No bridge, no vote, threatens people of three 'cut-off' villages in Arunachal Pradesh
The Hindu
People of three villages in West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh have threatened to boycott the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections due next year, if the government fails to construct a permanent bridge over a river, a key demand of them since 2014.
People of three villages in West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh have threatened to boycott the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections due next year, if the government fails to construct a permanent bridge over a river, a key demand of them since 2014.
The villages — Rime Moko, Pidi Rime and Todi Rime — have a population of nearly 400 and approximately 300 of them are voters. The northeastern State has a population of only 13.84 lakh, according to the 2011 census.
There is a makeshift bridge – a 20-metre odd log with a rickety wooden railing on one side for a user to hold – made by locals, but this is of no use during the monsoon as it goes below the rising water level of the Hijum river, a tributary of the Pisam.
“When the river is in spate, parents don’t send their wards to schools. They fear that the children might slip off the log bridge,” said Pokpe Rime who lives in Rime Moko village.
It is also extremely difficult to take a patient to a hospital in the absence of a proper bridge, monsoon or not. “We have to carry patients on our back and cross the log bridge over the river to the Nikte primary health centre or the Aalo General Hospital,” Pokpe said.
The road connectivity issue is also affecting the area economically and socially, people of the villages feel.
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