Raikot-Jagraon road still in very poor shape, despite promises

Jagraon: Even after ruling Congress representatives had promised that about 14km of Raikot-Jagraon road — catering mostly to NRI villages — would be constructed immediately after the Lok Sabha elections, the condition of the road has worsened in the rainy season. About 24km of the road from Jagraon to Raikot connects a number of villages with the two towns.

“The road caters to the villages of Kamalpura, Rummi, Binjal, Lamme Jatpura, Siloani, and Bassiyan which have a good number of NRIs. As the condition of the road has been very bad for many years now, it is giving a lot of trouble to villagers, including NRIs. It was a major election issue in the Lok Sabha elections, and the ruling party leaders had promised it would be constructed after the elections. We are waiting for work to be executed at a fast pace,” said Sukhwinder Singh, sarpanch of Kamalpura village, which is around 13km from Jagraon on the main road to Raikot.

The sarpanch of the neighbouring Bassiyan village — along the Raikot-Jagraon road — said work on the stretch between Raikot and Binjal was complete, but the road beyond that was giving trouble to commuters who take this road. “We want that road stretch, which is not in proper shape, to be constructed soon, so that commuters travelling between Raikot and Jagraon don’t suffer because of the damaged road,” said Jagdev Singh, sarpanch of Bassiyan village, which has around 70 NRI families.

NRIs say they are pained to see the state of the road. “In western countries, the quality of the roads is very good, but despite collecting taxes, the government agencies here don’t provide proper roads to people. It is really painful to see the state of the main road stretch, which is making commuters suffer. The agency concerned should construct the road soon,” said Mandeep Singh, an NRI from Chakkar village, whose villagers frequently use this road.

A villager from Kamalpura complained that potholes along the road were so huge that travelling on them caused bodyaches. The villagers said apart from humans who suffer because of bad roads, vehicles had to bear the brunt, as their tyres and suspension were damaged.

Senior Congress leader Malkeet Singh Dakha said he had already got the road construction project costing Rs12 crore approved, and the work was to begin before the elections, but due to the model code of conduct, it could not begin. He added that the work had now already been allotted to a road construction agency, and it would be carried at a quick pace in the next few days. “The work is expected to be completed in the next three to four months,” said a Congress leader, who is the halqa in-charge of the party for the Jagraon assembly segment.