Gumuda gram panchayat sarpanch Sonaru Pujari said the government has been told many times that a bridge is needed. | Image source: Special arrangement

A tribal boatman in the Kolaput region of Odisha built a bamboo bridge by mortgaged his sugar cane farm after the village boat he operated for transporting people was damaged.

The 100-meter-long bridge built on the Indravati River by boatman Jayadev Bhatra connects Koraput and Nabarangpur, two southern regions of Orissa, and has become a lifeline for about 10,000 people in three panchayats.

The boatman has long been transporting people on his village boat Basuli Ghat, and his son Banamali Bhatra assists him. The Indravati River separates Gumudi panchayat in Koraput from Kantasaraguda panchayat in Nabarangpur district.

The Kantasaraguda people depend on the Kotpad block in the Koraput district and therefore have to cross the river. A bridge was built in Chirma Ghat, but it could not be completed due to land disputes, so people came to Basuli Ghat and took Mr. Bhatra’s boat to cross the river.

"This ship is too old to carry so many people every day. People decided to build a temporary bridge in Basuli Ghat until the government completed a permanent bridge in Chirma. In the first year, people contributed to the construction of the bamboo bridge. But After a few months, donations stopped," the boatman said.

"Since we started to build the bridge, the risk of taking people by boat was too great for me to back down. I started to complete the bridge and covered the cost of it. Since I didn't have the cash available to cover the labor costs, I had to mortgage my three acres. Sugarcane farm. So far, I have spent 100,000 rupees," he said.

Gumuda gram panchayat sarpanch Sonaru Pujari said the government has been told many times that a bridge is needed. “The government has conducted a preliminary investigation. However, the current temporary bridge was built by Jaydev Bhatra with his own funds. We have not made any contribution,” Mr. Pujari said.

When asked about the Nabarangpur collector Kamal Lochan Mishra, he said: “I saw a report of a bridge built by a personal effort. It is embarrassing that one person had to build a temporary bridge. I have already reported to the Ministry of Rural Development. ’S executive engineer requested a report on the proposed bridge,” Mr. Mishra said.

In a similar effort, a retired livestock inspector spent 1.6 million rupees from his post-retirement fund to build a 270-foot-long bridge near his village in the Hatadihi neighborhood of Keonjhar district. Although the bridge has been completed, the approach road has not yet been paved.

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Printable version | 9:36:07 PM, November 16, 2021 | https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/odisha-tribal-boatman-mortgages-farm-to-build-bamboo -bridge/article37515647.ece

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