MANDAI / JIRANIA: Deep public resentment has erupted among the residents under the 11-Mandai Bazar Assembly constituency over the pathetic and dangerous condition of the vital road connecting Mandai to Baldum. Local villagers have strongly hit out against their elected representatives, accusing them of taking votes through false promises while leaving the rural infrastructure to completely crumble.
According to ground reports, the crucial road stretch was originally constructed during the previous Left Front regime. However, due to a total lack of maintenance over the last several years, the entire road has turned into a nightmare for commuters. Large crater-like potholes have appeared throughout the stretch, and massive portions of the road edge are rapidly sliding down and collapsing into the nearby rivulet (chhara).
Frustrated by the administrative apathy, local residents came face-to-face with media personnel today to expose the ground reality. Villagers leveled serious financial allegations, claiming that fund allocations for the repair of this specific road have reportedly arrived multiple times since the Left era, but no actual work ever materialized on the ground, leaving everyone wondering where the funds disappeared.
”Election after election comes, and leaders knock on our doors. Sitting MLA Swapna Debbarma and MDC Jagdish Debbarma secured our votes by explicitly promising to repair the Mandai-Baldum road. But once the elections were over, they completely abandoned the area. We are suffering every single day,” a furious local resident stated.
The angry locals further alleged that Mandai Bazar MLA Swapna Debbarma has completely failed to execute any visible development work in her home constituency since her election. Villagers accused the local leadership of delivering nothing but false assurances while ignoring the basic civic rights of the rural populace.
With the monsoon rains further aggravating the road’s erosion, the residents of Mandai and Baldum have issued a strong warning to the West Tripura administration, demanding immediate emergency repair and blacktopping of the stretch. They emphasized that if the authorities fail to initiate restoration work promptly, they will be forced to launch a massive democratic road-blockade agitation.
