E-Paper
Birahimpur’s hopes turning into reality
RS 8.9-CR Project: The UP Bridge Corporation begins construction of bridge to enhance connectivity of Birahimpur village with Malihabad.
People of Birahimpur village wore smiles on their faces and had all the reasons to celebrate on Monday. Reason: Their over 70-year-long struggle for a bridge over Behta nullah finally ended as the state bridge corporation began construction of the bridge to enhance connectivity of this village with Malihabad town, 40 kms from Lucknow.
“The construction of bridge has begun in Birahimpur village. It will take another eight months for us to complete the work. We laid its foundation on April 2 and have now started raising the pillars. The estimated cost of the project is around ₹8.9 crore,” said AP Singh, project director, UP Bridge Corporation.
The Birahimpur bridge issue gained momentum in November 2017 after the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court took suo motu cognisance of Hindustan Times’ report (dated November 13 and 17, 2017) highlighting the pilight of villagers in Birahimpur.
A division bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Abdul Moin had directed that the HT report published be registered as a PIL.
On the court’s order, the state government released funds for the construction of the bridge.
“It’s a big relief for us. I am happy that our long pending plea is heard and the construction of the bridge has begun,” said Vimal Kumar, village head, Birahimpur.
Birahimpur gram sabha in UP’s mango belt, Malihabad, has two villages – Rampur Basti and Birahimpur with a total population of around 7,000. The demand for the bridge on Behta nullah that separates the village from the town was pending since the British era, but none of the governments paid any heed towards it, said villagers.
Some villagers said they had grown up hearing about the pending demand for the bridge from their fathers and forefathers. But nothing much was done to resolve the issue.
Shyamu Ram, a villager, said after the people’s plea went unheard, they pooled in their own resources to construct a bridge with bamboo and wood. But over the years, this bridge became dilapidated, posing threat to the lives of villagers.
For villagers, this bridge is still the shortest connecting route between Birahimpur and Malihabad town (2.5 km). However, the other route leading to Malihabad town is around 21 km (via Ataura and Pahadpur).
“Commuting through the wooden bridge was a nightmare. Be it students or ailing people, all were forced to opt for this dangerous route as it was the shortest. There were many instances when villagers got badly injured after falling off the bridge,” said Bhaiya Lal, another villager.
In the 2017 assembly polls, the villagers had decided not to vote, saying ‘Pul nahi to vote nahi’, sending a strong message to the political parties and their respective candidates. On polling day, the villagers preferred to stay indoors.
Vimal Kumar said villagers who had been demanding construction of bridge didn’t vote. And it was perhaps the same reason that polling booth number 228 in the village remained deserted throughout the day. Officers on duty said only 54 voters turned up to cast their vote on the day whereas the population of the village is around 3,500.
