On a knife-edge GIRIRAJ BASKOTA Poor road condition - TopicsExpress

On a knife-edge GIRIRAJ BASKOTA Poor road condition major cause of growing accidents in Panchthar PANCHTHAR, Oct 14: On the day of Phulpati, the first day of Dashain festival, Shree Prasad Yongya of Nagi Village Development Committee-8 lost his life after falling off a moving vehicle. Yongya, who had climbed on the hood of a jeep packed with passengers, had lost his balance and banging on to the rugged road. He died while being rushed to the nearest medical center at Phidim, the district headquarters. Dashain for Yongya family, this year, did not bring any joy but lifelong suffering. Despite the fact that the jeep was overloaded with passengers, the accident would have never occurred if the road was in a good condition. Glimpses of the roads in Panchthar district, which are precarious and require immediate repair. (Giriraj Baskota/Republica) Most of the roads leading to the various parts of this hilly district in eastern Nepal are narrow, steep, bumpy, and full of sharp bends and dotted with potholes. Little wonder that road accidents are frequent in Nagi and other Village Development Committees (VDCs). There are roads connecting to almost every villages and VDCs across the district but none of them have been properly constructed. Lack of well engineered roads leading to various villages in the district has been inviting numerous road accidents every year. “Roads have been constructed amply across the district but most of the road projects seem to have overlooked even basic technical aspects. They are too narrow, sharply inclined with hairpin bends which make them precarious to travel on,” said Chief of Panchthar District Technical Office, Banu Baral. “On top of that only a few roads are intact in the district,” Baral further said. According to the bus and jeep drivers, to ride through the narrow roads is the riskiest part of driving in and out of Panchthar. “We always have to wait in a long serpentine queue while passing through a narrow road sections because there is no enough space for two vehicles to pass at a time,” said a jeep driver. Jeeps, pick-up trucks and tractors are the common modes of transportation in the rural parts of the district. The risk of accident along the roads has also increased due to vehicles carrying passengers beyond their capacity. “Be it jeep or any other vehicle, drivers carry people like animals. It seems they hardly care for any casualties or accidents that might happen due to excessive overload,” said Baral. “However, the locals cannot complain as these vehicles are the only source of transportation for them.” Constable at Panchthar District Traffic Police Office, Devya Raj Pokharel shared disappointment over the poor condition of the roads. “Driving along the roads here is of high risk. Thank God that no major accident has occurred here until this day,” said Pokharel. As per the record of the Panchthar District Development Committee (DDC), a total of 2,200 kilometer stretch of roads has been laid across the district. Apart from 96 kilometer-long Mechi Highway, most of the other roads are rough and rugged. “Many roads are in dire need of renovation. Along with dozens of other road sections, the much damaged Rakhe-Rabi road section must be given the first priority if the task of renovation ever comes here,” said a local. The increasing road problems, including accidents, are also the result of error of judgment and lack of public awareness. The number of accidents would have definitely been much lower if the drivers stopped carried passengers beyond the safety limits myrepublica/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=84756