A road that was never built
Since 1964, an Uttarakhand village has been demanding a road to the block headquarters. But the promises made by politicians have never been kept. Utpal Parashar reports.
It’s a promise that has not been fulfilled nearly 45 years after it was first made. And villagers of this quaint hamlet located on the Chamba-Mussoorie road are still waiting.
Since 1964, residents of this village of vegetable and apple farmers have been demanding a concrete road to connect Thangdhar village to the block headquarters at Thauldhar (Tehri district), 70 km from Dehradun. But the promises made by politicians over the past four decades have not been kept.
The road would have proved a boon for nearly 20 villages where potatoes, peas and apples are grown in abundance. But due to the poor condition of the seven-kilometre road, they have to travel over 50 kilometres to sell their produce.
As a result, farmers here have to pay nearly Rs 100 per quintal to transport their vegetables and fruits on ponies till the nearest road-head and another Rs 60 per quintal to take them to the markets on jeeps and trucks.
“We first raised the demand in 1964 and it was assured that the road would get built. But all we get is promises at every election,” said Chatar Singh Chauhan, a 65-year-old farmer.
“Hotels and resorts have sprung up and lot of construction activity is taking place. But there’s been no progress on the promised road,” said Gulab Singh, another farmer.