Villagers protest incomplete work on Dharampur-Sarkaghat road in Mandi

Residents of Damsera village in Sarkaghat subdivision of Mandi district staged a sit-in protest, under the banner of the Himachal Kisan Sabha, against a national highway construction company today.

The demonstration held over long-standing grievances regarding unsafe and incomplete work on the Sarkaghat-Dharampur road stretch on the Attari-Leh-Mandi highway via Hamirpur led to a complete halt of traffic for over three hours.

Former Zila Parishad member Bhupender Singh, Kisan Sabha president Rantaj Rana and other local leaders, including Sarita Devi, Dinesh Kaku and Mehar Chand, led the protesters. They accused the construction company of negligence and the administration of inaction. They raised slogans against the SDM and held the government accountable for two years of continuous suffering.

The local residents claimed that road cutting had endangered several houses, especially with the onset of the monsoon season. “The threat of landslides and property collapse looms large and our repeated pleas to the administration have fallen on deaf ears,” said Bhupender Singh. The villagers had held protests twice earlier and submitted memorandums to the authorities concerned but their concerns had not been addressed, forcing them to hold a demonstration once again.

Tensions rose further when neither the officials of the company nor of the local administration arrived for a dialogue. The protesters declared that if no resolution was reached, they would begin a fast outside the SDM office in Sarkaghat. Eventually, after three hours, the Tehsildar, Sarkaghat, arrived at the protest site. Company representatives also came there only after pressure mounted and a written agreement was reached to complete the pending construction within 15 days.

Meanwhile, the protest got widespread support from neighbouring panchayats and local leaders. The protesters said that if the promises made to them were not fulfilled, similar protests would be held at Cholthra on May 30 and at Rakhoh on June 2.

The locals insisted that unless safety measures were taken, damaged roads and water sources were restored, they would not end their agitation. “We will no longer go to the administration, it should rather come to us and address our issues,” said Bhupender.

Himachal Tribune