BY TC News Desk
Agartala, 19th September 2025: Frustrated by years of inaction from the Water Resources department, local residents and traders in Kailashahar have taken matters into their own hands to repair a vital stretch of road along the Manu River embankment near the Forest Office.
The road, which serves as a lifeline for thousands of residents in the western part of Chandipur Assembly constituency, is crucial for daily commutes to schools and colleges, as well as for emergency services like ambulances. Despite repeated appeals for repairs, the department’s continued indifference has left the road in a deteriorated state.
On Friday morning, a group of local traders launched a self-funded repair initiative, spending nearly ₹1 lakh to procure burnt coal and other materials to begin restoring the road themselves.
“We’ve approached the executive engineer of the Water Resources Development Department multiple times,” said Jayanta Das, a local businessman. “Every time, we were told the work would begin next week. That promise was never kept. We had no choice but to spend our own money and start the work.”
The issue dates back to two months ago when soil was dumped along the embankment road from Govindpur to the Forest Office under departmental supervision. Traders allege they were pressured to vacate their shops without adequate notice. Moreover, the absence of proper drainage on the PWD road has led to severe waterlogging during rains, rendering the road nearly unusable. Although some brick-lining was done following protests, the problem persists.
Over the past month, nearly 60 families have repeatedly petitioned the department, but no concrete action has been taken. Ironically, many of the same residents who had campaigned for the ruling party in 2018—hoping for development and change—now find themselves disillusioned, resorting to personal funds to fix public infrastructure.
The department’s negligence has sparked widespread anger among locals, who are now demanding immediate accountability and a formal initiative to restore the road properly.
