Yurkanphy RS
Dimapur | June 30
The roads in Dimapur Town, except for countable stretches, are generally pathetic. And the condition gets worse when it rains.
The sight of Super Market this past Wednesday was anything but pleasant. It had just rained and hardly anyone dared to walk in the middle of the road because of the mud and garbage floating in the puddles.
“Supermarket should be called nulla (drainage) market,” remarked a woman who was shopping vegetables. “We contribute money among ourselves to build small bridges over potholes,” commented a group of four women sitting together selling vegetables.
For some who commute through pothole laden roads every day, even to talk about the experience brings tears. When asked to comment on the condition of the roads, an old vegetable vendor at the market wiping tears off her eyes answered, “It was far better during my grandmother’s generation when the youths volunteered to level out land and built bridges out of wood.”
Another woman questioned, “Are they (those responsible for making/repairing roads) not citizens of the town themselves? Do they not go around town and notice the condition of the roads? People are becoming really selfish.” Meanwhile, a pharmacist at Super Market commented, “Our sales are going down. It is funny at times to look at customers turn away after seeing puddles of muddy water in front of our shops.”
An autorickshaw driver who has been driving an auto in Dimapur since 2004 said he has not seen any change in the condition of the road since the last one decade.
“They often collect tax for the purpose of repairing roads, but not even a bit of change is seen. It has become a joke,” commented another auto driver.
Pedestrians are among those who are worse affected when it rains. “I have seen students on their way to school get splashed all over with muddy water by passing vehicles. It is not a good sight to see,” a citizen stated.
Some people even refused to comment anything saying, “We are fed up of this matter, we have seen no change, and we don’t even want to talk about it.”
Then there were some who laughed after being asked to comment on the road condition. Hesitating to make any comments, they walked away murmuring, “I don’t think it’s ever going to change.”
Enough campaigns and demands have been made by the people to better the roads, yet the road conditions seem to remain the same if not worse.
It is evident that people are getting tired of making demands. “They can see the condition of the road themselves, we don’t need to say anything about this matter,” a fruit vendor said, while two other young people expressed with disappointment, “Whom shall we even share our problems with? We don’t have a say in this.” The writer is an intern at The Morung Express
