Inspired by Dashrath Manjhi, Barwani villagers carve road through hill:Women, children join effort; half of mountain route cleared

You must have seen the story of Bihar’s ‘Mountain Man’ Dashrath Manjhi in films, but in Barwani, Madhya Pradesh, this story has become a reality today. Fed up with the false promises of politicians and the endless rounds of offices, the people of Khedi Palas Faliyan village in the district have started building a road by cutting through a 150-foot-high mountain themselves. In this village of about 250 people, amidst the scorching heat of May-June, every child, elderly person, and woman in the village is working with pickaxes and shovels in different shifts, becoming a ‘Dashrath Manjhi’. The Path of Trouble: Why was this step taken? Actually, the village is 3 km off the main road. Of this, 1 km is a dirt track, and 2 km of the path goes directly through a dangerous mountain. Villagers used to ride bikes on rough roads, risking their lives. During the rainy season, the village’s contact is completely cut off, due to which children cannot even go to school. Dainik Bhaskar’s team reached out to meet these villagers who are building a road about 40 kilometres away from Barwani. To reach here, the car had to be parked about 3 kilometres away from the village. After that, they walked to the hill. Here, it was seen that about 35 to 40 men and women were busy building a five-foot-wide road. Pregnant women have to be carried in a sling Revati Bai of the village, from behind her veil, explains in her Bareli dialect- “The highest price for not having a road here has to be paid by the women and the sick. If a woman in the village is pregnant or someone suddenly falls ill, they have to be carried in a cloth sling. It takes 8 men to carry one sick person, and it takes two and a half to three hours to cross the hill. Fertilisers, seeds, and grains also have to be carried on the head. Now we are tired, so we are making the road ourselves.” Didn’t rely on the government, raised one lakh rupees themselves Sabjiya Adivasi from the village said that after years of public hearings and visiting offices, when only assurances were received, the villagers held a meeting a month ago. The capable families of the village contributed 10-10 thousand rupees. Others helped according to their capacity. In this way, a fund of 1 lakh rupees was collected. Out of the 2-kilometer road, half the work has been done by the villagers themselves by digging. The remaining work will now be done by calling a JCB machine with the money from this donation. Leaders made promises during elections and left Rural Saba says that during every election, leaders talked about building a road to the village. Who knows how many elections have passed, but the road could not be built. During the rainy season, the village’s connection with the surrounding areas was almost cut off, causing problems every year. Children often had to pass through muddy and waterlogged paths. We are building the temporary one, let the government build the permanent one Villagers say that their aim is not just to build a road, but to awaken the dormant system and set an example of collective strength. Villagers said – We want to open the road somehow before the rains. For now, we will clear the soil and stones to make a temporary road, so that vehicles can pass. Now, if the administration feels even a little ashamed, they should build a paved road on it. What did the officials say in this matter? When an attempt was made to contact Barwani Collector Jayati Singh regarding the matter, she did not answer the phone. Ankit Awasthi, General Manager of the Rural Road Development Authority (MPRRDA), informed that Ubadgarh village is connected by a CC road, but for internal connectivity, this route has been included in the Chief Minister Majra-Tola Road Scheme. The survey has been completed, and settlements with a population of more than 100 will soon be connected to the road network.