People suffer on dilapidated Jashore road

BENAPOLE, Jan 01: About half a kilometre road connecting the Jashore-Khulna Highway with Nawapara municipality river port in Jashore's Abhaynagar Upazila have not undergone any repair works in the last 19 years, leaving hundreds of people compelled to use it daily either by foot, or take an eight to ten kilometre detour.

Students use the road to commute to schools and colleges every day, while the road is also crucial for workers and business persons.

"Due to its poor condition, reaching destinations on time has become increasingly difficult," a local resident Mahbub Hossain said.Several educational institutions, markets, industrial establishments and densely populated residential areas are located nearby the road. Waterlogging and mud makes movement extremely difficult after rainfall, and in the dry season, dust pollutes the air. Locals said the road - called the Betar Mor to Dhopadi Chourasta road-is full of potholes as the road pitch had worn off.

Rickshaws, vans, motorcycles and other vehicles are reluctant to use the road due to safety risks. Nazrul Islam, a resident, said locals had lodged complaints with the municipality on multiple occasions, but no visible action had been taken. "We have received only assurances. No repair work has actually begun," he also said, adding that frustration among residents is growing by the day.

Locals said negligence on the part of elected representatives and municipal authorities is responsible for their continued suffering. Many locals expressed resentment, saying that despite paying municipal taxes regularly, they are being deprived of basic civic services. Fed up with prolonged neglect, residents and pedestrians warned that if the road is not repaired immediately, they will stop paying the taxes and organise demonstrations to press their demands. Abhaynagar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sheikh Salauddin Dipu said he had learned that the road has not been repaired since 2006. "I am personally monitoring the matter. Hopefully, arrangements will be made to repair the road after the national election," he said.

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