SHILLONG: For the allied forces in the Second World War, the botched Operation Market Garden, aimed at capturing a number of bridges in the Netherlands and Germany, was a one-off failure.
But, for the residents of Garo Hills in Meghalaya, it is always the story of A Bridge Too Far. There was one Richard Attenborough to tell the story of the allied failure in an epic film, but there is no one to tell the story of the daily plight of the Garos.
Connectivity remains a major cause of concern when it comes to the Garo Hills, though the area has given Meghalaya as many as four chief ministers who have ruled Meghalaya for no less than 25 years since the creation of the state in 1971.
Thanks to the negligence of the state government, several bridges which connect small villages with urban centres like Mendipathar and Resubelpara are in a dilapilated condition, as this reporter has found in a recent visit to Resubelpara.
One such timber bridge was situated at Chishmakanang village near Resubelpara in North Garo Hills. The condition of the wooden bridge was in such a sorry state that villagers fear that it could collapse at any moment. Speaking to this reporter, one villager regretted that the authorities had not found the time to repair the bridge.
Forget about cars, people travelling in motorcycles had to get down gingerly and then push their two-wheelers to the other side of the bridge. The risk of an accident taking place at any time on the bridge remained.
“We do face a lot of problem. Suppose this bridge collapses, then what will happen to the villagers who are settled on the other side,” asked a worried villager. There were a few more bridges in a similar condition. It was high time these bridges were repaired, the villagers said.
Postscript: Garo Hills is also a hotbed of insurgency, one of the worst in the entire northeast now.