Locals take it upon themselves to repair road Each household chips in Rs 1000

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Jan 13: Fed up and done waiting for the Government, residents of Leimapokpam have taken it upon themselves to repair the Malom-Chingphu Road which falls under Nambol Assembly Constituency.
As many as 2000 households are contributing Rs 1000 each and even more.
Blacktopping work along the 4-kilometre stretch of the Malom-Chingphu Road has started.
United Development Committee Leimapokpam's secretary, Asem Nawang said the reconstruction and blacktopping work was long overdue, and people could no longer wait for the Government authorities.
He said road levelling work to fill potholes started on December 9 last year, and blacktopping work kicked off yesterday and added that the local MLA had not taken up any steps to repair the road.
The villagers approached several relevant  authorities, urging them to repair the road. Representations were also submitted to higher authorities through the Bishnupur district Deputy Commissioner, he said.
Despite repeated appeals, the road remained neglected, causing immense inconvenience to commuters and locals alike, he said.
Filled with large potholes and protruding stones, the road was posing danger and health hazards to commuters, Nawang said.
"The ride was so bumpy that transporting eggs was impossible. So, most shops in Leimapokpam were not selling eggs," he said.
"Even Leishabising [girls] had complained that their boyfriends were refusing to come to Leimapokpam," he added humorously, while underscoring the deplorable condition of the road.
While the road was included for development under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), the tender process was cancelled multiple times, Nawang said.
He said the people of Leimapokpam may have been made victims of a "political vendetta".
A candidate from Leimapokpam contested against the sitting MLA in the last elections. This may be the reason for the MLA ignoring the people of Leimapokpam, he claimed.
"People were fed up waiting for the Government authorities to reconstruct the road. So, they came forward and made the decision to do it themselves," Nawang said.
The decision to repair the road was taken during a meeting which was attended by members of different clubs, organisations and locals under Leimapokpam Gram Panchayat area, he said.
Each household is contributing Rs 1000. Government employees are contributing above this amount. Many individuals have made generous contributions. Former Minister N Loken has also offered to make his contribution, Nawang said. The blacktopping work will be completed within a month, he added.