Will ‘Epidemic’ of Bridge Collapse in Bihar halt with new

Hope floats for good ‘Health’ of Bridges, Flyovers & Roads in the state

Patna/ New Delhi: Talking of bridges, roads and flyovers in terms of ‘health’ may sound a bit odd but the fact is real health of people of Bihar is inextricably linked to these transport infrastructures. As collapse of bridges in the state looks like an ‘epidemic’, the latest being Vikramshila Setu bridge, a vital link between Bhagalpur and towns and villages on the other end, health emergency is a major casualty.
Sample Vikramshila Setu bridge a slab of which has just collapsed (on May 4) into river Ganga is such a risky trip that a person with heart attack or some other critical conditions being rushed to Bhagalpur would have little chance of surviving the hazardous bumps.

The collapse of Vikramshila Setu and resulting complete disruption of sole route for over a lakh daily commuter just before the installation of first BJP led government under Samrat Choudhary as Chief Minister after ‘iconic’ CM Nitish Kumar gave way citing his wish to be member of Rajya Sabha and also due to his seemingly ill health, was a major embarrassment, though collapse of bridges has assumed an epidemic proportions in the state and people saw it coming. In fact, Sushasan Babu i.e. outgone CM Nitish Kumar presided over a veritable epidemic of bridge collapse. Now the onus of stopping such unbecoming ‘fall’ spectacles is on Mr Choudhary who has chosen his minister carefully for this.

So, Er Kumar Shailendra, the new Road Construction Minister is pitted against a very onerous task. But his reputation as ‘Paris Man’, thanks to quality of roads he got laid in his constituency during a couple of his stints as MLA, has fostered high hopes in his own constituency and all over the state. They say the ‘health’ of roads, bridges and flyovers are now in safe hands. His real Litmus Test awaits him.

Rajesh Mani former district spokesperson of BJP, who is mighty happy on his appointment as road construction minister, expresses great hopes about his super performance. Mr Mani said, ‘Er Saheb proved a rare MLA who made a record km of good roads in my constituency. His dedication is worth replicating by other MLAs. Thanks to him, there are no streets even in villages in my constituency which are without roads. It is not for nothing that he has earned the tag of being ‘Paris Man’, though it may sound a bit exaggerated.’

Er Shailendra is well known for his relentless pursuits of development. He, of course, measures up to the stupendous task he has been saddled with. But it will not be easy for him to replicate his reputation for the whole state. People have already started riding him. He has hit the road running. But since he is adept in thinking on his feet, he is expected to measure up to expectations his appointment has generated.