Baluabans: Local community comes together to build 120-feet bridge
Darjeeling: “What I try to tell young people is that if you come together with a mission and it’s grounded with love and a sense of community, you can make the impossible possible,” were words of famous American politician and civil rights leader John Lewis. Sunday saw his words being translated into reality. History was created with a concrete bridge becoming a reality through active community participation, with people pitching in with money, material and even voluntary labour. Inspired by this success, the community has decided to come up with 5 new tourist attractions around Darjeeling town before October, all through community participation.
The 7-month-4-day-long backbreaking endeavour resulted in the 120-feet-long bridge over the Chota Rangit river thereby connecting Singtam with Chungthung, Bijanbari and Som. “This is the route that used to connect places like Srikhola, Kaijaley, Bijanbari and also parts of Nepal and Sikkim with Darjeeling town in the early days. Trade used to also take place along this route using ponies and mules. However, over the years the hanging bridge over the river was in shambles making it even risky to be used as a foot bridge, let alone two-wheelers,” stated Kesang Sherpa of Singtam.
CPI(M) Lok Sabha MP SP Lepcha had started building a bridge during his tenure 1999-2004 but could not complete it. “Since I was a kid I always dreamed of a bridge on which vehicles could ply connecting Singtam to Bijanbari but it never took shape until now. Ajoy Edwards finally gave wings to the dream,” stated 48-year-old Pravin Ghising who does odd jobs for a living and voluntarily worked on the bridge.
Ajoy Edwards, president, a philanthropist and president, Hamro Party, decided to come up with the bridge through a community movement, distancing the project from politics. “40 welfare organisations of the locality (Samaj) came together and a committee was formed. Charity dinners were organised to generate funds. People pitched in with everything. The 120 feet concrete bridge has been built with a 20-feet-deep foundation on the river bed at Baluabans. Now by bike one can reach Bijanbari from Singtam in 25 minutes. The shortest route ever,” stated Ajoy Edwards while talking to Millennium Post. The bridge was inaugurated with an ambulance being the first vehicle to cross, as a symbolic gesture.
The old hanging bridge of the British era has been thoroughly repaired and transformed into a skywalk, all set to emerge as a tourism hotspot. “We got architects to calculate the load bearing capacity and thoroughly repaired the hanging bridge.
The wooden planks were changed; girdles repaired, rust treatment was done and with a fresh coat of paint the hanging bridge is all set to welcome the tourists. 30 feet across this 120 feet bridge, glass floors have replaced the wooden planks. Gates have been put up on both sides and with guards only 20 persons will be allowed at a time. We will come up with 5 new tourist attractions before October with active participation of the community,” added Edwards.
