The unfortunate death of three persons following the collapse of the Sanggam Bailey bridge on Siyom river in Siang district can only be termed as ‘man-made’ and it will be a futile attempt to pass it off as anything relating to nature’s fury. For over the decades, built with 1960s technology, the bridge has been giving services and as the disaster which took away three precious lives suggests, there was little or no maintenance. It was bound to happen anytime and that it survived for so long is itself a miracle. All the current developmental blueprints of the state that are being rolled out are marked with ambitious targets which is commendable. However, time has arrived to get serious about assessing the existing assets, be they roads, bridges, school and college buildings and so on. With the passage of time, most of these have undergone wear and tear and many have reached the beyond-repair stages. Used on a daily basis, the first-hand sufferers are always the people and no magisterial or commission level enquiries can make good the loss of lives and properties resulting out of such mishaps. Without wasting time, a dedicated team of officials comprising technical people should be formed by the state government to make assessments of all such infrastructures. It matters little whether the concerned agency mandated to construct and upkeep such public assets is under the Centre or the state. Genuine attempts to evolve a culture of staying faithful to responsibilities must be initiated at once.
It is a tale of sheer neglect spanning decades that can describe the Sanggam bridge collapse tragedy appropriately. One can imagine the level of wear and tear the bridge had undergone and it’s astonishing that it survived such a long period, even though there was a disruption in 2000 following a massive flood. It is from here another episode of doing things ‘half-done’ begins. Reportedly, the follow-up restoration process did not include anything radical and was actually a patch-up using the existing foundation and old equipment. It is incomprehensible why the fault remained outside the radar of the state administration(s) for 21 long years. If the issue of delays in having new infrastructures is always a hot topic in the state, coming next will be the qualitative aspects. In both cases, there is a marked tendency of blaming nature’s hostility.  Times have changed and there are technologies aplenty that can take on these factors. And if there is an encroachment of the corruption factor that leads to ‘compromise’ of materials, it’s the prerogative of the government to apply the antidote.
The ailments are many and chronic. A radical outlook with a firm political will is necessary for Arunachal’s true development.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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