'Congress shakes foundation of people's belief on development'

‘... It was Dhakuakha MLA Dillip Saikia who laid the foundation stone of the bridge in 1996. With the scheme remaining stillborn, the then Congress’ Dhakuakha MLA Bharat rah laid the foundation stone of the bridge in 1998. With the scheme remaining stillborn for 16 years after the laying of foundation by rah, MP Rani rah laid the foundation of the bridge afresh in 2014. The scheme is a stillborn one even today. This tale of the bridge depicts what Gogoi’s developed Assam exactly is.’ —Dhaniram Deori  

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, March 21: Assam ministers, MLAs and MPs are often seen to lay foundation stones of various schemes and projects, but rarely seen to iugurate them after their completion. The reason? Most of schemes and projects for which foundation stones are laid remain stillborn. If fact, foundation stone laying is a farce in the me of development in Assam.   

When one talks of development, one cannot ignore the bare truth that exposes what development is in Assam. Take Dhemaji, the most backward district in Assam, as a case study. According to the assistant secretary of the Deori Jajati Sixth Schedule Demand Committee, Dhaniram Deori, those at the helm of affairs at Dispur who talk of development of Dhemaji district have not yet seen the plight of the cursed district. “The word Dhemaji is heard from them only when there are floods,” Deori said, and added: “The culture of foundation stone laying for various development schemes has shaken the very foundation of beliefs of the people of Dhemaji on development. These are all farce, and the Tarun Gogoi-led Congress government has taught us all such lessons in his 14-year rule.”

Citing an example, Deori said: “There’s a broken bridge on the Chichi Kolghor-Machkhowa PWD road in Dhakuakha in the district. Because of this bridge, there has been no ASTC bus service to Machkhowa for a long time. Then came a series of drama in the  me of development. It was Dhakuakha MLA Dillip Saikia who laid the foundation stone of the bridge in 1996. With the scheme remaining stillborn, the then Congress’ Dhakuakha MLA Bharat rah laid the foundation stone of the bridge in 1998. With the scheme remaining stillborn for 16 years after the laying of foundation by rah, MP Rani rah laid the foundation of the bridge afresh in 2014. The scheme is a stillborn one even today. This tale of the bridge depicts what Gogoi’s developed Assam is.” 

Deori further said that such examples galore in Dhemaji. According to him, there have been two such bridges on the Dhakuakha-Machkhowa-Dhemaji road. “Dispur just can’t think of such matter,” he said.