Sonai Sanitation Worker Drowns Crossing Bamboo Bridge, Villagers Protest Lack of Proper Infrastructure

A sanitation worker of the Sonai Municipal Board drowned on Tuesday evening (July 29) while returning home, sparking anger among villagers over the absence of a proper bridge.

The deceased, 48-year-old Mitul Das of Gargari Par in South Mohanpur in Cachar, slipped while crossing the bamboo bridge over the Amjur River and fell into the swollen waters.

For the residents of Gargaripar, this bamboo bridge is the only way to connect the two banks of the river. Locals searched for nearly two hours before recovering his lifeless body. Around 10 PM, Sonai police retrieved the body and sent it to Silchar Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem.

Villagers staged a protest, blaming the lack of a proper bridge for the tragedy. “The only connection we have is this bamboo bridge. Mitul lost his life because no permanent structure was built here. We have been demanding a proper bridge for the last one decade but no response. If we had the bridge today probably Mitul Das would have been with us,” said a resident.

They added that Das, who leaves behind two children, came from an extremely poor family.

Locals have demanded the immediate construction of a concrete bridge, calling the incident a wake-up call for the administration.