The state’s premier commercial hub, Dimapur has been expanding in fits and starts with discernable developments taking place wherever the roving eye gazes upon but has also much to expect from the denizens concerned. The growing density of population with the rapid urbanisation is increasing by leaps and bounds. The Dimapur Municipal Council for one and the Urban Development on the other should take up the matter of sidewalks and the footpaths around the town immediately. Forget about good roads, it seems like a distant Utopian wishful thinking around here, even the footpaths and the sidewalks are in the most dilapidated conditions which pose a very high risk of being injured to the unsuspecting pedestrian and one can be maimed, especially the little children and the school going students while walking around the town. Broken drain slabs in many areas of the town needs urgent repairs or replacements.
There are also many areas in the town where footpath drain covers are found lacking which are proving to be very risky for the public.Whatever little stretches of paved pathways we have are in dire need of repairs with broken covers, large cracks and gaping holes which are all a pre-prepared out for a readymade death trap or a snare for some serious injury to the unsuspecting pedestrian. Well if not death, certainly a twisted ankle or breaking a bone or two in your body from these worn-out shoddy footpaths of the state’s most fast growing urban sprawl. Though the town is growing rapidly in terms of high-rise colourful private buildings, glitzy showrooms, latest international eateries, newest models of sleek and sleazy cars and SUVs adding to the town’s ever congestion of the traffic snarls it has miserably failed in terms of providing even the most basic required public utility infrastructures like a proper roadside drainages and footpaths.
A month ago I witnessed a young mother walking on a footpath with two of her unwary kids where one of them slipped from the side of an uncovered part of the roadside drain and fell into the gutter injuring the little boy’s shin in which blood was oozing out from the skin in the mud-splattered socks. A year ago too an old man badly injured his foot by a protruding iron rod from one of those slabs and had several stitches. I myself also nearly stepped in the one too many countless cracks and openings and had nearly sprained or wrenched my feet on the shoddy worn out slabs on several occasions. I believe many of you too must have experienced the same if you are someone who gets down from your cars and sometimes walk around the streets of Dimapur town. The popular stench of the Dimapur perfumes with the mixture of humidity is indeed overbearing. What is of more concern in today’s context is the pitiful condition of the broken slabs on the footpaths and in respect to the sanitation aspect too. But even as the glamorous and the flashy showrooms are appearing on every sides of the roads it is setting a contrasting backdrop for the garbage on the open portion of the roadside drains!
Due to the big gaps and holes and unrelenting throwing and dumping of wastes by those nearby residents and traders, a considerable amount of wastes makes its way to these drains around the town which as a result remains chocked and water remain stagnant. During the monsoon season there is drainage flood as a result water finds its way into the streets and into people’s homes which is more hazardous to our health and environment. In fact, roadside drains system must be intended to confiscate water efficiently off the road and make it safe for vehicles and other road users besides preventing structural damage to the road. However, the system here is altogether quite different.
It is also to be mentioned that most of the town dwellers or pedestrians normally throw all kinds of wastes in the drains without slabs. Most of the shopkeepers sweep their front portion of their shops and throw away all the dust and dirts into those drains. As a result, drains without slabs are almost packed with garbage with foul odour emanating from it. Here the roadside drains without slabs are being efficiently utilized for dumping rubbish and many take pleasure in dumping all kinds of garbage in the drains. No matter how best the municipal give its effort, there won’t be any desirable change unless we change our way of life. Most of our drains usually get blocked as the garbage thrown in them lead to overflowing of water on the roadsides.
A narrow path for walking or a path especially used for walking and in our modern concept footpaths has become an indispensable part of town and city life too. Of course we can never expect our footpaths in par with highly developed countries when our most basic necessities like good roads are also like crying for the moon.
Due to the unplanned arrangements, the new ones and old structural landmarks donning the old town’s landscape have developed on unplanned lines alongside the narrow roads with no scope for any expansion or broadening the existing narrow road. Even the little spaces the pedestrians have to squeeze and shove are all occupied by vendors of all kinds and hues. As a result the Dimapur town remains clustered with no remnants of expansions in the existing sidewalks or footpaths. Its main problem has been that when the Dimapur town was first conceived over centuries ago, perhaps no one had ever visualized that it would one day acquire various distinctions and such important commercial hub and a rising educational centre for the whole state. What has been a shortcoming since the early days are the narrow roads and streets which cannot be widened beyond some limits because solid buildings have been constructed on both sides of the roads. The numerous big upcoming buildings housing trendy outlets with broken slabs infront of their door-steps with the stench portray quite a contrast of how we live. Often some little roadside tea-hotels and pan-shops have put up their own fine drain covers and slabs by themselves from their own pockets, so surely can the upcoming alluring mega structures around the town.
The DMC and the Urban Development despite of their many good works at the same time should use all its resources at hand providing provisional measures to enable people to walk around freely and healthily in a positive atmosphere without the nuisance of some sick smell from those uncovered drains and without the fear of injury from those gaping holes and broken slabs of the town’s footpaths and sidewalks.
Jonah Achumi
