Residents of three Tandwa block villages in the district of Chatra do not want a portion of the road connecting the Chatti Bariatu coal project of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in Hazaribagh and Shivpur railway siding here to pass through the villages and have submitted an alternative route to the road building firm.
Citing apprehension, Congress block president Suresh Ram said, “Central Coalfields Limited transports coal from its Amrapali project using the Simaria-Tandwa Road which passes through some villages. Over the years, several villagers have died due to road accidents that occur mostly due to rash driving by the coal truckers. Our villages have schools and we do not want a similar fate for our people.”
Ram, who is leading the protest, said, “We have submitted a new route chart to the construction company and have told them that this route will not create problems for the villagers. We are awaiting a response.”
According to villagers, the 7.5-km road under construction from Sisai to Shivpur passes through three villages — Khailha, Brinda and Kabra — of Tandwa block at an approximate budget of Rs 23 Crore.
Ravindra Kumar Singh, a local resident, said, “Coal-laden vehicles would pose a threat to both the students and other pedestrians. Hence the best way out is the new route found by the three villages’ residents.
Local officials of the NTPC, unwilling to be quoted, said they had told their higher-ups and were awaiting their guidance on this.
