Dhamangaon Badhe villagers end hunger strike after written assurance on road works
Villagers in Buldhana district called off their indefinite hunger strike after the Public Works Department gave a written assurance on pending road works.
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Residents of Dhamangaon Badhe and neighbouring villages in Buldhana district have ended the indefinite hunger strike they had begun over road works. The villagers withdrew their agitation after the Public Works Department gave a written assurance.
Several road works in and around Dhamangaon Badhe had been sanctioned, but work on the ground was not moving forward. The delay had caused considerable resentment among villagers.
Ramdas Chaudhankar, Bhagwat Darakhe, Mohan Sapkal, Shrikrishna Bhore, Rajesh Jadhav, Mustaq Patel and other villagers had demanded that the road works be started immediately and completed. A memorandum to this effect was submitted to the Public Works Department on September 22. It also warned that an indefinite hunger strike would be held if the demands were not met.
When no concrete action was seen on the demands, the villagers began the hunger strike. On Friday, the Public Works sub-division, Buldhana, issued a written letter. The letter described the current status of the road works concerned and explained how they would be completed. Following this, the five protesters ended the hunger strike in the presence of MLA Sanjay Gaikwad.
According to the department's letter, work on the Pimpalgaon Devi-Mhalgi-Dhamangaon Badhe road is under way and the assurance given is that it will be completed within the stipulated period. Laying of gravel on the road from Dhamangaon Badhe to Panhera has been completed. The remaining concrete work is planned to be completed by March 2027. Work on the Dhamangaon Badhe-Panchling road is also in progress, and the department has said it will be completed by March 2027.
MLA Sanjay Gaikwad reached the protest site, gave the five protesters lemon water and thereby brought the fast to an end. The agitation also ended with it.
The villagers have been relieved by the Public Works Department's written assurance. Even so, citizens hope that the roads do not remain only on paper, that work actually begins and that it is completed within the stipulated period.
