Hooghly, 19 December (H.S.): Allegations of the use of substandard materials in construction work under Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's 'Amader Para, Amader Samadhan' (Our Neighborhood, Our Solution) scheme have surfaced from Goghat in Hooghly district. Allegedly, a concrete pillar collapsed with just a push, and the bricks of a wall under construction crumbled at the slightest touch.
The incident occurred at the Bagharbard Primary School premises in Bhadur Gram Panchayat area of Goghat-1 block, where a toilet is being constructed under the scheme. Local residents claimed that extremely low-quality materials were used in the construction, posing a serious risk of a major accident.
Local residents said that young children attend the school, and this type of construction work poses a grave threat to their safety. Following the allegations, villagers halted the construction work on Friday morning.
On information, Partha Nandi, the construction assistant of Bhadur Gram Panchayat, arrived at the site. After an inspection, he acknowledged that the construction materials were not of adequate quality.
As per information, a local Trinamool leader had previously demonstrated the shoddy workmanship on camera by easily dislodging the bricks with his bare hands. The incident has sparked political accusations and counter-accusations in the area.
Sushanta Bera, the BJP's Arambagh organizational district president, criticized the Trinamool Congress, stating that the Chief Minister is only launching schemes to attract attention, but neither the schemes nor the construction work is sustainable. He sarcastically remarked that this has become a scheme to increase problems in our neighborhood, rather than Our Neighborhood, Our Solution.
Meanwhile, Sherifa Bibi, the head of the Trinamool-controlled Bhadur Gram Panchayat, said that the panchayat engineer has been sent to investigate, and further action will be taken after receiving the report.
In the meantime, the school teachers have expressed serious concerns regarding the safety of the students.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
