Burdwan, 22 July (H.S.): Demanding the construction of a flyover, school students staged a protest on National Highway 19 on Tuesday morning at Nala–Metiali DVC Crossing area in Burdwan. Dressed in school uniforms and holding placards, the students sat on the highway, bringing traffic to a standstill for nearly three hours.

The protest took place in Belkash Gram Panchayat under Burdwan-1 Block, located on the outskirts of Burdwan town. The students said that due to the absence of a flyover or underpass, they are forced to take a long detour of around 1.5 kilometers to reach school each day.

Local residents, who joined the students in the protest, said, Crossing the busy highway is dangerous, and children have to risk their lives daily just to reach school.

The demonstration led to a complete traffic halt on both sides of the national highway. On information, officials from Burdwan Police Station, Block Development Officer Rajneesh Yadav, and representatives from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) arrived at the scene.

After discussions with the students and local residents, authorities assured them that a flyover would be constructed. After which the protesters withdrew their protest. BDO Rajneesh Yadav confirmed that the students' concerns had been formally conveyed to NHAI and that they had promised to take necessary action soon.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey