Residents of at least five villages in Bahubal upazila of Habiganj have been suffering for years due to the poor condition of a busy road beside Biharipur village in Bhadeshwar Union.
The road becomes particularly difficult to use during the rainy season, when rainwater turns large sections of it into mud.
While people can somehow use the road during dry weather, walking along it becomes a major challenge after rainfall.
The road is used by residents of Biharipur, Khojargaon, Nijgaon, Shahpur and Bhadeshwar villages, as well as people travelling to the upazila headquarters.
Students also use the road to travel to schools and colleges.
The poor condition of the road has caused hardship for seriously ill patients and pregnant women who need to be transported through the area.
A visit to the area found rainwater accumulated at several points along the road, while potholes in other sections had filled with water and turned into mud.
As a result, travelling along the nearly 2 kilometer stretch on foot or by vehicle has become risky.
Residents said the road has remained in poor condition for years despite local representatives visiting the area but no developments have been made.
“Development is taking place everywhere, but I do not know why there has been no improvement to our Biharipur road,” said a local resident named Tipu Mia.
“We are suffering a lot while using this road, but we cannot seem to make anyone understand our problems. We want the road to be developed so that our suffering comes to an end”, he added.
Another resident, Shubho Mia, said taking patients to the district headquarters becomes extremely difficult because of the condition of the road.
“Especially at night, it is almost impossible to travel along the muddy road,” he said.
Shahena Akter, Principal of Biharipur Government Primary School, said the poor condition of the road was causing hardship for both teachers and students.
“The condition of the road is very poor. We and our students face serious difficulties travelling to and from the school,” she said. “Sometimes we slip in the mud and soil our clothes.”
She urged the authorities to repair the road and make it suitable for travel, keeping the interests of the students and residents in mind.
Sri Kumar Kairi, Acting Chairman of Bhadeshwar Union Parishad, said the matter would be raised with the relevant authorities.
“We will contact the concerned department and take the necessary steps as soon as possible,” he said.
Bahubal Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Ujjal Ray said the authorities were aware of the condition of the Biharipur road.
“The issue has come to our attention. We will discuss it with the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) and take necessary action,” he said.
