Chandmari is one of the oldest localities of Guwahati. The area is situated towards the eastern side of the city. It is home to the All India Radio, Guwahati station, and many important academic institutions such as Holy Child School, Bhaskar Bidyapith Higher Secondary School, Gauhati Commerce College, and Assam Engineering Institute to name a few.
Even though the area is located at the heart of the city with such important institutions, it has been left under abject darkness. As per the locals, the high mast lights have not been working for the last 1 to 1.5 years. This has been a great reason of difficulty for people trying to walk on the footpath. "It is sad to see the intersection so dark. We have complained to the police but what can we do? Just look at the bus stop, it is so dark," said a retailer across the road.
The high mast lights atop the traffic signal spread across the area from the Chandmari Swahid Udyan to All India Radio bus stop towards the flyover side. As of now, these areas are dark with virtually no illumination. The Lions Club bus stop is also poorly lit. "I take a daily walk in this area and sit at the bus stop to take rest. I have observed that it has gone so dark along under the bridge. It feels no longer safe," said a Rajgarh resident.
Ahead of the road is the Chandmari flyover, where the other high mast light is placed, which is still not working.
The Chandmari flyover, which a go-to rendezvous point for the Guwahatians, is shrouded in darkness.
Woman to be most affected
Although the issue of illumination affects all the commuters, the most who stand to be affected are the women. "Darkness affects mobility. As there are no streetlights even in the by-lanes, Chandmari has gone too dark. As a local resident, I feel uncomfortable with such a situation," said Saswati Das, an NGO worker and Chandmari resident.
Socio-political activist, Tinat Atifa Masood, has claimed it to be a case of government negligence. She further stated that the hilly areas are also affected. "There are chain snatching incidents and I have written about it as well. Not just girls, everyone is unsafe in this atmosphere," said Tinat Atifa Masood.
She stated that the girls are particularly unsafe at the dark bus stop with a fear of someone groping them from behind. "How can we dream of a smart city when there is a place like Chandmari?" added Masood.
The police in Chandmari too agreed to the points raised by the citizens. "It is indeed difficult to patrol without the lights due to the darkness," said Officer in Charge (OC), Pradip Haloi.
The government's response
There are about 40 high mast lights across the city. Overall most of them are partially or not working at all. This was even acknowledged by Superintendent Engineer, Dipankar Kakoti, of the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC). "On some roads, cables have been cut and only a few are working as such. We are trying to work this out," said Dipankar Kakoti.
The GMC is now preparing a report to ascertain the overall status to find out where and what lights are working. An additional burden on the GMC is that normal lights are repaired with comparatively less effort due to the low tension. "Motor is used to repair the lights to bring them down, which requires additional manpower. Our department doesn't have them all the time," added a senior official on anonymity. "But we are trying to repair the lights of the by-lanes," he added.
GMC outsources work to light up every street of Guwahati by 2021
22 local agencies have been allotted the tender of repairing the non-functional streetlights along the main roads of Guwahati. Dipankar Kakoti, Superintendent Engineer of the Electric Branch of GMC informed G Plus, "We have outsourced the work to 22 agencies and work is currently under way at GS Road, AT Road, GNB Road, MRD Road, MG Road, RG Baruah Road, Mother Teresa Road, Panjabari, Hatigoan etc."
"The department is internally working to restore streetlights on the lanes and by-lanes where electric connection for the same is available. Many damaged poles are also being repaired," he said.
Over Rs. 9 crores is the estimated expense of the work. "But there are many nooks and corners of the city where there is no connection for streetlights. We are assessing the feasibility and the work required for the same. Once it is done and the expense is decided upon we will start work," Kakoti added.
Commuters and residents have been regularly complaining about the non-functioning of streetlights along major stretches of the Guwahati bypass, the NH37. Kakoti informed that many connections and electric lines along the highway had been damaged by the various departments and agencies while digging up the road.
"GMC has taken up that work as well. We are repairing the damaged lines and even the highway will be lit up fully soon," Kakoti added.
Reportedly, there are around 5,000 streetlights on the main roads of Guwahati and 10,000 more on the smaller lanes.
