Preventable deaths

Three Nepalis once again unnecessarily lost their lives when a suspension bridge over the Trishuli River connecting Darechowk Village Development Committee (VDC) of Chitwan with Bhumlichowk VDC of Gorkha snapped in Darechowk-9, Phisling Saturday afternoon. The consequences could have been worse as is evident from the death of 32 people in a similar accident in India’s Darjeeling Sunday.



People all around the world succumb to various kinds of accidents and many a times the unfortunate deaths cannot be prevented as the causes behind them are beyond human control. But the nature of many accidents here in the country is such that it begs a serious question: Can the precious lives of many Nepali citizens be saved if the concerned authorities just display a small degree of conscientiousness? Probably yes.



The news of Nepalis losing their lives in tuin (makeshift cable contraption) collapses is something that regularly dominates the country’s media space. As recently as in June, five children on their way to school perished to a tuin collapse in Dadhing district. Deaths resulting from such accidents are not only shocking but shameful. It is a grim reminder of the fact that people have been parting with their lives simply because the government has not been able to provide even the most basic infrastructure to its people. Or take for instance the regular deaths taking place in bus accidents. More often than not, such accidents occur either because the vehicles are not in condition or are carrying passengers beyond their stipulated limit. This again is proof of our pathetic monitoring and punishment mechanism.



The government has to take the blame for such deaths also because it does not see to it that funds allocated for construction, repair and maintenance of vital infrastructure such as roads and bridges are mostly misused. Often times, that results in either the complete absence of infrastructure that should have existed in the first place or the construction of bridges and roads of such a poor quality that they are vulnerable to an accident anytime.



People’s lives are too valuable to be played around with. But this is what is exactly happening here. The need of the hour therefore is not only construction of quality infrastructure but also regular repair and maintenance of existing ones. We hope that this government, and the others to follow, would find some time from the dominant theme of present-day politics – completion of the peace and constitution-writing processes – and give a thought to such pressing issues as well.

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