Road awaited

Bokaro, Feb. 28: The district administration has decided to build a parallel road to Jhumra hillocks that will cut down distance from Bokaro steel city by 35 km and build six new police checkposts in the area that is a hotbed of Maoist rebels.

The idea is to curb rebel movement in the Gomia zone and ensure easier access for security forces to the hillocks that has often proved to be a tough challenge for the state police and CRPF teams.

Tenders have been invited for the new road, via Konar dam in Tiskopi, which will ultimately ensure security forces are able to reach Jhumra within 3 hours, giving up the present 125km circuitous route through Hazaribagh, using the Ghato zone in Rahawan.

Bokaro SP Saket Singh said, “The existing road will also be repaired. Once the new road comes up, thousands of villagers of Gomia, Vishnugarh and Lalpania will have easier access. This is something they had been demanding for several years.”

Once completely under Maoist control, the hilly forests had to be reclaimed by security forces in 2003. In spite of that rebels have, time and again, made their presence felt by engineering blasts and orchestrating attacks on the forces stationed there.

Bokaro SP’s office is also working on renovating six police stations of Mahuatand, Lalpania, Nawadih, Maraphari, Balidih and Jharkhand Armed Police (JAP) camp in Jhumra.

This project, said Singh, would be completed by the end of June.

According to the approved plan, all the police stations would have 6 feet-high boundary walls, 30 feet-high watchtowers, bunkers at four corners of the stations and toilets.

Six new checkposts have been approved for areas considered more vulnerable like Mahuatand and Lalpania, both in Gomia zone.

At Mahuatand, a 1,050 sq metre boundary wall would also be constructed, while at Lalpania, a 450 sq metre boundary wall would come up in addition to extra rooms to house reserve forces whenever required.

At the JAP camp in Jhumra, three patrol towers would be constructed, while at Nawadih, double-storied barracks with 50 beds would be built, besides three watchtowers.

‘The renovation project is being undertaken after having taken into consideration special measures needed to tackle the Maoist presence in the area,” Singh added.