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| Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar with Dasrath Manjhi at his residence in Patna. (PTI) |
Patna, July 24: Dasrath Manjhi must have had several memorable moments in his life. But what happened at 1 Anne Marg today was something he wouldn?t have even dreamt of.
Leaving his chair for a little over five minutes, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar asked the 70-year-old from Gaya ? who single-handedly cut through hills to make a road for villagers several years ago ? to sit on it. This, said Nitish, was the only way Manjhi?s deed could be honoured.
Manjhi started cutting through the Gaya hills in 1959 as he wanted to reduce the distance between Atri and Wazirganj from 50 km to 10 km. Armed with a chisel and hammer and loads of determination, he toiled hard for days, completing the Herculean task 22 years later.
Manjhi?s decision to make a road was also prompted by his wife getting hurt while trying to cross the hills one day.
The old man now stays in a temple on the Gaya-Nawada border. Financial help from the temple trust allows Manjhi, who is said to have almost become a sadhu, to sustain himself. His wife Faguni Devi died several years ago.
Manjhi?s house is in Gehlor, around 5 km from Gaya town. His daughter Longi Devi is a widow while his son Bhagirath works as a labourer outside Bihar.
Last month, Manjhi had gone to the secretariat with a proposal to link the stretch he had created with the Gaya-Nawada Road. But he was not allowed to meet Nitish.
Refusing to give up, Manjhi knocked the doors of the chief minister?s residence today. He was asked to wait as Nitish was busy attending a janata durbar (people?s court).
After the meeting, the chief minister asked Manjhi to accompany him to the chamber where he was about to address reporters. Manjhi took a seat next to Nitish. Then came the big surprise.
Asking Manjhi to take his seat, Nitish said: ?This is the best I can do for your unmatchable grit.? He also accepted Manjhi?s proposal to link the two roads in Gaya.
?While the roads would surely be linked, the foundation stone should be laid by you, not me or any other politician,? he told Manjhi, describing him as a ?source of inspiration?.
An overwhelmed Manjhi said: ?I am honoured and humbled.?
Nitish later spoke to the Gaya district magistrate and instructed him to find out how the road could be constructed at the earliest. ?I will be there at the foundation-laying function, but only as an onlooker.?