The twin Mango bridges in Jamshedpur, which have earned the dubious sobriquet of suicide point with a body count of nine in 2015 alone, have taken one firm step to shed the ignominy, but critics believe it may not be enough to curb the steel city's death wish.
Mango Notified Area Committee (MNAC), the urban local body, on Monday began installing a six-feet-high wall of net along the guard rail of the old Jayprakash Narayan Setu, the good name of the bridge that straddles the rocky Subernarekha river. The MNAC's civic cousin Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee (JNAC) will do the same at the new Mango bridge from Tuesday.
JNAC special officer Dipak Sahay said the iron net wall would run along the individual 250-metre length of both bridges and the total cost of the project would be around Rs 40 lakh, which was being shouldered equally by the twin urban local bodies.
"The MNAC has outsourced the old bridge work to a private agency and we have hired another, which will work from tomorrow (Tuesday). According to the tender agreement, work will be completed by January 15," Sahay added.
The bridges run parallel to each other over the river. While the old one was built several decades ago, the new one came up in 1996. They earned their dubious distinction after many tried to use the 40-feet-plus height to suicidal advantage. Though most were saved by fishermen, the trend had the East Singhbhum district administration thinking.
In April, the urban local bodies were asked to conduct a survey and install the nets. It, however, took nearly six months to start the tender process. "The project was delayed because private parties did not evince interest," Sahay contended.
Work gained momentum after senior functionary of suicide prevention centre Jeevan M. Ram met deputy commissioner Amitabh Kaushal in November.
"The city has seen 177 suicides till November this year, with nine fatal jumps from the bridges. On an average, two persons attempt suicide from the bridges every month. It was very necessary to install a safety net at the earliest. I am glad that work has finally begun," Ram said on Monday.
However, critics of the net have raised objections. One, they say, people prone to suicide would make attempts in the future too and in different ways. Two, a net wall instead of a safety net below the floor of the bridge is inadequate, they believe.
The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California, US, can be a ready reckoner, they say. The safety net hangs some 20ft below the pedestrian deck of the suspension bridge, spanning the three-mile-long channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.
A jumper falls two stories before hitting the net, but escapes with injuries. Also, the natural sag of the net makes climbing out difficult. In addition, there is a spot rescue service. The net is said to have saved more than 19 lives.
MNAC special officer Jagadish Yadav, who is overseeing installation of net wall on the old Mango bridge, said they had taken a cue from the Yamuna bridge in Delhi.
Do you think the net walls will curb bridge suicides? Tell ttkhand@abpmail.com
