Silchar: Bilbari, a village in Assam's Karimganj district, presents a bleak picture of how development has remained a "myth" despite 70 years of Independence.

The residents are deprived of basic facilities like proper electricity, potable water and good roads.

Bilbari falls under Kabaribond gaon panchayat in Patharkandi constituency, around 90km from Silchar and 385km from Guwahati.

Residents said intermittent power in the village causes huge inconvenience, especially students. Besides, a road in the village, the only route for residents to reach Patharkandi town, has been in a deplorable condition for many years. The situation is worse in the monsoon, especially during medical emergencies, the residents said.

There is no potable water either. The main sources of water are ponds and pools/lakes. It is nearly impossible to believe the village has been in such a condition even after seven decades of Independence, the locals said.

The population of the village is around 4,000-4,500, mostly farmers and daily-wage earners.

The residents rued that the previous Congress governments never bothered to take any initiative to develop the village and so has been the attitude of the BJP government.

The BJP had talked about "change" and " achhe din" prior to the elections, but nothing has changed for them, they said.

The farmers said they had faced huge losses because of floods, but no compensation was provided by the government. Karimganj was one of the worst-affected districts in Assam floods this year. Nearly 30,000 farmers of the district have suffered losses and around 9, 000 hectares of arable land were damaged.

Patharkandi MLA Krishnendu Paul told The Telegraph that he would bring the matter to the attention of the government/concerned authorities and steps would be taken for the overall development of the village.

The government is committed to fulfil the promises it made to the masses and viable steps will be taken in this regard soon, he added.