Watch: The bridge is missing. Jharkhand villagers use rubber tubes to cross the river, every day
The region that powers 25% of India’s nuclear energy still struggles with a lack of basic infrastructure.
It’s ironic that in a state that fuels India’s nuclear energy reactors, some people do not even have a bridge to cross a river. The residents of Swaspur village in Jharkhand are isolated from Jadugoda town 10 kilometres away, and have to use rubber tubes and utensils that float to traverse the water body for their daily commute.
This lack of basic infrastructure keeps the village children away from schools, and villagers are often cut off from healthcare facilities. “If someone has a medical emergency they cannot even reach the hospital in time,” said a local resident.
The video clip (above) shows the person helping a tube-fitted cot with an elderly man across the river.
The water that the villagers are exposed to daily causes a host of health problems.
Jadugoda in the state’s East Singhbhum district has suffered radioactive pollution in its surrounding land and water bodies from uranium mining operations since 1967, causing severe health defects in residents of nearby villages.
