New Delhi: Women from a remote village in Bihar’s Banka district have pooled together to fix what has been a major concern – the lack of a road in the area.

According to a report in the Telegraph, more than 130 women from Nima village decided that they could no longer wait for the government to get its act together, as local people were suffering due to the lack of connectivity. They wanted the road to be ready before this year’s rainy season, which is when the lack of a road was most felt.

“It was especially painful during the rainy season,” Rekha Devi from Nima told Telegraph. “We could not even get to the block headquarters, hardly 2.5 km from our village. Many deaths have occurred – especially of pregnant women – as they could not reach the health centres in time.”

According to the women, there was some talk of the government working on a road in the area about three or four years ago, but it went nowhere. “Some three-four years ago, the local administration initiated land acquisition to build a road but due to protests by landowners the plan had to be abandoned,” Jhalo Devi, also a Nima resident, told the newspaper.

These landowners, who had earlier refused to give up their property for a road, told Telegraph that they were convinced after seeing the women’s enthusiasm. “We also realised the pain of the villagers,” said Arjun Manjhi, a landowner.

Once they got the land they needed, the women, with a little help from men, built a two-km road in three days.

“Many women from the two villages, Jorarpur and Durgapur, also joined us. The men in our homes first completed the groundwork. We carried sand, soil and stones from the riverbank nearby and barren lands. We would start work at sunrise and end in the evening. Now, light vehicles can easily ply on the road,” Usha Devi from Nima said.

The Banka district magistrate has congratulated the women on their work. “Without taking the private land, the road was not possible; the government could not just take private land. But when the village women initiated the road work, the same landowners gave their consent,” district magistrate Kundan Kumar told Telegraph.