“As I walked around the site I thought that these days the biggest temple and mosque and gurdwara is the place where man works for the good of mankind. Which place can be greater than this, this Bhakra-Nangal, where thousands and lakhs of men have worked, have shed their blood and sweat and laid down their lives as well? Where can be a greater and holier place than this, which we can regard as higher?”

— Jawaharlal Nehru. Speech at the opening of the Nangal Canal on July 8, 1954

“Bhakra-Nangal is a landmark not merely because the water will flow here and irrigate large portions (of land) or because enough electric power will be generated here to run thousands of factories and cottage industries which will provide work for the people and relieve unemployment. It is a landmark because it has become of nation’s will to march forward with strength, determination and courage.”

— At the same location, 1954

“Bhakra Nangal Project is something tremendous, something stupendous, something which shakes you up when you see it. Bhakra, the new temple of resurgent India, is the symbol of India’s progress.”

— Jawaharlal Nehru. Speech at the inauguration of the Bhakra Dam on October 22, 1963

Read these lines. Re-read them. And then snap into the reality of Indian infrastructure. Today. Sixty years on.

Roads

In 2023, the Parliamentary Committee on Rural Development called out the PM Gramin Sadak Yojana for inordinate delays, and poor-quality construction. While the Union government promised to connect rural settlements to schools, hospitals and agricultural markets through the project, more than 50,000 km of roads still await completion.

Phase 1 of the Bharatmala project has completed just 39 per cent of its original target. The estimated amount that has already been sanctioned for the project is 58 per cent more than the estimated cost.

Tunnels

Manjeet Lal was trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel for 17 days. His elder brother met a tragic fate at a construction site in Maharashtra in 2022. Manjeet’s father, who had no mobile phone, or money, spent his time anxiously praying outside a temple outside the tunnel. Little did he know that the same company that had faced charges when a launcher collapsed on the Samruddhi Expressway in Mumbai, killing 20 workers, was awarded a project of such importance.

Bridges and Flyovers

While searching for survivors of the Morbi bridge collapse, rescuers found the hand of a child, frozen, tightly clutching a toy, visible through the murky waters. The toy belonged to two-year-old Duruk, who was, perhaps, on one of his first family holidays.

The bridge on the Machchhu River collapsed in October 2022, killing 135 people including 50 children. The accident, which was the biggest civic disaster in Gujarat’s history, was later found to be due to gross negligence on the part of the authorities. Just eight months later, a portion of the newly constructed bridge collapsed on the Mindhola River. Preliminary investigation reported serious defects in the quality of materials used by the company that has built several bridges in south Gujarat. In October 2023, another bridge in Palanpur collapsed due to “workmanship errors” killing two people. Among the victims was an autorickshaw driver, caught under the debris while trying to escape.

After the tunnel collapse in Madhya Pradesh’s Sleemanabad in February 2022, Goralal, a construction worker, left a poignant message with his co-worker: “Tell my mother that I will be born to her in my next life.”

In August 2022, the Rs 304 crore Karam Dam faced seepage and erosion, leading to the evacuation of 18 downstream villages. Notably, the construction company involved is alleged to have ties to the BJP. A scam related to the e-tendering of the dam has been under investigation for the past four years. Interestingly, just three months later, the same blacklisted companies were given contracts for repair and maintenance.

Railways

The Indian Railways constitute the infrastructure for the fundamental right of every Indian citizen to travel from point A to point B. Who wouldn’t want a bullet train. But let’s put the priorities into perspective. Constructing each route kilometre of the “vanity project”, that is the bullet train, costs around Rs 200 crore. A dedicated freight corridor, which moves basic commodities for farmers and consumers, has a construction cost of Rs 23 crore per kilometre.

There are so many more examples of poor infrastructure affecting the lives of millions. At least 15 major rail accidents took place in 2023. A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) points out that over 50 per cent of the compulsory track safety inspections were not completed.

Priorities.

[This article was also published in The Indian Express | Friday, January 19, 2024]