A Bridge Not Too Far : #Indian_Army

                                           A BRIDGE NOT TOO FAR

Village Kotranka and Mohra do not figure on the first page of Google search, nor does Ans river figure in the Indian Mythology. Not to mention the 20,000 population of there villages as none of them have cleared CAT, GATE, UPSC and nor these villages have produced MS Dhoni or Katrina Kaif. The chances of news of a footbridge connecting these villages figuring on the first page of a national daily ( or on any other page ) are as remote as polite drivers in the NCR.

The why should this piece figure anywhere at all. It is hardly newsworthy, lacks sensationalism and is devoid of controversy of any kind. It does not merit attention of the so called 'aware' public of the state or the nation. But then,it should because, though small in effort, the job done by boys of Nagrota based Engineer regiment is by big and noble in thought.

The footbridge on this nondescript river in the nondescript area of Samote in J&K was connected by a stone and earth ramp on both sides. The local arrangement worked fine till the monsoon showers depleted the ramp. It became unsafe for use and Ans river soon assumed the proportion of a formidable obstacle. Daily there were reports of women and children and elderly men slipping while trying to negotiate the ramp. Many got injured, though none of them seriously but for the population of almost 20,000, the depleted ramp indeed was a cause of major concern.

As good Indians, we seem to adjust ourselves with whatever ecosystem we are put into. No one of value seemed to notice and none of the lesser mortals ever complained. The depleted ramp continued to be an insignificant event among the big events like Maha-rallies of political bigwigs, high profile murder cases and such like things. Things would have continued like that and in a matter of few months, villagers would have constructed the temporary ramp once again. The fact that the delay may have led to a major accident or loss of life is another story. After all, we have just sent a mission to Mars and as they say, there in no upper limit to human endeavour. But equally true is the omnipresence of the divine power which we lovingly refer to as God.

So, the God directed an Army patrol from the local Rashtriya Rifles battalion to go and cover the village Kotranka. Major `Eversmiles' the patrol commander noticed the missing ramp and instructed Subedar ' Never Frown' to remind him once the patrol reached their company base.

In the 'OK Report' to his CO, Major `Eversmiles' brought out the issue and colonel 'All yours', called up the the CO of the Engineer regiment. No letters had been written to any authority by the helpless villagers, but God's will is God's will. Colonel `Always At Work', the CO of Engineer Regiment moved a vehicle loaded with necessary manpower and stores the very next morning. It took the RR company assisted by the Engineer boys just three days to connect the footbridge to the river bank and all of 20,000 villagers finally had a sigh of relief. The aim of this story is not to put village Kotranka and Mohra on the Google's list of most searched places, nor to compare river Ans with mighty Brahmaputra. Nor it is to give out of turn promotions to the officials involved (Thats why the names have been exchanged with their character traits). The aim is to highlight the small little good deeds which are likely to get lost forever in the `Google sea of nobility'.