Indian community issues mass suicide threat over bridge name

A threat of mass suicide has been issued against state government of Assam if a newly constructed bridge is not named after Chutia dynasty queen Sati Sadhani, Times of India reported.

Over a 100 youths from the Chutia community will end their lives by jumping into the Brahmaputra from the Bogibeel Bridge on the day of its inauguration warned Mohen Bora, general secretary All Assam Chutia Students' Union (AACSU).

Addressing a demonstration at the Old Government High School field in Dibrugarh on Thursday, Bora said, "The Chutia community, which is one of the oldest ethnic groups of the state, has a glorious history. Unfortunately, successive governments have neglected us. The demand for naming the bridge after Chutia queen Sati Sadhani is an old one. The existing three bridges on the Brahmaputra were dedicated to the kings and generals of other dynasties of Assam. Therefore, we think it is logical to name the Bogibeel Bridge after Sati Sadhani.

"If the bridge is not christened as Birangana Sati Sadhani Setu, 100 youths from our community will end their lives by jumping into the Brahmaputra on the day of its inauguration. We are quite serious about it."



Legendary Chutia queen Sati Sadhani ruled the Chutia dynasty from 1522 to 1524 and is said to be their last queen.

The Bogibeel Bridge is a newly constructed viaduct over the Brahmaputra. Bogibeel Bridge measuring 4.94-km will connect Dibrugarh and Dhemaji and is said to be India's longest rail-cum-road bridge and is somewhat modelled on the famous Oresund Bridge that links Sweden and Denmark.

A faction of BJP leaders, including Dibrugarh MLA Prasanta Phukan, is in support of naming the bridge as Atal Setu after late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. A few Ahom organisations, on the other hand, want it to be attributed to the legendary Ahom ruler Chaolung Siu-Ka-Pha. Many locals feel the name should be Bogibeel Bridge since their emotional attachment to the state where it is being constructed.



Now in its 17th year, the construction work of the bridge was initiated by late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee on April 21, 2002. The foundation of the structure was set earlier by former PM Deve Gowda on January 22, 1997. Due to revised deadlines, the project cost has escalated from the initial Rs1,767 crore to Rs5,800 crore.

Referred to as an engineering wonder, a record 70,000 MT of steel has been used in the Bogibeel Bridge which is said to be equivalent to 10 Eiffel Towers. The newly constructed bridge plays a strategic role in connecting the country's eastern frontiers with the fast pace economy of the rest of India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to inaugurate the bridge this December.

 

This article originally appeared on the Times of India.