By Subhana Shiwmangal
Residents of Second Dam, Garden of Eden, East Bank Demerara yesterday staged a protest in front of the Craig-Caledonia Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) office following several complaints about the deplorable state of the main road and absence of street lamps despite promises.
Second Dam is located opposite the Guyana Power & Light Garden of Eden station and connects to the East Bank Demerara Public Road. It is the main access road for farmers/commuters who go about their business including transporting of produce to clients on a daily basis. Stabroek News spoke to residents and then visited Second Dam and witnessed firsthand the deplorable condition of the road which was filled with pot holes. There are GPL poles on either side of the road minus street lamps.
At yesterday’s protest, residents of the community spoke in unison about the terrible state of the road on which they said they cannot walk, cycle or drive properly. Most residents blamed the road’s condition on trucks traversing daily.
They lamented that without any street lights, they live in fear of snakes or being robbed. Naiome Arjune, a resident of several years, related that since last year she and other residents of the community have reached out to the NDC but have only received promises in response. These unfulfilled promises by the NDC caused Arjune to reach out to another resident, a community activist, to organise yesterday’s protest as one way of getting the authorities’ attention to fix the road and street lamps.
She said that numerous trucks traverse the road supporting businesses such as a concrete manufacturing company, the oil company, poultry businesses as well as other enterprises. She added that the road is so bad that vehicles cannot make it in and out without incurring repairs. She highlighted that the damaged road is the only artery into the community and noted that every time the rain falls, the road floods which increases the difficulty for everyone.
Another resident, Ramchand Sankar, a fruit farmer and vendor of Lot 6 Garden Eden added that thus far, the community’s concerns were not raised with the Minister of Public Works.
He said that all that residents received were promises from the NDC that the road will be looked at. He said that presently his business is affected as the cost of transporting his fruits out of the community and repairs to his vehicle are greater than his profit. Sankar said that school children are also affected since it is time consuming to navigate the potholed and uneven road.
He stressed that residents need a good road and street lamps because in the night the area is dark and unsuitable for anyone to walk safely. Tasha Kumar also supported Sankar and said that the high costs to repair damaged vehicles was affecting residents especially given the cost of living.
Sherann Isaacs, who said that she had to switch to wearing flats to minimize on personal expenses, noted that since last year, the road was in a deplorable state. Her major concern, however, was the noise and dust pollution produced by speeding trucks which sometimes jolt her out of her sleep. Sherann told Staboek News that she was forced to sell her vehicle as the constant costly repairs she and her family had to incur due to the road became unaffordable.
Stabroek News contacted Nankumar Jainarain, the NDC Councillor at Craig-Caledonia, who said that the Ministry of Public Works had invited bids to have work done in the area and three contractors were awarded contracts in 2023. Providing an update, Jainarain said one contractor is currently working at the back end of the road while another started some work at the entrance but work there is currently stalled. He suggested that this newspaper reach out to the Ministry of Public Works for updates on the contracts awarded.
