Assam: Infrastructure neglect exposed as students risk lives to reach exam centres in Bongaigaon

As hundreds of students across Assam began writing their High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) examinations, a group of examinees in Srijangram constituency of Bongaigaon district faced a far more dangerous test, crossing a fast-flowing river without a bridge. At the dilapidated Matraghola river ghat, education comes at the cost of life-threatening risk, exposing years of alleged administrative neglect.

With admit cards clutched tightly and hopes of a better future in their hearts, students were seen boarding small country boats to cross the river under precarious conditions. The absence of a permanent bridge has turned a routine commute into a daily gamble with death.

The crisis surfaced starkly on the first day of the HSLC examinations conducted by the Board of Secondary Education, Assam, when students struggled not just with exam anxiety but with the challenge of navigating turbulent waters to reach their centres on time.

Residents say the danger is not limited to exam days. Every day, hundreds of villagers — including schoolchildren, patients, elderly residents, and working individuals — depend on the fragile ghat for connectivity. With no emergency infrastructure or safety mechanisms in place, the river crossing becomes even more perilous during the monsoon season, when rising water levels often force students to abandon their journey midway and return home.

Locals allege that despite repeated appeals and representations to authorities, including the area’s elected representatives, no concrete steps have been taken to construct a permanent bridge. Several minor and major accidents have reportedly occurred at the ghat in the past, yet the demand for safe connectivity remains unaddressed.

The situation has reignited questions about the implementation of flagship government slogans such as Beti Bachao Beti Padhao and Digital India in remote and rural belts. For the residents of Matraghola, development rhetoric appears hollow when basic infrastructure like a bridge remains a distant promise.