Connectivity: More than 17 households of Zawa chiwog have been connected to the Athang gewog center in Wangduephodrang with a farm road inaugurated, yesterday.

The cost of constructing the road was Nu 830,000 and was funded through the gewog development grant (GDG).

The 2.7 km road was constructed by the Zawa community contract group that is comprised  of village members, and took one month and eight days to complete.

The road will connect two villages of Zawa chiwog, Zawa and Yultama and about 17 households.

The community contract group is formed of members from almost every household, and this, according to the gup of Athang was to ensure transparency and so that the work would be completed on time and to a high standard of quality.

Zawa is located closest to the Athang gewog centre. Athang is the remotest and least developed gewog in Wangdue.

“What used to take about an hour’s walk otherwise, will now take just about 20 minutes to reach the gewog centre,” said Tsagay, a resident of Zawa. The Athang gewog centre is located about 10 km from the Wangdue-Tsirang highway road at Kamichu.

Tsagay said the farm road will also allow villagers of Zawa to bring their  agriculture produce to the nearby Punatsangchu hydropower project labour camps at Kamichu.

Villagers said Zawa has very fertile land and much is grown there, however, withtout a farm road, it was a challenge in reaching their produce to the market.

The Athang gup pointed out that as per the government’s financial estimation, a one kilometre farm road is estimated to cost Nu 2.5M, however, when the work was awarded to community, the 2.7 km farm road was completed with less than Nu 1M and in one month.

To provide equal development through GDG, the gewog divided development activities into five years for the five chiwogs. Lucky dip would decide in which year a chiwog receives development.

Zawa chiwog was first to be chosen and opted for two farm roads, each costing Nu 830,000: a 2.7 km road from Athang gewog centre till zawa village and another 2.3 km farm road towards Jarochen, which is half way completed.

By Dawa Gyelmo, Wangdue