In the Benighat district of central Nepal, there are a number of such crossings. They require villagers to sit in either a basic loop of fabric or a small ramshackle wooden crate and operate the flimsy cable by hand. Many people using the crossing have lost their fingers while operating the cable. In 2010 a tr@gedy struck when a cable snapped and five people fell into the Trishuli River.
With the addition of supporting pillars or by upgrading the boxes, some of the high wires have been improved recently. The local of Benighat district demand for more footbridges to be built in their areas since @cc!dents in recent years have galvanized.
An investigation committee was formed following the 2010 tragedy. The committee submitted a report outlining the d@ngers of cable crossings for children and also identified places to construct su$pension footbridges. Only one has been built in the area so far. Locals like Shreyasa Kumar use it but many villagers still opt for the shorter rope bridge routes.
He said, ‘When the river is flooded, I try to avoid it and take the suspension bridge. It’s a longer route, but safe. My family is sc@red, because five people lost their lives in an @cc!dent that occurred in late 2010. I have children. If something happens to me they will be orph@ned.’
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