𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐑𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐡𝐚 𝐆𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐠 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐑𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞

By Leki Chungdon

Residents of Metakha Gewog in Chhukha sprang into action to restore a critical farm road soon after heavy monsoon rains receded this week, highlighting the community’s resilience and cooperation. The unpaved road, which connects five chiwogs to the main gewog center, had been severely damaged by continuous rainfall over the past month. Sections were washed away, while others became impassable due to landslides and deep ruts formed by runoff. The damage disrupted the transportation of farm produce, affecting livelihoods and access to essential services.

Passang Tshering, the Gup of Metakha Gewog, said the full restoration is estimated to cost over Nu. 200,000. “Since it is a farm road, there are currently no plans to blacktop it. However, we will begin repair work starting August 8,” he said. He added, “The gewog does not have its own machinery, so we are required to hire from private companies, which is costly. As per financial guidelines, we must follow procurement procedures. Based on the Dzongkhag’s approved quotation rates, it costs Nu. 1,779 per hour to hire machinery, making it difficult to manage within our budget. This has caused delays in restoration.” According to the Gup, the road is now accessible to light vehicles, and a more permanent repair will follow once the monsoon ends. “We are grateful to the people for their immediate response. Their action ensured that our farmers could resume their economic activities without long delays,” he said.

Without waiting for government support, villagers mobilised as soon as the weather cleared. Armed with basic tools such as spades, pickaxes, and wheelbarrows, they began clearing debris, filling potholes, and reinforcing weak sections of the road using locally available materials like stones and logs. “The farm roads in Metakha were badly affected by landslides and flooding, with some stretches completely washed away,” said Ugyen Dorji, Jimina Tshokpa. “Because our village is so remote, any disruption to road access creates serious difficulties. It becomes almost impossible to travel, especially when elderly or sick individuals need to reach a hospital or attend to urgent matters.” “Clearing the roads is also a challenge. Machinery is often unavailable or too expensive, and the gewog has a limited budget,” he added. “The government has invested a great deal in constructing these roads to improve our lives. When the roads are accessible, it’s easier to travel, seek medical care, and do business. That’s why we acted immediately to reopen the road.”

Ugyen Dorji also pointed out the challenges of budget allocation. “One of the major issues we face is that larger gewogs receive much more funding, while smaller gewogs like ours get far less. Yet the amount of work required—like road maintenance and service delivery—is often the same. Still, whenever there is heavy rain, most of us come forward to help. This time, 13 out of 16 households in our village participated in reopening the road. It shows the unity and shared responsibility within our community.”

For now, villagers say they are simply relieved to reconnect with the outside world and proud of what they have accomplished together. “As we live in a very remote area, this road is our only connection to the hospital and to Gedu and Phuentsholing towns,” said Jangchub, a resident of Goenpatoe. “When the road is damaged, it causes major difficulties for the entire community. That’s why, every year, all the villagers come together to carry out repairs two to three times. In 2018, 74 of us worked together to repair the Me Lungi Phakha road. This year, 60 came forward to fix the road connecting Changkha and Dung Gewog.”

Nima Gyeltshen, Pango Tshokpa, shared a similar experience. “When the road was blocked, we couldn’t bring in machinery. So, we villagers repaired the road using only hand tools like spades and pickaxes. Luckily, the weather was stable—not rainy or too hot—so we worked without the risk of falling rocks or flash floods. It took 35 villagers per day for three days to finish the repair.” They had requested support from the gewog office, but there was no immediate assistance. However, they have now received a machine to help further clear the road. He added, “During the manual repair work, we were given refreshments by the Gups and some school principals, which we really appreciated.”

Sangay Nidup, the Mangmi of Metakha Gewog, said that on July 30, just two hours of heavy rain severely damaged the Granular Sub-Base (GSB) farm road, which had been constructed only two months earlier with funding from the Small Development Project (SDP) budget. “As the gewog couldn’t respond immediately, 130 households in Metakha came together to repair the road for emergency use,” he said. “Apart from providing refreshments, we couldn’t support much during the repair since the road was completely blocked. Thanks to the villagers’ efforts, it is now partially accessible—small vehicles can pass.” He added, “We appealed to the Dzongkhag Administration for financial support but were told there was no emergency fund available. We were asked to manage the situation on our own.

Since we’re in a remote area, it’s difficult to arrange machinery quickly. But now we have hired an excavator and will begin technical repairs on August 8.” Many parts of southern Bhutan, including Chhukha, have seen above-average rainfall this monsoon, causing widespread damage to infrastructure such as roads, irrigation canals, and power lines. Officials say assessments are underway, and more coordinated repair work is expected to begin once weather conditions stabilize.