After 60-year wait, Ghazipur villagers inaugurate crowdfunded bridge over Magai River

LUCKNOW: On a quiet Sunday in Kyampur Chhavni village of Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur district, history did not arrive with govt machinery or political slogans. It stood firm in concrete and steel, stretching 105 feet long and 9.5 feet wide across the Magai River.

After 2 years, 1 month, and 18 days of relentless effort, and with nearly Rs 1 crore raised through crowdfunding, the bridge was finally inaugurated by Allahabad High Court judge Shekhar Yadav.The bridge, conceptualised and built by Captain (retired) Ravindra Yadav, was inaugurated by Allahabad High Court judge Justice Shekhar Yadav at Kyampur Chhavni village.Captain (retd) Ravindra Yadav, a civil engineer who served with the 55 Engineer Regiment of the Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers, returned to his ancestral village in Jan 2024 after retiring from the army following 30 years of service.

Disturbed by the daily hardships faced by villagers due to the absence of a permanent crossing, he took the initiative to design and execute the bridge with support from local residents and well-wishers.

Construction began in March 2024 and was entirely funded through crowdfunding.Marking the significance of the occasion, Ravindra’s home regiment deputed a junior commissioned officer to attend the inauguration ceremony.

The project later received national attention after the TOI report, following which inspections were carried out by the Public Works Department and subsequently by the Indian army. Both agencies acknowledged the scale and importance of the community-driven effort.The Magai river, which originates in Azamgarh’s Dubawan village, flows through Mau and Ghazipur districts for more than 200 km before joining the Tamsa river, which eventually merges with the Ganga near Ballia.Although the river is barely 70–80 feet wide at Kyampur, the lack of a bridge had a profound impact on the region. Kayampur village, home to around 3,500 people, lay directly on its banks, while around 50 surrounding villages with a combined population of more than 70,000 were forced to travel up to 40 km to cover an actual distance of 15 km.For decades, villagers routinely risked their lives crossing the river in fragile boats to access Nonahara market, the district headquarters and the district hospital.

Incidents of boats ferrying schoolchildren capsizing had been reported in the past. Residents maintained that while the district administration advised patience, they had already waited at least 60 years for a solution.Major General (retd) Ajay Chaturvedi, under whom Ravindra had served in Roorkee in 2003–04, contributed over Rs 1 lakh towards the project and encouraged others to donate. “Ravindra is one of those rare officers who go beyond the call of duty for others,” he said.

“This bridge bypasses bureaucratic delays and stands as a testament to grassroots determination and collective action.”In recognition of the initiative, Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi conferred the Veteran Achievers Award on Honorary Captain and Subedar Ravindra Yadav in Sep 2025.“For the people of Kyampur and neighbouring villages, the bridge now represents not just connectivity, but long-denied access to education, healthcare and opportunity,” said an emotional Ravindra while speaking to TOI.