Biswabrata Goswami
KRISHNAGA, 17 FEB: Admitting to a two-year delay and offering a public apology, Krishnagar MP Mahua Moitra on Tuesday inaugurated a long-pending Wellness Centre along with four newly completed roads in the Krishnagar Municipality area, signalling what she described as a renewed push towards inclusive urban development in the town’s historically neglected “added areas.”
Addressing residents who had gathered despite what she termed their “busy schedules,” Ms Moitra said the Suswasthya Kendra had been ready for nearly two years but remained non-operational for unspecified reasons. “This Wellness Centre has actually been ready for two years. For whatever reason, it remained pending; we apologise to you for that. But now it has finally been beautifully prepared, and I believe it will be operational starting tomorrow. It will be very beneficial for the local residents,” she said.
The programme was attended by District Magistrate Aneesh Dasgupta, SDO (Sadar), and Krishnagar Municipality administrator Sharadwati Chowdhury, along with local civic representatives and residents.
Apart from the health facility, four roads constructed under the Pathashree scheme were inaugurated — three in Ward No. 25 and one in Ward No. 24. Highlighting the PWD More road, Ms Moitra said it was of particular importance as it serves the Sardar Para locality. “The people of Sardar Para have lived here through many difficulties. They had been requesting this road for a long time. Today, that demand has been fulfilled,” she said.
According to official figures shared at the event, road works worth approximately Rs 1 crore are being undertaken in Ward No. 25, while projects worth about Rs 18 lakh are being executed in Ward No. 24. In total, 27 Pathashree roads have already been completed within the municipality, with another 28 slated for execution in the coming days.
Mr Dasgupta observed that municipal expansion had brought peripheral areas into the fold of urban governance and stressed the need for equitable development. “The added areas that were once considered outside the core town must now receive the same level of services. Development has to be inclusive and timely,” he said.
Echoing the sentiment, Ms Chowdhury noted that neighbourhoods such as Nagendranagar and Shaktinagar had long suffered from inadequate civic infrastructure compared to the main town. “We are now systematically working to bridge that gap. Infrastructure and primary healthcare are our immediate priorities,” she stated.
The MP further announced that eight additional Wellness Centres are planned or in progress across Wards 2 (Ghurni Janakalyan Wellness Center), 7, 8, 10, 11, 16, 17, and 25, underscoring the administration’s focus on strengthening primary healthcare delivery at the grassroots level.
For residents who had waited years for both paved roads and accessible health services, Tuesday’s inauguration marked not just the unveiling of infrastructure, but a symbolic acknowledgment that development, however delayed, must ultimately reach the margins.
