Ramps will be a fixture for Didi’s rally dais in Purulia & Bankura too

Kolkata: A 20ft by 10ft dais with a 21ft-long ramp on Asutosh Mukherjee Road, right in front of the entrance to Jatin Das Park, to allow chief minister Mamata Banerjee climb the dais on a wheelchair, is likely to be a constant in all public meetings she addresses till she is back on her feet.
The dais in Hazra is being replicated in Purulia and Bankura, where Banerjee is expected to address five public rallies on Monday and Tuesday.
Instructions have also reached party leaders in Purulia to even the surface of the stretch on which a wheelchair-bound Banerjee will head for the dais from the helipad in Balarampur and Jhalda. They have also been told to set up ramps to allow the CM to climb the dais in a wheelchair. Balarampur block Trinamool Youth Congress president Sunny Mukherjee said: “Ramps are being added to the dais.”
Banerjee is likely to reach Bankura at 11am on Tuesday. She will address three rallies there. Party’s district leader Arup Chakraborty said: “Special ramps will be set up for all the dais from where the CM will speak. Work will begin tomorrow and we are taking help of technical experts.”
“The CM,” he added, “was to reach here on Sunday. But her injury-induced delay led to postponing plans. Party workers, who were very anxious, are now brimming with excitement. We will do whatever it takes to ensure she faces the least discomfiture with her injuries.”
In Hazra, decorators were told to ensure the dais floor was smooth. The 3ft-wide ramp with small railings on either side ensured the wheelchair could be pushed easily without fear of toppling over.
“We were informed about constructing the two dais on Hazra Road and Mayo Road on Saturday night and were specifically asked to ensure the ramp was smooth enough for a decent climb,” said Kamal Tapadar of Modern Decorators. Associated with Trinamool for the past two decades, officials of Modern Decorators said unlike other party dais they had built over the years, the stress was entirely on the ramp this time.
“Our earlier briefs involved making the stairs short and wide with a high handrail to ensure elderly party leaders could climb easily. Stress was also given on increasing the dais height so that speakers could be visible from a distance. But this time, the ramp replaced the stairs and we were also asked to keep the dais at a lower height so the ramp slope didn’t become steep,” said Tapadar.
Trinamool leader and former Kolkata Municipal Corporation MMIC, Baiswanor Chatterjee, who was overseeing the dais construction, said he was relieved after the programme went off smoothly. “This was her first public address after the injury and we wanted to ensure the dais was perfect for her,” Chatterjee said, his eyes on a large banner of a wheelchair-borne CM (taken while Banerjee was leaving SSKM Hospital on Friday) put up atop the dais.
(With inputs from
Amit Singh Deo in
Purulia and Falguni Banerjee in Bankura)