Legendary 'mountain man' Dashrath Manjhi cut through a mountain in Gehlaur village in Bihar to shorten the distance of his village to the city. Though it took 22 years for Manjhi to complete the herculean task, villagers of Chhattisgarh's Dhamtari district have tamed a mountain in six months. Around 200 villagers under MGNREGA, have smashed rocks to tunnel a route to the city, reducing a distance of 20 km to 5.5 km. One among those who joined in the mission was Baraturam, a physically challenged person, who has only one hand. He has been an inspiration for many. Dhamtari's 'Majhis' have created ripples and representatives of Union government will be visiting the area on May 11 & 12 to document their work and decide on rewards.

When the Centre came to know about this work, it has decided to depute a team for documentation of work. Joint secretary Aparajita Sarange constituted a team under communication officer Ajay Kumar which will be visiting Dhamtari on May 11 and 13.

"This is the first such task done under MGNERGA. The government is considering it as a role model for the country," said Singh. Villagers claimed students will benefit as they had to travel 15-20 km to reach schools. They are also happy they have two ways to commute now.

"Earlier, students had to trek 25km from Nathukona to reach senior high-school in Narhar village. Now, this distance has reduced to just 14 km. Even villagers of Madumsilli who had to travel 20km to reach fields in other villagers would be relieved," said Baraturam, who joined in the effort despite disability. "We wanted to give easier jobs to Baraturam, like serving water to those cutting rock, but he refused and continued to work like others, "said collector Dhamtari.

Dashrath Manjhi Aka Mountain Man's Story Is The Most Inspiring Thing You'll Read Today