DIGHALBANK (KISHANGANJ), Nov. 8 -- On maps, the Kanakai is a modest border river dividing the far edge of Bihar's Kishanganj district from eastern Nepal. But in Singhimari panchayat of Dighalbank block under Thakurganj assembly constituency, the shallow, sandy stream has become a test of electoral resolve. On November 11-the day when the second and final phase of assembly elections in Bihar are scheduled-at least 2,500 voters of Tektha, Jali, Jogi, Methi and Kadgamarg villages of this panchayat will board a small diesel boat, cross the river in batches, and walk several kilometres to reach their booths. There is no bridge. And a boatman is the only link between the ballot and the state. "This happens every election. Leaders have come and raised slogans from the other bank in the past 17 assembly elections here," said Mohammad Junaid, a resident of Tektha, who will escort his 70-year-old mother to the riverbank on the polling day. "The situation is same in the 18th assembly elections as well...voting means first crossing the river. Nothing has changed." Singhimari panchayat, entirely in India, is split cleanly by the Kanakai-one half on the Bihar side, and the other on the Nepal side. Four polling booths cover these hamlets. Of the 2,500 voters, around 250 have been are "vulnerable" voters, mostly elderly men and women who cannot walk long distances. "Each election, we depend on boats. Sometimes there is a boatman, sometimes we have to drag the boat," says Munni Devi, 65, a widow who has voted in every Lok Sabha and Assembly election since 1985. "The river decides if we will reach in time." The Election Commission's mapping shows the nearest designated ghat-the boarding point for the boat-is at least 5km away for most households on the Nepal side. After they cross, they will walk another couple of kilometres to reach Tektha middle school and Dakoopara primary school, where the booths are. Ghanshyam Das (45) of Jali village, said the boat trips will start before dawn and continue till late evening as voters take turns. "The boatmen are always in hurry to make more round trips. So, it's always a risky ride." In 2020, the district administration, under pressure, erected a temporary bamboo bridge . It was disassembled weeks later. "They came, made a temporary bridge to show officers. and then removed it," said Rojina Khatoon (19), who will cast her vote for the first time this election. "It felt like the bridge was only for the photo." Kishanganj is often praised by political parties as a stretch where "border development" must be prioritised. But on the ground, the vote is dislocated from the idea of citizenship, alleges Mohammad Ikramul Haque, the Jan Suraaj Party nominee from this constituency. "This is the real development in Bihar - during the regimes of Mahagathbandhan and the NDA. Morning after morning, women balance tin containers and sacks of fodder on their heads, step into knee-deep water, and wade to small boats. Children cross the river to go to school. Men cross for work. But the state - the real state - exists on the other bank," he said....