Members of Ao Senden and others during the inspection of the Wati Lenjem-Wamakenyimsen Village stretch of the ongoing Foothills Road construction on February 26. (Photo Courtesy: Ao Senden)
Inspects construction works of Wati Lenjem-Wamakenyimsen village stretch
Mokokchung, February 26 (MExN): The Ao Senden today asserted that contractors refusing to sign the “implementing agreement” for the Foothills Road construction will not be allowed to carry out contract works under its jurisdiction.
As per the Ao Senden, a tradition of signing implementing agreements has been ‘set’ since 2013 among three Apex Tribal Hohos – the Ao Senden, Lotha Hoho, and Sumi Hoho – along with the Nagaland Foothills Road Coordination Committee (NFHRCC) and the concerned contractors involved in the Foothills Road construction projects.
To bring the Foothills Road to a logical completion, the Apex Tribal Hohos on January 16, 2025, had also resolved not to let any contractors break away from the ‘set tradition’ to undertake work under their respective jurisdictions, it said.
On February 4, this was reaffirmed in Wokha and later declared before the Minister of Public Works Department (Roads & Bridges), in the presence of the Engineer-in-Chief of PWD and other officials, during a meeting with the three Apex Tribal Hohos on February 7, it maintained.
The Ao Senden also claimed that during the meeting, the PWD(R&B) Minister assured to schedule a meeting with the NHFRCC at an early date. This meeting was expected to be an “ice-breaker” between the reluctant contractors and the Apex Tribal Hohos but, regrettably, it is yet to be called by the PWD Department, it added.
To this end, it reiterated that contractors refusing to sign the implementing agreement will not be allowed to carry out contract works in its jurisdiction.
Contextualizing its assertion, the Ao Senden pointed out that the Foothills Road project was initiated by the Apex Tribal Hohos in 2023 under the watchful eye of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio. Since then, the State Government has provided the necessary funds, while the NFHRCC was created by the Apex Tribal Hohos to coordinate, work, defend, and protect the contractors on their behalf from “all bad social elements.”
The NFHRCC has so far carried out many groundbreaking tasks, and an implementing agreement has been signed since 2013 among the Apex Tribal Hohos, the NFHRCC, and the contractors working on the Foothills Road, it pointed out.
It further highlighted how negotiations were held with Naga political groups to ensure that no taxes would be imposed on the contractors and how landowners were urged to give up their land without compensation.
The NFHRCC, on their behalf, has met the Union Minister and the Governor of Nagaland, La Ganesan, seeking funds for this road, it added. It also credited the committee for persuading some landowners to donate well-developed lands, incurring losses amounting to “more than hundreds of crores” at the new realignment at the Wati Lenjem to Wamakenyimsen village stretch during a meeting on September 9, 2023, at Wamaken Village.
To this end, the Ao Senden expressed appreciation to all the landowners who donated and sacrificed their well-developed lands without taking any compensation.
However, it was stated that the "arrival of judicious funds" in the current year may have contributed to the reluctance of some contractors, who received work orders for the Foothills Road, to adhere to the established tradition set in 2013.
Accordingly, the Ao Senden urged the reluctant contractors to bring their problems to the table and seek a solution amicably. “It is our belief that the ‘unseverable sense’ of Naga belongingness will bring them to their senses and will do the needful without delay,” it added.
Meanwhile, in a press release issued by its President Marsanen Imsong and General Secretary Imtipokyim, the Ao Senden informed that it inspected the Foothills Road construction site at the Wati Lenjem (Yajang junction) to Wamakenyimsen village stretch on February 26. This was in intensification of the Senden’s desire for quality workmanship in construction and the completion of the “historic and extraordinary” Nagaland Foothills Road, it said.
As per the Ao Senden, the construction work has been found to be “per specifications and most satisfactory to date,” and it lauded the contractor, Mongkum Jamir, for the same. It also expressed gratitude to the Department of PWD(R&B) Tuli, Langpangkong Tzukong Mungdang, and the Wamaken Village Council for being a part of the inspection team.
