An excavator clears debris after a fresh rockfall hit National Highway 29 along the Dimapur-Kohima four-lane road at Tsiedukhru Range on September 10. The incident damaged a vehicle, but no casualties were reported. (Morung Photo)
No casualties reported
Morung Express News
Dimapur | September 10
A fresh rockfall/landslide hit National Highway 29 along the Dimapur-Kohima four-lane road at the Tsiedukhru Range on Thursday morning, damaging a vehicle but causing no casualties.
Police personnel at the site said vehicle was caught in the falling debris but no casualties were reported.
When The Morung Express visited the site on Thursday afternoon, an excavator was clearing the debris, while traffic on the Left Hand Side (LHS) carriageway further uphill from Dimapur side being diverted.
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A person supervising the clearance informed that the incident occurred around 10:20–10:30 am
The vehicle, an NL 10 Mahindra Bolero, was proceeding to Kohima from Dimapur when it got caught in the rockfall about 2-2.5 km from the Chümoukedima police checkpost. The three occupants, said to be employees of the Nagaland State Rural Livelihoods Mission, survived unhurt. One vehicle, which was ahead, narrowly escaped the falling rocks.
Meanwhile, the rock debris that had fallen from the cliff was being moved towards the edge of the carriageway.
A person supervising the clearance said some of the larger rocks were being positioned along the edge as a temporary barrier to prevent further falling rocks from reaching the opposite side of the highway, as loose material remained on the slope.
The latest incident adds to a series of rockfalls, landslides and erosion-related disruptions along the Tsiedukhru Range, formerly known as Pagla Pahar.
On July 4, 2023, a major rockslide triggered by heavy rainfall in the Chümoukedima stretch of NH-29 killed two persons and injured three others.
A year later, on July 5, 2024, falling rocks damaged a Mahindra Bolero along the stretch. Four persons, including the driver, sustained minor injuries.
On May 30, 2025, a rock dislodged from the hillside struck a Tata dumper, killing its driver.
Meanwhile, on the intervening night of September 3–4, 2024, a massive landslide at Pherima village claimed six lives and caused extensive damage. On the same night, severe erosion at Chainage 126 in the Tsiedukhru Range damaged a portion of NH-29 and disrupted the highway.
Thereafter, the Guahati High Court Kohima Bench (GHCKB), which took up a suo motu PIL concerning the NH-29 Dimapur–Kohima four-lane construction in 2019, has issued a series of orders urging speedy land acquisition and other related measures, including slope protection and road maintenance.
However, several factors delayed the process and a fresh episode and subsequent disruption on September 14, 2025, raise questions about whether natural forces alone are to blame for the recurring crisis.
In its latest order on September 9, the GHCKB recorded continuing concerns over progress on several stretches and set fresh directions and deadlines.
