Dimapur, January 21 (MExN): The Nagaland State Planning Board has urged the Border Roads Organization (BRO) to take immediate steps to “upgrade’ and repair National Highway-150 connecting Nagaland Capital Kohima and Jessami in Manipur and another, a bridge in between.
A letter addressed to Lieutenant General S Ravishankar, the Director General of the BRO, from the board’s deputy Chairman Neiba Kronu, lamented the “utter neglect” of the national highway. The letter form the board said the highway needs “immediate upgradation and repairs.”
“The RCC Bridge near military base Chakhabama collapsed while under construction in September 2007. In spite of a lapse of 4 years, the BRO has taken no steps to reconstruct the bridge even after several reminders to the local BRO officials and higher ups. Moreover upgradation of road is required as the road is very narrow and leads to traffic bottle necks. But inspite of the commitment by the local BRO officials that up-gradation will be done, so far nothing has materialized so far,” Kronu stated.
According to the state planning board the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has also sanctioned Rs.143.5 Lakhs for improvement of the road from Km-65 to Km-70 (Pfutsero town areas) under the NH-150 on March 10.
“…but the work is yet to start. The whole stretch of NH-150 is filled with potholes and the condition becomes worse during monsoons with frequent landslides,” the board stated.
The planning board has queried on the reasons the BRO “are maintaining silence and inactivity even after repeated requests and reminders from an elected representative of the Nagaland government.” The public has the right to know what is constraining the ‘premier engineering force of the nation’ to “maintain this small stretch of NH-150 and their lack adaisical approach” to the genuine grievance of the citizens.”
“It would be advisable if the BRO expresses its intents in writing for its willingness/unwillingness to take up immediate steps to upgrade the road and construct the bridge or if the BRO is not willing to undertake the project, the Nagaland state government may kindly be intimated so as to initiate discussions by the Nagaland State Planning Board for taking over of the NH-150 by the state Public Works Department,” the letter said.
