In Dima Hasao Work on East-West corridor road project begins

Silchar: The construction of the Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch of the East-West Corridor in Assam’s Dima Hasao district officially began on Wednesday with a bhumi pujan (Earth Worship) ceremony at Jatinga.

North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council (NCHAC) Chief Executive Member Debolal Gorlosa performed the bhumi pujan ceremony in the presence of other dignitaries.
The East-West Corridor to connect Silchar in Barak Valley with Saurashtra in Gujarat was announced by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 10 October 1998. Its foundation stone was laid by then Minister of Surface Transportation B.C. Khanduri and Union Finance Minister Jaswant Singh in 2004.

The 3,300 km long road was to be completed by 2007. The construction of the corridor has been completed in other parts of the country except for two sections – the Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch (in Dima Hasao district) and the other is Harangajao-Balacherra part (in Dima Hasao and Cachar districts).
On Wednesday, a Bhumi Pujan ceremony was organized at Jatinga, about 6 km from Haflong, the headquarters of Dima Hasao district.
Apart from Debolal Gorlosa, other dignitaries including Ranu Langthasa, Chairperson, NCHAC; and Kaushik Patel, Project Director, Dineshchandra R. Aggarwal Infracon Pvt Ltd (Construction Agency, assigned for Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch work) were also present along with other dignitaries.
Expressing his reaction, Debolal Gorlosa said that the deplorable condition of Nirambanglu-Harangajao (about 49 km) stretch has been a major concern for the people of Dima Hasao district and Barak Valley for decades. Gorlosa said construction work on the road was done by several contractors over the past 10 years, but over time the road deteriorated due to geomorphic issues.
“The state government has been in touch with the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari since 2018 regarding Nirmabangalu-Haringajao stretch. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is giving special emphasis to the road work. Minister Nandita Gurlosa’s hill district “The efforts to improve road connectivity also deserve appreciation. The people of both Dima Hasau district and Barak valley will benefit after the completion of the Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch. Tourism in the hill district will also be boosted,” he said. Gorlosa said.
The Chief Executive Member of NCHAC pledged full support to DRA Infraction Private Limited regarding the road project. He also sought the cooperation of the residents of Dima Hasao for proper and smooth completion of the project.
Kaushik Patel, project director of DRA Infracon Pvt Ltd, said he is optimistic that the Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch, which will be a four-lane route, will be completed on time (within three years). “There are some hurdles (geomorphic issues). Hopefully, these will be resolved permanently and the road project will be completed properly,” he said.
Elaborating on the details of the work, Patel said elevated roads would be constructed at 14 different locations on the 49-km Nirimbanglo-Harangajao stretch. The construction will be done without destroying the nature. “We have enough machinery, human resources and technology available. If the weather is good, the project will be wrapped up easily,” said Patel.
It may be noted that the other part of the East-West Corridor – the Harangajao-Balacherra Road – has also been dilapidated for years. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari had announced on 25 December 2020 at a program organized on the occasion of Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s 96th birth anniversary in Silchar that the road work would be completed by March 2022, but it The project is incomplete. till today
BJP MP from Silchar Rajdeep Roy had said several times that the work would be completed by 2023, but it has not happened yet.
Currently, National Highway-6 (Barak Valley-Guwahati road via Meghalaya) is the only properly maintained road from Barak Valley to Guwahati, but the road is diverted due to landslides and mudslides during the monsoon season. Movement is often disrupted. Once completed, the East-West Corridor will be an alternate route from the valley to the state capital.