By Moa Jamir
The latest breach of road along the Chathe River on the Tsiedukhru range (Pagla Pahar) on September 14, the third major erosion of the NH-29 corridor within a year, can no longer be dismissed as an ‘Act of God.’ It stands as a stark indictment of systemic failure.
While the rains have been intense, with the India Meteorological Department reporting extraordinary departures of 413% and 278% from normal rainfall on September 14 and 15 respectively, close observers would attest that the damage was preventable, or at the very least, its magnitude could have been contained.
After the first breach last September, the Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench (GHCKB), which is hearing a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on the issue, repeatedly directed the authorities — particularly the Nagaland Government and its agencies — to address the vulnerabilities of the stretch. Orders as far back as November 2024 spelt out the urgency of widening the river channel and securing the embankments. Successive hearings reiterated the same instructions: acquire land, shift pipelines, and begin hill-cutting.
Yet progress has remained on paper. The pattern has been depressingly consistent: the Deputy Commissioner conducts verifications, forwards reports to the Commissioner, who cites approvals, disbursements, and “meticulous acquisition.” The NHIDCL prepares estimates. The Court nudges, directs, and even suggests invoking urgency provisions under the Nagaland Land (Requisition and Acquisition) Act of 1965. But by mid-2025, nothing substantive had been executed on-site.
By July this year, the Court’s language had turned sharply critical, noting the State’s “casual approach” and directing the Chief Secretary to intervene. The Amicus Curiae openly wondered whether the Government was “sleeping” on the issue.
In response to coverage of the proceedings, the Commissioner of Nagaland countered the allegations, maintaining that the land acquisition process had been “meticulously” carried out as per norms, citing a timeline of surveys and approvals since December 2024. He stressed that clearances for hill cutting had been issued and urged the public to avoid speculation. Yet, by the time of the September 14 breach, work had still not begun.
The erosion is therefore not an accident of nature but the direct outcome of bureaucratic inertia. That it occurred despite escalating judicial cautions and recognition of a clear and present danger speaks volumes about the governance deficit.
Nor is Pagla Pahar an isolated trouble spot. The NH-29 four-lane project has been plagued by recurring rockfalls, mudslides, and sinking zones. In November 2024, a landslide near Pherima cut off one portion of the highway. At Chainage-164, a sinking stretch continues to demand additional work orders. In Chümoukedima and Kohima segments, rockfall-prone slopes require constant barricading and slope management. Together, these incidents portray a highway perpetually under repair, where temporary fixes rarely last until the next monsoon.
The consequences go far beyond inconvenience. NH-29 is Nagaland’s lifeline, connecting Dimapur, Kohima, and the rest of the State. Repeated breaches and closures disrupt movement, inflate costs, and erode public confidence. More worryingly, delays risk compounding future disasters and the State cannot afford procedural ping-pong between departments when lives and livelihoods are at stake.
The malaise runs deep: project execution has been reduced to affidavits, clarifications, and shifting responsibility. Such rituals create the illusion of progress but fail to prevent disaster. Governance requires timely coordination, not endless correspondence. It demands foresight, not merely reaction to judicial rebuke.
The road ahead demands more than patchwork. The Government must resolve inter-departmental blockages, enforce accountability, and empower executing agencies with clear timelines. The Court, which has shouldered the role of monitor, cannot substitute for administrative responsibility. Unless the State owns this challenge, Nagaland will remain trapped in a cycle of disaster, affidavit, and erosion.
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