Development interrupted: Villagers lament incomplete roads in Meluri

•    Road project awarded in 2017 yet to be paved 
•    Field inspection by HC-appointed committee 

Veroli Zhimo
Lephori | November 15

Jubilees are usually a joyous time, but for the people of Lephori, it is also bundled with a sense of apprehension, especially for Chukhapa Katiri, the Chairperson of the Lephori Baptist Church Platinum Jubilee Planning Committee.

His mixed feelings are understandable - the road leading to village becomes terribly dusty during the dry seasons and impassable when wet.

So, when the village of 374 households celebrates the Baptist Church’s Platinum Jubilee from December 14-15, Katiri worries that many of the community members, who reside elsewhere, and guests would be deterred from attending the event.

To get to Lephori village, one has to take a right turn at the T01 junction, popularly known as Akash Bridge, spanning the Tizu River along National Highway 202, and drive uphill for about 20 kilometres.

The 20-km road was part of the road project which, in November 21, 2017, was awarded to M/S Nagaland Steel Engineering Works, for Rs 26,72,77,000 by the Nagaland Public Works Department (Roads & Bridges).

 Overall, the 38-km Water Bound Macadam (WBM) road project which ends at Kanjang village was to be completed by May 2019 with a five-year maintenance contract coming into effect after completion of construction works.

But even today, only about 7-8 km of the stretch has been black topped and the rest of the road remains as it was, despite the full amount for the project being reportedly withdrawn from the State Treasury.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is being heard at the Kohima Bench of the Gauhati High Court, with regard to this road project and two others— Lephori to Molhe Post (130 Pillar) and Akhen to Star Lake.

PIL, HC’s intervention 
As per Court records, the PIL was filed on November 10, 2020 on grounds that the contractor for the three road projects which are a part of one stretch of road, had ‘fraudulently’ withdrawn money without completing the works, and in violation of the terms and conditions of the work orders.

All three works— Lephori to Molhe Post (26 km), Akhen to Star Lake (15 Km) and T0-1 to Kanjang (38 km) — were awarded to Rhino Construction Agency and Nagaland Steel Engineering Works, which are said to be registered to one individual contractor.

In the first project between Lephori to Molhe Post, the stretch of road between Lephori to Kanjang also overlaps with the T0-1 to Kanjang project while the distance between Lephori to Akhen is covered under an existing PMGSY road. (See map)

Interestingly, while a ‘Completion Certificate’ for this project was issued by the Executive Engineer, PWD (R&B) Phek Division on January 2014, Molhe Post remains inaccessible by road till date. Moreover, in addition to the Rs 30 crore that was initially sanctioned for the project, additional funds of Rs 15 crore each were allotted on March 6, 2017 and October 4, 2018.

For the Akhen to Star Lake project, a total of Rs 5,69,27,000 was sanctioned in April 2011 for works that include earthwork, construction of unlined surface drain and eight Hume pipes. However, Star Lake also remains inaccessible by road. 

As for the T0-1 to Kanjang project which was sanctioned on November 21, 2017, only about 7-8 kms have been blacktopped so far.

This was corroborated when a team of journalists visited the area on November 10 and 11.

In terms of the PIL, the Court, in its order on November 1, constituted a committee to inspect the progress of the three road projects.

The Court, among others, tasked the committee to go to the spot, meet the village councils of the villages settled along the roads or “whoever they feel would be able to give the correct information,” and submit a report on or before the next date of hearing scheduled on November 16.

The committee comprising Advocates Joshua Sheqi, Moa Jamir, L Likhase, and Arenlong began their inspection on November 10, accompanied by department officials as directed.

On November 11, the contractor was also present at Akhen village as the Court-appointed committee headed out to inspect the Akhen to Star Lake stretch.

Earlier in May 2022, the Rising People’s Party, citing RTI revelations filed a police complaint against the NPWD and the Contractor alleging fraudulent withdrawal of public funds.

Broken dreams
Meanwhile, the Jubilee event, as big a celebration as it may be, is not the only concern of the villagers along the stretch. 

During an interaction with The Morung Express, Village Council Chairperson (VCC) of Lephori, Zarpa Katiri underscored that the lack of proper roads has proven to be a massive hindrance to the wellbeing of the community. 

“Owing to the bad road condition, bringing essential commodities to the village is a huge problem because the commercial transport vehicle hiring costs are extremely high. And even during medical emergencies, villagers often have to hire vehicles at high rates in order to get to the nearest hospital which is about 36 km away in Meluri town,” the VCC explained.

If the roads are in good condition, the distance can be covered in less than an hour; however, at present, it takes at least two hours to cover the same distance, he said.

About 18 km upward from Lephori lies Kanjang village, the end point of the T01 to Kanjang road project. Here too, the VCC Jongjan Singson underscored the plight of villagers in the absence of good roads.

Being further away than Lephori, the people in Kanjang often have to pay between Rs 8000 to Rs 10,000 to hire a vehicle just to bring basic commodities to the village. 

With only a Sub Centre in the village, people in need of emergency medical services and childbirth services are the most affected as they have to travel all the way to Meluri or Phek town in bad road conditions. This situation has often resulted in loss of lives, he maintained.

Singson further stated that he was unaware about the T01-Kanjang road project till he took charge as VCC in 2021. 

And even though the project was sanctioned in 2017, no works have been taken up so far, except for the 7-8 km stretch that was blacktopped after the PIL was filed in the Court, and the ‘hurried’ jungle clearing when a Court appointed inspection team would be visiting, he claimed.

At least even if 50 percent of the work was done, it would have helped the people a lot, he opined.

Further up is Akhen, a small village with about 30-40 households whose populace faces similar problems. 

Afi Pojar, a resident said that the village has one Government Primary School but the teachers are reluctant to stay in the village owing to the bad road conditions. As a result, Afi expressed with worry that she would have to move to Meluri once her two-year-old child attains school-going age.

Another Akhen resident Sabita, meanwhile, spends most of her time in Meluri where her children are attending school.
Both women also shared that the region is rich in horticulture products such as avocados, bananas, and oranges, among others. However, because of poor road connectivity, most of it are wasted because they cannot afford to hire vehicles and transport elsewhere.

This economic loss was also highlighted by the VCCs of Lephori and Kanjang. According to them, trade relations between the people of Myanmar and the Kamaleah region (Kanjang, Matikhrü, Lephori, and Akhen) have always been conducted via the Border Pillar 130 on the Indo-Myanmar border.

If the road from Lephori to Molhe Post had actually been constructed, the villagers would not be deprived of economic opportunities, they maintained. 

Likewise, VCC Katiri also pointed out that the Akhen to Star Lake road would have been a major attraction for tourists.

 A confluence of five rivers and surrounded by hills, Star Lake has the potential to become a hotspot because of the scenic beauty and abundant flora and fauna, and by extension, bring about more economic opportunities for the people of the region, he maintained.