Wokha, December 5 (MExN): Nagaland Home Minister Y Patton today formally laid the Foundation Stone for a bridge over the Doyang River to connect N Longidang village under Wokha district and Shena Old under Zunheboto District.
Addressing the gathering, Patton expressed hope that the bridge will play a vital role in ushering peace and understanding and more cooperation between the two districts in future. He added that the successful construction of the bridge will not just bridge the gap between the two districts but also have greater economic advantages specifically for Zunheboto district as the commercial and business trade with Merapani via Wokha will be cut short.
Meanwhile, the Home Minister also urged the gathering to propagate and practice clean election. Underscoring that the corruption in election starts from the grassroots level as voters demand money from the candidates, he reasoned that once the candidate was elected, he/she strives to recover the expenses instead of focusing on development.
He called for electing dedicated and visionary leaders who can bring more development for the state and lead the Naga society at large.
Er. Picto Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice also spoke on the occasion and termed it a ‘historic day’ while adding that the bridge was a long awaited dream of the people especially the two villages of N Longidang and Shena Old.
He appealed the neighbouring villagers to cooperate in the construction activities and also urged the department of Road and Bridges and the contractor to expedite the assigned work so that the construction can be completed at the earliest. He also urged the contractor to provide quality work in the construction of the bridge.
Parliamentary Secretary for Housing Er. Levi also addressed the gathering and viewed that the construction of the bridge will usher more unity and sense of brotherhood between the two neighbouring villages.
Contractor Avikhu Zihmomi informed that the project work was funded through Central Work Fund, through Road and Bridges department with an allocated fund of Rs. 14.42 crore and the contract work is taken up by the Hexeat Syndicate.
.JPG)
