[ Chukhu Indu ]
ITANAGAR, 25 Nov: Officials of the PWD, the PHED, the power department and the forest department, along with officials of the ICR administration on Friday inspected the 20-km Jote-Gohpur road.
The joint team was apprised of the issues pertaining to the road’s construction – including the need to shift the main pipeline in Bath and Moin villages – by the Doimukh PWD EE, the deputy chief wildlife warden, and the PHED JE.
Once completed, the Itanagar-Jote road will be the first state highway.
Earlier, Doimukh Power Division Executive Engineer Byabang Tugu gave assurance that the road would be completed by March next year, if the weather holds.
It is learnt that most of the utilities on the road are yet to be shifted.
A resident of Sangdupota village informed that, in October 2019, during a visit to the area, Chief Minister Pema Khandu had assured to develop the road from Sangdupota to Gohpur. “However, later it was reduced down from NIT Jote. If built, the distance from Sangdupota to Gohpur will be 27 kilometres,” the resident said.
The locals also said that they waited for the detailed project report for a long time, “only to hear a ‘no’ in response.”
It is also understood that public hearing with regard to the road was cancelled.
Commuters, including students, faculty members and staffers of the educational institutes in Jote, such as the Jarbom Gamlin Law College, the National Institute of Technology, and the Film & Television Institute, have to deal with bumpy rides to and from the institutes, owing to the road’s condition.
The locals have also alleged that the work on the road is substandard and misaligned.
Ngurang Changriang, the director of the project, informed that, under his jurisdiction, only roads are allowed to be constructed, and bridges are not included.
“Doing so is causing a lot of inconvenience for us. I, being a local from the area, am trying my level best to make a quality road, but every other day I get complaints from local commuters. Since the bridges are not in the provision under Phase 1, it is itself causing a hurdle,” he said.
Changriang informed that the bridges will be constructed in Phase 2.
He also informed that “several letters have been written to the department concerned for enlargement of the culverts, but no heed was paid.”
The project from Sangdupota to Itanagar had earlier been estimated to cost Rs 200 crore. However, it was reduced to Rs 98 crore and the DPR was changed due to fund constraint.
The project has been taken up by the Doimukh PWD division, and Gujarat-based agency, Bhimji Pvt Ltd, is the contractor.
