By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The slow pace of the construction work for the Umiam-Jorabat four-lane project has got even the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) concerned.
An official of the NHAI on Sunday said, “Things are certainly not improving and we are concerned about it.”
Three years into the project, a major portion of the work still remains incomplete raising questions over its completion by early next year.
Not satisfied with the functioning of the implementing agencies, the NHAI, however, is hoping that with the end of the rainy season the work would catch pace from September-October. The implementing agencies, meanwhile, have also assured of speeding up the work thereon.
Proposal for land acquisition in Ri Bhoi
The only positive development to have taken place in the meantime is the Ri Bhoi district administration’s success in spotting additional land for the project. The NHAI official on condition of anonymity informed that, “The authority has received a proposal for acquiring 32 hectares of land required for geometrical improvement of the road.”
The proposal of land acquisition has been sent to the NHAI headquarters waiting sanction “The compensation amount for the land acquisition would be over Rs 20 crore,” the official said. The NHAI is also waiting for the approval of the new alignment along the proposed Umsning Bypass which is an important segment of the mega project. “It is expected that the land for Umsning Bypasss would be acquired in September-October,” the official said.