Trucks flout rule, put Dawki Bridge in danger

SHILLONG: There are allegations that trucks transporting boulders to Bangladesh via the Dawki Land Custom Station (LCS) in West Jaintia Hills exceed the 9-metric tonne (MT) limit posing a danger to the Dawki Bridge.
Locals here alleged that the home guards stationed at LCS are “voiceless”. “If the guards allow trucks to carry boulders beyond the said limit, it will inevitably weaken the bridge,” they said.
Notwithstanding the poor rural infrastructure and a single lane narrow road, trucks ply during the day leading to traffic snarls and creating problems for tourists and locals alike.
The locals have urged truck owners, the State Government, the PWD Department and police to address the problem at Dawki Bridge.
The seven-year-old proposal to start an alternate bridge at Dawki is still hanging fire.
The foundation stone for the new Shillong-Dawki Bridge on River Umngot was laid on November 13, 2009, by the then Congress-led UPA Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways, Mahadev Singh Khandela.
The suspension bridge built on the Umngot was constructed in 1932.