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TURA: Two Garo organisations have petitioned the North Garo Hills district administration asking it to take immediate steps to stop overloaded coal trucks from plying on the crucial National Highway 62.
The Save NH-62 Mission Committee and the FKJGP have also accused transport officials of turning a blind eye to the violation of the National Green Tribunal regulations for money.
They submitted a memorandum to the DC.
“The permissible limit for a single axle coal truck is only 9 MT but all the trucks plying on NH-62 are carrying more than 20-26 MT resulting in immense damage to the road, which is our lifeline,” said Chengsal Momin of Save NH-62 Mission Committee.
Hundreds of coal trucks are plying everyday from the Nangalbibra coal belt in South Garo Hills towards Assam passing through Rongjeng, Songsak, Dainadubi and Mendipathar towns in the two districts of East and North Garo Hills.
The organisations have alleged that transport officials manning the check gate at Depa Sarangma are collecting money from trucks for the extra load and allowing them to pass through.
“Those manning the check gate are collecting money and releasing the trucks without providing any receipt for the payment. The state exchequer is losing on revenues,” alleged FKJGP president of Rongjeng Arman Marak.
Bothe the Committee and FKJGP showed an RTI document obtained from the Transport Department that allegedly revealed large scale misappropriation in the past by those manning the check gate.
“The RTI document revealed that only a handful of trucks were fined for excess load. The money collected from the trucks without receipts goes into the pockets of individuals,” the organisations alleged.
