GUWAHATI: Residents of villages near the Assam-Meghalaya border have alleged sub-standard construction of a newly-built road under Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) connecting Rani near Lower Lampi (Langpih) to Makoibari.
The allegation comes in the wake of visible patches of grass and vegetation sprouting from underneath the black-topped 1.96km road.
The construction of the road assigned to Assam Public Works Department was completed in January this year, barely 12 months after work started. The cost of the project is pegged at approximately Rs 1.18crore.
“We suspect something amiss in the project as cracking and crumbling of the road with vegetation sprouting from underneath only substantiates our doubts. The fact that the engineer had stopped work mid-way but again allowed the process to resume abruptly also raises suspicion on the honesty of the authorities engaged in the project,” Unnati Chetri, a resident of Lower Lampi, told The Shillong Times on Monday.
The road assumes significance for regular commuters from interior villages to Lower Lampi, which is a market place and also has schools and other establishments in the vicinity.
“This is a crucial road for transportation of farm items from the interior areas to the market. As it is a stretch from Meghalaya has been rendered inaccessible while the 30-km dilapidated stretch from Lampi from Boko has been in a shambles for decades now. Now this PMGSY road is only bound to get worse, come the monsoon season,” another resident said.
When informed about the allegation, Kamrup (Rural) deputy commissioner, Kamal Kumar Baishya said, “I would request the residents to submit a written complaint in this regard on the basis of which we can start an inquiry.”