SHILLONG: Cherrapunjee which is often considered by many as nature’s paradise has now become a nightmare for people visiting the place.
The poor and deplorable road conditions is much against the name and fame which it has earned for itself in recent years.
Few years back, a visit to Sohra would have given the feeling of being over the moon to every tourist but now the poor road in the picturesque place is acting as a dampener for people who visit.
Once the road from Shillong to Cherrapunjee was also considered by many bike riders as riders heaven but now it is deterring many riders from riding there.
It is seen that potholes have started appearing in the stretch starting from Umtyngar till Cherrapunjee and bumps are quite common here. Cracked roads has become a trademark in this stretch.
A tourist observed, “ The road and the place does not sync. While the place is absolutely beautiful, the roads here are equally bad.”
Not only the main road, roads to different tourist spots like Thangkarang Park and Nohkalikai Falls are equally bad and it certainly gives a bad impression to the tourists visiting the place.
When contacted, an official from PWD in Sohra said that the state government have proposed to strengthen the stretch from Umtyngngar till Cherrapunjee under World Bank programme and the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the project is under process.
“ The project is supposed to be taken up under PHASE II but we are trying to bring it under Phase I,” the official said.
The department intends to re-strengthen the road with pavements besides replacing the old culverts.
As far as the poor road condition on the way to Thangkarang Park is concern, the official informed that the contractor is currently working on the project from Mawsmai to the park junction and the work will be completed in March next year.
