From Our Correspondent
JOWAI, Sep 25: A venue for protest turned comical on Monday as protesters resorted to jeering on the National Highway-6, the deplorable condition of which prompted the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) East Jantia Hills District Unit to organise a road blockade to draw the attention of the authorities which have been dubbed to be apathetic.
The protest by KSU was joined by several other pressure groups such as JSU, HITO, UHM, HNYF, East Jaintia Trucks Owner and Driver Association, besides locals.
The protesters were seen mimicking the action of fishing in a water-filled pothole on a portion of the highway near the site of agitation. In another ridiculous gesture of protest, people were seen planting paddy on the road.
The protest lasted from 10 am to 4 pm.
The horrible condition of the road has been raised by several groups and locals for some time now. The inaction by NHAI has prompted the people to resort to more stringent measures to see that the road is repaired.
The NH-6 is an important stretch of road as it connects several states of the Northeastern region such as Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.
The KSU has urged all citizens to cooperate with the agitation by restricting the plying of vehicles between 7 pm and 5 am. This, it said, would continue for a week or so.
