M’laya govt inaction may negate high-speed corridor: NHIDCL

SHILLONG, Oct 6: The inability of the authorities to acquire land may nip Meghalaya’s high-speed corridor project in the bud.
The NHIDCL plans to construct the high-speed corridor from Umiam to Panchgram in Assam’s Cachar district for faster transportation of goods besides providing a hassle-free travelling experience to the passengers.
However, landowners from different villages are against the corridor’s alignment for one reason or another.
In the Ri-Bhoi district, some landowners recently said the alignment will affect the water source in their village.
NHIDCL sources said it is usually the influential people who try to change the alignment of a road project and the current situation indicates the high-speed corridor may be a non-starter.
Pointing out that the alignment will be mostly straight, the sources said that the objective of the corridor will be defeated if they follow the bends of the Shillong Bypass. “The new alignment will be 90% Greenfield and the sharp curves will be straightened,” one of the sources said.
“How can we build a road over a water source? If we do, the water source will damage the road. If there is a water source, we will either build a culvert or a bridge,” he said, adding that road realignment projects in the state are often opposed because of the perceived threat to water sources.
He also said that in some cases, the village authorities have been creating hurdles despite giving the possession of land on paper. At Diengpasoh, for instance, a tin shed on an approved alignment was passed off as a market that would be expanded.
“We have now been asked to go for another alignment from a valley. The way things are moving, we don’t think the high-speed corridor will be a reality in Meghalaya,” he said.
The 160 km high-speed corridor is planned from Umiam along the Shillong Bypass to Mawryngkneng and Ratacherra before terminating at Panchgram. The project is expected to cost at least Rs 20,000 crore.
People travelling between Umiam and Silchar face problems due to frequent landslides during the rainy season and traffic snarls.