By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 22: Concerned over growing safety risks along the newly constructed Shillong-Dawki road, the East Khasi Hills district administration has decided to remove hawkers and unauthorised parking areas encroaching on the Right of Way (RoW) of the highway stretch.
The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) RM Kurbah on May 15 after the NHIDCL project authorities flagged repeated encroachments at several points along the road.
Officials said hawkers have occupied portions of the RoW from Rilbong Point to 3½ Mile Upper Shillong and at 7th Mile, Upper Shillong, while concerns were also raised over vehicles being parked within the highway corridor at Rilbong Point.
According to an official statement issued on Friday, the encroachments were found to be hazardous for commuters, vendors and traffic movement along the busy corridor, necessitating immediate intervention by the authorities.
To facilitate the eviction drive, NHIDCL has been directed to clearly demarcate the acquired RoW, while the office of the Superintendent of Police (Traffic) will install barricades and deploy personnel to prevent parking within restricted areas.
The administration further decided that officials of the Police department, PWD (Roads) NH Division Shillong and NHIDCL would jointly conduct the eviction drive after carrying out awareness exercises among those occupying the area.
Authorities emphasised that the Shillong-Dawki road is an important route and warned that continued encroachment on the RoW could lead to traffic disruptions and increased danger to road users.
