UKHRUL, May 26: Gross irregularities in road construction from NH-150 to Khangkhui Khunou village under PMGSY in Ukhrul district continue to stir things up as work agency attempted to bluff their way through its completion inspection with the connivance of the concerned department.
Supposed to provide a lifeline to connect five contiguous villages of Khangkhui Khunou, Khangkhui Khullen, Choithar, Nungshong Khunou and Nungshong Khullen in Veikhang area, the said road project was undertaken under PMGSY Package No. MNO 916/Phase IV since 2008. However, following arbitrary shifting of road alignment by the agency and concerned department, the public of the area raised serious objection and the work subsequently halted.
Photo: IFP
Alleging that the agency is working hand in glove with the concerned departmental staff to extract the whole amount without completing the work, the Veikhang Development Front (VDF) has today said that contractor SK Redeem has already drawn Rs. 1,64,21,883 out of tender amount Rs. 3,45,94,587.48 by forging a completion report whereas in reality, the work has been abandoned with barely 60 per cent complete since September 26, 2012.
VDF, President A Hongva further stated that an interim court order dated 8 May 2014 calling a halt to construction of the work is in force which is an extension of the previous one, hence the work has been left incomplete.
“Even then the agency has in the meantime, fraudulently drawn another Rs. 10 lakhs till May 2014 apart from proposing another 1.10 crore,” he alleged.
Decrying alleged irresponsibility of EE, MSRRDA Somi, Hongva said that Somi had maintained that BMS and PMGSY are separate projects and that the stretch from Choithar to Khangkhui Khunnou cannot be undertaken under PMGSY as it was earlier started under BMS and the two roads cannot merge but roads constructed under the two projects practically joined after passing Khangkhui Khullen.
Moreover, as per the scheme guidelines, there should be 12 retaining walls, 12 breasting walls, 1 slab culvert 1 bridge and 44 ring culverts, but so far only 2/3 ring culverts have been laid and that too in unrelated portions while stream areas are left plunging. Even the width of the road is only 4.5 mtrs, far below prescribed norms of 7 mtrs, Hongva rued.
Interstingly, an official team of MSRRDA led by SE Ninglum has today inspected the work site whose completion report was reportedly submitted by the agency in collusion with the concerned departmental officials recently.
Deplorable and unnavigable surface of the so called completed road greeted the official team as the team’s vehicle got stuck on the road swivelling its wheels in the muddy ground for nearly an hour.
More surprise awaited the team as they proceeded since the road ended abruptly toward reaching the Chihui river, compelling them to take the old britisher road.