Dimapur: The Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) has urged the Centre and the Nagaland government to remove the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) as the implementing agency for the Dimapur-Kohima stretch of NH-29, citing alleged poor workmanship, prolonged delays and inadequate maintenance.
In a release dated September 13, the federation called for the project to be handed over either to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) or the state Public Works Department (National Highways).
The NSF said commuters face serious safety risks along the highway, particularly during the monsoon and at night. It alleged that several people have lost their lives while others suffered serious injuries in rockfalls and other road-related incidents, which it attributed to inadequate safety measures and slope stabilisation.
Highlighting the Medziphema-Peducha stretch, the federation pointed to damaged road surfaces, inadequate drainage, deteriorating roadside structures, poor slope protection and delays in restoration work, which it said continue to endanger commuters.
The federation also demanded an immediate inquiry by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways into the execution and maintenance of the Dimapur-Kohima project. It specifically questioned the issuance of a completion certificate for Package-II despite what it described as incomplete works and persistent deficiencies.
The NSF questioned how the package could have been certified as complete when significant components were allegedly still pending and problems continued to affect the highway.
It further accused NHIDCL of failing to carry out adequate repairs and rectify defects during the project’s five-year defect liability period. The federation cited collapsing side walls, inadequate drainage, poor slope protection, damaged road surfaces and shortcomings in road-safety infrastructure.
The NSF also criticised what it described as inadequate monsoon preparedness, alleging shortcomings in preventive drainage maintenance, slope stabilisation, erosion control, retaining structures and emergency-response arrangements.
Beyond the Dimapur-Kohima highway, the federation said complaints concerning workmanship, delays and maintenance had also surfaced in several other NHIDCL projects across Nagaland. These include the Kohima Bypass, Kohima-Mao Road, Dimapur Bypass, slope protection works along NH-29, Akash Bridge-Jessami Road (NH-202), and the Peren-Dimapur section of NH-129A under Packages II and III.