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Engineers panel to assess quality of work being done by NHAI in Himachal: Sukhu
CM Sukhu also criticised the contractors hired by the NHAI accusing them for unscientific road cutting practices along with calling for a review
Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday said that an engineers’ committee would be constituted in state to assess the quality of work being done by the contractor companies of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). The committee will also hold consultations.
CM Sukhu also criticised the contractors hired by the NHAI accusing them for unscientific road cutting practices along with calling for a review.
“For 60 to 70 years, we’ve been building roads in Himachal using traditional knowledge. Large companies were often awarded contracts based solely on their machinery, but they lack understanding of the fragile hill terrain of the state. As a result they conduct hill-cutting as per their convenience, which causes damage,” Sukhu said on Friday.
“I request NHAI not to award such contracts to those who don’t know the terrain. Give contracts to locals who understand how to stabilise the slopes after cutting. This unscientific cutting is causing large-scale damage,” he further added.
On Monday, a five-storeyed building had collapsed in Shimla’s Bhattakufer area. The locals had pinned the blame on 4-laning work being carried out by the NHAI. The issue had snowballed into a political storm after the panchayati raj minister Anirudh Singh was booked for assaulting and misbehaving the NHAI officials.
A case against NHAI was registered on the complaint of building owner Ranjana on Tuesday. A case against NHAI officials, technical manager Achal Jindal and Yogesh, a site engineer, was also registered on the complaint by ward committee member of Chamiyana panchayat residents of Sanjay Van in Bhattakufer.
Protest held against NHAI contractors
Hundreds of protestors gathered outside the deputy commissioner’s office in Shimla on Friday and demanded legal action against construction companies such as Gawar, Bharat, and Singla, operating under the NHAI.
The protest was jointly organised by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) and the Himachal Kisan Sabha.
A delegation led by Kuldeep Singh Tanwar (president, Himachal Kisan Sabha), Vijender Mehra (president, CITU Himachal), Sanjay Chauhan (co-convenor, Samyukt Kisan Morcha), Ranjana Verma (owner of the collapsed building), and other affected people met the deputy commissioner and submitted a memorandum seeking urgent interim relief and rehabilitation for the affected.
Alleging “massive irregularities and violations of labour and environmental laws”, the protestors demanded the blacklisting of Gawar Company and the registration of FIRs against its officials.
Protestors announced a series of actions, including a mass convention, at Kali Bari Hall, Shimla, on July 7 to mobilise public opinion against NHAI and contractor companies and a nationwide strike on July 9. They also said that they will intensify the protests if demands remained unmet.
Kuldeep Singh Tanwar, president, Himachal Kisan Sabha said, “A powerful nexus between politicians, construction companies, and the bureaucracy is plundering Himachal’s resources and endangering its people. This collusion is starkly visible in the ongoing four-lane highway construction by Gawar, Bharat, and Singla companies, which are operating with impunity in areas like Shimla and Dharampur in Mandi district.”
CITU and Kisan Sabha demanded that every house either collapsed or endangered due to highway construction be compensated with ₹5 crore, and that a public audit of agreements between NHAI and these companies be conducted. They demanded strict implementation of labour laws in all ongoing highway projects, 80% employment to local residents and immediately halt illegal mining, dumping, and unscientific construction practices.
