SHILLONG:
The process of unmasking the real culprits behind the Rngain landslide that led to the death of two persons on April 14 is shrouded in mystery and confusion as there seems to be constant pressure to put the entire blame on ARSS Infrastructure Projects Ltd, the company working on the stretch of National Highway 40 that passes through the area.
Days after the accident, the ARSS Infrastructure Projects Ltd had reportedly expressed its willingness to withdraw from the Rs 210-crore Shillong-Dawki Road project under Package II, but sources said that in the company was actually compelled to quit, a move which many viewed as a cover-up tactic of the government.
A source in the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. (NHIDCL) informed that the state government had asked it to terminate the contract with ARSS, soon after the Rngain mishap.
The ARSS Infrastructure Projects Ltd won the bid to implement Package II of the Shillong-Dawki Road Project at Rs 210 crore. This package entails improvement or widening to two lane with paved shoulder on a 26-km stretch of road, which includes the landslide-hit portion, till Pynursla.
According to the NHIDCL source, the government was unhappy with the work being carried out by ARSS and asked NHIDCL to terminate the contract with them following the April 14 landslide.
When asked if the state government had the authority to demand termination of the contract despite the project having already been handed over to NHIDCL, the source said that the government wanted it because ARSS had failed to fulfill all obligations and norms.
“NHIDCL handed over the project to ARSS last year but during the course of the work, the company failed to fulfilL all the obligations and there were other reasons also,” the source said.
The source was, however, unwilling to elaborate on the nature and types of ‘obligations, norms and other reasons’ which the ARSS had apparently failed to meet.
A senior government official, who did not wish to be named, had, on Tuesday, said that the ARSS was likely to withdraw from the project but cited that the reason was unclear. The official said that the NHIDCL had sent a letter to ARSS asking whether it still wanted to continue working on the project, to which the latter replied in the negative.
To a question on whether the ARSS was forced to back out after allegations surfaced that the company was sub-contracting the work to a certain pressure group, the government official said that he was unaware of any such development.
It was alleged that the ARSS either had some kind of an understanding with a certain pressure group or it was working under duress due to constant interference, as the construction work was reportedly sub-contracted to the particular pressure group with no experience thereby putting in danger the lives of citizens plying on this landslide-prone stretch of road near Pynursla.
The question arises: Is the ARSS solely responsible for the accident? Are the NHIDCL, state PWD (NH), Forest department, Mining and Geology department trying to wash their hands of this case?