Students with placards join the protest organised by Khuzama Students' Care Union against bad roads along the National Highway-2 Khuzama village on March 11. (Photo Credit: KSCU)
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Morung Express News
Kohima | March 11
Over 300 students, joined by local organisations and concerned citizens, today staged a protest along National Highway (NH)-2, demanding immediate repairs to the deteriorating Khuzama road stretch, accusing authorities of prolonged inaction.
The protest, spearheaded by the Khuzama Students' Care Union (KSCU), was joined by village council members, the Khuzama Youth Organization (KYO), Khuzama Women Society, Khuzama Kohima Krotho, and concerned citizens from neighbouring villages.
The students and volunteers held placards protesting the injustices meted out to the community and the public over a long period of time.
Placards carried by students highlighted how the dilapidated road conditions were unfair, causing people to endure unhealthy living conditions and affecting them economically and physically, while calling for urgent attention to the demand for better roads.
Speaking on the occasion, Nunese Sale expressed dismay over how the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDCL) has allegedly taken the public for granted despite many organisations and villages strongly pushing for action and submitting memorandums on several occasions.
The KSCU and KYO have given the NHIDCL two days to bring their machinery and start the work, he informed adding that "the Youth Organization and the students' body will personally monitor the work to ensure that the quality of work is not compromised and is completed within the allotted period."
Without disclosing the details, KSCU President Khriezo Tsükru further informed that the union would submit a memorandum to NHIDCL and pursue the matter relentlessly until the concerned authorities begin and complete the work.
He mentioned that NHIDCL had met the student body the previous day, assuring them that work would begin by the end of the month.
Meanwhile, Sale highlighted that NH29 is one of the oldest NHs in Nagaland and is also part of the Asian Highway, connecting Thailand, Nagaland, and Myanmar.
However, due to NHIDCL's negligence — despite repeated requests by the student community and youth to repair the road — no action has been taken, prompting the villagers to stage the protest, he maintained.
The voices of the students and villagers have been ignored, and the community continues to suffer due to the road's condition. Students are unable to reach their institutions on time, causing some to miss attendance and even exam, he added.
Daily commuters, including office-goers and businessmen, face delays due to the poor road conditions, often hindering their tasks while the dusty and hazardous during the dry season, causes accidents and respiratory issues, he maintained. Transporting the sick and elderly remains a significant challenge
Heavy rains also render it almost impassable, turning a 30-minute drive to Kohima into a four-hour ordeal, he added.
It may be mentioned that this road stretch is part of a suo motu PIL filed taken up by the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench, in 2023.
Several organisations, including the Southern Angami Public Organisation and the Southern Angami Youth Organisation, have submitted memorandums to the government and NHIDCL, urging them to complete, upgrade, or repair the road.
