A stretch of the old national highway along Langthil town and Samcholing Khamaed in Draagteng gewog, Trongsa is desperately calling for maintenance. The commuters who are mostly the residents of Tangsibji-Kela and Samcholing Khamaed of Draagteng gewog are frustrated by the road’s poor condition. The people claimed that despite reporting the road’s condition to concerned local leaders, nothing has changed so far.
Almost 10 kilometers of the stretch between the Mangdechhu hydropower plant and Rafey is severely damaged. The road can be used only by heavy vehicles. The residents have to park their vehicles along the road and walk almost 15 kilometers to reach Kela village.
“The road is so bad that even taxis do not want to come here now,” said Tandin Tshewang, a resident of Rafey in Draagteng Gewog.
“With a bypass constructed above the village, the road here has become neglected. Let alone light vehicles, it is difficult even for the heavy vehicles to ply on this road,” said Nado, a resident of Samcholing Khamaed in Draagteng Gewog.
The issue was discussed extensively during the recent Dzongkhag Tshogdu. The roads department said heavy vehicles transporting stones and sand to Nikachhu hydropower plant at Thumangdra from a quarry at Yurmong is damaging the road.
Ugyen Dorji, the Chief Engineer with the roads department in Trongsa said currently, only heavy vehicles transporting sand and stones from Yurmung quarry use the road. “Other vehicles travelling to Gelegphu and Tingtibi use the Rafey-Khoshala bypass.”
Tangsibji Gup Gyembo Dorji said it would help the people of the two chiwogs if the Nikachhu project could provide budgetary support to maintain the road. “There is no way we can demand to stop vehicles transporting materials to the Nikachhu hydropower project. It is a government project. But we can ask them to help us maintain the road by providing budgetary support.”
The Chief Engineer said that roads department is allocating 10 million ngultrum to maintain the road. The works will begin within this month.
Meanwhile, according to Yurmung quarry, the firm has deployed men and machines wherever and whenever necessary to level the potholes. But they added that they are not obligated for such service as per the contract agreement signed with the 118 MW Nikachhu hydropower project.
The quarry will continue its business until the Nikachhu project completes in 2022. And with the road maintenance works expected to take at least six months, the commuters will have to wait until then for a better road.
Passa, Trongsa
Edited by Phub Gyem
