Shillong, June 23: The proposed four-laning of the Umiam-Shillong road has been scrapped by the state government due to high costs associated with the construction of an elevated road. Instead, a double-lane road will be constructed but with a wider width of 10 meters, including the pavement.

Informing this on Monday, Deputy Chief Minister in-charge PWD (Roads) Prestone Tynsong said that the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) had begun surveying and preparing groundwork for the four-laning project. However, during a meeting with the NHIDCL managing director in Delhi, it was informed that preliminary reports have indicated that the cost of constructing an elevated road was prohibitively expensive.

“(Accordingly) I convened a meeting with officials of the department, (and) we have decided to abandon that idea of converting the Umiam to Shillong road into four lane,” he informed.

The deputy chief minister said that the new plan involves retaining the existing double-lane road but widening it to 10 meters, including the pavement. “But this time we are going to stick to the double lane (of the) existing road but it should be 10 meters width including the pavement,” he added.

According to him, this decision aims to balance the need for improved infrastructure with budgetary constraints.

The project aims to enhance connectivity and facilitate smoother travel between Umiam and Shillong.

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