Shillai: Constructed 24 years ago, road awaits Forest Dept nod for repair

Pankaj Sharma

Nahan, February 11

The Rast-Manal-Chunoti road in the Ronhat area of the Shillai Assembly constituency has not been upgraded or repaired for decades in the absence of forest clearance. The road is located in the home constituency of Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan. Thousands of residents of 15 villages and five gram panchayats have been waiting for nearly two decades for the road to be repaired. “Despite the loss of many innocent lives in road mishaps, the road has not been metalled even once since it was construction,” said Ramesh, a local resident.

All formalities done, says PWD official

After completing all formalities for green clearance, the file has been sent to the Forest Department. However, the file has been sent back multiple times due to petty queries like changing its cover and binding. — VK Aggarwal, Xen, sillai division

Successive governments have neglected the road, which falls in Ronhat subdivision of Shillai in the Nahan circle. The road was constructed in 2000 but it remains in a deplorable condition, posing a serious risk to the commuters. Despite numerous requests made to the authorities concerned, the forest clearance has not been granted for the road repair.

“The 15-km road, initially constructed to improve connectivity, now stands as a testament to governmental and bureaucratic apathy. The condition of the road raises questions about the efficiency of administrative machinery in addressing long-standing issues,” lamented Ravinder Thakur, another resident.

Residents and commuters have been left to grapple with the consequences of government inaction. “The pending forest clearance for the past two decades is a critical roadblock that demands immediate attention of the authorities. Until the necessary steps are taken, the road will continue to reflect the government’s negligence in undertaking progress and development of this area,” said Ranjeet, another resident.

VK Aggarwal, Executive Engineer of PWD division, Shillai, said that after completing all formalities for forest clearance several times, the file was sent to the Forest Department. However, the file had been sent back many a time due to petty queries like changing its cover and file vending.

He added that due to the allegedly sluggish attitude of the Forest Department, the work of maintenance of the road had not been started even after two decades, even as all required formalities under the Forest Conservation Act had been completed. The files are lying in the office of the Forest Department, he said.

Shri Renuka ji Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Parminder Singh said the matter was pending at the level of the user agency of the Public Works Department, Shillai. On October 10, 2023, the nodal office of the Forest Clearance Act in Himachal had raised a few objections and returned the file to the user agency for rectification. No response had been given by them yet, he added.

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