Progress on edge: Landslides turn dream road into nightmare

The ambitious Attari-Leh NH-3 project, which was expected to boost connectivity and development, has turned into a nightmare for hundreds of residents in Sarkaghat and Dharampur regions of Mandi district in Himachal Pradesh. Unscientific hill cutting and unchecked construction practices have triggered massive landslides, leaving several villages on the brink of collapse.

Inhabitants of villages like Riyur, Banal, Bhanerdi, Saraskan, Cholthara and others are living in fear, especially after continuous heavy rains worsened the situation. Over 100 families are reportedly spending sleepless nights as their homes and agricultural lands face imminent threat. Many have already fled to makeshift shelters, unable to risk staying under roofs that might cave in any moment.

Vijay Kumar, a resident of Riyur, lost his house in 2023 due to landslides triggered by construction activity. “I received just Rs 90,000 in compensation. I built another house with great difficulty, and now that too is under threat due to fresh landslides,” he said with visible despair.

The project, executed under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), has been sublet to various private construction companies. Locals accuse these firms of carrying out dangerous vertical hill cutting, some up to 80 feet high, with only minimal retaining walls of 3 metres, utterly inadequate to prevent soil erosion or landslides.

Suneel Kumar, vice-pradhan of Saraskan gram panchayat, warned of a looming catastrophe. “Eight houses have already been damaged in our panchayat. What’s more alarming is the ongoing deep cutting without scientific planning. It’s a death trap,” he said. “The retaining structures are laughably small compared to the scale of the cutting. This negligence could wipe out entire villages.”

Gyan Chand, another resident, lost his agricultural land and fruit-bearing trees. “This land was our livelihood. Now it’s gone. MoRTH and the contractors have not even acknowledged our suffering,” he said. Others echoed similar sentiments, blaming the government agency and its contractors for ignoring repeated warnings and protests from locals.

Former Zila Parishad member Bhupender Singh said: “Illegal dumping, reckless blasting and vertical excavation have devastated gram panchayats like Saron, Cholthara, Parshada Havani, Sajaopipulu and others. The forest cover is damaged, water sources are drying up, and yet, the administration remains indifferent.”

Despite growing anger and despair in the region, there is no response from key officials. Attempts to contact Project Director of MoRTH Romi Dhankhar and Sarkaghat SDM Swati Dogra went unanswered.

Former Union Minister and Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur and BJP leader from Dharampur Rajat Thakur also raised the issue of public with the authorities concerned. However, these days construction activities are stopped on this highway due to prohibition imposed by the district administration.

Villagers are demanding immediate intervention, compensation and scientific mitigation efforts to prevent further disaster. As rains continue, the region remains on edge — caught between nature’s fury and official apathy.

Unless prompt action is taken, the human and ecological cost of this highway could become irreparable.