Two people were confirmed dead after their bodies were found at the site of a landslide in Rngain, Pynursla, police said.
East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police Sylvester Nongtnger said rescuers have found two victims at the site of the landslide, along the Shillong-Dawki road.
Two teams of the State Disaster Response Force had conducted the search. He said both the bodies were spotted this evening even as efforts are on to retrieve the bodies.
The SP said both are residents of Wahlyngkhat and declined to give out their names.
However sources said one of the victims is the rangbah shnong of Wahlyngkhat, Seiborlang Khongsngi.
A portion of a hilltop caved in and fell at Rngain last evening at around 7. The two were crushed under huge boulders.
According to residents of the area, the stretch is prone to landslides and over the past two years commuters have expressed fear of travelling through the road. They said that besides the ongoing road construction, boulder mining along it becomes more dangerous.
Last year, a massive landslide occurred on the stretch prompting social activist Agnes Kharshiing to demand for an inquiry into the status of sand mining/quarry in the area.
Kharshiing said frequent sand mining/quarry activities and blasting of huge rocks in Rngain had led to frequent landslides posing threat to the lives and property of commuters. She had also sought for an inquiry into sand mining/quarry and rock blasting activities in the area.
In December 2021, Kharshiing has lodged a FIR after a video of boulders were seen rolling from a hilltop at Rngain.
