Truckers and transporters in the State have asked Chief Minister Conrad Sangma to take immediate steps for removal of illegal weighbridges along National Highway-6 and National Highway-40E.
National Highway-6 passes through Ri-Bhoi and East Jaiñtia Hills while National Highway40E passes through Dawki-Amlarem and Jowai.
In a memorandum to Sangma today, the Joint Action Committee of Truckers, Suppliers, Exporters, Traders and Transporters said the weighbridges which are set up at several locations in NH 6 and NH 40E are a real pain in the journey of truckers and transporters.
“Every time we had to pass through these weighbridges we were forced to shed a huge sum of money which is otherwise meant for our survival during the course of our work. At times we had to stay hungry for a few days as we used to run out of money because of these weighbridges. All these weighbridges have been declared as illegal by the Government of India and the Central government is totally against the existence of such illegal weighbridges in the NH 6 and NH 40E,” the Joint Action Committee said.
The memorandum also said that the National Highways are properties of the Central government and it is governed by a separate act known as National Highways Act which is totally under the Central government and issues related to overloading and its prevention including penalties etc have been clearly spelt out in the act.
“There is nowhere in the act that empower the officers of the Transport Department in State to meddle with the business of National Highway. Hence any structure built along the highway without the approval of the competent authority which is the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in the Government of India is deemed to be illegal and not permissible in law,” the Joint Action Committee said.
It also said that the attempts by the State government to protect these illegal weighbridges were not valid at all as the National Highways are covered under the National Highway Act and the power to enforce the same rests with the Central government and not with the State government.
It may be noted that recently, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari had said in the Lok Sabha that only one weighbridge along National Highway-6 (Jowai-Ratacherra road) has been granted permission to operate while other weighbridges set up along various highways in the State are unauthorised.
Gadkari had also said that the Road Transport and Highways Ministry had time and again asked the Meghalaya Transport Department to remove the illegal weighbridges from national highways in the State.
