Shillong, Jul 15: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has awarded a third specialised contract for slope stabilisation at seven identified vulnerable locations along the Jowai-Ratacherra stretch along the National Highway 6 in the Jaintia Hills, to prevent recurring landslides.
In its submission before the Meghalaya High Court, the NHAI informed that the contract was awarded to MFB Geotech Private Limited on July 3, 2025. The authority said the new scope of work is distinct from previous contracts which mainly focused on road strengthening. The contract involves specialised geotechnical solutions designed to prevent recurring landslides, including soil nailing and drainage enhancements.
The NHAI told the court that slope stabilisation and related works is 85 per cent complete while critical work at Byndihati, which include the construction of retaining walls, and micropiling operations with Pavement Quality Concrete (PQC) are in progress. However, completion is expected to take at least two more months, primarily due to the area’s frequent rainfall.
Further the NHAI also submitted that routine maintenance activities, including pothole repair, road furniture upkeep, cleaning of drain and clearance of debris due to landslide is being carried out on a regular basis across the entire 102.255 km stretch.
The NHAI said the ongoing slope stabilisation work will be completed by January 3, 2027. It assured the court that the status report of the work indicating its progress will be submitted regularly.
NHAI PIU-Shillong Project Director in-charge, Hemant Kumar Tiwari, who was present during the hearing on July 13 before the division bench of Chief Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Wanlura Diengdoh, assured that action will be taken against the contractors, if they fail to attend to the defects.
Amicus Curiae S. Panthi sought time from the court to inspect and submit a report on the status of the road.
