NHIDCL Projects in Nagaland Always End Up in Litigation, Asks High Court

The Gauhati High Court has reprimanded the Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) for the delay in upgrading the National Highway-2 (NH-2) between Kohima to Mao Gate in Nagaland and Manipur. The court has directed the MoRTH to take immediate steps to acquire the remaining land required for construction. Justice Kakheto Sema expressed dissatisfaction with the progress of work, and criticized the contractor for attempting to deceive the public. The justice asked why all projects by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) in Nagaland end up in litigation and said there is clearly something “very wrong”. The court also asked the state to provide assistance to the Centre in acquiring land to complete the project. Both the contractor and the authority engineer were directed to file an affidavit detailing the work progress on the existing right of way during the next date fixed. The court had directed the contractor to finish the project by May 31, 2023, and paved the way to impose substantial costs if the work is not completed by the deadline, or the NHIDCL issues a notice to the contractor for blacklisting. However, the Supreme Court later stayed the order, as a copy of the order was shown to the court by the contractor’s counsel, Joshua Sheqi.