ITANAGAR, Feb 8 : For the people of Dorjeeling, a remote village in Mechuka sub-division in West Siang district along the Sino-India border, an all weather road was a dream as their mode of communication with rest of the world was through porter tracks, that too by foot.
Their dream has turned into a reality with construction of a road by the State’s Rural Works Department (RWD) under the Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) programme in a record time.
The six km stretch of road which was formally inaugurated by RWD Minister Chowna Mein yesterday would be a turning point for the development of the village as the agriculture and horticulture products now could be transported easily to the nearest markets.
Emphasizing that communication holds the key for the development of the land-locked State, the Minister called for whole-hearted support of the rural masses and announced that his department was fully geared up to link 513 border habitations by road on schedule, official sources said here today.
The RWD, which was lauded recently at the national level for achieving a record in constructing 1,745 km roads connecting 339 habitations throughout the State, is executing 1400 km of additional roads under the Central government’s flagship programme Bharat Nirman and PMGSY that would bring 196 additional habitations under road network, sources added.
Arunachal Pradesh has increased its road density from 18km to 22 km per 100 square kilometre against the regional average of 52 km, because of roads constructed by the RWD, the minister disclosed adding, the state still remains with the lowest road density in the country.
He announced that a few roads would be taken up shortly at Mechuka sub-division to improve rural connectivity to accelerate the developmental process initiated by the Dorjee Khandu-led Congress government in the State.
The Minister also visited Manigong, few kilometres from the Chinese border and yet to be linked by road, where he discussed the future plan to bring the remote border villages under road network, sources added. (Agencies)
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