Union Minister Gadkari cites major illegal operations of weighbridges in Meghalaya by Transport Dept.
Union minister of road, transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said in the Lok Sabha that only one weighbridge in Meghalaya along NH-6 has been granted permission for functioning and any other bridges operating in the state on the highway are currently unauthorised, a concern which brings under the scanner the Transport Department of the state headed by Sniawbhalang Dhar.
Responding to a question by Meghalaya parliamentarian Vincent Pala, Gadkari said that currently only one weighbridge along Jowai-Ratacherra has been granted functional permission.
Regarding the issue, Pala also demanded a CBI inquiry into the illegal weighbridges run by the state's transport department on NH-6, which is a major cause of revenue loss for the state government.
Gadkari said that the Transport Department has currently given permission to private owners for five weighbridges even though the government has not allowed them to operate.
Furthermore, the union minister cited that the work of the Transport Department to set up such weighbridges has caused heavy damage to NH-6 in Meghalaya and that the matter was taken up numerous times with Sniawbhalang Dhar.
“State government has been informed about the damages to the highway, such as blockages of drains/culverts due to construction work …. for installation of weighbridges and check posts on NH6,” Gadkari said.
“It has also led to the problem of waterlogging,” he added.
Issues regarding improper and illegal operations of weighbridges have cropped up many times in the past.
Bailey Bridge at Dwar Ksuid, which was inaugurated at the end of March, gave way just two weeks after inauguration due to the plying of overloaded trucks, despite the presence of a weighbridge controlled by the Transport department.
Officials and many truck drivers have cited that Sniawbhalang Dhar was apprised of the incident in the past, but the concerns went unanswered.
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