Hollongi, 6 Aug – A mudslide caused by extensive earth‑cutting by private parties blocked National Highway 415 a few kilometres before Donyi Polo International Airport, forcing the Papum Pare district administration to order landowners to clear the debris.
The slide closed the highway for several hours, stranding vehicles and disrupting traffic. The debris originated from a site adjacent to the road where large volumes of earth had been removed, creating a dangerous slope that eventually collapsed onto the road.
District officials identified three major locations where the highway was damaged. They directed two private individuals and a gas‑pipeline agency to remove the material and warned that failure to comply would result in legal action.
Landowners have hired workers and machinery to clear the site, but rainfall continuously brings new material down the hill. A worker on the site said, “For the last four days we have been working to clear debris, but when it rains the debris keeps coming from the hill. We are trying to clear it as soon as possible.”
The Papum Pare and Itanagar Capital Region administrations face criticism for failing to curb illegal earth‑cutting along the highway. Officials have reiterated a blanket ban on such activity and urged new land purchasers to seek approval from local panchayat leaders before undertaking any earth‑cutting. In addition, authorities are protecting the road near the airport entry point from further erosion while monitoring progress with PWD engineers and local leaders.
