SARIMUL LASKAR, SILCHAR (Cachar):- The 6th National Highway passing through Katigorah in Cachar district has turned into a death trap due to the unchecked dominance of the sand and limestone mafia. Overloaded trucks ply the route with impunity, reducing the once-functional highway into a crumbling stretch riddled with massive craters. These potholes have now become stagnant ponds filled with muddy water, forcing local residents to bathe and wash clothes in them.
Meanwhile, the mafia operators continue to amass huge sums of money through illegal means and enjoy luxurious lives with air-conditioned homes and modern amenities.
This glaring contrast between the rhetoric of development and the harsh ground reality paints a tragic picture of life in Katigorah. Locals allege that the sand and stone syndicate runs a flourishing illegal business, with heavily loaded trucks damaging the bitumen road daily. During the monsoon, the craters fill with rainwater, causing severe traffic snarls. School children, college students, pregnant women, and even ambulances carrying patients are routinely stuck for hours.
Road accidents have become a daily fear for commuters.
Angry residents are raising serious questions: “If roads must be destroyed to fill the pockets of the mafia, what kind of development is this?” Many point out that merely changing the name of a town or road will not improve connectivity. They are disappointed that instead of repairing potholes and fixing drainage,
political leaders are busy with name-change politics.While the people of Katigorah are battling life-threatening road conditions, their MLA remains embroiled in controversies over renaming Badarpur. Such irrelevant political exercises have left the public feeling that their genuine hardships are being trivialised.
The deterioration of this vital Silchar-Guwahati connectivity link is not just a local issue — it is severely affecting the economy, education, and healthcare across the entire North East region.Residents have urged the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and the district administration to launch immediate strict action against the illegal syndicate and overloaded trucks. They have demanded urgent repair of the road on a war-footing basis.
Conscious citizens have demands the administration to stop the mafia’s reign in the name of development and prioritise solving the fundamental problems of the common people.
The people of Katigorah are now witnessing the naked face of so-called “development” with deep disappointment and anger.
