Sir — This refers to the editorial, “The road to nowhere” (July 6).
As stated in the editorial, the condition of National Highways is really pathetic, with pot-holed, narrow, lane-like roads passing off as ‘national highways’ in many sectors across the country. My recent tour on the Guwahati-Shillong highway turned out to be a nightmare. The roads in these most neglected of our States are not at all in a position to cater to the heavy frequency of traffic movement. Jams and delays are a common phenomenon, and they take a heavy toll on transportation costs as well.
Rampant deforestation in order to widen roads, has only increased the danger of landslides and destroyed the ecosystem. The tortuous 12-hour journey was compounded by heavy traffic congestion. One shudders to even think of the consequences of this shocking neglect. Given the state and functioning of our much-vaunted National Disaster Management Authority, one hopes that a Uttarakhand-like disaster will never strike the North-East region.