In Nagaland, six people lost their lives and three were injured after a series of massive mudslides and landslides hit National Highway-29 between Kohima and Dimapur following heavy rainfall last night. The deceased include five males and one female. Mudslides and landslides struck near Pherima and Tseipama/Piphema around 10:30 last night, while a landslide occurred at Pagla Pahar in the wee hours this morning, sinking a portion of the highway. The National Highway 29, which is completely cut off for vehicular movement, is the main lifeline for commuters travelling to the state capital Kohima and neighbouring state Manipur.
A high-level meeting was convened by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio to take stock of the disaster and discuss restoration and relief measures. It was attended by Deputy Chief Minister and Minister-in-Charge of National Highway T.R. Zeliang, along with all the concerned officials and agencies. During the meeting, the state government directed NHIDCL to make the highway operational within 24 hours to ensure that the supply of essential commodities is not adversely affected. NHIDCL was also directed to take rectification measures, including the use of the latest technology, to ensure that such disasters do not occur in the future. Meanwhile, Mr Zeliang informed Akashvani News Kohima that the state government has announced four lakh rupees each as ex-gratia payments to the families of the deceased and 16,000 rupees to the injured as emergency relief.
