Meghalaya tableaux showcases replica of bioengineering marvel Living Root Bridge

The tableaux of Meghalaya at the Republic Day parade this year showcased the Double Decker Living Root Bridge. The bridge is a bioengineering wonder located in the Nongriat village of the East Khasi Hills district of the state.

Trekking on the two-tier living root bridge takes two and a half hours with a steep descent of approximately 2200 feet from Tyrna, a village located on its North East.

The Living Root Bridge is a unique natural phenomenon coupled with human ingenuity.

The Khasi and Jaintia people of Meghalaya have been known to have the ability to build bridges from secondary roots of trees, in this case from rubber trees. These bridges are locally known as "Jingkieng Diengjri" literally meaning Rubber Tree Bridge.

Most of these bridges are made from the roots of a single tree, stretched and planted on the other side of a stream or river. These bridges take about thirty years to build. The living root bridges are known for their ability to keep on growing, bearing and shedding leaves with the seasons.