Arunachal govt moves MHA for Defence Min's objection to road

Arunachal Pradesh government has knocked the doors of the Union Home Ministry alleging discrimination at the hands of the Defence Ministry which had red-flagged its ambitious highway project connecting remote areas of the state.
During a recent meeting, which was attended by officials of the state government and representatives of Defence and Home Ministries, a senior Army officer raised objections to the alignment of the 1,500km trans-Arunachal Pradesh highway connecting Tawang with Vijoynagar.
The Army officer opined that the road would be too closer to the Sino-Indian border and sought changes, a suggestion that upset the state government, official sources said.

The state government alleged that the army was creating hurdles in its development project and pointed out that the Defence Ministry gave clearances to eight advance landing grounds (ALGs) near the border.
The construction for ALGs, at Mechuka, Zero and Tezu were being completed without informing the state government and the local administration.
However, the Ministry sources that the infrastructure was being built for defence of the country for which required permission was taken from the state government.

Pasang Dorjee, an MLA from Arunachal Pradesh, said that "in the case of the highway, the army is putting hurdles. Instead of saying that the road should be closer to the border, like China did, the army is saying it should not be along the border."

Dorjee claimed that the land for the ALGs was given on a condition that it would be used for both military and civilian purposes. "Now, they are shutting the doors for us. When the Mechuka ALG was inaugurated, neither the state government nor the district administration was informed," he said.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul will soon write a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lodge a protest against the Defence Ministry's "attitude", he said.
Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, who belongs to Arunachal Pradesh, said that he was informed about the development and would soon convene a meeting to sort out the differences.

The trans-Arunachal Highway is a planned mega two-lane highway project in Arunachal Pradesh. It extends from Tawang in the western part of the state to Kanubari (Vijoynagar) in the east covering 1,559 km and touching eleven of the existing district headquarters.