SHILLONG: The East Khasi Hills district administration has allowed Durga Puja pandals on certain Public Works Department (PWD) roads this year despite objections from pressure groups over traffic congestion and public inconvenience, but has told organisers that such arrangements cannot continue in the future. The decision comes as Shillong prepares for Durga Puja amid heightened security.
Deputy Commissioner Abhilash Baranwal said sector magistrates had been directed to coordinate with local dorbar shnongs, police and other stakeholders to minimise disruption while respecting the Hindu community’s religious rights.
“Pressure groups have come forward objecting to the construction of the Puja pandals on the PWD Roads, especially in light of the public inconvenience, we have taken note of those objections, and we have asked our sector Magistrates to work it out because every sector Magistrate is looking after different sectors,” Baranwal said.
He said the pandals had been allowed in consultation with local durbars and in accordance with PWD no-objection certificates, as relocating them at this stage would have caused practical difficulties for the committees.
However, he said the administration had made it clear that such arrangements could not continue in the future because of the traffic diversions they necessitated, adding that efforts would be made to ensure commuters were affected as little as possible.
Baranwal said the administration had coordinated with the Superintendent of Police’s office to minimise the extent and duration of traffic diversions, with adequate police deployment near R.R. Colony on major Puja days to prevent congestion from becoming unmanageable. At Lukier Road, the pandal was altered following intervention by the sector magistrate to keep it off the main carriageway and confine it to the area beside the drain.
The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) had earlier urged the PWD to remove pandals and temporary structures obstructing public roads, citing complaints from stakeholders and the public about difficulties for vehicles and pedestrians, particularly on narrow stretches. In a letter to the PWD chief engineer, the union’s education secretary, Alerick Kharjana, said such structures should not compromise public safety or convenience and called for proper guidelines before permission was granted. Baranwal said organisers had also been asked to submit undertakings, describing the requirement as standard practice and not a measure introduced specifically for Durga Puja. The administration has asked Puja committees to explore alternative locations for next year.
