New Delhi, Aug. 10: Scenes of political demonstrations “choking” National Highway 31A, which links Bengal and Sikkim, may soon become a thing of the past.

The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Centre and the two state governments on a public interest litigation, asking them to “reply with a solution to avoid frequent blockades of the national highway” due to “political reasons and disturbances”.

The apex court sought to know from them the steps they had taken to set up a council for bettering coordination between the states on the matter.

The PIL filed by .P. Bhandari, a “social worker” from Sikkim, said: “Due to frequent strikes and bandhs imposed by political parties in Darjeeling district, life along NH-31A ? Sikkim’s only link to the rest of the country ? comes to a halt affecting supplies not only to the people of the state but also to defence forces guarding the... borders with China, Nepal and Bhutan.”

Senior counsel for the petitioner, R.K. Jain, argued that the PIL was filed following threats by a new political outfit, the Sikkim-Darjeeling Joint Action Forum, to close down the highway to carry forward its agitation. The organisation is campaigning for a merger of the state with the hill station.

Bhandari in his PIL accused the Bengal government of being “apathetic towards the people of Sikkim” by not taking any steps to make NH-31A free from blockades.