Shillong, Oct. 30: Collection of fees from vehicles plying on the yet-to-be completed four-lane National Highway 40 from Jorabat to Umiam in Meghalaya has raised eyebrows.

The Guwahati-Shillong road, now also known as "Jorabat-Umiam Expressway", is a landslide-prone road since it was converted into a four-lane highway, making travellers feel unsafe.

Ironically, collection of fees has been going on for the last few months though construction of the four-lane highway is still incomplete.

Vehicles, big and small, plying on the highway, have to pay fees to collectors at the toll plaza at 18th Mile near Umling in Ri Bhoi district. Different rates are charged for small and big vehicles.

However, some vehicles, including those of the army and a few VIPs, are exempted.

Work is still going on a 5-km bypass at Umsning, and the four-lane highway lacks proper drains, thereby affecting paddy fields of farmers especially during monsoon.

Besides landslide posing threat to safety of travellers and pedestrians, during heavy rains, water flowed directly to agricultural fields.

Residential areas along the highway such as Nongpoh town, Byrnihat and other plain areas close to the four-lane highway were inundated by floodwaters.

Last week Umsning MLA Celestine Lyngdoh, who is also a parliamentary secretary in-charge of agriculture, along with officials of PWD (roads) and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) carried out inspections along the four-lane highway to assess the inadequacies that should be addressed immediately by the NHAI and other authorities involved in construction of the four-lane project.

The team also inspected pending construction of the four-lane project via Umsning bypass.

They found that in certain portions of the four-lane highway, construction was not up to the mark as there was no proper footpath for pedestrians besides construction of narrow drains.

The team had asked the NHAI to complete the project fully and suggested construction of footbridges at various junctions to enable pedestrians cross from one side of the highway to another.

Lyngdoh today said the construction of the project was satisfactory.

He said that officials of the NHAI had assured to restart the pending construction of four-lane at Umsning by next month besides improving the drainage system.

"We found that drains are very narrow causing floods during monsoon in residential areas and agricultural lands. The NHAI has agreed to address the problems including construction of footbridges at certain junctions of the four-lane highway," Lyngdoh said.

On collection of taking fees from vehicles, Lyngdoh said earlier some organisations had opposed the move to set up a toll plaza along the highway.

"I did not know what kind of arrangements have been agreed upon as the four-lane though yet to be completed fully, has already become a toll road now," the Umsning MLA said.

Travellers wondered that toll plaza has been operationalised though construction of the road is yet to be completed, adding that issue related to safety of travellers and pedestrians is yet to be addressed by the authorities concerned.