Shillong, Nov. 17: Nongblai, a little-known remote village in East Khasi Hills district, came into the limelight today as the only area with 16 root bridges.

This was possible with the initiative of villagers and Living Roots Ecotourism Society. The discovery not only added a feather to the eco-tourism cap in this hill state, but is a record of sorts.

Considered "God" by the villagers - as they are a lifeline and help them earn their livelihood - these bridges have remained unexplored despite having existed for hundreds of years.

Raid Nongblai, a conglomerate of Nongblai, Suthim and Wahlyngkhat villages, has now taken up the responsibility to safeguard these 16 living root bridges and declared Nongblai the "Living Roots Heritage Village".?

It is around 45km from Shillong to Wahlyngkhat.

As Nongblai village is yet to be connected by road, visitors have to go on foot from Wahlyngkhat to see these living roots. All the 16 bridges are made of aerial roots of Ficus elastica, a species of Indian rubber tree or diengjri as known in Khasi language. It is endemic to the Riwar area of Meghalaya.

"Since my childhood I have seen these bridges in our area, but they remained unknown to the world until we came into contact with Living Roots Ecotourism Society," head of Raid Nongblai, Nokot Khriam said.

Khriam, 74, and the inhabitants of Raid Nongblai thanked their forefathers for their skills in making these bridges.

"It takes about 50 to 60 years for roots to connect from one end to another till it becomes a bridge. Because of the efforts of our forefathers, the roots have turned into bridges. Our area is yet to see motorable road, but these bridges are roads for us connecting with our agricultural fields. We are earning our livelihood because of these bridges and we consider these as God," Khriam said.

He and the other headmen in the area hoped that the declaration of Nongblai as Living Roots Heritage Village would pave the way for people to start exploring the richness of the area not only as a tourist destination, but also highlight the culture and practice of the indigenous people in the village.

The headmen and youths from the area said that labelling Nongblai as a heritage village arose out of their deep concern to promote one's native ingenuity and culture before natural calamity and human exploitation inflicts irreparable damage on natural resources like the living root culture that is integral to the socio-cultural ethos of the region.

They expressed their desire to transform the area into an eco-tourism destination and the community has taken steps to clean trails and pathways leading to the bridges, besides providing guide services. They are also in the process of setting up campsites for the benefit of visitors.

Inhabitants of Nongblai and nearby villages are mainly farmers. The area is famous for producing oranges and honey, besides betel leaf, betel nut, pepper and other organic produces.

Living Roots Ecotourism Society president Ian Khongmen, while lauding the wonderful initiatives, termed Nongblai village a rare natural and cultural phenomenon that boasts of the highest number of living root bridges.

"With 16 living root bridges surrounding the village, this is the only place on earth where such high concentration of bio-engineered bridges are found. There is a tremendous scope for developing eco-tourism in the areas. The tangible and intangible benefits that the people of Nongblai and the surrounding villages hope to harness from their living root architecture and scenic landscape is the driving force behind this initiative," he said.

Khongmen and his team, who had explored the richness of the area in ecotourism and adventure sport, said the ingenious methods of sustainable practices that have stood the test of time has been reaffirmed with the commitment of the people to reinforce and strengthen these values, culture and creativity so that they are conserved and passed down as a legacy.

Khongmen said on Saturday the Living Roots Ecotourism Society would organise a second living roots eco-challenge at Nongblai to promote ecotourism and adventure sport. This entails a 10km mountain race-cum-trekking event. Participants will have to cross 10 living root bridges and climb uphill to complete the trek and race.