Port Blair Nov 2: The crumbling state of National Highway-4 — the lifeline linking South, Middle, and North Andaman — has pushed public frustration to the breaking point, prompting the Congress to take the fight from the streets to the police station.
In an unprecedented move, G. Bhasker, Chairman of the Campaign Committee of the Andaman & Nicobar Territorial Congress Committee (ANTCC), lodged FIRs at Baratang and Rangat Police Stations over what he described as the “disappearance” of NH-4. He urged police to investigate the lapses, fix accountability, and “locate and restore” the road that has virtually vanished in long-neglected stretches.
The symbolic act came as hundreds joined a massive “Chakka Jam” at Rangat Bazaar, led by Rangalal Halder, ANTCC President, and Bhasker, demanding urgent repairs to the deteriorating highway. Undeterred by heavy rain, protesters — including cab drivers, traders, and residents — decried eight years of administrative apathy that has crippled transport, trade, and emergency access.
Demonstrators even planted a banana tree in a pothole, mocking the authorities’ failure to maintain the route. Senior officials, including the ADM (N&M Andaman) and GM, NHIDCL, arrived to defuse tensions and sought a week’s time to provide a written assurance on repair work.
The ANTCC has warned that if the promise is not met within seven days, the agitation will intensify — a clear sign that the people’s patience has run out as their “lifeline highway” continues to sink deeper into neglect.
