The Tripura High Court has directed the Union government to investigate suspected collusion and corrupt practices between highway authorities and private contractors, while urging a nationwide systemic review of the National Highways Authority of India and the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited over the rapid decay of newly constructed corridors.
Hearing a suo motu public interest petition on September 8, a division bench comprising Chief Justice M S Ramachandra Rao and Justice Biswajit Palit expressed dismay over the hazardous condition of National Highway 108B and National Highway 208. The bench observed that expensive infrastructure projects were breaking down shortly after completion, or even prior to formal inauguration and before enduring their first monsoon, endangering the lives and economic stability of local residents.
The court instructed the Union government to submit an inquiry report by December 1, 2026, examining whether irregularities influenced contractor selection and whether collusion between NHIDCL personnel and engineering, procurement, and construction contractors led to the deployment of inferior building materials.
Additionally, the bench mandated NHIDCL to furnish bi-weekly status reports on ongoing rectification work across four designated segments of the two national highways. Once these repairs conclude, technical personnel from the Border Roads Organisation will independently inspect the corridors and deliver their assessment in a sealed envelope by January 30, 2027. The state administration was further told to consider initiating both civil and criminal cases against NHIDCL and its contracted firms.
Scrutiny Over Project Delays And Costs
Judicial intervention followed local press reports in June and July detailing widespread road damage, craters, and water accumulation along the two transport corridors. NH 108B spans roughly 55 kilometres between Agartala and Khowai, while the 158-kilometre NH 208 connects Kumarghat to Sabroom via Kailashahar, Khowai, Teliamura, and Amarpur.
The bench raised serious concerns regarding financial governance on the Mohanpur-Hezamara-Subalsingh section of NH 108B. Construction began on March 1, 2024, with an initial deadline of August 31, 2025, which was later postponed to September 4, 2026. Despite expenditures topping Rs 5 crore per kilometre, actual progress stood at only 51.14 per cent, prompting the judges to question contractor vetting procedures and order a formal inquiry into possible administrative collusion.
Other portions of the network also exhibited premature deterioration while still covered by mandatory five-year defect liability clauses. Work orders for NH 108B had been awarded starting in July 2020, with two segments completed in April 2023 and May 2024, whereas work on the Kailashahar-Khowai stretch of NH 208 commenced in May 2020.
Ground Inspection Discredits Maintenance Assurances
Physical inspections carried out on July 17, 18, and 20 by the District Legal Services Authority of Khowai contradicted NHIDCL’s claims of keeping the routes safe and passable. Covering 30.32 kilometres on NH 208 from Mahadebtila to Manikbhandar, alongside 26 kilometres on NH 108B between Mahadevtila, Mohanbari, and Mohanpur, the legal team catalogued extensive structural failures.
The inspection verified widespread potholes, surface distress, depressions, and rutting, together with clogged ditches, waterlogged stretches, damaged central dividers, and obstructed road shoulders. The report emphasized an urgent requirement for retaining structures, slope protection, and crash barriers at hazardous locations.
While the state government cited extreme precipitation during the 2025 monsoon as a primary factor behind the damage, it acknowledged that repair efforts remained severely deficient. The court deemed the state’s prolonged inaction perplexing, pointing out that authorities had months to pursue legal action against delinquent agencies or transfer highway maintenance back to the state Public Works Department.
The division bench has scheduled the next hearing in the case for September 22.
