Meghalaya MP Ricky J Syngkon has written to the Centre, urging urgent intervention over what he termed as “severe environmental degradation” of the Umngot River in West Jaintia Hills — once hailed as Asia’s cleanest river — now turned muddy and lifeless, allegedly due to construction under the Shillong–Tamabil road expansion project.

In letters addressed to Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, Syngkon alleged that large-scale hill cutting and the dumping of excavated soil and debris into the Umtyngar and Umngot river systems by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) have violated environmental safeguards. He said no spoil-barrier management or containment measures were in place, leading to heavy siltati

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