Agartala, 20th August 2026 : Tension mounted along the Ambassa–Kamalpur road on Thursday as local residents staged a prolonged road blockade at Mendi Chowmuhani, protesting the alleged move to cancel a development project in the area. Protesters accused local authorities and the elected representatives of deliberately stalling development work despite the tender process having already progressed.
During the protest, demonstrators displayed documents which, they claimed, contained instructions for cancellation of the project along with the signature of the concerned MLA. They also alleged that signatures of local residents had been forged and used without their knowledge or consent. The protesters demanded that the tender process be completed immediately and the proposed development work be allowed to proceed.
According to the protesters, the project had already been initiated, an estimate had been prepared and the tender had been floated. They alleged that the first stage of the tender process had already been completed and only the opening of the second, or financial, bid remained. They questioned why the project was being sought to be cancelled when the work was reportedly on the verge of being awarded.
The protesters also raised allegations against the concerned VC Panchayat authorities and officials, naming Panchayat Secretary Bikram Pal and the MLA from the Surma constituency in connection with the controversy. They demanded transparency in the entire process and called for the immediate opening of the pending bid.
An official, however, clarified that the tender process was being conducted according to established procedures. He said the Chief Engineer had initially directed the department to prepare the tender and that subsequent steps were to be taken after receiving the necessary sanction.
The official further stated that the Chief Engineer had subsequently given permission to proceed with the tender process, including opening the technical and financial bids. Several files had already progressed and some had been forwarded to the Superintending Engineer.
He explained that the process could not be completed merely by opening the financial bid. After the financial bid is opened, the Letter of Acceptance (LOA) has to be issued, the selected contractor must submit a Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG), and only thereafter can the formal work order be issued.
The official also said the Superintending Engineer’s father passed away last Thursday, necessitating a change in the Digital Signature Certificate (DSC), which was being processed. He expressed hope that the remaining formalities could be completed within around 15 days.
The road blockade brought traffic movement on the Ambassa–Kamalpur route to a halt for a considerable period, while protesters continued to demand that the development project be taken forward without further delay.
