6 Arunachal districts suffer as Kala Mitti Point on Hoj-Potin road suffers decades of neglect

Almost eight decades after Independence, the Hoj-Potin road connecting Arunachal Pradesh’s Itanagar to the Ziro Valley continues to remain in poor condition, with the infamous Kala Mitti Point causing severe inconvenience to commuters.
 

The 20-km stretch between Hoj and Potin in Papum Pare district, part of the Trans-Arunachal Highway (TAH), is known for being prone to landslides, particularly during the monsoon season. A recent major landslide near the Welcome Gate of Keyi Panyor district blocked traffic, leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded for hours.

Commuters say the Public Works Department (PWD) Highway Division has failed to provide a permanent solution despite identifying four vulnerable points, including Kala Mitti, as far back as 2008. Instead, only temporary measures are carried out.

“Travelling via Hoj-Potin road in this rainy weather condition is extremely dangerous and life threatening. Your car sinks in…gets stuck and meantime stones and muds comes rushing down from the fragile mountains. Terrifying, not advisable to travel unless emergency and importantly avoid travelling during evening and night time,” one commuter said.

Another commuter, Gichik Toge from Kra Daadi district, expressed resentment over the quality of repair work. Speaking to India Today, he said, “Temporary bad quality work [is] done by the Government and the contractors just to get financial benefits and not caring thinking about the future of this stretches which can be given permanent solutions if done technically and with proper specifications without intentions of corruption.”
 

The poor road conditions also threaten the state’s tourism sector. With the Ziro Music Festival scheduled soon, locals fear that the treacherous condition of the Hoj-Potin stretch will once again tarnish the image of Arunachal’s roads before thousands of domestic and foreign tourists.

Although other stretches have been maintained—cutting travel time from Itanagar to Ziro (140 km) to about two hours—the Hoj-Potin section remains a nightmare for those travelling to Ziro, Yachuli, Koloriang, Tali, and other towns across six districts near the Indo-China border.