Hahim bridge fire: Burning tyres cut Assam-Meghalaya road for hours

Traffic between Assam and Meghalaya was cut off for several hours after unidentified people set tyres on fire in the middle of the Hahim bridge on the inter-state border, police and local reports said.

The fire was lit late on Wednesday night, October 28, and kept burning into the early hours of Thursday, October 29, blocking the bridge on the road that links the two states through Hahim in Kamrup district.

Police yet to identify those involved

Hahim police have launched an investigation into the incident. As of Friday, the people responsible had not been identified and police had not stated a motive.

The blockade disrupted movement on the route for a few hours, and the incident has raised concerns about security and the free movement of vehicles along this stretch of the border.

Residents point to coal trucks

People living in the area have voiced suspicion that the fire may be connected to the recent movement of coal-laden trucks from Meghalaya into Assam during the night. Some local observers believe the burning tyres may have been meant to stop or target such trucks.

No evidence has yet emerged to establish that link, and NEInsider has not independently verified it.

Concerns over the coal route

The incident comes a day after The Sentinel reported that the alleged illegal coal trade had picked up again along the Hahim stretch, in the Boko-Chaygaon area. According to that report:

• around 30 to 40 coal-laden trucks were said to be waiting near the Athiabari police outpost in Meghalaya to cross into Assam after dark
• a truck driver alleged that consignments were moving from Shallang in Meghalaya's West Khasi Hills district to Boko without e-way bills or transport challans
• the coal was said to be headed for brick kilns and industrial units in Assam

Those claims, made by sources and a driver, were described in the report itself as unverified. Neither the Assam nor the Meghalaya government has publicly responded to them.

Why Hahim matters

Hahim, in the Boko area of Kamrup district, sits on one of the road links between Assam and Meghalaya, so a blockade on the bridge cuts off movement between the two states at this point.

Coal transport out of Meghalaya has long been a sensitive issue. Unscientific rat-hole mining in the state was banned by the National Green Tribunal in 2014, and the movement of coal is supposed to be backed by valid permits and transport documents.

Police said investigation into the bridge incident is continuing.