Meghalaya to have bitumen-plastic roads

SHILLONG: In a first-of-its-kind move in the northeast, bitumen and waste plastic will be used for road construction in Shillong using a technology known for its durability, especially in extreme weather conditions.

To start with, a four-km stretch in Jhalupara area of the city, which gets damaged every year due to heavy rains, will be re-constructed by Shillong Cantonment Board at an estimated cost of Rs 30 lakh. The CEO of the board, S Prabhakaran, said the board is approaching Madurai-based R Vasudevan, the patented owner of the technology. He added it will be the same as of conventional bitumen mix but will have a longer lifespan.

"To lay 1 km of plastic road 3.75 m wide, 9 tonne of bitumen and 1 tonne of waste plastic are required. A normal road requires 10 tonne bitumen for each kilometre. So a plastic road saves 1 tonne bitumen for every kilometre laid. Each tonne of bitumen costs Rs 50,000 to 60,000," he said.