Longleng cut off again: A struggle that refuses to end

The rain returned on the evening of 11th September 2026.
From around 6:00 pm, it began pouring heavily over Longleng and continued through the night with hardly any reprieve. For a district that had already suffered repeated landslides and road blockades during this monsoon, the sound of continuous rain was no longer just the sound of nature. It carried with it a familiar sense of uncertainty.
By morning, many people in Longleng were unaware of what had happened during the night.
Vehicles started their journeys towards Changtongya as usual, only to discover that the lifeline connecting Longleng to the outside world had once again been blocked by landslides and mudslides at several locations.
Early on the morning of 12th September, I received a phone call from the contractor, Hemant, engaged in clearing and maintaining the road. There was anguish and helplessness in his voice.
“Sir, the mud and debris keep falling. Our workers cannot work at full scale. Nevertheless, we are trying under very difficult circumstances to clear the road at least for small vehicles. But under these conditions, it may take three or four days.”
His words summed up the reality on the ground.
Clearing a landslide is not simply a matter of sending an excavator and removing the debris. When the rain continues and the slopes remain unstable, fresh mud and earth can come down even while workers and machinery are trying to clear what has already fallen. The safety of those working at the site itself becomes a serious concern.
There is another difficulty that is rarely noticed by those waiting for the road to reopen— where do we put the enormous quantity of earth and debris removed from the road?
Along this stretch, land belongs to different individuals and families. Dumping excavated material cannot simply be done wherever space is available. The contractor, with the assistance of the District Administrations of Longleng and Mokokchung, have to negotiate with landowners at different locations to find suitable places for disposal. What appears to be a straightforward road-clearing operation therefore becomes a complicated exercise involving machinery, safety, land, weather and cooperation from the local community.
And yet, beyond the immediate task of clearing the road, a larger question confronts us:
Why is this happening repeatedly and on such a scale?
As a layman, I can only observe what is visible before us. In several places, the soil appears loose and saturated, while vegetation may no longer be sufficient to hold the slopes firmly together. Road construction and cutting of hill slopes may also have altered the natural stability of certain areas. Then there is the most obvious factor—the extraordinary amount of rainfall the region has experienced.
But these are observations, not scientific conclusions.
Is incessant rainfall alone responsible?
Has human intervention made these slopes more vulnerable?
Has road cutting disturbed the natural stability of the hills?
Are there geological factors beneath the surface that we do not yet understand?
These questions require proper scientific and geological investigation. What is clear, however, is that landslides and mudslides have occurred this year at a scale that many people here do not remember experiencing before.
For Longleng, the consequences go far beyond an inconvenient journey.
This road is a lifeline.
There is no railway. There is no airport. There is no dependable alternative transportation system. Even alternative road connectivity remains difficult and unreliable. When this road closes, the effects are felt throughout the district—from the movement of essential commodities and medicines to patients, students, government services and ordinary families travelling for their daily needs.
The people of Longleng have already endured repeated disruptions this monsoon. Roads have been blocked, communication affected and normal life disturbed. And just when there is hope that things are returning to normal, another spell of rain brings another landslide and another blockade.
All available machinery has once again been pressed into service. Contractors, workers and officials are making every possible effort to restore connectivity at the earliest, despite difficult and potentially dangerous working conditions.
But there comes a point when the capacity of the District Administration alone may not be enough.
A disaster of this nature requires cooperation beyond departments and offices. It requires the support of the Government, civil society organisations, NGOs, village communities, landowners and concerned citizens. More importantly, Longleng may now require not only repeated emergency clearance but also a long- term scientific assessment of vulnerable slopes and a permanent strategy for resilient road connectivity.
We cannot continue indefinitely with the cycle of rain, landslide, blockade, clearance—and then wait for the next rain.
Perhaps this monsoon is telling us something.
Our hills are fragile. Development in mountainous terrain has to respect that fragility. Roads are essential for development, but the manner in which slopes are cut, drainage is managed, vegetation is protected and unstable areas are treated will determine whether those roads remain lifelines or become recurring disaster zones.
For now, however, these larger questions must wait while excavators continue their work against the mud and rain.
And once again, the people of Longleng wait.
They wait for the rain to stop.
They wait for the slopes to settle.
They wait for the machines to break through the debris.
They wait for their lifeline to reopen.
And above everything else, they pray.
For a district surrounded by beautiful hills yet repeatedly challenged by them, hope remains our greatest strength. Longleng has endured before, and it will endure again.
For now, we continue to work, we continue to hope, and we continue to pray that there will soon be light at the end of this long and difficult tunnel.
Thungchanbemo Tungoe, NCS
Additional Deputy Commissioner, Longleng