Shillong, September 10: The Meghalaya government has made significant progress in implementing projects under the Smart City Mission, with an overall physical achievement of 77.81 per cent as of July this year. This was informed by Deputy Chief Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar in the Assembly today.
VPP legislator Ardent Basaiawmoit raised concerns that the government is concentrating only on constructing commercial complexes, which is contrary to the objective of the Smart City project to improve living conditions, including education and other sectors.
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Dhar acknowledged that this might be the case in the first phase but assured that other important projects would be included in the second phase. He also informed about the installation of open-air gyms at various locations in Shillong, including Governor House, Mawprem, and Laitumkhrah, at a project cost of Rs. 5 crore.
Regarding the Polo commercial complex, Dhar said that the complex was recently inaugurated by the Union Finance Minister and is now in the process of being operationalized, with 109 shops.
Leader of Opposition Mukul Sangma asked if any monitoring quality audit had been conducted on the commercial complex at Polo. The minister replied that it had been done by the department. Sangma also raised concerns about the alleged huge withdrawal of salaries by the Smart City project CEO, but Dhar said he required notice as the information was not available with him.
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Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma clarified that the government had initially gone for a tendering process for the entire building but did not get any bidders. The government is now examining whether to go floor-wise or shop-wise for allotment of stalls.
“So very soon we will be finalising that,” he said.
On the issue of outsourcing the complex instead of engaging directly with unemployed youth, the Chief Minister said that the government had to follow procedure and ensure maximum revenue. However, he assured that the government has multiple projects to address employment issues.
(Newmai News Network)