SHILLONG: Is the Greater Shillong Water Supply Scheme jinxed?
The Rs 750-crore project has at best made tardy progress since its foundation stone was laid in 2008 by erstwhile President of India Pratibha Patil, with the delay being attributed first to disturbed law and order situation and now to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PHE Minister Samlin Malngiang said unrest over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) earlier in the year had stymied work on the project besides causing loss of crores of rupees.
Speaking to reporters here on Monday, he said the long-drawn agitation against the CAA resulting in imposition of curfew intermittently had severely affected the construction activities.
“The CAA agitation peaked in January this year engaging the government in restoring peace and normalcy in the state and as we were working towards it the coronavirus pandemic struck taking us by surprise, which has crippled the project”, he said.
He said workers were told to stay home and even officers were barred from supervising work at the site. The company then had to discontinue the work as labourers were not coming.
“After normalcy was restored, we resumed work, but then came the rain which has again stalled the work. The rain has been very heavy damaging some roads and preventing digging work”, he said.
He said that the construction of tanks at Nongkwar, Mawroh and Upper Shillong is almost complete while work is on at Lumparing.
Malngiang said that stoppage of work has extracted a heavy price to the tune of around Rs 17 crore.
He said prices of items such as cement and iron bars besides cost of labour have gone up, but the department does not want to delay the project. “Whatever fund is there, we are utilising it. And as long as the fund is there, we will continue”, he said.
Besides increased cost of materials and labour, he said restoration of PWD roads after the pipes are laid would further add to the burden adding though that the government has sanctioned Rs 17 crore for the purpose.
Other plans
As for Laitkor, which is facing scarcity of water, Malngiang said, “Government has sanctioned Greater Laitkor Water Supply Scheme costing Rs 30 crore from the state Plan. This will also go ahead”.
He said that the construction of induct wells and pump house is progressing while Stage-II pumping in Mawphlang will soon start as the PHE is negotiating with the Hima Mawphlang.
“What remains is the Stage -II pumping at Mawphlang. Here we have to negotiate with the Hima as a part of the land belongs to it. The Hima said that Mawphlang is also facing water scarcity”, he said.
In this connection, Malngiang said that the department has prepared a Mawphlang- Mawngap- Marbisu combined water supply scheme and sanctioned Rs 30 crore.
