From Our Correspondent
NONGSTOIN: Superintending Engineer, PHED, SK Blah on Thursday made a startling revelation that the sanction amount for the Nongstoin Urban Water Supply Scheme (NUWSS) had been reduced from the approved amount of Rs 133.94 crore to a meager Rs 16 crore since the Chief Engineer SK Sunn had projected Nongstoin’s population to be only 60,000 in the year 2045.
Blah made the disclosure to a group on NGOs of West Khasi Hills – the KSU, the FKJGP and the Synjuk ki Nongsynshar Shnong – on Thursday during their meeting.
The Superintending Engineer stated that the former Chief Engineer, H Prasad, and the Additional CE, I Hooroo, had signed and approved that the total expected population of Nongstoin by the year 2045 would be around 2 lakh. However, the new CE (SK Sunn) approved the total projected population of Nongstoin by 2045 to be only 60,000.
When questioned as to why he approved the projected population figure, Blah stated that that he was called by the CE and the Additional CE and was made to sign the approval for the new population projection, based on which the sanctioned amount for the water supply project was reduced considerably.
The NGOs, meanwhile, have questioned the motive of the CE to project a reduced population figure, saying that the President of the country keeps changing every five years but each new President does not change the Constitution.
They also expressed surprise on why the present CE had changed the figure that had already been approved and sanctioned earlier.