SHILLONG: The delay in the construction of Mawryngkneng Higher Secondary School building has prompted its managing committee to seek the State Government’s intervention.
The contract for building the school under an Asian Development Bank (ADB) project was given to Rocky Dhar, brother of MLA Ngaitlang Dhar, over two years ago.
Members of the school managing committee said their repeated requests to PWD officials to nudge the contractor have not yielded results.
“It is sad to learn that none of the officers dare to speak or give a reminder to the contractor for fear of retaliation as the contractor was a brother of the Cabinet Minister (now former minister Sniawbhalang Dhar) under the Mukul Sangma government,” said president of the managing committee K. Kharsati in a statement issued on Sunday. Asserting that ADB projects are time-bound, Kharsati said Rocky restarted work before the golden jubilee celebration of the school on October 20, 2016, in which the chief minister was present, but later abandoned the work.
The work done in a hurry was of poor quality and the columns constructed had to be dismantled, the committee said.
The school authorities then met PWD (Building) Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh on May 29.
The minister told them that the Rocky’s contract belongs to MLA Umroi Ngaitlang Dhar. “She told us that she would speak to him to start the work within a month. From what we have conversed with the Minister, it is clear that even she is not in a position to do anything to help the school,” the statement added.
Peeved at the undue delay, Kharsati said the contractor’s irresponsibility and the PWD’s negligence have denied the children the right to education.
“The inability to complete the project has defeated the very purpose of the government’s development initiative, especially the Education Department to improve the quality of education in and lack of responsibility by the executing department to take any action clearly speaks of its favoritism,” the statement read.
The Government had selected the school for ADB’s ‘Supporting Human Capital Development in Meghalaya’ project and an MoU was signed in 2014.
The foundation stone for the construction was laid in April 2015.
