Minister for speedy GSWSS implementation

SHILLONG, Dec 14: PHE Minister Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar said he was determined to complete the much-delayed Greater Shillong Water Supply Scheme (GSWSS) within the tenure of Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government.
He told journalists on Monday that an additional amount of Rs 60 crore was needed to complete the project and Chief Minister Conrad Sangma had earmarked Rs 25 crore from the special plan assistance.
“The work can progress with this money. I am determined to complete the project before the MDA completes its tenure,” the minister said.
Admitting that a “huge amount” is to be paid to contractors against pending bills, he said the department would soon request them to resume the construction work. As per initial estimates, the department required around Rs 75 crore to complete the project but it was brought down to Rs 60 crore. The department is optimistic about completing the project within a year with sanctions from the North Eastern Council.
The PWD has issued the no-objection certificate to the PHE department for laying distribution pipes in the city. Apparently, more than Rs 150 crore has been already utilised which helped complete over 75% of the work.
The Phase III of GSWSS is expected to solve the problem of water crisis being faced by the residents.
The Rs 193.5-crore project was approved by the central government in October, 2008 and the state government had targeted to complete it by May, 2011. The objective was to create infrastructure to provide for the supply of additional 24 million litres of water to the projected population of Shillong Urban Agglomeration from 2011 to 2041.
Tongkhar informed that the state government was actively working to connect all households with tap under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) by December, 2022 whereas the Centre’s target is 2024.
Stating that the amount sanctioned under JJM is not sufficient, he said the government was exploring the idea of using plastic pipes instead of GI pipes should there be a shortage of funds.