There are no local, financial challenges that may hinder GSWSS: PHE minister
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Nov 25: The state government on Monday promised to complete the remaining work for the heavily-delayed Jal Jeevan Mission scheme by the end of December and the Greater Shillong Water Supply Scheme Phase III by March next year.
PHE Minister Marcuise N Marak said there are now no local and financial challenges that may hinder the GSWSS Phase III.
The minister also said that the state government will soon come up with the ‘operation and maintenance rules’ to ensure that water supply projects are taken care of properly once they are completed.
This step is being taken following the observation that many projects under the JJM scheme in the state have continued to remain non-functional after completion.
Stating that the government is trying its best to complete all projects under the JJM scheme by December, Marak said the Village Water and Sanitation Committees are supposed to look after the projects once they are completed.
The delay in the completion of the projects has been caused by land and forest clearance issues, he said and added that the projects also have many components like distribution tanks and treatment plants.
Initially, the state government wanted to provide tap water connections to all households by December 2022 but missed the deadline multiple times.
Meanwhile, the New Shillong Township Water Supply Scheme, to be implemented at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore, will have the feature of Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. This is a computer system and digital network that monitors and controls water distribution systems.
With this system, the government can easily monitor water supply projects through a dashboard, and any faults reflecting in the system can be repaired immediately unlike the existing system where an officer is required to detect the fault and then, it takes days to repair the same, Marak said.
Stating that the work for the New Shillong Township Water Supply Scheme has already started, Marak said the government is unable to engage local contractors in the project as they lack the technical expertise like SCADA system.
Earlier, the local contractors and some pressure groups had asked the government to hand over different components of the project to locals only.