SHILLONG: The state government has decided to go ahead with the idea of developing Shillong into a smart city though there are no direct indications from the Centre as to whether it will sanction the funds for the project on the basis of 90:10 or 50:50.
Minister of state for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri had recently agreed in principle to revise the fund-sharing formula for the North Eastern states in the smart city project to 90: 10 instead of the existing pattern of 50:50.
Speaking to The Shillong Times here recently, state Urban Affairs Minister Hamlet Dohling said that the state government has decided to go ahead with the project and if there will be any issues, the Centre has assured to assist the state.
The central government, however, so far has not sanctioned any funds for the smart city project since the state is yet to constitute a full-fledged special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the purpose.
“Till now we have Director Urban Affairs as the interim CEO of the SPV. Once we have a full-fledged CEO, the SPV will become functional and the state will start getting funds,” Dohling said.
Dohling maintained that the state is making positive progress for the project and the pre-bidding for the project management consultants (PMC) has been done and the main bidding will follow shortly.
Earlier this year Shillong was selected as the 100th city to receive funding under the Smart Cities Mission, which was also the final slot.
The Smart City Mission was one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s key electoral promises in 2014.
The scheme, launched on June 25, 2015, aims to develop 100 cities across the country, making them citizen-friendly and sustainable. The total proposed investment in the selected cities under the scheme is over Rs 2.05 lakh crore.
