SHILLONG, Jan 31: Meghalaya Assembly Speaker, Metbah Lyngdoh said the new Assembly building will be made functional by July, hoping the COVID-19 wave will not delay the project again.
He told reporters on Monday that the July target has been set for completing work on the new 60-member House.
“We will take another month’s time for testing and commissioning,” Lyngdoh said.
“Hopefully, COVID should not delay the project again. We had to review and re-fix the date of completion of different components of work in the new Assembly building,” he added.
He had earlier said the May deadline set last year to complete the new Assembly building will not be met.
Apart from COVID-19, the shortage of labourers was a factor behind the delay in completing the project.
A major hurdle was constructing a dome, 85 metres from the ground, atop the RCC structure. “The dome will be in place by the third week of February,” Lyngdoh said.
He said the state government has assured there will be no problem with the flow of funds for the project.
“We are still awaiting Rs 100 crore from the Centre. We will be meeting Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman in order to get this fund,” he added.
Lyngdoh further said he will review the project again in the last week of February.
