By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, June 13: Despite the fanfare of “Act East” and high-budget allocations, 17 crucial central projects in Meghalaya—including flagship PM-DevINE and road schemes—exist only on paper, with the latest DoNER report revealing a staggering zero percent physical progress on the ground.
The May 2026 monitoring report from the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) identifies these projects as “non-starters,” despite being officially listed as under implementation.
The stalled portfolio includes three high-profile projects under the Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE) and six schemes under the North Eastern Council (NEC).
Further adding to the administrative paralysis, six projects under the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS-OTRI)—intended to bridge critical gaps in water, sanitation, and social infrastructure—have yet to see a single brick laid. Two essential road infrastructure projects are similarly stuck at the starting line.
While Meghalaya has 81 ongoing projects under various DoNER programmes, the “zero progress” status of these 17 schemes highlights a significant bottleneck in the state’s development machinery. The current track record shows that only 14 projects, valued at Rs 200.92 crore, have reached full completion—representing a success rate of barely 17% of the total monitored projects.
The report indicates that while 32 other projects have crossed the 75% completion mark and are in their final stages, the persistent inertia surrounding nearly a quarter of the state’s central portfolio remains a major concern.
Across the Northeast, DoNER is currently monitoring 1,008 projects. However, in Meghalaya, the failure to move high-budget initiatives from the planning stage to physical execution threatens to stall the promised infrastructure growth and improve the quality of life for local residents.
