Shillong, Sept 10: The issues related to Smart City were raised by the Opposition MLAs on Wednesday in Assembly.
VPP legislator Ardent Basaiawmoit pointed out that the government is concentrating only on constructing commercial complexes, which is contrary to the objective of the Smart City project to improve living conditions, including education and other sectors.
Leader of Opposition Mukul Sangma wanted to know whether any quality audit had been conducted on the commercial complex at Polo, to which the minister replied that it had been done by the department.
Sangma also referred to withdrawal of salaries by the Smart City project CEO.
In reply, the minister said the information was not available with him.
The state government said it made significant progress in implementing projects under the Smart City Mission, with an overall physical achievement of 77.81% as in July this year.
Deputy Chief Minister in-charge Urban & Municipal Affairs Sniawbhalang assured that more important projects would be included in the second phase.
To a question by Basaiawmoit, the minister said the government has installed open-air gyms at various locations in Shillong, including Governor House, Mawprem, and Laitumkhrah, at a project cost of Rs 5 crore.
Regarding the Polo commercial complex, Dhar said that the complex was recently inaugurated by the Union Finance Minister and is now in the process of being operationalized, with 109 shops.
Chief Minister Conrad Sangma clarified that the government had initially gone for a tendering process for the entire building but did not get any bidders. The government is now examining whether to go floor-wise or shop-wise for allotment of stalls.
“So very soon we will be finalising that,” he said.
On the issue of outsourcing the complex instead of engaging directly with unemployed youth, the chief minister said that the government had to follow procedure and ensure maximum revenue. However, he assured that the government has multiple projects to address employment issues
