Shillong: Tensions flared in the Meghalaya Assembly Tuesday during the autumn session. Nongkrem MLA Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit grilled Community and Rural Development Minister Sostheness Sohtun on social audit oversight. The minister appeared lost. He failed to provide data on detected irregularities, forcing Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma to step in.
Sohtun initially claimed that 70,000 audits occurred last year with four cases of irregularities found. He lacked specific details on the nature of these cases or any follow-up action. Basaiawmoit demanded answers on accountability. He pressed for the specific nature of those four cases and the penalties handed out to failing agencies.
The Chief Minister later provided broader data. He noted 7,724 issues reported over three years with 724 resolved. He added that Meghalaya conducted 4.19 million social audits in eight years. The state operates under the Meghalaya Community Participation and Public Services Social Audit Act, 2017. This law covers programs ranging from the Jal Jeevan Mission and PM POSHAN to Samagra Shiksha and various livelihood projects.
Opposition leader Mukul Sangma challenged the effectiveness of the current process. He argued that the 2017 legislation was meant for real-time community oversight, not just post-project reviews. He said, "The purpose was to involve beneficiaries and stakeholders while schemes were being implemented so that deficiencies could be corrected immediately, rather than relying primarily on punitive or corrective action after the completion of a project."
Conrad Sangma conceded that the system needs refinement. He promised a personal review of the Act. The government intends to examine how the process works to ensure it truly captures wage theft, record errors, and implementation gaps. Officials will meet to tighten the rules and push for better transparency across all departments.
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