Shillong: Meghalaya legislators blasted the government on Tuesday over the New Shillong Water Supply Scheme. Nongkrem MLA Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit raised a Zero Hour notice regarding the Rs 850.58-crore tender for Phase-II Part-A. The government issued this bid on July 31 with a deadline of August 28. It is a massive package. Basaiawmoit warned that bundling the work prevents local firms from bidding. He argued the state must review the project before spending public funds. He also pointed to over Rs 900 crore in unpaid Jal Jeevan Mission bills.
PHE Minister Marcuise N. Marak defended the decision. He said the project uses the Engineering, Procurement and Construction mode to ensure single-point accountability for complex urban infrastructure like reservoirs and pumping stations. Marak stated, "The EPC model would provide a single point of accountability, reduce coordination difficulties and interface-related delays or disputes, and include three years of operation and maintenance."
Separately, Mawryngkneng MLA Heaving Stone Kharpran challenged a staggering Rs 234-crore cost increase in Phase-I. The budget jumped from Rs 538.44 crore in March 2024 to Rs 772.924 crore by May 2026. Marak blamed the hike on unforeseen site issues. Engineers had to move the dam site upstream because a landfill was proposed near the original Nonghali location. This change forced expensive modifications, extra excavation, and slope stabilization. Other costs included power supply, road restoration at Jaroit and Diengpasoh, and compensation payments to Dorbar Shnongs.
Phase-I includes a dam, jackwells, and a water treatment plant at Mawpdang. The scheme targets the New Shillong Township, Mawkhanu Knowledge City, and 32 surrounding villages. Kharpran demanded a monitoring committee to oversee the project and insisted on better protection for the Umkhen River catchment area.
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