SHILLONG, SEPT 5: The Vice-President of India will lay the foundation for five major infrastructure projects worth Rs 1,011 crore during his two-day visit to Meghalaya beginning September 7.
The Vice-President will be accorded a public reception at Soso Tham Auditorium in Shillong on Monday evening at 4:15 pm, where he will unveil plaques for the projects in presence of Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma and Chief Secretary Dr Shakil P Ahammed.
The civic reception will feature cultural performances representing the Khasi, Garo and Jaintia tribes.
The largest of the projects is the Rs 850.58 crore New Shillong Water Supply Scheme Phase-II under the Urban Challenge Fund, which will ensure round-the-clock water supply for New Shillong City and 32 adjoining villages covering over 4.34 lakh people, with smart metering and real-time monitoring.
The package also includes two key connectivity projects under NESIDS – a 110-metre bridge over the Umngot river on the Jongksha-Kharang road at Rs 21.86 crore to integrate remote villages of Mawkynrew Block and create an alternative Shillong-Jowai link, and a 13.5 km all-weather road from Umsen to Barapathar in Ri-Bhoi Rs 56.01 crore to strengthen interstate linkage with Assam and improve access to tourism sites like Chibra Falls.
In the social and power sectors, foundation will be laid for a 30-bedded AYUSH hospital at Shillong Civil Hospital at Rs 10 crore to provide traditional and holistic healthcare, and a Rs 72.5 crore 132/33 kV substation at Mawkhanu with a double-circuit transmission line from Saisiej under PM-DevINE to meet the growing power demand of New Shillong.
All five projects have been tendered and are seen as critical enablers for the development of New Shillong City as the state’s future administrative and economic hub.
