Shillong, March 11: Newly elected Meghalaya chief minister D.D. Lapang has ambitious plans for his capital. He has decided that his first task as chief minister would be to re-design the city and free it from pollution, vehicular congestion and improper sanitation.
Lapang today held a high-level meeting with the government co-ordination committee members, including the commissioners of all concerned departments and the director-general of police, to chalk out ways of restoring the sobriquet of Scotland of the East to the capital.
Home minister R.G. Lyngdoh, urban affairs minister Friday Lyngdoh, chief secretary J. Tayeng, commissioners of PWD, PHE, power and water supply and the chief executive officer of the Shillong Municipal Board attended the meeting.
Speaking to The Telegraph after the meeting, Lapang said, “The old order of things will change to give way to the new.”
He said several important decisions like the construction of an underground passage were taken at the meeting.
“If the government is not in a position to fund the new projects, we will take loans from financial institutions and look out for other avenues to ensure that Shillong gets back its former beauty,” said Lapang.
He said the government had set deadlines for the completion of the four parking lots in the city and the formation of a sub-committee to take care of the traffic congestion.
The chief minister also warned that anyone found guilty of violating traffic rules would be made to pay heavily.
It was decided at the meeting that the Police Bazar parking area, which will have a capacity to house 218 vehicles, would be completed by July.
A parking area for 75 buses will be constructed at Iewduh (Bara Bazar) and a similar one for 22 more buses will be set up near the district council.
A parking lot is also coming up at the French Motor Works in Laitumkhrah.
As per the master plan of Shillong, 1991-2011 report, published by the urban affairs department, the growth of vehicles in the city over the past decade has been phenomenal.
The last survey carried out in 1987-88 had put the number of vehicles in the city at 16,320, but unpublished reports state that the figure had multiplied 10 times over the past few years.
“We will complete the parking areas as early as possible,” Lapang said, adding that his government would soon begin a survey to create diversion and approach roads for reducing traffic jams and congestion.
Additional director-general of police W.R. Marbaniang has been appointed chairman of the sub-committee, which will oversee the changes in traffic rules. Commissioner of power B.K. Deb Burma has been asked to chair the committee that will look after water supply, sanitation and power distribution.
Another major decision taken by the MDA government today was to replace the six main pumps of the Greater Shillong Water Supply Scheme (GSWSS) at Mawphlang.
An amount of Rs 3 crore will be earmarked to install new pumps at the GSWSS, which caters to the whole of Shillong and its suburbs.
The chief minister said the finance and planning department has approved the schemes proposed to augment water supply. “This includes replacing all old water distribution pipelines with new ones,” Lapang said, adding: “We have directed the chief executive officer of the Shillong Municipal Board to identify and take legal action against those who do not follow the sanitary latrine rules.”