Shillong, May 6: The Hynñiewtrep Youths’ Council (HYC) today said that the escalation in the cost of the New Shillong Township (NST) water supply project reveals negligence and failure in governance at the expense of public money.
HYC president Roy Kupar Synrem in a statement today highlighted that the project conceptualised at a budget of Rs 321 crore have escalated to an alarming Rs 770 crore under the current MDA government.
“This massive increase of nearly Rs 450 crore exposes gross financial mismanagement, lack of planning, administrative incompetence, and complete failure of coordination within the government departments concerned,” he said.
Synrem said the government’s justification that the rising cost was not anticipated is unacceptable as such excuses reveal negligence and failure in governance at the expense of public money.
With the people of Meghalaya facing issues such as unemployment, poor infrastructure, and limited access to basic services, the unchecked inflation of project costs raises critical concerns about transparency and potential misuse of public funds, he added.
“Public money is not the private property of any government or contractor. Every rupee wasted due to incompetence or mismanagement is a direct betrayal of the people of Meghalaya,” he asserted.
