Ministers, MPs concern over delay in NE projects

Union Ministers and MPs cutting across party lines today expressed concern over the delay in completion of various development projects in the Northeast and asked the state governments to ensure their speedy completion.
At the 3rd meeting of the Consultative Committee for the DoNER Ministry held here, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said state governments have a tendency to seek funds for new projects while the ongoing projects remained pending for long.
Secretary, DoNER, Naveen Verma informed the members that the backlog of projects now ran into more than Rs 2,000 crore.
Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, who participated in the discussion as a special invitee, underlined that project delays are unacceptable.

Singh stresses on timely completion of DoNER projects by the state governments.
Participating in the discussion, former Lok Sabha Speaker and National People's Party MP P A Sangma said the DoNER Ministry and the North-Eastern Council should not merely act as funding agencies, but also plan and monitor the projects.

Congress MP from Meghalaya Vincent H Pala proposed that vigilance and monitoring committee be constituted to oversee the timely execution of projects.
Members and the Union Minister also discussed the utilisation of Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR).
They also expressed concern over the delays in projects implementation and misappropriation of funds.