Correspondent
KOHIMA, SEP 3 (NPN): Ten projects were closed in Nagaland during the last five years, with implementation delays, landowner-related issues, prolonged monsoon conditions, alignment disputes and administrative and tendering delays emerging as major factors, the State government informed the Nagaland Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
The disclosure came in response to a question by advisor Achumbemo Kikon on projects closed without completion or implementation.
Kikon expressed concern over funds being refunded or surrendered because projects were not implemented within stipulated periods. Referring to the conversion of the Central Workshop into a bus station, night parking and market complex at Dimapur, he said the first instalment was released on June 8, 2016, but work could begin only in October 2020 due to delay in site clearance.
He questioned whether delays were due to bureaucratic red-tapism, inefficiency in preparation of detailed project reports or failure of contractors to execute works on time.
Kikon also cited the multi-level parking project at Rüleinu, Kohima, where Rs 1.22 lakh was refunded to the North Eastern Council (NEC), and the Kohima-Leike Road Junction to Barak road project, where Rs 1,534.25 lakh was refunded to the Government of India following closure.
On the Jandang-Saddle-Noklak-Pangsha-Tuensang road project, he said progress was hampered by landslides, prolonged monsoon conditions and disturbances arising from landowners seeking compensation along the alignment. Rs 1,570.97 lakh was subsequently refunded to the Government of India.
He similarly cited the Noklak-Thonoknyu via Sanglao road project, where landowners’ compensation demands, landslides and alignment disputes affected progress.
Kikon said responsibility for delayed projects needed to be identified, whether it lay with bureaucrats, technocrats or contractors. He also referred to the Pukhungri-Avangkhu-Layshi road project, where Rs 2,001 lakh released by NEC was fully utilised for earthwork, while the remaining Rs 339 lakh was insufficient to complete the balance works, resulting in foreclosure.
He further cited the infrastructure development project at Mayangnokcha Government Higher Secondary School, Mokokchung, where construction could not continue due to a landowner issue and Rs 101.67 lakh in unutilised funds was refunded to NEC.
Responding, deputy chief minister TR Zeliang agreed that practical problems affected project implementation. He said sanctions were often received from NEC, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and other donor ministries, but departments sometimes failed to process administrative approvals and tenders in time. Contractors also sometimes delayed works.
Zeliang said most of the 10 projects had been foreclosed primarily because of landowner-related problems. He cited projects sanctioned as far back as 2012, 2013, 2017 and December 2023 that remained incomplete or had their sanctions cancelled because of delays.
He said the Union Finance Ministry, MoRTH and donor ministries had repeatedly questioned Nagaland’s capacity to spend funds when previously sanctioned projects remained incomplete and utilisation and completion certificates had not been submitted.
Zeliang urged ministers, advisers and departmental officers to ensure administrative approvals and tendering were completed promptly after sanctions were received.
He also highlighted the “bank of sanctions”, saying Nagaland had stopped receiving sanctions under the Central Road Infrastructure Fund (CRIF) for several years because of accumulated incomplete projects. The permissible level of pending sanctions was below 3–5%, whereas Nagaland’s figure had risen above 11%, he said.
He said the State had to foreclose some projects to reduce the backlog and become eligible for fresh sanctions, despite incurring penalties and refunding unspent amounts. Following the reduction, Nagaland had started receiving fresh CRIF projects, with four or five subsequently sanctioned.
Zeliang stressed the need to adhere to Central ministry guidelines and process administrative approvals and contracts immediately after sanctions. He also expressed concern over delays in State-funded projects, saying work orders should ideally be issued by July to enable implementation during the working season up to March or April.
He appealed to landowners to cooperate with development projects, while asserting that Article 371A’s protection of Naga rights over land and resources should not become an obstacle to development.
Minister for Road & Bridges Kaito G Aye said some road projects had faced difficulties arising from landowners, difficult terrain and changes in alignment, with certain projects taking as long as 14 years.
Aye said foreclosure proposals were processed through the State-level Empowered Committee headed by the Chief Secretary and subsequently referred to the empowered inter-ministerial committee under the DoNER Ministry and NEC.
He clarified that in two projects, the State was required to refund Rs 17.25 crore out of Rs 19.11 crore, although works worth about 90.27% had been completed. The amount already spent had to be borne by the State following the committee’s decision, he said.
Regarding the Pukhungri-Avangkhu road, Aye said difficult terrain and substantial rock-cutting had hampered work. The project was subsequently brought under Bharatmala and handed over to the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), with no refund in that case.
Aye said new CRIF guidelines had made submission of utilisation certificates more demanding, including audit clearance from the Accountant General and drone mapping. The department was taking steps to comply with the requirements and address inherited backlogs.
Advisor Kuzholuzo Nienu said surrendering funds was a serious concern, particularly when other departments struggled to secure funding. He said responsibility for delays could not be attributed to a single entity, as government, bureaucrats, technocrats and contractors all had roles, though landowner-related issues remained a major obstacle.
MLA Limaonen questioned contradictions in the government’s replies concerning the Jandang-Saddle-Noklak-Pangsha-Tuensang road, particularly the reference to both landowner issues and landslides. He urged departments to identify responsibility where landowner issues obstructed projects and ensure technical and implementation difficulties were addressed at the planning stage.
Kikon, in his concluding remarks, said the issue was ultimately about delivering development and good governance. He urged bureaucrats, technocrats and contractors to execute sanctioned works within stipulated timelines and said the government needed to demonstrate development on the ground.