SHILLONG:
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma chaired two conferences of Deputy Commissioners and Sub Divisional Officers and Superintendents of Police and Commandants of the Police department, at the State Convention Centre and Police Headquarters, respectively, on July 13.
While in the first, Conrad announced sanctioning of Rs 120 crore for construction of new block buildings and repairment over 1,800 lower primary schools, which are in dilapidated conditions, in the second, he informed that the government has decided to create the police infrastructure renovation fund (PIRF).
Informing that a tender process is going on for construction of the new block buildings, the Chief Minister said, “Overall, approximately about Rs 120 crore plus has been sanctioned and works for new block buildings are going to start by August-September in all the blocks of the state.”
The chief minister also informed that the government has also started the first phase for improvement of schools including new buildings and extension buildings. “We have gone a step further and have decided that 1,800 government lower primary schools, which are in bad shape and screaming for repairment, will get makeovers through the district level,” he said.
“A decentralised approach will be adopted in which the district rural development agency (DRDA) along with the DLC and different education officers will work together. An amount between Rs 3 lakh to Rs 4 lakh will be given to each school,” the Chief Minister added.
In order to improve the health infrastructure, Sangma said that a similar model will also be adopted for renovation of the PHCs, CHCs and sub-centres.
“We have decided to decentralise those repair works and now the entire fund for it will be given directly to the DRDA and to the districts. Now, the district medical health officers (DMHO) will sit down and take up the work at the district level in a decentralised manner to ensure speedy implementation as against when the entire process was centralized,” he said.
Later, after chairing the conference of the Superintendents of Police and Commandants of the Police department, Conrad said through the PIRF, the government has decided to give a direct fund to the district level – District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), which will then work closely with the SPs and the battalions to take up renovation of the police stations.
In a bid to de-congest the city roads and enable the police to serve the people better, the government will release 60 brand new vehicles to all 76 police stations to control and monitor traffic and will also provide cranes and ambulances to the high-traffic zone districts and accident-prone districts.
“We have also decided to give brand new vehicles to all 76 police stations along with computers and complete IT set up. We will be giving cranes to lift vehicles that met with accidents and ambulances at the police level so that immediate response can be given as and when required,” Sangma said.
Stating that 70 per cent of the police forces does not have proper accommodation in the state, the Chief Minister informed that the government will soon come up with a housing project in this regard. “In a phase wise manner, we will be taking up certain housing projects at the district level,” he said.
Meanwhile, the state government has also decided to come up with the Chief Minister’s Police Medal and Disaster Response Medal to honor police personnel for their services to the people of the state. The chief minister also assured that the government is in the process of filling up vacancies in the police department.