Guwahati, Oct 17: Residents of Nongspung A village in Meghalaya’s Ri Bhoi district have sought Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma’s intervention to expedite a promised school building, alleging that the proposed design fails to account for the available land and the needs of both Lower and Upper Primary sections.
In a formal complaint submitted to the Chief Minister on Saturday, the villagers called for the design to be reviewed and the circumstances surrounding its preparation investigated.
“The dimension of the new building in the proposed plan is much bigger than the total land area of the school at Nongspung A. The new building has been designed to accommodate only the LP School, while the old building also houses the UP School,” the complaint, a copy of which is in possession of The Assam Tribune, stated.
According to the complaint, District School Education Officer T. Shangrang forwarded the budget proposal for the building to the Deputy Commissioner on October 13, 2026. The Deputy Commissioner subsequently forwarded it to the Chief Minister’s Office on October 14.
The villagers alleged that the proposed design was prepared by Bah Ebrin, a civil engineer associated with the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in Ri Bhoi district, without visiting the construction site or adequately assessing the school’s requirements.
The residents have sought an inquiry into the preparation of the design and a written explanation from the engineer concerned.
“Our objection is specifically to an unsuitable design that does not adequately account for the actual site conditions,” the complaint stated.
The villagers recalled that Sangma had promised a new school building under the Chief Minister’s Special Development Fund (CMSDF) during his visit to Nongspung A on May 22, 2025. The assurance was given in the presence of residents, the local MLA and the Ri Bhoi Deputy Commissioner.
The Chief Minister had also signed a memorandum submitted by the village headman and handed it over to Education Department officials for necessary action, the complaint stated.
However, the residents alleged that despite repeated representations to the Education Department and the Deputy Commissioner over the past 17 months, the proposal took considerable time to progress.
The villagers said Nongspung A’s aspiration to become a Smart Model Village made the timely construction of a modern, adequately equipped school particularly important. They maintained that a suitable building is essential to improving educational opportunities for local children.
They urged Sangma to ensure that the project moves forward with a technically sound design and construction begins without further delay.