CAG flags INR 27.97 crore Kohima water project lying idle, citing delays, lack of testing, and unresolved bulk water source issues.
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DIMAPUR — The ambitious pipeline project worth INR 27.97 crore, designed to receive and distribute 31 million litres per day (MLD) of water to Kohima town, has remained unachieved since 2013 due to the state government’s failure to augment bulk water supply.
This was stated by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in its report tabled in the State Assembly on March 26 during the budget session.
According to the report, the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), approved the project at a cost of INR 32.28 crore in September 2012 and subsequently signed a loan agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on November 19, 2012.
The scope of work included laying 318 km of pipeline within the existing right of way (RoW) and road shoulders across 27 hydraulic zones in Kohima city. The distribution network (loop system) was designed to supply 31 million litres per day (MLD) of water up to 2043, with a provision to draw 27.86 MLD from the Dzukou/Tepuiki stream.
The Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) was floated in February 2012, and the work was awarded in February 2013 to M/s Tantia Constructions Limited, Kolkata, for INR 32.28 crore, with a stipulated completion period of two years (by February 2015).
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The agreement required both the central and state governments to ensure that all land and RoW were made available to the contractor as per schedule. Clause 2.1 of the General Conditions of Contract (GCC) stipulates that the employer must provide access to the site in a timely manner to avoid disruption. Clauses 8.2 and 10.3 mandate completion of works and successful testing before taking over the project.
However, the report stated that the agreement lacked provisions linking payment to completion of specified tests and handing over of the project. As a result, the department released the full payment to the contractor before completion of mandatory tests. It also observed that encumbrance-free RoW was not made available as required.
The civil works were scheduled to commence on August 1, 2013, but clearances for pipeline laying were obtained only between April and May 2016—after the original completion deadline of February 2015. Permissions from colony and panchayat authorities were secured between September 2016 and December 2017.
Funding from ADB closed in June 2019. To complete the project, the Ministry of Finance extended the deadline to June 2021, which was further extended to March 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the state government revised the project scope in March 2022, reducing pipeline length from 318 km to 212 km and cost to INR 27.97 crore.
The delay and reduction in scope were attributed to RoW disputes with landowners and colony panchayats, construction activities, departmental clearances, changes in landscape, natural disasters, and the Covid-19 lockdown.
The project was reported as completed on March 31, 2022, and the contractor was paid INR 27.97 crore between July 2014 and March 2022 through 32 Running Account (RA) bills. Of this, INR 26.74 crore was reimbursed by MoHUA in March 2022.
The report further observed that even a year after completion, the distribution network had not been tested or commissioned for handover from the Urban Development department to the Public Health Engineering department, in violation of GCC provisions. As such, the project was not safeguarded through testing within the defect liability period (up to March 2023).
It also highlighted that Kohima currently receives only 3.36 MLD during the monsoon and 1.23 MLD during the lean season, against a demand of 18.71 MLD—resulting in a deficit of 15.35 to 17.48 MLD (82.04% to 93.43%). Demand is projected to rise to 31 MLD by 2043.
The report attributed the primary cause of the shortfall to the failure to implement the water source augmentation project for tapping 27.86 MLD from the Dzukou/Tepuiki stream, due to land disputes between two villages.
It added that existing water sources are insufficient to support the new distribution network, which remains idle despite an expenditure of INR 27.97 crore.