Kohima, September 16 (MExN): The Nagaland Tribes Council (NTC) today appreciated the “prompt reply” of the Department of Justice and Law to the people through print media regarding the construction of High Court complex. It also appreciated ST Yapang and Odi Jamir of RTI Initiative for bringing the material pertaining to the project to NTC for consideration and necessary action. “The main objective of the NTC for highlighting the issues in the print media is to give opportunity to the concern authorities, and therefore, necessary revelations and clarifications given by the competent authorities are well appreciated,” stated a press statement from Media Cell, NTC. NTC’s major concern, according to the statement, is “when the foundation stone was laid in 2007 along with other states and others have completed their project and installed separate High Courts in 2013, why Nagaland State is still struggling with 35% of job completion on the ground even after a lapse of 10 years.” The NTC placed some of the facts and circumstances under which the earlier statement was made for public consumption. Through the RTI reply Letter NO.LAW/RTI-4/2017 dated June 21, 2017, it said, the Public Information Officer, Department of Justice & Law, Nagaland stated that 35 % of the works for construction of new High Court has completed. As per the Annexure, the total estimated cost of the project is Rs 43.75 crores (Rs 4375.47 lakhs), the NTC statement added. Further, it quoted RTI reply Letter No. FIN/REV-4/RTI/9/14/434 dated June 24, 2017, where the Public Information Officer, Department of Finance, Nagaland furnished copies of 18 Drawal Authority(s) issued under Demand No. 04- Justice & Law for construction of New High Court Complex and Building at Meriema, Kohima from 2007-08 till August, 2017. In this regard, the NTC called upon the Justice & Law Department to furnish the utilisation reports of the aforementioned Drawal Authority(s) for public consumption and verification as the construction of the new High Court building is within a public domain. NTC meanwhile maintained that the estimated cost of the project for construction of the High Court complex is not consistent. As per the statements of the PIO, Justice & Law Department dated June 21, 2017, the cost was Rs 43.75 crores; however, according to the department’s statement published on September 16, the total estimated cost of the project was Rs 161.10 crores as per NPWD SOR, 2010 and the department has received Rs 57.61 crores, it said. “The inconsistencies in the estimated cost of the project need to be clarified to the public by the Department of Justice & Law, Nagaland,” the statement demanded. In this light, the NTC asked the Department of Justice & Law, Nagaland to further clarify the factors and circumstances that have inordinately delayed the completion of the new High Court complex for more than ten years. It noted that the States of Manipur, Tripura, and Meghalaya have completed the construction of new High Court Complex and established their respective High Courts way back in 2013. Foundation stone for the same, including Nagaland, were all laid in the same year in 2007, it added.
