SHILLONG, Dec 28: During the five years period from 2006-2011, only 35 villages in West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya were electrified. This fact was revealed by the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) report on West Garo Hills district for the year ended on March 31 2011. According to the CAG report on April 1, 2006, there were 789 electrified villages and as per the position on March 31, 2011, there were 824 villages. The report also states that out of 1,537 villages in the district, 649 villages, which amounts to 42 per cent, were yet to be electrified as on March 31, 2011. The CAG report also stated that the construction of 132 KV line from Agia (Assam) to Nongalbibra in Meghalaya, at an estimated cost of Rs 43.32 crore to provide an alternate route for supply of power to the district, was taken up under the Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) during May 2007. The project, which was to be completed by December 2009, was yet to be completed. According to the CAG report, up to March 2011, Rs 42.91 crore had been incurred on the project. The report states that the executive engineer, transmission and transformation division, Tura stated that the reason for delay in completion was due to non-receipt of no objection certificates from land owners for erection of towers on their lands. Meanwhile, the construction of another project, the 132 KV single line circuit on double circuit tower from Rongkhon sub-station to Ampati and construction of 132/33 KV, 2x25MVA sub-station at Ampati was approved by the Government of India and the DoNER in March 2010 at an estimated cost of Rs 30.79 crore and to be completed within two years. Rs 11.09 crore was released by DoNER to the Meghalaya government in March 2010 and from the government to the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) in December 2010. According to CAG report, as per information provided by the chief engineer (transmission) in August 2011, the up to date expenditure on the project was only Rs 3.13 lakh and the balance amount of Rs 11.09 crore was lying in the MeECL’s account. The CAG report also observed that verification of the survey works for the 132 KV line was yet to be completed besides land for the sub-station was also yet to be acquired. “Thus even after sixteen months (August 2011) of approval of the project, very little progress has been made,” the CAG report stated.