Kohima, July 23: The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER) has foreclosed 12 long-delayed projects in Nagaland worth ₹100.28 crore, citing prolonged implementation delays, even as the state continues to execute 93 other centrally funded projects.
Official data up to March 2026 show that the 12 projects had a sanctioned cost of ₹100.28 crore, of which ₹60.30 crore had already been spent before the schemes were closed.
Among the major projects scrapped are Phase-I of the New High Court Complex in Kohima, the 23-MW HFO Thermal Power Plant at Dimapur, and the Noklak-Thonoknyu road via Sanglao.
The ministry said projects that remained stalled for extended periods were closed on an “as is, where is” or “full refund” basis after consultations with the Nagaland government.
The review also found that 26 projects under the NESIDS-OTRI, NESIDS-Roads and NEC schemes had earlier been categorised as “distressed”. Sixteen of these were under the NESIDS-OTRI programme across departments including Law & Justice, Public Works, Health and School Education, with some projects dating back to 2003.
Despite the setbacks, Nagaland continues to have 93 ongoing MDoNER-funded projects, the fourth-highest among the northeastern states. Since its inception, the ministry has sanctioned 435 projects worth ₹5,337.93 crore for the state.
At a recent coordination meeting with MDoNER officials, Principal Secretary and Development Commissioner Y. Kikheto Sema directed departments to speed up implementation, strengthen project monitoring and ensure timely submission of utilisation certificates.
Officials also emphasised that all new proposals should be routed through the Planning Department to improve coordination.
The issue of project delays had earlier been flagged by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio at the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting, where he pointed to delays of six to ten months in the approval of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs).
Rio argued that Nagaland’s effective working season is limited to six to seven months due to weather conditions, making prolonged approvals a key reason for cost escalation and delays in project execution.
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