Shillong, May 8: Meghalaya is nearing a major milestone in decongesting and beautifying the Polo area, part of the larger Shillong beautification project, with the completion of the Polo Mall and the Riverfront Development Project making quick progress.

Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Thursday inspected the area and announced that the construction of the much-awaited Polo Mall has been completed. The project is currently in renting/leasing out phase of the shops and other areas of the complex, which is expected to be completed within 2-3 months.

The Polo Mall is the cornerstone of Polo beautification project, which has been constructed after razing the earlier Polo Market, another iconic marketplace. The idea of the project, taken up under the Shillong Smart City project, was to turn Polo into ‘Times Square’ by renovating it.

“Work for Polo Mall is complete. It is now under the process of renting out or leasing out the shops in the mall and we are hopeful that within couple of months few of the shops and areas will be active. There is space for entertainment centre, there is space for (food) court, there are very large shopping areas, commercial spaces… I’m very happy to see the work in the Polo Mall come up very fast. In the next couple of months, we should be able to get the rooms and the place active,” Sangma said after the inspection.

The mall has been constructed at a cost of Rs 85 crore, and boasts a total built-up area of 1.5 lakh square feet. The six-story structure will house 90 shops and offer mechanised car parking facilities. Among its features are 12 escalators, five lifts, a food court, EV charging stations, office spaces on the fifth and sixth floors, and a dedicated kids’ zone.

Riverfront Development Project

The chief minister also inspected the Riverfront Development Project in Polo, coming up on the Wahumkhrah River, another important project for the state with reference to the beautification of Shillong and the upcoming National Games 2027 in the city.

“There are two parts of this project, one is the development of the riverfront in terms of the infrastructure and also the overall cleaning up of the river itself. we are very keen to do both,” he said.

Sangma stated that the first phase of the project, which includes infrastructure work, is progressing at a fast pace and is expected to be completed by the end of this calendar year or early next year, within the financial year 2025–26.

The second phase will see the addition of small shops, eateries, parking areas, and hostel-style accommodations for sportspersons. “This can become a kind of an area for sports training, high-altitude training,” he said.

The Chief Minister also stressed on community participation for the success of the project, remarking that “riverfront without the river is going to be meaningless.” “Therefore, I urge the citizens, the local dorbars, the local headmen, and the society at large to work together with state government to ensure that we are able to keep our rivers clean, this requires the participation of the people especially the residents and we would be working very closely with them to ensure that this target is achieved,” he said.

He was hopeful that the riverfront project will be completed within the next 8-12 months.

Also Read: No need to panic, Meghalaya has enough food, assures Minister amid war tension

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