Roy said it was not acceptable to keep a government building with adequate land and infrastructure vacant
KRC TIMES Barak Valley Bureau
Silchar: The Silchar District Mahila Congress Committee has urged the Assam government to utilise a government building near Itkhola Bazar in Ward No. 8 of the Silchar Municipal Corporation area, which has reportedly remained unused for the past couple of years.
In a memorandum, Mahila Congress president Bandita Trivedi Roy said the building, constructed at a cost of around Rs 1 crore under the Untied Fund 2016-17, was initially inaugurated in 2021-22 as the Swami Vivekanand Auditorium and Guest House.
According to Roy, the building was later used by the Cachar district administration for about a year as the Silchar Sadar Circle Office in 2022. However, the office was subsequently shifted to Sadarghat, leaving the newly constructed building unused.
Roy said it was not acceptable to keep a government building with adequate land and infrastructure vacant. She pointed out that the Greater Malugram area has significant cultural potential but does not have an auditorium.
She suggested that the building could be renovated into a properly equipped auditorium, which would provide a platform for cultural activities and encourage young people to take up various cultural pursuits.
Alternatively, she said, the building could be converted into a Government Health Centre or Sub-Centre, as the Greater Malugram area has been lacking such a facility for decades.
Roy also recalled that a government health centre had earlier functioned in the present Ward No. 8, then Ward No. 3, but was later closed. She said the need for a government health facility in the area remains strong.
On behalf of the Silchar District Mahila Congress Committee, Roy urged Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the ministers representing Barak Valley, the Health and Cultural Affairs ministers, Cachar MP Parimal Suklabaidya, Udharbond MLA Rajdeep Goala, Cachar District Commissioner, Joint Director of Health Services, Cachar, and other concerned authorities to take up the matter on priority.
She demanded that the vacant building be renovated and put to public use at the earliest, either as an auditorium or a government health centre.
According to Roy, such a step would benefit residents of Greater Malugram, particularly those living in Corporation Wards 6, 7, 8 and 9.
