Guwahati, Sept 30: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Wednesday, reviewed ongoing development projects in Barak Valley and said he would return after Durga Puja for a detailed assessment of their progress. Sarma, visiting the region for the first time since taking oath for a second consecutive term, said the review could not be conducted in detail due to his political engagements.

“Today, we took a review of several development projects in Barak Valley, but due to political engagements, we could not do it in detail. After Durga Puja, I will come again and review them properly so that the projects can be completed soon,” he said.

Addressing concerns over the poor condition of roads in Silchar, Sarma attributed the situation to the large number of projects being executed simultaneously across the region. “The main problem is that tremendous road work is going on.

NHIDCL and PWD together are undertaking more than Rs 15,000 crore worth of work, and because everything is happening together, the roads are in bad condition. They should have taken it up step by step,” Sarma said.

The Chief Minister said most of the ongoing road projects would be completed within a year. “When we start the fly over work, we will get more complaints, and I am scared now, but we have to carry out the construction as the test pile has been done,” he said.

“Development brings struggle,” he said, citing the difficulties faced by residents during fly over construction in Guwahati before the projects began receiving public appreciation. “When we sit and review here, solutions come up,” Sarma said, adding that the Model Code of Conduct, in force due to maiden Silchar civic polls on October 3, has prevented a more detailed review during his current visit.

“If the Chief Secretary, I or other ministers come here every month and discuss the issues, we can carry forward many works firsth and,” he said. “If the government is at the doorstep, it benefits a lot,” he said.

Asked whether he would visit Barak Valley during Durga Puja, Sarma said his schedule would depend on the election. “Let the election be completed first.

If I don’t have any work during Puja, I will visit Barak Valley. Anyway, I will come after Puja for two days,” he said.