Morung Express News
Dimapur | August 11
Mystery over the whereabouts of a “Multipurpose Hall” constructed under the Khelo India programme deepened with the Directorate of Youth Resources and Sports issuing an explainer. The explainer came via a letter from the Director of Youth Resources and Sports on August 11.
The explainer from the Director was preceded by the Mangkolemba Ao Youth Telongjem (MALT), a Mangkolemba-based youth body writing a memorandum to the Nagaland Governor, on August 10, citing “unauthorised shifting of the Rs 3 Crore Multipurpose Hall project from Mangkolemba to a private ministerial residence” at Longtho village. Longtho falls under Mangkolemba Sub-division, in Mokokchung district.
The structure in question was traced to the private residential compound of Nagaland Minister for Higher Education and Tourism.
In the memorandum, MALT alleged that the Multipurpose Hall, with a sanctioned worth of Rs 3 crore, was constructed inside the private residential compound of the Minister at Longtho village. The youth body held that while a No Objection Certificate (NOC) was issued in October 2023 by the then ADC of Mangkolemba sub-division, no formal Land Donation Deed or Gift Deed was executed. “Legally, the asset remains a private property locked behind a politician’s private security gates,” MALT stated, while seeking the ordering of an inquiry from the Governor.
Responding to the claims, the Director of Youth Resources and Sports clarified that the project was “implemented at the designated and Ministry-approved geo-tagged location within the Mangkolemba administrative area.”
The Director claimed that while the nomenclature is “Multi Purpose Hall, Mangkolemba,” the location has “not been stated as Mangkolemba ADC HQ or Mangkolemba Town.” The Work Order issued in July 2024 to M/s Aren Enterprises designated coordinates under the Mangkolemba administrative circle, which reportedly aligns with the current site.
The department also said that the “Land Availability Certificate” was issued by the ADC's office after verification with the concerned Village Council, certifying the site was free from encumbrances. Furthermore, a joint Project Monitoring Committee consisting of state and central officials conducted a physical verification, submitting a report on December 9, 2025, certifying “100% completion of the project.” It sought the dissemination of the “factual position” to dispel misunderstanding.
