Shillong, Jan. 20: At the age of 29, Meghalaya lost its heritage Assembly building in an inferno in 2001. As it turns 45 tomorrow, the state is yet to build a new Assembly building.

Carved out of Assam, Meghalaya was declared a state on January 21, 1972 after enjoying the status of an autonomous state for brief period from April 2, 1970.

Speaking to The Telegraph on the eve of Meghalaya's 45th statehood day, Speaker Abu Taher Mondal expressed the hope that construction of a new Assembly building would commence before the 2018 polls.

Attempts to build new House ended without results in the past 16 years ever since the 125-year-old ornate structure that housed the Meghalaya Assembly at Khyndai Lad here was reduced to ashes on January 9, 2001.

The historical structure made of Burmese teak in Gothic style by the British before Independence , also had the privilege of hosting the historic South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) ministerial meeting in 1986.

Mondal said 11 firms have been selected this time and they have been asked to come up with their respective designs within two months to construct the new Assembly building.

The high-powered committee, headed by the Speaker, had selected a site measuring about 80 acres near the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), Mawdiangdiang, about 15km from here.

Earlier, 13 consultants participated in the expression of interest invited by the state PWD (buildings) for preparing architectural designs but two firms did not qualify.

"We have asked the 11 selected firms to come up with their designs and give a presentation before the committee in the presence of technical officials. Only one design will be considered," he said.

Mondal said after completing the process, tender would be also floated for constructing the new Assembly building.

Apart from the delay to have a new Assembly building, Meghalaya has no proper boundary and continues to have disputes with Assam.

Late Hoping Stone Lyngdoh, the then chief of Hill State People's Democratic Party (HSPDP), had opposed the creation of Meghalaya without proper boundary and had always expressed regret over the manner in which the state was carved out of Assam. Till his death, Lyngdoh had never missed speaking out, whether in the Assembly or outside, on the need to resolve the inter-state boundary dispute which continues to linger till today.

A few years back, documents related to 12 areas of difference were handed over by Meghalaya to Assam, based on supporting evidence, including notifications and maps as well as historical, ethnic and linguistic links.

Besides Blocks I and II, the areas of difference between Meghalaya and Assam include Upper Tarabari, Gizang reserve forest, Hahim, Langpih, Borduar, Boklapara, Nongwah-Matamur, Khanapara-Pillangkata, Deshdemoreah, Khanduli-Psiar and Ratacherra. These disputed areas are in West Khasi Hills, Jaintia Hills and Ri Bhoi districts of Meghalaya.

While the people are optimistic that the state will prosper, Meghalaya is lagging behind in terms of infrastructure. The airport at Umroi, about 30km from here, is yet to be fully functional through it was constructed in the mid-1960s and became operational in the mid 1970s.

Expansion of Umroi airport, including its runway from the present 6,000 feet to 8,000 feet, to facilitate operation of bigger aircraft had been planned but not yet executed.

Baljek airport, 33km from Tura in West Garo Hills, is still lying idle. The airport was inaugurated in October 2008 but no commercial air service has started till date. The airport is being planned for further development, including expansion of the 3,300-feet runway by another 1,200 feet.

Meghalaya entered into the railway map of India only in November 2014 when Prime Minister Modi flagged off the 19.75km Dudhnoi-Mendipathar railway line.

The proposed railway line, about 20.5km from Tetelia in Assam to Byrnihat in Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya, is not making much progress, thanks to opposition from pressure groups like the Khasi Students' Union because of fear of largescale influx.

"There is no denying that development is moving at a slow pace in Meghalaya. We hope for a better future, especially as we are inching towards the golden jubilee of statehood," an official said.