SHILLONG: The 13 pressure groups of Meghalaya have suggested issuing of receipts at entry and exit points for those who enter the state to check influx.
The receipts will be issued by the personnel of the anti-infiltration directorate manning the designated counters.
They also said that counters should also be set up at the airports of Shillong and Baljek to verify the antecedents of a passenger visiting the State.
The comprehensive mechanism to tackle influx in line with the spirit of ILP suggested by pressure groups stress that the anti-infiltration directorate should verify necessary documents and details of a passenger before exiting the airport to other parts of the state.
Moreover, a person leaving the state travelling by air must report to the exit counter at the airport.
A note in this regard was presented to the Chief Minister Mukul Sangma on Tuesday.
According to the mechanism suggested by the pressure groups, there should be anti-infiltration check gates and check counters at all viable point of entry and exit into the state.
The features of the anti-influx mechanism include compulsory reporting at anti-infiltration check counters and filling of forms at check counters.
“Against forms filled, coloured or number-based receipts will be issued as identification cards to all the visitors as this will enable them to have access to accommodation in hotels, admission in educational institutions, work permit, medical facility and others within the state”, the note said, adding that receipts will be issued only to those people who have documents of proof of Indian citizenship. In case of foreigners a valid pass port/visa must be produced.
The entry and exit check counters should be constructed within the premises of the entry and exit points.
There should be sufficient anti-infiltration officials to man the counters at entry and exit points and these counters will be equipped with modern facilities including computers manned by professionals for devising data feedback on visitors and for communication between the anti-infiltration counters of the state in the entry and exit points.
According to the proposal, receipts issued from check counters should clearly state the purpose of visit of every visitor.
The pressure groups further suggested that main venue of the check gates in Khasi and Jaintia Hills region should be located at Byrnihat (Ri-Bhoi district) and Ratacherra (East Jaintia Hills district). They also favoured entry points for Garo Hills.
Tenants verification
The NGOs also said that verification of tenants should be carried out only for non-indigenous persons and they should produce receipts from the infiltration counters to be produced before the landlords and village authorities before rental is given.
A District Task Force should be constituted with deputy commissioners of respective districts, police, traditional heads and social organizations to be included in the task force.
While suggesting that the indigenous Khasi, Jaintia and Garo tribes should be exempted from the entire exercise, the pressure group said that it must be the duty of the landlords to ask for documents from tenants and to submit the same to the local dorbar and the local police station. After examining the documents of the tenants, the local dorbar will issue an NOC for residential purpose only.
“An NOC issued by the local dorbar permitting any non tribal to reside in any locality must not be construed as to enable the holder of such NOC to claim for any benefit. In cases where the tenants desires to apply for any other amenities like ration card, driving license, gas connection, telephone connection, EPIC, and others, he or she needs to apply separately specifying the need of such amenities”, the NGOs said, adding that all residential NOCs must be subjected to renewal thereof within 179 days of issuance.
As far as tourists are concerned, the NGOs said that they have to produce receipts from entry point, relevant documents such as EPIC, Passport and others before they are accommodated in any hotels. “It must be mandatory for the Tourism Department in coordination with the Deputy Commissioners of respective districts to keep records of the numbers of hotels, guest houses run by both private and public undertakings. Records must include the number of rooms existing in such check-in accommodations”, the pressure groups said.
According to the NGOs, it must be mandatory for all the check-in accommodations existing in Meghalaya to have proper entry register for both the in station and out station tourists or persons who check in and checkout of such check-in accommodations.
“Such entry register must be submitted to the Department of Tourism on quarterly basis in a year. All educational institutions, hospitals, hotels, villages authorities, central and state offices as well as private employment providers shall be instructed not to entertain visitors without the receipt from check counters, and strong penalties should be imposed on violators”, the note said. Referring to the categories of people visiting the state, the pressure groups suggested that students have to show their IDs to ease their entry and exit through the check-gates or check counters whenever the need arises.
“Vehicles carrying the military and paramilitary in bulk need not pass through the procedure of checking at the check gates. In case there is any bulky movement of Military and Para military forces by hired or leased private vehicles, due verification of such vehicles and reporting at the check gates, of the officers leading such military or paramilitary personnel must be complied with”, the note said.
Professionals who include lawyers, engineers, trainers, doctors among others, however, must comply with the proposed permit system.
Businessmen including persons who enter the state with the intention of carrying on any trade or business like shopkeepers (wholesalers, retailers), hawkers, suppliers, corporate houses and others should understand that the entry permit for them was meant only for entry and not a permission to engage themselves in any business, the NGOs said.
As far as labourers- both skilled and unskilled – from outside is concerned, the entry permit is only for entry to be able to work in the state in whatever capacity and they have to comply with the work permit.
According to the proposal, all public and private carriers dealing with public conveyance must report at the entry counters, after keeping records of the number of people wishing to pass through the state and the officials at the entry points must convey the same to the personnel engaged at the exit points.
A passenger in transit to other states via Meghalaya shall be given transit permit for 48 hours. The permit also applies to persons who wish to enter the State with the purpose of visiting their family for any family gathering, or a person who wishes to get medical treatment in the State and persons engaged in any religious activities and others.
Commenting on the economic aspects, the pressure groups in their note said that in line with the regulation of trade by non-tribals as passed by KHADC and also based on the recommendation of the finance commission of India and also the Benami Transaction Prohibition Bill particularly section 9(1)b placed in Parliament, the Meghalaya Government must provide provision to detect Benami transaction.
They suggested that there should be cross checking of the documents of all business establishments from shops, mills, workshops, mining establishment, industries, hotels, lodges and others to detect Benami transaction.
“Documents must include the names of proprietors of such establishment, latest banking transactions of the proprietors, documents of purchase and other related documents of the establishments with due attention being given to the signatories of all these co-related documents If it is found out that any establishment surreptitiously is running on the basis of benami, all property related to the establishment must be out rightly confiscated”, the NGOs said.
The pressure groups are against the practice of advance payment called salami with regards to renting of any premises for business purposes. “The operation of the practice of salami put the educated unemployed youths at disadvantages when it comes to renting of a shop and this practice should be considered illegal”, they said.
They also stressed economic empowerment of the local indigenous tribals and said that no trading license must be issued to the non-tribals in areas where there is room for self-employed entrepreneurial and business activities of the indigenous people.
Quota for hawkers
The pressure groups also wanted the State Government to see that while giving permission to hawking business, due consideration in terms of quota must be given to the deserving local indigenous people of the state, who form the major chunk of the poor sections.
The NGOs added that permission for non-tribal hawkers must be subjected to renewal within 179 days of issuance.
They also said that the Government should regulate the hawking business by initially evicting the present hawkers and subsequently calling for application from people having interests to carry such hawking business
While allowing hawkers , the Government should also ensure that that hawkers should not create congestion to footpaths and bye-lanes, the NGOs said, adding that any non-tribal applying for permission of hawking business must produce valid documents proving his Indian citizenship, the entry counter receipt together with a police verification certificate of his state of domicile and proof of residence.
Onus on contractors
Referring to the labourers, who come to the state either in bulk, individually or are brought by contractors, corporations, industrial establishments, mining establishments, small, medium and large businessmen, the pressure groups said that it should be the duty of such entities to assume the role of sponsoring bodies of such labourers.
“As sponsoring bodies, it must be their duty to verify the antecedents of such labourers and to ensure that all labourers pass through the entry check counters and to comply with all the procedures enforced therein”, the pressure groups said.
According to the NGOs, in case where contractors, corporations, industrial establishments desire to bring labourers from outside the state, as sponsoring bodies it shall be their duty to first approach the labour department of the state by specifying the duration of the project needed for bringing in the labourers and thereafter register the names and address proof of such labourers with a copy of police verification of the individual labourers from the state of his or her domicile.
The labour department of the state has to issue labour license or work permit to each and every individual labourers and original documents of the labour license or work permit must be in the custody of the sponsoring body of such labourers, while the individual labourers must have in his person the attested photo copy of such licenses (attestation should be done by a gazette officers), the NGOs said. “On completion of projects, the sponsoring body must surrender the labour license orwork permits of all the labourers with a statement that it does not hold responsibility for such labourers, here-in-after”. The pressure groups made it clear that a permit holder when departing permanently or temporarily from Meghalaya after the completion of their purpose of visit, shall surrender their immigration permit to the infiltration officer at the exit point. Moreover,the labourers who enter the state on their own will have to vouch for themselves with regard to proof of Indian citizenship and comply with all formalities at Entry Check Point Counters and also to comply with all the regulations of tenants verification and the conditions of applying for work permit or labour licenses and others.
A labourer who deserts their sponsoring body midway cannot seek re-accommodation elsewhere in the state without producing the original entry permission receipts, the NGOs said, adding that the entire labour license orwork permit must be subjected to renewal within 179 days from date of issuance.