Editor,
I am speaking about the present controversial issue of Tara Ghar, the heritage site selected for construction of the prestigious State Assembly House. The contents of this letter may not be palatable for some. Initially, the three wise Speakers elected three different sites of their own choice for construction of Assembly building within a span of six years (2004-2010). One of them opted for the rich agricultural land at Upper Shillong, another a small strip of congested area at Khyndailad and the third preferred the lush green heritage place in the heart of Shillong i.e. Tara Ghar. All three are seasoned politicians and Shillong based. Therefore, they should have exercised their minds more deeply before taking a hasty decision. It was apparent from the selection process that whoever is elected as the new Speaker is privileged to have his own choice, totally ignoring the sites selected by his predecessors I understand that final selection of site for Assembly House construction has to go through the high powered House Committee consisting of senior members including the leader of the opposition party. Over and above, there is a high profile Government adviser, whose valued opinion would have been sought at the time of taking such a hard decision.
Now the point is, how come the three separate controversial sites selected by different Speakers have been cleared by the House Committee one after the other during those six years? Why were the first two selected sites at Upper Shillong and Khyndailad not considered?
Where is the credibility of the powerful House Committee when each and every site selected by successive Speakers can be approved without proper scrutiny? Assuming that a new Speaker is elected soon and he proposes to construct a hanging Assembly building over Wards Lake, will that be also approved? These are the small but vital information which common people like me would like to know about the mysterious selection game.
People want developmental activities to be spread out all over the state and should not be confined to one particular place. With this aim in view, the Government has acquired expansive plots of land at Mawdiangdiang some years ago. Development of Satellite Township at Mawdiangdiang by construction of Assembly House and the new Secretariat Office alongside would have been the best answer rather than constructing the House in an overcrowded place like Shillong.
However, the new township should be well planned and provided with modern amenities like good roads connectivity, reputed health centres, standard playgrounds, decent hotels and restaurants, inter state bus terminal, shopping malls, recreational centres, educational institutions, heliport, etc. Interestingly, not a single politician has opened his mouth both inside and outside the house to shift the Government infrastructure to the new township. As Bah AB Nongbet has mentioned in his letter to the Shillong Times (17th June, 2011) there might be some hidden agenda for which the Government land in the new township has been lying unutilized for so long.
Addressing a panel discussion at Shillong on 9th July, 2011 (The Sentinel, 10th July, 2011) Ardent Basaiawmoit, the firebrand legislator of Nongkrem, has rightly stated that the State Government is Shillong centric. He said, the Government does not want developmental activities outside Shillong, whereas some new projects should have been set up in the outskirts of the city. I fully endorse Bah Ardent’s views. Shillong is a growing city new commercial buildings coming up in each and every locality. As it is, the city is gasping for life for want of living space, potable drinking water and other environmental hazards. Considering all these aspects, it is high time that the new Assembly House be shifted to a more open space at Mawdiangdiang. The very selection of heritage land at Tara Ghar is faulty and therefore, one should be able to acknowledge the fact and respect the sentiments of the masses against such construction.
Yours etc.,
Rozario M. Sangma
Hawakhana, Tura