SHILLONG: The State Government is looking to procure 30 new vehicles (Maruti gypsy) for pilot escort duties.
This was informed by Home Minister Roshan Warjri at the floor of the House on Monday.
“We would try to clear the proposal for purchasing these new vehicles at the earliest,” Warjri said while replying to a question raised by South Tura legislator John Leslee K Sangma during the Question Hour of the Autumn Session of the Assembly here.
She also informed that the Home department has already withdrawn some gypsy vehicles from various units of the department which have now been deployed for escort duties.
Questions were raised about the security of the requisitioned vehicles after three security personnel of the Meghalaya Police accompanying Parliamentary Secretary, Marthon Sangma, were seriously injured earlier in the year when the driver of the hired Sumo they were travelling in lost control of the vehicle near Chaygaon, under Kamrup district in Assam.
“Several sumo vehicles which have been requisitioned for pilot escort duty are not road worthy. These vehicles are without sirens, flags and beacons,” the South Tura legislator said in the Assembly.
Replying to a supplementary question raised by Songsak legislator Nihim D Shira, the Home Minister said that though the Sumo drivers are hired by the owners of the vehicles, they had to go through a skill test conducted by the department.