Editor,
The bandh called by the GNLA is ill-timed. It falls on the day when thousands of our children are supposed to be appearing for their exams all over the state. The worst part is that they have called for an indefinite bandh in the entire Ampati constituency. How unfortunate! The news report says that ‘students appearing for examinations’ will be exempted. It does not mention teachers, supervisors and the MBOSE staff who are responsible for the smooth conduct of the examination. Will they be punished for performing their duties? As a teacher myself, I know that a great number of students come from semi- urban and rural areas. How will they reach their examination centres on time? Are parents/guardians who come to drop their children/wards exempted too? Or is anybody going to provide vehicles for them? Alas! Our innocent children will suffer. The bandh call will have a deep impact on their lives. Garo Hills is already suffering. This region has the lowest pass percentage. Are we going to make it worse this year? Time to think!
I am a law abiding citizen who is neither for nor against the police or any particular organization. What I fail to understand is that when somebody gets killed due to police firing (only God knows the truth in the midst of claims and counter claims) there is a hue and cry. When innocent villagers or some well to do people are brutally killed by militant organisations all voices are muted. Why is it so? Are we afraid lest we should meet the same fate? Who is not afraid of the bullet, but every killing of the innocent should be condemned by all, since ‘nobody can give life, nobody has the right to take anybody’s life’ either. I appeal to all my brothers to stop killing our own brothers. The saying that ‘those who take the gun will end up with the gun’ is true indeed. I also appeal to the GNLA to call off the indefinite bandh in the greater interest of our brothers and sisters because the SSLC/HSSLC examinations are stepping stones to their careers.
Yours etc.,
Name withheld on request
A Dream for Our Youth
Editor,
In one of the deliberations on entrepreneurship and small businesses, a chap rose up and with kind aggression said “I will give a serious thought on entrepreneurship if you give up your job and pursue the same”. The room went to silent as the grave mode as all were taken aback by this statement. It was nothing short of an academic ambush. The teacher became a sitting duck. It has set the cat amongst the pigeons and was ruffling feathers all around. The chap has raised a perceptive question. The statement is a challenge and a genuine and tenable one at that. That set of students has left the campus but the challenge remains and the deliberation continues. The crux of the matter is that it is easy to draw the line, but, can we actually walk it and/or do we have the means and systems to walk it. As such, I place the following pointers –
Firstly, I totally agree with the view points of Gerald Kharkrang. Entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial spirit is indeed one of the openings for livelihoods and growth. It is to be explored and embraced. The aspiring and motivated ones should look towards it. As such, in recent times a number of first generation entrepreneurs have come up to the fold and made good. However, this is just a starting point and there are miles ahead to tread. In addition, there is scope for more such budding entrepreneurs to get into the mix.
Secondly and in relation to the above, there is a mother of all questions concerning entrepreneurship. Who will create the opportunities and enabling environment for initiation and growth of small businesses? Apart from policies and plans on paper, we need to develop appropriate systems for the same. To start with we need a dedicated resource center on all matters concerning small businesses. Apart from training the center should look towards applied and action research for identifying openings and disseminating such information. This must continue with hand-holding during the initial stages of business with a plethora of assistance and advisory services. In addition, we need to invest in a business incubator resource center. This will be a practical medium for executing the processes of trade and commerce. It should look to provide appropriate office and operations space for the business, storage services, communication services, marketing and advertising services, financial services and so forth. These services are a must for encouraging and improving the success rates of small businesses. After all, we should never let a cub alone into a garden of wolves, should we?
Thirdly and if the above is done, I am sure there will be many who will look to come out of their comfort zone and jump into all possibilities. This is what happens when we provide an enabling environment. However, in doing so we must try to do away with the question of subsidy at least in financial terms (as business incubators are subsidies in kind). Financial subsidy should cease to be a motivation for doing business as a half-baked enterprise will never go far.
Lastly and as pointed also by others, our thinking should change over time. If ever, an enabling environment is created, it should be embraced and practiced. Of course, these sea changes will not happen overnight, but, at least the process can start. Overall, we need to move away from the prevalent notion of our thoughts being persistently narrow as our ‘lynti shnong’.
Yours etc,
Benjamin Lyngdoh
NEHU Campus
Shillong – 22