Editor,
When we travel through the length & breadth of Khasi Hills, we are filled with awe & wonder at its natural beauty which is simply breathtaking. But sad to say, the journey through these places is back breaking due to the pathetic road conditions. On getting back home we tend to think of the people who have to use these roads daily for all purposes. How do they travel to their work places, to the market, to the Health Center, to the capital town of Shillong or for that matter to their respective Headquarters for work which need to be done there? Have we or more so, the KHADC members ever given a thought to their problems? I doubt since I very well know that the KHADC which claims to be the saviour of the Khasi Community are in fact a stumbling block to the development of their own people. This can be proven by their dilly dallying tactics when it comes to land acquisition for construction & improvement of roads.
It is a fact that the Govt. of India through the Ministry of Surface Transport has released an amount of Rs 3000 Crore for various Projects related to construction & improvement of roads to the NHIDCL. The roads included in the projects are:- 1) Western By-Pass 2 laning. 2) Nongstoin – Rambrai – Kyrshai 2 laning. 3) Shillong & Dawki (including Bridge & improvement) 4) Dalu to Bagmara 5) Tura to Dalu. 6) Mawshynrit – Hahim interstate road. 7) Wahkaji – Phlangdiloin – Ranikor. 8) Nongstoin Domiasiat via Wahkaji 9) Ranikor – Nonghyllam – Maheshkhola- Bagmara Road. But the fact remains that the KHADC prefers to leave the far flung areas as they are, for reasons best known to them. It is only during elections that promises are made. However when development is offered to their constituencies in a golden platter they place obstacles which to us common people seem dubious. Is it because they are afraid that the roads built by the companies will last for too long a time compared to the roads built by our state government through their appointed contractors and that money will stop flowing to their pockets? It is up to them to answer these questions as leaders and defenders of the jaitbynriew. Let us hope that they still have their conscience intact & that they will not deprive the villagers of their rights to development as roads are the top most priorities in the development of a place or a region.
Yours etc.,
Vernon Kharhujon
Hearty charity of Facebook’s Zuckerberg
Editor,
Some people are immensely rich but filthy poor in generosity while very few are truly rich and largehearted. They can liberally loosen their purse string to exercise their benevolence. They can prove what they are — true human beings who feel for humanity. Others chase after the riches but miss the basic rhythms of life — too tempted to be deviated from the righteous path. Yes, the inner peace and harmony merrily elude them. They are utterly poor souls! Well, two exciting news has just broken. It must have lifted the heart and soul of countless people. It’s an announcement of an act of philanthropy by none other than Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook. Being sensible he chose the most joyful occasion – the birth of his beloved daughter Max, to make public a ground-breaking announcement of donating 99% of his total share of wealth towards charity. Of course, it needs tremendous courage and inner awakening to take such a decision. Mark wants that the next generation should not face the menace of poverty and the worry of ill-health as we have now. He believes that man’s inner potentialities must not be shrunken by other external shortcomings and the lack of education. He wishes that all be equally empowered to express themselves in every possible manner. Very understandably, Mark knows how to control the money and how best to use it instead of being controlled, or even consumed by it.
He perhaps does not want to cling to that which will never make him a good human being. Yes, what is quite clear is that Zuckerberg owns the wealth but it did not own him. That is truly admirable and inspiring for the world to know. It’s an example worth emulating by other tycoons as well. So that they can at least stop losing their sleep guarding their stacks of dollars. Some philosopher has rightly said that tonnes of money of a tycoon is far less meaningful than the golden mountain or the beauty of streams in a green landscape that never fails to make every one joyful and merry. The open scenery, a pleasant feast for the eyes, soothes the pangs of everyone’s heart while the huge piles of dollars make the owner’s greed more concrete and the mind more confused and heart less cheerful. Not even .001% of the total wealth has any lucky magnate ever used personally in his life time. Is it not a huge paradox? What an inevitable truth
that when we die we cannot take along even the dust that whole lot of money gathers over the years. But, we lose ourselves in the wilderness of greed which only strips us of other good qualities.
Yours etc.,
Salil Gewali
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