Meghalaya is a stare created out of the shared vision of the Khasi, Jaintia and Garo people. The stalwarts of the Hill State Movement must have had a long term vision on how to develop the state into a patch of beauty and grace, to borrow late Prof GG Swell’s famous words. It is therefore absurd to suggest that this state which is a mere 22,249 square kilometers should now be further truncated only to meet the narrow, short term goals of some political aspirants who are short on real issues. Meghalaya ahs no dearth of pressure groups each with an aim to occupy the political space by raising the communal tempo. Today, what the citizens of Meghalaya need are sustainable development models which had hitherto not been envisioned. This envisioning process should have involved politicians across the political divide. There cannot be too many differences in trying to work out a model of development which is equitable and for the greater good of the people of the state.
The fact that Meghalaya has depended on extractive industries such as coal and limestone mining both of which is environmentally degrading and extracts a heavy ecological price shows that since attaining statehood no government has really paid attention to the idea of sustainable development. Meghalaya is essentially an agrarian economy with huge potential for horticulture. This sector has not received adequate attention even though it has the capacity to create manufacturing industries and thereby promote entrepreneurship. Even in tourism which could have been a major revenue earner, the government has not developed a professional approach to the business. Each government has been driven by tactical short term objectives while strategic long terms goals are given short shrift. Perhaps the very nature of politics in this country which is governed by five-year tenures is in itself a major lacuna.
It is in this lacuna that people with a selfish motive choose to launch their political careers and sell their communal rhetoric. Many such individuals have come and gone but the plight of the people has remained the same. What makes these political wannabes believe that bifurcating Meghalaya is going to turn it into a paradise? Can they share their vision and long terms goals beyond the rhetoric? And why do such demands mushroom before the elections?