Editor,
Perhaps we are the only State in India that is so habituated to taking things very casually. What a mess we see in the health sector, yet our casual approach continues. I understand old habits die hard, but don’t we have a heart for the deserving and hard working students, at least?
Firstly, deserving students are “robbed” of the best colleges just because they don’t have any connections in the government. There is a visible and blatant irregularity in the allotment of medical seats in different colleges to students. I’m very sure we are the only state in India in where those with lower marks are allotted seats in some of the best medical colleges (higher preference colleges) while many top rankers have been given admission to third rate medical colleges. In other states of India the preference system makes sure that top rankers get the best colleges. What’s the point of having a merit list if top rankers are deprived of top colleges? Of course the authority in Meghalaya, as usual, would claim that allotment of seats is based on lottery system. But year after year what I see is a distribution of seats that is simply mathematically stupid! I am well versed in Mathematics and I understand what I see. So should I believe that allotment of seat is on the basis of a lottery system? It maybe a lottery system, but not after many seats are pre-booked! I wonder what the heck is that “medical counseling” for? And did I mention that “nepotism” is the worse form of “corruption”?
Secondly, a month before the medical seats were allocated it was heard that Assam would no longer allot seats to the neighboring states. Then why could our Government not resolve this issue in time? I can only imagine the psychological torture that the unfortunate students are enduring right now.
I’m afraid that if the government keeps playing with the future of hard working and meritorious students, karma will make sure that our State stays at the bottom of the graph! If we love our own State and our fellow citizens, we must speak up!
Yours etc.,
T Fightingstar L Mawlong,
Via email
Whither medical colleges in Meghalaya?
Editor,
It is very disheartening to learn that ten students from Meghalaya were denied admission for MBBS seats at three Medicals Colleges of Assam, viz., GMC, Guwahati; AMC, Dibrugarh; SMC, Silchar. It is in the interest of the readers and our political leaders, to know that our big brother Assam, has a total of 11 medical colleges in the State. Three to four new medical college projects came up under the NDA government under the able leadership of Prime Minister Modi. What is interesting is that five years ago, our Government made a public announcement that two medical colleges will come up in Shillong and Tura respectively, but in reality it was only a foundation stone laying ceremony.
Since election 2018 is round the corner, perhaps it’s high time for students, NGOs and all stakeholders to demand from the central government and claim 60% (around 30 MBBS Seats) for the local indigenous people of Meghalaya at NEIGRIHMS. At present there are only 8 to 9 MBBS Seats for students from Meghalaya in NEIGRIHMS, which is too little compared to a small state like Sikkim which has Sikkim-Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences and claims about 50% of the seats for local students.
Yours etc.
- Synrem
Via email.
No road-safety measures in place!
Editor,
National highways are the lifeline connecting every book and corner of our state. Most importantly they also connect tourism places of unique interests. The beautiful landscape between Laitlyngkot towards Mawlynnong all the way to Dawki mesmerises visitors. However, the safety of commuters is grossly compromised along this stretch due to the absence of road barriers and lack of signages. The entire stretch becomes all the more tricky during fogs and heavy rains, making driving very dangerous. The PWD NH division should start installing such road barriers before unfortunate loss of lives occur. Who will be held responsible in case such fatalities occur? .
Yours etc….
Dominic S.Wankhar
Shillong:
Give up religious symbolisms!
Editor,
We must not mix the basic tenets of a religion like going to a Temple/ Mosque or wearing a Cross etc. with discriminatory practices in the name of religion like patriarchal Sati, triple talaq, burqa or casteist sacred thread. We know that discriminatory practices like Sati had been defended by the logic that Hindu women did it “voluntarily and respectfully.” Now, it is argued that innumerable women from the Muslim community still believe in polygamy and in the system of triple talaq ~ therefore, those practices must not be dismantled for the sake of some women who are fighting against those age-old religious beliefs.
This was the reason why the East India Company was very reluctant to pay heed to Raja Rammohan Roy’s appeal to do away with Sati. They thought, quite rightly so, that it would hurt the people’s beliefs. And religious communities could think that they might even be denied to perform basic, general tenets of their religions. We are lucky that East India Company ultimately did not bow to such regressive logic and saved many of our great-great-grandmothers from being burnt alive.
Religious beliefs and practices need to be in tune with the changing times. So, we got a Raja Rammohan Roy to stop women from “voluntarily and respectfully” committing Sati, an Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar to stop “honouring” widows by allowing their remarriage and a Kamal Ataturk to deny Muslim women their “right” to wear the burqa. They dedicated their lives to weed out such regressive practices.
Indeed, the burqa has become a liability for Muslim women in this hot and humid country as girls are increasingly coming out to get higher education and jobs. Yet religious pressure makes many women in Muslim communities accept this liability. On the other hand, the religious practice of wearing a sacred thread by non-sudra Hindu community especially by Brahmins gives Dalits a non-sacred identity. We must admit that it is almost impossible to find a man who will voluntarily agree to wear a burqa and Hindu religion has not given Dalits the right to wear a sacred thread. So, it is time to do away with polygamy, triple talaq, burqa and sacred thread.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Kolkata