SHILLONG: The recent diktat of the College of Nursing at NEIGRIHMS to converse only in Khasi or face penalty has not gone down well with organisations in Garo Hills.
John Miltu Sangma, the general secretary of GSU central executive committee, said Meghalaya belongs to three communities of Khasi, Garo and Jaintia and the recent diktat is not acceptable.
“Let them learn Khasi as well as Garo language,” he said while adding that many patients from Garo Hills also throng the institute for their medical treatment. The college had recently issued a notification making it mandatory for students to speak in Khasi or cough up Rs 500.
Another NGO, Achik Youth Welfare Organisation (AYWO), has also termed the directive as “undemocratic and irrational”.
An AYWO statement expressed its apprehension about the circular issued by the principal of the college of nursing at NEIGRIHMS.
“India is a democratic and secular republican nation and no one is entitled to impose on anybody the use of any specific language. The principal at NEIGRIHMS is no exception and everybody has every right to choose their convenient language wherever and whenever he or she deems fit to do so,” AYWO general secretary Sengbath Ch Marak said.
