SHILLONG: Congress candidate from South Shillong Manas Chaudhuri has castigated his BJP rival Sanbor Shullai saying the MLA has done nothing worthwhile and people are unhappy because the MLA schemes for youths have not been implemented and utilised.
Speaking to media persons recently, Chaudhuri said the MLA has spent huge money buying small articles, which are of no use to the people, and a sum of nearly Rs 3 crore was spent on buying articles such as jugs, “which are of no value”. The former minister pointed out that in the last five years, the legislator did not flag a single issue in the Assembly while problems continue to plague the constituency.
Water crisis is a major issue in parts of the constituency like Laban and the Cantonment area.
“People who are rich dig into earth to get water but what about the poor who can’t spend money and the system is a big chaos as far as water is concerned,” Chaudhuri said. The Congress candidate gave a list of problems in South Shillong saying many roads, bridges and footpaths are in disarray and there is no semblance of development. “The slogan of BJP for a change will boomerang and BJP will be thrown out.”
On being asked the about the core issue of illicit liquor and drug abuse in certain parts of the constituency, Chaudhuri said these problems would not have spiralled out of control had the MLA performed.
Making a clarion call for activating the anti-narcotics wing of the Police Department, Chaudhuri said, “We must bring back the youths who have gone in the wrong direction.”
He also emphasised the need for a policy to control sale of illicit liquor.
NCP’s take
Another candidate from South Shillong, Vikash Gupta of NCP, echoed similar views on water scarcity and drug abuse. As a solution to the water shortage, Gupta suggested that the distribution system should be modernised to ensure that water is not wasted. He mooted rehabilitation and counselling centres for drug addicts in certain parts of South Shillong. Aggressive awareness programmes will also control the menace, he suggested.
According to Gupta, while his focus is on providing a platform to the youths for education, the problem of unemployment of youths can be solved to a certain extent by way of computer counselling and placements centres.
“I would like to see that computer counselling centres become functional in the constituency,” he said.
Gupta flagged the problems of single mothers, elderly persons and widows and pitched for special financial support schemes.
He also said the people in the constituency face trouble when it comes to mutation of property, repairing of houses and FSI since several parts fall under the Cantonment and that colonial laws needed rectification.
He also expressed confidence that a win for him in the polls would be a hat-trick for NCP since the constituency for the last many years has elected NCP candidate as their representative to the Assembly.
