By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The six-party Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government completed a month in office on April 6 without any major hurdle but the road ahead remains paved with stumbling blocks.
Despite the initial hiccup of HSPDP threatening to withdraw its support from the government, the coalition government remained stable, which is a necessary and sufficient condition for the state to focus on its development road map.
From Day 1, the new government had laid emphasis on education and health sectors. It has promised to prepare a draft education policy in three months.
The government is also making efforts to start the work for the medical colleges in the state.
However, with two murders in a month in Jaintia Hills, the government is facing challenges on the law and order front.
The murder of RTI activist Poipynhun Majaw last month and a woman on April 4 remains unsolved with the police being unable to make any arrests.
Besides, the city witnessed a flash violence during a rally on the 40th anniversary of the Khasi Students’ Union, putting the system to shame. Police have not made any arrest.
Despite several pressure groups demanding implementation of the inner line permit (ILP) and scrapping of the railway project, the government has maintained silence on these contentious issues.
The government is yet to spell out its stand on setting up of entry and exit points to contain influx, which was agreed upon by the previous government.
The suggestion of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma to introduce work permit to Bangladeshis had courted controversy.
On ILP, the MDA has said it would take everyone into consideration before taking a call on policy matters.
The chief minister recently said that the constitution of a group of ministers to deal with critical issues is the new approach of the government as it completes one month.
Decongesting the city and ending water crisis are other daunting tasks ahead. The state government has held meetings to discuss both the issues but concrete
solutions are still elusive.
The coalition government is yet to officially engage with Assam over the long-vexed boundary dispute.
Though it is working on a resolution on lifting the coal ban, the government has made it clear that it was against uranium mining.
When asked about his assessment of the new coalition, Opposition legislator and veteran politician Charles Pyngrope said on Saturday it would not be fair on his part to assess the performance of the government in such a short period of time.
