Editor,
Traffic snarls in Shillong have become a common sight. The problem can be reduced to some extent by widening the present narrow roads by 8-10 feet width. We need vacant/unutilised land by the side of the present roads for widening. Such land may belong to the government/semi-government public undertaking or private land owners.
Now let us first start with the basic traffic point/junctions:
- Dhankheti police point
- My suggestion is that the present traffic control shed be shifted to a distance of say 8-10 feet away towards the road going to Fire Brigade.
- Shift the present public bus stand to a distance of 10-12 feet towards the boundary wall of Stoneyland and remove illegal teashops and illegal parking lot.
- Dismantle /remove two small illegal pan shops temporarily installed at the road junction.
If the above job is done, the Dhankheti junction will have vast space for vehicular movement.
- Dhankheti Police Point to Fire Brigade Police Point
- In between these two points, we have Stoneyland, Assam House, St Edmund’s School and private land owners. The boundaries of the above land are by the side of the National Highway and they are having vacant/unutilised land suitable for road widening.
- Malki police point to Barik police point
To the left side of the road towards Barik police point, we have the office of Survey of India. This office is having sufficient vacant/unutilised land by the side of the main road up to Barik point. The matter is left for the government to decide.
- Barik police point to Military Rest house (Opposite Civil Hospital)
Barik police point is another busy traffic point. It needs road widening. This junction can be widened by dismantling the old PWD building facing Civil Hospital since this is now shifted to the new PWD building at Lower Lachumiere.
This old office at Barik is like a small island surrounded by motorable roads from either side. This land has sufficient area for widening including parking space, provided all condemned machineries and scraps are removed or disposed of. This can also be settled between the department and the government.
- Road from Military Rest house-Anjali petrol pump-Umshyrpi police point- Rhino to 101 area
The above mentioned points are very important and at these points, traffic congestion is an everyday issue. The junction needs immediate expansion of road and can be widened provided the Army authority cooperates with the government since sufficient space is available on both sides of the road.
In this connection, I request the government to take up the matter with the Centre soon, since the widening of Shillong-Dawki road is expected to start soon. This is a good opportunity for the government to take up the matter before the 2022 National Games.
Yours etc.,
- Senti Ao
Rtd Sr P.E (Mech)
(NPPC)
Glorifying the wrong heroes
Editor,
This refers to Poonam I Kaushish’s article, “Making a mountain of a molehill” (ST, May 8, 2018). Jinnah being a historical figure, must stay put in the pages of history books and even in portraits but in no way can we glorify him by instituting a top national award in his name as that would be akin to supporting his taking recourse to communal politics. Similarly, Dronacharya being a mythological character of the Mahabharata, must stay put in the pages of books and even in paintings but in no way can we glorify him either as it is certainly akin to supporting his inflicting inhuman torture on a Dalit student in the name of caste.
How can we honour such an inhuman character by giving Dronacharya award to sports coaches of our country or by renaming his native village Gurgaon as Gurugram? It certainly exposes our casteist mindsets. In this way, we have been hurting the sentiments of backward castes of our country.
Dronacharya should have been arrested in the Republic of India for cutting the right thumb of the brightest student, Eklavya as tuition fees so that he could never use his skills in archery. Not only was this an act of killing the dream and the very existence of a student but also the unity of a country. The need of the hour is to arrest our tendencies of glorifying such characters.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Kolkata
Need to reach out to Kashmiri youth
Editor,
This refers to the editorial ” Let Justice be done”(ST, May 9, 2018). The Supreme Court has done the right thing by shifting the Kathua Rape Case trial court to Pathankot in Punjab. You have rightly pointed out that there is increasing polarization and marginalisation of the society in J&K due to the activities of BJP ministers. Ever since the NDA regime came to power at the center, militant activities have increased in the valley. There is growing sense of alienation and deprivation among people of Kashmir due to some stern measures taken by the Centre recently. It’s high time the centre tries to bridge the gap between people and administration and try to alleviate this growing sense of despondency among Kashmiri youths. Oppressive measures will further increase the feeling of resentment and encourage more militant activities. As rightly pointed out in the editorial there can be no better opportune time to reach out to the people and youths of Kashmir than the ensuing month of “Ramzan”.
Yours etc.,
Sadiq Hussain Laskar,
Guwahati