It’s unbelievable that a new Government which is barely a few months old would raise the cap on the purchase price of vehicles amounting to several lakh rupees. This is a fetish that would prove very costly for the Government. A state that relies heavily on central dole and one that does not even have enough resources to pay for maintenance and repair of roads has no business to spend on luxury vehicles. If the MLAs and bureaucrats want to ride high end vehicles they should just buy their own. Many of them can afford a Mercedes, a BMW and even a Bentley if they choose to so why use public money for that? The Government certainly has very wrong priorities. Why spend Rs 40 lakh for the Chief Minister’s and Governor’s vehicle? May we ask who the suppliers are and whether there is a transparent tendering/bidding process here?
Those who have taken the road to one of the oldest colleges in the state – the Union Christian College (UCC) in Umiam know the condition of that road. It has been eroded by coal carrying trucks coming from West Khasi Hills for nearly three years now. The road hardly exists and yet that place has several institutions of repute and tourist resorts as well. Perhaps it is to manoeuvre such dilapidated roads that those in Government need the best vehicles that will not break their fragile backs. Well, the spines of ordinary commuters are important too. Since Meghalaya features poorly in governance one would have thought that good governance would be the MDA Government’s priority, which would include austerity measures. As it is roads in Shillong are repaired every year because the repair work is shoddy. There is large scale corruption at every stage of the process. The road to one of the leading health institutes of the region – NEIGRIHMS was completely flooded during the recent downpour. That road has been under construction for over a year. How long does it take to repair a 5 km road? And what about ambulances carrying patients that need emergency treatment at NEIGHRIMS but are slowed down by the poor quality of the road? Should the PWD not be held responsible for this and by extension the whole Government?
When roads are so decrepit, how can the Government spend money on expensive vehicles? It just does not make sense. The MDA Government has to set out clear priorities for itself and think of the people who have elected it with high hopes of seeing better governance.