Editor,
Apropos the letter by Lamkupar Rynjah (ST August 21, 2018) I personally feel that his opinions on the Khasi identity are totally outrageous. The Khasi Students’ Union ever since its inception has been championing and voicing the cause and unity of the Khasi community. It is a known fact that different sub groups viz the Khynriams, the Pnars, the Bhois, the Wars, etc constitutes this unique ethnic community known as Khasi to the outside world. It is also natural that each and every member of the Khasi community will pride himself/herself of being a member of a particular sub group or clan. A Pnar will be proud of his/her heritage or the glory of the erstwhile Sutnga kingdom to name a few. Similarly a Bhoi will feel dignified when the rich and variant culture of the Bhoi region is mentioned. At the end of the day everyone will be proud of whom he/she is or where he/she is from, except if that someone is suffering from low self esteem.
If we look and research on the different sub groups that make up the Khasi community we will find that they shared almost entirely the same aspects with regards to language, history, mythology, religion, polity, physical traits, origin, customs, etc. It is worth noting that the policy of divide and rule is also being experimented on the Khasis by former colonial rulers as well as adversaries of the Khasi community which is still lingering on to this very day.
Mr. Rynjah’s letter tends to subscribe to the devious divide and rule policy practiced by the British Raj. As a matter of fact, his comments on the Jaintias hold no water because Jaintia is the name of the region or to be precise, a kingdom. A Khynriam, a Pnar and a War can identify himself/herself as a Jaintia if he/she is from the Jaintia region.
If Mr. Lamkupar Rynjah wishes to air his views, he can do so in a democratic country, but why does he have to mention that he is an ex-KSU activist? Is what he is mentioning reflecting the objectives and ideologies of the KSU? On the contrary he is placing the Khasi community, the KSU, a few individuals and himself in a very poor light or maybe he is practicing a divide and rule policy by trying to create a wedge between the KSU and others by adding the tag ‘ex KSU’ to his name.
Finally, I can state here that Mr. Rynjah, through his writings, fails to absorb a few of the basic commitments and obligations that every true and loyal KSU member holds to his/her heart, such as: Strive for the overall empowerment and unity of the Khasi community; refrain from simply hiding behind a pen and a paper or a keyboard, one should act as well; abstain from peeking into the personal lives of others (womenfolk to be specific in this case).
Yours etc.,
(Donald V. Thabah)
General Secretary
Khasi Students’ Union
MUDA office without staff
Editor,
The Meghalaya Urban Development Authority (MUDA) has a unit at Byrnihat primarily to assist the residents of the area with building permissions etc., But for the past several months the MUDA office at Byrnihat has not been functioning. Whenever we have gone there to meet with the officers and staff for building permissions we are told by the fourth grade staff there (chowkidar and cleaners) that the administrative staff are not available. On further enquiry we were informed that the TPO is holding dual posts for Shillong and Byrnihat and that all permissions and other administrative work will be conducted from Shillong. We are also told that the officers and staff of the MUDA unit of Byrnihat are now based out of Shillong. This defeats the purpose of setting up the MUDA unit at Byrnihat. It also makes it very difficult for us from this area to travel all the way to Shillong to apply for permission for construction of residential building etc. Without the permission from MUDA the banks refuse to grant us house building loans.
We therefore seek the urgent intervention of the Minister Urban Affairs on this matter and request him to ensure that the MUDA office at Byrnihat becomes fully functional, otherwise why have an office here in the first place?
Yours etc.,
SR Khongjoh,
15 Mile Byrnihat
Meaningless exercise
Editor,
A pictorial warning saying, ‘Quit Today’ to be inserted on cigarette and tobacco packs from September 1 was recently announced by the Ministry of Health, Government of India. A helpline number to help people quit the poison will apparently be added alongside the new warning. For decades now, tobacco and cigarette packs have been warning people of the ill effects of consuming it through photos of affected people and a warning ‘Tobacco causes cancer’. I fail to understand how any of the previous warnings or the photos have been able to bring about a change in tobacco consumption, or how any of the changes in those photos or new warnings will change the extent to which people consume the poison, namely tobacco. Today, people are attracted more to what is inside the packet rather than what is written on it. I have observed many people purchasing a packet of tobacco or a box of cigarettes but I have never seen them concentrating on any of the instructions or the warnings on the packet. Tobacco is easily available and so cheap that no one has second thoughts about purchasing it..
What is The Ministry of Health trying to portray here? Why are there no steps being taken to minimise the production of cigarettes and other tobacco products and eventually stopping them from being sold in India ? Why is tobacco even being supplied? When people have not paid attention to the pack earlier, how can the Ministry of Health expect phone calls from the consumers? While this is a humble step towards prevention, is this all that it would take for a tobacco addict to stop consuming it hereafter?
Yours etc.,
Avantika Sharma
Via email