SHILLONG: The MLA of Shella constituency and the Speaker of the Assembly, Donkupar Roy was told by the Chief Minister Conrad Sangma that the demand for upgrading Sohra to a district would not be feasible this year due to financial constraints even as he was assured by the CM on upgrading of Sohra to a district level.
Roy said, “I told Conrad (Sangma), I will be attending the meeting on demand for Sohra District, what do I tell the people there? He said, ‘Sir, you have committed it and what you have committed, we will do it but this year the financial position of the state is not good. We will look into it in the coming year but what you have committed, we will do it’.”
Roy was speaking at the general meeting of South East Khasi Hills District Demand Forum at Swami Vivekananda Hall, Ramakrishna Mission, Sohra on Saturday.
Stating that the demand for Sohra District has been a long pending one and not since 2012-’15, he said Sohra sub-division met the required criteria to be upgraded to a district.
“Despite the fulfillment of the criteria, Sohra was not upgraded to the district level while other places got the opportunity to be upgraded to district level,” he said.
Referring to Khliehriat, Ampati, Resubelpara, Mawkyrwat that were upgraded to district, Roy said long pending demand was not fulfilled as there was lack of political will.
He said, “I was told to wait even as Sohra fulfills the criteria. Why do we have to wait? It is not a question of criteria or demand, but we are weak politically. When the government wants to upgrade, it goes ahead even without asking, there has to be political will for such a demand.”