SHILLONG: Garo Hills is an important part of Meghalaya with as many as five districts and 24 constituencies in the 60-member Meghalaya Legislative Assembly but the entire region has only one Government truck which transports and supplies medicines to different PHCs, CHC and Civil Hospitals.
The sorry state of affair in the medical sector in Garo Hills was intimated to the chairman of the State Planning Board chairman Lambor Malngiang and other members who recently visited West Garo Hills for review of implementation of the different schemes and programmes there.
Talking to media persons here, Lambor Malngiang said that they were informed by the department that they don’t have vehicle to carry the medicines except one truck which is 8-9 years old and the particular truck is transporting medicines in the entire region
Malngiang said that it should the responsibility of the suppliers to transport medicines to different health institutions. The Planning Board has decided to raise the matter with the Health Minister, AL Hek by submitting a report to the Minister
“ We will also take up the matter with the Chief Minister when he returns to the capital,” Malngiang said
He also lamented that there were many inaccessible areas where the truck can’t reach and medicines have to be carried on foot. He further informed that there were five to six PHCs mostly in Baghmara, which have been constructed but were yet to become functional.
The Committee has decided to visit Garo Hills region again shortly to acquaint themselves with the ground realities in the region
Meanwhile, the Board members were also unhappy with the fact the beneficiaries and job card holders of MGNREGA have to come all the way to Tura town to withdraw their wages of since banks are not available in rural areas and most of the banks are confined within Tura town
“ We will have a meeting with the Reserve Bank of India and we will highlight these difficulties,” Malngiang said
The Planning Board team also reviewed the progress of different schemes and visited the site for Shillong Medical College and Ganol Power Project.