Editor,
Today power crisis is being felt across the country but this adversity afflicts Meghalaya the most.Lack of vision and commitment and improper judgement of facts had led to this sad state of affairs. Had it not been for the visionaries like late Jawaharlal Nehru we can well imagine what would have happened to this tiny state of ours in the absence of the Umiam reservoir and its subsequent three stages. Let us also be thankful to the farmers of Umiam who had generously parted away with their paddy fields. Umtrew power project built under Colombo project would not suffice. Visionaries like late BC Roy had even tapped Beadon-Bishop Falls (Suna Pani) to help meet the demand with the efforts of the A.S.E.B. Hence villages all over the State were able to enjoy uninterrupted power supply. With the growing need of the expanding cities and with entrepreneurs in small scale industries requiring more power for their enterprises it was felt that Umngot river should be utilized to meet this huge power supply gap. Unfortunately this hit a wall thanks to the intervention of the environmentalists.
The Government of the day was left with no option but to focus on the run of the water project at Leshka. This entirely depends on the monsoons, but with the monsoons today becoming so unpredictable the Leshka has proved to be a money guzzling project with little outcomes. Then cement plants emerged and a good number of them flourished among the villages of Lumshnong, Umsning and Thangskai. Besides being the main sources of pollution they are also power guzzlers Purchase of power from NEEPCO cannot be a long term solution as the State’s exchequer is under strain. Thus with a big ‘NO’ to nuclear power and with Solar plants such as the ones practiced in China, a next to impossible reality – our only hope is that come monsoons and we are going to witness the disappearance of those many islands on our Umiam reservoir. Let us hope that between September to January next year we are able to enjoy uninterrupted power supply so that our people and the entrepreneurs whose livelihoods depend on electricity can work day and night to compensate for the loss. As a losing cricket test match team prays for rains, we too should do likewise.
Yours etc.
- Khyriem,
Shillong- 14
In the name of the cow
Editor,
This refers to Sushil Kutty’s article, “SC corrects election commission’s diabetic foot” (ST, April 18, 2019). Hate speeches kill harmony in a society. A few days ago, Prakash Lakra, a tribal man, was beaten to death. Why? Because he was cutting the flesh of a dead bull. This happened at Jurmi village in Jharkhand’s Gumla district, 140 kilometre from Ranchi. A group of people attacked Prakash Lakra and three of his friends over suspicion of slaughtering a cattle. And the attackers were so “kind” to the dead bull that they killed Prakash and thrashed his friends in the mute night on 10 April 2019. Deputy Inspector – General of police A. V. Homkar said that a group of people spotted the four persons cutting the flesh of a dead bull and started beating them.
“‘Maaro saalon ko’ was all we had heard when a mob of more than 25 ran up to us, armed with swords, sickle, iron rods” ~ said Janirush Minz (40) lying on a bed in surgical ward of Ranchi’s Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences. Peter Phuljan (50) and Belasus Tirkey (60) were on other beds near Minz. The fourth person ~ Prakash Lakra was declared dead on arrival at the hospital.
“The four of us were caught by the mob… they shouted slogans such as ‘Bajrangbali ki jai’, ‘Jai Shri Ram’. They were so angry, we just surrendered”, said Minz. Severely injured, Peter Phuljan could manage to say, “The mob beat us for two hours – until we reached Jairagi village, about one kilometre away (from the spot where the assault had begun). When we were unable to move any longer, they shoved us and we were forced to walk. Then they beat us again, and the same cycle repeated.”
“The ox was already dead. How could we kill it again?” they asked. We need to reflect on what Phuljan observed. He said that he could not fathom out what changed the mentality of the villagers, who had lived with them for generations.
The answer is undoubtedly blowing in the hate speeches. To stop the menace, the Supreme Court of India has taken the right step. Reacting sharply on the Election Commission’s plea that it had limited powers to deal with “hate speeches” or politicians exploiting religious feelings for votes, the apex court directed that a “representative” of the Election Commission be present before it. Within hours of the court’s rebuke, the EC had on Monday banned some politicians from campaigning for certain hours for hate speeches. However, the Election Commission must follow a single standard for all the politicians irrespective of one’s position in the power hierarchy.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Via email
Kudos to DTO personnel
Editor,
Most people do not associate government offices with even an iota of efficiency but, recently, I was pleasantly surprised when I went to the D.T.O.’s office here in Shillong to renew my driving licence armed with a fitness certificate from an approved doctor. The work was all done in a very acceptable time frame and I walked out a little dazed with the renewed licence in my hand and quite impressed with the efficiency that you rarely see in government offices. A member of the staff even refused to have his cup of tea as he had people to deal with. I wish to thank the D.T.O. and his staff who deserve a pat on the back for such good work.
Yours etc.,
D.M.Pariat.
Shillong -1