SHILLONG, Nov 15: Senior Congress MLA, Charles Pyngrope feels that the state government has finally realised that its original proposal to have a mall at Barik would be eventually opposed and that it has to come up with something that the stakeholders want, which is beneficial for the city.
“I feel the government has realised that its originally proposed will be definitely opposed. Besides, I think better sense has prevailed and we may eventually see the government coming up with something which would be more beneficial to the town as a whole,” said Pyngrope, also an environmental enthusiast.
Recalling that the matter had come up many months ago and he was one of the first few to give an opinion on what the government had proposed, Pyngrope said, “Now that everybody’s opinion and views are focused on that, they will definitely give in. I have a strong feeling that the government will look into all the aspects and make it into another Hydari Park or Wards Lake minus the water body”.
Referring to Deputy Chief Minister, Prestone Tynsong’s reply in the recently concluded autumn session of the state Assembly to the question in regard to the kind of infrastructure being planned at Barik, Pyngrope said that “the deputy chief minister said that an iconic structure would come up and it sent shivers down my spine.” “The definition of an iconic structure as I understand is something which will be viewed with awe…like the Eiffel Tower in France, Sears Tower in Chicago or the Taj Mahal in the country,” he said.
Stating that the reply was wrong, Pyngrope pointed out that the state government had invited tenders to submit drawings and one was selected but when the Opposition had asked the content of the drawing that qualified as the best, there was again no proper answer from the state government.
“You don’t have to build. You just have to lay down a place, sort of a breathing space which would be the lungs of Shillong city,” he added.
To a query that the deputy chief minister had earlier stated that there is already a green space in the form of Lady Hydari Park at Barik, Pyngrope said, “I would rather have a hundred Hydari Parks, why one only? Because they would be the lungs, where people can go and walk, meditate and meet.”
It may be mentioned that the state government had initially decided to set up a shopping mall at Barik. But soon the decision was opposed from various quarters, be it political leaders, individuals, environment groups or the civil society.