On the other side
So it happened again — the VVIP visits.
Last time when this VVIP visited the state, the SJ team reported about how people’s temperament was tested with the inconveniences rendered, but to give it a twist, this time we approached the security personnel, who are charged with causing the bother.
A traffic policeman happened to stop a member of the SJ team at Umsawli and incidentally they engaged in a conversation and what unfolded is certainly worth telling you, readers. The constable said that the drill has been going on unabated with them working round the clock, literally round the clock.
As tired as he appeared, the cop narrated his ordeal during the duration of around 45 minutes for which this constable stopped commuters.
It was circa 4 pm, the constable, who looked famished, said that his duty begun at 7 am, but has not consumed enough food. He added: “They gave me a tiffin, but it was hardly enough?”
Also, he lamented that shops were supposed to remain closed, which only added to his plight. He added that for the arrangement during the VVIP visit, they were short-staffed and so personnel from different parts of the district had to be deployed.
The seemingly friendly cop also talked about how at one point he had to stop a private car carrying a person who needed medical attention. He said he wanted to help somehow but couldn’t as the convoy was just about to approach. This conversation has revealed that on the other side of this murmuring, there are many government employees who are genuinely concerned about citizens.
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Another interesting aspect of the day’s trip was this certain lack of coordination among the entire team manning different check points in select parts of the city.
At a particular junction, two cops stationed 150-200 metres apart appeared to be communicating using hand signs which was perhaps difficult for the receiver to decipher. In this melee, a scooterist moved forward while the convoy was still crossing that section of the road.
A wedding to remember
COVID-19 has surely made everything in this world take a back seat, but when it comes to marriage, people seem to throw caution to the wind!
A marriage ceremony was discreetly organised at Mahadev Khola temple during late evening of Monday last amidst strictures in place.
The temple authorities claimed that the enthusiastic group numbering 20-30 forcibly conducted the marriage ceremony despite a fervent appeal from the priests to respect the government-enforced guidelines, which state that wedding ceremonies are not permitted.
Time to throw light on darkness
Gloomy are select city boulevards at night despite the presence of streetlights — they just don’t emanate light at all. Are partially or, at times, fully damaged streetlights to be blamed? Well, this can be an agree-to-disagree debate. Some might pin the blame on the general public while many may hold the government culpable for not fixing the streetlights. But here we are not to inculpate anybody and just take a pragmatic approach to address the issue.
Many stretches in Shillong — Mawbah to Jhalupara taxi stand, St Peter’s School in Dhankheti till Reserve Bank of India near Dylan’s Café, and from RBI till Fire Brigade (although the area near St Edmund’s gate is somewhat lit), among others — including some city highways stay in absolute darkness from dusk till dawn. With COVID-19 unable to recede crime rate, who knows what peril might lurk in such dingy areas.
With the government machinery focussing on COVID-19, for now there seems to be no glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.