Editor,
The Government of Meghalaya had decided to decongest Shillong by creating a new Shillong township around Mawdiangdiang and Umsawli. Normally, the first thing that is done before developing a new area is to give the place proper connectivity , wide roads and good drainage. Once that is done, institutions and offices are built. But in the case of our state basic common sense has always been uncommon. Proper roads and drains were not made but institutions such as NEIGHRIMS, AYUSH, MATTI, NIFT,The State Assembly, COVID Step down hospital, Software Technology Park, IIM Shillong etc became functional. It was only after this that the decision to widen roads and make proper drains was taken.
A few months ago, it was seen that the work of widening the roads and making drains started. As a result, the entire stretch between Ishwarwat and Umsawli and beyond was dug up. In spite of the many months that has elapsed, till date there is no sign of the road construction nearing completion. As a result, the entire stretch of around 11 kilometres has become a nightmare for travellers. The road has become extremely dusty, so much so that vehicles need to use headlights even during the day. The pebbles and sand makes it extremely dangerous. The Government does not seem to be bothered by the plight of the people using the roads and especially the patients and attendants who need to use either the NEIGHRIMS or the AYUSH hospitals.
I travel on a daily basis to my place of work at IIM and I can vouch for the hellish experience the road has become. Officials tell me that the road contract has been bagged by the Dhar brothers as they were the lowest bidder. Was there no time limit set in the contract for the completion of the work? As per the basic requirement in other states, for a firm to bag a contract of this size, they need to demonstrate that they have both adequate manpower and machinery to complete allotted work in time. Thus, most firms have the minimum ability to pave 5 kms on a single day. In other words, this road should have taken a week for completion. It has been a few months now, without any sign of activity or machinery. Will it even be completed or will it meet the fate of the Crowborough project? The joke is that the minister with the Lamborghini ought to be invited to take a drive on the road, maybe to visit the Assembly building, with the PWD minister as his co-passenger. The experience of the ride would certainly jolt the firm owned by them to speed up the work!
Yours etc.,
Sanjeeb Kakoty
Via email
Congress Mukth Bharat in the offing?
Editor,
Apropos of the editorial, “Big boost to BJP, AAP” (ST March 11, 2022) was interesting to read. The editor has driven home her view perfectly in saying that “the BJP is here to stay, the Congress is no competitor; the AAP has taken a big step forward and the regional dynasts have taken a beating”. Yes, it agreed that the BJP is here to stay. I subscribe to the view of the editor that “the UP assertion is principally the victory of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. This is bound to raise his national stature within the BJP to the discomfiture of Modi himself.” After all Uttar Pradesh sends 80 Members of Parliament to the Lok Sabha which is 15 percent of the representation to Lok Sabha unlike Gujarat which sends only 26 MPs which constitutes only 5% representation to the Lok Sabha. For the BJP both Ram and Ration worked. R. Jaganathan, Editorial Director, Swarajya magazine rightly pointed out that “Economic benefits and freebies, if they become a substitute for real economic reform and progress, will ultimately bankrupt all States.” Margaret Thatcher the iron lady of the United Kingdom at one time stated “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money”.
It is a shame for the Indian National Congress to have won only 2 seats out of 403 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh with a vote share of just 2 percentage points and not winning in their one time bastion Rae Bareli and Amethi is a big embarrassment. This reflects badly on Priyanka G Vadra. The Congress now remains in power in four states, two on its own in Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh and two as a junior coalition partner in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, while AAP swept Punjab. Surely it is time for “Congress-Mukt Bharat”
Yours etc.,
V K Lyngdoh,
Via email
Fishes out of water
Editor,
Whenever there is an inopportune change in the political ecosystem in our country, the first to accept with glee such a god-send opportunity are decidedly some of our unscrupulous representatives. For instance, without mincing words, we saw how the recent defections of twelve Congress MLAs of Meghalaya to All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has wrought about a seismic consequences in the political architecture of our state’s polity, leaving the other five Congress members high and dry. Incidentally, amongst the five remnants, a few of them had once savoured the pre-eminent powers of cabinet ministers in the past regime, hence with less than a year preceding fresh Assembly elections, the latter have found themselves like fish out of water for being mere MLAs.
Hence, the desertion of the said twelve MLAs was perchance pennies from heaven for the rest of their five counterparts and such an opportunity couldn’t have come a day sooner, given the fact the latter have reportedly asserted that they shall henceforth back up the MDA government under the Chief Ministership of Conrad Sangma. And it’s anybody ‘s guess that before long they may be accommodated in cabinet ministers’ rank in the unforeseeable future. Perhaps they are the unwitting admirers of late Ram Villas Paswan, ex-MP of Lok Sabha from Hajipur in Bihar,who was a consummate weathervane in the art of political defections given that he invariably managed to occupy plump ministerial posts at the centre at every change of dispensation in Delhi, notwithstanding the fact that he belonged to Lok Jan Shakti party.Thus, is this not called the art of defections?
Yours etc.,
Jerome K Diengdoh,
Via email
What we excel most, no one wants it
Editor,
In the just concluded Manipur Assembly elections the BJP came out as the single largest party with 32 seats. I rang up an old BJP friend over there to offer my congratulations. In the conversation, I simply just couldn’t conceal my curiosity anymore and asked him why their old coalition partner the NPP, with seven solid seats (an assurance that the Govt will remain stable for the next five years) was not included this time in the Government. His answer left me stunned and as a Meghalayan I simply could not help share his answer. His answer was very simple and direct to the point. He said “We don’t want corruption in this Government.” Jai Shree Ram.
Yours etc.,
Ramesh Tripathi
Via email