Editor,
In spite of demonstrations and protests to make our voices heard, it seems the NEHU authorities have gone into a deep slumber. Perhaps they expect the students to remain silent due to end semester exams. The entire written assurances given by the authorities seem to have no validity. Leaking pipes, zero Wi-Fi facilities, stomach bugs and lacklustre Covid care are everyday affairs with no light at the end of the tunnel. With immense frustration and anguish, a few students decided to talk to the administration this past week only to find out that the Vice-Chancellor is away from office for an entire week. The reason for his absence was not given and is best known to him, but given his frequent trips out of the state, perhaps another Covid scare is not far off.
Now the question is, who is actually in charge of NEHU? And who are the stakeholders? With the chief being out of town for the majority of his tenure, shouldn’t there be a Pro-Vice Chancellor who can genuinely listen to our needs and be present in office? Discussions with the VC are a necessity, given the CUET examinations, new NEP challenges and a whole lot of other demands but a listener is someone who is being missed dearly. The current Vice Chancellor seems to be in no mood to cater to our demands with false assurances every now and then which even the students of the Tura Campus have been reeling under.
Hence it’s for the stakeholders like the KSU, GSU and other student bodies to decide whether the NEHU authorities actually understand English or if NEHU is turning a blind eye to the needs of the students given their leaders’ vested interests with affiliated organisations elsewhere. Hope the Chief Minister and Chief Secretary are listening and do their bit to save this dying university.
Yours etc.,
Wilbert Thangkiew,
Shillong-2
Money laundering and release of coins
Editor,
The release of coins in commemoration of the 125th birth anniversary of Yugacharya Srimat Swami Pranavananda Ji Maharaj, who founded the not-for-profit and spiritual organization, Bharat Sevashram Sangha (BSS), is the talk of the town. The Rs.100, Rs.50 and Rs.10 denomination coins, minted by Government of India, will be released on the July 23 month at Guwahati by Assam CM, Himanta Biswa Sarma. The release of the coins, though beyond time, come against the backdrop of the lingering and unresolved money laundering case of nearly a crore of rupees, by former BSS, Shillong, Secretary, Swami Damodarananda. In fact, the incumbent Secretary, Swami Purnabratananda has blood in his hands unless cleared by the law since he committed the crime of blindly believing the former secretary in terms of monetary transactions concerning the BSS, Shillong for years.
In this digital age, when we witness unthinkable cases of money related fraudulences with the police cautioning the public not to fall prey to the tactics of the fraudsters, can anything else be more weird than a monk blindly believing his fellow monk – who ran riot with all the donations of the bhakts? The Secretary of BSS Headquarters in Kolkata, as reported earlier, Swami Vishwatmananda had told the local media here that suitable legal action will be initiated against the accused monk, who was expelled from the organization, but non-compliance by those in the management also compels, us common bhakts, to point our fingers at them. One can only wonder if the laundered money will ever be recovered and the accused monk is punished with the incumbent BSS, Shillong, Secretary being cleared of all the allegations that are uneasily lingering on him. Just look at the irony! Instead of the BSS Headquarters ideally, the local branch of BSS, Shillong has initiated the coin release, which despite being noble is riddled with sarcasm, which is, money laundering then and release of coins, now.
Yours etc.
BC Paul
Shillong – 4
Whither MLA Scheme?
Editor,
The MLA Special Development fund has turned into a personal fund of the MLAs with each one doing what he/she thinks best and spending the bulk of Rs 10 crore (Rs 2 crore for each year) at the fag end of their five-year tenure. The money is spent in such a way that it is made to look as if the money is coming from the MLA’s personal pocket. Some MLAs even want to name roads created out of public money after themselves. This is the height of megalomania. But in Meghalaya, anything and everything is possible. Anyone who has the commitment to dig into any aspect of governance will find a scam. And I wish someone does a rigorous RTI on at least one or two constituencies within Shillong city.
The only 3 MLAs I can recall who gave an account of how they spent their MLA funds down to the last rupee were (Late) TH Rangad MLA of the then Laban constituency , (Late) Ardhendu Chaudhuri, MLA of Mawprem Constituency and his brother Manas Chaudhuri of the same constituency. No MLA thereafter has had the moral heft to give a detailed account of how the MLA funds have been spent annually. Some MLAs are publicity hounds who will never spare an opportunity for a photo-ops even when the money spent on a particular project is public money. Sometimes I am made to wonder why the media patronise such publicity hounds who never miss an opportunity to advertise themselves.
While the MLA Special Development Fund may be useful to create infrastructure in rural Meghalaya, it has the possibility of being misused by MLAs in urban Meghalaya where the roads, bridges, water supply, power supply et al are already being taken care of by the respective government departments. So the MLA funds are being largely used to dish out to supporters and camp followers by giving them small contract works that are badly executed.
But then unless the public points out these anomalies and the civil society seeks accountability the ruling government (politicians) will do nothing to endanger the electoral prospects of its members. On the contrary the Government might even hike the amount for all we know. After all, this Government is good at milking loans from every lender. Quo Vadis Meghalaya?
Yours etc.,
Kyrhailin Suiam,
Shillong- 8