Editor,
Trust your intuition — it is the divine voice from within! Your science may let you down, but not your intuition. Even Albert Einstein prized intuition above all other rational thinking. So, it is not wise to dismiss the fact that one devout soul had a vision of the Umiam dam bursting and taking a heavy toll on human lives and property – “Nagaland church member gets vision of Umiam dam collapse” (ST August 22, 2022). Moreover, we should not take a chance at all at this juncture. We should not gamble with the lives of people either. Bluntly speaking, this 57-year-old bridge has already weathered the tornados of greed in various ways. It was never made to sustain the weight of the increasing volume of traffic and the continuous procrastination.
Probably 40 MT was the maximum limit but we allowed 18-wheelers to run over the bridge day-in and day-out. What had driven those loads of traffic if not our avarice? But still, we do not have a viable alternative at hand.
What if some major mishaps happen in the “near” future, heaven forbid – as also pointed out by RN Rymbai “Umiam Dam and bridge…” (ST,Aug 24, 2022)? We will be plunged into darkness. The whole economy of the state will collapse. What’s more, the unprecedented catastrophes will be witnessed by people in downstream areas, apart from countless lives being washed away. This will also adversely hit Mizoram and Tripura, apart from certain parts of Assam.
Metaphorically, the Umiam bridge is a stem through which this state receives nutrients to keep itself in full bloom. But how long will this “shrivelled” stem support us? People are growing panicky while the poor residents around are being haunted with traumatic thoughts!
If Assam can boast of the Bhupen Hazarika Setu with a whopping length of 9 km and Kalia Bhomora bridge of 3 km, why can’t we have a “robust” new Umiam bridge of probably less than two hundred meters? Disaster should not come crashing down like the dome!
Yours etc.,
Salil Gewali,
(Member of International Human Rights Commission)
Shillong-2
Ignorance can be dangerous
Editor
On August 23, 2022 out of misfortune or sheer negligence, I was denied “Insulin needles” as I did not have my father’s prescription who is highly diabetic.
I was not a first timer in Woodland’s Hospital, Shillong and there have been incessant incidents of harassment that I have encountered there in the past. It was past 8:00 p.m. and I had gone to a pharmacy nearby in Dhankheti which was closed. The aforementioned reason drove me to the infamous Woodland’s pharmacy(Opens 24 hours) and I waited there in a long queue since out of the 3 counters only 1 was operating. When my turn finally came, I asked them for “insulin needles”, in return they asked me for the prescription. I could not furnish one as I forgot to carry it with me and had gone out directly after my tuitions. I explained my dire situation to them but they still denied giving me the needles because I did not have a prescription.
I bought other medicines without prescriptions from the same pharmacy previously. I had returned home empty handed and I called Woodland’s hospital to complain. They gave me one of the horrendous answers as to why they did not give me the needles saying, “There are lots of drug addicts around.” I have been looking after my dad a seriously diabetic patient for the past 3 years and I have learnt a lot about medicines and insulins. Insulin needles are required for reusable insulin pens and they are not prescribed. They are attached to the reusable insulin pens when the previous needle gets damaged. I am not from a medical background but I gained this knowledge solely through experience. Hence I surprised as to how a person with a medical degree and who should have been more informed, could not differentiate between a syringe and a needle and gave me such an awful explanation for what had happened.
The larger question here is what could have a person done in a dire situation such as this? Owing to what I believe is an uninformed perception, a person’s health could have deteriorated aggressively. It is high time that issues like these which always do not come into the limelight, become public knowledge and are that there is enough awareness created on the difference between an insulin needle and a syringe. As I experienced this horrendous situation involving my ailing father, I was reminded of the saying – “False knowledge is worse than ignorance”.
Yours etc.,
Joanna Jessica Thabah,
Via emai
Compartmentalisation: A metaphor
Editor,
Just as trains have compartments, human life in different societies around the world is also compartmentalised. Varying from extremely high to low degree of compartmentalisation, people from different communities do not see eye to eye on a whole range of issues. There’s an unbridgeable, invincible abyss; sometimes a rigid line of demarcation separating them. At one point of time in Northern Ireland when relationship between the Protestants and the Catholics was at an all time low, just entering each other’s clearly demarcated residential areas could get a person killed. In India, compartmentalisation is the result of a plethora of reasons.
In Shillong, compartmentalisation is the result of a perceived fear that locals have of being overwhelmed by other communities who have migrated to our state. I don’t blame us for feeling threatened or having apprehensions about our future. In all honesty, I feel that our fear is real. The perceived threat resulted in compartmentalisation. Compartmentalisation has led to a feeling of distrust and sometimes hate. Apprehensive and suspicious minds are the main factors of the tense and sometimes volatile relationship.
Coming to compartmentalisation and our recent train journey, our neighbours from the next compartment on the train were folks from Shillong. They overheard us speaking Khasi, so they looked straight at us and enquired if we were from Shillong. When it was time to disembark one of them looked straight at me with a radiant smile, so I smiled back. The person appeared to be from a prominent business community of Northern India. We had a little conversation and I came to know that the person’s family shifted permanently to Siliguri that very day. When we were about to part ways, out of the blue the person told us that we can call if we need any help. Since Shillong is permanently out of sight, the person might have regretted not being acquainted with anyone from the Khasi community. That’s my wild guess for the person’s generosity. Had we crossed each other in Shillong that conversation would have never taken place. We would have avoided looking each other in the eye in the first place. Compartmentalisation has always been a complex issue and it will always be especially in a country like India. Invincible Berlin Walls still separate different communities around the world.
As far as Meghalaya is concerned, for compartmentalisation and invincible Berlin Walls to wither away, both the central and state government need to first redress the genuine concerns of the local population.
Yours etc.,
Gary Marbaniang,
Via email