SHILLONG, Nov 22: The North East Slow Food & Agrobiodiversity Society (NESFAS) on Thursday launched its ‘Vertical Transportation’ initiative at Dewlieh village in East Khasi Hills.
According to a statement, it is the second ‘Vertical Transportation’ initiative under NESFAS following the successful pilot launch at the neighbouring village of Nongtraw in November 2021.
“Dewlieh, Nongtraw, and the adjoining villages are part of the Khadar Shnong area known for its many steep hills. As such, these farming villages face the challenge of tasking transportation of livestock, farming products and other commodities. The pilot project at Nongtraw was hugely beneficial for the farmers in terms of cost and energy-efficient transportation. Apart from helping only the village where the vertical transportation is set up, it has also helped the neighbouring villages benefit from the same,” the NESFAS said in a statement.
It is pertinent to note that the ‘Vertical Transportation’ initiative at Dewlieh is a joint venture of NESFAS and Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) CEM Titosstarwell Chyne under the 15th Finance Commission to help support the livelihoods of farmers and the community at large at Dewlieh.
Chyne, who was part of the inaugural programme as the chief guest, inaugurated the Vertical Transportation in the presence of NESFAS team, village headman, community members and community representatives from nearby villages.
Addressing the gathering, Chyne shared his delight with Dewlieh villagers over the newly inaugurated mode of transportation.
He relayed that the project at Dewlieh had been inspired by the pilot model at Nongtraw. “After Nongtraw, we had a discussion and planned to build a ropeway in Dewlieh along with full trust and support of NESFAS,” he said.
Expressing his gratitude to NESFAS for the latter’s efforts in bringing vertical transportation at Nongtraw and Dewlieh, he encouraged the community members to take good care of the same. “These villages are quite lucky to have such blessings and I hope they make good use and take good care of it,” he said.
Chyne further informed that along with the NESFAS team, the District Council is taking measures to bring about more expansion and development in the village.
Executive Director of NESFAS Pius Ranee, on the other hand, shared the aspiration to further expand the initiative in the other neighbouring villages to help improve the livelihood and economy of the communities. “This initiative is low cost and efficient and road connectivity will still be a long wait for us so there is a need to move further with this.
I also urge the urban youths to do a thorough study on the system so that it would be an opportunity for them to learn about the technology,” Ranee said.
Village headman Shemborlang Diengdoh, in his address, extended his gratitude to NESFAS for implementing the initiative and shared the same will support the community members to transport produce and materials through the steep hills of the village.
“As a village head, I feel very delighted that from today onwards we are able to make use of the vertical transport,” he said.
Meanwhile, NESFAS community consultant Shaiphar Dohling said that NESFAS will continue to work for the well-being of the communities in the years to come.
“These initiatives will not end with the two villages and we (NESFAS) sincerely hope that the government will also extend such help for the development of other villages too,” he said.