SHILLONG, March 21: Amid mounting pressure on the government to revive the Mawmluh Cherra Cements Limited (MCCL), Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Tuesday said that the MCCL is one of the biggest challenges that it faces.
“I am not saying getting a third party is the only solution. We are exploring all options as it is one of the bigger challenges that we have apart from MeECL which is a huge challenge. We will try to ensure to find out an amicable solution,” Conrad told the House.
Admitting that MCCL has an iconic tag of being the only cement factory when there was none, he said, “But due to the numerous challenges and the complications that started to crop up in MCCL, the unit faced a lot of challenges”.
“Just to inform the House that in the past, almost close to Rs 300 crore had been sanctioned even before our government came in to completely renovate, revamp and restructure MCCL. Even after spending that amount, MCCL was not able to come out of its crisis,” he added.
Informing that a proposal continues to stand, he, however, said, “It is a mixed proposal. It is not complete in the sense there is much more to be done. Even after investment of proposed amount of Rs 200 crore, we are not sure whether we will be able to lift MCCL from its present state. We are facing a scenario where we are continuously putting in money and we are not being able to revive it and hence some decision has to be made on how to move forward.”
He further said, “Shall we again spend Rs 200 crore with the hope that things will work out and this autonomous kind of body has to manage things on its own. Hence, there lies all these challenges and difficult situations.”
The Chief Minister said that numerous meetings were held with the stakeholders in order to find ways and means for an amicable solution.
The opposition VPP, on the other hand, made a fresh push for revival of the MCCL on the floor of the House on Tuesday.
Raising the issue during the debate on Governor’s address in the Assembly, VPP president Ardent Basaiawmoit said that the government has failed to protect the interest of its own PSUs such as MCCL.
“Nothing much is known about the intention of the government on this cement factory which is the rice bowl of the people of Sohra. The employees are not getting their salary regularly and there are indications that the salary may stop at any moment,” he said.
Basaiawmoit also said that the government claimed to have difficulty in investing an amount of Rs 190 crore to revive the MCCL, which he felt was an irony. “If the government can spend Rs 200 crore for setting up a mall at the MTC building in Khyndai Lad, what prevents the government from investing Rs 190 crore for reviving the MCCL at Sohra? We cannot afford to give away the MCCL to any private entity in the name of a joint venture,” he said.
Reacting to criticism, Conrad said, “We need also to look at things from a practical point of view. I don’t think it will be fair to compare and say that we can spend on a mall and not on MCCL.”
He said these are two different projects and the viability and business patterns are different in nature.
Meanwhile, Basaiawmoit drew the attention of the House to the roads in state, which he said are in a pathetic condition. He cited the Shillong-Sohra road which according to him has been sanctioned for repair for a cost of Rs 12 crore.
“But the repair in some portions has been poorly done. Many stretches of the road have been left abandoned by the contractors. Tourists and commuters have complained that they faced a harrowing experience travelling to Sohra because of the deplorable condition of the road,” he said.
Basaiawmoit also mentioned the role played by Home Guards volunteers in maintenance of law and order, traffic duties and emergency situations. “It is sad to know that Home Guard volunteers have not been paid regularly. There were occasions in the past when they had to agitate to get their dues. The government should look into this matter seriously,” he said.
While talking about the FOCUS scheme, he said that this farmer-centric scheme was used so extensively just before the recent Assembly elections. According to him, MLAs and politicians belonging to the ruling side were seen going all out to distribute the FOCUS scheme to people.
“Even in Shillong, MLAs of the ruling party went about giving away the scheme as if the city has plenty of farmlands. I don’t know if this money for FOCUS comes from loans or state funds,” Basaiawmoit said.
He further observed that there has to be a proper audit as to how the scheme has been implemented and how much it has succeeded. “If not, such a scheme should be stopped as it will become just another waste of public money,” Basaiawmoit said.
As far as the constitution of the State Education Commission, he suggested that experienced academicians and experts on matters of education should be included in the Commission so that it turns into a successful initiative and comes out with excellent ideas on how to solve the various tangles related to the education sector in the state.