Editor,
This is with reference to a letter to the editor under the caption, ” Citizens must voice out their concerns “( ST May 12, 2023) by Kevin Phillips. In this regard I would like to say that I’ve had similar experiences of having been told by several people including highly educated ones that it is pointless to express their dissent against many things not going right in our state because, “government is never moved by the plight of the people.” I guess that this sense of general impotency and helplessness gradually crept in some years after our attainment of statehood and has become unmistakably visible in the last two decades. In short, most people have given up.
This attitude reminds me of the, ” Boiling Frog Syndrome.” The Boiling Frog story is a moral fable describing a frog being slowly boiled alive. The premise is that if a frog is put suddenly in boiling water, it will jump out, but if the frog is put in tepid water first which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will unresistingly be cooked to death. The story is often used as a metaphor for the inability or unwillingness of people to react or be aware of sinister threats that arise gradually rather than suddenly.
Here in our state, corruption has been creeping gradually and it has almost reached catastrophic proportions. Because the process is so gradual, it has also seeped into our psyche very imperceptibly to the point that it has somehow become normalized and we now have no compunctions to indulge in it and accept it. Hence, with increasing corruption in society our concern for the general good has correspondingly been severely eroded to the point that we now generally care for the well- being of our immediate families only, thinking that what evils exist outside our little worlds do not concern us, as if these evils will not in the long run come to bite our own children and grandchildren.
For me, the deafening silence of intellectuals is majorly responsible for the sinking of Meghalaya into the bottomless pit of corruption and the few voices of dissent that we hear are nothing less than mere cries in the wilderness. In concluding, this quote from Edmund Burke seems appropriate: ” The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing.”
Yours etc.,
Samuel Swett,
Shillong-2.
Dorbar shnongs must function under a set of rules
Editor,
As a regular reader of this column and above all other issues that are usually highlighted from time to time, I would also like to draw the attention of the authorities, the district administration and the KHADC in particular. Can a dorbar shnong levy fees for sale and purchase of land? Moreover there are certain rangbah shnongs who charge exorbitantly in the name of village development fund while they charge separately for a residential or no objection certificate. Since these institutions are in direct contact with the people at the grassroots, one has to succumb to whatever demands to get the paperwork done else it becomes an issue for any individual living in that system.
Even the staffs at the sub- registrars office will ask for a sale deed that has the headman’s seal whenever registration of land is sought for at the DC office. Till date it is not clear whether the headman’s NOC for sale/ purchase of land is mandatory. Therefore it is for the government authorities to issue notifications to the general public about the relevant procedures and also of the prescribed fees that dorbars can collect in such cases. As of today the land documents obtained from KHADC are still not accepted by the banks for loans but a no objection certificate from the District Council and the rangbah shnong is necessary for mortgaging the land to banks for availing loans. When will there be a system that will ease up land registrations in the state of Meghalaya?
A family member of mine was asked to pay 1% from sales proceeds as donation towards dorbar fund of a particular village for road construction. We found out that as per sanad of the Syiem of Mylliem the rangbah shnong was only allowed to charge a nominal amount as witness to the sale which should not burden the seller. We confronted the dorbar official that we will only donate an amount that is within our capacity and that no extra amount would be paid at any cost; they reluctantly agreed to sign the papers after a lengthy argument. The question remains as whether dorbars fall under any ambit when it comes to collection of such fees? It is pertinent to ask when developmental funds in the state come through schemes, how can collection of fees by village dorbars be permitted openly in the name of development? If that be the case then where are all the public schemes of MLAs and MDCs that are meant for the people?
There are dorbar shnongs that fall under municipal areas that also collect fees for cleaning and maintenance of the locality on a monthly basis when the very same is charged by the Shillong Municipal Board. Many citizens are skeptical about paying such fees since it becomes a burden for families to pay to two different authorities but most are reluctant to raise their voices in the locality for fear of harassment by the headman. Now how can such double collections be allowed? It is for the District Administration to intervene to bring a stop to this illegality that is rampant under its nose.
No doubt dorbar shnongs provide yeoman service in times of tragedies and effectively assist the government in many different ways and their recent handling of the Covid pandemic is commendable; however they should function within the mandate given to them under the Constitution so that people in general are not affected by their self-made diktat. For instance, the recent directive from the KHADC barring rangbah shnongs from active participation in politics (which is not being adhered to), similar directives should also be issued to dorbars on collection of fees and only a prescribed limit should be allowed for specific purposes that are permissible.
A time has come that well considered laws are made for village and municipal administration and also the do’s and don’ts that dorbar shnongs should adhere to while the State Government should also consider a remuneration for headmen as per provisions available because they cannot be expected to do their jobs pro-bono. In municipal areas of Shillong an urban local body should be constituted urgently to tackle the ever increasing civic woes.
Your’s etc.,
Iba S. Kharnaior
Shillong-1