Editor,
Mr Jerome K Diengdoh’s letter titled, ‘Winter Capital vs MBOSE,’ is a sanctimonious worship of one entity in lieu of the other while doing away with the hopes and aspirations of the other on equity, justice and fairness, etc. This unfolds the work of an artist with no objectivity of human integrity and justice and this came in a wake of the amended Office Memorandum on Reservation Roster a few days back.
The people of the State have witnessed the MLAs coming to the streets for what is projected as prejudice and injustice against the Hynniewtrep people due to the Meghalaya Job Reservation Policy of 1972 during the last 51 years of statehood, wherein, Garos despite having 40% reservation are getting 27% -32% of the reserved seats in those 51 years. Has this brought discrimination to the Hynniewtrep, people is a logic that is unfathomable.
The protests and rallies on the Reservation Policy also brought out de-facto reasons that Garos/A·chik are very backward, very uneducated, have low literacy rate, very low human development index, very underdeveloped, etc. but there must still be a cut in a reservation quota while the forward tribe needs more reservation because they are highly intellectual, very developed, having high literacy etc. This is a confusing theory of justification, if not for all, but me.
Most media of the state have worshipped that theory and had laid down a picture whereby a Hynniewtrep has been victimised by the Garos for 51 years of statehood by being unable to fill the reserved posts for Garos, even in the D Grade post where the eligibility is only 8th Grade while one can find more than thousands of engineers of Garo community lining up for a chowkidar’s job in a college. The statistics available in the government show that the Garo/A·chik community has been able to fill up only 34-36% of the 40% reservation allocated for them.
Perhaps for a 12th grader like me, a careful observation of the scenario reveals that the definition of reservation has become dynamic in this day and age and it relates to luxurious provisions of the rich, elite and the highly intelligent people rather than the poor, deprived and the backward class today.
Fortunately or unfortunately the amended Office Memorandum which is on public display has come up with absence of any policy for the backlog that Garo community deserves. To make matters worse none of the mainstream Garo NGOs feel that it is their concern to at least voice for the rights of the community. The fight for justice and equity seems to have evaded the people of the Garo community for 51 years and continues even today.
The right to demand and the right to voice is the right of any citizen as enshrined in the Constitution of India. Whether the demand is logical or illogical must be decided on Constitutional propriety, just as the VPP’s demand for the review of Job Reservation Policy or the demand of the people of Garo Hills for the Winter Capital in Tura.
The illogical and unceremonious assumption that there can be no winter capital in Tura reeks of arrogance and is like adding salt to wounds of the Garo community as happened in the amended Office Memorandum. Hence the demand by the people of Garo Hills for a Winter Capital is a right that can’t be termed as uncalled for and no tales of woes or reasons undermining it may matter to the people of Garo Hills. Winter Capital or not, our brethren in Meghalaya should make peace with the idea of Tura becoming the Capital of Meghalaya which is inevitable in the coming decades, as any student of geo-politics will agree.
Yours etc.
Katchan Salakim R. Marak,
Std XII, Little Blosom Higher Secondary School,
Tura
PA Sangma stadium
Editor,
As a resident of Tura, Meghalaya and one who has known Mr Purno Sangma as a man who cared for this state and during his first tenure had very pure intentions of putting Meghalaya in the development map, it is sad to see that a stadium in his name has been so badly constructed that the area around it has collapsed. In Meghalaya there is not a single government constructed structure that is done with engineering integrity. There are always shortcuts adopted by engineers in a bid to make money. Of course, the money is also shared by those in government. If one looks at the roads one finds that water logs in the middle and there are no drains at the sides. What sort of engineering work is this? Why are contractors allowed to get away with this kind of sub-standard work? Engineers who sign the completion report of such projects should be penalised heavily. In fact, a time has now come to approach the High Court to pull up such avaricious contractors and engineers.
There is not a single structure that we can claim to be an engineering marvel in this state. If even the State Assembly building which is the sanctum sanctorum of democracy is constructed so shabbily and by bending all the rules so that someone makes money then how will this state ever progress? Looking around one is filled with a sense of dejection at how everything is crumbling and every project is riddled with corruption even while those indulging in it know very well that an enquiry committee will acquit them should they be caught. Is this why we fought for our own state, just so that some people become millionaires and billionaires while others continue to remain poor throughout their lives and even their next generation?
Yours etc.,
AR Marak,
Tura