Editor,
It was John F Kennedy who said, “Economic growth without social progress lets the great majority of the people remain in poverty, while a privileged few reap the benefits of rising abundance.”
A country’s growth is determined by many factors, one of which includes the growth and development of the states within it. I picked up the newspaper in the morning on July 19, 2023, as I usually would on any given day. To my utter dismay, the headline of the report, “Niti Aayog names Meghalaya poorest state after Bihar,” caught my eye and brought with it an air of sadness and questions of uncertainty. In a state that prides itself on progress and prosperity, it is truly heart-wrenching to witness such news coming to the fore. The state’s title as the second-poorest paints a grim picture of its economic and social realities. For many, poverty would simply mean a “monetary condition” but poverty in itself encompasses a broader and wider range of other things, which include inadequate access to equitable education, healthcare, and other basic opportunities. Poverty in Meghalaya is perpetuated by unemployment, limited education, and a low standard of living.
The state’s struggle in providing opportunities for the youth in terms of employment is not new, but rather something that has been plaguing Meghalaya for the last many years. Its a condition that has seen very little room for improvement. The absence of diverse industries and infrastructure is contributing to the state’s inability to attract investments and create sustainable employment opportunities leaving our young minds untapped, hindering their chances of utilizing their abilities, and forcing them to adopt measures such as alcoholism and substance abuse. After all, desperate times call for desperate measures. Having been someone who has suffered the wrath of unemployment, I can say that many youths do not choose this life for themselves, but depression is an illness that very few people can handle strongly. Meghalaya also lacks in aspects of adequate healthcare facilities and services; many residents cannot afford proper medical care leading to a life of reduced expectancy. Health disparities are also evident in the lack of drinking water and adequate sanitation. Another driving force that is pushing the state towards poverty giving it the tag of the poorest state, is the rise in corruption and corrupt activities within the state including every nook and cranny of most government machinery. It is not new for the citizens to witness the rise in corruption in Meghalaya, a condition that has always been there and will continue to plague our society. There are an unaccountable number of reasons why Meghalaya is a poor state – leaving aside the statistical and practical side of things.
Who do we blame then? Those who are sitting at the helm of affairs? Not just those at the present but those of the past too, who should have come up with means and measures to change the entire system and work towards building the economy and growth of the state and not only working towards their own gain. Or do we blame ourselves? For not being wise enough to know who we should be choosing, and, on whose hands, we should be placing the future of our state. As a citizen of Meghalaya, it is sad to be waking up to a piece of news such as this, especially to be tagged a state poorest after Bihar – a state that has always been in the news for its poverty and crime rates. If this is not woeful news, then I do not know what is.
The news of being the second poorest state in the country is undeniably a sad reality but it should also serve as a wake-up call for all stakeholders out there – the government, civil societies, politicians, citizens, and everyone involved. We need to acknowledge the challenges plaguing our state and implement solutions, to pave the way for a bright and growing future. Otherwise, the aspiration to become a $10 billion dollar economy by 2028, will continue to be a distant dream.
Yours etc.,
Cassandra Gatphoh
Shillong – 14
Poetic justice or hand of God?
Editor,
The minorities in India, especially the Christians are overwhelmingly traumatized beyond the realm of imagination to know that more than 400 acts of violence against them have been unleashed by the religious fanatics in the course of just 6 months this year and the arena of occurrences are mostly in the BJP ruled states. The extensive persecutions have increased exponentially post BJP’s assumption of powers at the Centre with Uttar Pradesh topping the list with 155 cases. Alarmingly, 35 Christian pastors are incarcerated notwithstanding consistent appeals being made to the President of India, Home Minister Amit Shah and Prime Minister Modi. The appeals have fallen on deaf ears!
Recently many Christians in India and abroad were moved to tears on seeing visuals of how in one of the BJP administered states of North India, hordes of fanatical right-wingers entered into the under-constructed church and desecrated one holy spot by branding on it a Hindu insignia. To add insult to injury, the statues of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and virgin Mary were forcibly taken away and dumped on the street!
Coincidentally, nearer home, it’s no less agonizing to witness that around 300 churches were burnt down allegedly by the Hindu Meiteis leaving hundreds of Kukis to abandon their hearths and homes to take refuge in Mizoram, Meghalaya and other states. The atrocities on Kukis, who are mostly Christians, must have deeply unsettled the Vice President of the BJP, Mizoram unit which made him to unhesitatingly resign from the Party. I don’t think any BJP member from Meghalaya who is a Christian and holds a high profile party status will dare to emulate the example set by the Mizoram BJP functionary.
Uncannily, and as an anti-climax, the Northern States of India have been battered by unprecedented record rainfall from July 10. This unparalleled natural fury has made one of the senior citizens of these regions to go on record saying that he has never seen in his life-long career such ire of nature! It was seen that small temples adjacent to rivers were literally swept away; Panchwakarta temple was submerged on account of flooding of the River Beas at Mandi, Himachal Pradesh. An ancient Shiv temple was separated from Himachal’s mandi as the bridge linking the temple with the city was washed away. Sadly, some pilgrims died during the trek, and the yatra was forced to halt in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Alas! The incalculable toll on human and infrastructure beggars all descriptions.
The unprecedented natural pounding which has engulfed the northern parts of India has prompted me to ask my Hindu friends, with a secular bent of mind, the nuances behind the coincidental desecration of Churches vis-a-vis the flooding of Temples in India. They simply quipped, ‘Poetic Justice.’ But I, for one, am reminded of the iconic words of a legendary footballer, who said 37 years ago,’ The hand of God!’
Yours etc.,
Jerome K Diengdoh,
Shillong-2