Editor,
Apropos of the editorial, “Scathing NITI Aayog Report Card,” and the news item “Citizens blame government as state fails poverty test” (ST July 20, 2023), the editorial has brought out the bare facts on the causes of poverty in Meghalaya while the news item referred to above was amusing. Why is it amusing? Because few citizens have argued the causes of poverty without facts and figures. Let’s get to the brass tacks and see what the data shows on poverty in Meghalaya since 2004-05 to 2015-16. The population below poverty line in Meghalaya in 2004-05 in absolute terms was 4.10 Lakhs and in 2009-10 it was 4.9 lakhs. In 2011-12 the population below poverty line registered 3.6 lakhs and in 2015-16 it registered 10.76 lakhs. Hence the poverty ratio has gone up by 199 percentage points over 2011-12 and 162 percentage points over 2004-05.
These calculations are based on the BPL computed according to “Tendulkar Method on Mixed Reference Period” as reported in the RBI’s Handbook of Statistics on Indian Economy. Now if we take the Head Count Ratio (HCR) as reflected in India – National Multidimensional Poverty Index – A Progress Review 2023 of the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog), the HCR clearly suggests that multi-dimensionally poor population in Meghalaya in absolute terms has come down marginally from 10.76 lakhs in 2015-16 to 10.25 lakhs in 2019-21. The sin of the past has become the burden on the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance 2.0. If we look at the district-wise HCR on dimensionally poor people in the State as reflected in the Progress Review 2023 of NITI Aayog, the poverty ratio or HCR has increased in West Khasi Hills by 12.89 percent in 2019-21 over 2015-16 and 0.71 percent in East Khasi Hills. HCR of dimensionally poor population over the same period has decreased in East Jaintia Hills by 2.28%, Ri Bhoi by 14.64%, East Garo Hills by 26.91%, South Garo Hills by 1.50% and West Garo Hills by 19.29%.
Meghalaya as a whole between these two periods registered a decrease of 4.75%. In rural Meghalaya the HCR has decreased by 6.06% and the HCR in respect of urban areas has decreased by 0.27%. However, I would request the Government of Meghalaya and especially the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Conrad Sangma to get the editorial, “Scathing NITI Aayog Report Card” critically examined by the powers that be and draw up an Action Plan on how to empower the dimensionally poor to overcome poverty and better their standard of living.
Yours etc.
V K Lyngdoh
You can’t have the cake and eat it too!
Editor,
There has been a recent surge in discussions regarding three controversial topics: railways, ILP and the MRSSA. And while observing these discussions, I could not help but be entertained by the childish and immature views certain individuals and groups have been expressing.
All 3 issues fundamentally relate to preserving the demographic composition of our state, and all 3 have received vehement public support from several intellectuals, ministers and the most powerful entities in Meghalaya, the pressure groups. The ILP and MRSSA are both designed to make it difficult for any other Indian to visit the state, even if he/she is an innocent tourist who simply wants to spend money here, let alone anyone else. The aforementioned parties have repeatedly mentioned that they are in absolute support of these two measures and are willing to risk the hit tourism and the economy could take as a result. The opposition to railways takes this sentiment further, and many of these same parties have publicly stated that they are willing to forsake the economic development rail would bring to guard against the “influx of outsiders” they believe rail would cause.
In my view, these views are perfectly understandable. It is not necessary that all people must strive for economic progress alone. However, what is amusing is the fact that these same parties have also been complaining loudly about the sharp rise in poverty and unemployment in Meghalaya. They keep blaming the government for the dismal state of our depressed youth who have no jobs and prospects, and about our ever-increasing numbers of poor. They also whine about the worsening infrastructure and facilities visible everywhere. This leads me to wonder what exactly these parties mean when they say, “We are ready to sacrifice development for our identity”. If they are ready to sacrifice development, then why do they cry when the lack of development naturally leads to high joblessness and poverty? Do they live in some make-believe, cartoonish world where they can both sacrifice development to “save their identity” and somehow not suffer any ill-effects from lack of development? Or are all those majestic sounding comments about not wanting development just hypocritical rambles?
The Meghalaya government has endless faults, but no government in the world would succeed in providing jobs to Meghalaya’s hapless, jobless youth if investment from outsiders, tourism from outsiders and, in general, connectivity with outsiders are all severely restricted. State government jobs are far too scarce to even dent the unemployment figures. As such, it is unbecoming to witness prominent adult citizens, including supposedly erudite intellectuals, long-established politicians, and the all-powerful pressure groups, behave like petulant children and wail about the most obvious outcomes of policies they have wholeheartedly supported, and continue to support. To be clear, I am not advocating for anyone to abandon their fears of “influx” and switch over to the path of economic progress. I simply appeal for these adults to shed their comical immaturity, break out of the delusional fantasy world they seem to be inhabiting, and develop the conviction to accept the detrimental effects of their own demands and actions instead of continuing to bleat pathetically. Perhaps they need to be reminded of the phrase: You cannot have your cake and eat it too.
Yours etc.,
N.K. Kehar,
Shillong-3