SHILLONG, Aug 17: The Voice of the People Party (VPP) on Thursday said the decision of the General Administration Department (GAD) to allot the ground floor of Kolkata’s Meghalaya House to a Shillong-based person was shocking.
The ground floor of the Meghalaya House on Russell Street is presently occupied by three government departments or corporations – Tourism Information Centre under the Directorate of Tourism, the Directorate of Horticulture, and the Government State Emporium of the Meghalaya Handloom and Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd.
The GAD allotted the ground floor to one Rocky Dhar of Nongmynsong for business purposes.
“The units or outlets were set up to promote the products and services of the government departments on commercial terms,” VPP general secretary, Ricky AJ Syngkon said in a statement.
He said the VPP failed to understand how the government meant to serve the interest of the people can promote the interest of an individual.
“It appears that the present dispensation is all out to serve the interest of some individuals and not the people who voted them,” he said.
He said the government awarded the tender to Dhar after three failed attempts. “The government needs to come clean on the changes in the terms and conditions to favour the businessman,” he added.
Petition to CM
The VPP petitioned Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma to expedite the constitution of the expert committee for reviewing the state job reservation policy.
Syngkon reminded Sangma of the July 13 meeting where they were informed that the state government was almost ready with the notification regarding the constitution of the expert panel.
The chief minister said during the last meeting that the chairman of the committee would be identified in two to three weeks, he said.
“It has been a month since then and we expect the government to fulfil the commitment to constitute the committee as soon as possible,” Syngkon said.