Tura, Sep 23: ‘Does not arise’. This was the answer given to a question put forward by the MLA from Dadenggre, Rupa Marak when he sought an answer to the exact cost of the oxygen plant set up in his constituency, Jengjal.
“It is really amusing that this was the answer given to my question. I had tried to put forward this question during the Assembly session that concluded yesterday but this did not make it to the final list of questions in ‘Question Hour’, despite the matter being of such an urgent nature,” said Rupa.
Rupa asked as to what ‘does not arise’ meant and whether the oxygen plants were actually paid for through someone’s pockets or from a scheme of the government.
“If it was paid for by some private individual, we would be more than happy to thank him/her for their generosity. If it was paid for by the state through our schemes, ‘does not arise cannot be an answer. We need accountability and for these plants to be fully functional,” said the Dadenggre MLA.
A total of 8 such oxygen plants, including the one at Jengjal, were inaugurated or in the process of completion in the 5 districts of Garo Hills though despite the passage of over 3 years now, none of these plants are functional.
The functioning of the plants would have bridged the gap of oxygen requirements in some districts by almost 100% and about 30-40% in Tura Civil Hospital, the major hospital in the region. The plants were built during the height of COVID – 19 in an effort to augment the supply of oxygen to various Civil Hospitals and CHCs.
According to Rupa, five questions were put forward relating to the oxygen plants with the other question being on the status of the plants, utilization of oxygen, quantity and recurring expenditure. The answer he got – no and does not arise for all 5 questions put forward.
“We all know it is not functional but then why is it not functional? The plants form a critical part of the upgrade of our medical infrastructure of the state and particularly of the Garo Hills region. They have been trying to evade answering my questions despite this being so critical in nature,” he added.