By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 15: Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Wednesday said that the state government is not keen on doing away with the autonomous district councils (ADCs) in the wake of the administration in these institutions being “not up to the mark.”
Stating that the district councils play an important role in protecting the cultural heritage of the state, Sangma said, “If the administration is not up to the mark, it does not mean that it should be abandoned.”
It may be mentioned that Meghalaya continues to have three ADCs despite being a full-fledged state for more than 50 years. “We should streamline the performance of the ADCs and increase their revenue,” he said.
Time and again, the debate pertaining to existence of ADCs has come up over the notion that these institutions are a burden since Meghalaya is a full-fledged state with several privileges and provisions. Many, however, feel that district councils are important institutions to protect the cultural identity and traditions of the local populace.
Term extension
The Chief Minister, on the other hand, refused to give a clear-answer as far as the term extension of the KHADC and JHADC is concerned.
The Cabinet had, in February this year, extended the tenure of KHADC and JHADC to six months starting March since the delimitation exercise is ongoing and the delimitation committee had sought six months.
“We will see once we get the report and all will depend on it (the report),” he said.
With regard to increasing the number of seats in the ADCs, the CM said that the matter is pending with the Union government, adding that state government has already conveyed its views to the Ministry of Home Affairs. “We hope the draft bill will be out in next Parliament session,” he said
It may be recalled that last elections to both KHADC and JHADC were held on February 27, 2019, and votes were counted on March 2.