By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Dec 21: The Voice of the People Party (VPP) on Saturday said the Meghalaya government’s priority is misplaced and there is inequality and injustice in access to basic infrastructure in the state.
“You won’t believe the road conditions in the rural areas. There is inequality in access to infrastructure, which is highly unfair. When some sections of society are cut off from access to proper roads one cannot believe that we are living in the 21st century,” VPP spokesperson, Batskhem Myrboh said.
“A few sections of the people are yet to experience 2-3% of what we already have for ages,” he added.
Stating that the rural areas need infrastructural justice, he said, “The villages of Mawkynrew constituency such as Nohron and Nongryngkoh need pucca roads.”
“The financial support to entertainment and the extravagant expenditure for maintaining the political appointees at the cost of the infrastructural justice should make one wonder if the government has a conscience,” Myrboh said.
He said a visit to the state’s rural areas indicates the priorities of the state government are misplaced. “I don’t say festivals are unimportant but we have not really given the basic infrastructure like roads to the rural populace,” he said.
The VPP spokesperson said the talk about a $10 billion economy makes no sense when Meghalaya’s villages still face deprivation in the 21st century and access to basic amenities is not based on the principle of equity and fairness.
Recalling that the state government had given Rs 2 crore for shooting the Bollywood movie Rock On, he said the government should realise that people’s needs need to be prioritised over financial support for entertainment.
