TURA, June 29: Former ANVC (B) chairman and Tura MDC, Bernard Marak, has made an urgent appeal to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking the immediate implementation of the Agreed Text for Settlement (ATS), a tripartite agreement between the Centre, the state and the two ANVC groups that was signed as early as 2014.
In a letter, Marak expressed concern over the continued non-implementation of the ATS, calling it a betrayal by the Congress, which has continued to date.
“This has compelled me to write to you for your intervention. This agreement was envisioned to strengthen the Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) in Meghalaya and to bring lasting peace and development to the Hills of Meghalaya. However, even after a decade, the commitments remain largely unfulfilled,” he stated in his letter.
The Tura MDC added that despite the surrender and mainstreaming of hundreds of cadres, many have not received the promised rehabilitation packages even after multiple rounds of verification.
“The departments identified for devolution to the ADCs have not been transferred. The Monitoring Committee, mandated to meet every six months, has not convened since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. Moreover, the State Government has failed to constitute the State-Level Monitoring Committee as decided and the State Finance Commission, as stipulated in the agreement,” he added.
Marak then went on to further allege that the funds meant for the development of the ADCs have been diverted or delayed through bureaucratic channels, thereby undermining the spirit of the agreement.
“In light of the above, I earnestly request your intervention to direct the Joint Secretary (North East), Ministry of Home Affairs, to convene a Central-Level Monitoring Committee meeting in Tura—the headquarters of Garo Hills—at the earliest,” he appealed.
