From CK Nayak
NEW DELHI, Sep 17: Ampareen Lyngdoh, a seasoned politician, was left red-faced at the two-day National Conference on Agriculture for Rabi Campaign-2025 held in New Delhi from September 15-16.
The state government had on Sunday sent a delegation led by Lyngdoh, then the agriculture minister, to the national capital to take part in the conference, convened by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan.
She attended the event on the opening day on Monday but by that night, she was officially intimated by the state government about her removal from the ministry. So, she did not attend the conference on Tuesday as she was no longer the minister.
Lyngdoh, who left for Shillong on Wednesday, was not available for comment. R Annamalai, Secretary; and BM Umdor, Director of the Department of Agriculture, attended the conference held at the Pusa Institute.
The state government had earlier confirmed the participation of the agriculture minister but a chair designated for her remained vacant on Tuesday. Lyngdoh was also not on the dais when Chauhan addressed a press conference at the end of the event.
According to reports, some ministers, including from the NPP, were not informed about their removal in advance. Those, who knew, had tendered their resignation to the Chief Minister. NPP sources claimed that the ministers dropped were informed in writing and well in advance about the government’s decision.
One wonders if the ministers, who faced the axe, were informed beforehand, why the government had sent Lyngdoh to the event where the agriculture ministers of several states shared their viewpoints.
Agriculture Minister Gabriel D Wangsu of Arunachal Pradesh stressed the need for state-specific policy interventions for Himalayan and hilly states, keeping in view their unique physio-geographic and agro-climatic conditions.
He urged the Centre to support the land terracing initiatives for soil and water conservation and expansion of cropped area, pointing out that no dedicated efforts have been made in this regard so far.
Sangma dropped eight of his 11 cabinet colleagues as the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance-II government completed two and a half years in office. The move came amid the speculation that he could bring in some fresh faces to his cabinet.
However, the extent of it took many by surprise. The Chief Minister later told reporters that the changes had been made in consultations with the MDA constituents and senior leaders.