By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, March 29: For the past few years, Shillong has attracted a huge number of tourists, not only from neighbouring Assam and West Bengal but from across the country.
While these visitors come for pleasant stays, some touts and taxi drivers in the state capital often create problems for them, leading to frequent noisy and embarrassing scenes.
Although Khyndai Lad serves as the primary hub for tourists to board taxis and buses to various sites in Meghalaya, groups of touts and cabbies frequently create ugly scenes involving both themselves and the visitors.
A vlogger who recently visited Shillong captured footage of two local taxi drivers quarrelling over passengers. This is not an isolated incident as touts in Khyndai Lad often physically force tourists into their vehicles.
“This shouting and creating a scene for getting a passenger definitely exists in other states, but it should not exist in Shillong, where people usually remain calm and silent. In the process of getting passengers, they sometimes tend to create embarrassing scenes for everyone,” a tourist said.
The absence of a substantial number of tourist buses leaves visitors solely dependent on local taxis. Currently, only a handful of buses operate from Shillong for local sightseeing.
Federation of Shillong Hotels president, Parambir Singh Sehdave, admitted that it is a serious issue and noted that touts frequently push and pull passengers to get a cut from the taxi fare.
