District Council Polls

As the administrative preparations are going on in full swing to conduct the District Council polls in Khasi Hills on March 15, the political parties have become active once again.

What is the importance of this election? Wbo have the biggest stakes in it?

From all indications available, this election is going to be a battle of artrition for the State-based parties, which, consequent, on being battered at the Garo Hills and Jaintia Hills District Council hustings earlier, have of late suffred considerable erosion of strengh, especially from the second-level leadership. The gainer, obviously, the Congress (I) – the party presently in power-is going the whole hog to complete the routing of the State-based parties.

Having virtually bungled with the so-called ‘‘unity move’’, the APHLC and HSPDP are fighting a desperate back to wall battle to defend their last moorings-the Khasi Hills District Council. In this pursuit the two parties have decided to work out a seat-adjusment. Party sources said that barring three constituencies there was clear unanimity among the leaders. Observers say that if the present election results are any guide, then the regional parties should have a clear edge over the Congress (I) For, it must be noted that the national party could never catch the imagination of the people of Khasi and Jantia Hills districts.

Presently riding a crest of succcess, the Congress (I) with “its superior resources, added by the current spate of defections from the regional parties, is poised to strike the hardest to wrest power – for the first time – from the local parties.

According to Mr. J.E. Tariang, the working pesident of the MPCC (I), the last of parties nominees would be released by February 14.

Meanwhile, a piquant situation has arisen following the near-total deletion of names of eligible non-tribal residents from the electoral rolls. It is gathered that although there was no instruction from the top some underlings have, taken upon themselves to ruthlessly strike off the non-tribal names from the list.

Traders in Shillong, it appears, have been given a virtual free hand by the State Weights & Measures Department. With practically little surveillance maintained by the department, the traders are having a field day at the expense of the consumers.

Knowledgeable circles believe that half of the traders in Shillong either donot have the prescribed scales and measurement devices or are culprits of manipulating the scales.

The consumers sadly lack in consciousness. They usually make their purchases in good faith, seldom realizing how they are being taken for a ride by the cunning traders. Be it the grocer’s shop or the fish and vegetable stalls the tale is the same. By an expert maneuver of the scales the shopkeepers either increase the weight or decrease depending, upon what the item is.

There are a number of shops in Bara Bazar, which are openly violating the Weights and Measures regulations. Some of the stalls use such ridiculous stuff as a small stone chip in lieu prescribed weights. Many of the stalls donot even observe the modicum of official regulation; all the stalls are required to suspend their scales from a fixed point. Instead the shopkeepers use their expert hands each time a customer buys a commodity.

Irate consumers complain bitterly about the non-performance of the Weights & Measures Department. It is alleged that there has been total lack of initiative on the part of the Department to carry out surprise checks at the various trading centres.

A goods laid lorry was completely charred near Sohryngkham on Jowai Badarpur Road. The truck is reported to have caught fire following some mechanical defects. The vehicle bears registration under Gauhati, it is gathered.

Senior Army and civil officials are scheduled to meet at Fort William Calcutta on February 8&9 to review, among other things, the law and order situation in the North-East.

The meeting, which is an annual exercise, is likely to engage attention to bring about better army civil liaison.

According to informed sources here the officials would possibly discuss the latest law and order situation obtaining in the Assam Valley, particularly in respect of the Disturbed Areas. The recent discovery of arms and ammunitions in the valley is also likely to figure during the discussion.

Sources said that matters relating to hammering out better working arrangement among the myriad intelligence agencies was likely to be taken up. It has often been found that the these intelligencies tend to over lap each other.

Besides, there is the standing agendum insurgency. The officials are expected to exchange notes on the effectiveness of the combing operations carried out in the sensitive areas.

The top police and Home department officials drawn from the various States of the region are attending the two-day meet.

A review meeting – first of the officials followed by a Ministerial one –will be held here on January 16 and 18 respectively to take stock of the progress of the implementation of the 20-point programme in the far eastern region.

This is the first time that such a review meeting is being held at the regional level. Officials and Ministerial representatives from Nagaland, Sikkim, West Bengal, Meghalaya, Assam, Manipur and Tripura, besides officials from the Central Government, are expected to take part in the deliberations.

The Union Minister for Housing 4 and Works, Mr Buta Singh, will attend the meeting on January 18.

Police picked up 17 women from the “red light area” of Anup Chand Lane in Police Bazar following a surprise raid conducted on Jan 5.

The women have been forwarded for medical examination and further inquiries are in progress.

Meanwhile, On Dec 31 police recovered five women from the Darranga Mela on the Indo-Bhutan border. Acting on a tip-off police authorities dispatched a squad to Darranga which managed to rescue the girls.

N.E. Special allowance

The Central Government employees in the North-East submitted a memorandum to the Governor on January 10 for forwarding it to the Union Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, soliciting re-examination of the provisions of the special (Duty) Allowance.

The memorandum, which was submitted under the aegis of the Regional Coordination Committee of the Central Government Employees and Workers, North Eastern Region, stated that the Union Government had denied the ‘‘special duty allowance’’ at 25% of basic pay to the low-paid Central employees who are serving the difficult Nort-East as much as those having all-India transfer liability.

It quoted the relevant orders of the Finance Ministry of December 14: ‘‘Central Government civilian employees who have All India transfer liabIlity will be granted a Special (Duty) Allowance at the rate of 25 per cent of basic pay subject to a ceiling of Rs 400/- per month, on posting to any station in the North Eastern Region. Such of those employees who are exempt from payment of income tax will, however, not be eligible for this Special (Duty) Allowance.’’

The RCC argued that the working conditions being equal for all sections of its employees it was a ‘‘gross discrimination’’ to extend such an allowance only to those who come to serve temporarily. It demanded that all sections of Central Government employees should be brought under the purview of the Special Allowance.

It further demanded deletion of the Income Tax factor from the Orders so that the Scheduled Tribes (who donot pay pay tax) are not deprived of the privilege.

The State Govt. has made it clear that those who are found committing hooliganism at Barapani on Republic Day will be dealt with sternly.

An Official source said that the Govt had received reports that the certain elements in the name of celebration of Republic Day, and Independence Day are indulging in undesirable act. On August 15 last year, a group of young revelers were found dancing in the National Highway.

At the State Secretariat, the Home Minister, Mr D. D Lapang held a meeting this week with top police and home officials to discuss the issue. The meeting was attended, among others, by the Home Commissioner Mr. K .K. Sinha, IGP, Mr. B. S. Baber, S .P. Shillong, Mr K. C. Reddy.

The Centre has decided to extend all out help to the State for proper implementation of programmes of drinking water supply to the villages, allotment of house sites with construction assistance upgradation of slums and extension of housing facilities for the economically weaker sections of the society, Ministry of works and Housing, in his address to the Ministerial Level Regional Review Conference relating to those three points of the 20 point programme.

Mr Ramesh Chandra said that supply of drinking water to problem villages needed concerted effort as the country had more than half a million rural settlements and during the current plan it was imperative to provide at least one source of portable water to nearly 2,21,000 problem villages. In this sphere, Mr Chandra said, some of the states had been doing “very well” while greater efforts were needed on the part of the other States.

Mr Chandra made pointed reference to the Central Sector Scheme of housing assistance for plantation works which, he said, had special significance for the North-Eastern Region. This scheme he said, has been in operation for quite some time but according to available indications the results had not been commensurate with expectations. The objective of providing centper cent housing accommodation for the plantation workers was still to be achieved he observed, and requested the concerned States to give full consideration to the implementation of this scheme.

Referring to the housing shortage in the urban areas, Mr Ramesh Chandra said the increase in population of slum and pavement dwellers were visible manifestation fo the acuteness of this problem. The Govt. he declared, was determined to provide shelter to these people. He disclosed that a decision had been taken to revise the existing norm of Rs. 150 to Rs. 250 per capita to be spent for the scheme for benefit of slum dwellers added.

The States and UTs which participated in the Review Conference were West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura and Sikkim. Mr Buta Singh, Union Minister of Works and Housing, Parliamentary Affairs and Sports, who had to preside over the Conference could not come since he had to make a dash to Quilon to attend Mr. C M Stephen’s funeral.

Some nine individuals and organizations appeared before the Cabinet Sub-Committee to submit their views on the proposed Byrnihat Railhead project.

Stating this, an official spokesman said that the news item appearing in The Shillong Times (Jan 9, 1984) was erroneous. The report had stated that the sub-committee drew a blank as no one turned up to place their opinions. The spokesman said that while it is true that it did not open its account for the latter part of the allotted time for receiving public opinions on the issue, towards the fag-end some people turned up to record their views.