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Ronnie V.Lyngdoh taking a dig at BJP

Congress leaders and minister Urban Affairs of Meghalaya, Ronnie V. Lyngdoh is seemly playing the role of soothsayer as he openly pronounced that “BJP will lose Gujarat this time”. His prediction is apparently based upon the fact that BJP chief Amit Shah is constantly postponing his visit to Meghalaya, time and again. Ronnie said “believe me the BJP will be defeated in the upcoming Gujarat polls” adding that BJP had lost to the congress in the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha by-election with a margin of over 2 Lakhs votes. He said that this is an indication of things to come one day and will wave the magic wand so that the BJP would come into power. Ronnie V. Lyngdoh refuted the statement of Rupam Goswami, BJP spokesperson of Assam that the congress is facing leadership crisis in Meghalaya. Lyngdoh also predicted that history will repeat itself that those leaving the congress will not survive in politics.

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Congress-Led government is shielding Shangpliang- P.N. Syiem

Suspended Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (CEM) Pynshngaiñlang N. Syiem accused the Congress-led Meghalaya government of shielding bureaucrat-turned-politician H.M. Shangpliang, who is set to contest from Mawsynram constituency in THE 2018 Election.

Syiem who is both MLA and MDC alleged that Shangpliang has misused his position as IAS officer in many occasions prior his joining in politics but the congress led government instead of taking action him it is protecting him. In the past there was a demand from several quarters that action should be taken against Shangpliang, after a video clip surface showing Shangpliang attending a meeting of a political party. Talking to the press on Thursday Syiem said “He (Shangpliang) should be punished as per service rules of both the Centre and state governments.”

Shangpliang’s took voluntary retirement in October before officially joining Congress recently.

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Toki Blah the new Chairman of Social Audit

Meghalaya became the first state to have a Social Audit Act (SAC) with Toki Blah as its chairman. Blah who is a former IAS officer was appointed by Chief Minister Mukul Sangma after meeting on Wednesday.  

Dr. Mukul Sangma during the official appointment said that with the state now having a Social Audit it will create an environment that will make transparency and accountability in order to maintain irregularities in the course of the implementation of schemes and projects.

The Chief Minister said Sangma said that social auditing will make people easier to understand about various schemes and project that are meant for the welfare of the people of state as a whole.

The newly appointed chairman will have tenure of five years. Meanwhile Blah after his official officiating said the Council will encourage the public and civil societies to be part of the government’s development programme in order to bring out transparency and accountability in all developmental activities.

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HSPDP want Union Health Minister Intervention

The Hill State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP) has submitted a petition to Union health minister, J.P. Nadda regarding the issue of de-recognition of post graduate courses at North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS).

HSPDP President and Legislator Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit in a petition submitted to Nadda, said that the post graduate courses were started around five years back with full support of the Union ministry of health and family welfare and the state government.

The lapse came to notice during the inspection conducted by the Medical Council of India (MCI) several departments have been recommended for de-recognition like anesthesia, radiology, general, surgery, medicines. Upon inquiry the party came to know that the institute has increased a number of post graduate seats in certain disciplines like anesthesia without the permission of the ministry of health and family welfare.

The HSPDP also told the Union minister that the present NEIGRIHMS director, D.M. Thappa has refused to acknowledge the deficiencies and had sent the compliance report to the MCI with some alterations in the appointments of faculty at the institute’s clinical load and consequently, has put the institute at loggerheads with the MCI.

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MoU signed between Meghalaya Kingdom of Belgium

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Meghalaya Government and the Wallonia Region of the Kingdom of Belgium in the presence of Chief Minister Dr. Mukul Sangma at Taj Diplomatic Enclave in New Delhi.

The objective of these MoU was to promote favorable relations of partnership and beneficial cooperation between the two and to recognize the importance of the principles of equality and mutual in the fields of trade and commerce, training, healthcare, environmental areas, science and technology, agro-food including breweries, sports and leisure, architecture and heritage, urban development/eco-system management, veterinary & animal husbandry and other fields that shall be mutually agreed upon.

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Women to empower Assembly Election 2018

More and more women contesters in the Assembly Election 2018 are surfacing, prominent among is none other than Agatha Sangma, youngest daughter of Purno Sangma who is making an appearance from South Tura from the National People Party.  Agatha is not a stranger in the political field. She was the youngest minister of state in the UPA-II Manmohan Singh Government. Agatha has already started campaigning. It was Purno A. Sangma who formed the National People Party in 2012. The party is having two representatives in the Assembly. The NPP was formed in Jowai in a meeting convened by Purno Sangma in the presence of the NPP advisors Phidalai Toi. The National President Conrad K. Sangma is confident that Agatha being one of the aspirants would work for the interest to uplift the women folk in Garo Hills and also the state. Agatha would have therefore proved her worth and the parties interest facing the challenges of congress leaders for urban affairs, Ronnie V. Lyngdoh stated that NPP is in “a world of delusion”. 

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The evolution of the Chakma Autonomous District Council (C.A.D.C.) can be regarded as the opening of political Pandora box in the political situation of Mizoram. The issue has been propagated in different dimensions by certain political parties, civil societies and even the law-makers. The issue has been so tense and problematic because Chakmas are regarded as outsiders but Autonomous District Council has been created for the so-called outsiders with the trifurcation of the Pawi-Lakher Regional Council (P.L.R.C.) in 1972. It is an undeniable fact to admit that the original home of the Chakmas is Chittagong in Bangladesh and Chakma kingdom also flourished there since pre-British period. Chakmas appeared for the first time in Lushai Hills when the British authority engaged some Chakmas as Labour Corps with the permission of Chakma Queen, Kalindi Rani in the Lushai Expedition of 1871-1872, however, those Chakmas returned to Chittagong after the expedition. Thus, the Chakmas’ official association with Lushai Hills began in 1892 because of the transfer of some Chakma villages nearby Dimagiri from Chittagong administration to South Lushai Hills by the order of Sir Charles Elliot, Lieutenant Governor of Bengal but those Chakmas who were allowed to settle in South Lushai Hills were charged foreigner tax of Rupees Five per year. During that time, Chakma settlement was not found in Uiphum Tlangdung (Present CADC area) because Uiphum Tlangdung was the ancestral land of the Tlanglau and they ruled over the whole hill tracts. Other than the Tlanglau chiefs, there were also some chiefs from Bawm and Pang in the area. The geographical area of the present C.A.D.C. area was administered by the Tlanglau, Bawm and Pang chiefs since pre-British period and was known as Uiphum Tlangdung which means Uiphum Hill Range. The first Chakma migration in the Uiphum Tlangdung was recognized in 1905 and they were employed in the paddy field as workers by the Tlanglau chiefs. Chakma ’s population and influx from across the border increased at faster rate which led to the domination of the present C.A.D.C. area by the Chakmas. As a matter of fact, the Chakma Regional Council later on the Chakma Autonomous District Council (C.A.D.C.) surprisingly emerged as a result of the trifurcation of the Pawi-Lakher Regional Council (PLRC) in 1972 along with the creation and declaration of the Union Territory of Mizoram.

2. Status of the Chakmas in pre-independent era

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TUR oppose the Meghalaya Community Participation & Public Services Social Audit Act, 2017

The Thma U Rangli Juki (TUR) has strongly opposed the implementation of the Meghalaya Community Participation and Public Services Social Audit Act, 2017 in its present form. Angela Rangad said that the Act which was meant for ‘community participation’ was legislated without any ‘community participation’ or pre-legislative consultation.

Six months after the Bill was passed, the government decided to hold a small ‘consultation’ with select group of CSOs in the presence of Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, K.N.Kumar, IAS, B. Dhar IAS (nominated – retired), she said while stating that TUR was also one of those invited to the said meeting.

The TUR also raise questions at the State Social Audit Council by claiming that this Social Audit is not an independent body because all the members of the council are government nominees. The ‘’ without any announcement of vacancy or criterion of appointment goes against the very principle of independence and transparency claimed TUR.

Meanwhile, the TUR demanded that the Act needs to be amended in a consultative process and the rules for the implementation of the Act need to be framed in a consultative and transparent manner.