Meghalaya CM to seek Rajnath Singh’s intervention for allotment of defence land for relocation of Harijans

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaDecember 5, 2024

Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma will be meeting the Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi requesting his intervention into the state government’s proposal for allotting defence land for the purpose of relocating 342 families of Sweepers’ Colony from Them Iew Mawlong.

Informing this on Thursday, Deputy Chief Minister incharge Urban Affairs Sniawbhalang Dhar said, “Maybe tomorrow or day after tomorrow, the chief minister is planning to meet the union defence minister in relation to this subject only.”

He however said that the government is yet to identify the location for the purpose of relocation. “They (defence authority) want to meet us. That is why the CM is seeking an appointment with the defence minister. Let us see what the outcome of the meeting is,” Dhar added.

Earlier, the request for allotment of defence land was made by the delegation of the Harijan Panchayat Committee during a meeting convened by the state government.  

Asked about the government’s blueprint, which proposed relocation of the residents to a land belonging to Shillong Municipal Board (SMB), the deputy chief minister however said, “Blueprint is always there. But if there is a better option, we may go for a better option. If the defence gives us the land, we will get it free of cost. Simple as that. If they give, it is well and good but if not, what to do, we will have to go as per our blueprint only.”

Further, Dhar informed that the government is committed to resolve this long pending issue at the earliest.

“In the meantime, we are trying to solve it very positively. Because there is a slight discussion, we will wait for sometime and we will take a final call,” he assured.