Issuing taxi permits kept in abeyance

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 22: Taxi permits in Shillong is for the time being kept in abeyance for better regulation, deputy chief minister-in-charge Transport Sniawbhalang Dhar informed the Assembly today.

In reply to a query raised by VPP North Shillong MLA Adelbert Nongrum, Dhar also informed that the reason that the unused STPS buses are lying on the godown at various places in Shillong is that vehicles are no longer fit for use.

Whether the government will adopt a policy in order to restrict any tourist taxi from outside the state to enter Shillong city to avoid traffic congestion, the minister however said no restriction will be adopted since tourist permits can ply all over India. Moreover, Shillong is a transit route to other states.

Tourist taxis cannot be restricted under Para 4 of the Terms and Conditions of All India Tourist Vehicle Permit, he added.

Them Iew Mawlong: HPC waiting for govt’s call

The Harijan Panchayat Committee (HPC) has said that they are waiting for the state government to call for a meeting to discuss the issue related to the relocation of the Sweepers’ Colony from Them Iew Mawlong.

“We are waiting for the government’s call,” HPC secretary Gurjit Singh said.

He however refused to indicate if the committee would submit its reply on the government’s proposal.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong informed that the government would soon fix a meeting with the HPC to further sensitize them on the stand of the government and to also listen to their point of view on the matter.

“We are waiting for the return of the Deputy Chief Minister in-charge urban affairs as we want to convene a meeting with the HPC within this month,” he added.

Tynsong said that he is not aware if the HPC has sent any communication to urban affairs with regards to the reply to the government’s proposal.

On March 16, the state government set a deadline to the HPC for submitting its reply by April 10, with regards to the proposal for relocating of the Sweepers’ Colony from Them Iew Mawlong to the existing land of the Shillong Municipal Board (SMB).

The government had also turned down the request of the HPC to give another three months’ time to respond to the proposal.

The decision was also taken following an order of the Meghalaya High Court on February 16, asking the state government to immediately resolve the issue after the Assembly elections.

On September 29, last year the state government presented the blueprint to the HPC during a meeting, which indicated its decision to construct multi-storey flats at the existing official quarters of the Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) for relocation of the 342 families.

The state government had outrightly rejected the April 25,2022-proposal of the HPC that 200 square meters of land be provided to each of the 342 families within the European ward besides bearing the cost of construction of their homes.