Shillong, Dec 30: The year 2013 was the year of ‘King making’ in Meghalaya as the year witness Change of guard in the state for the first time under delimited constituency. The massive turn out of the electorate for the state Legislative Assembly election reflects the hard work by various district administration and the election officials.
“Night of 1000 lights & Phawar Competition” might sound like a stage play, but this is one of the unique ways adopted by the East Khasi hills district election department to create awareness among the urban voters of the importance of casting their votes in the upcoming assembly elections. Tapping their feet, dancing with the drum beat carrying mashals in hand, the people in Shillong celebrated National voters day.
In the election, Congress emerged as the single largest party in the election though it failed to secure absolute majority. Congress formed the coalition Government with the help of Nationalist Congress party.
Dr. Mukul Sangma became the Chief Minister of the state for second consecutive term. For the first time in the history of Meghalaya, a Lady MLA took over the charge of Home Minister in the state.
Dr. Mukul Sangma included three lady MLAs in his cabinet giving space to women voice.
A year old party Nationalist Peoples party failed to make its presence felt in the election.
PA sangma lost his grip over Garo hills, Dr. Mukul Sangma gradually became one of the most powerful leader in Garo Hills.
Several former Chief Ministers including Dr. DD lapang and SC Marak returned as MLAs, several new faces gets elected.
For the National political parties, Several Political big wings roped into Meghalaya for election campaign. Some of the big names include, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Chiarperson UPA Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, defence Minister AK Anthony, Raj babbar, Anun Jetley the senior BJP leader and smriti Irani.
A host of central delegation and important personalities also visited the state after election which includes President Pranab Mukherjee addresses State Assembly and Nehu, M M Pallam Raju – Then Union Minister Hrd, K S Rao Union Minister Of Textiles, Manish Tewari Union Minister I&B, Y V Reddy- Delegation Of 14th Finance Commission, V. Kishore Chandra Deo, Union tribal affairs minister, Shantaram Naik, Senior Rajya Sabha Member, Chairman Parliament’s Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, Altamas Kabir, Chief Justice of India.
The Meghalaya government urged the 14th Finance Commission to provide a special grant of Rs50,000 crore to enable the state meet its liabilities.
The Gujarat delegation also visited the state to gain support for the Statue of unity.
The year 2013 was the year of agitation, violence and disruption in Meghalaya. At the onset of the year 2013, the state was rocked by the rising crime against women which became a challenging factor.
Meghalaya joined rest of the country to protest the rising crime against women. However, what made the headline this year is one of the longest agitation by the Pressure Groups demanding implementation of Inner line permit in the state. Several bandhs, Night road Blockade and office picketing rocked the state. Violence, destruction of properties and killing of innocence people seems to have no end unless this issue finds a solution.
The adamant attitude of the Government as well as the Pressure groups somewhere made common man suffer. Several NGO leaders were arrested and forwarded to court. A special court which has begun proceedings against 28 leaders of 14 pro-Inner Line Permit pressure groups in Meghalaya for allegedly violating the Supreme Court ruling against shutdowns has given them one month’s time for filing written statements. The special court has issued a damage suit of Rs 31.09 crore against them.
The government’s failure to curb militancy continues to grab attention as several police personnel lost their life in the counter insurgency operations in the Garo hills region in last one year.
The cat and mouse race between the Police and the militants has mostly hampered the development of the region.
The separate statehood demand gradually gained momentum after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and creation of Telengana, In Garo Hills a section demanding Separate state resorted to agitation which was turned down by the Government.
Internal dissensions are part and parcel of Congress culture. Again this year, there were reported rumblings in the Congress-led MUA2 Government which aimed at dislodging Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma. However, such attempts were put down by the Chief Minister.
The issue of Chandra Mohan Jha (CMJ) University came to limelight after then Governor of Meghalaya Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary has brought out various irregularities in the functioning of the university. The fate of the students appeared to be in darkness. The state CID sleuths sealed the CMJ University located at Laitumkhrah after it obtained a court order for carrying out its investigation. Several officials and person attach to the university surrendered.
Months after the CMJ University scandal, its chancellor Chandra Mohan Jha finally appeared before the investigation officer of the Sadar police station.
Meghalaya looks forward for the implementation of the Food Security bill as over 70 percent of the population will be benefited from this bill.
However, Inflation, agitation dampened the celebration of the festivals in the state. The skyrocketing price of Onions and potato created panic in the mind of people. The drop in the buying rate of the onions worried the wholesalers. The sudden confusion with regard to the shortage of salt made people buy salt at a higher price and store it.
Meghalaya Lokayukta (Amendment) Bill 2013 was passed in the Assembly amidst strong protest from the opposition bench on the last day of the budget session. The bill was passed after Chief Minister Mukul Sangma assured the opposition that further amendments would be made to strengthen the institution of the Lokayukta.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma presented a Rs 526 crore deficit Budget for the financial year 2013-14. The fiscal deficit of Rs 526 crore is around 2.62 per cent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) and an increase of Rs 142 crore as compared to that of 2012-13.
The Chief Minister tabled a plan Budget of Rs 4,141 crore.
The Shillong Bypass project, which has been completed much before its deadline, has raised hopes of a changing trend of road construction in the State. It is open for the vehicular movement.
The project, which had been lingering for the past two decades, is now awaiting its formal inauguration.
To discourage Tobacco consumption in the state, the cabinet has decided to hike tax on tobacco and tobacco products from 13.5 percent to 20 percent. This initiative will help to raise an additional revenue of about Rs 85 crore, the tax on tobacco products ranges from 30-60 percent.
The hike would help the government exchequer to generate additional income of about Rs 15 crore per year.
The empowered committee on goods and services tax (GST) of state finance ministers visited Shillong. The Chairman of the committee told media person that in the meeting they unanimously decided to keep petroleum and alcohol out of the proposed GST since these were the main income of many state.
Justice Prafulla Chandra Pant was sworn-in as the new chief justice of the Meghalaya high court at a ceremony to be held at Raj Bhawan. Meghalaya governor Dr KK Paul administered the oath of office to the newly appointed Meghalaya high court chief justice. Sixty-one year old Justice Pant succeeded Justice T Meena Kumari whose term as the Meghalaya Chief Justice.
Wansuk Myrthong became the first woman from Meghalaya to scale Mount Everest. Myrthong is a woman Police Constable in Meghalaya Police, who has etched the name of woman from matrilineal Meghalaya on the ever formidable Mount Everest, and also became the second person from Meghalaya to conquer the highest Himalayan peak after Gary Jarman Lamare. The 30–year–old Myrthong is one among the 16 climbers of the first Northeast India Top of the World Mount Everest Expedition, 2013 which was flagged off by President Pranab Mukherjee from Rastrapati Bhavan on March 20.
To celebrate nostalgia and reminisce on fond memories, reminding one of days when water was yet to be packed in plastic bottles and the air free of conditioning in this hill station, the Creative, Arts, Literature and Music (CALM) Festival 2013 came down to Shillong with its second edition. The festival is an initiative of the Sahaki group — a body of professionals, not solely, and not necessarily, from the literary world
The festival drew eminent scholars and artists from across the country who have called the event as ‘unique’ and a right kind of platform to expose the hidden talents of the youths from the state.
The two-day Monolith Festival, which display and celebrate the often forgotten richness and profundity of Khasi culture, was organised at the Heritage Village, Mawphlang in Meghalaya. Union tribal affairs minister V. Kishore Chandra Deo inaugurated the festival. The venue for the festival, Mawphlang Heritage Village, is an initiative to protect, preserve and conserve the traditional heritage and social customs of the ethnic tribes of the Khasi Hills of Meghalaya.
The “Monolith Festival” showcases the rich traditional and cultural heritage of over fifty-three Himas of the Khasis under one roof and is in a way “path-breaking”.
Celebrated Odissi dancer Geeta Mahalik performed in Shillong with an aim to promote awareness among the youth about the centuries old classical dance form. The event was part of the week long International youth camp organised by Asian Confluence in Shillong. Mahalik performed with her eight-member dance troupe under Geeta’s Upasana presentation at the Aurobindo Ashram. The performance concluded with a poetic depiction of the Ramleela.
Asian Confluence Shillong organised a Bharatnatyam recital by Ganna Smirnova from Ukraine. A Bharatanatyam is a performer, choreographer and teacher. She has received extensive training from Guru Jayalakshmi Eshwar in Delhi under an ICCR scholarship. She is also and is also the founder and Art Director of theater Nakshatra in Kiev. Another dance programme of Ganna was also organised in Tripura Castle Shillong.
Famous Bollywood actress poet, author and painter Deepti Naval shared her insightful experiences of her life by reading her poetry and a short story to a jam packed audience of book lovers and fans at the Asian Confluence in Shillong. Deepti reads out ten lines from her book ‘The Mad Tibetan.’
Sports and Youth Affairs minister Zenith Sangma laid the foundation stone for the Multipurpose Indoor Sports Hall at Golf Link. The foundation stone laying ceremony was organized by the Pynthorumkhra Dorbar Sanong Shillong. This is an initiative by the Meghalaya Government to develop sportsmanship among the youth in the state and attract them to participate more in Sports activities. (SP News)
