Shillong, Jul 26: Youths from across Garo Hills took part in a peaceful rally in Tura on Sunday, calling for education reforms, administrative accountability and urgent action on several national issues.
Organised by the Artist Society under the banner ‘A Call to Garo Hills’, the rally began at Chandmari Playground with a prayer and a moment of silence for those who lost their lives in recent incidents across the country.
From there, participants marched through Ringre-Upper Chandmari Junction and the DMHO office intersection in Babupara, before culminating at DC Park.
Throughout the procession, demonstrators carried placards and raised slogans in Garo and English, including:
The slogans highlighted key demands: reforms in the education sector, restoration of peace in Manipur and opposition to the proposed implementation of E20 petrol.
Speaking to the media, event host Katta Nisa said the rally was aimed at uniting the youth of Garo Hills to raise awareness on issues impacting the region and the country.
Referring to the recent student deaths that led to nationwide protests, she said that while Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had resigned, “true accountability for the tragedy is still lacking” and called for a transparent inquiry into the matter.
Other speakers at the rally also voiced concern over the ongoing unrest in Manipur, the Assam floods and their impact on communities, the recent lathi-charge on student protesters in other parts of the country, the proposed rollout of E20 petrol, which participants claimed the rally was among the first in Meghalaya to publicly oppose
The programme concluded at DC Park with an open discussion forum, artistic performances, and community singing.
Organizers encouraged participants to engage in peaceful democratic processes and stressed the need for collective efforts toward justice, responsible governance, and social change.
