Shillong, Nov 8: Opposition to the railway project in Meghalaya flared up again on Saturday after members of the Hynniewtrep A’chik National Movement (HANM) pulled down a pillar put up by the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) at Lad Sohkymphor in East Jaintia Hills.
The action has once again linked the railway issue directly to the long-pending demand for the Inner Line Permit (ILP).
HANM president Lamphrang Kharbani said the organisation is not against development but will not allow railway construction to go ahead without protection for indigenous people.
“We are not saying no to development. We are saying give us protection first. Give ILP first, then we can talk about railways,” he said.
Kharbani argued that even without a railway, areas like Lad Rymbai, Pynthor, Khyndai Lad and Shalang within East Jaintia Hills have already seen demographic changes that have created fear among the indigenous people of becoming a minority in their own land.
He said HANM will continue to dismantle railway infrastructure if work proceeds without ILP and strong protective laws.
At the same time, he admitted that a railway could bring down prices of essential goods and make travel easier for students studying outside the state. But, he said, those benefits cannot override the need to secure land and identity for future generations.
