A public hearing lasted 46 minutes. A Rs 1,800 crore project was discussed. And in East Jaintia Hills, the gap between law on paper and law on the ground has never looked wider.
The statutory hearing for Shree Cement’s proposed integrated cement plant and limestone mine at Lum Syrman was conducted by the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board on Friday. On record, it followed procedure. Village elders from Nongkhlieh Elaka and local village and other representatives spoke in support. They spoke of jobs, of scarce government employment, of limestone as “a blessing” for a region where farming alone is no longer enough.
But a hearing is not meant only for those who agree. Its entire purpose is to hear those who will be most affected, including those who disagree.
That is why the allegations from Lum Syrman and Shnongrim cannot be brushed aside. Landowners and farmers say they were stopped by state police at Lad Shnongrim, despite carrying an order from the Deputy Commissioner directing that they be allowed to participate. If true, this is not a lapse. It is a direct subversion of the environmental clearance process.
The day was marked by more than just exclusion. The Jaintia Students Union alleged that stones were pelted at those who wanted to attend the hearing and many injured. But most unprecedented was the allegation by several NGO leaders and locals that a portion of the road to the public hearing site was dug up so that no vehicles could pass through it, effectively stopping people who opposed it from attending the hearing. One of the inadvertent victims of this was a mother in labour being rushed to the local medical centre. In high pain her journey was delayed and she faced numerous inconveniences because this road at Tongseng was trenched allegedly by those in support of the public hearing. The pressure groups say four JNC leaders were arrested a day ahead of the public hearing.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong had said both supporters and opponents should attend and that law and order would be maintained. JSU’s response was blunt: his statement was “all false” and he should resign. That anger is a symptom. People do not opt for street agitation when they feel heard.
Meghalaya’s development needs are real. Shree Cement says the lease area is 217.394 hectares and the project will cost over Rs 73 crore in this phase alone. The company runs 19 plants in India. For a state with high unemployment, that investment matters. But investment without legitimacy is a liability.
In Sixth Schedule areas, the balance between traditional institutions, individual land rights, and state authority is delicate. When a Doloi backs a project but individual landowners say they were blocked from speaking, the State has to choose which version of “public” it stands with.
A 46-minute hearing for a project of this scale, held amid allegations of blockades and arrests, will not settle anything. It will only move the fight to the next forum, either the High Court or the streets.
The government owes the people three things.
First, accountability. There must be an independent inquiry into the claim that police denied entry despite a DC order. If officials overruled that order, action must follow.
Second, de-escalation. Arrests and counter-arrests will only deepen the divide.
Third, credibility. If there is any doubt that affected persons were excluded, the State should consider a fresh, properly secured consultation. Speed is not worth the cost of legitimacy.
Shree Cement is not the villain here, nor are the villagers who support it. The villain is a process that appears to have been managed rather than conducted.
Development in Jaintia Hills cannot be a choice between jobs and rights. It must be both. Otherwise, what we get is not development, but a project imposed under police lines, to be contested for years.
A public hearing that the public cannot attend is not a hearing. It is an announcement. And Meghalaya deserves better than announcements. It deserves a conversation.
