If the government is provided with the name of so-called high levels who are involved in illegal activities then they will be arrested, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said today.
At first Tynsong said he was unaware of the term but came to learn of it from the media. High levels refer to people closely connected with the upper echelons of the establishment and who can get away with criminal activity thanks to these connections.
They are believed to have a hand in the illegal transportation of coal across Meghalaya.
“I feel the media should verify who these high levels are, name the people who are high levels so that we will get them arrested,” Tynsong said. “Name the people who are involved in allowing trucks to carry over 40 to 50 tonnes and ply over Umiam bridge and other state roads.”
The Deputy CM said this in reaction to a query on the allegation that overloaded trucks are allowed to use the damaged Umiam bridge due to a high level.
“If you are making allegations then you should be able to substantiate them with evidence so that the government can take immediate action against such illegalities,” Tynsong added.
It is an article of faith among members of the government that there is little to no illegal coal mining and transportation in the state. Equally, it is largely accepted by the opposition, and even the public, that such illegal activities are rampant.
Tynsong said that trucks carrying loads of more than 20 tonnes are not allowed on the bridge as they can weaken the structure. Far from allowing overloaded trucks to ply, he said that the Transport Department has deployed inspectors at the bridge to prevent overloaded trucks from crossing.
Meanwhile, he said that a survey is still being conducted for the construction of a new bridge downstream.
“We have entrusted the architect to survey downstream and, verbally, he has informed us that it is feasible and this will come out to the road leading to the industrial estate and to the fire brigade (on the Ri-Bhoi side),” Tynsong said.
There was an earlier proposal to build a new bridge next to the existing one but this idea was quashed by the Geological Survey of India, the Deputy CM said, because it was felt that vibrations from blasting during the construction of the new bridge could gravely weaken the present structure.
