The Hynniewtrep Youths’ Council (HYC) has demanded changes in the way money from the Meghalaya Minor Mineral Reclamation Fund (MMMRF) is utilised, claiming that there is too much waste under the current system that has effectively thrown away lakhs of rupees meant for the public good.
In a press release today, the pressure group cited three examples to back up its point. The group said that it had received information on these through Right to Information (RTI) inquiries.
In the first case, the HYC said that more than Rs 38 lakh had been okayed by the MMMRF Management Authority (MMMRFMA) for premium Scorpio SUVs. This was under a proposal submitted by Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) and its Garo Hills counterpart (GHADC) on January 29, 2025. The vehicles were needed “for the purpose of official duties and attending various meetings in Shillong and prevention of illegal mining”.
This proposal had already been rejected in 2022 as it was deemed that such a purchase would not fit with the purpose of the MMMRF. Three years later, though, it was given the go-ahead from the MMMRFMA executive committee on January 22 this year even though the actual proposal was not made until January 29.
The HYC questioned this date discrepancy and said that the purchase of such SUVs is not justifiable given that the district councils do not have any legal authority over illegal mining and that such vehicles are not justified for merely taking people for meetings.
In the second case, the HYC claimed that more than Rs 17 lakh was spent on office computers and related equipment but without any tender being called for.
Finally, the pressure group called into question how and why more than Rs 21 crore was allocated for eco-tourism work in Nongkhyllem Wildlife Sanctuary. This was more than Rs 1 crore over and above the Rs 20.09 crore in a proposal that was accepted by the MMMRFMA. “This is a clear case of manipulation and criminal misappropriation of the Funds by EDS, TCIL and the officials of MMMRFMA along with the officials of the Forest and Environment Department, Government of Meghalaya,” the HYC said, while questioning why such a proposal should be entertained by the MMMRFMA, which does not have the expertise to assess or implement it.
