Editor,
The much touted Integrated Basin Development and Livelihood Promotion (IBDLP) programme was the brainchild of former Chief Minister Dr. Mukul Sangma along with his small team who provoked the idea of integrating village communities, livelihood and environment – a perfect blend of modern and natural adaptations.
However with Dr. Sangma’s exit in 2018, the IBDLP which is now currently known as Meghalaya Basin Development Authority or MBDA as a non- governmental organisation began deviating from its core foundation and more towards money making with less than 50 per cent visibility of any realistic socio-economic transformation.
Under MBDA there are various wings and sections each with their own work profile and funding components. The organisation has become a hub for all and sundry consultants from outside the State and some even from within with no experience at all, which puts a big question mark on the efficiency, transparency, productivity and reliability of their interventions.
MBDA as today has become a place for corruption and lack of direction. Their funding partners include Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), World Bank, Asian Development Bank and other agencies.
Perhaps it is time to have a public audit of all its work and the impact of the projects they have undertaken in these past years.
