HP NEWS SERVICE
Shillong, Jul 1: Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui has opted to reserve his comments on the intention of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) to set up a police outpost at Langpih village near the inter-state border with Assam.
“I have nothing to say as of now without knowing what they decided and without seeing their concrete proposal. It is premature to say anything now,” Rymbui said yesterday.
When asked if the district council can do this given the fact that police matters are under the purview of the State government, Rymbui said, “The district council can do it within its jurisdiction, but policing is a subject matter of the State. I am not questioning the intention which is for public interest, but the State government has not sought help from anybody on this.”
Stating that the State government has been putting in efforts to create more police outposts and upgrade existing outposts to police stations, Rymbui said that the State government has been projecting under police modernisation scheme for availing fund to take up such projects.
Rymbui also said that the present State government has been focusing on developmental activities along the border areas.
“We have earmarked crores of rupees for various developmental activities in border areas not only from the border areas department alone, but other departments too because convergence is required for implementing different developmental projects,” he said while adding that Rs 5 crore has been earmarked from the border areas department in the current financial year, but because of financial constraints, only Rs 1 crore was made available.
Rymbui however informed that the present government under the leadership of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has adopted a ‘multi-pronged strategy’ to take developmental programmes to the border areas in convergence with other departments.
Commenting on the pending inter-state boundary dispute with Assam, Rymbui said that in the last budget session, it was decided that talks between the chief ministers of the two states should be held soon, but due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the matter remained pending.
“We hope that the situation will improve and talks between the two states will resume so that we find a permanent solution to this long pending issue,” Rymbui said.
