Shillong, Nov 11: A meeting convened by cabinet minister and South Shillong MLA Sanbor Shullai today to discuss the proposed Shillong Peak Ropeway project ended in chaos, with members of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) and other opponents demanding that the project be scrapped.
The meeting, organised by the 19-South Shillong Advisory Committee, which Shullai heads, at the State Convention Centre, was attended by representatives of 26 organisations from the constituency, including dorbar shnong, youth organisations and NGOs. However, Shullai claimed that people from other localities and constituencies were also in attendance in a planned attempt to politicise the matter and stir up trouble.
Discussions quickly turned heated as members opposing the project refused to accept the proposal put forward by Shullai. The situation became tense, with protesters shouting at the minister and demanding that the government scrap the project.
Security personnel accompanying Shullai had to shield him as some members of the agitating crowd moved towards him. The commotion also saw a supporter of the ropeway shove a person opposing the project. With no agreement emerging and the gathering becoming increasingly disorderly, the meeting was called off without any consensus.
In the evening the JAC announced its decision to hold a rally from the Kiang Nangbah statue to the Secretariat on Thursday from 12pm.
The committee has also appealed to the people of Shillong to extend their support and stand in solidarity with the JAC.
Speaking after the meeting, Shullai alleged that the gathering had been deliberately instigated by individuals with political motives, claiming that some participants were more interested in creating a disturbance than discussing the concerns surrounding the project.
He also alleged that people from outside the constituency had attended the meeting and accused certain political elements of using the ropeway issue for political purposes. He specifically named Venetia Mawlong, a former Congress candidate who had contested against him in the 2023 Assembly election, who is now at the forefront of the opposition in the JAC.
Shullai said the advisory committee had proposed approaching Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma to constitute an independent expert committee comprising technical and environmental experts from institutions such as the IITs and NITs. The proposed committee, he said, would independently examine concerns raised by residents, particularly the possible impact of the ropeway alignment on water sources and the surrounding environment.
He added that the advisory committee was also willing to take representatives of the organisations as part of a delegation to meet the Chief Minister, provided they agreed to the proposal.
However, Shullai claimed that participants refused to consider the suggestion and instead resorted to shouting and heated exchanges. He said he repeatedly sought their response to the proposal for an independent assessment before deciding to close the meeting.
In defending the project, Shullai repeated the government’s main talking points, claiming that the proposed ropeway alignment was 3.15km from Lum Shyllong with all six towers located outside the catchment area. He further stated that the nearest spring was approximately 1km from the alignment.
He also referred to a no-objection certificate issued by the local dorbar shnong on January 16, 2023, and clearances subsequently obtained from the Airports Authority of India, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Interestingly, however, today the Tourism Department said that no clearance was taken from the Environment Ministry as ropeways are exempt from such a requirement.
Shullai maintained that the project could generate employment for local residents and create business opportunities for small traders and taxi operators through increased tourist movement.
Opposing the minister’s proposal, activist Angela Rangad said the meeting was supposed to provide an opportunity for residents to raise their concerns rather than persuade them to accept the government’s position.
She said Shullai had read out his recommendation in English, proposing the formation of an expert committee, but maintained that the people were not seeking another committee.
According to Rangad, the minister should have listened to the concerns of his constituents instead of presenting what she described as the government’s intentions. She said that only two women had managed to speak before Shullai stood up and walked away from the meeting.
Rangad further claimed that the minister had entered the meeting with a predetermined intention of getting people to agree to the project, but the attempt failed, leaving him angry.
