The A’chik Conscious Holistically Integrated Krima (ACHIK) today responded to yesterday’s assertion by Thomas Passah of the Khun Hynñiewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) that there is no need for Meghalaya to have a winter capital city.
“It is rather remarkable that Thomas Passah of KHNAM, a regional party, has been unable to comprehend why ACHIK and other NGOs are pursuing the demand to establish a winter capital,” ACHIK said in response today.
One of Passah’s arguments was that only one state in India, Himachal Pradesh, has two capitals. This is actually incorrect, as was pointed out by ACHIK. Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand all have summer and winter capitals. Other states have separate judicial and administrative capitals.
“Second, the desire for Tura to be declared the second capital or winter capital is a valid demand to achieve parity in terms of overall development. This demand was first raised in 1972; however it has still not been met even 51 years later,” ACHIK added.
Another argument of Passah’s was that Garo Hills has received the lion’s share of development over the years, a point countered by ACHIK. “We advise you (Passah) to visit Garo Hills to observe the types of changes that are occurring there and contrast it with Shillong. You appear to have overlooked the fact that this year’s budget speech for 2022–2023 raised funding for the Shillong Smart City project from Rs 700 crore to Rs 1,000 crore whereas just Rs 50 crore was set up for Tura Smart City… However, we never voiced a concern or oppose it. How, therefore, sitting in your luxurious home in Shillong, can you claim that the Garo Hills are receiving the most funding without any data or supporting evidence? Please come and see the ground reality before forming assumptions, as we respectfully request. The lion’s portion is actually going to someone else, contrary to reality.”
ACHIK listed numerous examples of new development in the Shillong area in support of its argument.
