Shillong: In a positive turn of events concerning the relocation of residents of Shillong’s Harijan Colony, a first meeting between the Meghalaya government and Harijan Panchayat Committee (HPC) was held at the Shillong Secretariat on Wednesday.
From the government, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong, who is the chairman of High Level Committee, East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Isawanda Laloo and several other senior officials were present.
The Deputy CM later shared that it was a positive meeting. “I have informed the HPC that relocation will take place as per recommendations of the High Level Committee. An alternative place has also been considered by the government where they can shift,” said Tynsong.
The HPC will now take the message to the residents of Shillong’s Punjabi lane and see if they agree with what the government has to offer. The next meeting will be held on April 25 to inform the government about their decision.
“This is as per indication made by the HC, since the court wants relocation to happen at the earliest. Maybe in the second meeting, I will be able to tell you about the status of their relocation,” added Tynsong.
The Deputy CM refused to divulge information about the location identified by the government to relocate the Harijan Colony settlers.
Meanwhile, HPC secretary Gurjit Singh told EastMojo that after four years, and with the intervention of the Meghalaya HC, the state government decided to invite us for talks. “The Deputy Chief Minister told us that all the families living at Harijan Colony will be accommodated by the government,” said Tynsong.
He added, “I have informed that I can’t decide on this alone and will need to talk to the others in the community and, if they agree, will inform in the next meeting.”
Singh said he was happy that at least a meeting was finally held. He said that it was sad that the government didn’t have a clear idea of how the residents live there and giving a wrong image was wrong.
“The government called Harijan Colony a den of criminal activities, which is very wrong. The CM and deputy CM haven’t been there, so on what basis are they making such claims,” Singh said.
He shared that there are 342 households and these are all government employees, including the existing ones and those who have been working for a long time.
Also read: HC freeze on recruitment: Meghalaya cabinet prepares affidavit