Shillong, April 6: The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) today met Urban Affairs Minister, Ronnie V. Lyngdoh and demanded from the State government take back the land already allotted to Nagaland near near North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), Mawdiangdiang.
KSU president Lambokstarwell Marngar told media persons after meeting the Minister that the State government should instead use the land for constructing houses to accommodate the people of the state who come from far flung areas for treatment at the hospital.
Marngar said that the number of patients who visited NEIGRIHMS has been able to attract patients from all over Meghalaya besides other states of the Northeast including nearby countries.
He said that patients from remote and far-flung corners of Khasi and Jaintia Hills as well as from Garo Hills of Meghalaya who came for treatment have no place to stay and had to spend huge amount of money for accommodation in hotels of Shillong besides spending for daily visit to NEIGRIHMS from the city.
“We are not opposing the government to allot the land to Nagaland, but we want our government to first treat its own people properly,” Marngar said.
KSU general secretary, Donald V. Thabah also said that NEIGRIHMS has indeed been a boon for many poor patients of Meghalaya especially those who come from far flung villages, who, otherwise would have travelled to far off places for treatment with heavy expenses.
Thabah said that the people of Meghalaya were the ones who elected the state government, and the loyalty of the government should be to the people of the state first.
“The land allotted to Nagaland should have been used for setting up of boarding and lodging facilities for patients of the state who go to NEIGRIHMS for treatment. The government should give first preference for the people of the state and it can allot land for other states somewhere else,” Thabah said.
The KSU said that from its information, the land near NEIGRIHMS was allotted during the tenure of the then Urban Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh who is now the Minister for Labour and IT.
The KSU said that Lyngdoh has assured to look into the issue and would try to consider the best possible steps.
