JOWAI: Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said on Thursday the allegation of corruption levelled against him by BJP’s Hayithung Bill Lotha was “irresponsible” and threatened with legal action.
Addressing the media at Laskein in West Jaintia Hills on Thursday, Sangma said such “blank fire attempts” were being made by people with dearth of issues to flag.
BJP had termed Sangma as the most corrupt chief minister in the country during a press briefing by Lotha, the national secretary of the party’s ST Morcha, on Wednesday.
“They are talking about the state of Meghalaya where GDP and GSDP, when compared with other states, are showing growing trend. This (determining GDP and GSDP) was not done by us but by the planning commission and various other government institutions under the Government of India,” Sangma said on Thursday.
Last year, media reports quoting IndiaSpend said Meghalaya was India’s fastest growing state with a growth rate of 9.7 per cent in 2013-14.
Stressing on the improving economy of the state, Sangma said tourist footfall in Shillong and other parts of the state has increased manifold.
“Tourism has started showing the way of a sustainable livelihood opportunity for our people. Why has it happened? It is a turnaround that you are seeing,” he pointed out and added that the government has invested in bettering road connectivity.
To drive his point home, the chief minister cited an example of vehicle registration. He said earlier people would not buy vehicles with Nongstoin registration numbers as they knew the roads were rough and the car would not be in good condition. “But gone are those days.”
JH water projects
Many water projects in Jaintia Hills have been delayed for several years and the chief minister suggested concurrent review for course correction.
“The government has come up with the Meghalaya State Social Audit Bill. This will be an effective mechanism to take care of all such problems (delays in projects),” Sangma said.
When asked on the issue of Block I, the disputed area between Meghalaya and Assam, the chief minister said the state governments are engaged in talks to resolve the issue.
