SHILLONG, June 9 - Meghalaya�s �Cabinet on the Move,� would hold its first Cabinet meeting outside the State Capital since Statehood and the meeting is scheduled at Tura in West Garo Hills, on June 10.
Meghalaya after its Statehood in 1972 has concentrated power here in the State Capital holding all the important meetings at the Secretariat here. But now the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) Government wants to change all that.
�MDA Government is glad to announce that Cabinet meeting is being held outside Shillong for the first time and we are beginning this initiative from Tura. We will continue this endeavour with rotational Cabinet meeting to be held in other district headquarters as well,� Chief Minister Conrad Sangma tweeted.
Dubbed as �Cabinet on the Move,� the objective of the Cabinet being held outside the State Capital is to help the stakeholders to meet the Cabinet Ministers, take the Cabinet closer to the people.
It�s planned that Cabinet meetings would be held at all the eleven district headquarters on a rotation basis. But is the move mere symbolism?
�No. Most of the decisions taken by the Cabinet are data-driven. But once the Cabinet feels the pulse of the people by interacting with them about their problems there would be some changes,� Prof Biswajit Mohapatra, Associate Professor of Political Science department, NEHU said.
He said certain parts of the State have been historically neglected like the Garo Hills. �Economically, the Garo Hills region was neglected, so that also encouraged militancy to an extent. This is a good move of the Government,� Mohapatra believes.
The entire Cabinet after the meeting would be holding discussions with several stakeholders and get feedback about the burning issues in the region. One of the important decisions that the Cabinet is likely to take is adopting the State Water Policy in its meeting in Tura.
