TURA, June 22 - Residents of Phulbari in association with the NGOs of the town today held an office picketing in protest against the frequent power cuts in the town area.
The NGOs representing the joint action committee, including the GSU, FKJGP, AYWO, AAYF, AIGU, ASWA and APSDO, had earlier visited the office of Phulbari section of MeECL, but were not able to meet anyone as the officers skipped their office.
�It is really surprising that there was no one of stature in the office to address the problems being faced by the consumers. This is highly unprofessional. There is no dedicated telephone line to address the issues,� said Ranuel Sangma, the FKJGP president of Phulbari.
The joint action committee members have been protesting the increasing power cuts problems, sometimes as high as 80 times per day in towns of Phulbari and Tikrikilla.
Office picketing by the NGOs began at 10 am this morning and ended at 5 pm mirroring the office timings. None of the office-bearer turned up for office making the day a paid holiday for Phulbari office employees of the MeECL.
�We are protesting the uninformed power cuts that take place every day and want a solution to the problem being faced by all residents of Phulbari. This attitude of the MeECL is highly condemnable and there has to be more accountability. As a consumer and a bill payer, we demand answers from the MeECL. Our protests will continue till we get proper functioning power lines without interruptions,� added GSU president of Phulbari, Francewell Marak.
Authorities asked to resume fishery work: The Association for Democracy Empowerment (ADE), Chokpot regional unit, today urged the authorities to resume work of the incomplete fishery in Deku Kalbanggre village, under Chokpot Block in South Garo Hills. The fund for the fishery was already sanctioned under Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) scheme in 2013-2014.
�The digging of the fishery under the BRGF scheme was allotted to a particular women self-help group. The digging work was being undertaken by the block itself,� the general secretary of ADE Chokpot regional unit, Warren A Sangma, said in a released.
