Tight security, attendance normal

SHILLONG, MAY 8:  Day one of the four days state, central government offices and financial institutions shutdown called by the proscribed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) from Thursday does not appear to have had its impact as all the offices and financial institutions in Khasi and Jaintia hills remained open.

Except in Mawlai financial institutions located in the locality remained closed.

The HNLC had given the four days government offices and financial institutions shutdown call to pressurize the government to release Hynniewtrep A’chik National  Movement (HANM) Lamphrangsngi Kharbani and four others attested by the police.

To thwart any attempt to stop office goers from attending offices, heavy deployment of police forces were seen in different junctions of the state capital. Police personnel including the flying squads were seen doing their rounds in different parts of the city.

Meghalaya additional chief secretary KS Kropha told this website in the forenoon that attendance in government offices across the Khasi and Jaintia hills is above normal. He said, “In fact the attendance in government offices is above normal.”

As the state government announced on Wednesday that employees who remains absent during the HNLC shutdown, their absence will be treated as “unauthorized leave” and salary will be deducted, this could be the reasons that the attendance in government offices were above normal.

While Kropha informed he is yet to receive the percentage of attendance from all the districts, he however said that attendance in the main and additional secretariats is around 85 percent.

Even as Kropha said that financial institutions and central government offices were functioning normally, but he informed that all banks operating from Mawlai area are closed.

East Khasi hills deputy commissioner Sanjay Goyal informed that attendance in his office is around 95 percent and the rest five percent remained absent because of health issue.

West Khasi hills deputy commissioner S Kharlyngdoh also said that the shutdown did not have any impact in his district as offices were functioning normally.- By Our Reporter