Student to seek support of 60 MLAs for demand to review state reservation policy

SHILLONG, JAN 29: Barilang Pyngrope, an agriculture student on Saturday asked all the 60 legislators to pressurize the state government for immediate reviewing the 50-year-old state reservation policy.

 

Speaking at the sidelines of a signature campaign to garner public support on the issue, held at Motphran, Pyngrope said she would soon meet all the 60 MLAs for their intervention into the matter.

 

“(We will) have a meeting with all the 60 leaders and carry this proof (signatures) that yes, there are people who want to change this and carry this forward to the chief minister of the state (for necessary action). We will not quit halfway and I hope that they will actually listen to the voice of the youth,” she added.

 

She said this is not a new issue as many leaders have been raising this but there is no political will to address the issue adding “Therefore, I urge everyone to demand the government to review, renew and revamp this “outdated” policy.”

 

Pyngrope further alleged the policy has no planning and target.

 

“It has no planning, no target, what is the reservation? Who is it for? Who needs it the most? Are the ones who need it getting? Is it distributed that way? Is it scientific? Does it have planning? Nothing, it is just based on Khasi, Garo and Jaintia, which is based on population but you cannot base it on that,” she said.

 

On the opposition from Garo Hills based NGOs, Pyngrope said she urged them and everyone not to turn this into a political issue.

 

“I am standing not for the Khasi, Jaintia but for the youth as a whole, Khasi, Jaintia and Garo. This campaign that I am doing, I have no benefit from it…I just want this state to have quality, to progress and not to regress like how we are,” she said.

 

Maintaining that she is not against the Garo community, Pyngrope said, “I am only asking the government to renew it (policy).”

 

Referring to the education quota, she said there is no cut off marks, the policy just mentioned 40 percent for Garo. “But who needs and who deserves that 40%, is it not those people from the Garo from those rural areas who cannot afford education, they should be getting but if we see it’s not them who gets it is the one who has connections. Therefore we have to be specific, it has to be scientific, I just want them to upgrade, to renovate and to renew (the policy) or else we will have a regression in the state…,” she added.

 

When asked, Pyngrope said the response was overwhelming as over 300 people have come forward to participate in support of the demand.

 

“I’m so thankful that I will progress this forward. We will not do rallies and demonstrations and protests, we will use pen and paper and carry this forward,” she assured.

By Our Reporter

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