From our Staff Correspondent

SHILLONG, July 5: At last the Chief Minister decided to send a high-level team headed by State Home Minister HDR Lyngdoh to visit Langpih to meet and persuade the activists to call off their fast-unto-death.

It took the government five days to politically intervene even as it was aware that the public sentiments were going against its alleged indifferences. The Sentinel on Thursday came up with a report where the political leadership had left only to the district authorities to handle the sensitive issue.

On Thursday, three of the fasting activists - Marka Sing Kharbani (72), Ninghian Samakha (85) and Ephrem Khardewsaw (33) - were rushed to Shillong Civil Hospital after their condition worsened. Sources said that the health of the youth who led the fast, Pynshkhem Nongshlong, had worsened too.

While the high-level team has been assigned to convince the civilians to call off the fast and to convey the sincere steps taken by the government, a letter from the Chief Minister was also sent to the People’s Movement activist Nongshlong and his associates to inform about practical initiatives undertaken by the government in the past two years.

Viewing the sudden upsurge of public sentiments over Langpih, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, however, urged the concerned leaders and members of the civil society “not to politicize the issue”.

“Politicization of the issue will delay its early solution,” Sangma stated.

Sangma was not aware that Pynshkem Nongshlong was an apolitical youth, not from Langpih, and has resolved to take such a drastic recourse out of concern for the harassed residents of Langpih. The others who joined the fast are volunteers and local residents.