Harassment of tourists visiting Shillong Peak: Letters to The EDITOR

Harassment of tourists visiting Shillong Peak

Many tourists visit Shillong peak every day, as part of their tour to Shillong and its surrounding areas. However, visiting Shillong Peak is harassment for tourists. One has to go through security areas of Air Force, and there is a lot of harassment by the air force personnel at the security gate. They ask for identification proof, and keep these in their custody, till the visitors leave the security gate on their return. One does not understand why identity proofs of tourists are to be given to Air Force personnel, which may be misused. It is not necessary for any citizen to carry an identity card, as the Government has not made it a law, nor has the government issued any notification on identity proof. Many homemakers and little children do not necessarily carry identity cards because they simply do not have them. When someone travels by air, an advance notification is issued to the air traveler to carry an identity proof, whereas no such instructions are issued to anyone while they visit Shillong or Shillong peak. If there is any security issue, frisking, etc can be done in a proper manner.

Such harassment by Air Force personnel is unwarranted. The Government of Meghalaya should intervene and sort such issues for making Shillong and Meghalaya a better place for tourists to visit.

A Bhuyan,

Nagaon.

Urgent steps must for the protection of school children

An unfortunate incident at Hatikhula near Kaziranga was reported in the media where a school van (Maruti Omni) overloaded with school children was knocked down by a speeding truck thereby injuring the helpless kids, some of whom were seriously injured. Only last year, the education and transport departments came out with notifications banning private carrying vans from ferrying school children if the school authorities do not have the registration details of such vehicles and also if these private carrying vans do not possess the protections necessary for the children passengers. The result was obvious after a few days of implementation of the notification. Some private players protested the move citing the issue of livelihood; and resultantly, everything returned to the former state.

Similar was the situation with respect to the notifications on the mandatory provisions for the maximum weights of school bags (class-wise) from the Ministry of Human Resource Development and also from the State Education department. Just after a few trial runs under full media attention, things remained the same.

Many questions arise: Why are such half-hearted measures taken with respect to school kids? Why can't the government be serious with the issue relating to children? Has any action taken against the irresponsible school authorities? What is the role of the government?

A few months back raids were conducted on the city buses under full media glare. The end result was yet another fiasco.

What is going on? The Gauhati High Court can take up "suo-moto" action against such acts. Unless such activities — school children-carrying vans without the necessary protection, or heavy school bags besides other issues related to school children and the general public — are not checked urgently, fate of the future generation hangs in the balance.

Rajib Chakravorty,

Zoo Narangi Road,

Guwahati.