Shillong, Sept 11: The HYC on Wednesday questioned the explanations of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma and the officials of related departments on CAG report regarding the state finance.
Full unedited text of the letter
This is an Open Letter from the Hynñiewtrep Youths’ Council-Central Executive Council (HYC-CEC) to our Hon’ble Chief Minister, Mr Conrad Sangma and State Government machinery, regarding the “fear of Meghalaya falling into debt trap” as observed by CAG.
The Hynñiewtrep Youths’ Council-Central Executive Council (HYC-CEC), is deeply concerned about the recent Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on the State finances audit report for the year ended March 31, 2023. As citizens of the State we are in a serious dilemma, whether we should believe the words of our Chief Minister that as a State we will be able to achieve the ambitious target of 10 Billion dollars economy by 2028 or whether the financial positions of our State will be worse going forward knowing that our State is in ‘debt trap’ to the tune of Rs 15,000 crores and counting.
Although the Chief Minister of the State and the Officers of the Finance Department were hyper-proactive in rebutting the CAG Report and its observation that our State is potentially high into falling in a ‘debt trap’. Yet as stakeholders of the State, we want certain questions to be answered by our Government and the officers concern.
Firstly, it is common knowledge that loans are not grant and not all loans taken by our Government is in the form of a Grant, as tried to explain by our Chief Minister to allay our fear that most loans taken by the State Government are interest free loans for 50 years. The Report of the CAG states that Meghalaya’s Loans includes market loans of Rs 11,285.50 crore, loans from financial institutions of Rs 1,349.04 crore and Rs 2,002.58 crore loans and advances from the Government of India. Is it not a fact that a loan once taken has to be repaid, with or without interest? And in the event, such loans are not able to be repaid, within the stipulated time, then what will be the consequences?
Secondly, Loans cannot be taken without collateral. Then, the question arises, what were the collateral given against these loans? What were these loans taken for? And as citizens of the State we are entitled to also know as to how the loans have accumulated to such a colossal amount?
Thirdly, as witnessed in the recent years, the State Government has utilised public money for programs which are not fruitful like Festivals and which did not generate wealth to the State. The State government has utilised public money in so many unproductive activities like appointment of countless political appointees, consultants, etc. Moreover, we have witnessed the act of inflation of cost of various projects like the Saubhagya Scheme, Construction of Meghalaya Legislative Assembly Building and others. If the amount taken as loans is being utilised by the State Government on these unfruitful programs and activities, for perks and salaries to political appointees and inflation on cost of projects, then how does the Government justify the same?
Fourthly, it has been detected by the CAG that the State Government has failed to recover the public money in the form of Taxes, cess, royalty, fees, etc from various persons and entities who are supposed to pay such taxes, etc. Moreover, we also see that the Government has waived the taxes to certain categories of private individuals and companies like the VAT from Petrol Pumps owners, Electricity Bills to factories etc. In a peculiar case of our State, where a Government takes a lot of loans but still comes out with these kind of freebies to companies and few privileged individuals, then what will happened when it comes to repayment capacity of the loans taken?.
Fifthly, it can be seen from the CAG Reports year after year that there are Public Undertakings and Corporations who have become the ‘white elephants’ for the State and immediate corrective actions must be taken by the State Government.Our concern is, what if these “white elephant entities” are run by money taken as loans? Whether the State Government will be able to repay the loans when these entities are running on losses?
Lastly, there is a growing demand from our friends in Garo Hills for a separate Garoland State. In such a case, if the State is bifurcated into two separate States in the near future, whether it is not the liability of the parent State to repay the loans taken? Is it not a fact that the citizens of Khasi-Jaintia Hills, by whatever name called, being a Parent State at that point in time, will be liable for the repayment of whatever amount of loans taken by the State of Meghalaya?
Roy Kupar Synrem
President
Hynniewtrep Youths’ Council
Central Executive Council.
