Shillong, Nov 5: Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh has defended the ropeway project.
Speaking to reporters, he welcomed further dialogue with the stakeholders.
According to Lyngdoh, the state will not roll back the project as the deal is sealed and the opposition has come four years too late.
“Claims can always be made, but we have all the records with us,” he said.
“What was the main objection? Water bodies – I have shown you the map. The only major objection is why are you entering into the sacred peak of Lei Shyllong. We have clearly shown you that a distance of 3.15 km separates the project site from the Shillong Peak,” Lyngdoh said.
Displaying the PHE Department map, he said the alignment from Terminal 1 has no stretch near any water source or stream. The disturbance near water bodies, he said, is due to houses built by people, not the ropeway.
Lyngdoh said the ropeway was born out of decades-old complaints at the Shillong viewpoint – ID checks, restricted entry, closed gates. The project offers a three-minute ride from Terminal 1 to the viewpoint for all visitors.
The paper work, he said, is complete: dorbar cleared in writing in 2022, a 30-year land lease with Riat Laban Dorbar Pyllun of seven dorbar shnongs was made on January 16, 2023.
NOCs from AAI, Air Force and Army, clearances from Government of India ministries, and transfer of land for compensatory plantation was done in September 2023.
Objections, he pointed out, surfaced only last year.
“This is a bilateral agreement. There is no cooling-off period. The day the MoU was signed, it was sealed, signed and sealed for good,” Lyngdoh said.
He said the government engaged repeatedly, including on Wednesday, but opponents refused to state their grounds.
“The only language was – we are against, we oppose,” he said.
Lyngdoh said the President of India inaugurated the project after due diligence by Rashtrapati Bhavan, and even the defence forces, who could have flagged security concerns, cleared it.
He pointed out that the Union Environment Ministry’s notification of April 27, 2022, held ropeways to be environment-friendly and recommended their exclusion from the EIA notification 2006.
He also referred to the role of Greentech, which first opposed the project and had earlier opposed temporary structures at Lumphongdeng, despite a permanent MeECL boathouse standing there since 2008 for 18 years without protest.
“This raises a big question mark on intent and motives,” he said.
Regarding public consultation, Lyngdoh said dorbars had used PA systems to call residents, but attendance was poor because no private land was involved. Copies of notices issued by the Director, Meghalaya Institute of Governance, were shown to the media.
When asked if politics was behind the stir, Lyngdoh said, “I will not rule that out. We are just a year plus away from general elections.”
If we vitiate the environment where Government of India, other agencies or private parties feel that Meghalaya is not safe as an investment destination, then it will not impact just the results of the 2028 elections, it will impact Meghalaya in the next 40 years or even more, he said.
“Who would like to come and invest in a state where projects face opposition four years after signing of agreements?”
