Shillong, May 18: Advocate and RTI activist Napoleon S Mawphniang has petitioned President of India and Prime Minister among others for a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the implementation of Lakadong Turmeric Project under the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA).
In a statement issued on Sunday, Mawphniang said that the complaint, addressed to the President of India, Prime Minister, Governor of Meghalaya, Chief Minister, and Chief Secretary, details a disturbing pattern of administrative improprieties, statutory violations, and fiscal imprudence that demands immediate rectification.
“When transparency becomes a casualty, development becomes the first victim,” he stated in the complaint. “The Lakadong Turmeric Project has become a textbook example of how public funds can disappear into a labyrinth of bureaucratic evasions and half-truths”, he said.
According to Mawphniang, the response to RTI query received on May 1 reveals shocking financial mismanagement. Of the Rs 20.92 crore allocated, Rs16.34 crore has allegedly been spent, with a staggering Rs13.6 crore going toward unspecified infrastructure development” without any disclosure of tender details, contractor information, or project specifications.
“In the absence of accountability, power corrupts not just individuals but entire systems,” he said.
“The MBDA’s pattern of expenditure without outcomes suggests a prioritization of disbursement over development, potentially serving greed rather than need.”
The complaint highlights numerous contradictions in the MBDA’s claims. While they assert that 1,000 farmers are engaged in cultivation, they provided no land records, training logs, or subsidy receipts to substantiate this claim. They claimed a 5% average profit margin without any market price data or production cost breakdowns. They reported 48 extension visits annually per farm, which would necessitate 48,000 visits for 1,000 farmers-a logistical impossibility given their staffing levels.
“Truth does not fear investigation, only falsehood trembles at the prospect of scrutiny, he said, while adding that the MBDA’s reluctance to provide complete information raises the question: what are they hiding?”
The complaint also addresses the institutional vacuum created by the absence of a functional Lokayukta in Meghalaya since February 28, 2025. This critical anti-corruption body remains vacant despite the Search Committee’s mandate to finalise names by April 2025.
“When watchdogs are muzzled, wolves roam freely,” he warned. “The vacancy in the Lokayukta office has created an accountability vacuum that emboldens those who misuse public funds.”
Perhaps most concerning is the project’s ecological negligence. Despite substantial expenditure, the RTI response reveals no implementation of soil conservation techniques, water harvesting structures, or climate adaptation strategies, despite acknowledging higher incidence of diseases due to climate change.
“We are not inheritors of this earth from our ancestors, we are borrowers from our children, the MBDA’s ecological negligence mortgages our future for temporary gains”, he said.
Demands by the RTI activist
1. Investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and/or Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) into financial irregularities
2. Suspension of officials pending investigation
3. Immediate appointment of the Lokayukta
4. Comprehensive social audit with participation from farmers and civil society
5. Public disclosure of all project documents
“This is not merely about financial impropriety; it is about the betrayal of public trus and when those entrusted with development funds operate in shadows, they steal not just money but hope from the very communities they claim to serve”, he added.
According to Mawphniang, the farmers of Meghalaya, and indeed all citizens who value transparency and accountability in governance, deserve nothing less than complete honesty in the use of public resources.”
