Student bodies condemn stopping of Meghalaya-bound tourist vehicles

Guwahati, July 27 (IANS) Two prominent student bodies of the northeast -- All Assam Students' Union (AASU) and the Khasi Students' Union (KSU) -- have condemned the act of a pressure group trying to disrupt the plying of tourist vehicles from Assam to neighbouring Meghalaya.

In a joint statement issued on Saturday, the student organisations said, “The All Assam Students' Union (AASU) and the Khasi Students' Union (KSU) are perturbed to witness that tourist carrying vehicles from Assam, both of private and commercial registration, are being stopped at several places in Meghalaya and denied entry to the state.”

“Under the aegis of North East Students' Organization (NESO), the AASU and the KSU have discussed the issue with utter seriousness. While discussing the same, the KSU states that the organisation is not aware of any such incident of stopping vehicles from Assam and it firmly does not conform to any such initiative,” the statement added.

The AASU and KSU leaders said that the vehicles ferrying tourists from Assam should come to Meghalaya without any worry. However, it is pertinent for both the Assam and Meghalaya governments to hold a dialogue on the issue and solve it permanently.

Meanwhile, at least 10 members of the Hynniewtrep National Youth Front (HNYF) which had stopped tourist vehicles from Assam from entering different tourist places in Meghalaya were arrested, the police said on Saturday.

The HNYF activists tried to prevent the tourists of Assam from visiting Sohra and Dawki, two attractive destinations in Meghalaya, on Friday.

The police said that the security arrangements have been beefed up around Sohra and Dawki so that there is no disruption in tourist activities.

The state is looking to introduce the Inner Line Permit, according to HNYF.

President of the HNYF Sadon Blah stated that the organization has demanded this kind of action to compel the government to enact a law limiting the flow of visitors' cars entering the state.

Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong expressed regret for the incidents and said, “It was very unfortunate. Tourists come to Meghalaya to enjoy the scenic beauty. The law will follow its own course, and we won’t let such things occur again.”

Numerous Meghalaya tourism bodies have denounced the HNYF for its decision to bar visitors from Sohra and Dawki.

--IANS

tdr/bg