SHILLONG:
United Democratic Party (UDP) leader and social welfare Kyrmen Shylla on December 20 appealed to the people of the state to give UDP a chance to lead the government in 2023.
“Give UDP a chance to run the state so that we can show what we can do for the people and the state,” Shylla told reporters.
He informed of the party’s commitment to work hard for the overall development of the state and for the people. Shylla, stated, “We will do everything in our power to ensure that not a single vote is wasted.”
Money Not a Priority
Urging the people not to vote for money, the minister said that it is pointless to vote for money and regret later, rather it is good to vote and be satisfied with one’s decision.
Stating that money is not a priority to win elections, Shylla said, “If money works but how much can you give. Suppose you give Rs 1,000 per head and there are 45,000 voters it will come to Rs 4.5 crore but from where will you get such kind of money.”
“During the last election, people voted for me out of love and I still believe that they will continue to do so despite my shortcomings because I still want to serve them better,” he added.
When asked, Shylla said that he will not underestimate his opponents but will take it as a challenge to fight and come back in 2023.
“I will do my best and ensure I come back as the public’s love is still with me. The youth are still with me and their parents are also supporting me,” he said.
The Khliehriat legislator further assured to fulfill the aspirations of the people of the constituency if re-elected and said, “There are lots of pending developments relating to road connectivity, construction of bridges, setting of government colleges, and others.”
On Scientific Coal Mining
When asked, Shylla emphasized the need to relax the norms for starting scientific mining of coal in the state.
He said that guidelines are quite tough for people to comply with. “In the end we cannot go back to rat hole mining as we need to strike a balance between livelihood and the environment. Therefore, we need to go for scientific mining to ensure sustainable livelihood without destroying the environment,” he added.
Shylla said that they are yet to know the outcome of the scientific mining in the state. “We will implement scientific mining but if we see that it is not benefiting the people, the state government may request the Centre to relax the norms,” he said.