SHILLONG : Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Monday said the Meghalaya Government was willing to discuss and address any genuine concerns raised over the proposed Shillong Ropeway project, but cautioned against opposition that could jeopardise employment and livelihood opportunities for the state’s youth.

Reacting to protests by various groups against the project, Sangma maintained that technical, environmental and other related concerns had already undergone extensive scrutiny over the past two-and-a-half years, with the departments concerned providing clarifications on various issues.

“It is really unfortunate. There were concerns raised by certain organisations and individuals and the department has clarified on almost all fronts,” he said.

The Chief Minister said the government was open to further discussions if protesters could establish genuine concerns, but questioned opposition without substantial reasoning.

“My concern right now is to find out what are the concerns and if there are any genuine issues, we should talk about it and figure it out. But opposing for the sake of opposing is not really a healthy trend in governance and in politics in general. You will have to back your concerns with real reasoning. If there are genuine issues, we will discuss it, we have no problem in that,” he said.

Sangma pointed out that the project had been examined by expert agencies over a period of nearly two-and-a-half years, covering environmental and other technical aspects.

He said the various agencies involved had assessed the project thoroughly and that the concerns raised so far had been addressed through the examination process.

“We have been spending almost two and a half years on this project and all agencies involved are very expert kind of agencies. Therefore all different aspects of environment and all other issues, most of them, in fact all of them I should say, have been addressed and taken care of. So there is no reason why there should be any issue,” he said.

Referring to the clarifications issued by government officials, Sangma said the Commissioner and Secretary of the Industries and Tourism departments, along with the Managing Director of the Meghalaya Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC), had responded to the queries raised by different groups.

He said the explanations had been acknowledged, and questioned why the project should be stopped after the concerns had been addressed.

The Chief Minister also underlined the employment potential of the Shillong Ropeway, stating that the project could significantly boost tourism and generate substantial direct and indirect employment.

“We all talk about job creation and complain that there are not enough jobs for our youth. This project is going to boost tourism to a new level and opportunities that will come out of this are going to be huge. There will be hundreds, even thousands of youths who will get direct employment and thousands will get direct and indirect employment,” he said.

Sangma maintained that while environmental concerns should be taken seriously and discussed, stopping the project could affect opportunities for young people seeking employment.

“If there is an environmental concern, we are ready to discuss and address those issues but as far as my knowledge goes and all explanations given, there is no such issue. We are losing out on employment opportunities, which is one of the major reasons why we are pushing this project. In a way those opposing this project are opposing livelihood opportunities that our youths can get,” he added.

Questioning the timing of the protests, Sangma said the ropeway project had been under consideration for approximately two-and-a-half years and argued that major concerns could have been raised earlier in the process.

He pointed out that objections had emerged after the project had already been awarded, raising questions about the timing of the opposition.

“This is not something that we just started yesterday. It has been going on for the past two and a half years. If there were major concerns, they could have been raised a long time back but for whatever reason, they decided not to. Suddenly when the project has already been awarded, this issue is raised, so timing also is of concern,” he said.

Nevertheless, Sangma reiterated that the government remained prepared to engage with all stakeholders, resolve outstanding concerns and ensure that the project moved forward.

On the action involving a Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) official in connection with the ropeway matter, the Chief Minister said the state government had acted in accordance with the law and that appropriate action would be taken based on the applicable legal provisions.

“We have followed the rules and the law and whatever action has to be taken will be taken. Whoever the officer concerned from KHADC, who has gone ahead and done this, based on legal provisions, the state will act and the law will take its own course,” he said.