KSU Rebukes Meghalaya Minister for Railway Remarks, Reaffirms Opposition to Railway Projects

Shillong, Meghalaya — The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) has launched a strong critique against Meghalaya’s Food and Civil Supplies Minister, Comingone Ymbon, following his comments linking the rise in essential commodity prices to the lack of railway connectivity in the state. KSU General Secretary Donald V. Thabah dismissed Ymbon’s statement as an “irresponsible” attempt to deflect from the government’s failure to manage price stability.

Thabah urged the public to disregard Ymbon’s remarks and reiterated the KSU’s firm opposition to any railway projects in the Khasi-Jaintia Hills. The union’s stance is conditional upon implementing safeguards to control the influx of outsiders into Meghalaya. Specifically, Thabah called for the introduction of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) under the Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation of 1873 before considering any railways in the region.

Drawing parallels to the protests of 1989, Thabah warned of potential actions by the KSU if railway projects advance without addressing their concerns.

Minister Ymbon’s comments were made in response to a sit-in protest by the opposition Voice of the People Party (VPP), which criticized the government for its handling of rising prices ahead of the Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) elections. Ymbon accused the VPP of leveraging the price issue for electoral gain, attributing the high costs to the state’s reliance on truck transportation due to the absence of railways.