Shillong, Aug 09: Meghalaya Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma, on Wednesday asked the indigenous youth of the North East to look beyond the reservation system and be competent enough to compete with the best in the world.
I started my political career with the foundation to take our North East forward & to address the concerns & issues of our indigenous people. Have always believed in taking a stance when it comes to our North East people despite my political affiliations and I will continue to… pic.twitter.com/TrIU2egJPW
— Conrad K Sangma (@SangmaConrad) August 9, 2023
Attending an event to observe the International day of the World’s Indigenous People organized by North East Indigenous People’s Forum (NEIPF), Meghalaya Chapter, at Multi Conventional Hall at NEHU campus in Shillong, CM Sangma said it is important to change the mind-set of the people especially the indigenous community and stop expecting that there will be a reservation in all aspects of life. “We need to look beyond reservation and the mind-set of the youth of the North East should be that they are competent enough to compete with anyone in the world,” he stressed.
He told the gathering that different issues of the indigenous people of the North East have always been a concern to him, and shared that different political parties or different organizations or forums have the same goal when it comes to the indigenous people. “(That is) to preserve our identity, our roots and about who we are that makes us different from the other communities and being proud of our identity,” he said.
He, however, cautioned that while having an identity and being proud of it is a good thing, things should not be taken for granted.
He further urged the NEIPF to push for documentation on the identity of the different indigenous people of the North East. “The government of Meghalaya is working together with the three autonomous councils to document the different aspects of the culture and tradition of the indigenous people of the State,” he informed.
He also noted that different states of the North East, because of the diverse indigenous communities, face issues and challenges and it is through programs and forums like these that North East can rise above those issues and problems and can come together as a strong region.
“It pains me to see the situation of Manipur and I hope forums like NEIPF will take up the matter for a peaceful resolution in Manipur so that we can move forward and reach out to different communities,” he said.
He also suggested that forums like the NEIPF apart from taking up critical issues of the indigenous people should also study, research and document the indigenous knowledge and practices that have so much to offer to the world. “This wealth of knowledge should be passed on to the younger generation and shared with the rest of the world,” he said.
Earlier, the Chief Minister also released a book, “Indigenous 2023” during the occasion. Delegates from other North Eastern states were also present on the occasion.
Also Read: Meghalaya: Wild elephant kills BSF personnel near border road in SGH
Also Watch
Find latest news from every corner of Northeast India at hubnetwork.in, your online source for breaking news, video coverage.
Also, Follow us on-
Twitter-twitter.com/nemediahub
Youtube channel- www.youtube.com/@NortheastMediaHub2020
Instagram- www.instagram.com/nemediahub
