“You say you don’t want business from Assam, then why have you come to Assam”

Shillong, Sept 11: The ongoing black flag protest by All Khasi Meghalaya Tourist Taxi Association (AKMTTA) in Khasi – Jaintia Hills region against non-state tourist vehicles in Shillong and other tourist spots in the State has started to show its ramifications with sharp reaction coming from Assam.

Assam tourist taxi drivers on Wednesday opposed the display of black flag on Meghalaya registered tourist vehicles inside Assam, stating such protest must be confined within Meghalaya.

The Assam tourist taxi drivers were infuriated because the display of black flags on Meghalaya registered tourist vehicles is part of the protest to pressurise the government to ban all vehicles from outside the state to ferry passengers to tourist spots inside Meghalaya. In July this year, tourist taxis with Assam registration were not allowed to go towards popular tourist destinations such as Sohra and Dawki by a local pressure group along with local taxis, forcing them to return midway from the Umtyngngar area.

In a video that has gone viral, one of the drivers from Meghalaya was confronted by a group of tourist taxi drivers from Assam and asked why the black flag was being displayed. He was then directed to remove the black flag inside Assam and was told to confine such antics to Meghalaya only. The driver removed the flag and the situation was back to normal.

“This is a vehicle from Meghalaya. There is protest going in Meghalaya but why has it come to Assam with black flag, what does he want to show or prove…” one of the drivers recording the video said.

He further told the driver from Meghalaya, “Why are you showing black flag in Assam? We will not allow black flag in Assam. You do that in Meghalaya; we have no issue but not in Assam.”

Ironically, when asked for the reason behind displaying black flag, the taxi driver did not know the reason. He replied he was told to put the black flag on his vehicle.

The Assam drivers were further infuriated that the black flag was apparently a challenge to them, but the driver from Meghalaya had the audacity to come to Assam and fetch passengers.

“You will come here and show us black flag and also take passengers, how will this work? You are showing this (black flag as protest to Assam tourist vehicles in Meghalaya) on our face and also taking passengers. And they you say you don’t want business from Assam, then why have you come to Assam?” they further asked.

The AKMTTA is holding a ‘Black Flag Week’ protest from September 9-14, urging local taxi drivers to display black flags in opposition to out-of-state vehicles ferrying tourists to popular destinations in Meghalaya.

The AKMTTA has criticized Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh for not addressing their demand to restrict non-local vehicles ferrying tourist to popular tourist spots.

The Tourism Minister, however, has stressed the need for unity among local tourist taxi operators and said 60 percent of the drivers aren’t affiliated to any association.

He also highlighted a shortage of 3,000 vehicles to meet tourism demand and urged local drivers to engage with their Assam counterparts emphasizing the economic interdependence between the neighbouring states.

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