Meghalaya Opposition leader Mukul Sangma on Monday got emotional while stating the reason behind his personal attachment with the Integrated Basin Development and Livelihood Promotion (IBDLP) programme.
“I understand the need for programmes such as the IBDLP. I am the son of an educator. I struggled while growing up, with only a meagre income from my father as economic support. I know the hardships of being born poor,” Sangma said.
He was addressing a block-level meeting held after inaugurating the AITC office at Trikrikilla in West Garo Hills.
Lambasting the present Meghalaya government over the "misutilisation of funds", the former chief minister commented, “I tried ensuring three stable income sources for each family under the Integrated Basin Development Livelihood Promotion Programme. The Government of India could not provide us with adequate funds so I sourced money from various international funding agencies like the Asian Development Bank, The World Bank, and JICA.
“I established 117 educational institutions across the state with the Human Capital Development funds from the Asian Development Bank. However, the MDA government did not provide a Utilisation Certificate to the Asian Development Bank, and therefore lost our hard-earned funding!”
Unifying the crowd with a message of service and harmony, Sangma commented, “We may belong to different political parties but we all belong to Meghalaya. The Meghalaya TMC intends to put the nation first. By strengthening the party, we would strengthen the foundation of our country. The welfare of people is our religion.”
Also Read: Centre releases Rs 7183.42 crore revenue deficit grant to 14 states; Rs 192.50 crore to Manipur
