Meghalaya: AL Hek seeks appointment with Amit Shah to discuss ILP issue

SHILLONG: Meghalaya cabinet minister AL Hek has sought an appointment with union home minister Amit Shah to discuss the issue of implementation of inner line permit (ILP).

Notably, there has been a growing demand in Meghalaya for the implementation of ILP soon, especially before start of railways operation in the state.

Besides, the Meghalaya minister will also discuss the issue of inclusion of Khasi and Garo languages, widely spoken in the state, in the eight Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

It may be mentioned here that union home minister Amit Shah is slated to visit Shillong on January 19 to chair the plenary meeting of the North Eastern Council (NEC).

Several political leaders, both from ruling and opposition parties, have been demanding inclusion of the Khasi and Garo languages in the eight schedule of the Constitution of India.

Earlier, Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma had said that inclusion of languages belonging to different tribes and communities in the eight schedule of the Constitution will strengthen national integration.

Khasi is an Austroasiatic language spoken primarily in Meghalaya by the Khasi people. It is also spoken by a sizeable population in Assam and Bangladesh.

Although most of the 1.6 million Khasi speakers are found in Meghalaya, the language is also spoken by a number of people in the hill districts of Assam bordering with Meghalaya and by a sizeable population of people living in Bangladesh, close to the Indian border.

On the other hand, Garo is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in India in the Garo Hills districts of Meghalaya, some parts of Assam, and in small pockets in Tripura.

It is also spoken in certain areas of the neighbouring Bangladesh.

According to the 2001 census, there are about 8,89,000 Garo speakers in India alone; another 1,30,000 are found in Bangladesh.