Police and Govt working together to combat extortion in Meghalaya: CM Sangma

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Friday stated lauded the District Administration and the Police department of West Garo Hills for cracking down on the illegal raising of prices of food items and other goods in the entire region. 

“Recently the West Garo Hills Police and the administration has been cracking down on different kind of illegal activities, especially in terms of extortion which are leading to the prices of essential commodities going up”.
 
CM Conrad in a statement has said that this was being down in the interest of the people who have been suffering because of the unscrupulous acts of certain groups and individuals who have been behind this illegal raising of prices.
 
CM said that food security is a priority of the government to ensure the common people are not cheated of their requirements.
 
“Based on the different inputs received, a number of action has been taken by the district police and the SP, and the concrete steps are now been taken to ensure that doesn't happen in the future”. 
 
“I want to assure the different merchants and shopkeepers that the entire administration, police, and the government as a whole will be there to support and to ensure that full protection is given in the future so that this kind of illegal activities and extortion do not take place which will unnecessarily lead to the price hike affecting common citizens”.
 
The illegal and self-created Meghalaya Chamber of Commerce organization by arrested BJP MDC Bernard N Marak has been found in an investigation to be behind the rise in prices as they have forced traders to raise prices of all food items, construction materials, etc. and was taking a commission for each price hike.
 
This group of traders and a handful of their supporters who have been holding Tura citizens and people of West Garo Hills to ransom by dictating their own terms in regards to price rise have been unearthed by Tura police.
 
“This will have a huge impact in ensuring that the price of essential commodities comes down to large extent and this will impact the poorest of the poor people and the general citizens of Tura and West Garo Hills”, the chief minister continued in a statement.

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