Our Correspondent
Kohima | March 17
Opposition Congress today demanded the State’s Home Minister Imkong L. Imchen to lay a cabinet memo on the floor of the House pertaining to the creation of administrative centres and the latter informed that the cabinet memo are normally kept under secrecy. Not convinced by the Minister’s reply, Opposition Leader Tokheho Yepthomi argued that the government does not want to maintain transparency that is why the cabinet memo was not laid.
He maintained that till the cabinet decide any decision the matter remains secrecy but after the decision is taken to create “I think it becomes public.” “It is nothing secret I feel” he said adding that inauguration of the administrative centres have already taken place and wondered as to why the government wants to hide it. Yepthomi went on to argue that there was no cabinet memo, saying “if you have cabinet memo you should lay.”
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said that all creation of administrative centres is done on public demand, adding that the centres are created after careful study and to fulfil the aspiration of the people.
On queried by Congress MLA Kheto whether the EAC HQs were created on need base, public demand or on political ground, the Home Minister replied that the government had certain rules for upgradation of the administrative centres and some made on public demand.
Earlier, replying to starred question raised by Tokheho, the Home Minister said that eight administrative posts/centres have been created from 2008 to February 2012. On being asked to furnish the total number of population of the town /village of each as per 2012 census, the Home Minister said the office of the Registrar General of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India has not released the population figures for towns and villages of census 2011 as yet.
