Shillong: East Khasi Hills district administration officials pulled down a seal from the KEC-TCL Joint Venture office on Wednesday. The site holds the future terminal for a Rs 151-crore ropeway connecting Madan Laban to Shillong Viewpoint. Deputy Commissioner Abhilash Baranwal ordered police and an Executive Magistrate to unseal the premises. They handed the keys back to the state Tourism Department. The KHADC had originally shuttered the office on October 27. They claimed the company lacked a mandatory trading licence.
Baranwal pushed back against the council's interference. He noted that the administration acted only on legal advice. Any future construction decisions remain with the state government, not his office. "We are not the project proponents. The department has initiated the project. Our responsibility was only to unseal the premises and hand it back to the Tourism Department," he said.
The government held a public consultation the same day at the State Convention Centre. C.V.D. Diengdoh, CEO of the Meghalaya Ropeway Development Authority, insisted the six towers will occupy only 0.2 percent of the catchment area. He cited a Public Health Engineering Department report claiming spring sources remain safe. Designers followed European CEN standards with help from the French firm POMA. RITES is managing the project.
Agencies including the Indian Army, Indian Air Force, and Airports Authority of India provided clearances. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change authorized tree removal, requiring compensatory planting. Funding flows from the New Development Bank and the PM-DevINE scheme.
Opposition remains fierce. The Joint Action Committee boycotted the public meeting entirely. President Deborah Marbaniang sent word to Tourism Commissioner R.M. Kurbah that they demand a site relocation. They reject Lum Shyllong as a construction hub. The committee also demanded that local Rangbah Shnongs cancel the land lease. They allege the state bypassed local consent when signing the deal. Diengdoh stated the government is still willing to talk.
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