Mukul Sangma

Shillong, July 27: North Garo Hills district, with headquarters at Resubelpara, today became the eighth district of Meghalaya.

Chief minister Mukul Sangma inaugurated the newly created district in the afternoon at the Resubelpara mini stadium, in the presence of hundreds of people from the area.

The district, which was carved out of the existing East Garo Hills district, will have four Assembly constituencies — Resubelpara, Bajengdoba, Kharkutta and Mendipathar — under its ambit.

Till recently, Resubelpara was a sub-division under the East Garo Hills. East Garo Hills will now have only Williamnagar, Rongjeng and Songsak Assembly constituencies under its guard.

W. Khyllep will take charge, as the first deputy commissioner of North Garo Hills district, while Aditya Goenka will be the first superintendent of police. According to the 2011 census, East Garo Hills has a population of 3,17,618 persons in an area of 2,603 square km.

Another three districts will be launched soon. These include East Jaintia Hills in Khliehriat, South West Khasi Hills in Mawkyrwat and South West Garo Hills in Ampati. Ampati is also the chief minister’s home constituency

From next month onwards, the total districts in Meghalaya would stand at 11. Till yesterday, there were only seven districts in the state.

On July 31, Sangma will inaugurate the East Jaintia Hills district with Khliehriat as the headquarters. The district’s first deputy commissioner will be Abhishek Bhagotia, who till now is the East Khasi Hills additional deputy commissioner.

M.K. Dkhar, who has been holding the post of commandant of 1st Meghalaya Police Battalion at Mawiong, has been appointed as the superintendent of police. The district has emerged from the present Jaintia Hills district.

However, today, the Joint Action Committee, a conglomerate of social organisations, opposed the government’s move to appoint Bhagotia as the East Jaintia Hills deputy commissioner.

The Joint Action Committee (JAC), East Jaintia Hills, comprising social organisations of the district, which include the Khasi Students’ Union, All Jaintia Youth Welfare Organisation and Hynniewtrep National Youth Front asked the government to appoint a local as the head of the new district.

Speaking to reporters, JAC chairman Streamly Niangti said, “We want a deputy commissioner who is experienced and who understands the needs of the people of the new district.”

He also urged upon the newly appointed deputy commissioner not to take up his new assignment. In a letter submitted to the office of the chief minister, the JAC said most of the residents of the new district would have a problem conversing in English.