SHILLONG: A high-stakes meeting took place in Shillong as a joint delegation from the Khasi Welfare Committee, Mizoram, and the KSU Vairengte Circle, Mizoram, met with Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma to address the severe hardship faced by the Khasi community in securing crucial Land Settlement Certificates (LSCs) in Mizoram.
The gravity of the situation was highlighted by Donald V. Thabah, General Secretary of the KSU Central Body, who revealed that hundreds of Khasi families reside across several villages in Mizoram.
“The reason Khasis are demanding the Land Settlement Certificate is because they are not mere migrants in Mizoram; they have been residing there since the 1930s,” Thabah asserted. “Even before Mizoram was born, and even before India was born, they were settled in those areas, which means they are the indigenous inhabitants of that place.”
Despite decades of hard work and settlement, these families have been tragically denied legal land documents.
The delegation previously met with the Mizoram Revenue Minister, but the bureaucratic process has stalled. Paul Teibor Miki, Secretary of the KSU Vairengte, Mizoram, reported a staggering statistic: approximately 500 Khasis live in just one village, Vairengte, across over 90 households.
He pointed out the cruel irony: the Khasi people are actively involved in agriculture, particularly betel nut and betel leaf cultivation, but they are denied official recognition of the land they toil on.
Mizoram’s government has repeatedly made assurances, but without tangible results, forcing the Khasi community to turn to their home state for intervention.
In response to this urgent appeal, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma has given an assurance to the delegation.
He promised to personally take up the matter “face-to-face” with the Chief Minister of Mizoram to ensure the Khasi community finally receives the legal Land Settlement Certificates they are entitled to, bringing an end to nearly a century of struggle for land rights!
