Shillong, Oct 7: Chief minister Conrad K Sangma on Sunday threw his weight behind University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya (USTM), which had drawn the ire of his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma for waging a “flood jihad” in Guwahati.
Lauding USTM as a leading educational institution of North East, he emphasised that the university has obtained all necessary permissions required for construction and establishing a varsity.
The Assam chief minister, in the wake of a devastating flood in Guwahati on August 5 this year, sought to blame USTM for causing “flood jihad” in the capital city by rampant cutting of hills and deliberate diversion of stormwater.
In this regard, the Meghalaya chief minister said, “Education institutions are exempt from taking certain permissions related to environmental issues.”
Congratulating the USTM team for adhering to the rules and guidelines for construction, Sangma said, “All necessary permissions as per the regulations have been obtained from the deputy commissioner, the state government, and any relevant agencies.”
“They are doing an excellent job. The USTM team is one of the premier education institutions in our state,” Sangma told Pratidin Times during a talk show in New Delhi.
USTM, which has named its medical college after the CM’s father P A Sangma, was recently granted permission to start an MBBS course with 150 seats, making it the first private medical college in the state.
According to Sangma, USTM is providing quality education across its various departments. “I’ve seen the commitment they have shown. While there are other issues that can be debated, the key point is that they are delivering quality education to their students,” he said. (With inputs from PTI)
