Tura, Oct 24: Questions have been raised and fingers pointed against the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council over its alleged failure to provide documentation and give recognition to three Garo villages located in the Kharkutta constituency of North Garo Hills.
The inhabitants of Chiginde, Doeni and Balsrik villages have not been given any recognition or notified as revenue villages or habitations by the GHADC despite the villagers applying for Village Status way back in 2014.
In the absence of any official recognition from the council, the villagers reportedly do not have any citizenship document, birth certificates, ID cards, caste certificates and are unable to exercise their franchise in any election. They are reported to face issues when it comes to jobs and education scholarships and grants.
Meanwhile, a Garo social organization calling itself GOERA (Garo Omniscience for Ethnic Renaissance and Awakening) has filed a formal appeal with the office of the Chief Executive Member of GHADC seeking clarification on the absence of recognition for these three villages. The group has pointed out that villagers are losing out on land rights, being denied development packages, unable to participate in the democratic process of voting during elections and facing a severe identity crisis.
