A test for governance

Long ago, check gates were mainly located at inter-state borders to serve the purpose of inspection of the vehicle and occupants for security matters and livestock so as to prevent sickly or diseased animals from entry. Personnel manning the check gates were also to verify documents for movement of transport and goods. Over the decades, check gates especially in Nagaland earned notoriety as they turned solely into cash collection points. Collection of money became the order of the day. Joining around a dozen cash collectors of around a dozen departments were nearly ten Naga groups besides those from various civil society organisation, unions and associations. All of them believed that they had the right to collect tax. This phenomenon where one truck had to pay to over two dozen agencies and organisations etc became a real menace that made check gates earn notoriety for the state. Trucks loathe crossing Dimapur check gate(s) as drivers have to pay exorbitant amounts to all the authorised, unauthorised and illegal collectors. As mentioned in several issues of this newspaper since the early 90s, check gates became lucrative postings for police and for ‘official duty’ for staff of various departments such as –taxes, excise, geology & mining, forest, veterinary & animal husbandry, transport including Dimapur Municipal Council(DMC)etc. The deployment of staff from so many departments seem to indicate that these departments have established offices at check gates. It may be recalled that the state government had issued notifications twice –on June 22,2009 and reaffirmed on June 12,2012-banning collections in any form at check gates and highways. The Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench had in a landmark judgment on June 3,2014 had banned on collections in any form by CSOs. In 2012 ACAUT Nagaland had organised a rally calling on the government to implement the ban orders by the state government besides a massive rally was organised in 2013 against all forms of collection. Even the report of the three-member High Power Committee (HPC) set up by the government in 2014 to look into illegal collections submitted its report in 2015 but it has been kept under wraps. A single truck had to pay collectors of multiple government and other groups besides paying multiple times for the same items- truck wise, item wise etc. Even trucks had to pay amount depending on number of tyres-more the tyre, higher the fee. During September 2019, volunteers of the Public Action Committee(PAC), set up under the aegis of the Naga Council Dimapur(NCD) thwarted illegal and multiple collections at check gates but the government did precious little. Eventually the Governor of Nagaland Prof. Jagdish Mukhi prevailed upon the state government which led to issuance of an order on May 19 for closure of all check gates, except inter-state gates while those manned by state government departments will have to close down by May 31. Some CSOs in Dimapur wanted a relaxation of the ban for DMC. This would mean a compromise and eventually could be counter-productive. People of Dimapur and Nagaland want an end to the collections which have pushed up prices illogically. Perhaps there is also a need to seriously look into prevalence of market syndicates which also provide cover for ‘fixing’ rates and eliminating healthy competition. All these are not good for the people and for which the government should not ignore any longer.