Staff Reporter
In a bid to provide a platform to local entrepreneurs, 2-Dimapur II Assembly Constituency legislator Moatoshi Longkumer will allot 40 shops and open spaces to local youth near his residence at Indisen village.
Speaking to Nagaland Post in this regard, Longkumer said the shops/stalls have been constructed at his land and under his own initiative at a minimal rent.
He further said thatunder similar initiative,funds were provided too Kuda youths for construction of a market,through the Iconic project under LADP.
Moatoshi said that, after having been elected as MLA, he had formed around 300 self-help groups (SHGs) and provide seed money of Rs 20,000 to each of these.He claimed that many SHG were doing very well and some had even generated income of up to Rs 2 lakh, while admitting that a few did not perform well.
He hoped that the seed money provided by him would encourage families to revisit the lost tradition of kitchen gardening.
The MLA explained that his objective from the very beginning was to provide a platform to local farmers and young entrepreneurs to sell their products, while appealing to Nagas to work hard to develop their own economy.
He also urged Nagas to support fellow Naga entrepreneurs and farmers to boost the local economy.
Appealing to Naga entrepreneurs to have patience while starting a new venture, Moatoshi lamented that most of them harboured a desire to become rich overnight, stressing that such mentality should be done away with.
He also held illegal multiple taxation as another factor responsible for holding back enterprising local youth from starting any new ventures. Noting that non-locals were still carrying out trade and managing profits, he urged the local traders to learn from them.
He alleged that most of the vegetables imported from Assam were not organic and contained harmful chemicals used as preservatives, which were highly toxic and unfit for human consumption. He suspected that consumption of chemical-laced imported vegetables from Assam could be one of the reasons for the rise in cancer cases in Nagaland.
Moatoshi maintained that if all colonies had locals growing organic vegetables, this would promote local economy as dependence on inorganic vegetables from Assam would drop and lead to consumption of organic vegetables, which would benefit health of the people.
On local vegetable vendors selling their produces in unhygienic areas without proper shed in locations like Super Market and New Market, Moatoshi asserted that it was the responsibility of Dimapur Municipal Council (DMC) and Development Authority of Nagaland (DAN) to build proper sheds for them as welfare of Naga entrepreneurs should be given priority.
Meanwhile, when contacted, a DAN official claimed that the authority had already constructed structures for vendors, but alleged that the vendors did not sell their produces from there.
The official informed this reporter that a minimal amount was collected from each vendor so as to provide salary to those who cleaned the place every morning.
The official alleged that even after multiple appeals made by DAN to throw their trash in a designated area, he lamented that many would just throw it on roadside, leading to foul smell and clogging in drains.