Meghalaya villagers, JNC protest against transfer of community land to cement company

Hundreds of residents from Daištong village and neighbouring areas on Wednesday staged a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office here in Meghalaya’s East Jaiñtia Hills district of Meghalaya, opposing the alleged transfer of community land to a private-run Shree Cement Integrated Cement Plant.
The protest, led by members of the Jaiñtia National Council (JNC), accused the authorities of facilitating what they described as an unlawful handover of ancestral land and demanded that all proceedings related to the disputed land be stopped immediately. Protesters carried placards reading “Shree Cement Go Back” and “Daištong Land Not a Factory Land,” while raising slogans in the local language expressing opposition to the alleged illegal sale of land. Protesters vocally expressed their sentiments in the local dialect, including the phrase “Dai thaw Beaiñ, ngi Pyrshah,” (“selling land illegally, we protest”). Community leaders, representatives from the JNC, and village elders took to the stage to address the assembly, denouncing what they termed a breach of local land rights and traditional ownership.
They reiterated their united stance that no private or industrial encroachment on ancestral land will be accepted without the informed and voluntary consent of the community. JNC President Sambormi Lyngdoh cautioned that should the ongoing public hearing process fail to halt the alleged land acquisition, the community would escalate its protests.
The JNC also announced their plans to seek legal recourse, including filing a case with the Meghalaya High Court, to protect their ancestral rights. The protest was conducted peacefully yet resonated with a strong message, reflecting the deep-seated discontent among villagers who fear that their customary lands are under threat of exploitation.
Meanwhile, the JNC has pledged to persist in its campaign until the relevant authorities and the company withdraw from the contested area. “Additionally, a stern warning was issued that if the public hearing proceeds, and if the so-called officials or government representatives who are aligned with the company attempt to act with force, we too will respond with force on that day, communicating in their own terms,” Lyngdoh warned.