Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday said the various demands raised by the eight UDP MLAs before the BJP leadership should be judged by the outcome rather than political credit. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function, Sangma said the demand for inclusion of Khasi and Garo in the Eighth Schedule should be pursued as a collective objective for Meghalaya, and any success should be seen as a victory for the people. On coal mining, he said the government had made progress following the Supreme Court’s 2019 verdict, but scientific, technical, regulatory, safety and environmental requirements continued to affect the viability of mining. Four mines are currently functional. On the Meghalaya-Assam boundary dispute, Sangma said the issue required a permanent settlement, while tensions should continue to be addressed through coordination at the local level. He said some areas had already been resolved, with the remaining points to be taken up. Sangma said if the initiatives of the eight MLAs resulted in concrete gains on these issues, the outcome should be seen as a gain for Meghalaya rather than for any particular political party. BYTE: CONRAD K. SANGMA- CHIEF MINISTER