State got Rs 135.08 crore under PMKKKY

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 19: An amount of Rs 135.08 crore has been received by the State government under the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) since implementation till date, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma informed the Assembly today.

Replying to a query raised by UDP legislator from Shella Balajied K Synrem on the issue, Sangma said Rs 9,67 crore was received under the scheme for the year 2022-2023.

He said that the schemes implemented under the PMKKKY in the Sohra area include the improvement of water supply of the circuit house, Sohra civil sub-division to take up a new pumping water supply scheme from a nearby spring source known as Um Them Circuit amounting to Rs 21,80,600 and construction of rainwater harvesting for circuit house, Sohra civil sub-division amounting to Rs 31,65,000.

On the issue related to the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) fund, Synrem sought to know whether mining-affected area are taken up as a primary concern while utilizing the fund.

To this, the chief minister said that as per guidelines, the identification of affected areas has to be looked into.

“As the name suggests this is a district mining fund, this is basically a trust which is then taken up at the level of the district and the deputy commissioner is the chairman for screening and sanctioning of projects and the state government does not interfere in the process of such selection and sanctioning of funds,” he added.

Synrem further raised concern over the non-inclusion of MLAs as members of the DMF despite of being more aware of the schemes that are required to be implemented in the district.

Sangma in his reply informed that a new notification has been issued by the government on August 22, 2022, where MPs and MLAs of the district are also made members of the DMF. He also assured to again remind the district administration on the need to implement the said notification in letter and spirit.

Meanwhile, the chief minister has also assured that the State government will come up with an annual report on the utilization of the funds.

This assurance was made based on the request made by the opposition AITC leader and former chief minister Mukul Sangma, who had stressed the need to ensure transparency in the utilization of said funds.

Govt empowering women through economic activities: CM

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Friday addressed the National Seminar on “Representation of Women of North East India in Multi–Disciplinary Discourse” at Don Bosco College, Tura.

The seminar was attended by scholars from different parts of the country, and papers were presented. The seminar saw the participation of Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma as well. The keynote address was delivered by Prof Sukalpa Bhattacharjee of the NEHU Shillong campus.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the government has conceptualized a programme to empower women through different economic activities. He further informed that through the SHG movement, the government is ensuring that women are made financially independent.

He told the gathering of a situation, where young women were at high risk due to childbirth without spacing of three years and some young women even giving birth to more than five children by the age of 23 years.

“So we had to come up with a solution which is long-lasting that ensures the health and well-being of a mother. The Safe Motherhood Programme addresses the concern of women. We have also introduced intervention that empowers women financially through income generating activities initiated through Self Help Group,” he added, while stating that economic empowerment of women is of paramount concern of the government.

He further informed that Meghalaya is one of the few states in the country, where 95 per cent of the women from rural areas are part of the Self Help Group movement. He said that there are over 4 lakh women under the SHG movement in the State, which was around 35,000 thousand prior to 2018.

He further said that the government is working with a positive mindset to provide different opportunities to enable the economic empowerment of women. He said that there are different problems confronting women but the government is working with an approach to provide effective solutions to those problems.

“Having a positive mindset does not mean that we overlook the problem. However, we come up with a perspective to address the concern and improve things. It is a challenge but we have to come up with an approach to ensure real change,” he stressed.

Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma, spoke at length on the contribution of women in different fields. He also urged the women to continue to overcome challenges and stand tall in making their contribution to society. He also said that women have better convincing power and their active participation is very important in different sectors.