Meghalaya Budget Session to commence from March 20

Staff Reporter

Shillong, March 13: The budget session of the eleventh Meghalaya Legislative Assembly will be held from March 20 to March 28.

The calendar for the upcoming session was approved during a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) chaired by the Assembly Speaker Thomas A Sangma here today.

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The meeting was attended by deputy chief minister in-charge parliamentary affairs Prestone Tynsong, former minister Lahkmen Rymbui and opposition members – Charles Pyngrope of the AITC and Dr Celestine Lyngdoh of the Congress.

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“We decided to have a full budget session starting from March 20 till March 28,” Sangma told reporters.

“Since it is the financial year ending month so our officials and the government need to clear all the pending financial issues so we decided to end the budget session on March 28 so that March 29 to 31 will be available for the officials in the secretariat and districts to clear the financial dues,” he added.

He said there will be seven working days of which government business has been allotted for five days while for private members’ business for two days.

Sangma also informed that the election of the Deputy Speaker will be held on March 20.

“We are giving notification from tomorrow so that intending candidates can file their nominations and we will have the election on the first day of the budget session,” he said.

The Speaker said, “It is up to them (opposition parties). If they file the nomination everyone is welcome. But if they don’t file, of course like me, the deputy speaker will also be elected unopposed.”

When asked, Sangma said, “It is five days for government business. It is at the discretion of the Speaker so I may extend the time. I have sat in parliament where discussion went till midnight 12 am so if not till midnight but will have till late evening if necessary if required.”

Meanwhile, the Speaker informed that he has received applications from the Congress and All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) requesting for his recognition while the Voice of the People Party has not submitted any kind of indication to be part of the opposition bench.

“The office is examining the matter,” he said while adding that the Congress and AITC are seeking recognition as separate entities and not as a Forum.

Meghalaya BJP’s Mahila Morcha President Judy Surong expresses gratitude for tireless efforts of women party members

Staff Reporter

Shillong, March 9: BJP Mahila Morcha State President Judy Surong has expressed her gratitude to all the members of the Mahila BJP for working tirelessly in the just concluded Assembly elections.

 “I thank the central leadership, State Prabhari Dr M. Chuba Ao, Election In-charge Dr Sambit, Rituraj Sinha, BJP Media Convener Assam Rupam Goswami and Meghalaya In-charge Aienla Jamir for actively involving the Mahila Morcha in every sphere of the campaign, in terms of providing resources which enabled us to reach out to women of the state to create an awareness about how central schemes have enriched and eased their lives,” she said in a statement. 

From shop keeping to becoming a knitting entrepreneur- The story of Malpleasha Mylliemngap

Shillong | March 8, 2023
Malpleasha Mylliemngap, is a mother of 5 who hails from Laitkroh, East Khasi Hills, Meghalaya. Prior to taking up knitting garments as a full fledged business activity, her main source of livelihood was through shop keeping. Knitting was only a hobby before she took it up as a livelihood activity.
It was on days when her shopkeeping business was very low that she started knitting boots for babies through which she received many other orders because of the unique designs and quality products. Soon after, she also got orders for knitted scarves and shawls. Through her undivided commitment and perseverance, more orders came in for knitted caps, socks, purses, hoodies and dresses. She extensively relied on YouTube tutorials to learn different techniques and designs.
She also started a knitting class at the cost of five hundred rupees (₹500/-) per person where she provides training to the youth not only to upskill them but for employment generation. She has created a name for herself in her village and her daughter who is also a nurse makes time amidst her busy schedule to learn her mother’s craft.
Malpleasha wishes to expand her business and be able to be completely depend on it for her daily sustenance. As the knitting process is a tedious one that requires a lot of time and patience along with skills, it was a challenge for her to complete all orders on time because she did not have additional skilled manpower to help her. She also struggles with the lack of readily available and cheaper wool. The wool that she uses is bought from Shillong which is approximately 25km from her village.
Her enthusiasm for knitting led her to get identified under the PRIME Sauramandala Rural Entrepreneurship Programme (PSREF), a project under PRIME Meghalaya. Now she also hopes to come up with an official brand name for her products and also be financially able to purchase machines to produce uniform products. She was able to make the most use of support provided to her as part of the PRIME programme that helped her realize her potential.
This article has been featured in collaboration with PRIME Entrepreneurship Meghalaya. To know more about PRIME, visit: https://www.primemeghalaya.com/