Govt targets state a 10 billion US dollar economy by 2028

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Feb 16: Meghalaya Governor Phagu Chauhan today said the State government has set an ambitious target of making Meghalaya a 10 billion US dollars economy by 2028, thereby doubling the State’s GDP.

“Sectors like infrastructure, power, water supply, investment promotion, IT, tourism and agriculture will drive the economic growth necessary for achieving that target,” Chauhan said while delivering his address in Hindi during the first day of the Assembly’s budget session.

Highlighting the policies of the MDA government, the governor said the State envisions doubling the farmers’ income by leveraging Meghalaya’s unique agro-climate conditions and by strengthening and innovating value chains.

To this end, the government is prioritizing farm to table interventions in high-value crops like turmeric, ginger, oranges, pineapple, herbs, spices and honey in mission mode. Under these missions, farmers are provided with planting materials, capacity building, value addition infrastructure and market linkages. Till date, these missions have helped 1 3 lakh farmers augment their income.

He said the Government is investing heavily in animal husbandry to create rural livelihoods and increase milk and meat production.

A 50 per cent subsidy on unit costs for piggery, goatery, and poultry is being offered under the CM ELEVATE program. Under the Piggery Mission, 367 cooperative societies have been formed which are operating more than 6,000 breeding and fattening units. More than 1,000 dairy farmers have availed interest-free loans under the Meghalaya Milk Mission.

Stating that Meghalaya’s fish production increased by 1,139 metric tons in 2023, reaching 19,374 metric tons, the governor said the state is taking further steps to reduce the demand-supply gap by introducing advanced spawning and culturing techniques like Recirculatory Aquaculture System and Integrated Cage Culture. Institutions for modernizing fishery related infrastructure and expertise is being set up across the state with support from NABARD.

In regards to the health sector, Chauhan said that Meghalaya’s public health indicators have shown remarkable improvement in the last few years. The state has experienced a 50% reduction in maternal death following the introduction of the Chief Minister’s Safe Motherhood Scheme.

“The scheme’s existing network of 140 transit homes is being strengthened by upgrading 20 CHCs into referral units. 6 24. 87% of eligible infants have been brought under the state’s routine immunization target. There has also been a 30% reduction in infant mortality, both of which are record-breaking achievements”.

He said that the Government has taken the lead in powering its public health infrastructure by solar energy adding that close to 400 sub-centres and more than 50 primary health centres and a number of other healthcare facilities are now fully solar powered. This has resulted in deliveries being conducted for the first time at sub-centres.

Further, the governor said to bolster the state’s healthcare workforce, the Medical Recruitment Board has filled 47% of vacant medical positions in just one year. The government has disbursed more than 6 crores rupees through 6,500 Village Health Councils to strengthen localized public health capacity through community participation.

Asserting that the government remains committed to providing quality education at all levels, the governor said the government is currently upgrading the existing infrastructure in all schools.

“208 Elementary, Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools have been taken up in Phase-I. 111 schools are being covered under Phase-II and another 1,725 under Phase-III. The long-standing issue of recruitment of government elementary school teachers has been successfully completed recently,” he said while adding that the 996 newly recruited teachers were handed appointment letters in programs at Tura and Shillong.

In the field of higher education, he said that Shillong Government College of Engineering was inaugurated last year and will welcome its first cohort of students soon. “The College of Architecture and Urban Planning in Tura is scheduled for completion later this year. The Captain Williamson Sangma Technical University Act was amended to make it a State University to be able to affiliate colleges. This is going to be Meghalaya’s first state university,” he said.

Coming to employment generation, the governor said that the Government aspires to train 1.5 lakh youth in employable skills in the next 5 years through the Skills Meghalaya program. Recent initiatives in skilling include the training of nurses who will find employment in developed countries like Japan, Singapore and the United Kingdom. A large number of youth are also being trained for self employment in trades like integrated farming, hospitality, culinary arts and fashion. These skilled youth are also being provided start-up tools to take up production, thus leading to employment and contributing to the State’s growth.

Moreover, the governor informed that till date, 4.8 lakh households across the state have been provided with functional tap water connections under the Jal Jeevan Mission – a coverage of 74% which is above the national average.

He said apart from households, 66% schools, 66% of Anganwadi centers and 71% of PHCs have been provided with drinking water by the state government. More than 1,000 villages in the state have been certified as ‘Har Ghar Jal’ villages. 5,467 villages have been declared open defecation free under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) Program. The government is targeting to achieve ODF status for all remaining villages in Meghalaya by the end of the current year, he added.

Further, Chauhan said that the department has taken several steps to extend the air transport infrastructure of the State. Shillong is already connected with flights to 8 cities across India.

“Airport Authority of India is conducting a technical study to expand the Shillong Airport at Umroi to allow regular passenger flights to all major cities,” he said while informing that the proposed heliports in Shillong and Tura are in advanced stage of planning.

On the decision of the government to develop the new hill city – the New Shillong Township, Chauhan said that it will be in two phases. The first – an Administrative City at Mawdiangdiang with world class governance infrastructure is making steady progress. The second – a Knowledge City at Mawkhanu is in the ideation stage.

As part of a comprehensive connectivity plan for New Shillong, 3 roads connecting New Shillong, Shillong City and the Shillong Bypass are being built. Similar plans are being developed for Tura and Jowai.

He said that the government is also taking a number of measures to enhance ease of living for citizens in urban areas. “A Comprehensive Mobility Plan is being worked out for Shillong and Tura with the aim of providing seamless, sustainable and affordable mobility. As part of this effort, the state is repurposing the government land for building parking spaces, pathways and improving road geometrics. Works on upgradation of the Umkhrah Riverfront and Ward’s Lake in Shillong are under progress,” Chauhan said.

Meghalaya Governor says State preparing for growth strategies

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Jan 27: The Meghalaya government is preparing growth strategies for all sectors to achieve its ambitious target of making the State a 10 billion US dollars economy by 2028.

Addressing at the 75^th Republic Day celebration in Shillong on Friday, Governor Phagu Chauhan said, “In resonance with the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of transforming India into a 5 trillion US dollar economy by 2025, the Government has set the ambitious target of making Meghalaya a 10 billion US dollars economy by 2028, thereby doubling the 3 State’s GDP. To achieve this, the Government is preparing growth strategies for all sectors and is mobilizing investments.”

He said infrastructure like roads, water supply, power and IT are going to be key drivers of growth in the State.

“The Government envisions building 1,600 km of new roads, upgrading close to 6,000 km of existing roads and converting 7.5 km of timber bridges to permanent bridges over the next 5 years,” Chauhan said while adding that unconnected habitations will also be connected with all-weather roads under the CM Rural Connectivity Program.

Regarding the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) implementation, the Governor said from only 4550 functional tap connections, the state today has been able to provide clean drinking water to more than 4.7 lakh households across the state – a coverage of 73.2% which is at the national average.

“The target is to cover all 6.5 lakh rural households with tap water connections at the earliest. A detailed plan to protect about 4,000 water sources is also being made to ensure sustainability,” he added.

He said that providing uninterrupted power supply to every household in the State is among the top priorities of the Government. To that end, the Ganol Hydroelectric Project was completed in August 2023. Currently 24 new sub-stations are being constructed and 48 existing sub-stations are being renovated under the Meghalaya Power Distribution Sector Improvement Project with support from the Asian Development Bank. The Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme is also being implemented to improve the efficiency and financial sustainability of Meghalaya’s power distribution system.

Stating that Shillong currently has 40 per cent share of the state’s GDP, the Governor said that to further expand this, the Mawdiangdiang Administrative City in New Shillong has already undergone considerable development. The new Legislative Assembly building is nearing completion and plans for building a new Secretariat Complex are being finalized. The Government is also working on plans for a new Knowledge City at Mawkhanu.

He said that a comprehensive plan is being developed to improve connectivity between Shillong and New Shillong City. As part of the plan, 3 new roads connecting Lumshyiap with 4 New Shillong, Mawpat with Umsawli and Diengpasoh with Shillong Bypass are being built.

Further, the Governor said that to make urban transformation environmentally sustainable, a fleet of 100 Electric Buses will be introduced by 2025 that will reduce fuel emissions in the cities. The process of reclaiming the Marten landfill site using advance bio-mining technology has been initiated.

He also informed that the Government is exploring possibilities of introducing regular flights between Shillong and large metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

“Plans to fully operationalize the Baljek Airport with regular flights to Shillong are also underway. Plans to provide internet connectivity to every village in the State by developing last-mile IT infrastructure is being finalized,” he added.

Moreover, the Governor said that the PRIME Program is currently supporting more than 5,500 young entrepreneurs and 210 startups. 50 startup incubation centres called PRIME Hubs are being set up to provide entrepreneurs with adequate infrastructure, capacity-building support and market linkages. Nine of these PRIME Hubs have already been operationalized.

He said that the Government launched the CM-Elevate program in September 2023 with the target of supporting 20,000 entrepreneurs over the next three years. Under the program individual entrepreneurs, registered and unregistered entities are provided financial support of 35 per cent to 75 per cent of the project cost through credit linkages with private and public sector banks. This umbrella program alone will generate about 80,000 employment opportunities in the sectors of horticulture, logistics, animal husbandry, sericulture, tourism, entertainment, and wellbeing.

The Government is finalizing the Meghalaya Industrial & Investment Promotion Policy to provide impetus to Meghalaya’s industrial sector. Under the policy, key growth sectors like tourism & hospitability, IT & ITES, green industries, power generation, 7 logistics and food processing are being granted industry status. A lucrative package of incentives is being provided with a target of attracting about 2,000 crore rupees of investment in the next three years.

Also pointing out that the Government aspires to create a job-ready workforce by training 1.5 lakh youth over the next 5 years, the Governor said in the past year, more than 35,000 youth have been trained in technical skills under the flagship ‘Skills Meghalaya’ program and in soft skills under the ASPIRE program. A world-class Skills & Innovation Hub will be constructed at New Shillong City. The PRIME Hubs will also function as skilling centres and provide training by engaging local training partners.

He said that the betterment of the human condition forms the bedrock of the Government’s social development plan. For this, a life-cycle approach has been adopted encompassing health, child welfare, education, sports and social security services.

Claiming that significant improvements have been made in healthcare over the last few years, the Governor said that there has been a 50 per cent drop in maternal death between 2020 and 2023 as an outcome of the Chief Minister’s Safe Motherhood Scheme. 87 per cent of all eligible infants have been brought under the routine immunization target resulting in a 30 per cent decrease in infant mortality.

He said that to meet the requirement of trained medical personnel, the establishment of 3 medical colleges in Meghalaya has been announced. “Treatment facilities in all civil hospitals and community health centres will be upgraded with the latest healthcare technology. Operationalization of the Medical Recruitment Board has resulted in filling up 47 per cent of vacant posts in a single recruitment cycle,” he added.

During the programme, the Governor handed over the U Tirot Sing Award 2024 for Arts and Culture to Risingbor Kurkalang, Pa Togan N Sangma Award 2024 for Social Service to Dr Delphine Gare Momin and U Kiang Nangbah Award 2024 for Sports to Phrangki Buam.

The Megha Health Insurance Scheme (MHIS) & Pradhan Mantri Jan Yojana (PMJAY) awards for hospitals as the top performing hospitals both public and private based on their overall performance, utilization and quality were also distributed during the programme.

The top performing PHC in the District of East Khasi Hills is awarded to Pomlum PHC, top performing CHC in the State goes to Mawphlang CHC, East Khasi Hills, top performing private hospitals in the State go to Bethany Hospital, Shillong and Bansara Eye Care Centre, East Khasi Hills, the top performing Chest Hospital in the State goes to Reid Provincial Chest Hospital, East Khasi Hills District and the top performing Maternal and Child Hospital in the State goes to Ganesh Das Government Maternal & Child Hospital, East Khasi Hills District. Further, the Reid Provincial Chest Hospital, East Khasi Hills District has also bagged the award for the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana Quality Certification Hospital.

During the programme, announcements were also made for the Police Medal for Meritorious Service (MSM) to Shri Vivek Syiem, Superintendent of Police (City), Shri John M Sangma, AB-Inspector and Shri Teibor Sumer, Havildar and Home Guards & Civil Defence Medal for Meritorious Service to Smti Aniosca Basaiawmoit, Inspector posted as Senior Instructor at Central Training Institute of Civil Defence and Home Guards, Mawdiangdiang.

The celebration saw the tableau presentation by the Tourism Department, Office of the Deputy Commissioner, DCIC-East Khasi Hills, Superintendent of Fisheries, Meghalaya State Skills Development Society, District Animal Husbandry and Veterinary, District Horticulture, DFO, Social Forestry, NCC, Divisional Soil and Water Conservation and District Election Officer. The best tableau was awarded to the DCIC-East Khasi Hills (1^st place), Meghalaya State Skills Development Society, (2^nd place) and District Animal Husbandry and Veterinary (3^rd place).

In the March Past competition, NCC Girls bagged first prize, while NCC Boys and Sacred Heart Girl’s Hr. Sc. School bagged the second and third prizes respectively.

Other highlights of the programme include cultural programmes which were presented by Seng Khasi Higher Secondary School, Mawngap District Christian Multi-Purpose Higher Secondary School Sanmer Higher Secondary School, Upper Shillong and Mission UP SSA School, Mawryngkneng.

Governor’s House Tura almost complete

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 20: Construction of the Governor’s House at Tura, West Garo Hills is likely to be completed by March next year.

In his reply to a starred question tabled in the Assembly today, GAD Minister Rakkam A Sangma said that the time of completion for the balance works is 12 months from the date of issue of final work order that is by March 24, 2024.

The time of completion of the additional works is 12 months from the date of issue of the Final work order which is by January 2024, he added.

The original administrative approval was accorded on September 7, 2009. The foundation stone was laid on August 6, 2010

The administrative approval for the balance works was accorded on December 2, 2020 and administrative approval for additional works was accorded on October 27, 2022.

The original tender was floated on November 14, 2009, and the tender for the balance works was floated on December 3, 2020. The tender for additional works was floated on October 28, 2022.

The minister said that the original sanctioned amount is Rs 5,47,89,000.

“Sanctioned amount for balance works is Rs 10,97,87,971. The sanctioned amount for additional works Rs 7,68,81,960. Therefore, the total amount sanctioned is Rs 24,14,58,931,” he added.

IGNOU setting benchmarks for Open Distance Learning: Guv

Staff Reporter

Shillong, April 4: The Governor of Meghalaya, Phagu Chauhan today graced the 36th Convocation of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) at IGNOU Regional Center Shillong, NEHU Campus. The Convocation was part of the main function conducted at IGNOU Headquarters at New Delhi and also simultaneously in all 33 Regional Centers across the country.

Delivering the Convocation Address, the Governor lauded the Indira Gandhi National Open University for taking the national responsibility of promoting and setting benchmarks for Open and Distance Learning (ODL) and online education (OL) in Meghalasystems in India and the world. “IGNOU, which is known to be the World’s largest open University with above 3 million enrolments of students in different IGNOU programmes, has made significant contributions to democratizing Higher Education in the country by providing access to a large number of aspirants through the Open & Distance mode and through online mode,” he added.

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Stressing on the need for shifting from the conventional degree to Skill Development, Employability, Entrepreneurship and Community Development programs, the Governor reiterated the importance for every University in India to make its academic programmes more futuristic and need-oriented. “The NEP puts a greater emphasis on restructuring academic programmes to make them multidisciplinary and holistic. Academic programmes should focus not only on the creation of new knowledge but also to acquire skills required for the job market”, he said.

The Governor further stated that to fulfill India’s mission and goal set by NEP 2020, there is a need of the hour to make a collaborative framework between Central and State government institutes to identify skill-based bridge courses in the emerging area of professional/vocational programmes.

Established in April 1988, IGNOU Regional Centre Shillong at present has 21 Learner Support Services covering 10 districts of Meghalaya. This year 1319 learners are being conferred Degrees/ Diplomas/ certificates for this 36th Convocation under the Shillong Regional Centre.