Meghalaya State Olympic Association calls on Sports Minister

Staff Reporter

Shillong, March 17: Officials of the Meghalaya State Olympic Association (MSOA) called on the new Minister in-charge Sports and Youth Affairs Shakliar Warjri at his official chamber yesterday.

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During the first meeting, a number of issues were discussed including the programs conducted jointly between the Department of Sports and Youth Affairs and the MSOA.

The officials of MSOA also informed the minister that as per the  Constitution of the MSOA the sports minister is also ex-officio President of the Meghalaya State Olympic Association.

John F Kharshiing, Working President, MSOA and  Finely L Pariat, General Secretary, extended invitation to the minister to spare time to visit the MSOA office at JN Stadium so as to enable MSOA to invite all the presidents and secretaries of the various state associations under its umbrella to interact and meet him.

The minister has agreed to visit the office MSOA at an appropriate time after the upcoming  session of the Meghalaya  Assembly.

The meeting was also attended by Matsiewdor War Nongbri, Vice President, MSOA & President Meghalaya Archery Association, Paia War Nongbri, Secretary, Meghalaya Archery Association, Dipshon Rynthathiang,  P Laloo,  EH Passah Executive Council Member, MSOA including  Ian Campbell, Olympian and other sports officials.

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/