Meghalaya Governor Phagu Chauhan on Friday said the government is taking steps to ensure scientific mining of coal. The Ministry of Coal, Government of India has approved 17 applications for grant of prospecting license.
“Out of 17 applications, 6 applicants have submitted their geological report to the Central Government and have obtained approval,” the Governor said.
Addressing the first day of the Budget session of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, the Governor said that the Mining Plan in respect of 4 applicants has been approved by the Ministry of Coal and is awaiting Environment Clearance. With these developments, it is expected that scientific mining of coal will begin soon.
Further, the governor reiterated that the Government is committed to bring lasting peace to the State and once again reiterates that it is open to talks with the HNLC within Indian’s constitutional framework and in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The governor also informed that following the signing of the historic memorandum of understanding in 2022 for six areas of difference, the process of survey has been initiated to demarcate the interstate boundary.
Delivering his address during the first day of the Assembly budget session, Chauhan said, “Sectors like infrastructure, power, water supply, investment promotion, IT, tourism and agriculture will drive the economic growth necessary for achieving that target.’
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% 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.
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.
Stating 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.
“The Chief Ministers of Assam and Meghalaya met again in May 2023 to initiate the process of resolving the dispute in the remaining six areas of difference. The Regional Committees have conducted meetings with their Assam counterparts and the process for resolution of the remaining six areas is on track,” he added.