Shillong (Meghalaya) [India], October 13 (ANI): The Meghalaya Cabinet on Tuesday passed a resolution expressing gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership and support towards the development of Meghalaya and the Northeast, with Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma highlighting progress in rural livelihoods, healthcare, infrastructure, education and information technology, a release said.

The resolution acknowledged the impact of Central government schemes on people's lives, particularly in drinking water, housing, roads, employment, healthcare and the preservation of the state's cultural heritage.

"The Council of Ministers resolves to place on record the deep gratitude of the government and people of Meghalaya to the Honourable Prime Minister for his leadership of the nation and his steadfast support to the development of Meghalaya and the Northeastern region," Sangma said.

He added that the state government remained committed to working in partnership with the Centre under the spirit of Team India, towards building a developed Meghalaya as an integral part of Viksit Bharat.

Highlighting the impact of rural development schemes, Sangma said more than 3.2 lakh assets had been created under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). He also referred to employment generation under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), under which women had been organised into self-help groups and provided access to bank-linked creditM

The Chief Minister said Rs 664 crore had been transferred directly to farmers in Meghalaya under the PM-KISAN scheme, benefiting 1,83,821 beneficiaries. Additionally, Rs 39.4 crore had been paid in crop-loss claims to farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.

On healthcare, Sangma highlighted a 57 per cent decline in maternal mortality since 2020 and a reduction in the infant mortality rate from 28 to 23 deaths per 1,000 live births between the financial years 2020-21 and 2025-26, according to the figures cited in his address. He also pointed to the state's maternal healthcare initiatives and transportation support for pregnant women, as per the release.

Under the Prime Minister's Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE), seven projects worth Rs 773.92 crore had been sanctioned, Sangma said, adding that these included tourism and infrastructure-related projects.

The Chief Minister also highlighted Meghalaya's cultural and heritage initiatives, including the nomination of the state's living root bridges and associated cultural landscapes for the UNESCO World Heritage List for the 2026-27 cycle.

Addressing the extension of the term of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC), Sangma clarified that the government's intention was to conduct elections before the extended six-month period ended.

He said the extension had been granted to facilitate the completion of the delimitation exercise and other connected electoral processes, including the preparation of a separate electoral roll.

"The elections cannot be held without the delimitation being held, and the delimitation exercise cannot be completed without the SER and the separate electoral roll coming in," Sangma said.

He explained that the delimitation process had been extensive and required the separate electoral roll to be approved by the Governor before the committee could proceed with the final exercise.

Now that the separate electoral roll process had progressed, the government was confident that the remaining steps could be completed within the extension period.

"We are not trying to delay the elections for any other purpose," the Chief Minister said, reiterating that the government's intention was to hold the polls at the earliest.

Sangma also briefed the media on his recent visit to Delhi, where he attended the GST Council meeting, discussions on telecommunications and a national conference on women and child development.

He said the GST Council had approved changes aimed at simplifying procedures, improving ease of doing business and reducing the possibility of harassment of businesses and transport operators. He cited revised safeguards concerning vehicle inspections by tax officials, which would require specific intelligence or inputs and certification by an officer at the joint commissioner level.

At the telecommunications meeting, Sangma said Meghalaya had highlighted the need to strengthen mobile towers, optical fibre infrastructure and last-mile connectivity, particularly in remote areas of the Northeast.

He also said Meghalaya had been invited to present its early childhood development model at the national women and child development conference, where the state shared its approach to improving Anganwadi centres and making them more effective spaces for learning, nutrition and community engagement.

On investment, Sangma said Meghalaya's second IT Park had been fully booked, with companies from the United States, Europe and other regions expressing interest in establishing operations in the state.

"We expect that close to 22,000 new direct and indirect jobs will be created through these investments," he said.

He added that companies operating from Shillong were undertaking advanced technology-related work, including the development and testing of artificial intelligence models and enterprise software systems. According to the Chief Minister, the expansion of the IT sector could encourage engineers and other professionals to return to Meghalaya and contribute to the state's growing technology ecosystem.

Sangma also highlighted the inauguration of a model degree college and a new senior secondary school building during his visit to the region, besides laying the foundation stone for a mini secretariat at Patharkhmah.

He said the mini secretariat concept aimed to bring government services closer to citizens, reducing the need for people to travel to district headquarters or Shillong for routine administrative work.

The Chief Minister further highlighted the Chief Minister's Business Catalyst Programme, implemented in collaboration with IIM Shillong, through which young entrepreneurs received mentoring and opportunities to develop their business ideas.

He also announced the launch of an innovation competition to encourage young people to develop solutions to challenges such as waste management, water conservation and solar energy.

On coal mining, Sangma said a committee constituted at the level of the Union Coal Ministry had visited Meghalaya to examine the feasibility of smaller mining areas and scientific mining practices.

He said discussions had focused on balancing the interests of small-scale miners with worker safety and environmental protection, adding that the government hoped to move towards a more scientific and regulated mining framework.

The Chief Minister said the state would continue working with the Centre to accelerate development while addressing outstanding challenges and ensuring that the benefits of government programmes reached more households across Meghalaya. (ANI)