Meghalaya

The district administration of Meghalaya has imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita in West Garo Hills ahead of the filing of nomination papers for the upcoming elections to the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC), officials said on Sunday, March 8. The order was issued by District Magistrate Vibhor Aggarwal and will remain in force from 5 am on March 9 until the completion of the nomination process in the district. Elections to the 29-member GHADC are scheduled to be held on April 10. The last date for filing nominations is March 16, while candidates will be allowed to withdraw their nominations until March 17. According to the district administration, the restrictions were imposed in view of the possibility of obstruction or ...

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Saturday said multiple development interventions amounting to more than Rs 700 crore are currently underway for the development of Tura town. “Different interventions at different levels worth more than Rs 700 crore are being implemented for the development of Tura town,” Sangma said after inaugurating the Nehru Ading Locality Beautification Project at Nehru Ading, Hawakhana in Tura, West Garo Hills. The programme was organised by the Nehru Ading Development and Welfare Committee (NADWC) at the Old Church Compound in Nehru Ading. Highlighting infrastructure initiatives under the Smart City Mission, the Chief Minister stated that Rs 60 crore has been allocated for paving internal roads in different localities. “In addition, Rs 15 crore has be...

Conrad K. Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya, said that the true measure of development lies in the positive impact it creates in the lives of ordinary citizens rather than the number of infrastructure projects undertaken by the government.Addressing a program in Tura on March 6 to mark eight years of the National People's Party-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government, Sangma reflected on the challenges his administration faced since assuming office in 2018.He said the journey over the past eight years had been difficult at times, but the government managed to overcome the challenges with the support and trust of the people.“Over the last eight years, our journey has been filled with challenges and difficulties. It has not been easy, but with the blessings from above and the love an...

In one of the largest narcotics recoveries by Meghalaya Police so far, the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) seized drugs worth approximately ₹51.13 crore during a naka checking operation at Ratacherra on Friday. According to a press release issued by the office of the Director General of Police, the operation was conducted by a team of ANTF officers and personnel on March 6. During the coordinated naka checking, a Tata Sumo bearing registration number MZ01 M 8625 was intercepted and searched. The vehicle was carrying two passengers along with the driver. During the inspection, police recovered 19 plastic soap cases containing suspected heroin from the possession of one of the female passengers. The seized heroin weighed 203.7 grams. Further search of the vehicle led to the recovery...

The High Court of Meghalaya has accepted a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that challenges the participation of non-tribals in the elections for the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC). The PIL was initiated by Niksrang Ch Marak, with the hearing set for March 9 after the respondents requested more time. This legal action arrives against the backdrop of a GHADC notification issued on February 17, which mandates that all candidates vying for council seats on April 10 must produce a Scheduled Tribe (ST) certificate from the Meghalaya government. Defenders of the notification, including various Garo tribal organisations, argue it is essential for preserving indigenous identity. Conversely, non-tribal leaders criticize it as unconstitutional and an infringement on democrati...

Adelbert Nongrum, the MLA from North Shillong, has protested against new guidelines from the Ministry of Home Affairs, which require the full six-stanza version of "Vande Mataram" to be played at all government and school events. Previously, only the first two stanzas were performed. The directive, issued on February 6, designates the entire six-stanza composition as the "official version" and suggests a duration of 3 minutes and 10 seconds for its performance. Nongrum has urged the Meghalaya government to contest these instructions, emphasizing his support for the first two stanzas adopted as the national song in 1950. He pointed out that the Constitution of India does not stipulate a national song and warned that enforcing the full version may violate Article 25, which safeguards religi...

No candidate from Meghalaya has cleared the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination (CSE) for the 2025 exam cycle, the results of which were declared on Friday. According to available information, candidates from the state who appeared for the examination could not make it past the Mains stage, the second phase of the highly competitive examination conducted annually for recruitment to the country's top administrative services. The last locals from Meghalaya to clear the examination were Isawanda Laloo and Daribha Lyndem in 2012. Swapnil Bhattacharya, who cleared the examination in 2023, remains the most recent candidate from the state to qualify. As per the UPSC, a total of 958 candidates have been recommended for appointment to various central civil services...

The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) has issued a notification prohibiting non-tribal persons from purchasing or claiming land in the Garo Hills districts of Meghalaya, invoking its constitutional powers under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India, officials said on March 6. However, the council clarified that the status of land already legally held by non-tribal individuals will remain unchanged. The council said the directive has been issued to safeguard, preserve and protect the land, customary rights and traditional ownership of indigenous tribal communities in the region and to prevent the alienation of such lands to non-tribal persons. The Sixth Schedule provides for the administration of certain tribal areas as autonomous entities in four northeastern sta...

A two-day national workshop titled “Re-Imagining Teacher Education: The ITEP Pathway to Professional Excellence” was inaugurated at University of Science and Technology Meghalaya (USTM) on Friday.The workshop was organised by the PQH School of Education with support from IQAC, USTM, bringing together eminent academicians, policymakers, teacher educators, and researchers to deliberate on innovative pathways for strengthening teacher education in India.The inaugural session commenced with a welcome address by Prof. G.D. Sharma, Vice Chancellor of USTM, who highlighted the importance of transforming teacher education in alignment with the vision of the National Education Policy 2020 and emphasised the significance of the Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) in developing competent a...

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma distributed appointment letters to nearly 3,000 newly recruited personnel of the Meghalaya Police, calling the recruitment exercise an important step toward strengthening law enforcement and governance in the state. Speaking at a programme held in Tura, the Chief Minister described the event as a historic and memorable moment. He said it was one of the largest recruitment drives carried out by the state government and added that the selection process was conducted in a transparent and merit-based manner. According to Sangma, the recruitment drive saw a huge response from job seekers across Meghalaya. More than 1.7 lakh candidates applied for different posts in the police department. After several stages of selection and verification, close t...