The Meghalaya Cabinet has approved a major education infrastructure upgrade to address the acute shortage of Class 11 seats in the state. The move comes after this year’s high Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) pass rate led to a shortfall of nearly 12,000 seats.
State government spokesperson Paul Lyngdoh said the cabinet has cleared a proposal to upgrade six government secondary schools into higher secondary schools. Additionally, 11 existing higher secondary schools will introduce new academic streams to expand their intake capacity. “To support this academic expansion, the government will create 137 new teaching posts,” Lyngdoh stated. The annual cost of the initiative is estimated at Rs 10.81 crore.
The government acknowledged that the shortage is worsened by an uneven distribution of higher secondary schools, most of which are located in the urban centres of Khasi-Jaintia Hills. The expansion is intended to correct this regional imbalance and boost access to education in underserved areas.