Meghalaya part of country’s growth engine: Margherita

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaFebruary 23, 2025

Pabitra Margherita, Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Textiles, emphasized that the government is progressing as envisioned and that any loopholes in programme implementation can be resolved by the state and central government.

He addressed a press conference to highlight key features of the Union Budget 2025-26 on Saturday.

When asked if he was satisfied with the programme implementation by the state government of Meghalaya, he said, “We always appreciate the hard work of each and every government irrespective of ideology, party affinity or alliances. How programmes are implemented is evaluated by bonafide agencies, for evaluating that further grants are approved. Till this moment, I think all the stakeholders are working properly, but there may be practical loopholes. The people of Meghalaya will evaluate.”

However, he quickly added that Meghalaya is part of the country’s growth engine.

When questioned about BJP MDC Bernard Marak pointing out loopholes in programme implementation, state BJP president Rikman Momin responded, “We will talk with our concerned MDA partners so that nothing will be left out.”

To this, Margherita said, “We have immense confidence in our alliance partners and state stakeholders. We can resolve all these loopholes if there are any.”

Further, Margherita praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for presenting a ‘visionary and inclusive budget.’

He said that under the PM DevINE scheme, a 4-lane road in New Shillong township, skywalk, and tourist hub at Mawkdok, and an IT Park at Tura have been approved. Additionally, 540 km of national highways have been constructed in Meghalaya since April 2014 under the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS). Seven road and bridge projects worth Rs 459 crores have been approved, and Meghalaya has availed nearly Rs 1300 crore in 2024-25 under Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment.

Recognizing the importance of tourism in the state, as Meghalaya is one of the preferred tourist destinations, he said the Modi government has sanctioned Rs 29 crore under the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spirituality Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) scheme and Rs 184 crore for the development of the North East Circuit under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme.