Hope takes root in Meghalaya

MEGHALAYA put its best foot forward for the visiting VIP earlier this month. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was on her first long trip, one of four days, a substantial one by any measure for a senior colleague of the Prime Minister, to this small state.

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The FM’s visit was well-choreographed by the state government, led by its affable Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, an NDA ally. There was a visit to what she called an “iconic” living root bridge in Sohra (old name Cherrapunji); the town used to hold the record for the world’s highest rainfall but has been more in the news in recent weeks for the sensational murder of Raja Raghuvanshi.

For those whose minds have been swayed by the garish media coverage of that messy business, remember that the root bridges are engineering marvels which will outlast such events. They represent ancient traditions in modern times; a staggering 72 bridges in Meghalaya are mentioned in the UNESCO cultural landscapes listing. Local villagers weave the bridges from the extended roots of India rubber trees and create ladders, platforms and towers. One account said the FM remarked that the root bridges represented “a global benchmark in ecological resilience”.

The visit wasn’t exactly a relaxed one — she packed a lot into those four days. Apart from an interview with a young entrepreneur by the pretty Ward’s Lake in Shillong, she opened the state’s first major mall, flagged off the first consignment of pineapples — among the sweetest produced in the country — to Dubai, visited Sohra’s Ramakrishna Mission (a pioneer of modern education in the region), interacted with members of the business community, farmers and women SHGs (self-help groups), laid the foundation stone of a conference centre as well as that of a massive concert and football venue in this music and sports-loving state.

Sitharaman was clearly impressed and she posted photos as well as videos on social media. That should have pleased the state government, which had, smartly and strategically, decided not to raise the issue of funds or other matters directly with her. It let others who were meeting her do the talking and pose questions.

The FM underlined the improvement in Meghalaya’s health sector, which once made extremely dismal reading. The state’s Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) or the number of women who die in childbirth was among the highest in the country in 2020-21, at 243 per one lakh live births. Thanks to a multi-sector approach, which combined better access to healthcare, transit homes for high-risk pregnant women, transportation facilities and a new app which enabled closer monitoring and reporting of pregnant women by health workers at different levels, the MMR dropped dramatically and now hovers around 107.

This is an extraordinary achievement by any measure and Meghalaya received high praise at an international conference in Berlin this year that celebrated innovative and creative bureaucracy. Also, there has been a significant decline in infant mortality, although stunting and anaemia among children remain critical obstacles.

The FM must also be aware of the continuing challenges, which the CM himself readily admits. The Primer on Maternal and Child Health in Meghalaya, published by Accountability Initiative, said there were a range of issues which continue to resist change and need continuous and long-term focus. “Problems of social taboos, teenage pregnancies, poverty, remoteness, etc. pose long-term constraints. Addressing them must remain a protracted focus of the state,” the primer said.

Another challenge was highlighted by Ibalarishisha Syiem in 4Front News, “HIV cases in Meghalaya have surged by over 220 per cent in the past two decades, with the state now ranking sixth in India for HIV prevalence. As of 2025, more than 10,000 people are living with HIV, yet much of society still treats it as a distant or taboo issue”.

Since she moved in a cavalcade which swept through roads and highways, Sitharaman perhaps did not encounter traffic gridlock, one of the major problems that is the bane of growing cities, whether Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Guwahati or Shillong. Unlike other cities on this list, which are in the plains, Shillong’s narrow sloping roads on hills of different gradients do not lend themselves easily to expansion.

The city is becoming more crowded with concrete buildings looming over lanes and thousands of vehicles being added to its vehicular population every year. Parking is a problem and jams are long and painful, although scooter taxis and walking are options. The Shillong Times, quoting official data, says Meghalaya has about six lakh registered vehicles; the East Khasi Hills district, which is dominated by Shillong, accounts for about half of them. The capital’s population is around five lakh.

Plans to decongest Shillong include relocating the state government offices and the legislature to a newer part of the city, while another segment will house major educational institutions like the National Law University and other centres as well as cultural and sports arenas. “People will have to move to those areas from their current homes, it’s not practical to make long commutes when those townships come up,” said a senior official who is familiar with the plans.

There is a key sector where the state government needs to engage robustly, as it has done in the health sector — education, especially at the school level. Both the highly regarded Annual Survey of Education Report (2024) and the Central Government’s Performance Grading Indicator (PGI) have given stinging indictments of Meghalaya’s performances in this area.

The PGI is a rigorous assessment that looks at some 73 categories, including whether students have access roads to schools and transportation; it reviews the quality of teaching and learning as well as school building infrastructure, including toilets and drinking water. I was disappointed to find that all states of the Northeast, barring Sikkim, figured in the lower categories. Meghalaya, according to the PGI report, sits at the very bottom.

Chief Minister Sangma and his team need to turn their attention to this area with the intent and vigour they have shown in the health sector. The two are seamlessly connected. Without health, there cannot be an educated population — and vice versa. One is sure that Sitharaman and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will lend considerable support.

Innovations such as those pioneered by Dhir Jhingran, a former IAS officer from Assam, and his Language and Learning Foundation, which has worked successfully across numerous states, could be considered. However, at a fundamental level, for initiatives to take off, Meghalaya will need basic infrastructure of good school buildings in rural areas, with trained teachers, proper classrooms and mid-day meals to draw children and retain them.

Ultimately, these are the living roots of its society.

Sanjoy Hazarika is an independent columnist.