During the pre-budget consultations in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan today, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma, presented the memorandum to Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman outlining the critical development needs of the State.
These requests are designed to enhance infrastructure, promote digital services, support rural livelihoods, and improve financial inclusion in Meghalaya.
Sangma emphasised the importance of continuing and augmenting the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) scheme, requesting an allocation of over Rs 1,50,000 crore for the upcoming fiscal year. According to him, the SASCI scheme has been instrumental in enabling states, particularly those in the North East, to undertake vital capital projects that stimulate economic growth and improve citizens’ quality of life.
Stating that the meritocratic approach of the scheme rewards states for implementing reforms and effectively utilising funds within the fiscal year, Sangma said that Meghalaya has successfully leveraged this initiative to bridge resource gaps and enhance connectivity, making it essential for the Finance Ministry to strengthen this program further.
Recognising the unique challenges faced by North East states, Sangma proposed a special allocation of Rs 10,000 crore within the SASCI scheme specifically for seven North East states (excluding Assam).
“The region’s geographical barriers lead to significantly higher infrastructure costs between 35 per cent to 50 per cent more than other regions which hamper development efforts. Despite their special status and funding ratios, these States receive minimal investments in national projects and have limited access to private capital. The proposed allocation aims to empower these states to become equal partners in India’s growth narrative and improve their human development indicators,” Sangma said in his memorandum.
To address the digital service delivery challenges in Meghalaya, Sangma proposed establishing 1,000 Citizen Digital Service Delivery Centres (CDSDCs) across the State. These centres will provide citizens with access to essential government services such as welfare programmes, banking services, healthcare, and education — particularly in remote areas where digital literacy is low. The initiative aims to bridge the digital divide by promoting digital literacy and ensuring that even the most marginalised communities can benefit from government services. Each centre will facilitate training programs to empower citizens with necessary digital skills.
With the growing number of Village Organisations (VOs) in Meghalaya, many women Self-Help Group (SHG) members are forging ahead to expand their businesses. To provide them with a safe working space and boost their entrepreneurial efforts, Sangma proposed leveraging the SASCI scheme to receive financial assistance for constructing 1000 VO service delivery centers across the State. He also urged the Finance Ministry to consider this proposal for inclusion under the SASCI scheme funding, as an extension of the “Working Women Hostels” initiative, to empower rural women in Meghalaya to actively contribute to the State’s economic growth.
Sangma also said that schemes like AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0, which aimed at providing basic urban infrastructure, have had limited impact in states like Meghalaya. He however said that despite removing the 1 lakh population criterion, AMRUT 2.0’s allocation to the North East region remains low, at 2.68 per cent of the total Rs 66,750 crore funds, which drops to 1.52 per cent excluding Assam.
To address these disparities, Sangma said that Meghalaya proposes to increase AMRUT allocation in this year’s budget. He also urged the Finance Ministry to introduce a dedicated budget for the North East region and hilly cities to address their distinct infrastructure challenges and meet their urban development needs.
Sangma also proposed a 50-50 cost-sharing mechanism for operation and maintenance expenses under the Jal Jeevan Mission for the first 2-3 years, recognising Meghalaya’s unique socio-economic and geographical challenges. He said that this collaborative approach will enable the State to overcome its operation and maintenance challenges, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the mission.
The key benefits of this support include ensuring equity by alleviating the financial burden on the State, safeguarding investments made in water supply infrastructure, and promoting sustainability by empowering communities to take ownership of their water supply systems.
The Meghalaya chief minister also informed that the State aims to boost the performance of women led micro-enterprises and expand their economic opportunities with the support of the Lakhpati Didi initiative. To achieve this, the State proposed increasing the loan ceiling from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh to support the expansion of existing businesses run by Self-Help Group (SHG) members. Additionally, Sangma suggested introducing an additional 3 per cent interest subvention on prompt loan repayments to encourage more SHGs to avail loans, aligning with the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) framework.
To ensure that banking services reach the rural areas of Meghalaya, Sangma urged the Finance Ministry to ensure that rural branches of the banks having one-man branches to depute an additional resource to ensure better service delivery. He also said that a guideline should be devised to encourage the banks to double their rural branch network to bridge the bank deficit in the hilly areas and financial assistance for the same may be provided in the form of VGF or additional assistance from Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF).
