The State

Natural hazards and related issues of Meghalaya

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Natural hazards and related issues of Meghalaya

As the State lies in the seismically active zone, special emphasis should be given to reduce the impacts of earthquake. Moreover, it is also affected by hazards such as floods, flash floods, epidemics, fire, hailstorm, lightening, road accidents, etc.

Earthquake

The State of Meghalaya has witnessed seismic events of ‘8.7 magnitude in 1897’. This region has been identified as a potential site of a future catastrophic earthquake. With the growth of population and infrastructure seismic vulnerability has increased and previous earthquakes have provided a glimpse of the devastating potential of seismic tremors.

Cyclones

Meghalaya is situated in the north eastern direction of Bangladesh which is highly prone to cyclone/ winds. Every year about 60% of the area is affected by cyclone in Bangladesh. The Districts of West Jaintia Hills and East Jaintia Hills may experience a wind speed of up to 55m/s. Occasional cyclones do occur in western Meghalaya their severity being more during monsoon season. The Districts close to Bangladesh like South West Garo Hills, South Garo Hills, South West Khasi Hills, West Khasi Hills, fall in very high cyclonic zone due to close proximity to Bay of Bengal (which is a cyclone basin). In this zone wind speed can reach up-to 50 m/s, which can cause large scale damages. The Bay of Bengal accounts for seven percent of the annual tropical cyclone activity worldwide; the recorded frequency of cyclones per year along the Bay of Bengal is four and inevitably one of the four transforms into a severe cyclone causing human and property losses

Floods

The State with hilly terrain does not suffer from a major problem from floods, However, due to heavy rain, flash floods may be caused resulting in river bank erosion and some local damage. In Meghalaya, Natural hazards and related issues of Meghalayafloods occur in river valleys, when flow exceeds the capacity of the river channel, particularly at bends or meanders. The plain areas of Meghalaya adjoining Assam are affected by flood due to the back flow of water from the River Brahmaputra during the flood season between June and October. The tributaries like Krishnai, Jinari, Jingjiram, Rongai, Dudhnoi, Ringgi, Gohai, Dilni etc cause flood in the plain areas of the State.

Landsides

Meghalaya being a hilly terrain is prone to landslides. Every year a number of landslides have been reported from various localities. These cause a lot of miseries to public, resulting in loss of lives and properties, disruption of communication network, besides causing economic burden on the society. Landslide is primarily attributed to high slope, immature geology, neo-tectonic activity, heavy rainfall, unplanned and improper land use practice in the State. Landslides generally occur during heavy rains, that is during the months of June to October in Meghalaya.

Southern part of Meghalaya is more susceptible to Landslides than the Northern Part. National Highways like Bajengdoba-Tura-Dalu, Damra–Siju-Baghmara, Guwahati – Shillong- Tamabil, and Shillong- Jowai- Badarpur are prone to landslides.

Landslide occurred frequently at Sonapur on Shillong- Jowai- Badarpur Road, but now the problem has been mitigated by constructing a tunnel for the vehicular traffic. Urban areas of Shillong and Tura, Jowai are also prone to landslides due to the faulty Construction of Houses and rapid Urbanization.

Lightning and Hailstorms

Lightning occurs during the monsoon months and can strike at any place. Hailstorm generally occurs in the pre and post monsoon months. Some loss of crops lives and properties due to lightning and hailstorms are reported in the state.

Hazard Specific Mitigation Plan

The State Disaster Management Authority was established in the State under the Chairmanship of the Chief Minister with 8 other members under section 14 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 by a Government notification dated 26th June, 2008. It is the apex body for disaster management in the State.

The State Executive Committee headed by the Chief Secretary with 4 other Secretaries as members was also set up to assist the State Disaster Management Authority in the performance of its functions.

The District Disaster Management Authorities under the Chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioners and Chief Executive Members of the District Councils as Co-Chairmen with 5 District Officials as members were also set up for the better management of disasters in the Districts.

Similarly at the Block and Village levels Block Disaster Management Committee and the Village Disaster Management Committee were set up headed by the respective Block Development Officers and the Village Headmen. The State Disaster Management Authority, has set uMock drill by NGO’sMock drill by NGO’sp a State Disaster Management Secretariat in 2010 which is located in the Office of the Director of Land Records and Surveys, Lower Lachumere, Shillong. The day to day functioning of the SDMA is looked after by the Executive Officer of the Secretariat.

Functions of SDMA

Framing of Disaster Management Policy and the preparation of the State Disaster Management Plan, reviewing the preparedness, prevention, mitigation and capacity building measures in the State.

Activities of SDMA

The preparedness, prevention, mitigation and capacity building programmes.

The Disaster Risk Reduction Project funded by the UNDP which focuses on the awareness programmes, capacity building, strengthening of the disaster management institutions are being implemented in the three districts of East Khasi Hills. West Garo Hills and the Jaintia Hills, While the Urban Risk Reduction Programme is being implemented in the capital city Shillong through the SDMA Secretariat the Capacity Building Programme is under the 13th Finance Commission.  Besides, Hazard Risk Vulnerability Assessment (HRVA) will also be carried out for the Shillong city and the West Garo Hills through North Eastern Space Application Centre, Umiam.

State Disaster Response Fund is available for management of disasters in the State. An advance amount from the fund is made available to the Deputy Commissioners to meet any emergency arising out of disasters.

 

 

 

06.02.18 Meghalaya(MeghalayaPSC) Current Affairs

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NORTH-EASTERN STATES

  • IOC to invest Rs 3,400 crore in Assam to augment operations

 

  • Indian Oil Corporation will invest Rs3,400 crore in Assam over the next five years to expand its operations by setting up new units as well as upgrading the existing ones.
  • The company will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Assam Government to this effect at the two-day ‘Advantage Assam – Global Investors Summit 2018’, beginning in Guwahati.
  • They are signing an MoU with the state government that will empower us to invest Rs 3,400 crore in Assam over the next five years.
  • This will be for various projects across the state,” Indian Oil Corporation, Executive Director (IndianOil-AOD), Dipankar Ray.

 

 

 

INTERNATIONAL

 

  • Maldives declares state of emergency

 

  • Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen has declared a 15-day state of Emergency, his aide Azima Shukoor announced on state television.

 

  • The move gives sweeping powers to security forces to arrest and detain suspects as Yameen refuses to comply with a Supreme Court order to release political prisoners.

 

  • The latest crisis was triggered when the Maldivian Supreme Court ordered the release of some opposition leaders, including former president Mohammed Nasheed, after overturning their “terrorism” convictions.

 

 

  • Dubai named the world’s busiest International Airport

 

  • Dubai International Airport says it has held on to its No 1 ranking as the world’s busiest airport for ‘international travel’, after seeing some 88.2 million passengers in 2017.

  • Dubai International Airport first surpassed London Heathrow as the world’s busiest airport for international traffic in 2014.

 

  • It has maintained the title ever since, with some 90 airlines flying into skyscraper-studded Dubai.

 

  • The airport is home to the long-haul carrier Emirates.

 

  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia remains the world’s busiest airport overall.

 

 

·        Japan Launches Smallest Rocket Ever To Carry Tiny Satellite into Orbit

 

  • The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)launched the world’s smallest rocket with the ability to put a tiny satellite into orbit.
  • The rocket lifted off from the Uchinoura Space Center.
  • It carried a microsatellite TRICOM-1R, a three-unit CubeSat weighing about 3 kilograms.
  • This satellite launch was a re-flight of the TRICOM-1 mission, which was lost in SS-520’s failure in 2017.
  • The launch was aimed at testing the ability of JAXA to launch low-cost rockets that can put microsatellites into space at affordable rates.

 

NATIONAL

 

·        India contributes $1 million to UN Development Partnership Fund

 

  • India contributed additional $1 million to India-UN Development Partnership Fund, earmarked for South-South cooperation.
  • The contribution aims to intensify its partnerships with other developing countries in the south.
  • India has pledged a multi-year contribution of $100 million to the fund establishment in June 2017.
  • The fund was set up on 9 June 2017 on occasion of the World Oceans Day as a partnership between India and United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation.

·        International company Singtel to invest 2649 crores in Bharati Telecom

 

  • Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) spend up to 2643 crores on shares in India’s Bharti Telecom, lifting its stake slightly in the holding company for Bharti Airtel to just under half.
  • India’s telecommunications sector has been hit hard by a price war since the entry of carrier Reliance Jio, the telecoms arm of Reliance Industries Ltd, more than a year ago.
  • The purchase worth as much as 26.5 billion rupees could increase Singtel’s stake in Bharti Telecom by up to 1.7 percentage points to 48.9 percent and its holding in Bharti Airtel, the country’s biggest mobile carrier, by up to 0.9 percentage points to 39.5 percent.
  • The deal will be done via a preferential share allotment.

 

 

  • Maharashtra govt approves new wildlife sanctuary at Ghodazari

 

  • The Maharashtra government has approved Ghodazari in Chandrapur district as a new wildlife sanctuary in the state.

 

  • The decision was taken at the 13th meeting of the Maharashtra State Board for Wildlife, chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

 

  • The sanctuary, in the North East of Tadoba, will include 159 sq km of Brahmapuri forest.

 

·        India Successfully Test-Fires Nuclear-Capable Agni-I Missile

 

  • India successfully test-fired the indigenously developed short-range nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile.
  • The missile was fired from the Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha coast.
  • The test was conducted by the Strategic Force Command of the Indian Army.
  • The range of Missile is 700 km.
  • It was 18th version of Agni-I.

 

 

·        Prime Minister Narendra Modi to go on 4-day visit to Palestine, UAE, Oman on February 9

 

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modiwill have a packed schedule during his four days visit to Palestine, UAE, and Oman from ninth of this month.
  • This will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Palestine, and Prime Minister Modi’s second visit to UAE and first to Oman.
  • During the visit, the Prime Minister will hold discussions on matters of mutual interest with their leaders, apart from participating in many community events.
  • In Dubai, Prime Minister would be addressing the Sixth World Government Summit being at which India has been extended ‘Guest of Honour’ status. Joint Secretary (Gulf).

 

  • IWAI Signs Project Agreement With World Bank For Jal Marg Vikas Project.

 

 

  • Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI)signed a project agreement with the World Bank for Jal Marg Vikas Project on river Ganga.
  • The World Bank entered into a USD 375 million loan agreement with the Department of Economic Affairs, Union Ministry of Finance for Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP).
  • Jal Marg Vikas Project, which is expected to be completed by March 2023, is being implemented with the financial and technical support of the World Bank.

 

30.01.18 Meghalaya(MeghalayaPSC) Current Affairs

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NORTH-EASTERN STATES

  • Territorial integrity of North eastern states won’t be compromised: Rajnath

 

  • Territorial integrity of Assam and other northeastern states will not be compromised when the final Naga peace accord is inked, home minister Rajnath Singh assured Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal.

 

  • The insurgent group NSCN-IM’s key demand is to integrate the Naga-inhabited areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur, which has been strongly opposed by the three states, currently ruled by the BJP.

 

  • The NSCN-IM has been engaged with peace talks with the interlocutor of the central government since 1997 when it announced a ceasefire agreement after a bloody insurgency movement which started in Nagaland soon after the country’s Independence. 

     

    INTERNATIONAL

     

    • ‘Aadhaar’ is Oxford’s first Hindi word of the year

     

    • Dictionaries at the Jaipur Literature Festival.

     

    • ‘Aadhaar’ also becomes the first Oxford Dictionaries Hindi Word of the Year.

     

    • The accompanying shortlisted words include Notebandi, Swachh, Vikaas, Yoga and Bahubali.

     

    ·        India Cheapest Country To Live In After South Africa: Survey

     

    • India is ranked second only to South Africa as the cheapest country to live or retire, according to a recent survey of 112 countries by GoBankingRates.
    • The survey ranked nations on the bases of four key affordability metrics. The metrics are Local purchasing power index, rent index, Groceries index, and Consumer price index.
    • India’s local purchasing power is 20.9% lower, rent is 95.2% cheaper, groceries are 74.4% cheaper, local goods and services are 74.9% cheaper.
    • The top three most expensive countries in the survey are Bermuda (ranked 112), Bahamas (111), and Hong Kong (110).

     

     

    NATIONAL

     

    ·        Economic Survey 2018:  Brief Summary

     

    • The Economic Survey, an annual publication of the Finance Ministry, is presented in both houses of Parliament during the Budget Session. It is a review of the developments in the country’s economy over the previous one year.
    • Sticking to the practice started last year, finance minister Arun Jaitley will present Union Budget 2018 on 1 February.
    • It presents a summary of the performance of the government’s major development programmes undertaken during that period.
    • It also details the main policy initiatives of the government.

     

    • The  Survey sees FY19 GDPgrowing 7-7.5% vs 75% in FY18.

     

    • The Due to higher expected increase in imports, net exports of goods and services are slated to decline in 2017-18.

     

    • The Exports biggest source of the boost to growth.

     

    • It points out that the GDP growth has averaged 7.3% for the period from 2014-15 to 2017-18, which is the highest among the major economies of the world.

     

    • Demonetisation helped share of financial saving to rise.

     

    • The ratio of domestic saving to GDP reached 29.2 percent in 2013 to a peak of 38.3 percent in 2007, before falling back to 29 percent in 2016.

     

    • The Sanitation coverage in rural India increased substantially from 39 percent in 2014 to 76 percent in January 2018. With the launch of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) on October 2, 2014, the sanitation coverage in rural India increased substantially.

     

    • So far, 296 districts and 307,349 villages all over India have been declared Open Defecation Free (ODF).

     

    • India is gradually improving its performance in Science and Technology. In 2013, India ranked 6th in the world in scientific publications. Its ranking has been increasing consistently. The growth of annual publications between 2009 to 2014 was almost 14%. This increased India’s share in global publications from 3.1% in 2009 to 4.4% in 2014 as per the Scopus Database.

     

    • The foreign exchange reserves grew by 14.1% on a year-on-year basis from the end of Dec 2016 to end of Dec 2017.

     

    • The forex reserves as per 2016-17 were estimated at USD 370 billion. It grew to USD 409.4 billion in 2017-18.

     

     

     

    ·        VINBAX: India and Vietnam hold first military exercise in Jabalpur

     

    • The India-Vietnam Bilateral Army Exercise (VINBAX-2018)was conducted at Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh.
    • It is the first military exercise between the two countries.
    • The six-day-long military exercise (from January 29 to February 3, 2018) was conducted as part of joint training undertaken with friendly foreign countries by Indian Army.
    • VINBAX-2018 was Table Top Exercise to carry out training for Peace Keeping Operations under United Nations (UN) mandate.
    • The Defence ties between India and Vietnam have been on an upswing with the primary focus being cooperation in the maritime domain.

    ·        International Bird Festival To Be Held In Dudhwa National Park

     

    • A three-day international bird festivalwill be held at the Dudhwa National Park, Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh in February 2018 with nearly 200 leading ornithologists expected to attend.
    • The purpose of the international bird festival is to promote eco-tourism in Dudhwa and to give it a distinct international identity besides highlighting its traditional Tharu arts, culture, and heritage.

     

    ·        Asias biggest auto testing track inaugurated in Madhya Pradesh

     

    • Union Minister Babul Supriyo and Madhya Pradesh Industrial minister Rajendra Shukla inaugurated Asia’s biggest auto testing track in Pithampur of Dhar district, Madhya Pradesh.
    • The country’s research and development activities in the sector of automobile engineering and technology will get a boost, due to the construction of the auto testing track in Pithampur.
    • Pithampur will emerge as a hub of the automobile industry in future.
    • Union Minister further mentioned that the state government has provided 4 thousand acre land to NATRiP and the National Auto Testing Track has been developed on 3 thousand acre land.
    • Automobile units can be established by the industrialists on the remaining one thousand acre land.

     

    ·        Sandeep Lamichhane Becomes 1st Nepal Player To Get IPL Contract

     

    • Sandeep Lamichhane became the first cricketer from Nepal to land a deal an IPL contract.
    • He was picked by Delhi Daredevils in the player’s auction.
    • The 17-year-old, the only Nepal player in the IPL auction, was sold at his base price of Rs 20 lakh.
    • The leg-spinner rose to prominence with a successful outing at the 2016 U-19 World Cup where he guided Nepal to a creditable eighth place.
    • He hogged the limelight by becoming the second-highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 14 scalps in six innings.

Irrigation and hydro power of Meghalaya

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Irrigation and hydro power of Meghalaya

Bamboo irrigation in Meghalaya

In Meghalaya (one of the seven northeastern states in India), an ingenious system of tapping of stream and springwater by using bamboo pipes to irrigate plantations is widely prevalent. It is so perfected that about 18-20 litres of water entering the bamboo pipe system per minute gets transported over several hundred metres and finally gets reduced to 20-80 drops per minute at the site of the plant. The tribal farmers of Khasi and Jaintia hills use the 200-year-old system.Irrigation and hydro power of Meghalaya

Dating back 200 years, tribes in Meghalaya have used bamboo drip irrigation as a means of bringing water to seasonal crops. This traditional technology uses locally available material while harnessing the forces of gravity. Holed bamboo shoots are placed downhill, diverting the natural flow of streams and springs across terraced cropland. The advantages of using bamboo are such that it prevents leakage, increases crop yield with less water, and makes use of natural, local, and inexpensive material.

The Jaintia, Khasi, and Garo hills of Meghalaya are largely made up of steep slopes and generally rocky terrain where the soil has low water retention capacity and where the use of groundwater channels is impossible. During the dry seasons, rain fed crops such as paddy, betel leaf, and black peppers can be irrigated by bamboo drip irrigation.

The bamboo drip irrigation system is normally used to irrigate the betel leaf or black pepper crops planted in arecanut orchards or in mixed orchards. Bamboo pipes are used to divert perennial springs on the hilltops to the lower reaches by gravity. The channel sections, made of bamboo, divert and convey water to the plot site where it is distributed without leakage into branches, again made and laid out with different forms of bamboo pipes. Manipulating the intake pipe positions also controls the flow of water into the lateral pipes. Reduced channel sections and diversion units are used at the last stage of water application. The last channel section enables the water to be dropped near the roots of the plan.

 

Bench terrace Irrigation practice

This is the common irrigation practice in Meghalaya as well as throughout the North East Himalayan region. The hill streams are tapped as soon as they emerge from the forests and the water is channeled to accommodate a series of terraces. In this system, water flows continuously from the upper to lower terraces. This method of irrigation practice is widely used for non-fertile land to be utilized for raising rice crops. Stone and gunny bags help in the maintenance of terraces and stop soil erosion problems. Submergence of water up to 5 – 8 cm is maintained continuously throughout the year. After harvesting, ear head of rice is plucked and the straw is left as such in the field, which then gets rotted and helps improving soil fertility. Mostly all farm operation is done manually; bullock power is used for field preparations only in some pockets of Meghalaya.  Bench terracing is an important conservation measure for valleys and hill slopes. This is used predominantly for rice cultivation. In bench terrace agriculture practice under rainfed condition, topo-sequence crops such as maize, bean and potato are planted on upper slopes and crop requiring more water such as rice and jute are grown on lower slopes. The excess runoff from upper portion of slope is nutrient rich, utilized for the lower hill crops.

Hydro power in Meghalaya

Meghalaya is rich in potential water power resources, hydro power has played an important role in the state’s energy policy.

Small Hydro Power

In a move that aims to address the power requirements of the Megahlaya, as many as 50 mini and micro hydel power projects have been identified to be set up in different districts of the state.

The projects which have already been commissioned include Sonapani on Wahumkhra-Umshyrpi river, Pashyiang Micro HEP on Barim river and Umsaw Micro HEP on Umsaw river. The Lakhroh Micro HEP on Lakhroh river in Jaintia Hills district is under construction.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has also identified 37 mini and micro hydel projects in the state with a cumulative power generation capacity of around 8.5 MW. Out of the total 37 projects, elecven project sites are located in West Garo Hills, South Garo Hills and East Garo Hills districts; nine of them in West Khasi Hills district; eight in East Khasi Hills district; six in the Jaintia Hills district and three in Ri Bhoi district.

Some of the hydro power projects in Meghalaya are as follows:

Myntdu-Leshka Hydro Project

The Myntdu-Leshka Hydro Project Dam (3X42 MW)[2] built across the river, undertaken by MeECL, scheduled in three phases, is located at Leshka, West Jaintia Hills district, Meghalaya near Amlarem, the sub-division headquarters. The project cost is estimated to be around INR 360 crores.

Umiam Hydro Power Complex

All the power stations are in the Umtru River which flows to the north into the mighty Brahmaputra. Running adjacent to this river are two other rivers viz. the Umiam and the Khri. Water from the Umiam basin is diverted into the adjacent Umtru basin thus enhancing the water flow of the Umtru River where all four power stations are constructed. In a similar manner, the water from the Khri River is also intended to be diverted to the existing reservoirs at the Umtru River to further enhance the power generation at the existing system.

 

Horticulture in Meghalaya

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Horticulture in Meghalaya

Meghalaya has three factors conducive for the development of horticulture – vast land suitable for horticulture development, diversity in agro-climatic factors making cultivation of an array of crops feasible and established tradition of horticulture activity making further expansion easy.

A large extent of land is available in the form of fallows, cultivable waste and miscellaneous tree crops. Most of this land is in hill slopes and is more suitable for plantation and fruit crops than traditional agricultural crops. With diversity in elevation, temperature, topography and rainfall a variety of horticultural crops can be grown.

Meghalaya has a long history of growing horticultural crops. Potato, Pineapple, orange, turmeric, ginger and areca nut are grown traditionally and besides these crops, a variety of new crops like tea, cashew and strawberry have been introduced. Most of the land used for these crops is not suitable for traditional agricultural crops like cereals, pulses, oil seeds and fibres. With the introduction of Horticulture in MeghalayaHorticulture Mission for North Eastern & Himalayan States, a lot of area expansion has taken place, but the programme has had little impact on marketing and processing. This can be taken as a potential for future development of the sector.

Strategy

  • Cluster approach to strengthen the existing concentration of crops. For each crop post harvest management and value chain management will be given emphasis so that additional income and employment will be generated in the State itself.
  • New technologies in Post-Harvest infrastructure like grading, packaging, ripening chambers will be introduced for the major crops in areas of their concentrations. As it is difficult to attract huge investment to start large scale processing units, small scale and cottage units will be encouraged and support will be provided for them.
  • Farmers associations (FPOs & FIGs, etc) will be promoted for development of horticulture as a holistic approach.
  • Convergence with other programmes will be established for optimising the resource use.
  • Demonstration of new technologies and crop management practices are being taken up with farmers and other stakeholders.

Quality planting material production

As good quality planting material is the backbone of any horticultural economy, this is one of the most important issues to be addressed, especially since there has been tremendous expansion of cultivation (under convergent schemes like the RKVY, BRGF, NREGS in addition to the normal schemes of the Department) and since around 60% of planting material is imported into the State either from nurseries in other States or from outside the country, resulting in increased production costs and draining of valuable foreign exchange. Moreover, the bulk of supply is from small, unregistered nurseries where quality is difficult to enforce.

The State will seek the involvement of the private sector through the establishment of nurseries, which could be registered and affiliated with the NHB and other recognised agencies, so that quality standards are adhered to and a system of surveillance and certification of the operating standards and planting material are put in place.

It is envisged that this will usher in income-earning opportunities for retired Departmental officers and entrepreneurial avenues for fresh unemployed graduates. The Planting Material Production Centres (PMPCs) set up with grants from the 13th Finance Commission, will produce quality planting material for new crops like strawberry, kiwi, raspberry and blackberry as well as for traditonal crops like potato, cashew, citrus (orange and sweet oranges), pineapple, spices (turmeric, ginger, black pepper) and temperate fruits. These PMPCs will be geared to cater not only to the planting material needs of their own clusters, but also to the needs of the other districts of the State as well as other States of the North East. The objective, in the long run, is to turn Meghalaya into a planting material destination for the entire North East.

 

Area expansion

Model orchards : There are a number of unique fruit crops which are indigenous to the State with tremendous commercial potential, but which have never been properly utilized due to the lack of organized cultivation. The area under many of these crops is declining and some are on the verge of extinction. Keeping in view the need to preserve the horticultural heritage of the State and to provide for the commercial cultivation and exploitation of these crops, there is an imperative need to demonstrate the economic viability of these crops through the establishment of model orchards. In order to make these model orchards successful, for emulation by the farming community, and to ensure their continuity, it is proposed that the orchards be set up within and in conjunction with the integrated farming proposed to be implemented in the micro-watersheds.

Theme villages : The remarkable success achieved in the ‘’Strawberry Village’’ of Sohliya in the Ri Bhoi district will be transferred to different crops and villages of the State. At least 1000 farmers in each such area will be motivated to take up cultivation of selected crops – Orchid Valley in Zikzak horti-hub area, Kiwi Village in the uplands in the vicinity of Shillong, Strawberry Villages in other districts, Citrus Hills in the Nokrek range, Pineapple Hills in the Chibinang area, etc.

Rejuvenation of citrus & cashew: The senile plantations of citrus and cashew will be brought under systematic and scientific rejuvenation to restore the profitability of these traditional crops for the benefit of this group of farmers, especially considering the potential for export of these crops to neighboring Bangladesh.

Post harvest management and processing

Meghalaya is predominantly a horticultural state where a wide range of fruit crops both indigenous and exotic are grown abundantly in different altitudes of the State. During the peak season of harvest the State experiences glut in the market and the farmers are not getting remunerative prices for their produces. To overcome the said problem the State had established two processing centres located in Shillong, East Khasi Hills district and Dainadubi in North Garo Hills district.

The objectives of these Centres were to demonstrate, develop value addition technology for the farmers and entrepreneurs of the State. These two Processing Centres are being upgraded and the products marketed as MEG brand. The Department had initiated programme on modernization of arecanut soakage tanks traditionally practiced by the farmers. These improved technologies have generated additional livelihood to the arecanut growers of the state. The Lakadong variety of Turmeric has high Curcumin content between 7 to 8 percent. Capitalizing on the potential of the turmeric grown in the State the Government had taken step to improve the processing technology adopted by the farmers. Effort is being made to attract private investment in the PHM sector by scaling up volume of production, especially targeting niche markets outside the country and setting up of scientific modern storage facilities across the state Traditional crops like ginger, turmeric, pineapple, citrus, potato and vegetables are the mainstay of a majority of the farmers of the State.

Marketing infrastructure

Farmers markets, implemented during the 11th Plan, will be expanded to cover more areas within the State during the 12th Plan, where farmers market will be tried on the hub and spoke model – large central markets and satellite markets in their hinterland. The effective functioning of farmers markets depends to a large extent on the flow and easy availability of market related information to enable farmers to take proper and profitable market decisions based on reliable real time data. Market information system is thus a crucial and urgent intervention that would be made in order to make Farmers Markets viable and vibrant entities leading to the evolution of a much more transparent marketing system.

 

Migration of Meghalaya

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Migration of Meghalaya

Migration is a common phenomenon in developing country like India as well as the state of Meghalaya. North-East India has experienced two massive immigration waves in historical period of time. At the time of independence of India and formation of Bangladesh, Meghalaya also has experienced a significant proportion of immigration from Bangladesh. Meghalaya and others North-Eastern state has experienced a large scale illegal immigration from Bangladesh which effect on social harmony and social well-being.Migration of Meghalaya

Rural to urban migration

In recent time each part of our country as well as Meghalaya also has experienced high volume of rural to urban out-migration. Percentage of scheduled tribe population in India has recorded 8.02% in 2001 whereas Meghalaya has recorded 85.9%. The present study aims to analyse pattern of out-migration at district and state level.

Poverty and migration corelation in Meghalaya

Despite the wage difference between remote areas and towns, there is hardly any migration of unskilled poor workers to the towns. There may be many factors that distinguish Meghalaya from mainland India in this respect. Firstly, the character of the urban work force in the Northeast, unlike other urban centres, is not primarily in manufacturing, but in the services sector, implying existence of either government servants or a largely self-owned and self-managed business sector, with family labour and minimal hired labour. Secondly, opportunities for unskilled wage labour in the urban areas beyond construction are limited. In construction too, contractors prefer Oriya or Bihari labour, and the locals lose out in preference. And lastly, first generation migration requires some previous history of migration from the same village, and in its absence push factor does not work well.

There are additional problems of sustainability arising from rural – urban migration and the fragility of marriage, combined with men’s lack of responsibility for children. The upper sections of the villages, who are the families with larger forest holdings, are also the ones who invest in urban areas, and whose families tend to migrate to the cities. At one level this transfer of rural surpluses to urban investment since it remains within the same ethnic political unit, is not a loss to the local economy. But at another level such transfer of timber income also can mean that the families involved in such migration may not be so concerned about the longer sustainability of forest income.

 

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