By Azera Rahman, IANS
New Delhi : Upgrading the civil airport, building a multi-speciality hospital and boosting tourism — Meghalaya is all set for a makeover with these and more initiatives, says Chief Minister D.D. Lapang.
“Accessibility to the north east is a major challenge. For this reason, we wanted the Shillong airport to be upgraded and I had a word with the civil aviation authorities in this regard.
“I am happy that the authorities have agreed to it. After upgradation, communication will become a lot easier. For instance, people can take a flight to Bangkok and reach in just two hours,” Lapang told IANS in an interview here.
Building a multi-speciality hospitality is another initiative on Lapang’s agenda.
“The northeast and especially Meghalaya needs a good hospital. I have had a word with Health and Family Welfare Minister Anbumani Ramadoss and he has given a positive response. To start with, Rs.80 million will be invested in this venture,” Lapang said.
Various well-known hospitals across the country are going to provide expertise for the development of different departments in the proposed hospital.
The Christian Medical College in Vellore, the Shankar Nethralaya in Chennai and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi are some of the hospitals whose advice and expertise will be sought.
Talking about education, Lapang said the fact that northeastern youth are scattered across the nation, working shoulder to shoulder with their counterparts from the rest of the country in different professions, proves that there is no dearth of talent in this region.
“What is actually lacking is good educational infrastructure. That’s why we are planning to set up good educational institutes, awarding higher degrees and open up more industries here so that we don’t lose our youth, not only of Meghalaya but of the entire northeast.
“For instance, there are so many northeastern youth in Bangalore and Delhi working in the information technology industry. By trying to open up various other industries here, we can probably prevent further brain drain,” he said.
In a move towards achieving this aim, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in state capital Shillong has agreed to award postgraduate degrees to the students there.
The coal industry, in which mining techniques need to be modernised, thermal power and hydel power projects are all on the radar to attract more investors to the region.
“Five hydel power projects have been commissioned in Meghalaya. There are 40 companies who have come forth to invest in the hydel power projects in the state and we expect even better response in the future,” Lapang said.
The food processing industry is another focal point of the development plan. Meghalaya is famous for its pineapples, oranges, strawberries and other fruits. The food processing industry is growing in the state.
“But more needs to be done,” the chief minister said. “Our success is nominal in comparison to what can be achieved.”
Boosting the state tourism is yet another of Lapang’s aims.
“Meghalaya has a number of beautiful lakes and water bodies. But these are known only among the locals. They have the potential of attracting a large number of tourists. That’s why we are working towards further beautification of these places and starting water sports.
“Also we want privatisation of the tourism industry. We want that people should be trained in places like Thailand who have managed their tourism industry incredibly well. Besides other places, the Gulf is our main target as people from there love this place,” he said.
Talking about the overall situation in Meghalaya, Lapang said he had found music to be one of the main unifying factors there. He referred to the popularity of Amit Paul — one of the finalists of the singing talent show “Indian Idol” — who hails from the state.
“Generally the tribals don’t support the non-tribals of the state but Amit Paul’s voice changed all of that. When he sang, the whole state stood united and sang with him. That’s why we conferred upon him the title of ambassador of peace. No wonder people say music transcends barriers. It definitely has in Meghalaya.”