By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, April 28: Following Governor Chandrashekhar H Vijayashankar’s assent to the Meghalaya Official Languages Ordinance, 2026, the state government has begun framing rules to implement Khasi and Garo as official languages alongside English.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong stated that the ordinance will be tabled in the Assembly for regularisation during the August-September session.
The Meghalaya Official Languages Ordinance, 2026 (Ordinance No. 1 of 2026), was promulgated on Monday under Article 213(1) of the Constitution as the State Legislative Assembly is currently not in session. The ordinance has been published in the Extraordinary Gazette of Meghalaya.
Under the new provisions, English, Khasi, and Garo will serve as official languages for state purposes from a date to be notified by the government. However, English will remain the language of all civil and criminal courts.
Similarly, proceedings in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly will continue in English under the Meghalaya State Legislature (Continuance of the English Language) Act, 1980.
The ordinance empowers the state government to specify the use of official languages across different administrative levels and regions. District, sub-divisional, and block-level offices in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills Division will use English and Khasi, while similar offices in the Garo Hills Division will use English and Garo. English will remain the medium for inter-district communication.
The state clarified that the constitutional rights of various linguistic groups regarding the medium of instruction in educational institutions remain protected. With the promulgation of this ordinance, the Meghalaya State Language Act, 2005, stands repealed.
