SHILLONG: In 2018 the abode of cloud saw many ups and downs while often hitting the international headlines for both positive as well as negative incidents.
This year, Meghalaya was in the news for the fact that a new geological time scale was named after the state. The Meghalayan Age refers to a period that began 4,200 years ago and experienced an abrupt mega-drought and cooling around the globe. The proof of the Meghalayan Age was found while studying the chemical make-up of a stalagmite in the state. Another positive development was that the previous MUA government approved the amendment in the Meghalaya Registration of Birth and Death Rules, 1999, paving the way for recognition of transgender in line with the apex court order. The amendment was made to ensure that the option of male, female and third gender should be available in birth and death registration forms provided by the departments concerned.
In a show of political unity, the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly earlier this year unanimously passed a resolution to urge the Centre to include Khasi and Garo languages in the Eighth Schedule.
However, the government recently convened a special session to modify the resolution and it was again passed unanimously in the House.
More than 46 years after achieving statehood, the new NPP-led MDA government this year finally approved the state education policy. The policy places the learner as the focal point and it covers broad areas which include vision, overall goal and goals for the development of early childhood care and education, elementary, secondary, higher secondary and teacher education.
Apart from the usual politics, many important meeting and developmental activities also took place in the state which helped Meghalaya to plan its development in a better way and Shillong also hosted the 67th Plenary session of the NEC that was attended by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
During the session, Singh said the road to ‘New India’ will go through a developed and peaceful ‘New North East’ even as he added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a dream of New India by 2022.
Apart from the Plenary session of the NEC, Union Minister of Road and Transport Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the Jowai-Ratacherra two-lane road project and he also reviewed the progress of national highways in the region. During the meeting, he informed that road projects worth around Rs 1 lakh 90 thousand crores are being implemented in NE.
This year, Meghalaya lost a tall leader as Congress legislator from Selsella Clement Marak died in a hospital in New Delhi after suffering a brief illness. Apart from Marak, senior Congress leader and former Meghalaya Governor MM Jacob died in a private hospital near Kottayam. He was the governor from 1995 to 2007.
