SHILLONG: Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Thursday attended the World Economic Summit at the Taj Diplomatic Enclave Hotel in New Delhi and highlighted the plan of the government to start the smart village project.
He spoke about the project during a panel discussion on ‘Union of States’.
Explaining the diverse situation within India, the chief minister said, “Even though we are one country, every region has its own economy and challenges. There are lots of different stories.”
He said that every state should consider on its strengths. “We face a lot of challenges, and we might disagree with the central government, but we need to work out what we do best. Meghalaya, for example, is pioneering a concept called smart villages using technology to improve quality of life in these villages,” he said.
The panelists deliberated on the theme – “From Kashmir and Kanyakumari to Kohima and Kutch, India is witnessing one of the largest national urban transformations of the 21st century. How can cities, states and regions advance structural reforms, address inequality and be engines of growth?”
Besides the chief minister, other panelists were Mekapati Goutham Reddy, Minister for Industries, Commerce and Information Technology, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Amarinder Singh, Chief Minister of Punjab, KT Rama Rao, Minister for IT, Industries, Government of Telangana and Kamal Nath, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.
The chief minister explained that smart village is a community empowered by digital technologies and open innovation platforms to access global market.
“The initiative will provide good education and healthcare, access to clean water, sanitation and nutrition, the growth of productive enterprises to boost income and enhanced security, gender equality and democratic engagement, which will enable people to live in their respective villages,” the chief minister said.
Meghalaya is set to start the smart village initiative and at least 100 villages will be selected for implementation of the project. Elaborating the concept of smart village, he said, “Through the initiative, Meghalaya aims to increase the overall standard of living and quality of life, simultaneously creating economic, social, and environmental value.”
The initiative will work on intervention for the prosperity of the community through business model innovation approach, generating sustainable business models to provide a holistic development of the villages.
Recently, the chief minister was at the University of Berkeley in California, where an MoU between Meghalaya and the University was inked for a partnership for five years where Prof. Solomon Darwin and the smart village team will be committed to make selected villages in Meghalaya smarter.
