+913642224282 cmomeghalaya@gmail.com


Tura | Friday | 28th March 2025: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, today, attended the SPARK Summit 2025 held at the District Auditorium, Tura. The summit marked the celebration of a year of milestones under the SPARK Programme (School Programmes in Articulation, Resilience, and Kindness), an initiative of the Department of Education, Government of Meghalaya, under Samagra Shiksha.

H M Shangpliang, Advisor to the Government of Meghalaya, Department of Education; Swapnil Tembe, Secretary, Education and Director of School Education & Literacy and State Project Director, SEMAM-SSA; Jagdish Chelani, Deputy Commissioner, West Garo Hills along with Principals of various schools in Garo Hills region and other dignitaries were also present.

In his speech, the Chief Minister emphasized that the primary purpose of education is not merely academic excellence but also personality development, confidence building, and nurturing life skills among students. He stated that the SPARK initiative has proven how simple yet focused interventions in communication, soft skills, positive thinking, and kindness can significantly transform young minds.

He reiterated that in today’s world, communication, articulation, resilience and a positive attitude are as important as academic qualifications and added that the SPARK initiative is equipping students with these vital skills to prepare them for future challenges.

He also shared how the SPARK programme has brought visible changes in students’ behaviour, confidence, and academic engagement across schools in West Garo Hills. He specifically mentioned how the programme has helped in breaking inhibitions among students, improving their speaking abilities and developing critical thinking.

The Chief Minister assured that the Government of Meghalaya is deeply committed to strengthening the education sector and will continue to support innovative initiatives like SPARK to bridge learning gaps and nurture well-rounded individuals.

Speaking on the role of teachers and schools he appreciated the dedicated efforts of teachers and school leaders in making the programme successful and encouraged them to sustain the momentum. He urged teachers to lead by example and inspire students to adopt the principles of kindness, discipline, and resilience in their daily lives.

The Chief Minister through a detailed presentation shared his vision of building a generation of confident, kind, and responsible citizens who will contribute positively to society. He mentioned that initiatives like SPARK are in line with the broader goals of the government’s education policy focused on holistic learning, emotional well-being and leadership development. He also encouraged parents, community leaders and local bodies to actively engage with schools and support programmes like SPARK to ensure that the values of kindness, resilience and articulation are inculcated at home and in the community.

The Chief Minister concluded by stating that the Government will explore scaling up the SPARK initiative to other districts, making it a model programme for holistic student development across Meghalaya.

Advisor H M Shangpliang, in his address, commended the efforts of teachers and students under SPARK and encouraged schools to continue fostering positive values and skill-building among children.

Earlier in the programme, Secretary and State Project Director Swapnil Tembe presented the SPARK Outcomes Report, sharing insights into the key achievements of the initiative.

The programme had testimonials from students and teachers who shared their experiences and the impact of SPARK on their personal and academic growth.

The summit also highlighted the “Plasticured” initiative in collaboration with AI-VI.IN, Bangalore, encouraging responsible resource use and sustainable practices among students.

The programme concluded with the distribution of tablets and felicitation of school principals, teachers, and students for their leadership and achievements under SPARK. Cultural performances by students of Dadenggre Puri Government Higher Secondary School and Government Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Tura, added vibrancy to the event.

Initiatives : Agriculture

Launch of “Restart Meghalaya Mission’ on 15th August 2020

The Mission comprise of a series of interventions to support farmers and entrepreneurs by enabling them to build growth-promoting basic infrastructure and services. Under this Mission, 1917iTEAMS – the IT Platform aimed at enabling farmers access to agricultural information, crop advisories and markets will be expanded logistically through induction of another 100 vehicles.

Creation of the Directorate of Food Processing on May 2018

With the objective of seizing opportunities in the sector and the untapped food processing potential of the state for uplifting the livelihoods of farmers and value chain actors, the Government of Meghalaya created the Directorate of Food Processing (DFP) as a one-stop agency to handle all matters relating to food processing in the state and to deal with all central government Ministries and Agencies (viz. Ministries of Agriculture, and Food Processing, SFAC, NCDC, NABARD, etc.) in all matters pertaining to the development of agricultural food processing sector.

First Ever Farmer’s Parliament held on 4th - 5th December 2018

The parliament was organised by the state department of agriculture in collaboration with Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA) and the Hill Farmers' Union (HFU). As a step toward the promotion of new technologies, HFU with the support of Meghalaya government, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a Machine Learning Artificial Intelligence App for farmers — called Nongrep (nongrep in Khasi language means farmer) with its software partner Impetus Solutions from Hyderabad — as a social innovation project. This app will address matters of farm aggregations, soil health and disease identification, crop yield, farm produce pickups, market linkage and retail sellers app.

Launch of the Farmer’s Portal on 7th May 2018

The Meghalaya Famers’ Portal (www.megfarmers.gov.in) of the Department of Agriculture is a platform for farmers to seek any information related to agriculture. Detailed information on farmers’ insurance, agricultural storage, crops, extension activities, seeds, pesticides, farm machineries, etc. is provided. Details of fertilizers, market prices, package and practices, programmes, welfare schemes are also given.

Awards & Recognitions
  • Meghalaya has been selected for the Commendation award in 'Total foodgrains Category-III' for 2017-18. The award consists of a citation and an amount of Rs. 1 crore.
  • Meghalaya Agriculture Department and the MIE Meghalaya Team won the '7th eNabling North East (eNorth East) Award 2019-20' in the 'Agriculture & Rural Development' category for 1917 iTEAMS project which is a project in collaboration with Digital India.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi awarded Meghalaya on May 2018 the Krishi Commendation Award for the year 2015-16, in recognition of the commendable foodgrains production achieved by the State.
  • Meghalaya has been adjudged the Most Improved Small State in the category of Agriculture and received the India Today – "The State of the States” Award on 23rd November 2018.