Mumbai, Aug 8 (IANS) Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Saturday described the foundation stone laying of a new Meghalaya House in Mumbai as a “dream come true”, thanking the Maharashtra government for helping the state secure prime land in Kharghar for the facility.
Sangma and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis jointly laid the foundation stone for the new Meghalaya House at Kharghar in Navi Mumbai, marking a significant step towards strengthening Meghalaya’s institutional presence in Maharashtra and providing better facilities to people from the northeastern state.
“For us as a State of Meghalaya, today almost feels like a dream,” Sangma said, expressing gratitude to Fadnavis, the Maharashtra Cabinet, officials, CIDCO and the local representatives for supporting the project.
He said the new facility was particularly significant because of the difficulties involved in securing land and space in a major metropolitan city like Mumbai. “At the end of the day, this is not something that we are doing for us; this is for the people of Meghalaya,” Sangma said, underlining the citizen-centric objective of the project.
The Chief Minister highlighted the growing presence of people from Meghalaya in Maharashtra, particularly Mumbai, across healthcare, education, business, music, sports and entrepreneurship. He said the new Meghalaya House would further deepen the relationship between the two states and strengthen the connection between their people.
The existing Meghalaya House at Vashi, established in 2008, has only 12 rooms and has been facing increasing demand, particularly from patients and attendants travelling to Mumbai for treatment at Tata Memorial Hospital. Students, government officials, entrepreneurs, sportspersons and tourists from Meghalaya also use the facility.
The new Meghalaya House will come up on 2,071.67 square metres of land at Kharghar and is expected to significantly expand accommodation and public facilities for Meghalaya residents visiting Mumbai.
Fadnavis, meanwhile, highlighted the strong cultural and people-to-people ties between Maharashtra and Meghalaya, particularly through students, professionals and artists from the Northeast. The event also featured a cultural performance by Khmih Creative Society under the Chief Minister’s Meghalaya Grassroots Music Programme, showcasing the state’s rich artistic traditions.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong, Minister Sosthen K. Sohtun, Rajya Sabha MP Milind Deora and senior officials from both states attended the ceremony.
–IANS
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