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Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on May 25 presented a comprehensive roadmap for education sector reforms in the state before Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan during a meeting in New Delhi.

According to an official statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office, Sangma highlighted the structural and academic reforms initiated by the Meghalaya government to address long-standing challenges affecting learning outcomes and overall education quality in the state.

During the presentation, the Chief Minister pointed out that Meghalaya, despite having a population of nearly 30 lakh, has around 14,600 schools — one of the highest numbers among northeastern states after Assam — leading to fragmented utilisation of resources, multiple grant-in-aid systems and administrative complexities over the years.

Sangma informed the Union Minister that the Education Department has identified critical gaps in learning outcomes and initiated reforms focused on improving infrastructure, governance and academic delivery.

He stated that the government has undertaken a major school rationalisation exercise to optimise resources, improve the student-teacher ratio and ensure better access to laboratories, digital facilities and academic infrastructure.

According to the presentation, around 3,198 lower primary schools out of 14,582 schools in the state have already been rationalised as part of the restructuring process.

The Chief Minister also highlighted the introduction of a unified pay structure, including structured pay mechanisms for SSA teachers, aimed at improving parity, morale and accountability within the teaching workforce.

Sangma further informed the Union Minister about ongoing teacher training initiatives, including DIKSHA-enabled professional development programmes, self-paced learning modules and continuous skill enhancement opportunities for teachers.

The Meghalaya government also briefed the Centre on the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP), including the three-language formula, compulsory learning of Khasi and Garo languages, play-based learning methods, contextualised textbooks and “bag-less days” at the foundational learning stage.

The Chief Minister additionally highlighted the launch of the “CM LEAD Fellowship” programme, under which 12 fellows will be deployed across districts to strengthen planning, implementation and monitoring of education reforms.

He also informed the Union Minister about the establishment of the Meghalaya Teachers Training Academy (MTTA), which will support teacher education and professional development under the Samagra Shiksha programme.

“With a clear roadmap and strong political will, Meghalaya is poised to overcome its challenges and significantly improve its education indicators in the coming years,” Sangma said during the presentation.