Department of Information and Public Relations

Press Release No. 696/18

3RD NORTH EAST HEALTH CARE SUMMIT

Meghalaya Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma today inaugurated the 3rd North East Health Care Leadership Summit 2018 in presence of Health Minister, Shri A.L. Hek and Sikkim MP P.D. Rai at Shillong. The Summit is organized by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) in partnership with the Government of Meghalaya with the support from the Ministry of Development of the North East Region (DoNER). The objective of the summit is to strengthen the focus on key health issues in the north-east region, explore emergent avenues for collaboration and provide a platform for interaction between various agencies and stakeholders such as healthcare providers, policy makers, researchers, government officials, the private sector and non-governmental organizations. The leadership summit attempts to draw the attention of policy makers and other stakeholders to the healthcare system of the North East region and contribute towards bridging the North Eastern Region for Health Transformation. Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K Sangma graced the leadership summit as the Chief Guest. Other dignitaries present were PD Rai, Member of Parliament, Sikkim, Shri Alexander Laloo Hek, Minister, Health & Family Welfare Dept. Govt. of Meghalaya, C.H. Kharshiing, Planning and Health Adviser, North Eastern Council, Shri Yeshi Tsering, Chief Secretary and State Vigilance Commissioner, Government of Meghalaya, Jayanto Narayan Choudhury, Vice President, PHFI, Dr. Sangey Thinley, Former Health Secretary, Royal Govt. of. Bhutan, V Vumlunmang, Principal Secretary, Dept. of Health & FW, Govt. of Manipur, Lalrinliana Fannai, Commissioner & Secretary, Dept. of Health & FW, Govt. of Mizoram, Shri Pravin Bakshi, Secretary, Dept. of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of Meghalaya, Dr. Priscilla Nghaite, In-Charge Northeast, PHFI along with a host of senior government health officials from all the north eastern states of India. Chief Minister, Shri Conrad Sangma in his inaugural address congratulated the organizers for the summit the Public Health Foundation of India and the Department of Health and Family Welfare for organizing the 3rd North East Healthcare Leadership Summit in Meghalaya that highlights key issues in today’s evolving healthcare scenario pertinent to Northeastern parts of India. He emphasized on the importance and relevance of organizing such summit as it is a platform for sharing and exchange of vast knowledge and experiences. The Chief Minister however stressed on the importance of realizing and recognizing the fact that while we talk about challenges and gaps, that we should realize the potential of the available resources and maximize its usage which is equally important for efficiency and effective delivery of health services. He encouraged the august gathering to find innovative ways of improving the existing system with the available resources. He expressed and acknowledged that this is not the solution but this approach can have a great impact in taking us forward for our vision of a Healthier Region.

“There is a need to improve the overall efficiency of service delivery in the health sector. Meghalaya allocates 7 percent to the sector which is higher than the national average,” the Chief Minister said. He also said that this year the Government increased the budget allocation for to almost 30 percent. “We are focusing on creating maximum impact with minimum investment,” he added. Highlighting the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, the chief minister urged all those in the health sector to deliver their services with compassion and empathy towards their patients’ suffering. Terming the development of infrastructure and upgradation of human resource as the key element in ensuring better service delivery, the Chief Minister expressed optimisim that the government would be able to initiate work on the two medical colleges as soon as possible. “On a regular basis we have been monitoring the implementation of the scheme through video conferencing with set goals and agenda. This has ensured that administration and other line departments are constantly engaged with the government to ensure efficient delievery of services to the people,” he said. He also told the gathering that the government was contemplating to provide basic soft skill and technical training to asha workers and nurses to ease the burden on doctors.

During the Summit, Chief Minister also handed over achievement awards and citation to outstanding individuals for their contribution to NHM, Govt. of Meghalaya. (1) Dr. Kalpana Choudhury, Gynaecologist for her expert service in PMSMA where pregnant mothers get specialised care on the 9th of every month. (2) Sportspersons, Mr. Hameshaniah Suian & Ms. Melanie Pariat, they are Goodwill Ambassadors for RKSK Program. They are instrumental in promoting healthy habits and lifestyle through school and community health programs and through various media. (3) Development partners WHO & UNICEF for their continuous support and guidance, towards improving the performance of the state’s Immunization, Maternal & Child Care etc (4) Smt. Selmila Momin, ASHA from Nangaburi village of North Garo Hills, for her dedication and hard work to improve the health conditions and nutritional status of the children of her village. She is also the recipient of ‘POSHAN MAAH” award 2018 in New Delhi on 10th Oct 2018 under the individual excellence category. The summit saw prominent speakers deliberating on themes that are very relevant and pertinent to the North Eastern Region such as (1) Access to Health and Challenges in the North East (2) The Impact of Tobacco, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Epidemic: Lessons Learnt and Way Forward (3) Health Care Financing, Human Resources for Health Issues and Challenges in the North East (4) Epidemic & Disaster Preparedness in the North East (5) Leadership, Governance and Policy in Health: The North East NHM Context (6) Cross Learnings of Best Practices and Challenges in the North East. The summit recorded an attendance of about 200 participants. The leadership summit witnessed active participation of bureaucrats and technocrats from the respective north-east states, academicians and researchers, representatives of UNICEF, WHO, World Bank and other stakeholders during the presentation and discussion.

The summit falls under the umbrella of Project Swasth Uttar Purv, an initiative by the Public Health Foundation of India supported by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region to strengthen human resource and systems capacity for strengthening Public Health in the North Eastern Region that is committed to address the identified and felt needs of the eight states of the North-East by promoting policy and programme relevant research, by filling critical information gaps, conducting health summits and Health Conclaves, conducting impact assessments and cancer awareness programs, evaluating innovations for improving the outreach and effectiveness of health systems, ultimately developing a robust public health cadre in the North East.

Press Release No. 697/18

CM INTERACTS WITH PUBLIC VIA VIDEO CONFERENCING

Meghalaya Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma today interacted with the public through video conferencing from Chief Minister’s Secretariat Tura and Williamnagar NIC office. Last month, the Chief Minister’s secretariat was opened in Tura to ensure engagement with the Chief Minister Office. “Technology has paved way to connect directly to the mass in the virtual space. I would like to take advantage of the technology to be heard and make people heard through this platform,” the Chief Minister said. Over 100 people including the senior citizens and members of social and civil organisation expressed their concerns from both Tura and Williamnagar today, to which Chief Minister has assured to look into. “In an era of digital and social media, people are all connected through technology. Most people in even rural areas today has access to media, it should be our endeavour to connect to them and enlighten them through this platform,” the Chief Minister said. He said that the social media presence of Chief Minister’s Office was started with an idea to inform and solicit public opinion. He said that in the past seven months, the government has acknowledged the people’s opinion and critical criticism to improve delivery system and mechanism for welfare of the society and the state as a whole. “Video Conference with the public will further enhance our government’s commitment to directly engage with the people and ensure that we are a people friendly government,” he added. This is for the first time that Chief Minister’s Office has made an endeavour to connect to the people through video conferencing.

Press Release No. 698/18

NATIONAL SC-ST HUB MEGHALAYA STATE CONCLAVE

The Meghalaya Conclave of the National SC-ST Hub under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India was held today at the State Convention Centre Shillong. Addressing the gathering at the inaugural function, Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K Sangma encouraged the gathering especially the youth to exploit the opportunities that the region has to offer and be a part of the economic growth story. Terming the MSME’s as engines of growth in the country the Chief Minister stated the need for more financial support from the lending institutions to the enterprises. “If we look at the available figures, banks loan almost 85 percent to large enterprises and only 15 percent to the MSME’s. There is a gap in the support given to these small enterprises”, the Chief Minister added. In order to support entrepreneurs the Chief Minister has also stated the need to encourage offices and institutions to buy locally produced products.

“Under the Public Procurement Policy for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) Order 2012 every Central Government Ministries, Departments and Public Sector Undertakings are required to procure minimum of 20 per cent of their total annual value of goods or services from Micro and Small Enterprises and 4 percent of total procurement of goods and services is to be made from Micro and Small Enterprises owned by SC & ST entrepreneurs”, the Chief Minister said. The Chief Minister also urged all entrepreneurs to develop a competitive spirit in order to fuel creativity and innovation. Among the officials and dignitaries present at the function was Shri Sniawbhalang Dhar, Minister for Commerce & Industries, Health Minister, Shri A.L.Hek, Shri Inder Iqbal Singh, National Working President Forum of SC ST Legislatures and Parliamentarians, K.S. Siddique, Zonal Manager (NE), NSIC and Karanjit Singh Ngangbam, Deputy Director (SME), Ministry of MSME.