Department of Information and Public Relations

Press Release No. 554/19

CONSTITUTION DAY OBSERVED

To commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India and to honour and pay tribute to the contribution of its founding fathers, the High Court of Meghalaya in collaboration with the Meghalaya State Legal Services Authority (MSLSA) organized a Photo Exhibition in the High Court premises today. The photo exhibition was inaugurated by Mr. Justice Mohammad Rafiq, Chief Justice, High Court of Meghalaya and Patron-in-Chief, MSLSA. The programme was also attended by Mr. Justice H. S. Thangkhiew, Judge, High Court of Meghalaya and Executive Chairman, MSLSA, Mr. Justice W. Diengdoh, Judge, High Court of Meghalaya, Smti B. Mawrie, Registrar General, High Court of Meghalaya, Shri Noor Ain Khan, Member Secretary, MSLSA among others.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Justice Mohammad Rafiq, Chief Justice, High Court of Meghalaya informed that 26th November is celebrated as Constitution Day, and this year, to mark the 70th years of the adoption of the Constitution, a yearlong campaign focusing on creating awareness on fundamental duties as enshrined in the Constitution will be conducted by the Meghalaya State Legal Services Authority. Highlighting that the Constitution of India was handwritten and calligraphed in both english and hindi and that the original copies of the Constitution are kept in special helium filled cases in the Library of the Parliament of India, the Chief Justice also informed that the Constitution of India is the longest written constitution of an independent country in the world.

On the occasion, the Chief Justice, Mr. Justice Mohammad Rafiq and Mr. Justice H. S. Thangkhiew, Judge, High Court of Meghalaya led the reading out the Preamble and Fundamental Duties of the Constitution of India respectively. In the exhibition, a copy of the replica of the original Constitution of India both in english and hindi which shows the Indian Constitution was handwritten and calligraphy and also contained signatures of all 284 members of the Constituent Assembly was displayed. To educate the citizens about cultural values and ethos of our nation, 40 paintings which are seen in the original Constitution of India are also exhibited in the exhibition.

Press Release No. 555/19

NATIONAL MILK DAY 2019 CELEBRATED IN THE CITY

The National Milk Day 2019 was celebrated today with a grand function organised by the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department along with the Directorate of Dairy Development at State Central Library Shillong. The theme for this year’s celebration is ‘Drink Milk Today and Everyday’.

The inaugural function was attended by Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma, Deputy Chief Minister, Shri Prestone Tynsong, Principal Secretary to the Govt. of Meghalaya Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Department Dr. P Shakil Ahmed, Chairman of Farmers Commission, Shri K.N. Kumar, Regional Director of NCDC NE Region A.K. Srivastava and senior officials of the department.

Addressing the gathering Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma said that the National Milk Day is an appropriate celebration to honour the contributions of Dr. Verghese Kurien the ‘Father of the White Revolution’, in transforming the dairy sector and rural livelihood across the country. Stating that the per capita consumption of milk in Meghalaya is only 83 grams as opposed to the national average of 200 grams the Chief Minister expressed hope that the various initiatives and programmes of the Government to ramp up milk production in the State will transform the dairy sector further adding that increased production and consumption of milk will help secure the nutritional security of children. ‘Milk is a very important source of vitamins and protein and it could be one of the answers to combat malnutrition and improve overall health of our children.’ he said.

Informing that the total milk production requirement of the State is 2.3 lakh metric tons, of which the State currently produces only 83000 metric tons, the Chief Minister said that the need to fill up the deficit in production is a huge opportunity for dairy farmers in the State. ‘In trying to fulfil the production requirement of our State in the dairy sector State we are also creating a very strong institutional setup in terms of cooperative societies which ultimately will give economic benefit to the people’ he said while lauding the efforts of the various dairy cooperatives in the State. The Chief Minister also said that the Government has envisioned a roadmap to empower dairy farmers and uplift rural livelihood through various mission mode projects under the dairy sector in the State.

In his address Deputy Chief Minister, Shri Prestone Tynsong said that the National Milk Day is celebrated annually in India to make people aware about the nutritional and health benefits of milk. Stating that the Government is committed to improve the dairy sector through various programs and initiatives to increase production the Deputy Chief Minister informed that the Milk Production Centre at Mawiong has been upgraded to increase production capacity from current 12000 litres to 52000 litres per day and similar upgrades are being planned for dairy plants in Tura and Jowai respectively. The Deputy Chief Minister also informed that the Government is in the process of setting up a cattle ranch at Mawmerang, South West Khasi Hills on a pilot basis. Awards were also distributed to outstanding dairy farmers and winners of various competitions at the function.