Department of Information and Public Relations

Press Release No. 480/09

PRESS RELEASE

Altogether 52 villages from 6 districts of Meghalaya were today awarded the Nirmal Gram Puraskar (NGP) 2009, for achieving total sanitation in their respective villages, at the State Level NGP Award Ceremony held at U SoSo Tham Auditorium, Shillong. The ceremony was organized by the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), Meghalaya in collaboration with the Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission, Department of Drinking Water Supply and the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India.

The Award Distribution Ceremony was attended by the Meghalaya Chief Minister, Dr D D Lapang, C&RD Minister, Mr M M Danggo, Chief Secretary, Mr W M S Pariat, Commissioner & Secretary, PHED, Mr P W Ingty, Chief Engineer PHED, Mr T G Abraham and the Deputy Commissioners of all the Districts of the State. The meeting was presided over by the PHE Minister, Mr Prestone Tynsong.

The NGP was instituted by the Government of India to encourage the implementation of the Centrally Sponsored Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) to felicitate the clean and open defecation free villages for achieving the goal of Total Sanitation by 2012. The TSC has been taken up in all the seven District of Meghalaya under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioners of the respective districts and is being implemented on the demand driven mode with active involvement of local villagers for which considerable Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities have been carried out. The progress of TSC projects in all the Districts are at various stages of implementation. The main goal under the programme is to provide necessary toilet facilities to schools, Anganwadi centres and individual households and the overall cleanliness of villages by constructing liquid and solid waste management facilities to create hygienic rural environment.

During the current year 2009, the State Government has forwarded NGP applications for 84 villages from 6 Districts to the Government of India to be considered for the NGP 2009. After thorough field verification, 52 villages were found to meet the parameters as set in the NGP guidelines. The numbers of villages district wise are West Garo Hills-21 villages, East Garo Hills-12 villages, Jaintia Hills-7 villages, Ri Bhoi-6 villages, East Khasi Hills-5 villages and West Khasi Hills-1 village and none from South Garo Hills.

It may be mentioned that the Award includes a Certificate and Citation, a trophy and a cash prize of Rs 50,000/- for villages with less than 1000 population, Rs 1 Lac for villages with a population of more than 1000 and less than 2999 and Rs 2 Lacs for villages with a population of more than 2999 and less that 4000. Among the 52 villages, Madan Kynsaw village of Jaintia Hills District under Laskein C&RD Block received an amount of Rs 2 Lacs as it has a population of more than 2999, while Myntriang village and Iawthymme village of Jaintia Hills and Dingkajhora village and Salbaripara village of West Garo Hills received Rs 1 Lac each as they have a population of more than 1000 and less than 2999 respectively while the rest received Rs 50,000 each.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Lapang congratulated the awardees villages for having achieved Total Sanitation coverage and open defecation free status in their respective villages and he hoped that this will encourage other villages in the State to strive for achieving Total Sanitation. Lauding the respective District Administrations and the PHE Department, Dr Lapang stressed that intensive efforts should be made in those parts of the State where Total Sanitation is yet to be achieved so the Meghalaya will also become a ‘Nirmal State’. Later, Dr Lapang also felicitated the NGP 2009 awardees. A pledge was also read by the NGP awardees which was led by the Additional Chief Engineer, PHE, Mr H Prasad.

Among others who spoke on the occasion were C&RD Minister, Mr M M Danggo, Chief Secretary, Mr W M S Pariat, Commissioner & Secretary, PHED, Mr P W Ingty and the Chief Engineer PHED, Mr T G Abraham.