Department of Information and Public Relations

Press Release No. 58/22

MEGCOPWATCH APP LAUNCHED ON 08.03.2022

The Crime Investigation Department, Meghalaya Police today launched the mobile application “MegCopWatch” at the Conference Room, Police Headquarters, Shillong. Smti I. Nongrang, Special Director General of Police, Meghalaya attended the programme as Chief Guest.

The mobile application “MegCopWatch” is designed for quick response and intervention by the police for women and children in distress situations. It also seeks to provide safety and security to women and children in distress, the application shares the live location of any person in distress to the nearest police station for a quick and guaranteed response and intervention by the police. The App will help make the state of Meghalaya safe for women and children, it will provide safety for women who are studying, working, staying alone in PGs, hostels, living in remote areas and travelling at odd hours for work. It will also secure children who are living with limited parental supervision as parents have to often be away at work. The application is currently available in 3 languages, Khasi, English and Hindi, it is being launched in the city of Shillong and will be extended to cover all districts of Meghalaya in the upcoming months. The Meghalaya Police encourages everyone to download the MegCopWatch application and be ready when they are facing a challenging situation.

Smti I. Nongrang during her brief address said that the launching of the app is a step further in ensuring that the response to the women and children in distress is prompt and efficient. She stated that it is befitting to launch the app on the same day where the whole world is observing international women’s day. Stating that the app will address the issue more efficiently, more adequately and to ensure not just the immediate response but also the subsequent response, the investigation into the case and the steps to be taken to alleviate the distress of women in every situation. She also stated that after the horrific Nirbhaya case in 2012, various other states have come up with different strategies to tackle the problem of women in distress and she expressed happiness that Meghalaya have also come up with one of its own strategy. She further stated that the launching of the app will go a long way in addressing issues about women in distress.

Others who were present include Shri D P Marak, DIG CID, Meghalaya, Smti Supriya Das, Special SP CID, Meghalaya and Shri S S Dkhar, Deputy SP, CCW, CID, Meghalaya.

Press Release No. 59/22

INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY CELEBRATION 2022

As part of the International Women’s Day celebration 2022 the Meghalaya State Commission for Women in collaboration with St Anthony’s College, Shillong supported by the National Commission for Women today organized the National Parliament for Women held at the Auditorium, St Anthony’s College Shillong. The theme for this year celebration is “Break the Bias”. Smti. Phidalia Toi, Chairperson, Meghalaya State Commission for Women delivered an introductory speech during the programme. Others who attended include Smti. Patricia Mukhim, Editor Shillong Times, Smti Linza Fenny Syiem, Senior Coach Directorate of Sports & Youth affairs, Meghalaya, Smti Mary G T Sangma (IPS) Principal, Police Training School, Umran, Smti Mitali Chandra, IAS, SDO (Sadar), East Khasi Hills Shillong, Prof Badaplin War, Department of Khasi, NEHU, students among others.

Also as part of International Women’s Day, the District Legal Services Authority, East Khasi Hills District in collaboration with Meghalaya State Legal Services Authority under the aegis of National Legal Services Authority organised a street play on “Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act”, at Police Bazar, Shillong on 8th March, 2022. The street play was presented by the volunteers of Manbha Foundation, Shillong.

Press Release No. 60/22

CELEBRATION OF FOUR YEARS OF MDA GOVERNMENT ON 08.03.2022

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Tuesday along with the council of ministers released a booklet titled “Meghalaya on the move”, a report to the citizens on completion of four years of the MDA Government.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that over the last four years, the government has given the liberty to different departments to take decisions of their own, which has enabled the government to ensure that all stakeholders were taken on board for the collective interest of the State.“As a leader the biggest challenge is to find the right people and allow them to work. It simply means that one has to allow the team to work. It also means that you have to allow them what they want to do and believe in them, that they would do the right thing and make independent decision which they feel is right and in the interest of the department, constituency and the people of the State,” the Chief Minister said, while categorically stating that the team work in the government has been ‘great’. He said that many challenges that came along were tackled by collective teamwork and the government was able to initiate pro-people welfare and development programmes. “We are not here to harp on, that we have done a lot. We have done whatever we could, but there is a lot more to be done, there are a lot of things that did not go the way we wanted. Maybe those decisions were not correct. Our decision may not have been correct but our intent was always correct. We always kept the people of the State first,” he said.

Reminding the gathering on the poor implementation of PMGSY roads in the past, he said that the progress of the road construction was very dismal but in the last four years the State government has ensured speedy progress and today the State is ranked as one of the top performing States in the country. He informed that during FY 2018-2022, a total of 1,851 km of rural roads were constructed with total spending of Rs. 1,300 cr and Meghalaya has been constructing 2 km road on average every single day during FY 2020-21.

On expenditure of the government, the Chief Minister said, Rs. 10,000 cr was the annual expenditure, which will rise upto Rs. 15,500 this year. “As the spending grows, it will act as a stimulus in the growth of the State and will ensure that the economy of the State grows. Despite Covid challenge, the State government has been able to increase spending and ensure growth and development is on a fast track,” he added. He further said that the past four years have been very eventful, and the government has taken up several programmes and policies to resolve the various unmet developmental needs of the different sections of the society. He also spoke on the challenges the government had to face due to Covid pandemic, but that did not dither the effort of the government to ensure growth and development works continued. He informed the gathering that the State has earned accolades at several fronts. “Our Government has provided rural employment to a greater number of people than ever before, we have financially empowered more women than ever before, we have ensured safe and uninterrupted water and electricity to households”, the chief minister said. He also told the gathering that the government has ensured programmes for the welfare of the farmers, ensured improved and innovative health care, better educational infrastructure facilities, amongst others. He further said that the State government has taken a pledge to make Meghalaya among the top 10 States in 10 years, in GSDP per capita and SDG ranking. “We are building a brand Meghalaya on which every citizen can capitalize and benefit,” he added.

Befitting to the occasion, a colourful programme was lined up for the celebration, wherein the Chief Minister along with ministers also launched various citizen welfare programmes.

In presence of various ministers and stakeholders, the Chief Minister launched Meghalaya's 1st Early Childhood Development and Maternal Health Helpline ‘14410’ which aims to connect mothers with the nearest Govt healthcare facilities for timely support in areas that concern child nurturing and wellbeing of both mother and child. The Chief Minister’s Safe Motherhood Scheme which aims to accelerate reduction in maternal mortality in the State was also launched in presence of Health Minister James K Sangma. He also launched the ASHA Payment Gateway, an initiative to digitize the incentive payment process for the ASHAs.

During the programme Chief Minister along with Urban Minister Hamletson Dohling and other ministers also launched the Aspire – 2 and Skills Meghalaya Programme – an initiative of the government for the youth to equip them for the world of tomorrow.

Press Release No. 61/22

MEGHALAYA GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES CM- SAFE MOTHERHOOD SCHEME FOR SAVING LIVES OF MOTHERS AND INFANTS

On the occasion of four years of completion of the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) Government, which also coincides with the International Women's Day, the state government announced the launch of Chief Minister's Safe Motherhood Scheme or CM-SMS to accelerate reduction in maternal mortality in the State.

The Chief Minister's Safe Motherhood Scheme is a result of a rigorous approach aimed at building Meghalaya's State Capability to tackle the problem of maternal and infant deaths through the Rescue Mission, which was initiated in December 2020. As part of this, granular monitoring of the problem was done through weekly reviews at the state, district, block and village level. This led to identification of six areas to be addressed on a mission mode, namely- Anemia and nutrition, safe delivery, right to birth spacing, teenage pregnancy and activating collaboration among key demand side and supply side stakeholders.

It may be mentioned that for the first time in the history of Meghalaya, and on its 50th year of Statehood, the Government has resolved, with a strong conviction, to save the lives of mothers and infants on a war footing basis, and the CM-SMS Programme is a step towards fulfilling this resolve, following intense monitoring through the Rescue Mission.

The scheme will contribute to the larger objective of ‘top ten in 10 years’ that the State has set for itself during the golden jubilee year of statehood. This involves, 1. Providing transportation support to ANMs to reach pregnant mothers to ensure safe delivery. 2. Providing dedicated vehicles at PHCs / CHCs to bring pregnant women from home to health facility or safe motherhood homes and vice versa. 3. The vehicles will cater not only expecting mothers but also to any medical emergency that may arise periodically. 4. Organizing “safe motherhood homes” in and around the PHCs/CHCs, for keeping pregnant women belonging to above mentioned priority groups, for up to 15 days prior to expected date of delivery (EDD). 5. Award scheme for the Village Councils or VHCs for reducing maternal and infant mortality and curbing teenage pregnancy.

It is worthy to note that after a year of initiation of the Rescue Mission since December 2020, Meghalaya has witnessed 21 per cent reduction in Infant Deaths from 2020-2021 and 9 per cent reduction in Maternal Deaths. The Chief Minister's Safe Motherhood Scheme is a step towards fulfilling the objectives of the Meghalaya Health Policy.

Press Release No. 62/22

MEGHALAYA LAUNCHES PAYMENT SOFTWARE FOR ASHA, ASHA FACILITATOR AND ANMS

The State Government on March 8, 2022 launched the first ever ASHA payment gateway with an aim to reduce delays and ensure transparency in incentive based payment systems for ASHAs, ASHA facilitators and ANMs. The online platform called ‘ASHA First’ has been created to digitize the entire incentive payment process whereby ASHAs, ASHA facilitators and ANMs will raise the claims through mobile phones or laptops.

The complex payment process for incentives, delay in timely payment of wages, pending dues and unverified bills continues to be a challenge with respect to incentive payment of ASHA, ASHA facilitators as well as ANMs. Furthermore, reliance on pen-paper based approaches for reporting and incentive calculation impacted the transparency and timeliness of payments. This also contributed to delay in approval of the bills from the authorized person. All these systemic challenges led to the initiation of the online platform called ‘ASHA First’.

The online platform was first piloted in Umling in Ri Bhoi district whereby 77 ASHAs were covered and benefitted. During this pilot, 77 ASHAs were able to receive payment for the claims submitted by them within 48 hours.

Announcing its launch on the occasion of four years of completion of the MDA coalition government, it was informed that the State also endeavors to match the claims with the performances on the MOTHER application to create a culture of performance based payments.

The software is designed to create the proper accounting for payments made against different health programs. Payments duly signed with digital signatures will be transmitted directly to the bank through PFMS. End-to-end integration will provide the status of credit / reject messages from the Bank. The ASHAs and approvers can track the claim status on the platform, ensuring timely payment to the beneficiaries. The objectives of ASHA First are as follows 1. To ease the payment process of ASHA incentives. 2. Timely disbursement of incentives. 3. Support tool for regular monitoring and tracking of ASHA payments. 4. Ensure minimum time lag in payment to ASHAs.

The Integrated Single window payment mechanism will enable payment from a single channel using a digital platform, while also 1. Ensuring timely and transparent online payment to ASHAs. 2. Improving the system for effective monitoring of the ASHAs performance and overall programme uptake at the community level. 3. Enabling District and State officials in monitoring and generating payment status reports on a real time basis through a centralized dashboard.

Press Release No. 63/22

MEGHALAYA GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (ECD) AND MATERNAL HEALTH HELPLINE 14410

On the event of International Women’s Day, the State Government announced the launch of Meghalaya’s first Early Childhood Development and Maternal Health Helpline 14410. This is the first-of-its-kind intervention in the State for expectant mothers, mothers of one-year-old children and mothers of two-year-old children across the State.

The Call Center is equipped with specialized Nurses, Counselors and Doctors who will be acting as tele-consultants and who will make outbound calls to the pregnant women and mothers. The ECD and maternal helpline aims to support beneficiaries with personalized tele-counseling through 21 calls during the first 1,000 days of the child’s life from the date of conception. The team will follow a push-based approach through simple, effective, personalized health counseling and advice in order to support a mother in ensuring that her child reaches optimal development in all aspects. The data on expecting mothers will be collected through the MOTHER App which is in place to track high risk mothers across the State.

This intervention is part of fulfilling the greater objective of the State Health Policy that was approved by the State Cabinet in 2021. Following this, the Meghalaya Early Childhood (ECD) Mission was launched. The ECD mission will also cater to 1,554 villages, which are not being covered under the ICDS programme. The State’s ECD mission is a multidisciplinary, research-based approach which will not only lead to a holistic development of a child but also help to overcome poverty. ECD is a convergence of the departments of Social Welfare, Health and Family Welfare, Education and other key stakeholders for ensuring better healthcare and education of children as well as creation of a massive pool of productive, cognitive capital in the long run.

The counseling team is divided into two clusters covering the Khasi, Jaintia, Ri Bhoi and Garo Hills region. The toll free Number 14410 COVID-19 helpline has been integrated into a Health helpline in which the Early Childhood Development Call Center will operate. A critical role of the Helpline is to connect mothers with the nearest Government health care facilities in order for them to seek and receive timely support in all areas that concern child nurturing and well-being of both mother and child. Beneficiaries can access the Helpline from Monday to Saturday, 9 AM to 7 PM, by calling the Toll Free Meghalaya Health Helpline 14410.

The Early Childhood Development Call Center is a component of the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram programme. Recognizing and understanding that mothers are key stakeholders in the physical mental and emotional development of the child, the Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Meghalaya has taken the initiative to set up an Early Childhood Development call center with an aim to 1. Support a pregnant woman and mothers in child nurturing and care. 2. Provide simple, effective and personalized health counseling to the pregnant woman beginning from her pregnancy stage till the child reaches two years of age. 3. Provide ante-natal, postnatal advice and mental health counseling related to postpartum mental health issues.