Meghalaya CM inaugurates Rs 9.26-crore farmers’ market for 3,000 farmers in South Garo Hills

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on November 9 inaugurated three key infrastructure projects in South Garo Hills district, including a PRIME Hub, a farmers’ market and a block integrated development complex, aimed at strengthening rural livelihoods, improving agricultural market access and bringing administration closer to people.

The Chokpot Warima PRIME Hub has been established to support bamboo and arecanut value chains by providing common facilities for aggregation, processing, training and marketing.

With its inauguration, South Garo Hills now has four PRIME Hubs across Chokpot, Rongara, Baghmara and Gasuapara. The district also has 32 micro-processing units developed with an investment of Rs 4.24 crore.

The initiative is expected to create better opportunities for farmers and local entrepreneurs by strengthening processing and marketing facilities in rural areas.

Sangma also inaugurated the Chokpot Farmers’ Market, developed at a cost of Rs 9.26 crore through the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), South Garo Hills.

The market will provide organised vending spaces for more than 3,000 farmers, allowing them to sell vegetables, fruits, spices and organic produce. It is also expected to improve market access through linkages with Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) and government agricultural schemes.

The third project inaugurated was the Block Integrated Development Complex of Chokpot Community and Rural Development (C&RD) Block.

Highlighting the importance of administrative infrastructure, Sangma said the state government had undertaken major infrastructure upgrades across Meghalaya over the past eight years, with block offices being among the key areas of focus.

"We remain committed to bringing administration closer to the people, especially in our rural and border areas," he said.

He also urged the Block Development Officer (BDO) and other staff members to serve people with compassion and ensure that government schemes reach their intended beneficiaries.

The chief minister shared details of the inaugurations in a series of social media posts on November 9.