Guwahati: The northeastern state of Meghalaya will mark its 50th anniversary of independence on Friday.
The Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government plans to commemorate the golden jubilee by launching projects throughout the year.
Meghalaya was separated from Assam on January 21, 1972. Earlier it was divided into two districts: United Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills, and the Garo Hills.
Chief minister Conrad K Sangma said on Monday that the state had planned huge celebrations but that they had been cancelled because to the rampant coronavirus disease (Covid-19) epidemic.
“We’ve got close to 300 projects listed… We’ve decided that rather than inaugurating things all at once on the 50th anniversary of statehood, we’ll do so over the course of the year so that the significance grows ” Sangma added.
The official programme will take place today at the JN Complex, which has a capacity of around 3,000 persons.
However, only 30% occupancy is permissible because of the Covid-19 protocol. Guests must also adhere to Covid policy, which includes donning face masks and sanitizing their hands at regular intervals.
The chief minister further stated that due to the Covid-19 scenario, all districts will be connected to the Shillong programme via the internet.
Meanwhile, Meghalaya reported 329 new cases of Covid-19 on Thursday, the largest one-day rise ever. There are currently 1,629 active cases in the state, including 1,494 deaths. The total number of cases is 87,404.