CORRESPONDENT
SHILLONG: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Monday said the overall situation in Bangladesh, coupled with the long transition toward scientific mining, has significantly disrupted Meghalaya's non-tax revenue collections, with the state feeling a financial impact of roughly Rs 200 crore.
"Roughly about 200 crore impact we felt because of the situation that was there (in Bangladesh) overall , but as I said hopefully now the things stabilising more, the scientific process also now more or less coming into the scene and the transitioning taking place, We do expect that we will be able to bring it back to the estimates we had last year," the chief minister said.
During his budget presentation, Sangma noted that the state's own non-tax revenue collections have been inconsistent in recent years due to border trade disruptions with Bangladesh and the long transition toward scientific mining. However, he maintained that However, the outlook is improving.
Three mining licenses have already been awarded, while twenty more are at various stages of approval. "Based on these developments, I project non-tax revenue to reach Rs 634 crore in 2026-27," he said, outlining the government's fiscal projections for the financial year.
When asked whether scientific mining alone could contribute Rs 200 crore, the chief minister stressed the importance of scale and full operationalisation. "If we do it (scientific mining) well the scale can go up but we need all the 20 mines also to start," he said.
On whether relations with Bangladesh are expected to improve under the new government there, Sangma expressed cautious optimism while clarifying that such matters are beyond the state's direct control. "We certainly hope it will improve, we have to wait and watch but whatever statements we are reading in the papers whether from government of India side, or, from government of Bangladesh, We are seeing it moving towards a positive direction," he said.
"But as I said it's a it's a subject that is beyond our direct kind of control. So it will be government of India, and government of Bangladesh will be in a better position to reply, but we do hope and we are seeing positive trends," he added.
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