BADO Sohra
Name of the Scheme: Completion of building at St. Ursula Border Area H/S School at Mawlong.
Amount Sanctioned: Rs. 15.00 lacs
Years of Schemes: SCA(BADP)2017-18.
Mawlong village along with a cluster of villages around it has been recently adopted by the Border Areas Development Department, Meghalaya as a Model Village in Sohra block under Border Area Development Programme.
In the village of Mawlong alone, there are 4(four) lower primary schools, 3 (three) upper primary schools, 2 (two) secondary schools, and one higher secondary school (Arts). St. Ursula Border Area Higher Secondary School is one among these. It has classes right from Nursery to +2 Arts. The school was chosen and assigned the Examination Centre for the Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examinations for those secondary schools in Bholaganj (Majai), Shella, Ichamati, and Mawlong areas by the Meghalaya Board of Schools Education. The school has been greatly helping students especially those hailing from poor families avail education up to Higher Secondary standard in their own village/area. It has been achieving good pass percentage in the MBOSE exams. Some teachers of the school hail from outside the village and so, they have to incur extra expenditure out of their meager salary for attending their classes. In order to solve this particular problem, in the beginning, the school authority applied for the construction of staff quarter for which the department had sanctioned an amount of INR 8.00 lakh. Since the plinth area of the building is more, the SMC could construct only the frame of the building sans the walls, etc. However, due to the increase in the roll strength and the shortage of classrooms, the SMC was forced to change its plan to convert the same into classrooms; and hence accordingly sent its proposal to the Border Areas Development Officer, Sohra requesting for additional amount for the urgent completion of the building. It was during the year 2017-18 that the department could sanction an amount of INR 15.00 lakh under Special Central Assistance (Border Area Development Programme) under Model Village for the said work. The building was satisfactorily completed. Besides the classrooms for Classes XI & XII (Arts) and for the Secondary classes, the building also houses the Principal's Chamber, Teachers' Common Room, Library Hall, and the Clerk's Office cum store room.
The School Managing Committee expresses its gratitude to the department for the financial assistance that it had received which has, as such, enabled it to construct the building. The department, on the other hand, feels rewarded on having been able to extend its helping hand to such an institution as St. Ursula Border Area School which are always there and offers an all out altruistic service for the education and welfare of the community of the poor people of the border areas.
Name of the Scheme: Construction of Road at Mawlyndiar
Amount Sanctioned: Rs. 5.76803 lacs
Years of Schemes: SCA (BADP) 2017-18
Mawlyndiar is 6 Km away south east of Laitryngew village under Sohra Block. Like Sohra, the soil here is not arable as the place is stony and gravelly and hence, it is devoid of good top soil which is prerequisite for cultivation activities. Formerly, the people of this village earned their livelihood from coal mining activities; however, with the ban that was being imposed on this activity, they were forced to shift the same to daily labour while some of them concentrate on broomstick cultivation. Most of these villagers struggle hard for their living. Recently, with the initiative that was took place at its neighbouring village viz Laitmawsiang where, with great enthusiasm, the village people toiled hard in turning the same into a tourist spot by making use of the readily available caves, springs, and natural beauty of the place, it has instilled in the people of Mawlyndiar village to also do the same as their village too has the potential of being a prospective tourist spot. Heeding to their request, the department had sanctioned an amount of INR 5.76803 lakh under Special Central Assistance (Border Area Development Programme) during the year 2017-18 for the construction of an approach kutcha road leading to the vicinity of the Kshaid Latara (Latara Water Fall). Beyond the end point of this road, there are other water falls like Kshaid Iapkhnai (Iapkhnai Falls), and others, plus other wonderful exciting and breath taking viewpoints. The road was satisfactorily completed by the village council; and tourists had started pouring in prior to the onset of the monsoon. Since the road is a kutcha one, vehicles can ply only during dry seasons.
In order to enable the tourists enjoy the beautiful scenery of the place all the year round which in turn would open an opportunity for the locals to earn their livelihood, the road needs to be extended with proper MBT works.