Amid growing criticism over Meghalaya’s crumbling school infrastructure, Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma strongly responded to opposition leader and former Chief Minister Dr. Mukul Sangma’s remarks. He accused Dr. Mukul of inaction during his own tenure and urged all lawmakers, including Meghalaya’s two MPs, to actively help in improving government schools.
“It’s true — there are many such schools. But during his tenure as Chief Minister, no new government school was built. My father was a government primary school teacher, and even then, nothing was done,” Rakkam said.
Dr. Mukul Sangma had earlier criticized the Conrad K. Sangma-led government for the worsening state of Lower and Upper Primary Schools, especially in the Garo Hills region.
In defense, Rakkam highlighted that over the last 4–5 years, the current administration has launched renovation work across government Lower Primary Schools. “New buildings are coming up, and the work is ongoing,” he assured.
Rakkam said out of over 14,000 schools in Meghalaya, around 3,000 to 4,000 have already been upgraded, while nearly half still need urgent repairs. Sharing his work in the Rongara-Siju constituency, he revealed that he had renovated 45 Ad-hoc and SSA schools using ₹2 lakh per school from MLA funds.
“If each MLA renovates 50 schools annually, we can bring real change,” he stated, encouraging all 60 MLAs and the two MPs to take similar action. He urged everyone, including MDCs, to focus on solutions rather than criticism.
“Let’s not play the blame game. Let’s preach what we practice. Instead of pointing fingers, let’s build together,” Rakkam concluded.
