Union Minister for Communications and Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, on Wednesday attended two High-Level Task Force (HLTF) meetings aimed at accelerating coordinated, data-driven and outcome-focused development across the Northeast.
Earlier this year, DoNER constituted eight HLTFs led by chief ministers of the Northeastern states, following consensus at the 72nd NEC Plenary Session in Agartala, marking a shift toward participatory regional planning.
‘One Sport, One State’: Chaired by Manipur governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, the meeting was attended by Union MoS for Sports Raksha Khadse, sports ministers of Mizoram and Meghalaya, senior DoNER officials, representatives from Assam, and the Sports Authority of India.
The meeting reaffirmed the “One Sport, One State” approach, under which each state will develop a core discipline: Mizoram—Football; Manipur—Boxing & Weightlifting; Tripura—Judo; Meghalaya—Archery; Nagaland—Archery & Taekwondo; Sikkim—Taekwondo.
Scindia urged states to submit focused micro-proposals jointly developed by State Sports Ministers and Secretaries in coordination with MoS Sports and SAI DG. He stressed adopting a “60–40 model”—60% emphasis on human resource development, coaching, technology-enabled training and talent scouting, and 40% on infrastructure. “The real priority is high-quality coaching and standards-driven training. DoNER will fully support this vision,” he said.
He also called for a comprehensive sports calendar built from preschool to university and block levels, with interstate exposure and competition pathways, noting that at least one Northeastern discipline should become a national model of excellence. The discussions reflected the Centre’s commitment to positioning the region as a future high-performance sports hub aligned with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision.
Self-reliance in milk, eggs, fish and meat: Chaired by Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu, the meeting reviewed demand–supply trends across the region.
Discussions focused on connectivity and logistics, value chain gaps, human resources, breeding and productivity, and expanding credit access and private investment to build a sustainable food systems strategy.
To fast-track progress, interventions will begin in two states per product category—milk, eggs and poultry, meat and fisheries—to generate learnings for scaling. A clear implementation framework involving Central ministries, State departments and private stakeholders will map responsibilities across the value chain, with jointly shared funding.
The meeting emphasised viewing the Northeast as a single integrated market through better movement of surplus to deficit areas, stronger trade linkages and leveraging state-specific strengths.
Concluding the session, Scindia said strengthening production, upgrading value chains and improving logistics would lay the foundation for a self-reliant, market-ready food economy in the Northeast.