Meghalaya tops NEC's Rs 79.53 crore October fund release for Northeast

Meghalaya received the biggest slice of the money the North Eastern Council (NEC) released to the region in October 2026, with Rs 26.56 crore out of a total of Rs 79.53 crore, according to the Council's monthly update carried by several regional outlets.

The funds were released under the Schemes of NEC (SoNEC) and the roads component of the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS-Roads), and are meant for projects ranging from rural roads and livelihoods to education, scientific research and cultural preservation.

Where Meghalaya's money is going

A large part of Meghalaya's share is tied to the rehabilitation and strengthening of the 46.08-km Chokpot-Kharukol road in South Garo Hills, taken up under NESIDS-Roads. The NEC says the upgraded road should improve connectivity for 78 villages and more than 15,000 residents in the area.

The Council has also backed a multi-disciplinary training-cum-resource centre in Shillong. Separately, it reported that a project at North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) in Shillong to design and build low-cost laboratory instruments was completed during October.

How the other states fared

Sikkim was second with Rs 15.51 crore, followed by Assam at Rs 14.79 crore and Arunachal Pradesh at Rs 11.18 crore. Nagaland received Rs 7.99 crore and Tripura Rs 3.50 crore. The reports said projects in Manipur and Mizoram were also supported, but did not give separate amounts for those two states.

Echo of Arunachal reported that Arunachal's share is going to strategic roads and a girls' hostel, among other works.

The NEC's October review also listed completed and ongoing projects across the region in areas such as strategic roads, agricultural processing, educational buildings and heritage conservation.

Why it matters

The NEC, headquartered in Shillong, is the regional planning body for the eight northeastern states and works under the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region. Its schemes often fund smaller roads, bridges and institutional buildings that fall outside the larger central programmes, which makes the monthly releases important for remote districts.

The Council released Rs 42.63 crore in September, according to reports at the time, so October's figure marks a sharp increase month on month. Rural road projects such as Chokpot-Kharukol are closely watched in the Garo Hills, where poor connectivity has long affected access to markets, schools and health care.

NEInsider will track the progress of the Chokpot-Kharukol road and other NEC-funded projects as work moves ahead.