Six Meghalaya farmers win Krishi Gaurav Samman for millets, Lakadong

Six farmers and agripreneurs working in Meghalaya have been given the Krishi Gaurav Samman 2026 for keeping traditional crops alive and turning them into a source of income, officials said on Sunday.

The awards were handed over on Saturday, October 31, at the close of a two-day Academic Assembly at the College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences (CPGSAS) of the Central Agricultural University (CAU) at Umiam in Ri-Bhoi district, PTI and Hub News reported.

Who was honoured

• Chekjing Sangma of Sadolpara village, West Garo Hills, for pioneering modern millet farming and encouraging others to grow millets.
• Darapbiang Mulieh of Khanduli village, West Jaintia Hills, for adding value to millets.
• Sitrian Surong, also of Khanduli, for keeping Meghalaya's millet heritage alive.
• Trinity Saioo of Mulieh village, West Jaintia Hills, known as the "Lakadong Lady of Meghalaya", for championing the state's indigenous Lakadong turmeric.
• Jemnud Marpan of Thadnongniaw village, Ri-Bhoi, for conserving indigenous crops and farm biodiversity.
• Midat M Binau, Professor of Practice at Manipur University, Marngar, Ri-Bhoi, for agripreneurial work that takes traditional spice crops to wider markets.

According to PTI, two of the awardees were earlier mentioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 139th episode of his radio programme Mann Ki Baat for reviving millet cultivation in Meghalaya.

Scientists recognised too

Three agricultural scientists received the Krishi Siksha Gaurav Samman 2026, Hub News reported: Dr S V Ngachan, former director of the ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region at Umiam, for lifetime work in research and education; Prof Lalnuntluangi Hmar, Dean of the CAU College of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry at Selesih, Aizawl; and Dr Kanchan Saikia, principal scientist at the Regional Rainfed Lowland Rice Research Station in Gerua, Assam, for rice research in flood-prone lowlands.

'Indigenous wisdom' theme

The assembly was organised by the Purvottar Janajati Shiksha Samiti (PJSS) with CPGSAS under the theme "Transforming Classrooms through NEP 2020: Integrating Indigenous Wisdom, Culture and Experiential Learning". Organisers said 375 registered participants from institutions across the Northeast attended.

CAU Vice-Chancellor Dr Anupam Mishra, the chief guest, urged that indigenous knowledge be combined with modern science for sustainable farming. He pointed to tribal communities' traditional role in conserving biodiversity and forests, and called for scientific documentation, value addition and community enterprises to strengthen rural livelihoods. He also said development should not be measured by GDP alone but by well-being and environmental sustainability.

Why it matters

Lakadong turmeric from West Jaintia Hills is prized for its high curcumin content, and millets have seen renewed attention in the hills as hardy, low-input crops. Organisers said the awards were meant to highlight the role of farmers, especially women and rural entrepreneurs, in protecting traditional crop knowledge and building local value chains.