| Emblem of Meghalaya | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Armiger | The Government of Meghalaya |
| Adopted | 2022 |
| Shield | Three hills, clouds, three monoliths, wangal drum |
| Supporters | Rikgitok and Paila beads |
| Motto | Government of Meghalaya |
| Earlier version(s) |  |
The Emblem of Meghalaya is the symbol used to represent the government of the state of Meghalaya, India.
The current emblem was adopted on 19 January 2022 as part of the state's golden jubilee celebrations. The design by P. Mario K. Pathaw was chosen following a state-wide competition that attracted 198 entries. [1] [2] [3] Previously the state used a seal based on the emblem of India for official purposes.
The emblem is a circular seal depicting the following features: [4]
There are three autonomous district councils in Meghalaya which have each adopted distinct emblems to represent themselves.
The government of Meghalaya can be represented by a banner displaying the emblem of the state on a white field. [5] [6] [7]
Meghalaya is a state in northeast India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of Assam: (a) the United Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills and (b) the Garo Hills. The estimated population of Meghalaya in 2014 was 3,211,474. Meghalaya covers an area of approximately 22,429 square kilometres, with a length-to-breadth ratio of about 3:1.
Shillong is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, a state in northeastern India. It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the 330th most populous city in India with a population of 143,229 according to the 2011 census. It is said that the rolling hills around the town reminded the British of Scotland. Hence, they would also refer to it as the "Scotland of the East".
The Khasi people are an ethnic group of Meghalaya in north-eastern India with a significant population in the bordering state of Assam, and in certain parts of Bangladesh. Khasi people form the majority of the population of the eastern part of Meghalaya, that is Khasi Hills, constituting 78.3% of the region's population, and is the state's largest community, with around 48% of the population of Meghalaya. They are among the few Austroasiatic-speaking peoples in South Asia. The Khasi tribe holds the distinction of being one of the few remaining tribes that have a matrilineal society. Under the Constitution of India, the Khasis have been granted the status of Scheduled Tribe.
The Garo Hills are part of the Garo-Khasi range in Meghalaya state of India. They are inhabited by the Garo people. It is one of the wettest places in the world. The range is part of the Meghalaya subtropical forests ecoregion.
The Khasi Hills are a low mountain formation on the Shillong Plateau in the Meghalaya state of India. The Khasi Hills are part of the Garo-Khasi-Jaintia range and connect with the Purvanchal Range and larger Patkai Range further east. The Khasi Hills, and the whole Garo-Khasi-Jaintia range, are in the Meghalaya subtropical forests ecoregion.
Hopingstone Lyngdoh was an Indian politician who was the president of the Hill State People's Democratic Party (HSPDP), one of three official political parties of the state of Meghalaya in India.
Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) is an autonomous district council in the state of Meghalaya in India. It covers West Khasi Hills district, Eastern West Khasi Hills district, East Khasi Hills district and Ri Bhoi district. It is one of the three autonomous district councils within Meghalaya, and one of twenty-five autonomous regions of India. Between its foundation on 27 June 1952 and 14 June 1973 it was known as the United Khasi-Jaintia Hills District Council. The total area of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council is 11,718 km2 having a population of 1,578,375 as of 2011.
Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) is an autonomous district council in the state of Meghalaya in India. It is one of the three autonomous district councils within Meghalaya, and one of twenty-five autonomous regions of India. Present Jaintia hills was a part of historical Jaintia Kingdom. It was formed as the Jowai Autonomous District Council on 23 November 1964 from the Jowai Subdivision of the United Khasi-Jaintia Hills District – adopting its current name on 14 June 1973.
Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) is an autonomous district council in the state of Meghalaya in India. It is seated at Tura and covers East Garo Hills district, West Garo Hills district, South Garo Hills district, North Garo Hills district and South West Garo Hills district; is one of the three Autonomous District Councils within Meghalaya, and one of twenty-five autonomous regions of India. The total area of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council is 10,102 sq km having a population of 1,394,362 as of 2011.
The Khasi and Jaintia Hills are a mountainous region in India that was mainly part of Assam and Meghalaya. This area is now part of the present Indian constitutive state of Meghalaya, which includes the present districts of East Jaintia Hills district, headquarter Khliehriat, West Jaintia Hills district, headquarter Jowai, East Khasi Hills district, headquarter Shillong, and West Khasi Hills district, headquarter Nongstoin.
The Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council is a militant organization operating in Meghalaya, India. It claims to represent the Khasi-Jaintia tribal people, and its aim is to free Meghalaya from the alleged domination of outsiders from the Indian mainland. It was proscribed in India on 16 November 2000, but the ban was later lifted, before banning it again in 2019.
Williamson Ampang Sangma, was a Garo leader, and the first Chief Minister of Meghalaya. He was also the first Governor of Mizoram among the Garos in 1989.
Evangelization of Meghalaya began in the 19th century during the British era. In the 1830s, American Baptist Foreign Missionary Society had become active in Northeast to evangelize indigenous tribes to Christianity. Later, they were offered to expand and reach into Sohra Meghalaya, but they lacked the resources to do so and declined. Welsh Presbyterian Mission took the offer and they began work at Sohra mission field. By the early 1900s, other Protestant denominations of Christianity were active in Meghalaya. The outbreak of World Wars forced the preachers to return home to Europe and America. It is during this period that Catholicism took root in Meghalaya and neighbouring region. Currently, Catholics, Presbyterians and Baptists are three most common Christian denominations found in Meghalaya.
The Caves of Meghalaya comprise a large number of caves in the Jaintia, Khasi Hills, and Garo Hills districts in the Indian state of Meghalaya, and are amongst the longest caves in the world. Of the ten longest and deepest caves in India, the first nine are in Meghalaya, while the tenth is in Mizoram. The longest is Krem Liat Prah in the Jaintia Hills, which is 30,957 m (101,600 ft) long. The word "Krem" means cave in the local Khasi language.
The hill tribes of Northeast India are hill people, mostly classified as Scheduled Tribes (STs), who live in the Northeast India region. This region has the largest proportion of scheduled tribes in the country.
Hinduism is a minority religion in the Meghalaya state of India constituting 12% of the state's population. The Nartiang Durga Temple in Meghalaya is one of the 51 Shakti peethas on Earth and is considered by Hindus of Meghalaya as the permanent abode of Goddess Durga. Hinduism is a popular religion practice by Rabhas, Hajongs, Kochs, Rajbongshis, Mikirs, Bengalis, Nepalis, Biharis etc.
James Joy Mohan Nichols Roy was a Christian minister and politician from what is now the state of Meghalaya, India. Before the independence of India he agitated for autonomy of the tribal peoples of northeast India. After independence this was enshrined in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India through his efforts.
Eastern West Khasi Hills is a district in the Indian state of Meghalaya, located approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) west of the state capital of Shillong. It was created in 2021, after bifurcation of existing West Khasi Hills district. The territories which make up the district recorded a total population of 131,451 in the 2011 census. The district headquarters is the town of Mairang.
The Sixth Schedule to the Constitution of India provides measures of autonomy and self-governance to the Scheduled Tribes in the hill regions of Northeast India.
