States » EastPosted at: Sep 27 2026 8:53PM


Meghalaya pivots to sustainable, community-led tourism model

Shillong, Sep 27 (UNI) Meghalaya is establishing a sustainable, community-led, and climate-resilient model designed to position the state as a year-round global attraction, an official said on Sunday.
“Tourism has become a primary driver of local economic growth and regional development as Meghalaya advances toward its vision of becoming a USD 16 billion economy,” a Tourism Department official said on World Tourism Day 2026.
Supported by public and private investments across more than 150 active projects, tourism-linked livelihoods in Meghalaya expanded from approximately 50,000 in 2022 to over 75,000 in 2025, with annual tourist footfalls reaching nearly 18.55 lakh in 2025.
“With over 76 per cent of its land under forest cover, Meghalaya's rivers, caves, waterfalls, and living root bridges form an irreplaceable ecological and cultural framework,” the official said.
“Rooted in the traditional land and forest governance systems of the Khasi, Jaintia, and Garo communities, the state's Tourism Policy 2023 emphasises high-value, low-volume tourism centred on carrying capacity, right pricing, and zero-waste management,” the official emphasised.
As community participation remains central to Meghalaya’s tourism strategy, the tourism official said, homestays, local guides, tourist vehicles, community-run infrastructure, and other local enterprises are creating opportunities for residents to participate directly in the tourism economy.
The state has sanctioned 877 homestay applications, with over Rs 120 crore disbursed, generating more than 6,000 jobs through local hospitality enterprises.
"The CM’s Meghalaya Homestay Mission is targeting the creation and upgradation of 1,000 homestays in 2026–27, as part of a larger vision of 3,000 homestays,” an official data revealed.
Community-led tourism is also being strengthened through rural tourism cooperatives and the Community-Led Tourism Infrastructure Scheme, enabling communities to play a greater role in shaping destinations and developing local enterprises.
“This community-centric approach also intersects with climate resilience. The Meghalaya Community-Led Landscape Management Project has supported more than 400 villages in restoring land, water and forests by combining traditional knowledge with scientific and data-driven approaches. Spring rejuvenation, mine-land restoration, Living Root Bridge conservation and Payment for Ecosystem Services demonstrate how environmental stewardship can also contribute to economic resilience,” the official underscored.
To establish Meghalaya as a year-round global attraction and distribute economic benefits across all districts, the state has also proposed more than Rs 162 crore allocation for tourism infrastructure, destination development, and community tourism.
Four major hubs like Umiam (Barapani), Sohra (Cherrapunjee), Dawki-Shnongpdeng, and Nokrek have been designated for transformation into global-scale destinations, the tourism official said, adding that major infrastructure developments include the Rs 233.75-crore PM-DevINE Sohra Tourism Circuit.
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Tags: #Meghalaya pivots to sustainable# community-led tourism model
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