Guwahati: Meghalaya commissioner and secretary Dr. Vijay Kumar stated that the presence of a robust private sector can assist Meghalaya to become one of the top 10 performing states in the country by 2032.

Speaking at a Round Table Session on "Increasing Credit Flow in Meghalaya" yesterday in Shillong, Kumar stated that the Meghalaya government's vision is to be one of the top ten performing states by 2032, which can only be achieved by having a strong, vibrant, and thriving private sector that allows for growth and job creation.

The roundtable was organised with the goal of building synergies for easy loan flow for business and economic growth in Meghalaya.

The State Government conducted the initiative in partnership with Invest India, the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency.

He stated that credit is the "lifeblood" of the private sector, emphasizing the critical role that the banking sector and other financial institutions can play in creating an enabling climate for private sector growth.

Reiterating the need to lessen reliance on government programmes, Dr. Vijay Kumar stated that individuals should not be afraid to take credit for the growth of their enterprises and emphasised the need of leveraging the financial system. In turn, he asked banks and financial sector firms to simplify banking services.

Dr. B.D.R Tiwari, Commissioner, State Investment Promotion, delivered the closing remarks, emphasising the importance of digital technologies made available in a vernacular-based format to increase financial literacy and awareness in the state, and emphasised the vision of making Meghalaya "one of the top ten states" within the next decade.

In his welcoming address, Mr. Varun Sood, Vice President, Invest India, stated that "credit is the lifeline for the private sector" and emphasised the need of long-term relationships between banks and businesses in establishing a sufficient demand-supply for credit in the economy.

The technical session witnessed participation from select banking and financial services players like HDFC, Meghalaya Rural Bank, Meghalaya Cooperative Apex Bank, SBI, North East Small Finance Bank, and entrepreneurs from Meghalaya such as Urlong Tea, DD Spice Products, Country Spices, etc, cooperative societies such as Mendipathar Multipurpose
Cooperative Society Ltd, Meghalaya Rural Tourism Cooperative Federation Ltd., relevant government stakeholders, and regulators like RBI, NABARD, etc.