Scindia Charts New Roadmap for Sports & Food Self-Reliance in Northeast

Minister Scindia urged states to prepare micro-level, highly focused proposals built collaboratively by State Sports Ministers, departmental secretaries, MoS Sports, SAI DG, and DoNER.

Union Minister of Communications and Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, chaired two crucial High-Level Task Force (HLTF) meetings on 19 November 2025, signalling a strong and coordinated push toward transforming the North Eastern Region (NER) through deeper collaboration, targeted investment, and structured policy planning.

These HLTFs were constituted earlier this year by the Ministry of DoNER following a collective decision taken at the 72nd North Eastern Council (NEC) Plenary Session in Agartala. Each Task Force is led by a Chief Minister of one of the eight northeastern states and focuses on a strategic sector critical to the region’s development.

On Tuesday, Minister Scindia participated in two thematic HLTFs—Sports and Self-Reliance in Milk, Eggs, Fish and Meat—both of which are pivotal to the Northeast’s long-term economic, social, and youth development.

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HLTF on Sports: Building a Powerhouse of High-Performance Athletics

The first meeting, chaired by Shri Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Governor of Manipur, convened key stakeholders including:

• Union Minister of State for Sports & Youth Affairs Smt. Raksha Khadse

• Sports Ministers from Mizoram, Meghalaya and senior officials from Assam

• Representatives from the Sports Authority of India (SAI)

• Top officials from the Ministry of DoNER

One Sport, One State: A Targeted Pathway for Excellence

The session reaffirmed the “One Sport, One State” vision—an approach that encourages each of the eight Northeastern states to concentrate their energy and resources on developing excellence in one or two core disciplines.

The identified disciplines include:

• Mizoram — Football

• Manipur — Boxing & Weightlifting

• Tripura — Judo

• Meghalaya — Archery

• Nagaland — Archery & Taekwondo

• Sikkim — Taekwondo

Minister Scindia urged states to prepare micro-level, highly focused proposals built collaboratively by State Sports Ministers, departmental secretaries, MoS Sports, SAI DG, and DoNER. These proposals are expected to form the backbone of a region-wide strategy for nurturing world-class athletes.

A 60–40 Investment Model: People First, Infrastructure Second

In a paradigm-shifting directive, Scindia emphasised that 60% of resources must be dedicated to human capital—elite coaching, talent scouting, sports science, and technology-enabled training systems—while only 40% should be spent on physical infrastructure.

He stressed that while India already has numerous sports facilities, the country lags in having:

• advanced coaching infrastructure

• standards-driven athlete development

• integrated sports science systems

The Northeast, he said, holds a natural competitive advantage and a rich sports culture, making it the ideal region to lead India’s high-performance movement.

Grassroots to Elite Pathway: Building a 360° Sports Calendar

To nurture talent consistently, Scindia called for a comprehensive sports calendar starting from:

• pre-school activities

• school-level tournaments

• university championships

• block-level competitions

• interstate exchanges and exposure tours

He emphasised that this bottom-up approach must feed into elite training pathways, turning the Northeast into a national case study for sports excellence.

The discussions concluded with a clear message: the Northeast’s sporting potential can become a major pillar of the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision through structured planning, accountability, and sustained investment.

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HLTF on Self-Reliance in Milk, Eggs, Fish & Meat: Creating a Unified Northeast Food Economy

The second HLTF meeting, chaired by Shri Pema Khandu, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, focused on building a self-reliant and efficient food production ecosystem across the Northeast. The meeting brought together:

• Senior officials from the Ministry of DoNER

• Representatives from all eight Northeastern states

• Officials from the Department of Fisheries

• State-level agriculture, veterinary and food-processing experts

A Composite Framework: Beyond Traditional Silos

The Task Force reviewed a detailed demand–supply analysis of all eight states, forming the basis of a multi-dimensional strategy that integrates:

• production capacity

• logistics and connectivity

• cold chain infrastructure

• breeding and productivity enhancement

• market access

• credit expansion

• private sector participation

Scindia stated,

“Our aim is to build a connected, efficient and resilient food ecosystem for the Northeast—one that strengthens livelihoods, expands market access and ensures better nutrition for every citizen.”

Pilot Interventions to Generate Real-Time Learning

In a strategic move, the HLTF resolved to begin pilot interventions in two states for each product category (milk, eggs/poultry, meat, fisheries). These pilots will create:

• rapid learnings

• scalable models

• evidence-driven policy expansion

• micro-level insights for long-term planning

A Clear Implementation Structure

The meeting outlined a robust implementation architecture involving:

• Central Ministries

• State Departments

• Private stakeholders

• Farmer groups and cooperatives

Each intervention will map responsibilities across the entire value chain—from production to processing to marketing and consumption. Funding will also follow a shared model with contributions from states, Centre, and industry.

Viewing the Northeast as One Integrated Market

The Minister stressed the importance of treating the Northeast as a single, interconnected market. This would enable:

• efficient movement of surpluses

• filling of production gaps in deficit states

• enhanced intra- and inter-state trade

• better logistics coordination

• long-term regional food security

Over time, this approach will drive seamless economic activity and stronger regional self-reliance.

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A Unified Vision for a Prosperous Northeast

Closing both meetings, Minister Scindia emphasised the need for a bottom-up, evidence-based and collaborative approach, where:

• states contribute local intelligence

• central ministries provide policy alignment

• the private sector offers scale and innovation

• communities remain at the heart of planning

He said:

“By strengthening production, upgrading value chains and improving logistics, we are laying the foundation for a Northeast that is self-reliant, market-ready and driven by shared prosperity.”

Both Task Forces reflect the government’s unwavering commitment to making the Northeast not only a sporting powerhouse, but also a robust, integrated, and resilient food economy—key pillars in achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.