Meghalaya, a small hilly state located in the northeastern region of India, was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from Assam, the Garo Hills, and the United Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills. It became a fully-fledged state under the North Eastern Region (Re-Organisation) Act, 1971.

Meghalaya means “the abode of clouds” in Sanskrit. Meghalaya is one of the Seven Sister States of northeast India. The others are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland. Meghalaya covers an area of about 22,430 square kilometres.

It is the wettest region of the country and around 70 per cent of the state is covered with forests. The main languages spoken are Khasi, Garo, Pnar and English.

The statehood day celebrations in Meghalaya include cultural events. However, the foundation day celebrations this year will be a low-key due to coronavirus pandemic.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 20, 2021 08:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).