Baghmara, Meghalaya | 18 June 2025 — In a milestone moment for India’s voluntary carbon market and nature-based community development, farmers from the Garo Hills of Meghalaya have received India’s highest-ever carbon income under the Meghalaya Carbon Agroforestry for Community Resilience and Ecosystems (MegCare) initiative.
At a public event held in Baghmara, South Garo Hills, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma handed over carbon income cheques to local farmers—recognising their role in combating climate change through tree-based agroforestry.
“This initiative empowers our farmers and strengthens our mission of sustainable development,” the Chief Minister said. “I encourage more farmers across Meghalaya to join this transformative programme.”
Launched in January 2024, MegCare is a joint initiative of IORA Ecological Solutions, Rabobank’s Acorn platform, and the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA). In just 18 months, it has already expanded to 22,000 hectares and involved over 10,400 farmers across the Khasi, Jaintia, and Garo Hills regions.
What makes MegCare exceptional is its carbon finance model: farmers earn revenue based on the actual volume of carbon removed from the atmosphere through agroforestry practices. The first disbursement under the programme saw the Carbon Removal Units (CRUs) sold at EUR 40 per tonne—the highest carbon rate ever paid to Indian farmers, and 4–5 times the global average.
“We selected this programme because of its high integrity and farmer-centric design,” said Gunanka D.B., IFS, Executive Director of MegLIFE and MegARISE.
“MegCare is more than a carbon project—it’s a movement for rural prosperity and ecological regeneration,” added Swapan Mehra, CEO of IORA Ecological Solutions.
Through a robust monitoring system and community-led planning, the programme is helping restore biodiversity, recharge mountain springs, and revive degraded lands—all while enhancing farmer incomes.
Rabobank’s Acorn platform, which connects smallholder farmers to global carbon markets, has played a key role in driving transparency and pricing confidence.
“The farmers of Meghalaya are showing the world that regenerative agriculture and carbon finance can co-create solutions for climate, community, and conservation,” said Harm Haverkort, Asia Lead at Acorn.
MegCare aims to eventually cover 100,000 hectares of new agroforestry plantations and upgrade 50,000 hectares of existing tree-based systems. In parallel, the programme is building green entrepreneurship, facilitating market linkages, and nurturing a climate-resilient rural economy in Meghalaya.
As climate urgency intensifies, MegCare offers a powerful blueprint for how India’s northeastern states can lead the way in community-led carbon solutions.