ASSAM

Assam govt to review status of tap water supply to homes

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TheAssamgovernment will launch Jalotsav to assess the quality and functionality status of piped water supply to every household even as statistics revealed that barely 42% households in the most populous northeastern state have got tap water connection under the Centres scheme for drinking water, Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).

While seven states andUnion Territoriesin the country have achieved 100% target in ensuring piped water to rural households three years after its launch, in Assam more than households, a bigger Percentage of government schools andanganwadicentres have benefited from JJM.

Of the 3.3 crore Assam Population, only 1.11 lakh rural population had tap water connection in the state before the launch ofJMMin 2019. After three years 28.27 lakh people of the state, accounting for 42.1% of Assams population, have tap water.

Assam’sper capita debt burdenat the close of the last financial year 2021-22 is estimated at Rs 26,771 while the per capita income has been pegged at Rs 1,02,965 (by quick estimate), state finance minister Ajanta Neog informed the assembly.

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According to the minister’s reply to a query, the per capita debt burden has increased by over Rs 13,000 from Rs 13,521 in in last five financial years.
Quoting reports from the statedirectorate of economics and statistics, Neog stated that the state’s per capita income according to quick estimates was Rs 1,02,965 andGDPRs 4,12,162 crore registering a Growth rate of over 16% in 2021-22.

The minister said in last three financial years, the availed a total loan of Rs 17,148 crore during the last financial year from several sources for various purposes.

During 2021-22, the state government has taken Rs 12,753 crore from market borrowings for development work, another loan of Rs 1,385.94 crore has been taken for developing rural Infrastructure from financial institutions, central loans of Rs 157.34 crore for implementing development schemes and Rs 600 crore for implementing capital schemes and Rs 2252.10 crore from state provident fund for development and welfare projects.

Assam’s first satellite town to come up in Jagiroad

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The deserted campus of the locked Nagaon paper mill of the Hindustan Paper Corporation (HPC) inJagiroadon the eastern fringe of Guwahati may soon become the centre of the state’s first satellite , to be designed by experts from Singapore.

The Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has appointed Singapore-based M/S Surbana Jurong Infrastructures Private Limited as the consultancy firm for drawing the masterplan and developing the satellite township, barely 55 km from the city. Sources in the housing and urban affairs department told TOI that the bigger plan is to develop around 10 sq km area in Jagiroad, including the defunct paper mill area. The State Government in March had formally taken over the assets of HPC Limited’s sick paper mill unit at Jagiroad in Morigaon district.

Assam communities demanding ST tag want to put on united front

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Leaders of six communities in Assam, which are agitating for Scheduled Tribe status in their State, have stressed the need to stay united in their fight. The leaders of Tai-Ahom, Matak, Moran, Chutia, Koch-Rajbongshi, and Adivasi communities have cautioned that they are being pitted against each other, even as they are headed for a fresh round of meetings with the All Assam Tribal Sangha (AATS), an umbrella body of existing STs, over their demands.

Efforts to keep representatives of all six agitating communities together has been renewed, especially since one faction of the Chutia community – the Chutia Yuva Sanmilan – announced recently that they would be breaking away from the group that has so far been meeting with the AATS and the government over demands to be classified as STs.

Put together, the six communities agitating for ST status in Assam comprise at least 30% of the States electorate. Adding them to the ST list would significantly increase the ST Population in the State and reduce the share of entitlements available to the existing ST communities unless the quota is increased from the present 10% for tribes in plains and 5% for tribes in the hills.

Assam CM launches land revenue streamlining reformsAssam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday launched ‘Mission Basundhara’ aimed at empowering people to resolve their land-related issues through an online system. Terming the initiative as a historic and decisive step, the chief minister asserted that through this mission, middlemen would be eliminated from the system. “Securing land rights of the indigenous population is the prime objective of the mission and public, especially poor and disadvantaged sections, must be facilitated to get their land-related works done through ‘Mission Basundhara’,” an official statement quoting the Chief Minister said. A total of Rs 225 crore would be spent on the implementation of the programme and the mission would be able to rebuild all lost land records of the state, the chief minister said.

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Updating records in a mission mode is a major goal of ‘Mission Basundhara’ by offering nine land revenue related Services online, including mutation and reclassification of land, Sarma said. The application period in the portal is from October 2, 2021, to November 30, 2021, and the disposal shall be within May 10, 2022, Sarma said. As part of the second component of the mission, a polygon survey would be conducted of yet-to-be surveyed 672 non-cadastral villages of the state by March 31, 2022.

Assam reclaims 200 hectares of land from Mizoram encroachersThe Assam government on Wednesday informed the state assembly that it has reclaimed 200 hectares of land in Inner Line Reserve Forest from encroachers of Mizoram a few days ago. The state government had last month said in the House that nearly 1,800 hectares of Assam land have been encroached by the people of neighbouring Mizoram. In reply to a query by AIUDF MLA Suzam Uddin Laskar, Border Area Development Minister Atul Bora said that the Forest Department in association with the Assam Police cleared 200 hectares of land inside Inner Line Reserve Forest.

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also said that miscreants from Mizoram set ablaze 27 houses at Jalnacherra village in Hailakandi district of Assam on February 9 this year, affecting 20 indigenous families. He further informed the House that miscreants also torched a few houses on July 25 at Bilaipur-Dhalcherra of Hailakandi. In Hailakandi district, around 1,000 hectares of Inner Line Reserve Forest have been encroached by people from Mizoram for a long time

Dibrugarh to host 2023 Assam Youth Olympics

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Sonowal said the second edition of the Assam Youth Olympics will be hosted by Dibrugarh from December 2 to 10 that will witness the participation of over 5,000 athletes from all 31 districts of the state. Sonowal said the event, organised and conducted by the AOA, under the aegis of the department ofsportsand youth welfare, government of Assam, is an attempt to provide a professional platform for the upcoming talent from the grassroots levels to perform and excel for better sporting milestones in the future.

Assam cow bill seeks ban on beef around 5km of temples

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Assamchief ministerHimanta Biswa Sarmaon Monday tabled the Assam Cattle PreservationBill, 2021, in the state assembly to regulate slaughter, consumption and transportation of cattle, even as the Opposition MLAs staged a walkout over price rise on the first day of the budget session.

After the Bill gets the nod of the assembly, sale, offer or exposure of beef will be prohibited in areas which are predominantly inhabited by Hindu, Jain,Sikhand other non beef-eating communities. The will also come into effect within a radius of 5km of any temple,satra(Vaishnavite monastery), or other Hindu religious institutions. It also may be applicable to any other institution or areas prescribed by the competent authority.

The Bill, however, brought exemptions for slaughter which is certified by a veterinary officer authorised on this behalf by the State Government in the interest of public Health. Slaughter of cattle suffering from incurable, infectious, contagious disease or is a danger to other cattle has been permitted but with due permission from the authorised veterinary officer.

The already existingAssam Cattle Preservation Act1950, regulates cattle slaughter in Assam, provided concerned veterinary officers give a fit-for-slaughter certificate. Slaughter of cattle that are over 14 years of age is conditionally allowed. The new legislation will repeal the 1950 Act where consumption of beef was not an offence. Besides, the legislation may lead to further intensify the BJP-governments move against cow smuggling toBangladeshwhich is on through the porous international border and riverine areas along the international border for long.

Assam’s Cachar village declared free of child marriage

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TheAssamgovernment has declared Cachar district’s Rukni Part-IV village as a “zero child-marriage village”.

“Rukni Part-IV has been found with nochild marriagecases in the past two years. It’s a good job by the Cachar District Administration, Police department and social welfare department for making it possible by creating awareness among the people of the locality. I also thank the villagers for their sense of consciousness and response to the government initiative,” said Assam minister for excise, and transport Parimal Suklabaidya.

Suklabaidya was addressing a programme at Darmikhal High School Rukni Part-IV village in Dholai assembly constituency on Sunday where the village was ceremonially declared as a “zero child-marriage village”.