Assam Cabinet grants OBC status to 37 tea tribes, extends SVANidhi scheme

Guwahati, March 11: The State Cabinet on Tuesday decided to accord Other Backward Class (OBC) status to 37 tea tribe communities in Assam.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that these communities were earlier categorized as sub-castes. "Now, they will be given the status of OBC independently. The Social Welfare department will issue a notification soon," he said.

Sarma said that the Cabinet also decided to extend the PM SVANidhi Scheme to street vendors in census towns of the State. Currently, the scheme is extended to vendors in municipal areas only.

The Cabinet also decided to rename Dr Fakaruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College as Barpeta Medical College as all other medical colleges are named after their geographical locations.

"However, we will name another institution befitting the stature of the first President from Assam”, he said.

It also decided to extend the South East Water Supply Project of Guwahati to remaining uncovered areas like Noonmati which will be executed at a cost of Rs 1,367 crore. It will be implemented by L&T.

The Cabinet also decided to declare a government holiday on Ali Aye Ligang and allot 10 bighas of land of Zubeen Khetra in Sonapur to the Cultural Affairs department.

In another decision, the Cabinet decided to set in motion the allotment of land pattas to families living in the hill areas of Guwahati. In the first phase, 816 families of Dispur, Guwahati and Azara will get pattas. Sarma said that third-generation Assamese families will be eligible to get pattas, and around 12,000 applications are already with the government.

The Cabinet also approved 112 bighas of land for the Goalpara industrial estate, besides six private investment proposals worth Rs 24,800 crore and two proposals of Assam Gas Company Private Limited worth Rs 110 crore.