GUWAHATI, Feb 24 - Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today said that religious institutions of all faiths promote human values and lead people towards spiritual awakening. This helps in reforming human mind and building a value-based society.
The Chief Minister said this at the launch of Asom Darshan Scheme in a programme held at the Veterinary College Playground in Guwahati today.
Under this scheme, the State government takes up a comprehensive plan to develop religious places of all faiths including 915 institutions with a budgetary allocation of Rs 710 crore. While Rs 2 lakh additional annuity grant to 160 Devalayas and Rs 10 lakh as the first instalment to listed religious institutions are being provided to improve infrastructure, steps are also being taken to improve connectivity for visitors by building a strong road network leading to the places of religious interest at a project cost of Rs 614.45 crore under this scheme.
Underlining the rich heritage and resources of the State, Sonowal said the Asom Darshan Scheme would help promote religious tourism in Assam. He reiterated that the State government is fully committed to the cause of the indigenous people of the State and has taken number of steps for protection and promotion of Assamese language, literature, culture and heritage.
He emphatically said that the government never took any decision which was against the interest of the indigenous people of the State.
The Chief Minister said that with religious tourism gaining momentum in the State, incidence of theft in religious institutions has also been rising, which is a cause of concern. He urged the management boards of the religious institutions to pay special attention on the issue and take steps for ensuring safety and security of valuable properties of such institutions.
Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, Minister of Finance, Education and Health, etc., while speaking on the occasion said that the aim of the Asom Darshan Scheme is to protect the jati, mati, bheti of the Assamese people, and it is an endeavour to highlight the rich religious heritage of the State at the global platform by preserving them and strengthening their infrastructure.
He said that under this scheme the State government would take steps for improving key infrastructure of religious institutions for which initially Rs 10 lakh to each identified institutions would be provided. He informed that religious institutions which would submit utilisation certificates of the initial amount within August 15, they would receive another Rs 15 lakh during this year.