GUWAHATI, June 27 - The first Cabinet meeting of the BJP-led government in the State, held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, today took several key decisions that include appointment of TET teachers and new government doctors, besides rationalisation of entertainment tax and a welfare scheme for cine artistes.
�As per the commitment of the new dispensation, the Cabinet has decided to appoint 10,000 TET-qualified teachers in different schools of the State before March 31, 2017. Moreover, decks have also been cleared to appoint 700 new doctors in government-run hospitals,� an official release said.
The Cabinet has decided to upgrade the Majuli subdivision to a full-fledged district and inaugurate it before August 31.
Moreover, in line with the recommendations of the Jahnu Barua Committee, it decided to rationalise entertainment tax and service charge for exhibition of cinema. The Cabinet decided to reduce the service charges from Rs 40 per ticket to Rs 8 per ticket for non-AC cinema halls and Rs 12 per ticket for AC cinema halls. This would increase the proportion of proceedings of admission charges due to producers, while the owners of cinema halls are duly compensated.
The Cabinet also decided to constitute a �Silpi Aru Kalakaushali Kalyan Nidhi� for which one rupee would be collected from every cine-goer. �This has been done to create a welfare fund for the cine-artistes and technicians and increase the share of the producers,� it said.
The Cabinet approved the constitution of a �District Mineral Foundation� under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner of each district with representatives from PRIs and other stakeholders. This foundation will be funded from fees to be paid by the mining lease holders as per the Government of India norms. This fund will be used for relief and rehabilitation of those affected from mining activities.
In a move to perpetuate the memory and highlight the contributions of the late Achyut Lahkar, concerted steps will be taken at his native village in Barpeta district. The Cabinet has also decided to preserve the house of Swahid Kushal Konwar at Sarupathar in Golaghat district and convert it into a heritage building. The road leading to Swahid Kushal Konwar�s residence will also be repaired and renovated.
The Cabinet has also given its nod to develop the house of Dr Bhupen Hazarika at Kuthari in Nagaon district as a unique memorial of the legend.
As a mark of respect to the contributions made by journalists, the Cabinet decided to grant one-time ex gratia compensation of Rs 3 lakh to the next of kin of 45 journalists who lost their lives in various incidents of violence in the State.
The Cabinet also approved the Human Development Report 2014. It observed that as per the report, 77 per cent of the people of the State were not satisfied with the governance provided to them, and therefore, the new government in the State would prepare a �one-hundred-day action plan� focusing on good governance and ensuring extensive public participation in governance.
The Cabinet also congratulated Angaraag Mahanta (Papon) on winning the Best Playback Singer (Male) Award at IIFA 2016 and conveyed its best wishes for all his future endeavours.
