GUWAHATI, July 26 - Updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC) is the number one priority for the Government of Assam and an amount of Rs 24,932 lakh is proposed to be released from the State Budget for the purpose.
In his Budget speech, Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that to have a fresh insight into the proper implementation the Assam Accord, the department will be revamped and made more robust. The government will give priority to support and strengthen the functioning system of the Foreigners� Tribunals.
He proposed a one-time ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the martyrs of the Assam Agitation and said a budgetary allocation of Rs 30 crore has been made in the current financial year. The government has also decided to construct a memorial and park to honour the martyrs and the memorial will be known as Swahid Kshetra and Rs 100 lakh have been allocated as an initial amount for construction of the memorial.
The Executive Council of the Jawaharlal Nehru University has resolved to approve the establishment of an Assamese chair in the Centre of Indian Language, Literature and Culture Studies of the university, he said.
On the Assam-Bangladesh border, Sarma said 99.97 per cent of fencing is completed and the remaining portion is likely to be completed within December. The government will also try to ensure that the quality of fencing is at par with the fencing of India-Pakistan border. He also said that efforts will be made to motivate the people near the international border to deal with foreigners and narcotic and drug trafficking.
