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Assam Budget 2025-26: A youth-centric vision for progress
The Assam Budget 2025-26 brings new opportunities for students and young professionals, focusing on education, employment, and entrepreneurship. With a total outlay of Rs. 2.63 lakh crore, the government aims to create a progressive and inclusive future.
Education receives a major boost with Rs. 18,733 crore allocated to improve infrastructure, introduce smart classrooms, and provide free bicycles for students. The recruitment of 5,550 new teachers ensures better quality education, making learning more accessible to young minds. Additionally, initiatives to promote Assamese literature will encourage youth involvement in writing and intellectual growth.
For aspiring entrepreneurs, the Mukhiya Mantri Mahila Udyamita Abhiyan (Rs. 3,038 crore) and the Orunodoi scheme (Rs. 5,000 crore) offer financial support to young women looking to start businesses. These initiatives foster self-reliance and innovation.
Employment generation is a key focus, with Rs. 24,964 crore allocated for asset creation, promoting industrial expansion and job opportunities. Tax exemptions for professionals earning up to Rs. 1.2 lakh annually will provide relief to young workers entering the job market.
Infrastructure projects worth Rs. 10,200 crore, including new roads and bridges, will enhance connectivity, benefiting students and professionals travelling for education and work. The launch of ASSAMSAT, in collaboration with ISRO, will modernise governance and improve internet access, aiding digital education.
With Rs. 5,393 crore for healthcare and Rs. 8,291 crore for law enforcement, the budget ensures better medical facilities and a safer environment for students and youth.
This budget paves the way for Assam’s young generation, equipping them with resources, skills, and opportunities for a brighter future. Effective implementation and active participation will determine its success in empowering the youth.
Munmee Roy
Gauhati University.
Cricketing extravaganza
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is known to showcase domestic cricket talent in a big way. It has been a stepping stone for plenty of young Indian cricketers hoping to make it big. From the initial leagues to the upcoming 18th edition, it has metamorphosed into a tournament that has a keen eye for talent and skills. Along the way, the league has shed its early teething problems; a more mature and solid extravaganza is there to see now. Despite a few inherent flaws, the IPL has groomed and encouraged players. The presence of senior Indian and foreign cricketers alongside the freedom to go for their natural game and a significant financial cushion have ensured that young names like Riyan Parag, Sai Sudarshan, and Rinku Singh came to the forefront along with a lot of others.
Fearless and committed, sincere and ambitious, the young guns in the editions of the IPL have paid scant respect for reputations. Their focus is more on the ball; bowlers are secondary.
The confidence reposed by franchises in some players despite their lackadaisical form has made sure that they repay the trust reposed in them. In India, cricket is a religion; neither socioeconomic roadblocks nor academic ambitions have prevented youngsters from suppressing their desire to rub shoulders with the best in the game. Numerous local cricket leagues modelled on the IPL are trying their best to hone talents. Fame and money are deceptive and dangerous companions; they need to be prioritised vis-à-vis duty and dedication.
Dr Ganapathi Bhat
(gbhat13@gmail.com)
Siang project deadlock
The mega 11,000 megawatt (MW) Upper Siang multipurpose storage and hydroelectric dam project on river Siang in Arunachal Pradesh has reportedly been stuck between geopolitical risk and environmental concerns. Although the state government is making all-out efforts to convince project opponents about the daunting geopolitical risk posed by the massive Chinese dam project of 60,000 MW on the Yarlung Zangbo in Tibet, in the upper reaches of the Siang. Yet, it has failed to achieve much of a breakthrough with the organizations opposing the Siang project so far in the state. The editorial, 'Breaking the Siang project deadlock', published in your esteemed daily on March 21, has highlighted the state Deputy CM's address to people during his visit to Siang and Upper Siang districts regarding the importance of the project in view of the proposed Chinese dam to prevent drying up of the Siang river and its tributaries, as the Chinese project will divert Yarlung Zangbo (the Brahmaputra river in the Tibet region), which will not only affect the aquatic life of the river but also the large population in the plains of Assam and Bangladesh, who largely depend on the Brahmaputra for the irrigation needs of their agricultural fields. The need is to check the cascading impact of the Chinese dam on water security in the region. The apprehension of the state government about China using the dam as a weapon and releasing a large volume of water in the event of conflict between India and China, which will result in unpredictable floods and irreparable loss to lives and property of people living in downstream areas of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, needs to be considered with all seriousness.
Those people who are against the Siang project need to rethink the issue and come to the table for threadbare discussion for a permanent solution to it. It is imperative for the central government to invite representatives of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh for dialogue to find an environmentally sustainable solution to the Siang project deadlock for the well-being of people of both states living in downstream areas of the Brahmaputra. At the same time, one cannot turn down the claim that the proposed dam on the Siang River will act as a deterrent and release the water in a controlled way and moderate flooding downstream in times of emergencies. Let us hope that the stalemate will end soon.
Iqbal Saikia,
Guwahati.