OUR CORRESPONDENT
KOKRAJHAR: Chief Executive Member (CEM) of BTC Pramod Boro, who is also the in charge of finance, presented the demand of supplementary budget during the winter assembly session of BTC on Thursday. On the first day of the session, the BTC Land and Revenue Regulation (Application and Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Bodoland Territorial Council Flood Plain Zoning Bill, 2024, were also introduced by the respective EMs of the council during the session.
During the question hour, MCLA Fresh Mashahary said there had been no concrete data of issuing land pattas under the Udalguri Circle Office and also alleged that people get undue delay of land-related services in the Circle Office. He further alleged that the CO and the Lat Mandols force the people to pay amounts ranging from Rs. 5,000 to 7,000 for issuing land documents and records and other services. He also questioned who controls the Circle Officer of BTC, where their corrupt practices are not checked, although the present council government has been claiming that the corruption in BTC has crashed down.
Replying to the question, the EM of Land and Revenue, Ranjit Basumatary, said 2,59,874 land-related cases have been solved, and over 2 lakh people have been given land pattas through Mission Bwiswmuthi and Land Mela in BTC. He said there had been official data of issuing land pattas in 19 circles of BTC. He said BTC was the first 6th schedule council to digitize land documents and provides online services to the people to avail land-related documents, he said, adding that 13 services are being given through Mission Bwiswmuthi.
On taking bribes in the name of services in the Udalguri Circle Office, he said not only EMs of respective departments and MCLAs are liable to check corrupt practices but also every elected member and conscious people are equally responsible for ending the bad practices. He also said the government of BTR had been tough on crashing down on corruption and corrupt practices since it took over the council administration. He called upon all to furnish evidence of corruption to take prompt action against the officials of the department, as they will never allow such practices.
Taking serious note of the allegations brought by the MCLA against the Udalguri Circle Officer and Lat Mandols, the CEM, Pramod Boro, stood and said there would be no tolerance on corruption and corrupt practices and no one would be spared if corruption is brought with evidence. He said loud and clear that stern action would be taken against the corrupt officials within 24-hours if proof is furnished. He also called upon all to take equal responsibilities to check and crash down the corruption and corrupt practices.
Meanwhile, the leader of the opposition, Derhasat Basumatary, while talking to media persons, said most of the projects of MoS of the BTR accord had not been implemented in the last four years of the present council government, and the CEM, Pramod Boro, has also admitted this before the house. He said many major projects of the MoS were still in the process of DPR, survey, and under consideration, which is unfortunate. He also said the proposed institutions of technical and paramedical sciences, the Railway Coach Factory, and the industrial hub in Ramfalbil, and higher educational institutions are not in sight as per the MoS of the accord, but the ruling party has been taking credit over concept papers.
On the other hand, the CEM, Pramod Boro, said no educational institutions, projects, or infrastructures came within 4-5 years after the BTC accord too when Hagrama Mohilary was the CEM. He said there had been a surge of COVID-19 immediately after they took over the BTC administration and more than a year gone without development activities in the region because of the COVID-19D-19 outbreak. He also said that after COVID, they faced new government at the centre and new ministry; many of them are not aware of the MoS of the BTR accord and some of the projects are purely innovative for which they were invited for queries over the new projects that are out of the purview of normal projects. He further said most of the projects of MoS were getting approval and would be implemented very soon.
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