‘People of Assam want peace and development, not propaganda’
Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma told the legislators, especially the new faces, that politicians should not be arrogant, as a win in an election does not make one “all in all.”
The chief minister said these words in his reply to the debate on the governor’s speech in the state assembly today. He said, “What I say is especially for the youth MLAs. The LAC you have won isn’t a permanent win. The people who make you win can also ensure your defeat. The people of Assam are mature and can judge which MLAs are arrogant. Arrogance has no room in politics. Many of the sitting MLAs lost in the last election primarily because they relied heavily on their personal assistants (PAs) and officers on special duty (OSDs). You need to be careful while relying on them.”
The chief minister said, “The BJP and its allies polled around 50 per cent of the total votes of the state only because of peace and development. The people of the state give scant regard to the politics of propaganda. We got votes from each and every community. They want peace and development. Ours is an inclusive politics, working for the development of all and sundry. Our prime agenda in the next five years is the protection of land and culture, besides development. Our policies of eviction drives and pushing back Bangladeshis will continue.”
The Chief Minister said, “Another positive side of the last Assembly election in Assam is that it’s an incident-free electoral battle in the pre- and post-poll periods, despite registering a heavy turnout of 85 per cent. In the past, the law-and-order situation in the state was so sensitive that the current peaceful conditions were beyond the expectations of the people. Two words, ‘peace’ and ‘development’, have replaced the word ‘violence’ in Assam. The people of the state want industries so the youth won’t have to leave their home state for jobs.
On the development front, the chief minister said, “BPL families in the state have come down to 17 per cent from 40 per cent earlier. Our target is to bring it down to three per cent in the coming five years. Likewise, the MMR (Mothers’ Mortality Rate) in the state has come down to 84 per lakh from 480 per lakh earlier. Our target is to bring it down to seven per lakh in the next five years.”
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