Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma said that ‘it’s a new Assam where the state government thinks of everything from subsidized dal and sugar for the people to an exclusive satellite for the state.’.
Taking part in the debate on the annual budget placed on the floor of the House yesterday, the Chief Minister said, “Assam is one of the five fastest-growing states of the country, and the resounding success of Advantage Assam 2.0 speaks volumes about its growth journey.” The Chief Minister said, “Our thrust is not only on the concrete development of infrastructure in the state. We are making strides on all fronts, taking our culture and heritage to the rest of the world. After scripting records with Bihu and Jhumur dances, our next target is to sing our melodious ‘O mur aponar dex…’ by one crore people at the same time with the same accompaniment.”
Giving a vivid picture of the rising graph of Assam, the Chief Minister said, “The budget outlay of Assam was Rs 74,818 crore. We anticipate that the outlay of the 2026-67 annual budget of the state will be around Rs 2 lakh crore. The government is not only taking loans. Assam is now a robust economy with sufficient cash reserves of around Rs 58,000 crore and resources. We’re committed to building greater potential for future investment. The government can encash these reserves anytime.”
The Chief Minister said, “We hear what the people of the state say and act accordingly to make people see the development taking place. A success on any front doesn’t make us sit idle with elation. We continue to try to scale newer heights and success. They criticize the government’s DBT schemes like Orunudoi, Nijut Maina, etc. They, however, miss noticing the foundation that such schemes have laid for the rural economy in the state. The purchasing power of the rural populace has gone up now, and the money is being rolled into the state markets. Unlike this, the former Congress government in the state provided freebies like yarn, blankets, CI sheets, etc. The money spent for the procurement of those materials used to go to merchants outside the state.”
On the announcement of popular schemes, the Chief Minister said, “Despite this being a pre-election budget, we haven’t announced any new popular schemes. All we’ve included in this budget are the continuation of the ongoing schemes. This is because our target is not to win the 2026 Assembly election, which is like a cakewalk for us. Our target is to win the 2047 Assembly election.” The Chief Minister said, “Our thrust is on a balanced development of the state. We plan to develop Dibrugarh, Silchar, Jagiroad, Gohpur, etc., as cities, let alone Guwahati. A plan is afoot to set up a full-fledged Assembly in Dibrugarh. A ropeway from Khanapara to the airport, a water metro transport system in Guwahati, etc., are some of the plans that the government has its eyes set on.”
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