

Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: The AASU and the NESO are in action again to bring to fruition their avowed goal to ensure that the sons of the soil have a good grip on the bureaucratic cores in all the northeastern states, including those of Assam. With a view to producing capable administrative officers among the students of Assam and other states in the region, the AASU launched a project - Pratyasha.
Speaking to The Sentinel, AASU's chief adviser, Dr Samujjal Bhattacharjya, said that the bureaucratic grip in the state administration would remain out of reach for the local people unless they made inroads into it. The present situation in Assam is such that for years to come no indigenous administrative officer will be able to hold the post of the chief secretary, and so will the post of the DGP, he said. He stated that the administrations in the north-eastern states have deteriorated to that point since the students from the region, including those from Assam, rarely succeed in the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) examinations. On the contrary, students from several other states in the rest of India continue to crack UPSC examinations.
To fill this vacuum, the AASU, in collaboration with the NESO (North East Students' Organization), has stepped in to provide a platform for the students of Assam and other states of the Northeast.
Dr Bhattacharjya said, "This year, we will pick 40 students, 26 from Assam and 14 from other states in the region, under Pratyasha 2.0. From today, we started to collect application forms from UPSC aspirants, and this drive will continue until May 15, 2026. The aspirants can file their applications offline and online through www.aasu.org.in. On May 31, 2026, we will conduct an entrance examination at four centres: Guwahati, Tezpur, Sivasagar and New Delhi. The students qualifying for the entrance exam will have to face viva voce. We will send the selected candidates to New Delhi and admit them to the Next IAS Organisation, a coaching centre. We will bear the entire cost of the candidates, besides paying them a sum of Rs 12,000 per month each as a stipend. The NESO will select the other 14 candidates from the remaining states in the region."
The AASU adviser appealed to the UPSC aspirants from the state desiring to contribute their services to the state to come forward and grab these opportunities.
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