Will end influx: Amit Shah

Our Correspondent

Kokrajhar/ gaon, Feb 10: Blaming "Congress vote bank politics" for the continuing influx from Bangladesh, BJP tiol president Amit Shah today said the infiltrators have spread across Assam, infringing upon the rights of local youths, be they from tea gardens or Hindi-speaking community or Bodoland.

Addressing a public rally organised by the Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF) to mark the 14th Bodoland Day celebration at Bodofa Nwgwr here, Shah said his party is determined to stop the illegal migration.

“If the BJP forms a government in Assam, it will end infiltration from Bangladesh,” he said.

“Our vision is to make India a developed tion, so we want development of Bodoland, Assam and other parts of the region in all spheres,” Shah further said.

The BJP president said many people had to sacrifice their lives for the BTC Accord, but the problems of the region continue to remain uddressed due to the “apathy” of the Congress government.

 “The Congress has been ruling the State for the last fifteen years. But Assam has not developed as it should have. Misrule and corruption by Congress is responsible for this under-development. One crore people live below the poverty line in Assam. Thirty-six percent have no access to electricity. The number of unemployed stands at 23 lakh now. The Chief Minister did nothing, except promoting his family,” said Shah at a rally in gaon.

Describing Assam as a resource-rich State, Shah said, “The State has so many big rivers, including the Brahmaputra, but the farmers still lack adequate irrigation facilities. The State government has utterly failed to tap the water resources here.”

 Assuring that the NDA government would give importance to the development of the BTC region and the entire Northeast, the BJP president said that by 2019, all the villages will be connected with good roads, electricity and telephone lines and other basic infrastructure.

Shah termed the alliance between his party and the BPF a historic one and said it will go a long way in ensuring development in the State, and the Bodo areas in particular.

“We have decided to contest the Assam elections together with the BPF. This is not a political decision but one for the development of Bodoland. This is going to be historic for Assam.”

Shah referred to the 1962 war with Chi, and said the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had bid goodbye to the people of Assam and the Northeast then.

“It is because of the brave soldiers of India that Assam is today a part of India,” he said.

Shah said BTC chief Hagrama Mohilary has sought Rs. 1,000 crore for development of Bodoland and has also worked out the details about how the money would be used.

“I assure that the Government of India will give more than that amount for the welfare of the BTAD people. Prime Minister rendra Modi believes that for unity of the country, development should be equal in all parts of India,” he added.

Addressing the gathering, Mohilary said his council has been working for the development of the region in all spheres.

“There have been lots of changes within short span of time. We could have taken up more developmental initiatives had the State government released more funds on the basis of population pattern,” he said.

Mohilary said the BTC will provide IAY type houses costing Rs 1 lakh to 8,000 families of BTC region every year. He also announced flyovers in all railway crossings of BTAD, a Rs Rs 200-crore package for erosion protection from Sonkosh to Majbat, fincial grants to all the private educatiol institutions and the Bodo Sahitya Sabha.