Guwahati, Feb 16 (IANS): For the first time in the legislative history of Assam, a session of the Assembly will be held in Kokrajhar on Monday instead of the Assembly’s permanent building in Dispur.
State Assembly Speaker Biswajit Daimary on Sunday underscored that holding the first-ever sitting of the house outside Guwahati is an endeavour to take the parliamentary democracy closer to the people.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the historic decision to host Assam's 1st ever Assembly session outside the state capital, in Kokrajhar, has been solidly backed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, the two architects of peace in the region.
Talking to the media, the Chief Minister said that after the independence, the Assam Assembly session would be held in Kokrajhar, once a hub of Bodoland agitation for many years.
With Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya's customary speech, the first day of the Budget session would be held in Kokrajhar, adding that the remaining Budget session would be held at the permanent Assembly building in Dispur.
The Budget session would continue till March 25, with Finance Minister Ajanta Neog to present the budget for the financial year 2025-26 on March 10.
A key agenda of the first sitting of the house would also be strengthening the administration of Sixth Schedule areas, the Chief Minister said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, earlier in a post on X regarding the special sitting in Kokrajhar, said, "The NDA governments, both in the Centre and Assam, have been working tirelessly to empower the Bodo community and fulfil Bodo aspirations. These works will continue with even greater vigour."
The Prime Minister also recalled his visit to Kokrajhar, where he witnessed the vibrant Bodo tradition and culture.
Amit Shah, also in a post on social media, extended his best wishes to the people of Bodoland.
“This is a significant step towards fulfilling PM Narendra Modi’s vision to accelerate the development of our Bodo sisters and brothers while nourishing their culture that proudly represents our civilisational ethos. My heartfelt best wishes to the people of Bodoland,” the Home Minister said.
State Assembly Speaker Daimary after the solution of the Bodoland issues Bodo Territorial Council (BTC) was created and now people of the tribal areas witnessed that there is no major difference between Guwahati and Kokrajhar.
The Speaker also appealed to all 126 MLAs to participate in the discussions of the historic Assembly assembly session in Kokrajhar, 226 km west of Guwahati.
The Assembly will be held in the BTC hall. The Assam Legislative Assembly came into being on the day of its first sitting on April 7, 1937, in the Assembly Chamber at Shillong, the erstwhile Capital of the composite State of Assam.
However, in 1972, the Assam government decided to shift the Capital to Dispur, Guwahati. Accordingly, the first sitting of the Budget Session of the Assam Legislative Assembly was held at the temporary capital at Dispur on March 16, 1973.