Assam Govt to form eight sub-committees to draft road map on population policy
Guwahati, July 4: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, after discussing population control policy with 150 indigenous intellectuals from the Muslim community, said that they are in a consensus that population explosion in the state is a concern.
The discussion centered around socio-economic issues affecting the indigenous Muslim population of Assam and was held in presence of Minister of Welfare of Minorities & Development Department @cmpatowary, Education Minister @ranojpeguassam, MLA & Pol Secy @jayanta_malla. 2/4 pic.twitter.com/qCXLd5VmfS
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) July 4, 2021
He said that he would hold a series of meetings with different groups from the Muslim community including the Bengali-speaking Muslims and then form eight sub-committees to draft a road map on population policy.
Sarma, who took charge as Assam Chief Minister on May 10, 2021 after completion of a month, had on June 10 said that the state needs to tackle its population explosion, especially among the minority community, to better allocate its resources, disseminate government policies and solve poverty.
Reiterating on Sunday, Sarma said, “If Assam wants to be among the top five states in the nation, it needs to address its population explosion. Population explosion is posing serious threat to economic well-being of the people residing in the state.”
The Sunday meeting, ‘Alaap- Alochana: Empowering The Religious Minorities’, was first of those meetings held with 150 intellectuals from the community.
“Assamese Muslims have a very rich cultural heritage and we wish to protect that,” Sarma said.
Assam’s indigenous Muslims have been broadly divided into Gorias, indigenous tribes that speaks their lingo but are converted to Islam, Morias who were brought in 16th century from the mainland India by the Ahoms to wield weapons, and Deshis – a term associated mostly to the Koch Rajbongshis who have been converted to Islam.
While both Gorias and Morias are settled in Upper and Northern Assam, the Deshis are mostly settled at western Assam.
Sarma said he will be holding meeting with the representatives from the Bengali Speaking Muslims next.
The Bengali-speaking Muslims, mostly from the chhar (Brahmaputra sandbars) and chapori (flood plains) regions of western Assam and the Barak Valley of southern Assam, both sharing borders with the neighbouring Bangladesh, have more than often been marked as ‘mia’, a colloquial term in Assam denoted to migrant Muslims. They are also mostly blamed for the population explosion.
“After completion of the meetings, eight sub committees will be formed that will look into the health, education, population stabilisation, cultural identity, financial inclusion and skill development and file a report within three months. Then, we will draft a road map for the policies and their implementation,” Sarma said.
