The Assam government will withdraw one lakh “minor cases”, including many of the pending cases on charges of objectionable social media posts, announced Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma while addressing the people on the occasion of Independence Day in Guwahati.
This, Chief Minister Sarma said, will reduce the burden on the judiciary. Assam has a total of 400,000 pending cases.
“The reduction of 1 lakh cases will help judiciary in giving special focus to pending cases related to serious crimes such as rape and murder, among others,” Mr Sarma said.
On the Independence Day, he also paid homage to freedom fighters who sacrificed for the country’s interest.
In an effort to inspire people and make them aware of the sacrifices that the past generations had put in, the chief minister said the state government will send 1,000 youth to visit Cellular Jail in Andaman and Nicobar Islands this year as part of an educational tour.
“On the occasion of 76th Independence Day, I pay homage to countless freedom fighters who sacrificed a lot for our motherland. We will send 1,000 youth to Cellular Jail this year on an educational tour to help them get inspired by the sacrifices of our freedom fighters,” Mr Sarma tweeted.
“Our freedom heroes made huge sacrifices to bring back the glory of this great nation and free its citizens. We shall forever remain indebted to them,” Mr Sarma said in another tweet.
Speaking about the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ movement, Mr Sarma said self-help groups in the state have sold 42 lakh flags with a total cost of around 17 crores.
The ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign commenced on Saturday and will run till today. The programme envisages inspiring Indians everywhere to hoist the national flag at their homes. The aim of the programme is to make the relationship with the national flag a more personal one rather than just keeping it formal or institutional.
Further in his address to the people of the state, Mr Sarma reiterated his resolve to make Assam one of India’s topmost states.
He said Assam is well on course to ensuring universal health insurance.
“In this regard, Ayushman Bharat benefits will be extended to 58 lakh people. Additional 10,000 govt appointments will be made in September. Assam is the first state in the country to undertake such an initiative.”
Also, as part of the efforts to boost the state’s education sector, the state government will provide ₹ 10,000 crore for educational infrastructures – specifically in high and higher secondary schools, Mr Sarma said.
