The Cabinet on 3rd May approved a payout of Rs 308 crore to employees of the state’s two defunct paper mills, as well as a release of Rs 116 crore to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Awas Yojana beneficiaries (Urban).
On 3rd May, the Assam Cabinet gave administrative sanction to a corpus of over Rs 8,000 crore for infrastructure development projects in the state.
Following the meeting, Health Minister Keshab Mahanta told the media that Rs 308 crore had been paid in compliance with the Government’s agreement with the Nagaon and Cachar paper mills’ employees’ unions and that the employees will now receive their arrear dues in a short time.
Furthermore, the government will follow through on its promise to rehire 100 former employees of closed paper mills within a week, based on their qualifications.
Mahanta went on to say that a sum of Rs 2,000 crore has been given administrative approval for the construction of four new medical institutions in the state – at Bongaigaon, Dhemaji, Golaghat, and Morigaon. Each medical college has been allocated Rs 500 crore.
The Cabinet also gave administrative clearance to an amount of Rs 3,197 crore for the construction of a four-lane bridge over the Brahmaputra between Sualkuchi and Palasbari, which will be 4.08 kilometers long, according to the Health Minister.
A total of Rs 2,390 crore was also given administrative sanction for the development of 34 polytechnic institutes and 43 ITIs across the state.
The Government of Assam and Tata Technical Limited would collaborate to build these institutes as ‘Centres of Excellence,’ he added, adding that the latter will give 78 percent of the funding.
The Minister stated that the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana (Urban) now has roughly 1.16 lakh participants and that the Cabinet agreed to provide some relief to the beneficiaries due to rising building material costs. A total of Rs 10,000 will now be given to each beneficiary.
Cabinet to establish Assam Inland Waterways Company Limited
The Chief Minister will lead the Assam Inland Waterways Company Limited, which will be established by the Cabinet.
Moreover, this company will aim to improve the state’s waterways. A total of Rs 289 crore has been approved for riverine infrastructure development.
Mahanta revealed that the Cabinet has decided in principle to establish an ‘Assam Complex’ in Maharashtra’s Raigarh district. The facility will feature Assamese art and culture, as well as accommodations for guests from the state.
According to Mahanta, a high-powered committee would be formed to settle the project’s modalities.
Also Read: 2 PAPER MILLS OF NAGAON AND CACHAR DISTRICT TO BE ACQUIRED BY ASSAM GOVT
