GUWAHATI, Dec 16 ? The State has, in fact, received a total amount of Rs 613 crore from the Central Government besides the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) and the National Calamity Contingency Fund (NCCF), to meet the situation created by the devastating floods this year. Another amount of Rs 200 crore is also coming from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) for the purpose.
Disclosing this in the State Assembly today, Minister of State for Finance Himanta Biswa Sarma said that those amounts were received by the State at the instance of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. The Minister also announced on the floor of the Assembly that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan for fiscal reforms was also cleared.
He asserted when he said that the State Government itself would build the village for the National Games. The issue of holding the National Games is now liked with the pride of the State?s people and the State Government will not allow this pride to be lost, he said.
The Minister also announced that the State?s Right to Information Rules were adopted on December 8 and now on the Right to Information Act was in force in the State. He was replying to a debate on the Assam Appropriation Bill- X. The Bill sought approval of the House for withdrawal of Rs 1768,47,18,000 from the Consolidated Fund of the State.
Giving an account of the developmental activities, he said that the Chief Minister would lay the foundation stone of the computerised and composite check gate projects taken up to improve the performance of the Buxirhat and Srirampur Check Gates on January 28 next. Also, 1000 High Schools of the State will receive Rs 4 lakh each, while the Government will take steps to resolve the issue of pension to the college teachers in consultation with the Education Department, he said.
The Minister also accepted the suggestion of AGP member Dilip Saikia that erosion by the State?s rivers should be included in the natural calamity lists of the Central Government and to pave the way for that the State Government should impress upon the Central Government.
He also accepted the suggestion of AGP Legislature Party president Brindaban Goswami that there should be threadbare discussion in the State over the formation of Brahmaputra/Northeast Water Resources Authority proposed by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. AGP MLA Brindaban Goswami, Hitendranath Goswami, Dilip Saikia and Bubul Das, BJP?s Bimalangshu Roy besides independent MLAs Pabindra Deka and Premadhar Bora took part in the discussion.
Following the Minister?s reply, the House passed the Assam Appropriation Bill-X. The House also passed the Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts (Assam Amendment) Bill, 2004, which was introduced by Law Minister Dinesh Prasad Gowala and the Assam Irrigation Water Users Bill, 2004, introduced by Irrigation Minister Ismail Hussain.