Assam govt plans to remove AFSPA from five districts: CM Himanta

The Assam government was working to remove the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from five more districts as the law and order situation in the state had improved considerably during the last two years, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday

The removal of the AFSPA from 60 percent of the state and signing of peace accords with several armed groups of the state has led to an atmosphere of peace, the Chief Minister said while addressing a press conference to mark the completion of two years of his government.

'Prime Minister Narendra Modi's various initiatives has led to peace agreements with several armed groups, removal of AFSPA from 60 percent of the state, besides resolving boundary issues with Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya', he said.

He said that this has given a message of hope for the youth and 'we hope that the AFSPA will also be removed from five more districts by the end of this year'.

The centre had removed AFSPA from April 1,2022 from the entire state of Assam barring nine districts and a sub-division of Cachar district and later it was removed from the Lakhipur sub-division and West Karbi Anglong district.

The state was declared a 'disturbed area' under AFSPA during the intervening night of November 27-28, 1990 and this was extended every six months since then.

Sarma said that the border dispute with Arunachal Pradesh has been completely resolved while with Meghalaya, an agreement was reached in six of the 12 disputed areas and talks for the remaining areas will start next month, he said.

The Assam government has also taken steps to find an amicable solution to the border issues with Mizoram and Nagaland, he added.

The state government will also set up five additional Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) courts and was also considering setting up a dedicated judicial cadre of government appointed Public Prosecutors and Additional Public Prosecutors, the Chief Minister said.

The government will continue with its zero-tolerance policy towards drug trafficking and 5,659 cases have been registered during the last two years under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act while more than 5431 drug traffickers have been arrested, he said.

The government will also constitute a dog squad to detect drugs hidden in secret chambers of vehicles, he added.

Referring to the education sector, the Chief Minister said that the state will implement the New Education Policy (NEP) from this year with the four-year integrated degree course scheduled to begin this year.