Assam to form 13 councils to track how welfare schemes reach people

Assam will set up 13 state-level advisory councils to check how government schemes are working on the ground and to report gaps directly to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

The state cabinet approved the plan at a meeting chaired by Sarma at Lok Sewa Bhawan, according to a government release dated November 4. The councils will come under the Department of Transformation and Development.

Who will sit on the councils

Each council will have a chairperson, a vice-chairperson and seven non-official members, all nominated by the Chief Minister. Chairpersons will hold the rank of minister of state, and sitting MLAs can be appointed to the post. The release said preference would go to social workers, public representatives and experienced people above 25 years of age.

An officer of deputy secretary rank will serve as member secretary of each council and pass its recommendations to policymakers. Departments will provide office space, meeting rooms and transport. Each council can serve for up to three years.

The 13 councils

The councils will cover rural livelihood, health and wellness, educational entitlements, social security, public housing, drinking water supply, power supply, employment, cultural affairs and happiness, sports, health and education in tea garden areas, food security and procurement, and financial assistance and direct benefit transfer.

What they will do

Each council must meet at least once every three months. Members will hold district-level discussions and public awareness programmes, look at how schemes are being implemented at the grassroots and send reports to the Chief Minister that point out shortcomings and areas that need action.

After the cabinet meeting on November 3, Sarma said the councils would not be independent authorities. They would talk directly with beneficiaries and members of the public about whether schemes such as Orunodoi, Ayushman Bharat, Mukhya Mantri Ayushman Assam and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana were reaching them. The government would then consider changes based on those recommendations, he said.

Early reports after the meeting said 15 councils had been approved and that cabinet ministers would chair them. The government release lists 13 councils and says chairpersons will be nominated, with MLAs eligible.

Part of a wider push

The government has linked the plan to its goal of a "Viksit Assam" by 2047 and to its earlier creation of 86 co-districts, which it says have brought administrative services closer to people at the assembly-constituency level. The release also said the councils would take the state's demographic profile and cultural needs into account.

The release did not give a budget for the councils, and the names of chairpersons and members have not yet been announced.