Guwahati, August 27: In a move aimed at addressing the state’s changing demography as well as the issue of illegal immigration, the Assam government plans to bring a domicile policy later this year that will allow only those born in the state to be entitled for government jobs.
Addressing a session in the Assembly on Tuesday, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said, “We will pass a law in the Assam Legislative Assembly in order to bring a domicile policy to ensure that 90 percent of the government jobs in the state are given to only those who are born in the state…while 10 percent of the jobs can be given to non-domicile persons with PRCs (permanent resident certificates.”
“The state domicile policy will be brought later this year and we will speak to organisations in this regard so that grade III and grade IV jobs can be secured by indigenous people. We want to ensure that government jobs in the state are “ring fenced”. However, we also want to maintain a fine balance in regard to managerial posts by allowing non-domicile persons with permanent resident certificates in such posts,” Sarma said.
On the other hand, the chief minister claimed that the state “is facing an economic and external aggression because of population imbalance”.
Referring to “political, economic and social encroachment”, he said that such encroachment was aimed at transforming the demographic landscape and marginalising the indigenous people of the state.
The chief minister’s statements came during a session in the Assam Legislative Assembly on adjournment motions brought by Opposition parties to discuss the law and order situation in the state in the wake of the rape of a 14-year-old girl in Nagaon district on August 22.
Asserting that he would not let “Miya” Muslims (a term that refers to migrant Muslims) take over Assam or let the state become a land of Miya Muslims, the chief minister also took on Opposition leaders and criticised their statements that “people from lower Assam would migrate to Upper Assam”.
“Why will Miya Muslims from lower Assam go to Upper Assam? We will not allow Miya Muslims to take over Assam? We will not allow any such migration,” Sarma asserted.
The chief minister further stated that the security of Assam was intrinsically linked to the protection of indigenous rights. “The state is safe only if the rights of the indigenous people are protected,” he said.