Guwahati, July 11: Assam minister of social justice and empowerment Pijush Hazarika held a meeting with representatives of four organisations from the Ahom community here on Tuesday in connection with the issuance of caste certificates to genuine members of the Ahom community.
During the meeting held at Janata Bhawan, the representatives urged the minister to ensure the rights of the members of the Ahom community, which they said was of utmost importance at this juncture.
Addressing the issue, the minister informed after thorough deliberations with the representatives that a new committee to address the matter would be formed soon.
It was further decided during the meeting that the committee would comprise members selected by the representatives of the Ahom organisations, who will be empowered with the right to verify the genuineness of the person applying for the caste certificate.
Underlining the importance of the challenges faced by the members of the Ahom community, the minister said that to expedite the process, the new committee would be required to register under the Societies Registration Act, 1960 and a proposal would be submitted to the Cabinet for approval of the same.
The minister hoped that the decision would largely benefit the people of the Ahom community in the days ahead in obtaining the caste certificates under a seamless process and that no genuine person would be deprived of their rights.
The meeting was attended by Binita Pegu, secretary, state department of tribal affairs (plains), Kulashree Nath, director, welfare of SC, and other senior officials of the concerned department.
