GUWAHATI, May 13: The first meeting of the Assam Cabinet of the NDA 3.0 government on Wednesday approved the draft Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, excluding various religious rituals and customary practices.
“The UCC Bill will be laid before the Assam Legislative Assembly on May 26, 2026. However, tribal communities (ST Hills and ST Plains) will remain outside the purview of the proposed law,” Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who chaired his first Cabinet meeting of his second term, informed mediapersons here.
The chief minister further stated that the proposed UCC would not interfere with traditional customs, social practices or religious beliefs of protected communities.
“UCC will deal with matters relating to polygamy, marriage age limit, succession, property rights, live-in relationships, compulsory marriage registration, etc,” he said.
Sarma also announced the formation of a high-level task force to prepare a roadmap for providing two lakh government jobs in the state over the next five years.
The task force will function under the leadership of the chief secretary of Assam and will assess the requirements, vacancies and recruitment mechanisms necessary for achieving the government’s employment target of two lakh jobs in five years.
Sarma stated that the task force has been directed to submit its detailed report within three months outlining the strategy for recruitment and implementation across various government departments.
The chief minister announced that the BJP’s election manifesto would now serve as the “principal model” for policy formulation and governance in Assam.
Austerity measures
On the other hand, in view of the current global economic situation and the need for austerity measures, the state Cabinet also decided that no new government vehicles would be purchased for the next six months.
“Government officers and employees will not be allowed to undertake foreign tours during the six-month period except for medical reasons,” Sarma said.
He said that the government has further decided to reduce the size of convoys for ministers and officials and cut diesel and petrol expenses by 20 percent over the next six months.
“The government will also not procure any foreign goods during this period and will encourage maximum use of video conferencing for seminars and official meetings and administrative work,” he said.
