Guwahati: Calling Native Muslims State as ‘Muslim Assamese’, Chairman of Himanta Minister Himanta Buswa Sarma on Sunday asked a member of a minority community to design ways to control the population and prepare a road map to accelerate the welfare steps and overall development.
from the community.
At a two-hour meeting where Sarma meets more than 150 intellectuals, writers, education, doctors, cultural workers, historians, and people from various layers of society representing the minority community, discussions are held on problems faced by Muslim Assam and threats their identity, cultural and inheritance traditions.
“The meeting emphasized the need to protect and preserve the uniqueness of the original Muslim Assam.
However, in a wider landscape, it has been agreed that the population explosions in some parts of Assam have paid up to a real threat to state development, more specifically in the economic front,” Sarma said to the media After the meeting.
“If we have to be among the top five states in this country, we must manage our population.
What has been agreed upon today,” he added.
To achieve that goal, Sarma said it had insisted that eight sub-groups were formed to work on various problems – health, education, population control, cultural identity, financial inclusion, empowerment and development of women’s skills.
“All problems will be discussed by sub-groups and after three months, we will be here again to prepare a road map for the next five years,” said the ministerial head.
Sub-groups will be formed from within the community.
Each sub-group will have the chairman of the community and secretary of members of the government.
Some of the leading personalities including Padma Shri Dr.
Illias Ali, Padma Shri Eli Ahmed, Syed S K Alam, Dr.
S I Ahmed and Nekif Age attended the meeting and highlighted the socio-economic problems faced by native Muslims in Assam.
While the representatives of political parties were not invited to the meeting, Sarma said it would be carried out in the next round of conversation along with legislators.
Also, the opinions of student bodies and social organizations representing a minority will be sought.
Sarma said that the original Muslim population, became an integral part of the Assam community, needed accelerated developments so that it could be a significant contributor to the growth of the country.
Distinguishing between customary Muslims and those who have roots in East Bengal, ministerial heads said the government would have another discussion round with the last.
While political parties claim this will break the split, Sarma says traditional Muslims and those who have roots in different East Bengal have different cultural and linguistic differences.
Congress welcomed the step but said the focus on a particular community about unwanted population control.
“What they need is a guide through health education programs and health awareness,” said Bobbeeta Sharma, Chair of the Media Department of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee.
He reminded that Sarma was the longest health and education minister for 15 years of Congress government.
“What is the contribution to this goal?” He asked.
AIUDF, meanwhile, calling efforts to divide Assam’s Muslims and blame the entire community.
“If the population explosion is a problem in Assam, the law must be brought for all communities to examine population growth.
Why is only Muslims just under the radar?” Asked AIDF Secretary General Aminul Islam.