A New Era in Assam & North East Politics

After the win in Assam in 2016 for BJP, we did see the change of guard across North East India under the able leadership of Himanta Biswa Sarma who was a minister in Assam Government & the head of North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA). The major successes in these 5 years from 2016-2021 was the establishment of BJP government in communist Tripura & also shifting of Congress into BJP in Arunachal Pradesh. While in most of the other states there has been a realignment amongst the regional parties of North East states.

One of the striking feature during these 5 years have been the development & connectivity in these regions. We can safely assume that since Independence in 1947, this region was the most ignored by the Indian Politicians. Though on a small scale the development projects starting taking shape in North East & so did the opportunities to do more & more for the local population. During Assam elections, all the people agree on one agenda wherein BJP was successful & it was Development

Our former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who has been the Rajya Sabha member from Assam during his complete tenure as Prime Minister have visited the state 9 times during his 10 years in office. On contrast in last 7 years our Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited Assam 35 times. That is indication to show the seriousness towards the North East of India from the very top of the political spectrum. Ministers of cabinet have been making regular rounds across these regions to look for development opportunities & execution of the existing projects towards well being of the people.

In Assam 2021 elections Himanta Biswa Sarma again became the giant slayer for the BJP, the credit of 5 years of Governance must go to Sarbanand Sonwal who has been running a development led & corruption free Government.

Signalling by BJP

In recent memory, for the first time it has happened that a successful Chief Minister who led the victory in the re-elections has stepped out to pave the way for a new leader to be the Chief Minister of Assam, but it does happen in BJP wherein the movement is more important than the people.

Appointing Himanta Biswa Sarma as the Chief Minsiter, BJP has kept the aspirations of native Assamese Ahom people in mind while building up on the development done in last 5 years.

BJP also signalled to all its NEDA allies about the work that BJP is expected to do in North East by keeping regional sentiments in mind. In the region, Arunachal Pradesh Government is in the hands of a successful Chief Minister Pema Khandu with road network & infrastructure focus across the Chinese borders & minority ministry working for development of ethinc people is a big boost. In Tripura Biplab Deb has been changing the entire dynamics of the state with development & reaching to the people far away in hills & mainstreaming them. During the communist rule, Tripura has the 4^th pay commission granted to the government employees while the rest of India was having the 6^th & 7^th pay commission. These discrepancies are removed leading to successful governance model. Manipur BJP has also come a long way with respect to the popularity it enjoys within the local communities. These states have become violence free & are looking towards the improvement in the standard of living including, basic amenities like connectivity, electricity & water. The same goes for the NEDA alliance members across Nagaland, Meghalaya & Mizoram. The support from New Delhi is equivocal & continuous for the people across communities.

Assam is surely expected to be on the development path, We wait to see whether Himanta Biswa Sarma can attract investments & Industries in Assam that have never saw business friendly environment across North East. Bihar, Jharkhand & West Bengal has never been able to attract the Industries & surge the economic activity in the state, so can Assam achieve this feat? We need to wait & see what Assam can achieve in next 5 years. Even if the MSME sector can pick up in Assam following the encouragement by the state Government, it will be a start to a new era across North East. Assam may become not only the growth engine, but an economic engine for entire North East India. This will enable jobs & employment opportunities across Assam & the people may not need to migrate to central & western India

The courage BJP has shown in Assam; will also ensure its strong standings in the upcoming elections in North Eastern states before 2024. The entire 25 seats of Lok Sabha from Assam & North East will also be a target looking towards 2024. As of now, BJP seems to have played its card right & to see a popular & courageous leader in Assam who speaks the truth, is an asset for the BJP.

The good work in next 5 years will cement BJP in Assam & entire North East to be a political force that not only came to power, but is serving the aspiration of people & removing the ills of the earlier decades that people were subjected to in earlier Governments.

For the CM of Assam, he is at the peak of his political career & will do justice to the CM chair to not only leave behind the legacy, but also inspire the next generation of leaders towards the path of development. He seems to be the person who will bring North East closer to India & make it one.

Jai Hind!

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