Assam's Cabinet to meet on Jharkhand visit on Dec 5; tea tribes issue in focus
The CM statement comes in the wake of a visit by Jharkhand govt to study the plight of tea tribes in Assam
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma/X
Guwahati, Dec 1: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced that a cabinet meeting will be held on December 5 to decide on a visit to Jharkhand to observe "certain aspects," which are speculated to be related to the tea tribes.
Sarma, addressing the press on the sidelines of an event on Saturday, shared that the Jharkhand cabinet is planning to send a representative team to Assam and in turn, Assam too will send two teams to Jharkhand. However, the specific issues to be discussed during these visits were not disclosed.
“The Jharkhand cabinet is planning to visit Assam. On December 5, we will convene a meeting to come to a decision and we will also visit Jharkhand to observe certain aspects,” he said.
The Chief Minister's statement comes in the wake of the formation of a panel by the Jharkhand government to study the conditions of the tea tribes in Assam.
"We will be happy if they (the Jharkhand panel) visit us as there is so much work happening," Sarma remarked.
The tea tribe community has long been a subject of focus, especially after Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Chief Hemant Soren was re-elected as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand.
Earlier on October 14, before the just-concluded assembly polls in Jharkhand, the Soren government had approved the formation of a special committee to conduct a social and economic survey of tea tribe communities in states, including Assam and Union Territories.
Soren has often raised concerns over the plight of the tea tribes, who were brought from Jharkhand to Assam during the British colonial period.
In September, Soren wrote to CM Sarma urging the grant of Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to the tea tribes, a move supported by ongoing protests from various communities in Assam.
Meanwhile, six communities in Assam, including the tea tribes, Moran, Matak, Tai Ahom, Chutiya, and Koch Rajbongshis, have been actively advocating for ST status. They have organized several protests across districts in the state demanding recognition.
Sarma's government is expected to address this issue in discussions with Jharkhand officials during the upcoming visit.
