HT Correspondent
JORHAT, Oct 19: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday announced a series of welfare measures for the uplift of the tea tribes community, including land allotment for workers and new reservations in government jobs.
Addressing the 19th Biennial Conference of the Assam Tea Tribes Students’ Association (ATTSA) at Mariani College playground, Sarma said a bill would be introduced in the Assam Legislative Assembly on November 25 to allot tea estate land to workers.
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He said a worker’s life remained insecure without land ownership and reminded that he had made a similar commitment in the Assembly three years ago.
The chief minister also announced 3 per cent reservation for members of the tea tribe community in category one and two posts in the civil services, in addition to the existing 3 per cent quota in Grade III and IV posts.
“This will ensure greater participation in administration and empower the community further. Our youth can now aspire to become magistrates and DSPs,” he said.
In the education sector, Sarma announced that four seats would be reserved for tea tribe students in each of the 14 medical colleges across the state.
He added that 100 new high schools would be opened in tea garden areas in January 2026, in addition to the 115 schools already established by his government.
The chief minister said these initiatives were significant given that no high or higher secondary schools had been set up in tea estate areas since Independence.
“Through sustained efforts, students from the tea tribe community have excelled as doctors, professors, engineers and professionals across various fields,” he said.
Highlighting the government’s cultural initiatives, Sarma said that the mega event Jhumoir Binandini 2025 held in Guwahati had showcased 8,000 dancers from the tea tribes.
He announced that similar cultural programmes would now be organised in New Delhi and later on an international stage.
Commending ATTSA for its continued efforts to uplift the community, the chief minister recalled that the organisation, founded on December 28, 1947, had evolved into a strong voice for the tea tribes.
A new executive committee of ATTSA was formed during the conference, with Jagdish Baraik elected as president and Sunil Tirkey as general secretary.
Among those present were Assam cabinet minister Rupesh Gowala, Kaziranga MP KP Tasa, Mariani MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi, former Union minister Paban Singh Ghatowar, former Lok Sabha MP Pallab Lochan Das, outgoing ATTSA president Dhiraj Gowala, and Padma Shri awardee Dulal Manki.
