Sarbananda Sonowal took oath of office as the first chief minister of Assam from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), almost a month ago. Around the same time, his relatively new government colleague Himanta Biswa Sarma - who crossed over to the BJP less then a year ago from the Congress - was also given the political charge of creating a new BJP-oriented front of chief ministers from the Northeast.
In the last month, virtually every north-eastern chief minister has had a chance to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi (the last being Pawan Chamling from Sikkim). For chief ministers from the Northeast, this is no small matter. By contrast, Sonowal is yet to earn his spurs in performance.
The BJP came to power in Assam for the first time ever on the back of the promise of poribartan (change) in its Assembly election campaign. The party vowed to make governance corruption-free, speed up development, prevent the influx of Bangladeshi migrants into the state and end poaching of rhinoceros at the Kaziranga National Park.
Sonowal is considered a politician with integrity. But his exposure to administration has been limited: he has only served as the sports and youth affairs minister in the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.
Not so Biswa Sarma. As a minister in former chief minister Tarun Gogoi's cabinet, Biswa Sarma was counted among the performers. He is a hands-on minister and Sonowal relied on his ability by awarding him the key portfolios of finance, health and education, besides a few others.
For the BJP, it is crucial that the Sonowal government delivers. Its success could become the party's launch-pad in the Northeast.
The new government seems sincere in its intentions as it aims to crack down on graft, end red tape and expedite the decision-making process to ensure swift implementation.
After taking charge of the ministries assigned to him, Biswa Sarma released a white paper on finances, which claimed that the liabilities of the state stood at Rs 10,000 crore, a legacy of the previous government. Because finances were strained, Biswa Sarma said the initial period would be challenging for the new government. His message: the government would steer clear of populism.
To eliminate corruption, the new government decided to abolish checkpoints across the state. Such checkpoints had mushroomed during the previous Congress regime and turned into centres of extortion and graft. The government assured that the loss of revenue due to the closing down of the checkpoints would be minimal.
To bring in efficiency in government departments, officers were told not to keep files pending for more than three days. All pending files, including pension files, would be cleared in the next three months, the new government promised.
During the Assembly election campaign, Biswa Sarma had said that if the BJP were voted to power it would abolish interviews for candidates seeking Grade III and Grade IV employment in the government. That promise has been kept.
The Assam Public Service Commission, which has allegedly turned into a den of corruption and nepotism, has been asked by the chief minister to ensure that the selection procedure for candidates appearing for jobs is transparent.
This apart, in the very first session of the new Assembly, the Assam Ease of Doing Business Bill was passed. The government has set a 100-day target to put in place a single-window clearance system for investors and build a land bank for companies to set up shop in the state.
New Industry Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary has assured that he would minimise human interface in his ministry by launching a single-window portal. The portal would allow at least 70 forms to be filed online. "Red tape, lengthy clearance procedures, unnecessary rules and regulations had hampered industrial growth in Assam in the past," said entrepreneur Amit Jain, vice-chairman of Federation of Industries and Commerce of North Eastern Region. "With the new government, there seems to be a ray of hope."
Taking note of the poor condition of roads in Assam, the BJP government has accorded priority to the repair of roads and bridges. The roads are in especially bad shape in Barak Valley in the south of the state. Shortly after assuming office, Sonowal and Public Works Department Minister Parimal Suklabaidya held meetings with officials of state and central government agencies and issued directives for road repair. Suklabaidya is believed to have even sent top officials of his ministry on a trip from Guwahati to Silchar to experience first-hand the problems faced by the common man.
The government's move to do away with red-beacon cars, at least in Guwahati for the time being, has been welcomed by citizens. There were at least 20 red-beacon cars in former chief minister Gogoi's convoy, which often caused traffic jams. Sonowal has decided to limit the number of vehicles in his convoy. Ministers in his cabinet have given up their red-beacon cars.
On the economy front, Biswa Sarma said it would take another six months for the state to come out of its financial mess. Plugging leakages and enhancing production would be the focus areas, he said.
The minister has also decided to regularise the jobs of more than 7,000 teachers in one go.
However, poaching of rhinos, an emotive issue in the state, continues unabated. In the past 20 days, two rhinos were killed at Kaziranga, following which a director of the park was suspended. After the second incident of poaching, new Forest Minister Pramila Brahma admitted that ending poaching was a challenge. "The poaching racket runs deep with a strong nexus in the state," she said. "I will need some time to stop the rhino killings."
The chief minister, too, has decided to chip in here. He is set to form a joint committee of district administration, police and forest officials to tackle this menace.
In line with the BJP's promise to seal the Indo-Bangladesh border, Sonowal chaired a high-level meeting attended by members of the Border Security Force. He directed them to take up the task of fencing the border swiftly.
Although it is only one month, the general impression is that in terms of performance Biswa Sarma is far ahead of Sonowal. Can this relationship - which seems cordial so far - endure? That is the question Assamese voters are asking.
Disclaimer: These are personal views of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of www.business-standard.com or the Business Standard newspaper
