Assam’s Legislative Assembly just made history. Hindi will now be used in the state assembly for the very first time in Assam, alongside the existing languages already in use.
Starting July 6, on the opening day of the budget session of the 16th Assam Legislative Assembly, Hindi will join Assamese, English, and Bodo as an official language used within the assembly.
How the decision was made
Assam Legislative Assembly Speaker Ranjeet Kumar Dass told ANI that this decision came out of a General Purpose Committee meeting held on Saturday, chaired by him personally.
Dass confirmed that several key figures were present at the meeting, including Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika, Minister Keshab Mahanta, and Opposition Leader Wazed Ali Chowdhury. MLAs Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha, Sabharam Basumatary, Chakradhar Gogoi, and Joy Prakash Das also attended.
Why Hindi was added
According to Dass, the assembly previously operated with only three languages, Assamese, English, and Bodo. Hindi becoming part of the assembly marks a first in its history.
Dass explained the reasoning behind the move directly, saying Hindi holds the status of Rashtra Bhasha, and the decision to introduce it was made specifically to recognise that status.
A rebrand for the Assembly’s TV channel
Alongside the language change, Dass announced another update. The assembly’s existing channel, previously known as ALA or Assam Legislative Assembly, will officially be renamed Assam Vidhan Sabha TV starting Monday.
He shared future ambitions for the channel as well, saying there are plans to eventually shape it into something comparable to Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV.
Budget session details
Dass also laid out the schedule for the upcoming budget session. It begins on July 6 and will run for 21 working days, continuing through July 31.
He confirmed that the State Budget will be tabled on July 10, marking one of the key highlights of the session.
According to Dass, ten new bills have already been introduced as part of this session, setting up a busy legislative period ahead for the assembly.