GUWAHATI, AUG 18:

Aiming to woo the younger generation, the Assam government on Tuesday decided to set up a new department dedicated to the youth of the state, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Addressing a press conference after a cabinet meeting here, he said that a new hydrocarbon policy was also approved in order to give incentives to exploration of minerals and crude even if there are no findings.

“The cabinet approved setting up of the Youth Empowerment and Welfare Department. With this, Assam will probably become the first state to have a dedicated youth department,” Sarma said.

The proposed department, which will start functioning from September 17, will look after all issues related to the youth, including the Employment Exchange, he added.

“Most of our government’s programmes revolve around the youth. Out of 10 programmes by us, nine are dedicated to the youth. That is why the youth supported us every time. This is nothing new, but a continuous process for the youths,” he said.

The CM also said that the cabinet has approved a new hydrocarbon policy to give incentives for exploration of oil reserves.

“The crude happening in Assam is all from old discoveries. In the last 20 years, we have not found any new minerals because we have not done any exploration. There is a risk in exploration as they may not result in findings and all investment will be useless then,” he added.

In order to create a positive environment, the state government will give incentives like GST rebate or subsidised land lease agreements, Sarma said.

“We have been producing around 4 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) of crude annually. If we don’t have new reserves, this will start declining after 10 years,” he added. (Source: PTI)