The Assam Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Friday approved a series of land and council-related reforms under Mission Basundhara 3.0, aimed at streamlining governance and boosting equitable development across the state.

As per a statement from the Chief Minister’s Public Relations Cell, the Cabinet has greenlit the allotment of government land for 942 infrastructure projects across 11 urban districts. These projects belong to various departments of the state government and fall under the Mission Basundhara 3.0 framework.

In a significant move towards supporting community institutions, the Cabinet also approved land settlement in favour of 1,977 non-government educational, religious, and socio-cultural institutions across 12 districts.

Further, key changes were approved in the Assam Panchayat (Constitution) Rules, 1995. These amendments include a proposal to reserve the posts of President and Vice President of Zilla Parishads for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and women through lottery and rotation, excluding those constituencies already covered. The lottery will be conducted publicly in the presence of political representatives, administrative officials, and other stakeholders to ensure transparency and fairness.

The Cabinet also cleared two crucial ordinances:

The Moran Autonomous Council (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, which aims to revise the Preamble and core provisions of the Moran Autonomous Council Act, 2020.

The Matak Autonomous Council (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, to facilitate the uplift and governance of the Matak community.

Sharing details on X (formerly Twitter), CM Sarma said, “In today’s Assam Cabinet meeting, we resolved to: ensure fair representation of SCs and STs in Zilla Parishads; approve amendments to Moran and Matak Council Acts for equitable development; and allow transfer of government land under Mission Basundhara 3.0.”

In a related development, CM Sarma announced a new Aadhar issuance rule, stating that very soon, only District Commissioners (DCs) will be authorised to issue Aadhar cards to adult citizens. This step is intended to tighten the verification process and prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining Aadhar cards.

“Last night we pushed back 20 more Bangladeshis as part of our ongoing efforts to detect and deport illegal infiltrators,” Sarma stated on X. “The decision to toughen Aadhar issuance rules will aid our efforts in this direction.”