The tea community is an integral part of the greater Assamese society and it is an important contributor to the state’s socio, economic and cultural growth, said chief minister Sarbanada Sonowal while laying the foundation stone for a model high school in Mekipur Tea Garden playground in Nazira, Sivasagar district on Sunday.
Assam state government is on an ambitious mission to construct 119 model high schools in tea garden areas across the state.
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Highlighting the need for schools, Sonowal said that since independence, none of the state governments have taken steps for education of people associated with tea gardens, which resulted in the tea community losing opportunities in the social and educational sectors. He requested the parents and guardians in the tea garden sectors to encourage their children to take advantage the schemes and projects launched by the Assam government for the education of the students of the tea community.
He continued that following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s motto of ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikash, Sabka Viswas’, the BJP led government, after coming to power in Assam in 2016, has undertaken several steps for equal development of all the sectors of the society.
He also mentioned several schemes for development of the tea community which included Mobile Medical Units in tea gardens, construction of roads in more than 800 tea gardens, Chah Bagicha Dhan Puraskar Mela, smartphones to tea garden chiefs, wage compensation to pregnant women, scholarships to meritorious students, and a Rs 25,000 one time financial assistance to tea community youths for self-employment.
Education and finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in a similar but separate programme on Sunday laid foundation stones for model high schools at Sakomatha and Pratapgarh tea gardens in the Biswanath district.
He said that these schools will play a significant role in improving the educational scenario of the tea community.
He added that not a single student from the Assam tea gardens would be deprived of higher education and that a total amount of Rs 142.50 crore has been allotted for the project.
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