Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Amit Shah, addressed the 57th annual conference of the All Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU) as the Chief Guest in Kokrajhar, Assam on Sunday.
According to an official statement from the Ministry, Shah praised the significant role played by ABSU in bringing peace, development, and unity to the Bodoland region, noting that the Bodo Accord would not have been possible without their efforts.
The event was attended by Assam Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Shri Biswajit Daimary, the Union Home Secretary, and the Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), alongside other dignitaries.
During his address, Amit Shah paid tribute to the five thousand martyrs who fought for Bodoland’s peace, emphasizing the legacy of Upendra Nath Brahma, a key leader of the Bodo community. Shah announced that a prominent road in Delhi would be named Bodopa Upendra Nath Brahma Marg in Brahma’s honour, and a bust of Brahma would be unveiled in a special program in Delhi in April.
Shah highlighted the positive outcomes of the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) peace accord, signed on January 27, 2020, stating that 82 percent of the agreement’s terms have already been fulfilled.
He assured that the remaining terms would be fully implemented in the next two years, leading to lasting peace in the BTR. He also noted that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) had been removed from the entire BTR area on April 1, 2022, as part of the peace process.
Shah emphasized that peace in Bodoland has led to significant economic progress. Under the ‘One District, One Product’ program, Kokrajhar’s famous “Mushroom from Bodoland” is now being served in hotels in Delhi.
The Home Minister also mentioned the region’s growing industrial base, with over a dozen Bodo products receiving Geographical Indication (GI) tags. He encouraged Bodo athletes to begin preparing for the potential Olympics in India in 2036, following Bodoland’s success in hosting the Durand Cup tournament.
Amit Shah stressed that hundreds of Bodo youth have been brought into the mainstream through education and development. The government has allocated Rs. 287 crore for the rehabilitation of former National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) members, with 90% of the funding provided by the Modi government. This rehabilitation effort has been pivotal in shifting the focus from separatism to progress in Bodoland.
The Home Minister reaffirmed the central government’s commitment to Bodoland’s development, stating that Rs. 1,500 crore has been allocated for the region, despite its population being only 3.5 million. He also praised ABSU’s contributions to education, which has enabled students to take their 12th-grade exams in the Bodo language, ensuring the survival of the Bodo language for generations to come.
Shah concluded his address by calling on Bodo youth to focus on education and contribute to the ongoing peace process. He expressed the government’s vision of building world-class infrastructure in Bodoland so that its youth can compete globally.
