Assam govt setting up portal for indigenous people to apply for arms license: Himanta

Guwahati: The Assam government is setting up a portal through which indigenous people living in "sensitive areas" can apply for arms licences, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Wednesday.

The arms license will be granted after proper scrutiny and a multi-layered process, he said.

"A dedicated portal is coming up where indigenous people, who perceive a threat to their lives and reside in sensitive areas, can apply for Arms License," he said in a post on X, sharing a detailed guideline on who is eligible to apply and the process of application.

Those who are "original inhabitants or Indigenous Indian citizens of Assam", and "perceive a genuine threat to life and safety due to the vulnerability of the area of residence" are eligible to apply, the post said.

People who reside in vulnerable or remote areas, as notified by the district administration or assessed as such by authorised security agencies, are also eligible to apply, it added.

The process of granting the license will include security assessment, verification and vetting, compliance with existing laws, non-transferability and periodic review along with monitoring and reporting, according to the post.

The state cabinet on May 28 had decided that arms licences would be given to indigenous people living in "vulnerable and remote" areas to instil a sense of security in them.

The CM had said some of these "vulnerable and remote areas" are Dhubri, Morigaon, Barpeta, Nagaon, South Salmara-Mankachar, Rupahi, Dhing and Jania.

All of these places have large Muslim populations.

Sarma had claimed that indigenous people living in such areas have been demanding an arms licence for safety purposes since the Assam Agitation period, which took place between 1979 and 1985.

He had claimed that the Assamese people won't survive by doing agitation, but by taking "practical steps".