Gold for brides, a development corporation for indigenous Muslims and e-bikes for girls securing first division in higher secondary examinations were among a slew of sops in the ₹1,193.04-crore deficit budget presented in the Assam Assembly on Wednesday.

State Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced a ‘golden gift’ for brides of all communities. The facility will be for the economically weaker sections with an annual income of below ₹5 lakh.

“I am happy to announce that we shall give one tola (11.34 gram) gold, costing around ₹38,000 today, to brides... The benefit can be availed upon formal registration of the marriages under the Special Marriage (Assam) Rules, 1954, and will reach the beneficiaries right in time for the social marriage,” he said.

A sum of ₹300 crore has been allocated for the scheme named after Arundhati, the wife of sage Vashisht.

Mr. Sarma also announced a scheme to provide battery-operated e-bikes to all girl students who secure first division or above in their Class XII examinations for commuting to their places of higher studies. For parents whose annual income is below ₹2 lakh, the Finance Minister announced admission fee waiver and free textbooks up to degree level.

The scheme, called Gyan Deepika, currently covers Classes up to XII.

A section of the budget was devoted to religious places with ₹4.11 crore earmarked for 160 Hindu temples and monasteries across the State as total annual grant besides a one-time grant of ₹1 lakh each to install CCTV cameras.

Grant for temples

The annual grant for 2019-20 is 451% more than the ₹91.03 lakh for the current fiscal.

A few mosques and dargahs are among more than 800 religious destinations to be provided ₹10 lakh each for infrastructure improvement. But the Finance Minister laid more stress on creating a development corporation for the indigenous or Assamese Muslims, who have been demanding a council like some ethnic groups.

Such a development council “will take up various programmes aimed at their holistic development. Once the corporation is formed, ₹100 crore will immediately be sanctioned,” Mr. Sarma said.

According to the 2011 Census, Assam has 1.18 crore Muslims, of which the indigenous or Assamese Muslims are estimated to be 72 lakh.

Before the 2016 Assembly elections, the BJP had promised to protect the identity of the indigenous Muslims against the Bengali-speaking migrant Muslims.

The budget also focuses attention on tea plantation workers who account for 17% of Assam’s population and are a major vote bank for the BJP.

“The government has decided to provide rice, which is presently provided at ₹ per kg, free of cost to 4 lakh families in the tea garden areas as well as 2 kg of sugar per month,” Mr. Sarma said.

Nutrition plan

Beyond the tea estates, 53 lakh households would be provided rice at ₹1 per kg under the Affordable Nutrition and Nourishment Assistance Yojana. The current rate is ₹3 per kg, he said.

“We will start the pilot implementation of this scheme from March, for which ₹377 crore has been allocated,” Mr. Sarma said.