Assam Finance Minister Unveils Rs 2.63 Lakh Crore Budget for 2025-26: Major Announcements and Welfare Initiatives

Poonam Sharma

Assam Finance Minister Ajanta Neog unveiled the state’s budget for 2025-26 on March 10, 2025, amounting to a whopping Rs 2.63 lakh crore. The budget aims to tackle the socio-economic issues of the state and foster welfare in a wide range of sectors including agriculture, women empowerment, tea industry promotion, education, and technological development. Let’s explore the major provisions and announcements of the Assam Budget 2025-26 that are likely to make a big difference in the lives of the people of Assam.

1. Overall Budget Size

The Assam budget for 2025-26 is Rs 2.63 lakh crore, which represents a significant increase in the state’s financial outlay. The budget highlights the state government’s commitment to raise public expenditure in key sectors to drive development and welfare programs. Additionally, the capital expenditure has increased to Rs 24,964 crore for 2024-25, which shows an emphasis on infrastructure development.

2. Professional Tax Exemption

One of the highlights of this budget is the professional tax exemption suggested for workers with incomes of up to ₹15,000 a month. The action will alleviate the burden of taxes on those in the informal sector and is expected to help more than 1.43 lakh taxpayers in Assam, thereby granting considerable relief to the working population.

3. Financial Relief to Tea Garden Labourers

The tea sector is one of the major sectors in Assam’s economy, and the budget makes a significant provision for the benefit of tea garden laborers. One-time financial assistance of Rs 5,000 has been granted to tea garden laborers, which will affect about 6.8 lakh laborers. With a total outlay of Rs 342 crore, this financial assistance is intended to ease the economic hardships of tea workers, especially in the aftermath of the economic impact of the pandemic. This is part of Assam’s overall initiative to enhance the living standards of tea garden workers and their families.

4. Extension of Tax Holiday for Green Tea Leaves

The Assam government has also provided a two-year extension to the tax holiday for green tea leaves as a boost to the tea industry. This action is a bid to boost production and exports of tea, so that Assam is not left behind as a competitor in the international tea industry. The move is projected to offer relief to tea farmers and producers as needed and ensure the continuation of the industry’s growth.

5. Flagship Schemes and Women Empowerment

Empowerment of women is the major emphasis of this budget, with various provisions to enhance the position of women in Assam:

Orunodoi Scheme: A whopping Rs 5,000 crore has been allocated to continue the Orunodoi scheme that offers financial help to women of Assam. The scheme will benefit more than 37 lakh women to boost their economic independence.

Mukhya Mantri Mahila Udyamita Abhiyan: To promote women’s entrepreneurship, the budget provides Rs 3,038 crore for the Mukhya Mantri Mahila Udyamita Abhiyan, which will be kicked off on April 1, 2025, in Behali. The scheme is meant to empower and encourage women entrepreneurs with the required resources and counseling to set up and grow their businesses.

Mukhiya Mantri Nijut Moina Scheme: The scheme, targeting the promotion of higher education among girls and preventing child marriages, has been set aside with an allocation of Rs 391 crore. It is set to empower girls and young women, enabling them to acquire better educational prospects and futures.

6. Pension Reform: OPS Benefits under NPS

A landmark reform has been proposed for government employees. The budget extends the benefits of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) to eligible employees under the New Pension Scheme (NPS). This change will affect around 2.8 lakh government employees and is expected to provide them with greater financial security in their retirement years.

7. Ration Card Holder Relief

The government has made a major announcement for ration cardholders in Assam. From October, all ration cardholders will get extra food support, such as 1 kg of lentils, 1 kg of sugar, and 1 kg of salt. Rs 370 crore has been set aside to help fair price shops distribute these items. This move is to reduce food insecurity and offer essential nutritional support to poor families.

8. PSU and Contractual Employees Insurance

As part of a move to provide cover to state public sector workers, the budget has a provision for zero-cost death and accident insurance for all contractual and public sector employees drawing their salaries from commercial banks. The scheme aims to offer protection to such employees who might not be entitled to the privileges normally enjoyed by regular staff.

9. Farmer Support

The budget has recommended direct financial support for major crops to assist Assam farmers. The following are the provisions that have been made to increase agricultural productivity:

Rs 250 per quintal for paddy

Rs 250 per quintal for maize

Rs 500 per quintal for mustard

This scheme is likely to play a pivotal role in helping farmers as it will ensure them with a proper price for their produce, which will ease their economic burden and boost farm returns.

10. Promoting Education and Literature

The government has also charted provisions to enhance education and the literary culture of Assam:

Young Writers Support: A single financial grant of Rs 25,000 will be given to young writers making a noteworthy contribution to creative science and education. This scheme will inspire the future generation of writers to contribute to the literary world of Assam.

Book Donation Campaign: The government is fostering a reading culture by urging people to donate books on birthdays and weddings. Moreover, government officials will be given Rs 1,000 to buy books, further encouraging a reading culture in the state.

11. Dibrugarh as Second Capital

A historic step has been taken in this year’s budget with the allocation of Rs 200 crore for the new Assembly building and MLA hostel in Dibrugarh. This is the official declaration of Dibrugarh as the second capital of Assam, showing the government’s determination towards decentralization of administration and balanced regional development.

12. Historic Move: Launch of ASSAMSAT

Taking a bold leap towards technological progress, the government of Assam has said that it will soon launch its own satellite, ASSAMSAT. The satellite will benefit several sectors including agriculture, disaster management, infrastructure, border security, and policing. The project for the satellite will be prepared with the help of IN-SPACe and ISRO, and students in colleges and universities will be central to the development of experimental satellites, creating a space technology engagement platform for youth.

13. Decrease in Jeevan Dhara and Domestic Consumer Electricity Rates

As a measure of reducing the financial strain on domestic consumers, the budget suggests a cut in electricity rates for Jeevan Dhara and domestic category consumers who consume up to 120 units of electricity per month. From May 1, 2025, the rate will come down to Rs 1 per unit, bringing great relief to Assam households

Assam Budget 2025-26 is a package of welfare proposals that seeks to promote inclusive growth, empower women, assist farmers and laborers, and invest in technological growth. With its emphasis on social welfare, economic development, and infrastructure growth, this budget represents a major initiative towards making Assam a prosperous and equitable society for its people. The focus of the government on empowering women, support for the tea industry, pension reform, and education and literature promotion indicates that it is devoted to developing an equal and sustainable socio-economic system for everyone.