Guwahati

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the launch of co-districts on Saturday to decentralize administrative power from district headquarters to the sub-divisional level. He emphasized that this initiative aligns with Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of distributing power more evenly across governance.

In a post on X, Sarma stated, Continuing Pujya Bapu’s ideals of decentralization and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for effective grassroots governance, Assam is the first state to establish and operate co-districts—targeted administrative units within a district. He noted that this innovative concept is unique to India and has received praise from Prime Minister Modi.

Currently, 39 co-districts have been set up across Assam, with plans for more in every Assembly segment. These co-districts empower officers to handle most citizen-related tasks that were previously managed by district commissioners, reducing the burden on their offices. This change will significantly improve citizens’ access to government services, eliminating the need for them to travel to district headquarters for tasks such as land-related issues and certificate issuance.

Sarma stressed that co-districts will focus on enhancing overall district growth. The offices will facilitate a range of services, including issuing various certificates, managing government permissions for events, and processing ration cards, making government services more accessible to the people. He described this initiative as a major administrative reform aimed at enhancing the quality of life in Assam.