Guwahati: In the last major disbursal before poll dates are announced, the BJP-led Assam govt on Tuesday transferred Rs 9,000 each to 40 lakh economically disadvantaged women beneficiaries by direct bank transfer under Orunodoi — a nearly six-year-old scheme flagship scheme.Expressing gratitude to the people of Assam for their trust and courage in allowing him to serve in last five years, chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma promised “much better days” if BJP is returned to power.
Himanta said the next govt would create two lakh jobs and provide one kilogram each of salt, sugar, dal and mustard oil and half kg of tea free of cost to households.He also pledged enhanced financial assistance for women beneficiaries under welfare schemes and expanded support for youth entrepreneurs, positioning the promises as part of a broader agenda of empowerment and economic opportunity.The Orunodoi monthly transfer includes aid of ₹1,250 covers two pending months (January–February), the current month, and April in advance. In addition, beneficiaries received a special Bihu bonus of ₹4,000 each. This scheme was launched in 2020 and is one of the largest direct benefit transfer (DBT) programmes in the state.Framing the financial support under Oronodoi as gratitude-driven rather than election-time sops, the chief minister sought to underline continuity in welfare delivery while raising the stakes with new pledges aimed at everyday essentials, livelihoods, and empowerment.“We have been doing this for the last six years, and Assam was the first state to introduce direct benefit transfers for women beneficiaries,” Sarma said, stressing that the programme was rooted in compassion, not politics. “If it were about elections, everyone would have been included. These are not freebies.”He explained that the scheme is implemented in a controlled manner, with seven clear eligibility criteria covering widows, divyang, families with cancer patients, divorced women, and women in distress.“Our strength in the polls comes from Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, not from these schemes,” Sarma asserted. “These are ongoing programmes, continuing as part of our commitment to welfare.”The chief minister said the results of Orunodoi have percolated on the ground and shown how effective targeted poverty alleviation schemes can be.“Lakhs of people have been pulled out of poverty & together with other schemes, a comprehensive security net has been laid to ensure they remain poverty-free,” Sarma said.On Tuesday, Himanta addressed a gathering of women beneficiaries centrally in Guwahati and virtually across the state at 3,800 public programmes organised at gaon panchayats, autonomous council constituencies and village development committees.This Orunodoi financial assistance comes over and above the Mukhyamantri Mahila Udyamita Abhiyan (MMUA), under which 28.61 lakh women entrepreneurs have already received Rs 10,000 seed capital each as of February, which Himanta said was adopted in Bihar, where it was credited as a key factor behind the NDA’s sweeping victory in the last assembly elections there.“From food security and monthly assistance for women to housing, education, and jobs, we have sought to cover every critical need — and succeeded to a great extent,” Himanta said.
