Bodoland Territorial Council

The Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) is an autonomous district council for the Bodoland Territorial Region in India.[3] It was established in February 2003.

This article is about the council which controls the Bodoland Territorial Region. For the region and proposed state, see Bodoland.

Bodoland Territorial Council
Type
Type
Autonomous District Council
of the Bodoland Territorial Region
Term limits
5 years
Leadership
Speaker
Structure
Seats46 (30 reserved for Scheduled Tribes, 5 for non-tribal communities, 5 open for all communities and 6 nominated by Governor of Assam from the unrepresented communities of the region)
Political groups
Government (20)

Opposition (20)

Other (6)

  •   Appointed (6)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
8 April 2015
Next election
2020
Meeting place
Bodoland Secretariat,
Bodofa Nwgwr, Kokrajhar
Website
http://www.bodoland.in

The BTC has 40 elected members and an additional six members that are appointed by the Governor of Assam. The area under the BTC jurisdiction is officially called the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). The region falls within the geographical map of the least developed region in India. The agro-based economy is the only source of livelihood of the people. Industrialisation and other employment opportunities are scant.

The Bodoland Territorial Council is headed by a Speaker and is executive committee is chaired by a Chief Executive Member, most recently Hagrama Mahilary.

The BTR consists of four contiguous districts — Kokrajhar, Baksa, Udalguri and Chirang — carved out of seven existing districts — Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Nalbari, Kamrup, Darrang and Sonitpur — an area of 8,822 km² (11% of Assam land area i.e 78,438  km² ) comprising various protected tribal belts and blocks in Assam. Its establishment was under the Amended Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India.[4]

The term of the previous council ended on 27 April 2020 and following the postponement of elections scheduled for 4 April 2020 a result of the global Covid-19 pandemic, Bodoland is under Governor's rule until a new council can be elected.[5][6]

Powers and competencies

Executive and legislative powers

The executive and legislative powers of the Bodoland Territorial Council are derived from the provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India and the 2003 and 2020 Bodoland Peace Agreements.

The powers and competencies of the council are as follows:[7][8]

  • Cottage Industry
  • Animal Husbandry and Veterinary
  • Forests
  • Agriculture
  • Public Works
  • Silk Industry
  • Education
  • Soil Conservation
  • Co-operatives
  • Fisheries
  • Handlooms and Textiles
  • Health and Family Welfare
  • Public Health Engineering
  • Irrigation
  • Social Welfare
  • Flood control schemes
  • Sports and Youth Welfare
  • Weights and Measures
  • Library Services
  • Museums and Archaeology
  • Urban Development and Town and Country Planning
  • Tribal Research Institute
  • College Education
  • Land and Land Revenue
  • Public Relations
  • Printing and Stationery
  • Tourism
  • Transport
  • Development
  • Municipal Corporations
  • Village administration
  • Tribal Welfare
  • Markets and Fairs
  • Lotteries, Theatres, Dramatic Performance and Cinemas
  • Registration of Births and Deaths
  • Food
  • Intoxicating liquors and opium and derivatives

Revenue and taxation

The Bodoland Territorial Council to levy taxes, fees and tolls on; buildings and land, animals, vehicles, boats, entry of goods into the area, roads, ferries, bridges, sanitation, employment and income and general taxes for the maintenance of schools and roads.[9][10]

Executive Committee

Executive power is usually vested in a 14 member Executive Committee led by the Chief Executive Member. However, following the expiration of the present term of the council on 27 April 2020, all executive and legislative functions are currently exercised by a principal secretary acting on behalf of the Governor of Assam.[11]

In April 2020, Siddharth Singh has been appointed as the Principal Secretary of Bodoland Territorial Council[12], while Rajesh Prasad is posted as the administrator.[13][11]

Membership (2015-2020 session)

The members of the Executive Committee up to 27 April 2020 were as follows:

Executive Member Portfolio
1Hagrama MohilaryChief Executive Member, PWD, P & RD, WPT & BC, IBA
2Kampa BorogoyaryDeputy Chief Executive Member, Forest, Tourism, Education
3Lwmsraw DaimaryPHE, Museum & Archaeology, Excise
4Bonjar DaimaryFood Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, Cinema, Cultural Affairs
5Rajib BrahmaIrrigation, WPT & BC (Plan Fund)
6Mritunjay NarzarySocial Welfare, Information & Public Relations
7Alindra MushaharyLand Revenue & Disaster Management, Printing & Stationery, Market & Fairs
8Ganesh KocharyHealth Services, Cottage Industry
9Doneswar GoyaryUrban Development and Town & Country Planning, Sports & Youth Welfare
10Ansumwi Khungur BoroAgriculture, Weight & Measure
11Deben BoroHandloom & Textile, Sericulture
12Shyam SundiFishery, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary, Labour & Employment
13Jagadish SarkarSoil Conservation, Transport, Cooperation
14Maheswar BasumataryWater Resources, Library Services

See also

References
  1. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/assam-governor-takes-over-bodoland-territorial-council-in-absence-of-term-end-polls-1671802-2020-04-27
  2. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/assam-governor-takes-over-bodoland-territorial-council-in-absence-of-term-end-polls-1671802-2020-04-27
  3. https://indusscrolls.com/what-is-bodo-peace-accord-read-the-full-text-of-draft-bodo-treaty/
  4. "BTC Accord". 1 January 2018. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  5. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/assam-governor-takes-over-bodoland-territorial-council-in-absence-of-term-end-polls-1671802-2020-04-27
  6. https://www.time8.in/governors-rule-imposed-in-assams-btc/
  7. https://ucdpged.uu.se/peaceagreements/fulltext/India%2019930220.pdf
  8. https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/pdf1/S6.pdf
  9. https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/pdf1/S6.pdf
  10. https://ucdpged.uu.se/peaceagreements/fulltext/India%2019930220.pdf
  11. Nath, Hemanta Kumar (27 April 2020). "Assam: Governor takes over Bodoland Territorial Council in absence of term end polls". India Today.
  12. "Siddhartha Singh takes over as Principal Secretary of BTC". South Asia Views. 29 April 2020.
  13. "Rajesh Prasad takes over as New Administrator of Bodoland Territorial Council". inSidene. 30 April 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.