Guwahati, Sept 3: Assam will raise two new specialised battalions, including one for disaster response and another for providing security to the state's oil and gas installations, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Thursday, following a two-day conference of senior police officers in Dergaon. The decisions were among several measures discussed at the conference aimed at strengthening the Assam Police and improving its capacity to deal with crime, disasters and emerging security challenges.

Addressing the press after the conference, Sarma said the government had decided to establish a new State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) battalion and another dedicated to the security of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India Limited (OIL) installations. “To strengthen Assam Police, we have decided to establish a new SDRF battalion and another battalion for the security of ONGC and OIL,” the Chief Minister said.

The conference also held detailed discussions on intensifying the state's campaign against drug trafficking, including emerging trafficking routes, changing modus operandi and ways to identify kingpins. Sarma said Assam would strengthen coordination with Manipur, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh to tackle the drug trade and would explore measures, including preventive detention, against major traffickers.

He also announced that the state would constitute an Anti-Narcotics Task Force within a month. “The Centre has asked us to constitute one.

The proposed unit will focus on issues including property attachment, strengthening forensic investigations, disrupting the financial networks of traffickers and preventing procedural lapses that could benefit accused persons,” he said. The Chief Minister said the government would also examine rehabilitation centres following reports of drugs being available at some such facilities.

The two-day conference of senior superintendents of police and other senior officers also deliberated on measures to improve law and order and strengthen investigations to raise the state's conviction rate. 30%.

“The conviction rate in Assam stood at around 7% in 2020, Wwe want to better that and bring the number to 35%,” he said. The government also discussed plans to expand the strength and infrastructure of the Assam Police.

Sarma said around 5,000 personnel had been recruited over the past five years, with plans to recruit another 15,000 to 20,000 personnel during the next five years. “We are trying to clear the bottlenecks for this,” he said.