Jorhat, Sept 15: Education, investment, health and the Viksit Assam initiative were among the key areas discussed at the two-day conference of Assam’s Deputy Commissioners, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Tuesday. Addressing a press conference in Jorhat a day after the conference concluded, Sarma said the meeting also held extensive discussions on the high dropout rate in secondary schools and ways to address it.

“We discussed about different areas, especially in educational sector of secondary schools in Assam where drop-out rates are still high. A long discussion took place on how to resolve the issue,” he said.

The availability of land for industrial projects was another major focus, with Sarma pointing to a shortage of land even as investments have started flowing into the state. “Investments have started entering in Assam.

However, to sustain them, we don't have sufficient land banks,” he said, comparing Assam’s “less than 10,000 bighas” of land banks with around eight lakh bighas in Gujarat and Maharashtra. “We also held discussions of creation of land banks for industrial set ups,” he said.

The conference also discussed the reconstruction of embankments and levees damaged during previous floods, Sarma said. Sarma said he separately chaired a meeting with Deputy Commissioners of the Upper Assam flood-affected districts of Jorhat, Sivasagar, Golaghat and Charaideo, focusing on the initiation of the second phase of damage assessment for rehabilitation grants to affected families.

Under the Viksit Assam initiative, the government plans to invest Rs 50,000 crore in thematic areas covering schools, colleges, anganwadi centres, power lines, stadiums, government infrastructure and other sectors. “We also wish to invest Rs 50,000 Crore in a thematic area in the state under Viksit Assam covering schools, colleges, anganwadi, power lines, stadium, govt infrastructure and others,” Sarma said.

Discussions were also held on the type of schemes to be adopted for each district, he added. The Chief Minister said the conference also examined how Deputy Commissioners could contribute to implementing the ruling government’s manifesto and taking its initiatives forward at the district level.

Health was another major area of discussion, particularly the TB-free India campaign, establishment of new medical colleges and the phased transformation of 4,000 sub-centres into hospitals, as announced in the State Budget. The upcoming Khel Maharan was also discussed at the conference.