Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced that the state government plans to launch a portal to streamline the process of granting arms licences to eligible individuals from indigenous communities residing in areas where they are vulnerable.
CM Sarma said the portal will be inaugurated in the first week of August.
This comes even as the state moves to evict illegal settlers and encroachers, mostly Bengali-speaking Muslims, from occupied forest and wetlands.
“There will be a portal for people to apply for an arms licence, and it will be inaugurated between August 1 to August 7. The Deputy Commissioner (DC) will conduct an enquiry, and those who meet the criteria will be granted an arms licence,” CM Himanta said in a video. He shared the clip on X.
The portal can be accessed by anyone, anytime, to apply for arms licences, he added.
CM Sarma clarified that “after the portal is inaugurated, people will be able to apply online.
Even without the portal, one can apply by submitting physical documents. There are no restrictions, Sarma stated.
“Even now, people are applying and receiving arms licences through offline channels. What we’re doing is simplifying the process, similar to what we’ve done with portals like Sewa Setu,” he added.
After the portal’s launch, Deputy Commissioners will review all applications and grant licenses to those who meet the eligibility criteria.
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He added, “People have been applying for and receiving arms licences even before; this is not something new.”
Regarding the issue of freeing up land encroached by illegal immigrants, the Chief Minister noted that a significant 29 lakh bighas remain under occupation.
