Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday, 5 June announced a hike in the MLA Area Development Fund from ₹1 crore to ₹1.5 crore for the current financial year, with a further increase to ₹2 crore annually from the next financial year. Speaking to reporters in Guwahati after a Cabinet meeting, Sarma also confirmed that the Assam Legislative Assembly's Budget Session will commence on 6 July.

Why the Fund Was Revised

The MLA Area Development Fund had remained frozen at ₹1 crore since 2016 — nearly a decade without revision. Chief Minister Sarma cited rising developmental needs across Assembly constituencies as the primary reason for the enhancement. The current-year allocation was fixed at ₹1.5 crore rather than the full ₹2 crore because, as Sarma explained, roughly half of the financial year had already elapsed by the time the decision was taken.

'The MLA Area Development Fund has remained at ₹1 crore since 2016. We have now decided to increase it to ₹1.5 crore for this year and from April next year it will be raised to ₹2 crore,' Sarma said.

How the Fund Can Now Be Used

Under the revised framework, 90 per cent of the fund will continue to be directed toward infrastructure development works. The remaining 10 per cent — a newly introduced flexibility — can now be spent on essential items and equipment for public welfare. Sarma cited specific examples: school furniture and benches, support to namghars (community prayer halls), wheelchairs for persons with disabilities, laptops for deserving students, and community-use equipment such as ambulances.

'Earlier, the fund was largely restricted to infrastructure projects. We have now allowed a portion of it to be used for important public utility items that directly benefit citizens,' Sarma said.

Budget Session and Financial Continuity

The Cabinet's decision to convene the Budget Session from 6 July is aimed at passing a full-fledged state budget and restoring regular financial allocations for all government schemes from 1 August. Sarma noted that several developmental programmes had been operating under constrained provisions because Assam had been functioning on a Vote-on-Account arrangement following the recent Assembly elections.

Notably, the Chief Minister appealed to the media to refrain from speculation, asserting that no government scheme had been discontinued. 'From August 1, people will receive the benefits of all government schemes in a regular manner,' he added.

What This Means for Constituencies

The hike effectively gives each of Assam's 126 MLAs a larger discretionary development envelope, with the added flexibility to address welfare needs that pure infrastructure spending could not cover. The move is the first substantive revision to the fund in nearly nine years, and it arrives at a politically significant moment — as the state transitions from a caretaker Vote-on-Account budget to a full annual budget. All welfare and development programmes are expected to resume normal disbursement from 1 August once the budget is passed.