Guwahati, Oct 15 (IANS) The Congress government in Assam will release a white paper on the foreigners' issue by Oct 20 definitely, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said Monday.
Interacting with media persons at his residence, he said the white paper will reveal the exact status about the issue of foreigners' influx into the state.
Gogoi also accused the opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) of blowing the issue out of proportion and said it is the Congress government which had taken concrete steps to stop the influx.
The chief minister had earlier said that the white paper would be released Oct 7 and then extended its date to Oct 15. Seeking to explain the reasons for the shifting dates, Gogoi Monday said that it is taking time because of the comprehensive and exhaustive nature of the document.
The document will be released by Oct 20 for sure, he asserted.
"The white paper will itself give the exact status of foreigners' problem in the state," Gogoi said while adding that the document will be comprise all details of the issue.
"It will be an exhaustive one because we have taken into account the nature of migration the state experienced even before Independence. We are almost ready with the document and we will place it before the cabinet committee meeting," he said.
Gogoi said his government has always been serious about the foreigners' problem, but at the same time it has given more importance to the developmental issues in the state.
"Unlike AGP, we are not trying to project the foreigners' problem out of proportion. Our facts and figures in the white paper will tell the exact status," Gogoi said while reiterating the seriousness of his government over the issue of infiltration.
Reacting to Gujarat Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Narendra Modi's tweet message criticizing Assam as "government of foreigners, by foreigners and for foreigners", Gogoi said that Modi has insulted the nation by this comment.
On the rehabilitation process in Bodoland Territorial Area District (BTAD), the chief minister said that of the remaining 142,672 displaced people, 19,675 families have land documents and will be rehabilitated soon. He said about 42,000 people, however, did not possess land documents but have their names in the voters list.
He also informed that of the 485,921 people originally displaced during the August-September ethnic clash, 343, 249 have already left for their homes in BTAD.
"We are now working on exploring ways on how to rehabilitate those people who don't have land documents. No genuine Indian citizens affected in the violence will be left out from rehabilitation," he said adding that situation is normal now in BTAD and mutual trust is gradually building up among the people.