Last 5 years best period for Assam:Chief Minister

Guwahati, Feb 11 : Exuding confidence of returning to power for the third straight time, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today claimed that his last five years in office were the best years for the state in terms of development.

''The last five years have been the best period for Assam since Independence in terms of development,'' Mr Gogoi said, addressing a press conference.

Of the last ten years that he has been in power, Mr Gogoi ranked the first three years, since 2001 when he took over from Asom Gana Parishad(AGP), as the most difficult and challenging period.

''Those three years were most difficult. There was total lawlessness with the militants calling the shots. There was huge flight of capital. The economy of the state was in the red. The government exchequer was not only almost empty but there was a deficit of Rs 500 crore and we had to bear a loan amount of a whopping Rs 2000 crore,'' he said.

''Things started to look up from the fourth year and this tenure has been the best for the state,'' he added.

Mr Gogoi said he was confident of the Congress remaining in power for the third consecutive term in the coming Assembly elections.

The Chief Minister said during the AGP rule, the 11th Finance Commission’s award was only Rs 13,280 crore whereas the 13th Finance Commission awarded the government Rs 57,832.70 crore.

He further said, ''It is an irony that both the terms of AGP under the leadership of PK Mahanta were the darkest chapter in the history of Assam. Various scams like seed scam, shallow tubewells, green house, veterinary scam ruled the roost during Mahanta’s two terms in office.''