GUWAHATI, April 16: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced that the Assamese language will be made compulsory for all government-related official work across the state. However, the Barak Valley and the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) will continue to use Bengali and Bodo, respectively, alongside English for official purposes.
The decision, which took effect on April 15, comes as part of the implementation of the Assam Official Language Act, 1960. As per the new directive, all government documents, including notifications, orders, acts, and regulations, will now be issued in both Assamese and English—except in the Barak Valley and BTR, where Bengali and Bodo will be used respectively, in addition to English.
CM Sarma made the announcement through a social media post, stating, “Beginning this Bohag, Assamese will be the compulsory official language for all government notifications, orders, acts, etc., across Assam. In Barak Valley and BTR, Bengali and Bodo languages shall be used respectively.”
Additionally, the notification mandates that Central Government documents be translated into Assamese (and Bodo or Bengali where applicable) within 30 days. Legacy documents are to be translated into these languages over the next two years, with assistance from university language departments.
For legal matters, the English version of documents will continue to prevail. Communication with the Central Government will also remain in English.
