The Assam government has proposed denying state welfare benefits to men practising polygamy and dismissing government employees found guilty of the practice, according to the 2026-27 state Budget presented on Friday.
Presenting his maiden Budget in the Assembly, Finance Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah said the move is aimed at promoting women’s empowerment, gender justice and responsible citizenship.
Welfare Benefits to Be Denied
Announcing the proposal, Baruah said men practising polygamy would no longer be eligible to receive benefits under government welfare schemes.
“In order to promote women’s empowerment and gender justice, any male practising polygamy shall not be eligible to avail benefits under any government welfare scheme,” he said.
The government also proposed amending the Assam Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1964, so that any government employee found to have practised polygamy could face dismissal from service, in accordance with the law.
Convicted Persons May Also Lose Welfare Benefits
The Budget also proposes restricting welfare benefits for persons convicted under criminal laws.
“To promote integrity and responsible citizenship, I propose that any person convicted of an offence under any criminal law shall not be eligible to avail benefits under notified government welfare schemes,” Baruah said.
He added that welfare schemes, which were paused due to the election process, would resume from August.
Rs 6,000 Crore Allocated for Welfare Schemes
The Finance Minister said the government has proposed allocating more than Rs 6,000 crore for various beneficiary-oriented welfare programmes.
He said all welfare schemes would be implemented through the state’s Digital Infrastructure for Direct Benefit Transfer (DIDS), which includes Aadhaar-based authentication to streamline benefit delivery.
Other Key Budget Announcements
Baruah presented a Budget of Rs 2.85 lakh crore for the 2026-27 financial year.
Among other proposals, the government announced a four-fold increase in the tax exemption limit for small tea growers and a reduction in Value Added Tax (VAT) on piped natural gas by nearly 10 percentage points.
The minister also said the government would continue major welfare schemes introduced over the past five years while aiming to reduce the state’s budget deficit to Rs 419 crore.
