Union home minister Amit Shah will arrive in Assam's Silchar on Thursday night for a three-day visit to the state, ahead of the assembly elections in the state. Sources said he will spend the night at Silchar in Cachar district. On Friday, he will visit the BSF's Natunpur border outpost along the India-Bangladesh border to review the situation.
He is also expected to attend an event under the Centre's Vibrant Villages Programme -- a Union home ministry initiative focused on border infrastructure and livelihoods.
This will mark the launch of the Vibrant Village Programme in Assam along the Bangladesh border - a new edition of the programme that was in place earlier along the China border in Arunachal and Ladakh.
The programme focuses on livelihood generation, promotion of tourism and cultural heritage, skill development, and strengthening of agriculture and allied sectors in border areas. BJP leaders said the party will pair development messaging with border security in its campaign pitch in the valley.
Natanpur, under the Katigorah area of Cachar district, an area which has witnessed the apprehension of over 200 illegal migrants, including Bangladesh and Myanmar nationals, in recent years, officials said.
The VVP, organised by the Union Home Ministry, focuses on livelihood generation, promotion of tourism and cultural heritage, skill development, and strengthening agriculture and allied sectors.
After attending the event in Cachar, Shah will travel to Guwahati to participate in the CRPF Raising Day celebrations at Sarusajai Stadium.
Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said this will be the first time the CRPF is organising its Raising Day event outside its campus in Assam for public viewing. CRPF Director General GP Singh will also attend the ceremony.
Shah will also address a public meeting, and the BJP is working to mobilise a large gathering of party workers in the region , sources added.
Barak Valley - covering 13 assembly constituencies across Cachar, Sribhumi and Hailakandi - shares a long and porous border with Bangladesh and has a Muslim-majority demographic profile. The region has often seen multi-cornered contests.
In the 2021 assembly polls, the BJP got six seats, the Congress bagged five seats while AIUDF won in 4 seats in Barak Valley. After delimitation 15 assembly seats have been reduced to 13 seats.
Sources said Amit Shah's visit to Assam ahead of the assembly polls is crucial because the BJP has been taking all possible steps to win more seats in Barak Valley, which is largely dominated by the Bengali population.
