Assam

Assam (English pronunciation: /əˈsæm/  listen ; Assamese: অসম , Ôxôm [ɔ'xɔm]  listen ) is a state in Northeast India. Located south of the eastern Himalayas, Assam comprises the Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak Valley along with the Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao districts with an area of 30,285 square miles (78,440 km²). Assam, along with Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, and Meghalaya, is one of the Seven Sister States. Geographically Assam and these states are connected to the rest of India via a 22 kilometres (14 mi) strip of land in West Bengal called the Siliguri Corridor or "Chicken's Neck". Assam shares an international border with Bhutan and Bangladesh; and its culture, people and climate are similar to those of South-East Asia – comprising the elements in India’s Look East policy. Assam became a part of British India after the British East India Company occupied the region following the First Anglo-Burmese War of 1824–1826.

Assam is known for Assam tea and Assam silk. The first oil well in Asia was drilled here. The state has conserved the one-horned Indian rhinoceros from near extinction, along with the pygmy hog, tiger and various species of Asiatic birds. It provides one of the last wild habitats for the Asian elephant. The Assamese economy is aided by wildlife tourism, centred around Kaziranga National Park and Manas National Park which are World Heritage Sites. Sal tree forests are found in the state, which as a result of rainfall looks green all year round. Assam receive more rainfall compared to most part of India. This rain feeds the Brahmaputra River, whose tributaries and oxbow lakes provide the region with a hydro-geomorphic and aesthetic environment.

Legislative assembly

Legislative assembly is the name given in some countries to either a legislature, or to one of its branch. The name is used by a number of member-states of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as a number of other countries, with notable examples being that of the Australian States, which each have a legislative assembly as a Lower House.

Legislative assemblies in the Commonwealth

The modern-day legislative assembly in a Commonwealth country, either as a national or sub-national parliament, is in most cases an evolution of one of these colonial legislative chambers.

In a number of territories, the name House of Assembly is used instead.

Examples of legislative assemblies in Commonwealth countries

In India, the lower or sole house of each constituent state's parliament is called the legislative assembly, or Vidhan Sabha. The same name is also used for the lower house of the legislatures for two of the union territories, Delhi and Puducherry. The upper house in the seven states with a bicameral legislature is called the legislative council, or Vidhan Parishad. Members of the former are called MLAs, and those of the latter MLCs.

Election commission

An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of election procedures. The exact name used varies from country to country, including such terms as "electoral commission", "central election commission", "electoral branch" or "electoral court". Election commissions can be independent, mixed, judicial or governmental. They may also be responsible for electoral boundary delimitation. In federations there may be a separate body for each subnational government.

Electoral models

In the independent model the election commission is independent of the executive and manages its own budget. Countries with an independent election commission include Australia, Canada, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the United Kingdom. In some of these countries the independence of the election commission is constitutionally guaranteed e.g. section 190 of the Constitution of South Africa.

In the branch model the election commission is often called an electoral branch, and is usually a constitutionally-recognized separate branch of government, with its members appointed by either the executive or the legislative branch. Countries with an electoral branch include Bolivia, Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and Venezuela.

Tarun Gogoi

Tarun Gogoi (Assamese: তৰুণ গগৈ; born 1 April 1936) is an Indian politician who has served as the Chief Minister of Assam since 2001. He is a member of the Indian National Congress and has led the party to a record three consecutive electoral victories in Assam. He completed 14 consecutive years as Chief Minister of Assam on 18 May 2015.

Early life

Gogoi was born on 1 April 1936 into an ethnic Assamese Tai-Ahom family at Rangajan Tea Estate, erstwhile Sivasagar District, now the Jorhat District of Assam.

His father, Dr Kamaleshwar Gogoi was a medical practitioner at Rangajan Tea Estate and his mother, Usha Gogoi, younger sister of the renowned poet Ganesh Gogoi, was known for her collection of poetry, Hiyar Samahar (Heart’s Treasures).

Fondly called Punakon by his parents, Tarun Gogoi began his primary education at the No.26 Rangajan Nimna Buniyadi Vidyalaya (lower foundation school). From there he moved on to Jorhat Madrassa School where he studied up to class IV, and then moved to Bholaguri High School located near Badulipar Tea Estate where he studied till class VI. In 1949, young Gogoi was enrolled at the Jorhat Government High School, from where he passed the HSLC Examination. He did his graduation from Jagannath Barooah College, located at Jorhat District, of Assam and after that he did LLB from Gauhati University, Assam. He is designated as an alumnus of the prestigious Jagannath Barooah College, Jorhat.