Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday announced that Assamese will now be the compulsory official language for all state government notifications, orders, acts, and related administrative documents.
The decision is set to take effect from Bohag Bihu, the Assamese New Year, marking a symbolic and culturally rooted start to the language mandate.
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The government notification clarified that while Assamese would be the default official language for most of Assam, Bengali will be used in the Barak Valley districts, and Bodo in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), acknowledging the linguistic and ethnic diversity of the state.
The notification further stated, “The English language shall continue to be used for communication with the Government of India, central government offices, and other state governments.”
It also clarified that in case of any dispute in interpretation, the English version of acts, rules, and orders shall be treated as the authoritative text.
Taking to social media platform X Sarma said “Beginning this Bohag, Assamese will be the compulsory official language for all government notifications, orders, acts etc. across Assam.”
According to the 2011 Census, Assamese is spoken as a mother tongue by over 15.1 million people, comprising approximately 48.38% of Assam’s population. Bengali is the second-most spoken language with around 9 million speakers (nearly 29.9%), while Bodo, recognised as an official language in designated areas, is spoken by about 1.48 million people (around 4.5%).
