After Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's comment on the changing demography in Assam, he further claimed that the Congress party should take responsibility for controlling the country's rising population. Sarma suggested that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should be made the brand ambassador for population control, believing this would expedite the process.
Sarma stated, "If not 'Khata Khat', the work will be done 'Phata Phat'. A section of the community views me as their enemy, but they listen to the Congress."
The Chief Minister also noted that one does not need to be married to become a brand ambassador for population control. "To be a brand ambassador, one doesn't need to have ten children," he added.
Sarma emphasized his previous work on sterilization during his tenure as the state's health minister.
"While I was health minister, around 1 lakh male sterilizations were done in 2009. These efforts should continue for better results. Political leaders should take the responsibility of raising awareness about birth control. In India, we cannot enforce family planning compulsorily. Although there has been some progress in population control, it is not publicly acknowledged. If former chief ministers in the 70s and 80s had addressed these issues neutrally concerning religion, the current situation would be different. If previous governments had focused on educating girls and preventing child marriages, such issues wouldn't have arisen. I cannot perform magic in my three-year term in the government; it takes at least two decades to achieve effective population control," he concluded.
