| Staff REPORTER |
Itanagar, Mar 9: The Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly has passed five important government bills by voice vote following brief discussions during the ongoing session.
The bills were moved by different ministers on the opening day of the five-day Budget session on Friday last and subsequently approved by the House on Monday.
Deputy Chief Minister and Minister in-charge of Tax and Excise Chowna Mein introduced The Arunachal Pradesh Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2026, while Panchayati Raj Minister Ojing Tasing moved The Arunachal Pradesh Local Authorities (Prohibition of Defection) (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
Urban Affairs Minister Balo Raja introduced The Arunachal Pradesh Urban and Country Planning (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and Home Minister Mama Natung moved The Arunachal Pradesh Fire and Emergency Services Bill, 2026.
In addition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pasang Dorjee Sona introduced The Arunachal Pradesh Salaries, Allowances and Pension of Members of Legislative Assembly (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which was also passed by the House.
According to the statement of objects and reasons, the amendment relating to salaries and pension aims to address repeated representations from former legislators seeking pensionary benefits. The government noted that the existing provision requiring a minimum service “period of four years” under Section 11 of the Act acts as a hurdle for some former legislators to qualify for pension. The amendment seeks to remove this condition in line with provisions in the Assam Legislative Assembly Members’ Salaries, Allowances, Amenities and Pension Act, 2018, taking into account the services rendered by former members of the Assembly.
Similarly, the Arunachal Pradesh Fire and Emergency Services Bill, 2026 aims to replace the outdated Arunachal Pradesh Fire Service Force Act, 1991, which is considered inadequate to address the evolving challenges of modern firefighting. The new legislation is based on a revised Model Bill (2019) circulated by the Government of India and seeks to introduce comprehensive provisions for modern firefighting equipment, techniques and emergency response systems.
Meanwhile, the state annual budget for the financial year 2026-27 will be presented in the Assembly on Tuesday by Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, while the budget will be taken up for discussion and passing on Wednesday.