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Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday started distribution of relief packages to 2,751 former employees and workmen of Nagaon Paper Mill and Cachar Paper Mill of government-run Hindustan Paper Corporation Ltd (HPCL).

At a programme held at Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati, the Chief Minister started distribution of relief package as part of the government's "humanitarian gesture" and the total cost of the relief package would be Rs 810.02 crore benefitting 2,751 employees of the two closed paper mills including 2,003 regular employees and 748 contractual workers.

The production at the HPCL's Cachar Paper Mill in Hailakandi district stopped on October 20, 2015 while the Nagaon Paper Mill at Jagiroad in Morigaon has remained shut since March 13, 2017.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the Assam Government took this step considering the hardship the ex-employees, workmen and their families had to endure due to non-operation of the mills for the last 5 to 6 years.

Sarma said that under this relief package a trust would be created with financial outlay of Rs 25 crores and this would be utilised for various purposes like medical benefit, educational support, social assistance of the ex-employees and workmen.

The Chief Minister announced that the Assam Government would put efforts for opening a new paper mill at the plot of land of Cachar Paper Mill and the land of Nagaon Paper Mill would be utilised for expansion of capital region.

While the state government has already initiated steps for providing jobs to 84 eligible ex-employees of the mills, the Chief Minister on Thursday distributed appointment letters to 66 such employees on the occasion.

An agreement was signed in September last year between the government and the unions of the two paper mills after a series of discussions.

According to the Joint Action Committee of Recognised Unions, which has been spearheading the agitation for the past many years demanding reopening of the two paper mills, since the shutdown of the two mills, 103 employees have died, including 3 who committed suicide