Guwahati, May 16 (IANS) Former Leader of Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly, Debabrata Saikia, has written to the Assam Chief Secretary alleging serious malfunctioning of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) Assam website and its associated helpline numbers, calling the situation “highly unprofessional” and unacceptable.

In a letter addressed to the Chief Secretary on Saturday, Saikia claimed that while attempting to retrieve his own NRC details through the “Know Your ARN” section of the NRC portal, he encountered multiple technical and administrative failures.

According to Saikia, the website directed users to contact the state helpline number 15107 for assistance. However, he alleged that repeated calls to the number went unanswered.

He further claimed that when he used a SIM card registered outside Assam to contact the toll-free number meant for outstation callers, the call was reportedly diverted to a veterinary hospital in Shillong.

Saikia, who is also a former Vice President of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), questioned the accountability of the authorities in maintaining the NRC infrastructure despite the “massive public expenditure” incurred during the NRC updating exercise.

He stated in the letter that more than Rs 1,600 crore had been spent on the NRC process, but basic digital infrastructure and telephone support systems were allegedly not functioning properly.

The Congress leader further said that NRC documents and related data are frequently required by Assam residents for legal and administrative purposes, and therefore, citizens must be able to access their information without difficulty.

Raising concerns over the present condition of the portal, Saikia questioned whether the state government had “implicitly nullified” the importance of the NRC due to the “abandoned state” of the website and helplines.

He urged the Chief Secretary to immediately investigate the matter, restore the functionality of the NRC website, rectify the helpline system and ensure proper support for citizens seeking NRC-related services.

–IANS

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