Zee Media Bureau
Guwahati: The debate has continued for long but the northeastern state of Assam has taken the first step in breaking away from the practice of following a single time zone across the country.
The government of Assam has taken a call on following garden time or daylight-saving time, which was first introduced by British tea planters over a century and a half back.
The clocks in Assam would soon be advanced by an hour ahead of the Indian Standard Time (IST).
Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said the change in time zone will help in people becoming more energetic. The measure would also help cut down on energy consumption, he added.
The reason which the state government has given for altering the time zone it follows is: in the Northeast, including Assam, sun rises as early as 5 am and it sets by 5 pm in the winters and a little later in the summers.
So, following the IST leads to a loss of daylight hours and subsequently, a fall in productivity. The Indian Standard Time is based on the local time at Uttar Pradesh`s Allahabad.
While Assam is going ahead with the move, it still may require the nod of the central government for the measure to become final.
