Guwahati: The Assam government has extended maternity leave for its employees from 12 weeks to 26 weeks.

In a meeting chaired by chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal at Dispur on Saturday, the state cabinet gave its nod to a proposal to amend the Assam Maternity Benefit Rules, 1965, to increase the period of maternity leave.

It approved formation of an Assam Climate Change Management Society to combat climate change and make the state free of pollution. Sonowal will be its chairman.

"The cabinet has also approved creation of a Biotechnology Council with Sonowal as its chairman and science and technology minister Keshab Mahanta as the member secretary for implementation of Assam State Biotechnology Policy, 2018-22," an official source said.

Dispur had framed the policy to fulfil expectations to boost industrialisation based on immense potential of the state's bio-resources and core areas through better market prospects and suitable incentives.

The source said the cabinet had also decided to allow cinema owners to retain service charge levied on ticket sales.

"It was decided that the service charge will be retained by the cinema owners and not to be shared with distributors which was the practice earlier," the source said. He said service charge collected by cinema halls would have to be utilised by them for improving infrastructure of halls.

A resolution was passed condoling the death of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The cabinet expressed its gratitude to chief secretary T.Y. Das ahead of her superannuation.