G Plus Vol 4 Issue 04

Police on toes suspecting fake note racket

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In conversation -

Amanjeet Kaur, DCP Traffic PG 08

G PLUS APR 23 - APR 29, 2016

Is it easy to do business in Assam?

11

PG 04

VOLUME 04 | ISSUE 04 NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

PRICE `10

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Cash crunch sends Guwahati in a tizzy 02

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Download FIRs New facility from PG CCTNS 07

Ward 26 residents slam authorities for no show

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Lead Story

Cash crunch sends Guwahati in a tizzy

Rahul Chanda

With people trying to convert black into white and the government taking pot shots from all corners for the move, the Guwahati public is fed up of waiting in queues Rs 5,000 was all that mattered to him. A city-based businessman, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that many companies have good relations with the senior officials of banks, especially private banks. So he intimated that if someone has black money, he/she can crack a deal with the bank officials by providing a number of ID proofs of employees, relatives, servants, etc. and get a lot of old currency converted into new ones. The businessman said that for this the bank official might take a cut and this is one way by which some of the black money can be at least made usable in the market. So with all these agents mushrooming there were also many reports and rumours that people are buying flats and plot of lands using the old currency notes.

Can people buy property with black money?

People continue to get harassed by the denomination move of the government | surajit Sharma/G Plus

City people irked with waiting in long queues outside ATMs and banks The demonetization move gives birth to various agents and middlemen for converting black money into white Experts say transporters, builders and businessmen with daily bank dealings to benefit the most if they have hoarded money Many sectors like telecom, automobiles, liquor take a toll as sales dip AREIDA President assures black money cannot be used to buy flats Income tax sources say that it’s not easy as all transactions are under scanner and black money converters will be questioned after 31st December SBI CGM assures the transaction rush will ease up by next week

It’s been 10 days since Prime Minister Narendra Modi banned the 500 and 1000 rupee notes.

Guwahati, as a city, has thrown up various views and responses to the move. The Supreme Court meanwhile has declined the request of the central government that it stay all petitions against demonetization pending in various high courts and other forums stating that people have a right to approach courts when they have grievances. What grievances do the people have regarding the move? There are reports saying people are converting black money into white through various ways. Is this possible? Is the move seriously helping people or harassing them? Till when will the banks and ATMs witness queues? G Plus checks the mindset of the people regarding the move.

The grievances BJP might claim that their “great” Prime Minister took the decision of demonetizing the old higher denomination currency notes to combat black money and counterfeiting. But people standing in queues outside ATMs and banks have a different perspective all together. A college student, Nita Das, talking to G Plus outside the HDFC ATM at Lokhra said, “I don’t understand the fairness of mak-

ing people wait outside ATMs for hours. This is my fourth attempt since yesterday to withdraw some money as my father is not well and I need to buy medicines.” She said that she has no problem with the move but enough 100 rupee notes should have been made available in the ATMs and banks so that people did not have to suffer.

At the Guwahati railway station there are around four ATMs adjacent to each other. But ironically, three were disabled and only the Punjab National Bank ATM was operational in front of which around 50 people were waiting in queue on Tuesday last. For a while, the G Plus team waited there and eventually early in the evening the machine stopped dispensing cash. JK Patir, a businessman from Barpeta, had come to Guwahati for his mother’s treatment. She was admitted in GMCH. Patir, searching for money from Bhangagarh, reached Guwahati Railway station and after waiting for half an hour was informed that the ATM had stopped working. Talking to G Plus he said, “Next time I will not vote for BJP.” He said that he had visited all the ATMs from Bhangagarh to the railway station but none of the ATMs were working.

On the flipside and very interestingly, we met one unemployed man at Paltan Bazar area

who was very happy with the move and he told G Plus, “The whole day I stand in queues outside ATMs and banks for others who come and take my place when I reach the door. They pay me Rs 200 every time I stand in the queue.” He was standing outside the Vijaya Bank ATM located at Manipuri Basti in Paltan Bazar and apparently he was asked to stand in the queue turn after turn by many businessmen of that area. The move, it seems, has given birth to many such petty agents in the city.

The agents Outside RBI we found a rag picker standing in the queue.

Talking to G Plus, he said that a businessman from Lakhtokia had asked him to exchange currency for which he will get Rs 100. Again, an employee working in a private firm in Ganeshguri, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that he was asked by one of his seniors in his company to deposit Rs 50,000 into his account. He said, “My senior told me if I deposit Rs 50,000 in my account in old currency notes, I would have to return him Rs 45,000 later and I would stand to earn Rs 5,000 which will remain in my account.” Interestingly, he said that he had no idea whether it was black money he was depositing but that he would earn

AREIDA President, PK Sharma, said that as for the allegation of “cash component” in real estate transactions, although cash transaction were allowed earlier, such transactions in real estate were debarred by the Finance Act 2015, notified by the Government of India. He said, “Our members have, since then, stopped accepting cash beyond Rs 20,000/- as mandated by the law. Therefore, the various adverse views expressed in a section of the media are unfounded.” A highly placed source in the Jyotikuchi area narrated a different story though with an elaborate example of a deal which is in the progress. The source said, “Say, a businessman has around Rs 70 lakhs of old currency notes and he is searching for a property he could invest in. He gets hold of a transporter who has around five trucks lying idle for the past 5 months for whatever reasons.

So his bank transactions are, like nil, since last 5 months. The businessman with Rs 70 lakh old notes contacts the transporter as both are friends. The transporter talks to a land owner who has two kathas of land worth Rs 50 lakhs which he wants to sell.

The transporter tells him that he will get Rs 60 lakhs but the payment will be made in instalments. The transporter works out that he will take Rs 70 lakhs from the businessman of which Rs 14 lakhs will be deposited in

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

3

Lead Story the businessman’s account and a check will be given to the land seller. The transporter will deposit the rest of the money in his and his friends’ accounts who all are transporters and convert the cash into white showing earnings in last 5-6 months. Gradually the money will be withdrawn and paid to the land owner and in the process the transporter will earn around Rs 10 lakhs.”

According to sources some businessmen are making payments of one year to their employees making them sign on a bond paper. So similarly people are finding ways and means in the city to convert black into white money.

But is it that easy?

Is it easy?

A source in the income tax department, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that people are no doubt working out ways to convert their black money into white by buying property, jewellery or other investments. After 31st December they will under-

stand the grave mistake they are making. The source said that the banks are sending all the reports to the government and the income tax department has access to it. Any suspicious transaction will be double-checked and the account holder should be ready with the income records of the money deposited in the account.

He further said that people have huge amounts of black money and by paying salary to their employees and buying a flat or a plot of land “they are just throwing out two buckets of water from the deep well.” Also, after the 8th November declaration, the government will work on the strategy to identify the culprits. It is not that easy and even the builders or the land owners, whoever are accepting such notes and feel they can manage the books by fudging calculations, will face the music after 31st December.

Meanwhile, government revenue has started flowing in old notes are being accepted till 24th November. But whoever is gaining or losing, the common public

demonetized OLD CURRENCY NOTES | file photo

has been severely irked by the harassment.

CGM of SBI, NE Circle,

Kamakhya temple authorities lock down donation boxes; says no to black money G plus news

PVSLN Murty talking to G Plus, said that the situation has improved as there were lesser queues on Friday. He said that

in Guwahati there are 301 ATMs of SBI out of which 170 have been recalibrated for 2000 rupee notes, 90 ATMs are dispensing cash and 12 ATMs will dispense cash 24/7. There are 8 cash vans and 4 to 5 ATMs in Dispur are dispensing only 100 rupee notes 24/7. He said that by next week the situation will become normal as till then 500 rupee notes will also start coming. He said that before, as with 500 and 1000 rupees notes, the agency responsible for refilling money used to refill once a day. But now many ATMs can take only Rs 100 notes. So they have to refill twice or thrice daily for which they have a manpower issue which will be resolved soon. He confidently said that by next week the situation will be controlled as 500 rupee notes will also arrive.

The private banks, on the other hand, are not being able to recalibrate the ATMs for which most of the ATMs are not working.

SBI receives Rs 53,000 Cr deposits in 2 two days

T

he authorities of the Kamakhya temple on Tuesday locked all the donation boxes to stop unscrupulous people from donating black money anonymously. However, the members said that they will continue to accept donations in cheques and cash (new currencies), only after the necessary identity norms re followed.

Commenting on the step taken, Kabindra Sarma, head priest of Kamakhya temple said, “Donations at Kamkhya temple do not give tax ex-

emptions and so black money hoarders may not be interested but we will not allow entry of any sort of black money. In addition to that, if people give donations of huge amount in

rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

old currency notes, we will have trouble in exchanging them. So we have locked all the donation boxes, where people could donate money anonymously.”

S

tate Bank of India (SBI) yesterday said that it has received deposits worth Rs 53,000 crores and has exchanged currency worth Rs 1,500 crores so far, after the government scrapped the 500 and

G plus news

1,000 rupee notes. The information was put forward

by SBI Chairman, Arundhati Bhattacharya, while announcing the bank’s quarterly results on Monday.

“The bank got deposits of Rs 31,000 crores on Thursday. On Friday, the amount of deposits increased by Rs 22,000 crores.

The business of demonetization is going well. We have also been able to put up 29,000 ATMs and Cash Deposit Machines (CDMs).

Of these, 21,000 are ATMs and rest are CDMs,” Bhattacharya said.

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Business

Is it easy to do business in Assam? rahul chanda

I

With Assam being ranked 24th in the ‘ease of doing business’ assessment, the government claims that the status has improved and the state will be in a better position next year.

G Plus explores the possibilities.

n the latest ‘ease of doing business’ report India’s ranking recently improved by just a notch and was way off the target that the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had hoped to achieve. India has been

Tarun Gogoi government initiated ease of doing business in 2011 2014: After BJP formed the government World Bank started assessing the states This year’s assessment says Assam ranks 24th out of 32 states and UTs The industry and commerce department sources say the act was passed in June 2016 The source says that many departments failed to initiate reforms till the assessment was done in June last The state government now says that 85% reform recommendations have been completed Sources say that many departments lack infrastructure and manpower to work digitally but the status has improved nevertheless CAs and businessmen say it’s still not easy to do business in Assam except for high profile people who have the connections

ranked 130 and was placed at 131 the previous year, thus reflecting a marginal improvement. India could not improve its ranking further despite initiation of a slew of reform measures which have been lauded in the assessment report mainly because other countries in the ranking list also did well last year. This was reported in the media by World Bank officials who oversaw the report. Similarly, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Industry and Commerce, in partnership with the World Bank, released the results of the assessment of state implementation of business reforms 2015-16 and placed Assam at 24th. In last year’s assessment the state was ranked 22nd. The former Congress-led government had initiated the ease of doing business strategy in 2011 and it became an act in 2016. But why did the state score so less? Is it so tough to do business in Assam?

How many industries are there in Assam? Department-wise what is the performance and what is the plan of action in place so that the state can score better in next assessment? G Plus looks closely at the scenario.These are mere rumours that are being spread through social and other media,” the official added.

The assessment The assessment studied the extent to which states had implemented DIPP’s 340-point Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) for states/ UTs covering the period 1st July 2015 to 30th June 2016. The BRAP includes recommendations for reforms on 58 regulatory processes, policies, practices spread across 10 reform areas spanning the lifecycle of a typical business. Data for the assessment was collected from state governments on the BRAP portal where the governments had

INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE OFFICE IN GUWAHATI, THAT HANDLES EASE OF DOING BUSINESS

to submit the evidence of the reform. At least 32 state and UT governments submitted evidence of implementation of 7,124 reforms.

The submissions were reviewed by the World Bank team and validated by DIPP’s team to study whether they met the objectives of the BRAP. The portal allowed for collaborative dialogue between DIPP and the state governments in finalizing the evidence submitted. A total of 6,069 reforms were approved as implemented or not applicable on the portal. As Assam was ranked 24th G Plus tried to find out what went wrong.

The problems A highly placed source in the state’s industry and commerce department, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that the state, at present, has a more conducive atmosphere for business. He said that the ease of doing business was an initiative taken in 2011 by the Tarun Gogoi government and an

ease of doing business portal was launched (www.easeofdoingbusinessassam.in). He further said that that when anyone opts to do business in any state a lot of formalities have to be observed involving many state departments in the process. Initially there used to be problems getting clearance from every department at a single moment. For example, previously the tax had to be paid in the treasury office and to cut a tree, NOC from the Department of Forest was required and to get electricity APDCL had to be contacted. Now everything is in a single window format through the portal and in 2016 an act namely ‘Assam Ease of Doing Business Act, 2016’ was also passed which makes it mandatory for all departments to help the businessman at one go. The source said that now everything is online and people can apply for everything through one online window. Also the industry and commerce department is setting up a single window physical office

which might be rendered useless with the online portal being easy enough to access and every officer in the hierarchy from the chief secretary to the commissioner of commerce and industry are in the loop as regards any processing activity. Enquiring about why the state came in 24th, the source said the assessment had certain parameters. For example, a certificate had to be furnished to prove that electricity to an applicant is provided within 15 days, but the concerned department failed to issue such a certificate. Similarly, the DIPP had recommended 340 reforms in 11 Assam state departments out of which 269 reforms were completed. Also the World Bank started assessing the states since 2014 and the ease of doing business act was passed only in 2016 in Assam. As such, many departments were not under compulsion to reform certain systems which they have to now. rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

Implementation status as on 3rd November 2016 is Sl no Department/Directorate No. of DIPP recommendation

Complete Partially completed

Pending % of completion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Finance Land & revenue Law & Judiciary UDD/GDD Forest & Environment Industries & Commerce Fire & Emergency Services Taxation Labour & Employment Pollution Control Board Power (APDCL)

1 9 13 37 13 27 6 57 117 49 12

0 0 4 14 5 21 5 48 111 49 12

1 1 3 8 8 4 1 9 5 0 0

0 8 6 15 0 2 0 0 1 0 0

0% 6% 42% 49% 69% 85% 92% 92% 97% 100% 100%

Total

340

269

39

32

85%

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

5

In The News

Police on toes suspecting fake note racket W

Kalyan Deb

hile cash crunch and interminably long queues at bank offices and ATM kiosks have been in the headlines for the past several days, a piece of news recently surfaced that carried serious potential to create panic among Guwahatians. Reports had circulated that Basistha police had seized fake currency making machines from the Koinadhora area in the city. Meanwhile, police are keeping on toes while considering the involvement of any gang that might be in the counterfeit currency making racket. However, the reports of a fake note making machine being seized has been dismissed by Basishta police which mentioned that the news has been wrongly published and a different story altogether has emerged.

The reality On Wednesday morning Basistha police raided a property in the Koinadhora area located near Khanapara in the city and seized a note counting machine, paper cutters and ink bottles from one Anu Devi’s home. The police also recovered two 500 rupee notes, a 100 rupee note and a currency note of the United States of America. However, the recovery of the note counting machine was misreported as recovery of a fake currency making machine and this might have created a panicky situation amidst the current chaos of exchanging, withdrawing and depositing Indian currency at banks. Meanwhile, Basistha

Amidst cash crunch and interminably long queues at bank offices and ATM kiosks news of fake note machine being seized in Guwahati surfaces as reports had circulated that Basistha police had seized such machines from the Koinadhora area in the city However, the same has been dismissed by Basishta police and mentioned that the news has been wrongly published

NOTE COUNTING MACHINE AND INK SEIZED BY COPS

police has said that there is no truth in the news that a fake currency making machine has been recovered and urged people not to panic or believe in any such rumour. However, investigation is underway since a few denominations of Indian as well as foreign currency has been recovered.

“The note counting machine that has been recovered is not in working condition but along with those we have recovered a few items that puts those living in the house under suspicion and scrutiny. We have recovered three bundles of paper that bear resemblance to the paper used in currency making, a paper cutting machine and a few denominations that are suspected to be counterfeit,” said an official of Basistha police.

“No arrests have been made so far but investigation has been carried out and those living in the house have been identified. We will get to the root of the matter regarding the presence of such items in the house,” the official

added.

The incident The cause of the matter that raises suspicion towards a possible racket goes in a completely different direction altogether.

From property dispute to occurrence of antisocial episodes, all have transpired during the incident. It was based on the suspicion of the locals of the area that they noticed a few unknown people residing for quite a while on a property owned by one Ratan Lal Amo. Ratan Lal had bought the plot of land in 2013 but has been residing in Mumbai for the past several years and had given the responsibility of looking after the plot to a relative named James Amo. The property houses an office of Public Health Engineering. In the meantime James had rented a part of the property to one Anu Devi who has been residing in a temporary house with her daughter. Meanwhile, there have been disputes

On Wednesday morning police raided a property in the Koinadhora area and seized a note counting machine, paper cutters, ink bottles along with two 500 rupee notes, a 100 rupee note and a currency note of the United States of America from one Anu Devi’s home.

Locals reported the matter to police on suspicion of property dispute and occurrence of antisocial episodes since a few unknown people have been residing in the property Meanwhile police has taken the involvement of any racket of making counterfeit notes and will accordingly carry out further investigation regarding the property as one Achyut Goswami claims that he had bought the plot of land from James and several exchanges of words had taken place in the area.

Thus, the locals who suspected that antisocial activities were being carried out reported to Basistha police on Wednesday evening. However, when the police visited the spot it was found that

the temporary house had already been vandalised by the public and on searching the house the aforementioned items were recovered.

Police have also summoned Anu Devi and the others who had been residing on the property in order to get to the bottom of the matter. kalyan.deb@g-plus.in

6

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

City

Solid waste management plant set up at Kamakhya

Juthika Baruah

The waste management plant will help keep the Kamakhya Temple premises clean as thousands of pilgrims visit the place and take ‘bhog’ dirtying the premises in the process and producing waste Art of Living sets up solid waste management plant at Kamakhya The temple committee has also contacted other temples to provide their waste materials to the plant so that the waste could be channelized properly Every day 1 quintal of waste material is generated at Kamakhya Temple The plant has been set up on 1,000 sq. ft. of land within the temple premises The plant will produce fertilizer from the waste thereby benefitting the plantation of the area

I

n order to keep the Kamakhya Temple premises clean, the Art of Living foundation has set up a solid waste management plant which will also help to produce fertilizers for plants out of the waste material.

Kamakhya Temple has been regarded as one of the 51 shakti pithas and around 3,000-4,000 pilgrims visit the temple everyday

to seek blessings from Maa Kamkhya by offering flowers. The same are thrown away into the temple pond thereby polluting the water.

To save the water from pollution and to keep the temple premises clean a solid waste management plant has been installed.

The Art of Living has surveyed the entire premises and made certain observations. The Sobhagya Kund is frequently visited by pilgrims and the flowers thrown make the water of the kund (pond) dirty. The stairs of the kund must be free from any algae growth to avoid accidents from slipping and the water must be cleaned frequently. “It’s a nice project done

by Art of Living and the fertilizers which will be prepared out of the waste material will be used for plant growth. We have also invited other temples to provide their waste flowers and materials so that the fertilizer produced thereof could be used in making the roots of the plants strong. We have asked the Sukreswar Devalaya committee to give their waste materials to which they have agreed and we will also approach other temples gradually,” said Doloi of Kamakhya Temple, Kabindra Sarma while speaking to G Plus.

Sarma said that 1 quintal of waste material is generated per day and those waste products make the premises of the temple dirty. Animals are also sacrificed by the pilgrims making the place dirty with the blood and subsequent foul smell. The Art of Living felt strongly about keeping the place clean.

Creative writing workshop to be held in city

H

eadway~d intel club will organise a workshop on Creative Writing on 4th December, 2016 at the Assam State Museum Auditorium which will be followed by a Creative Writing Competition on 11th December at Bisnu Nirmala Trust Campus.

The events will be conducted and judged by renowned author, journalist and columnist Mrs. Indrani RaiMedhi and Sahitya Akademy Awardee for children’s writing, Mrs. Rashmi Narzary.

The workshop is aimed to

G plus news

guide young participants on the importance of writing, nurture their creativity and imagination in writing fictional and non-fictional short stories, essays and dialogues.

The workshop and competition will be open to children in the age group of 7 to 15 years. Children aged 7 years up to 11 years and 11 years up to 15 years will be divided in two separate groups.

The top three winners in both groups will be awarded prizes. All participants will be awarded participation certificates.

What the

Tweet!?

After #DeMonetization, now #StopDemonetization surfaces#ConfusedIndia Rajesh Sharma @ ‫ ‏‬beingAAPian Modi should not make it issue of ego, people are suffering due to unplanned demonatisation. #StopDemonetisation Neel Shah @ ‫ ‏‬i_neelshah #StopDemonetisation The nation cannot afford the loss of another innocent soul because of the vested interests of the friends of Modi Ji. Bhaanu @ ‫ ‏‬BhaanuWrites #StopDemonetisation for this demon is creating irreparable damage in the common lives of the common men & women of the country.

SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PLANT AT KAMAKHYA

The Art of Living also finds that the kitchen and Prasad are not hygienic due to a lot of vegetable waste being generated and the staff cannot clean these properly while managing the rush in the temple. Consequently, the waste materials are thrown into the pond. Thus, the waste management plant is being set up. The solid waste management plant is set up on a 1,000 sq. ft. plot of land within the Kamakhya Temple premises.

The Art of Living also found that the surroundings of the other temples, i.e., the seven sacred

shrines of Kali, Tara, Bhubaneshwari, Bhairabi, Chinnamasta, Bagala, and Dhumabati and the five Shiva temples of Kameshwar, Siddheswar, Kotilinga, Aghor and Amratkeswar should also be cleaned and wiped regularly.

The project of the waste management plant cost around Rs 1520 lakhs and the total expense has been borne by Art of Living. The maintenance part will be looked after by the Kamakhya Devalaya committee. juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

Guwahati boy receives National Child Award from President

G plus news

Guwahati boy, Abhisekh Saharia, bagged the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement from President Pranab Mukherjee on the occasion of Children’s Day at Rashtrapati Bhawan yesterday.

Abhishek, a Class XI student of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Khanapara, was awarded the Inspire Award Certificate for innovation in Science Pursuit by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development for his innovative project of designing and preparing an infrared blind aid kit, an official release said here today.

Abhishek received a silver medal, a cash prize of Rs 10,000 and book voucher worth Rs 3000 for his exceptional achievement in the field of innovation.

The President gave away the awards to children for their outstanding achievements and to individuals and institutions for contributing to child development and child welfare.

The National Child Awards for Exceptional Achievement gives recognition to children with exceptional abilities in fields such as academics, culture, arts, sports, music etc, the release added.

johnpauljose ‫‏‬ @johnpjk1996 No action against Reddy’s ₹650cr marriage ceremony for his daughter, shows Modi saving big sharks, targets poor #StopDemonetisation Nitinkumar S.R. @ ‫ ‏‬nitinkumar9465 #StopDemonetisation Suddenly demonetisation have been implemented and now everyone r struggling so much this should have been planned early Jamsheer ‫‏‬ @jamsheerk786 Every day a new rule on demonetisation. @PMOIndia should admit that govt has failed in execution.. #StopDeMonetisation Jatin Rana @ ‫ ‏‬rana_jatin99 I noe what al a common man is goin through. Exchange of notes is taking so much time.

This should have been well planned .#StopDemonetisation crime master gogo ‫@‏‬vipul2777 Pls don’t tell me people are ready to stand hours to hear arvind kejriwal but not ready to stand in queue to change cash #StopDemonetisation Robin Saini @ ‫ ‏‬RSK_Robin Leader busy in nautanki followers busy in trends.

Such is the life of #AAPtards #StopDemonetisation

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

7

In The News

Download FIRs: New facility from CCTNS Rahul Chanda

As directed by the Supreme Court, Assam Police has made FIRs available online starting from 15th November despite the fact that even after almost one year of the launch of CCTNS, people still cannot file complaints online How to search and download FIR:

time that the new government has been in the seat of power at Dispur but according to sources, the chief minister, till date, has not reviewed the CCTNS status and yet, he keeps talking publicly about improving the policing system of the state. So, with the public still not habituated to doing things online and with things still happening manually, if people at all lodge their complaints online, what is the guarantee that it will work efficiently? The government should make sure that the public money is not wasted and people utilise this platform which has many uses.

Public may visit citizen portal (www. assampolice.assam. gov.in) and click on FIR download button User may select the district, police station and year from the drop down menu button.

If user knows the FIR number, the radio button “Yes” may be selected and the 4-digit FIR number {prefixed by zero (0) before the FIR number to make it a four digit number} may be entered.

Click the “Search FIR” button and click the download FIR icon.

If user does not know the FIR number please select radio button “No” and click the accused/ complainant/victim radio button. Please type the name of person by which the FIR may be searched.

Then, click search FIR number and download the FIR.

Some more plans

SCREENSHOT OF CCTNS WEBSITE HOMEPAGE

It’s been almost a year since January 2016 that the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & System (CCTNS) portal was launched

by Assam Police. Services like tenant verification, domestic help verification/employee verification, character certificate, protest or strike request, procession request and event performance requests are today accepted by the police online and the police claimed that the portal will reduce footfall in the police stations. In September, the Supreme Court directed all states and union territories to upload FIRs on their websites within 24 hours of registration at police stations and gave them time till 15th November to put the mechanism in place. The FIRs shall be made available on the websites of the police department concerned or state governments. During the launch of CCTNS in Assam, police had claimed that after the assembly elections of 2016, the public will be able to file complaints online as the police was working on the process and now, with the deadline of the Supreme Court being over, G Plus tries to understand what the status is.

by citizens with effect from 15th November 2016 through CCTNS Citizen Portal (www.assampolice. assam.gov.in) as well as Assam Police website (www.assampolice. gov.in). Citizens can download the FIR by choosing the District, PS, Year and FIR number if known or they can search for the FIR by submitting the name of complainant/ accused/victim. According to sources in Assam Police, cases which are sensitive in nature have been blocked from public view as per Supreme Court directive. Citizens may approach the district authority for obtaining the same as per Supreme Court guidelines.

But unfortunately, complaints still cannot be registered online by the public. A highly placed source in the CCTNS management team, talking to G Plus, said that the system is ready to take complaints but the decision has to be made by the government. The public can download FIRs as soon as it is uploaded and in cities the police is expected to upload within 24 hours of the FIR registration while in rural areas of Assam, it is within 24 to 72 hours.

The status

Why can’t people file complaints online?

As directed by the Supreme Court of India, Assam Police has facilitated the downloading of FIRs

According to sources, Rs 40 crores has already been pumped into the whole project and since

January till date approximately 50 requests have been received by the police from people applying for various verifications and other requests. The awareness level about CCTNS and its importance has still not reached the public and people are still applying for different services manually. Also there are issues related to network because the system cannot work without internet. There are 374 locations in entire Assam out of which 92 locations are still not connected because the locations are in areas where there is no network. According to Assam Police sources, unless and until the SPs of districts or the commissioner of police mandate that all the requests should be accepted online people will keep working manually and the CCTNS portal will of no use. Also there is lack of skilled manpower in the police as every police station should have at least two operators who should concentrate and keep processing the public requests online. Talking about complaints, the government should pressurise the police to allow public to register complaints online. The FIR service has been made available online since 15th November but there is no circulation of information. The police chief or the chief minister should have informed the public through media but this never happened. Also it’s been quite some

According to sources in the CCTNS management team if things go as per plan, there are other features which will be added to the portal. Interoperable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) scheme of Government of India will enable electronic exchange of data between police, court, prison, prosecution and forensic science laboratory to computerize the work flow which will save time, effort and improve the overall delivery of the justice system. Mobile platform is tested and will be available soon for ease of access of services by citizens. Citizens can access the services on mobility as well as tracking the status of the submitted request. CCTNS is integrated with Assam Online state portal for accessing of services.

So the portal is indeed useful and if people can also file complaints online, it will be a great success for the system. Even the recent service of availing FIRs online is a great feature as now people do not have to request the police for a copy of the FIR. Online is the way forward and the government should accordingly exert the requisite pressure on the police system to adopt the technology and proliferate its use among the public of Guwahati at least to start with. rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

Weather report for the week Guwahati

SUN 20 Nov

MON 21 Nov

TUE 22 Nov

WED 23 Nov

THU 24 Nov

FRI 25 Nov

Hazy Sunshine

Hazy Sunshine

Hazy Sunshine

Mostly Sunny

Sunny

Mostly Sunny

28 / 12 °C

28 / 12 °C

27 / 12 °C

26 / 12 °C

32 / 18 °C

32 / 18 °C

SATURDAY

19 November Hazy Sunshine

28 / 14 °C

8

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

In Conversation

“No malls can take parking fees from customers”

Amanjeet Kaur, DCP Traffic

Rahul Chanda

2009 batch IPS officer Amanjeet Kaur joined the city police commissionerate two months ago and has tried many experiments to improve the city’s traffic scenario. She talks exclusively to G Plus, explains the motive of the experiments and the changes that the city will witness

“

Please give us a detailed background of yourself, your education and your career so far.

Guwahati is our city and to keep it orderly and beautiful is our responsibility. We must inculcate the habit of abiding by rules and think beyond just our own comfort.

I hail from a village called Kabirpur in Kapurtala District of Punjab. I did my initial schooling at Shri Har Krishen Public School.

I did my graduation and post graduation from Chandigarh in Economics. I joined the services in 2009 as an IPS officer. I was allotted the Assam-Meghalaya cadre after training. I was a probationer and posted at Jorhat for six months. I was SDPO Abhayapuri in Bongaigaon District, Additional SP (Traffic) for Guwahati in 2013 and then joined as Superintendent of Police, Jorhat in January 2014. I was there till September 2016 before joining here as DCP (Traffic).

“

so accident reports have lessened.

We have already started our Facebook page “guwahatitrafficpolice,” and are trying to expand our base.

People can make suggestions, give their feedback and we will act accordingly. We are also planning on moving from paper challan to e-challan. We have initiated steps on improving the driving habits of bus drivers so that they drive safe and not flout norms. I am in touch with various other departments for inter-departmental coordination. My efforts are on and I hope I am successful.

It’s been quite a while since you have joined here as DCP Traffic. What are the problems you’re facing?

Traffic is an area of major concern. We are a growing city with growing number of vehicles. The infrastructure takes time to expand, but the number of vehicles is expanding at a much faster pace.

Guwahati has small roads, narrow streets. We lack alternative roads and those that are there are used less because people want to reach a destination by the shortest possible distance. We have problems of not observing rules and regulations. People voluntarily and rampantly break traffic rules. In situations of congestion, people lose patience and try to overtake on the narrow roads. Haphazard parking on roads is another problem.

You initiated some changes in the traffic routes. Why were those immediately rolled back?

We experimented and introduced a lot of things; we have sustained some and positive results are coming in. We introduced parallel parking on GS Road. It took some time to be streamlined but now vehicle movement is smooth.

At Ganeshguri we have divided the roads and certain areas have been made no parking zones. So the perpetual congestion which used to be observed in Ganeshguri has reduced drastically. We have also closed certain unscien-

As you were talking about parallel parking, don’t you think it eats up a lot of space and people take a lot of time to park? tific intersections which I thought was hampering the traffic with positive results all over the city.

Closing the Maligaon Chariali intersection yielded positive results and we have continued with that.

We have declared Paltan Bazar area as no parking zone and our sustained efforts have brought results. We have introduced division for bus bays. We had introduced one-way on AT Road but then we observed that there are certain pressure points which we need to look at. We rolled it back because there is a need to do a little more work on these pressure points – especially the railway crossings where a train comes every five minutes. This hampered our oneway plan. We observed that the Bharalumukh point is not able to

sustain the pressure. Of late we have introduced division of roads on AT Road. We are also trying to streamline parking in that particular stretch. The roll back was not sudden but done after an analysis that some more work needed to be done.

What are the other changes that the city is going to witness?

Well, for one thing, the traffic is much smoother. The Saraighat Bridge used to face perpetual traffic jam. But with the peak hour restriction of truck movement on the bridge the traffic movement has become smooth. We have also put restrictions on truck movements in various parts of the city. We have controlled rash driving and

It is the angular parking which eats away 50% of the road space and affects the normal flow of traffic; parallel parking is easier.

Further, so we have sent notices to all the malls to not to take parking fees. I appeal to people that they can report such parking charges to us. Malls, as per GMC guidelines, cannot charge anything from their customers.

City buses do not stop at the designated stops. They don’t have fixed timings. There is a lot of chaos because of the buses. How will the traffic department act on this issue?

To streamline those things we have done a lot of work. For example, in Paltan Bazar, we created a bus bay and a dedicated officer is deployed there. Things have im-

proved. We have introduced a bus bay near Ganeshguri flyover too.

We are also issuing challans for flouting norms. We would like to have much more surveillance on them. Our work is on and I am trying to coordinate with other departments.

Bus stops are made by other departments. It is observed that every end of a flyover has bus stops which slow down the traffic. Can’t the traffic police demand that the stops be moved and constructed scientifically?

We try to minimize stoppage time and push the buses ahead wherever they seem to create a chaos. If the stops are near bridges we try to open up the space.

For example, at the Bhangagarh Bridge bus stop, there used to be a lot of encroachment by private vehicles as well. So we have cleared that and you can now observe that the normal traffic is moving. Same with the Sixmile Bridge. We have made a bus bay there also. From our end we are trying to streamline things and are also in touch with other departments to find ways and means on how we can relocate the bus stops and free up more space. I am in touch with other departments so that every bus has a route number and that buses should stop only at designated stoppages. There are no visible bus numbers either on the buses or at bus stops. The bus stops must mention which bus is supposed to stop there and where it will go. I am in the process of getting this done.

Since 2011, the entire concerned government machinery including the court has been trying in vain to ensure that autos ply on meters. Why is it so difficult?

It is a joint task and police alone cannot enforce meter readings; it has to be a joint drive. The concerned department along with the traffic police have to do it. We help the concerned department whenever they come for drives.

But can’t the police individually also act on it?

Customers have to come forward and complain to us. We have always taken a case and so

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

9

In Conversation far I have not come across any single case or complaint against the autow alas. I request people to make complaints.

Since 2012, High Security Registration Plates (HSRP) is a mandate. But even now a lot of vehicles, especially VIP vehicles, ply without HSRP. Why has it not been enforced?

We had done drives when I was Additional SP traffic in 2013.

Since I have joined here now I have observed that most vehicles have HSRPs. We will definitely resume the drive. There was a tendency to use fancy number plates but it has come down drastically. We will take action against those not using HSRP and we will start extensive drives.

About B Baruah Road - a lot of people feel that the parking should be shifted to the stadium side as the other side has a lot of lanes and private entry gates.

I think there is a need to shift the parking off that road. The street is already very narrow. The fundamental thing is that the road is for travelling, parking comes second. We are trying as much as possible to remove parking from the road. What you said is a valid point but it can’t be done because when you are coming from Ulubari you can observe from the middle markings on the road and the way the road is constructed that there is much more space on the left side than on the right side.

Anyway, in future you might see certain changes.

With traffic police personnel there are still two issues - corruption and class consciousness. So how are you going to resolve the issue?

Regarding corruption if I receive a complaint we will take very strong action against the personnel. I don’t go for any long enquiry.

If any citizen is harassed we take

and the government is going ahead with that. Traffic control room is not only being set up in Guwahati only but in other districts also.

Recently the honourable DGP has announced that the pending CCTV project will be completed soon. The cameras which were installed before will be functional and a control room is on the verge of getting completed.

Your family? strong immediate actions against our officers. My number is with everyone. I have zero tolerance to corruption. Regarding class consciousness it is a clear instruction that whatever the vehicle may be, if the norms are violated, we are taking action. At times my police officers have even wheel clamped police vehicles.

What are you doing to improve the technical aspect of city traffic

Guwahati reporter bags journalism award

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arking a glorious achievement in the industry of Information and Broadcasting of the region, All India Radio, Guwahati has been conferred with two national awards in the annual Akashvani Awards for distinguished services in production, news and technical sectors.

G plus news Manas Pratim Sarma, the news editor of AIR Guwahati, won the best reporter award in the ‘Bold and Courageous Reporting’ category.

The award was handed over by the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Rajyavardhan Rathore.

Demonetization: A hurdle over midday meal G plus news

MIDDAY MEAL BEING SERVED IN A SCHOOL | FILE PHOTO

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he demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes has posed a hurdle in serving midday meals in schools of Assam as there is scarcity of cash in buying food items for the purpose.

At present, midday meals are served to 32 lakh students in 56,000 government-run schools of the state.

As teachers can’t afford to spend their valuable time queuing up in banks and ATMs for cash, the money to buy food is slowly drying up. “In many sub-divisions of the state, schools are spending mon-

ey very carefully because the teachers can neither wait in queue to withdraw money from banks, nor can they spend their valuable time in exchanging higher denomination currency notes for buying food for children,” said Jiban Chandra Borah, president of Assam State Primary Teachers’ Association.

However, officials in the education department have assured that managing midday meals for the students have been one of the top priorities of the government and they are working on necessary steps to manage the same.

police as there is no traffic control room, the signals are not working and there are many infrastructural loopholes?

Most of the traffic signal lights which were put in Guwahati city are unscientific. They cannot serve the present needs. So sometimes I have to actually switch them off in the evening when the pressure of traffic is more. There is already a proposal for a traffic control room

I have my parents and I have two elder brothers. My eldest brother is a doctor in the US. The younger one is a mechanical engineer works in a multinational company. My father is a farmer and also practises Ayurvedic and Unani medicine. My mother is a household lady and a farmer and equally contributes in all the work.

rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

10

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Sports

ATK breaks Northeast hearts with last minute equaliser Gplus News

I

ain Hume once again proved his worth in the Hero Indian Super League after scoring a 90th minute goal to help Atletico de Kolkata hold North East United FC 1-1 at Rabindra Sarobar Stadium, Kolkata, on Thursday.

The Canadian striker is among the leading goal scorers with 21 goals to his credit in the history of ISL and his strike against NEUFC ensured that he has scored against all the teams in the ISL. North East appeared as though they had done enough to earn full points after Nicolas Velez capitalised on a defensive lapse in the 5th minute to give his team the lead but Hume struck in the last minute to give his team a precious point.

ATK will be happy with the point which keeps them in the top four with 14 points from 10 matches. NorthEast United spent three weeks at the top after winning two matches in a row at the start but started at the bottom prior to this game. The draw helped

them take their points tally to 11, the same as FC Goa, but Zico’s team will be placed at the bottom because of their inferior goal difference.

Velez gave NorthEast United a dream start by scoring in the 5th minute. The Argentinean striker could not believe his luck after Henrique Sereno, under pressure from Emiliano Alfaro, played a suicidal ball across for Arnab Mondal which Velez intercepted on top of the box, rounded off goalkeeper Debjit Majumder and slotted it inside an empty goal.

Atletico de Kolkata’s attack was found wanting in the first session and they could not do much to trouble the rival defence. Helder Postiga’s shot in the 28th minute which missed the target narrowly was their best attempt and Sereno could have done better to beat Paul in the 35th minute with his header from Javi Lara’s free-kick.

The second session saw Atletico de Kolkata press hard for the equaliser. A direct corner-kick from Lara almost got them the goal as the ball evaded goalkeeper Paul and sailed

IAN HUME OF ATK NETTING THE EQUALISER

towards the goal but defender Robin Gurung, who was on the line, managed to head the ball away.

NorthEast United should have killed the game before ATK fought back. In the 72nd minute, Katsumi Yusa’s cross from the right found Alfaro with plenty of time and space

back to haunt NorthEast United as ATK got the equaliser in the 90th minute. Lara’s freekick from the right found Postiga inside the box who headed it towards the far post where Hume stabbed it in much to the delight of home crowd.

to head home but he only ended up picking the goalkeeper.

Again in the 82nd minute, Alfaro had another chance from close range but again his header went straight to the keeper at the other end.

Those clear chances came

Hero ISL 2016 Points Table Teams M W D L GD

P

Delhi Dynamos 11 4 5 2 7 Mumbai City 11 4 4 3 1 Kerala Blasters 10 4 3 3 1 FC Pune City 11 4 3 4 -1 atk 10 3 5 2 1 Chennaiyin FC 10 3 3 3 -2 neu FC 10 3 2 5 -1 FC Goa 11 3 2 6 -6

17 16 15 15 14 13 11 11

VELEZ CELEBRATING NEUFC OPENER

Goals galore as Rajdhar Bora HS beat Railway HS to advance to finals

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atch day at the Reliance Foundation Youth Sports – School and College Football saw semi-final action at the Nehru Stadium. The high scoring match of the day saw Rajdhar Bora HS School take on the Railway Higher Secondary School in the first semi-final of the senior boys’ category. The exciting tie produced 8 goals with Rajdhar Bora coming out on top with a 5-3 victory to progress to the finals of the category.

Rajdhar Bora got their first goal through a penalty which was converted by Dipan Das in the 2nd minute. Rakesh Das doubled the advantage in the 39th minute before Dhanjit Das scored in the 45th minute to give his team a 3-0

lead going into halftime. The second half saw Railway trying to get back in the game and they almost gave a scare to Rajdhar Bora when they scored 2 goals in two minutes - in the 56th through Banamali and in the 58th through Chintu Das. Rajdhar Bora shook off the challenge from Railway Higher and finished the match strongly with Rakesh Das adding his second in the 81st minute followed

by Dhanjit Das in the 86th minute to give Rajdhar a 5-2 lead before Chintu Das got another for Railway Higher in the 87th minute to end the match at 5-3 in favour of Rajdhar Bora HS School.

The victory takes Rajdhar Bora HS School into the finals where

Gplus News

they will meet Dispur Academy who overcame a stern challenge from Montfort School winning their semi-final 4-3 on penalties after the match had ended 1-1 at full time.

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Ganeshguri market thrown out of gear

Juthika Baruah

11

City

Assamese dictionary app launched Assamese dictionary app launched

G plus news

A section of traders protested by shutting their shops for two hours because a new executive committee was formed forcefully and without the consent of the present committee whose tenure is not yet over

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SHOT OF THE GANESHGURI MARKET

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he Ganeshguri Municipal Corporation Bazaar Committee (GMCBC) had shut its shops for two hours on 15th November, 2016 in protest against the decision of forming a new executive committee by another group.

In 2014, Azam Ali had been elected as the president of GMCBC and Nitin Das was appointed as the secretary. But within 4 months, Das apparently triggered massive financial anomalies with many people levelling a number of allegations against him. “Das was also associated with the previous committee but they had indulged in many corrupt practices and had not done anything beneficial for the shopkeepers and the people. In 13 years people have not received a single paisa from the previous committee and now they have formed a new committee without the completion of the tenure of the prevailing committee. This has not been accepted by the people and the present committee,” said Azam Ali, President of GMCBC. Ali said, “The electricity line office and the corporation office were like cowsheds during the tenure of the previous committee. But now I have cleaned up the room and have converted it into a decent office. And I regularly clean the drains. In my one-andhalf-year term I have done developmental works for the market and I still have money left over for further work.”

Ali also alleged that earlier many untoward incidents like gambling, sale of alcohol inside the market place, etc. took place in the market. These have now been stopped after he was been appointed President. “Nitin Das had embezzled a sum of Rs. 1,75,000 in four months. He is now saying

that he will repay the amount and has given us 15 cheques. During the tenure of the previous committee there was a goondaraj of the locals and which demanded money from the shopkeepers. This has now been controlled,” said Ali. In connection to the entire tussle the traders protested against the formation of the new committee. Without any consent of the present President a meeting was convened by the old committee.

Subsequently, a new executive committee was elected under the presidency of Nikhil Thakuria which was also attended by the Dispur MLA, Atul Bora although the market does not fall under the Dispur constituency. Today, however, the old committee, which was chosen a year back, declared yesterday’s meeting as illegal and threatened GMCBC opposes the formation of the new committee GMCBC opposes the move as the tenure of the existing committee is not over During the tenure of the previous committee many untoward incidents including financial anomalies took place in the market There are around 220 shops under the committee The new committee was elected under the presidency of Nikhil Thakuria The meeting was also attended by the MLA of Dispur constituency, Atul Bora

legal action against the convenors.

“The old committee has not been dissolved yet. The manner in which the new committee was elected is totally illegal and undemocratic. Today we held a meeting in which a majority of the traders reposed faith in the existing committee,” the committee’s president Md. Azam Ali said, charging “unscrupulous elements who had indulged in massive financial anomalies during the tenure of the previous committee” for the unrest prevailing in the market for the last few weeks.

Another executive member of the old committee also expressed regret over the presence of Dispur MLA Atul Bora in yesterday’s meeting. “The market does not fall under Dispur LAC. We were surprised by the presence of Atul Bora in the meeting. We don’t know under what circumstances he attended it,” said another executive member of the old committee.

However, the rival group accused Ali of running the committee in an autocratic manner. “He doesn’t listen to anyone. We have been demanding convening of the meeting of the committee, but he has not paid heed to the demand.

So we were forced to convene the meeting yesterday,” they said.

There are around 220 shops under the committee and the existing committee does not accept the new executive committee that has been formed without the consent of the existing President as the tenure is not yet complete. “Two new buildings have also been constructed as some shopkeepers do not have proper shops and now if people want me as the president I will continue or else I will quit from my position,” said Ali. The market is not secure at night as eve-teasing is a common nuisance that takes place inside the market and it happens due to the goondaraj of the local youths. juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

urlov Gogoi, an Assamese lexicographer-cum-software expert, has developed an Assamese and English bilingual dictionary app that will run offline.

The app, called ‘Aadarxa Bilinigual Dictionary,’ was released a few days ago during the ongoing North East Book Fair. The book took more than a year to be developed and has more than 1,20,000 words along with images for better understanding of the meanings.

The app developed by Gogoi is currently available on Android and iOS platforms.

Even though the app can work offline, Gogoi suggests that to view the images along with the words, one must use

the app in an online mode.

“There are facilities for searching words by categories. For instance, one can key in names of animals and birds, special days and even scientific terms to find a particular word,” Gogoi said.

The app that weighs 13.14 MB also has an Assamese keypad, to facilitate easier search. For an Assamese user who wishes to search Assamese words, a keypad in Assamese language is a boon.

The app is not free, and a user has to pay Rs 100 for a first time installation. However, if any user formats his phone, they can re-install the app for free of cost. The updates, too, will be made free of cost.

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Campus

Two city colleges accredited by NAAC with excellent grade

Juthika Baruah

The assessment of NAAC helps the college to gauge its performance and to set parameters through introspection

Accreditation facilitates

Institution to know its strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities through an informed review process.

Identification of internal areas of planning and resource allocation Collegiality on the campus.

Funding agencies look for objective data for performance funding Institutions to initiate innovative and modern methods of pedagogy New sense of direction and identity for institutions The society looks for reliable information on quality education offered Employers look for reliable information on the quality of education offered to the prospective recruits Intra and interinstitutional interactions

COTTON COLLEGE | FILE PHOTO

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he National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) have conferred grades to some city colleges among which Cotton College bagged the highest position with Grade A++.

NAAC is an autonomous body established by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to assess and accredit institutions of higher education in the country. “The college which bags good position gets more funds from UGC for the development of the college. Colleges that receive Grade A or B receive more funds than the colleges that receive Grade C or D. Grade A and B are considered to be good and the grades are given based on the performance of the colleges,” said Sunayana Roy Medhi, Assistant Manager, Quality Advisory, e-Pathshala while speaking to G Plus.

Sunayana said that the colleges are assessed based on seven

criteria and they should answer seven questions on curriculum, research and methodology, infrastructure, teaching and learning method, scholarship and eco-friendly system. Based on these answers the colleges are given the grade. A college holds the validity for five years once it has been accredited and they can renew after five years.

(NAAC) has conferred ‘A++’ grade to Cotton College with a CGPA of 3.76 in the 4.00 scale.

‘A++’ is the highest grade conferred by the NAAC and Cotton College has become the first college ever to get the highest grade in the entire eastern zone of the country. The CGPA of 3.76 scored by the college happens to be the third highest score among the colleges nationwide.

The result was declared by the NAAC on 5th November, 2016, through their website.

This is the third cycle of NAAC accreditation for the college.

G plus news

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After a three-day assessment by the NAAC peer team from September 14 to 16, 2016, the result has brought cheer to the college and all its stakeholders.

The result is the outcome of the assessment of five years (201116) of excellence demonstrated by it under seven types of criteria earmarked by the University Grants Commission (UGC).

NAAC has also recommended the college to introduce Commerce stream but according to an official source it has come to be known that introducing a new stream immediately is not easy as the college has become a constituent of Cotton College State University. The college has also been recommended to introduce a post graduate course which again is not possible as it comes under the Cotton University’s jurisdiction.

Commenting on introducing the PG courses one of the students said, “We will be happy if

the college introduces PG courses but at the same time it has ensured that there is sufficient faculty personnel for that. At present some of the departments do not have enough faculty and the students are demanding appointment of teachers for such departments because due to the absence of teachers, classes are being missed and courses cannot be completed on time.”

Notably, Arya Vidyapeeth College achieved Grade A in the latest assessment.

Meanwhile, one of the students of the college said that the students are facing problems in the hostel. “Water crisis is a major problem which has not been solved for so many years. Years are passing by and new students are being admitted but they have to face the same problem again and again. Whenever we call the plumbers they do not respond and we have been informing about the problem to the authorities repeatedly but till date it has not been solved. The students are hopeful that with the accreditation of the NAAC the infrastructure of the college will be improved.

One of the students, Priya Talukdar, said that the girls have to face problems as the girls’ common room is not in a good condition and girls cannot relax in the common room due to its unhealthy environment.

“I heard that a new girls’ common room is under construction which will be helpful for the students as we cannot roam here and there during the off periods.

If there will be a common room then girls can at least spend their leisure hours there. As we have achieved Grade A we are hopeful that with the funds that are granted by UGC these problems will be solved,” said Priya. juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

Workshop held at Taj on ‘Women in Family Business’

icci flo Northeast chapter organised a workshop for ‘Women in Family Business’ - a National initiative where women are encouraged to take their role in business effectively by promoting different skills, optimise resource utilisation and maximise resource development.

Keeping this in view, a session was

conducted by Ms. Babita Baruah, Senior Vice President and Executive Business head, JWT New Delhi who spoke on various subjects including marketing, branding, digital and social media, branding and business ethics. Earlier this year, she was also invited as speaker to Harvard Business School to speak at the ‘India Conference.’

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

13

Ward Watch

‘Developed Khanapara’ still reeling under unregulated water supply Kalyan Deb

WARD NO

Concentrated Area: Khanapara

30

Ward Number: 30 Sub-division: 30(a) Councillor: Manabendra Malla Bujarbaruah Phone no. 9864073215 Area sabha member: Purnima Boro Phone number: 9706245709

THE KHANAPARA JUNCTION | SURAJIT SHARMA/G PLUS

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ast-growing Guwahati has seen rapid development in the past few years. In fact according to a survey done by a UK media, Guwahati is among the 100 fastest growing cities of the world and is the 5th fastest growing among Indian cities.

The city stretches between the LGB International Airport in the west and Narengi in the east – a span of almost 45 kilometres, and between the southern bank of the Brahmaputra River to the foothills of the Meghalaya hills which is around 15 kilometres.

With the ongoing development works several localities have been upgraded. One such locality is Khanapara. Located at the extreme south of Guwahati, the Khanapara area was considered to be on the outskirts of the city until just a decade ago. However, several changes over the past few years present a completely different picture of the area today.

With broader lanes than most areas in the city, various commercial establishments, boon in the residential establishments with the construction of several apartments and several other serviceable establishments, Khanapara is now one of the rapidly growing localities of the city.

Demographic structure Khanapara shares borders with Meghalaya at one end and the Six Mile flyover on the other.

There are several establishments in the area such as the Frontier Headquarters of Sashastra See-

|surajit sharma/G Plus

ma Bal, Assam Public Service Commission Office, College of Veterinary Science and Regional Science Centre among several others that had marked the significance of the area in the past few decades. However, there are also several newly built establishments and some of these have significantly raised the skyline of the city.

Apart from the commercial institutions the area also houses several residential lanes that connect to several other areas such as Jayanagar and Beltola through several arterial roads while the other side of the GS Road houses several government institutions and quarters.

The initiation of development It was not too long ago that the Khanapara area was considered a village. Only those people who had to travel to other parts of the state or to Meghalaya passed through Khanapara. Although the residences had been established several decades ago the area lacked economic elevation and the few existing ones received tepid response.

“It was only till 7 pm that people could be seen on the streets.

Shops would shut down by 7:30 to 8 pm; the buses would not ply through the area after 7 pm. It was more of a village like scenario even just a decade ago. College students would boss around and not pay the bus fares. However,

the residents have been there for several generations,” said Pradip Kumar Medhi, a local resident.

The inauguration of the Rupnath Brahma Inter-State Bus Terminal (ISBT) at Betkuchi gave the area the much required boost that also helped in expanding the boundaries of the city. The first of its kind in the northeast, the ISBT was opened in December 2006 and that initiated the gradual development of the area. The initiation of ISBT not only provided a major boost to the footfall of the area but also opened avenues of business. There are two sectors that amplified in terms of trade and commerce - the hospitality and automobile industry.

The area houses several outlets of vehicle accessories that have been in existence for several years. But with the establishment of ISBT in Betkuchi, Khanapara became a hub for such accessories. These outlets today virtually take a huge slice of the business of those traditional outlets in the heart of the city and the parking space available is the added advantage.

“There were very few shops in the area but gradually several other shops were established.

There is hardly any traffic congestion and if we compare the area with other parts, the roads here are much wider adding to the beauty of the area. With the gradual development several new shops have opened up and are doing good business,” said Gautam Mazumdar, a businessman of the area.

Increased inflow of tourists has made north-eastern states the next big destination for the hospitality industry with hotel chains. Thus, alongside the automobile industry, the area has also become a hub for the hospitality industry. Although the hotel industry in Guwahati is still in its infancy, it is gaining momentum due to the gradually growing economy and Khanapara is leading the bandwagon since the past few years. The area houses several reputed hotels such as The Palacio, The Lily and Vivanta by Taj. These three establishments together have elevated the aesthetic beauty of the area providing it elegance besides adding to the peace.

The plight Scarcity of drinking water is a major problem in Guwahati.

With the ‘tropical monsoon rainforest climate,’ the state of Assam experiences heavy rainfall and high humidity and with a massive river system that includes the mighty Brahmaputra and its numerous tributaries, Assam definitely can boast of adequate availability of water. However, in the case of safe drinking water, Assam is very poor, more so Guwahati. Like several other areas in the city, Khanapara has to bear the brunt of development.

The residents are either dependent on wells or bore-wells that basically provides them underground water. The problem does not surface until winter but with the onset of December the wells start drying up and the condition lasts till April. For almost five months most of the households have to buy their share of water.

“Each household up to Jayanagar has to buy an average of at least 1,000 litres of water that costs up to Rs 300. For a middle class family it becomes very diffi-

cult to survive such living costs.

There had never been such requirement until the construction of apartments and the large buildings. The problem has surfaced over the past few years and has been getting worse. A government-led project is much needed for the area,” said Sanjay Rai, a local resident as several others echoed similar views.

Blast from the past Khanapara made it to the headlines for an untoward incident that claimed many lives. At least nine people were killed and over 120 injured when an oil tanker caught fire and exploded in the Khanapara area in 1998. Seven of the dead were students of the nearby Assam Veterinary College who woke up from sleep and went to find out what had happened. It was reported that the incident took place at around 9:45 pm when a leaking tanker caught fire and exploded.

The fire spread to at least 13 more tankers parked at the site near the frontier headquarters of Sashastra Seema Bal. The blaze was doused after a four-hour operation.

Fire brigade personnel, however, suspected that the blaze was sparked by a cigarette butt. The veterinary college, which is situated about 500 metres from the blast site, bore the brunt of the devastation. Reportedly it took nearly four hours for all the fire tenders of Guwahati city and Guwahati Refinery to douse the flames. The fire was brought under control at about 4 am in the morning.

The impact of the blast was so powerful that it was heard at a distance of 5 kms. The fire devoured everything in its vicinity. It ripped through electric posts and trees in the neighbouring area and even damaged the busy Guwahati-Shillong Road. kalyan.deb@g-plus.in

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Snippets

G Plus Ward Talks witnesses frustrated residents at authorities’ no-show Gplus News

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n its continued effort to provide a platform for the citizens of Guwahati to express their problems and a medium to connect with the administration, G Plus has been featuring a column called “Ward Watch” since its inception. To further supplement the purpose of the column – which is to initiate some tangible improvements in the city starting with the micro-level of the ward - the media house had been mulling with a concept whereby the people of a particular ward and the representatives of the Ward Unnayan Samitee could be brought together onto a common platform along with the authorities from various government departments like GMC, GMDA, Police, etc. for interaction and exchange of ideas. G Plus thus f loated the concept of ‘Ward Talks’ and carried out the third phase of the initiative recently at Rukmininagar Auditorium, Beltola.

The third phase of Ward Talks was concentrated in Ward No. 26 which includes several areas of Dispur, Beltola and Kahilipara among others.

The areas have several issues such as drinking water problem, theft, lack of street lights, etc. that were discussed in the

Residents of Ward No. 26 slam authorities for absence during the discussion

L-R: MANJULA KAKATI (Councillor), Reboti Mohan Hazarika, PURNA LAL SENAPATI and BIJOY GOSWAMI of Ward 26 | SURAJIT SHARMA/G PLUS

session. However, the panelists who were invited from the various departments failed to make an appearance for the interactive session and this irked the locals of the area.

On the panel of the event was Purna Lal Senapati, Retd.

General Manager, The Sentinel Group, Reboti Mohan Hazarika, Bijoy Goswami, representatives of development committees of the ward and Manjula Kakoti, Councillor, Ward number 26. The event discussed ways to address issues such as drinking water, traffic, lack of street lights, etc. Enthusiastic participation of the public was

also witnessed in the event, which discussed ways to permanently resolve the issues of f lood, garbage collection and de-siltation of drainage systems among others.

The panelists raised the issue of the absence of the authorities of various departments and said that the area has been neglected. “We feel neglected as none of the officials showed enough enthusiasm to be present in the discussion. It seems that the authorities and the bureaucrats avoid being present in public to discuss problems as it will put them in a situation of accountability,” Senapati said

while addressing the gathering.

Raising the issue of the half constructed Rukmini Nagar auditorium, Reboti Mohan Hazarika said, “The former chief minister Tarun Gogoi inaugurated the ground f loor of the auditorium but till date the other f loors remain unconstructed. Nobody is taking the responsibility of the work, which has now been stalled by the concerned authorities.”

Water supply has always been a long pending problem of the ward and since the last 20 years, the people have been facing crisis. The urban water supply is irregular and the bor-

ing which was started has not been completed yet. “Only 20% of the boring work remains to be completed and even this has not yet been finished. It has been one and half years since then. At least 500-600 households will be benefitted from the water supply but due to the incomplete work people are suffering,” said one of the residents of the area.

Street lights have been another problem and due to the lack of street lights many untoward incidents take place in the area like chain snatching, thefts etc. There are other problems like unconstructed roads and according to the residents there are 30 by-lanes in Jonakpur of which only 3 are well constructed with the rest remaining in pathetic condition.

The city is also under the threat of dengue but the people of Ward No. 26 alleged that they have not had any fogging in the ward by the GMC yet. Meanwhile, the locals of the area have urged the government to take necessary steps in order to address the problems. However, the absence of the authorities was highly criticized by the locals as some more concrete solutions could perhaps have been found with their presence.

Bihu enthralls London Commonwealth Country Fair, 2016 G plus news

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his year’s Commonwealth Country Fair held at the Kensington Town Hall, London was attended by 33 Commonwealth countries. This is an annual event held in aid of the Commonwealth Girls Education Fund.

There was an array of cultural events presented by different countries and India was represented by London’s Bordoisila Bihu Gosthi which performed the rhythmic and gracious Bihu dance from Assam. With the dancers adorning authentic attire made out of muga silk, the live on-stage performance was eye-catching and had the audience from the various Commonwealth countries clapping to the beat of the dhol.

An official from the Indian High Commission mentioned, “This is the first time that Bihu performance has happened in this fair and we are so grateful to all of you that you have come and performed live music. It was a beautiful

performance and everybody enjoyed it. It was very nice to see small children performing as well.”

The colourful traditional costumes were the centre of attraction apart from the

graceful dance movements of the nasonis and many from the audience were seen to have spoken to the performers enquiring about the gorgeous muga mekhala chadars that they had adorned. The post performance applauds and the

number of people who came up to appreciate, compliment and have pictures/selfies of them taken with the team went on to say that the team did manage to put Assam in the hearts of people from 33 Commonwealth countries.

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Finnish redefinition of the Educational system Finland to get rid of traditional school subjects

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inland’s education system is considered one of the best in the world. In international ratings, it’s always in the top ten. However, the authorities there aren’t ready to rest on their laurels, and they’ve decided to carry through a real revolution in their school system.

Finnish officials want to remove school subjects from the curriculum. There will no longer be any classes in physics, math, literature, history, or geography.

The head of the Department of Education in Helsinki, Marjo Kyllonen, explained the changes: “There are schools that are teaching in the old-fashioned way which was of benefit in the beginning of the 1900s — but the needs are not the same, and we need something fit for the 21st cen-

E-cigarettes equally guilty of damaging gums and teeth: study Gplus News

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damage that could lead to various oral diseases,” said Irfan Rahman of the UR School of Medicine and Dentistry.

“How much and how often someone is smoking e-cigarettes will determine the extent of damage to the gums and oral cavity,” said Rahman. The study, which exposed 3D human, non-smoker gum tissue to the vapours of e-cigarettes, also found that the flavouring chemicals play a role in damaging cells in the mouth.

Reportedly, the flavourings made the damage to the cells even worse. It’s important to remember that e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is known to contribute to gum disease. Most e-cigarettes contain a battery, a heating device, and a cartridge to hold liquid, which typically contains nicotine, flavourings, and other chemicals. The battery-powered device heats the liquid in the cartridge into an aerosol that the user inhales.

Instead of individual subjects, students will study events and phenomena in an interdisciplinary format.

For example, the Second World War will be examined from the perspective of history, geography, and math. And by taking the course, ”Working in a Cafe,” students will absorb a whole body of knowledge about the English language, economics, and communication skills.

This system will reportedly be introduced for senior students, beginning at the age of 16.

The general idea is that the students ought to choose for themselves which topic or phenomenon they want to study, bearing in mind their ambitions for the future and their capabilities.

In this way, no student will

Trotter

Gplus News have to pass through an entire course on physics or chemistry while all the time thinking to themselves “What do I need to know this for?”

The traditional format of teacher-pupil communication is also going to change. Students will no longer sit behind school desks and wait anxiously to be called upon to answer a question. Instead, they will work together in small groups to discuss problems.

The Finnish education system encourages collective work, which is why the changes will also affect teachers. The school reform will require a great deal of cooperation between teachers of different subjects. Around 70% of teachers in Helsinki have already undertaken preparatory work in line with the new system for presenting information, and, as a result, they’ll get a pay increase. The changes are expected to be complete by 2020.

(Brightside)

More germs live in an ATM than your dustbin W

lectronic cigarettes, often perceived as a healthier alternative to conventional cigarettes, are as damaging to gums and teeth as smoking, a new study has warned. The study by researchers at University of Rochester Medical Centre in the US is the first scientific study to address e-cigarettes and their detrimental effect on oral health on cellular and molecular levels.

Electronic cigarettes continue to grow in popularity among younger adults and current and former smokers because they are often perceived as a healthier alternative to conventional cigarettes. Previously, scientists thought that the chemicals found in cigarette smoke were the culprits behind adverse health effects, but a growing body of scientific data, including this study, suggests otherwise. “We showed that when the vapours from an e-cigarette are burned, it causes cells to release inflammatory proteins, which in turn aggravate stress within cells, resulting in

tury.“

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ith people queuing outside ATMs over the past week, ATMs sure have become a public destination receiving a crazy footfall. Automated teller machines aren’t just a source of cash. They’re also a way for scientists to understand what microbes are in the environment and on people’s fingers— such as mold from sugary food.

For a new study, researchers took samples in the summer of 2014 from the keypads of 66 ATMs in US, and then analyzed what they found. They discovered microbes that live on human skin, as well as in places like bathrooms, kitchens, pillows, and evidence of food like chicken, fish, and mold from baked goods.

The cash machines they studied were scattered across the city of New York, from Manhattan to Queens to Brooklyn, and four of them were outside, although they didn’t see anything different with those ATMs compared to the inside ones.

More than dispensing cash, ATMs are dispensing germs, bacteria and other parasites. Rest assured, there needs to be a sanitation drive after the cash conundrum in the country!

Gplus News

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G Talk

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Harassment from the Demonetizing the conscience visionary Bishaldeep Kakati

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don’t want to be funny with the most serious issue bugging the nation at this hour. But I couldn’t help a certain thought crossing my mind, cricket freak that I am! Remember all those world cups that India never won? Especially, the 1991 edition in Australia that Imran Khan won? Well, the saving grace for us in all these world cups remains the fact that we beat Pakistan – every time. It didn’t matter that they won that bloomin’ Australia edition – India had beaten them fair and square prior to that.

A lot has been said and is still being discussed about the “Mo-demonitization” and how good we are all feeling at the current harassment we are facing. Or how bad for that matter! At the one end it’s an overpowering nationalistic feeling that the good days finally seem to have descended. At the other end are endless discussions by economic experts about how bad this move will be and how the real big chest of black money has not yet been touched. The clear fact remains – and I wouldn’t want to term it as a point of success in as much I wouldn’t want to dwell on its possible failures – that Kashmir is at peace today, albeit temporarily, and Pakistan’s nefarious terrorism has stopped simply because they might well be using all those big Indian notes as tissue paper now. For me, this harassment of ATM queues is a hugely tolerable nuisance just for the fact that Pakistan has been defeated once again in another bloodless battle!

For a long time, G Plus has been reporting and doing in-depth analy-

sis on the black money sector in our region. And this includes stories about corruption, counterfeit money trails and success stories of Assam Police in combating the greatest ill dogging our society.

That the present state government is here to stay and fight the corrupt elements is amply clear as Rakesh Paul would confirm. The amusing part in the whole melee is the appearance of those erstwhile highly-prized pieces of paper that have been literally flushed down the city’s drains in more than one instance. That such an invaluable item could be rendered so useless by a simple stroke of a prime ministerial pen makes it worth pondering about the superficiality of human desires and wants. A lifelong pursuit of the corrupt has been brutally cut short.

And so, I am today prone to wondering about the need for black money generation by those people who hold the power to do so.

The Mahat Talukdars and Rakesh Pauls, I am sure, could never have a peaceful night’s sleep for fear of a burglary, stashed with cash as their homes were. And beyond just the physical sleep would, I am sure, be that prick of conscience which every human being is blessed with and which constantly told them that they were doing something gravely wrong. It is time the corrupt listened to their inner good selves and cleansed themselves along with their almirahs. Demonetizing the conscience is the need!

Swapnil Bharali Editor

guwahati adda Scenes from an ATM late at night. The colour of the clothes is how you remember people in a queue.present committee whose tenure is not yet over Green t-shirt: Poisa hobo ne till the time I get to the front of the queue?

Check Shirt: Ek pine there are mosquitoes, the fear of dengue and hence the kadam-taal, and on the other hand, I need cash. Aaj kal line me rukne ka paisa milta hai. For withdrawing 4000 from the bank, I paid someone 300 Rupees commission the other day.

Blue vest: There’s an HDFC at ABC that’s dispensing cash. You can try there.

Green t-shirt: And leave my place here? No, thanks.

Check Shirt: But I think I’m the smartest. I hold the queue before midnight, make a transaction and then again after 12, make another one.

That’s 8000 in 2 turns.

Blue vest: I toh need money to travel to college tomorrow. Trekker and buswalas have refused to accept coins I don’t know why. Idiots!

Check Shirt: I read a story somewhere last week that it takes Rs. 7 to mint a 10 Rupee coin, like wtf!

Yellow t-shirt shouts: HEI! POISA SES! There’s an HDFC at ABC that’s dispensing cash!

SIDHARTH BEDI VARMA

Opinion

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th November, 2016. A day all Indians will definitely remember forever or at least will stay very fresh in their minds for a prolonged period of time.

It was the day when Americans were voting for their 45th President while the Indians were taken aback when Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the burgess over television with one of the boldest decisions ever taken by any Prime Minister in the world.

He very positively said that 8th November midnight onwards the 500 and 1000 rupee notes would be scrapped and it was meant to be taken as a legal decree. It was Modi’s novel way of curbing the menace of black money as well as corruption which is at its peak in India.

The Prime Minister believed that the plan which he had kept under wraps for a long period of time would help to bring out lakhs and crores of rupees in black money hoarded illegally by a large group of people and the resultant deposits would be used for the development of the people and the entire nation. In his speech the Prime Minister also said that on the next day, i.e., on 9th of November all banks shall remain closed while the ATMs shall remain closed for two more days, i.e., on 9th and 10th November. Things shall run normally from 11th November onwards. As a result of this, people were seen queuing up to ATMs to withdraw cash on the night of 8th November itself causing the subsequent hue and cry. The government, on its part and for its people, did make some crucial concessions as it announced that the old 500 and 1000 rupee notes can still be used at hospitals, petrol pumps, in booking bus and aeroplane tickets, etc.

Well, the immediate effect of it was seen on the day when banks opened. People were found storming them in huge numbers to either deposit or withdraw cash or to exchange the old notes with the new ones. Serpentine queues continued to be seen in each and every ATM. The dilemma of the people stood complete.

The government announced a cap of Rs 4,000 on exchanging demonetised 500 and 1000 rupee notes for valid money but citizens were found to make multiple such transactions by visiting different bank branches as there was

no specific direction on whether the cap was meant as a daily limit, as a result of which, not all the sections of the people could exchange money because of limitation in currency notes. Although the Finance Minister and the RBI Governor openly claimed that they were ready to meet the demands of the people in terms of providing money and notes the ground scenario was exactly the opposite. ATMs ran out of cash and most people were deprived of even a mere 2000 rupees to run their normal lifestyles. Though the withdraw limit was higher in banks, the rush was too huge and many people suffered standing in queue from dawn to dusk. Hence, anger intensified among citizens as banks struggled to dispense cash properly to all the people.

The government’s sudden and abrupt decision also made people with marriages having to be postponed because of obvious reasons. Even foreigners were found stranded in unsavoury situations as they had no option but to queue up in expectation of withdrawing at least a 2000 rupee note which was also a rarity. Though the government ordered hospitals to accept the scrapped 500 and 1000 rupee notes, certain private hospitals refused only worsening the situation. The demand for 100 rupee notes also increased leading to its scarcity and suddenly there was a predicament of loose money in major shops, markets, petrol depots etc. Be it the cabs, buses or autos none accepted the scrapped 500 or 1000 rupee notes and it

only led to huge difficulties for the common people. Most of the people in India also reside in rural areas where, in certain pockets, there are no banks or ATMs and since rural people depend on regular wages in the form of cash, the new system made them fall to their knees in despair. Around 60% of rural people do not possess debit cards and the government didn’t take proper steps to solve their difficulties.

Everyone expected that things would become normal after a few days but all their hopes and expectations seemed to go astray when the Finance Minister announced that it would take at least 3-4 weeks more for the situation to be normal again which still remains a doubt as the government just seems to continue extending the time period.

Although this newest development is worthy of appreciation as the government proposes to impose heavy taxes and penalties on the corrupt black money holders, only time will tell as to whether this plan becomes successful in solving the menace of black money. Even the citizens have understood that to achieve something good certain sacrifices are necessary and they are ready for it. But since the government definitely was found wanting in taking the appropriate precautions before announcing such a bold step, the harassment on the people stood complete. An encouraging step like this is always welcome but not at the cost of happiness and comfort of the common people.

Letter to the Editor Level crossing elevations are welcome The citizens of Guwahati face a lot of trouble at the various rail level crossings as the gates remain closed most of the time for which people are forced to waste long hours. The gates are closed every five minutes or so causing massive traffic jams. As a result we get late for office, schools and colleges. Sometimes the trains also stop at the level crossing for which people have to wait up to an hour or so. I have been repeatedly writing letters to Railway authorities to provide some alternatives but to no avail. I thank G Plus for carrying the article of railway level crossing and how people suffer. Keeping the gates closed for 18 hours per day is not a small issue. I am indeed happy that the union ministry has coincidentally responded so promptly to the issue with the proposal of elevating the track at the required places.

Congratulations on bringing up the issue and reporting it so well.

Mantu Medhi Via email from Bharalumukh

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

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In Focus

Is the ULFA opposition of allocating Meet land to Patanjali in the greater good Krishnanjan Chanda of the State?

Educationist Dhrubajit Narzary How many of you b******* know about Patanjali? It’s not a mandir. Patanjali is an Ayurvedic hub. From treatment to medicine everything will be there. Hundreds of local people will get jobs. And please don’t shout Ramdev Ramdev. He is doing much good to the Indian society; even saving lives of ordinary people with cheap Ayurvedic medicines and most importantly teaching yoga. At least he is not killing people and extorting money.

Shahnawaj Ahmed I don’t understand why give free land to Patanjaali? It would have been better if this offer would have been given to 10 local Assam-based companies. Why making the rich richer? This is not a business deal as Ramdev is not a businessman. All outside companies are paying their taxes here in India. So why is Ramdev nationalising the issue that we shouldn’t allow outside products? I m not in support of ULFA but I think this is not a wise move on Assam’s behalf! I am simply talking about Patanjali as there are a lot of regional companies which would have been benefitted by this. And why are you bringing up the congress issue? I don’t support the corrupt congress. And can you please enlighten me how many local entrepreneurs are willing to open a five star hotel in Assam? But there are a lot of already established companies willing to work if the concept would have been similar to a food park instead of giving free land to a sole XYZ company. I hope you are getting my point. I am not criticising the govt or appreciating the previous govt. I have said what I feel would have been better for our state.

Jyotishman Nath Where were you when Congress allotted land to IHCL to build a five star hotel? How many local youths have been employed there? How many locals would be employed in Patanjali? To create jobs, increase revenue for a state, industrialisation is the only way around. Why would a company invest in a particular state without getting anything in return? Since Assam is at the bottom among the states in case of ease of doing business, one has to attract these companies with freebies. As per your point, for other SMEs there is EPIP in Amingaon, and AIDC to help them out!

Nabajit Ray Hahaha... You are saying like this because you neither have faith in Yoga nor in Indian cultural treatment. Patanajali is nothing but a movement to awaken our citizens to use our own goods. Best example you can see is in Japan. Patanjali has given jobs to thousands of unemployed. Moreover they will buy this product in Assam and will also serve in NE region and the rest of our country. I don’t know what your problem is in this. ULFA first should give clearance on how more than 50 lakhs Bangladeshis entered Assam and how they captured our lands. ULFA now seems to be an agent of Bangladesh because they kill our own nation’s citizens but is silent on the Bangladeshi issue.

Samyabrata Roy Has ULFA done anything good for Assam? I can’t stay back in my hometown or even in my home state because we don’t have any jobs there. If any company is investing in Assam we should be happy. It will give employment to many of our brothers and sisters.

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hether we realize it or not, every single one of us is a teacher in some capacity or the other. But before one reaches such a stage as to be teaching even informally, one is groomed and educated.

And who else does the job better than a professional teacher?

A teacher becomes a role model inspiring and encouraging his or her pupils to strive for greatness, live to the fullest potential and see the best in them. We students learn through them, through their commitment to excellence and through their ability to make us realize our own personal capabilities. Such an example is Krishnanjan Chanda, Principal of South Point School, Guwahati.

Continuing his family legacy that was started way back in 1960 by his mother and founder principal, Late Minati Chanda, Krishnanjan has taken the school to a different level altogether.

Established as a pre-primary Montessori school over half a century ago, the school, under the guidance of Krishnanjan, has become one of the leading CBSE affiliated co-educational schools in the city.

After shifting from Rehabari to Barsapara in 1972 the school underwent several infrastructural and educational transformations. One such major transformation took place in 2003 when the school got affiliation from the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). “With several outstation students taking admission in the school and due to the change in the parents’ profile we opted to apply for CBSE. With CBSE it also helps to add more relevant areas in the course structure and making subjects broader that helps in expanding the horizon of the students. Since most of the major entrance exams are carried out

by CBSE it also helps a student in the long run,” Krishnanjan said during a conversation with G Plus.

An alumnus of this school itself, Krishnanjan started contributing towards the school since his days in Gauhati University while pursuing his Masters in English Literature and Bachelor of Education. He also obtained a diploma in teaching English from CIEFL, Hyderabad. He formally joined the school in 1984 as a teacher and took over the responsibility of the Principal in 1996. It is obvious that Krishnajnan had inherited the inclination towards teaching from his mother who had laid the foundation of the school.

“I have been associated with the school since my college days when our classes were not taking place regularly due to the Assam Agitation

and I have enjoyed this association. I have always loved teaching and I still do but with the sheer workload and responsibilities on me now I have to supervise the teachers and also work towards making the education scene more holistic,” the principal asserted.

Other than education, the educationist is an avid promoter of sports among youngsters. Through the school he offers a platform for several sporting disciplines such as chess, swimming, shooting, taekwondo, table-tennis, football and cricket among several others. Through the initiative and the available infrastructure in the school, the institution has groomed several students who have performed and brought laurels to the school and the state at national level.

A lesser known fact about Krishnanjan is that the educationist is also a motorcycling enthusiast. He, along with a few like-minded people, formed a registered group called Rhino Riders Motorcycle Club in 2005. “I always had a bike from my college days and in 2005 a few of us friends together got the idea of starting a club and got it registered. However, the qualifying requirement was that all the members should possess a Royal Enfield motorcycle. The prime motive was to encourage the youngsters to ride sensibly. There are so many accidents taking place where either the biker gets killed or runs someone down. So we want to promote the habit of safe riding. The club also encourages tree plantation through various activities and organises health camps on various occasions.

Krishnanjan married Mandira Chanda who was a batch-mate in Gauhati University, shared similar interests and who also wanted to be a teacher. The duo tied the knot in 1985 and is blessed with a son, Reetam. With the vision to encourage a child to be confident and successful Krishnanjan is currently working towards opening a law and B.Ed. college in the near future.

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Lifestyle

VAASTU SHASTRA USE OF VAASTU IN THE OFFICE

Critical steps to secure your home Wi-Fi

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emember the days when you had to plug your computer into the phone jack if you wanted to go online; the days of dial up? The connection was slower, but at least you didn’t have to worry about snoopy neighbours stealing your Wi-Fi. When the router came along, more options for flexible browsing came along. However, it was also another piece of equipment to worry about. Without proper security, the very tool that provided you with access to the internet anywhere in your home also opened the door to some uninvited users to your network.

1. AVOID EASY SET UP It’s tempting to take the easy way out when it comes to setting up your router, but doing so can cause you major problems down the road.

Wi-Fi routers often promise an easy, headache free setup – “just press the button to get connected,” but when you don’t know your own credentials, you’re not the master of your domain.

2. YOUR NETWORK, YOUR CREATIVITY When you’re first getting start-

The Sugar Butterfly

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he place I’m talking about today is the little enchanting “The Sugar Butterfly.” This little place begs you to fall in love with everything pretty and sweet.

The owner, Mandakini Dass, is a trained pastry chef from the Institute of Culinary Education, New York and certified in the Techniques & Art of Professional Cake Decorating.

The Sugar Butterfly is made of sugar, butter and a whole lot of nostalgia. I had a bite of the Fairy’s garden cake and I tripped, literally. I could not stop eating, it was a melange of a deep dark

ed, your network name is typically determined for you by your internet service provider. But you can change this, and it’s a good idea.

Although this step doesn’t make your network more secure but it makes the entire network situation better. When you sign in or help a guest sign in, you won’t have to remember whether you’re TENDA or D-Link. Instead, you can choose a name that’s easy to remember – be creative. One great name often used is “Recharge your internet pack.”

3. CHANGE YOUR WI-FI LOGIN CREDENTIALS When you unbox your router, you’ll notice a password has already been assigned to you. However, it’s important to note that router manufacturers frequently reuse these, which means that they are not unique. Your real admin password should be super-secret.

Strengthen your password with a reliable encryption. To achieve this encryption, the recommended setting on your router is called WPA2.

This setting will be a drop down option within the security options.

Note: Every router is a bit different, so you’ll need to refer to your router’s user manual.

4. MULTIPLE DEVICES, MULTIPLE THREATS Modern houses have more than one Wi-Fi network, and thus several devices can stay connected. Updating the login credentials for one network is simply not enough. For total security, you need to update all of them. Don’t give anyone your password, EVER!

chocolate layer, red velvet cake, and vanilla cake, frosted together with a light buttercream, all enveloped in a pretty fairy pink frosting. I crave for cakes with a dense even texture, the kind I grew up eating. This was just that, evoking memories of enchanted days.

I worked my way through and tasted the Walnut and Apple Breton - a lovely dessert, a cross between a flan and tart. Apples and walnuts ensconced between two layers of crumbly pastry, it was heavenly. The Japanese Cheese cake caught my eye. The cooler held goodies that you don’t regularly see in a bake store in

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he Vaastu rules for offices are same for everyone. It is not different from residences or plots; only the use of rooms or purpose is different. The main entrance must be as per the Vaastu norms. The directions for sitting for everyone must be north or east only.

It follows similar pattern like keeping raw materials or heavy items at southwest or keeping marketable goods at northwest. You can maintain your files in your office as given below: Accounts file - in southeast corner shelf, Personal file - in southwest shelf of your cabin, Purchase file - in southwest shelf made on the south wall, Sales file - in northwest shelf on wall, Estate file - in southwest shelf made on southern wall, Shares file - in northwest shelf on north wall for selling; those shares for long

the city. There was Chocolate Truffle, Bailey’s Chocolate Dream, Nutella Cake, Salted Caramel amongst many others.

The Brownies looked delectable as well!

The Japanese Cheese was light but not cotton soft and pillowy.

The Gooey Chocolate Caramel cake was divine. That hint of salt in the fudgy caramel taste, marry that with deep dark chocolate and you end with a ridiculously yummy slice on your plate. Her cakes are indeed fanciful but do not compromise on the quality of the ingredients or taste. She does a lot of custom cakes for special occasions.

term investment should be kept in southwest shelf on the southern wall, Raw materials file - in southwest shelf, Finished goods file - in northwest corner shelf, Income tax file - in southwest corner shelf, Sales tax and excise files - in southwest corner shelf, Import and Export file - in northwest corner shelf, Stores file - always in southwest corner shelf, Cash purchase file - in southwest corner shelf, Credit purchase file - in northwest corner shelf, Staff and workers file - in northwest corner shelf, Litigation file - in northwest corner shelf; northwest rules legal matters, litigations, etc., Pending bill file (receivable) – should be kept in the northwest shelf which will help in early recovery or payment.

Construction of door frames or shutters

The best-kept secret of Sugar Butterfly is its yummy housemade ice cream. I had a scoop of the Kaffir Lime Ice Cream - it is how ice cream should taste - the lovely lime flavour and aroma cutting through the sweetness.

The ice cream is made from proper cream Anglaise base and real cream; no additives are added. Quite a few flavours available - at Rs 70 a scoop, they are worth every penny!

Do not miss the Chocolate Truffle, a rich creamy chocolate dessert is a dream. Creamy chocolate with a thin crust is just

The main door plays a vital role for the occupants. People go for various designs and shapes on the doorframes for beautification but Vaastu lays down certain guidelines on this. There should not be a hole in the doorframe because it is destructive and inauspicious. The spy hole on the door is not considered as a big hole.

The main door must be the biggest door of the entire house.

There should be no other door in the house which is bigger than the front door.

Triangular doors should be avoided because they cause problems for females. A cart-shaped door causes fear to the head of the family besides quarrels. Doors which are window shaped are very bad for relations. Round doors are supposed to cause ‘birth of females’ issues!

Doors which do not have the centre, causes many types of sorrows. It is recommended to lace wood on the front portion of pillars instead of stone. The exposed edges of the door & window frames should be rounded to avoid poison arrows.

The colour of the main door can vary according to its placement. For example, if the main door is placed wrongly at eastern southeast, then it must be painted red.

Hemanta Kumar Sarmah Engineer, Businessman, Advanced Pranic Healer and Su Jok Acupressure specialist

heavenly. Mandakini’s Dessert cafe is also the recipient of the “Most Promising New Entrant” in the prestigious Guwahati Food Awards, 2016.

Sugar Butterfly also does some health bars, granola bars, speciality cookies with olive oil and herb, multigrain artisan bread and the Farm House Pizzas.

Sugar Butterfly is a beautiful place indeed!

Kashmiri Nath Foodie, owner at XOXO cupcakes, food blogger, recipe developer and expert on Assamese cuisine

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

19

Lifestyle THE LIFE BAKERY - by Madhur Jain

Salt is ‘not worth your salt’

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he average salt intake in India is double that of the WHO-recommended maximum consumption level of 5 gm/day, a study said recently in October 2016. The average daily salt intake is 10.98 grams per day for Indians aged above 19.

Salt shoots up our blood pressure. Raised blood pressure (hypertension) is the major factor which causes strokes, heart failure and heart attacks - the leading causes of disability and death. There is also increasing evidence of a link between high salt intake and stomach cancer, osteoporosis, obesity, kidney stones, kidney disease and vascular dementia and water retention. Salt can also exacerbate the symptoms of asthma and diabetes.

Claire Johnson said: “Over the past 30 years the average Indian diet has been transformed.

They are eating less pulses, fruits and vegetables and lots more processed and fast foods. As a result their diets are now full of salt, sugars and harmful fats which are driving up rates of high blood pressure, obesity and cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attack and stroke.”

Although the easiest way to reduce our salt intake is in the salt we add to our food at home, the largest proportion of salt intake, for the average Indian adult, comes from processed food

and restaurant food.

So if we need to change this for good, it’s time we become aware of how our food is prepared at restaurants, know what’s in our packed food. Begin reading food labels as a matter of course. Sodium content is always listed on the label.

Good food is not just food that tastes good, it should be healthy too. A good restaurant is not just a cool looking place serving yummy food. We need to also consider how healthy their food really is.

If you’ve been following this space, you pretty much know that I like to think in lists, so here’s a list of things we could do to reduce our salt intake: 1. Choose fresh fruit and vegetables, since they are very low in sodium.

2. Compare various brands of the same food item until you find the one that has the lowest sodium content, since this will vary from brand to brand.

3. Select spices or seasonings that do not list sodium on their labels i.e., choose garlic powder over garlic salt.

4. Before dining out, do your research. Food critics, enthusiasts can play an important role here by listing out eating places that offer healthy food. “#foodporn” instagramers should also contribute by not limiting themselves to only good looking and tasting food.

5. Beware of products that don’t taste especially salty but still have high sodium content, such as cottage cheese.

6. If you have elevated blood pressure, dietary sodium restriction can not only lower your blood pressure, but can enhance your response to blood pressure medications.

Salt preference is an acquired taste that can be unlearned. It takes about 6-8 weeks to get used to eating food with much lower quantities of salt, but once it’s done, it’s actually difficult to eat foods like potato chips because they taste way too salty.

Madhur Jain

Madhur Jain is the founder, author and podcaster at The Life Bakery. The Life Bakery is focused on sharing life hacks, tech and tools to make life awesome. Visit www. thelifebakery.com

DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY CALORIES ARE BURNT DURING STRENGTH TRAINING?

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trength training or weight training or resistance is known by many different names. But do you exactly know how many calories are burnt during a strength training workout?

This is a most interesting question which is buzzing in everybody’s minds.

To find out the truth a study was done to see the impact of strength training on raising a person’s metabolic rate and calorie burning efficiency of the body.

The study was done with a group of 20 men and 20 women, 17 to 36 years of age, who volunteered to participate in this study. Performing 3 circuits (10 stations/ circuit), using a work (30-sec) to rest (15sec) ratio of 2:1, and a total exercise time of 22.5 min, the energy expenditure was found to be highly related to body weight.

The average gross energy expenditure was 539.7 and 367.5 kcal/hr. (9.0 and 6.1 kcal/min) for the men and women respectively, but was 7.0 and 6.0 kcal/ kg-hr when expressed relative to body weight, and 8.1 and 8.2 kcal/kg(LBW)min when expressed relative to lean body weight. Thus, when body composition was considered, there were essentially no differences in the energy expenditure for

THE 5 MINUTE WORK MASSAGE

There is nothing better than a good shoulder and neck massage after hours of sitting on the office chair. An article cannot teach you how to give a professional and therapeutic massage but just a quick shoulder rub does relieve a lot of stress. The shoulder muscle is called the

trapezius, the muscle where you ‘trap’ your tension. Here are some techniques you can use to perform a quick but relaxing shoulder massage. By the way, before you go all out on a person, remember to take due permission first. Although most people enjoy it, some people might find

it unnerving. Make sure you’re trying to knead the muscles, and not break some bones, Go easy.

Put your opposable thumbs to good use. Apply pressure uniformly and evenly. The shoulder is a sensitive area around the spinal joint and your skull. Treat it with the respect it deserves. If the receiver complains of pain, STOP immediately! You might just be doing more harm than good. Ask before applying more pressure: Inappropriate force could aggravate pain instead of relaxing your muscles. If you’re hitting something hard, it’s probably a bone and you should stop. And if you’re the one massaging everyone and want someone to come to you to, be patient.

Karma does good things.

males and females.

Additionally strength training is also superior to other forms of workout when it comes down to after burn which means the increase in the metabolic rate even after quitting exercise is much higher in the case of strength training and it lasts till 16 hours to 48 hours due to the rise in Excess Post Oxygen Consumption (EPOC). Comparatively strength training or weight training is far superior than any forms of Aerobic exercise or Cardio workout when it is a matter of fat loss or if an individual wants to lose weight.

So now it has been proven scientifically that strength training burns quite a significant amount of calories along with hosts of other health benefits.

(Source: Med Sci Sports, 1978 Summer;10(2):75-8. Wilmore JH, Parr RB, Ward P, Vodak PA, Barstow TJ, Pipes TV, Grimditch G, Leslie P.) BIBHU MONI SINGHA,

Gym Manager Training & Nutrition Head, SFL Fitness Gym & MMA For further Workout Programs & Diet follow me on Facebook or log on to my website – www.bibhuuniversalfitness.com. You can also watch my videos on my YouTube channel.

Wellness Do it yourself facial hair removal Things you need: 1. 1 tbsp of honey 2. ½ cup of ground oatmeal 3. Few drops of lemon juice

*Lemon has the characteristic to dry out your skin and cause irritation.

Make sure your skin is suitable.

Mix 1 tbsp of honey with ½ cup of ground oatmeal. Mix vigorously with a few drops of lemon juice. Apply paste on face like a mask and leave it on for 15 minutes. Rinse properly.

For best results: Repeat the same twice a week for at least a month for best results.

Sonika Ajmera Fashion Blogger

20

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Reviews Cast: John Abraham, Sonakshi Sinha, Tahir Raj Bhasin Director: Abhinay Deo

I

n this sequel to the 2011 ‘Force’, ACP Yashvardhan returns in a faster, more thrilling actioner, set in Budapest and Berlin, the grand, picturesque old cities of Europe. Scratch that.

‘Force 2’ aims for all of those things, and by rights, should have been all of those things, but ends up feeling overlong and stretched, and more than anything else, over familiar.

That’s the problem when you try doing a Bond-Bourne combo full of bristling cops and smart spies and twisted villains, and sexy Mata Hari types, but you end up papering over the thrills and spills by Bollywood-style swelling background music, and a female lead with a gun who can’t pull it.

In the first one, Yashvardhan (John Abraham) was a battering ram, all flint-eyed and stone-hearted after the death of his pretty wife. Five years later,

vie Mo view Re

the cop is given a good-looking RAW agent KK aka Kamaljit Kaur (Sonakshi Sinha), who is strictly business, attired in collared shirts and holstered guns and a raised eyebrow. But underneath all the bluster, there’s just a silly little girl who freezes at the sight of a pistol. In Hollywood, KK would have been allowed to kick serious butt. But because this is Bollywood, the female RAW agent is made into a creature who quivers and squeals and says, “Yash, don’t do that”. That’s her job description, and it’s already old by the time the first time she uses it.

That apart, the briskness with which you should come at car chases and rooftop races, is missing. They go on for far too long : both Bond and Bourne and their copies have been in existence for too long, we see their repeats on TV all the time.

So what are you giving us that’s

new? Abraham is efficient and does what he needs to. His super toned muscles are used well to get rid of the bad guys, but not even the most impressive bod can rise above a sluggish script.

Tahir Raj Bhasin is the interesting element in ‘Force 2’, and he tries bringing a bit of complexity to the way he plays bad guy Shiv Sharma’s part, but again gets buried in all the obviousness. There’s a tiny sparkle at one point when a leather-clad hottie propositions Yashvardhan: both John Abraham and Sonakshi Sinha get us to smile in the way they handle that situation. Now a little more of that—a twinkly awareness that they are treading a well-known path—would have made ‘Force 2’ a much more rewarding watch.

The way it plays out, ‘Force 2’ forces us to stay far too much in the been here-seen that territory.

D

important life decision, there are many who will try to convince you one way or the other. But to live a full life, it is important the decision be made by the individual. Tum Bin 2 music may not be as good or haunting as the first movie, but the drama seems right up there.

The movie begins on a emotional note as Taran (Neha Sharma) loses the love of her life when Amar dies in an accident.

Sad and depressed, Taran has lost all hope. Taran can’t come to terms with her loss even though her family wants her to move on and start a new chapter in her life. Her memories with Amar still haunt her at every corner.

But there is always light after dark. Can Shekhar (Aditya Seal) be that light in her life? Shekhar is no stranger to loss of a loved one. THey slowly find common

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and Moon

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u Yo ULD O SH play Slick Rick - revisiting the new jack swing era on the ‘Poison’-esque ‘Finesse’, or tapping into a blend of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Boyz II Men on the bedroom cut ‘Versace on the Floor’, Mars is returning to the classics and yet somehow they sound as fresh as they did first time around. Embracing change and doing it so simply with a no nonsense nine track project, when they say less is more they’re talking about Bruno Mars’ new album. A solid example of what good songwriting sounds like, 24K Magic is simplistically spectacular.

u Yo ULD O AY H S PL

I

t’s quite exciting to think that Pokémon games have been around for 20 years, and much to our joy it seems Pikachu and co aren’t going away anytime soon.

To commemorate the occasion, developer GameFreak and The Pokémon Company have delivered us Pokémon Sun and Moon – a pair of games prepared to push the boundaries of what a Pokémon game really is.

With the Pokémon excitement very much reaching a height earlier this year with Pokémon Go and that success sending 3DS sales skyrocketing, there’s an ad-

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Game:Pokémon Sun

By: BRUNO MARS

Ronson collaboration was inspired by. With 80s funk the main dish on the menu - very evident on tracks like ‘Chunky’ and the album’s lead single ‘24K Magic’ listeners are treated to what can be best described as a Cameo, Brick, and The Commodores joint album produced by Roger Troutman, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis and Teddy Riley.

Not afraid to dip into his influences and rewind to a time when music had soul and purpose, whether he’s mixing James Brown and Mystikal on ‘Perm’ - a track that borrows the intro to iconic hip-hop record ‘The Show’ by Doug E Fresh and

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ground in each other’s company.

But they say first love is hard to forget. Can taran forget Amar and can offer Shekhar the same emotional bond that she once had with Amar? The movie is a fresh take on friendship and love and Anubhav Sinha has created wonderful script for Tum Bin 2.

Neha Sharma, Aditya Seal and Aashim Gulati have delivered good performances and sparkling chemistry among the three is the highlight of the movie, say the audience.

Except for the genre, the sequel and prequel both are completely difference films and have no connection in common. You can feel the huge contrast between the two films only after watching them. Being an intense love story as the genre, the prerequisite of the film was a strong story which couldn’t be found.

ALBUM: 24K MAGIC

runo Mars’ new album is everything fans and critics hoped it would be. It’s funky, ferocious, soulful, sexy, romantic, and most of all it’s a bold switch up from the norm that hears the pint sized singer bypass the popular trap drum fad in favour of a project crafted entirely from the soul.

24K Magic is a story made up of three chapters.

It’s a party starter, a dance break, and a slow jamz tape all rolled into one. After the success of ‘Uptown Funk’, Mars has now essentially made an album that feels like it was conceived in the same era as the one his Mark

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Cast: Neha Sharma, Aditya Seal, Aashim Gulati Director: Anubhav Sinha irected by Anubhav Sinha, Tum Bin 2 casts fresh new faces in the movie. Ankit Tiwari composes the music for the movie which was mainly shot in scenic Scotland locales.

Although Ra One was not that successful, the director’s last outing with Gulab Gang impressed many. Aditya Seal returns in his second Romance movie after his first – Ek Choti Si Love Story – with Manisha Koirala. Tum Bin was a romantic drama with amazing performances and an excellent plot. We can expect another intense romance-drama in this sequel with a fresh set of actors. Tum Bin 2 brings another love triangle centering around Shekhar and Aman. Old friendship, newfound love, and a difficult decision.

When you get a confused individual at the center of an

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ditional pressure on Sun and Moon to be a Pokémon game for everyone. But also for it to do enough to appease the fans that have stayed with the series since the beginning. Well, Pokémon Sun and Moon certainlytakes the series in a fresh direction, setting it in the tropical climes of Alola, where the beaches are sandy and the volcano is hot. It’s the best-looking Pokémon game we’ve had in years. The graphics are seriously impressive and even though there’s no 3D feature for the 3DS family, its new perspective is the best we’ve seen on the 3DS.

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G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

21

Entertainment

Most awaited film Bahniman’s audio released

T

he most awaited Assamese film of this year is ‘Bahniman.’ The film is directed

by Biswajeet Bora of ‘Aisa Yeh Jaha’ fame and produced by Barnali Hazarika under the banner of ‘Santoshi Maa Production.’ The film’s audio was recently released in an elaborate ceremony held at Sraddhanjali Kanan, Guwahati.

The cultural event was held in the presence of various renowned people belonging to the industry and the songs and dances were performed by the ‘Bahniman’ team.

The film’s music is directed by Jatin Sharma (Mumbai). The film contains four songs of different flavors among which three songs have been penned by Rajdweep and one by Dr. Archana Devi. The song ‘Matal Hol Ei Rati’ has been sung by Zubeen Garg, Kalpana Patowary and Raaj J. Konwar.

The Assamese rap is by Jatin Bora while the English rap is by Joshua Neville Queah and Gorisha Nath.

‘Kola Kola’ is penned by Papon, ‘Gupone Gupone’ is penned by Rupjyoti Devi and the ‘Bahniman’ title track is penned by Nihal Das. According to the music director, Jatin Sarma, the listeners will get a different kind of taste from all the tracks.

Bahniman’s story-screenplay and dialogues have been penned by director Biswajeet Bora. The film, which shows the love-friendship and revenge, has the key roles

KALYAN KUMAR KALITA

KALYAN KUMAR KALITA

O essayed by Yashpal Sharma, Jatin Bora, Ravi Janghu, Rimi Hazarika, Bishnu Kharghoria, Arun Hazarika, Baharul Islam, Nihal Das, Rina Bora, Champak Sharma, Suneet Bora, Manuj Gogoi, Antariksh, Puja Kasekar, Mahadev Deka, Chetana Das, Arun Bora, Ashim Saikia, Ramen Tamuli, Deepak Roy, Dadumoni Bora, Beepul Bora among others. The film’s action has been directed by Bollywood’s popular action-director Kaushal-Moses. The cinematography has been done by Bollywood’s Titu Jena around some beautiful locations of Assam and northeast. Editing has been done by Bollywood’s editor Suresh Pai, sound designer is Arun Nambiar, VFX is done by Sachin

Jadhav from Mumbai. Bahniman’s production designer is Nuruddin Ahmed, production controller is Ashim Saikia, executive producer is Phatik Barua, chief assistant director is Ghanashyam Kalita, assistant directors are Chandan Kumar, Anindita Kalita and Pranjal Saikia. Make-up has been done

by Kishore Dangi, dress designer is Lopamudra Gogoi Bora, and posters have been designed by Dipankar Deka. The film’s choreography is done by Jinny Mahalia and Ashim Gogoi, DI is by Sujit Bora, production manager is Moni Goswami. According to the producer, the film will hit the theatres on 2nd December all over India.

‘Beautiful Lives’ selected for Kolkata Film Festival

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New Assamese single ‘Morisika’ released

ew Assamese full length feature film titled ‘Beautiful Lives,’ directed by Kangkan Deka, has been selected for the 22nd Kolkata International Film Festival. The film has been included among 165 films of 65 different countries to be screened in 20 categories during the festival. The film ‘Beautiful Lives,’ made under the banner of Karnel Film Production, is produced and directed by Kangkan Deka, who has also written the story-screenplay and dialogues.

Executive producers are Bhaskar Jyoti Lekharu and Rajib Phukan. The movie is all about weaving the pain of living and the pain of hope to stay alive.

It is all about lives found and lives lost. ‘Beautiful Lives’ would remind a divided society about the great importance of love and peace in the time of hatred. It portrays the lust for life against all odds and a struggle to live life to the fullest. It exposes how vulnerable lives are at the hands of cruelty of time and fate. The movie honestly tries to stir emotions of hearts to think about reality of destiny in our lives. Notably, Kangkan Deka’s short film ‘Sita,’ screened at ‘Kan Film Festival 2015,’ was also highly appreciated by the viewers. The film contains only one track. Music is directed

by Bhagawat Pritam, the title track is penned by Bikash Baruah and rendered by Zubeen Garg.

Sound is designed by Amrit Pritam, edited by Ru-

Hemanta Sarma

pam Kalita. Art direction is by Jyoti Narayan Bhattacharya. The film’s chief assistant director is Rajib Dutta, assistant directors are Anindita Kalita, Liza Pegu and Priyanku Baruah. The key roles in the film have been essayed by Pakiza Begum, Boloram Das, Ashrumoni Bora, Juri Dutta, Pragati Devi (Jayshree), Prankrishna Mahanta. The other roles have been played by Jayanta Bhagawati, Pratibha Choudhury, Nabadeep Burhagohain, Nayan Saikia, Jumi Das, Manmath Baruah, Bhagawat Pritam, Nabanita Kalita, Hemanta Sarma, Dr. Joy Bora and Nabajyoti Bora. The film’s trailer and audio-video song was released on 29th October at Guwahati Press Club.

n this auspicious occasion of Puja, Bhagyashri Roy, a most promising singer in the Assamese music industry recently released her latest audiovideo song titled ‘Morisika.’ This song is a complete item number where Assamese music lovers will get a different kind of taste.

Though the concept of item song in Assamese music industry is not a new idea, the number of Assamese item songs is comes to just a handful. The song has been penned by cine journalist Kalyan Kumar Kalita and composed

by Hrituv Hazarika. The song has been musically arranged by popular Assamese music director Palash Gogoi and rendered by

Bhagyashri Roy. The key roles in the video have been essayed by Anurag Bitupan and Madhusmita with other co-stars. Choreography has been done by Santumoni Baruah and cinematography has been done by Bhaskar Sarma. The song is edited by Moni Rajkonwar, make-up by Anup. Presently the song is being telecast by various Assamese entertainment channels like ‘Ramdhenu’, ‘Jonakk’, ‘Rengoni’ and has collected some positive reviews from the viewers.

The song also got good response on social media like Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Instagram etc.

The singer is now preparing her upcoming Audio-Video song which will hit the market soon.

22

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Citypedia Horoscope of the week

Cancer

People in job will have a certain sense of dissatisfaction and look for new opportunities elsewhere. Just remain patient as things will improve soon. Curb your desire to spend recklessly or your budget may go haywire. A friend of yours may come forward to seek your help. Friends will be supportive and helpful this week. Your health might require your attention during the first half of the week. Better take care of your diet as well as routine. Talking idealistically, blend your good deeds with personal pleasure that you wish and want. You are very enthusiastic to take up a fruitful trip.

Libra

Keep your work focused on precise definite aims and seek your friends support. Act with discretion but without risking or losing the opportunity. Give careful thought before signing any document.

You’ll have plenty of good opportunity this week to resolve your personal agenda. Spending will be on higher side. This week will open up some lucrative opportunities with attractive financial possibilities. The loan that was being tried to obtain will get disbursed this week.

Capricorn

Your relationship may be slightly upset with family members and friends. You may buy new property or vehicle during this week. Habitually, you will spend extravagantly over household things. It is good week for students and those preparing for any sort of exams.

Your relatives will ditch you causing loss of wealth. Overall, this week is going to produce some troubles at work place. Troubles in personal life are also foreseen. There would be lack of concentration and mental peace.

GUWAHATI

Demonstrate confidence in your great ideas and let them exude positive impacts on others. This week is good time for making new contacts as your future will greatly depend on these. Those looking for new opportunities can expect a good chance concerning their career. Your familial demands will keep you occupied throughout the week. Job opportunities, salary increment, promotions are in store this week. Celebrations with your family and friends will bring great enjoyment.

Leo

Demonstrate confidence in your great ideas and let them exude positive impacts on others. This week is good time for making new contacts as your future will greatly depend on these. Those looking for new opportunities can expect a good chance concerning their career. Your familial demands will keep you occupied throughout the week. Job opportunities, salary increment, promotions are in store this week. Celebrations with your family and friends will bring great enjoyment.

Scorpio

Don’t feel disheartened by the testing and troubles concerning your professional area. Manage your new task with great deal of accuracy to maintain the trust at your workplace. You might also exaggerate your concerns. Students may get disappointed with their grades. Work hard and do not allow lady luck to go far away from you. Do not remain ignorant of the importance events happening around you. You all might splurge both travel and outings to spend the weekend blissfully. This is a lucky time to earn extra money.

Aquarius

Don’t waste your time over inconsequential matters somewhat look up towards major ones. Little things might distract you like an unexpected expenditure, or forgetfulness in some important matter so be careful with your things and arrangements. Self-employed people could get appreciation for their recent efforts, obtaining significant monetary booty. You are suggested not to give opinions on the subjects that you do not fully recognize. As far as health is concerned, there might be little physical discomfort during this week including work related stress and blood disorders.

New contacts or ideas may impress, urging a review. Prepare for a test of confidence at home, bringing uncertainty or confusion. This week, your stars focus on simple work transactions. There’ll be furtive incidents in the air. Try to find out happening behind the scenes.

A partner or close associate will be under pressure from extended duty. You might focus on ways to earn money in or from your home.

But you may feel like retreating from the social bustle. Your proficient demands will clash with your requirements.

Virgo

Beware of an unfriendly person who is very inventive. He or she might interfere in a work matter concerning you straightforwardly.

Students will achieve laurels in sports, games and competitions.

Do not lose temper over trivial matters. Be patient with everyone around. Do not jump to conclusions and make guesses. The responsibility of an important assignment might come your way. Health will remain good for most part this week. Those who had been suffering from fever or headaches will get relief. Watch out for raise in pressure levels.

Sagittarius

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Arya Hospital, Ulubari 2606888, 2606665 Ganga Blood Bank 2454742, 2455029 Lion’s Club of Ghy Central 2546611 Marwari Yuva Manch 2546470, 2547251 Saharia’s Path Lab (24 hours) 2458594

AMBULANCE

Ambulance 102 Arya Hospital, Ulubari 2606888, 2606665 Downtown Hospital 9864101111, 9435012669 GLP Social Circle 2737373 GGUMTA (Mirza) 03623-227109 Marowari Yuva Manch 2542074, 2547251 Free Ambulance to GNRC Hospitals Toll Free: 1800-345-0011

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        

Every

Week

Wiin st Wrt ch wa

   

You don’t have to be obstinate, rather keep the avenues of communication open to get through your strategy. Stars indicate that there are rewarding times ahead for you. Just exercise patience to get all that you deserve. Students will do exceptionally well in their examinations. Small problems will sop up lots of your time and resources. Instead of wasting your resources find some creative solution to come out of jinxed solutionDo not speculation in the stock Complete it market as chances of losses are foreseen.

Take a photo

Pisces

WhatsApp to 8486002320 or Inbox to G Plus on Facebook with Issue date Entries with correct answers get selected You might have to shell out extra money due to some unexpected One lucky winner wins a Wrist Watch from IO Plus and G Plus expense coming up. A partner might behave in a very odd manner. Be willing to listen first before evaluating. Financially it will be Winner’s name to be announced in the next issue

an extremely beneficial week. Don’t put off the important tasks in hand. Some of you may go overseas, and initiate the new beginning in their career. Health will remain generally fine baring few minor ailments like headache, cough or cold. You must exercise your patience in certain delicate and emotional matters.

EMERGENCY NUMBERS 24-HOUR PHARMACIES Arya Hospital, Ulubari (2606888, 2606665) D Modern Medicos, Maligaon (9864366763) Candid 24x7, Panbazar (2604422)

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last week solution

Relax and enjoy activities happening around you. Initial days of week will keep you happy and contented with everything happening around you. Good news is on the anvil that will pep up your week.

Your family will render cooperation letting you focus on opportunity elsewhere. Your financial position will remain satisfactory but will not match up luxuries that you are eyeing. Review and revise your investment plans to make most of the economic situation. Look after your health, taking great care of cleanliness around you.

Sudoku

Gemini

Taurus

Aries

police station

Comissioner of Police: 0361-2540278 DCP, Traffic: 0361-2731847 DCP, (Central): 94350-49599 DCP, (East): - 94350-83103 DCP, (West): - 94350-27744 Police Control Room: Ph-2540138, 2540113 Azara PS: Ph2840287 Basista PS: Ph-2302158 Bharalumukh PS: Ph- 2540137, 2731199 Borjhar PS: Ph-2840351 Chandmari PS: Ph- 2660204 Chandrapur PS: Ph-2788237, 2785237 Dispur PS: Ph-2261510 Fancybazar PS: Ph- 2540285

Arya Hospital, Ulubari (2606888, 2606665) B Baruah Cancer Institute (2472364/66) Brahmaputra Hospital Ltd (2451634/678) Chatribari Christian Hospital 0361-2600051, 92070-44374 Downtown Hospital 2331003, 9864079366, 9435012669 Guwahati Medical College (2529457, 2529561) Guwahati Medical College Emergency (2263444) International Hospital 0361-7135005 Mahendra Mohan Choudhury Hospital (2541477, 2543998)

Fatasil Ambari PS: Ph-2471412 Geetanagar PS: Ph-2417323 Hatigaon: Ph-2562383 Jalukbari PS: Ph-2570587 Jalukbari Out Post: Ph-2570522 Jorabat: Ph-2896853 Khanapara: Ph- 2281501 Khetri PS: Ph-2787699, 2787220 Latasil PS: Ph-2540136 Noonmati PS: Ph- 2550281 North Guwahati PS: Ph-2690255 Paltanbazar PS: Ph-2540126 Panbazar PS: Ph-2540106 Pragjyotishpur Ps: Ph-2785237 Women PS Panbazar: Ph-2524627

Marwari Hospital & Research Centre 0361-2602738/39 Marwari Maternity Hospital 0361-2541202/01 Nemcare Hospital 0361-2528587, 2455906, 2457344 Pratiksha Hospital 0361-2337260, 2337183/84 Basistha Military Hospital (2304617/0351) Railway Central Hospital Casuality (2671025) Redcross Hospital (2665114) Sri Sankardeva Netralaya 0361-2233444, 2228879, 2228921

GMC helpline number for garbage collection

8811007000

Hospital

TB Hospital (2540193) Wintrobe Hospital 0361-2519860, 98647-77986 IHR-Institute of Human Reproduction 0361-2482619, 098641-03333 Dispur Hospital Reception 97070 20370 82539 99124 361-2235759 (Landline No. / Fax) Hayat Hospital 8011003110 GNRC Hospital 1800-345-0022 (Toll Free) GNRC Ambulance 1800-345-0011 (Toll Free)

Vigilance and anti corruption toll free number

1800-345-3767

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

23

Events

7

Days

Events

Nov 12th to Nov 18th

Vinayak^A // 19TH November // NYX Hotel Palacio 7 PM onwards

NorthEast United FC vs FC Pune City Tue Nov 22 2016 at 07:00 PM Indira Gandhi Atheletic Stadium, Guwahati

Vini Vici The electric Israeli duo (Matan Kadosh, Aviram Saharai) tore Guwahati up on a Sunday night as they performed at Residency Resort, Dispur. Both well known & experienced in electronic music for over a decade, the concept of ‘Vini Vici’ was formed as an attempt by the boys to express their love for the old school sound paired with their progressive ideas.

Shameless Mani Live at Under Doggs, 19th Nov 7 PM onwards #GenNext

Nawed Khan at Terra Mayaa 19th Nov 8 PM onwards

Arpan At XS | SAT Nov 19th 7 PM onwards

24

G PLUS NOV 19 - NOV 25, 2016

Catching Up Most shared story of the week

Ruhani Ahmed

New

Chic on the block

About Me

923 515

With the hue and cry about people disposing off their stashed currency of 500 and 1000 denominations, a massive amount of 500 and 1000 rupee notes were recovered from the drain near Chandan Nagar, Keraikuchi, Ghoramara in the city. According to reports, a sum of Rs. 30 lakhs was torn and shredded in the pile. facebook.com/guwahatiplus

Guwahati

twitter.com/guwahatiplus

GYAN

T

Did you know?

Dispur

he political map of Guwahati changed in 1973 when Dispur, a locality of Guwahati, became the capital of Assam. The small village in Beltola Mouza was selected temporarily as the capital of the state following which all the important government offices were shifted to Dispur. People from different parts of Assam came and settled in and around Dispur, quickly converting a rural area, into a thickly populated region. As the years progressed, the city of Guwahati expanded and Dispur became a part of greater Guwahati city. Dispur became a permanent seat of the government of Assam and remained as the capital. To the south of Dispur is the theologically important site of Basistha Ashram and the Shankardev Kalakshetra, a cultural centre created in the 1990s. Next to Dispur is the ancient township of Jatia. Dispur is also known for the Guwahati Tea Auction Centre and a number of important business and commercial establishments.

Hello to all the readers of G Plus! My name is Ruhani Ahmed and I hail from the wonderful city of Guwahati, surrounded by beautiful hills and guided by the mighty Brahmaputra. A few things about me? Well, I am keen to learn things that interest me. I am a social bee and I like to indulge myself with topics that I can talk about. I am not a mugger, but I do like to know about what’s changing around me and more than anything, I am all about la familia.

Mojo I believe that no matter how hard your day was or how ill-treated you were at work, home or college, never let the goodness within you die away; never ever let it bring you down to their level. Keep your head high always. Stay strong, stay put.

Route in the woods I have always been fascinated with novels that spin drama, inspiration and have a tale to tell. Someday, I would like to see my name in the last page of a book or see myself working in a reputed magazine. Let’s just say writing is what makes me alive.

(Coordinated by: Tarkik Borah)

PIC OF THE

Ka m u r of the week

WEEK

Q

ueues outside banks and ATMs remain a kamur this week too with many people carrying lunch boxes before deciding that they will visit a bank to exchange, withdraw or deposit money. Many city ATMs remained non-functional adding to the harassment of the public. The SBI authorities might claim that the situation will be under control soon, but the extended kamur stands complete.

WHAT DID I JUST HEAR?

C

ongress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi on Friday took people by surprise when he arrived at an SBI bank on Parliament Street in New Delhi and stood in a queue to get the demonetized currency notes exchanged.

He said, “I have come here to get Rs 4,000 exchanged. I want to stand in the queue...people are suffering, neither Prime Minister Narendra Modi nor owners of big media houses would understand it,” he said.

SOLIED TOIL? | SURAJIT SHARMA/G PLUS

Printed & Published by Sunit Jain on behalf of Insight Brandcom Pvt. Ltd. and Printed at Arkashish Publications (P) Ltd., Katahbari, Garchuk, Guwahati and Published at H/No. 34, K. C. Choudhury Road, Chatribari, Guwahati - 781008, Editor: Swapnil Bharali.

Phone: 0361 2737737, Email: info@g-plus.in, RNI No: ASSENG/2013/52641