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Swindler queen Olivia arrested from Moradabad

‘Replacing’ Baij’s Gandhi statue stirs hornet’s nest Avishek Sengupta

iscontentment started spreading like wildfire after the Kamrup (Metro) district administration “proposed” to replace the Ramkinkar Baij sculpted Mahatma Gandhi statue at Gandhi Mandap, 200 metres atop the Sarania Hills here, under the Guwahati Smart City Project. Freedom fighters, senior artists and Guwahati-oriented organisations came out raising serious concerns regarding the competence of the district authority. They criticised the move alleging that the district administration was “incapable” of appreciating art. The resentment grew so

strong that the authorities had to reconsider their decision. But the entire episode created a dark blotch on the district administration and has reaffirmed people’s doubts regarding the Guwahati Smart City Project, which is already progressing very sluggishly. What is the significance of the statue? How important is this statue to the people of Guwahati? And how is the district administration about to deal with the whole issue? The decision

In a meeting last Monday, which was convened by

Continued on page 4

Baffled city administration creates massive traffic chaos

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à la FIFA: final tweaks in preparation, fans amped up

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Lead Story

Swindler queen Olivia arrested from Moradabad The brainy banker turned fraudster is a 1st class Zoology master degree holder from Gauhati University and worked in the insurance sector before becoming a banker. She was chased down in a classic cross country police chase

Olivia Dutta Choudhury, the prime accused in the IndusInd Bank fraud case being produced at CJM court in Guwahati on Wednesday | G Plus Photo

Rahul Chanda rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

livia Dutta Choudhury, a city-based banker, who recently grabbed the headlines for all the wrong reasons, and who at present, is in the police custody for swindling a huge amount of money from customers’ accounts in the Bhangagarh branch of IndusInd Bank, was apprehended by a city police team headed by Pan Bazar ACP Suprative Lal Baruah. She was intercepted in Moradabad having shifted out from a resort in Nainital after learning that the police was hunting for her. She was working as a deputy manager with IndusInd Bank, Bhangagarh branch and used to live in a flat she had bought in Shine Heaven Apartments located in Satgaon area. The police team has been showered with accolades for a good, prompt job. How did the police manage to track the accused? What was her modus operandi? G Plus delves deep into crime committed and the manner in which the police tackled the case.

The complaints

According to police sources, everything started from 29th July when the IndusInd Bank filed a complaint against Olivia Dutta Choudhury on suspicions that she had siphoned off a huge amount of money from customers’ accounts. The police then recalled that a few days back, an IndusInd Bank customer had also filed a complaint that around Rs 2.78 crores was missing from the account of Guwahati Opthemetic Centre.

Another person, Bidyut Jyoti Kalita, also filed a complaint saying that Rs 28 lakhs was missing from his account. In total four cases were registered against Olivia under section 120B/409/420 of IPC. The police immediately launched its hunt for Olivia Dutta Choudhury. The police source said that the initial investigation revealed that she had left for Delhi by Rajdhani Express on 27th July. The police then contacted her husband, Shankar Sinha, who was the branch manager of IndusInd Bank, Gangtok branch. The husband surrendered before the police and was brought to Paltan Bazar police station and now he is in judicial custody. The police source said the husband was arrested because money was transferred to his Bandhan Bank account and their 7 month old child’s bank account as well. The hunt

The police team comprising a lady police constable Geetanjali Saikia, Samarjyoti Roy and led by ACP Suprative Lal Baruah left for New Delhi on 4th August. After reaching New Delhi, the police came to know that Olivia had stayed with her sister, Sylvia Dutta Choudhury, in an apartment located at Sector 74, Noida. The police raided the apartment but Olivia was not there. The police quizzed the sister and it surfaced that she had left her house four days back. The police again had to start fresh investigations as they did not know where Olivia was. The police source said that many phone numbers supposedly used by Olivia were tracked and analysed and it was eventually

found that she was holed up in a resort in Nainital. Immediately the police team left for Nainital even as it realized that Olivia was well aware about the police’s movement. Informers alerted the police team that Olivia had decided to leave the resort and move somewhere else. The police team rushed to the resort only to find that Olivia had already moved out. The police then, with the help of informers, tracked her to Moradabad. The team finally intercepted her in Moradabad and arrested her on 6th August at around 4 pm. The police source said that she was thereafter taken to Noida Sector 39 police station and was produced before the Noida CJM on 7th August where the police asked for twoday transit remand which was allowed by the court. Olivia was then brought to Guwahati on a Jet Airways flight and on 8th August she was produced before a court in Guwahati which sent her to 4-day police custody. Meanwhile, one Biswajit Ghosh of Rehabari, was also arrested in connection to the case. Why was Ghosh arrested?

Police source said that Biswajit Ghosh was arrested for wrongfully acquiring wealth as Olivia used to provide a lot of money to Biswajit. The source said that Biswajit met Olivia two years ago when he went to open an account for himself. Later she helped open many accounts for other people in his family. The source said that later on she used to ask him to open credit card accounts for others also as, according to the source, if a particular bank official facilitates opening of credit card accounts he or she earns incentives and points which help in securing promotions. So accordingly, Biswajit helped her open many bank and credit card accounts. For credit card accounts, a joining fee used to be charged. According to the source, Olivia used to transfer money to Biswajit’s account to facilitate payment of the joining fee as well. The source also said that in these credit card accounts, vouchers could be availed for shopping and other expenses by paying some amount. It’s like a demand draft; so vouchers used to be given to Biswajit for certain amounts which again Olivia

used to pay for from various other accounts. Police raided Biswajit’s house and recovered five suits costing Rs 3.75 lakhs, four ladies’ bags costing Rs 68,000, four trolley bags costing Rs 60,000 and two belts costing Rs 34,000. With the vouchers, Biswajit used to shop expensively in Kolkata. The police source said that further investigation is on and some more arrests are likely if required. Biswajit’s family members, talking to G Plus, said that after meeting Olivia, Ghosh’s lifestyle had changed. Modus operandi A close friend of Olivia, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that she was a very bright student and completed her masters in Zoology from Gauhati University securing 1st class. Before joining IndusInd Bank she used to work in the insurance sector and had managed to meet all the targets set by her company. It seems she is very ambitious and has very good communication skills with which she could influence anyone. IndusInd Bank sources said that they have sacked her after the fraud complaints surfaced and an internal enquiry is on. The police source said that she used to forge signatures of customers and transfer funds of the customers to other accounts from where she used to withdraw money. It seems she bought the Satgaon flat with her own money and has also booked a flat in VIP Road. Police is investigating the matter. Police have recovered Rs 27.50 lakhs from her and according to her confession she had dropped off a bag containing Rs 10 lakhs at Guwahati Railway Station which the police are searching for. Police are investigating how much money in total was swindled and after four days of police interrogation this will come to light, the police source said. Meanwhile, the complainants are very upset and feel that the bank should take the responsibility of returning their money. But the bank has filed a case of its own claiming itself as a victim. If the police do not manage to recover all the money from Olivia who will refund the customers’ money is a question that will gain immense n pertinence.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Governance

Baffled city administration creates massive traffic chaos City administration acts against legally installed hoardings disrupting traffic signal functioning in the process Rahul Chanda yy

rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

his week, the city witnessed unprecedented traffic jams. Many commuters, talking to G Plus, said that there were huge traffic jams at all the main junctions of the city. G Plus team visited the junctions and discovered that none of the traffic signals were working and the traffic personnel were directing the traffic manually. On GS Road especially, not a single traffic signal was working. The G Plus team talked to the traffic personnel at ABC point who said that the traffic department does not manage the traffic signals; they are maintained by the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA). A source in the GMC, talking to G Plus, said that the traffic signals are outsourced to private agencies who maintain it but as an eviction drive was being undertaken across the city to dismantle the electrical hoardings installed on the medians of the main roads as well as footpaths, the electrical connections to the traffic signals might have got disconnected. What was the drive all about? Why were the traffic signal connections snapped? Who had ordered the drive? Is there any departure from legalities by the agencies installing such hoardings? G Plus checks the situation. Who manages the traffic signals?

A GMC source said that the traffic signals were installed by some private agencies and are currently managed by them. The source said that in 2010, through proper tendering process, three private agencies were offered to install 16 traffic signals each 48 in total – through their own investments across the city and they have the contract with the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) to maintain and manage the traffic signals till 2020. Talking to one of the agencies it came to light that in 2010, GMDA had floated a tender and three agencies participated. All the three agencies were asked to install traffic signals at 48 (16 each) city points and in return they could install advertisement kiosks as well as unipoles (lit hoardings) on the median of the streets. The agency also said that the entire cost of installing the traffic signals was borne by the respective agencies and despite

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Huge traffic jam at ABC with the signal lights not working at the traffic point | G Plus Photo

this they did not get permission from the GMC to install unipoles for the first five years thereby incurring huge losses. In all these days the agencies have also been maintaining the traffic signals including payment of their electricity bills which have not come for free. The agency said that they came to know all on a sudden that the GMC and the administration were dismantling the advertisement kiosks without any prior notification and in the process they had even snapped the electrical current flow to the traffic signals. Electric connections for most of the other traffic signals have been disconnected by the APDCL earlier, according to the agency. The agency also said that they pay huge amounts of tax to the GMC every year after generating revenue from the kiosks and the unipoles advertisement. So if the advertisement kiosks and the unipoles are duly authorised and part of an ongoing contract with the Government and tax paid why did the administration issue such an order which only succeeded in bringing the city to a standstill? The order and the drive

When a senior official of GMC was contacted, he said that the eviction drive was ordered by the district administration under Section 30.2(iii), (v), (xi), (xx), (xxiii) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The official also said that the traffic signals might have been disconnected by the APDCL as the power distribution company is a component of the team that is carrying out the eviction drive. An ADC (Additional Deputy Commissioner) level official of the district administration, talking to G Plus in anonymity, said that 7 people had died in the city in this

flood season due to electrocution and to avoid such incidents in the future, the drive was ordered by the Deputy Commissioner. The officer said that the drive was carried out on two bases. Firstly, the administration has, on many occasions, ordered usage of Assamese language on all sign boards and hoardings and this has not been implemented fully. So the administration had asked the GMC to remove all such hoardings and sign boards from the city which did not have Assamese language. Secondly, the officer said that the illuminated hoardings installed on the medians of the main roads as well as footpaths have electrical connections coming from below and the connections are loose. So he said that during urban floods there was every chance of electrocution for anyone climbing the median or treading on the footpath. Therefore he said that all electrical hoardings having electrical connections from below were being dismantled. On being reminded that the agencies had installed such hoardings legally and also that people were facing problems because the power to the traffic signals had been snapped, the officer said that the order was issued under Disaster Management Act and it is not the administration’s lookout, people’s lives being more important. The officer said that the agencies should ensure that the traffic signals are functioning. He further said that the drive will carry on across the city and added that the traffic police department being another component of the task force will handle the situation accordingly. G Plus talked to DCP (Traffic) Amanjeet Kaur who said, “No

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one took any permission from me before disconnecting the traffic signals.” She said that traffic personnel are handling the situation but she will soon ask the administration to fix the issue as traffic signals are required for smooth flow of traffic. The confusion

The administration source said that the task force includes GMC, GMDA, PWD (Roads), Traffic department and APDCL who will also conduct a safety audit to understand which city points are vulnerable to electrocution. Interestingly, the DCP (Traffic) was not apprised before the drive was carried out. APDCL sources said that the safety audit is under process and it is not complete. So, how come the district administration, without any proper research or study, decided to dismantle the illuminated hoardings which, according to the administration’s assumption, are vulnerable to electrocution? The APDCL source also said that none of the electrocution deaths reported in the city were because of any electrical hoardings or traffic signals. G Plus enquired the matter with the Deputy Commissioner himself. Kamrup (M) Deputy Commissioner, Dr M Angamuthu, talking to G Plus,

said that the drive was ordered to avoid electrocution deaths in the city. On being informed that the administration is facing public ire because the traffic signals were not working and the advertisement kiosks which were being dismantled are under contract and legal, the DC said that he was not aware about such a chaos and he will look into the matter. The administration might be harbouring the very noble thought of protecting citizens from getting electrocuted but the process seems to have led to huge hassle for the commuters and traffic personnel and also for the agencies who are legally to get compensated for their investments and public services. The administration could have issued an order to the advertising agencies to convert all electrical hoardings into solar powered ones. They could have even provided some alternative options which could have been smooth. But by putting a legal business into distress and causing harassment to the public by snapping power supply to the traffic signals, the administration is only showing its confused state and lack of interdepartment coordination and ineptness in handling issues and concerns of the city. Meanwhile, the agencies have taken the matter to court and have n obtained a stay order.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

In The News

‘Replacing’ Baij’s Gandhi statue stirs hornet’s nest The district administration proposed replacing Ramkinkar Baij’s statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Gandhi Mandap and then took back the decision creating serious concern among the citizens about the competence of the authorities

The statue of Mahatma Gandhi sculpted by Ramkinkar Baij at Gandhi Mandap | G Plus Photo

Continued from page 1

Kamrup (Metro) Deputy Commissioner, Dr M Angamuthu and state Culture Minister, Naba Doley, East Guwahati legislator Siddhartha Bhattacharyya, Guwahati Mayor Mrigen Saraniya, social worker RD Borkotoky and other officers of the district administration discussed about the refurbishment of Gandhi Mandap which included landscaping, illumination, view point, proper walkway, establishment of yoga centre, cafeteria, museum, library etc. under the Smart City project. The meeting accepted the DPR for Refurbishment of Gandhi Mandap on design, build and operate basis and agreed for handing over the land and property to Guwahati Smart City Ltd. The foundation stone of the project will be laid by Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal, on 2nd October, during the Gandhi Jayanti celebrations. It was proposed during the meeting that the existing statue of Mahatma Gandhi will be replaced by a new one as this one gave a “distorted image” of Mahatma Gandhi. The meeting had directed the executive engineer, Public Works

Department (Building), to float a bid document for the same immediately.

later years of his career in 1968 after he was requested by a team of experts and Assam’s then culture minister under Bishnu Ram Medhi’s cabinet. Narzary said Baij, who died in 1980 at the age of 74, had started working on the sculpture and then left midway for it to be completed by his assistant Asit Dasgupta. “During my student life I saw Ramkinkar Baij making a monumental statue of Gandhi in clay following a small maquette of Gandhi made at an earlier time, structurally strong, semi abstract, expressive of inner strength and power of Gandhi in the gesture of the great Dandi March. A team of experts along with the cultural minister came to Shantiniketan and requested the sculptor to make Gandhi realistically stressing on his affinities. Ramkinkar had no prejudices to any stylistic representation; his styles of works range from realistic to abstract, geometric to organic and he experimented them in various ways. He started working in direct concrete for the Gandhi statue on a concrete base for permanent installation at the existing site of Kala Bhavan campus. Asit Dasgupta, a national cultural scholar, working under Ramkinkar Baij, was assisting his teacher in making the Gandhi statue in clay

made the head of Gandhi in his studio in clay and cast in cement which was placed atop of the figure,” Narzary said. Explaining the statue, which was termed as “distorted,” Narzary said, “The statue of Gandhi is structurally much emphasised to be strong and stable. It is a concept of Gandhi’s Dandi March during the Noakali crisis; his right hand holds a large walking stick (dandi) expressive of power and determination, while the left hand holds a money bag to help the victims. Ramkinkar titled the statue as The Apostle. The finished concrete statue was cast in bronze and done in greenish black patina colour by Bipin Goswamy, a sculptor from Kolkata and sent to Guwahati for installation.” Assam’s eminent sculptor Noni Borpujari said, “It is Baij’s style that the figures have longer hands than actual. Sudama’s statue and Gautama Buddha’s statue in Shantiniketan too are similar structures.” District administration’s stand

The Kamrup Metro deputy commissioner, Dr Erected in the Dandi March M Angamuthu, had earlier position – Mahatma Gandhi’s admitted that he was unaware of resolute face gazing at his right the statue being built by Baij. He, foot as he extends it in a walking like Siddhartha Bhattacharya, position with right who is a lawyer from hand holding the Guwahati, and now a rected in the Dandi walking stick at an Guwahati legislator had obtuse angle and a the proposal, March position – Mahatma during money bag on the left said that the statue gave a distorted image of hand – the statue had Gandhi’s resolute face Gandhi. been at the Gandhi gazing at his right foot as Mandap for the last When G Plus four decades, braving contacted, Angamuthu he extends it in a walking the sun and storms said, “It did give a and it received the distorted image of position with right hand annual whitewash Gandhi to which many holding the walking stick at could not relate. The prior to the Gandhi Jayanti. Baij’s student, an obtuse angle and a money proposal to replace was one of the witnesses given with all good who saw the statue intentions. Now that bag on the left shoulder – being built and who people have expressed the statue had been at the is currently a retired their concerns, we professor of Vishwa reconsider the Gandhi Mandap for the last will Bharati University in proposal and take steps four decades, braving the Shantiniketan, West accordingly. We have Bengal, Janak Jhankar not taken any decisions sun and storms. Narzary, recalls the regarding the same. The statue being bronze decisions will be taken in colour with a hint of greenish and also in cement concrete. I after discussion with all those black patina on it. The 1906 born have seen Ramkinkar constantly who are opposed to the move. Baij, who had defined modern directing his assistant Asit, often The district administration will India’s sculpture, had started using his own hands and tools to not take any hasty step.” sculpting the statue during the model and correct the figure. He The Assam government’s

The statue

twitter handle MyGov Assam also cleared the air tweeting, “Govt. of Assam has decided to renovate entire area of Gandhi Mandap. Gandhi statue will be remain as is. (sic.)” Crticisim

Even though the district administration and the state government have indicated the statue will not be replaced after all, the anger still simmers among the people. Borpujari said, “The proposal itself shows how less the district administration and the people’s representatives here know about the city and its remarkable statues. They say the statue gives a distorted image of Gandhi, but who made them the judge of art all of a sudden? They are bureaucrats and politicians. They should have left the judging to the artists. A sculpture isn’t supposed to be an exact replica of the personality. It is supposed to express the essence of the person. Had it been a replica, it would have been a toy and not an artwork. By calling the sculpture distorted, they have insulted Baij.” Narzary said, “The bronze statue is now painted on the surface with white enamel paint. As a result it has lost the organic and living quality. It lost its homogeneity with earth and nature. The enamel colour should be removed and restored to its original condition and look.” “The government has to be careful in appointing any civic administrator to find a person with knowledge and love of art - culture and beauty free from prejudices. Most of our cities are turned ugly as the civic administrators are aesthetically blind. The white enamel colour paint on the Gandhi statue is part of one such ugly contribution,” Narzary further added. K Sarma, General Secretary of Save Guwahati Build Guwahati, criticising the move said, “I can’t understand why the statue is such a big deal when there are more perennial problems in the city which remain unresolved. The roads are all broken, water crisis, pollution, traffic snarls, unscientific roads and the list goes on. I think the government should concentrate more on these issues rather than the n statue.”

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

City

Guwahati on high alert ahead of Independence Day The commissioner of police said that there is no specific threat but the city police force is prepared for any kind of situation Rahul Chanda rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

very year ahead of Independence Day and Republic Day, the entire country is on high alert mode as terrorists and rebel groups try their best to make their presence felt with various acts of terrorism. Ahead of the forthcoming 71st Independence Day, two men with suspected links to al-Qaeda were arrested in Delhi in two separate cases. In the first case, the Delhi Policeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Special Cell arrested 29-year-old Syed Mohammed Zishan Ali, suspected to be linked to the terror outfit. In the second incident, Raja-ul-Ahmed (25), with links to al-Qaeda, was arrested by the Delhi Police on 1st August following a tipoff from the West Bengal Police. So far as Guwahati is concerned, the city is a favourite target of the rebel groups based in the northeastern region. So, is Guwahati under any threat this time? Are the police prepared to tackle any kind of situation? G Plus checks the security scenario of the city ahead of Independence Day. The preparedness

Commissioner of Police, Hiren Nath, talking to G Plus, said that operational teams like the commando and other patrolling parties are scouring all the areas near the celebration venue as also the entire city. According to him, the senior police officials are meeting all the thana personnel and conducting meetings with the local people to sensitise them and soliciting information about any suspicious person in the area. The police are meeting all the nagarik committees in the city and asking them to inform the local police about any suspicious activities, persons or even relatives. All security measures like checking, frisking and so on are being carried out on daily basis with change of timings to keep the surprise element intact. There are many anti-sabotage teams who keep patrolling different areas every day. Nath said that all the city entry points on the highways are being thoroughly checked. The train entry points are also being checked. Nath said that the vehicles coming from upper Assm, Hojai and Lanka are specially checked as there were some inputs that boys from some Manipuri outfit

Security personnel checking a vehicle ahead of the Independence Day celebration in the city | G Plus Photo

might enter the city to disrupt the law and order situation. He said even the vehicles coming from Goalpara side are being checked thoroughly. Nath said that external forces are being deployed in the city and along with the CRPF, help of the army is being taken for anti-sabotage checking. Nath said that 8 MSVs (maximum security vehicles) which have special features are being deployed across the city to check the security scenario. According to him 1 MSV has been deployed at the Saraighat Bridge to keep a 24X7 vigil. Even flying squads are conducting security checks at the bridge. There are some suspicious city areas which are under the police scanner and are checked almost every day. Another senior police official, talking to G Plus, said that the river ways of the city are also well guarded. All the river ghaats are being thoroughly checked every day with an eye being kept on suspicious people crossing the rivers. All suspected miscreants of the city are being scanned and if required being interrogated to search for any clue. All the hotels, lodges are being checked and strict verification of the people visiting the city is being done. There are commando teams moving as mobile patrols and door to door checking is being done area-wise. Nath said that even the vegetable, fish and other markets in the city are being thoroughly checked. The venue

So far as the venue at Khanapara is concerned, Nath

said that fixed pickets have been installed which will always remain there. He said there will be three layers of security at the venue and drones, flying squads will keep a 24X7 vigil. He said that this time the Independence Day will be celebrated for three days starting from Sunday. Therefore, the venue will be

under strict security scan for all three days. He said that all the workers working at the venue are being verified and they can leave or enter the venue only after a thorough security check. He said that the entire field will be under CCTV surveillance and biometric surveillance will be in place to check all the workers or anyone visiting the field. There will be around seven watch towers in the field to keep an eye on all the activities in and around the field. Anti-sabotage check teams of police and central forces will be inspecting the field to ensure that there are no programmable time explosive devices which could have been fixed by extremists even as long as six months ago. The police are confident that no one will be able to enter the field unchecked. Is there any threat?

Nath said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is no specific threat.â&#x20AC;? He said that although there is no specific threat, there is a high alert sounded in the city because the police have to be prepared for any kind of situation. Talking

about rebel groups, he said that if at all any group attempts to do anything during Independence Day, it might be the ULFA (I). He asserted that there is no jehadi threat to the city. He said that a few days back they had information that some boys from some Manipuri rebel group might enter the city, but at present there is no such specific threat. Yet, the police are still very alert. Another police officer said that there might not be any specific threat but there is always a threat and accordingly even the police are prepared for any kind of situation. Meanwhile, the district administration sources said that in three days there will be various programmes organised to celebrate the Independence Day. The source said that on 13th August, all the government buildings, important statues and monuments will be illuminated. There will be various programmes like unity run, open quiz, art competition etc organised in these three days. On 15th August, the National Flag will be hoisted at 9 am at the Khanapara field. n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Concern

Illegal shops in Ganeshguri market hampering bona fide business The GMC and a newly formed committee of Ganeshguri market are involved in a nexus that is harassing bona fide traders by allowing vendors to set up shops illegally in the market

The new market building that is pending completion | G Plus Photo

Juthika Baruah juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

he Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has thrown a spanner into the works by forming a new Ganeshguri Municipal Corporation Bazaar Committee (GMCBC) without dissolving the existing committee. The new committee has been formed with the consent of Dispur and Guwahati East MLAs. The GMC has formed the committee so that it can illegally collect money from the traders who are under the new committee. “The GMC had started construction of the new building in 2014 but till date the building has not been completed. We have proposed to construct the new building as there is no space for the vendors to set up their shops but it has been more than two years that the construction has been going on and instead of completing the construction, the GMC has been involved in

forming a new committee for the illegal establishment of some new shops,” said the President of the GMCBC, Azim Ali while speaking to G Plus. In 2014, Ali had been elected President of GMCBC and Nitin Das had been appointed as the Secretary. But in four months Das had triggered some massive financial anomalies due to which people hurled allegations at him. “Das was also associated with the previous committee and they indulged in some corrupt practices and have not done anything beneficial for the vendors and the people. In 13 years people have not received a single penny from the previous committee and now they have formed a new committee even before the tenure of the existing committee could be completed. This has not been accepted by the people and the present committee,” said Ali. Ali informed that there are 365 GMC allotted vendors and 200 non-allotted vendors but now some new vendors have illegally set up their shops at

the entrance of the market due to which the old vendors are suffering a lot. “The vendors, whose shops are at the entrance of the market, have rented these out to another party in order to gain extra money and this has hampered the vendors who have shops inside the market because customers do their shopping right at the entrance and do not come inside the market. There is no permission for fish traders in the market but still they are selling fish,” said Ali. He also informed that GMC Mayor Mrigen Sarania also visited the market and demanded that the rent of the shops be paid on time and threatened the vendors that if they do not pay the money their licenses will be cancelled. “We pay the money monthly but do not get the facilities from the department. Sometimes we cannot pay the money as business doesn’t go well. The vendors who have shops inside the market have to face the problem as customers do not come inside the market and rather buy products at the

entrance from the people who have set up their shops illegally,” Ali informed. Ali added, “The electricity line office, the corporation office was like a cowshed during the tenure of the previous committee. But now I have converted it into an office by cleaning up the room. I regularly clean the drains. It is within the one and half year term that I have done developmental works for the people and I still have money in my hands for further work.” Ali also alleged that earlier, many untoward incidents like gambling, sale of alcohol, etc took place in the market. These have now been stopped after he was appointed as the president. “Nitin Das has embezzled a sum of Rs. 1,75,000 in four months. Das now said that he will repay it and has given us 15 cheques of Rs. 10,000 each but the first cheque itself has bounced. We haven’t received the money till date and therefore have filed a case against him. During the tenure of the previous committee there was goondaraj by the locals and they demanded money from the shopkeepers which has now been controlled,” said Ali. In connection with the entire tussle the traders protested against the formation of the new committee and without any consent of the current president a meeting has been convened by the old committee. “The old committee has not been dissolved yet. The manner in which the new committee was selected is totally illegal and undemocratic. We also held a meeting in which a majority of the traders reposed faith in the existing committee,” the old 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. However, the rival group accused Ali of running the committee in an autocratic

manner. “He doesn’t listen to anyone. We have been demanding holding of the meeting of the committee but he has not paid heed to the demand. So we were forced to convene the meeting,” a member of the new committee opined. There are around 565 shops under the committee and the existing committee does not accept the new executive committee formed without the consent of the existing president as his tenure is not complete yet. “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 incidences of eveteasing are rampant inside the market and it happens due to the goondaraj of the local youths. n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Ward Watch

Pipeline leakage brings misery to Jayanagar road In Ward Watch this week, G Plus checks out the plight of the Jayanagar Road, the deterioration of which was triggered off by a private telecom operator’s slip shod work while laying its cables to augment its 4G network Concentrated area – Jayanagar Road (31 A) Ward no. – 31 Population of the ward – 58,000 Voter Population – 24,300 Population of Jayanagar Road– 11,250 Ward Councillor: Manabendra Malla Bujarbaruah

Pathetic condition of the Jayanagar road| G Plus Photo

Avishek Sengupta

-year old Hiren Saharia, who had opened his grocery shop “Varieties Store” at Jayanagar Road near the NRL petrol pump three years ago, had never bargained for the fact that a bad road will cause severe losses to his otherwise strategically located shop. One of the primary arterial roads of the city in Ward No 31 that connects Six Mile with the Beltola Road and then further onto the National Highway 37, has developed two furrows near the NRL petrol pump and 50 metres further towards Beltola with large stones exposed and water leaking from the pipeline underneath. This has made life rather difficult for the commuters – pedestrians and motorists

alike - as a passage of only 2 feet is left commutable and is proving to be a bad business proposition to the roadside shops. The concern holds greater seriousness as the road is used by ambulances too as it leads to the GNRC hospital about 200 metres away from where the potholes have appeared. The stretch of the road is almost 1 km, but it gains more significance because this road also connects Panjabari on the right and Narengi via VIP road on the left. Moreover, it is the main passage to a vast and important residential area of the city with a number of apartment blocks located in the vicinity. To add to the misery, the road is used as an alternative by heavy trucks at nights as, for the truck drivers, it acts as the shortest route from Narengi to the highway.

“When it rains, the road is all murky with big rocks precariously exposed and on the sunny days, the entire area remains covered under a cloud of dust. This has been the scenario for the last three months. Business was good until the road condition started deteriorating. Who would stop their car and purchase from our stores when the road is so bad?” Saharia said. The residents said that the potholes appeared last June when the telecom operator Reliance Jio had started digging the road to put in cables to augment their 4G connections and network. “In June this year, a few people came in and started digging the road. When questioned, they said they are from Reliance Jio and they were here to lay cables for internet connections on their mobile network. While digging,

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they accidentally punctured the water line that runs into the Narengi Army camp,” Gaurab Sarma, a shop owner in the vicinity of the road said. Thereafter, the water started oozing out from inside and for the next few days the area remained unrepaired. “About a month later, people from the Army cantonment came and further dug up the road. They fixed the leaking pipeline but did not repair the roads. This has stopped the water, but the furrows grew bigger. When asked, the army men said that repairing of roads does not fall under their responsibility and the PWD will take care of it,” Sarma said. Samrat Sarkar, a resident of the area said, “The PWD had brought sand and big rocks and laid these just like that. When the road gets too bad they come and simply readjust the rocks. But this road did not see any pitch work since it was dug.” Councillor’s say The area has seen a lot of development over the last decade with several new shops thriving there. With a hospital in the area and being a short cut to the national highway, the area

bustles with activity till late into the night. At least, 100 trucks ply on the road every day further worsening the it. Talking to G Plus, Manabendra Malla Bujarbaruah, councillor of Ward No 31 said that he is aware of the condition of the road. “I do understand that this road is very important and I am in talks with the PWD department. But after the recent crisis of rocks and building materials that the city faced, it became very difficult for the department to repair the roads. The department had listed this road among the ones that needed repairing and it has started the repair works on the basis of important roads. Once those are done, I think, this one will also be repaired,” Bujarbaruah said. He further added, “It is however, very tough to maintain the roads through which big trucks carrying heavy freight travel. The bigger the tyres, the more it affects the road. There are potholes on national highways too, all thanks to these trucks. If you notice, the truck circuits in the city have worse roads than this. We have at least stopped the potholes from getting bigger.” n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

City

Marathon and organ donation come together at ‘Organothon 2017’ Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

ublee Baruah, founder of Zublee Foundation, has always managed to steer clear of controversies and this endeavour of the Foundation tells us why she is one of the most loved stars of the state. Zublee Foundation is the first non-governmental organization (NGO) working for the noble cause of organ donation awareness in the north-eastern region of India. It is an initiative undertaken by singing sensation Zublee Baruah, Amitabh Gohain along with several other like-minded people and was established in 2013. The idea behind “Organothon 2017” was to raise mass awareness among the people of Assam, while promoting a fitter city and to encourage organ donation in the region. On 6th August, 2017, the run was flagged off by Partha Sarathi

Partha S Mahanta taking part in the Organothon 2017

Mahanta, APS at 6:30 am from the Assam Engineering Institute playground, Chandmari, and went on to Super Market, Ganeshguri and back via the same route, covering a distance of 12 kilometres. “Organothon 2017” witnessed the participation of approximately 300 people who hailed from different districts of Assam as well as different states of India. Apart from Guwahati, there were runners from Chennai, Sadiya, Tinsukia, Darrang, Hajo, Karbi Anglong, Sivasagar, Golaghat, Jorhat, Morigaon and several other places. Zublee Baruah, speaking to G Plus, said that it was amazing that people from all across the state came out to be a part of this endeavour. “We were expecting the participation of around 150-200 people and were overwhelmed to see approximately 300 people join us in our aim to promote organ donation. Organothon received amazing response from the people and they said they’d love to associate with Zublee Foundation and participate in future events to spread awareness regarding organ donation,” expressed Priyanka Borah, CEO, Zublee

Foundation. The event was graced by a number of well known personalities of the city; a list that included prominent city businessman and the first Assamese to win Ironman at South Africa, Rajnish Goswami, Mr Universe 2009, Mahadev Deka, Dr Hitesh Barua, MD,

Zublee (C) with Partha S Mahanta (2nd L) Rajnish Goswami (4th L) and Diganta Hazarika (2nd R)

Nemcare Hospitals, Indrani Baruah, SSP, renowned musician JP Das, actor Diganta Hazarika, and several others from the film and music fraternity. Talking to G Plus about Zublee Foundation’s initiative, Diganta Hazarika said, “I was unaware of the concept of organ donation until four years back when I came to know about it from Amitabh and Zublee. Knowing about it developed a wonderful feeling within me because the cause itself is so noble. Since then, I have been engaged in all the activities of Zublee Foundation and have been learning a lot more about it through their initiatives. Recently, I participated in the Cyclothon organized by Guwahati Cyclothon which was also supported by Zublee Foundation and now the ‘Organothon.’ Like the way I am now aware about organ donation, I want all the people of Assam and northeast to know about it and support it. Going forward, I will always be here to support the Zublee Foundation.” Hitesh Baruah expressed similar gratitude towards Zublee

Foundation and said, “I have been associated with Zublee Foundation since its birth and I am so glad that Zublee has taken the initiative in Assam. I whole heartedly support Zublee Foundation and the noble cause of organ donation. My best wishes are with the entire team and I hope to be with them whenever they need my support.” All the participants were given participation certificates while the first three runners to complete the run were presented with trophies, finisher certificates and t-shirts. The first three runners were Kamal Ali from Hajo, Harata Kro from Karbi Anglong and Safiqul Islam from Boko respectively. Zublee Foundation, through this initiative, sought to make people understand and support the cause of organ donation and grab the attention of the government to take necessary steps to make cadaver organ donation possible in Assam and the whole of northeast India. After the grand success of Organothon, 6th August has been officially set as the date for

‘Organothon’ every year and Zublee Foundation will continue to do their bit to contribute to the cause. The Foundation invites people from all parts of the northeast to join hands in reaching out to those who are in need of special attention. “We’ll be organising our next event on 27th November, 2017 at the Assam Engineering College, Chandmari to observe National Organ Donation Day. It’ll be a full day event with several programs and speeches to promote organ donation and we’re looking forward to more and more participation,” said Priyanka to G Plus. “Our motive was to spread awareness and we’re glad to have achieved that. We’ve been receiving a lot of calls from people across the state to enquire about the cause and to gain information about how to become an organ donor. Zublee Foundation has been around for 4 years and we have a long way to go. Hopefully, we’ll be able to break religious myths and encourage many more people to donate organs and give life to n others,” said Zublee.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Health

Dealing with depression

After a depressed Mumbai youngster committed suicide just to take up the challenge of the ‘Blue Whale’ internet game, G Plus sought the views of leading psychiatrist, Dr Jayanta Das, to understand depression better

Dr Jayanta Das with Dr Anweshak Das and Jayashree Das

r X, a 45 year old man working in a bank, was diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes 3 months ago. Since the last two months his family members noticed decrease in appetite, sleep disturbances, social withdrawal and irritability. Few days ago, he was brought to a psychiatrist for these complaints and he was later on diagnosed as having depression. Master Y, a 14 year old student who was abused by his father, gradually started to show deterioration in studies, have sleep disturbances, decreased concentration and irritability. When consulted with a psychiatrist he revealed the severe stressors that he undergoing and was diagnosed to have been suffering from depression. So is depression a cause for concern? Or is depression becoming a major health issue worldwide? The answers to the above are all affirmative. Yes, depression is a major cause of concern. Yes, depression is a major heath issue worldwide throughout all communities, throughout all age groups. It has sent alarm bells ringing and has

compelled the World Health Organization (WHO) to take up depression as this year’s World Health Day Theme. How big is the concern?

The new estimates released by WHO states that the number of people living with depression has increased by 18% from 2005 to 2015. It is the largest cause of disability worldwide. More than 80% of this disability is in the lower and middle income countries. In humanitarian emergencies 1 in 5 people suffer from depression. The total number of people living with depression in the world is 322 million. In India, almost 1 in 20 suffers from depression and it is reported to be higher in females in the age-group of 4049 years. By 2020 depression will be the most common disorder overpowering cardiac disorders and diabetes. But depression is not only preventable but also curable.

How can we identify depression?

Depression is an illness characterized persistent sadness, loss of interest in activities that you normally enjoy, inability to carry out daily activities, decrease in appetite, sleep disturbances, pessimistic thoughts, feeling of hopelessness, crying.

There are certain subtle signs that one can observe like irritability, sudden anger outburst, withdrawn behavior. Depression can affect any age group. It’s a common myth that children do not suffer from depression. But the fact is that childhood depression is on the rise and more so in the adolescent age group. A child, when depressed, will have irritability, loss of concentration in studies, school refusal, dietary changes, stubborn behavior, loss of interest in playing, academic deterioration, sleep disturbances etc. Adolescents can indulge in substance abuse. Depression can also be found in old age. A feeling of worthlessness, talks of death, sleep disturbances, crying spells and memory problems are commonly found in this age group. Many a time in this age group depression is overlapped with dementia. With lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension and stroke which are on the rise, depression is also commonly found in people suffering from these diseases. What is worse for depression is that it can lead to suicide which is the second most common cause of death in the age group of 15-29. As depression can be an ‘invisible’ illness, some people find it difficult to understand the effect it can have. They might see depression as trivial or dismiss it altogether. And this can make it harder for those experiencing it to speak openly and seek the help they need. Why are some people more vulnerable to depression?

Learned helplessness: This thinking pattern suggests that individuals come to believe that they have no power over events in their own lives. These individuals are passive and believe that they cannot do anything to relieve their sufferings. Being stuck with negative thoughts: Depressed individuals are prone to ruminate on negative thoughts. Unfortunately, this tends to maintain or amplify negative thinking. Feeling depleted: The opposite of depression is not happiness but vitality and resilience. Individuals with

depression lack the ability to flexibly shift attention away from negative information and they lack resilience. Lack of motivation: Depressed people can feel purposeless and almost any activity/ task becomes a challenge. They have impaired decision making capacity and impaired problem solving capacity. Biased memory: Depression is associated with recall of negative events. The memories of past failures and the images of feared future scenarios further worsen one’s mood. Schema: Schemas are cognitive structures that shape our information processing. Schemas of people suffering from depression often include themes of loss, separation, failure, worthlessness, or inadequacy. Personality type: Depression occurs at least in part due to personality styles (e.g., neuroticism). Neurotic traits lead to depression through poor coping with stressors. Why are people depressed in urban areas?

Urban life can be quite taxing. Recent studies have suggested that people living in urban cities are more prone to depression when compared to people living in rural areas. Some factors responsible for this are highly competitive life in urban cities leading to many stressors, social isolation, lack of proper social support, social inequality, physical stressors (such as pollution, traffic, flash floods, noise), altered lifestyle behaviors (food habits, sleep patterns), lack of proper open spaces for recreational activities.

Saying no to stigma

The most important barrier to prevention or for treatment in depression is stigma since depression is a mental disorder. Since time immemorial, mental illness has been attached with stigma whereby people with mental issues are more isolated from others. For many people, the stigma of being depressed is compounded by shame and guilt about not being a “productive member of society.” The stigmatization of depression does nothing to help or encourage those grappling

with depression. In fact, treating depression as a personal problem instead of a real illness can lead depressed people to avoid seeking professional help. Depression is a serious illness, not a sign of weakness or a character flaw. So the first step towards prevention and treatment of depression is the removal of this roadblock of stigma. Talking about depression, whether with a family member, friend or medical professional; in schools, the workplace and social settings; or in the public domain, in the news media, blogs or on social media, helps break down this stigma, ultimately leading to more people seeking help. How can you help

Make it clear that you want to help. Listen without judgment and offer support. Find out more about depression. Be patient; it usually takes a few weeks to feel better. Encourage them to seek professional help when available. With elderly people help them with everyday tasks and to have regular eating and sleeping patterns. Encourage regular exercise and social activities. Encourage them to get involved in a social forum. Encourage them to focus on the positive, rather than the negative. If they are thinking about self-harm, or have already intentionally harmed themselves, do not leave them alone. The same applies when you notice a child who is depressed. With a child, talk to him or her about things happening at home, at school and outside of school. Try to find out whether anything is bothering him or her. Protect your child from excessive stress, maltreatment and violence. Pay particular attention to your child’s wellbeing during life changes such as starting a new school or puberty. Make time to spend with your child. If your child has thoughts of harming himself or herself, or has already done so, seek help from a trained n professional immediately. Dr Jayanta Das is a senior consultant psychiatrist, Dr Anweshak Das is a consultant psychiatrist and Jayashree Das is a consultant clinical psychologist. All of them practice in Guwahati.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Bazaar

Vegetable prices in city skyrocket under impact of monsoon, floods

Kamrup (M) district administration says that prices of onion and potato will come under control within a week Juthika Baruah juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

he soaring prices of vegetables have irked the common people as they have to face this problem year after year. But the government has remained silent on the issue and the traders are taking the advantage by terming the price rise as seasonal and attributing this monsoonal inflation to the floods. The public wants the state government to introduce a price control mechanism in order to reduce the huge gap between the prices quoted by the farmers and the cost that has to be paid by the consumers. But till date the mechanism has not been devised as a result of which people have to think twice about purchasing and consuming fresh vegetables at its skyrocketing prices. “The prices of the vegetables have gone high due to the incessant rains and floods during the monsoon season and as production is also less during the season, it is a helpless situation,” said one of the vegetable traders while speaking to G Plus. “Heavy rainfall for past several weeks has destroyed the crops triggering a price rise at the source. Moreover, floods in the lower Assam areas including Nalbari and Barpeta have affected the supply of vegetables in the markets of Guwahati,” a vegetable trader of Ganeshguri said. Recently, the prices of green chillies have gone up like never before. In the Ganeshguri market, vendors are charging Rs 160 per kg, whereas the wholesale rate of green chillies at Fancy Bazar is Rs 80-90 per kg. Against its bulk price of Rs 12 per kg, the summer favourite cucumber is selling between Rs 30-40 at Ganeshguri market. Another

producing state. As such, the commodities are imported and when the cities from which these commodities come face a drought-like situation the price increases. “The hike in price is uncontrollable as it depends on the production. If the production is less the price increases automatically and it is also during the rainy season that the production becomes less. The transportation cost also varies from place to place for which the prices vary in different places,” the official said.

also been formed. The drive will be carried out against the wholesale traders and action will be taken if any discrepancy is found against the traders. A review meeting on supply and movement of essential commodities in the state was also held earlier under the chairmanship of Assam Food & Civil Supplies Minister, Rihan Daimary. In the presence of Commissioner & Secretary (Food & Civil Supplies), Rajesh Prasad, Deputy Commissioners of Kamrup Metro & Kamrup District, Dr M Angamuthu

summer special vegetable, the ridged gourd, locally known as jika, is available at Rs 40 per kg at Ganeshguri market, while in Chandmari and Silpukhuri, it is Rs 50 and Rs 40-45 respectively. Wholesale rate of pointed gourd, lady finger and brinjal is around Rs 20-25 and the retail rate is more than Rs 40 at most of the vegetable markets. Pumpkin’s bulk price is Rs 15 per kg, whereas bottle gourd is selling at a wholesale rate of Rs 25-30 per kg at Fancy Bazar market. In comparison, the retail rates of all these vegetables are much higher in the local markets.

Against its wholesale rate of Rs 60 per kg, carrot is selling at Rs 100-120 in the retail markets. Similarly, the retail rate of French beans is between Rs 80 to Rs 100 - almost double in comparison to its wholesale rates. Price of teasel gourd or bhat kerela is around Rs 20-22 in wholesale and around Rs 4050 in retail. The price of tomato is also very high at Rs 60-80 in

People buying vegetables from a city market | G Plus Photo

most of the markets. At the same time, the price of onion has also become very high and the wholesale rate has increased from Rs 800 to Rs 1750-2600 per quintal for which the retail price has gone up to Rs. 30-35. In a meeting held with the Kamrup (M) district administration, the price has increased because the production of onion in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat has gone down and it is not only in Assam but in the entire country that onion prices have skyrocketed. The traders have also informed that Guwahati needs 600 quintals of onions daily and at present only 3,428 quintals of onions is available in the city. Speaking to G Plus, a highly placed official of Food and Civil Supplies of Kamrup (M) said that Assam is only a consuming state but not a

In 2016, the district administration decided to provide more licenses to wholesale traders under the Assam Trade Articles (Licensing and Control) Order, 1982. Traders have been asked to submit their applications to obtain the licenses but the official of Food and Civil Supplies said that as there is no license of most of the traders, they fix the price according to their whims and action cannot be taken against them. As there is no control on the traders, the prices of essential commodities skyrocket. Moreover, the district administration has inspected the city markets for the soaring prices of onion and said the prices will come under control within 7-8 days. Inspection will also be carried out due to the hike in prices of other vegetables as well for which a 10-member committee has

and Binod Seshan, Secretary, Food & Civil Supplies, Ratul Dowarah, Director, HN Kalita and other government officials and stakeholders, minister Daimary took stock of the supply of wheat. He expressed unhappiness regarding the price hike of wheat and potato. In this regard, Kamrup Chamber of Commerce said that due to unavailability of railway racks, sufficient supply has not been possible till date. So, the price of wheat has also risen. With respect to the monsoon season, minister Daimary has asked railway officials to give priority to carrying essential commodities to the state. Grahak Suraksha Parishad expressed unhappiness regarding the 25% hike on price of bread but they expressed the satisfaction regarding the sufficient supply n of LPG.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

City

Tri-colours ready to hit markets ahead of Independence Day The Khadi and Village Industries Board had set a production target of flags worth Rs. 20 lakhs but has managed production worth only Rs 11,23000 in the aftermath of the floods Juthika Baruah juthika.baruah@g-plus.in

he Assam Khadi and Village Industries Board is all set

parties also buy the flags as per their requirements,” Chetia said. The Assam Khadi and Village Industries Board have appointed workers on contractual basis to make the tri-colour and many such workers have been working under the board since 15-20 years. “It’s a matter of pride for us that we are engaged in such work which makes us feels good. Also, we are lucky that we have been engaged in this work for so many years. I have been working here since the last 2022 years and although we do not get much money we are happy that it keeps us busy and by doing this work we feel that we are doing something for our country,” said Pratima Barman, one of the workers. The women belong to the economically weaker section of the society and the money that they make is not

enough but it keeps them busy in producing a work which represents the symbol of India. “During

to distribute the National Flag in the market. This year the Board has received a target to produce flags worth Rs 20 lakhs but it is unfortunate that till 9th August it has been able to achieve only Rs 11,23,000 worth of production which is just slightly more than 50%. This year the target couldn’t be achieved due to the floods as weavers have not been able to finish their work on time. “There are 47 production centres in the state and most of these get affected due to flood. Therefore the weavers have not been able to send the cloths on time. Resultantly, the target has not been fulfilled,” said Executive Officer of Assam Khadi and Village Industries Board, Anup Chetia, while speaking to G Plus.

ates of Flags

6’x4’ 500 Rs

3’x4.5’ 370 Rs

2’x3’ 200 Rs

1.5’x2.25’ 130 1’x 1.5’

Rs 90

6’’x9’’

Rs 60

Earlier, when the state was dogged by militancy, people were apprehensive of going out of their homes during Independence Day and Republic Day as rebel groups called for boycotting the celebrations and this practice was maintained for a long period of around 1820 years. But now-a-days people come forward to celebrate in homes, schools, colleges and offices and therefore the demand for the tri-colour has increased in the last two-three years. “It was over the last twothree years that the demand for the tri-colour has increased and we make six types of flags of different sizes to cater to this demand. We get orders from the government and the political

Independence and Republic Day we make the tricolour and in other seasons we make kurtas, pyjamas, Nehru caps, jackets etc. We don’t think of the money but we are happy keeping ourselves busy in a work which also makes us feel proud,” said Mira Saikia, who is working in the Board since more than seven years to make the tri-colour. A worker of the board said that in Guwahati there are three bhandars and they take orders from the government departments and accordingly they distribute the flags according to the orders. “We brought the cloths from New Model Charkhar which is approved by Khadi and Village Industries as we cannot purchase the cloths from any other organization. Only the white cloth is brought and we dye the cloths with saffron and green colour. The Ashok Chakra is printed on the cloths and thereafter the whole flag is complete. We need

around 2000 thaan of cloth; one thaan consists of 12 metres,” the worker said. Binanda Kalita, in-charge of the tailoring section of the Board said that the women are hired on contractual basis even though they assume features of being permanent employees as it is very difficult to make the flag correctly. It has to be made to a particular measurement which is not known by any normal tailor. Only these professionals know the measurements. Kalita said that the making charges paid to the employees differ with the size of the flag and it starts from Rs 9 in the case of 6’’x9’’ flag to Rs 32 for the 6’x4’ flag. The work was started in July and it will continue till the Independence Day. It is a rather difficult task and the women work hard to complete the same within the stipulated time. The Executive Officer also said that DTDC Express, the courier service, has ordered a flag of 12’ x 8’ which is the largest flag till date and they will fly the tri-colour at their head office in Bangaluru. It has been seen that the markets are flooded with different sizes of the tri-colour made of different materials which do not represent the significance as the main significance of the tri-colour is that it should be made of khadi cloth. But people do not follow such conventions and buy flags made of plastic, n paper or other material.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Sports

à la FIFA: final tweaks in preparation, fans amped up Once denied a chance to host the mega tournament, the city today is virtually set to host the Under 17 FIFA World Cup matches; fans are excited about the event with almost all tickets sold out

Avishek Sengupta

xcitement was at its peak when the city got the FIFA nod to host the Under-17 Football World Cup, 2017, in October last year. Venue selection started way back in 2013 when the International Football Association or FIFA decided to hold its 17th edition of the World Cup in India and it wasn’t an easy journey for Guwahati in the northeast to qualify in the selection process. A delegation from the All India Football Federation (AIFF) that had come here in 2013 declared the Indira Gandhi Stadium at Sarusajai as “unfit” to hold the matches because it was holding non-sporting activities. The FIFA delegation, in their first visit here in 2014, too showed concerns about the condition of the field citing that the athletics track is too close to the field. The Assam sports ministry, with aid from the central sports ministry however, made the required changes before time and has earned the world football governing body’s confidence. So much so that the Sarusajai stadium was not only given the nod to host matches in October last year but was also awarded three of the knock-out matches along with six other matches of Group E and Group F fixture of the U-17 World Cup. The tournament will start from 6th October and the finals will be played on 28th October at Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata. The Group E (Honduras, Japan, New Caledonia and France) and Group F (Iraq, Mexico, Chile and England) matches in Guwahati will be held on October 8, 11 and 14 while the knock out matches will be held on October 17, 21 and 25 (see fixture) A total of 24 countries divided into six groups of four teams each is participating in the junior football world cup which will have a total of 52 matches. Besides the Indira Gandhi Stadium, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi, DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, Salt Lake Stadium of Kolkata, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium of Kochi and Fatorda Stadium of Margao are the five other venues where the matches

will be held. The tournament director of the local organising committee of the World Cup, Javier Ceppi, on his last visit this Wednesday, too lauded the state government for its preparations. “We’ve come a long way from where we had started and the stadium now looks much better. Almost all the issues regarding the FIFA guidelines have been sorted out. A few minor tweaks are left which will be taken care of way before the event starts,” Ceppi said. Arrangements

A total of Rs 20.48 crores has been sanctioned to redevelop the Indira Gandhi Stadium which had hosted the 33rd National Games in 2007, followed by the 12th South Asian Games last year and the annual Indian Super League since 2014. The state government received Rs 9.30 crores from the central government to upgrade the infrastructure of the Indira Gandhi Stadium in 2014 after the FIFA delegation’s first visit. The state government also generated another Rs 3.40 crores from within the state. This money was spent to upgrade the dressing rooms for the players, media centres, VIP arenas and providing other facilities as per the FIFA guidelines. Besides these, another fund of Rs 7.78 crores was sanctioned but has not been released yet,

Director of Sports and Youth Affairs, Pabitra Ram Khaund told G Plus. “This fund will be utilised for the isle security, charting out evacuation plans and other beautification plans and refurbishing the parking areas. The money has not been released yet but the works have already started as we are running a deadline and we want all the facilities set and ready at least a month before the

“

The people of the region are really aware of football. If football is a religion people must give a statement here. I’m telling you this is going to be the single best live football that they will see” -Javier Ceppi event starts. A few beautification works and security works are left,” Khaund said. Ceppi said FIFA is very particular about the evacuation plans as Assam falls in a seismic sensitive zone. “We are very particular on setting up a comprehensive evacuation plan and have asked the state authorities to set the seats and make changes accordingly. There will be four evacuation ways while there will be enough

space in the front of the gallery. In case of disaster such as earthquake, the gallery will collapse outwards and hence, people will need to get down towards the field first and then move out through the four evacuation routes,” Ceppi said. The FIFA guideline, keeping security of the stadium in concern, has also asked to set up bucket seats throughout the stadium so that they have an idea of the count of spectators. “It will be 23,850, because we have put on that number of bucket seats and the ticketing will also be done accordingly. The main stadium has also been refurbished. The VIP area and spectators’ area have also been upgraded,” Ceppi said. The recent flood that wreaked havoc in the state this monsoon, however, stalled some of the upgradation works, Ceppi said. “We realise that hosting FIFA isn’t the only thing the state is concerned about and the monsoon this year had been particularly hard on Assam. So, we have decided that the state should focus more on the relief works during the floods. Now that the disaster is evaded, we will resume the final tweaks soon,” Ceppi said. Regarding security, Ceppi further added, “FIFA will only provide support, technical knowhow and if required, training. The rest will be taken care of by the state government.” “The state government is also very concerned about the security aspect. A police official of the Additional Director General of Police will be made the nodal officer and he will look after the traffic aspect during the match days,” Khaund said. Ticketing

In the first and second phase of the ticketing, Assam was ahead of Kolkata and Kochi, the two other regions of India where football is very popular. But in the third phase, Assam lagged behind the other two. “Football is like religion here. The first two phases saw the fastest sell out. But the third phase saw very sluggish sale. However, we are not very concerned about filling up the seats because this is the greatest football event that the region will see,” Ceppi said.

Star attractions

The FIFA U-17 World Cup trophy tour will begin from 17th August and will make an almost 9,000 km journey over a period of 40 days till 26th September. Fans will be able to see the trophy in the six host cities starting with New Delhi, where India will be playing their group matches. The silverware will be on display in the capital city from August 17 to 22. Guwahati will be the next stop: August 2429 followed by Kolkata between August 31 and September 5. Fans in Mumbai will get to see the trophy between September 6 and 10, while it is scheduled to be on view in Goa from September 14 to 19. Besides that, the team lineup will also be very attractive here. France, Japan, Chile, Mexico, New Caledonia and Honduras are scheduled to play here. “But let me tell you France has Amine Gouiri who was the highest scorer in the Under 17 UEFA championship with 8 goals which is a record. Japan’s Takefusa Kubo is a star of Barcelona youth level and is the youngest scorer in Japan league. He is an absolute phenomenon and he is bound to be the best Asian player ever. Those are the guys who will be real stars in the next two years and you will be seeing them in Guwahati and not the washed out stars from 10 years ago who cannot move now,” Ceppi added. He said that Chile and Mexico are two strong teams who will be playing in Guwahati. “Mexico was World Champion in 2011, Runner-up in 2013, semi-finalist in 2015. They are really a strong team,” Ceppi said. And the under 17 Chilean team has defeated every professional club in their country, where professional clubs have produced players like Alexis Sanchez, Marcelo Salas and others. “So, we now expect the sale to pick up. The people of the region are really aware of football. If football is a religion people must give a statement here. I’m telling you this is going to be the single best live football that they will see,” said n Ceppi.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Buzz

GTC Celebrates 111th Foundation Day A brief look at the 111 year old legacy

also has, to its credit, produced a lot of other Indian sports stars including Devashish Roy, Motilal Das and Pradeep Phukan.” In cricket GTC has had representations in Assam and East Zone teams, including junior Indian teams. Saikia went on to add, “Most of our players have been placed well in various top teams. Recently, one of our players, Pranjal Bhoomi, was selected to be part of Mumbai City FC. GTC has also produced many state level players playing for the junior teams. We currently have 5 coaches to train the boys. Our children are also shining in disciplines like taekwondo, chess and swimming and bringing laurels to the academy.” Further talking about the

to play in the I-League in the senior divisions, but we stopped doing so in 2013, giving more emphasis on the participation of youngsters.” Initially, when the football academy started in 2010, about 200 candidates from all over northeast took part in the selection process. But in the 2017 selection process, there were about 1700 boys. The club witnessed a radical increase in the number of candidates indicating rapid growth in the inclination of boys from the north-eastern states towards sports over the years. One of the most important highlights is that GTC has decided to tie up with Bollywood personnel to organise one off-

upliftment plans of the club, now that it has come such a long way, Saikia added, “Our current motto is: “Catch them young and train them young.” We’re laying stress on sourcing young talent from various parts of the state and other parts of the northeast. The focus is on spotting the talents and bringing them into our academy to groom them. Earlier, the club used

beat movie screening every month from September onwards, where either the director or one of the main actors of the movie will be present to interact with the audience. Founded in 1906, Gauhati Town Club has come a long way in identifying, training and nurturing the local talent of northeast India in all aspects – n be it sports or cultural.

Gauhati Town Club (above); the flag hoisting ceremony at GTC (Right) | G Plus Photo

Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

he prestigious Gauhati Town Club (GTC) celebrated its 111th th Foundation Day on 6 August, 2017. The celebrations began at 6 am with a flag hoisting ceremony by the senior most member of the club, Badal Thakur, who is a renowned football and cricket player of yesteryears from Assam. Most of the participating members were accompanied by their families and the event saw a full gathering. The flag hoisting was followed by a football match amongst the members of the club. The keenly contested match was between two teams of GTC - GTC Red and GTC Blue - comprising members of all age groups. GTC Blue won. Post the match, the club

members enjoyed a breakfast feast at the club premises. Thereafter in the evening, they attended the cultural program which was dominated by participation of the children of members. Children showcased their talents by singing songs, playing instruments, etc, which

the General Secretary of GTC, Devajit Lon Saikia. Speaking to G Plus about the 111year long journey of the club, Saikia said, “One of our major endeavours at the 111th Foundation Day was to give a proper platform to our cultural talents. The new GTC committee, installed on 25th June, has decided to take initiatives to organise cultural activities for its members’ children and develop sporting talents, especially from the junior level.” He added, “If you take a look at the history of our club in football, you’ll find that GTC has contributed hugely to sports. The captain of the Indian team leading the 1948 Olympics, Dr. T Ao, was a player at GTC. GTC

atch em’ young, train em’ young - Devajit Lon Saikia, General Secretary, Gauhati Town Club was followed by the performance of two upcoming singers of Assam – Ritrisha Sarmah and Vreegu Kashyap. The cultural program was followed by a gala dinner. On the occasion of the Foundation Day, G Plus spoke to

Weather report for the week Guwahati

SUN

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THU

FRI

T-Storms

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SATURDAY

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33°/27° C

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

G Talk E

Fast lane syndrome

ven as I am writing this, I can’t help wondering if I will be accused of sexism. But what to do? Crime by beauteous women always makes salacious news. Remember Indrani Bora and the reams of footage she was given? More recently, IndusInd Bank employee Olivia Dutta Chowdhury might have fallen short of such towering levels of notoriety with a pettier crime: a series of embezzlements at her bank amounting to a ‘mere’ Rs 3.70 crores. What baffles one is what made an essentially smart cookie like Olivia dabble in such buffoonery. Did she have a prolonged brain fade and fooled herself that her customers would never notice anything amiss? After all, with the demonetisation and the government’s expansive attempts to usher in foolproof banking practice within the country, even a lay soul can easily understand that recorded transactions through banks allow for better financial governance and monitoring. In this situation, even contemplating fudging banking transactions makes one a glutton for punishment, leave alone actually indulging in such fraudulence. It leaves one astonished that in her senior capacity as a deputy manager, Olivia actually believed that she could get away with her variety of blue murder! The point of concern now is – and it is a socially discomforting thought – what was her intention behind those acts of fraudulence when, in her heart of hearts, she

always knew that the law would eventually catch up with her? Materialism? Greed? Ambition? Or a judicious combination of all three? Time and again it has been observed that the pressure of private jobs in the banking, insurance and telecom sectors have pushed employees to the brink of nervous and mental breakdowns. And all this in the name of business and growth of which there seems to be no end. Life in Guwahati today is such that the word “contentment” does not find its place in anyone’s dictionary. Olivia represents that particular specimen of Guwahatians who are in the huge rat race to be at the top losing all peace of mind in the process. You can’t help asking – is it really worth it? Actually, if one thinks about it, Guwahati can easily be a city that sets an example of social sobriety, of moderation in living, materialism and all the modernisms that are squeezing out the citizenry’s peace of mind. The city is inexpensive, in fact, frugal when it comes to its material temptations and quite unpretentious in offering the simple pleasures of life. It is however, desperately trying to match the consumerist culture that has swept modern India and in the process has tasked its citizenry into doing dangerous things that are called crimes. Pray, we really do not need another Olivia or Indrani to fall by the wayside in her attempts to travel on the fast lane, do we? Swapnil Bharali Editor

Defining the ‘Right to Privacy’

have genuinely developed an apprehension of speaking and typing things on my smartphone. Yes, we all knew that we lost our ‘Right to Privacy’ the day we bought one of those 10K smartphones. We knew our devices were being tracked and so they had access to our location, our personal information among many other things. And then WhatsApp released the encryption based messaging update, confirming that prior to the update, WhatsApp considered all data ‘public’ and had access to the same. All content that was being circulated was ‘big data’ that companies were mining. However, there is a new trend on the internet that has spiked my fear levels. I have started seeing suggestions and content based on my conversations that were possibly textual, (mail or messaging app chats) and also ones that were verbal. I see video suggestions on new artists whose name I might have taken in a verbal chat with a friend; or maybe a new KFC offer on a day I crave for KFC. Mind you, these are not bulk SMS(s) that everyone gets. On the day I’m craving, I get pinged with a new offer. I would have limited this to coincidence but it is not just with KFC. Air tickets, artists, song suggestions, restaurant suggestions, smartphones, tech products - everything under the sky has popped up on my mails and social channels. I am speaking about this because the lack of defining ‘privacy’ made the headlines a couple of weeks ago; something that requires immediate attention. Actually, it is something that no supreme court, regulatory body or forum could take control over. The fight to define ‘privacy’ will be a long one. The problem is the digital world has opened gates to endless possibilities promising a ‘bright future ahead.’ However, no one knows where this door (read: data bank) could lead to and what it might be used for. So next time you get an expensive fingerprint detecting Smartphone, remember, it is no longer just your SIDHARTH BEDI VARMA fingerprint. Or am I just being paranoid?

The Doklam Impasse

O p i n i o n Swapnanil Barua

country is keen to make its presence stand is that Doklam is theirs and felt in the community of nations. they are free to construct any road This will be all the more in case they want. This is the issue which of world powers like China and India is contesting and hence the countries like India who want to stand-off. become a world power. A spirit of As stated before, war mongering competition is always there and often has its roots elsewhere. though India may not stand strong The Chinese Communist Party as a world economic power today, Congress is due in October. its population, in its sheer numbers, President Xi Xingping wants to cannot be ignored. For China, India assert his presence in the party and is a potential competitor, waiting for the country that he is the actual its turn. It may be ignored for the successor to the legacy of Chairman nly mad megalomaniac moment but cannot be wished away. Mao, who will lead China to being leaders go into actual war. While India’s diplomatic corps try the leading power of the world in Be it Saddam, ISIS, the to project the country as a peaceful the 21st century. The President is Afghan warlords, Hitler, Hirohito, giant on the making, China wants also the Chairman of the Central Mussolini, if you look at actual to counter it as showing India Military Commission, whereby he war mongers, you would see to be a colonial power in intent, wants to take the all powerful PLA megalomania written all over in his support. So the assertion of their minds and psyche. USA, till Chinese military supremacy cannot War mongering often the other day, felt that it was their be watered down at this moment. has its roots elsewhere. bounded duty to maintain peace in To make a physical display of his The Chinese Communist the world. This also emanated from closeness to the Army, the President Party Congress is due a superiority complex of being the donned military fatigues in the in October. President Xi leader of the world, with a feeling Chinese Army Day parade on July Xingping wants to assert that all had to follow the diktat of 30th last. So war mongering will Uncle Sam. But those days are over. his presence in the party continue, at least for the few months All sensible leaders know that going to come. President Xi is also not and the country that he to war means death, bloodshed, is the actual successor to pleased at India and ally Bhutan’s maimed for life human stories and refusal to join the world meet on the legacy of Chairman expenditures to the state’s coffers. the Belt and Road summit, in which Mao, who will lead China War has long term effects, which sworn enemies like USA and Japan may at all times not be beneficial. to being the leading power participated. of the world in the 21st India’s security concern is that Defeating an enemy and capturing century. the road to Doklam, if built, will territory is one issue and holding be a threat to the ‘Chicken’s Neck’, on to it for long time is another the slender link of the northeast to issue. Today’s colonialism is not being in actual physical possession trying to play the big brother over, mainland India, as much as the of another country’s territory, but Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and political unrest in Darjeeling getting capturing the market of the enemy Sri Lanka, by using SAARC as a external support. Any retreat at this country. Again today’s enemy could guise. India’s postures of being a stage will be a display of the ’62 turn out to be tomorrow’s friend. friendly neighbour is only a show; syndrome, something which India They therefore posture war, but take its actual intentions lying elsewhere. has got out of and has been able to it to the battlefield only as the last Doklam is far away from India, check advance of the Chinese. Given the state of affairs, none act. Doklam to me is such an act of lying in the Sino-Bhutan border. battle cries, loudest in noise, but low China wants to project India as an of the countries can back off now. on actual fire power. China in 1962 aggressor and therefore coming So the build-up of armies on both came to Bomdila and the foothills, to fight someone else’s battle. The sides and the related tensions will n but went back. India captured East Chinese media have unleashed a continue. Swapnanil Barua retired from Pakistan and handed it over to the string of threats like ‘Repeat of 1962,’ Bangladeshis. So don’t be surprised to being outclassed in an eventual IAS in 2016 and has since taken up if Doklam ends as fluffy and soft as war. Further, the scribes are saying writing on social and political issues, a big dhokla. that it’s a matter between Bhutan based on his experiences. He also is War is something while war and China, which should not be into drama and arts promotion and games are another thing. Every of concern to a third party. China’s spares time for his hobby.

“

r Matter of concern

Letter to the Editor

ometime ago the BJP MLA from Hojai stated that it is people from a particular linguistic minority community of doubtful nationality that are involved in most of the criminal activities that occur throughout the state. As expected, the so-called secular brigade went on rampage branding the said MLA as communal. Effigies of the MLA, along with the Prime Minister, were burnt at many places. Candidly admitting, the said MLA’s observation holds true to a certain point as the involvement of these people can be seen in most of the criminal activities. Be it poaching, smuggling, illegal cattle trade, encroachment of government land, burglary etc, involvement of people of suspected nationality is observed in maximum cases. The handiwork of the linguistic minority community in most of the illegal activities in the state is definitely a matter of concern. For the better interest of the state and its people one should keep aside the political compulsions and accept this fact which is indeed an alarming fact. Lanu Dutta Chowdhury GNB Road Guwahati

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

In Focus “My father has supported a lot in my career. Yes, bodybuilding is a very expensive sport; I spent approximately Rs 50,000 per month on my body. But I’m thankful to my

Abhijit Das Rajbongshi Professional Bodybuilder

odybuilders spend years and years of their lives focusing on sculpting their bodies through proper

training and nutrition. Abhijit Das Rajbongshi is one such focused individual from Assam who has mastered the sport of bodybuilding. Born in Guwahati to a well-todo family, Abhijit did his schooling from Don Bosco High School and went on to pursue higher secondary from Shrimanta Shankar Academy Senior Secondary School before moving to Pune to study Commerce. At a very young age, Abhijit developed a passion for body building and joined a gym soon after passing the 10th grade. But it wasn’t until he

completed B.Com. from Pune that his passion converted into a career path. “I met a professional bodybuilder in a gym and was amazed to see his muscles. So I asked him to guide me in my training and dieting and to my surprise, he agreed. He started preparing me and taking me to bodybuilding shows; that’s how I learned the basics of bodybuilding,” expressed Abhijeet. He further added, “I watched a movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and that’s when I got so inspired by him that I made it my ambition to be like him someday in life. He, along with Phil Heath, has been my inspiration throughout my journey.” Abhijit started his career when getting a good coach and quality supplements in Guwahati was a challenge. The fitness industry in the city has seen a massive surge very recently, but we still have a long way to go as there are a vast number of things needed in the profession of bodybuilding. Being such an expensive sport, bodybuilding requires proper financial assistance along with facilities, supplements and training. Talking to G Plus about financial aid, Abhijit said,

dad that I haven’t faced much of a challenge financially.” “Assam continues to be struggling in the field of bodybuilding. We do not have proper knowledge and we are lacking in sponsorship; there’s no assistance from the state government either. Right now we have to work very hard to be able to compete on international platforms. We have many talented athletes in our state who can do very well if they’re given proper

training and assistance,” expressed Abhijit about the current scenario of Assam in the field of bodybuilding. Fighting against all obstacles that came his way, Abhijit went on to participate in his first competition, Mr Nilachal 2014, where he bagged the prize for 2nd runner-up. The win motivated him to take part in Mr Assam in 2014 and there has been no looking back ever since. Abhijit has participated and won many competitions, representing Assam as well as India internationally. He has been awarded 5th position in Mr Asia, 2nd position in Mr India and has recently been selected to represent the Indian team in Asian Body Building and Physique Sports Championship to be held at Thimphu, Bhutan from September 2 to 8. He’ll also be participating in Amateur Olympia to be held in Mumbai in October. Talking about his achievements and recognitions far and wide, Abhijit said, “It feels proud to be representing my land on international platforms. The feeling cannot be put into words.” Abhijit aspires to participate in the IFBB professional bodybuilding competition and achieve a professional card to compete in further bodybuilding pro leagues. He has his mind set to excel and make his mark in the field of bodybuilding. To all aspiring bodybuilders of Assam, Abhijit has only one message - focus on your dream, work hard and never lose hope.

What’s your take on Guwahati’s Night Life for girls?

Safety of girls at night has been a major concern in the recent past and not surprisingly, statistics have revealed the not-toocomfortable picture that the city presents for its girls Hemant Gupta Safety in any place or region is possible when people become responsible enough. So each and every citizen of Guwahati should know their responsibility and if anyone sees anything wrong being done towards girls, we should show our responsibility towards ensuring their safety. We should create such a place that no girl should be afraid to walk alone at the streets at midnight. I hope Guwahati becomes the safest place in the whole of India and very soon. Ishan Das The fact is that since the last 5-6 years this city has witnessed rampant infiltration from outsiders. By outsiders I do not mean Indians from other states, but illegal infiltration from the neighbourhood country. And that has increased the criminal cases in the city. Also 30% of the city has its original citizens who have been living here for the past 30-40 years. Migration from neighbouring places has given rise to unknown population who have entered the city in the last 10-12 years. But it’s still quite safe compared to other places. But some horrible incidents do occur. I will accept that too. But still it’s safe comparatively. Pallav Sinha I don’t know why people are complaining about night life in the comments. It says ‘girls at night’ and that holds a different meaning to the so-called “nightlife.” But sticking to the subject, my opinion would be that the authorities should become more aware of their surroundings and help keep girls safe rather than question as to why they are there. Just keep the scoundrels away from the girls and let them be as they are. We all are human irrespective of our sex and it pains me to see such a sexist subject prevailing in the modern world.

I’Ayva Loveen Firstly, a safe city is one which guarantees women’s rights in all spheres. I personally believe that Guwahati city is much safer than cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangaluru, etc. The girls or the women here can go out at 12 midnight or at 5 in the morning. One should actually have freedom to move on their own whether it’s a boy or a girl. A city is said to be safe when it eliminates gender-based violence and at the same time promotes equal opportunities for both men and women. And in order to make a city safer, it should provide the girls and women public space and public life without any fear of harm. And moreover, it has also been seen that the government takes necessary action to provide attention, prevention, and punishment for violence against women and girls and by doing this, the government guarantees women and girls access to justice. The night life for girls in Guwahati city, in the present scenario, is better and free from fear. Safety will be seen at its fullest when the mindset of the people gets updated (in today’s world), the way of thinking and the people’s perception. And well, it is always said that, “Too much of everything is bad.” Anurag Chakraborty Guwahati was actually safe. But after hearing about all the recent cases that have occurred in the city I no longer feel it’s safe anymore. Every now and then we get to hear something or the other and it is seriously a big concern. Some action should be taken about this. If guys can roam freely why not girls? Why is there a fear factor? Basically people need to broaden their minds and maybe then a change will be seen in Guwahati. Moreover, Guwahati is an amazing place and its crime rate is comparatively low but the rate of crime or any other incidents should be further reduced. Hope to see a better Guwahati in the coming times.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Buzz

NEFF: A food forum exclusively for Northeast cuisine With the website launch of North East Food Forum, a platform to promote cuisine from the NE, G Plus spoke to the founder and president of the forum, Kashmiri Barkakati Nath about the initiative and the idea behind an online food forum helped create and launch ‘Axomiya’ breakfast options served as buffet at

Founding members of NEFF strike a pose during the launch

Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

“N

orth East India is breathtakingly beautiful: verdant fields, deep green forests, and the mighty Brahmaputra flowing through. Our land is a confluence of several cultures and cuisines, all living in harmony with Mother Nature. We have inherited a cuisine which is so healthy and so flavoursome yet little explored outside the region. So, we are looking to re-discover our region and weave tales through food,” said Kashmiri Barkakati Nath, founder of the North East Food Forum (NEFF). The Forum came into being about a year and half ago as a Facebook page. Talking to G Plus about the inception of NEFF, Nath said, “There are so many misconceptions about our cuisine and most of the time a lot of misinformation is being put out on the internet. It hurts me when people outside the region think that Momo is a local and ethnic dish of Assam. Guwahati did not have Momos until the late 80’s. This is a Tibetian dish and let’s give due credit to where it belongs! Let’s make Tekeli Pitha the most popular street food of Assam. Let’s find 101 ways of serving Tekeli Pitha! That I feel is taking a cuisine forward. These are just some of the issues that I felt needed to be addressed, thus leading to the birth of NEFF.” On the 4th of August, 2017, North East Food Forum formally launched itself with a website unveiling event held at Vivanta by Taj, Guwahati with the likes of Ravi Capoor, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries &

Commerce and Social Welfare Department, Government of Assam, Manivannan, Secretary, Transformation & Development, Government of Assam and Shoeb Samad, Regional Director NorthEast, India Tourism, Government of India. Actors Kopil Bora and Zerifa Wahid graced the occasion with their presence. To mark the event, NEFF along with Vivanta by Taj held a workshop for 25 underprivileged girls from the state run women’s home, Jalukbari, Guwahati and Utsah Foundation. The girls themselves plucked vegetables from the organic garden at the hotel and used the produce to create a 3-course meal taught to them by the Executive Chef of Vivanta by Taj, Chef Sovan Kumar. “We had sleepless nights preceding the launch. We were stepping into the real world from the virtual world. But we were immensely blessed by the turn out of our well wishers, friends and guests,” Kashmiri expressed. NEFF aims to promote local cuisine, support artisans and small farmers. It intends to create awareness that from being “I’m hungry to I’m full”, there are many factors involved. At present, the NEFF family constitutes of eight executive members, including the founder and co-founder, along with other members who all share the love for food, whether it be creating or savouring food. What is common among the members is their consciousness about responsible eating and promoting the local cuisines of North East. The NEFF is also engaging in many programs. Nath has dedicated much of her time in promoting local cuisine. She has

Gateway Grandeur Hotel and given her inputs in designing Assamese dishes for Vivanta by Taj. She recently curetted a menu of ‘Axomiya Jolpan’ that has been designed keeping in mind the outstation guests seeking to savour local cuisines. NEFF is preparing to start

a “School to School” workshop for kids to learn the skills of cooking and the importance of healthy eating. They’re also planning to organise food festivals and cooking workshops across the North East. Becoming a member of the forum is as simple as visiting www.northeastfoodforum and filling the registration form. The benefits of becoming a member are many – one gets to enjoy discounts on meals at the partnered restaurants, avail discounts during workshops, and preference during culinary tours.

EDUCATIONAL NOTICE SECOND COUNSELING FOR SELECTION OF CANDIDATES FOR PROVISIONAL ADMISSION INTO MBBS/ BDS COURSES IN THE MEDICAL COLLEGES OF ASSAM FOR THE SESSION 2017. This is for general information that the 2”d round of counseling for selection of candidates into 1st year MBBS/BDS courses in the Medical Colleges of Assam for the session 2017 shall be held on 17th August /2017 in the office of the Director of Medical Education, Assam Sixmile Khanapara Guwahati-22 from 10.30 a.m. for few vacant seats. Candidates who were called for the 1st counseling held from 17th to 23rd July/2017 are eligible to attend the 2nd round of counseling along with new candidates under ST (H) category secured Assam State rank upto 5672 & TGL/ Ex-TGL Category secured Assam State rank upto 5829 of NEET UG 2017. The selection shall be made provisionally subject to fulfillment of the prescribed eligibility criteria as per the Admission Rules. Candidates who are satisfied with their allotted seat and institution during the first counseling held from 17th to 23rd July/2017 need not appear the 2nd round of counseling and their seats in already allotted college shall remain unchanged. However those candidates who have already been selected during first counseling and want to change their institution as per available vacancy in order of merit may appear the 2nd counseling for such change. All new candidates called must bring with them Application Form (Schedule-1) in original duly and properly filled in, Marks sheets of 10+2 (Sc.) examination, Admit Card of HSLC examination, Pass Certificates, PRC, Caste certificates, Admit Card of NEET-UG-2017, and other relevant documents in original. A set of photo copies of all the said documents signed by the candidate himself/herself are to be submitted along with the Application Form (Schedule-I) at the time of counseling. The said application Form- Schedule-I is available in the web site www.dmeassam.gov.in Incomplete application Form shall be summarily rejected. Candidates must appear personally for counseling on the scheduled dates and time failing which no seat shall be allotted in this counseling. The candidates who had already submitted the complete Application Form (Schedule-I) at the time of first counseling need not submit the same in the second counseling. N.B. :

(i) Counseling on 17/08/2017 shall continue upto 6 pm. If it is not completed by that time . then it shall be continued next day i.e. 18/08/2017 from 10-30 AM. (ii) The Vacancy Status shall be made public in the website www.dmeassam.go in before counseling. (iii) Schedule of Mop-up counseling shall be notified in due course of time.

Janasanyog 1189/17

Prof. (Dr.) A. K. Barman Director of Medical Education,Assam

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Trotter

Ice cream that doesn’t melt!

apanese scientists have come up with a cool solution to stop ice cream melting before you’ve had time to finish it. The ice cream retains its original shape in 28°C (82.4 F) weather and still tastes ‘cool.’ A strawberry extract stops the oil and water from separating

quickly which means the sweet treat stays frozen - even if you blow a hair dryer at it, reports suggest. These strange-looking deserts were first created by mistake by a pastry chef looking to make use of odd-shaped strawberries. Scientists at Japan’s Biotherapy

Development Research Centre in Kanazawa used a polyphenol strawberry extract to develop melt-resistant lollies. “Polyphenol liquid has properties to make it difficult for water and oil to separate,” said Tomihisa Ota, a professor at Kanazawa University who helped develop the lollies. So a popsicle containing it will be able to retain the original shape of the cream for a longer time than usual, and be hard to melt. The ice creams, which are only for sale in parts of Japan, first hit stores in Kanazawa before rolling out in Osaka and Tokyo. The company created the ‘non melting popsicles’ by accident. A pastry chef wanted to create a new kind of confectionery in order to use strawberries that were not the right shape to be sold. (Source: Dailymail)

Chinese restaurant offers women discounts based on their bra size

Chinese restaurant has come under fire for offering discounts to women depending on their bra size. The local people complained to the council after seeing posters advertising discounts for the Trendy Shrimp restaurant at a mall in Hangzhou, the main city of coastal Zhejiang province. The company’s adverts showed a line-up of cartoon women in their underwear with the slogan, “The whole city is looking for BREASTS.” It listed discounts for women depending on their cup size, with greater offers available to women with bigger busts. One representative complaint said the posters were “vulgar advertising” and “discriminatory towards women.” The posters first appeared on 1st August and have since been removed, but Trendy

Shrimp general manager, Lan Shenggang, defended their sales strategy. “Once the promotion started, customer numbers rose by about 20%,” he said, adding, “Some of the girls we met were very proud - they had nothing to hide.” He reassured readers that customers could claim their discounts from the

waitresses rather than dealing with male staff in order to “avoid embarrassment.” This is not the first time that a restaurant in China has offered discounts based on appearance. In January 2015, a restaurant in Henan rewarded diners it deemed “good-looking.” (Source: Huffpost)

Man and wife sue Amazon over ‘transphobic abuse and threats’

transgender woman and her husband have sued Amazon after they allegedly suffered a year’s worth of threats, slurs and sexual harassment by numerous colleagues. According to a lawsuit, Dane Lane and Allegra Schawe-Lane endured discrimination and harassment at the online retailer’s warehouse in northern Kentucky. A lawyer working with the couple said the case is notable in part because Amazon, one of the nation’s largest corporations, has a record of strongly supporting gay

and transgender rights. The case, which was filed in US District Court in Covington, Kentucky, alleges that the couple’s complaints to superiors led to retaliation in some cases, rather than any effective steps to halt the abuse. At one point, the brake line of their car was allegedly severed while parked in a secure lot at the workplace. Amazon declined to respond to the allegations, saying in an email, ‘We have a practice of not commenting on active litigation.’ The case will be handled by

Kentucky lawyers on behalf of the Transgender Legal Defence & Education Fund, a national transgender-rights organisation. She said: ‘I thought we would be safe and accepted. Instead it was like a bad dream. Both Dane and Allegra were hired by Amazon in October 2014 and resigned a year later saying conditions at their workplace were intolerable. Two months before resigning, they filed discrimination charges with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (Source: metro.co)

Model kidnapped to be sold at online auction

hloe Ayling, a British model in her twenties, who was coaxed while coming to Milan for a photo shoot was drugged, kidnapped, handcuffed, and loaded into a bag on arrival for six days. She was sent by her British modelling agency who had asked her to reach central station and later to the apartment where the shoot was to be held the next day. When she reached the apartment, she was drugged and undressed by two men who took her pictures. The accused Lukasz Herba, 30, and his accomplice then tied her up, put her in a bag in the boot of a car, and drove her miles away. The model was driven to an isolated house in Borgial, where she was kept handcuffed in a chest of drawers for 6 days until she was released. “The psychological pressure on the girl has been extreme,” said Serena Ferrari, a senior police officer from Milan. The British agency did notice her prolonged absence of contact and when they received a message from the captor demanding $300,000, they were sure that something bad had happened to

her. They then notified the police about it. Lukasz Pawel Herba, the captor who lives in UK, spent months planning the abduction and auction. He bought a fake passport under the name of Daniel Zawada through the internet. Lukasz is part of the ‘dark web’ network called the “Black Death” group. Although the police are unable to say whether he was just a part of this group or had himself created it, they are sure that Lukasz had contacts with people who have kidnapped women in the past. The only reason Lukasz decided to let go of the model was because she had a child of two years and it was against the group’s rules to kidnap any mother. Lukasz threatened her by saying she would be released if she paid them $500,000 and told no one about it. He also reminded the model of her value at the auction market saying he treated her with respect and expects the same in return. Lukasz decided to drop the model at the British Consulate in Milan. The police aren’t sure why he did that, but upon reaching the embassy, Lukasz was immediately arrested. The Polish, Italian and UK embassies are dealing with his case now. Meanwhile, the model is being given consular support. (Source: Indiatimes)

Popular Saudi Arabian singer arrested for DABBING

popular Saudi Arabian TV host and singer was arrested by religious police after he was filmed dabbing during a concert. Abdallah Al Shahani performed the dance move at a music festival in the city of Taif, in the south west of the country last weekend. However, Saudi police arrested the performer because the move is banned as authorities fear it promotes a ‘narcotic culture.’ Thousands of Saudis have commented on the arrest on social media. The move, which features a dancer tucking his or her head behind the back of their elbow and pointing, was outlawed by the all-powerful Saudi Ministry of the Interior. Their National Commission for Combating Drugs recently claimed the move

promoted marijuana use. Following his arrest, Al Shahani wrote on Twitter, “I apologise to our respected government and to my audience for unintentionally and spontaneously making the dance move at Taif festival. Please accept my apology.” (Source: Dailymail)

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Fun Horoscope of the week

Something may need to change, and with a powerful lunar phase showing up today, it could be your routines, habits, and daily schedule that need to alter. With a strong focus on a more secluded and spiritual sector of your chart, the current setup could encourage you to step back and see things in perspective. An event may have disrupted your routine, and now you need to make alternative arrangements. Whatever the situation, take your time before making a key decision.

Your approach to leisure activities and your social life could change this week, and the change may have been brewing for some time. You may be looking to move in new circles, make new friends, or involve yourself in activities that can harness your creative potential. To do this, you might need to move away from situations that no longer serve you. Don’t feel guilty. The cosmos is encouraging you to say goodbye to one chapter of your life and hello to another.

It may be decision time this week, and this could involve tension with family members concerning career plans or a key ambition. This matter may have been bubbling away beneath the surface for some time, but now it could come out into the open. This can be a good time to clear the air, even if doing so involves some complex conversations. With interactive Mercury spinning backward from the end of the week, it would be just as well to approach this carefully and sensitively.

If a certain matter has brought up objections in the past, these could intensify over the coming week. You could be locked into an argument that causes a rift with another if you aren’t careful. But this event could also encourage you to take a closer look at your opinion. It’s an opportunity to put yourself in another person’s shoes and see things from their perspective. Doing so could make quite a difference to the outcome of future conversations.

If one relationship has been under pressure for some time, this is when things could come to a head. A lunar eclipse in your sector of relating means that feelings could erupt and lead you to make an impulsive decision. If you can refrain until your emotions are more settled and you can see the lie of the land, you may be able to make a more informed choice. Quicksilver Mercury turns retrograde at the end of the week, so you’ll need to tread carefully.

Health and well-being may be very much on your mind, as a potent lunar phase could encourage a fresh start. A wellness issue or the sense that something needs to change regarding your overall health could act as a catalyst. Other people may have advice for you, but it would be better to seek the services of a personal trainer or health professional that you trust. You’ll want to feel as positive and energized as possible going forward.

The Auniati Satra was established in Majuli in 1663 AD by the Ahom King Sultanla. He was given the name Jayaddhaja Singha after he adopted the Hindu Religion (Vaishnava) from the first Satradhikar of Auniati Satra Sri Sri Niranjan Deva. King Jayaddhaja Singha was endowed with 81,650 bighas of land in two different categories namely Devotra and Brohmotra to be looked after and maintained by the Satra. How did the ‘Auniati’ Satra get its name?

Husori (Huchari) is a traditional carol singing that celebrates Bihu. According to one theory, Huchari comes from the Dimasa Kachari words for ‘land’ (ha) and ‘move over’ (char). But what is the most accepted version behind the name of ‘Husori’?

The prestigious Santosh Trophy Football Tournament was held in Assam in 1964. In a group match Assam defeated Gujarat 10-0. Now what was so special about that match for Assam football? Abhra Das; Ace Quizmaster of Assam This quiz has been brought to you by Brain Jam, a property of Priya Communications

Luann by Greg Evans

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7 5 2 2 5 7 6 2 Sudoku: Thu53-Aug-2017 6 4 Daily 1 7 Daily Sudoku: Thu 10-Aug-2017

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Daily Sudoku: Thu 10-Aug-2017

hard

noun [muhs-i-tey-shuh n]

8/10/2017

Puzzlers' Cave™ Crosswords

Muttering; mumbling; murmuring. http://www.dailysudoku.c Puzzlers' Cave™ Quick Crossword No. 1013

He recounted his performance at the Royal Hall in Kathmandu in front of King Mahendra of Nepal in 1965 and said, “I had picked up a Nepali folk song from two wandering minstrels at Bhaktapur en route to Mount Everest. I sang the song in front of the king. After the song was over, Dharam Raj Thapa, better known as the “King of Nepali folk music,” honoured me on stage by taking off his cap and placing it on my head. I considered it as an honour to Indian music and I have been wearing the cap since. Identify this famous figure from Assam?

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1. The slightly elevated land of Majuli where this Satra was established was full of Auni Paan (a kind of betel creeper plant). Ati means elevated place. Hence so named. 2. Khagen Mahanta. He was an exponent in folk and traditional music of Assam. Khagen Mahanta was a notable person in Assamese folk music and known as the ‘King of Bihu’. His Bihu songs, Borgeet and other folk songs are evergreen to the Assamese society. 3. The word ‘Husori’ is derived from two words ‘Hari and Ucchari.’ During the time of Bohag Bihu, groups of young people recite Husori while going from house to house and chanting the name of God. (Husori: Take the name of Hari, the God) 4. Shri Ajoy Kumar Das, one of the finest footballers from Assam, scored the first ever hat-trick for Assam in that match.

At the start of the week, you may sense that something needs to change, and you may have felt this way for some time already. Over the coming days, this urge could grow stronger and possibly encourage you to take action. Doing so could be a relief and a release, even if it’s a little bit uncomfortable to let go of a very familiar situation. However, if it no longer serves you, you are certainly doing the right thing.

With a lunar eclipse early in the week, relationships could go through a period of instability. Feelings that have been held back may come out into the open, and this could encourage you or another to make a key decision. If you can wait a few days until things calm down, you’ll find it easier to make the best choice for you and others. And while you’ll do better if you can be firm with others, a compassionate aspect could see you being very flexible.

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A financial matter may need attention, particularly if it’s something you’ve so far avoided. With a lunar eclipse across your money axis, you might need to make a swift decision or take action to settle a key matter. However, this can also be a turning point for you and perhaps an opportunity to reorganize your affairs. On another note, it might be wise to check the details, particularly when signing anything important, as interactive Mercury turns retrograde on Saturday.

Sudoku

This week, feelings could reach a peak and be a cause of intense discussion. If you and another can’t see eye to eye, matters could intensify, with the possibility of a falling out. But if you can approach this more sensitively and be willing to put yourself in the other person’s shoes, a more positive solution may be found. Communicative Mercury, your guide planet, turns retrograde at the end of the week, which could be a cause of misunderstandings if you aren’t careful.

Tensions could emerge that are related to your work/life balance and your relationship between your family and worldly responsibilities. This can be an opportunity to clear the air and explain to others more about your intentions. Even so, you might need to make a radical decision concerning your job or a personal ambition. It’s also possible that events could alter your plans anyway, and new opportunities may become available as a result. Time spent in good company can help you feel more upbeat.

last week solution

Changes could be in the cards early this week, and they could affect the social groups or people you hang out with. Certain friends may leave your circle, but others will join over time. You could also benefit from some downtime and pampering if you need to recharge your batteries, so think good food, more rest, and a chance to unwind. As Mercury enters its retrograde phase, it might also be a good idea to back up important documents and files.

Crossword Across 1. _______ Plague (7) 6. Baked dessert with filling 8. Where animals are kept 9. Not lose 10. Sheep cry 11. Pancake topping 12. Hilted weapon 14. Fires a bow and arrow

16. Short scene in a play Made with 18. Celestial body ribbon .1 21. Losing moisture Stringed 23. Fortunate instrument .2 26. Long-eared Non-existent mythical creature person .3 28. Large tree Caesar (Russian) 29. Stinging insect .4 31. Lowest number One who does not win .5 in a deck of cards Cat sound .6 32. Baseball teams; Largest type Red or White of Antarctic 33. Lower

Down

flightless bird .7 Stir fry pan .13 Headwear .15 Depression .16 Itchy plant .17 Noah’s boat .19 Small pieces .20 Bird homes .22 Wire .24 Head cover on a jacket .25 Provoke .27 Last .30

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Last week’s solutionDOWN

ACROSS 1. _______ Plague (7) 6. Baked dessert with filling 8. Where animals are kept 9. Not lose 10. Sheep cry 11. Pancake topping 12. Hilted weapon 14. Fires a bow and arrow 16. Short scene in a play 18. Celestial body 21. Losing moisture 23. Fortunate 26. Long-eared mythical creature 28. Large tree 29. Stinging insect 31. Lowest number in a deck of cards 32. Baseball teams; Red or White 33. Lower

Made with ribbon .1 Stringed instrument .2 Non-existent person .3 Caesar (Russian) .4 One who does not win .5 Cat sound .6 Largest type of Antarctic flightless bird .7 Stir fry pan .13 Headwear .15 Depression .16 Itchy plant .17 Noah's boat .19 Small pieces .20 Bird homes .22 Wire .24 Head cover on a jacket .25 Provoke .27 Last .30

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Entertainment

Debajit Changmai: The Assamese synonym of Bollywood hits

Chandrika Das

f you are talking about Bollywood, Debajit Changmai is a name which is taken with reverence. A professional in sound design, Debajit Changmai is looked upon as a mentor by an entire generation. He has been an in-demand sound mixer in films who plays an active role both on the creative as well as the technological front. Born to a school teacher father and a home maker mother and brought up in a quaint place in Sivasagar, Debajit Changmai hardly bears any trace of the childhood that defines his identity at present. As destiny would have it, from Sivasagar to Guwahati to Mumbai, Debajit today is a personality every Assamese needs to know about. Regarded as one of the best sound mixers of the

Bollywood film industry, he has earned recognition with his good work from multiple quarters. The technician, who holds a diploma in sound engineering and recording from Jyoti Chitrabon Film and Television Institute, proudly belongs to the first batch that passed out from the prestigious institution. Although he doesn’t have any formal training in music, he recalls the days when he witnessed recordings of songs in the studios of Doordarshan. Fascinated by the technical elements inside the studio, he decided to pursue his profession in sound engineering. Speaking about his days in Jyoti Chitrabon, he fondly takes names of Ujjal Chakraborty, Farooq Iqbal, and Deepak Dutta who played significant roles in moulding his passion into profession.

As a sound mixer, Changmai works to complete a visual of a film or video with sound. Working on creating audio elements that complement the video, he thrives to achieve a near perfect production by mixing the sound elements. Sound mixing is the last stage of a production. Placing sound with the correct frame of video needs a lot of skill and holds a strong impact. Describing his work, he says, “The toughest job of a mixing engineer is to produce sound elements that complement every vision of the director. A mistake anywhere can ruin the entire feel of the video.” Although a renowned professional in the industry, the artist is no exception when it comes to challenges. In his words, the biggest challenge of a mixer is achieving a deadline. Talking about the digitalization of every aspect of the industry, he sighs on the fact that every client comes with a particular release date in his hands, which often makes it difficult for the technicians. On the other hand, he speaks about the creative challenges of every production which require him to understand the perspective of the film and also the director’s vision of the film. “Every word in a film is put with a meaning where the director looks forward to trigger the right emotion in his audience. It takes utmost care and effort to produce individual sounds that could be a personification of that particular moment in the video. Perfect blending of sound according to the mood of the scene is the toughest and the biggest challenge.” Speaking about the importance of visuals and sound in relation to each other, the technician says that the one individual element cannot exist without the other. One minus the other cannot produce anything that is absorbing and interesting. While a person watches a video,

Papon sings for Rajdweep’s ‘Best of Luck’ Kalyan Kumar Kalita

n spite of his busy schedule, Papon sings a song for mobile theatre. After ‘Bonoriya’ last year, he is again associated with Rajdweep’s play ‘Best of Luck’, this year. After a lot of hit numbers in Bollywood, popular Assamese singer, Angaraag Papon Mahanta, is again associated with Assamese mobile theatre. This time, he has sung a beautiful song for Rajdweep’s highlighted play ‘Best of Luck’ which is

he creates a sound projection of that moment in his sub-conscious mind. And the beauty of that visual only comes good if it is combined with the right sound failing which the video can, in no way, be of much appeal to anyone. Debajit went on to speak

Rashtrapati Award for Ishqiya in 2010 IIFA winner in 2013, 2014, and 2015 for Barfi, Haider, and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag Apsara Award for Kick and Barfi Dhwani Award by Sound Association about scenes which were largely impacted by sound. It was exciting to know from him how unreal sound elements were used to ignite real emotions in the minds of viewers in the scene where Farhan Akhtar, in the role of Milkha Singh, was chased by horses and he looks back to the moment as he gets haunted by his dark past. The particular scene doesn’t have any real sounds of horses but are technically produced impacts which acted like a bridge between the audience and the visual to feel connected. He also speaks about a particular scene from the movie Dangal where the character Geeta calls her father over phone and where the weeping sound was muted. “Our motive was to produce an emotional frame to explain the bond between a child and a parent. We could have used sounds representing weeping but decided not to and this is how it

going to be staged by one of the popular mobile theatre troupes ‘Kohinoor Theatre.’ The song has already been released on all leading music sites. The song was recorded in Mumbai and has been written and tuned by Rajdweep. The music has been arranged by Pulak Nath. This romantic song titled ‘Matho Tumi’ plays a vital role in the play ‘Best of Luck.’ Papon feels very happy being associated with mobile theatre again. He said, “It is always a different type of experience working with mobile theatre. I am emotionally attached to this medium. Last year I was also associated with Rajdweep’s play ‘Bonoriya’ as a music director. The feedback for this song was so

works in a movie. We wanted to portray a meaning that parents, no matter what, understand the feelings of their children,” said Debajit. “Silence is as important as sound,” and silence is a vital segment of sound. Here the technician goes on to speak about the movie Ishqiya which got him the prestigious Rashtrapati Award and explains how the intimate scenes between Vidya Balan and Arshad Warsi were imbibed with ‘silent sound.’ Explaining the scene where the duo gets intimate with each other, he said, “As Vidya and Arshad came close to each other, we went on reducing the sounds in the backdrop until the point when their breaths were the only sound elements that remained. Also, to make people feel that the moment isn’t so blank, we created some light sound elements to give the feeling that something far away is keeping the moment alive, like a perfect real night time.” The profession of Debajit Changmai demands him to stay technically updated. The new technical stuff that has the market overboard at present keeps changing every day, and he fears that not being updated might make a technician obsolete in the industry. To the young aspirants he says that the profession requires patience and thirst to learn new things every day. This profession which often looks glamorous, is not always the same, and requires a lot of hard work and dedication, which is why he advises the young generation to refrain from considering just the glamorous aspect. His most satisfying works include Kaminey, Ishqiya, Barfi, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Dedh Ishqiya, Haider, Reluctant Fundamentalists, Dangal, Kaabil, Bahubali etc which have won him huge accolades and given him a n wide range of experience.

good. So I am hopeful that people like this song of the play ‘Best of Luck’ as well. The story of the play is very heart touching and connected to our society.” The lyricist and composer of the song, Rajdweep said, “The song was very nice and it was beautifully implemented in the play.” This season, Kohinoor Theatre has signed Tehsin Akhtar, Arup Bora, Kamal Rebati, Pallabi Phukan, Mahesh Bora, Krishnamoni, Joy, Pallab Plaban, Sankar Chakraborty, Arun Borah, Amrit Raj along with a lot of new comers and senior artistes. Notably, the song of Kohinoor Theatre’s ‘Best of Luck’ is the only song Papon has sung this year for mobile theatre. n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Reviews Cast: Akshay Kumar, Bhumi Pednekar, Divyendu, Sudhir Pandey, Anupam Kher Director: Shree Narayan Singh

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Toilet – Ek Prem Katha

“B

iwi paas chahiye toh ghar me sandaas chahiye” - With this motto, Akshay Kumar sets out on a mission to hold a mirror to those who support open defecation in the name of age-old traditions and so called Indian culture. Bhumi Pednekar’s idealistic stand on marriage and overflowing love for her husband accompany Akshay Kumar while he takes on the system, society and his own father. The story is this - Go-getter Keshav (Akshay) serenades liberal-thinker Jaya (Bhumi), a woman from his neighbouring village in Uttar Pradesh. They marry but it doesn’t strike

Keshav to tell her that his house doesn’t have a toilet. This then becomes the grounds for Jaya to file for a divorce. Akshay is the backbone of this satire. His inner journey as an actor pays dividends and he delivers yet another topnotch performance. Bhumi is perfect in her rendition of the feisty Jaya and Divyendu is a terrific comic. The presence of veterans, Pandey and Kher, is unmissable. The screenplay is peppered with loads of LOL moments balanced correctly with emotional outbursts. As bonus, you get a hummable soundtrack with Hans Mat Pagli, Bakheda and Gori Tu n Lath Maar.

Cast: TJ Miller, Anna Faris, James Corden, Patrick Stewart Director: Tony Leondis

et in a fantasy world inside the smart phone of a teenager, the film revolves around an emoji called Gene. Unlike his 'meh' parents, he can't stick to expressing just one emotion. Tagged as a 'malfunction' for being multiexpressional, he flees the digital city along with his friends Hi5 and Jailbreak so that he's not 'deleted'. ‘Embrace yourself just the way you are and why fit in when you can stand out?’ is the message that lies at the heart of this digital tale. The thought is sweet but just an idea can't salvage a predictable advertisement parading as a film.

The impact of this Emoji movie is as long-lasting as an IPhone battery. Speaking of brands, the film blatantly promotes apps and emojis — Instagram, Facebook, Candy Crush, etc. Even if you were to overlook the branding, there’s absolutely nothing in the story that can keep you from dozing off. Also ironically, the very use of emojis is to cut short the words. Thus, the emoji that can best describe this film is its very central character — meh! Also last but not least, our sympathies for Patrick Stewart, who lends his voice to the poop emoji. Yes, you heard that right. n

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Product Review

Gionee A1 Lite

ionee has launched its newest member in the A-series, the A1 Lite. Perhaps the highlight of the Gionee A1 Lite is its 20-megapixel selfie camera, and a 4000mAh battery. Available in Gold and Black colour options, Gionee A1 Lite will be available in India starting August 10. The smartphone is priced at Rs 14,999. Specifications

Speaking of its specifications, Gionee A1 Lite features a 5.3-inch HD (1280 x 720) and 2.5D curved glass Under the hood, the phone is powered by an octa-core 64-bit processor coupled with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. The internal memory is further expandable up to 256GB via a microSD card slot. The mid-range is backed by a 4000mAh battery that claims to offer uninterrupted usage for up to 30 hours regardless of web browsing, reading or even consuming video content.

Camera

On the camera front, the A1 Lite sports a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 20-megapixel shooter in the front. Connectivity options include 4G VoLTE, dual-SIM, Bluetooth, GPS, and USB OTG. In addition, there’s a fingerprint scanner on the back, just below the camera. Attractive offers

To attract new customers, Gionee has partnered with Airtel and PayTm to announce two exciting offers. For instance, new or existing Airtel customers who purchase the A1 Lite will get additional 10 GB data per month for 6 months on on any data recharge of 1GB and above. Plus, everyone who opts for the Gionee A1 Lite will get 2 PayTM cashback vouchers codes entitling customers with Rs 250 cash back on a minimum purchase of Rs 350 on PayTM Mall. Gionee A1 Lite is the third smartphone in the A-series that has been launched in India. The other two smartphones – the A1 and A1 Plus – are already available in India for Rs 19,999 and Rs 26,999, respectively. Verdict

Ultimately the Gionee A1 Lite is a smartphone for users who would like to avoid hooking up to a power outlet frequently and also promises something impressive for the selfie enthusiasts. n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Lifestyle

VAASTU SHASTRA

Plants and Vaastu

lants and trees bring freshness in the surroundings. Greenery increases the beauty of a place or household. So people should plant trees and flower plants wherever possible. Besides releasing vital oxygen for us, plants have the power to rectify Vaastu defects also. The Tulsi (Basil) plant is such a

plant which has several health and Vaastu benefits. Green plants purify the air and check air pollution; but there may be adverse effects from trees too if Vaastu rules are not followed. So it is important to keep trees and plants accordingly. Cactus and milk producing trees are not good. Thorny trees emit sharp energies from the thorns and hence if they are kept in the compound, sufficient distance should be maintained from them. Thorny plants should be specially avoided in front of the house. Tall and large trees should be avoided in the north, northeast and east because they make

have delivered in the last 2-3 years. When the markets are running at lifetime highs, an investor may be reluctant to invest new money into it. However, the big investors are also betting big on the equity markets and in such a scenario, we are reminded of a famous dialogue of a Bollywood movie which says, “The larger picture is yet to come.” 10,000 is just another mark for Nifty and there are great peaks to be scaled in the future. Spending ‘time in the market’ is much more important for the investor than timing the market. This becomes the essence of goalbased investing. Once you have linked goals to the investing, it becomes imperative to stay focused on the goal than focusing on the daily price volatilities. In case you have a longer time horizon, a big fall in a day should not bother you much. Likewise, a gap up opening for a day should not excite you unless you need to liquidate your investments the same day. A longer time horizon helps the investors capture the upsides for better returns and downsides for lowering

these directions heavy besides blocking the early morning sunrays. It has become fashionable to exhibit Bonsai plants in the drawing room. Bonsai is a Japanese way of artificially dwarfing a plant which even bears fruits and flowers. This is in violation of a natural process by suppressing the natural growth. By keeping Bonsai plants at home, the energy for growth and development is blocked. It can hinder the progress of the household. So they should not be kept at home however beautiful they look. Similarly, dried flowers and plants should not be used for decoration as they symbolise death and withering. If it is not possible to keep live plants at home, pictures of the same may be kept. Climbers like the money plant can be kept in the corner. This brings prosperity and removes depression. The southeast corner is the place for money and prosperity according to Feng Shui. Green plants should be kept here. Feng Shui recommends the bamboo plant in the east for happiness and prosperity. A fresh bouquet of flowers brings positive energy at home, shop or workplace. But when the flowers start to wither, they should be removed or replaced immediately. However, refrain from keeping any kind of plants or flowers in the bedroom. This causes marital disharmony. Hemanta Kumar Sarmah Engineer, Businessman, Advanced Pranic Healer and Su Jok Acupressure specialist.

Drop The Guilt

uilt has a purpose. It does not allow you to get into a cycle of actions that are not good for you and for others. When such an action happens, the guilt in you acts like a brake for you not to continue the same act. However, guilt is good in the right amount and only for that period of that time. If it goes beyond a limit then it eats you up like termites in the cupboard. So, you need ‘skill’ to get out of guilt, but at the same time, not totally remove it from the system until you realize that you are not the doer but the total light, the wisdom, the self. Until that blossoming, a little bit of guilt serves you. It protects you from wrong-doing that you might engage in. To bring about that balance we have spiritual practices, surrendering to the divine, and faith in the higher power and self. Your very wish to repent has solved the purpose. This wish is an indication that your intellect is getting

matured. Otherwise, you would not have been aware of your wrong actions. You are innocent in the present moment. That person who did a mistake has packed off his suitcase and gone. Now inside you is a new person. Start believing in the innocence of the present moment where the YOU in you is innocent. Lord Krishna tells Arjuna, “I will relieve you from your sins. You just surrender. Then it’s my responsibility to take care of your sins. Don’t worry. Drop all that you are holding onto - even your dharma.” Instead, people try to get rid of their sins. The Divine will relieve you of your sins. All that you need to do is to let go of everything you are holding on to.

shri shri ravi shankar Founder- Art of Living Foundation.

Nifty at 10,000 – What Next?

aunched in the year 1996 with base value 1,000, Nifty 50 index hit the 10,000 mark in the month of July after the market uptrend continued due to expectations of better monsoon, moderating inflation numbers and the implementation of GST as expected. Nifty has given 19% returns to the investors in this year itself and shows much promising investing future ahead. Even while the benchmark indices are touching lifetime highs, the journey has not been that

smooth. The index took a whole 8 years to double and touched 2000 mark in 2004. However, the buoyant markets helped Nifty touch 6000 mark in 2007, just after 3 years. Right after that point, the markets were hit by the global crisis and it could rebound and hit the 7,000 mark only in 2014, a good long period of 7 years. The Nifty has finally touched the five-digit mark in July 2017 with much strong

domestic indicators. The institutional and retail money is flowing into the markets in great numbers and such is the present belief in the present government’s reform agenda that any negative data point is dismissed and even a slight positive is highly cheered. Needless to say, this trust being bestowed over the equity markets by the investors is based upon the returns markets deficit

numbers and forex reserves. Further, with the improving economic scenario, corporate earnings will also improve over time and the equity markets are indeed the true barometer for the same. As we look beyond the numbers in the equity markets, Warren Buffet said something relevant for the situation, “Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” Equities provide the same comfort for your investments. Plant your tree of investments now and reap good returns in the future. the average cost of investment. The economy is encountering various structural changes like the implementation of Goods & Service Tax (GST), Real Estate Regulation

Act (RERA), the Insolvency Act etc. Recently, the ruling party has also walked past Congress to be the largest single party in Rajya Sabha too and this has increased hopes

of major legislative reforms in the times to come. As such, it still makes sense to consider investing in equity markets with moderating inflation and much comfortable

Pallav Bagaria CEO, Brand New Day – one of Northeast’s leading Mutual Funds Investment Consultancy and Portfolio Management Services pallav@salasarcapital.com

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Buzz

Sony launches flagship BRAVIA OLED A1 in Guwahati Fashion show to aid cancer after year. The introduction of the new Sony OLED defines the patients’ treatment

The new product being unveiled by Manas Robin in presence of Bhaskar Guha, Br. Manager, Sony India Pvt. Ltd. & Rajiv Jain, Director, Sony Center.

ony India today announced it’s much awaited premium flagship line-up of OLED TVs aimed at redefining the future of home entertainment. With cutting-edge TV technology the new A1 series made the Guwahati city launch on Friday, 11th August at Sony Center, GS Road, Christian Basti, Guwahati. The TV boasts of a wide variety of features like the OLED technology for incredible contrast and life-like colours, Acoustic Surface™ revolutionizing sound

technology, One Slate design, 4K HDR Picture and X1 Extreme Processor. Sony’s BRAVIA line-up has Model name 164 cm (65) KD-65A1 139 cm (55) KD-55A1

next leap towards modernising the TV viewing experience. It is the foremost premium offering targeted towards delivering an extraordinary experience packed with distinctive features. Sony’s 4K HDR Processor X1™ Extreme has been widely acclaimed for its ability to produce lifelike picture with superb texture, depth, colour, and contrast, bringing a significant leap forward in the space of HDR. With this new TV series, Sony introduces 4K HDR Processor X1 Extreme’s power to a broader audience. The customers can avail a pre-booking offer on the

Availability

MRP

4th August, 2017

Rs. 464,900

4th August, 2017

Rs. 364,900

been continuously witnessing a positive progression with premium products being introduced for the customers year

Sony OLED TV from 1st to 15th August, 2017 from select dealers and the customer will be entitled to get a PlayStation 4. n

Visitors admiring the paintings of Mukumoni during an exhibition titled “Spandan”, at the State Art Gallery in Guwahati on Tuesday.

fashion show, showcasing the finest collection of designer Meghna Rai Medhi, along with 30 elite fashion models and industry experts, has been designed to come together to put up one of the biggest fashion shows In the North-East Zone. Meghna Rai Medhi will present a fashion show and an auction of her collection. Aimed at a noble cause, the fund generated from the auction will be an aid to cancer patients. Meghna Rai Medhi is one of the first designers from North East to be featured in the prestigious six page designer portfolio feature of Femina Magazine. She is known for her work to promote Assam silk not only in her native country but also in countries like Thailand, United Arab Emirates among others. Speaking to Meghna about the

event and how fashion can affect change, she said, “Everything and everyone can make a difference in life and to the society. The only thing we need is to begin somewhere and for me fashion is the one thing I can do. It might be a small effort but I wish to do start n somewhere.

Yo! China’s Thai Food Festival

uwahati’s most loved Cantonese restaurant Yo! China has yet again come up with a fresh new food festival. Geared up with a specially curated menu, Yo! China an presenting a Thai Food Festival till 15th August 2017. The Thai Food Festival menu includes Tom Kha Kai Soup, Glass Noddles Soup, Special Thai Red / Green/ Yellow Curries, Steamed Fish Cake, Thai Basil Lamb/ Chicken, Lemon Chicken with Thai Herbs, Massaman Curry and Thai Path Noddles to name a few . “The Thai Food Festival is a must-visit event, specially crafted for our guests, to explore never-seen-before variety of Thai food options. The Thai Food Festival will culminate on the 71st Independence Day of India with special offers to woo the

lovers of Thai Food. The special menu boasts of dishes which are not available anywhere under one roof in the city, making the 30-day event a unique mustvisit experience,” says Shaurav A Chowdhury, General Manager at KARINI Group of Restaurants. Yo! China recently won the tag of Guwahati’s best Oriental cuisine restaurant at the Guwahati Food Awards. Yo! China bar-cumrestaurant was inaugurated in 2010. Located at Lachit Nagar on GS Road, the popular restaurant serves as a happy blend of Chinese cuisine keeping in mind the local tastes and preferences. Rated as one of the most authentic and finest Oriental cuisine restaurant in the city, the food, available in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian choices, has become an instant favorite among the food lovers. n

1st U17 Inter District Futsal Championship 2017

Artists enacting a drama “Macbeth” directed by Sangeet Natak Academy awardee Ratan Thiyam from Manipur, at the ongoing Natasurya Drama Festival, at ITA Machkhowa on Monday.

he 1st Under 17 Inter District Futsal Championship concluded at RG Baruah Stadium, Guwahati. A total of 14 districts participated in the event. The chief guests for the opening

ceremony were Sanjeev Gogoi (Secretary, Sports) and Dept. Director Mustafa Piar while the chief guest for the closing event was Debashish Bose (Assistant General Secretary, Guwahati Sports Association). The event was a grand success with Baksa emerging victorious by defeating Dima Hasao in the finals with a score line of 2-0. This was the first of its kind tournament held in Guwahati and received great ovation all around. n

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Events

Celebration of Gauhati Town Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 111th Foundation Day Date: 6th August A musical concert with Vreegu Kashyap and Ritrisha Sarmah Glimpses of the celebrations at Gauhati Town Club All smiles - Vreegu Kashyap with the GTC members

Ritrisha Sarmah during her performance

But first, lemme take a selfie!

The Friendship Day Gig at NYX Date: 6th August Venue: NYX Lounge and Deck, Hotel Palacio

Venue: Terra Mayaa Date: 6th August (The Friendship Day Gig with DJ Paroma) DJ Paroma from Mumbai played a fantastic Bollywood set. The dance floor was packed with the insane energy from both the artist and the audience.

G PLUS | AUG 12 - AUG 18, 2017

Catching Up Poll of the Week

How safe is nightlife for girls in Guwahati?

Priyanka Nath

15% of the respondents feel night life in

the city is safe for girls

85% felt that it is not safe for girls to stay

However, out at night

(This poll was done with 80 respondents )

New

Chick on the block