Vol 5 Issue 36 by G Plus

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018 @guwahatiplus www.guwahatiplus.com

Inside

Volume 05 | Issue 36 Jun 30 - Jul 06, 2018 Price `10

Is Sijubari turning into Guwahati’s premier crime locality? PG 04

Govt stance on detected foreigners post final NRC update ambiguous

Location survey for elevated railway tracks in Ghy begins

PG 10

Rising Ambubachi footfall poses management challenges to DA for future melas

PG 11

Depleting groundwater adding to city’s increasing heat

Metal detectors at Kamakhya temple where laser cameras were connected to count the footfall | G Plus Photo

Rahul Chanda rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

round 20 lakh people thronged the Kamakhya Temple atop the Nilachal Hill on the occasion of Ambubachi between June 22 and June 25 last. The district administration had, for the first time, barred devotees from entering Nilachal Hill for 5 hours every night between 12 am and 5 am. The devotees were not allowed to climb up the hill from the Kamakhya Rotary to the Kamakhya Temple between 12 midnight and 5 am during the dates of June 22 and June 25. But even while the administration adopted this new crowd management strategy, the situation was seen to be very chaotic on all the days and the authorities had to resort to “staggering” (stopping and allowing entry at intervals) at certain times. Managing Director of Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC), Kausar Hilaly said, “19.36 lakh devotees

entered Kamakhya Temple during Ambubachi and it is the highest till date.” According to him, last year there was a footfall of around 15 lakh people. While the footfall of devotees is increasing every year, the administration is relying on three routes for devotees to reach Kamakhya Temple – the main road from Kamakhya Rotary, Mekhela Ujowa Path and Pachim Duwar Path from Aruna Cinema Hall. The residents of Nilachal Hill are very unhappy with the arrangements as, according to them, their personal lives get paralysed and go off the routine track during Ambubachi. A resident of Nilachal Hill, Sanjib Sharma, talking to G Plus said, “We are not allowed to drive down to the Kamakhya Rotary during Ambubachi and we are stuck for almost five days. During health emergencies we face problems taking patients to the hospitals.”

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A child dives into Brahmaputra river to get relief from the scorching heat in the city | G Plus Photo

ith the city’s temperatures soaring higher every passing year, besides pollution and irregular monsoon, reports indicate that the depleting groundwater in the city is also one of the reasons for the same. According to Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) that has its northeast branch at Bethkuchi here, groundwater acts as a natural coolant. “Consider the groundwater as a natural coolant. It consists

Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in mostly of the rainwater that the soil soaks in and it runs underground like a stream. Along with the rainfall cycle, the groundwater level naturally goes up during the summers when it rains and dries up a bit in the winters when the rain is scanty. Hence, when it is hottest in the summers, the groundwater stabilizes the heat

that the soil soaks in and cools the environment at night. This balance has been destabilized with the fast depletion of groundwater,” a scientist at CGWB said. As per a report of the CGWB published in 2013, the groundwater resources in greater Kamrup – Kamrup (Metro) and Kamrup (Rural) districts – is still under ‘Safe’ category. The annual dynamic

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Lead Story

SNIPPETS Man claims false insurance after staging robbery, arrested

he Bhangagarh police recently arrested one Rahul Kalita who duped money from a private insurance company. According to the police, Kalita staged a robbery in his own house and later claimed Rs 16 lakhs from a private insurance company. The accused is now in custody for further questioning. n

Kamrul Islam Choudhury elected as the new APYC President

he much-awaited Assam Youth Congress election results are out. In a multicornered contest Kamrul Islam Choudhury from Cachar grabbed the post of President with 13,504 votes. Coming a close second Ankita Dutta polled 10,803 votes and will be the Vice-President. Ankita Dutta is the daughter of late Anjan Dutta who was Assam Pradesh Congress Committee President. Others who won were: Ratul Patowary 7,735 votes, Arup Talukdar 5,252 votes, NS Wazid 2,899 votes and Mrinal Hazarika 2,678 votes. There were a total of nine candidates for the post of state president. n

Ambubachi Mela devotee drowns in Brahmaputra

n an unfortunate incident that took place in the city, a pilgrim who came to Guwahati for the Ambubachi Mela 2018 drowned in the Brahmaputra River. According to Jalukbari Police, SDRF is currently conducting a search operation to locate the devotee. The identity of the devotee is yet to be known. It is to be mentioned that more than 19 lakh devotees from all over the world have thronged Ambubachi Mela this year to seek the blessings of Maa Kamakhya. n

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Depleting groundwater... Continued from page » 1 groundwater resources as in 2009 are estimated to be 1,847.29 million cubic metres while the net annual ground water consumption is 715.97 million cubic metres of which, 43 per cent is renewed every year. But when the rise in water consumption concentrated in the urban areas is considered, the scenario is worrisome, CGWB said. “The water renewal of the groundwater channels mostly depends on the porousness of the

soil. Unlike Kamrup (Rural), about 70 per cent of Kamrup (Metro) has hard-to-penetrate granite rocks while only the Brahmaputra river bank areas consist of porous new and old alluvial soil. Hence, the renewal rate is much lesser. But the consumption here is much higher,” the scientist said. The consumption, since 1980 till 2010, has increased four times and is expected to further double by 2020. About 70 per cent of the city is dependent on the groundwater as the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) is able to

provide water to only 30 per cent of the city’s population. While the city waits for its three ambitious water projects – South Central Guwahati, East and West Guwahati water projects – the continued dependence on groundwater is fast depleting the reserve. While the fast depleting groundwater reserve is an issue, several international reports and NGOs indicate that the heating of the groundwater reserve too adds as an insulator. This was first revealed in a report published by ETH Zurich and further backed in

another by Nature Geoscience. The reports, based on a datasets of 40 years of observation of climate change and groundwater movement, demonstrated that global warming is directly reflected in the groundwater temperatures up to 60 meters below the surface. “This sets motion to a much more harmful chain of climate change. As the excessive heat in and around the city puts off the prospects of rains, it leads to the further depletion of groundwater,” Parthojyoti Das, an environmental scientist of Aaranyak, said. n

Guwahati to become an ‘Urban Heat Island’

he real feel of temperature in the city during the summers is growing at a higher rate than other areas in its vicinity despite having the same climatic conditions, a phenomenon that is called ‘Urban Heat Island’ (UHI) syndrome. First discovered by a British chemist and amateur meteorologist, Luke Howard in 1810, the phenomenon holds more relevance two centuries later when human activity now has increased more with industrialisation, vehicle and air conditioning pollution. According to a report published by Juri Borbora and Arup Kumar Das named “Sustainable Cities and Societies” in 2014, it was revealed that the temperature imparity of a city and its nearby areas is about 2 degrees due to the UHI affect. The Borjhar-based Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) has

People drinking coconut water on a hot day in the city | G Plus Photo

The annual dynamic groundwater resources as in 2009 are estimated to be 1,847.29 million cubic metres while the net annual ground water consumption is 715.97 million cubic metres of which, 43 per cent is renewed every year. The groundwater consumption, since 1980 till 2010, has increased four times and is expected to further double by 2020. About 70 per cent of the city is dependent on the groundwater as the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) is able to provide water to only 30 per cent of the city’s population.

said that the temperature in the city is going to be at an all-time high and is not expected to go down in the next one week. “It is going to be about 36 to 38 degrees Celsius in Kamrup. This is partly because the northeast region is going to get lesser monsoonal rainfall than normal. Also, the city is receiving lesser rainfall because of the pollution here. There is a wide difference between the rainfalls that Borjhar receives and that the Basistha or Fancy Bazar receives,” Sanjay O’Neil Shaw, director of RMC said. “Greeneries attract the low floating clouds such as cumulus and cirrus clouds. The city, which has a scant green cover, fails to do this,” Shaw added. However, if the UHI affect is considered, the real feel temperature in the city is as high as 41 to 42 degrees Celsius. “This is mostly due to high carbon footprint in the city due to automobile pollution and the cumulative heat generated by

air-conditioners,” Ranjan K Baruah, an environmentalist under the banner of Northeast Dialogue Forum, said. He further suggested, “The city cannot avoid the problems that might arise due to global warming and other issues, but we can bring the pollution in the city down if we change our lifestyle a bit. Instead of purchasing more and more cars, we must also use bicycles like in China and Japan. We should be very judicious in using our air conditioners. And, if we plant a tree in every house, I don’t think green cover will be an issue. With these small steps, the people of Guwahati can help the city avoid the fluctuating climate to some extent.” According to a report of the Pollution Control Board, Assam (PCBA), the green cover of the city is less than 25 per cent which is less than the UNESCO standard of 33 per cent. The Assam State Disaster Management Authority had, in

2015, conducted a survey to identify the wards in the city with low green cover and had started a project to increase it. It is not known if the project has been successful in achieving the objective. Gokul Bhuyan, senior environmental engineer of PCBA, said, “Other indexes of pollution are still on the safe side, But the suspended particles that are emitted from vehicles is rising alarmingly rising in the city. Guwahati already has a high index of such particles due to the sand bars in the riverine areas.” “The rapid deforestation in the city’s outskirt and the rampant usage of automobiles and air conditioners has raised the city’s carbon footprint. The air conditioners that we use provide cold air inside, but release the hot air into the atmosphere. The automobiles we drive emit carbon monoxide and suspended particle matters which increase the heat index of the city,” Ranjan K Baruah said echoing Bhuyan. n

Lead Story

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Rising Ambubachi footfall... Continued from page » 1 Sharma described how a patient was not able to be taken to any hospital till the Ambubachi festival ended. There are around 1,000 households in Nilachal Hill and a population of around 9,000 people who are adversely affected during Ambubachi. Even the residents of areas like Santipur, Bhootnath, Maligaon and the adjacent areas are affected during Ambubachi. The administration claimed that it did not issue any VIP passes to anyone that would allow vehicles to be taken up to the Kamakhya Temple from the Kamakhya Rotary. A resident of

Kamakhya, under condition of anonymity said, “We were not given any passes but the parking lot here was full with vehicles.” He said that bureaucrats, ministers, prominent businessmen and police personnel down to the rank of constables drove up in vehicles. Only on Sunday evening vehicles were completely barred from the Rotary as the crowd was so huge that the entire stretch of road from the Rotary up to Kamakhya Temple was fully jampacked. On Sunday the crowd was so huge that many Guwahatians were apprehensive that there could be stampede-like accidents in the massive crowd. Dipali Das of Jyotikuchi visited Kamakhya on Sunday and

she said, “We started walking from Kamakhya Rotary at 6 pm and reached Kamakhya Temple at around 11 pm.” She said that this year was the worst experience she had ever had as there was a huge crowd on both the sides and at times she feared that stampede could break out. She visits Ambubachi every year and this was the first time she faced a tough time reaching the temple for seeking the blessings of the Goddess. The crowd was so huge on 24th June (Sunday) that the traffic department had to summarily and without prior notice block the AT Road even as vehicles coming from Azara side were diverted onto the national highway. It was chaotic for many citizens as

ATDC counts footfall using laser technology for the first time

he Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC), for the first time, calculated the footfall during Ambubachi Mela 2018 adopting a laser light technology. ATDC managing director (MD) Kausar Hilaly said, “AMTRON carried out the work as we wanted to have a genuine footfall count.” AMTRON installed laser camera lights at the walk-through metal detector gates. The cameras were connected to the machines which recorded the footfall calculating the head counts. The technology is expected to be upgraded next year. A source in ATDC said, “We are planning to calculate footfall on the basis of face count next year and the images of the visitors

will also be captured.” If the images are captured, it will also help the security agencies to identify criminal elements among the multitude that visits Kamakhya during Ambubachi, the source asserted. The technology this year was installed only at the main gates near the temple. The visitors climbing up the Nilachal Hill and not entering Kamakhya Temple were not calculated. This gave an actual calculation about the total number of visitors that entered the temple premises. Last year, the footfall was estimated to be 15 lakhs but there was no actual data. This year, according to the laser technology calculation, 19.36 devotees entered the temple during Ambubachi. n

there was no prior instruction provided. Citizens also believe that the decision of barring devotees from climbing the Nilachal Hill for the 5 nightly hours was a bad idea. A Guwahatian said, “I always go to Kamakhya during the nights because it is easier and less chaotic but the decision this time made me visit the temple in the evening and it was very tough.” Ambubachi is an important festival but the authorities need to adopt different strategies to manage the crowd so that Guwahatians, especially the people living in Nilachal Hill, do not suffer. After around 20 lakh people visited Kamakhya this year, there is every possibility of this figure swelling next year. n

SNIPPETS Centre releases Rs 340 crores for Assam floods

he centre has released an amount of Rs 340 crores, including Rs 239 crores under National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) and Rs 101 crores from Ministry of DoNER as flood assistance. It was announced after DoNER minister Jitendra Singh held a detailed review of the flood relief measures with Assam state government at Guwahati recently. This year’s first wave of floods has already displaced thousands and has claimed 26 lives so far. “The Central government is monitoring the Assam flood situation on a daily basis and we have assured the state government of providing all kinds of assistance,” said Jitendra Singh. He said that the Ministry of Home Affairs, through its NDRF, has ordered immediate release of Rs 239 crores as first instalment for the State Disaster Relief Fund. n

58th National Inter-state Senior Athletics Championship inaugurated in city

hief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the 58th National Interstate Senior Athletics Championships 2018 at IGA International Stadium, Guwahati in presence of former international athlete PT Usha recently. With vibrant regular national and international events, Guwahati has become an attractive sporting arena. "Under the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Assam is on the right track to become the sports capital of India, a journey which started with the South Asian Games in 2016. Every tournament, small or big, at either the junior or senior levels is a shot in the arm for us, strengthening sporting infrastructure and developing personalities of our youngsters and sportspersons," said Sonowal. n

City

SNIPPETS Haj pilgrims from Assam to promote Gamocha in Mecca, Medina

aj pilgrims from Assam will be wearing a gamochas while on their holy journey to Mecca and Medina. The move is to make the pilgrims stay connected with each other and for better coordination. The decision was first proposed by Northeast Haj Pilgrims Coordination Committee (NEHPCC) and has now been approved by the Assam government. Speaking to G Plus, Nekibur Zaman, working chairman of NEHPCC said, “There are three main motives behind the decision to let our pilgrims from Assam carry gamochas. One, this will help people of Assam to easily identify and stay connected with their own kind among the 80-90 lakh pilgrims from across the world. The second reason is to promote the gamocha and Assamese culture worldwide. Thirdly, to distinguish their place of stay from other nationalities, buildings wherein the Haj pilgrims from Assam will stay, will have a flag like identification.” Ranjit Dutta, Minister for Welfare of Minorities has already ordered 4,000 gamochas which will be provided to the pilgrims. This year the Haj pilgrims from Assam will start their journey to Mecca and Medina from 14th-22nd July, 2018. n

City police nabs wanted poacher

n a joint operation, Biswanath police and the city police apprehended a wanted poacher from Pan Bazar area recently. The accused, Yakub Ali, is part of the wanted list in many poaching cases. Police said that he was making efforts to secure bail in some of the cases registered against him. He is already charge sheeted by CBI in a rhino poaching case, in which he also has a non-bailable warrant issued against him. n

Drug peddler held with heroin

ased on a secret tip-off, city crime branch, along with the Hatigaon Police, today arrested one Abdul Rahman and recovered 3 packets of heroin in Hatigaon. According to the police, the net worth of the seized heroin is said to be worth Rs 21 lakhs in the international market. Abdul Rahman is a resident of Lalmati, Lakhimandir Path. Guwahati has become the narcotics transit capital of northeast. n

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Is Sijubari turning into Guwahati’s premier crime locality? G Plus traces the various criminal activities and elements emanating from Sijubari in the recent past with the growing number of questionable people settling in the locality Nehal Jain

he crime rate in Sijubari area of Hatigaon has remained alarmingly high over the past few years. Although crimes in Guwahati have seen an overall dip this year, officials at the Hatigaon police station say that the number of cases reported here are among the highest in the entire city. Sijubari has recorded an increased number of crime cases this year. Out of a total of 420 cases registered at the Hatigaon Police station in the past six months (January 1 – June 26), 84 cases alone are from Sijubari. Officials at the Hatigaon Police station informed G Plus that every year, cases from Sijubari area are highest in numbers as compared to the rest of the area that falls under the police station. Other areas include Hatigaon main road, Lakhmi Nagar, Lal Mati and Bhetapara. While cases

The ever busy Sijubari Chariali | G Plus Photo of petty theft, gambling, crime against property and dowry are very common in these areas, some of the heinous crimes that have increased in Sijubari are kidnapping, fake note racket and

murder, to name a few. Sijubari is home to a large number of illegal migrants who have come to Guwahati from nearby places like Dhubri, Goalpara and Barpeta. They live

in overcrowded rented houses and indulge in various labour works to earn a living. “Muslim inhabitants from lower Assam are residing in our locality in large numbers. To my knowledge, these inhabitants are behind most of the crimes taking place here. In Sijubari, a vicious cycle of conspiracy can be observed as household maids can be seen working in many high rises of the area. They come as workers during the day and send their gang members to rob under the cover of darkness,” Atiqul Habib, a resident of the area told G Plus. In the same vein, Md Ajijur Rahman, a grocery shop owner said, “Petty theft and gambling (teer) are very common crimes here. Most of the original inhabitants of Sijubari do not work and their source of income is rent. Earlier, people had huge lands and property which they have sold off over the years. Now that they do not have any savings, they have given rooms on rent to people from parts of lower Assam.” n

Murder, kidnap and Police fails to fake currency: cases control crime in the that shook Guwahati area: Residents

ijubari came into limelight for all the wrong reasons this year. Cases of gruesome murder, kidnapping and crimes against women gripped the city with shock and panic. Further, large numbers of fake currency notes printed in Sijubari have been found circulating in the market. In November 2017, just when the city was prepping up for the New Year, counterfeit Indian currency notes of Rs 500, Rs 2000 and Rs 200 amounting to a face value of Rs 3 lakhs were recovered from Sijubari and they looked almost real. Investigations revealed that the original currency note is first scanned after which it is printed on tracing paper and then with the help of screen printing stencil, it is

printed on the fake currency note paper. Police officials had arrested one Jainal Ahmed in connection with the racket. Not much later, in February this year, one Hemant Chaucharia was shot dead at Kailash Nagar area of Hatigaon. The victim, a grocery shop owner based in Hatigaon, was shot in the evening while he was on his way to the shop. Police arrested five persons in connection with the killing and recovered the 9 mm pistol that was used to shoot the victim. Sources in the police revealed that the culprits were contract killers based in Sijubari. While these are among the very few cases that managed to garner attention from the local media, many cases went unnoticed; some even remained unreported. n

espite claims of tightened security by the city police, residents of Sijubari constantly feel the lack of crime mitigating measures in the area. Speaking to G Plus, Loknath Deka, officer in-charge of Hatigaon police station, said, “We have taken steps to tighten the security in the area in order to strictly enforce law and order. Stringent actions are being taken by our personnel, which include the surveillance by patrolling vehicles at night and strengthening of Village Defence Parties (VDP). Motorcycles and other special vehicles have also been deployed to cover all areas thoroughly.” “Instead of patrolling in the interior localities where prevalence of crime is highest, the police patrolling vehicles are found

standing at Hatigaon chariali every night. If the police start patrolling visibly, they can help prevent crime by deterring potential criminals,” Atiqul Habib informed G Plus. Some residents even exerted that not only the police have failed but the chances are that a few officials are hand-in-glove with the wrong doers. There are many schools and colleges in and around Sijubari, due to which students from across the state are residing in hostels and in paying guest facilities here. A group of girls, all hostellers, anonymously informed G Plus that they feel unsafe to roam around alone, especially during night hours. The situation has become such because of an increase in the number of crimes against women. n

City

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Chetan Bhattarai

% Guwahati residents believe traffic management is poor

onday to Saturday, the city of Guwahati comes under some sort of drag spell. There is a lag and everything in Guwahati during rush hour moves at a speed of 20 km per hour—sometimes, even lesser. Everyone wants a smooth ride to office or to any place one is travelling but that’s a rarity in Guwahati. When you are in a hurry or late for your engagement, the last thing you want is a slow moving traffic. Here in Guwahati, 45 minutes to an hour is normal for a four-wheeler to complete a 10 kilometre drive. The traffic police department is trying its level best but given the road conditions, the surge of vehicles, VIP movement et al, there is chaos. Guwahati roads are brimming with vehicles of all sizes and shapes. Everyone just wants to pip the fellow commuter and reach his destination faster. But that is not going to happen soon. So what has led to this chaotic, uncontrollable traffic scenario in Guwahati? Is the traffic police department trying its best to manage the rush hour traffic? G Plus conducted a poll recently to understand what everyday travellers had to say about the traffic management in the city during rush hours. Over 3,000 respondents took part in the poll and Guwahati was open for ideas to smoothen the traffic in Guwahati. The results of the poll are not very appealing for the traffic police department as most of the respondents – 71% - believed that the department was not able to manage the rush hour traffic properly. Only 29% respondents believed that the traffic was being managed well. That does not mean that everyone is blaming the traffic police. Citizens voiced their opinion that some part of this chaos is created by the commuters themselves. The selfish nature is to be blamed. Moreover, some part of the blame is on lack of no proper parking areas, mindless lane driving, disobeying traffic rules… the list goes on.

City buses the main laggards

Most of the concern was raised regarding the stoppage of city buses. Respondents strongly believed that the buses are not using the bus bays (if any) and stop in the middle of the road to pick up passengers. They buses don’t stop at designated bus stops. This has to stop and vital crossings should not allow buses to stop and pick up passengers to clog those crossings according to respondents. The queue of buses waiting for passengers brings the already slow moving traffic to a

Do you think Guwahati Traffic Police have been successful in managing the rush hour traffic smoothly?

71% Votes

3.1K Yes

29%

% Guwahatians feel more flyovers can solve traffic problems in Ghy

raffic congestion has become a nightmare in Guwahati. Peak traffic hours have eaten into the city’s productive hours of office-goers and businessmen alike. People often complain about slow moving traffic even during odd hours. Every major crossing in the city has become a stifling point with staggering traffic movement. While there could be many reasons for this surge in traffic, Guwahatians, in a recent poll conducted by G Plus, had a lot to comment about the pathetic condition of city traffic. Around 2,000 respondents took part in the poll and people aggressively pointed out challenges and solutions to smoothen the traffic in Guwahati. Between all this, the newly-appointed PWD minister, Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, announced that in order to reduce the congestion on city roads, three new flyovers

Can flyovers help release the burden of slow moving traffic and other forms of vehicular congestion in Guwahati?

21% Votes

2.1K Yes

79%

virtual standstill. The police needs to take strong measures to keep check of this practice.

Positive Response

Comments by respondents show that there is respect for the hard-working traffic police and the traffic department is really working hard to earn the trust of the citizens and manage the traffic as well. Respondents believed that there are some encouraging changes which are visible on the streets. They have agreed that the number of traffic officials have increased. For most part of the day they are visible and working to manage the traffic at important and semi-important crossings.

Complaints, demands and blame game continues Respondents have blamed the administration for being slack and allowing the chaos to continue. They believe that some strong measures are needed to bring some discipline on the streets. Haphazard parking and stopping at no stopping zones during heavy traffic movement are some of the primary reasons that citizens feel is slowing the traffic movement. Many respondents demanded proper traffic signals at various intersections. Moreover, respondents were also wary of the mix of public transport moving at the same time. They believe that buses and small public transport vehicles should not share the same routes. Banning of rickshaws from main roads was suggested by others. n

Lighter and faster

Traffic police on duty (L), File photo of Jalukbari flyover (R) would be constructed. The three main points where the flyovers will come up are Super Market Chowk, Fatasil Ambari and the Ganeshguri Crisscross. 79% of the respondents believed that flyovers could help the traffic congestion and 21% of the respondents believed that constructing flyovers without proper planning and future requirements would not help in any way. Several respondents believed that the project would not complete on time and the construction would add to the woes of traffic congestion. Citizens were also of the

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opinion that the government was creating flyovers as a “feel good factor,” without taking into consideration the growth of vehicles Guwahati is bound to see in near future. Citizens in the poll have suggested more parking space, efficient parking management as solutions for getting things on the right track. Many felt that a couple of underpasses are required at some vital crossings so that there is no vehicular confluence. Others felt that long stretches should be turned into flyover zones just like in Kolkata. The ideas are good but is anybody listening? n

City

SNIPPETS Frequent transfers of Smart City MD, GMDA CEO raise concerns about city projects

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Tata Memorial Centre to take over BBCI from July 1 Saumya Mishra saumya.mishra@g-plus.in

B F

requent transfers of the chief executive officer (CEO) of Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) and managing director (MD) of Guwahati Smart City Ltd has raised serious concerns regarding the completion of various projects ongoing under both the agencies. IAS officer, Rupak Kumar Mazumdar, has been recently appointed as the new CEO of GMDA and MD of Guwahati Smart City Ltd. Mazumdar was posted as director of land records and secretary, revenue and disaster management department. Dr M Angamuthu was, since August 2018, acting as an incharge of both the agencies. Prior to Dr Angamuthu, Varnali Deka was working as the CEO of GMDA for a few months and prior to that, Ashutosh Agnihotri was heading GMDA. Similarly, Smart City Ltd also witnessed many transfers its managing directors. A source in the GMDA said, “The frequent transfer of CEOs does affect the flow of work. Every individual has his or her own way of dealing with work and with the frequent change of the officers the work flow gets affected every time the officer is transferred.” Another IAS officer, talking to G Plus under condition of anonymity said, “Any officer should get at least a minimum time period of 3 years after which the performance of that officer in that department can be visibly calculated.” The transfers of IAS officers are the decision of the government and sources in Dispur revealed that the transfers are invariably decided by the ministers. There are around 12 projects which are under Smart City Ltd and detailed project reports of many projects are yet to be prepared. The GMDA also keeps drawing criticism for slow pace in completion of its projects. With the frequent transfer of the officers the situation becomes more concerning. n

Borooah Cancer Institute (BBCI) will officially begin functioning under the Department of Atomic Energy and Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai from July 1 onwards, informed authorities. Following this, a host of changes will be undertaken in the institute including infrastructural, changes in OPD timings as well as strengthening the doctors and staff. Dr Amal Chandra Kataki, director of BBCI informed that all new rules and regulations of the Atomic Energy and Tata Memorial Centre will be implemented at BBCI from July 1. Speaking about the new developments, Dr Kataki said that one of their primary priorities is to increase the number of employees. “When the institute comes under the central government, a total of 166 new posts will be created which includes nursing staff, specialist doctors, resident doctors and other staff,” said Dr Kataki, adding that at present BBCI has 225 regular employees and 92 contractual employees, 42 doctors, 26 post graduate doctors and 69 nurses who are presently working. He further said that there is a manpower shortage in the field of Oncology. “In order to meet the shortage, we will start a two-year post graduate oncology fellowship programme which will be jointly conducted by BBCI and Tata Memorial

File photo of BBCI Centre,” said Dr Kataki. Authorities said that first they will also have to optimally utilise the existing resources and will then gradually increase the infrastructure facilities for the treatment of patients. Further, the cancer institute will start a new pharmacy within the next few months in order to provide relief to the patients. The BBCI has a 100-bedded guest house at present and another guest house with 29

cabins has also been started. In terms of machinery, BBCI has procured a new linear accelerator machine at a cost of Rs 17 crores. Officials said that the state-of-the-art machine will become operational within the next two months. “This linear accelerator machine will be able to treat 100 patients daily,” said Dr Kataki. He added that with the introduction of the new changes, the out-patient department (OPD)

timings will also change. Now for the convenience of the patients, the hospital OPD will remain open from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm from Monday to Friday and from 9.00 am to 1.30 pm on Saturdays. According to the new rules, the work week for all the employees has also been fixed at 48 hours a week. Additionally, a separate private OPD has also been inaugurated for those patients who wish to attend private consultation. n

BBCI doctors to give up private practice

part from the abovementioned new developments, one of the major changes for the doctors of the institute will be to give up private practice. As per the new agreement which puts the BBCI under the control of the central government, doctors will have to refrain from private practice. “The doctors at the institute have gracefully accepted the decision and have welcomed it too. It is a big step and challenging for everyone,” said Dr Kataki complimenting and thanking the doctors for accepting the provision of not practising privately. A senior doctor at the institute, Dr Tashnin Rahman, professor and in-charge of the head and neck oncology department at BBCI

told G Plus, “I was anyway not practising medicine privately but now all the doctors will dedicate themselves to the hospital and will work here from the morning till evening. I believe this will provide a much-needed boost to the institute.” Further, with the takeover of the institute by the department of atomic energy and Tata Memorial Centre, the doctors are also set to receive several benefits such as increase in their salaries by 2040%; they will be paid a special duty allowance of 10% of the basic pay for working in the northeast. Additionally, they will also receive transport allowance of Rs 1,800-7,200, an allowance for the education of their children at Rs 2,250 per child per month up to two months. The house rent allowance has now been

increased to 16% of the basic pay and they will also be entitled to receive the pension benefits under the provisions of the central government. Dr Kataki said that a new course called MSc in Cancer Biology will be initiated in the college which will be the first such course in the northeast. Experts say that alcohol and tobacco consumption, sedentary lifestyle contribute to the rise of non-communicable diseases including cancer. As per the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), tobacco consumption in Assam has increased from 39.3 per cent in 2010 to 48.2 per cent in 2017. On the contrary, the national prevalence of tobacco consumption has decreased from 34.6 per cent in 2010 to 28.6 per cent in 2017.

All other northeastern states except Sikkim have a high prevalence of tobacco consumption. Due to this, tobacco related cancers (TRC) in the northeastern states are highest in the country, as per the National Cancer Registry Programme of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Further, according to the population based cancer registry of ICMR, national average incidence of cancer varies from 80-110 new cancer patients every year per lakh population, whereas in the northeast region, incidence of cancer in many places is higher than 200 per lakh population. Northeastern states have the burden of 39,000 cancer patients every year out of which Assam alone contributes to 29,962 patients. n

Governance

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Officials destroy 315 litres of milk during drive against adulterated food Nehal Jain

n a continuous and massive drive against adulterated food products, government officials have destroyed 315 litres of milk and fruit supply belonging to more than eight fruit vendors from Guwahati within the past month. Cases have been initiated against two milk suppliers for selling sub-standard products. Food checks have also been conducted at various eateries across the city and notices have been issued to five hotels and sweet shops namely, Ajay Hotel, Sharma Sweets, Rookman Sweets and Salasar Kitchen to improve their kitchen conditions. A team comprising the minister of state for health & family welfare, Pijush Hazarika, along with officials of the department, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the State Public Health Laboratory (SPHL) are

Minister Pijush Hazarika with food safety officials during the drive | G Plus Photo making surprise visits to various hotels, milk vans, sweet shops and factories to check the quality of products being sold to customers. On the spot testing of milk and its products are also being conducted at shops using a mobile van. Notices have been issued to the sellers of spurious food products and test samples of their

Govt welcomes FSSAI’s proposal to impose life imprisonment for food adulteration

ith the aim to form more stringent laws to curb the pernicious practice of food adulteration, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed life imprisonment as the maximum punishment or a fine of Rs 10 lakhs for those adulterating food products. The FSSAI has issued the draft amendments to the Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, which was notified in 2011. Appreciating the move, Anupam Gogoi, food analyst to government of Assam told G Plus, “The decision of FSSAI to increase the penalty is commendable and I welcome it.” “The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 is a very recent act that got implemented in 2011. We still have a long way to go before the act is fully implemented and thus, I feel, that the adulterators are always a step ahead of the act and it’s very challenging to eradicate adulterated products altogether. Implementation of stricter laws will surely take us closer to

reaching our goal,” he further added. Any person who “adds an adulterant to food so as to render it injurious for human consumption with an inherent potential to cause his death or is likely to cause grievous hurt, irrespective of the fact whether it causes actual injury or not, shall be punishable for a term which shall not be less than 7 years but which may extend to imprisonment for life and also fine which shall not be less than Rs 10 lakhs,” the proposed amendment states. The FSSAI has also proposed increase in the punishment for obstructing, impersonating, intimidating and threatening or assaulting a food safety officer in order to enforce the law at the ground level. The regulatory body has recommended imprisonment of not less than six months and up to two years, besides penalty of up to Rs 5 lakhs for such acts of intimidation or assault. At present, the imprisonment is up to three months and the fine is up to Rs 1 lakh. n

products are being sent to the SPHL for a comprehensive report to check for violation of safety norms. During the drive that started in the first week of June, the team has visited different areas including Khanapara, Ganeshguri, Fancy Bazaar, Bharalumukh, Beltola and Rukminigaon.

Fruits adulterated and ripened artificially using calcium carbide, milk mixed with substances like water and milk powder, was destroyed during the drive. Further, if the products are found to be sub-standard, a penalty which may extend up to Rs 5 lakhs is being imposed on the person or manufacturer selling, storing or distributing such products. Similarly, the cases of misbranding are also being sent to the court of the adjudicating officer and a fine of up to Rs 3 lakhs is being imposed. And if the food is found unsafe for consumption, a case is being initiated at the judicial court and a fine of up to Rs 10 lakhs or life imprisonment is being imposed. “Food adulteration is an illegal practice and causes serious health hazards to consumers. The food safety drives are being conducted across the state to ensure that the food reaching end customers is safe and healthy,” said LR Nampui, food safety official of Kamrup (M) while speaking to G Plus. n

Food Safety on Wheels: mobile van keeping a check on spurious food products

he recent drive against food adulteration is being conducted with the help of ‘Food Safety on Wheels’ (FSW) - a mobile van to assess food quality on the go. The FSW was inaugurated in Guwahati on May 13 by the health & family welfare minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma. With the number and spread of food testing labs in the country being grossly inadequate, these mobile units provide food quality assessment at the doorstep of citizens through its food safety van. The initiative has been started in Guwahati and extended to other parts of the state. Apart from conducting simple tests for common adulterants in milk, water, edible oil and other items of food of daily consumption, this mobile unit is also being used for awareness building around food safety, hygiene and promoting healthy eating habits in citizens at large and for conducting training and certification programme for food handlers and supervisors in the food business.

“Awareness is the key to knowing what to eat and what not to eat. We can only try to maintain hygiene and regulate food quality but the general public has to be aware and informed about the repercussions of consuming unhealthy food,” says Anupam Gogoi, food analyst to government of Assam. In addition, the mobile unit is being used by the field functionaries in the state to enhance their outreach and conduct surveillance activities even in far-flung areas with the hope to bring about a paradigm shift in food safety ecosystem in the country. “Milk and its products are consumed everyday by a large number of people. Therefore, the quality of milk is very important. Officials have been directed to take stern action against all those involved in adulteration practice,” mentioned minister Pijush Hazarika. The mobile van, that does a qualitative analysis of the food products, generally takes just a few minutes to give results. n

SNIPPETS Siddhartha Bhattacharya presents performance report as MLA Gauhati-East

tate Education Minister and MLA, Siddhartha Bhattacharya, recently presented a two year report card at the State BJP Headquarters, Hengrabari. The minister produced the report in a colourful magazine format where all his assembly development works for the past two years have been recorded. The state BJP President, Ranjit Dutta, released the report. “As an MLA of the 52 Number Gauhati-East, I have completed two years. The amount of work done by me for the people of my constituency has been recorded and produced as my Yearly Report-2. This is to make the citizens aware of what has been achieved during my two years as an MLA. I am grateful to all of you for your help and co-operation,” said Bhattacharya. “All BJP MLAs have to present a report card. We have given a deadline of July 30 to submit all the works done by the MLAs in their respective constituencies,” informed Ranjit Dass, BJP President, Assam. n

State Minister Pijush Hazarika investigates wholesale fish markets in city

fter milk, fruits, sweet shops and bakery houses, State Minister Pijush Hazarika went on to investigate the wholesale fish markets in Betkuchi area of the city. The minister along with his team investigated the quality of the fish in the markets and checked if any of those were chemically treated. Speaking to media, the minister said, “We will stop the import of fish from Andhra Pradesh or any other state, if we find any chemical treatment in the fish. Fish is an important part of meals for Assamese people. So I insist, and will personally check that the quality of fish in the city markets are not compromised for some amount of price.” n

In The News

SNIPPETS GMC seals 67-yearold city building

he Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC), on Thursday, sealed the 67-year-old Lal Singh Mansion building located in AT Road. The three storey building was constructed in 1951 and was marked as “unsafe.” The GMC, as per the orders of the Supreme Court of India, had sealed 27 rooms of the building. The move has been undertaken under the supervision of GMC Collector, Loni Borpatrogohain. Five families residing in the building have been given 24 hours’ time to shift to some other location. GMC, in 2016, approached the Supreme Court over the matter categorising the building as “dangerous.” n

DGP Saikia becomes victim of fake Facebook profile

t can be stated that the netizens have promised to be as stubborn as one could be. In a new twist, amidst Assam Police’s quest in overcoming cyber-crime, a fake Facebook account by the name of “Kuladhar Saikia” was opened on June 11. However, the original account of the DGP goes by the name of “Kula Saikia.” Previously, a fake Facebook account of City Police Commissioner Hiren Chandra Nath was also created and within a few days, the state police arrested one person from Raha, Nagaon for creating the fake account. The matter is now under investigation. n

Assam govt to preserve Bhupen Hazarika’s Kolkata residence

he Assam government has decided to acquire the Kolkata residence of Late Bhupen Hazarika for Rs 1,65,00,000 and preserve it. The current owner of the residence is Janaik Dangi who is ready to sell the property to Assam government. Assam Government had approached Dangi several years ago for the acquisition of the property. n

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

3500 students in Kamrup (M) to receive late scholarships this year The examination for chief minister’s special scholarship scheme has been delayed by almost seven months. It provides assistance of Rs 5000 to successful students of class V and VIII Saumya Mishra saumya.mishra@g-plus.in

round 3,500 students in Kamrup (Metro) will bear the brunt of late conduct of examination for the Chief Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (CMSSS) this year. The first screening examination which is conducted at the primary level is usually held between December and March every year - before the beginning of the academic year. However, it is yet to be conducted for the academic year 2018-19. The chief minister’s scholarship scheme was initiated in 2012 to provide meritorious students of classes V and VIII of government schools of the state some monetary relief in the pursuit of their education. The scheme provides for a one-time assistance of Rs 5,000 in the form of a cheque to meritorious students after a written examination. The scholarship amount is then fixed deposited for five years in the bank. Officials at the directorate of elementary education informed that last year close to 93,000 students were beneficiaries of this scheme. The guidelines for the scholarship test mention for the district elementary education officers (DEEO) to constitute an examination committee at the district level. The committee shall supervise and monitor the process of the conduct of the examination for scholarship. Further, the guidelines state that the Additional Deputy

File photo of school students Commissioner (Education) shall be the chairman of the committee while the District Elementary Education Officer (DEEO) will be the member secretary. The written examination is conducted on two days for classes V and VIII. Officials informed that this year, tentative dates for the tests were decided as July 21 and 22. However, these dates too are likely to be postponed. “The government had decided on July 21 and 22 as the dates for the examination but a delegation of the lower primary teachers’ association has conveyed to us

that it would be difficult for them to collect students for the test during the vacation period. The date might therefore be further postponed,” deputy director of directorate of elementary education, Manoranjan Kakati, informed G Plus. Elaborating on the reasons for the long delay in conducting the scholarship examination, Kakati said that the scholarship test could not be held on time this year since the government was busy in organising another test for the students of classes V to XII under a separate

government scheme. “The test for the other scheme was conducted in January and thus the date of scholarship examination had to be postponed,” Kakati added. Officials, however, said that they will conduct the examination for the chief minister’s scholarship scheme in January from next year onwards. “We will hold the scholarship test before Bihu from the next academic year onwards so that the students do not suffer,” said an official of the elementary education department. n

Lackadaisical approach of the government

n the other hand, district elementary education officer for Kamrup (Metro), Buli Gogoi Bhuyan, mentioned that there are around 2,000 class V students and close to 1,500 class VIII students in Kamrup (Metro) who are potential beneficiaries of the chief minister’s scholarship scheme. The district elementary education authorities also informed that they had earlier received information from the state education department to conduct the scholarship examination in December 2017 for the next year, but it was then deferred.

“The examination date then got postponed from December to March and then finally to April. However, the school results were supposed to be declared in April and so the test was further delayed,” informed Bhuyan. Mentioning the logistical hurdles in conducting late examination, Bhuyan said that since the test was delayed, those students who are currently in class IX will now have to appear for the class VIII test and class VI students will appear for the scholarship examination for class V which will be problematic for the students. Further, authorities

mentioned that many students have changed schools after passing out of class VIII. “It will prove to be difficult for us now to track those students who are currently studying in a different school after getting into class IX,” said a district education official on the condition of anonymity. Further, members of the All Assam Lower Primary Teachers’ Association (AALPTA) blamed the lackadaisical approach and apathy of the government for the late conduct of the scholarship examination. “We have submitted a list of demands to the education

department and have requested the authorities to conduct the examination at the earliest for this academic year,” general secretary of the AALPTA, Ratul Chandra Goswami, said. Education officials added that a cut-off limit is set for the scholarship examination on the basis of which meritorious students are selected across the state. The state government’s guidelines mention that 1,00,000 shall be awarded the scholarships—50,000 at the primary level for class V and 50,000 for the upper primary level for students of class VIII. n

In The News

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

State sprinter Hima Das on her way to Asian Games Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

igh expectations were stacked on her and she lived up to it. Sprinter from Assam, Hima Das, has clinched gold in both the 200 metre and 400 metre running events of the 58th National Interstate Athletic Championship, 2018 with the required qualifying time to

participate in the Asian Games, 2018. In the championship held at Indira Gandhi Stadium, Sarusajai, Guwahati, Das completed the 200 metres on June 27 in 23.10 seconds; the qualifying time is 23.50 seconds. She ran the 400 metre event on June 29 in 51.13 seconds where the qualifying time is 52.47 seconds. Giving her personal best in this championship, in which Das is the brand ambassador, she showed that her timing was improving with every tournament that she was participating in. In the Bangkok Asian Youth Championships in May 2017, she finished the 200 m sprint in 24.52 seconds; in the Nairobi World Youth Championships in July the same year, she clocked 24.31 seconds; in the Jakarta

Airport parking charges become a deterrent to Ola, Uber services Vanshika Sharma

hile Ola and Uber cab drivers have been alleged to be refusing rides to the Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahati, they have pointed out the “exorbitant” parking charges as a reason for the same. “The airport authorities charge us a lot for the parking and we need a space for parking our car as we have to wait for our passengers to arrive and loading their luggage takes some time too. The fee is too high for airport parking and in the end it turns out to be a loss for us. We can’t afford the loss and that is why we don’t take pick up or drop off passengers to the airport,” said one Ola driver, Jiten Ch Deka. Not only is the pickup and waiting a problem but a drop off is also an inconvenience. “After a drop off, we need another pick up from the airport itself. We can’t afford to go back to the city without a pick up as it will turn out to be a loss for us. And to get another pick up we need to wait at the airport. While this takes time, the charge for the airport parking keeps increasing by the minute,” said another Uber driver, Koustov Jyoti. One the other hand, people in need of the services are rather upset about the unavailability of the same. “Last month I had a flight to catch to Mumbai. I had to attend the Google Cloud Summit that was being held there the very next day. I had booked an Ola from Bharalumukh to the airport. Just moments after I booked it, the driver called and asked me where I wanted to go. When I told the driver of the location he immediately asked me to cancel the ride. I did not do so as I was

already running late. The driver was very rude and told me that I had to cancel the ride, which I later did. I had to immediately call up a friend who finally dropped me off. Had it not been for my friend, I would’ve missed the flight,” said one Simran Jain, a resident of Bharalumukh. The drivers not only refuse pickups from the airport but also refuse to take rides from areas that are too far away. The passengers are asked to cancel the ride because it is chargeable if they cancel it themselves. On refusing to do so, they either start getting rude or aggressive and sometimes abusive too. Another Ola driver, Milon Swargiary said, “The main reason for not taking rides to the airport is that after dropping off the passengers at the airport, we have to wait for hours to get a booking again at the airport and sometimes we don’t get a booking even after we are there for the whole day. We cannot waste our entire day there as we get many bookings in the city and after the drop off we have to come back to the city without a booking. So the trip to the airport costs us both time and money.” Just last month, an Ola driver was accused of misbehaving with a passenger who needed to be dropped off at the airport only because the passenger had opted to pay by Ola money. Not a month after that, more complaints started filing in against Ola and Uber drivers. A lot of people had complaints against drivers who asked their designated passengers to cancel the ride, especially passengers who need to be dropped off at the airport. On inquiring about this problem, the team at G Plus found out that the problem really was nothing but the unjustifiable and exorbitant parking charges at the airport. n

Asian Games test event in February this year, she did it in 23.59 seconds; in March, she cut it down to 23.37 seconds in the Federation Cup in Patiala - well below the qualifying cut-off for the Commonwealth Games. The best timing recorded this year in the 200 m sprint has been 22.83 seconds by Brittany Brown of the USA. The national record is 22.82 seconds by Saraswati Dey Saha in 2002. Both figures seem within clocking distance for Hima. When asked if she would be able to break the national record in the Asian Games, Das said, “I don’t know about that yet. People will see when I run there.” Born in Dhing village in Assam’s Nagaon district, Hima took to athletics only two years ago but from then on her rise has been meteoric. She has

been improving her timing rather impressively within a short time. She ran 23.22 seconds in Poland earlier this month during the training-cumexposure tour and on June 27 she improved upon it. With regard to the 400 metre event, though she had delivered her personal best, from 51.32 sec in Commonwealth Games, 2018 to 51.13 second in this championship, chances of clinching gold in international championships are possible only when she gets into the 50 seconds bracket. In the CWG, she came sixth while the winner Amantle Montsho took the gold clocking a time of 50.15 seconds. The Assam state government and the Assam Athletic Association have high hopes from Hima, as was evident from speeches made before her feats. During the inauguration

on June 26, chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, exuberant of Das’s earlier feats, had said, “Assam is fortunate to have athletes like Hima Das and the state should put in efforts on getting more athletes like her.” Organising secretary of the championship and secretary of the Assam Athletic Association, Pradip Nunisa, who is also often credited of spotting Das’s talent and promoting her on national and international platforms, said that he was aware that she would bring laurels to the state. “She has great potential. She is just 18 and hence has the advantage of age behind her. I am not only confident that she will perform well in the Asian Games but also very hopeful of seeing her in the upcoming Olympic Games,” Nunisa said. The interstate championship concluded here on June 29. n

In The News

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Govt stance on detected foreigners post final NRC update ambiguous Rahul Chanda rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

n 29th June 2018, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) widely published a newspaper advertisement about the options that citizens could avail if their names did not figure in the complete draft list. According to the advertisement, people whose names do not figure in the complete draft list can submit their claims for inclusion of their names in the final NRC list. Opportunity will also be given to file objections against inclusion of any ineligible person. After the process of claims and objection is over, the final NRC will be published. The question now is: what will happen to those applicants whose names are not published in the final NRC list? Is there a plan in place? Sources in the border police said that it is very difficult to comment now as the government will share information only after the final NRC list is out. An advocate of Gauhati High Court, talking to G Plus in anonymity said, “Nothing will happen to the foreigners.” He added that after the final NRC list is published the persons whose names do not figure will approach the Foreigners’ Tribunals (FTs) to contest the NRC authorities. If the judgements of the FTs also go against the applicants, they would further approach Gauhati High Court. If the Gauhati High Court’s judgment is also unfavourable, the applicants can even approach the Supreme Court, the lawyer said. Eventually, the process would be very lengthy and in the course many detected foreigners will again be untraceable. G Plus, after due diligence and study, reported last week that in the draft final list which was to be published on June 30, around 4 lakh applicants will be on hold.

Prateek Hajela while releasing the first draft of NRC | G Plus Photo After totalling the numbers of D voters (1,26,520), declared foreigners post 1971 (57,807), unregistered declared foreigners of 1966 to 1971 stream (15,468) and cases pending in foreigners’ tribunal (1,99,657), around 3,99,453 persons would come under scanner and might not make it to the second or final draft NRC list. As reported by G Plus in the recent past, there are around 90,000 declared foreigners and of them, only 900 are in detention camps while the rest remain untraceable by the border police. The police are finding it tough to trace the declared foreigners. The NRC authorities identified around 4,238 declared foreigners and sent a list of 43,000 including the siblings of the declared foreigners to the border police for them to be traced and make references if required. But sources revealed that the border police have informed the NRC authorities that it is a tough job for them. This being the stance now, it is a wonder how they will be traced if their names do not appear in the final NRC list.

The other question that remains is will the people be deported to other countries if they are found to be foreigners? A senior official of the home department declined from commenting on the issue saying the government is still planning what will need to be done. In January 2018, chief minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal had said, “The issue of deportation will come later. First, our target is to segregate the foreigners. What steps we will take against them will come next.” Sonowal had also said, “The people who are declared foreigners will be barred from all constitutional rights, including fundamental and electoral. They will have only one right - human rights as guaranteed by the UN that include food, shelter and clothing.” A resident of Lal Ganesh, who works in the defence sector and is based in Shillong said, “I am a citizen of Guwahati but I don’t have a voter’s card. I did not apply for NRC and I am not bothered what government will do if my

name does not appear in the NRC.” He said that he is a central government employee and has a plot of land in Lal Ganesh and he dares the government to act against him for not applying for NRC.

Talking about deportation, a senior IPS officer explained in anonymity that it would be difficult to deport Bangladeshis. In 2014, the Supreme Court had asked the Centre to enter into necessary discussions with the government of Bangladesh to streamline the process of deporting illegal Bangladeshi migrants. Though India and Bangladesh entered into an extradition treaty during the United Progressive Alliance II regime in 2013 which facilitated the deportation of the long-in-prison United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) leader Anup Chetia, expulsion of undocumented migrants from Bangladesh allegedly residing in Assam was not discussed in the talks. The talks between the Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh have not flagged the issue of undocumented migration from across the border beyond the angle of narcotics and cattle smuggling. The government is still unsure about what will be done with the people who will be detected as Bangladeshis after the NRC final list. n

NRC authorities fail to publish complete draft on 30 June

hough the National Register of Citizens (NRC) authorities were expected to publish the complete draft list on 30th June 2018, they have failed to meet the deadline. State coordinator for NRC, Prateek Hajela, said that many Nagrik Seva Kendras (NSKs) in the Barak Valley area are affected by the recent floods which has delayed the process. The Supreme Court would fix the next date at a hearing on

July 2. The Supreme Court had earlier asked the NRC authorities to publish the NRC by 30th June. Some ten days were wasted because of the floods in central Assam’s two districts and all three districts in southern Assam’s Barak Valley, claimed NRC officials. The first draft NRC, which was published on 31 December 2018, had 1.9 crore names from the 3.29 crore applicants. n

Weather report for the week Guwahati

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City

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Location survey for elevated railway tracks in Ghy begins Post a G Plus News in 2016 which proved that Guwahati wasted 18 hours a day at level crossing gates, the same was escalated to the then Union Minister of Railways, Suresh Prabhu who instantly sanctioned the elevation of the railway tracks running through the city to eliminate such level crossings Rahul Chanda rahul.chanda@g-plus.in

he Centre, on Thursday last, announced an investment of over Rs 5,000 crores to construct a 12-km-long elevated railway corridor inside Guwahati. Last year the same was announced in the union budget and accordingly the survey was started this year. In 2016, G Plus reported that Guwahatians waste around 18 hours a day after which the Centre announced the proposal of the elevated railway tracks. Guwahati is set to get a facelift on its railway track routes as the ministry of railways is expected to start the work for elevated railway tracks in Guwahati soon

after the final location survey is completed. Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO) of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), Pranav Jyoti Sharma said, “We are presently undertaking the final location survey which started 2 months back and will be completed in one year.” Sharma also said that as soon as the survey is completed, a tender will be floated for execution of the work. So the survey will be completed next year which will provide exact calculations about what should be the height, breadth and alignments of the elevated sections of the railway tracks. Consequently, all the level crossings in Guwahati will be eliminated with the elevated railway track running from New

Guwahati station to Kamakhya Station. TVUs (Train Vehicular Unit) of all the city railway level crossings suggest that the crossings have, since long, required road over-bridges/underpasses to eliminate traffic congestion in the relevant areas but the state government had not bothered to take any action. The point to be noted here is that after ten year of construction of the tracks, such over bridges require 50% investment from the state government. In this case however, the elevated tracks will be completely funded by the railways and the state government will not have to spend anything, revealed a source in NF Railway. The elevated tracks will eliminate 12 railway crossings in Guwahati.

Construction of the elevated tracks connecting Kamakhya and New Guwahati would decongest city roads, free up railway land and enable railways to develop Guwahati station as a commercial hub. The new project would keep provisions for connectivity with the proposed metro. The final location survey is expected to also establish links with the proposed metro rail planned by the state government. TVUs of all the city railway crossings demand that there should be elevated tracks but the Centre and the state did not work on the issue for the last 10 years. The proposal was finally announced in 2016. Yet, the pace of work seems slow as even though the project was announced in last year’s budget, the location survey started just two months ago. n

Guwahati railway station to be decongested

he Guwahati railway station had been the premier station from where trains originated in the northeast. But the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) is planning to decongest the station and also the other stations located within Guwahati. Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO), NFR, Pranav Jyoti Sharma said, “Every train, after reaching a destination, has to be maintained for 7 hours which is the duration taken for the trains to be cleaned and maintained.” Because Guwahati Railway Station was a train originating station, there are many pit-lines. Pit-lines are the facilities with which trains are stationed and maintained. All the pit-lines are now getting transferred to New Guwahati. The railways are further also constructing many more pit-lines in New Guwahati with the aim to decongest Guwahati station. “The trains that will be originating from Guwahati will not be stationed in Guwahati for maintenance but at New Guwahati,” said Sharma. Talking about New Guwahati station, it is more used as a loading/unloading area. Lot of consumer goods which come for the northeast get loaded and unloaded at New Guwahati because of which there is congestion in Guwahati. Loaded

SNIPPETS Guwahati expected to become the nerve centre of export trade with Bangladesh

nion Commerce Secretary, Rita Teotia, during her visit to Guwahati on Thursday, took part in a discussion with the Indian Chamber of Commerce. She announced during the meeting that the centre has decided to leverage on good relations with the neighbouring nation, Bangladesh, via the Chattagram Port (Chittagong Port) to carry forward the export trade. The decision brings Guwahati in focus as the centre is keen on using the waterways of the region. The centre will try to connect the Chattagram Port with various ports of Assam including the one in Guwahati. Teotia asked the state government to frame a holistic export policy with the focus on agribased products and service sectors like tourism, education, nursing and paramedical science. n

Tele-calling fraud cases on the rise in Guwahati

New pitlines getting constructed at New Guwahati to decongest Guwahati Railway Station | G Plus Photo trucks keep plying across Guwahati from New Guwahati station. To decongest the city, NF Railway is converting the Azara and Changsari stations into loading and unloading points. All the automobiles freighted to the northeast get unloaded at Changsari these days whereas

other consumer goods get loaded/ unloaded at Azara. The move has resulted in decongesting Guwahati and New Guwahati Railway station to a fair extent. To further decongest Guwahati, many trains going to westward are originating at Kamakhya Station, Puri Express is a case in point.

After the elevated tracks are constructed, even New Guwahati will be converted into a passenger train originating station and east bound trains will originate there, a source in NFR said. Further with the construction of more pit-lines at New Guwahati, Guwahati railway station is expected to be congestion-free. n

n two recent cases that occurred in Guwahati, it came to light that customers of State Bank of India (SBI) and Central Bank of India became targets of tele-calling agents and have lost money. One of the victims is Devapriya Das, who is an account holder at Central Bank of India. Allegedly, an amount of Rs 24,999 was siphoned off from her account. The incident came to her knowledge only after she received a message regarding the withdrawal of the said amount through an SMS. The victim has registered a case in this connection at Chandmari Police Station. The second fraudulent incident happened with one Tarini Baishya who holds an account at SBI. Reportedly, Baishya lost an amount of Rs 30,000 after he gave his 16 digit ATM number to a tele-caller who claimed to be an employee of SBI. Baishya has filed a complaint with the Bharalumukh Police Station. n

Ward Survey

G PLUS | JUN

Flash floods main issue of misery in otherwise convenient Chandmari of Ward 21 In this week’s Ward Watch, G Plus presents its findings from its survey in the locality of Chandmari where GMC has been reported to be offering satisfactory service

Positive Response

ater logging and lack of proper drainage system remain the most crucial problem for the residents of Chandmari in Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) Ward No 21. The same has acquired perennial characteristics over the last several years. In a survey conducted by G Plus, 50 families of the ward were asked questions on 14 parameters of living standards such as regular supply of potable water, routine pest control measures, public toilets, parking spaces etc. All the respondents unanimously said that they suffer due to water logging after a smart shower of rain and this is accentuated by lack of a good drainage system. It may be mentioned here that the stretch from Silpukhuri to Bamunimaidam, that is Chandmari, consists of the highlands of the Sarania Hills and Ramsa Hills with the Maniram Dewan Road bisecting the two. This makes this area a virtual basin bowl and so, more prone to flash floods with storm water gushing down from the hills. “People of Gandhi Basti or those

File photo of water logging at Chandmari who stay in Nabagraha Road or Kanwachal Road do not face much of the flash flood problems. But those who live near the main road (Maniram Dewan Road), have to face the brunt of the flash floods,” Pradeep Baishya, a resident here said. The first flash flood of this year began with the heavy pre-monsoon

100% Sometimes 0% Half an hour daily 0% An hour daily 0% More than an hour 0% No load shedding Load shedding

0% Everyday 56% Twice a week 16% Once a week 0% Fortnightly 28% Irregular 0% Never Garbage Collection

downpour on May 21 that inundated the stretch of Maniram Dewan Road from Chandmari point to Bamunimaidan and this was followed by a series of such flash floods that lasted for short periods every time there was a heavy downpour. The residents feel that besides the geographical disadvantages, an

50% Yes 0% No 50% Needs improvement Ambulance, Health Services

24% 48% 28% 0% Street Lights

32% Good 34% Average 2% Bad 32% Pathetic Road Condition

aspect of the flash flood menace, regarding which both the government and the residents cannot do much, is lack of a proper drainage system which actually adds to the woes. “This region lacks a proper drainage system. On the GS Road or the Zoo Road, they have the Bharalu River that takes out the bulk of the

18% Yes 28% No 54% Sometimes Water Supply

0% Very secured 50% Secured 50% Needs more security 0% No security Law and Order

100% Yes 0% No 0% Needs improvement Transport Connectivity

storm water. Water logging is a problem there because it is in the low lying areas. But here, despite having a fair bit of high grounds, we lack a major storm water drainage channel,” Reena Hazarika, a resident said. Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), however, attributes the flash flood to the highlands. “There is not much scope to carve out a major water channel there due to over concentration of population and the hilly terrains. Some work was done at the Gandhi Basti area, but the Ramsa Hills could not be touched,” Dhiren Baruah, ex-chairman GMDA had said in an earlier conversation. Besides this, the residents are also irked by the lack of parking space in the area - a problem they attribute to the unplanned settlement in the area. “A lot of houses have sprouted here over the years. This area being one of the convenient residential areas of the city in terms of location attracts a lot of settlers and has many residential complexes. Most of the people have their own vehicles. Due to lack of parking spaces, many park their vehicles on the road itself,” Nitul Das, a resident, said. n

Councillor Report

Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

36% Always 60% Someti 4% Never

Councillo

36% Yes 12% No 46% Someti 6% Only du

Councillor

Ward Survey

30 - JUl 06, 2018

Moderate performance of GMC leaves Chandmari residents hopeful

espite being drubbed for not fulfilling at least five living parameters, GMC apparently has met the expectations of the residents of Chandmari at least half way. In the G Plus survey, the residents gave a moderate feedback in at least four parameters – supply of water, garbage collection, streetlights and security. While supply of water remains a perennial problem in the rest of the city, 27 respondents (54 per cent) said they receive potable water “irregularly” to their residences. 9 others (18 per cent) said that they receive it regularly. The same goes with garbage collection where the NGOs do not collect garbage daily. But according to a majority of 28 respondents (56 per cent), garbage is collected at least twice a week. Of the rest, 14 respondents (28 per cent) said it’s being collected irregularly and eight respondents (16 per cent) said that the garbage is collected at least once a week. Regarding streetlights, 24

respondents (48 per cent) said that the roads are insufficiently lit while 14 said they are vaguely lit. 12 respondents (24 per cent) said the roads are well lit while none said that there are no streetlights. The respondents are divided in opinion regarding security as 50 per cent termed the locality

thrive to be the centre of activities in the city,” Jyotishmita Baruah, a resident, said. In the survey, all the respondents unanimously said that the area meets the standards regarding the roads, transport and medical facilities. For an area, to get 100 per cent

File photo of door to door garbage collection to be secure while the rest 50 per cent are of the opinion that it needed more security. “This ward surely has some problems, but it is somewhat better than many other wards of the city. With better initiatives from the GMC and district administration, this area can

affirmation regarding its roads is commendable. “But then again, this region has the headquarters of the Public Works Department. If the roads would have been bad here, then people could not expect any better from the department in other parts of the city,” another resident, Priyam Sarkar, said. n

Flash flood is because of a geographical disadvantage: Councillor

this ward did not have much of he councillor of Ward No flash flood problems. It only started 21 said that flash flood is happening in the last few years. a problem caused by the The hills were more vegetated geographical situation of back then. The trees would have the area, a disadvantage retained the flowing water and the regarding which no proper solution water had its natural way to flow has been reached yet. into the drains. But now, people “There are mainly two problems. have also made houses on the One is that this area is like a basin natural water channels. Due to this, bowl for storm water coming the water takes down from different routes the hills on and instead the both sides. of getting The second distributed, is that there comes down is no major with a huge storm water load clogging channel. The the drains.” government He said that is mulling attempts have preparing been made a channel by the GMC linking it with to keep the the other major drains clean storm water but excessive channels. But plastic use has for that the clogged the master plan drains too. first needs to “The drains be uploaded. Councillor Sashank Jyoti Deka are cleared Land allocation regularly. There is a lag in taking needs to be done first. It is a out the cleaned drain garbage from tough task as the ward is already the roads which we are trying to overcrowded,” Sashanka Jyoti Deka, address through the NGOs. But the councillor told G Plus. the drains get filled up again. He further added, “There is no This is mostly due to the abuse of encroachment as such in this ward. plastics and the fact that this area But there are a few houses that has become crowded. The existing are on the top of the hills without drain capacity is not enough to permission.” take the load of sewage generated,” Sighting deforestation as Deka said. another reason, he said, “Earlier, n

Concentrated Area: Chandmari (21A) Ward No: 21 Population of the Ward: 33,000 Voter Population: 24,000 Population of Chandmari: 20,000 Ward Councillor: Sashank Jyoti Deka

imes

or in Community Works

imes

uring election

r Interaction

72% Yes 28% No Do you know Councillor?

0% Excellent 62% Satisfactory 38% Under performing 0% Poor Councillor Performance

Negative Response

Survey conducted by Priyanka Saha

0% Yes 100% No 0% Sometimes Pest Control Measures

100% Yes 0% No 0% In some lanes Water Logging issues

0% Yes 100% No Parking Spaces

0% Smooth 40% Occassionally crowded 60% Pathetic 0% Yes 100% No Public Toilets

0% Yes 100% No 0% Could be better Drainage system

14 E

G Talk DI

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Good PR exercise

he expectations of the people from the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) seem to be playing heavily on the mind of the government. Embroiled in fake news and yet, fine-tuned calculations (reported in G Plus edition dated Jun 23 - Jun 29) showing that around 4 lakh applicants comprising ‘D’ voters, declared foreigners, cases pending in foreigners’ tribunal et al, might be on hold (read left out) in the final draft that was scheduled to be published today, the NRC secretariat is trying its best not to allow the impending controversy to snowball into a major political and social crisis. You see, there are often great benefits in delaying a decision. And such delays should not be read as procrastination. The missed June 30 deadline was because of lost working days as a result of floods in some of the districts of the state and resultantly work remaining incomplete. But what this delay has allowed is an opportunity for some good PR work by the government in the form of advertisements in the local newspapers. For all the fears of serious trouble breaking out post publication of the NRC, the

ORI

ad communications seek to dispel the same and cool down tempers. The passing days will hopefully ensure that. The benefit of delaying decisions is that it gives you a chance to rethink strategies, consider options, seek support and review your intentions. And the government, with its latest communication, has done just that. But what is slightly disturbing is the advertisements highlighting “What if an applicant’s name in not included in the Complete Draft NRC?” This is almost like declaring that the NRC secretariat is not confident of the voluminous work it has done over the last few years and the final NRC might just not be as fair as it is expected to be. Nevertheless, having recognized this possibility, the government has clearly indicated that remedial measures would be at hand and a revised date for filing of Claims and Objections will be advertised separately. The procedure for the same will also be formulated in due course. With this, the government has hopefully thwarted any trouble that might have brewed. This has indeed been a good PR exercise. Swapnil Bharali Editor

What’s under the flyover?

uwahati’s failing civic sense is a big cause for concern. The police, administration and media must become more aggressive to counter this problem. Being the public voice, it makes us concerned if people are spitting on roads, parking incorrectly, breaking the law and in general failing to live up to what we call “civic sense.” A recent video report published on G Plus drew a lot of attention. An active citizen journalist shared a video report of a fellow citizen who had possibly blocked a stretch of a city road by parking his vehicle incorrectly. This report drew massive heat on social media and the violator received his bit by the rest of the public. This brings me to an observation that citizens need to be more sensitive about playing God on roads. They must understand that they are always being watched. Secondly, apart from the police managing traffic, somewhere citizens too must be sensitized and empowered to be watchful on the roads. Guwahati traffic is only growing exponentially and roads, with their limited capacity, must accommodate the same. About a decade ago, if I recall correctly, the government undertook an arbitrary road expansion project. While the exercise then accommodated the chaos, it certainly needs more thought today and this time around, a random road widening exercise simply wouldn’t work. To be more precise, the authorities have to carry out a ‘capacity building’ exercise. This necessarily does not mean the construction of flyovers in the city but rather use the existing ones wisely. Several stretches of city roads and areas under flyovers lie wasted and that is where the government can start. This could be followed by the utilization of several empty/wasted government land patches around the city. Clearly, the Shraddhanjali Kanan parking has failed in terms of managing traffic. This calls for an immediate recce and evaluation of what went wrong there and how new parking set ups can be made more effective and efficient.

Sidharth Bedi Varma

The Japan Option

“H

ow could you get the information about studying in Japan for your daughter from remote Assam?” A candid question from a parent whose son was among 9 undergraduate students studying in the School of Engineering of Kyushu University in April 2015. Our daughter Angana, then in the 2nd semester in this Imperial University of Japan, was perhaps the only one hailing from a non-metro Indian city. It was a strange question from an engineer himself who either seemed unaware of the internet or simply wanted to taunt us. The pursuit for studying in Japan started one evening when my brother-in-law, Sujit Kakati, came to our place with Hemanta Hazarika who was professor of civil engineering in Kyushu University, Japan (where Angana studies today). During our chit chat I casually asked him if there was any scope for students without knowledge of Japanese language to study in Japan at the undergraduate level. To our utter surprise he informed that there are universities in Japan imparting education in English under the Global 30 (G-30) Education Programme of the Japanese government. Through various sources and by visiting edu-fairs in the country, we collected as much information as possible for a 4-year undergraduate programme in a Japanese University imparting education in English. Thereafter, Angana applied to Nagoya University and Kyushu University of Japan in Chemical Sciences. Additionally, she also applied to National University and Nanyang Technological University of Singapore and Hong Kong University of Science & Technology for pursuing an engineering degree in chemical scienc-

rThe thugs of JNU

es. Applications to these universities follow an identical procedure as far as uploading of documents through the net is concerned. No paper or document is required to be sent. Only scans of academic and non-academic credentials including results from Class 9 onwards, awards, certificates of extra-curricular activities, essays, recommendations from teachers, ToEFL or IELTS results, etc are to be submitted online through the university’s application portal for international students. Meticulous planning, good knowledge of internet use and a high-speed consistent internet connection are required to make a successful online application. Angana took her IELTS test in Kolkata scoring 7.5 out of 9; British Council regards such a score as a grade between very good and excellent. Most universities required

With the college admission season on, the author reasons that pursuing undergrad programmes in Japanese universities is a possible and good option for Assamese students a score of only 6 to assess the proficiency in English. SAT scores are not mandatory. On 31st March 2014, Kyushu University informed that Angana was selected in the preliminary screening and would have to sit for written tests in Chemistry and Mathematics followed by an interview on 5th May 2014 at New Delhi. Both Mathematics and Chemistry sample papers were multiple choice types and the standard matched JEE (Mains). After 4 hours of written tests (2 hours for Chemistry and 2 hours for Math) and following a lunch break of 45 minutes, there was a rigorous interview in the afternoon for about an hour where questions relating to applied chemistry and general topics that interested the student were asked. Questions on the essays submitted during the application process were also asked

O pi n io n

Abhinav Pankaj Borbora – perhaps to verify originality of work. The whole interview was video recorded for further evaluation in Japan. On 21st May 2014, the results were uploaded on the university’s website at 11 AM Japan time. It was 7.30 AM in India. The first roll number on the list was T0708: Angana’s; a total of only 10 students were on the list qualifying for the Kyushu University with full scholarship. There was another list giving the roll numbers of the successful students selected for admission into the Kyushu University’s Undergraduate programme for Engineering 2014-2015 intake. There were 29 roll numbers in this list. Though Angana had received admission offers after declaration of 12th Board results from NTU Singapore and other reputed Indian institutions, we opted for Japan as she was offered full scholarship without signing of any bonds. We also perceived that education in Japan would benefit her in experiencing a new culture and learning a new language. It would be heartening to increase the number of Assamese students not only in Kyushu University but in other universities of Japan offering G -30 programmes where science/engineering education is imparted in English. Angana’s cousin Akash Kakati, son of my brother-in-law Sujit, was also short listed by Kyushu University in the 2015 G-30 exams. Akash had also won the Kyushu University scholarship to study Aero Space Engineering. The admission of Ragini Sharma (d/o Dr Rajib Sharma) into environmental science in Tohoku University in 2017 was another heartening development. The Japan Education under G-30 programme is attractive because very advanced learning can be acquired at relatively lesser costs even without scholarships as compared to the UK, USA and Australia. Japan is also a foreigner-friendly country with one of the lowest crime rates. An exposure to the disciplined culture of Japan blending with the ultra modern technology can indeed inspire the talented students of Assam to become good human beings in addition to acquiring an excellent techie degree by exploring the Japan Option for education after class 12. n

Letter to the Editor

awaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has the reputation of producing some of the finest scholars of the nation. The gems of the university, in the past, have bought glory to the nation on many occasions globally. The university which gets financial assistance from the central government to produce brilliant and patriotic minds has, of late, been on the wrong side of the story due to a few thugs (students) “studying” there. These thugs are earning a dubious name for the university as they are using the university campus as the breeding ground of the anti-national elements. In the past, notorious and dreadful Afzal Guru was hailed as a hero by some students along with a few professors within the walls of the campus. The infamous so called ‘tukde tukde gang’ is very much active within the university campus and its solo aim is to destabilize the nation. Their loyalty to neighbouring Pakistan is already known to all. Now the recent decision of the thug gang of not recognising Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister of India is another attempt to harp on the constitution of India. These thugs of JNU must be reminded that JNU is very much part of the country though their roots of origin is doubtful. Dr Ashim Chowdhury, Ambari, Guwahati

In Focus

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Partha Pratim Goswami Percussionist

on of late Dr Prasanna Kr Goswami, a Xatriya dance exponent and Aroti Goswami, an A-grade radio artist, Partha Pratim Goswami is a self-taught drummer from Guwahati who has had the opportunity to perform with some of the most renowned Indian artists like Shaan, Zubeen Garg, Abhijeet, Remo Fernandez and Mahalaxmi Iyer. Born in Guwahati, Partha

pursued initial education from Holy Cross School in Silchar before moving back to his hometown to study at Don Bosco School. He further graduated in Arts stream from Cotton College. The Assam-born percussionist embarked on his musical journey at a young age of 4 when he started playing the Assamese Dhol. He then learnt to play the Ojha Dhol under the guidance of

Gondheswer Ojha and ended up playing 12 Dhols at the same time.

At the time, radio and cassettes were the only media available and thus Partha learnt to play the western drums on his own. He performed across the country as a child Ojha Dholiya and soon became a professional drummer. From class 7 onwards, he started performing with the top bands and artists of the region before finally moving to Mumbai in 1995. Apart from performing with the famed artists, Partha became a full-time music arranger who has worked for companies like Sony, T Series, Universal and Crescendo. He also did re-mix arrangements for Anu Malik, Pritam, Himesh Reshamiya and Akbar Sammy, to name a few. Speaking to G Plus about his association with Zubeen Garg, Partha said, “Zubeen is more of a friend to me than an artist. We have been friends for over 30 years now and have also stayed together at a studio apartment in Mumbai for many years. When we perform together, we perform as friends and not as two professionals.”

Partha has been performing live in many countries and has featured in many popular TV as well as radio shows for over four decades now. Recalling his fondest memory, Partha told G Plus, “Every show has its own experience and it’s difficult to differentiate between them. However, my tour to South Africa with Joi Barua was an experience unparalleled – hearing the audience sing traditional Bihu and Assamese songs gave us goose bumps. The famed percussionist feels that the music scene in Assam is in a pathetic state due to piracy. He says that piracy has spoilt the music business as artists have become apprehensive about releasing new albums due to fear of piracy. “Assam’s music scene is constantly deteriorating because of untrained artists trying to sing professionally for personal gain with the aim to quickly rise to fame. I request such artists to gather formal training before getting on the stage and not to use cheap lyrics to gain attention because such gimmicks do not last long,” he added. Apart from being a performer, Partha is also a teacher of music. With the aim to pass on his talent to the future generation, he runs ‘Shankh - the school of music’ for genuine music students.

The school imparts training on vocals, drums, guitar, keyboards as well as piano. Being a nonprofit organisation, the music school imparts free training to the differently-abled. Music sensations of Assam Diganta Bharati, Zubeen Garg, Zublee Baruah, Madhurjoy Bordoloi, Bhaswati Bharoti are all associated with the school. Partha has also been associated with the Zublee Foundation ever since its inception four years ago. “Zublee Foundation is the only NGO in the entire northeast India which is working towards creating awareness of organ donation. I strongly believe in the cause of organ donation and wish to make Assam the land of immortals. Thus, I’m an active part of the foundation,” he expressed. A percussionist of par excellence, Partha is a recipient of many prestigious awards and accolades, including the Best Drummer Award at Mood Indigo Fest of IIT Mumbai and Best Drummer (Western) at All India Contest held at Delhi. He has also been bestowed with the title of ‘Mou Konwar’ by Dr Bhupen Hazarika and has been the first junior artist to perform on Delhi and Mumbai Doordarshan, and open the cultural night of ITF at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. Partha has performed across the globe bringing laurels to the state of Assam.

With three new flyovers coming up at Ganeshguri, Super Market, and Fatasil Ambari, will these help in de-congesting Guwahati’s traffic? Rajesh Kr Jalan I don’t think it will be possible as we have no proper planning. The government is not calculating onroad movement of vehicles and incoming of new vehicles in near future. As per my opinion it should be calculated more properly and a plan should be made. When we move through the areas mentioned above we have to get stuck every day in traffic. So just imagine the increase in traffic congestion that will happen during the construction of the bridges. Just coming up with new proposals is not a solution to a smart city. The government should have thought about these long back. And this is one of the core reasons why our country is lagging behind. No proper planning and maintenance is the reason. Highly doubt that these flyovers will help in de-congesting Guwahati traffic.

Samrat Ghosh I just hope the project does not become like Jalukbari which took nearly a decade to complete. The existing situation is already pathetic with heavy traffic throughout the day. The construction period will only make it worse. Basically the people have to plan their working schedules while the flyovers are in construction. If these efforts would have been made years back when there were lesser vehicles on the streets, today we would have not been worried about these problems. And most importantly, apart from increase in vehicles in the streets, the people are highly responsible for traffic problems in our city. People in our city lack sense. They double park and dual traffic lanes during traffic by the 2 wheelers create more problem. It becomes really difficult for the traffic police to clear the traffic in Guwahati.

Paras Jain Flyovers can’t solve the problems unless it is meticulously planned keeping future load of road traffic. The service roads should be free of parking and well maintained. Lesson should be learnt from the shortcomings of existing flyovers of city. Sarabbhati junction is creating too much problem for the people - one area which needs immediate attention. The increasing traffic in that area, that too in this scorching heat, is a big problem for all the office and college going people. Of course the three flyovers coming to the city is a good thing but let’s see by when these will get completed and what more problems we are going to face during its construction period. Naresh Harisinghani In our city decisions are taken without planning. These flyovers take so much time to get ready that the problem again remains the same. We have been staying in Guwahati and have seen how much time a flyover construction takes. The projects that the government is planning to take are a good thing that is going to come up but will be completed after nearly 10-15 years. So basically we the people of city have to face the current problem throughout or even more. One request - think different, act smart. Shreya Dhar Flyovers can be beneficial only if made with proper planning and completed within time. Flyovers are also required at Sarabhatti Charali and Fancy Bazar Rly Gate No 3. One should just see the traffic problem we face every day. The situation is terrible during office hours. Request the authorities to look over it. It’s a tough time for the public, traffic police and everyone.

Feature

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Dark Web: The dark side of Internet Shubhadeep Sengupta

here is much more going on over the internet than what the eyes and the search results offer. We use internet every day, but most of our usage remains confined to Google, Facebook, YouTube, Reddit and such like. But that’s just the surface of the web that is visible to us. The World Wide Web is quite vast; the visible web or

the surface web constitutes only 4% while the rest 96% is said to be formed by deep web and dark web.

What is dark web and deep web?

Surface web is anything that a search engine can access whereas deep web is anything that a standard search engine can’t access. Dark web is just a portion of the deep web. Deep web contains information that you cannot access without the help of an URL or an address. For example, your friend has uploaded photos on Google Drive; even though the photos are on the web, you cannot access them unless the exact address of the drive on which the photos are is shared with you. This is applicable to all the sites which are not listed on the search

engines and may be accessed only when the owner invites the user to access. Deep web may contain academic information, medical records, government resources, and other mundane personal information etc. On the other hand, dark web is a section of deep web which can be only accessed with specialized browsers. One can use browsers like Tor and Freenet to explore dark web.

Both the browsers disguise the IP address and keep one anonymous. Dark web is often linked with criminal activity and illegal market place.

How does it work?

One must have heard about the most conventional internet protocol HTTPS (hypertext transfer protocol secure). The surfing we usually do on the web is assisted by HTTPS. HTTPS is a protocol that encrypts information and transmits it from one destination to another. However, the encryption can always be tracked and hacked. For accessing deep web, one needs “Onion” routing; in onion routing messages are condensed in layers of encryption, equivalent to layers of an onion. When

the final layer is decrypted, the message arrives at the destination. That way the sender remains anonymous. Based on this protocol, application like Tor has been created which claims to defend users from network surveillance and keeps the information flow unidentified.

How dark web lives up to its name of being notorious and grotesque

As dark web is anonymous, it is a breeding ground for illegal activities where there are several market places to exchange services in return for crypto currencies such as Bitcoin, Litecoin etc. The famous market that came into being with the popularity of dark web was Silk Road, which was eventually shut down in 2013 giving rise to another market place called Atlantis. Drugs, military grade weaponry, counterfeit documents and stolen artifacts are some of the products that are traded at these marketplaces. Interestingly, all of these get delivered right at your doorstep just like your conventional e-com sites. Contract killers can be hired to take out targets within a very short period of time. The dark web is home to hardcore pornography and has an active pedophilia community. There are sites which stream live videos of victims getting tortured. They are described as Red Rooms where the viewer can request specific torturous acts to be performed on the victim in return for a definite price. However, services like these are said to be rumored and they are only featured in films and fictional stories. No records of it being actually available have been documented.

Who are using the Dark Web other than the criminals?

According to the reports, FBI ran the world’s biggest child pornography site on the dark net, going by the name operation

The dominance of Social Media “Social networks aren’t about web sites. They’re about experiences,” Mike DiLorenzo, NHL social media marketing director. Dipeeka Saboo

nd that definitely holds true in today’s world where we dedicate the day of 30th June as the Social Media Day. We must pause to reflect that consumer experience has been enriched over the past decade or so and a lot is because of the emerging and pow-

erful social platforms. Over 70% of international FIFA fans are watching the recaps and highlights at a later time on YouTube. For all the Messi fans, now that Argentina has made it to the round of 16, the FIFA fever continues to mesmerize us all over social media. While you are reading this article, over 60,000 searches are being made on Google every second. 42% of the world’s population

is active on social media and 68% are unique mobile users. Where impressive storytelling and seller ratings have taken over any marketing message that one can design, consumers are getting smarter, so are the marketers. Be it the millennial’s impulsive shopping behavior or where do you holiday and dine, the social giants know it all. Perhaps, when Bill Gates had the vision of one computer for every household, he had

Not all who use deep web are criminals, federal bodies or defense agencies. In today’s time of Big Brother where every move is surveyed and logged, people use deep web to communicate without the fear of getting tracked. Individuals can share information and start movements against corrupt organizations,

political parties, public offices, etc amongst each other by securing their digital identity. In heavily censored countries like China and Iran, journalists exchange information without the fear of getting tracked and prosecuted. Edward Snowden revealed NSA’s program PRISM, which was formed to collect private data of users from Google, Facebook and others and monitor their behavior. People who value their privacy online have started to shift from conventional surface web to dark web. It is reported that post revelation, there is an increase of TOR users by 75% in US and nearly double globally. For them, deep web is a tool which genuinely upholds the ‘right to privacy.’ So all you cool people on the web, as far as Indian Law is concerned, alone surfing on dark web is not illegal. You cannot be imprisoned just for hanging around there. You can use dark web for accessing research documents or initiating untraceable communication, but have to be careful about your digital imprints. You will find numerous tutorials, blogs that’ll guide you around the web. However, users who have visited dark web purely out of curiosity, advise the first timers to stay away owing to the bad experiences they have had. n

gauged that today would dawn where mobile phone is quickly replacing TV as the primary source of video. We have also seen the recent emergence of influencers, bloggers, Vbloggers in the northeast India, who are flaunting the rich culture, exotic landscape beauty and also the talent of the region. Women entrepreneurs and small businesses are flourishing and are more confident to do business because of the effective branding exposure and growth that effective social media promises them. A number of niches and job profiles such as online campaign manager, content marketing manager, digital marketing manager, Vblogger, search engine marketer, SEO expert, influencer

marketer, community manager, etc are emerging; we had not thought of these as lucrative career options when we passed out from our academic lives. The job potential in the digital marketing industry is also seen as very promising amidst the young job seekers. But it takes years of experience and a continuous learning process to become a seasoned digital marketing expert. Beyond all, it’s our responsibility to take care of our own security and be wary of free floating fake news and data in the social media world. Let’s hope for a more well-connected world that helps the world as a whole. n (The author is a digital marketer with over a decade of experience in this industry)

Playpen. The motive was to track down pedophiles that use the website for streaming videos. There were some 137 people who were charged from this and close to 1500 IPs were recovered from the site. Memex is being developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Government of USA. Memex is a search engine that will index and identify specific activity patterns on the dark web. It is basically the Google of the dark web. The purpose of Memex is to uncover crime by analyzing the patterns of advertisements that are posted on sites. Governments use deep web to communicate and transfer intelligence inputs from one corner to the other corner of the world without revealingthe IP addresses. The messages cannot be intercepted and hence are considered to be safe.

Flicker of light in everything dark

Trotter

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Mumbai man collects, donates uneaten plane food; thumbs up from Facebook

Mumbai man said he decided to do something about the food he saw often being wasted during flights. In a viral post on Facebook, Vishab Mehta detailed how he collected uneaten food during a recent flight and then offered it to those in need. His post, since being shared on June 21, has collected over 49,000 reactions and more than 23,000 shares - and still counting. "I was flying to Jaipur from Mumbai and I had decided that I'm going to do this this time," Mehta said. In his post he explained that passengers often leave food served on flights untouched and it usually ends up as garbage. "I decided that I'm not going to

let any uneaten food to be wasted or dumped into the garbage. Rather, I'll collect it and feed that food to the hungry," he wrote. According to the post, the passenger requested the cabin crew of the Air India flight for a bag to collect the uneaten food. "The crew was very supportive and suggested me to be seated and that it's better if they collected it while taking their food-trays back, separating the uneaten food in a bag simultaneously," he wrote on Facebook. Mehta said they managed to collect about 70 burger buns, 50 butter pockets and 30 chocolates. He said that he distributed the food while travelling to Ajmer from Jaipur.

Urging others not to waste, he wrote, "It's a request to all, save food and feed the hungry!" "Fabulous! Really commendable and what a noble thought," said one Facebook user. "More power to you and the wonderful act of kindness. Completely inspired by it," said another. (Source: ndtv)

Shirtless rapper climbs highway sign, causes hour-long traffic jam

or motorists in Los Angeles, getting stuck in traffic is just part of daily life. The city's sprawling road system is notorious for its rage-inducing gridlock, with one 2015 study finding that Los Angeles is home to 11 out of the 25 most congested segments of freeway across the country. So when southbound traffic slowed to a halt on State Route 110 during rush hour recently, it was just another day for commuting Angelinos. That is, until the source of the jam was revealed. A shirtless man - later identified by police as Alexander Dunn, an aspiring rapper whose stage name is Dephree - had climbed onto the top of a freeway exit sign wearing only black underwear and white sneakers. Videos of the scene posted to social media showed Dunn shouting from a megaphone, dancing and rapping, only taking occasional breaks during which he vaped. On the sign, he hung banners, one of which had "Dephree" in graffiti-style lettering. Others displayed environmental slogans, including "Fight pollution, not each other" and "Give a hoot,

don't pollute." California Highway Patrol officer Dion Conley told The Times that calls about Dunn started coming in shortly after 8 am. Less than 30 minutes later, the Los Angeles Fire Department tweeted that a rescue effort was underway. In addition to the fire department, highway patrol and the Los Angeles Police Department also arrived on the scene. By around 9:30 am, Dunn's performance appeared to be nearing its end as authorities set up ladders and climbed the sign themselves in an attempt

to capture him. Below the sign, giant inflatable pads were set up, stretching across the freeway's lanes. But, Dunn proved to be a wily foe, managing to repeatedly outmanoeuvre law enforcement. At one point, after inching his way along the top of the sign and away from police, he raised his arms in victory. Finally, authorities seemed to convince Dunn to get off the sign, but the rapper made sure to go out on his own terms. Surrounded by police, Dunn did a backflip off the sign, falling gracefully on to the inflatable pad as onlookers cheered raucously. Upon landing, Dunn, who appeared to be uninjured was arrested. Around 10:30 a.m., roughly two hours after Dunn climbed the sign, California Highway Patrol tweeted that all lanes were open. Dunn was booked for delaying a peace officer, trespassing and failing to obey a regulatory sign. He could also face additional charges if prosecutors determine that the stunt was done for commercial gain. (Source: dailymail)

Couple make their 11-year-old have sex with them ‘to stop him being gay’

set of parents, who have not been named to protect the identity of their son, made him watch them in bed and take part in various acts. His father told police it was because he wanted to keep his son “on the straight and narrow.” He and the boy’s stepmother were jailed today, for six years and nine years respectively. Judge

Maria Lamb heard that the victim had initially told the police what was happening to him in 1998 but his father lied to detectives and he was not believed. Years later the victim, now an adult aged in his 30s, complained again to the police and this time the father and the boy’s stepmother were both arrested. The father and stepmother sat in the dock

at Reading Crown Court as prosecutor Ruby Silva described to the court how they had begun their sexual assaults when the boy was 11. Ms Silva read aloud a statement from the father’s initial interview with police, citing how he had claimed the abuse was to “keep him on the straight and narrow path,” following the couple’s irrational fear of their son being gay. (Source: metro.co)

Football fan breaks hand while cheering favourite team at World Cup

he 2018 World Cup, currently underway in Russia, has been an exciting one. There have been some humiliating upsets and memorable victories making it an extremely stressful experience for the passionate fans. While most injuries during the World Cup often occur on the field, there are some exceptions - like a fan in China whose emotions got the better of him. While watching the Uruguay vs Saudi Arabia match on June 20, the fan was so overcome with excitement that he ended up banging his hand on a table. Like every action has its reaction, this one resulted in the football fan suffering

a fracture. According to a daily, the incident came to light when the young fan went to see a doctor. The man experienced bruises and puffiness on the back of his right hand, an orthopaedic specialist was quoted as saying. The incident was reported from east China's Tongxiang city. The Group A game between Uruguay vs Saudi Arabia ended in Uruguay's favour with a 1-0 win for the South American nation. Striker Luis Suarez scored the winning goal for Uruguay. It's not clear which team the Chinese fan was rooting for - though it is clear he's a passionate fan of the beautiful game. (Source: cnbc)

Young dad kills himself for being banned from seeing his baby

week before he killed himself last November, Harry Slaughter warned probation services what he was planning to do if he was not allowed to visit threemonth-old Frankie. Harry, 21, was banned from seeing his son because he sent text messages to a schoolgirl he met on a train asking her to perform a sex act. He was convicted last year and tried to take his own life before being rescued by police seeing him walking into the sea. After an assessment by mental health teams it was found that he should not be admitted. His mother, Jane Ward, told an inquest that he had tried to kill himself five times since the age of 16 after her marriage broke down with his father. She said he heard voices in his head and had panic attacks. She said, “I felt he was let down in a big way and now I have lost my baby boy.”

Probation officer Kimberley French spoke to him shortly before his death. She said, “He said he didn’t feel anyone was helping him and his attempt of suicide was to show me and social services that he really wanted to see his son so someone would do something about it and push us. He told me the reason he would hang himself outside the probation office is so he wouldn’t have to be identified by his family and he would be found quickly.” She broke down in tears when asked by Harry’s mum why she only sent an email to his doctor rather than contacting mental health services following the meeting. “It’s a question I ask myself all the time,” said Miss French adding, “Harry didn’t present himself as suicidal that day and he wasn’t talking to me about wanting to do anything again.” (Source: metro.co)

Review

G PLUS | JUN 23 - JUN 29, 2018

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Vicky Kaushal, etc Director: Rajkumar Hirani

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Sanju

anju explores some of the most crucial chapters from movie star Sanjay Dutt’s dramatic and controversial real life. It gives a lowdown on his tryst with drugs and his trials and tribulations in the Arms Acts case and the 1993 Mumbai blasts. One man, many lives is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Sanjay Dutt. Rajkumar Hirani’s film presents a vivid and very dramatic look in this biopic of sorts. The film starts off with Sanjay Dutt (Ranbir Kapoor) wanting a writer for his biography even while he's preparing to surrender himself to the Supreme Court's judgement in the Arms Act case. A film writer fails him miserably, so Sanju turns to a

more established writer Winnie (Anushka Sharma) to pen his biography. His confessions and recollections to Winnie are intimate and give us deep insights into the highs and lows of his life, which is nothing short of a roller-coaster ride. Like any Rajkumar Hirani film, Sanju blends humour with drama effortlessly. While it doesn't reveal much about the protagonists’ relationships and marriages, it does tell a strong story of an unbreakable bond between a father, son and a best friend. In fact, Sanjay’s relationship with his father Sunil Dutt (Paresh Rawal) forms the major part of this story and some of the most heart wrenching and touching moments in the film belong to both of them. n

Cast: Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, Cate Blanchett, etc Director: Gary Ross

rad Bird is back at what he does best! I remember reading that he finally just had to stop reading the negative reviews of Tomorrowland, but there was nothing negative about Incredibles 2! My wife looks down on great animated movies and calls them "cartoons" and after sitting through the trailer for ReckIt Ralph2, condescendingly said, "this is the kind of trailer you get when you go to a cartoon", but within a few minutes she was smiling and had a look of wonder in her eyes that remained the entire movie! There were several very young

children in the audience, and more than once my wife, myself and my twin 21 year old daughters were laughing equally as hard as these very little kids after a humorous line or scene. That's universal appeal that's very difficult to pull off. When the movie was done, our heads were spinning, having been highly entertained by so much witty humor, dynamic action and occasional touching moments. Definitely merits a 2nd viewing. Thank you to Mr. Bird, the voice actors and the rest of the Pixar staff for creating such a richly entertaining film! It's a real gift to the rest of us! n

Gadget Review

has a striking design, a near-stock build of Android and a sizeable 4,000mAh battery. Can the Moto G6 Play carve out a place for itself in a competitive segment populated by the likes of the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Review) and the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 (Review), both of which offer tremendous value for money? Let's find out in our full Moto G6 Play review.

Moto G6 Play design

Moto G6 Play

ith the Moto G6 (Review) and Moto G6 Play, Motorola has finally latched on to the 18:9 display trend that has permeated the smartphone industry. We have already reviewed the Moto G6, and now we have its more affordable sibling in for review. The Moto G6 Play is a budget smartphone that

The Moto G6 Play looks a lot like the pricier Moto G6. The highly polished metal midframe and circular rear camera module have been carried over from the Moto G6, but the glass on the back has been replaced by what Motorola calls 'polymer glass'. Marketing-speak aside, the back panel is made of plastic with a high-gloss finish that's trying to imitate glass.

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Incredibles 2

It does not feel as premium, but is claimed to be less prone to breakage. Build quality is top-notch and the phone feels reassuringly solid. The most striking aspect of the G6 Play's design is how easy it is to fit this phone in one hand. However, the body is quite slippery and the plastic back picks up smudges at an alarming rate. The lack of an of an IPxx rating for wa-

Galleria Cinemas

ter resistance is not a surprise at this price point, but the Moto G6 Play even lacks the water resistant nano-coating found on the Moto G6 and Moto G5S Plus. While the Moto G6 has a pillsized front facing fingerprint sensor, the one on the Moto G6 Play is embedded within the Motorola batwing logo at the back. Fans of Motorola's familiar dimple, which

was last seen in the third-generation Moto X series, will feel right at home. The setup process is surprisingly slow but the sensor is quick, accurate, and easy to locate by feel. The volume rocker and power button are on the right, and the left edge is blank save for the SIM tray which has separate slots for two Nano-SIMs and a microSD card. While the buttons are quite small, they are tactile and well within reach. On the top of the Moto G6 Play is a 3.5mm headphone socket. Unlike its more expensive sibling - which has a modern USB Type-C port - the Moto G6 Play makes do with the old Micro-USB standard for charging and data transfers. The earpiece also acts as a speaker, and while it's loud and clear, the sound it produces lacks warmth. n

Entertainment

G PLUS | JUN 23 - JUN 29, 2018

‘Xhoixobote Dhemalite’ being screened at film festivals across the world

ssamese film ‘Xhoixobote Dhemalite’ (Rainbow Fields) from India, gets 8 nominations at the Love International Film Festival (LIFF) in the USA. The awards ceremony will be held in Beverly Hills on the 7th of July, 2018. The nomination categories from LIFF Awards, USA include Best Feature Film - Rainbow Fields, Best Director - Bidyut Kotoki, Best Actor - Nakul Vaid, Best Actress - Dipannita Sharma, Best Supporting Actor - Victor Banerjee, Best Screenplay

- Bidyut Kotoky, Best Cinematography - Satya Prakash Rath and Best Score - Anurag Saikia. Produced by Nitesh Batra and directed by Bidyut Kotoki, Rainbow Fields is based on a true story and narrates the psychological trauma that the children of Assam had to go through during the Assam Agitation of the 1980s. It’s a children’s film which deals with violence and is inspired by the director’s first-hand experiences. It is a 90 minute long film which was shot in Gerukhamukh in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The film features actors such as Dipannita Sharma, Victor Banerjee, Naved Aslam, Nakul Vaid and a few fresh child actors. Apart from Assam, the film has also been released in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Kolkata and Bengaluru. “It did particularly well

in Kolkata where it released in Nandan Theatre and it released across 39 theatres in Assam. The problem is that Assam doesn’t have too many theatres, which it needs,” said Nitesh. According to the young producer, In spite of the huge success, recovering the investment when it comes to realistic films is a very big struggle. “More government support, more screens for such films and a change in mindset are required to give a boost. We are more open to watch a film in a language from a different country than watching a film in a different language from another state in India. That can change with exposure,” he added. The film is now reaching the theatres of the USA where it will release on 27th July in California and New Jersey.

Adil Hussain nominated for Norway's national movie award

ctor from Assam, Adil Hussain, has been nominated for Norway's top national movie award ‘Amanda’, in the Best Actor category for his role in Iram Haq's critically acclaimed film ‘What Will People Say’. Adil had earlier won the Kanon Award at Kosmorama film festival, which is Norway's equivalent of the

Academy Awards. The film shows a cross-cultural clash between a teenage PakistaniNorwegian girl and her immigrant parents who are horrified with her affair with a local boy. Adil here plays the role of an affectionate yet controlling father in the film. Although one may argue that his character transforms too easily from a doting dad to tyrant, Haq definitely represents him as a composite and conflicted character. The director is able to convey the love that exists between a father and a daughter very clearly, which does not end happily because of the wide gulf between their cultures. The film is also nominated for

the best film, actor, director and script and Adil plans to attend the Amanda Awards which will take place on 18th of August this year. He also mentioned how he really liked Haq's style of storytelling and is thrilled to be recognised in Norway. "One of the casting directors in India contacted me and then I spoke to the director. I really liked the script. I had also liked her first film. This film opened in Toronto International Film Festival and has travelled to many others. The film was very successful in Norway where it ran for six months," said Adil. Haq's feature debut "I Am Yours" was Norway's nomination for the Oscars in 2013.

Oscar 2018: Assam’s Debajit Changmai invited as voting member by Academy

ational award-winning Debajit Changmai from Assam has been invited to be a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (OSCAR) this year. With this, he becomes the second Assamese ever to be invited by the Academy as a voting member. Earlier in 2017, Bollywood sound designer Amrit Pritam Dutta of Assam was selected as a member of the Academy. Dutta, who was the first Assamese to be nominated as a voting member has congratulated Debajit for this achievement of his on Facebook. It may be mentioned that membership to the academy is by invitation only.

Hailing from Sivasagar, Changmai is a senior re-recording mixer, currently working for Future Works. Changmai has been part of several major films of Bollywood in the recent past like ‘Baahubali 2’, ‘Bhag Milkha Bhag’, ‘Haider, ‘Secret Supestar’, ‘Kaminey’, ‘Dangal’ and ‘Barfi’. He has also won a national award for re-recording of the final mixed track of Hindi film ‘Ishqiya’ in 2011.

Moving out from Sivasagar to establish himself in Mumbai has been a long journey for Changmai, which saw a lot of ups and downs. But slowly he has been able to establish himself. He is a Jyoti Chitrabon alumnus and was a pass out from the first batch in the sound mixing course. He has also been publically congratulated for his work by Utpal Borpujari, national award winning film critic and filmmaker.

Assam model wins Miss National Universe India title

ajabinda Bindra, a 20-year-old model from Assam, was crowned with the title of Miss National Universe India at the Rubaru Miss India Elite 2018 held in Gurgaon, India recently. Groomed by noted fashion

designer, Prasantt Ghosh, Bindra also won the subtitle of Miss Intellectual at the event.

A graduate from the Chandgarh University, Rajabinda will now represent India in a pageant in Thailand scheduled for later this year.

Assamese Feature Film ‘Astittwa’ to release soon

roduced under the banner of Skyplex Motion Pictures International, much awaited Assamese feature film ‘Astittwa’ completed its shoot recently. Astittwa revolves around the story of Lachit Hazarika, who depicts the common Assamese man and how he fights for his Astittwa. The story is quite unique and brings out the values of an Assamese which were otherwise forgotten. The film has a mixture of old and new faces which gives a great cocktail of performance. The protagonist Lachit Hazarika is played by Bibhuti Bhushan Hazarika. The most loved villain of Assamese films, Dinesh Das plays the bad man of the film and has left no stone unturned to ensure the wrath of the audience. Among the other artists are Brojen Bora, Siddhartha Mukherjee, Talented Lonishri Das, Durgashree Bora, Manuj Gogoi, Bibhash Sinha, Runumi Devi, Uddalak Yogi, Rohit Choudhury, Mahibur Rahman, Kuldeep Bora, Jyoti Shankar, Smriti Das and Rajib Kro. The film has only one song that has been composed by the national

award winner Tarali Sarma. It is said that the song is going to be a landmark composition and is going to be released soon. Dony Hazarika has taken the responsibility of the background. Award winning

cameraman, Nahid Ahmed, handled the cinematography aspect of the film. The editing is under the charge of Jhulan Krishna Mahanta. The film introduces a stunt director duo Spandan and Bibhash, who has composed realistic fights and stunts with a mixture of mix martial art and street fight style. The VFX is under the supervision of Priyam Chakraborty, who also has designed the poster of the film. The film is Mirza Arif Hazarika’s debut project and he has penned the screenplay, story and dialogues as well. The film is currently in post production stage and is to be released soon.

Fun

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Horoscope of the week The big news for you this week concerns courageous Mars in your sector of far horizons. This fiery planet turns retrograde on June 26 and remains so until August 27. This can suggest delays to a vacation or perhaps a longer journey. If you’ve been thinking about taking a course or getting a qualification, something could come up that postpones it.

You could be in the mood to indulge in a little retail therapy at the start of the week, which might help you feel more upbeat. The chance to purchase a few small luxuries will do you a world of good. Even so, feisty Mars in your sector of business and shared assets enters its retrograde phase on Tuesday and remains so until August 27, and this could slow things down in this area.

The start of the week could see you eager to bring a little sparkle into your home, perhaps by arranging a get-together or other fun gathering. There’s also a change of pace as feisty Mars enters its retrograde phase in your relationship zone on June 26 and remains so until August 27.

A dream could inspire you to move forward with an idea. If it portrays you as confident and in charge, you might carry this feeling forward into your daily life to positive effect. However, fiery Mars turns retrograde in your lifestyle sector on June 26 and remains so until August 27, which could cause some delays.

A lovely blend of energies involving Venus, your guide planet, and jovial Jupiter could find you in a generous mood at the start of the week. You might show your appreciation for friends or family by taking them somewhere special or treating them to a meal.

A generous gesture could go a long way at the start of the week and endear you to others, especially those in high places. But get ready for a shift on Tuesday as dynamic Mars, your co-ruler, enters its rewind phase in your home zone and remains so until August 27. This would be a good time to thoroughly remove clutter.

You might get a nudge to take a break and do something different at the start of the week. If so, the cosmos hints that it could be very good for you. Enjoy a respite now because there may be things to mull over later in the week. Positive Mars turns retrograde in Aquarius and your communication zone on Tuesday and remains so until August 27.

Someone’s generosity could melt your heart at the start of the week and bring you closer to this person as a result. Fiery Mars turns retrograde in your personal financial sector on Tuesday and remains so until August 27, which could delay your plans. If you’ve been thinking about taking out a loan or applying for other credit, it might be wise to hold off for now.

A friend or partner could be very generous with their praise and encouragement, and this could see you becoming more confident about the path you’ve chosen. On another note, feisty Mars in your sign turns retrograde on Tuesday and remains so until August 27, which could offer an opportunity to review your plans.

The sun’s presence in your sector of relating encourages you to kick back and take some time out for yourself. And with lovely Venus angling toward expansive Jupiter on Monday, this could take the form of a massage, some other pampering session, or another special treat.

What is the khasi word for tears? Which is the first Indian film to be released in Saudi Arabia? What is the national dish of Pakistan?

curio-city

1 2 3 4

Alan Moore’s cult favourite ‘Watchmen’ shows which place as the 51st state of?

Carless, Capell and Leonard, a British engineering company were the first in the world to use which “valuable” brand name for their “refined” product in 1870?

Identify this angry bird? Dr. Soubhadra Chakrabarty This quiz has been brought to you by Brain Jam, a property of Priya Communications

Doonesbury By Garry Trudeau

1 7 8 7 5 2 3 9 1 1 3 9 2 3 2 6 3 5 7 4 1 8 1 65 4 6 3 3 8 1 Sudoku: 5 Fri 29-Jun-2018 Daily 1

7 5 9

19 54 8 4

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Daily Sudoku: Thu 21-Jun-2018

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6 last 3 7week 4 9 solution 2 8 1 5 2 4 1 7 5 8 6 3 9 1 7 95 54 82 6 3 81 64 92 37 6 2 77 83 69 5 1 43 82 19 54 8 1 6 5 9 1 9 5 2 7 34 73 28 46 2 3 34 27 41 8 6 99 55 87 61 3 6 5 7 8 8 1 2 9 4 16 97 45 23 4 5 42 79 38 1 2 65 39 76 18 8 4 56 62 93 3 8 77 11 54 92 1 Sudoku: 5 Fri729-Jun-2018 9 6 2 4 3 8hard Daily 9 8 4 3 1 5 2 6 7 Daily Sudoku: Thu 21-Jun-2018

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http://www.dailysudoku.com/

1. Umiam, as in the Umiam lake 2. Rajinikanth’s latest release ‘Kaala’ 3. Nihari, beef or lamb shanks stew, very popular during the winters in India too 4. Vietnam 5. They were the first to use the word Petrol for the fuel used to run cars. 6. Canarhinho Pistola, the new mascot of the Brazilian Soccer team

curio-city

Sudoku

As delectable Venus angles toward upbeat Jupiter in your relationship sector on Monday, you could succeed in impressing someone with your cooking and entertaining skills. This person could become a friend for life as a result. The big news this week is dynamic Mars turning retrograde in your career and ambition sector on Tuesday, which could cause delays to your best-laid plans.

The week starts on a somewhat indulgent note, and you could enjoy a pampering session or a chance to go on a shopping spree just for the fun of it - and why not? With all the hard work you’ve been putting in lately, you deserve it. Dynamic Mars, your ruling planet, turns retrograde in your social sector on Tuesday, and it will remain so until August 27.

Word of the week edentate adjective [ee-den-teyt] toothless

Crossword Across

Down

1 Enquires (4) 3 Walks with an arrogant manner (8) 9 Drag in — bole rim (anag) (7) 10 Talkative (5) 11 Dr Who’s alien robot (5) 12 Type of car (6) 14 Shame (13) 17 Hackneyed expression (6) 19 Once more (5) 22 Scent (5) 23 Nonplussed (2,1,4) 24 Lay bare (8) 25 Thin strip used to stiffen a garment (4)

1 Scotland’s Granite City (8) 2 Afghan capital (5) 4 Wartime warning against loose talk (5,4,4) 5 Judge’s hammer (5) 6 Put inside (7) 7 Unaccompanied (4) 8 Stove (6) 13 Holds oneself in readiness (6,2) 15 Device supplying an organ with air (7) 16 Sacred beetle of ancient Egypt (6) 18 Baby-like advance (5) 20 Bring to a premature end (5) 21 Pig fat used in cooking (4)

Last week’s solution

Lifestyle

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Should we believe in Vaastu?

t is very often asked whether we should believe in Vaastu or astrology in this modern scientific era or not. It is akin to everyone going to religious temples or shrines and performing religious ceremonies like funerals, weddings etc offering homage and respect to ancestors and Gods but without being sure whether god or souls of ancestors exist at all. But is Vaastu purely based on faith and belief? Proof of existence of application of Vaastu is found in the excavation of ancient Indus valley Civilization which is almost 8000 years old according to archaeologists now. Vaastu Shastra has been mentioned in vedas and puranas which are the gospels of Hinduism. Modern science has taken a leap in the form of a scientific revolution in the 16th and 17th century. Copernicus and Galileo formulated their famous theories on astronomy in the 16th century. Newton’s Law of gravitation came later in the 17th century. Our Aryabhatta’s mathematical discoveries came around 1700 years ago. As recent as 1954, a German physician named Ernst Hartmann discovered that the earth’s magnetic lines are 8 to 12 inches apart and they form a grid North-south and East-west. The intersecting points form nodes which are harmful and cause geopathic stress. Manfred Curry, an American scientist, discovered a similar grid which is diagonal to Hartmann’s Grid. They came to the conclusion that earth’s rays emanating

from the ground are electrically charged. These rays can only be detected by dowsing rods or by magnetic needles. Ernst Lecher from Austria invented a wire loop to measure the resonance of the earth in 1920. It is known as the Lecher Antenna.

It can measure earth’s vibrations or energy emissions from human beings, animals, vegetation or the surrounding. The principle of the Lecher Antenna is based on three energy fields which are (1) Vibrating Field, (2) Centripetal Field and (3) Centrifugal Field. A French Physicist Bovis devised a scale by which the energy of the earth can be measured. It is widely used by western scientists. It is found on the Bovis scale that the energy of the earth is from 7000 to 18000 Bovis. Minimum positive energy required for us is 7000 to 10000 Bovis. We get tired when the energy level goes below

6500 Bovis and we may fall sick below 6000. Readings of 0 to 6500 on the Bovis scale is considered negative energy. The church bells and temple bells produce 11000 to 14000 Bovis. It is found that the Swastika produces 10,00,000 Bovis! Hindus have been using the swastika on the houses or business establishments and religious ceremonies since ages.

Indian Vaastu Shastra experts knew the above phenomena through observation and experience and have been using them for thousands of years. This old Indian science on architecture teaches how to effectively deal with the earth’s forces. In Yoga Shastra, the Panch Bhutas or the five basic elements are studied in detail. Since Vaastu is based on the properties of the earth and the sun, it is universal and has nothing to do with religion, caste or nationality. It does take help

Hypoglycemia

he term appears technical but everyone with Diabetes should be familiar with all aspects of Hypoglycemia. It simply means low blood sugar which is abnormal and can be potentially life threatening. It is invariably due to anti diabetic medicines and is the biggest challenge to aggressive sugar control. Our normal body physiology keeps our blood sugar in a tight range irrespective of the amount and pattern of food intake. But when the same control is desired with medicines, there is always a chance of the blood sugar dipping very low. The earliest symptoms are similar to a stress response and driven by our adrenaline system. There may be palpitation, sweating, tremors, fear and hunger etc. These are generally seen below a sugar level of 50mg% but may occur at higher levels in those whose sugar control is poor. With further lowering, the brain function is affected and there may be dizziness, unconsciousness and if not timely treated, even death. They may not necessarily occur in that sequence, especially in those who have recurrent episodes. The body in such situations may stop sending signals and the first problem could be unconsciousness.

Thus hypoglycemia should never be ignored. Many symptoms are non specific and attributing them to hypoglycemia may be difficult. It is here where self test by a glucometer is handy. They are fairly reliable and endorsed by all organisations for good control of blood sugar. The urgency of the situation also means that you need urgent report and it comes within few seconds with a glucometer. The treatment is with 25 to 50g of glucose, which will be somewhat like 5 to 10 tsf of sugar. Symptoms of hypoglycemia, low glucose on testing and improvement with sugar completes the triad of hypoglycemia. The episodes may recur and it is advised to take urgent medical attention. But that should not delay self management as delay

may be potentially dangerous. The reason for hypoglycemia is mismatch between the drug and the desired effect. The reasons could be skipped meals, acute illness, poor intake as with vomiting or diarrhoea, advanced illness with organ dysfunction, introduction of new drugs or change in treatment strategy etc. It’s important to identify the cause and rectify so that the condition doesn’t recur. Hypoglycemia could also be due to improving Insulin sensitivity and better disease control expects that the sugar is too low to be safe. Those who never have had their blood sugar controlled well will never experience hypoglycemia. In people who are prone to hypoglycemia, realistic targets for control should be set. The medicines are becoming safer, the incidence of hypoglycemia has declined but it can never be taken away in the management of Diabetes. So learn your numbers, know your medicines, self assess for symptoms, have easy access to glucometer and to sugar and learn to avoid and manage hypoglycemia. Dr Rakesh Periwal Critical Care Medicine and Sleep Specialist drperiwal@gmail.com

of astrology at times which deals with the cosmic forces of the planets and stars on us. Earth’s forces, solar radiation and the cosmic forces are continuously interacting with each other and releasing bio-energy. When we build a structure over the surface of earth, there is an interaction with the natural forces. This interaction can produce positive or negative vibrations depending on type of construction and the direction or location. If a structure is designed and located in such a way that the negative forces are taken care of, there will be positive vibrations which are beneficial for the users. If the negative forces are allowed to override the positive forces due to lack of knowledge or negligence, a weak bioenergy field is produced which is detrimental for the occupants. Vaastu Shastra has advocated and formulated certain rules to live peacefully in harmony with the natural forces. Hemanta Kumar Sarmah Engineer, Businessman, Advanced Pranic Healer and Su Jok Acupressure specialist.

Misunderstandings Somehow I don’t want to talk Because what I will say Will end up being lost. Silence, but at what cost? It is not that I don’t pray For this uncertainty to stop But there is nothing I can say To help me on this day. Sanjali Dixit

Buzz

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Two Assamese writers bag Sahitya Akademi awards

he Sahitya Akademi has announced the names of the winners of two prestigious awards namely Bal Sahitya Puraskar and Yuva Puraskar. The names of two writers from Assam – Jugallochan Das and Bipasha Bora – have also been announced among the list of recipients this year. Jugallochan Das bagged a prize in the children’s category for his Assamese novel “Xonbali Bagisar Bhoot” and Bipasha Bora for her short story collection, titled “Mou Makshi Samrajya.” The Bal Sahitya Puraskar will be vouchsafed to 21 winners at a function on November 14. The Yuva Puraskar has also been announced to 21 recipients. Ten poetry books, seven short stories, three novels and one play have been chosen for this award.

A However, the date for conferring this award has not been declared yet. The award comprises a casket containing an engraved copperplaque and a cheque of Rs. 50,000 for each of the award categories. Awards have also been

declared for Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay (Bengali), Sitaram Basumatary (Bodo), Easterine Kire (English), Khangembam Shamungou (Manipuri), Tongbram Amarjit Singh (Manipuri) and Dushyant Joshi (Rajasthani), to name a few. n

City school bags second position in Taekwondo championship

iles Bronson Residential School (MBRS), Guwahati, secured the overall second position at the All India Indian School Conference (IPSC) taekwondo championship hosted by Birla Vidya Mandir, Nainital this month. The championship was held on the 21st and 22nd of June 2018. The MBRS team included seven players who played in three different categories i.e., Under-14, 17 and 19 (Boys). The team altogether won four golds, one silver and two bronzes. The golds were bagged by Devraj Basumatary (27 kgs) in Under-14 category, Bhaigyajeet Basumatary (51 kgs), Gaurab Kumar Gupta (68 kgs) and Upamanyu Rabha (73 kgs) in Under-19

Assam shuttler Ashmita Chaliha wins All India Senior Ranking Tournament

ssam girl Ashmita Chaliha and former Junior World No. 1 Siril Verma entered the Asian Games selection mix after claiming titles in their respective categories at the All India Senior Ranking Badminton Tournament that concluded in Hyderabad on Sunday, June 24. Both the shuttlers beat tournament favourites with Siril overcoming Sourabh Verma and Ashmita getting the better of Sai Uttejitha Rao in the finals at the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy. Ashmita pulled off an upset victory over India No. 3 Uttejitha in the final. The 18-year-old left-handed shuttler went on to beat Uttejitha, who was the winner in Bengaluru, 21-16, 14-21, 21-15. In the first game, Ashmita fought back from 8-11 but in the second, Uttejitha regained her

Assam boy bags gold at ISSF Junior World Cup category, The silver was bagged by Mebaplield Lyngkhoi (54 kgs) in Under-19 category while the bronzes

were bagged by Aryan Mishra (45 kgs) and Birkhang Narzary (48 kgs) in Under-17 and Under-14 category respectively. n

SOS Day celebrated along with the birth anniversary of its founder

he global SOS community and the SOS children’s village celebrated SOS day and the birth anniversary of its founder, Dr Hermann Gmeiner on the 23rd of June. The celebrations began by paying tribute to its founder Dr Hermann Gmeiner with flowers followed by plantation of trees and release of balloons for global peace. The main programme started in the evening with the lighting of the lamp, followed by a speech on the philosophy of Dr Gmeiner and his lifelong passion for providing loving and caring homes to the

composure and took a 7-1 lead before eventually going on to win 21-14 and force a decider. The third game saw Uttejitha took a 10-6 lead early on. However, Ashmita claimed the next six points and then, run away with the match and the title. By winning the title, the Assam shuttler has confirmed a spot in the Asian Games Women’s Single Squad. n

orphaned and abandoned children. The chief guest for the occasion was Justice Rumi Kumari Phukan of the Gauhati High Court. A host of dignitaries graced the occasion including Managing Director of Vinayak Honda, Sanjay Lakotiya, Principal of St Joseph School, Azara, Siju Sabastiam, Manager, CSR of Dalmia Group, Sandeep Duwarah among others. The children presented a few cultural items that were cheered by the audience. The

I commemoration also included distribution of prizes to the children who excelled in various fields of activity. n

ndia’s young shooting brigade bagged their second gold medal of the day after Hriday Hazarika claimed the top spot in Men’s 10m air rifle at the SSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany on Monday. Hriday shot a score of 248.7 in the final to finish just 0.3 points ahead of silver medallist Maximilian Ulbrich from Germany and China’s Gangfeng Fu, who won bronze with 226.9. The other Indian in the final, Divyansh Singh Panwar, was the second to be eliminated with a total score of 141.8.

Hriday had led the pack right from the qualification, topping the chart with a score of 627.1. This is India’s eighth medal from the competition, making it four gold, one silver and three bronze medals. Born in Assam in 2001, Hriday started shooting a few years ago from a shooting range in Guwahati and qualified for the Kumar Surendra Singh National Championships soon after. He hails from a non-sporting family, unlike many other shooters. Both his parents are school teachers. Hriday has participated in and won many honours. Amongst his most notable victories was a clean sweep during the Sardar Sajjan Singh Sethi Masters Shooting Championships in New Delhi. The youngster took part in three events and claimed the gold medal in each of them. Hriday has performed well in the National Rifle Association of India’s selection trials as well, finishing on the podium on several occasions over the years. n

Events

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018

Event Sunday Club Night Date June 24, Sunday Venue Dunkin Oza

Event Summer Jam - World Music Day celebration Date June 21, Thursday Venue Aucto Creation

Event Unplugged Night ft. Suraj Verma Date June 22, Friday Venue The Socialite

Event: Northeast India Beauty Pageant Date: June 23, Saturday Venue: Pragjyotish ITA Machkhowa Northeast India Beauty Pageant held at Guwahati this weekend was attended by the whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s who of the fashion industry. The pageant was judged by Mr World 2016 Rohit Khandelwal and Miss India Universe 2017 Shraddha Shashidhar along with groomer and choreographer Mr India 2017 Jitesh Singh Deo. Anisha Baishya was crowned the winner of Miss Jealous 21 Northeast India, while Kriti Karmakar and Aisha Afrin were crowned first and second runner up respectively. All three winners were from Assam. Indigo Nation Mr Northeast India crown was bagged by Diwakar Dutta from Sikkim, with Chidananda Singh from Manipur as first runner up and Daya Sagar Boro from Meghalaya as second runner up.

Catching Up

G PLUS | JUN 30 - JUl 06, 2018