Vol 5 Issue 42 by G Plus

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018 @guwahatiplus www.guwahatiplus.com

Inside

Volume 05 | Issue 42 Aug 11 - Aug 17, 2018 Price `10

City foodies jittery after recent rise in ‘food scandals’ PG 04

City girl of Jain community chooses love over social bindings to marry Muslim boy PG 07

2019 elections

Assam’s magic rice Boka Chaul gets GI Tag PG 13

Modi VS Togadia in Assam Some Assam BJP leaders to go against Modi in 2019 PG. 03

City Snippets

Aadhar enrolment in Assam to start from August end

n a relief to the citizens of Assam, the much-awaited Aadhar card enrolment process will start from the last week of August. The Aadhar implementation date has been extended by the Supreme Court of India from 31st March 2018 to March 2019. The process has not been initiated formally in Assam and neighbouring Meghalaya though a few public sector banks have been acting as enrolment centres for some time now. There will be 10 zones in the state and if required the number of Aadhar enrolment centres would be increased from the present 1,241 centres. People can visit these centres with the necessary documents and get themselves enrolled for the 12-digit unique identification number. State government employees will be entrusted with the verification of documents during the Aadhar enrolment process. According to sources in the General Administration Department (GAD) which comes under the Chief Minister’s office, work plans submitted by the vendors are being scrutinized and very soon work orders will be issued to the eligible vendors. A total of 20 firms have responded to the bid floated by the GAD. The UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) has declared the GAD as the State Register for Aadhar. n

Guwahatibased actorchoreographer dies in road accident

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Plethora of celebrations planned for Independence Day; city security beefed up Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

ecurity measures in the city have been beefed up in view of the forthcoming Independence Day which the state aims to celebrate with pomp and grandeur. While there were plans to plant saplings and make this Independence Day a plastic-free event, the state also stares at certain threats from divisive forces, especially with the final draft for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) having been released recently. “According to intelligence inputs, there are some threats that the city is staring at. In view of those, the security arrangements in the city have been beefed up,” a source in the Guwahati city police commissionerate said. Director General of Police, Assam, Kuladhar Saikia said that the state police are in close contact with the police forces of Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh, the two possible fronts from where militant attacks can be expected. “We have asked both Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh Police to carry out offensives against militants in the bordering areas of Assam. In some districts of the states, Section 144 has been imposed so that vested elements

Employees of Assam Khadi and Village Industries Board making Indian flags at their workshop ahead of the Independence Day celebrations | G Plus Photo joined the peace talks with the government of India had jointly called for boycott of the Independence Day celebrations in the entire northeast. Companies of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) have already reached the city and are conducting checks at different locations. Security in and around the Veterinary Field at Khanapara where the Independence Day celebrations will take place has also been beefed up. “There are regular checks in at least 50 locations of the city. All the vehicles that are coming into the city and leaving the city are being checked. People and their belongings are being checked

ewel Ahmed, also popularly known as Jewel, a wellknown face in television and cinema, lost his life in a road accident on Wednesday night. His body was found near Hotel Vishwaratna, Tokobari, in a bloodied state and was taken to the Gauhati Medical College & Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. According to reports, Jewel had a tiff with a group of eunuchs and was attacked by them. It is believed he met with the accident while he was running away from the eunuchs. The mysterious circumstances which led to Jewel’s death have raised a lot of questions. Interestingly, the whereabouts of one Ganesh, who picked him up from his home, is also not known. The case is under police investigation Jewel, a resident of Jalukbari, has acted and choreographed in a number of music video albums and television serials. n

administration, in association with the cine-exhibitors, has arranged for a free patriotic film show in their respective theatres of the city on the eve of Independence Day. This was decided in a meeting held at the conference hall of the DC’s office between the owners of cinema halls and the district administration here on August 10. The meeting was presided over by DC Kamrup (Metro), Virendra Mittal. “It was decided that on 15th August a patriotic film will be screened at 11 am. The show will be open for students from Class 8 to post graduate level. The students must come with their identity cards. Seats will be offered on first-come-first-served basis,” Mittal said in the meeting. The free show will be held in the following cinema halls: Anuradha –Bamunimaidam, Pragjyoti – Maligaon, Apsara – Ulubari, Meghdoot – Paltan Bazar, Vandana – Noonmati, Urvashi

– Fancy Bazar, Galleria – Hub Bhangagarh, Gold Cinema – Paltan Bazar (ASTC), Narengi and Lakhtokia, Cinepolis – Christian Basti, Grande Cines – Paltan Bazar, PVR – Dona Planet, GS Road. Earlier, the district administration had a meeting with 12 higher educational institutions of the district at Circuit House where the same was discussed. Besides, the DC also discussed a three-day celebration – a practice that was started after BJP came to power in 2014. Among various activities, the DC had also advised the representatives of the educational institutions to organise competitions on patriotic solo and group songs and poster making on the theme of Swachh Bharat amongst the students on 13th August and to organise a quiz competition on the theme of “Freedom Movement of India” on 14th August.

RPF personnel patrol with sniffer dog at Guwahati Railway Station | G Plus Photo This apart, the DC also encouraged the schools to organise small awareness meetings amongst the students in their respective institutions regarding the theme of road safety, time management, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao etc where he promised to be present. n

Say no to plastic flags this I-Day, appeals Admin Security forces participating in parade rehearsal for the Independence Day celebrations in Guwahati | G Plus Photo cannot create any disturbance in the run up to the Independence Day celebrations,” Saikia told the media. While the Arunachal Pradesh border is more than 400 kms away from the city, Assam shares a long border with Meghalaya which is in close proximity to the city. Militants outfits including ULFA (I) and others who have not

by police personnel. There are also police personnel in civilian clothes making rounds of the city,” the source said. The source also said that during the Independence Day celebration ceremony at Khanapara, drones will be used to obtain an aerial assessment of the security arrangements. The Kamrup (Metro) district

head of the Independence Day, the district administration of Kamrup Metropolitan District, Guwahati has appealed to the citizens that flags made of plastic should not be used in terms of the provisions of the “Flag Code of India, 2002” maintaining the dignity of the flag. The administration has appealed to all the street vendors

and shopkeepers not to sell plastic flags and has requested the general public to discourage the sale and purchase of plastic National Flags thereby ensuring strict compliance of the Flag Code. Moreover, according to Section 2 of Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971, one should not disrespect the National Flag. The use of plastic Flag is also a sign of disrespect to the National Flag. n

Lead Story

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Snippets Provide faster internet to the public, CM to BSNL

PM Modi and Assam BJP leaders during a rally in Guwahati | G Plus Photo

Some Assam BJP leaders to go against Modi in 2019 G Plus News

he poster boys as also the think-tank of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi and Assam have already started campaigning for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections but some senior leaders in Assam are distinctly unhappy with the central leadership to the extent that they are planning to go against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019. A highly placed source in the Sangh Parivar revealed that a few

senior leaders are not happy with the leadership. The Sangh Parivar includes the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other affiliated organisations like Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Bajrang Dal and the BJP. The source said, “One sitting member of the state legislative assembly (MLA) and a sitting Lok Sabha member of parliament (MP) will quit the BJP before 2019.” The source claimed that both the leaders are not happy with the leadership as in spite of having served the party for a prolonged period, these two BJP leaders did not get the desired recognition.

The source said that he will reveal the names to G Plus after a few days and accordingly G Plus will publish the names. It needs to be mentioned that following the first expansion of the ministry in Assam in April, some of the party leaders expressed their disappointment at being ignored and not considered as ministerial material in the expansion. BJP’s firebrand MLA from Dibrugarh Assembly Constituency, Prasanta Phukan, had resigned from the post of the chairman of the BJP’s steering committee for panchayat elections soon after the

expansion. He also resigned from the position of the chairman of the Assam Medical College & Hospital (AMCH) management committee. The AMCH is located in Dibrugarh. He had also tendered resignations from five vital committees he was associated with. Phukan had then said, “I resigned from these posts because I felt that if I am not eligible to be a minister then I am also not eligible to handle such huge responsibilities.” Similarly, BJP MLAs from Dispur, Sonai and Morigaon were also disheartened by the cabinet expansion. n

Leaders to join Tagodia’s new political party

ormer top leader of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Pravin Togadia, who had come to Guwahati in July last, is likely to launch a political party in October. The party will be launched in Ayodhya in front of a huge gathering, informed a source in the Sangh Parivar. The source said, “Many BJP leaders from across India will join the party. From Assam, there will be two senior BJP leaders and

many former Bajrang Dal and VHP leaders who will join the party.” The source revealed that when Tagodia had visited Guwahati, he came in touch with these two BJP leaders and had joined hands with them with the intention of creating problems for the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls of 2019. Tagodia, after quitting VHP over differences with the top leaders of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), VHP and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), had launched

a new Hindu organisation called Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP), and many Bajrang Dal and VHP members from Assam had joined the same. A prohibitory order, under Section 144 of the CrPC, was issued by Guwahati’s Commissioner of Police, Hiren Chandra Nath, ahead of Togadia’s scheduled visit to Guwahati from July 17 to 20. Tagodia however did visit Guwahati and met the members of AHP. Now he is gaining support from across

the country and has decided to launch a political party, said the source. It needs to be mentioned that around 90% of the trained Bajrang Dal cadres and active VHP members had resigned in Guwahati and Assam and had joined the AHP. The source revealed that the two BJP leaders will join the new political party which will be launched in October and they are also trying to rope in some more BJP leaders from the state. n

he chief minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal, has directed the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited to strengthen the internet services and make it faster for the common public. Speaking in a review meeting on Wednesday with officials of the IT department and BSNL, Sonowal stressed that the people of Assam's hill districts should be able to use faster internet services and be benefited by it. The BSNL officials informed the CM that at present 1,350 village panchayats have been connected through optical fibre and almost 95% of the first phase work is over. The second phase work will end by March next year, informed the officials. The CM raised concern about the bank accounts opened by tea garden workers after demonetisation and said that they should not suffer due to poor internet connection. The CM directed the National Informatics Council to facilitate E-Office process so that the citizens have information regarding the movement of their files from wherever they want. n

Magistrate orders inquiry on death of boy who died after escaping from police custody

he District Magistrate of Kamrup Metropolitan District has ordered an inquiry regarding the death of Chandan Bharali. The body of Bharali (23) was found hanging from a tree near the Panikhaiti Police Outpost. The police had picked up Bharali in a social media love angle case. Pallab Jyoti Nath, Circle Officer, Chandrapur Revenue Circle and Executive Magistrate, Kamrup (M) District has been entrusted to conduct an enquiry to find out the circumstances leading to the death of Chandan Bharali and to submit the findings within 15 days for onward submission to NHRC/ AHRC. The victim, a resident of Chaigaon in the district of Kamrup, was arrested on 7th August and produced at OM Court on the same day. He was sent for police remand for three days and kept at the Panikhaiti Outpost. According to the police, at about 11.30 PM, the police realized that the accused person had escaped even though he was in handcuffs. A search operation was launched to find him. n

In The News Snippets

Young girl foils molestation attempt in moving train, one arrested

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

City foodies jittery after recent rise in ‘food scandals’ and check what is best at which joint. But, after these incidents, I am a bit apprehensive about eating outside now,” Partha Prawal Goswami, a professional in a private firm here, said.

After these incidents, no matter where the legal battle ends, I am not going to those places ever again.”

n a sensational incident, a young girl travelling with her brother was luckily saved from the clutches of a molester in a moving train. As per the Railway Police, the girl and her brother were onboard the Dimapur-Kamakhya BG Express (Train no 15666) when the incident happened near Lumding. Taking advantage of the late hours and less passengers in the coupe, the accused, Koraiba Wilson, attempted to rape the girl. When the girl raised an alarm, other copassengers came to her rescue and the accused ran away. He was later caught by the Railway Police Force at Guwahati. The accused Wilson hails from Senapati district of Manipur and is currently in the custody |of GRP. n

City cop caught taking bribe of Rs 20,000

he Vigilance & AntiCorruption Bureau, on 7th August, arrested a subinspector of the Paltan Bazar Police Station, Guwahati for allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 20,000. The arrested official has been identified as Biren Kumar Bora. According to sources, the official took the bribe of Rs 20,000 from one Jayanta Das of Bongaigaon, in the bar of Hotel Victoria, Paltan Bazar. Jayanta Das had obtained bail from the High Court in a case. To receive the bail, the SI Biren Kumar Bora demanded Rs 40,000 from Das. On 27th July, Jayanta Das went to the Vigilance & Anti-Corruption Bureau and on the complaint of Jayanta Das on Tuesday, SI Bora was arrested red-handed with Rs 20,000. The transaction happened in the bar of Hotel Victoria. The manager of the hotel, Jatindra Nath, has also been arrested as he is accused of keeping the money. n

Sayantani Dev, a research fellow in Gauhati University

Internet photo Three Guys Restaurant that is in the news | G Plus Photo

Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

ity food trotters are jittery after cases of spurious food being served by eateries here have started becoming more frequent. One of the most recent cases was that of last week when a Jonali-based family restaurant, “Three Guys” had allegedly served chicken containing worms to its customers. This snowballed to filing of a complaint in the Geetanagar Police Station and a cross complaint by the restaurant

owners against the customer in the same police station. This brings back recent memories of the Kareem’s restaurant, still afresh from last month, when a customer filed a complaint in the Dispur police station alleging that they were served stale food, which was further cross complained by the restaurant authorities in the same police station. Weeks earlier, Street-Za, a popular roadside food truck parked at Chandmari, was alleged to be serving food that caused poisoning to its customers. “I am an ardent foodie. I go around the city to try new foods

The bone of contention in the ‘worm in chicken’ incident

uthorities of the “Three Guys” restaurant had, on August 9, taken to the social media platforms asking people not to spread rumours and wait until the report from the Food Safety Authority of India comes. This otherwise popular FSSAI certified joint in the city, had recently made headlines after a customer shared a video in which they confronted the waiters in the shop about worms that they found in the chicken. They had ordered a hot garlic chicken, one of the favourite items on the restaurant’s menu. Based on their complaint, officials of FSSAI had arrived and taken away samples of the food item in question. Talking to G Plus, Manindre Kalsi, owner of the restaurant said, “We would ask the people to

wait till the reports of FSSAI come. After that, we will ourselves reach out to the media and let them know whatever the report reveals. Until then, we request people to refrain from any sort of speculations and defaming the restaurant’s name on the basis of the same.” The restaurant has also filed a defamation case against the customers. “We wouldn’t want to pursue the case. But we don’t want any sort of unsolicited bad name to come to the organisation,” Kalsi said. The restaurant has been asked to shut down for a week by the minister of state for health & family welfare, government of Assam, Pijush Hazarika. The restaurant will open next Wednesday (August 15) and the reports from the FSSAI will come after two weeks. n

He, however, said that he had tried the food in all the three restaurants in question and had no complaints about the food served to him. Sayantani Dev, a research fellow in Gauhati University, also a food lover, said, “After these incidents, no matter where the legal battle ends, I am not going to those places ever again. There’s no point spending money and then, for somebody else’s negligence, fall sick. But, one can never be sure about these things. The city eateries need to be transparent about how their foods are prepared and allow the customers to check their kitchens.” n

Ministry fails to maintain food quality despite numerous raids

fter Pijush Hazarika, the Jagiroad legislator who had recently taken charge as minister of state for health & family welfare, the city saw him leading numerous raids conducted at different eateries. According to people in the food industry, the sporadic raids by the minister might have increased, but the follow up of the same and checks thereafter are not being conducted regularly. “There is no regular check going on in the food joints now. Earlier, after every two months, there used to checking by the FSSAI officials. Also, the GMC used to check the hygiene of the restaurants. Now, after the minister started conducting raids, the regular checks have decreased,” said the owner of a restaurant at Chandmari under condition of anonymity. This might just be the case, because the minister had constituted a team comprising officials of the health & family welfare department, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the State Public Health Laboratory (SPHL) to conduct surprise visits to various hotels, milk vans, sweet shops and factories, that left the departments in dearth of manpower to conduct the regular checks. An employee of the FSSAI, under condition of anonymity said, “This being a central government office does not have much manpower. The team constituted by the minister has taken most of our food inspectors.

Now, they are conducting sporadic raids throughout the city, collecting samples and following up on those cases only, while the regular checks have taken a beating for that. Thanks to the minister, now several restaurants are on their toes regarding the food they serve, but at the same time, several are trying their luck and continue to be lax in maintaining the standards of the food they were supposed to.” Enforcement officials of the Commissionerate of Food Safety recently ordered three hotels and restaurants of Guwahati to keep their shutters down for three consecutive days during a food safety drive conducted in Paltan Bazar area of the city. The three hotels and restaurants - Raja Hotel & Restaurant, Kamakhya Hotel and Green View Hotel - were found not adhering to hygiene norms and were asked to keep their kitchens clean. Earlier, five city-based sweet shops were also issued similar notices. Speaking to G Plus, to revamp the food industry in the city, Hazarika had said, “There are certain problems with food sample collection since we cannot conduct the test on the spot and it generally takes around 15 days to get results from the laboratory. Necessary steps are being taken by the department to curb the problem of unsafe food and the Assam government has procured a testing kit from Germany that will be able to test food samples on the spot. It is expected to be delivered in a week.” n

Concern

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

When protector turns predator Children’s home official arrested for alleged sexual abuse

Snippets Reusable sanitary pads made by Guwahati girls

The children’s home which cares for orphaned and abandoned children in Guwahati reported a case of sexual abuse recently raising questions about safety of children in supposedly safe places Saumya Mishra saumya.mishra@g-plus.in

he assistant village director of the NGO SOS Children’s Village, Guwahati was arrested by the police on August 6 for allegedly sexually assaulting three minor girls. The matter came to light when the girls, who are the inmates of the children’s home, confided in a few people from outside the NGO. The girls approached a few members of the Rotaract Club which was organising a six-day leadership camp at the SOS Children’s Village. The girls, aged between 12 and 13 years, informed them that the assistant village director, Loon Vaiphai, had misbehaved and had touched them inappropriately in a locked car. Following this incident, the NGO suspended Vaiphai on August 3. After getting to know about the matter, city-based child rights activist, Miguel Das Queah, lodged an FIR at the Azara police station. SOS Children’s Village is an international childcare organisation for orphaned and abandoned children. The organisation provides family-based care to these children and has 32 such centres across the country at present. “We have lodged a case under section 10 of the Protection of Children under Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the investigation is ongoing; the chargesheet will be prepared soon,” informed the officer-in-charge of the Azara po-

File photo of SOS village

he girls, aged between 12 and 13 years, informed them that the assistant village director, Loon Vaiphai, had misbehaved and had touched them inappropriately in a locked car.

SCPCR takes suo moto cognisance

onsidering the gravity of the matter, the state commission for protection of child rights (SCPCR) has taken suo moto cognisance in the case, informed the chairperson of the commission, Sunita Changkakati. “Our team met the police and also visited the SOS Village and met the director to find the facts of the case. We will now prepare a report based on the findings,” she said. Pointing towards some of the gaps in the case which need answers, Changkakati said that

they are trying to identify the type of assault and the intensity of the same. “As far as the information we have received goes, the assault happened a long time ago but it wasn’t revealed to the authorities until recently. We will have to investigate the reasons behind the delay that occurred in bringing the case to the fore,” she further said adding that some more inquiry is needed and if the need arises, their team will again visit the village and prepare the report thereafter. The matter has come on the

lice station, Ashok Dutta. Further, officials at the SOS Children’s Village informed G Plus that the girls were produced before the Judicial Magistrate Kamrup (Metro) for recording of their statements on August 3. As per the girls’ request, the Judicial Magistrate ordered to send them back to the SOS Village. “The girls are being provided with counselling and support at the village and we are also investigating the matter at the internal level,” Head, communication at SOS Children’s Village, Barnali

Das told G Plus. She added that the NGO has a zero-tolerance policy against any kind of abuse or misconduct against children under its care and thus they have undertaken the issue seriously. Additionally, Queah informed, “The SOS Management was co-operative during the rescue. The assistant director has been arrested by the police and I hope that immediate measures are taken across all child care institutions, to ensure that children are protected all the time.” n

heels of similar cases which were reported in Muzzafarpur in Bihar and Deoria, Uttar Pradesh. In Bihar’s Muzzafarpur, at least 34 minor girls aged between 7-17 years were allegedly raped for months. After the matter came to light, the women and child development ministry informed that the shelter home had been sealed after a sex racket was discovered and 46 minor girls were rescued after that. A huge uproar followed the revelation of this case which was condemned by various sections of society. Further, several arrests were also made in this case. A similar case was reported from Deoria in Uttar Pradesh where 42 girls were rescued from a shelter where they were allegedly being mistreated and

sexually exploited. Child rights activists have made a case for more stringent procedures at such shelter homes across the country, especially those which house minors. The Supreme Court, on August 7, ordered a blanket ban on the publication of photographs and videos of victims of child sexual abuse after images of children who were sexually assaulted in Deoria surfaced in the media. The three-judge bench expressed serious concern over the rising number of cases of rape in the country. “What is to be done? Girls and women are being raped left, right and centre. Figures suggest four rapes take place daily and these are reported statistics. God knows how many go unreported,” said Justice Lokur, who headed the bench. n

n what could be termed as a commendable initiative, the local girls studying and working at Parijat Academy, Guwahati, have come up with the initiative of making reusable sanitary pads. Parijat Academy is distributing free sanitary pads among village women to create awareness about women health and hygiene. The pads are priced cheaper than other pads available in the market and can be reused after washing properly. Speaking to G Plus, Uttam Teron of Parijat Academy said, “The pads are made of pure cotton. The idea was first shared with us by a group of social workers from Floyd, USA. The pads are priced much cheaper. The larger pads come for Rs 110 and the smaller size for Rs 80 per packet.” n

Cyber crime: Woman loses Rs 55,000 from account

yber crimes involving siphoning off money from bank accounts have become rampant in the city. A lady customer of State Bank of India, Hatigaon Chariali Branch, recently had her account emptied off Rs 55,000. As per information received by G Plus, the victim, Rahana Yasmin from Hatigaon, had gone to the branch to withdraw her deposit. The bank told her that the money has already been withdrawn. The lady, angry and sad with the news, created a ruckus in the bank premises. When she complained to the bank officials it was made known to her that the money was transferred to another account through her registered cell phone. It was learnt that on 27 July somebody had already cleared her account. The victim lady lodged a complaint at the Hatigaon Police Station and a case has been registered. Interestingly, cyber crimes have become common in Guwahati with one or more incidents occurring every week for the past two months. The police, on the other hand, have not been able to do much on this front. n

Governance Snippets

9.27 per cent in 7 districts excluded despite 19.25 per cent population growth: Prabajan Virodhi Manch

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Shortage of legal stamp papers hits GHC post NRC final draft Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

T A

bout 9.27 per cent of the applicants in National Register of Citizens from the seven districts bordering Bangladesh have been excluded in the final draft, Prabajan Virodhi Manch revealed on Monday. The anti-influx body alleged that the excluded figure falls “far short of the official estimates”, especially because these districts – Dhubri, South Salmara, Nagaon, Goalpara, Morigaon, Karimganj, Barpeta – have registered a decadal population growth of 18.78 per cent in 1991-2001 and 19.25 per cent in 2001-2011. “In the breakup against a state average of the 11.59% (40,07,707 applicants out of 3,29,91,384) applicants who were excluded from NRC, border districts have given figures of exclusion which are far below the state average with Dhubri at 7.49%, Karimganj at 7.49% and South Salamara at 7.49%. The decadal growth rate of population in the border districts of Dhubri, Goalpara, Barpeta, Karimganj, Naogaon and Morigoan has been between 21% and 24% for the decades between 1991-2001 and 2001-2011 and 18.19% for 1991-2001,” Upamanyu Hazarika, convenor of the body mentioned. “It is evident that the influx of Bangladesh migrants to the bordering districts of Assam is high. However, the percentage of exclusion from Final Draft does not match the population growth. This indicates that a lot of Bangladeshi immigrants have already registered their names in the NRC. Also, the official estimate of 40 lakhs that is likely to reduce considerably after the claims and objections period is way less than the official estimates,” Hazarika added. He further cited that in July 2004, Shriprakash Jaiswal, then Union Minister of State for Home had told the Parliament that as of 2001 there were 1.2 crore Bangladeshis in India, of which 50 lakhs were in Assam, which meant Assam had 40 per cent of the illegal Bangladeshi migrants in India. On the other hand, Hazarika had alleged that several original inhabitants have been excluded by the NRC. n

he final draft of the National Register of Citizens has not just left 40,07,707 applicants (those whose name did not appear in the final draft published on July 30) in limbo, but has created inconvenience for those who need to frequent the Gauhati High Court for legal work too. The filing of affidavits has risen exponentially since the NRC exercise had started leading to an imminent shortage of the legal stamp papers, a necessity in filing any affidavit, at the Gauhati High Court, which is also the high court for Arunachal Pradesh,

To file an affidavit for the NRC or any legal works, one will have to attach legal stamp papers with it. We are thinking that the extreme shortage of legal stamp papers is due to the NRC update only. People might have already brought the stamp papers apprehending that during the submission of claims, objections and corrections, they will have to use the same in the affidavits” Mausam Khaund, GHC Bar Association member

File photo of Gauhati High Court Nagaland and Mizoram. While there was a major scarcity of the same during 2013 and 2015 – the time period during which people were allowed to file their applications to be included in the NRC, speculations are rife that people have again emptied the stamp paper bank of the High Court anticipating that they may have to file affidavits for the claim, objection and correction purposes. The NRC 1951 is being updated in Assam under the supervision of the Supreme Court of India with midnight of March 25, 1971 base date and the final draft of the same has been released in which, 40,07,707 persons did not find their names. The state coordinator’s

office had, on August 10, released the reasons why their names were not included and will start taking claims, objections and corrections soon hereafter. “To file an affidavit for the NRC or any legal works, one will have to attach legal stamp papers with it. Also, a legal stamp paper can be purchased by anybody from the vendors at the court. We are thinking that the extreme shortage of legal stamp papers is due to the NRC update only. People might have already brought the stamp papers apprehending that during the submission of claims, objections and corrections, they will have to use the same in the affidavits,” Mausam Khaund, a member of Gauhati High Court

Bar Association said. The bar association had, three months ago, protested regarding the shortage of stamp papers and filed a memorandum to the Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court. “We were told that the scarcity is due to the NRC update purpose. So, we will wait till the last date of the claims and objection. Even after that, if the scarcity continues, we will protest again,” Amal Baishya, general secretary of Lawyers’ Association, said. The legal stamp papers have to be collected from the district treasury office by the High Court’s registered vendors. There is a certain quota of stamp papers that are allotted for High Courts, district courts and CJM’s office. n

Black marketing of legal stamp papers speculated

very time the crisis of legal stamp papers hits the Gauhati High Court, its prices increase exponentially a phenomenon that many wonder is due to the involvement of a black marketing racket. According to a peon in the Gauhati High Court, the prices have been known to increase 10 times during the crisis period. “The Rs 10 stamp paper becomes Rs 100 whereas the Rs 50 becomes Rs 500. It only happens when there is a crisis. Otherwise, the price remains the same at other times,” said H

Medhi, a peon here. According to employees who work in the court, shortage of legal stamp papers for about one or two months is a regular affair, but this year, the shortage is set to last for more than six months. “Every year, from February, we have a dearth of legal stamp papers. This mostly includes Rs 10 and Rs 20 legal stamp papers. This year, however, the shortage is lasting longer. According to other court personnel, it will last till September this time,” an employee in the registrar’s office of Gauhati High Court said under condition of anonymity.

The lawyer's association too did not rule out the possibility of black marketing. “There is no regulation over the purchase of legal stamp papers. To acquire these is part of a person's legal rights. So, it is only possible that a certain racket purchases in bulk from the vendors during times of crisis and then sells those at a higher rate. The vendors cannot be blamed either, as they are bound to sell those,” Baishya said. “We will however, wait till the NRC claims and objections are over. If the problem is not solved

by then, we will ask the High Court to come up with a holistic solution. Till then, we all have to endure a bit,” he added. Meanwhile, people are irritated with the exorbitant rates of the legal stamp papers. “For each affidavit, we need at least two such stamp papers. If we are submitting a case at the High Court, these stamp papers are a necessity. For my case, I had to spend at least Rs 2000 to Rs 2500 on the stamp papers only. How can a common man incur such expenses?” Swapan Mazumdar, a city-based businessman said. n

In The News

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

City girl of Jain community chooses love over social bindings to marry Muslim boy G Plus News

or a love affair of two young adults from Guwahati who belonged to different communities and who had eloped last year, it was the victory of love over stifling social restraints when the court set them free recently after a case against them underwent months of legal proceedings and hearings. The 19-year-old girl, who was a resident of Athgaon, had opted to elope last year with a Muslim boy for the fear of backlash and non-acceptance from their respective communities. They were recently granted permission by the court to live freely wherever they wished. Sneha Barjatya, belonging to the Jain community, had eloped with a Muslim boy a few months ago, causing much heartburn and consternation among her family members and community. According to sources, the girl was in an affair with the boy for the past few years. Her family, on coming to know about their relationship, disapproved of it. They then tried to reason with her and became extra vigilant about her whereabouts since then. There was mounting pressure on Sneha from her family and the community to severe the relationship. Fortune favoured her when a few months later her parents had to leave town. Sneha seized the opportunity to leave home. She allegedly also took with her jewellery and cash from her house, which was approximately worth Rs 8 lakhs. Following this incident, after their return, the girl’s parents filed an FIR with the Bharalumukh police station for their missing daughter and slapped charges of kidnapping and abduction against the boy. “After some time passed since they went missing, some people from our community came to know from a tip-off that she had

changed her religion and had married the boy in a Nikah,” informed a relative of the girl on the condition of anonymity. He added that the couple became untraceable again after the marriage. On the other hand, the boy’s parents reportedly denied having any knowledge of the whereabouts of their son or of Sneha. They also said that they were not aware that the two had got married. The girl, who was on the run, resurfaced in Guwahati to appear before the court during the beginning of this month; her parents had no knowledge of the same. When she appeared in the court on August 3, her family received another tip-off about her presence in the court. When confronted by them, she allegedly refused to even recognise them leave alone speak to them. Subsequently, the girl was sent to the state women’s home for two days before her statement was recorded. Dilip Kothari, the lawyer representing the girl’s family informed G Plus, “Recently on August 6, when the girl appeared in the court in connection with the case, she informed the judge that she had married and is living with her husband by her own free will and was not under any duress as alleged by her parents.” He added that since the girl is not a minor and is a consenting adult, she was set free by the court and the judge informed that she can live anywhere now. Additionally, her parents have decided not to pursue the case any further. When the matter had first come to light after the couple went missing, local media houses reported the news mentioning that certain Hindu organisations had called it a case of ‘love-jihad’ since the girl had changed her religion to marry the boy. n

City

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Lady professor in Ghy allegedly harassed by cyber bullies, registers complaint Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

n a recent incident, one Papri Banerjee took to Facebook and Twitter to narrate the story of allegedly being harassed by some miscreants, hiding in disguise behind fake profiles, on social media platforms. In a post where she tagged Assam Police’s Twitter handle along with media houses of the region, she wrote, “Being sexually harassed and otherwise harassed for the last two months online. Didn’t got much help from you all, care to help now?” Interestingly, the Assam Police was really quick in responding to the tweet and asked Banerjee to message them the complaint. However, the rest of the conversation happened on personal messages and over phone calls. Soon, Assam Police got in touch with the victim, apprised the Crime Branch of the incident and a case was subsequently registered at the

Chandmari Police Station. Banerjee went on to write to Union Cabinet Minister for Women & Child Development, Maneka Gandhi on Twitter. This time the tweet read, “Ma’am I’m being sexually and otherwise harassed online. I need your help as I foresee danger to my life and well-being by six people.” The minister, too, came out in support and responded to the tweet asking Banerjee to share the details of the case along with her contact information over an email. Assam police however assured Gandhi that the Guwahati city police have been sensitized and the matter has been taken up on high priority. The series of tweets gained massive traction – while some applauded Assam Police and Maneka Gandhi for their efforts, others put forward a different picture, a different side of the story from the one that Banerjee had been sharing. A complaint was registered at the Chandmari police station on 7th August 2018 by one Papri Banerjee on account of being har-

assed online. The case no 537/18 was registered under Section 354/354B/505C of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) read with section 66/67 of the Information Technology (IT) Act. Banerjee, 35, is a resident of Gandhi Basti Tinali and is currently working as an assistant professor at Icon Commerce College, Gauhati University (GU). The complaint states that Banerjee is being threatened and harassed by certain people on social media platforms as well as over phone calls. It further states that not only are morphed images of her conversations and pictures being shared, she has also been receiving life threatening phone calls. “The harassment started two months ago when a Facebook profile that goes by the name of Surya Samaddar published a photoshopped tweet by student leader Shehla Rashid mocking one of my Facebook posts. Nowhere in his post was

Haters deny Banerjee’s claims, call her attention seeker

ith her hateful posts against India’s leading political party and the elected Prime Minister of the country, Banerjee has gained quite a lot of haters – both online and offline. These haters have refuted her claims alleging them to be a publicity stunt. A large number of people have openly expressed on social media that the Assam Police and the union minister of women & child development are supporting a woman who’s been provoking hatred on social media for a long time and is now playing

the victim card to seek public attention. “She herself is a fraud who keeps abusing everyone. I know her very well, she’s just an attention seeker,” said a student of Icon Commerce College. “She seems like a habitual defaulter. We have screenshots of her making mockery out of PM Modi, Yogi Adityanath and other political leaders. She has also publicly used lots of cuss words for many people. I wonder how she’ll explain her own doings to the police,” another added. Some even went on to say that Banerjee deserves to be treated the way

the trolls are treating her. However, speaking to G Plus, Banerjee alleged that she has just been posting her personal thoughts on her personal profile. “Being a liberal woman who has been writing vociferously on Facebook on pertinent issues for a couple of years now, I’ve learnt to take on trolls and abuses with a pinch of salt. My ‘other messages’ folder on Facebook is filled with toxic threats and I’m sure that I’m not alone in this. Outspoken, unabashed women are always treated thus by trolls,” she said. n

Assam Police’s social media wing in limelight

nce again, the efforts of the social media wing of Assam Police have caught attention of social media users from across the state and beyond, including the Indian Union Cabinet Minister for Women & Child Development, Maneka Gandhi. Previously, when Assam Police received information from Facebook headquarters that a

minor girl was contemplating suicide and there was very less time to react on the information and save her life, the ‘Assam Police smart social media centre’ and the concerned local police immediately swung into action and were able to locate the child within 30 minutes thereby ensuring her safety. Assam Police’s social media wing has also been garnering attention for its social media

campaigns that are being widely appreciated and circulated. The creative posts meant to sensitize the youths deal with varying issues, including drug abuse, women safety, mob lynching and stalking. The campaign that reached millions of social media users also received strong support from Assam DGP, Kuladhar Saikia and chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal. n

it stated that the picture was actually not real. So, a virtual lynch of crowd followed suit, they started sharing the post, writing terrible things about me and my

character. They even went on to publish morphed images of me clad in burkha, with a gun in my hand,” Banerjee told G Plus. She further added that Samaddar later edited the post and wrote that it wasn’t real. But the damage had already been done. She alleged that she has no connection with Samaddar and didn’t know why he would post anything against her. Officer in-charge of Chandmari police station, Biren Deka informed G Plus, “The case is currently under investigation but the progress has been slow because our personnel are tied up with Independence Day round the corner.” n

In The News

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Guwahati based OOH firm Outreach Advertising among Top 100 SMEs

uwahati-based OutOf-Home (OOH) media owning firm, Outreach Advertising, has been recognised in the list of top 100 Small Medium Enterprises of the country by the Ministry of MSMEs. Commenting on the recognition award, Sunit Jain of Outreach Advertising shared, “I believe the purchase order process followed by our company which is robust and systematic has got us this recognition because most of small and

medium enterprises don’t follow organised work processes.” Sunit feels that such awards are a confidence booster for the business fraternity. “A lot of investors and bankers present at the event were amazed to see an OOH company getting an award and it would perhaps change their outlook on OOH business. Eventually this will benefit us in getting financial support from the bankers required to grow our inventories and business”, he said.

Snippets NRL participates in Brand Quiz Baadshah

Director of Outreach Advertising, Sunit Jain (R), receiving the award Parlee Gogoi, Senior Manager, Outreach Advertising said, “It gives me immense pleasure that the northeast OOH market is exposed to the national forum through Outreach. With sheer dedication and hard work, I

Business Network International Guwahati Region launched

NI (Business Network International) Guwahati Region launched its 1st chapter on 8th Aug, 2018 and has reported over Rs 89 lakhs in closed business. The idea behind BNI is to help members increase their business through a structured, positive and professional business networking and referral programs that enable them to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with quality business professionals. The Guwahati Region was launched in the presence of Bimal Samal – District Director, East India, Sidharth Garodia – Regional Director, Guwahati and Pankaj Maloo – Senior Director Consultant, Kolkata CBD (A). BNI Guwahati Region is managed by Regional Director, Sidharth Garodia. Bimal Samal, District Director – East India is very happy to set BNI’s footprint in northeast and is very excited that Guwahati’s launch would encourage other tier 2/3 cities of the northeast to start BNI and make a difference to the business community.

The organization aims to create an outstanding culture that promotes collaboration and co-creation. The average seat value per member in new business terms in BNI India is Rs 46 lakhs per year and growing. The Wall Street Journal named BNI in the List of Top 25 High-Performing Franchises. In

2017 at the International Franchise Association, BNI had the single largest organizational presence in the world. In India, BNI is present in 58 cities, with over 22,500+ members in 449+ chapters. In 2017 alone, BNI members in India passed 10,49,733 referrals resulting in over Rs 7,092 crores in closed business. n

believe we can change the perception of the national buyers and investors to make the region more developed. Winning among 33,000 nominees is the most incredible milestone we have achieved so far.” n

RL’s holding Company, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, has been running a national initiative in the form of a quiz contest for engagement of employees and channel partners aptly named ‘Brand Quiz Baadshah’. The objective of this initiative is to enhance knowledge, build brand ambassadors and unleash latent potential in the employees and channel partners. The initiative has been recognized by ‘India Book of Records’ as the Largest Employee Engagement Program by an Indian organization with pan India impact in the year 2017. This year’s edition of Brand Quiz Baadshah witnessed total participation of 12,646 employees. The initiative commenced on 26th June’18 and comprised 5 rounds. The first 2 rounds were held online and the next 3 rounds were held live in 24 locations across the country. The winners of the semifinals, Amitabh Roy and Juganta Senapati, will be representing NRL at the grand finale to be held at Mumbai in October 2018 where a national champion will be declared from among the eight finalist teams. n

Concern

Snippets Lady robbed of Rs 40,000 outside NF Railway Headquarters

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Insurance firms fail to keep their promises, allege consumers

n a daring daylight robbery at Maligaon, an elderly lady employee of the Railways lost Rs 40,000 to a snatch and run gang. The victim, Juri Das, had withdrawn Rs 40,000 from the State Bank of India branch in the Railway headquarters and was going to her office with the cash when she was looted by bikeborne miscreants. The incident happened just outside the main gate of the Northeast Frontier Railway Headquarters located in Maligaon. Interestingly, the RPF security personnel manning the post near the main gate could not apprehend the snatchers. Juri Das, who is a resident of Uzanbazar area, later lodged an FIR at the Maligaon Police Station. The incident has created a sense of insecurity and anger among the Maligaon residents. n

Bharalumukh police cracks Green Park Colony robbery case

haralumukh Police, on 5th August last, apprehended four persons including the cook in connection with the Maligaon Green Park Colony dacoity case from the house of one Suresh Poddar. As per earlier reports, dacoits looted valuables worth Rs 12 lakhs on a Sunday night from Green Park Colony of Maligaon area in Guwahati in the month of July. Ornaments worth Rs 7 lakhs have been recovered out of Rs 12 lakhs as claimed by the victim before the police. n

File photo of District Consumer Court, Guwahati

Saumya Mishra saumya.mishra@g-plus.in

ith several insurance firms denying payment of the claims to their policy holders citing one reason or the other, many consumers are increasingly taking recourse to legal action. This is evident from the rising number of cases against insurance companies being registered at the Kamrup (Metro) district consumer disputes redressal forum (DCDRF). Authorities informed that such cases make up at least 40% of the total cases received by them in a month. Further, cases are filed against both private as well as government insurance firms. In a recent case, a city resident had insured a newly-bought van with a private insurance company. However, within a month, the van got badly damaged as a truck

coming from the opposite side rammed into it. The owner of the van filed an FIR with the police and informed the insurance company about the damages to the vehicle. However, the insurance company closed his claim as “no claim” saying that they did not receive proper documents such as registration certificate, driving licence and route permit of the vehicle, among others. On the other hand, the consumer said that he had submitted all the necessary documents and was being harassed by the company. He then filed a case under section 2, “the deficiency in service”, of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 at the district consumer disputes redressal forum. This case is currently ongoing at the forum which is currently handling many cases of similar nature. Additionally, officials at the state consumer disputes redressal commission (SCDRC) informed that they too receive a

large number of cases related to insurance firms. “A person often invests in an insurance policy thinking it would help him or her at a time of need. But to the contrary, it sometimes becomes too much of a hassle to get the money from insurance firms and often the family is need of the claim money,” said Anand Sarma who had claimed for his car’s insurance when it was damaged and later received the full amount of the claim after filing a case in the consumer court. He added that earlier, the private insurance firm from which he had purchased the policy, was refusing to pay the entire amount. In another instance, a resident of Hatigaon approached the DCDRF a few months ago. He was a policy holder with the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and had paid the premiums regularly. He mentioned that he had invested in the Jivan Suraksha Policy and had paid all the premium amounts.

He has also stated in his complaint that as per the terms of the policy, he was liable to be paid Rs 908 as pension every month after the maturity of the policy. However, he was only paid Rs 600 as monthly pension after the maturity of the policy. Further, when he approached the LIC authorities, he was told that the amount of Rs 908 was wrongly printed in the policy bond instead of the intended Rs 600. He then approached the district consumer court with his complaint and has mentioned that he is entitled to draw a pension of Rs 908 instead of Rs 600. On this account, he stated that he should receive an arrear along with an interest at 15% per annum. Additionally, he has filed for a compensation of Rs 1 lakh for loss and damage suffered by him along with the cost of proceedings. After hearing the case, the district consumer forum passed the judgement and directed the defendant to pay Rs 908 as future pension every month and Rs 43,890 with an interest of 12% per annum from 2011 as arrears for the previous years. Further, they were asked to pay Rs 40,000 as compensation for harassment including cost of proceedings. However, authorities say that insurance companies are not entirely to be blamed as a majority of people who purchase various policies from them often do not read the document of the policy carefully before investing. “A lot of people skip reading all the minute points which are mentioned in the policy and mostly rely on the agent. Therefore, they miss out on some details which are also written in a very small font,” Anuja Bhuyan, ACS, and registrar of the state consumer disputes redressal commission told G Plus. On the other hand, an official of a private insurance firm in Guwahati informed that they have an internal system of grievance redressal mechanism at their company where customers can approach them in case of any discrepancies. n

Weather report for the week Guwahati

SUN

MON

TUE

WED

THU

FRI

Storm

30°/25° C

32°/26° C

30°/27° C

31°/27° C

31°/26° C

32°/28° C

SATURDAY Storm

30°/26° C

City

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Alarming rise of stray dogs; lack of GMC funds for sterilization to blame Animal welfare organisation, JBF, is yet to receive Rs 6.63 lakhs from GMC for the ABC and ARV operations carried out in the city, leading to slow progress in its work Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

n recent years, Guwahati has witnessed a tremendous rise in the stray dog population. This increase has led to an increase in instances of dog bites and rabies too. While the only way to curb the increasing numbers is regularly carrying out Animal Birth Control (ABC) and Anti-Rabies Vaccination (ARV) programmes, the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has been largely unsuccessful in curbing the problem due to lack of fund and equipment. Although counting of dogs and finding their exact number is difficult, a GMC official informed G Plus that there are about 1 lakh dogs currently living on the streets of the city. However, officials at a city based animal

welfare organization - Just Be Friendly (JBF) - claimed that going by the ratio of 1:40 (the current dog to human ratio in India is pegged at 1: 40, that is, 1 dog for every 40 human beings), Guwahati would have close to 30,000 dogs on the roads. The JBF had also conducted a sample survey on dog population on head count basis within a radius of 10 square kilometres with the city’s Beltola-Survey area being the focal point. During the survey conducted in 2009, 3,000 dogs were found in Survey area alone. “Until 1934, there was not a single dog on the streets of Guwahati. But the scenario has changed drastically over the years. Now, dogs can be found in every nook and corner of the city,” Dr Sashanka Sekhar Dutta, Managing Trustee of JBF (India) Trust told G Plus. JBF, in association with GMC, the nodal agency for tackling such activities, did start a sterilisation

Activists of JBF performing a street play on human behavior towards stray dogs in Guwahati | G Plus Photo and vaccination drive in Guwahati. JBF has been working on neutralising the dogs since 2009. However, the organisation had

Number of dogs that have undergone Animal Birth Control (ABC) and AntiRabies Vaccination (ARV) surgeries by JBF in the past 5 years Financial Year

Without government support

With government support

Total

April 2013-March 2014

339

920

1259

April 2014-March 2015

222

3865

4087

April 2015-March 2016

1571

635

2206

April 2016-March 2017

1704

April 2017-March 2018

2662

323

2985

signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in September 2014 to operate on 4,500 stray dogs. The figure was achieved by March 2015. In the financial year 2015-16, another MoU was signed wherein the GMC agreed to pay Rs 500 per dog to JBF to carry out the surgeries. However today, there’s an outstanding amount of Rs 6.63 lakhs that the JBF is yet to receive from GMC for the surgeries carried out. Speaking to G Plus about the non-payment of dues, Veterinary Officer of GMC, Dr Pradip Medhi said, “The state government has sanctioned an amount

of Rs 50 lakhs for ABC and ARV programmes to be carried out in collaboration with JBF, but the amount hasn’t been released and there’s a massive fund crunch due to which we’re being unable to pay JBF.” “At JBF, we have a team of 15 members (including four doctors) who’re capable of doing 25-30 surgeries per day. Without support from the government also we’ve been conducting about 400 surgeries every month. But the numbers and results can increase manifold if we get the necessary support and fund from the government,” Dr Kabir asserted. n

Garbage menace: encouraging stray dog population Practice of adopting street

pen garbage is the single most important reason behind the huge population of stray dogs in the city. Stray dogs are scavengers and rely on garbage on the street as a source of food. In places where garbage is kept in bins and cleaned regularly, stray dogs cannot survive on the streets. “The unsystematic garbage disposal in Guwahati is a huge problem that is leading to very high breeding rates in dogs. Dealing with dogs on a daily basis, we see that there are more healthy dogs than unhealthy ones here. This is solely because they get adequate food to eat, courtesy the open garbage,” Dr Dutta said. He further added that apart from tackling the garbage menace, regular ABC and ARV programs are necessary to slow down the increasing numbers. Under JBF’s

Rabies Control Programme, the main initiative is Animal Birth Control (ABC) Operation and AntiRabies Vaccination (ARV) of stray dogs. As part of the procedure, JBF picks up the animals from different parts of a city and brings them to their centre, operate on them, vaccinate them and give ‘V’-shaped ear notch to each animal for identification and easy recognition. After post-operative

The unsystematic garbage disposal in Guwahati is a huge problem that is leading to very high breeding rates in dogs Dr Kabir Humayun, JBF

care, the animals are released in the same area from where they were picked up. Benefits of the operation includes reduced aggression in males, reduced urination and territorial marking, reduced wandering, reduced infighting between themselves, prevention of pyometra in female dogs and decreased incidence of mammary tumours. It also reduces humananimal conflict and bite cases. The increase in dog population of the city has also led to the growth of the illegal dog meat trade. A lot of dog trades have been busted by the Assam police in recent times, but animal lovers in the city claim that they continue to notice dogs from their area being taken away for neutralisation by people claiming to be members of certain NGOs and never returned. n

dogs trending in city

ntil a few years ago, there were very few pet owners in Guwahati but the numbers have been increasing drastically in recent times. Apart from buying foreign breeds as pets, residents of the city have started to adopt the local breeds – while some people just feed the strays in their locality, others take them in as pets and take care of them. Speaking to G Plus on the trend, Founder Vice-President of Purr Paws Rescue Foundation, Nandini Baruva said, “Guwahatians have become more sensitive towards animal welfare. Animal lovers from across the city have been rescuing injured animals, taking care of them and feeding them. They’ve taken to social media to

write about animal rights and the need to adopt local breeds, sparking the trend.” She further added that while animal lovers are playing their part in ensuring fair practices, the non-governmental organisations working towards the cause of animal welfare need to improve their performance levels and get more aggressive in their approach. “After neutralising and sterilising the dogs, proper postop care is required – three to five days for male and five to seven days for female. But very often we lose dogs with premature cuts and incisions due to the lack of professionalism by the NGOs operating upon them that fail to provide post-op care,” Baruva said. n

Ward Watch

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

BR Phukon Road reconstruction throws life off-gear in Athgaon Lack of parking space - the throbbing raw nerve of Athgaon

T The under construction BR Phukan Road | G Plus Photo

In this week’s Ward Watch, G Plus takes a look at life in busy Athgaon and the latest road reconstruction work that has paralyzed life Avishek Sengupta avishek.sengupta@g-plus.in

ormal life has been paralysed on a stretch of about 500 metres of the BR Phukon Road in Athgaon of Guwahati’s Municipal Ward No 8 - one of the commercial hubs of the city. The road has otherwise remained rundown for the past few years. Located in the heart of the city, the dilapidated stretch of the road from Kumarpara Panchali (where five roads meet) to Railway Gate No 7, however short as it may be, poses a major threat to commuting commercial vehicles that are often loaded with goods. “It is one of the commercial hubs of the city. Most of the shops around are wholesalers and thus, purchase goods in bulk. The majority of the vehicles that commute carry goods and due to the uneven roads, we have a constant fear of these vehicles toppling over,” Arun Baweja, a shop owner here, said. Another businessman, Pratap Pareekh, said, “Due to

the bad condition, we mostly opt for hand-pulled carts; as for the other vehicles, it is almost impossible for these to commute. This hampers our business badly.” Athgaon, that connects Paltan Bazar to its east with Bharalumukh to its west, has converted into one of the major commercial areas of the city over the years along with Fancy Bazar. BR Phukon Road eventually exits to the MG Road near the Tarun Ram Phookan Park at Bharalumukh. To add to the commuter’s woes, the already dilapidated road has, of late, converted into a dumping ground for garbage; with the faulty drainage garbage spills over onto the streets every monsoon. "This particular stretch of road has been in a dilapidated state for a long time now. The road is broken, the drainage isn't proper and water gets accumulated after rain. Often, after rain, garbage from the drain spills onto the roads. It stinks horribly and one cannot really make out if the

The majority of the vehicles that commute carry goods and due to the uneven roads, we have a constant fear of these vehicles toppling over” Arun Baweja, a shop owner

garbage has been thrown by the people around or has come out from the drains. But we have to commute through that every day,” Niraj Jain, a resident of Athgaon, who takes this road to commute to office daily, said. Recently, the authorities have taken up reconstruction work of the stretch but the shabby execution has only added to the misery of the residents. Further, with the railway crossing located here, the problems are even more heightened since it constantly causes traffic jams. “The government has started working on this road after turning a blind eye to our woes. And they chose the monsoon season to start work and that too, on the entire stretch of the road at the same time. Now, half the road is covered with heaps of cement on the other side, and since there is a railway crossing located here, we have to face traffic jams that last for more than 15-20 minutes and with it, a harrowing driving experience,” Jain added. When asked, Amit Jain, area sabha member of 8B, said, “People will have to be a little patient. The road was in this condition for such a long period of time. Finally, it has started taking shape. It will be solved soon.” He further added, “Repairing this road was not under GMC's mandate; it is the responsibility of the Public Works Department. We had informed the department about a year ago. Finally, it got sanctioned and is being undertaken.” n

his 500-metre stretch of rundown road is not the only blotch on a ward that is otherwise well taken care of. Residents expressed that they have trouble commuting on a daily basis due to lack of parking spaces and massive traffic congestions. In a survey conducted by G Plus earlier, the residents had expressed satisfaction regarding almost all the living parameters such as potable water, cleanliness, regular supply of electricity etc. The above mentioned two parameters were the only exceptions. The problems here are two-pronged – slack in the government functioning and disproportionate growth of the area. Back in 1960s-70s, when Fancy Bazar mostly housed the grocery and clothes markets, Athgaon, being the connecting road to lower Assam from Paltan Bazar railway station, had developed in to a commercial joint catering to motor parts related requirements of the vehicles travelling through the area. This area also served as the most suitable residential area for the traders and as an area for having godowns, Fancy Bazar being already crowded. The pace of infrastructural development, however, could not match the area’s commercial development and by the mid 1990’s, it started getting over-crowded. The situation went from bad to worse over the subsequent years. “We have been parking our vehicles on the road over the last few decades. This is mostly because most of the houses here are old and don’t have parking spaces. And now, so many shops and houses have been established here that there are hardly any parking spaces. People have to park their vehicles as far as Paltan Bazar and Machkhowa to reach here,” Shubham Sharma, a resident said.

Regarding the government’s lag, the residents pointed out the delay in the multi-level parking lot project that the old jail in Fancy Bazar was supposed to be converted into. “Had that project been completed, our parking problem would have been solved,” another resident, Vijay Soni, said. The infrastructural constraints are not just confined to parking problems, but are reflected in the regular traffic congestions too. “Right from 9 am to 9 pm, there is constant traffic congestion here. People come from all over the city here and park their vehicles haphazardly. Moreover, the road exits to a railway gate which often remains closed due to train traffic. This compounds the problem with the roads being already narrow,” Vijay Todi, a resident said. Another resident, Vishal Jain said, “This place has developed exponentially, but the roads still remain narrow. Traffic jams are inevitable.” Sunita Bhilwaria, the councillor of Ward No 8, in tandem with the residents, said that delayed projects and unplanned expansion has made the place very congested. “I had been urging the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority to complete the parking lot work for a long time now. But there are a few very genuine reasons why this project has been delayed. Once the project gets completed, we can finally have a holistic solution to the problem,” Bhilwaria said. Regarding traffic too she was of the opinion that it’s related to the parking problem. “Once we have a solution to the parking problem, we will urge the government to turn this area into a no parking zone. Now, more than often due to faulty or double parking, the roads have become narrower which leads to traffic congestion. Once that is solved, smoother commutation will be possible,” Bhilwaria added. n

Feature

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Assam’s magic rice Boka Chaul gets GI Tag Nehal Jain jain.nehal@g-plus.in

n what can be termed as a proud moment for the small farmers of Assam, the Boka Chaul (mud rice) has received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the government of India’s Intellectual Property India (IPI) body. It is now in the league of Assam Tea, Muga Silk, Joha Rice and the Tezpur Litchi to have earned the GI-tag. Boka chaul is a native rice of the state of Assam which is wellknown for its unique property of preparation by just soaking it in water at room temperature. It is a variety of rice grown in many parts of lower Assam, including Nalbari, Barpeta, Goalpara, Kamrup, Darrang, Dhubri, Chirang, Bongaiagoan, Kokrajhar and Baksa. Grown mostly for personal consumption by farmers, the Boka Chaul is sold in farming areas for Rs 60-80 per kg, as opposed to Rs 100-150 per kg across towns and cities. In Guwahati, it’s generally available during festive and winter seasons across all major departmental stores, including GNRC, SICEDM and NEDFi House. This variety of rice is mostly used as part of the traditional cuisine. Traditionally in Assamese culture, at the eleventh hour of arrival of guests or during the need of savouring homemade light dishes at any undecided moments or at the time of guerrilla warfare in want of hurriedly consumable dishes during the bygone days of swords and arches or at the time of field work in agricultural lands at distant places, Boka Chaul has always been the first preference that can be easily prepared without requiring any fuel. Lotus Progressive Centre, an NGO based out of Nalbari, along with the Centre for Environment Education (CEE), Guwahati had been conducting research and running scientific tests on the rice since 2014 in order to acquire a GI tag for the same. “Our years of hard work have finally paid off. The main aim with which we applied for the GI tag was to ensure the well being of farmers that are dependent on this particular variety of rice. Farmers,

who up till now were just growing it for themselves, will now be able to grow it for a wider audience. The Boka rice, we hope, will become a commercially-viable crop,” Hemanta Baishya, foundermember of Lotus Progressive Centre (LPC) told G Plus. The GI tag ensures that none other than those registered as authorised users (or at least those residing inside the geographic territory) are allowed to use the popular product name. Boka Chaul belongs only to Assam. Boka Chaul is and has been known for its ‘zero-cooking’ identity. It does not require boiling in water or pressurised cooking at the time of preparation as the other kinds of rice require. It is mostly used in the preparation of traditional Assamese food items or cuisines called Lalpaan where Boka Chaul is generally eaten with curd/milk and jaggery/sugar along with other

assumed another nomenclature ‘Magic Rice’. Due to this peculiar and exclusive property of the rice, which is seemingly absent in any similar class of rice, it is widely recognized as ‘Instant rice’ or ‘Soft rice’ in the community. However, getting the GI tag wasn’t easy. Hemanta Baishya along with Simanta Kalita of CEE had been continually performing tests, doing field research and collecting historical evidences of the existence of Boka Chaul for over two years before finally applying for the GI tag in 2016. After submission of the application, the duo and the rice fields were visited by many correspondents for verification purposes. After a while, in September 2017, they were invited to Kolkata to give a presentation to the national committee of IPI, furnishing scientific details pertaining to the rice’s unique quality and the geo-climatic factors responsible for its characteristics. Later, after submitting more details to the

committee in February 2018, the Boka Chaul got featured in the GI Journal published by the GI Registry on 28 March this year. It was considered as a milestone on its own. Finally, on July 30, Assam’s indigenous Boka Chaul’s status in the GI registry changed from ‘pending’ to ‘registered’, valid up to July 24, 2026. “Even though we haven’t received the physical copy of our certificate yet, we have been told that it’s coming soon,” said Baishya. Over the last four years, the scientific tests and analysis for Boka Chaul was done in consultation with Assam Agricultural University, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Assam Science Technology and Environment Council, and Gauhati University’s Biotechnology Department. n

Snippets Charge-sheet against woman who hid foetus in AirAsia lavatory

he unattended foetus case in an AirAsia plane took a new turn with Delhi Police filing a charge-sheet against the 19-year old woman who delivered the foetus in the plane’s lavatory. The police though, have not arrested the woman. On 25 July, a foetus wrapped in toilet paper was found inside the toilet of an AirAsia flight in New Delhi, as the ImphalGuwahati-Delhi flight was about to land. Upon investigation, it was found that the foetus belonged to a female taekwondo player. n

State govt to improve infrastructure of hospitals

he state government is looking to develop the infrastructure of the existing hospitals including Gauhati Medical College & Hospital (GMCH) and Mahendra Mohan Choudhury Hospital (MMCH) among others. Authorities informed that they are planning to augment the capacity of the existing hospitals as their workload is increasing day by day. “We are looking to improve the infrastructure, equipment and manpower for the existing hospitals,” informed director of medical education, Anup Kumar Barman. For this, the state government is giving a special grant. This fund is meant to augment the infrastructure of the existing medical colleges. n

Guwahati to get cooking gas via pipe

ingredients. Boka Chaul has ever been the first preference that can be easily prepared without requiring any fuel. As cold water i.e. water at ambient temperature, would suffice in soaking the kernels and making them ready for consumption, Boka Chaul has a wide acceptability to be used anytime, anywhere. By virtue of this nature, Boka Chaul has metaphorically

ddressing a press conference in Guwahati, Oil India Limited’s (OIL) Chairman & Managing Director (CMD), Utpal Bora said that OIL will launch a city gas service in Guwahati area, where cooking gas will be supplied to all houses via pipelines The consumption will be charged on the basis of usage, for which a metre will help to record it. A joint venture (JV) for the same has been already signed. According to OIL, this project will cover Guwahati and its surrounding areas along with Silchar, Hailakandi and Karimganj. However, the implementation of this project will take around three years. n

G Talk

DITORI

Selective rebukes

hold the Supreme Court of India in reverence and awe. Actually, every Indian does. After all, it has been successfully putting the checks and balances on the corrupt elements of the Indian Executive and Legislature and has done more than its fair bit in holding the morals of our Indian democracy high. And so, every utterance, frowns, verdicts and judgements through its formidable college of judges are treated with a great degree of respect and admiration. In the post NRC situation however, has come an observation and some harsh words that seem to border on rebuke by one of these venerable judges who targeted the state NRC coordinator and even threatened to send him to jail for what the judge termed as action that was in contempt of court. The state coordinator, Prateek Hajela, apparently had stepped out of his line of duty when he briefed the press about the “claims and objections” that an applicant can apply for on not finding his or her name in the NRC final draft. The harshness of the words apart, the scolding was selective in nature given to a meek government official

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

who, for obvious reasons of his job, has no scope to answer back or offer a clarification. In contrast were the far more damaging and contemptuous actions and reactions (by way of inflammatory utterances) by seasoned Indian politicians like Mamata Banerjee and her ilk who, to all appearances, tried to create social and communal unrest to the extent of even sending a delegation of party workers to Silchar with intentions of instigating unrest there. We would have been really impressed had the Supreme Court chosen to take suo moto cognizance of the act of these politicians and issued a stern warning to them as well. However, despite the entire Indian media covering the macabre spectacle, the reverend judge in question could not locate a single newspaper to brandish the way he found one to question Hajela. The worst fallout of this for us journos is that Hajela will now obviously clam up. For all the heat that is expected to arise during the “claims and objections” period, I doubt we will get a single byte from him to present a clear picture of the news to our readers. Swapnil Bharali Editor

Freedom of speech and criticism

think people have taken “freedom of speech” for granted. No one seems to have any control over what they are talking about, what information they are sharing, both personal and official. The lines between personal communication and official information have become so blurred because of the way people use social media. Which is why, the Assam government is likely to bring its employees under a social media usage policy so that apart from their lips being sealed, their thumbs are as far away possible from Facebook and Twitter posts. This brings me to the observation that yes, people who fill “Works at Assam Government” in their bio on Facebook, more often than not, communicate inappropriately on their social media handles. While of course, we can argue that social media is a personal domain, gone are the days that you could say that be done with it. Consider communication at free will on social media a luxury. For instance, when you have a complaint, you rant about it on Facebook and expect the brand to respond to you. You write #Boycott<insert brand here> and expect everyone to take it seriously. Then why ignore the little things? If the Assam Police is expected to monitor the internet for a potential ‘cry for help’ or crime, please note, that your small and trivial updates will also fall under its purview; because if they choose to ignore it, we are going to scream bloody murder! From the initial understanding, this ‘Social Media Usage Policy’ is actually a crash course on social media etiquettes, and the government hopes that everyone is a fast learner. While freedom of speech is important, maybe social media is not the best place to be liberating ourselves, all the time! Clearly, people are losing the entire point and are making and breaking brands here. It’s time we catch up too and understand that this “empowered via social media” rule needs to be relooked at. Sidharth Bedi Varma

Politicising the ‘Outsider’

n 30 July 2018, the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was published amidst apprehensions of law and order problems. Such apprehensions were however dispelled as the publication of the draft citizen’s register was followed by a substantial measure of collective peace, endorsement and restraint amongst the participants in the exercise. This cordiality of the masses to the exercise and to each other has not concurred with the political responses that followed the publication of the draft. The lived experience across the state after publication was largely that of cordiality, peace and restraint. In contrast, the interpretations provided by diverse political opinions have tended to read the situation as one of belligerence, coercion and hostility. As political opinions ranged from denouncing the exercise, crying foul and aggravating anxieties, the actual participants have maintained a matured composure in endorsement of the exercise. Are the participants simply ignorant or something else better explains their behaviour? For about a century, Assam has lived under shadow of the ‘Outsider’ from East Bengal. The issue of influx has impinged on structures of the rural economy, politics and the popular consciousness. These structures, on their part, have gone on to shape vulnerabilities as well as excesses. The idea of the ‘Outsider’ has therefore meant differently to different social classes. The atmosphere of relative peace prevailing today in Assam, notwithstanding political opinions and their contrary interpretations, need to be understood against this

n the aftermath of the final draft publication of the NRC, the author writes on the consensus that it received within Assam and dismantles the same in the context of the illegal migrants

background. When migrant communities expand inward, they inevitably enter into antagonistic relationships with existing peasant populations. Continuous influx has not only put immense pressure on land but has contributed to falling size of land holdings and landlessness amongst a broad section of the indigenous peasantry. It is for this reason that the national problem in Assam is intimately tied to the question of land. The native peasantry living under the perpetual gaze of land alienation consequently has a strong rationale for seeking redressal of the problem of influx. This works to build consensus of the numerically dominant class in Assam towards the NRC updating exercise. The Assamese speaking middle class has also strongly stood behind the NRC updating exercise. The infiltrating ‘outsider’ speaks a language that not only stifles the hegemonic project of the middle class but also revives historical apprehensions. For this class therefore, security against influx becomes synonymous with security in jobs and entrepreneurial activity. It is for such a reason that the middle classes in Assam have always constituted a fundamental bloc of support against the issue of influx. Regrettably, a popular consciousness against the ‘outsider’ also produces its perversions. Consequently, legitimate religious and linguistic minorities have continued to suffer the excesses instigated by such perversions. Muslims and Bengali citizens of the state have been often viewed with suspicion and had been at the receiving end during the Bongal Kheda Andolon, the Lachit Sena Agitation as well as during massacres in Nellie and Chaul Khuwa Sapori to indicate a few instances. For these minorities, incorporation of their names in the NRC can provide them a powerful rightbased claim to citizenship as well as dignified existence. It is on such grounds that the minorities, as a social class, have also largely tended to identify with the NRC updating exercise. A divergent set of rationale have therefore converged to produce justification for the NRC updating exercise in Assam. The relative peace and cordiality prevailing

rFailed ‘Mahagathbandhan’

O pinion

Abhinav Pankaj Borbora

today is symbolic of the cross cutting consensus that exist among three broad classes towards the exercise in question. Political opinions unfortunately have not demonstrated a similar consensus as the participants. Their positions on the issue seem to have been shaped more by political expediencies and lack of adequate and sympathetic understanding of this intricate problem. Only such reasons could explain why for Mamata Banerjee, the issue of detection of illegal Indians is similar to an attempt to expel Bengalis and Biharis. Within the ranks of the Congress, while many leaders have derided the quantum of exclusions, Ghulam Nabi Azad made an erroneous claim regarding exclusion of a crore people from the final draft. This plainly showed the ignorance and vested intent of senior Congress leaders regarding the issue. CPI (M) MP, TK Rangarajan went further to call the report “illegal” while Manoj Kumar Jha of the RJD termed it as a “heartless bureaucratic exercise.” The BJP is also not aloof from such biases. Despite this draft not having finality, Amit Shah swiftly chose to aggravate anxieties by terming all the excluded as illegal migrants. Such a contradiction between the participants and the political classes can have serious ramifications. For it constitutes a form of symbolic violence inflicted upon the participants through misrecognition of their genuine grievances. This can produce a deep sense of alienation among the participants whose life worlds are constantly punctured by the issue of influx. It is such a sense of discontentment that eventually becomes the seedbeds of regional chauvinism and secessionism. Considering the prevailing political climate, there is now more reason to mitigate such aggressive sentiments. For in Assam, Hindutva nationalism finds a ready ally in regional chauvinism in view of the particular demography of the ‘outsider’ in question. n

Letter to the Editor

wo things were apparent in NDA’s victory in the polls to the Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman’s post. First is the nimbleness and guile shown by the core strategic group of BJP; second is the failure of Rahul Gandhi to stitch the so called Mahagathbandhan. BJP desperately wanted to shed the tag of being self-centred as they chose to field a candidate from alliance partner JD (U). The prospect of winning the post for the NDA nominee Harivansh Narayan Singh, a first time Rajya Sabha member from Nitish Kumar’s party was almost bleak. The poll was the unity index test for the anti-BJP and anti-Modi opposition parties spearheaded by the chief of opposition party Congress. The victory in the polls would have sent strong signals to BJP but as usual the incompetence of Rahul Gandhi came to fore. For the first time in 40 years a non-Congress leader has become the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha. Instead of fielding his own candidate he could have given a chance to his allies of the newly formed Mahagathbandhan. With general polls less than a year to go, this victory for NDA and more particularly for BJP would give them a shot in the arm. Gaurrav Chowdhury, GNB Road, Guwahati

In Focus

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Swati Bidhan Baruah First transgender judge of Assam

ppointed the first transgender judge of Assam and northeast India, and the third in India, Swati Bidhan Baruah hails from the state’s strong LGBTQ+ community. Born and brought up in Guwahati, Swati will work in a national Lok Adalat in the city. Joining the brigade of 20 judges, she will mediate cases in Lok Adalat. She was appointed by Kamrup (Metro) district legal service authority. Belonging to a community that is marginalised and discriminated against, Swati has never let anyone pull her down. She has always dreamt of bigger things in life and has worked her way up to achieve them. Swati, who did her schooling and higher secondary education from Sri Satya Sai Vidyalaya Guwahati, went on to pursue B Com (Honours) with Economics Major from West Guwahati Commerce College. She further completed a course in CS (Company Secretary) and Law from the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and Gauhati University Law College respectively.

Ever since a very young age, Swati started to identify herself as a transgender. “Every school has a protocol. Since I was born as a boy, I had to dress up in boy’s uniform – shirt and trousers. But I used to hate that uniform and getting out of it felt like getting out of prison,” Swati recalls, speaking to G Plus. “As I hit puberty, the habits of dressing as a female and putting on makeup became more affirmative. So, I started to be discriminated by my school mates, family members and relatives. At home, I was shunned. I was never introduced to any guests or relatives; instead, I was locked in my room with two square meals and books,” she added. Originally known as Bidhan Baruah, the 27 year old has been fighting for the rights of the transgender community for over seven years now. In 2012, Swati had moved the Bombay High Court seeking permission to undergo a sex reassignment surgery, which her family opposed. She won the case and underwent the procedure. “When I was around 18 years old, I met my boyfriend - a flight attendant. It was a beautiful

phase of my life. With him, I could just be myself, away from all the negativity and discrimination. We used to sneak out and go hang out at parks, indulge in long phone calls. “During that time, I started taking classes to save some money. With the money saved and some help from my boyfriend, I decided to undergo the Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS). I took my laptop bag, shoved some clothes in it and left home. When my mother asked where I was going, I told her I was going to repair the laptop. But instead I went to the airport and took a flight to Mumbai where I planned to undergo the surgery,” Swati told G Plus. But, things didn’t go as smoothly as planned. Her parents got to know about her decision and through a family lawyer sent a legal notice to the doctor con-

cerned. The doctor then kept the surgery on hold and asked Swati to get a court order for the same. And so began the most difficult phase of Swati’s journey - in a new city, surrounded by new people, with barely any money to survive. However, the Bombay High Court, passing a landmark judgement dated 7 May 2012, allowed her to undergo the surgery. The case was later referred as an example of SRS surgery by the expert committee on transgender under the ministry of social justice & empowerment. Earlier this year, Swati had filed a PIL in the Gauhati High Court for non-implementation of a 2014 Supreme Court order (the NALSA judgement) on the welfare of transgenders. The Gauhati High Court, in May 2018, directed the state government to implement it within six months. Recently, on July 14, Swati

created history when she got appointed as a judge at the Lok Adalat. Speaking to G Plus about her appointment as judge, Swati said, “I had plans of travelling to Delhi for a conference when I got a call asking me to reach court. I immediately cancelled my flight ticket and reached court fearing something negative had happened. To my surprise, when I reached there, I was informed that I had been appointed as a judge. The feeling is hard to describe in words.” Swati now plans to work more aggressively towards empowering the transgender community. She believes that transgenders, especially the eunuch community, are more marginalised than the rest of the LGBTQ+ community and face much more struggles. “The problems are heightened in Assam, compared to rest of the country. I feel that our state is full of educated illiterates with really shallow mentality,” Swati adds. Swati has also been organising workshops and awareness programs in the city for many years now. Apart from schools and colleges, workshops have been conducted at 14 police stations as well. The appointment of Swati comes as a relief to over 5,000 transgenders living in Assam who had to run from pillar to post with their legal and other social problems. They have a new hope in the form of Swati Bidhan Baruah.

The MG Road Walking Zone has been temporarily withdrawn for the occasions of Bol Bom and Independence Day and it seems to have brought a sense of relief to a lot citizens; some comments… Gaurav Mour The walking zone should be shut down permanently. People living on MG Road should not be asked to compromise so that the whole of Guwahati can take a walk. The government has been unsuccessful in controlling traffic. Important roads cannot be blocked for hours. The concept of walking zone is very good but the choice of area is extremely poor. My house is situated on MG Road and I have to literally walk but I am not willing to walk for which I purchased a private vehicle. Why should I be asked to compromise? The government wants to make a walking zone. Use the riverside, make it a good well-built beach sort of a thing rather than creating problems for the locals of that area. This is so not right.

Thomas Alex This government sponsored this walking has caused immense hardship to thousands of people living across the river in North Guwahati. People can’t visit their friends and relatives on Sunday as no 2 wheelers are allowed.This shows the indifference of the corrupt and well to do towards the rural folks. I feel that the government has no authority to shut down a main arterial road of the city thus denying the basic right of passage, right of citizens for the benefit of the well-heeled. This action was necessary and I’m glad that it is taken and hope it is permanently withdrawn.

Jyoti Prakash Das Great step, the walking zone should be withdrawn permanently. Only traffic jam nothing else occurs in the area because of this naïve initiative. Moreover, people suffer a lot because of this concept of walking only on Sundays. And why on the occasion of Bol Bam and Independence day? It should be permanently withdrawn. I don’t see anything good happening because of it. This was one of the worst initiatives taken by the government till date. There are so many things that the government should look after and work on for the betterment of the people and society but they prefer walking zone that, in turn, creates so many problems every Sunday. Rahul Jain I think it should be closed forever. It should be shifted to some other place where there are no traffic issues. The Sunday scenario of walking zone is nothing but a street full of vendors selling chaat, puchka and what not and people coming just to click selfies. This decision should have been taken long back but anyways it’s good that now locals of the area can move out freely without any restriction of the so-called Walking zone. I just don’t understand why on earth the government chose MG Road for such an activity. I mean seriously because of the Brahmaputra River? Are people not residing in that area, don’t they need to go somewhere in the evening time? I just want to request the officials to make it permanent and withdraw the walking zone permanently for the betterment of people.

Feature

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Drain cleaning by GMC should be a regular exercise

How do you think can the problem of water logging in Guwahati be solved?

Widening existing drains

27%

Votes

1.2K Regular drain cleaning

73%

A drain cleaning exercise undertaken at RG Baruah Road | G Plus Photo

Chetan Bhattarai

n the month of July, short spells of rains in the evenings almost drowned major parts of Guwahati. The city came to a complete standstill and whoever tried to wade through these murky waters definitely had a tiring and harrowing experience. Tall claims made by the GMC that they have been regular in cleaning the drains fell flat

after an hour of downpour. G Plus decided to ask the citizens what they thought about this water logging after the spells. The citizens were aware that the GMC has been trying hard to clean the drains this season, but has not been able to deliver the desired relief. Of the 1,200 respondents, 73% were of the opinion that regular drain cleaning can help solve the water logging issue to a great extent. They expressed that the flash floods and water logging

are caused mainly by the water, sand and soil coming down from the hills surrounding the city. Drain cleaning had always been done at the last moment, due to which water remained logged for long duration. Though the water receding time has come down after the recent GMC drive, it still is an irritant for a wannabe smart city. Respondents believed that widening the drains is a big project and will take a lot of time. Till the time such plans are made

and implemented, the civic body should keep cleaning the drains at regular intervals. A good chunk — 27% of the 1,200 respondents wanted widening of existing drains as an option. They said that the existing drains are eating the road space and are not serving the purpose of what a drain should be doing. Also, some respondents were of the opinion that drains should be below the roads, like everywhere else in the world. Many respondents were jittery at the thought of the drains being widened. That’s because they know how the system works in this part of the world. They were worried that if widening of drains came up now, the unplanned manner in which public works are undertaken in this city would result in nothing but more congestion. Most of the major business establishments are right next to one main road or the other. The respondents said that such plans would be rejected by the public and the administration. Almost all the respondents felt

that there should be awareness among the citizens regarding what can be released into the drains. Drains are primarily for carrying the water and silt and should not be used as a dumping ground for garbage and other materials. The open drains in the city face this dumping issue as citizens don’t seem to have much civic sense when it comes to dumping garbage. Banning plastics may be one way of keeping the drains clear as blockage is mostly caused by plastic materials being thrown into these drains. People should understand, that if they keep dumping something which is choking the drains it will ultimately lead to overflowing, thereby drowning the nearby areas even after a short spell, believe respondents. Respondents were peeved that people in the city tend to throw their garbage into the drains. Even when there are garbage disposal sites and collection of garbage is done by the GMC, people don’t seem to care and continue choking the drains with waste, resulting in water logging. n

Zublee’s ‘Organothon 2018’ sees massive participation, star presence

ith the aim to raise mass awareness about organ donation among the people of Assam and encouraging deceased organ donation, Guwahati-based Zublee Foundation organised the second edition of ‘Organothon’ last Sunday. On August 5, 2018, the run was flagged off by Prof Dr Vimal Bhandari, Director, National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO), government of India at 6:30 AM from Gitanagar High School Field and covered a total distance of 10 kms. The run witnessed participation of over 1,000 people hailing from different parts of Assam as well as other states of northeast India. Zublee Foundation is the first non-governmental organization

(NGO) working for the noble cause of organ donation awareness in the north-eastern region of India. It is an initiative undertaken by singer Zublee Baruah, Amitabh Gohain along with several other like-minded people and was established in 2013.

The event was graced by Dr Suresh Badhan, Consultant, Co-ordinator, NOTTO, Sangita Sherawat, Chief Transplant Co-ordinator, NOTTO and Dr Navanil Baruah from GNRC. A number of well known people from Assam, including renowned musician JP

Das, Ravi Sharma, Mahadev Deka, Joi Barua, and a few others from the film and music fraternity participated in different ways. The run was followed by a live show by different artistes from Assam. Songs were performed by Joi Barua, JP Das, Zublee Baruah and Priyanka Dey to entertain and encourage the runners. A mime act on organ donation was presented beautifully by some students from Hayat School of Nursing, Guwahati. The runners were also presented finisher certificates and medals. Through this event, Zublee Foundation wanted people to understand and support the cause of deceased organ donation and also had a focus to grab attention of the government to take necessary steps to make deceased organ do-

nation possible in Assam and also the seven other states of northeast India. After the run, Dulal Deka, the father of a deceased who wished to donate his son’s kidneys and arms after his death was felicitated by PS Mahanta, SP, Kamrup (M) for his brave desire to come forward and support the cause of organ donation. Similarly, Krishnakhi Das and Prerna Das were also felicitated by Zublee Baruah for their life saving contributions. The ultimate dream of Zublee Foundation is to transform Assam into the land of immortals by generating mass awareness among the people. Zublee Baruah, speaking to G Plus, said that it was amazing that people from all across the state came out to be a part of this endeavour. n

Trotter

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Spiderman in a thong, drawn by an Indian artist for a reason

hreya Arora, a 21-year-old graphic design student, made six drawings and juxtaposed them with the original covers of comic book giants Marvel and DC Comics that show scantilydressed women in sexually suggestive poses. “I have been reading comic books for a while but increasingly I noticed that while the stories inside had become a lot more inclusive and empowering to women, the covers did not necessarily follow,” she said. “I decided to take the covers with really demeaning or sexist portrayals of super-heroines and recreate them as superheroes. I wanted the shock value to get a conversation started.” Critics have long accused the male-dominated comic book industry of representing women as hypersexualised objects of desire, given secondary roles and less dialogue than men. Observers hailed last year’s blockbuster hit “Wonder Woman” - the first superhero movie to star a woman since 2005 and the first to be directed by a woman - as a sign of changing times. One of Arora’s drawings shows a bare-chested, masked Spiderman in a thong,

holding a strategically-placed beach ball in front of his groin, while another has Iron Man crouching in a pose that accentuates his apple-shaped posterior. Only about 27 percent of all Marvel and DC Comics characters are women and just 12 percent of mainstream superhero comics have female protagonists, according to a study by the digital platform, The Pudding. “Females are more than twice as likely to be given a name that may make her seem weak, less dangerous, less aggressive and not on equal footing with male characters,” said Amanda Shendruk, author of

the study. Arora said her next targets are Indian comics, which often depict women as accessories or as annoying wives, and to teach children about feminism to help curb sex attacks in India. More than 100 cases of women being raped daily were reported in 2016, according to government data. “You can look at sexual assault as a problem but it is basically because of rape culture that exists in our country and I want to get to the root of the problem - combat sexism and misogyny from a young age,” Arora said. (Source: ndtv)

Elderly men, missing from old-age home, found at heavy metal concert

ordes of headbangers amassed in Germany for the world’s largest heavy metal festival among them, two elderly men who apparently left their retirement home to rock out, police said. Authorities said the pair went missing from their retirement home in Dithmarscher, a rural district in Schleswig-Holstein, and were found to have travelled about 25 miles to Wacken Open Air, a day-long festival not far

from Hamburg. Peter Berndt, a spokesman for the Itzehoe police department, said the two men were thought to have made their way to the festival by foot and public transport, though it is unclear when exactly they arrived in Wacken and how much time they spent at the festival. Authorities told the Deutsche Welle that retirement home personnel had alerted police that the two men were missing. The men - who were not identified by authorities - were located

“disoriented and dazed” at the Wacken at 3 am on Saturday, police said. “They were then taken to the medical tent on the festival site and were sent back by taxi at around 6:30 am,” Berndt said. “We had to explain to them why they had to go home - but in the end, they went back voluntarily.” Police said in a press release that officers in a patrol car spotted the men, “who were apparently intrigued with the metal festival.” “Of course, their disappearance was noticed at the nursing home and their swift return there was organized after police picked them up,” the statement said. But the authorities added that the men “were reluctant to go home, so a patrol car accompanied the contracted taxi as a precaution. A photo showing other elderly people rocking out at the festival was posted on Twitter. Wacken Open Air responded: “Seriously? How cool is that, please?” Then, the festival added in English: “You’re never too old to rock.” (Source: ndtv)

After Blue Whale game, Momo Challenge sparks fear on the internet

ast year, the ‘Blue Whale Challenge’, an online game blamed for the death of several children, sparked fear all over the world. Now, an equally scary challenge is reportedly being linked to the death of a 12-year-old girl in Argentina. Known as the Momo Challenge, the terrifying viral trend has reportedly swept the internet and parents are being warned against the “game.” Reportedly, Momo is a social media account on platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook and YouTube. It uses artwork that shows a woman with scary features. Much like the ‘Blue Whale’, the Momo Challenge

also pushes participants to follow certain “orders” after they are asked to communicate with an unknown number. If players refuse to abide, they are threatened with violent images. The game is likely a way for criminals to steal data from people and then extort them, Rodrigo Nejm of Brazil’s NGO, Safernet said. (Source: foxnews)

A sinkhole opened up and swallowed 2 cars in China; no injuries luckily

wo cars plunged into a sinkhole that suddenly opened up on a road in China - but miraculously, nobody was injured in the accident. The incident took place in Harbin, capital city of Heilongjiang province in north-east China. According to a local daily, Morning, the sinkhole, formed after heavy rains, led to the collapse of a part of the busy road. The result-

ing sinkhole - 10 meters long and over 4 meters deep - immediately swallowed two cars that plunged into it one after the other. The driver of the second car said he did not realise he was driving into a hole until he felt the front of his car dip. It was too late by the time he hit the brake and by then he had realised there was another car in the sinkhole. The three occupants of the two cars fortunately escaped without any injuries. Authorities are now investigating the cause of the accident. This isn’t the first time that a sinkhole has swallowed up cars in Harbin. In October last year, a horrifying video captured a Rolls-Royce Phantom car plunge into a sinkhole on the city’s roads. (Source: indiatimes)

This Ganesh Chaturthi, grow your Ganpati idol into a tree

anesh Chaturthi, a tenday festival which starts on the fourth day of Hindu luni-solar calendar month Bhadrapada, is due in September. With an aim to keep the environment safe, artisans in Mumbai are adopting eco-friendly ways to make idols of Lord Ganesh ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi. An artisan, Dattadri Kothur, has been making idols using ecofriendly clay to promote a unique concept of ‘Tree Ganesha.’ The most striking feature of the idol is the fact that it has a seed inside and can be grown into a plant by pouring water after the festival ends. “On the day of immersion, one can take the idol to their balcony, terrace or a garden and like the way they water the plants, they

can pour water on the idol. The idol will dissolve and in four to ten days and a plant will come out of it,” Kothur said. Another artist, Rohit Vaste has been making the idols of Lord Ganesh with paper so that it can be recycled later on. In an attempt to go the environment-friendly way, even the decoration items used in pandals are made out of eco-friendly materials these days. (Source: ndtv)

Review

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Starring: Kamal Haasan, Pooja Kumar, Andrea Jeremiah, Shekhar Kapur, etc Director: Kamal Haasan

A e w Movi vie e R

Vishwaroop 2

fter the original Vishwaroopam, this film continues the story of Indian spy Wisam (Kamal Haasan) and his battle against Al Qaeda terrorist Omar (Rahul Bose). This time, Omar and his henchmen are out to take revenge from Wisam and his friends, while planning bomb terrorization in London and Delhi. Vishwaroop 2 takes on a distinctive screenplay that tries to tell a story that shows both before and after settings of the original Vishwaroop movie. So, the sequel shows a continuation of the original story, as well as plot points that explain the first film’s scenes. The result of this approach is a lengthy film that doesn’t feel consistent. To astound the audience that Wisam isn't just a cold-blooded spy determined only on killing his

rivals, the limelight is briefly put on his Alzheimer's-stricken mother, Waheeda Rehman, who doesn’t recognize his son. This sequence is supposed to bring a lump to the throat but unfortunately it does nothing of that sort. The plot is uneven, sloppily hopping between continents (India, US, Afghanistan) and time zones. When the characters are not killing each other, either by means of hand-to-hand battle or blades and guns, they are busy flying about in all kinds of transport, and setting up weapons. Helicopters are droning away, missiles are being launched, grenades are being planted, and Vis, armed and dangerous, is on top of everything, saving India’s capital from being exploded out of existence. Not only is the film non-indulgent, it’s also a bit too boring, despite its smooth execution. n

Starring: Jason Statham, Bingbing Li, Winson Chao, Rainn Wilson, Ruby Rose, etc Director: Jon Turteltaub

he Meg, basically Jason Statham fighting a Giant Prehistoric Shark, is a shark movie that never gets too ruthless, despite the size of its “gigantic monster,” as several people call the shark. There’s some slow-moving action, a little tension, a few clearly telegraphed leap scares, a bit of romance, a sweet kid, and some insipidly envisioned witticism nestled into weakly visualized dialogues. People who enjoy SciFi channel shark movies, about sharks fighting robot sharks or sharktopi fighting whalewolves (yes, that’s a thing), may find it refreshing that the core of submarines actually look like submarines in this movie. And when Jason Statham is swimming in the middle of the ocean, less than one hundred feet

iaomi has just launched a successor to the Mi A1 called the Mi A2, and it promises a better hardware while still running on the stock Android.

from a ticked off Megalodon, and racing a titanic fish to a little boat that’s probably not safe anyway, that part’s filmed with some real passion and successfully grabs audiences eyeballs. It’s an enjoyable movie. The problem with The Meg is that while it definitely masticates at your senses, it’s just not outlandish enough to be unforgettable. What results is a film, that’s both exceedingly watchable and exceedingly skippable. It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters when it could be spending it with, you know, the gigantic shark. Based on the novels by Steve Alten, The Meg may be the Platonic ideal of a full-size mindless summer movie: entertaining to watch and very painlessly simple to forget. n

Cinepolis

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09435025808 Vishwaroop 2 09:10 AM,

The Meg 08:45 PM

02:45 PM, 05:50 PM, 08:55 PM

The Meg, English 10:30

Mulk 09:40 AM, 03:20

AM, 01:15 PM, 03:30 PM

PM, 09:00 PM

Vishwaroop 2 10:45 AM,

Mission: Impossible

03:45 PM, 08:30 PM

– Fallout, English

Mission: Impossible –

09:45 AM, 06:30 PM

Fallout, English 12:45 PM

The Meg, English 10:10

Mulk 05:45 PM

AM, 12:45 PM, 03:20 PM,

Karwaan 6:20 PM

05:55 PM, 08:30 PM Karwaan 12:40 PM, 06:20 PM

Anuradha Cineplex Noonmati 0361 2656968 The Meg 05:15 PM The Meg, English 11:30 AM Vishwaroop 2 2:00 PM

The Mi A2 has a metal unibody which gives it a first-class feel in the hand. It has a big 5.99inch display with an 18:9 aspect ratio, which makes the phone tall and narrow. The sides are curved which makes it comfortable in the hand. The black matte finish model also resists fingerprints to some extent. The power button is well placed, but the volume buttons are a little too high. Xiaomi Mi A2 has opted for a dual camera setup at the back, which is now positioned vertically

Dona Planet 08800900009 Vishwaroop 2 9:30 AM, 05:45 PM, 09:05 PM The Meg, English 10:30 AM, 12:55 PM, 03:20 PM, 08:40 PM Mulk 12:25 PM, 06:15 PM Mission: Impossible – Fallout, English 03:15 PM

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AM, 05:00 PM

The Meg, English

Dhadak 02:00 PM

10:00 AM, 05:50 PM

Fanney Khan 02:30 PM

Vishwaroop 2 12:15

Mulk 08:00 PM

PM, 08:45 PM Mulk 03:00 PM

The Meg

saver mode kicks in after 7 and 30 minutes.

Xiaomi Mi A2 cameras

compared to the horizontal setup on the Mi A1. This camera module protrudes quite a bit causing the Mi A2 to rock when placed on a flat surface.

Xiaomi Mi A2 specifications, software, and features

Xiaomi Mi A2 design

PVR Cinemas

Gold Cinema

Xiaomi Mi A2

Mi A2 has chosen the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor to power the Mi A2. It has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. Sadly storage isn’t expandable like the Mi A1, and you will need to make do with the storage you get. This is a dual-SIM smartphone and has two Nano-SIM slots. There is support for 4G and VoLTE on both SIMs. The Xiaomi Mi A2 runs stock Android 8.1 Oreo. It has an app drawer, and you need to swipe up to see all your installed apps. You also get Google Feed by swiping right from the homescreen and summon the Google Assistant by long-pressing the home button.

09854017771

The 5.99-inch display sports a full-HD+ resolution, has a pixel density of 403ppi, and uses Corning Gorilla Glass 5 for protection. Viewing angles are decent but the display does not get very bright.

Xiaomi Mi A2 performance and battery life

The Xiaomi Mi A2 offers a good performance and no lag or stutter has been found when flipping through the phone’s UI and multitasking. With 4GB of RAM,

you should be able to multitask easily without the phone automatically killing apps in the background. The fingerprint scanner is quite fast and was quick to unlock the phone. In an HD video loop test, the smartphone ran for 8 hours and 13 minutes, which is below average. With a usage comprising of active WhatsApp and Gmail accounts, an hour worth of games luke PUBG, some time with Instagram, and making a few calls, the battery

Xiaomi’s camera app is different from the stock Android camera. You get Short Video, Portrait, Square, Panorama, and a Manual mode, apart from the usual Photo and Video modes. The Manual mode lets you set white balance, focus, shutter speed and ISO, and also lets you choose between the ‘regular’ and ‘low light’ lenses. The 12-megapixel primary rear camera has 1.25-micron pixels and an f/1.75 aperture. Selfies are detailed and sharp results were received when shooting indoors.

Verdict

Xiaomi has priced the Mi A2 at Rs. 16,999 which is quite aggressive for the hardware it offers. However, its battery capacity is below average, resulting in relatively poor battery life. But it has got the cameras right and is amongst the best camera phones at this price point. n

Entertainment

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Biswajit Thakuria - a rising star in Assamese music Kalyan Kumar Kalita

iswajit Thakuria, a promising new singer, had dreamt of becoming a singer since his childhood. Every time he listened to songs on television, he would quickly come and stand in front of the TV, trying to learn the songs. He regularly renders songs of prominent singers like Dr Bhupen Hazarika, Jayanta Hazarika, Zubeen Garg, Mahendra Hazarika etc. Biswajit, son of Gambhir Thakuria and Rina Thakuria, often shared with his mother his dream of becoming a singer, but due to lack of facilities at his birthplace Naamshala Gaon of Sarthebari - his mother failed to provide him the requisite musical training. But he was doggedly determined. After completing his HSLC exams, Biswajit’s musical journey began. For continuation of his studies and to start his training in musical, his parents sent him to one of their relative’s house in Jorhat. The relative, Ila Baruah, is a retired worker

of Jorhat administration, a popular singer and a writer. Biswajit completed his degree from Kamrup College, Nalbari and also underwent training in music. He released two songs written by Ila Baruah. The songs ‘Majoni’ and ‘Moinajaan,’ tuned and rendered by Biswajit himself, were highly appreciated by the Assamese music lovers. At present, this promising singer is busy with a lot of songs at Studio Eden, Jorhat. Among them, some

remarkable songs are ‘Kheti’, ‘Osina’, ‘Lorali’, ‘Lahori’, ‘Janmoni’, ‘Tarali’, ‘Moromjaan’, ‘Bhaijaan’, ‘ Aaita’, ‘Mayabi ei nixa’ etc. “I am thankful to my parents and especially Ila Baruah and Pranjal Pradip Bharali of Studio Eden, Jorhat for believing in me and helping me fulfill my dream. I’m also thankful to the audience who loved my songs and encouraged me each time,” Biswajit said. He also added that the songs will hit the market very soon.

Week-long drama fest concludes with Manoj Joshi’s Chanakya

he 23rd Natasurya Drama Festival, 2018 was held at Sri Sri Madhabdeva International Auditorium and Srimanta Sankaradeva International Auditorium, Kalakshetra from 1st August to 7th August 2018. The concluding act for the week long fest was the historical drama “Chanakya,” performed and directed by veteran Manoj Joshi.

The play, written by Mihir Bhuta, was presented by Mumbai-based group Dharmajam, which has been continuously staging the drama for the last 24 years. A total of seven plays were staged during the festival that was organised by Natasurya Phani Sarma memorial celebration committee in collaboration with the state department of cultural

affairs. While six drama groups of the state presented the first six plays, the seventh play was staged by Mumbai-based drama group Dharmajam. The plays staged on the first six days were August Strindburg’s Miss Julie directed by Boloram Das, Baharul Islamscripted and directed play Swabhabjat, Jintu Bhattacharya’s Ejon Ahangkari Manuh directed by Arjoo Amin and Tapan Deka, Nabajyoti Bora’s Hayera Jetuki Bai directed by Moni Bordoloi, Dr Ajit Bharali’s Dhanbar Ratani directed by Jyotiprasad Bhuyan, and Giyas Uddin Ahmed’s Bhagnangsha directed by Ashimkrishna Baruah. The festival was inaugurated by chairman & managing director of Oil India Limited (OIL), Utpal Bora. The guest of honour was Director (Finance) of OIL, Rupsikha Bora, while cultural affairs commissioner & secretary, Pritam Saikia, was present as special guest. Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee and multitalented artist, Nuruddin Ahmed, was also felicitated during the festival. Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the concluding evening’s performance in the presence of guest of honour and cultural affairs minister, Naba Kumar Doley.

Lucky to have played characters and not decorative pieces in films: Dipannita Sharma

ormer Miss India contestant and finalist Dipannita Sharma, who turned into an actress, says she has been very lucky to have played characters in films that mean something and are not in the movies just as decorative pieces. Born in the Oil India Limited colony town of Duliajan in Assam, Dipannita has hosted television shows, been a judge on a fashion based show on Mtv, “Mtv making the cut” and acted in the lead role on a show called “Life Nahi Hai Laddoo” before making her film debut with the 2002 Bollywood film 16 December. She has featured in Bollywood films like My Brother... Nikhil, Ladies vs Ricky Bahl and Pizza. She has also walked the ramp for all major designers in the country and for international design houses such as Valentino & Fendi in India. For her, it is important to play good and interesting parts that showcase her as an actor as opposed to a “meaningless lead who only has two songs in a few scenes with a really big actor.” “As an actor, I do not believe in just lead or supporting cast. I believe that a character should be interesting. There should be a reason why the character is there in the film and I must say that, so far, I’ve been very lucky to have played parts in films that mean something and are not in the film just as a decorative piece,” she said. She also bagged the best

actress award at the Love International Film Festival in the US this year for playing a mother in the Assamese film, Xhoixobote Dhemalite (Rainbow Fields). “It is extremely encouraging for a regional film industry like the Assamese film industry, which has been struggling for a while although it has immense talent. You can tell a story in the Assamese language and it can be accepted worldwide; that itself is a great feeling. It gives a lot of hope for the industry,” she said. The semi-autobiographical film takes inspiration from director Bidyut Kotoky’s life and is based on the psychological trauma that children in Assam went through during a period of agitation in the 1980s. Dipannita is also working on her own company called North East Film Studio.

Byatikram awards to be held on August 11

he Byatikram Awards which are conferred on people from various art fields including literature and socio-economic activity will be organised on August 11 at Pragjyoti ITA Centre, Machkhowa. These awards are conferred every year on people for making contribution in having excelled in their respective fields of expertise. This year, ghazal maestro Padmashri Pankaj Udhas will enthral the audience in a musical evening. The programme will exclusively showcase a symphony of evergreen melodies by Pankaj Udhas. According to the organisers, the highlight of the evening will be a traditional fashion walk. Mrs Archita Baruah Bhattacharyya, Mrs intellectual Byatikram ‘Queen of Northeast-2018’ will be seen once again on the traditional fashion walk which will be held on Byatikram Award. They added that Byatikram literary award will be awarded To Kamal Shing Narzary, MLA Bijni for all his achievements in the field of Literature till date.

Further, Dima Hasao will be acknowledged with ‘Byatikram Most Promising Tourist Place of Assam 2018’ for the Year 2018 since Dima Hasao is visited by maximum number of tourists every year in comparison to any other tourist point of Assam.

Fun

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Horoscope of the week You have learnt, over the time that a charming personality plays a huge role in winning people over. And, great communication skill is an integral part of an impressive persona. You shall take up the task of developing your personality, thus, when the week begins. On Tuesday, Venus enters its own Sign, Libra - your 5th House.

Moon, the ruler of your Sign is in its sign of exaltation, Taurus in the 11th House. It is now in direct opposition to benevolent Jupiter, which is currently in the 5th House. You will be happy as you feel hopeful about a prosperous future. This week, you might bump into an influential person, developing a good rapport with whom, will work well in enhancing the chances of progress in career.

Entrepreneurs shall begin the week on a busy note, negotiating a deal with a prospective client. Although the likelihood of the deal getting delayed for one reason or the other is high, keep at it, says Ganesha. Venus will be entering its own Sign, Libra in the 3rd House on Tuesday. This is indeed a welcome change as you might indulge in a creative activity.

A near relation may give you a useful suggestion, when the week begins. This may be quite helpful in enhancing your prospects on the occupational front – so keep your antennae on. Give some due to others! Cohesive influence of Jupiter will work well in preserving peace and harmony in your relationships. You need to, however, remain attentive about the needs and aspirations of your sibling/s.

Meeting an influential person, this week, is likely to raise your hopes and aspirations for success. You will be determined to enhance your prospects, when the week begins. Good news comes for you with your Sign ruler – which now enters your Sign and its own abode. This will sow the seeds of prosperity for you. Some encouraging opportunity may come your way soon.

You are determined and dogged in your pursuit for success, but despite your best efforts, you may not have been getting the desired results. Well, for starters, continue unabated. And, secondly, don’t blame yourself – it’s all in the planets. The direct influence of retrograde Saturn over your 9th House of luck shall be acting as an hindrance on the path of your success.

You have been lately quite anxious about your financial prospects and maybe, also the family life. Saturn, astrologically, owns your 2nd House i.e. primarily linked these two sectors. And, at the moment, Saturn is travelling in retrograde motion in your 2nd House – Capricorn – itself. While Saturn’s journey here is a year-long process, its retrogression may intensify its punishing effects.

The stagnancy in your career is getting on your nerves, and you might now want to sit down and plan an intelligent move to give your career a push. However, retrograde Saturn will try every trick possible to make your goal not-so-easy to achieve. Never forget that Saturn is not what it appears on the outside. It is the planet that makes you go through hardships.

Progress you have seen but the slow pace at which it is happening is now bogging you down. Hence, you are likely to experiment a little with your strategy in order to enhance your prospects. Venus moves into Libra in the 9th House, the House linked with luck and fortune. This planetary change will boost your confidence and support you in your endeavours.

You are a naturally laid back Sign, but the pace of things, at the moment, may annoy even you. Blame this on planets, but continue your work efforts. Whatever it is, a renovation project, something to do with your financial situation or generally, the environment at work – things shall remain largely unchanged for the next 2-3 weeks. All you can do is change yourself, says Ganesha.

Why did the British government decide to transfer power on 15th August to the Indians?

Which historic event took place from 12th March 1930 to 6th April 1930?

Connect C Rajagopalachari, CV Raman and Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan.

The Hindi movie Purab ki Awaz tells the story of which famous freedom fighter of Assam?

The original copy of the Constitution of India was illustrated by which famous painter?

Identify this hero of India’s struggle for Independence. Dr. Soubhadra Chakrabarty This quiz has been brought to you by Brain Jam, a property of Priya Communications

Non Sequitur By Wiley Miller

2 1 8 4 9 26 4 3 1

4 8 3 6 1 1 4 4 3 3 2 3 9 5 3 9 8 4 6 25 3 3 4 8 9 9 8 6 5 2 7 5 8 4 9 1 5

Daily Sudoku: Fri 10-Aug-2018

6 2

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Daily Sudoku: Thu 2-Aug-2018

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4 last 3 9week 2 1 solution 7 5 6 8 1 7 6 5 3 8 4 2 9 1 6 53 88 25 9 4 26 47 73 91 8 3 29 96 47 8 7 45 26 11 53 2 1 4 5 9 7 6 1 4 9 73 68 35 82 3 7 86 54 32 1 6 92 59 84 17 8 5 9 6 2 6 2 7 3 5 19 31 48 74 4 5 97 43 81 6 2 81 93 27 65 9 4 31 12 58 7 8 64 72 59 36 4 Sudoku: 9 Fri310-Aug-2018 7 1 5 8 6 medium 2 Daily 5 7 6 2 8 3 1 9 4 Daily Sudoku: Thu 2-Aug-2018

medium

http://www.dailysudoku.com/

Word of the week calescent adjective [kuh-les-uh nt] growing warm; increasing in heat.

curio-city

http://www.dailysudoku.com/

1. To commemorate the 2nd anniversary of the surrender of Japan during the Second World War 2. The Dandi March 3. They were the first recipients of the Bharat Ratna in 1954 4. Kanaklata Barua, who was shot dead in 1942 at the age of 18, while leading a Quit India procession 5. Nandalal Basu 6. Shaheed Udham Singh who shot dead Michael O’Dwyer to avenge the Jallianwala Bagh massacre

curio-city

Sudoku

You may be thinking about raising provisions for your family. Over Tuesday, the ruler of your Sign Venus moves to its other abode – Libra - your 6th House. This will ease the overall vibes at your work place. You may even prefer to work independently. If you are already not one, becoming a freelancer or consultant may be on your mind.

Contemplating about where to invest the money you have in hand, you are looking for something that assures good returns on maturity. This can be rather confusing, so you can consult your friends and family members who are likely to show you the right direction. On Tuesday, Venus enters Libra in your 7th House. Now, it will be under the direct aspect of retrograde Saturn.

Crossword Across

Down

1 Tobacco rolls for smoking (6) 4 English metaphysical poet, d. 1631 (5) 7 Mighty (6) 8 Telephone (informal) (6) 9 Catch sight of (4) 10 Someone beaten without difficulty (4,4) 12 Based on solid evidence (4-7) 17 Shook (8) 19 Neither good nor bad (2-2) 20 Works hard (6) 21 Damage (6) 22 Drainage channel (5) 23 Ball game (6)

1 Person used by another to gain an end (4,3) 2 Of the vocal chords (7) 3 Feeling guilt over something (9) 4 Wheeled platform for moving heavy objects (5) 5 Out of the running (7) 6 Misprints (6) 11 Succinct extract from a speech or interview (9) 13 Dignified and graceful (7) 14 Short-handled cleaning receptacle (7) 15 Fire (7) 16 Get ads (anag) — performed (6) 18 Collection of items handled together (5)

Last week’s solution

Lifestyle

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Bathroom rules and the role of a blue bucket

ater is the most important thing in a bathroom or toilet. The blue colour signifies water. So it is very beneficial to keep a blue bucket or tub in the bathroom. This should not be kept empty. There should be some water in the bucket. Doing this will keep the family harmony intact. We often do not pay much attention to the bathroom but it may generate lot of Vaastu defects. The bathroom is one of the most important parts of the house. It can generate wealth as well as bring about financial losses. A toilet generates negative energy because this is where the waste products of the body are discharged. There should not be a mirror in front of the bathroom door because when the door is opened, the mirror will reflect the negative energy back into the house. The door of the toilet should always be kept closed. For similar reasons, it is advisable to keep the lid of the western style toilets down when not in use. However, the windows can be opened after use to let fresh air in and the negative energy to go out. In earlier days and in villages

even now, the toilet is not constructed inside the house. It is kept further away so that the negative energy does not come into the main house. But this is not practical in cities or towns,

especially with the modern lifestyle. Wasting water in the toilet is considered a sin. Leaking taps or faucets signify financial drain. If you have any leaking taps or leakages in the plumbing, getting them re-

paired/replaced as soon as possible is must. Educate the children and the domestic helpers to keep the taps closed properly. Bad effects of the moon arise due to leaking taps. Earlier, the toilet and the bath-

Listen to your heart

he heart is a silent performer. In normal circumstances we feel it work only after a sprint, when we can sense the beats, called palpitations. But when the heart is diseased, it may show symptoms which should not be missed. The most important of this is pain. Pain of cardiac origin has a particular character and is generally appreciable when the heart is under stress. The characteristic pain is in the middle of the chest, felt as heaviness or a smothering sensation. This comes on activity and is relieved by rest, lasting for a few minutes. This is called Angina. The pain mat radiates to the left arm, to the jaw above and till the navel below. Sometimes, patients

complain of pain at only these other sites, so called Atypical Angina. Women are more likely to have typical symptoms. If the pain is persistent and unrelieved by rest and medicine, there is a strong likelihood of a catastrophic cardiac condition called Acute Coronary Syndrome. 50% of such patients may fail to reach the hospital and the biggest benefit is if the treatment can be initiated within an hour. This may require urgent angiography and angioplasty or clot buster medicine called Thrombolytic. Time should never be wasted in such circumstances, be it reaching the hospital or giving consent for the procedure. It is not infrequent for people to have pain at rest, so called Unstable Angina. This is especially

common among smokers. Since our generation doesn’t exert much physically, many experience the cardiac pain at rest for the first time. For many, the first symptom may be catastrophic one. Thus the room for mistakes is very little. Many people, especially the elderly may not have pain but symptoms like breathlessness, fatigue, tiredness which are known as Angina equivalents. It is important to appreciate the risk factors for cardiac disease like hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking which are modifiable and age and family history which are non modifiable. In presence of such risks, any of the symptoms suggestive of cardiac disease should prompt one to take medical attention. One should also be aware when such attention is an Emergency. There are tools like ECG, Echocardiography, especially when done under stress which may point to a diseased heart. But even when these are normal, pain which could possibly be of cardiac origin should not be ignored. When it comes to heart disease, time is tissue and timely intervention is what the most important variable for a favourable outcome is. Dr Rakesh Periwal Critical Care Medicine and Sleep Specialist drperiwal@gmail.com

room were kept separately which is still prevalent in rural areas. The bathroom is governed by the moon whereas the toilet is ruled by Rahu. Having both together is like having a lunar eclipse! So experts suggest a rock or boulder to separate the two. Otherwise, there are disagreements among family members, financial problems and various ailments. The floor of the bathroom should be designed in such a way that the water runs off towards the Northeast, East or North only. As the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, both East and West are considered as the directions of the Sun God. So the toilet seat should not face these directions as it will demean the Sun God. Instead, the toilet seat should face either North or South. Otherwise, users may face legal problems and bad name besides stomach problems. Be careful while fixing mirrors inside the toilet. They should be fixed at Northeast, East or North only. Hemanta Kumar Sarmah Engineer, Businessman, Advanced Pranic Healer and Su Jok Acupressure specialist.

Sensitive, thoughtful children

few parents have told me about their difficulties in socialising their sensitive and thoughtful children. We put enormous importance on a child being outgoing and friendly. Sensitive, thoughtful children get labelled as ‘shy’, ‘timid’, ‘unsocial’. In fact, these children value meaningful conversations, they are very observant, they are creative. They are more attuned to others’ and their own feelings. They are high on empathy.

They quickly sense changes in mood, emotion and tone of voice. They do all this in addition to what you or I would notice. A side-effect of catching so much with their radar is that this information-load needs to be processed by the brain. This processing can quickly get overwhelming. If the activity or interaction is not engaging it becomes all the more tiring.

Tips to help a child

• Monitor your child – What is their threshold? What are the early signs of them being overwhelmed? Introversion is about energy • Give them time – Going to a Introversion is not about party? It helps to arrive slightly shyness or social awkwardness. early so your child gets time to It is about energy - how we use settle down. it and how we recharge. Radar is • Give your child a recharge a useful example to understand (maybe more than once) - take this. Introverted children have them away to a quiet spot or sit gigantic radars. They catch a one-on-one for some calming. LOT of information from their • Be careful how much focus surroundings. They notice you put on this aspect. Being very subtle things, things that introverted is not a flaw. Take blend into the it in your background stride and Bornali Borah for most of us act matterFamily Counsellor, Parent Coach smells, sounds of-factly and Mediator. and play of helping Email: bornali.borah@gmail.com in light on things. your child.

Buzz

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

Assam boy to participate in Asian Youth, 27th Convocation of GU held World Youth Chess Championships

hahil Dey of Assam secured the third position in the 32nd National U-11 Boys’ Championship held at Sivaganga, Tamil Nadu. In the championship, Shahil won nine points out of a total of 11 rounds. Based on his performance at the national championship, Shahil has been selected to participate at Asian Youth Chess Championships and World Youth Chess Championships in U-12 category next year. The young prodigy proved his talent by finishing joint first in the championship that concluded on August 5. Shahil, who was seeded second in the tournament, scored 9 points along with Dev Shah of Maharashtra, Mahendra Teja Mekala of Andhra Pradesh

and AR ILLamparthi of Tamil Nadu. However based on tiebreak, Shahil was placed third in the tournament and top seed Dev Shah clinched the championship. In the same event, Assam’s Mayank Chakraborty and Aslesha Talukdar were 14th and 17th in the boys’ and girls’ categories respectively. The All Assam Chess Association will felicitate Shahil for his achievement on August 12. Shahil had earlier won the National U-7 chess title in 2014 and National U-9 Chess title in 2016. Shahil had also managed to secure a silver medal at the Asian U-8 Chess Championship 2015 at South Korea and also Gold Medal at the Commonwealth Chess Championships 2015. n

Guwahati Cycle Tour to organize Freedom Ride on I-Day

uwahati Cycle Tour (GCT) is back with the second edition of Freedom Ride to celebrate India’s 72nd Independence Day with a cycle ride around the city. Last year’s edition of the event called “Freedom Ride’17” was one of the biggest cycling events in the region which witnessed

the participation of around 200 cyclists from all across the city. This year, the event is expected to get bigger and better. The event will start at Sonaram High School Playground on August 15 at 6 AM and after moving through different parts of the city for almost 25 kms, will end at Sonaram Playground. The route of the ride is Sonaram High School Playground – MG Road – Uzan Bazar – Barowari – Chenikuthi – Gauhati Club – Silpukhuri – Chandmari – U Turn at Chandmari – Silpukhuri – Gauhati Club Traffic Rotary – Ambari – Dighalipukhuri – MG Road – Bharalumukh – Maligaon – U Turn before Jalukbari – Maligaon – end at Sonaram High School Playground. There is no joining fee and participants just need to be above

the age of 10. Participants who are between the ages of 10 to 14 need to come with their parents. Wearing cycling helmets is compulsory for all the participants. The organizers will also have ambulance service to look after anyone in case of an injury and a support vehicle will also be there for anyone who may face any technical failure like a puncture of their cycle tires during the ride. There will be technical support for all cyclists free of cost at the venue before and after the ride. Interested participants need to register their names through the link provided here. The organizers have announced goodies for the first 200 registered participants. The registered participants will be provided with T-Shirts, as well as food and refreshments post the ride. n

Inter-district Wushu championship concludes

he 15th Sub-Junior, Junior and 22nd Senior All Assam Inter-District Wushu Championship came to an end at the Deshbhakta Tarun Ram Phukan Indoor Stadium in RG Baruah Sports Complex, Guwahati on August 5, Sunday. Organised by the Wushu Association of Assam, the championship witnessed participation of altogether 750 players along with 45 officials from 24 affiliated districts. Assam Police also participated. In the sub-junior category, Dibrugarh emerged champions with 12 golds, nine silvers and six bronzes. Kamrup (M) were second with 11 golds, three silvers and

seven bronzes while Biswanath with four gold, two silver and four bronze medals secured the third spot. In the junior category, Golaghat topped with four gold, four silver and two bronze medals while Baksa got the second position with four golds, one silver and four bronzes. Kokrajhar occupied the third place with three gold, four silver and one bronze medals. In the senior category, Assam Police secured the top spot with 14 gold, one silver and three bronze medals while Kamrup (M) occupied the second place with three gold, one silver and four bronze medals. Golaghat with two gold, two silver and five bronze

he prestigious Gauhati University (GU) organized its 27th convocation for the passing out batch of 2017 at its premises on Wednesday, August 8. The programme was presided over by Governor and GU chancellor Jagdish Mukhi in the presence of eminent scientist Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan as chief guest. Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal was the guest of honour. Speaking on the occasion, Kasturirangan said, “Gauhati University has already set its goal towards making an entry in global ranking that implies encouraging interdisciplinary research and teaching, working with other agencies like the private sector. It is time now to look outward and think beyond conventional boundaries.” The university gave away certificates to more than

600 students. Veteran artist Neel Pawan Baruah and Late Sukrachajya Rabha were honoured by the university with honorary degrees of Doctor of Philosophy. Wife of Late Sukrachajya Rabha received the honorary degree from Mukhi on behalf of her husband. Honourary DLitt (doctor of letters) degrees were also conferred to former ISRO chairman, Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan and Assam nephrologist, Sarbeshwar Saharia for their immense contributions to the society. “The state government would leave no stone unturned for overall development of Gauhati University that has been producing academicians, social activists, politicians and scientists over the past 70 years,” said Assam education minister, Siddhartha Bhattacharya attending the convocation. n

Parag Das memorial debate to be held in city

File photo of the 14th Parag Das Debate which was won by Gauhati University

he 22nd Parag Das Memorial All Assam Inter College Debate Competition is scheduled to be held at the Assam State Museum auditorium, Guwahati on

August 19. “In the opinion of the house only NRC can protect the identity and existence of the Assamese people in Assam” has been announced as the topic for this year’s debate. While it is mandatory for the participating colleges to field two candidates each, one for the motion and the other against it, the participants are allowed to contest in both English and Assamese language. Named after late journalist Parag Kumar Das, the debate competition has been organized since 1997. n

Assam paddler Trisha Gogoi bags silver in Jordan

A medals stood third in the tally. The championship was held in the city from August 1 to August 5. n

ssam girl Trisha Gogoi won a silver medal in the recently concluded World Junior Circuit Jordan Junior and Cadet Open held at Amman, Jordan. Representing the India team, Trisha won a silver medal in the team event and also a bronze medal in the doubles event. India defeated Thailand in the semifinals and lost to China in the finals of the team event. ATTA president, Mriganka Barman and secretary, Tridib Du-

varah, on behalf of all the members of the organization, congratulated Trisha for her fine show at the international arena. n

Events

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018

August 11, Saturday Big Bollywood Night Event: Mr & Miss Fashion Fiesta 2018 Date: August 5, Sunday Venue: Jyoti Chitraban Film Studio

XS The place to be 7PM onwards

Photography Unique Borah

August 11, Saturday Busted Saturday Dunkin Oza 7PM onwards

August 11, Saturday Event: Grand Friendship Day Celebration Date: August 5, Sunday Venue: Dunkin Oza

Bolly Commercial Night ft. Jawed Khan Terra Mayaa 8PM onwards

August 11, Saturday Saturday Night Live ft. Blue Wings Culina the Kitchen 7:30PM onwards

August 11, Saturday Event: Friends Anthem Rajeev Raja Live Date: August 4, Saturday Venue: Underdoggs Sports Bar

Zokhum Live NYX Lounge and Desk 8PM onwards

August 11, Saturday Byatikram Awards ft. Pankaj Udhas Pragjyotish ITA Centre 5PM onwards

August 14, Tuesday Event: Friends Anthem Rajeev Raja Live Date: August 4, Saturday Venue: Underdoggs Sports Bar

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Audition Don Bosco Institute 8PM onwards

Catching Up

G PLUS | AUG 11 - AUG 17, 2018