Vol 6 Issue 13 by G Plus

@guwahatiplus www.guwahatiplus.com

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Volume 06 | Issue 13 Jan 19 - Jan 25, 2019 Price `10

Chori (theft) city’s top crime of 2018, 26% increase reported PG 02

O pi n io n Swapnil Bharali

he serious talk of the town the past week has of course been the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 (CAB), its passage in the Lok Sabha, the societal fallout (read bandhs, mass protests, violence, angst) and the

just a temporary solution of the extremely fragile Assamese society is simply not making sense. Or else, let’s take a look at what Clause 5 of the now trashed Assam Accord says: Detection and deportation of illegal migrants. The current government is resigned to the fact that this is impossible even though the NRC exercise,

when completed, would indeed account for all who are foreigners on our land. That would make the “detection” part

Is the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 a permanent solution to the complex demographic issues of Assam? No, by a long margin, if we are to believe the words of its vociferous propagators. So what is a permanent solution?

complete. As for their deportation, the “well-meaning” central government can easily take any number of steps to clear these people out of Assam at least and resettle these foreigners in other parts of the country if Bangladesh doesn’t take them back. Further, the tall world leader that Prime Minister Modi is, I am quite sure that he can easily convince an immigrant-receptive country (say Canada or Saudi Arabia) to accept our lot. This, I feel, is what a permanent solution would be. Else, we are all on nothing but a massive CAB ride. n

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New Hindu party to be announced on 9 Feb; will contest against BJP across India G Plus News @guwahatiplus

rather insipid attempts by the BJP spokespersons towards damage control. The logic of securing 17 vulnerable seats for prospective indigenous Assamese MLAs by settling and giving citizenship to Hindu Bangladeshis sounds strange. The repeated assurance that the CAB is designed to secure the home and hearth of indigenous Assamese without really succeeding in explaining how this is exactly possible is also creating enough confusion with a decent dose of indignation thrown in. And further, Dr Himanta’s remark during a recent TV interview that this monumental exercise would secure these 17 seats for just 1015 years maximum brings us to a worrisome conclusion about the temporariness of the solution; the requirement was to give more thought and seek a permanent solution. Given the obvious virility and procreative capacities of Bangladeshi Muslims and the rather quick change in the demographic structure of Assam due to this, the situation going out of hand in 15 years looks like a distinct possibility. And so, the CAB needs to be revisited; each clause contained therein needs to be thoroughly revised. All the current brouhaha for

Assam deemed most vulnerable state in the Indian Himalayan Region

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The ultimate CAB ride

BJP’s game of rousing political sentiments in Assam

hile the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is busy playing the Hindutva card with the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 et al, a large cluster of Hindus in the country - including Guwahati and Assam - have united to form a new political party which is set to contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. After quitting the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), the Hindu rightwing leader Pravin Togadia formed a new Hindu organisation - Antrarashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP), and now the organisation is set to announce its political party on February 9 in New Delhi.

A senior Guwahati-based leader of AHP, talking to G Plus under condition of anonymity said, “The new Hindu political party will field candidates across the country against the BJP; the political party will be announced in Delhi on February 9.” The leader said that Togadia’s party, under no circumstances,

Pravin Togadia during his visit to Guwahati will ever ally with the BJP as, according to him, BJP has totally neglected its main promise of the Ram Mandir nirmaan (construction) at Ayodhya. The AHP is at present

undertaking a major recruitment drive and aims for what it terms as “1 booth, 25 youth.” The leader said, “5 lakh people have already joined AHP in Assam and around 30,000 in Guwahati.” All the members will work for the political party which will be announced on 9th February 2019. Just as the AHP is boosting the number of members in Assam, many members are continuing to join the party across India. During the recently conducted panchayat polls in Assam, many AHP members contested as independent candidates because they were not part of any registered political party. The AHP source said, “Many won the elections and some lost by very small margins.” The AHP is also in talks with many dissenting BJP leaders in the country including Assam. “Many BJP leaders will join AHP’s political party after February 9,” the source revealed. n

2019 saffron poll strategy in Assam: 1 RSS Panna Pramukh for 60 voters G Plus News @guwahatiplus

he Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has always worked at the grassroots level to back the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and so the BJP owes a great deal to some strategies adopted by the RSS in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in the northern part of India, especially in Uttar Pradesh. The same strategy was adopted in Tripura which helped the BJP win the elections and uproot Manik Sarkar’s long reign. After the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 erupted as a controversy in Assam, the RSS has adopted what it

feels would be a winning strategy in Assam in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. A senior RSS leader, who is also a probable candidate of BJP for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Assam, talking to G Plus in condition of anonymity said, “The concept of panna pramukh helped BJP win elections in Tripura and it is also being implemented in Assam for the first time. The RSS is working at the grass-roots level since the last one month for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.” Each prabhari or pramukh is given responsibility for one panna – which literally means a page; in this case it refers to one page in the electoral rolls. Each page, according to the leader, has around

60 voters and each pramukh is expected to persuade these 60 voters to vote for the BJP. In every booth, according to the RSS leader, there are around 1,200 to 1,500 voters and the micro division of the booth starts with a panna (page) of the electoral rolls. RSS is targeting the voters on these pages to win elections for the BJP in 2019. The leader said that in Tripura 43,000 panna pramukh worked day and night which helped BJP secure the massive victory. A similar strategy is now in place in Assam this time to help the BJP. Since 2014 till date, there is a huge increase in the membership of the RSS in Assam, the leader revealed. n

2 City Snippets Indian Women’s Cricket Team to play series against England in Guwahati

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Chori (theft) city’s top crime of 2018, 26% increase reported Nehal Jain @NehalJain96

T T

he Indian women’s cricket team will play England in a three-match T20 International series in Guwahati from March 4. The T20Is will begin at 10:00 AM IST and will be held at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on March 4, March 7 and March 9 respectively. Another three-match ODI series with England will also be held in India, at Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium starting from February 22, according to the BCCI. This match is part of the ICC Women’s Championship.

IIT Guwahati Research Scholars demand Fellowship Hike

heft has been topping the list of crimes happening in Guwahati every year, indicates the statistics provided by the Crime Branch. According to data, the city recorded 3,807 cases of theft from January 1 - November 30 in the past year out of the total of 16,892 cases of crimes reported during this period. This shows an increase of over 780 theft cases (25.64%) as against 2016. In 2017, a total of 3,742 cases of theft were registered with the city police. The data indicates that at least 10 cases of theft were recorded daily in 2018. However, police had been able to crack merely 2,558 cases of robbery until October 2018, some of which were registered in the previous years. Guwahati, in 2018, witnessed an overall increase in the number of cases registered pertaining to other crimes as well. The city police registered a total of 16,892 cases from January 1 - November 30 in the past year, an increase by close to 1,000 reported crimes compared to the previous year.

In the past year, multiple cases of thefts surfaced in media reports. From automobile to electronics and medicines to drugs, thieves stole whatever they

such cases are investigated by the police, a highly placed source in the city police informed G Plus. “Mobile theft cases are hardly touched by police officers. Only if

could get their hands on. 2018 specifically witnessed an increase in mobile theft cases, most of which remained untouched. Hundreds of mobile theft cases get reported in police stations across Guwahati every month but not even 5 percent of

the mobile phone of a VIP is lost, some investigation happens,” he said. There are new technologies which police is equipped with to track the mobile phone with the help of the international mobile equipment identity (IMEI)

Dispur PS records highest number of theft cases

he crime rate in Dispur has remained alarmingly high over the past few years. Among other crimes, theft has been found to be most prevalent in Dispur area of the city with the Dispur police station

sensational incident that occurred on the night of January 17, wherein mobile phones and cash worth lakhs were stolen from a mobile showroom located at Ganeshguri. The theft was conducted after the miscreants disconnected

the Scorpio had kept the amount inside the vehicle and had gone for shopping. The owner had withdrawn the money from a bank, informed sources. In the absence of the owner of the car, miscreants broke the window

he Research Scholar Fraternity of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, held a protest rally on their campus on the issue of fellowship hike for all research scholars in the country on January 17. The fraternity demanded an 80 per cent hike for the research fellowships with a proper revision every four years. The representatives at IIT Guwahati firmly stated that the agitation will continue until the hike in fellowship is confirmed by the Government of India. In addition, in the coming days, all laboratories will be kept closed and the teaching duty will also be boycotted if the government does not officially notify regarding the fellowship hike.

number, but the police source revealed that the lost and found ratio of mobile phones in Guwahati continues to be worrisome. There have also been an increasing number of cases where two-wheelers parked on the roads have been lifted by miscreants. Residents blame it on the lack of intervention by the police as well as unavailability of streetlights on the road. “The entire stretch from the approach of the Lamb Road up to Latasil playground is in total darkness in the evening. The surroundings of Jorpukhuri are infested by anti-social elements taking advantage of the darkness. Streetlights don’t work in the area and the police have failed miserably in recovering the vehicles,” a resident of the area told G Plus. “Police cannot keep an eye on each and every local staying in this area. Taking advantage of the dark, miscreants take to stealing two-wheelers. There has been no inaction on our part. We still have thieves in our jail but after being released, the miscreants again resort to stealing,” a senior official said, negating the idea of lackadaisical attitude on the part of police. n

File photo of Dispur police station | GPlus Photo recording the highest number of theft crimes every year. A whopping 784 cases of theft were reported at Dispur, out of the total of 3,807 thefts reported across the city from January 1 - November 30. The year began with a

the CCTV connection of the showroom. In a daylight robbery that took place in Dispur area last month, unidentified miscreants looted Rs 5 lakhs from a Scorpio parked near Christian Basti. The owner of

glass of the car and looted the amount. It is to be noted that Dispur recorded the highest number of theft in the previous years as well, with a total of 836 cases in 2017 and 641 cases in 2016 being registered

at the Dispur police station. Dispur police station had also been successful in cracking 647 cases of theft in 10 months, from January 1 to October 31, 2018. The city police had been successful in filing the final report for over 8,138 crimes of all sorts in the past year, 2,558 of which were cases of theft. Jalukbari and Paltan Bazaar areas too recorded a large number of theft cases in 2018, with 422 and 362 cases being registered in the respective police stations. On the other hand, Pragjyotishpur police station recorded the least number of theft cases in 2018, with merely 20 incidents being reported from the area. Pragjyotishpur was followed by Satgaon and Khetri police stations which recorded 24 and 32 cases respectively. To curb with the increasing number of theft cases and to ease the process of filing complaints with the police, Assam police had launched the online complaint registering facility through Crime & Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) portal. Among the services available on the portal is Lost and Found property module that enables citizens to submit the lost and found of property items to the police. n

Concern

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Assam transgender community opposes CAB 2016 fearing its complete wipeout Saumya Mishra @saumyamishra03

Citizenship Act 1955 by making minority communities namely

is passed, Swati said that transgender people from other coun-

he transgender community of Assam has strongly opposed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, as they feel it will undermine their existence and identity in the state. “While our existence already did not have any form in Assam since the NRC process has begun, on top of this the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will completely end the transgender community’s existence in the state,” Swati Bidhan Baruah, the first transgender judge of Assam who heads the All Assam Transgender Association, told G Plus. She added that for other communities, the citizenship bill raises issues about merely the citizenship. But for the transgender community, they will suffer either way as there’s no light at the end of the tunnel for them. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 seeks to amend the

the indigenous Assamese transgender community will become extinct,” informed Swati. She added that the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, if passed, will pose a traditional as well as cultural threat to the transgender community of the state. People from the transgender community in Assam say that

Members of transgender community during a procession in Guwahati Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan become eligible for Indian citizenship. Elaborating on the types of problems which can arise for the transgender community if the Bill

tries, especially from Bangladesh, might settle in Assam. “They will settle their gharana in Assam which will pose a direct threat to the older already existing ethnic gharanas of the state. If a guru from Bangladesh with a large following comes to Assam,

File photo of Swati Bidhan Baruah with the National Register of Citizens (NRC) updation process which is currently underway in the state, the community was already on the back foot for which

Baruah has already submitted a petition in the Supreme Court of India. “According to the 2011 census report, there are at least 11,000 transgender people in the state which might have increased to more than 20,000 by now. Many of the new entrants are either too scared to come out fearing embarrassment or have come from other parts of the city. So, a screening by the government is required to differentiate the original inhabitants from the shifting crowd,” said Baruah. The transgender people feel that producing legacy data is difficult for many of them because, in most of the cases, when a family finds out that the child is a third gender, either they shun them or send them to the hijra guru (families of transgender). Further, most of them do not have enough documents with themselves. Those who have, due to the fear of insult and embarrassment, have not kept any contact with their real family members and so, approaching them for legacy data is out of question. n

4 Politicking Snippets Assam: Budget Session to commence from January 28

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

BJP’s game of rousing political sentiments in Assam Though the perception in the media and the society looks like the BJP is on a tough wicket and it would lose some Lok Sabha seats in Assam, it would be foolish not to see it clearly that by raking up these sentimental issues the saffron party has succeeded in getting the message across that it means business.

ssam Governor Jagdish Mukhi announced that the Budget session of Assam Legislative Assembly will begin from 28 January to February 26 on 18 January. The first day of the budge t session 2019-20 will be directed by the Assam Governor and there will be other sessions as well including debates on the Motion of Thanks on the Governor’s address to be held on January 30 and February 1. Presentation of the Annual Financial Statement of the Government of Assam for the year 2019-2020 will be on February 6. Finally, on February 25, the business will be consideration and passing of government bills.

Chetan Bhattarai @chetbha1

eing a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker may mean many things in Assam. Given the mood of the general public it may mean that you can be called

followers. I would call it the final consolidation of Hindu votes in Assam. Dr Sarma’s argument that 17 seats would go to the Jinnah ideology (AIUDF) will make the Hindu voters think twice before they cast their votes to some other party. This move is purely political in nature and it’s out in the open. The only way to test this project’s success is the general election

thick-skinned and they will always play with the emotions of their voters. Deep down somewhere BJP knows, in the end, politically, it is a so-called Assamese versus the Bengali-speaking Muslims (mostly from Bangladesh). In the recent weeks it is only Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma who has been stressing and repeating that the cultural and ideological

NEUFC signs Midfielder Panagiotis Triadis from Apollon Smyrnis Football Club

reek-German attacking midfielder Panagiotis Triadis has joined the NorthEast United FC (NEUFC) on a direct transfer from Apollon Smyrnis Football Club. This valued signing marks an unprecedented episode of direct transfer between a Greek Super League Club and an Indian Super League Club. Triadis has represented the German national team from U15 to U17 levels and Greece national team for the U19 level. Triadis is a versatile attacking midfielder having an excellent vision and range of passing and can also play through the wings possessing deceptive pace to break into an attack. The 26-year-old combines German precision who sets the tempo and makes things tick in the centre of the park with Greek strength and physicality to orchestrate the midfield work. Having plied his trade in clubs like SV Wehen Wiesbaden, Xanthi FC and Apollon Smyrnis FC Panagiotis, Triadis brings in a wealth of experience to reinforce our club's attacking repertoire for the ongoing season.

PM Modi and CM Sonowal during a rally in Barak Valley | G Plus Photo a traitor or someone who is trying to sell the state. It all started with the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 and if you look at the protests held throughout the state in the past two years, it won’t be hard to guess which way the wind is blowing. The mood is anti-BJP when it comes to supporting the bill. People have voiced their opinions and also what they want. Despite all these, the BJP is hellbent at the Centre and the state to pass the bill. Why? BJP’s stand on the bill saw party offices being broken and burnt in some places in the state and some of BJP leaders getting expelled for speaking out of turn. Even senior BJP leader Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma agreed that the party workers have gone into hiding given the mass anger against the bill. But BJP is not going to go back on the bill as it would mean not only loss of face but also of trust and votes. The BJP understands that the Bengali-speaking Hindus who will be marked as illegal citizens in the final NRC (National Register of Citizens), if continued to be given their voting rights, will become its

which is barely a few months away from now. The BJP knows this and is testing the waters while other political parties are busy with shadow boxing and street protests. The final NRC is definitely not going to come out before the general elections, so this political stroke is surely going to get benefits for the BJP, unlike what Dr Sarma has been claiming. For BJP, after the four-and-a-half years of Narendra Modi rule and the kind of coalitions coming up in the rest of the country, each vote counts. That’s what the truth is, and they will try all the tricks in the basket to increase their vote share. People of Assam have been very vocal about this bill. There is a unity of opinion across the state when it comes to the Citizenship Amendment Bill. A Bangladeshi is a Bangladeshi; Hindu or Muslim does not matter is what people have majorly expressed. The protests against the bill have been so overwhelming in the Brahmaputra valley that the BJP finds itself stuck between the devil and the deep sea. But political parties are very

community has to remain active politically, argued Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma. BJP knows that without guaranteeing safeguards to the indigenous community it won’t be able to get back the confidence. So, there is a three-pronged approach applied to woo the community in general. The first is the longpending Scheduled Tribes (ST) status to six communities - they have it in the election manifesto. The second is the legislative safeguard by reserving MLA seats and other forms of reservations (jobs etc) for the indigenous community (Clause 6, Assam Accord) and the final one is the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill that would help BJP secure those 17 seats where the votes of the Bengali-speaking Hindus matter. The passing of the bill will no doubt increase a certain percentage of votes for the saffron party in Assam and in other parts of the country like West Bengal. Though the perception in the media and the society looks like the BJP is on a tough wicket this time and it would lose some Lok Sabha seats in Assam, it would be foolish not to see it clearly that by raking up these sentimental and serious issues the saffron party has succeeded in getting the message across to the voter that it

Asom Gana Parishad protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 G Plus Photo identities are different between these two distinct communities and people of Assam need to take a stand now. According to Dr Sarma, it’s now or never. And for the indigenous community to survive the political onslaught of illegal Bengali-speaking migrants, the Citizenship Bill is a bitter pill that Assam will have to swallow if the

means business and has already given a shape to the political sentiment – Them versus Us. In an election year, isn’t that what a political party is supposed to do? So what is this brouhaha about? n (The views expressed are purely the author’s and G Plus may not necessarily subscribe to the same)

Governance

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Number of child rights cases peak in September 2018

ut of a total of 640 cases recorded by Childline, 75 were from the month of September. Childline Guwahati, a support centre for child protection and child rights, has recorded 75 cases in the month of September the most number of cases

from abuse cases, 2 were Childline and emotional support and guidance (ESG) cases, 3 were referred by other Childline help lines and in 2 cases, officials could not find the victims. â&#x20AC;&#x153;September had the most number of cases because we were working in collaboration with the Gaya

recorded in any month for the year 2018. 14 of these cases were restoration cases, 3 were missing persons cases, 19 were shelter-related cases, 32 were rescue or protection

police from Bihar. There were around 17 cases of children who were rescued from the city regarding child labour concerns and so we worked with the police to help them

while they were awaiting order from the Child Welfare Committee to send them back to their home in Tripura. We provided those children a base in Guwahati that included shelter, care and the required necessities and registered this incident as part of the organization. So, the numbers for September are a little high,â&#x20AC;? said Nirmal Deka, Childline coordinator for Guwahati. According to data provided by the organisation, each month saw roughly 50 cases, except for September which saw a 70 percent increase in the total number of cases reported compared to any other month. Most of the cases reported were rescue or protection from abuse cases. Some other type of cases included restoration cases, missing cases, shelter-related cases, ESG cases, medicalrelated cases and more. In total, the organisation had recorded 640 cases in 2018 for the whole year because of its 24-hour helpline. n

6 In The News Snippets Narayana Hospital Doctors successfully conduct two rare surgeries

arayana Superspeciality Hospital, Guwahati conducted surgeries for two extremely rare and complicated diseases. The surgery was done under the supervision of Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Dr Rajnish Duara. The patient Utpal Barman, 34yrs(M) hailing from, Assam was suffering from autoimmune disorder involving the Thymus Gland (Myasthenia Gravis) which causes extreme weakness of the muscles and Thyroid Gland (Grave’s Disease) for which a hyperactive thyroid gland present with toxic features. This type of operating thyroid and chest bone splitting procedure for Thymectomy is extremely rare in India. In medical literature there are reports of staged procedure with interval between procedures except for a solitary case report from USA in 1988 where a similar concomitant procedure was done. In another case, a critical patient Khagen Rajbongshi, 57 yrs old(M) from, Assam presented with a near fatal vascular disease with acute renal failure at Narayana Hrudalaya, Guwahati. He had a dangerous condition called Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) involving the whole left leg. He underwent emergency dialysis under Dr Sashank Gupta, Nephrologist. The DVT was managed with blood thinning agents but due to extensive progress of the thrombosis the patient was implanted with IVC Filter by Cardiovascular Surgeon, Dr Rajnish Duara. The patient recovered from his renal failure completely and got significant relief from DVT. DVT can cause a dreaded complication called Pulmonary Embolism which occludes the blood vessels going to the lung from the heart. This condition has almost 90% mortality and even emergency surgery results are extremely poor. This is the first time such a procedure has been done at Narayana Superspeciality Hospital, Guwahati.

'Jestho Jotno' - A free orthopaedic health camp

free screening camp for patients requiring orthopaedic care under 'Jestho Jotno' project will be conducted on January 19. The orthopaedic health camp is specially organised for the Senior Citizens of the community. The health camp is an initiative by the members of Dr Siddhartha Foundation and shall be organised at Radha Govinda Baruah Kalakhetra, Lakshmi Nagar, Zoo Road, Guwahati. The timing will be from 11 AM to 3 PM.

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Sombre Tusu Puja celebrations amidst Bihu Saumya Mishra @saumyamishra03

midst the revelries of the Magh Bihu festival which was recently celebrated in Assam, another quiet but significant festival known as Tusu Puja was celebrated in the city as well as the entire state. This festival is primarily celebrated by the indigenous tribal communities of the state - the

In the tribal culture, Tusu’s valour and sacrifice is equated with that of Sita and Savitri’s courage. Tusu Puja celebration in Assam (Facebook photo) tea tribes as they worship the folk goddess Tusu. Some of the main tea tribes of Assam include Kharia, Bhumij, Gonju, Chawra, Munda, Chawtal, and Kol which constitute around 17 per cent of the total population of the state.

Celebrated at the time of harvest, the Tusu puja is also observed by the tribal population of states like Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha. Month-long preparations usually precede the puja during Pau-

sha (December-January) month. The festival starts on the Uruka day and ends on Makar Sankranti. Futher, similar to Bhogali Bihu, pithas, ladoos and other items are prepared in households

and friends and relatives are invited to celebrate; specifically, Til pitha and til (black sesame seed) are considered significant during Tusu puja. In some places the festival is also known as Til Sankranti. n

The folk legend behind the puja

f folk legend behind the festival is to be believed, Tusu or Rukmini was the daughter of Gujarat’s Kurmi king but he was chased and forced to run away by the Mughal ruler and take shelter in Punjab under the King Birbal. It was then that Tusu and Birbal’s son Sitaram fell in love with each other. However, the Mughal ruler was against their relationship and created hindrance. After this, the Kurmi king from Gujarat was again forced to flee. Following this, he met Chawtals and Bhumijs. Eventually Rukmini and Sitaram got married with the help of the king of Bhumij. However, Sitaram passed away soon after getting married and Tusu also killed herself by jumping into the funeral pyre of her husband. Following this incident, the Kurmis, Chawtals and Bhumijs began worshipping Tusu as a symbol of love and sacrifice which is how the festival is celebrated as till date as well. In the tribal culture, Tusu’s valour and sacrifice is equated with that of Sita and Savitri’s courage. In the modern times, the Tusu

puja is celebrated with a lot of religious and festive fervour. As part of the celebrations, idols and sculptures of Goddess Tusu are made and decorated with flowers and mud. The idol of Goddess Tusu is then installed at a common place of worship where the locals offer their prayers throughout the day.

In the modern times, the Tusu puja is celebrated with a lot of religious and festive fervour. As part of the celebrations, idols and sculptures of Goddess Tusu are made and decorated with flowers and mud.

The idol is then immersed in water the next day. At some places, young boys and

Idol of Goddess Tusu (Facebook photo) girls take the sculpture of Tusu from house to house singing songs narrating the folklore of Tusu. Further, gathering together and dancing on the beats of traditional instruments by the members of the community, also forms an integral part of the festival. Then the idol is taken to the river and before the immersion jhumur dance takes place. The idol

is then immersed in the river bed at the end of ceremonies. There is also a custom in which many devotees formulate a friendship bond keeping the river as witness. According to experts, earlier the festival was celebrated for the entire month of Poush. However, with the changes in tradition, the festivities have been reduced to a few days during the Tusu Puja. n

Politicking

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Vested interests spreading misinformation in Assam: Sarbananda Sonowal

ssam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that in today's age of science and technology, the people of Assam should be motivated by reason and rationality instead of being guided by sheer emotions. Emotions always do not help in forging a strong society and in this context, Sonowal urged upon the people of Assam to use their rational bent of mind and analyse the proposed Citizenship Amendment Bill thoroughly. “Central Government taking decisions for the whole country is not a new phenomenon. It has been doing that since 1947, the year the country gained its independence. Based on the national policy the Citizenship Amendment Bill was drafted and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh elaborately explained the salient features of the bill in both the houses of the parliament,” said Sonowal, speaking in a Silpi Divas celebration at Mangaldoi. He also added that a section of vested interests is hell bound to create disturbances in Assam

by spreading misinformation that 1.90 crores Bangladeshi will get citizenship as an outcome of the bill. He also said that he being the son of the soil would under no circumstances allow his government to harm the interests of the indigenous people of the state. Chief Minister Sonowal said that steps taken by the central government to provide a constitutional safeguard to the indigenous people and granting ST status to six communities of the state would permanently secure interests of the local people. The chief minister also urged the AASU, AGP, the artist community and the intelligentsia of the state to wholeheartedly extend cooperation in the implementation of

New ACS officers must work to earn people's trust: CM

ddressing officers at the Joint Induction Training of ACS and Allied Services – 2019 at Assam Administrative Staff College recently, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that the 193 newlyrecruited officers should

so that they can contribute to strengthening values in society. He also asked the office rs to work for the promotion of peace, harmony and universal brotherhood in the society. “For strengthening peace everybody needs to work with a positive

always try to encourage values in the society so that people can repose their trusts and faith in the democratic system. Stressing that value system is the corner-stone for establishing “Ram Rajya” dreamt by father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, Sonowal urged upon the newly recruited officers to keep working with integrity and sincerity

mindset. The newly inducted officers need to translate their learning into practice,” Sonowal said. He moreover urged upon the officers to re-dedicate themselves for the service of the nation and face any hostility upfront to establish morale of human civilization. He also asked the office rs to imbibe devotion to rendering their services to the people.

clause VI of the Assam Accord. Stating that constitutional safeguard would act as an invincible shield to secure interests of the indigenous people, Sonowal said that in states like Mizoram, no one except locals could enjoy the land and political rights only due to existing constitutional privileges. He moreover said that as a result of sincere efforts of the central

and state governments, sealing of Indo-Bangladesh border would be complete soon. Besides, the major push given by the present dispensation in an expeditious update of the NRC would also help in identifying the genuine and illegal citizens, he asserted. The Congress government earlier had unilaterally imposed IMDT Act on the people of Assam. The chief minister said that the

present central government is working in the most transparent manner and formation of JPC for the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is a case in point. He also came down heavily against the Congress and the left forces and said that had they supported the Assam movement, 850 precious lives of the youth of the state would not have been lost. n

8 Concern

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Assam deemed most vulnerable state in the Indian Himalayan Region With a vulnerability index of 0.72, the highest among the 12 states in the Indian Himalayan Region, Assam ranks first in an unfavorable manner Harshita Himatsingka @HHimatsingka

ssam has been found to be the most vulnerable state in the Indian Himalaya Region (IHR), according to a report prepared by the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT-G) and IIT Mandi in collaboration with IIT Bangalore. The report, titled, “Climate Vulnerability Assessment for the Indian Himalayan Region using a Common Framework” was prepared to focus on the identification factors of vulnerability in the region and to map out the differences for the same. It was also done to promote and build the capacity of individual line departments working with state governments in this region.

Assam received a high vulnerability score because it has the least area under irrigation, least forest area available per 1,000 rural households and the second lowest per capita income compared to the other IHR states.

The preparing authorities of the report hope that it will help the 12 regions to adopt a coordinated and integrated approach to tackle this climate change issue. “This report is just the beginning. It is a snapshot of where the current states stand in regard to their place in the IHR. This was the first time a report has been made that has used common indicators for comparison of the states and where representatives from all the 12 states flew down to IIT Guwahati to conduct an integrated comprehensive report,” said Anamika Barua, the principal investigator of the report and a professor at IIT Guwahati. The 12 states that constitute the IHR region include Assam, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, West Bengal, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Jammu & Kashmir and Meghalaya. According to the report, the four main indicators that the

states were measured against include a) socio-economic, demographic status and health, b) sensitivity of agricultural production, c) forest dependent livelihoods and d) access to information services and infrastructure. Each of these indicators has then been further divided into two to six sub- indicators for an indepth analysis. It should be noted that since these indicators are in different units, they were normalized to aggregate the units for measurements to a common variable. Assam scored highest in the vulnerability index prepared by this report. It received a score of 0.72 out 1, which included a multitude of factors. Some of these factors which are part of the four main indicators include per capita income, percentage area irrigated, area under forests per 1,000 rural households and percentage area under open forests. Assam received a high vulnerability score because it has the least area under irrigation, least forest area available per 1,000 rural households and the second lowest per capita income compared to the other IHR states, according to the report published by the IITs. “All the states in the IHR are very agriculture-based states. And one indicator that we looked at was how the farmers were doing. The farmers in Assam are not doing very well. They are not taking any loans from the government even though many schemes have been introduced. Insurance cover is poor and per

capita income is also less compared to the other states,” said

Tripura at 0.51, and Arunachal Pradesh at 0.47 followed by Ut-

states are vulnerable, but Assam is the most vulnerable,” said Ba-

Indian Himalayan Range Barua. Following Assam is Mizoram with a vulnerability index score of 0.71, which is followed by Jammu & Kashmir at 0.62, Manipur at 0.59, Meghalaya and West Bengal both at 0.58, Nagaland at 0.57, both Himachal Pradesh and

tarakhand at 0.45. Sikkim scored the lowest score as the least vulnerable state with a vulnerability index score of 0.42. “While Assam has ranked as the most vulnerable, it should be noted that this is in relative to the other 12 states. All the 12

Vulnerability index of IHR states State

Vulnerability Index Score

Rating

Sikkim

0.42

LOW

Uttarakhand

0.45

LOW

Arunachal Pradesh

0.47

LOW

Tripura

0.51

MODERATE

Himachal Pradesh

0.51

MODERATE

Nagaland

0.57

MODERATE

West Bengal

0.58

MODERATE

Meghalaya

0.58

MODERATE

Manipur

0.59

MODERATE

Jammu and Kashmir

0.62

MODERATE

Mizoram

0.71

HIGH

Assam

0.72

HIGH

rua. The main questions that this study aims to understand and promote are “who is vulnerable, what makes them vulnerable and why.” The report was done at a macro, short-term level, i.e. at the district-level for the years following the 2030s. This report was made in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology (DST), government of India and has been funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The Agency is currently working on its project, Indian Himalayas Climate Adaptation Programme (IHCAP), which is a bilateral programme between the Government of Switzerland and Government of India to support the implementation of another programme, the National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE). “This report is important as this is not a solution but the first step identifying what can be done now since we have identified the issue using similar methodology and indicators. It is a map of sorts for the government to see and decide which state they would like to fund and what the next step will be,” said Barua in her closing remarks. n

Guest Column

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

The Final Nail, Chief Minister Sir Rrituraj Sharma expresses his views on the latest political developments of the state and wonders how settling Hindu Bangladeshis as Indian citizens can work towards securing the home and hearth of the indigenous Assamese.

ore than half of the first month of 2019 is already over. After a few hundred days, we will land into 2020. I remember, at the turn of the millennium, there were many 2020 visions of nations, corporate and progressive thinkers. In 2014, the people of India voted for a BJP government at the centre and two years later, the people of Assam were exhilarated to have a BJP majority government in the state. There was hope. There was positive anticipation. There was comfort that this team will surely deliver. What the AGP couldn’t do in 10 years, what the Congress couldn’t (read didn’t) do in 20 long years, there was hope that BJP will fulfil the vision of a better Axom, despite all odds. And hence, the election slogan of ‘Jaati, Maati aru Bheti’ (community, land and base) resonated so well with the masses. But alas! As we are headed for the year 2020, a shadow has been cast on the intent of this slogan. And this shadow will not go away with a rhetorical speech by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal that he delivered at the historic Nehru Bali, Nagaon claiming that ‘Jaati, Maati aru Bheti’ will surely be secured. I mean, how? People’s trust has been shattered and they want to know how the Chief Minister would ensure this! His determination to make the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 (CAB) a law clearly shows that, to remove a larger cancer, he wants to introduce a smaller one. Doesn’t he know that a cancer always grows bigger? And spreads, too? How could letting foreigners become Indian citizens to help secure political power by indigenous Assamese in 17 constituencies be a permanent solution for the state? Was the sacrifice of 855 martyrs of the Assam Movement meant for such a temporary solution? For a moment let’s assume that the electoral data provided by the Sonowal government for these 17 constituencies is correct. But can he assure that after 10-15+ years, indigenous people will still continue to retain political supremacy in these electorates?

ments, there has been unabated Before we go any further, let’s movement of people from across take a step back from the discussion the border. Clause 5 of the Assam of CAB and talk about the NationAccord talks about deportation. al Register of Citizens (NRC). The But we all know that this is realisinitiation of NRC itself by the BJP tically next to impossible. So, what government is such a positive step. is the solution then? Let’s assume True, the Congress also attempted again that the government has recto do a pilot project earlier, but the tified the NRC and has identified a actual implementation happened few lakh illegal migrants residing during the BJP regime. So let’s give in the state who do not have their it to the BJP for now. However, the names in the electoral rolls. In a first draft of NRC showed that few years names from now, of sevthey will eral multiply promand grow. inent Even if they Ascannot vote samese and elect famgovernilies ments, they were will cause missenough ing. pressure on This the social also landscape means and tilt the that demograthere is phy of the every entire state possifurther. bility Sarbananda Sonowal at Nehru Bali, Nagaon This will that then start reflecting in all aspects many wrong names, through fraud of the society including language, documentation, may have been inculture, traditions, customs … cluded in the register. The governeverywhere. The CAB will just add ment has also acknowledged this fuel to this fire that will prove utin various forums. So, instead of terly grievous to Assam. When the finalising the NRC, instead of recstate government’s thinking matifying the drawbacks of the NRC chinery should actually be strateprocess, instead of ensuring that gizing and networking with the the NRC necessarily includes the central leadership as to how to denames of bona fide citizens only, port these illegal migrants and to why is there an attempt to regularwhere, it is focussed on something ise immigrants who may have enthat is definitely going to break the tered the country by illegal means? fundamental fabric of our society. Ok, I understand if the Central BJP Its still not too late for the Chief leadership insists on implementMinister to reassure the people of ing CAB from a pan-India perspecAssam that he actually can be the tive. There could be and there are harbinger of change and can truly compelling reasons for that. Howprotect our ‘Jaati, Maati aru Bheti’. ever, Assam has to be made an exBut for this, he will need to take ception to this. And why do we have some stringent actions and show to tell this to the government? Is it meaningful results. (1) The Chief not aware of it? As colonnades of Minister’s immediate focus should the Assam Agitation, is the Chief be on a near accurate NRC. (2) Post Minister not sensitive to this fact? that, he will have to find a solution Assam is already in the midst of of what to do with the identified an extremely complicated demoillegal migrants. A radical and graphic transition. Because of lack complex problem that we have in of initiative by previous govern-

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Assam also needs an equally radical solution. He should discuss with his central leadership and ensure that these illegal migrants are taken out of Assam/Northeast and settled in other states of India. A formidable challenge, we know. But this is definitely easier than deporting them to the country that they originally belong to, isn’t it? (3) He should please ensure that the land rights of this lot are clearly defined. (4) Next, he should ask the central leadership to exclude Assam from the clutches of CAB. Persuade them is necessary. This is a basic ask from his electorate. BJP doesn’t require this to win centrally in 2019, then why let the state burn? We don’t want another Khargeswar Talukdar¬! We don’t want our students to lose an academic year! And it the Chief Minister’s responsibility to ensure this. It’s the 21st century, we need to progress hand-in-hand with the rest of the world. We can’t be out on the streets protesting just because he and his ministry have not been able to convince their central leadership. (5) He should please introspect why people appointed to implement Clause 6 of Assam Accord have already expressed their intention to leave the committee.

For a moment let’s assume that the electoral data provided by the Sonowal government for these 17 constituencies is correct. But can he assure that after 10-15+ years, indigenous people will still continue to retain political supremacy in these electorates?

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8486002318/8486002320

back. (6) Additionally, if BJP has a real intention of reserving seats for Khilonjiyas, this is the time to firmly commit to that. (7) And yes, he should seal the border for God’s sake! Even Trump is attempting to build a wall. With the BJP at the centre and the state, surely the Chief Minister can find the means of doing it. The Assamese are a kind lot, amiable, forgiving. But we will not forget. Not again, not anymore. If the current government focuses on the right priorities now, the Assamese will still believe it when they say that they will protect our Jaati, Maati aru Bheti. We will still let them lead our state into the paths of progress. We have trusted them with this, haven’t we? We will renew that trust, yet once again. But if it continues to tread against this mass uprising, this could just be the final nail for the Chief Minister! This could be just the final nail in the coffin and Assam once again will be left leaderless, headless, as well as pushed a few decades back, grappling to make strides into 2020 and beyond. We, as Assamese, need to rise above this and the Chief Minister needs to facilitate this. In Bhupen da’s words, òî ÂÅ ò á¿îÂ ÎàðÃ± / ÎëÂßÁ± á±öÂ1n¸ Õ±¿÷ / ¿òö ÂÇ ÏßÁ ß ÁÅ ¿1 ú¿îÂßÁ±1 Õ:±ò äÂ±ÒßÁÍòûû ±þ / ÛôÂùÏû ±þ ßÁ¿1 Æï ÷±¿1 û±ÝÒ æÃÏ»òË1 ëÒÂ±1 / ¿æÃ¿ùßÁ±Âõ ùÅý Ãî× ÂË1 Âó±1 Joi Aai Axom! n (The writer who describes himself as a ‘Passionately

Õü÷Ïû ±þ ’ hails /from Guwahati.

He is an IT Consultant by profession, is a mu-

Assurances to implement the above suggestions may hold them

Have a story to tell? Be a Citizen Journalist Get in touch with us, Contact/WhatsApp

Rrituraj Sharma @RriturajSharma

sic composer and special correspondent for Pratidin Times. The views expressed in this article are his own)

10 City

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

City CBSE schools register poorer pass percentage than many other states Chandrika Das @chandrikadas89

he 10 and 12 board exams are knocking on the doors and Guwahati students are all gearing up for it. In 2019, 64,844 students will appea r for the 10th Central Board of Secondary Examinations (CBSE) board exams and 51,299 students will appear for the 12th CBSE exams from the entire northeastern region. However, the performance of the CBSE affiliated schools in Guwahati is comparatively much lower than that of states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Guwahati currently has 63 schools affiliated to the CBSE. Although the curriculum is the same, Guwahati students have, over the past few years, failed to set a benchmark. When asked about the reason, KK Choudhury, Director, Regional Office of CBSE, Guwahati asserted that the quantum of education imparted in Kerala or Karnataka Board or any other school education board of the southern states is much higher compared to what CBSE is doing in the region. In 2018, the Kerala Board recorded a pass percentage of 97.84 for class 10, Karnataka recorded 71.93% and Tamil Nadu recorded 94.5%. On the other hand, CBSE Schools in Guwahati recorded a percentage of 62.29. th

How safe is copy rechecking?

Over the past few years, hundreds of students who have appeared for the board examinations, have alleged that they have received wrong grades or marks which were much lower than what they had expected. There has been a sharp drop in the results of several students than what is expected and this is difficult to accept. Speaking on this issue, the Director of Regional Office of CBSE, Guwahati said that the examiners

face a lot of pressure while checking the answer sheets. “The time gap between the last day of examination and the date of result declaration is very less. Within this time frame, the examiners have to evaluate the papers, get the marks posted, evaluate

whether the posting of marks are correct or not. Mistakes can happen during the short span of time and that is just human tendency. Wherever a human factor is involved, there is bound to be a mistake,” said the director. After several allegations by

In August 2011, the Supreme Court permitted students appearing for the board examinations for classes 10 and 12 to access their evaluated answer scripts. While this was seen as a good step, there have been many hurdles in its implementation.

examiners’ side. Faults happen on the part of the students too. And parents need to understand that rechecking might help their wards get a few marks higher, but many a time, mistakes in the answers come to light after reevaluation and their marks get decreased and that is a challenge. So if the student or the parent is not confident, it is better not to go for rechecking.” he added.

How is rechecking done?

File photo of CBSE students

Although there has been a trend of parents shifting their wards to CBSE, there hasn’t been much difference in the results. The schools in Guwahati under the CBSE are still performing and scoring much lower than many other boards.

students about mistake in their results, all the boards have now decided to give away copies of the answer sheets to the students for evaluation.

But how safe is copy rechecking for the students? According to the Choudhury, students should not opt for answer sheet rechecking if they are not 100% convinced about their performance. Although students get benefitted several times, there have been instances where the marks have been lowered after rechecking. “Faults do not always happen from the

The answer sheets of the Guwahati students are evaluated by teachers of different schools within the city. But for rechecking, the identity of the candidate is kept anonymous. When a student asks for rechecking, the board receives the application and roll number and coverts it into a coded form to keep the identity of the student or the school of the candidate anonymous. For re-evaluation, the board selects a teacher, sends the application and the answer sheet and gets the rechecking done.

How to prepare for the boards? Experts Say: Several people who been closely associated

have with

the education department have unanimously advised that proper planning is the key to good results for students in class 10 and 12. Father Sebastian Matthew, Principal of Don Bosco School, Guwahati said, “Students should plan several months ahead of the exams. It is very important for the students to devote equal amount of time for all the subjects and stay focused to the curriculum.” KK Choudhury, Director of Regional CBSE Office, Guwahati said, “Students should follow previous years’ question papers. A student should not only follow the earlier question papers, but also the answering techniques. Planning is the most important aspect. Students should complete the whole syllabus by end of December. The following months

CBSE has a total of 248 subjects for class 12 This includes subjects like Skill Development, Legal Studies, Dance, Vocal Training etc CBSE has a total of 61 subjects for class 10 should be for revision.” Paristosh Saha, Faculty, Faculty Higher Secondary School said, “First of all, students have to be very clear with their concepts. After completion of the topics, the students should solve sample papers. They should solve earlier years’ question papers and also question papers of different schools’ preboards. All students should keep in mind that two months of study is not sufficient to score good marks. Students should prepare from the beginning and stay focused and updated all throughout.” n

Weather report for the week Guwahati

SUN

MON

TUE

WED

THU

FRI

Sunny

26°/12° C

27°/13° C

SATURDAY Sunny

26°/13° C

City

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

City resident wins case against private insurance firm Saumya Mishra @saumyamishra03

ith the rising instances of cases being reported against insurance firms, a Guwahati resident recently won a case against a private health insurance firm which had failed to deliver a claim consistent to the policy purchased. The resident, who requested anonymity, alleged that he had bought a medical insurance policy from Star Heath Insurance worth Rs 5 lakhs. He informed that the insurance companies have a certain capping in the policy for rooms rented in hospitals through the course of the hospitalization procedure. “For instance, if you do buy a policy between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 4 lakhs, the room rent capping is Rs 5,000 per day. However, the catch is that if you take a hospital room which charges more than the capping limit provided by the insurance policy, your reimbursement amount will be paid after deducting the entire bill proportionately,” said the complainant.

He added that the deductions are made on every item in the bill that includes the doctor’s fees, operation costs and all other associated medical expenses. He said that usually the common people’s understanding is that they will have to pay the difference in the bill from their own pocket which is beyond the room rent capping as fixed in the policy. This doesn’t hold true here. The complainant’s policy ex-

pired in April 2018 after which he had renewed it. However his policy was renewed according to the old policy norms where the room rent was fixed at Rs 7,500 but his new policy did not have any room rent capping. “I took my wife to Chennai for treatment where we hired a room in the hospital at Rs 9,000 per day. So they cut down my bill by 33% at the time of claim, which was the difference according to the old policy,” he said.

The complainant’s bill came to be Rs 1.50 lakhs but he said he was paid only Rs 80,000 by the insurance company. He then approached the grievance redressal system of Star Heath Insurance and put forth his complaint. However, they refused to refund the amount saying that it was part of the policy. “After this, I approached the insurance ombudsman and they gave me a date and after hearing the case, the Ombudsman directed Star Health to pay me the rest of the amount which I received later,” the complainant told G Plus. He added that the insurance company lost the case on the ground that there was no room rent capping as they had removed the room rent capping clause for the policy from 2018. He alleged that this system of reimbursing less by the insurance after deducting the bill proportionately is unfair. “There is some sort of an understanding between the insurance companies and private hospitals. The insurance companies must be aware of the rent of the rooms available in different private hospitals and make their policies according to the current situation,” he said. n

Consumer courts register maximum complaints against insurance firms

to four cases being filed with the omplaints against insurconsumer forum every month. ance firms make for the SahadatHussain added that in maximum number of casa recent instance, a city resident es filed in the District Conhad given his blood sample for sumer Disputes Redressal testing to a Forum (DCDRF) laboratory in Guwahati, inbefore donatformed authoring blood to a ities. Cases filed against insur- friend. Howev“We see er, the reports several cases ance firms make up at revealed that against both least 30 to 40 per cent of he had tested public as well total cases on an average, positive for private insurHIV (Human ance compain a month,” Archana Immunodefinies. Cases Deka, member DCDRF ciency Virus). filed against After this, insurance the man firms make consulted up at least 30 two doctors to 40 per cent and on their of total cases on an average, in advice, gave his blood samples a month,” informed member of for testing in two different laboDCDRF, Archana Deka. ratories. Both the results showed Further, medical negligence a negative result for HIV. cases are also filed frequently. “He then filed a case of medThese cases range from wrong diical negligence against the first agnosis of diseases to negligence laboratoryin which the DCDRF in medical services. Talking to passed a judgement and G Plus, president of the DCDRF, ordered the laboratory ownMohammad Sahadat Hussain, er to pay compensation to informed that such cases of the complainant,” informed medical negligence have become Mohammad Sahadat Hussain. n very frequent with at least three

12 City

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

GMC spends over Rs 72 Cr in repairing 830 city roads/lanes in 2018 Nehal Jain @NehalJain96

he Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) repaired and constructed 833 city roads and lanes in 2018. A source in the GMC said, “Around Rs 71.59 crores was invested to repair 833 roads,” adding that the work of many other roads are ongoing. According to the details availed from the chief engineer’s office of GMC, repairing work of more than 80 roads and lanes are currently in progress. The funds were sanctioned in three parts - Rs 40 crores was sanctioned as devolution grant, Rs 21 crores as part of the 5th Assam State Finance Commission and the remaining Rs 10.59 crores was sanctioned under the second instalment of the 14th Finance Commission - after the ward councillors submitted reports on the roads that needed repair in their respective wards.

Road construction in Guwahati | G Plus Photo With the amount received as devolution grant, a total of 721 roads were repaired. Additionally, some drains, guard walls and community halls were built and streetlights were installed. While

the 5th Assam State Finance Commission grant had been given for construction of 162 roads and lanes, 82 have been completed and the remaining are in process. The fund from

GMC received Rs 75 Crores to clean major river channels in 2018

ccording to the details availed from the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC), the chief engineer branch received a grant of Rs 75 crores in 2018 to develop the drainage system and major river channels. The GMC prepared a three-year plan (201820) to assess the drainage system of the city, de-silt the drains and clean the river channels utilising

the fund. In the first year, GMC spent hefty amounts of money to clean and desilt the major river channels in the city. After identifying the areas which get affected by urban floods during rainy season, the GMC also took steps for flood mitigation. A GMC source said, “De-silting has been done at 330 drains and five major river channels of the city (Bharalu, Bahini, Lakhimijan,

Basistha and Mora Bharalu) were cleaned this year,” adding that even masonry guard walls were constructed near some river channels. The source further informed that for 2018, 100% cleaning and de-silting works of these rivers have been completed; in 2019 again the rivers will be cleaned if required. Additionally, maintenance works are currently on-going. n

Other GMC projects in 2018 pending completion Project

Budget

Work Status

Storm water drain at Division 6

Rs 2.56 crores

80%

Rs 2 crores

93% completed

Garbage transfer station below Gauhati Club flyover

Rs 6.5 lakhs

20% completed

Garbage transfer station at VIP

Rs 33 lakhs

95% completed

Construction of art garage at Basistha

Rs 5 crores

95% completed

Ulubari multi-storeyed market building

Rs 3 crores

70% completed

Fatasil market building

Rs 2 crores

30% completed

Rupnagar market building

Rs 3 crores

20% completed

Biomethanation plant

Rs 1.49 crores

60% completed

Ganeshguri market building

multi-storeyed

14th Finance Commission was used for the construction of the remaining 30 roads constructed in 2018. The repair works included construction of protection

walls in some areas, lane and road improvement, guard wall constructions, construction of drains, improvement of RCC covered box drains near some lanes, construction of culverts and RCC slabs, construction of steps adjacent to some lanes, construction of underground drains and setting up of community halls and upgrading streetlights infrastructure in some areas. With the end of the 5-year tenure of the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) council on 31st July 2018 and the deferred elections, the works are currently going on at a slow pace, a source at GMC said, speaking to G Plus. The councillors also alleged that the government had been very slow in allotting funds. Commenting on the speed of the work, former councillor of Ward No 27, Jona Rabha said, “The problem is that the funds are not sanctioned on time by GMC which slows down the developmental works of every ward.” n

Construction of 3 GMC market complexes sees no progress

he Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) mulled plans to construct multi-storeyed markets in Ganeshguri, Ulubari, Fatasil and Rupnagar to relocate the street vendors of the same areas. However, the works of three of these market places have been stalling since the past two years. The setting up Ganeshguri and Ulubari market complexes began around the same time in 2015. However, while Ganeshguri market complex has neared completion and is expected to start operating from February 2018, the construction work of the market complex at Ulubari has been stalling for over a year. “The Ulubari market complex had completed 70% construction by 2017 but the work was going on at a very slow space. GMC decided to remove the contractor for substandard work and is also taking action against him. A new contractor will soon be assigned to complete the work,” a source at the chief engineer’s office of GMC

informed G Plus. Similarly, he informed that the works for Rupnagar and Fatasil market complexes have been stalled due to land disputes and court cases by the local vendors who’re opposing the decision to relocate. “We are fighting a case in the court because we're unhappy with the relocation. They're trying to send us there as they want to tell the court that they have given us space. But the total number of slots they are making available in the buildings is much less than what we require,” explained a vegetable seller. According to the officials, the street vendors have occupied the streets with illegal shops which are leading to traffic congestion during the busy hours of the day. The illegal vendors covering a majority of the parking areas and footpaths have added fuel to the growing concerns. While GMC officials have been regularly carrying out eviction drives against street vendors, they keep resurfacing. n

Photo Feature

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Magh Bihu celebrations across Assam, enjoy the pics!

Buffalo fight at Ahotguri, Assam

Fresh dahi for Bhogali Bihu

Community fishing- the age-old tradition

From Darkness to Light; Meji burning

Catch of the Day

Pitha preparation at community kitchen

14 G Talk E

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019 T

Celebrating Mediocrity

elebrating Mediocrity It is often said that we as people enjoy celebrating mediocrity, and of all the states, I couldn’t emphasize more that Assam emerges as the star here. “Celebrating Mediocrity” here is a reference to the fact that many people, who are unworthy of recognition and haven’t really contributed to their respective fields, have been recognized, and Assam continues to celebrate that with pomp. This is in context of the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, being awarded the first ever Philip Kotler Presidential Award by an organization named World Marketing Summit (WMS). A lot of people have raised questions on the credibility of this award and rightly so. A fact that needs attention is that the award was labeled “a very confidential award.” Not much clarification was issued about the jury panel and the process of selection. Might I also add that a single nomination cost about Rs 1 Lakh. Another question that comes to mind - if there was a real purpose of giving an award to the Prime Minister of a country? There was no previous recipient of this award. This award was instituted for the very first time for India’s knight in shining armor, Narendra Modi. The WMS has previously given awards to recognize achievements in advertising and marketing – so did Modi successfully market himself? Which begs the question – should the Prime Minister really accept an award like this? Let’s be clear, the position and chair of the Prime Minister is one of the highest in the world. It clearly needs no certificate or recognition, especially from a non-entity such as the WMS. The position of Prime Ministers and Presidents are supposed to recognize and reward excellence – these include bravery, gallantry and civilian awards such as the Padma Shri. So is Modi looking for recognition for himself – by an organization which has not even been heard of? Now here is another perspective – more than people focusing on what award was given to the PM, people started talking about the Philip Kotler Award. Let’s face it: Narendra Modi’s chair and his 56 inch chest are clearly bigger brands than the WMS. Organizations like these would mint the opportunity to leverage the position of the Prime Minister of one of the biggest democracies in the world! What is the outcome of this process? The PM was kind enough to acknowledge the award with a photo-op on his Twitter feed. Honestly, this was a bigger branding exercise for the WMS who took away all the “chatter” with this one award. I was extremely intrigued by the report done on The Wire on this entire award and how each partner in the event seemed to be achieving a bigger agenda by associating

with the event. Setting the context in Assam - there are similar initiatives taken here where a lot of “xongothons” institute such awards and bestow it upon people who have achieved something at the national or international level – but ironically do not hold much credibility as an organization themselves. These awards are more of a PR opportunity for the organizers rather than the awardees. The purpose of an award is to reward and recognize an achievement, but here the process gets reversed. Until very recently, an organization, not really known in the region, made its way to Guwahati. They held an event at a hotel and gave away an award to every business establishment. I’ll break it down further – about 4 or 5 people were given the award of “Best Real Estate Builder.”Now how do you gauge who the best is? I also ask why there is no transparency in the process. No public opinion, no survey, no jury? Just awards … I reaffirm my statement that these organizations actually institute such independent and opaque awards to only propagate their own interests and ride on the achievements of others. At this point, I can only say that achievers should stop accepting these awards – because it is not they who are getting the recognition but the organizers. And in this process, some of these awards are given to undeserving people, and the ones that do deserve, are left out. Guwahati is rampant with such fictitious organizations creating award shows as a business – with no transparency and credibility – young adults running around media brands to propagate their event. I would not withhold the fact that there are organizations that offered, “aapko ek award de de?” to which I think – “Bhaisaab, award show hai, langar nahi!” More than often, these award shows are also hijacked by the same set of people. A filmmaker from Assam was honored with the Northeast Excellence Awards by an organization that aims to promote business and investment opportunities in the northeast. The filmmaker, in her own right, is worthy of laurels. But why is it done by an organization that does not even function in the same space? When a commerce/industry based organization is honoring a person for her work in films, bestowing an award is clearly a PR move. The media would cover it because the said filmmaker has grabbed the media’s attention over the past few months. So my point is: these baseless awards have damaged the credibility, sanctity and gravity of an awards ceremony. Leaving room for questions in a process only shows the fishy business there. Here’s hoping we stop celebrating mediocrity.

Sidharth Bedi Varma @sid_bv

O pi n io n

Unity is the key

t’s already three years since 2016, but it still seems that the deplorable scenarios of Assam haven’t changed for good. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 is making every nook and corner of Assam burn in despair. The conspicuous scenes that we have witnessed have forced us to believe that the indigenous people of Assam have left no stone unturned to ensure that illegal immigrants do not get the chance to threaten their language, culture, existence and identity. However, the current happenings are not helping the cause because there are a lot of enemies within the state itself whom the Assamese people had earlier trusted with the hope that they would help them out in their never ending fight again illegal immigration. But unfortunately this remains the execrable faith of the indigenous people of Assam, as almost every time they get betrayed by those individuals whom they love and adore the most. It won’t be wrong to say that the ears of those self-proclaimed kings have all gone deaf, as the pleading of the common people are heard by none. If the leader of the nation, during his election campaign, said that within no time all the illegal immigrants would be thrown out of Assam, then the so called ‘Jati Mati Bheti’ leader of Assam went a step ahead to say that he would do nothing that would put the identity of Assam in crisis. But instead of doing anything substantial for

here are too many associations and leaders leading to confusion among the people who are protesting and who aren’t getting the proper direction. So, at this crucial juncture Assam needs ‘Unity in Diversity’

Bishaldeep Kakati

the common burgess, the leader of the state only remained a puppet dancing to the tunes of the not so secular national leader. The topical question today: Would the identity and the existence of the indigenous people remain protected in the longer run? This is not the first time that the Assamese identity is under crisis. If we flip over the pages of history, we would find all those inspiring tales of valour and courage displayed by the people of Assam, be it in the Battle of Saraighat of 1671 or in the Indo-China war of 1962. But if we carefully analyze, we would notice that in all those legendary battles, the key factor was the presence of an able leader who had the vision and mission or a plan to win the battles and bring the happiness back to the people. In the current scenario do we have that same skilled leader to guide the community and win the battle again? In contemporary Assam, the one noticeable thing is that every

now and then a new association or unit comes up in no time. Keeping count has become a problem. If even for a second it is considered that new organizations are necessary because of varying ideologies, when the talk comes about protecting the motherland, all those different ideologies must be kept aside and the perspectives of all must merge as one with the sole motive of protecting the native land. And if that happens, the strength and power would increase to such an extent then none would have the capacity to break it. Added to this, the thoughts of choosing one leader to lead instead of many can also turn out to be the game changer. While a lot has been deliberated about the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, the sad fact is that most of the common citizens of Assam still have no idea about the main facets of the bill. Some leaders in the government,

rIs our democracy well-deserved?

with their own logic, have tried to present their views regarding the so-called positive aspects of the bill in order to distract a section of the society, and so stem the protests or agitations. And somewhere down the line, the protests undertaken till date don’t seem to be effective enough given the rigid government stance of passing the bill. Not only this, the students of different colleges and universities have come out in protest against the bill, there have been numerous hunger strikes, bandhs been declared and classes would be boycotted till the bill is trashed. So this indeed shows that people have taken all steps possible to force the government to discard the bill. However, nothing so far has worked except for the momentary decision of not placing the bill in the Rajya Sabha. Thus, although there have been a significant number of protests, if we still logically think, we can clearly observe that the protests have not been unified moving in the right direction. And the core reason for this is that there are too many associations and leaders leading to confusion among the people who aren’t getting a proper direction. So, at this crucial juncture, all that Assam needs is ‘Unity in Diversity’, with may be one unified association having one apt leader. It remains an earnest request to the people of Assam as well as all the associations to leave behind all their differences and unite as one to launch an all out protest against the bill as well as the government to safeguard the state. If the opposite happens, the tales of Assam shall remain scripted only as allegories in history books. n

Letter to the Editor

he great US president Abraham Lincoln had famously said: You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. This was the stress and faith he had laid on the tenets of democracy while justifying this style of governance. However, this somehow does not apply in the case of India or more specifically, Assam. Here, people are fooled all the time and the latest instance is of course the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 and its impending fruition into a law. Successive governments have not failed to fool us with their parochial rhetoric so that they could achieve their political goals at the expense of the state specifically and nation at large. I today wonder if India deserves the kind of democracy it is experiencing especially when democracy clearly requires a greater educated population to thrive. Name withheld for fear of being targeted with sedition, A concerned Indian citizen

In Focus

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Meeta Dutta Lawyer, social activist

n independent lady of grit, Meeta Choudhury Dutta dons many hats. She is a well known advocate at the Gauhati High Court, a social activist, an entrepreneur, a freelance model and an actor. Born to a Punjabi family based in Yamuna Nagar, Haryana, Meeta did her schooling at multiple places due to the transferable nature of her father's job. However, for the most part of it, she studied at Birla Vidya Niketan School in New Delhi. She went on to pursue graduation in English (Honours) partly from Jesus and Mary College, New Delhi and the rest from Cotton College, Guwahati. Meeta further studied law from Bongaigaon Law College, Bongaigaon. Soon after graduating from law Ccollege, Meeta started her career joining the Gauhati High Court. As a lawyer, she specialises in the criminal and matrimonial fields of law. She has fought and won many path-breaking cases. "Each case is very challenging but especially challenging are the ones where I'm able to contribute to the delivery of justice

to the deprived and suppressed womenfolk," said Meeta in a conversation with G Plus. She is also associated with various NGOs like Feeding India (an organisation that fights against hunger, malnutrition and food wastage), Awareness (spreading awareness about aforestation), Together for Change (which promotes literacy) and Ujeevit Foundation (fighting against youth-centric issues). Her interviews and activities have been broadcast on local radio channels and also published in the local newspapers. Meeta has also widely spoken about the rights of the transgender and is one of their supporters to the hilt. She believes that while a lot has been done in regard to giving the transgender community their rights, much more still needs to be done. “No one is a transgender by choice. It is an aberration of nature that some people have unfortunately fallen prey to. But the great thing is that many among them have emerged stronger and instead of allowing their predicament to suppress them they have come out of it by excelling in their chosen fields of activity,” Meeta

expressed, speaking to G Plus. Meeta says she’s been inspired by many luminaries in life, all from different fields. But on the legal front, she’s been most inspired by Arun Jaitley and Justice Rumi Kumari Phukan of Gauhati

High Court. Expressing her thoughts on the MeToo movement, Meeta said, "Many women hitherto exploited by their ever so dominating men folk at work or play have been able to see light at the end of a

very dark tunnel. They now have a chance to give vent to years of mental trauma and frustration by speaking out against and exposing such men who once thought they could do whatever they wished with impunity. This movement will revolutionise the level of circumspection and discretion and some of those men will henceforth be bound to exercise restraint in their interaction with women.” With over 10 years of experience in writing, she has successfully generated hundreds of legal drafts, beauty blogs, letters, proposals, presentations and reviews. She has also designed and produced material for newsletters, brochures, and flyers. Meeta has never left anyone short of thrilled with her write-ups, essays and articles. Many of her articles have also been published in The Assam Tribune. In 2018, Meeta founded ‘Styling Divas’, a makeup and styling portal with the aim to help men and women create the perfect look and store it for years to come. A Punjabi by birth, Meeta tied the knot with Aloke Dutta, an Assamese-Bengali. With her in-

laws being in the film exhibition, distribution and production business, she became a part of the industry too. Her father-inlaw, Late AK Dutta, was an active film producer in both Bengal and Assam and had produced hit Assamese and Bengali movies like ‘Raja’ and ‘Raag Anuraag’ respectively. Her maternal father-in-law, Late KK Choudhury had been the president of Film Federation of India. She is now closely associated with the fashion and film industry. She has acted in an advertisement for a sister concern of Balaji Telefilms, Mumbai and says that she has many web series and projects from Bollywood in the pipeline that she's ardently looking forward to. The actor-model-lawyer has also attended various beauty pageants and talent shows as jury member as well as guest of honour in Guwahati and Mumbai. She had recently attended a show alongside Bollywood actress Mugdha Godse and actor-presenter Aman Verma. “They say behind every successful man there is a woman. I say behind me is my husband,” Meeta exclaimed.

Singer Zubeen Garg asks Assam Chief Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal to return ‘his’ votes Guwahatians React! Mridul Ram Kalita Once this man said that being a performer, he sang a song for BJP as he was hired to do that. He even said that he publicity sang the song for other parties too in the past only for a handsome amount. Now, what is the logic behind this statement? Actually, it is a 3rd class nonsense and is not even close to a statement by miles. He is not making any sense now. How can someone say this, especially when he has earned money from it.

Amit Singh Really, the way you asked for returning the votes and the money from the CM, I just have to ask you, how much money do you have? We really want to know. Honestly, I feel sorry for a person like you as instead of supporting Hindus you are in favour of Bangladeshis. Actually, you just want to be in limelight that’s why you are getting into this controversial issue. I hope you have not forgotten the way you had insulted an army personal wearing the Indian army uniform. Better focus on your singing like Papon.

Bidhan Dutta Why is a singer like Zubeen making a political comment? Has any celebrity from the sports fraternity or other made any comments? Did Bhupen Hazarika make any political comment during 1960s ethnic clash? Never! He sang so many heart touching songs for humanity and that’s why he is liked by everyone all over the world. This type of humanist artist is missing now. Nayan Nayman Shivam Zubeen Garg should refrain from commenting things like this. He is a public figure and he should definitely not lose respect by entering into politics. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is not only a bill for Assam but for the whole nation. And the bill is the need of the hour. It will benefit many and it’s a good move. I support the bill. I hope it gets implemented. Pankaj Surana We have spent a lot to hear your songs. Kindly repay the amount you have earned since you have started singing. And please stop these silly tricks to be in the lime light. This spoils your stature rather than building it. It’s sad to see such things coming from you.

16 Feature

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Coping up with Examination Stress “I failed in some subjects in my examination, but my friends passed in all. Now he is an engineer in Microsoft and I am the owner of Microsoft.” - Bill Gates Shreeprakash Sharma

xamination, a single word that evokes a labyrinth of anxieties, dilemmas, stresses, confusions, desperation, depression and a lot of other psychosomatic disorders. All these feelings arise because of the examination fear which students commonly suffer across the world. The fear of examination, if not attenuated and tamed in time, aggravates to stress, a dangerous condition. It also adversely affects the psychological condition of examinees. The academic performance and career prospects then land in trouble. You need to learn an array of techniques to keep stresses under control and pacify examination pressure. Some of these techniques are as follows:

1. Ask yourself why you are stressed and afraid Though it may seem bizarre, sometimes, we do not even know why and what we fear and this dilemma aggravates the problem. Only diagnosing the problems in time can help us to come out from the difficult condition. So, you must first identify the reasons of your worries. This is the first step in the direction of uprooting and overcoming the stresses. For some students, lack of completion of syllabi of examination poses the great problem, while for others, lack of retention power of lessons learnt seems to be their Achilles’ heel. Some students do suffer from the problem of

understanding the subjects and so feel very helpless and discouraged to face what we may call the ordeal of examination. Problems may be galore, but they need to be fixed before trying to solve them. Groping in the dark for solutions without knowing the nature of the problem would lead you nowhere. So, make an honest assessment of your strengths and weaknesses. Once you know your problems, you must do your best to solve them with help from professionals and experts. The faster you overcome your problems, the sooner will you be able to drive the fears out of your system to finally become confident, cool, calm and courageous.

2. You must push harder for your dreams No one can deny that hard labour has no substitute for accomplishing any task in this world. Achieving much-expected results in examination is not at all different from this precept. With hard work, students can amazingly harness their inherent potential to fulfill their dreams Going through the syllabi of subjects seriously and thoroughly is prerequisite for good results. This will enthuse you with confidence and courage and ultimately help you with the pressures of examination.

3. Speak to and seek parents’ guidance In case of examination stress, it is always inevitable to speak about it to your parents. If you fear or feel shy speaking to your parents, it would be better if you talk about your problems with

someone you confide in and trust most. Students may also speak to their best friends and teachers in this critical condition. Sharing your problems openly with trusted ones will help you allay the fears and phobia of examination.

4. You must have strictly planed and fully occupied day Chalking out plans for preparation of examinations is a sine qua non of what you want to achieve in your life. But majority of students fail to plan and that is why they fail to assess the tasks that need to be accomplished until the examinations commence. Delay in planning is not good because, in this case, students are left with relatively less time to finish the immense task. This virtually insurmountable condition may put you in jeopardy. So, you need to chalk out a comprehensive time to plan only at the outset of the session for all subjects. And at the most, religiously sticking to the planned study hours is also of prime importance.

5. Regular meditation would help you stay cool and calm The of

practice regular

meditation quietens one’s mind. This brings about personal metamorphoses in the form of a sharper mind, enhanced focus and strengthened concentration which ultimately help the students grasp the subject matter fast and stay calm and cool. So, you must practice meditation regularly at least for ten to fifteen minutes as per the schedule you may convenient.

6. Stop Cramming Lessons Rote learning does not help much in the long run because its retention period is very poor because what we learn by rote does not stay in the mind for longer periods of time. Nor are such lessons retrieved easily at the time students need most. This situation causes tension. Always try to understand the subject matter, the processes and clearly know the way a certain theory functions. Give time to understand the various concepts of the subjects.

7. Set Realistic Goals Dreaming to achieve bigger things is human nature which we all love and long. But dreaming must be based upon the availability of resources and inherent strength. So, you must honestly make a real assessment of your capabilities. Know your own strengths and weaknesses very honestly. Set your goal keeping your limitations in mind and that would help you to lead a life full of mental serenity.

8. Never Panic People usually panic when

problems arise, and there is nothing weird about it because one’s whole world seems to have been shattered in the crisis. Life does not seem to be enjoyable. But, panicking does not pay anything. Nor does it heal or provide relief to the bruised body or disturbed mind. Rather, it aggravates the situation. At this crossroads, you need to be very rational. Do not lose heart, patience and courage. Try to always stay stoic and firm. Keep on pushing hard for what you want to realize in your life. This would help you to become courageous to brave the challenges of life with ease.

9. Always believe nothing bad will happen Unlike success, failure makes a man a cynic and a pessimist. Due to this, he starts doubting even himself and his own potential. This is a very serious problem which eats into the inherent capability of a student. Believing in your strength helps you stay motivated and ambitious. With a positive bend of mind and unshakeable faith in your capability, you can accomplish any task however difficult it may be. This is bound to bring about much-cherished success to you and amazingly keep stresses at bay. Psychoanalysts say that examination stress is just a state of mind. With low self-esteem and shattered self-confidence, the examination stress goes on mounting with a speed never seen before. So, mould the mind and bring about changes in the life style and philosophies of life - you would never be under stress and worries would never haunt you. n

Trotter

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Amazon is selling coconut shells Good company but no for over Rs. 1,200 and Indians one to talk to: Asha are stunned Bhosle’s tweet is an eye-opener

ndians were recently “shellshocked” to discover that the humble coconut shell is being sold on e-commerce website, Amazon for nearly Rs. 1,200. “This is an actual, real, coconut. Therefore, it may have cracks, dents and imperfections,” reads the product description. Rebranded as “Natural coconut shell cups”, these shells start at Rs. 1,289 and can even go up to Rs. 2,499! The revelation, predictably enough, left many Indians stunned. Used to buying coconuts for as little as 20 bucks apiece and then throwing the

shells away, they took to Twitter in disbelief. Their reactions were even curated into their own Twit-

ter Moment. On Amazon, these coconut shells have garnered mixed re-

views. “In Kannada we call this chippu, means you’ll get nothing,” laughed one person while writing a product review for the natural coconut shell. “I pity those who are buying these useless shells,” another said. However, a few users who actually bought the coconut shells found them to be useful. “Natural coconut shell.. it’s used for various purposes.. showroom price would be around 3k.. my friend bought it at a low price of 1300 .. great Amazon,” wrote one reviewer. (Source: ndtv)

e live in times where our cell phones have almost become extensions of ourselves. A tweet by legendary singer Asha Bhosle perfectly encapsulates this phenomenon. Recently, Asha Bhosle took to Twitter to share a picture which shows her in a

“Bagdogra to Kolkata... Such good company but still, no one to talk to. Thank you Alexander Graham Bell,” she wrote in the biting caption accompanying the picture. Since being shared online, the tweet has garnered over 2,800 ‘retweets’ and more than 13,000 ‘likes’. While many

sitting room with four men - all busy on their phones. Asha Bhosle, the only one without a phone, used the image to deliver some eyeopening social commentary about the times we live in, thanking the inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, in her sarcastic tweet.

have commented on the picture to call it an ‘eye-opener’ or a much-needed reality check, others have said that they would never have dared to look at their phones in the presence of the legendary playback singer. (Source: Free press journal)

A pet owner in Delhi fatally shoots a man for throwing rocks at his dog

ccording to a national daily, a man from Delhi allegedly shot his neighbour fatally for throwing a stone at his dog. The incident took place in northeast Delhi’s Welcome colony on Sunday afternoon. The victim, Aafak, had allegedly thrown a stone at the dog for barking at him. According to the police, Mehtab, the dog’s owner has had a criminal record in the area. Aafak’s family said that the dog had tried to bite him, after which he threw a stone to scare it away. The dog squealed and Mehtab came running out of his house and accused Aafak of trying to kill his dog. While Aafak was trying to leave, Mehtab pulled out a pistol and shot him through his torso. Hearing the gunshot, the neighbours rushed out and found Aafak lying, bleeding on the road.

Man spends three hours licking a stranger’s doorbell on New Year’s Eve He was then taken to GTB Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Aafak has three children and is the sole earner of the family. Police said that following the incident, Mehtab fled the house along with his parents and left the dog tied to the gate. The police informed that Mehtab has

more than 20 cases of robbery and extortion against him and that he recently had been released from jail. While it’s not okay to hurt innocent animals, it’s equally not okay to take someone’s life over an issue such as this. (Source: scoopwhoop)

Man 'shoots' birthday cake on video; had 'Gujjar' written on it

man celebrating his birthday looks at his cake. Instead of cutting it, he whips out his gun and shoots at it. Several times. The video has gone viral on social media. There is speculation that the video was shot in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, but the police havedeniedit. The video, which has gathered thousands of views on social media, shows four men on a road with a birthday cake. The cake has the word “Gujjar” on it. The men are heard talking in Hindi but it is not clear where

or when the incident took place. It is also not clear why some claimed that the video was shot in Meerut. The video appears to have

been shot on the TikTok app for creating and sharing short videos. Since being posted on Twitter, it has provoked outrage. (Source: deccan chronicle)

trespasser was recorded licking a stranger’s doorbell for 3 long hours and police are currently on the hunt for him for this bizarre act. The security footage outside the house on a doorbell camera shows a man trespassing outside a family home before he begins licking the doorbell. The trespasser has been identified as Roberto Daniel Arroyo (33). A spokesperson for the Salina Police Department, California said: “We were pleasantly surprised that the image was so clear, it didn’t take us long to identify the individual.” Arroyo spent a total of three hours outside the front of the house on New Year’s Eve licking the doorbell of the stranger’s house and he was also filmed relieving himself and moving an extension cord around the garden. The property he trespassed on, and the doorbell he licked belongs to the Dungan family. The parents were out at the time of the odd incident, but their children were inside the house

sleeping. According to Mirror. co.uk., they claim they weren’t woken up by Arroyo’s act but later came across footage of the whole thing on their security system and called the police. Sylvia Dungan stated she was

concerned by the whole odd experience but she was relieved things didn’t get any worse on the night. She told KION: “You kind of laugh about it afterward because, technically, he didn’t harm anybody, he didn’t break anything.” However, she did also take the opportunity to reflect on the importance of having a proper security system, adding: “This just kind of reinforces how important it is to have security within your home.” (Source: mid-day)

18 Review

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Starring: Emraan Hashmi, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Snighadeep Chatterjee Director: Soumik Sen

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hinese smartphone company has come up with the Meizu M16th to cater to different markets. With this smartphone, the company aims to compete with manufacturers including Xiaomi, Asus and Honor. The phone is priced at INR 39,999 and it competes with the likes of the OnePlus 6T and the LG G7+ ThinQ.

Design:

The Meizu M16th has a glass back panel that curves slightly on the sides. It has a dual camera setup in the centre along with a six-LED ring flash. It has a 6-inch display without a notch and super thin bezels on the sides. The bezels at the top and the bottom are thicker in comparison, but symmetrical. The earpiece has been added towards the frame, and the small selfie camera sits right above the display in the upper right corner. The phone has a metal frame, the power and volume buttons are sleek, and on the right side of the device. On the left side of the

Sattu’s elder sister, Nupur (Dhanwanthary) is in love with Singh and a romance sort of grows in between the two. The pressure for studying for his own exams and giving exams for rich spoilt brats gets to Sattu and he loses control, not wanting to let the easy money go. He begins doing drugs and starts hiring prostitutes. He even gets kicked out of his college, but Singh gets him a fake degree and helps him get a job in Qatar. Due to police pressure, Singh shuts down his shop in Lucknow and moves to Mumbai. He has an even bigger plan now. Everything looks good, until his past catches up to him and everything comes crashing down.

Meizu M16th

phone is the SIM tray, which has two Nano-SIM slots. It also has a USB Type-C port along with a 3.5mm headphone jack, primary microphone, and a loudspeaker grille on the bottom. It has an indisplay fingerprint scanner and a 3010mAh battery.

Specifications and Software:

The Meizu M16th has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor paired with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage and since storage is non-expandable, buyers will have to manage with this limit. It has a Super Amoled panel with full-HD+ resolution (1080 x 2160 pixels) and a vivid output. Different modes are available

Since Hashmi has made a career playing the anti-hero, he is in his element in the film and even newcomer, Dhanwanthary has good screen presence beside Hashmi. The film is supposed to present a satirical take on the education system in India, but the real emotion is felt when they focus on the interpersonal relationships between different characters. The first half of the movie is tight and follows good writing, however, the second half is just as badly written and totally makes the audience lose interest in the story and the cause. The movie is a one-time watch. Go and see it for yourselves if you have two hours to spare, if not, that’s okay too. n under the display settings, so you can choose between Adaptive, Standard, Photo, and Dynamic. The colour temperature can also be tweaked and an option of an always-on display exists to check your notifications.

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10:00 AM, 12:25 PM URI- The Surgical Strike

Gold Cinema

Performance, Battery life and Cameras Connectivity options on this model include Bluetooth 5, dualband Wi-Fi 802.11ac, and seven satellite location systems. There is support for dual 4G as well as VoLTE. It has a dual rear camera setup

03:00 PM, 05:50 PM, 08:30 PM

consisting of a 12-megapixel primary camera and a 20-megapixel secondary one. The primary camera has an f/18 aperture, while the second one has an f/2.6 aperture. It has toggles for HDR, the timer, filters, and beautification. There are also Portrait, Pro, Panorama, Slowmo, Scan, and Time-Lapse modes.

Verdict:

The M16th is well designed and has flagship-grade hardware. There are several things that hold it back such as the Flyme OS, which is not impressive. The camera and battery life need improvements as well to be in competition with other similarly priced smartphones. One of the other major drawbacks for the phone is that since the brand does not have a strong presence in India, buyers might prefer to go with more established phone brands. n

Fiction

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

When birds turn into fishes Ranjan Kumar Choudhury ranjanchou@hotmail.com

ack in the year 1975 I had gone out for an angling trip on the Dikrong River near Banderdewa which was the entry point to Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh. I used to come and fish in this river often in the winter months from November till early March. The river was small and shallow with deep pools at regular intervals just like most of the rivers there. There is a tea garden called Harmoty and I had a good friend working there whom I used to visit at times; in fact it was quite common for us bachelors to stay over when visiting and some common friends also joined in from other gardens. Harmoty was one of the best tea estates I have

known. It location was ideal with the Dikrong flowing alongside, and an out garden called Ganeshbari which had premium new teas planted up on a hill. That place was a haven for Wild Imperial Pigeons, Green Pigeons and Wild Fowl. The factory was down below and it had a pulley line which was used to carry the green leaf from the hill division to the factory below. Strangely because of the elevation, this hill division had some light rains as early as February which helped the new tea shoots to grow earlier than the plains area teas. I used to always tell my friend how much I envied his working in such lovely conditions. Coming back to my fishing trip, it was in the month of January when I took my brother, sisterin-law and my young nephew for camping on the bank of the Dikrong. We arrived around midday and after selecting the site we pitched our tents and set out for some casting from the river banks. It was in fact the 26th January and being a holiday the river side was full of anglers who were using Indian made bamboo rods and simple reels and “bundia” as bait. This was a

common practice with the Khasi anglers in the Umiam Lake which I had witnessed before. We tried our best with our metal spoons and casted much longer but that afternoon it seemed that the fishes were enjoying their sweets more as they reeled in at least a dozen broker fishes. We decided to go further downstream to avoid the crowd and it paid off as my brother quickly picked up two fishes for our dinner. The next morning after a hearty breakfast I saw to the arrangements to keep my sisterin-law and nephew comfortable and safe and my brother and I set off on our fishing trip. After a few hours we came to the bridge point where we could cross the river to its other side and go to a place called Duimukh. Some things are quite common in these rivers; Duimukh is one such. It literally means “Double Mouth” and is the place where a smaller stream joins the main river forming two mouths of water. In these points the game fish lie in wait for the small fry to come gushing down for an easy meal and it paid dividends if we could fish here. True to expectations we landed 3 good sized Mahseers and were happy with our success. We then decided to stop for lunch which were a couple of sandwiches and boiled potatoes. It was about 4 hours since we had left camp and was just after midday and we started on our way back. At that point in the river the water was crystal clear and I remember that one could see the spoons and small fishes swimming after

it in mock pursuit. My brother was following behind me and my good friend and companion on all my trips, Durjan, was by

The bird thought that my spoon was a fish and had dived in to catch the same. At that moment I cannot say who was more surprised - me or the bird. my side with my extra rod and reel. Suddenly I felt a bite and looked at the end of my line to see what I had caught when, lo and behold, my spoon flew out of the water and was flying with a common kingfisher bird impaled on the hook! The bird thought that my spoon was a fish and had dived in to catch the same. At that moment I cannot say who was more surprised - me or the bird. I reeled in my line slowly with the bird now back in the water and gently caught it up. Durjan freed the bird and put it in the pocket of his jacket. My brother was witness to this and was stunned at the turn of events. I had now caught a bird, a small turtle earlier in the Manas

River and also had an elephant on my line in the Boroi River … all while fishing. My experiences with the rod and reel were quite unique and I marvel at why I was so lucky to have made these exploits. We got back to camp and then left for our tea garden which was a good 2 hours’ drive. In the meantime we had bought a small bamboo basket to carry the kingfisher bird and I tied this nest up in a tree outside my bungalow. I tried to feed it with small fish and other small insects but to my concern it was not feeding at all. Its beak wound had healed and so on the third morning of captivity I released the bird carefully. It stayed in my hand for some time, then just jumped up and flew away in dipping movements slowly picking up momentum until I saw it reach and sit on a tree. It was now free once again and I do believe that it must have adjusted to the new environs. Now when I think back of this incident I am truly amazed that this happened. As I have written elsewhere I have never caught a really big fish but then my special trio of catches is enough for a lifetime of fishing. n

20 Fun

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Horoscope of the week This week, your life will be on track. You will get good results in the things you plan to excel at. Whereas in some cases, you may not get the desired results, so you will have to be a little patient. This week, you will spend a good amount of time with your partner. However, you will have to take care that you don’t hurt them in any way. Career-wise, you will hear some good news in regard to your business.

Thethirdweekof2019,willbequitefruitfulfor Cancers. This week is the best time to spend with your near and dear ones. At this time, mutuallove,loneliness,affection,andwarmthwillbe felt.Youwillalsolearntobepatient.However,itwould helpifyoulearnedtobepolite.Aharshtonecouldlead to many misunderstandings. Your superiors will be happy with your performance and praise you.

The third week of this month may provide you with mixed results. The beginning and the end of this week may prove amazing for you. Your romantic relationship may get stronger. Around the 14th to the 16th of this week, there are chances of some differences and struggles in your relationship. If you implement compromise in your relationship, it may get better eventually.

Ganesha predicts that the third week will bring mixed results for the Virgos. From the 14th to the 17th of this week, things will be in your favour. During these days, love will deepen and intensify in your relationships. However, on 13th, there is a possibility of a fight or a conflict. Healthwise, the beginning of the week is a favourable time.

Thereisahighchancethatyoucoulddiscover your sensitive side this week. The chances of ups and downs in your relationship are really high during this time. It would help if you took utmost care of your health. You could be required to work hard during this week to get your desired results, as your luck may not support you. For your love and relationship, this week may prove hopeful.

During the beginning of this week, it’s advisable for you to take utmost care of your health. There are chances of some struggles and mental anxiety during this period. There is a chance that you may suffer from headaches due to the lack of sleep and tension. It would also help if you avoided going on unnecessary trips this week.

This week may bring family, finance, and personal life-related benefits for you. You may stay highly energetic and happy in your life during this week. You could require taking additional care of your health during this time. For employees, this week may favor them highly. Your married life will also prosper during this time.

According to the 2019 horoscope, this week is going to be wonderful for the natives of Capricorn sign. This week will be highly favourable for those holding jobs and the business owners. Your personal life will see great improvement as well. However, there may be a few health issues this time.

This week may prove sorted and relaxed for you. Your health may support you during this period. You may feel at peace as well. Employees may find this week in their favour. You may get financial benefits, and your expenses may reduce as well. Your business may progress during this time.

Which famous character from the world of Cinema was played by Subir Banerjee?

Which famous person's last job was as the Head of the Royal Mint in England?

Which deadly disease derives its name from the Swahili word Ka -dinga pepo meaning 'evil spirit'?

5 Haradhon-Rongmon Katha, a song written in 1960 about an Assamese and a Bengali peasant who have lost their homes in race riots in Assamese and Bengali, was instrumental in the stoppage and subsequent healing of the strained Assamese-Bengali relationship. Who were the two musicians who wrote the song? 6

Identify this inventor who recently came back in prominence due to a tweet by Asha Bhosle, who was also a founder of the magazine National Geographic. Dr. Soubhadra Chakrabarty This quiz has been brought to you by Brain Jam, a property of Priya Communications

Dilbert By Scott Adams

curio-city

8 2 4 6 5 7 9 3

8 4 1 7

9 8 6 3

9 7 4 6

9 8 4 2 1

Daily Sudoku: Fri 11-Jan-2019

medium

last week solution 7 8 4 3 2 5 9 1 6

9 1 2 8 4 6 3 7 5

5 3 6 7 1 9 2 4 8

3 6 9 2 7 8 1 5 4

8 5 1 6 3 4 7 9 2

2 4 7 5 9 1 6 8 3

6 7 5 9 8 2 4 3 1

1 9 8 4 6 3 5 2 7

Daily Sudoku: Fri 11-Jan-2019

4 2 3 1 5 7 8 6 9 medium

Word of the week 1. Chiki made of sesame and jiggery 2. He played the child, Apu in Satyajit Ray's, Pather Panchali 3. Sir Isaac Newton 4. Dengue 5. Bhupen Hazarika and Hemango Biswas 6. Alexander Graham Bell

The Sindhis call it Laee, what delicious sweet eaten mainly during Makara Sankranti are we talking about?

http://www.dailysudoku.com/

curio-city 1

Sudoku

The beginning of the week will show good tidings in the social life for the natives of Taurussign.Youwillhaveagoodrelationship with the people around you, says Ganesha. However, you may also want more freedom for yourself, which may be lacking during this week. There are no important planetary transits taking place during this week,buttheMoonmaygiveyougoodchanges.

During this week, you will go through many different experiences. You will feel a yearning desire for love. Misunderstanding and arguments between couples are normal. However, If you’re having an extramarital affair, then meeting that person will lead to a lack of certainty. You will also feel a bit stressed in terms of your health.

douceur noun [gad-uh-bout] a person who moves about restlessly or aimlessly

Crossword Across

1 Short item throwing light on the main article — braised (anag) (7) 8 Expel from the body (7) 9 Went back on (a promise) (7) 10 Rowdy — strident (7) 11,19 Kind of sweetener (5,5) 13 Of figures (9) 15 Pulled apart (9) 18 Easily irritated (5) 21 Curl (7) 22 Pasta in wide strips (7) 23 Small round boat of skin over a wicker frame (7) 24 Wiped across (7)

Down

Plant — brush (anag) (5) 2 Yellow Australian dog (5) 3 Explanation for a novice winning? (9,4) 4 Three-time Grand National winner, d. 1995 aged 30 (3,3) 5 Something one learns to like? (8,5) 6 Showing extreme courage (6) 7 Sneaky person — small, long-necked carnivorous animal (6) 12 Cunning scheme (4) 14 Female relative (4) 15 Dapper (6)

16 Extreme destitution (6) 17 Names of books (6) 19 See 11 20 Give up (5)

Last week’s solution

Lifestyle

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Vaastu and the effect of Cosmic Forces

henever we mention vaastu, we have to take into account the solar energies and magnetic forces of

the earth. If these two factors are not considered, it is a gross violation of the principles of science and vaastu. Our ancestors were aware of this fact and vaastu rules were formed keeping in mind the position of the sun and other geo-magnetic forces. Houses were built accordingly based on these principles and rules. Since living beings came into existence, the sun has had a tion very special posiin their minds since it is the prime source of light. The sun provides vital energy for plants to prepare their food via chlorophyll and because of this, plants produce oxygen which is needed for living to survive. Hence, the sun is the ultimate provider of life here on earth. The early morning sunrays are full of Vitamin-D. The seven basic

colours of the sun (VIBGYOR) have different benefits for our body. During the northward movement of the sun (Uttarayan), days are longer

and so we get more sunlight on earth. Thus, it is recommended to have auspicious occasions like marriage, ceremonies, commencement of construction and business etc. during Uttarayan. Even death in this period is supposed to be better. This is the reason why vaastu has specified that there should be more open and vacant spaces

in the north and east to receive maximum morning sunrays. There should also be more doors, openings or windows in these directions. Morning sunrays reflecting from water bodies have lots of beneficial effects. So, water bodies are recom-

should be heavy construction in the south and the west to reduce the heat of the sun and minimum openings, like doors and windows should be provided in the south, west and the southwest. Water bodies are forbidden in these directions.

mended in the east, north and the northeast. But as the day progresses, the sunrays become more potent and stronger. So there

The earth acts like a huge magnet with its forces acting from north to south. Our body also acts like a magnet with its head as the

north pole. So, vaastu has advocated that we must sleep with our head to south so that there is no magnetic repulsion with our body and the earth. If this rule is violated, there may be headache, insomnia, blood pressure related problems, body pains and tension.

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

How to manage your time efficiently this year Harshita Himatsingka @HHimatsingka

illiam Penn said it best, “Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” In today’s day and age, when you are bombarded with a work load that can kill you, time management is an essential skill to have. This is one skill that can either make or break you. Since the year has just started, we are sure that you would love to make the most out of it. So, check out a few pointers below on how to make the best use of your time and manage it efficiently.

1. Use smart prioritisation

Smart prioritisation is simply deciding which tasks should be included in your to-do list and

which should be discarded. We aren’t saying that one or more of your tasks are not important. However, we are saying that you should choose and pick tasks that will serve you most and will be the best utilization of your time and resources. Prioritise based on importance, not based on number of tasks to be completed.

When you can decide and make correct choices that serve your best interests, your life will see a huge improvement. Deciding on the

and efficiency.

3. Avoid multitasking

While this might seem like the best idea to complete a number of tasks all at once, nothing can be further from the truth. Many people do claim to be expert

4. Take regular breaks

2. Decide, decide, decide Decision making is an important part of good time management. It is important to decide which tasks should be done when, how they should be done, how much time is available to complete the task etc.

productivity and focus to get more things done. Doing one thing at a time and then moving on to the next task, also helps you remain stress-free as your mind is focused on one thing and can concentrate to finish the given task without having to worry about anything else.

important facets of your day early can also help boost productivity

multitaskers, but it is not for everyone. Focusing on one task at a time will not only guarantee that the task is done well, it also helps boost

The best way to complete a task is to do it with a clear mind, and you cannot have a clear mind if you are continually stressed or preoccupied with something else. Thus, it is important to take regular breaks in between your scheduled tasks so that you get to breathe and take a little time for yourself. Walking, getting a little fresh air, stretching, talking or hanging out with friends and family all help with clearing the mind.

22 Buzz

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

IIT Guwahati Alumnus’ creates startup to ensure students opt for the right career path

avi Nishant, an IIT Guwahati Alumnus has founded a startup called, Edvizo that helps students across India, especially the Northeast region to make the right career choices. In an interview with a local news publication, Nishant said that he created this startup so that he can help students make the right choice regarding their career. He mentioned that since there are a lot of options available for students today, they might be confused and make the wrong choice. He added that pressure from parents and the society also impacts many students’ decisions. Nishant wanted to create a platform where students could find

out relevant information regarding their career preferences and

make the right choice according to present career prospects and their interests as well. His company helps students talk with different experts from

IITs, IIMs, AIIMS and even with former IAS officers to give the right guidelines to students according to their ability so that students can avail all benefits and be more efficient in their search and pursual for their career. Edvizo has a website and mobile application that gives students all necessary verified information regarding their choice of career. It also gives them a platform where they can check opinions and feedback from previous students. Nishant’s company and vision is to change and improve the entire education system. He wants to improve the system using three key factorstransparency, accountability and technology. n

Don Bosco School Guwahati wins the SAEVUS Eco-Achiever’s Nature & Wildlife Quiz

otary Club of Guwahati Luit hosted the Guwahati edition of the SAEVUS Eco-Achievers Quiz 20182019 on January 12 in collaboration with Saevus magazine, the country’s foremost nature and wildlife magazine. 30 teams, consisting of three participants in each team took part in the competition. Each group also comprised of one student each from standards 5, 6 and 7 from schools across Guwahati. The quiz championed the cause of the natural world. The city edition of the quiz was conducted by renowned quiz master, Rajib Sanyal from Kolkata and consisted of a written elimination round and a quickfire round for the six best teams. The winner, first runner-up and second runner-up teams from this round were presented with

n National Youth Day which commemorated the 156th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, Assam governor, Professor Jagdish Mukhi unveiled a life-size statue of iconic figure, Swami Vivekananda at the St. Vivekananda English

Academy on January 12. The statue was also unveiled as part of the silver jubilee celebrations of St Vivekananda English Academy which was set up 25 years ago by founder, principal and present rector A.

trophies, certificates and backpacks from Skybags. While Don Bosco School, Panbazar emerged as winners and have qualified to participate in the national round, Sarala Birla Gyan Jyoti were the first runners up and Maharishi Vidya Mandir, Silphukri were the

2nd runners up. The winning team from each of these city rounds will be pitted against one another in the national finale to be held in Mumbai on February 2019. This was the second edition in Guwahati headed by Bhupen Medhi and Tushar Jalan. n

employment opportunities. It also hopes that the participating

teams will present projects that will tackle social, cultural or environment issues by bringing

about a positive change. Each team can have a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 5 members. Participation is free of cost and participants can win prizes worth Rs. 1 lakh. Registration for the competition began on January 1 and will continue on until January 20. After that, the execution and mentorship phase will begin on February 1 and will carry on until February 15. The final presentations for the competition will be held on February 16. n

K. Som, winner of the prestigious President’s Award for Teachers. Speaking at the occasion, the Assam Governor hailed the role of teachers, present and past and said that the school has empowered its students by providing them with opportunities, challenges, values and commitments. He said that the main purpose of education is to produce good and productive citizens and has asked the school authorities to infuse intellectual temperament in its students. Professor Mridul Hazarika, Vice Chancellor of Gauhati University, R.C. Jain, Chairman of SEBA, A. K. Som, rector of St Vivekananda English Academy were all present on the occasion, along with other dignitaries. n

40th Northeast One-Act Play Competition to begin from January 21

Social Service Club, IIT Guwahati conducts its 3rd Social Entrepreneurship Competition: Action Plan he Social Service Club at IIT Guwahati is conducting its 3rd Social Entrepreneurship Competition: Action Plan. The competition challenges participants to ‘build a plan of action’ for a social problem by engaging with the community and stakeholders. The competition aims to boost the ecosystem of the region and build a strong platform for nurturing innovation and startups that will drive sustainable growth and generate large scale

Governor Mukhi unveils statue of Swami Vivekananda on National Youth Day

ocio-cultural organization, Jyotirupa is all set to organize its 40th edition of the North-East OneAct Play Competition at the District Library auditorium from January 21 until January 25. The first day of the competition will see the staging of 6 plays, ‘Bhok’ by group, Rika Aniruddha from Sipajhar, Jetiya Sandhya, ‘Name’ by Prosenium Natyadal from Nagaon, ‘Mot’ by VBMLTP Natyagosthi from Guwahati, ‘Lo Jaru Lo’ by Navarash from Chaigaon, ‘Bajok Doba Bajok Sankha’ by HDN Natyagosthi from Chaigaon and ‘Aprapti’ by Ketharsis from Jalukbari. The second day of the competition will see 8 plays will be staged namely, ‘Shiyaliye Nahibi Rati’ by Kenduguri Natya Samiti from Baihata Chariali, ‘Eta Prasnabodhok’ by Gamocha Natya Dal from Biswanath Chariali, ‘Putola’ by Samannai Khetra from Nalbari, ‘Pohrashali’ by Natmandal from Pathsala, ‘Chicken Parlor’ by Jengrai from Mangaldoi, ‘Manuhe Manuhor Babe’ by Bahniman Silpi Gosthi from Mangaldoi, ‘Bibah Bibhrat’ by Natyam from Nagaon and ‘Nurul Daa Kot’ by the group Brindavan from Mangaldoi. The third day of competition

will see plays such as ‘Alap’ by Asom Natya Sanmilan, Kaliabor branch, ‘Kotha Ajaputram’ by Ingit from Ghilamara, ‘Eta Galpar Dwitya Khanda’ by Bhas Theater from Nagaon, ‘Sihote Pahar Bogale’ by Ajak Sopon from Guwahati, ‘Death of a Thespian’ by Cyclomara D Theater Lab from Bijay Nagar, ‘Swarnalipi’ by Natshala from Bajali and ‘Kalsandhir Dostabez’ by the students of Rajdhar Bora Higher Secondary School, Azara. Plays to be staged on the fourth day are ‘Upohar’ by Gandharva from Guwahati, ‘Drishti’ by Natatirtha from Guwahati, ‘Abelir Bhoi’ by Natyacharsa from Nalbari, ‘Bibah Ata Bahir Sur’ by Asom Natya Sanmilan, Jorhat branch, ‘Mukha: Ek Gatha’ by Rongchara from Barpeta and Bibhranta, ‘Rang’ by Krishti Sanskritik and Samajik Gosthi from Mirza. On the evening of January 25, the prize distribution ceremony and a cultural programme will be held as part of the competition. Playwright, Dr Sailen Bharali will inaugurate the competition on January 21 and release a souvenir by Jyotirupa. On the concluding ceremony on January 25, Manju Bora, a prominent filmmaker will be felicitated. n

Entertainment

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Guwahati boy, Devraj Ghosh stars in Bollywood movie ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’

Assamese film, Marksheet bags multiple awards at Prag Cine Awards

he much-anticipated movie, ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike,’ which is a befitting tribute to the Indian Army was released on January 11. Along with Vicky Kaushal, who gave a top-notch performance in the war drama, stands a young boy from the northeast, Devraj Ghosh, who made his Bollywood debut with this film. Uri is a real-life story based on the surgical strikes conducted in 2016 by the Indian Army against the militant launch pads in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. In the film, Devraj plays the character of Niloy Banerjee, a Special Force Commando. The protagonist, Vicky Kaushal, plays the role of Major Vihan Shergill, who leads a team of around 15 commandos, one of which is played by Devraj. Devraj was born in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh and raised in different parts of the northeastern region as they had to keep moving due to his parents’ job. His family is currently settled in Guwahati. To pursue his acting career, Devraj ditched a glossy 9-5 IT job. He started with modeling as a career and later decided to shift to acting. He moved from Bangalore to Mumbai and in 2016, completed his acting course from Anupam Kher’s ‘Actor Prepares’ - The School for Actors, where he was trained under the guidance of Rabijita Gogoi, a powerhouse

director and acting instructor from Guwahati. Devraj is also a theatre artist and has worked on 4 short films prior to ‘Uri’. Devraj appeared for the first round of audition with casting director Vicky Sidana, and on the very next day, was called for the second round of audition and selected for the role amongst several hundreds of people. For Devraj, ‘Uri’ was a massive learning experience. He considers it a big deal to even get a chance to work alongside actors who are well established in the industry, and equally popular and versatile. Speaking to G Plus about his role and experience in the movie, the actor said, “It was very difficult to prepare for the character, and even more difficult to get into the psyche of an army officer. To be a

part of an army boot camp, and to get trained by real army officials was an experience of a lifetime. Bollywood is a tough place; hundreds of people are getting added to the competition every minute. You need to work hard, you need to have the talent, and you need to have contacts. To be a ‘somebody’, you need to place all three elements in the correct place and proportion.” Devraj is currently working on a web series and has a short film project in hand. Although he wants to work with different filmmakers and act in films of different genres, he desires to work with Sriram Raghavan at some point in his career. He said that the movie ‘Ek Haseena Thi’ by Raghavan made quite an impact on his mind.

Xhoixobote Dhemalite shortlisted for ‘Oscars of Sound’

idyut Kotoky’s film Xhoixobote Dhemalite is on the verge of adding one more feather to its cap. After being shortlisted, the film is just a step away from getting nominated for the MPSE Golden Reels Award in Foreign Film category (also known as Oscars of Sound) which acknowledges the year's best work in the various areas of sound editing: Dialogue, ADR, Effects, Foley and Music. This is the first time that an Assamese movie has been shortlisted for nominations for this prestigious award. The jury panel of MPSE shall decide the nominations among the shortlisted films and the list shall be declared by next week. “We always believe that in Xhoixobote Dhemalite (Rainbow Fields) we are making a world cinema in Assamese language. Recognition of such kinds reinforces our belief,” says Bidyut

Kotoky, Director, Xhoixobote Dhemalite. Set to be released on the 8th of February it has already won numerous awards like the Best Narrative Feature in Erie International Film Festival, Pennsylvania, Best Screenplay Award at Treasure Coast International Film Festival in Floridaamong others.

Speaking on the occasion the sound designer of the film, Amrit Pritam said, “The film is shot in two different time frames -- present and the 1980s. While designing the sound for the film, I have mostly used ambience sounds like rain, wind, cultivation sounds like ploughing etc. Since the film involves childhood, hence I also had to keep in mind the kind of sounds that would help children develop an interest in the film and make it relevant. It is a great honour for the film industry that Xhoixobote Dhemalite ( Rainbow fields) is shortlisted for the award”. Founded in 1953, Motion Picture Sound Editors (M.P.S.E.) is an honorary society of motion picture sound editors. The 66th Annual Golden Reel Awards will be held on February 17, 2019 which will honour the sound editorial for the year 2018. This is one of the best prestigious awards in field of sound.

Hrishikesh Sarma

he Assamese film 'Marksheet' has recently won multiple awards for Best Debut Director (Ratan Sil Sarma), Best Director (Ratan Sil Sarma), Best Editor (Ratan Sil Sarm) at the Prag Cine Awards. The story of 'Marksheet' revolves around a young boy who ran away from home because he got very low scores in his mid-year exams. Babu, a 10 year-old kid, who loves to live in his own world of fantasies, does not pay attention to his studies. His father always pushed him to hard to study and used to

compare his marks with the exam toppers. Babu did not score well in his mid-year exams and did not have the courage to confront his father and thus he plans to run away to his grandfather's home. On his way, he meets an unknown kid, Azad, who is of his age. Soon, they become friends. Azad comes to know about the situation Babu is facing, and comes forward to help him. The cast includes Aditya Malla Bujorborua, Abhijit Choudhury, Pranami Bora, Kintu Kalita and Dibyajyoti Saikia. The music of the film has been directed by Tarali Das, and cinematographed by Dikhit Das.

Plus-sizemodelfromAssam bags‘AsiaPrideAward’ Kalyan Kumar Kalita

rogyashree Hazarika from Assam was recently honored with the ‘Iconic Woman Diva Award’ at the AC Excellence Awards 2018 which was organized by All India Achievers Conference in New Delhi. The Assamgirlhasdebunkedthestereotypical concept of beauty as slim, andassertedthat beauty is not just about the physical appearance but a feeling to standuprightandambitious. Progyashree is best known as Assam’s Plus Size model who has broken the stereotypical beliefs

about beauty and has set a new mark that beauty is much more than just countingcomments. Themodelproudlyholdstheposition of national brand ambassador and coordinator of ‘Anti-Corruption Foundation of India.’ She was honored with the ‘Asia Pride Award’ by the organization and presented the award by famous celebrity actor, RazaMurad. According to Progyashree, nobody should feel uncomfortable in their body. She believes that modeling is all about beauty and strength and not just size. “Our body is a onetime blessing from God. That’s why we should carry it as a pride and always flaunt our curves withasmile,”shesaid.

G PLUS | JAN 19 - JAN 25, 2019

Printed & Published by Sunit Jain on behalf of Insight Brandcom Pvt. Ltd. and Printed at Janambhumi Press (P) Ltd., Kalapahar, Guwahati and Published at 4A, Royale Arcade, Ulubari, Guwahati - 781007, Editor: Swapnil Bharali. Phone: 0361 2522444, Email: info@g-plus.in, RNI No: ASSENG/2013/52641