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ASSENG/2015/64205
PAGE 12
Vol. II
Issue 45
Dibrugarh, Tuesday, August 2, 2016
INDIA VS WEST INDIES: I WISH TO KEEP IMPROVING ON MY PERFORMANCES WITH MORE CONSISTENCY, SAYS LOKESH RAHUL
Devotees flung in large number Golaghat, Aug 1: Under the banner of Shiv Jalabhishek Kawad Yatra Samity Golaghat devotees in large number offered holy water at Town Shiv Temple today. Devotees dressed in orange dress went to Dhansiri river to collect water barefooted. After coming from there they performed the ritual on the second Monday of Sawan month. Next Monday devotees will gather in Neghreting Temple of Lord Shiva. (Correspondent)
OIL donates 75 lakhs for flood victims of Assam Guwahati, Aug 1: Oil India Limited, as part of its corporate social responsibility, handed over a cheque worth Rs. 75 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. OIL CMD Utpal Bora handed over the cheque to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal at Brahmaputra State Guest House today. Chief Minister Sonowal thanked OIL CMD for his gesture in contributing to the Chief Minister ’s Relief Fund. (A Staff Reporter)
PAGE 6 MAO CITIZENS, SHOPKEEPERS REPAIR NH-2 Page - 5
MP Gogoi raises flood Assam floods: Toll climbs Assam situation issue in Lok Sabha to 34, 11 lakh affected
hit people in Maharashtra and the National Capital Region (NCR) also," he said, adding that the central government was apathetic towards the people's problems.
IANS New Delhi, Aug 1
PTI Guwahati, Aug 1
The opposition Congress on Monday raised the issue of flood situation in eastern and northeastern India and said the casualty figures have gone up to 90, including 45 of them in Assam.
Flood situation in Assam continued to remain grim today with three more persons losing their lives, taking the death toll to 34 in the current deluge in which over 11 lakh people have been affected.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Congress member Gaurav Gogoi said in the Lok Sabha that the situation has turned serious in states like Bihar also.
According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), two persons were killed at Bilasipara and Chapar in Dhubri district, and one person lost his life at Barpeta town in Barpeta district.
"What has happened in eastern and northeastern India is very serious," he said. The
With this, the death toll in the current wave of floods has gone up to 34 in the state.
Flood victims of recent Assam flood.
The ASDMA said more than 11 lakh people are suffering across 1,659 villages in 21 districts. Till yesterday, nearly 17 lakh people were affected by floods across 2,266 villages.
Kokrajhar, Dibrugarh, Biswanath, Kamrup Metropolitan, Nagaon, South Kamrup, Karbi Anglong and Chirang.
As of now, the affected districts are Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Jorhat, Bongaigaon, Dhemaji, Barpeta, Goalpara, Dhubri, Darrang, Morigaon, Sonitpur, Nalbari, Sivasagar,
Among them, Barpeta is the worst affected with nearly three lakh people still suffering, followed by Morigaon with almost 2.7 lakh and Goalpara with 1.4 lakh people hit by the floods.
Authorities are running 366 relief camps and distribution centres, where over 1.25 lakh people are taking shelter across 15 districts. More than one lakh hectares of crop area are under the flood water across the state, besides washing away a number of roads, embankments, bridges and other infrastructure. Currently, the Brahmaputra
is flowing above the danger mark at Nematighat in Jorhat and Dhubri town, while its tributaries Dhansiri at Numaligarh in Golaghat and Beki at Road Bridge in Barpeta are flowing above the normal level. Meanwhile, Oil India Limited, as part of its corporate social responsibility, handed over a cheque of Rs 75 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.
CM Pema Khandu conducts high level meeting over growing traffic congestions CM constitutes six member Interim Committee ET Bureau Itanagar, Aug 1
CM Khandu taking brief over proposed construction of tunnels to bypass Sela pass
Chief Minister Pema Khandu was briefed about the road development works being taken up by BRO at BomdilaTawang road and on the proposed construction of tunnels to bypass Sela pass.
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Page - 6
CM Pema Khandu briefs the progress reports of proposed construction of tunnels to bypass Sela pass
ET Bureau Itanagar, Aug 1
5.00
MAMATA CRITICISES CENTRE FOR DIVISIVE POLITICS
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ET CAPSULES
Price -
RS Rao, Commander, 42 BRTF had called on the Chief Minister who briefed him about the progress of the work. Two tunnels are proposed that will bypass Sela pass by nearly 10 km, Contd. on Page 3
Taking cognizance of the growing traffic congestions, poor road conditions in Capital Complex and proper solid waste management of the twin capital city, Chief Minister Pema Khandu convened a high level meeting with departmental officials and reviewed the issues here today. Khandu constituted a six member Interim Committee to make a thorough case study of traffic congestions and come out with a definite solution. He called for a clear- cut solution to the issues and directed concerned officials to submit the report latest by 13th of this month. He advised
CM Khandu during high level meeting at Itanagar them to take into consideration the views and suggestions of the citizens expressed through the online Survey Management System with regard to traffic management
and road conditions of the state capital city that was recently launched by the govt. Contd. on Page 3
Gaurav Gogoi casualty figures has gone up to 45 in Assam, said the MP from Kaliabor. "Around eight lakh people have been affected. Flood has
According to reports from Assam, areas affected by this year's flood spread across districts like Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Jorhat, Bongaigaon, Dhemaji, Barpeta, Goalpara, Dhubri, Darrang, Morigaon, Sonitpur, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Kokrajhar, Dibrugarh, Kamrup, Nagaon and Karbi Anglong. Morigaon is the worst affected with nearly 3.5 lakh people hit, reports said.
LPG price hiked Rs 1.93/cylinder, non-subsidised LPG cut by Rs 50 IANS New Delhi, Aug 1
In a move to cut subsidies, state-run oil marketing companies (OMCs) has hiked the price of subsidised LPG by Rs 1.93 per cylinder. A 14.2 kg subsidised
cooking gas cylinder will now cost Rs 423.09 in Delhi as against Rs 421.16 earlier. LPG rates were last hiked by Rs 1.98 on July 1. The monthly increase in LPG rates is along the lines taken towards the deregulation
of diesel in November 2014, which was preceded by raising the fuel rates by 50 paise a litre every month. In case of kerosene for public distribution, Contd. on Page 4
Approximately 1,374 crashes and 400 deaths take place every day on Indian roads: Adv Ajoy Hazarika A Staff Reporter Guwahati, Aug 1
“India is World’s sixth largest Car Market and 2.03 million passenger cars were sold in India as per last year data. India has been witnessing very high rate of road accidents resulting in the largest number of road deaths and injuries in the world. Approximately 1,374 crashes and 400 deaths take place every day on Indian roads. One of the major reasons behind high causalities in road accidents in the lack of safety features in Indian cars which have been criticized as being insufficient and ineffective compared to developed countries.” This was told by Advocate Ajoy Hazarika, Secretary, Consumers’ Legal Protection Forum in the state level car safety workshop organized by Consumer Voice in collaboration with Consumers’ Legal Protection Forum,
Assam at Ambika Academy Auditorium, Hatigaon Chariali, Guwahati on Sunday to make consumers aware of different car safety aspects today. Attending as a speaker, automobile expert Mrinal Medhi said “When the World is gearing up for fully automated self drive cars, most of the cars sold in India lack basic safety features like air bags, antilock braking systems (ABS), electronic stability control (ESC) etc. Due to absence of strict safety regulations and testing procedures like Global New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP), car manufactures design their cars in India without essential car safety features in name of cost cutting. Recently when some of popular cars in India were tested on NCAP standards and out of 5 four failed badly”.
Presiding over the workshop noted social worker Atul Chandra Dutta told that while buying car consumers should give preference to safety features not, just its looks, price and other luxuries. Swagata kashyap, Lecturer J.B.Law College, Retd. State Govt. officer Kalyan Kumar Borthakur, Agriculture Expert Durgeswar Thakuria, Biplaba Nanda Choudhury of Grahak Suraksha Sangstha and other speakers from different fields also focus and discuss on car safety issues and demand for safer cars for consumers. Most of the speakers demand for safer cars will push for better safety regulation and standards in India at par with global safety standards. The workshop was attended by more than 100 participants including consumers, students, CSOs, govt. Officials from various departments from all over the state.
Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) units handle 107 wild rescue cases in Kaziranga floods Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) units of the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) – the wildlife rescue, care and rehabilitation facility jointly run by Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), Assam Forest Department (AFD) and International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) – have attended 107 wildlife rescue cases in the ongoing flood crisis in Kaziranga National Park as of August 1.
cmyk
Kaziranga, one of India’s UNESCO world heritage
vehicular traffic. While the Kaziranga Forest Authority had introduced a ‘Time Card’ system to regulate the speed of vehicles on NH37 during the floods, the role of MVS units – three from CWRC and one from WTI and the Japan Tiger and Elephant Fund’s Wildlife Rescue Centre at Diphu – in running round-the-clock rescue and wildlife crisis mitigation operations in the four Forest Ranges adjoining the highway has been crucial.
sites, has faced a major wildlife crisis this year due to what are being described as the worst floods in a decade.
As large areas of the park are inundated in the annual monsoon floods, wild animals
seek higher ground across National Highway 37 towards the foothills of Karbi Anglong. The intense flooding this year
has caused unprecedented animal movement and a large number of casualties, particularly hog deer, from
MVS teams have handled 107 rescue cases in seven days. They have released 62 hog deer out of 92 rescue cases attended to date; they have also attended, with the AFD, three eastern swamp deer rescues
(two of the deer survived and were brought to CWRC for treatment). Working with the Kaziranga Forest Authority, MVS teams have also attended ten Asian one-horned rhinoceros rescue cases in a week of floods, of which one rhino died before it could be brought to the rescue centre and another was rescued and released shortly after. Eight rhinos, all calves separated from their mothers, have been kept under observation at the Large Animal Nursery at CWRC. A jungle owlet and a fishing cat were also admitted to the centre for treatment during the floods. The sudden influx of rescued animals – especially
the large number of rhino calves – into CWRC has stretched the centre’s resources to the limit. “The number of animals under our care has risen sharply in the last week”, said Dr Rathin Barman, Deputy Director, WTI and Centre-in-charge. We have had to erect a temporary shelter where two baby elephants are being housed. Two paddocks are also ready to the shift rhino calves into once they become stable. Of course, several of these animals will require long term care once we can look beyond the current situation towards possible rehabilitation into the wild.” Contd. on Page 4
cmyk
ET Bureau Kaziranga, Aug 1
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
PAGE 2
ASTRO FOR YOU Aries You will be indecisive today, which is not usually the case with you. This could lead you to indulge in speculation, which is not so bad unless you risk all your money in it. Besides, when it comes to matters of the heart, you must exercise a great deal of caution. Taurus Impulsive action kicks in as you work and interact today. Do not let the pressure and strain cloud your thoughts, and instead focus on acting on the things at hand. If you find things spiralling out of control, take a break and listen to some music that soothes your heart. Gemini Today, you will decide to become a bit more conscious about your health. You may or may not join a gym or measure your calories, but you will definitely sit up and take notice of your lifestyle and unhealthy food habits. A new job is also likely, which will open a completely new chapter in your life. Cancer Today, you will put your heart and soul into whatever task you take up. And, that's a great thing to do. Don't lose heart though, if despite the best efforts, the results of your efforts are not too forthcoming. Feeling dejected is only going to hamper your progress. Remember that you'll receive your due sooner or later. Spend some time with your loved ones to revive yourself. Alternatively, a quiet evening tucked in the bed with a nice book is also a great idea. Leo If one were to put an earnest spirit and a frank attitude together, the result would be a Leo; it's like your hallmark. And with qualities like these in your kitty, don't be surprised if you happen to reach a milestone or two today. Will it be marital bliss or career success? No matter what the area is, be assured that your societal standing shall get a heady boost today. Just don't let the success go to your head. Virgo The booster rockets of your ambitions and spirit to work will kick in at the maximum today. Seek recreation after a hard day's work and look to relax at private parties, socialdos and even weddings. Libra "Every man has specific natural abilities", said Aristotle. This seems to be true for you today. Your natural talents will be acknowledged and documented at work. This might prompt your equals to hold you up above the rest, and for your seniors to positively encourage you to scale greater heights. But as always, be careful to make sure that success does not make you heady with arrogance. Keep yourself firmly grounded, and remember that, 'pride cometh before the fall'. Scorpio You will find yourself thinking with your heart rather than your head today. You may not be able to repress your feelings, and you should not even try. But you should be careful about how you express them, particularly in public as people may judge you wrongly on the basis of it. Sagittarius Today, your superiors at work are going to trust you with many complicated assignments. But, after exerting yourself, you are sure to come out with flying colors and have your work appreciated. Do not be surprised if cash incentives come your way. Such may indeed be your fortune. Capricorn You will be a live wire, today. With amazing exuberance you have completed mammoth tasks and have spread the energy around. It will give you tremendous job-satisfaction. Everything seems well and good the personal front, too. Spending some quality time your spouse will relax your mind and keep you in an upbeat mood. Aquarius For a moment, it seems that you're swamped with problems. But you are brave enough to deal with any ugly issue that crops up suddenly. A romantic evening, which may just be time together in a jacuzzi, or simply preparing a meal together. Pure ecstasy! Pisces You are fond of traveling and are always looking for an excuse to set off. Hence it comes as no surprise if you pack your bags and decide to embark upon a journey on a whim today. It is a much needed break too, from the daily stresses of earning a livelihood. While you are seeking solitude, you will take your friends and relatives along with you on the trip.
PRASAR BHARATI (India's Public Service Broadcaster) ALL INDIA RADIO : DIBRUGARH (M.W.529.1m/KHz567 F.M. 101.30 MHz) Phone No.-03732325456 E-mail -dibrugarh@air.org.in Facebook Page-All India Radio Dibrugarh Programme Highlights 2-8-16 (TUESDAY) 6-10 A.M-Swasthya Charcha 6-15 A.M-Classical Music 6-50 A.M-Folk Song (Tokari Geet) 7-15 A.M-Aajir Dinto 7-30 A.M-Geetanjali 8-35 A.M-Surar Panchoi 9-05 A.M-Antara 12-30 P.M-Geetimanjari 1-10 P.M- Troops Programme 2-00 P.M-Singphow Songs 2-10 P.M-Brindagaan 2-30 P.M-Western Music Programme 3-45 P.M-Programme in Mizumishimi 4-05 P.M- Programme in Khamti 4-25 P.M-Programme in Wancho 5-00 P.M-Programme in Idu 6-15 P.M-Ganya Raijor Anusthan 7-15 P.M-Chah Sramikor Aasor 7-45 P.M-Aadhunik Geet 8-00 P.M-Krira Jagat-Talk-"Rio Olympic Aaru Bharotiyo Kheluwoir Pratyasa"by Jayanta M Gogoi 9-30 P.M-Sahitya Kanan-Poem Recitation by Nilotpala Dutta Shaikia 10-00 P.M-Question Hour in Parliament Sd-/H.O.P
Drinking water becoming unsafe ET Correspondent Golaghat, Aug 1: The present drinking water system of Golaghat town has become unsafe and such allegations have been brought by local public of the town. It is to be known that the water of pond at the backyard of Double Storey Parking building has been used by Municipality for town water after filtration. But presently the pond is found to be filled up with bottles, thermocol and other materials which is considered to be a threat to the health of town people. Apart
from this nearby the pond is public urinal and as per the complaint the pipes of
urinal has leakage and eventually the leakage is getting mixed with the
very pond water. "This situation may lead to serious water borne and seri-
ous skin diseases" says conscious public. The very water is supplied to almost every nook and corner including hotels, houses, shops, schools etc as such the matter is becoming serious as municipality is not checking out the matter which may lead to uncertain disaster. Even the notorious public are found not using the public urinal for avoiding fee to be paid and they are seen urinating on the walls. However the parking place has already become the spitting place for many due to municipalities carelessness.
Governor interacts with mem- Delhi Public School Numaligarh bers of tea tribe organizations Bags Top Position in the Country ET Correspondent Guwahati, Aug 1: “Society cannot progress if a section of its people are left behind”, said the Governor of Assam P.B. Acharya in an interactive programme with a delegation of Tea Tribe organizations at Raj Bhawan on Sunday, informed administration in a press release. Governor Acharya in the interactive programme with a delegation of 25 members discussed the vital issues for the welfare of the tea garden community in Assam. With a view to bolster education driven development of tea tribes’ community, the Vice President, BJP Assam Pradesh Siba Prasad Bodra requested the Governor to introduce reservation for the students belonging to tea tribe community in Guwahati University and other Universities of Assam in line with Dibrugarh University. Addressing the problem of Education, Governor
SSB organises medical camp at Chirang ET Correspondent Kokrajhar, Aug 1: A medical civic action programme was conducted by SSB and civil Doctors at Dadgiri weekly market along Indo-Bhutan border on Monday in Chirang district. It was organised to provide medical aid to the flood affected peoples in the area and distributed medicines at free of costs. KS Shekhwat, officer of 16th Battalion of SSB graced and distributed the medicine among relief inmates. Relief camp inmates expresses their appreciation for noble venture initiated from SSB.
Acharya said that Education is the only tool to empowerment and stressed upon to build more schools and colleges in the tea garden areas. He added that skill based education should take over the conventional education. Also empathizing with the tea tribe organization, the Governor said that he being the Chancellor of Universities of the State he would definitely do the needful for introduction of reservation for the tea tribes. The Governor also commented that all the Universities in Assam should act on the research works carried out on the tea gardens or the tea gardeners so that based on the findings, follow up actions for the development of tea tribe community can be taken. Shri Acharya also said that he would talk to the government for setting up of one model school covering every five tea gardens. The Governor also asked
the Commissioner of Assam Tea Employee’s Welfare Board to check the lower wage structure board for the tea garden labourers working in the Barak valley and stressed for having equal wages all over the state. Highlighting Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s schemes like ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ and ‘Jan Dhan Yojana’ the Governor said that to address the socio economic development of the tea garden labourer community at large, the benefits of the schemes should be fully utilized at the grass root level. Member of Parliament from Jorhat Kamakhya Prasad Tasa present in the meeting assured the tea tribe organizations that all possible steps would be taken for the uplift of the tea labourers. The Governor also urged upon the media to highlight the issues confronting the tea garden labourer community so that their problems could be addressed accordingly.
Students pay homage Rahul Singner Sushanta Roy Diphu August 1: The Diphu Government College, Karbi Culture Society Unit and the Diphu Government College Students Union Committee commemorated the death anniversary of Late Rahul Singner who laid down his life for Autonomous State Movement on 31st July 2013. The highlight of the commemoration program was lighting of the candles at the main entrance of the Diphu Government College at around 6.30 pm. The program was conducted by DGC-KCS Unit President Waisong Mukrang Terang, DGCSUC General Secretary Mukrang Bey, and accompanied by Hostellers of Rasinja Girls Hostel, Serdihun Girls Hostel,
Waisong Boys Hostel and other Students. Speaking on the occasion, student Leader Mukrang Bey said that DGC students had taken active part in the 31st July uprising when many among them received bullet injuries and many had to go to jail. He mentioned that the heroes of that rising deserved salutation.
ET Correspondent Golaghat, Aug 1: In a recent result analysis carried out by Delhi Public School Society the DPS Numaligarh has marked itself the top rank among all 22 PSU DPSs of the country. Also the school bagged the first position among all the 8 Delhi Public Schools of the North Eastern Region. The Result Analysis which includes this year's AISSCE (Class XII) results and based on Performance Index of the batch in all the three streams of Science, Humanities and Commerce. This year
Akangsha Dutta has secured the first DPS rank in Humanities, Chahbaz Aman and Vidisha Jain secured sixth DPS rank in Science and Commerce respectively. Altogether ten students from DPS Numaligarh secured top ten positions in the three streams. Remarkably in the same analysis last year DPS Numaligarh was placed in the seventh position among all the 124 DPS schools in the country and abroad. So this latest analysis brings a major achievement for the school and also to Golaghat.
Parbotjhora model hospital inaugurated ET Correspondent Kokrajhar, Aug 1: BTC chief, Hagrama Mohilary, inaugurated the newly constructed Parbotjhora model hospital at Tipkai on Monday under Parbotjhora subdivision in Kokrajhar district. The hospital was constructed amounting of Rs. 3.72 crores from BTC administration to facilitate medical services in the area. Mohilary also participated
in a meeting organized in connection with the programme. Mohilary said, the BTC administration was working for the uplift of society in the region, especially health sector has been given priority to make socially awareness on health among society. Mohilary urged citizens of the area to come forward while making social integration towards building social unity.
FASHION
The day was also observed by Joint Action Committee for Autonomous State (JACAS) at Hidim Teron Community Hall, Manja yesterday. In the morning at 8.30 am JACAS members lit candles and paid floral tribute to martyr Rahul Singnar at the memorial column which was led by Stalyn Ingti, vice Chairman of JACAS.
DC reviews flood situation in Kamrup ET Correspondent Rangia, Aug 1: Kamrup DC Vinod Seshan has asked the Circle Officers and officers of Agriculture, Water Resources, PWD, Veterinary, Health, PHE and Education etc to assess the flood damages in a professional way and to submit the list on a prioritise way within August 4. Reviewing the flood situ-
ation in Kamrup and South Kamrup Districts on August 1, DC asked the officers to undertake proper field assessment of the damages of crop, embankment, road and Government buildings etc in view of flood. He further stressed on immediate submission of proposal in regards exgratia, if any, in any circle.
Earlier on July 31, Kamrup DC also directed the concerned officials to take necessary steps to ensure that schools where relief camps are set up should be restored to original conditions after the camp is wound up. He also instructed to take all steps to prevent water born diseases in villages after flood recedes.
Models cat walk on a ramp during Upper Assam x Weekend Presents by SRS groups and Dress designer by Mrs Sangeeta Singpho at Dibrugarh. Pic - Pronib Das
Mass prayer conducted for peace & tranquility
A flood relief camp was organised by Agarwal Yuva Sangh Sanskruti led by Pulkit Chamaria, President & Agarwal Seva Samity, Tinsukia on 31/07/2016, Sunday covering 4 villages of Barekuri Area and reaching more then 500 people. Members of Tinsukia Yuvak Sangh and Akhil Bharatiya Marwari Mahila Sammelan offered assistance during the organisation of the camp. Pic - Siddharth Singh
ET Bureau Bomdila, Aug 1: A Jinseg pooja - 'Maha Yagya' was organized today at Bhalukpong in the district, to invoke the god's divine blessings for peace and tranquility in the area by the Bhalukpong Buddhist Association.
Rimpoche and monks from the Thubchog Gatseling Monastery, Lower Gompa Bomdila offered the pooja praying for the peace of the departed souls who had lost their valuable lives in the tragic July 1 incident at Bhalukpong circuit house complex.
His Eminence Guru Tulku
A total of ten people had
lost their life and properties worth crores damaged. All the relatives of the deceased were also present in the Jinseg pooja. Praying for the swift rebirth of the departed souls, the Rimpoche expressed his condolences to the members of the bereaved families and said that, the Jinseg pooja is done to liberate the
souls and advised the members of the bereaved families to be spiritually strong and to cultivate more merit in one's life. Earlier, the president Bhalukpong Buddhist Association Kesang Wangda, i/c EAC Bhalukpong, elaborating on the need to go for such Maha Yagya
said that such measures wards off tragic incidents affecting the life and properties of the people. It facilitates peace to the departed souls and also paves the way for peace and tranquility in the area. Later, the event culminated with offering of Tsog (offering) pooja.
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
PAGE 3
Rastra Sevika Samiti refutes 'The Outlook' report Saint Claret College of on trafficking of 31 tribal girls from Assam Ziro celebrates Freshers’ A Staff Reporter Guwahati, Aug 1: The Rastra Sevika Samiti, North East chapter today sharply criticized a news article that had appeared in the news magazine ‘The Outlook’ on stating that the Rastra Sevika Samiti and its coorganizations are involved in trafficking of 31 tribal girls from Assam.
The Samiti while issuing this press statement condemning the unconstitutional and false news article written by Neha Dixit, which was published in “The Outlook” magazine. Neha Dixit’s article is totally false and baseless. In her article, she has provided wrong information and has labeled false allegation against
Rastra Sevika Samiti. The issues regarding 31 tribal girl’s child and their parents’ statements is entirely a self created propaganda by journalist Neha Dixit.
“Rastra Sevika Samiti strongly opposes this irresponsible and unjustified act of ‘The Outlook’ magazine,” states a statement from the organization. Understanding the need of national integrity and with a motto of enhancing the feeling of patriotism, in the year 1936 dated 25th October at Vardha; Nagpur on the auspicious occasion of Vijaya Dashami, Vandaneeya Laxmi Bai Kelkar (Mausiji) has
initiated the work of Rastra Sevika Samiti. Since its inception Samiti is working on socio-economic issues related to women. For the greater interest of nation building and to inculcate the ideologies of sacrifice, service, self-confidence as well as empowerment among woman, the Samiti is devotionally working from the past 80 years. They are also working for psychological, spiritual and physiological development of women across the country. As the ideology of the Rastra Sevika Samiti has been accepted worldwide, it is also active in 41 other countries.
all these years Samiti has been active in various social activities related to the upliftment of the status of women in the region.
The North East chapter of the Rastra Sevika Samiti has been active since 1975, and
However as this region is plagued by various socioeconomic issues, it is often
Keeping in the mind and looking at the unstable scenario persisting in the region, the Samiti has been working all along to bring the spirit of patriotism and nationalism among the women here. Along with empowering women through education, the Samiti has also involved and indulged in providing various social services in the region for the girls of the deprived section of the society.
difficult to impart education on all. The Samiti takes steps to ensure children gets access to education, and the facilities for their overall developments. The Samiti runs three women hostels in Assam, one in Mizoram and has 30 hostels in other parts of the country, where over 180 girl children are availing proper education. Apart from this several girl students have also completed their education and are now working in different parts of the country. The Samiti always serve the people of Assam at the time of need and they have extended their services during natural calamities and riots in the state.
Dissatisfied with Sunday LAWS felicitates Meritorious meeting, PPWC to go with Students of Lodu Society Pasighat bandh on 6th MaksamTayeng Pasighat, Aug 1: While showing dissatisfaction with Sunday’s power meeting held with officials of power department at DC’s Chamber under the Chairmanship of DC Pasighat Isha Khosla, Pasighat Peoples’ Welfare Committee has decided to continue its proposed Pasighat bandh on 6th August next. While talking to this reporter yesterday evening, PPWC Chairman Okom Yosung and General Secretary Oyin Moyong has said that, no satisfactory assurance was received from the concern authorities which are so unfortunate. “As communicated to us earlier, that Commissioner Power is also attending the meeting, we had high expectation that we will reach with a good and satisfactory solution. But due to non attendance of Commissioner, Power and Executive Engineer, Aalo Division, no clear assurance could be delivered from both the Chief Engineers, i.e. Central Zone, Takar Mara and Transmission, Planning and Monitoring, Anong Perme.”, added the duo. Whatever was delivered to convince us by Mara and Perme was void of any seriousness as no concrete assurance
was given to us, hence finding no solution, we are compelled to go with the proposed bandh on 6th August next if government doesn’t take up necessary step by 5th August, added PPWC. Beside a joint meeting with Commissioner (Power), CE Central Zone, CE (T,P & M), EE Aalo, EE Rumgong, EE Pasighat, PPWC is demanding for enhancement of power allocation of 3 MW to 5 MW from Assam, working out modules for early detection and restoration of fault at Aalo-Rumgong side etc. In today’s meeting, CE (Central Zone), CE (T, P & M), EE, Rumgong, SE Pasighat, local MLA, ZPC, representatives from PPWC and officials attended. When contacted for her statement on Sunday’s final solution, meeting Chairman cum DC, Pasighat, Isha Khola said that, both the CEs has already given their assurances and are going to issue the necessary order or notification by tomorrow to address the problem raised by PPWC. She also said that, the necessary step has been taken from her side by proposing/ arranging today’s meeting where concern Chief Engineers Itanagar also attended and personally assured to solve the problem.
ET Bureau Ziro, Aug 1: As has been the tradition at Saint Claret College, Ziro, the senior Claretines organized a colourful Freshers’ Day 2016, much to the delight of the newcomers to the college. During the celebration Mr. Dani Obing and Ms. Ebribra Mihu were adjudged Mr. Fresher and Ms. Fresher respectively, informed college authority in a press release. The event began with the lighting of the lamp by representatives of the management, the staff, and the
freshers. The newly admitted batch of B. A., B.Com, and Mass Com students were divided into seven groups wherein they presented themselves before assigned teams of seniors and staff, who marked them on their self-confidence and communication skills. Each group nominated two winners to the final round in which a panel of five judges scored them on their overall personality traits and talents. The finalists showed an amazing range of talents and handled the judges’ ques-
tions with varying degrees of confidence. The competition rounds were interspersed with variety entertainment from various batches. Crowning and felicitating the Mr & Ms. Freshers, the principal, Dr. (Fr.) Paulson Veliyannoor, invited them to be role models for the entire college and congratulated the seniors for making the event enjoyable and heart-warming for the freshers. The day ended with table fellowship for all students and staff.
Apex Professional University observes its 3rd foundation day Aalo, Aug 1:- Meritorious students of Lodu society in the CBSE examination for the year 2016-17 were felicitated by the Lodu Ao Welfare Society in a thickly attended function held at Conference Hall of Hotel Aagam on 31st July last. Miss Kasen Tato, Miss Kisson Boje and Miss Iken Bole from Class XII Science, Miss Karpi Potom, Miss Yajum Paja and Master Senge Poyom from class XII Arts, and Master Dekar Potom, Genam Potom, Marge Tato, Miss Marry
Bogo, Master Tomo Potom, Miss Degam Boje, Miss Kai Tato, Master Komri Bogo, Miss Yilynn Raksap, Master Kimmo Boje, Master Bigam Tato, Miss Pokjum Raksap, Master Tetor Potom and Jarluk Param from Class X were felicitated with certificate of merit trophy and cash prizes Chief Guest, Shri Yiba Boje rtd. DAEO and Guest of Honour Shri Pokdey Yomgam, Vice Principal Govt. H.S. School Yomcha exhorted the students to keep up the brilliant perfor-
Assam assembly Speaker meets DoNER minister over floods IANS New Delhi, Aug 1: Assam Assembly Speaker Ranjit Kumar Dass called on the DoNER Minister Jitendra Singh on Monday to discuss the Assam floods and the devastation caused by it. Dass informed Singh that all the ministers in the state government were making all efforts to mitigate the suffering of the people affected by floods. During the meeting Dass was told that there will be no dearth of cooperation from the Centre in rehabilitating the affected
people during the floods. "Dass also brought to the notice of Jitendra Singh the project relating to the construction of a two-lane Railway Over-bridge in Barpeta district under the Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) funds of the DoNER ministry," said an official statement. Dass apprised Singh about the Detailed Project Report (DPR), which had already been sent by the Assam government and was personally following up the matter.
CM Pema Khandu briefs the progress reports of proposed construction of tunnels to bypass Sela pass Contd. from Page 1
Long Que in front of SBI ATM at Tezu in Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh. Pic - Dinesh Goyal
Day with enthusiasms
which is expected to significantly curtail travel time to Tawang by one hour. Also it will provide an all weather road since during winter Sela pass remains covered in snow making journey difficult. An approach road to the entry of the first tunnel (500m) will take off at 229 km point. The entry to the second tunnel (1450m) from the exit of the first tunnel will be joined by another approach road. The approach road from the exit from the second tunnel will finally meet the existing Tawang road at 247.5 km point. Bypassing of Sela pass will make motorable journey easier letting tourist inflow even during harsh
winter when the pass remains cut off due to heavy snowfall, the discussion observed. Also the BRO official briefed the Chief Minister on the issue of land acquisition on the SelaKela-Rama Sapper camp under Dirang subdivision. He informed the CM that latest technology in cement carpeting is being used for re-carpeting of roads in the area which can withstand harsh weather conditions and had life of more than 25 years. Chief Secretary Shakuntala Gamlin, who was part of the briefing, suggested having provision for laying of optical cable fibre along the highway so that later inconvenience could be overcome. Chief Minister decided to visit the proposed site in the last part of August next.
mance all through their academic career to come out as good officers and citizen of the society. The President and Secretary LAWS Shri Bidu Poyom and Shri Kali Paja disclosed that this is the 2nd Felicitation function of this kind to encourage students of Lodu area where the literary percentage is quite low in comparision to other clans of our community. Many senior officers and public also shared their views and goodwill message to the student community of the occasion.
Spl Correspondent Pasighat, August 1: The Apex Professional University, Pasighat which had started its journey toward imparting quality education to the students of this border state offering various degree courses some three years ago after getting approved from Government of Arunachal Pradesh has observed its 3rd Foundation Day today in the university where John Neihlaja, IPS, DIG, Central Zone, Pasighat attended as Chief Guest. While speaking on the occasion, DIG, Neihlaja em-
phasized the need for students in other states in India to be educated of the ethnic diversity and varying Socio-economic conditions of people staying in NE India. He also that this can be possible if the curriculum in high schools and higher secondary schools in rest of India included a study of NE India in all is aspects like economic, social, political, geographical etc. He also expressed his desire, that the society in rest of India respect the aspirations of the NE Indian students and provide a suitable study environment for them. Uni-
versities have to be the change of agent in society, he added Earlier, Professor (Dr) A.A. Dange ViceChancellor welcomed the Chief Guest and gave a brief account of the new schools-School of Legal and Juridical studies, School of Agriculture, School of Education that will be started this year. Dr. Baruah, Registrar (i/c) proposed the vote of thanks. Besides faculty members, students also took active participation in the foundation day observation.
USFA Conducts Mega Traffic Awareness Camp Aalo Aug 1:- In order to regulate wreck less parking in crowed area of Aalo township, the United Studentsâ•™ Federation of Aalo in collaboration with Aalo Police organised one day traffic awareness at Aalo town today. Hundreds of NCC students from Govt. Higher Secondary School Aalo and Scouts and Guides from PI Middle School took part in the daylong awareness camp to generate awareness on parking of vehicles. The President and General Secretary of USFA Shri Markar Lollen, Shri Dojum Ete and Organizing Chairman Shri Jomgum Ete disclosed that the camp is being conducted voluntarily to inculcate
sense of vehicle parking in the crowed places of Aalo Township and appealed all
citizens to cooperate and park their vehicles in proper manner to avoid traffic con-
gestions. The two wheelers riders were also appealed to use helmets for safe drive.
CM Pema Khandu conducts high level meeting over growing traffic congestions Contd. from Page 1 Pointing that garbage collection is another issue that needs to be managed properly, the CM asked the DC Capital to make a proper plan of garbage collection so as to make the state capital garbage free. He also said to give full support to the Itanagar Municipal Council and Urban Development Department for garbage management. He asserted that the Administration, Urban Development and the Itanagar Municipal Council must work in tandem to manage the
problem. Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, also present in the meeting, said that need of the hour is development of civic sense among the capital dwellers. He stated that Waste Management is a part of cleanliness drive; people must change their mindset and inculcate a habit of cleanliness to make the city garbage free. P D Sona, MLA participating in the discussion, suggested that the state capital adopt and use Information Technology in garbage management system in line
with other metropolitan cities of the country. Chief Secretary Shakuntala Gamlin suggested charging minimal amount of fees from citizens so as to make the garbage management system self sustainable. Chief Councillor of Itanagar Municipal Council, Kipa Kaku sought the help and support of the govt and HoDs of various departments in proper Waste Management of the capital city. Chief Engineer (PWD) Nani Tatung, Deputy Commissioner (Capital)
Sandeep Kumar, SP (Traffic) Hibu Tamang, CEO cum ADM (Capital) Talo Potom and Director SSANS Solutions Sandeep Das made power point presentations on Road Condition in Capital Complex, Waste Collection System, Traffic Management and Security Status of Arunachal Civil Secretariat respectively. Among others, Satya Gopal, Principal Secretary (Home), Commissioners Hage Kojeen, Bilatee Pertin, Ashish Kundra, Secretaries, Chief Engineers (PWD Highways) and DG attended the meeting.
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
PAGE 4
Post flood situation Government silence on miserable in Lakhimpur PDS scam irks public 34 schools in Bihpuriya and 26 in Nowboicha Education Block still affected
ET Correspondent Lakhimpur, Aug 1: Though the flood situation of Lakhimpur has slightly improved, the affected people have to still pass their days in miserable conditions. Normal life has not come back to those areas where flood ravaged the day to day activities of the common people. The victims are now suffering a lot in case of processing food items and pure drinking water and fodder for the livestock. Though the District Administration has tried to relieve their agony by distributing flood relief of rice, lentil and salt; it does not turn to be enough as the answer of
Health Camps at Flood affected villages of Kamrup ET Correspondent Rangia, Aug 1: The Health Department has deputed 15 nos. of medical teams at various flood affected areas of Kamrup and South Kamrup Districts. During last one week, the Health department has conducted regular health camps at Hajo, Palashbari, Chaygaon, Chamaria, North Guwahati and Nagarbera circles. In these health camps necessary medicines, water purification tablet and ORS pack were provided to the flood affected people. During the period, health education was imparted to 4914 nos. of flood affected people.
KamrupDC receives relief materials from SMC’89 ET Correspondent Rangia, Aug 1: For the flood affected people of Kamrup District, SMC’89, a NGO of Guwahati has handed over relief materials to Kamrup DC Vinod Seshan on August 1 at DC Office, Amingaon. Receiving the relief materials DC Seshan appreciated the generous help of the organisation for the flood affected people. The NGO has provided 50 nos. of Mosquito nets, 50 nos. of bed sheets, 50 pieces of Dishes, 120 nos. of Plain Copies for students and a good quantity of used clothes. It is noteworthy that, the SMC’89 is a newly formed NGO with the 1989 batch students of Saint Marries Convent, Guwahati with Dr.Jeena Bordoloi Deka as President and Nirmali Das as Secretary.
Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) units handle 107 wild rescue cases in Kaziranga floods Contd. from Page 1 “Our veterinarians and animal keepers have been working round the clock to ensure that rescued animals get the required treatment and care”, said Dr Panjit Basumatary, lead veterinarian at the centre. “A lot of the animals, as you would expect from the trauma they have undergone, are highly stressed. Several of the orphaned rhino calves in particular were injured and emaciated, and were initially not responding to our milk formula. They are now responding well, however – which brings its own set of challenges since they are aggressive, yet have to be hand-raised and rehabilitated before release!” Although water levels are now receding in Kaziranga the MVS teams remain in constant touch with the Assam Forest Department to ensure that no stray incident goes unattended.
Members of Golaghat Lions Club get ready to distribute aid to flood victims. Pic - Amit Nagori
their want. Amidst such dreaded conditions, most of the students of different schools have faced challenge regarding the continuation of their educational life. Students of more than fifty schools could not go to school today though their school was reopened after the month long summer vacation. As per report found 29, LP and 5 MV Schools under Bihpuriya Education Block. Similarly, 26 schools of Nowboicha Education Block are still affected by flood. As a result, the students of these schools are deprived of learning their lessons.
Govt to evacuate jobless Indians facing financial crunch in Saudi Arabia New Delhi, Aug 1 (PTI) A large number of Indian workers in Saudi Arabia who have lost their jobs and cannot even buy food due to severe financial hardship will be brought back home, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, asserting that not one of them will go hungry. In a statement in Parliament amid concerns by members in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Swaraj said her deputy V K Singh is leaving for Saudi Arabia to oversee the evacuation process. She said the Indian embassy in the Gulf nation was running five camps to feed the affected people. "Not one worker of ours will go hungry. This is my assurance to the country through Parliament... We will bring all of them back to India," Swaraj said. Issues like logistics and modalities of a possible repatriation of the workers who want to return to India will be worked out during
Sushma Swaraj Singh's visit. Official sources said approximately 10,000 Indian workers have been affected by the economic slowdown in the Gulf and the situation was "fluid and dynamic". They said the situation varied from company to company. Sources said 3,172 Indian workers in Riyadh have not been paid their salary dues for several months but are getting regular rations. Separately, 2,450 Indian workers belonging to the Saudi Oger Company are housed in five camps in Jeddah, Mecca and Taif. Since July 25, the company had stopped providing meals to the workers besides defaulting on their salaries, the sources said.
The Indian Consulate in Jeddah, with the assistance of the diaspora, has provided rations to the workers which should be sufficient for the next 8 10 days, they said. The government, Swaraj said, was in touch with the foreign and labour offices in Saudi Arabia to ensure early evacuation of affected Indians. Swaraj noted that the law there does not permit an emergency exit visa without no objection certificate from the employers who, she said, have shut their factories and left the country, leaving these employees stranded. The government has requested the Saudi authorities to give them exit visas without NoC from employers and also urged it to clear the dues of workers who have not been paid for months, whenever they settle the accounts with the companies concerned. .
Extended building of DHS Kanoi Commerce College inaugurated A Staff Reporter Dibrugarh, Aug 1: The newly built extended building of DHSK Commerce College here was inaugurated today in a function attended by many academics, distinguished citizens of the city along with the members of the college family. The three blocks A, B and C of the extended building built with the utilization of the Rs. 1 cr. infrastructural development fund sanctioned by Assam govt. as well as college fund was formally declared open by inaugurating the replicas of the said blocks respectively by Imran Hussain, Ghanashyam Adhikary and Gopal Chandra Sharma--retired teachers of the college. The block A is comprised of rooms for 'Internal Quality Assurance Cell'(IQAC), 'Equal Opportunity Centre', Smart class room, women's cell, girls' common room, separate toilet blocks for boys and girls, power house as well as parking space. The block B of the extended building covers boys common room, academic departmental rooms, day care centre, space for drinking water facility as well as 'Saraswati mandir'. The block C contains rooms for 'Information Career Guidance Cell'(ICGC), NSS, NCC, distance education besides parking space. Prof. Anowar Hussain, President of the college governing body, Dr. K. M.
Bhagawati, Principal of the college, Prof. Shristidhar Dutta, former Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences, Rajiv Gandhi University as well as Prof. A. R. M. Rehman, former head, Deptt. of Commerce, Dibrugarh University also graced the occasion. A few personalities from different section of society were also felicitated in connection with the programme. Among others, these personalities included Dr. Raghunath Borborah, former principal; Dhrubajyoti Bhattacharjee and Kalpana Khound-both former principals i/c; Harinarayan Yadav, Subodh Chandra Paul, Kunjalata Hatibaruah, Sarita Goswami, Chandralekha Kakoti---all former teachers of the college. Lakhimai Baruah as well as Dhiren Chetia-retired employees were also felicitated in the function. Representatives of students' guardians in the college governing body J. Gogoi and S. Gogoi; President of college Alumni body Pramod Garodia, President of Dibrugarh Bar Association Ajit Borgohain; noted Chartered Accountant Pramod Chandra Medhi, Dhrubajyoti Bhattacharjee, architect were also honoured in the function. Two alumni of the college--Manjit Borah, Editor'Dainik Pratikshan' and former executive editor of now obsolete daily 'Ajir Dainik Batori' and Lalit
Sharma, senior journalist of 'Purbachal Prahari' were also given warm felicitation in the programme. Dr. K. M. Bhagawati, Principal of the college welcomed the gathering; while Prof. Anowar HussainPresident, College governing body asked for co-operation from all concerned for the further improvement of the college scenario. The guests on the diace also praised the efforts of the college principal as well as the members of the entire college family for their thirst for development.
Sushanta Roy Diphu August 1: After revealing shocking scam concerning falsified giving out of the levy free food items meant for public distribution in Karbi Anglong district a month ago and massive protest by various students and social organizations till now no action has been initiated. It may be mentioned here that the dreadful swindle surfaced during the enquiry of N K Deka Barua, magistrate of Diphu court; it may be stated here that followed by strong protest by United Farmers Committee (UFC), Karbi Anglong Youth Organization (KAYO), Turbong Village Organization (TVO), Kuki Students organization (KSO), Kuki National Assembly (KNA), Karbi Students Association (KSA), Karbi Students & Youth Council (KSYC) who alleged that central government sponsored levy rice under National Food Security Act for BPL/APL/APP/ AAY etc in Karbi Anglong District has not been put into operation as per government norms since 2012 to 2016. The organizations complained against illegal
activities of Promod Shyam Deputy Director, Food and Civil Supply alleging his unholy nexus with Bajarang Industries; Deputy Commissioner of Karbi Anglong ordered a magisterial level probe to find the real extent of the scam, through letter no KGC.11/2015/114Dated 27.5. 16. The enquiry report supported by about 600 page document has mentioned that in March 2014 a quantity of 9060 quintal rice was distributed among 1719 Above Poverty Line (APL) Family Identity Card Holders of Hamren ( now West Karbi Anglong) which clearly shows that each family received 527 KG rice on that month but practically no rice was distributed. In case of Bokajan in the same month the PDS authority has in record distributed 6899 quintal of APL rice among just 44 APL card holding families which means each APL family received rice not in quantum of kilogram but in quintal here each family received 156 quintal rice. In case of Diphu, PDS authority dispersed 8000 quintal rice
Dr. Jecob Konwar and Luku Morang---both faculty members of the college anchored the entire programme including offering of vote of thanks. Pradeep Kumar Sahu, viceprincipal as well as coordinator of the programme has thanked all concerned for making the same a grand success.
Strangely the whole system of the distribution of wheat, rice, sugar for the APL and BPL card holders is controlled by the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council, here after receiving the government break up the Joint Secretary in charge of Food and Civil Supply sign the formal order for allocating the particular quantity of food item to certain allot tee and the Deputy Director of Supply and his team dose the field work in accordance to that order. In case of Karbi Anglong maximum numbers of APL cards have not been distributed among the families and in such situation question of receiving any PDS item by the non existing APL family does not seem possible It was mentioned in my earlier report that if the mal-
practice with levy wheat, sugar, Kerosene meant for both APL and BPL families of entire Karbi Anglong district ( undivided) if audited properly another episode of ruthless exploitation of the poor men’s meal will come to focus . Maximum levied rice are sold at Rs. 3/- or Rs.8.30 officially but these superfine rice are sold at Rs. 30/in open market. Both centre and Assam government pays dearly for procuring the levy items for feeding the needy but allegedly almost Rs.100.54 crore rupees scam is committed in Diphu subdivision alone each year in the department of food and civil supply; not to mention about West Karbi Anglong district, Bokajan and Howraghat subdivision which are also controlled by DDS Karbi Anglong. The primary report of the magisterial enquiry was send to Assam government and enquiry of the BPL scam is now underway, strangely the present government is maintaining a stoic silence on the findings.
New dental care hospital comes in Tezpur Shambhu Boro Tezpur, Aug 1: Yet in another endeavour keeping pace with the credit of providing health care service to the people of Tezpur and it’s adjoining areas in Sonitpur District the proprietor of EMM Hospital & Research Centre located at the heart of the Tezpur town has opened a new hospital christened “Tezpur Super Speciality Dental Care” at Kamarchuburi-Murhateteli here on Sunday marking a grand inaugural function. It is to be mentioned here that for decades, EMM Hospital & Research Centre has been providing quality health care to people of Tezpur and other remote areas in Sonitpur District whose effort has now been extended to specialized dental care. After inaugurating the hospital which shortly named as TDC, Deputy Commissioner, Sonitpur District, Laya Madduri expected the new dental are hospital would be able to provide the required dental care service
to the people coming from different corners. The occasion conducted by noted artist and reputed physician, Dr. Jahanara Begum was graced by noted lawyer, Iske Alom, President, Ban Theater, Mahendra Keot, note social worker and academician, Bijai Saikia, Ritubaran Sharma, Jitu Agarwala, Dr. Pradip Sharma among others. Besides the Deputy Commissioner other dignitaries present also spoke on the occasion. Highlighting the objectives of the hospital and facilities to be provided to the patients Dr. Farah Parveen mentioned that Tezpur Dental Care is a dream come true. “Most people know they should brush and floss regularly. Many of us were taught, since childhood that regular brushing is the key to having healthy teeth and the best way to avoid cavities. What is less well known is that, there are dangers associated with poor oral health that extend beyond cavities and well be-
Sensex climbs 180 points on GST hopes
yond the cosmetic inconvenience of discoloured teeth.” Dr. Parveen said mentioning a Healthy Mouth means a Healthy person. Emphasizing the importance of the dental care she also stated that one cannot be healthy without oral health. Oral and general health should not be interpreted as separate entities. “Oral diseases are progressive and cumulative and become more complex over time. They can affect our ability to eat the foods we choose, how we look and the way we communicate. These diseases can affect economic productivity and compromise our ability to work at home, at school, or at the work field.” She added further saying TDC is an attempt to provide improved, specialized and most recent dental health care treatment to the people of Tezpur and all neighboring places. Moreover, stating about the physician’s strength of the newly established hospital Dr. Parveen also mentioned that TDC has a team of few dedicated,
OMCs have been allowed to raise the price by 25 paise a litre each month for 10 months. The second such hike was effective from the midnight of Monday. Mumbai, Aug 1 (PTI) The BSE benchmark Sensex recovered by over 180 points to 28,232.15 in early trade today buoyed by firm Asian cues and optimistic buying by funds and retailers amid rising hopes of GST law passage this week. The 30-share index, which had lost 156.76 points in the previous session, rebounded 180.29 points or 0.64 per cent to 28,232.15 with all the sectoral indices led by metal, infra, oil&gas, realty and auto, trading in positive zone, rising up to 1.17 per cent.
Buying activity picked up as investors indulged in widening their bets after the government listed the much-awaited GST bill for consideration and passage in Rajya Sabha's agenda for this week, brokers said. A firming trend in the Asian region also influenced buying, they said.
Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty was quoting 58.00 points or 0.67 per cent higher at 8,696.50.
The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.13 per cent lower in Friday's trade on on below-par growth data.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 1.29 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei rose 0.49 per cent in early trade today. Shanghai Composite Index, however, fell 1.30 per cent.
postgraduate dentist, specialized in different clinical branches of dentistry like oral & maxillofacial surgery, conservative dentistry & endodontic, pedodontics, orthodontics and periodontics with the modern facilities like Digital OPG and the digital RVG. “The advantages of digital radiography include rapid acquisition time, best image enhancement, and least radiation exposure—which are a boon for both the dentists and the patients among others.” She mentioned. Speaking on the occasion Dr. Manuj Mirdha said that besides providing better dental health care to the patients the TDC would be sincere in caring the poor section of the society in subsidized rate it would provide free dental care service to the family members of the cultural icons, Kolaguru Bishnu Prashad Rabha, Rup Kwonar Jyoti Prashad Agarwala, Natasurya Phani Sharma and Dr. Phupen Hazarika.
LPG price hiked Rs 1.93/ cylinder, non-subsidised LPG cut by Rs 50 Contd. from Page 1
The inauguration programme was started with the presentation of the college song composed by Dr. Bhupesh Bhagawati, Head, Deptt. of Commerce of the college and music created by Bhuban Gogoi. Earlier, the college flag was hoisted by Prof. Anowar Hussain, President of College governing body followed by 'swahid tarpan' perfomed by Dr. K. M. Bhagawati, Principal of the college.
among 8032 APL card holding families which literary means each family received 100 KG rice on that month. According to government finding 76,982 families of West and East Karbi Anglong do not have any category of ration cards till 2015.
Instead, the price of non-subsidised LPG, which consumers buy after exhausting their quota of 12 cylinders, was on Monday cut by Rs 50.50 per 14.2-kg cylinder. Non-subsidised LPG now costs Rs 487 in Delhi as compared to Rs 537.50 per cylinder earlier. The price of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), or jet fuel, was also cut on Monday by 4.2 per cent, or Rs 2,080.5 per kilolitre (kl) at Delhi, to Rs
47,206.68. The reduction follows five straight monthly increases in prices. ATF rates vary at different airports because of variable local sales tax. Amid the recent fluctuation in global crude oil prices, the Indian basket of crude went below the $40 mark on Friday as per official data, closing trade at $39.90 per barrel. Meanwhile, the petroleum ministry has pegged the underrecoveries, or losses, for August on account of subsidising kerosene at Rs 11.49 per litre. Moreover, the cash transfer of subsidy for LPG to the customer will be Rs. 63.91 per cylinder, an official statement here said.
REGION
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
Prabhu lays foundation of rail project in Nagaland
Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu Kohima, Aug 1 : Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu today laid the foundation of the Dhansiri (Dimapur)Zubza new broad gauge line at Dimapur Railway Station. "More than geography, it is important to bring together different aspirations of the people and to fulfil the long cherished dreams of the citizens by connecting the capi-
tal of Nagaland to Delhi," Prabhu said in his address. "A comprehensive plan on how to meet the aspirations of the people of the North East is in the process of finalisation and very soon it will be presented to all the chief ministers concerned," he said.He assured that the present project will be completed in 2019.(PTI)
Sate Govt. yet to pay compensation to next of kins of one victim SSPs/ SP submit 45 reports of death in policeaction to NHRC IMPHAL, Aug 1 : From whittling down the number of cases from 34 to 28 (published in the July 28 edition of The Sangai Express), in contrast to the recommendations of the National Human Rights Commission and ordered by the Supreme Court of India, it has again emerged that the State Government is yet to pay the exgratia amount of Rs 5.5 lakh to the next of kins of one Irengbam Ratankumar Singh son of I Babu Singh of Langol. Irengbam Ratankumar Singh was allegedly eliminated in police action at Ningombam and Monsangei road, near Vale Academy on September 1, 2010. In an exclusive chat with The Sangai Express
Mao citizens, shopkeepers repair NH-2
Senapati, Aug 1: In what can be termed as frantic measures to improve the pathetic road condition along National Highway 2 in Mao area, shopkeepers, social leaders and citizens of Mao Gate took up voluntary work to fill potholes and repair the deteriorating road on Saturday. The initiative was organized by Mao Gate Business Union
(MBU) in which 300 volunteers participated. N Jacob, chairman of MBU said that the road has been left in a very bad shape for a long time now giving harrowing experience to the travelers. The Mao Gate Business Union initiated the road repair, he stated. A Athili secretary MBU
PAGE 5
also said that the union has also hired twenty labourers to lay stones. Dumpers and Tata trucks were hired for the service. MBU then appealed on behalf of the Mao citizens to the Manipur Government and department concerned to look into the pathetic road condition of NH- 2 which is also the lifeline of Manipur.(Agencies)
father of the deceased, I Babu Singh said that they have not received the exgratia till date and appealed that the amount due to them be released soon. Babu further said that the police in its report had claimed that his son was serving extortion notes of an underground outfit and added that the police in its report claimed that the extortion note was found in the pant pocket of his son. However the demand note produced before the NHRC in its Imphal camp sitting at Hotel Classic in 2013 was found intact while the pant of his son was riddled with bullet marks, added Babu. It is not yet clear whether the case of Ratankumar is
amongst the 6 cases which have been omitted by the State Government. Interestingly the Senior Superintendent of Police of Imphal West police filed the complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). At the moment there are 45 such complaints filed by the SSPs/SPs with the NHRC. This came about after the NHRC wrote to all the Chief Ministers of India on May 12, 2010 that 'all cases of deaths in police action in the States shall be reported to the Commission by the Senior Superintendent of Police/Superintendent of Police of the district within 48 hours of such death.' The directive of the NHRC
also said that the report should mention the date and place of occurrence, police station, district, circumstances leading to the death, brief facts of the incident, criminal case number and investigating agency.
residue of gun powder to justify exercise of right of self defence and report of the ballistic expert on examination of the weapons alleged to have been used by the deceased and his companions.
A second report should also be sent said the directive of the NHRC and added that the report should include information on post mortem report, inquest report, findings of the magisterial inquiry/inquiry by senior officers, names and designations of the police officials, if found responsible for the death, whether use of force was justified and action taken was lawful, result of the forensic examination of 'handwash' of the deceased to ascertain the presence of
The case of Irengbam Ratankumar was heard during the camp sitting held at Hotel Classic in 2013 and listed as item 11. At the moment, there are 45 such cases where the SSP or SP have submitted reports to the NHRC in connection with deaths caused in police action. Moreover the NHRC in its Imphal camp sitting had asked the State Government to pay compensation in some cases of death in police action.(Agencies)
Chief Minister should resign on moral ground: Tamenglong AC Samuel Jendai Imphal, Aug 1: Alleging negligence of the State Government in initiating developmental activities in Tamenglong district, former Minister from Tamenglong AC Samuel Jendai said that Chief Minister O Ibobi should resign on moral ground. Samuel Jendai, also a State executive member of BJP Manipur Pradesh, recently visited Tamenglong district to take a stock of the prevailing developmental works in the district. "Khongsang-Tamenglong road, which is the lifeline of the people settled in different parts of the district is in a battered condition. The road which is also a State Highway connecting Tamenglong with the rest of the State is in its worst state due to negligence of the State authorities concerned", alleged Samuel while interacting. He further said that many trucks carrying essential commodities are stranded due to the deplorable road
condition. Such road condition, without a doubt, can be considered as the worst in the entire State. During medical and other emergency cases, common people have to go through untold sufferings yet the State Government led by O Ibobi confidently claimed that there is development in both the hill districts and valley. "Visiting Tamenglong will bring a clear picture whether there is development or not in the hill districts. Since Chief Minister O Ibobi has failed to serve the people, he should resign on moral ground," Samuel asserted. Due to bad transportation facilities, prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed leading to artificial price rise which directly affects the common masses. Is it a curse or manmade, quipped the former Minister. People of Tamenglong have been demanding and pressuring the State Government and the agencies con-
cerned to repair Khongsang-Tamenglong road but the cry of the people has been brushed aside. The State Government should understand the sentiments of Tamenglong people as the district is a landlocked region and 85 percent of the populace depend on the Government supplies. If the State Government is not willing to repair the road within a month's time, the road should be declared a public road so that people can repair it. Developing only Thoubal or other valley districts cannot term Manipur as a developed or developing State, Samuel Jendai stated. Only when there is development in each and every district, the State can be termed as a developed or developing State. Such partial attitude of the State Government is the main reason why certain sections of the people in the hill districts are demanding separate administration for
the hills. This circumstance is created by the State Government's incompetence, he alleged. "When the State Government agencies can black top streets in Thangmeiband and Thongju ACs prior to the by-election last year, why can't the same be done to Khongsang-Tamenglong road?" he asked. Samuel Jendai said that the elected representative of Tamenglong AC should be responsible enough to provide good transportation and communication facilities. It is the elected representative's responsibility to heed the grievances and demands of the people. There is lack of staff members in almost all the State Departments in the district Headquarters including Education, SDO, Electricity and Public Works Department. It is his duty to look into the matters as it directly or indirectly affects the lives of the people, he said.(Agencies)
Give teachers their due: UDP tells State govt Shillong, Aug 1: The Opposition UDP has expressed concern over the plight of school teachers who were forced to step out of their classrooms and brave the inclement weather, all for making their demands heard. The Joint Action Committee of All Teachers' Association of Meghalaya (JACATAM) had resorted to strike for three days last week dem a n d i n g provincialization of their services and asked the State government to issue a notification in this regard. JACATAM will also organize a rally on August 5 which will witness teachers from all over the State taking part. In a statement issued to the media on Sunday, UDP working president Titosstarwell Chyne said the government needs to not only take serious note of the matter but also resolve this issue across the table. "It is highly regrettable that the very teachers to whom we entrust our children's future are now out of the classrooms fighting for their rights," the UDP leader deplored. Chyne said the party has always been in support of the teachers' just demands and the matter had been brought up in the Assembly. The UDP urged the government to immediately address the concerns of the teachers.(Agencies)
Water receding in GH, More fogging machines, lab assured relief work underway Shillong, Aug 1: Though water levels have gone down marginally in Garo Hills, the flood situation remained worrisome on Sunday. As many as three persons have died due to flood on Saturday which prompted the authorities to initiate measures to provide relief to the affected people. In a statement issued to the media on Sunday, West Garo Hills Deputy Commissioner Pravin Bakshi said temporary pit latrines have been constructed near relief camps and 110 boats have been requisitioned for carrying relief materials to the affected areas. The deceased in the flood include
Sahida Bibi (19) of Moulakandi village, Phulbari; Ashraful Hoque (14) of New Bhaitbari and Rabia Khatun (8) of Nayagaon, Phulbari. As per reports received from the Selsella BDO, 27 relief camps and 12 cattle sheds have been set up. A total number of 699 families consisting of 3316 members are still in camps. Construction of tube wells in the worst hit flood affected areas has been ordered after a survey and drinking water supply has been managed for the relief camps by PHE Phulbari, the official said. According to the deputy
commissioner, supply of essential items including ready to cook food, chiwra (flattened rice flakes) and jaggery, baby food and kerosene oil is being supplied to the relief camps. Moreover, 10 days of gratuitous relief is also being supplied and distributed by the village relief distribution committees under the supervision of the SDO (Civil) Dadenggre who is camping in Phulbari along with BDO Selsella and Gram Sewaks. An SDRF team from Shillong with 13 officials has also reached Phulbari and will be stationed there for emergency relief and
rescue works and other contingencies. The NEC Solartek Majhipara embankment is now stable with receding water and all roads are open for communication, Bakshi added. Earlier, the Principal Secretary, Revenue & Relief department, and Commissioner of Division for Garo Hills P.W. Ingty had extensively toured the flood affected areas with the deputy commissioner, the SDO (Civil) Dadenggre, the BDO Selsella and officers of Disaster Management, PHE, Rongai Valley project along with District Medical & Health Officer and others.(Agencies)
Umlyngka 'murder' case: Family seeks justice Shillong, Aug 1: Shocked family members of the 16 year old girl from Umlyngka whose body was recovered from Dam site, Ri-Bhoi on July 29 - have asked the police to arrest the perpetrators of the crime at the earliest. During a visit to Umlyngka on Saturday, the family members told The Shillong Times that it appears to be a case of murder as the victim's face had been torched by those who had kidnapped her. The girl, last child of Spery Mawlong, went missing on July 24. The mother filed a missing complaint on July 25 and another FIR on July 28. Trailyne Mawlong, the victim's sister, recalled that it was after
getting a call on July 24 at around 9 AM that her sister hurriedly went out. She was wearing multi-coloured pants, a brown Khasi apron and slippers at that time. "I saw her going out hurriedly, but I thought she would return soon. After few hours at around 12:30 PM, I tried to contact her number, but it was switched off," the sister said. However, what shocked the family members is that the victim's slippers were found intact near Umtong waterfalls, not very far from Umlyngka. According to the sister, it was the villagers of Mawdun at Dam site who first spotted the body of the victim without clothes on July 29. "I noticed that the long hair of
my sister was burnt and her face too was fully black which indicates that foul play and an angle of murder," Mawlong said. Mawlong had accessed a Whatsapp photo of her sister which showed that she was travelling along Umshyrpi bridge, Rilbong point, in a vehicle on July 22 along with her two friends including one Juntia Lyngdoh Marshillong (Julie Lyngdoh Marshillong). Marshillong told this reporter that the vehicle was driven by one person identified as Max from Laban, but did not elaborate the details. The July 28 FIR filed by the victim's mother had named Marshillong and sought the intervention of the police to quiz her to get more information about her daughter as they
were close friends. Moreover, the FIR filed by the family stated that Marshillong, who had also gone missing the same day (July 24), returned home the next day. The FIR had also said that when the victim's sister called up Marshillong over the phone, she had reacted rudely. Curiously, Marshillong had provided a photo of a young boy identified as Vicky to the victim's family linking the boy to the victim. The family is certain that the WhatsApp status of the victim which reads "My life is end now. C U all my frndzz in heaven" was the handiwork of those who were trying to mislead everyone to make it appear as a suicide. Incidentally, the mobile phone used by the victim is yet to be traced.(Agencie)
CCpur, Aug 1: Several top officials from the State Health Department who came visiting the district to take stock of the situation following the outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and the overwhelming cases of viral fever, have assured more fogging machines and a laboratory even as they instructed district health officials to ensure that there is no dearth in resources to tackle the situation.
The official team headed by PK Singh, Commissioner Health and O Ibomcha, Director Health interacted with the district health officials and the Deputy Commissioner to understand the situation. The team, also comprising of top officials from Family Welfare, Malaria Department, State Health Mission and the State Epidemiologist sought to finetune the response of the district officials and instructed them to continue the fumigation exercise within 2 square kilometres from where JE cases have been identified as well as in other susceptible areas. The Health Commissioner has, on learning about the inconveniences of conducting tests at Imphal, instructed the accompanying officials to station the needed man-
power and machinery to establish a laboratory at the district hospital. The delay in obtaining the test results has often turned costly in several instances in the past and a laboratory at the district hospital is expected to empower the health officials to more effectively respond to any outbreak in the district.
The JE vaccination exercise which witnessed a mad rush before it was withdrawn is not the proper way to respond to the outbreak as there is no certainty in its potency on adults, said the officials. The vaccine obtained from China is said to work only for children below 15 years and is different from the vaccine used by western countries. Besides, the vaccine unleashes its potential only after about a month of receiving the shot and thus administering them to the masses may only aggravate the health and could turn out to be a waste of resources, they noted. The expert team also instructed officials to continue the fumigation exercise and promised to deliver three more machines to the two already in station. They have also instructed district officials to ensure sufficient medicines to tackle the overwhelming cases of
viral fever and be prepared to tackle any further worsening of JE cases. Advising the officials to focus on disseminating awareness amongst the population, the team pushed for an extensive publication of facts on newspapers and cable television. They also gave instructions of how to use the fumigation machines saying that the fumes should be directed upwards to cover maximum area and unleash its potential but also cautioned against excessive usage. It may be noted here that the district administration had announced a week long holiday for education institutions in the district to help control the spread of viral fever that has affected thousands of students and adults alike. It had also issued instructions for removal of pigsty and non-septic toilets located in close proximity to schools within a week. The Deputy Commissioner Lunminthang Haokip also told the visiting team that village authorities are instructed to utilize at least two man-days of the MGNREG scheme on cleaning up the localities. Meanwhile an official data released by the District Immunisation Office, Churachandpur revealed that 10 suspected cases of JE have been
tested for JE out of which three have turned out to be positive and two negative. Five others are said to be unequivocal meaning they are inconclusive, and re-test on the samples will be conducted after 8 days of incubation to obtain the true results. The list however did not include some suspected cases where the patients have already expired and two others cases that have been sent to Imphal yesterday for conducting the test. As for the viral fever that has triggered the JE panic and the mad rush for its vaccine as the symptoms in both cases are very identical, health authorities said samples have been sent to NIV Pune to ascertain the exact nature of virus that causes the highly contagious fever. Another data provided by the District Hospital showed that cases of viral fever after opening a Fever Clinic on July 23 is steadily declining with the peak figure of 415 recorded on Wednesday (27 July) against the latest figure of 345 recorded yesterday (30 July). However, random surveys on Sunday Schools conducted within the town today indicated that there still are rampant cases of fever amongst the children despite a considerable decline in the figure.(Agencies)
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
SMS monitoring system for mid-day meals in Rajasthan
Mamata criticises Centre for divisive politics
Bundi(Raj), Aug 1: Attempting to usher transparency and remove corruption from mid-day meal distribution, Rajasthan government has initiated an SMS-based system through which meal data will be sent everyday by schools to a toll free number that will be monitored at the state-level. Earlier, the per day mid-day meal data was reported on a monthly basis to the district education department. Under the new system launched today, the mid-day meal in-charge of the school will have to send the meal data immediately after serving food to students to a toll free number, 15544, that
would be checked at the state-level every day, District Education Officer (Secondary set up), Paras Chand Jain said. The in-charge has to report everyday about the type of school, the students' attendance status, number of students benefited by the midday meal and the quantity of food items used for the meal, he said. The new system would bring transparency and reduce possibility of manipulation of data in the mid day meal programme, said a teacher posted in a senior secondary school here. Currently a total 62.50 lakh
students from class 1 to 8 in 73,199 government schools and elementary education institutions of the state are availing the scheme, according to data available on the mid-day meal programme's website The cooking in at least 68,729 schools for 58.58 lakh students is managed by School Management Committees (SMC) while the rest are looked after by Central Kitchen, Annpurna Mahila Samities or by different NGOs. According to the data, a total of 1,19,071 cooks -- including 1,05,902 women and 13,169 men -are engaged in mid day meal cooking programme across the state.(PTI)
No power shortage in the country, says Goyal New Delhi, Aug 1 : There is no shortage of power in the country to cater to the demands of states and government is trying to fully tap the potential of new and renewable energy to produce 175 Gigawatt of power by 2022, Rajya Sabha was informed today. Power Minister Piyush Goyal also said the government was exploring producing energy from waste and garbage and clearance of certain projects were awaited from National Green Tribunal and the Supreme Court, monitoring the use of technology which does not impact on environment. "There is no shortage of power in the country. We have sufficient power and if any state wants to buy power, one can do so from a portal now."Total poten-
tial in India from new and renewable energy is huge and immense and the total potential is certainly not being exploited. This government has embarked on a plan for producing 100 GW planned capacity in solar and an overall five-fold increase in renewable energy to 175 GW by 2022," Goyal told members during the Question Hour. Replying to supplementaries, the Minister said as regards the total amount of energy generated last year from solar power and renewable sources of energy put together was 65 billion units. "In 32 years, the country barely had 34 MW of renewable energy capacity and the total solar power capacity is 2,632 MW but we have added 4,130 MW capacity in last two years.
This is almost 1.5 times in two years against what was added in last 32 years," Goyal said. As per the new tariff policy, government has made compulsory grid inclusion for all new projects converting waste into energy, he said. "Government is awaiting clearance of technology for use by certain projects to convert waste into energy. The NGT and Supreme Court are monitoring the technology used for proposed plants for converting waste and garbage into energy. We are in discussion with foreign makers for use of technology,"he said. The Minister also said there was a proposal to tap the potential of wind power along the 7,500 km coastline in the country, but the cost turns out to be higher than in Europe.(PTI)
No separate Vidarbha proposal before Maha govt Mumbai, Aug 1 : There is no proposal before the Maharashtra government for creation of a separate Vidarbha state, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis informed the state Assembly here on Monday. "There's no such proposal (for a separate Vidarbha state). Carving out small states is a subject handled by the Centre," Fadnavis said. The Chief Minister's said this amid noisy protests by the Opposition, within and outside the Lower House, on the contentious issue of formation of a separate Vidarbha state. BJP's ally Shiv Sena, which is vehemently opposed to any such move, also joined
in condemning the proponents of a separate Vidarbha. Shiv Sena MLA Prakash Abitkar asked Fadnavis to clarify stand on creation of a separate Vidarbha state. Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil alleged there's fixing between Sena and BJP over Vidarbha. The Assembly was adjourned for the day after noisy scenes by Opposition legislators over the separate Vidarbha issue, which had disrupted the House proceedings on Friday too. Shiv Sena MLAs held a protest outside the Assembly building, opposing demand for separate Vidarbha state.
"Maharashtra should remain united," shouted the Sena legislators on the stairs of the main entrance of Vidhan Bhawan. They displayed a banner depicting BJP MP Nana Patole as "shekhchilli" (a comic character). Patole had last week moved a resolution in the Lok Sabha, seeking formation of a Vidarbha state. Vikhe Patil said Maharashtra was formed after the sacrifice of 105 martyrs in Samyukt Maharashtra movement. "BJP has insulted people of Maharashtra by making and backing demand for separate Vidarbha," the Congress leader said.(PTI)
Sohrabuddin case: SC rejects plea against Amit Shah New Delhi,Aug 1: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Monday got a relief as the Supreme Court rejected a plea against him in the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case. Questioning the locus standi of petitioner Harsh Mander in the case, a bench comprising Justices SA Bobde and Ashok Bhushan rejected the plea challenging the Bombay High Court order which upheld the discharge of Shah by the trial court in the case. "When the person is genuinely aggrieved then the issue takes a different colour but when the person is not remotely connected and wants to revive the case then it is a different matter," the bench said. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Mander, said, "The CBI has filed a charge sheet and had made Shah accused number 16. It is a case of murder". "I am unable to
understand why they turned turtle. Even his (Sohrabuddin) brother who filed the case against Shah withdrew his case later," he said. Urging justice to the people of India, Sibal said, "Public must get the feeling that nobody is above the law". Any member of the society can have a locus in the case and the high court could have taken suo motu cognisance of the issue, Sibal said. Senior judge Harish Salve, appearing for Shah, cited various judgments of the apex court and said, "This court has already held that if one is not connected with the case, he cannot interfere with anyone's trial." "It cannot be a case that if state is not going to file an appeal, I will file the appeal," he added. Salve also said this court has held that a third party cannot be allowed to interfere in the trial unless it
is an aggrieved party. In the petition, Mander had sought quashing of the December 30, 2014 order of a Mumbai sessions court giving clean chit to Shah in the case. He questioned the findings of sessions court, which was endorsed by the high court exonerating Shah in the Tulsiram Prajapati killing case, holding that there existed "no case" against him and that he had been implicated for "political reasons". Mander had approached the Bombay High Court against the sessions court order. The high court had dismissed the plea in March. Gangster Sohrabuddin was killed along with his wife Kausar Bi by the Gujarat police in 2005, when Shah was the state home minister. His aide Tulsiram, an eyewitness to the encounter, was also killed allegedly by the police in 2006.(PTI)
PAGE 6
Rajnath to attend SAARC meet in Islamabad as scheduled
family where several religions have been living as brothers. If one of our brothers falls sick, other brothers can not stay well," Banerjee said. The Chief Minister announced a slew of projects for the development of students of minority communities. A new girls hostel of Aliah University and a mobile app 'Haj Sathi' were inaugurated by her. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Kolkata, Aug 1 : Lashing out at the NDA-led Centre for pursuing "divisive politics", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday urged the minority community not to fall into their trap. India, she said, was like one big joint family where several religions have been living as brothers for decades. "The BJP government is disturbing the communal harmony of the country through various means. Its only job is to divide people, conduct cow census and spread of fundamentalism in the country. It is not only about attack on Muslim community, but also on Christians and Dalits.
"They (BJP) are not interested in development of the communities but want to divide them," Banerjee said addressing a minority affairs program here. Urging the Muslim community not to fall prey to BJP's communal and divisive politics, she said, "They (BJP) are using Facebook and Twitter to spread communal hatred. I request my brothers and sisters of the minority community not to fall into their trap. "Please don't pay heed to whatever they say. They want you to fall into their trap. India is one big joint
Banerjee said the Center has withheld funds for minority development by citing "lame excuses". "Last week when I had gone to New Delhi, I inquired why the funds for the minority development have been withheld by citing lame excuses that the web portal they had developed for allocation of funds was not working. Why are there problems in the portal? There are no problems in the advertisements that you (the Center) give out in newspapers everyday propagating what you have done. "I want to make it very clear either you fix such technical problems or do not stop funds citing such lame excuses," Banerjee added.(PTI)
Minister Rajnath Singh New Delhi, Aug 1: Downplaying LeT founder Hafiz Saeed's threat, the government today said Home Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Pakistan this week to attend the SAARC Home Ministers' conference as scheduled. "The SAARC meeting is a multilateral meeting. There are some commitments. He is not going to give some message or having a separate meeting with (the) Pakistani Home Minister," Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju told reporters here. He was responding to questions about threats made by JuD chief Saeed over the Home Minister's visit. Saeed warned of a country-
BJP MLA defends NCW summons doctor for ill-treating cow vigilants Hyderabad, Aug 1: Telangana BJP MLA Raja Singh has defended the cow vigilants in the backdrop of flogging of Dalits at Una in Gujarat, saying those who consume cow meat are bringing disgrace to the entire community and should be taught a lesson. In a video uploaded on his Facebook page with the caption, "My comments on recent ?#?Una Dalit incident" the legislator from Gosamahal here blamed Mayawati for "dragging" all Dalits into the issue. "I am asking those Dalits (who kill cows). Is it necessary to murder cow and eat its meat? This is absolutely wrong. It is because of such 'galeez' (dirty or disgusting) Dalits, that the image of whole Dalit community which is patriotic, follows dharma, and worships cows, is tarnished. "I support the beating of Dalits whoever slaughter cows to consume its meat. It is apt. I also support those who taught them a lesson," Singh said in his two-andhalf minute video, which was uploaded on July 30
and has so far got 65,000 views. He said there are so many Dalits in Telangana who take part in 'Gau Raksha' along with him. "I want to ask people who proclaim to be secular and Mayawati in particular, why Dalits are being dragged into this? I want to tell everyone, not only Dalits, but all sections of this society, be it Kshatriya, Yadav, if they resort to cow slaughter, we will teach them lesson in the same way. You please remember this," he further said. According to him, 'gau rakshaks' should not keep quiet until the cow is declared as "Mother of the nation". On July 11, four Dalit youths were beaten up by cow vigilantes at Mota Samadhiyala village in Una taluka of Gir Somnath district when they were skinning a dead cow. Though the youths pleaded that they are from the skinning community, the cow vigilantes thrashed them alleging that they were involved in cow slaughter, sparking an outrage.(PTI)
minor gangrape
New Delhi, Aug 1 : The NCW today summoned a doctor who conducted medical examination of the minor victim in the Bulandshahr gangrape case for allegedly ill-treating her and asking "awkward" questions and also slammed police for not including sections of POCSO Act in the FIR. National Commission of Women Chairperson Kumarmangalam said that the family had told the NCW team, which met the victims in Bulandshahr, that when the girl was taken for a medical examination, "she was abused by the doctor, who asked her a number of awkward questions and berated her". "The FIR in the case did not have sections of POCSO act. We had pointed it out to them. NCW members asked them why the FIR had no sections of POCSO Act, but no police official gave them a concrete answer," she said. Despite being pointed out, the police is yet to include sections of POCSO act in the FIR, she said. DIG Meerut Range Laxmi Singh told PTI POCSO Act has not yet been added in the FIR.
Kumarmangalam said the NCW members were counselling the victims, as they were traumatised and had not been offered any such assistance by the UP Police. "Both the minor girl and her mother are severely traumatised. The police has not offered them any counselling, either clinical or psychiatric." NCW also alleged that the police initially did not allow their team to meet the two gangrape survivors. "We were to meet the victims in Noida but as soon as the police came to know about our plans they whisked them away to Bulandshahr. When our team reached Bulandshahr, for an hour they did not allow our members to meet them. We had to remind them that what they were doing was illegal," she added. Three persons have been arrested in the case. The gangrape occurred when the victims' car was stopped on NH91 by a group of dacoits when they were on their way to Shahjahanpur on Friday night. The women were dragged to a nearby field and gangraped while the family was robbed at gunpoint.(PTI)
Oppn uproar in RS over Parrikar's comments New Delhi, Aug 1: Rajya Sabha today witnessed a brief uproar by opposition members over alleged remarks by Manohar Parrikar against actor Aamir Khan even as the Defence Minister denied having said what was been quoted to him. During the Zero Hour, Derek O'Brien (TMC) raised the issue of "dangerous" rise in religious fundamentalism in the country, saying the government, ministers and people associated with the ruling party were "shooting their mouths off every day". "The Prime Minister needs to come and say
these are in fact mistakes, this is not thinking of the government. Prime Minister come here and assure us that we can live in the India we know -- Unity in Diversity". As soon as he finished his Zero Hour mention, Leader of Opposition and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad quoted a report which said 'Parrikar takes swipe at actor Aamir; Those who speak like this must be taught a lesson'. "So may I ask him (Parrikar who was sitting in the House) what lesson he is going to teach us...The entire nation should be told what type of action and lesson he is going to teach the minori-
ties of this conuntry," Azad said. To this, Parikar said: "I would only say one thing. Let the members see the video...and make up their mind". However, this did not pacify the agitated opposition. Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M) said what the minister had said was "highly objectionable". "It is a matter that borders on the question of privilege. Tomorrow you are going to threaten me ... you will say there will be a social boycott, we will make them withdraw what they have said," he said. Deputy Chairman P J Kurien tried to pacify the
members. "Minister says please see the video. It means he has not said (as quoted in media)". Parrikar said he did not take anyone's name. "What is quoted is not what I have said. I never took the name of anyone, nor threatened anyone," the Defence Minister said. Recent reports had quoted Parrikar as saying that anyone speaking against the country must be "taught a lesson" while referring to alleged antinational sloganeering at JNU earlier this year as well as remarks by an "actor" who "had said that his wife wants to live out of India".(PTI)
wide protest in Pakistan by his outfit if Singh arrives in Islamabad to attend the SAARC ministerial conference. "I want to ask the Pakistani government will it add insult to injury to the wounds of Kashmiris by welcoming Rajnath who is responsible for the killings of innocent Kashmiris," Saeed said in a statement. The mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack said "if Singh comes to Islamabad on August 3, the JuD would hold countrywide protest to tell the world that the Pakistani rulers might have compulsions to receive Kashmiris' killers but the people of Pakistan are siding with oppressed Kashmiris".(PTI)
Modi govt spent over Rs 35 cr to advertise Mumbai, Aug 1 : The Narendra Modi government spent Rs 35.58 crore on advertisements in print media, highlighting its achievements after it completed two years in power in May, an RTI query has revealed. RTI activist Anil Galgali had sought information on expenses incurred by the Centre for publishing advertisements in leading newspapers across the country on its second anniversary on May 26, 2016. The Public Information Officer of Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) Rupa Vedi provided the details about advertisements issued in 11,236 newspapers, including those in regional languages. According to the information furnished by DAVP, the sum was spent under various heads pertaining to Transforming India, Vikas ki Raftaar, Badhha Karobar, Jan Jan Ka Uddhaar and NDA goverment Two Years. In another query in the RTI, Galgali had sought details of advertisement expenses incurred by the Manmohan Singh government on its second anniversary. The DAVP said there was none. "Please be noted that no advertisement campaign was undertaken by the DAVP on the completion of two years of the Manmohan Singh government," reads the reply. Meanwhile, Galgali has written to PM Narendra Modi requesting him to make these expenses public by putting the information on its website like it did in the case of various foreign trips. " It would be extremely welcoming that if his government follow the policy of austerity and does not indulge in wasteful expenditures," said Galgali.(PTI)
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
NEIGHBOURS
Believe 'in a new humanity': Pope to youngsters
Pope Francis Krakow, Aug 1: Pope Francis encouraged hundreds of thousands of young people at a global gathering of the faithful on Sunday to "believe in a new humanity" that is stronger than evil and refuses to see borders as barriers. His appeal came at the end of World Youth Day, a weeklong event being held in southern Poland this year that draws young Catholics from around the world every two to three years for a spiritual pep rally. The youth gathering was Francis' main focus during his pilgrimage to Poland, but over five days in this deeply Catholic nation he also prayed at the former Nazi Auschwitz death camp and implored God to keep away a devastating wave of terrorism now hitting the world. He also met with Poland's political and church leaders. For a second straight day, a
Russian military chopper shot down in Syria
huge crowd filled a vast field on Sunday in the gentle countryside outside the city of Krakow to see Francis, who was visiting central and eastern Europe for the first time. Security was very high throughout the pope's visit, coming at a time of terror attacks in Western Europe. Many of the faithful had camped out overnight after an evening of entertainment and prayer with the pope in the same field Saturday night that drew 1.6 million people, according World Youth Day organizers. Sunday's faithful numbered at least in the hundreds of thousands. The Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman, referred to an estimate by Polish authorities of 1.5 million on Sunday's closing Mass. The pope used his several encounters with the young pilgrims from mega-gatherings to a private lunch with only a dozen people from
five continents to encourage a new generation to work for peace, reconciliation and justice. God, said Francis in his final homily of the pilgrimage, "demands of us real courage, the courage to be more powerful than evil, by loving everyone, even our enemies." "People may judge you to be dreamers, because you believe in a new humanity, one that rejects hatred between peoples, one that refuses to see borders as barriers and can cherish its own traditions without being self-centered or smallminded," Francis told his flock, many of them in their late teens, 20s or 30s. Earlier in his pilgrimage, Francis had expressed dismay that many people and places aren't welcoming enough to refugees or those fleeing poverty in their homelands. After over 1 million people arrived on Europe's southern shores last year, some nations on the continent, notably in central and eastern Europe, hastily built fences to keep the refugees out. Poland has been among the EU countries that have refused to take in many Muslim refugees, saying it has already welcomed hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian immigrants. (Agencies)
Malaysia's new Conference of Pak ensecurity law voys begins in Islamabad comes into effect
Malaysia on Monday enforced the National Security Council law aimed at widening the fight against terrorism
Kuala Lumpur, Aug 1: Malaysia on Monday enforced the National Security Council law aimed at widening the fight against terrorism, while activists claimed that it could also be used to silence political opposition. The law allows the country's Prime Minister to designate "security areas" where the forces deployed can search people, vehicles and buildings without a warrant, EFE news reported. The law will also allow for the imposition of curfew and detention of suspects without any charges. Prime Minister Najib Razak defended the law last week saying it was necessary due to the current security threats, including jihadi terrorism, in the country.
However, international organisations including the UN office for Southeast Asia and human rights groups warn about the perils of the new law. "With this new law, the government now has spurned checks and assumed potentially abusive powers," Amnesty International (AI) deputy director for South East Asia and the Pacific, Josef Benedict said in a statement. AI recalled that Najib's government has often invoked laws for national security to stifle peaceful dissidence. "The Najib government is increasingly resorting to repressive new laws that are said to protect national security but in practice imperil human rights," Benedict stated. (Agencies)
Four killed in Kabul truck bombing
Moscow, Aug 1 : A Russian military helicopter with five people on board was shot down today over the Syrian province of Idlib, the Russian defence ministry said. "A Russian Mi-8 military transport helicopter was shot down from the ground after delivering humanitarian aid to Aleppo," the defence ministry said in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies. "Three crew members and two officers... were on board," it said, indicating that their fate was unclear.(PTI)
Four killed in Kabul truck bombing Kabul, Aug 1: One police official and three militants were killed on Monday in a gunfight that erupted after a massive truck bomb struck a guesthouse housing foreigners in Afghanistan's capital city of Kabul. "One militant rammed an explosives laden truck on the North Gate guesthouse whichhouses employees of several foreign companies and logistic firms. Two
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armed militants tried to enter the facility but police intercepted them. The attackers took position in a nearby building, triggering a gun battle lasting for a while," Kabul police chief General Abdul Rahman Rahimi said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack that occurred at around 1.25 am "Our initial findings showed
that no casualties occurred inside the complex which is located in Dispachari locality of Pul-e-Charkhi area," the police chief said. It is not immediately known how many people were inside the complex when the massive blast took place. The Afghan Special Operation Forces arrived shortly and launched a counter attack. One policeman was killed and three others injured during the exchange of the fire with the militants. The huge sound of the explosion caused panic among local residents and following the massive blast the city was plunged in darkness for a while. The targetted building is located in an industrial park. The blast caused a huge crater and severely damaged the surrounding buildings. Zabiullah Mujahid, the purported Taliban spokesman,
told local media that a Taliban suicide squad conducted the complex attack against the foreign guest house and was part of Taliban yearly rebel offensive. The same hotel came under an attack in July 2013 when five insurgents blasted the perimeter wall open with a truck bomb and made their way into the compound. Five security guards were killed before the attackers were gunned down. Kabul has repeatedly been the scene of deadly attacks in recent months. On July 23, at least 80 people were killed and over 300 others injured when the Islamic State attacked a Hazara (ethnic Shia minority group) gathering. In April, the Taliban launched an attack on the intelligence agencies in the capital which killed 64.(Agencies)
Islamabad, Aug 1: Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs here on Monday kicked off a three-day conference of its envoys based in various countries, including India. The meeting will be chaired by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Apart from High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit, Ambassador to the US Jalil Abbas Jilani, Ambassador to China Masood Khalid, UN (New York) Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi, Ambassador to Austria Ayesha Riyaz, Ambassador to the European Union Naghmana Hashmi, Ambassador to Afghanistan Abrar Hussain, Ambassador to UN (Geneva) Tehmina Janjua and Ambassador to Russia Qazi Khalilullah are among
tended it," Vance in an interview aired on Nine Network. "Somebody would have to select it (in the cockpit)." Vance said, from photos released of the flaperon, there was evidence to show the aerocraft hit the water at a controlled speed, pointing to it being a "human engineered event". "Somebody was flying the aeroplane into the water... There is no other alternate theory that you can follow of all the potentials that might have happened. There's no other theory that fits," he said. "The force of the water is really the only thing that could make that jagged edge that we see (on the flaperon). It wasn't broken off. If it was broken off, it would be a clean break." Meanwhile, Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) crash investigator Peter Foley said there was
a possibility that someone was in control of the plane as it went down. "There is a possibility there was someone in control at the end and we're actively looking for evidence to support that," he said on Sunday night. He admitted that if it was brought down by a "rogue" pilot, the wreckage could be outside the parameters of the Australian-led 120,000 sq.km search zone. The search for the Boeing 777 is scheduled to end in the coming weeks, considering less than 10,000 sq.km is yet to be searched. "If you guided the plane or indeed control-ditched the plane, it has an extended range, potentially," Foley said. The MH370 was a scheduled passenger flight bound for Beijing from Kuala Lumpur that went missing on March 8, 2014. There were 239 people on board.(Agencies)
Islamabad, Aug 1: A threeday conference of Pakistan's envoys to key multilateral institutions and countries, including India, began here today to deliberate on a host of issues like the Kashmir situation, Indo-Pak ties and relations with the US. Pakistan Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz inaugurated the Envoys' Conference for discussing how to confront multiple challenges faced by the country. Nine envoys of Pakistan accredited to various capitals and multilateral institutions have been invited to participate in the third annual conference being held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Aziz, in his address, said the envoys should focus on protecting the country's interests and project its point of view on vital issues of national importance. Details of his address were not immediately available. The situation in Kashmir will
be discussed in the conference in addition to the current stalemate in ties with India, sources said. Other issues to be discussed, include Afghanistan, relations with the US and the progress on the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor that will provide access to China to the Arabian Sea. The upcoming SAARC summit and the issue of India's efforts to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group, disarmament affairs and terrorism was also expected to be discussed during the conference. Foreign Office Spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said in statement that the Envoys' Conference is a regular feature in which Pakistan's representatives in various regions brief the government on important developments in their respective areas of accreditation and challenges and opportunities arising out of such developments. "The envoys also present
the participants. According to a statement from the foreign office, Sharif will express his vision for regional and global peace during the meeting. The Envoys' Conference is a regular feature in which Pakistan's representatives in various regions brief the
government on important developments in their areas of accreditation, and challenges and opportunities arising out of such developments, it said. Last year's Envoys' Conference focused on connectivity, and regional issues and developments.(Agencies)
Sri Lanka PM leaves for Indonesia to attend forum Colombo, Aug 1: Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe left for Indonesia on Monday to attend the 12th World Islamic Economic Forum where he is expected to give a speech. During his visit, Wickremesinghe will hold discussions with Indonesian President Joko Widodo and will meet leaders of Malaysia and Jordan on the sidelines of the summit, Xinhua news agency cited from a statement by Prime
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Minister's Office. This is Wickremesinghe's first visit to Indonesia after
being sworn in as the country's Prime Minister in August 2015.(Agencies)
Turkey briefly closes NATO air base country's intelligence agency will be under his control and military commanders will report to the defence minister. Erdogan said the moves aim to bring the Turkish military under civilian control after the failed coup attempt last month.
Turkey briefly closes NATO air base Ankara, Aug 1: Turkey's counter-terrorism police forces briefly closed the Nato's Incirlik Air Base to prevent a new coup attempt. The shutdown operation on Sunday carried out by the police forces, was completed in two and a half hours following a report that
'Rogue pilot may have Pak envoys' conference to discuss Indo-Pak ties crashed MH370' Canberra, Aug 1: A leading air crash expert on Monday said the missing Malaysia Airlines fight MH370 was likely to have been in controlled flight as it hit the water, giving life to the theory that it was brought down by a rogue pilot or hijacker. Air crash expert Larry Vance told Australia's Nine Network that there was no other way to explain why the flaperon, found off the coast of Madagascar, was "extended" meaning it would have been in controlled flight as it hit the water. Vance said the only way to extend the flaperon, something which happens when a plane is attempting a landing, was for the pilot to engage a switch, something which is unlikely to have occurred during an sudden disaster, Xinhua news agency reported. "You cannot get the flaperon to extend any other way than if somebody ex-
Conference of Pak envoys begins in Islamabad
their recommendations towards existing foreign policy with a view to review, adapt and recalibrate policy in accordance with the prevalent strategic, political and economic trends," he said. The envoys invited for the conference include Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani (Washington DC), Ambassador Masood Khalid (Beijing), High Commissioner Abdul Basit (New Delhi), Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi (UN ) and Ambassador Qazi M Khalilullah (Moscow) among others. Surprisingly, envoys to the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia have not been invited for the conference. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will preside over the concluding session of the conference during which he will be briefed on the outcome and he will share his foreign policy vision, Zakaria said.(PTI)
the supporters of US based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen would make a new coup attempt in this air base, news agency cited from the . Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that the
A total of 1,389 pro-coup soldiers, including Erdogan's military aide, were discharged from the Turkish Armed Forces, the state Official Gazette announced on Sunday. Altogether, 8,651 soldiers took part in the failed coup attempt on July 15, making up 1.5 per cent of the military's total personnel, the General Staff of the Turkish armed forced said.(Agencies)
Turkey arrests 11-man 'death squad' over Erdogan hotel raid Istanbul, Aug 1 : Turkey has arrested 11 fugitive soldiers suspected of involvement in an attack on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's hotel during the night of the failed coup, the deputy prime minister said today. Erdogan was staying in the western seaside resort of Marmaris on July 15 but dashed to Istanbul just before the hotel came under attack from rebel soldiers determined to oust him from power. "Eleven of them were captured in Ula," Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told a press conference after a cabinet meeting, referring to a town near Marmaris. He said one soldier was still at large. Earlier said his swift escape had saved
him from being killed or taken hostage. An interior ministry official, who declined to be named, described the arrested men as members of a "death squad" and said the overnight operation to catch them followed a tip-off from local villagers. The soldiers had been hiding in the wild landscape above Marmaris since the military action, and the villagers spotted them while they were out boar-hunting. "There was an exchange of fire during the operation," the official added. "Drones and helicopters were used to pinpoint the location." Since the coup, Erdogan has launched a massive purge of Turkish institutions, especially the military, with more than 3,000 armed forces personnel dismissed.(PTI)
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DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
Tackle the issue Natural disasters has been increasing over the years Despite repeated demands that the Assam floods be declared a national problem, Home Minister Rajnath Singh did not budge, but said a concrete action plan should be prepared to tackle the issue. Various organisations, particularly the All Assam Students' Union (AASU), have long demanded that the Centre declare the floods in the State a national problem. Singh, along with Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Dr Jitendra Singh and Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, assessed the damaged caused by current wave of flood which has affected over 36 lakh people in 28 districts. Around 26 people have been killed so far. The flood has damaged the physical infrastructures like houses, schools, sub?health post, hand pumps, culvert etc. as well as productive agriculture land, and livestock. Floods have caused difficulty in mobility, increased risk for living at houses, trends of fear and trauma, and erosion of social assets such as neighborhood, brotherhood and strong bondage of kinship. Likewise, damage of stored grain and spread of water borne diseases are other distresses. Increased health hazards, increased investment in treatment and farming, increase in price of seed, less return from animal husbandry, poor performance of social institutions, changes in cropping pat-
tern and reduction in the crop production are immediate impacts of flood on the livelihood of farmers. The frequency of natural disasters has been increasing over the years, resulting in loss of life, damage to property and destruction of the environment. The number of people at risk has been growing each year with high poverty levels making them more vulnerable to disasters. But what we can say now is that these floods are a stark reminder of what it means to be living in a world in the grip of climate change, this and other similar examples such as 2014 floods of Jammu and Kashmir and 2013 Uttarakhand floods. Whereas for Assam, this will only get worse if the Government continues to delay urgent action. Meanwhile, urgent relief and help is needed for those suffering the floods. Social Media is bursting with urging people to donate for flood relief work and other initiatives are being carried out for helping the flood victims. The community is coming together through different platforms to assist at the time of a disaster. But at the same time we also need to be prepared; as we are living in a world in which the grip of climate change is currently getting worse and it is the most poor and vulnerable that are suffering the most and that are least responsible. This inequity in the distribution of the benefits of the economy versus its price in lives lost needs rebalancing.
Combating Hepatitis Knowledge is always handy Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global health problem and it is estimated by the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately one-third of the world population has been infected with HBV with serological evidence of past or present infection with HBV. Of the approximately 2 billion people who have been infected worldwide, more than 350 million (5-7% of the world's population) suffer from chronic HBV infection. Approximately 15-40% of patients infected with HBV will develop lifethreatening liver consequences resulting in 600,000 to 1.2 million deaths per year due to HBV. India has over 40 million HBV carriers and accounts for 10-15% of the entire pool of HBV carriers of the world. Of the 25 million infants born every year in India, it is estimated that over 1 million run the lifetime risk of developing chronic HBV infection. Every year over 100,000 Indians die due to illnesses related to HBV infection. Very high levels of HBsAg positivity have been reported in the tribes of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Nicobarese tribe-23.3%, Shompen tribe-37.8%, Jarawa tribe-65%).13,14 There are hyper-endemic foci of HBV infection in Arunachal Pradesh where the point prevalence of HBsAg in the Idu Mishmi tribe has been found to be 21.2%.15 A higher prevalence of HBV infection has also been reported in patients with human immunodefi-
ciency virus (HIV) positive intravenous drug users in Manipur in northeast India. As the number of injecting drug users in the northeast goes up, the incidence of Hepatitis B and C is increasing rapidly in the region. About four to five per cent of people in the northeast are suffering from Hepatitis B, while another 1.98 per cent is infected with Hepatitis C. The incidence of Hepatitis B is high in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, while Hepatitis C is high in Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur. The symptoms of acute Hepatitis B are fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, vomiting, abdominal pain, joint pain and jaundice. However, people with chronic Hepatitis have no symptoms. The symptoms of both Hepatitis B and C are similar to acute Hepatitis B. The best way to prevent hepatitis B is by getting the hepatitis B vaccine. The hepatitis B vaccine is safe and effective and is usually given in three-four shots over six months. Awareness among people is very low. There is no any vaccine for hepatitis C. The viral characteristics, genotypes and host response in the Indian subcontinent are likely to be different. Hence, there is an urgent need for leading hepatologists from India to come together and formulate protocols that would be appropriate for our country rather than blindly following guidelines based on European or South-East Asian countries.
ASEAN and the Logic of Collective Action To defend their interests against China, ASEAN members will have to overcome the temptation to free ride. Walter C. Clemens, Jr. The ten member states of ASEAN aspire to "One Vision, One Identity, One Community." Their foreign ministers meeting in Laos this July demonstrated again how far the distance is between goal and reality. Like the European Union, the regional organization of Southeast Asia is pulled apart by the divergent interests and priorities of each member. ASEAN's many cultures and political systems are much more variegated than those in the EU; wealth differences are also much greater. The Europeans differ somewhat in their responses to the threat posed by an expansionist Russia, but ASEAN states are even more divided as they confront a rising China. Across the globe there are webs of interdependencedefined by Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye as mutual vulnerability, a relationship so close that actors can harm or help one another. For real interdependence, however, there must be some kind of parity. Thus, France and Germany are quite interdependent; France and Greece, less so. Ties between every ASEAN state and China are quite asymmetrical. China is a giant-far larger in nearly every way than ASEAN members alone or together. The combined populations of ASEAN number about 640 million-more than Europe but roughly half of China. If ASEAN were a single country, its GDP would make it seventh in the world, while China's is second (or third, if you count the EU states as one unit). In short, most ASEAN countries are far more de-
pendent on China than vice versa. For most ASEAN states the big picture is dependence on China-not interdependence. Dependent or interdependent, states can choose which strategy to take-pursuit of mutual gain or onesided gain. Those who feel strong may try to exploit others for unilateral advantage. Experience shows, however, that the exploitation of others may yield short term gains but tends over time to boomerang. Individual as well as shared interests are optimized by policies aimed at mutual gain. Compare, for example, the outcomes of the 1919 Versailles treaties and the 1947 Marshall Plan. Those who feel weak may attempt just to save themselves-sauve qui peut. They will join the "bandwagon" rather than balance with others against a superior force. Wise actors-call them "owls" rather than hawks or doves-will seek win-win solutions to shared challenges and opportunitiescontingent on reciprocity by their partner competitors. If cooperation for mutual gain is wise, why do individual members of ASEAN follow such diverse policies toward China? They are tempted to succumb to what Mancur Olson called the logic of collective action. This logic, according to Olson, leads actors to appear cooperative but, in reality, to maximize individual interests-even to cheat. As an example, several factories (or governments) might pledge to install expensive equipment to limit pollution. If one factory cheats and continues to
The ten member states of ASEAN aspire to "One Vision, One Identity, One Community." pollute, it will be spared the cost of new equipment but its owners can still benefit from a common goodcleaner air and water. The logic of collective action is to behave as a parasite. This kind of self-seeking leads to the "tragedy of the commons." If a plot of common land will support one hundred farms with just one grazing cow each, a rancher who sneaks in an extra cow will degrade the commons slightly but his cheating may go unnoticed. But if ten other ranchers also cheat in the same way, the commons may be destroyed. Parasitism hurts even the parasite. Parasitic logic also wreaks havoc with burden sharing. When common security is at stake, the logic of parasitism leads ostensible allies to let the strongest power do most of the work and to pay more than its fair share for defense, while keeping their own in-
puts as low as possible. Most NATO allies have similar levels of wealth, but most spend barely 2 percent of GDP on defense while the United States pays out more than 4 percent. The strongest power has a deep interest that keeps it in the game, but it may pull out if it feels that its good will is being abused. Burden sharing in Southeast Asia is more complicated. Wealth differentials are much greater within ASEAN than within NATO. Apart from Singapore and Brunei, the economic gaps between most ASEAN members and their potential supporter, the United States, are much larger than within NATO. Disparities can be altered when ASEAN members offer bases to American forces. Still, the logic of collective action suggests that each putative partner should do as little as possible for the common cause. Several ASEAN mem-
bers that border the South China Sea are threatened by Beijing's efforts to claim virtually the entire sea for itself. The growth of Chinese power could permit Beijing to take the dragon's share of the sea's resources and even curtail freedom of navigation and flight. China's expansionist ways threaten all ASEAN states bordering the South China Sea, from Indonesia and the Philippines to Vietnam. (Thailand and Myanmar face the Gulf of Thailand and Bay of Bengal, where China makes no claims.) Non-littoral states such as Laos and Cambodia have their own priorities in dealing with China. To be sure, the well-being of Laos and Cambodia can also suffer from China's destruction of the environment and activities along the rivers that course from the Himalayas southward. But China can also offer these less developed countries both eco-
nomic assistance and diplomatic support. Most ASEAN countries share with China an allergy to scrutiny of their human rights performance. The ten ASEAN countries could resist and balance against an expansionist China. To do so, they would have to discard the parasitic logic of collective action. Beijing does not wish to face a united front in Southeast Asia. Instead, it labors to divide and subdue. Dealing with these states one by one permits Beijing to choose from its quiver of soft and hard power, potential concessions and hammer blows. Facing China one by one, individual ASEAN members have little leverage. If they acted as one interdependent community, they could enhance their individual as well as their shared interests. Presenting a united front, they could even encourage China to rise in harmony with others. Courtesy: The diplomat
India at the 2016 Summer Olympics: What to Watch For Here are the Indian athletes to watch for at this year's Olympic games. Padmapriya Govindarajan With 119 athletes bound for Rio, the Indian Olympic delegation has come a long way since 1900, when they it sent a lone participant for the international games. Although India sent its first national team to the summer games only in 1920, it has attended every one since. In 2016, it's athletes will be taking a stab at sixty five events. In its Olympic tenure, Indian Olympians have brought home twenty-six medals, including nine golds. Eight of those golds were won by the national field hockey team and the ninth was won by shooter Abhinav Bindra, the air rifle
champion from the 2008 games in Beijing. In the past, India has had a stellar run with shooting, with Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar, and Gagan Narang bringing home medals in addition to Bindra. Meanwhile, Leander Paes' tennis performance remains one of the country's oldest and most noted individual successes at the games. In wrestling, excellent performances by Yogeshwar Dutt and Sushil Kumar remain on record, while Vijendar Singh and Mary Kom gained prominence in boxing. Other significant female individual
Olympic Indians are Karnam Malleswari for wrestling and Saina Nehwal for badminton. The 2016 Indian shooting team is a force to reckon with this year. It includes both Bindra and Narang, but viewers should also watch out for Jitu Rai, the first Indian shooter to qualify this year. Rai has been a medal winner at the ISSF World Cup multiple times and won the gold in 2016. Apurvi Chandela, who broke the world record in the finals of the air rifle world championships, was the first Indian woman to qualify for Rio this year and is another important addition to the delegation. In gymnastics, Dipa Karmakar will become the first Indian woman to partici-
pate. A bronze winner at the Commonwealth Games in 2014, she currently has sixty seven Gold medals to her name across tournaments at different levels. In badminton, Saina Nehwal has a lot of hopes riding on her and female debutante PV Sindhu will be joining her as well. This year sees far fewer boxers in contrast to the London games; notably, Mary Kom failed to qualify. Rowing (Dattu Bhokanal) and Judo (Avatar Singh) only have solitary representation from India. However, the men's hockey team, which failed to qualify in Beijing, is back with a bang, on the heels of a silver at the Champions Trophy.
Leander Paes and Sania Mirza will both be representing India in tennis at the Olympics - with Rohan Bopanna in the men's doubles and mixed doubles categories respectively. Mirza will also be playing in the women's doubles category. 2014 Commonwealth games gold medalist Sivalingam Sathish Kumar will be an important contestant for India in weightlifting this year. Wrestling, which has been rife with controversies in the qualifying stage, is expected to be another strong suit for India. Praveen Rana, a provisional replacement for Narsingh Yadav after his suspension on testing positive for
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Good Work Done Sir, How immensely our children get benefited after attending the workshop arranged by organizations during summer vacation only the parents/guardians can judge. One such Socio-cultural organization of Dibrugarh 'PRAYASH' has been arranging such workshop for the fifth time in a row. It is a fact, some introvert students who are shy with mental inertia receive boost to do away with the negative aspects. This year the workshop was held in the B.L. Beria Saraswati Sushu Mandir, Dibrugarh, distinguished faculty including Assistant Professor of Dibrugarh University among others taught the children. The workshop ended on July 24 and on July 26, a cultural Programme was organized in the auditorium of the Dibrugarh District Library exclusively participated by the small children who were the participants of the said workshop. We got spell bound to see the dancing aptitude of small children. Recitation of poems and their gesture of story-telling were simply superb! Perhaps, flawless pronunciation and gesture was the result of what was taught in the workshop. The show was inaugu-
banned substances, made waves with his gold at the Youth Commonwealth Games in 2008 and at the Dave Schultz Memorial Tournament in 2014. Sandeep Tomar, who won a gold at the 2015 Asian Championships, is another source of a possible big win. With the Rio Olympic games set to begin in less than a week, the archers, athletes, boxers, and shooters have already arrived and settled in as viewers are pouring in. Flagging off a 5 kilometer 'Run for Rio' event in New Delhi on July 31, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed his certainty that the largest Indian contingent of Olympians in history is sure to do very well. Courtesy: The Diplomat
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rated by Ashim Sarma, the great dramatist. Speaking on the occasion, he narrated, how 'Prayash' is gaining momentum involving in many benevolent works including arranging Blood-donation camp with the passage of time. Hiren Gohain, the prolific musician of Assam, imparted training on music in the workshop who also composed a chorus for the show that was sung aptly by the children. Dramatization of Kabi Guru Robindra Nath Thakur's poem 'Bir Purush' kept the audience enthralled. Dancing to the tune of the song, 'Aita Tumi Jerenger, Kokadeuta Mezenger' the children gave everyone pleasure. Synchronizing the workshop and cultural show, a magazine of prayash 'Suhrid' edited by Abdul Khaleque was published, which was inaugurated by Parimal Mukherji, one of the Prominent educationists of Dibrugarh. One gains pleasure to be of use to explore latent talent in a child and contribute humbly to shape him/ her up-is no mean an achievement. 'Prayash' truly deserves Kudo for the good work done. Yours etc. Ashok Bordoloi Dibrugarh
of the month in the Letter to the Editor section will be awarded an amount of Rs 200. So please keep writing. Letters to the editor and articles should be sent to : The Eastern Today Chowkidingee, Near Sankardeva Hospital Mancotta Road, Dibrugarh786001 (Assam) Ph: 0373-2328944 Email : editor.easterntoday@gmail.com
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
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From Media's Role To AFSPA, Burhan's Death Is Not The Only Reason For Unrest In Kashmir Badrul Duja Unrest in Kashmir is not a new phenomenon. Like in 2008 and 2010, the situation is tense and dangerous for all the people whether it's the Indian government, the Kashmiri people or the Pakistani government. Burhan Wani's assassination turned the whole scenario in Kashmir into a bloody and 'pellet-full' one. The causes of this anger, unrest and burn are multiple. Here are what I feel are the reasons which have turned this heaven into a hell full of the three Bs: bullets, bodies and blood. 1) Burhan Wani's Death Burhan Wani's death led to the whole unrest. He was a youth icon among Kashmiris. His story of picking up the gun is identified as the same story which forces the Kashmiri youth to pick up the gun. His innocent brother was beaten up and killed by security forces in front of him. This is what is said to have led Burhan Wani to rebel. Since the past two years, every funeral of a militant has seen thousands of people gathering together. 2) No Talk On The Kashmir Issue, No Dialogue With Pakistan It appears that the BJP government at the centre is in no mood to discuss the Kashmir issue with Pakistan or with the Kashmiri leadership. They seem to be, somehow or the other, trying to escape from taking talks forward. Sometimes they don't want Hurriyat in the dialogue process, sometimes they want to talk only about Kashmir under Paki-
stan. Thus, in one way or the other this approach of the Indian PM, Foreign Minister and NSA has led to a political vacuum in the Valley where peace and talks appear to have no value as of now. 3) The Indian Electronic Media's Radical Narrative On Kashmir Along with security forces and the government, the Indian media seems to be leaving no stone unturned in demonising Kashmiris and their cause. Discussions, debates, public tweets etc. are adding fuel to the fire in which Kashmiris are burning. Instead of highlighting and discussing the human rights violations, killings of children, pellet injuries etc. they seem happy to label Kashmiris as terrorists, or Pakistani parrots and Muslim fundamentalists. The more Indian media shows anti-Kashmir stories, the more anti-India and possibly pro-Pakistan Kashmiris will turn and are, in fact, turning. But TRPs seem to be doing the talking, not sense. 4) The Unholy Alliance Of PDP & BJP 67% Kashmiris voted in the Assembly Elections for bjili, pani and sadak. Yet, the 87 MLAs of J&K were nowhere to be seen during these days. Few visited hospitals, few met the families of victims etc. After 10 days, when the CM intervened we saw a minister going to a hospital with his security making sure that no civilian volunteers were allowed to be present. Another important cause is that the BJP-PDP alliance in the Valley has turned
bloody and disastrous. There appears to be a total mistrust among the people towards them. The Central BJP government is not ready with any economic package for Kashmiri people. The floods of 2014 are the biggest example where no proper package for financial assistance was provided by the Centre to the Valley. Such things have probably added to the mistrust of the government and people are unhappy both with Centre as well as the State as BJP and PDP's election campaign was based on flood relief promises. PDP leader Tariq Karra had also openly accused the centre of deceiving Kashmiris and his political party. Besides, out of the amount given by Centre to
Image for representational purpose (Photo: static.dnaindia) the State,500 crores were 5) Attempts To Saffronise taken by the Defence Min- Kashmir And The Whole Of istry for the Army's work India during the floods from the a) The beef ban in the State Disaster Relief Fund. Kashmir valley and other Did the Army demand such states where a good numa bill for the floods in Tamil ber of Muslims are living Nadu or Uttarakhand? seems to be another exSimilar were the promises ample of creating a divide of an IIT and IIM which we on communal lines. Unlike never got. other states, J&K is a MusThe most anticipated lim majority state where beef scheme of the Central gov- has consumed without ernment was the Prime much issue. The ban has, Minister's Special Scholar- however, has angered the ship Schemefor Kashmiri people of Kashmirbecause students which was intro- they perceive it as a threat duced during UPA's second to communal harmony. Obtenure. It is now in viously, it will directly affect shambles. Thousands of the people of Kashmir. Kashmiri students were b) Sainik Colony: The forced to leave their col- Sainik Colony plan further leges and universities out- angered people and unified side Kashmir as the Central them to revolt against the government has not paid for construction of said colony. their expenses. c) Separate Pandit
Colony: Separate colonies for Kashmiri Pandits was the worst thing which Central government could do to the people of J&K. Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Ahmedis etc. all live in Kashmir. Our social fabric is that of what we call Kashmiriyat. These communal divisive policies are not bridging the gap. They're further widening it. 6) Attacks On Kashmiri Students Outside Kashmir Sometimes Kashmiri students are attacked for supporting West Indies in a cricket match, sometimes for supporting Pakistan. Sometimes they are attacked for not chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'. Sometimes they are attacked for having a beard on their face. Sometimes they are labelled as Paki-
stanis and sometimes as terrorists. My own friend came back from a medical college in Uttarakhand as he was called a terrorist because he was a Kashmiri. More than 30 incidents of violence against Kashmiri students outside Kashmir have been reported in the past three years. 7) The Role Of Security Forces This is also a major reason for unrest in Kashmir. The AFSPA shield gives them a green signal to do whatever they feel it is right to do. From fake encounters to disappearances, from torture to civilian killings, all have time and again created anguish and anger among the people of Kashmir. Their duty is the protection and not the killing of Kashmiris. 8) Attacks On Muslims And Other Minority Communities In India The killing in Dadri of Mohammad Akhlaq, attacks on minorities and the 'intolerance wave' have all had a direct effect on Kashmir. On the Dadri killing, late CM of the BJP-PDP government in J&K Mufti Mohammed Sayeed asked the Centre to take steps for curbing such incidents. He went on to say that if we are divided, we can't progress. This was a clear warning by the late CM to the Centre that the anger over Dadri was present in the Valley also. 9) Attempts To Destroy Article 370 Among Other Things Debates on Article 370, the scrapping of JKCET for NEET, turning the regional engineering college in Srinagar into NIT, attempts to abrogate Article 370, state subject laws, flawed power
sharing with NHPC, debates on J&K flags have also contributed to the unrest. The accession of J&K to India gave three subjects to the Centre viz Defense, Foreign Affairs and Communications. Perhaps these three subjects were there only on paper. From 1947 to 2016 we saw an erosion of Article 370, erosion of the State's autonomy in the valley. From a change in the post of Sadr-e-Riyasat to the post of Governor, from a separate post of PM in J&K to that of CM, from the Delhi Agreement of 1952 to the Indira-Sheikh accord of 1973, from the changing of REC to NIT to changing the CET, i.e., the State's common entrance test into NEET, i.e., a national test. 10) India's Perceived Unwillingness To Go For A Resolution On The Kashmir Issue The Kashmir problem is an old problem. It needs to get resolved. Resolution or referendum on Kashmir is important to save the Valley from erupting in flames after every three to four years. The government's promise was a resolution of the Kashmir problem. 67% Kashmiris voted in elections in Kashmir. They didn't boycott it. It's the right time for India to hold a referendum in Kashmir and solve this problem once for all. The Indian government must understand that they might be able to bring the current unrest in Kashmir under control, but the antiIndia sentiment is increasing day by day. And the coming generations of Kashmir are already aware of the problems in Kashmir. Courtesy: Youthkiawaaz
Why You Need To Think Twice Before Can The Man Behind Modi And Throwing That Chapatti Into The Dustbin Nitish's Success Steer Congress To Victory In UP And Punjab?
Ishan Arora
Ravindra Singh It is said that "wasting food is a sin and a crime". But do we really believe in this quote? Do we really understand the importance of not wasting food? Today, while having dinner at my mess, I saw hundreds of people wasting food. I was sitting alone so I started contemplating, "There are thousands of people in the world who die because of hunger every day and here we are paying 40 thousand per annum and, yet, wasting food like anything." There could be three possibilities, among others, to explain this negligent attitude: Possibility 1: We don't respect food and feel that since we're paying for it anyway, so we have every right to waste it. Possibility 2: We are selfcentred and selfish and we don't give a hoot about who is dying or who is not. Possibility 3: We are ignorant and we don't know how wasting our food is linked to people dying across the globe. Whatever the reason may be, the result is the same: wastage of food and threat to the lives of many. Especially for the third category, here are some important facts. Some Facts About Food Wastage " About 1.3 billion tonnes of food, i.e., US $1 trillion in monetary terms is wasted every year globally. " Between 1990-2005, the number of hungry people in India has increased by 65 million. This figure is more than the entire population of France. " A child dies approximately every five seconds as a result of hunger and
Prashant Kishor was one of the most important people in Modi's team driving strategies for months before and during the 2014 elections. Shortly after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stunning electoral victory, Kishorwanted to create a policy outfit for the new government. The rejection of Kishor's idea led him to create IPAC (Indian People's Action Committee) as an election campaign company.
malnutrition. " Hunger and malnutrition took the lives of about 7 million children in 2012. " 20 crore Indians go to sleep hungry on any given night, according to a survey conducted by 'Bhook' in 2013. " 300 million barrels of oil are used to produce food that ultimately gets wasted. " Food wastage generates 3.3 billion metric tonnes of CO2, which accelerates global climate change. Hence, it is quite evident from the above facts that food wastage not only leaves hungry people behind but also affects the nation's economy and environment at a macro level as well. To explain this point better I would like to take a hypothetical example: A farmer
works really hard under Sun throughout the year to produce wheat. A lot of water, manpower, agricultural tools, electricity, logistics, distribution costs, deforestation etc. is required before those wheat grains reach our plate in the form of achapatti. Now, it seems we don't think twice before dumping it. As a result, everything that goes into making/processing that chapatti is wasted. According to reports, the actual worth of the food wasted in India annually is estimated at a whopping Rs. 58,000 crore. After reading all this, I do feel bad. But what do I do as an individual? How can I optimise the wastage of food? Here are few recommendations that would help you
decrease food wastage: " Take what you can eat: The most important thing is to take on your plate only what you can eat. We humans always know our food preferences and capacity we just need to examine ourselves. To do that, I would recommend you start observing your food habits. Take less food on your plate initially and within a week you will know the optimum quantity you can consume. " Make finishing the food on your plate a habit. Try to inculcate it further in as many people around you as you can. " Respect food. Consider yourself lucky for getting it every day. Make sure to thank God before you begin eating. " Try to feel or imag-
ine what it's like to truly starve. I guarantee that you'll forever think twice before wasting food. Conclusion It is said that "one man's trash is another man's treasure". For us, wasting food is normal but for someone who hasn't eaten anything for the past few days, it's a treasure. By wasting food we are not only playing around with their lives but we are also depleting our own environment as shown above. Hence, in every way, it is a true menace to society. Being responsible citizens, it is our responsibility to act more proactively and minimise food wastage. Alone, we can still do a bit. But together, we can bring a huge change and make the world a better place to live. Courtesy: Youthkiawaaz
Prashant started working with Nitish Kumar, the two-time chief minister of Bihar and recorded his second victory proving his mettle as an invincible political strategist. One more thing that worked in favour of Kishor, though, was the support to Nitish Kumar of Arvind Kejriwal, the anti-corruption crusader and the person to be re-elected as CM of Delhi with a landslide victory against the Narendra Modi 'wave'.
Prashant Kishor was one of the most important people in Modi's team driving strategies for months
ments of the Congress top leadership with Prashant Kishor over ticket distribution hit the headlines. The bigger challenge in Punjab is now the convener of Aam Aadmi Party and CM of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal who is likely to win as the pre-poll surveys predict clearly. It will be hard for Kishor to understand the political strategy of Kejriwal since he has never worked with him, unlike Modi. In Delhi, Kejriwal, with no portfolio under him other than being CM, works tirelessly towards promoting AAP nationally, often hitting directly at PM. Moreover, there are four MPs from AAP in Punjab which adds to their winning probability in the state.
Not long after the grand victory in Bihar, the Indian National Congress approached Kishor for the upcoming elections in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. He took the challenge and started working closely with Rahul Gandhi and Punjab CM candidate Capt. Amarinder Singh. But The case of the Uttar soon after that, disagree- Pradesh elections will be
equally hard for Team Prashant Kishor considering that it's a stronghold of regional parties like BSP and SP and that Congress has been all but out of UP politics for the last 27 years. Although Kishor claimed recently that the next CM of UP will be a Congress candidate, but the party is still struggling to convince Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to take up a more prominent role in the state. There are chances that Ms. Vadra will revive the INC but winning seems largely uncertain. All the odds are against team PK in Punjab as well as Uttar Pradesh. Only time will tell if Prashant Kishor remains the unbeatable 'Chanakya' or hits the floor. The history is not entirely written yet. Courtesy: Youthkiawaaz
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
BUSINESS
PAGE 10
Rs 1.29 lakh crore in Rs 12,600 crore infused into cost overruns witnessed country's equity markets in July by 101 infra projects New Delhi, Aug 1: Overseas investors have infused over Rs 12,600 crore into country's equity markets this month, making it highest inflow in four months on rising hopes of passage of the GST Bill in the Rajya Sabha and expectations of better corporate earnings. Besides, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have invested Rs 6,845 crore in the debt markets during the period under review. Experts are hopeful that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill will be passed in the Upper House
HIGHEST TILL DATE ØOverseas investors have FPIs stood at Rs 12,612 infused over Rs 12,600 crore into country's equity markets this month, making it highest inflow in four months on rising hopes of passage of the GST Bill in the Rajya Sabha and expectations of better corporate earnings.
Ø Besides, FPIs have in-
vested Rs 6,845 crore in the debt markets during the period under review.
ØAccording to depositors' data, the net investment of
Social media account launched in China by CII to boost trade ties Pune, Aug 1: The CII and the India Business Forum (IBF) in Shanghai launched a social media account on Friday to provide "meaningful" interaction between the Indian and Chinese businesses and to stay updated with the latest industry news and trends. A Wechat account was launched at a ceremony attended by Prakash Gupta, Consul General of India in Shanghai, Sujit Chatterjee, Chairman designate of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)IBF China, Madhav Sharma, Head of Greater China and Chief Representative, CII China and Ravi Shankar Bose, Director of Fugu Mobile which provided the software backup. "The launch of the CII IBF Wechat App is a unique initiative of CIIShanghai, which aims to bring together leading Indian industries in China on one common electronic platform," Gupta said at the function held at the Consulate General of India in Shanghai. "While this is a unique and welcome step to adapt to one of China's most popular communication platforms, we do hope that it would also enable faster and greater sharing of information and success stories amongst local Indian CEO's on a real time basis, and thereby further promote Indian business interests in Eastern China", he said. Chatterjee, who is also President, Tata Consultancy Services, China said "The CII IBF We Chat App is a great platform to stay up-todate with the latest industry news and trends in China. It provides a meaningful opportunity for India
and Indian companies to market themselves to the larger consumer group in furthering their commitment to the Chinese economy". He said the CII-IBF Wechat account is in line with the growing social media trend in China, this will help us in creating greater awareness of CII in China and CII-IBF member companies amongst Chinese businesses. Sharma said: "It will showcase CII-IBF Members business interest in China leading to greater businesses, highlight opportunities for Chinese businesses in India under the Make in India initiative, highlight some of the latest policy updates, business development events both in India and China". "I believe that this platform will help build greater two way communication between businesses ", a CII statement quoted him as saying. It said since the establishment of CII office in China in 2003, the number of Indian companies in China have grown substantially, therefore in 2009, CII China launched the IndiaBusiness Forum. "The CII India-Business Forum aims to promote Indian business interests in China through collective approach. The CII-IBF also platform for members to meet with Chinese companies interested in doing business with India, Think Tanks, universities and other policy organisations of China. The forum also works in showcasing India and Indian industry, thereby building "Brand India" in China", it added. (Agencies)
crore in equities in July, while it was Rs 6,845 crore in the debt market, taking the total inflow to Rs 19,457 crore (USD 2.89 billion).
ØThis was the highest net inflow since March, when FPIs had pumped Rs 21,143 crore in the stock markets.
ØSo far this year, FPIs have
invested Rs 31,778 crore in equities while withdrawing Rs 4,723 crore from the debt market. This resulted in a net flow of Rs 27,055 crore.
of Parliament. The Bill is likely to introduce in the Rajya Sabha this week. With states onboard and the Cabinet approving the amendments, the government is hopeful of passage of the long-pending GST Bill in the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament, which ends on August 12. Further, the monsoon did not disappoint and experts are hoping for better corporate earnings numbers for the quarter, which helped in boosting investor sentiment. According to depositors' data, the
net investment of FPIs stood at Rs 12,612 crore in equities in July, while it was Rs 6,845 crore in the debt market, taking the total inflow to Rs 19,457 crore (USD 2.89 billion). This was the highest net inflow since March, when FPIs had pumped Rs 21,143 crore in the stock markets. So far this year, FPIs have invested Rs 31,778 crore in equities while withdrawing Rs 4,723 crore from the debt market. This resulted in a net flow of Rs 27,055 crore. (Agencies)
Rs 2 uprise in sugar prices in Delhi Chandigarh, Aug 1: Sugar prices rose by about Rs 2 per kg in the national capital in June-July to Rs 40-41 per kg, the government said. "The retail price of sugar in Delhi increased by about Rs 2 per kg in JuneJuly 2016 and currently, the prices are in the range of Rs 40-41 per kg," Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs C R Chaudhary said in a written response to the Rajya Sabha. The wholesale price of M31 sugar in the Delhi market in June and July (up to July 22) were in the range of Rs 3,690-3,890 per quintal, he added. "To keep a check on rise in price of sugar, the central government has imposed stock holding and turnover limits on sugar for six months. Further, government has imposed Customs duty of 20 per cent on export of sugar to conserve stocks in the country and ensure its availability at a reasonable price," Chaudhary said. There is no proposal, according to the minister, to supply sugar at nominal rates to Delhi residents through retail outlets of
Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs, C R Chaudhary. (Photo: delhinewsagency) Mother Dairy and the Na- Maharashtra and tional Co-operative Con- Karnataka. Despite the essumers' Federation (NCCF). timated fall in next year's Meanwhile, as per Indian sugar output, ISMA said Sugar Mills Association there would be sufficient (ISMA) data, the country's stock to meet domestic desugar production is esti- mand. "With an estimated mated to fall to 25.1 million opening balance of 7.1 miltonnes in the 2015-16 mar- lion tonnes and estimated keting year ending Septem- production of 23.26 million ber, from 28.3 million tonne tonnes, the sugar availabilin the previous year. The ity during the 12 months of association has projected next season will be 30.36 that production could fall by million tonnes, enough to over 7 per cent to 23.26 mil- meet the domestic sugar lion tonnes next marketing consumption requirement year starting October on a of 26 million tonnes in 2016likely drop in sugarcane 17," ISMA had said. (Agenoutput due to poor rains in cies)
SBI to shed all its merger by March end: Arundhati Bhattacharya
EO Amazon world's third-richest, surpasses Warren Buffett: Forbes
Amazon founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos. (Photo: wikimedia)
Washington, Aug 1: Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos have dislodged Warren Buffett as the third-richest person globally with an estimated worth of US$ 65.3 billion, says Forbes real-time wealth tracker. Buffett's worth has been pegged at US$ 64.9 billion. "Bezos has seen his fortune swell on Amazon's success and the 52-year-old has sur-
passed Warren Buffett as the third-richest person on the planet," Forbes said. Amazon has reported robust second-quarter earnings, with the company posting a profit of US $ 857 million, significantly up from US$ 92 million a year ago. "Revenue also jumped 31 per cent to US$ 30.4 billion, topping analyst estimates of US$ 29.5 billion," Forbes said. Expectedly, the stock has climbed, notching up 11 per cent gains this year and 41 per cent over the last 12 months. Bill Gates remains the richest in the world with a net worth of US$ 75 billion. Zara's Amancio Ortega is the second-richest in the world with a net worth of US$ 67 billion. Making clear its intention, Amazon recently announced plans to invest an additional US$ 3 billion in its India operations. (Agencies)
Kolkata, Aug 1: Unfazed by nation-wide public sector bank strike, SBI chief Arundhati Bhattacharya said the merger of 5 associate banks and Bhartiya Mahila Bank with the stateowned lender should be over by next March. "People have to understand that the change is inevitable. There have been strikes at many occasions but we have to educate them and take them on board," she said on the sidelines of the launch SBI's wealth management offering called 'SBI Exclusif'. Services at around 80,000 bank branches in the country were hit today as employees of public sector banks went on a one-day strike to protest against the proposed merger of SBI associates with the parent among other issues. Asked as to when the proposed merger would be complete, Bhattacharya said: "Timeline is around by the
end of the financial year (for merger to get over)." On completion, the merger is likely create one of the largest banks in Asia. The merged entity will create a banking behemoth, which can compete with the largest in the world, with an asset base of Rs 37 lakh crore or over USD 555 billion. SBI alone has close to 16,500 branches, including 191 foreign offices, spread across 36 countries. SBI has five associate banks -- State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Hyderabad. Of these, State Bank of Patiala and State Bank of Hyderabad are unlisted. The last merger of its associate State Bank of Indore took about 55 weeks, but it would be significantly less this time, the official added. SBI first merged State Bank of Saurashtra with itself in
2008. Two years later, State Bank of Indore was merged. As for SBI Exclusif, SBI chief said it is targeted at the fastgrowing affluent segment in the country for wealth management which will come initially free of cost. "SBI Exclusif customers will have access to a dedicated Relationship Manager supported by a team of investment experts to take care of all their banking and investment needs through various channels i.e. in-person, a first of its kind e-Wealth channel(remotely via a call or video conversation) or through future ready digital(internet banking/mobile) channels," he said. The bank had launched the offering in Bengaluru on a pilot basis on January and it rolled out this service in Delhi for customers who earn a monthly income of Rs 2 lakh per month or fixed deposits of Rs 30 lakh or Rs one crore housing loan. (Agencies)
Image for representational purpose. (Photo: media.wirtgen-group) Lucknow, Aug 1: As many as 101 infrastructure projects sized Rs 1,000-crore and above have reported a cost overrun of Rs 1.29 lakh crore, as per official data. The Statistics Ministry monitored 286 infrastructure projects, each worth Rs 1,000 crore or more across sectors such as power, railways and roads in April 2016. "The total original cost of the 286 projects was about Rs 9,40,160.86 crore and latest reported anticipated completion cost is Rs 10,69,547.02 crore, which reflects an overall cost overrun of Rs 1,29,386.16 crore," according to the latest report for April. As per the report, out of the 286 projects, 2 projects are ahead of schedule, 54 are on schedule, 123 delayed and 101 projects reported cost overrun and 41 projects reported both time and cost overrun with respect to their original project implementation
schedules. During the reference month, out of 286 projects, 123 projects are delayed with respect to original schedule and 31 projects have reported additional delay vis-a-vis the date of completion reported in the previous month (March, 2016). The report stated that the additional delay is in the range of 1 to 13 months in respect of projects relating to power, petroleum, urban development and road transport & highways sectors. It said the expenditure incurred on these projects till April is Rs 4,57,160.26 crore. Out of 286 projects, 101 projects have cost overruns with respect to original cost. Cost overrun of these is 101.72 percent while during the last month, it was 103.84 percent in 100 projects out of 278 monitored projects. In comparison with the last month, the number of projects reporting cost overruns de-
creases from 35.97 percent to 35.31 percent, it said. Out of 123 delayed projects, 22 projects have overall delay in the range of 1 to 12 months, 18 projects have delay in the range of 13 to 24 months, 59 projects have delay in the range of 25 to 60 months and 24 projects have delay of 61 months and above. During April, there are 117 projects which are showing time overruns of more than 6 months and 99 projects which are having cost overruns of more than Rs 100 crore and 40 projects are having both time overruns of more than 6 months and cost overruns of more than Rs 100 crore. Speedy implementation of projects assumes significance in view of government's push to move towards high growth trajectory of over 8 percent and touch double-digit mark over the next few years. (Agencies)
Tea Board to audit, grade and support all tea gardens Kolkata, Aug 1: The ailing tea industry will now have a ranking system of its own. The Tea Board of India has launched an initiative to audit, grade and support all 1,421 gardens in the country. The objective is to brand better-managed estates and improve the output at lowranked gardens. Tea Board chairman Santosh Sarangi said: "We have started this mammoth task of scanning and auditing infrastructure and human resource condition of as many as 1,421 gardens in India. The estates are being given grades on five to six parameters like scientific management, replantation, rejuvenation, quality agricultural practices and workers' conditions." The board's pilot to grade tea gardens in Assam and Nilgiri, which started two months ago, is almost over. Now, tea gardens across the country will be given scores on these parameters, and an elaborate ranking will be published in three months, said Sarangi. Few agricultural bodies have followed the tedious process of introducing a healthy competition among estates, which might have a long impact on boosting the morale of tea producers. Fresh after implementing initiatives like pan-India e-auction and accident insurance scheme for plantation workers. The board has devised a new software to analyse data. "We will felicitate the gardens with better scores and ranks while the laggards will be provided advice to revive their condition. Our team is examining whether a tea estate is following the Plant
Protection Code - (PPC) how much are they doing for garden welfare; whether they are really committed to workers' wellness (like regular payment of wages and provident fund)," the board chairman said. According to the plan, representatives of the gardens scoring below a certain level will be advised to visit the top-ranked estates to learn best practices. Various standard quality assurance systems, like ISO or HACCP, will be evaluated in the worse-performing gardens. S Sundarajan, director (tea development), Tea Board, who is spearheading the ranking initiative, said the gardens that fare badly will come under the direct supervising mechanism. "This constructive concept scales up the visibility of the garden. We have covered almost 90% of south India and half of Assam. Our data collection team will now complete north Bengal," he said. Indian Tea Association (ITA), the apex body of tea producers, however, wants to assess the board's initiative first. Arijit Raha, secretary-general, ITA, said, "The purpose of the study is not clear to us. However, I have been given to understand that higher grade gardens would be rewarded. We feel developmental schemes of the board should apply equitably. While several good schemes exist, we have not been able to avail the benefits of schemes like Quality Upgradation Scheme, critical for factory modernization due to the 20% export eligibility criteria. Our representation for review is still pending with the board."
Tea Board chairman, Santosh Sarangi. (Photo: bsmedia.business-standard) Meanwhile, the board is on the verge of completing its mock trial on the post-settlement process in pan-India e-auction with the buyers and brokers. "We are getting favourable response on new NSEIT software which will soon replace the old system," added Sarangi. In order to maximize its promotion of the domestic tea in the global exports market, the Tea Board will double up its presence in the upcoming World Tea & Coffee Expo (WTCE) to be held in Mumbai in 20-22 October. The board will set up a big pavilion (double the size of the last year's) this year in order to portray Indian tea to retailers, wholesalers, importers/exporters, chain stores, tea retail chains, F&B and spa managers, hotels, vendors/suppliers, grocers, resorts, tea & coffee houses, spices Manufacturers and allied professionals across the globe. (Agencies)
Marginal dip on home loan rates on MCLR cuts Mumbai, Aug 1: Interest rates are slowly creeping down. State Bank India and IDBI Bank are the latest to bring down their marginal cost of lending rate (MCLR). The reason why the interest rate reductions are not noticeable is because of the new MCLR benchmark - based on monthly variations in cost of funds - and these revisions are as low as 5 basis points (100bps=1 percentage point). SBI has reduced its marginal cost of lending rate by 5 bps effective August 1. SBI offers home loans at 20 bps above MCLR to women and 25 bps over MCLR to other
borrowers. Effectively the home loan rate from August 1 would be 9.3% for women and 9.35% for others. The rate cut by SBI is applicable on loans across all maturities. Following the reduction, the bank's one-year MCLR - the rate to which most retail loans are pegged - has been reduced to 9.1% from August 1 from the 9.15% at present. Similar reductions have been effected on other maturities as well. IDBI Bank reduced its base rate from 9.75% to 9.65%. The public sector lender had also recently reduced its MCLR. Other banks that had brought down MCLR in July include Axis
Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Travancore and Syndicate Bank. Since the MCLR has been in effect only from April, only new borrowers will be able to avail the lower rates. Those who raised loans in April would have to wait until their benchmark comes for renewal next year (since it is a one-year MCLR) to avail of the lower rate. Those whose home loans are pegged to the base rate will have to wait for the base rate to be revised. They can also ask for their loans to be pegged to the new benchmark. (Agencies)
DIBRUGARH, TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
Features
PAGE 11
HEALTH & LIFESTYLE Active participation of women in Behind the screen: Kajol and her role as a mother sports can improve global health Getting more girls and women into sport would improve health around the world suggests new research from the University of Queensland. The health of women is a sure indicator of the general health of the community they live in. Building up this argument further, researchers from the University of Queensland suggest that getting more girls and women to play sports would improve health around the world. Not only would it improve physical health, suggest three researchers from the university's School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, but it would also improve mental, social, political and economic health across the world. Using data from 146 countries, the team found that nearly all (137) had a population in which males were more active than females. High-income countries are also not necessarily more likely to have more women participating in sport, with lead researcher Professor Wendy Brown commenting that, "Gender differences are not confined solely to low and middle income countries. Some of the highest levels of physical inactivity for women occur in affluent Middle Eastern countries."
Representational image Photo: hrmagazine "However, even in highincome countries where there are fewer cultural barriers to female participation, there are still surprisingly high differences," Professor Brown said, "In Australia women are still about 30% less likely than men to meet physical activity guidelines."
However news released on Wednesday did reveal that Australia's 2016 Olympic squad would be more than 50% female for the first time ever. The team also pointed out that the previous 2012 Olympic Games in London was the first to have women competing for every nation represented,
and the percentage of female athletes in London 2012 was also a staggering improvement on previous years, with 44.2% of athletes at London 2012 female, compared to just 2.2% prior to 1920. To coincide with the upcoming Games the journal The Lancet, which pub-
lished the study, has released four major research publications on physical inactivity, and in recent years researchers have become increasingly interested in how exercise can benefits girls and the importance of encouraging them to partake in physical activity. A UK study published this year found that although those who cycle in childhood are more like to cycle as teenagers, teenage boys were still far more likely to cycle than girls, with only 8% of girls cycling in the previous week compared to 37% of boys, and only one in 60 cycled to school, compared to one in seven boys. And an Australian study looking into how to motivate teens to exercise also found that girls were less likely to exercise than boys, with researchers suggesting that encouraging exercise that prioritizes having fun with friends, rather than competition, could be the key to motivating more teens, including girls, to get active. In addition to research in the area some positive action is also being taken, with the Australian Government launching the 'Girls make your move' campaign,' earlier this year to encourage more girls and women to get involved in sport. Courtesy: hindustantimes.
As a mother of two, actor Kajol says that the biggest dilemma for any parent is to guess if their style of bringing up their kids is right. With so many methods of parenting coming up today, Kajol says that she often feels that other mothers are doing a better job. "The toughest thing about being a mother is that you never know if you are doing it right. You think that everyone else is doing a better job than you. You always think that you are either being too harsh or too lenient. You never know the right balance for it. You are hoping that everyone sees the bigger picture like you do, for your kids," says Kajol, who was in the capital as the #HelpAChildReach5 and Handwashing Ambassador as a part of an initiative recently. The actor says that the most difficult habit to inculcate in her children is getting them to wash their hands. "It's really hard. Teaching children to wash hands is by doing it yourself first. What they see is
what they learn," she says. Talking about her parenting style, Kajol says that it's all about setting the rules straight. "I hope I am a balanced mother. I am on the stricter side for sure. I believe that children need strong limits and rules. That's the only way that they will grow up to be straight, tall and sure of themselves. So we have to keep pushing their limits. As parents that's our job," she says. As compared to Bollywood's heir apparents such as Shah Rukh's children Aryan and Suhana Khan or Amitabh Bachchan's granddaughter Navya Naveli Nanda, Ajay Devgn and Kajol have kept their children - Nysa and Yug - away from media's glare. It would come as a surprise to many that Nysa Devgn is now a teenager. Talking about Nysa, dad Ajay Devgn said recently, "Nysa is my biggest critic. She gives me such interesting perspectives that I find solutions to seemingly irresolvable problems each time I discuss something
with her. Yug and Nysa have had a calming influence on me. They have independent thoughts and we must let them grow as individuals, grooming them in the right direction."Kajol took to Instagram to share her pictures with Nysa, but she did it in her own protective way. Talking about success, Kajol, who has been part of Bollywood for more than two decades now, says, "Success is subjective. I believe I am a good and responsible human being today. I am a good mother and I have a lot of roles to play in life. That's all that I can hope for. I am not perfect, but I feel I am successful because I feel fulfilled with all that I have done. I don't believe that success is linked to just being good at what you do. There are people who are great at what they do, but are unhappy doing it. So they may be considered successful from that point of view, but I am sure, personally, they don't think of themselves as successful," adds Kajol. Courtesy: hindustantimes
Drug Facts: Understanding Drug Abuse and Addiction Many people do not understand why or how other people become addicted to drugs. It is often mistakenly assumed that drug abusers lack moral principles or willpower and that they could stop using drugs simply by choosing to change their behavior. In reality, drug addiction is a complex disease, and quitting takes more than good intentions or a strong will. In fact, because drugs change the brain in ways that foster compulsive drug abuse, quitting is difficult, even for those who are ready to do so. Through scientific advances, we know more about how drugs work in the brain than ever, and we also know that drug addiction can be successfully treated to help people stop abusing drugs and lead productive lives. Drug abuse and addiction have negative consequences for individuals and for society. Estimates of the total overall costs of substance abuse in the United States, including productivity and health- and crime-related costs, exceed $600 billion annually. This includes approximately $193 billion for illicit drugs $193 billion for tobacco and $235 billion for alcohol. As staggering as these numbers are, they do not fully describe the breadth of destructive public health and safety implications of drug abuse and addiction, such as family disintegration, loss of employment, failure in school, domestic violence, and child abuse. What Is Drug Addiction? Addiction is a chronic,
often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences to the addicted individual and to those around him or her. Although the initial decision to take drugs is voluntary for most people, the brain changes that occur over time challenge an addicted person's self-control and hamper his or her ability to resist intense impulses to take drugs. Fortunately, treatments are available to help people counter addiction's powerful disruptive effects. Research shows that combining addiction treatment medications with behavioral therapy is the best way to ensure success for most patients. Treatment approaches that are tailored to each patient's drug abuse patterns and any co-occurring medical, psychiatric, and social problems can lead to sustained recovery and a life without drug abuse. Similar to other chronic, relapsing diseases, such as diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, drug addiction can be managed successfully. And as with other chronic diseases, it is not uncommon for a person to relapse and begin abusing drugs again. Relapse, however, does not signal treatment failurerather, it indicates that treatment should be reinstated or adjusted or that an alternative treatment is needed to help the individual regain control and recover. What Happens to Your Brain When You Take Drugs? Drugs contain chemi-
Representational image Photo: drugabuse
cals that tap into the brain's communication system and disrupt the way nerve cells normally send, receive, and process information. There are at least two ways that drugs cause this disruption: (1) by imitating the brain's natural chemical messengers and (2) by overstimulating the "reward circuit" of the brain. Some drugs (e.g., marijuana and heroin) have a similar structure to chemical messengers called neurotransmitters, which are naturally produced by the brain. This similarity allows the drugs to "fool" the brain's receptors and activate nerve cells to send abnormal messages. Other drugs, such as cocaine or methamphetamine, can cause the nerve cells to release abnormally large amounts of natural neurotransmitters (mainly dopamine) or to prevent the normal recycling of these brain
chemicals, which is needed to shut off the signaling between neurons. The result is a brain awash in dopamine, a neurotransmitter present in brain regions that control movement, emotion, motivation, and feelings of pleasure. The overstimulation of this reward system, which normally responds to natural behaviors linked to survival (eating, spending time with loved ones, etc.), produces euphoric effects in response to psychoactive drugs. This reaction sets in motion a reinforcing pattern that "teaches" people to repeat the rewarding behavior of abusing drugs. As a person continues to abuse drugs, the brain adapts to the overwhelming surges in dopamine by producing less dopamine or by reducing the number of dopamine receptors in the reward circuit. The result is a lessening of dopamine's impact on the reward cir-
cision making, learning and memory, and behavior control. Together, these changes can drive an abuser to seek out and take drugs compulsively despite adverse, even devastating consequences-that is the nature of addiction. Why Do Some People Become Addicted While Others Do Not? No single factor can predict whether a person will become addicted to drugs. Risk for addiction is influenced by a combination of factors that include individual biology, social environment, and age or stage of development. The more risk factors an individual has, the greater the chance cuit, which reduces the that taking drugs can lead abuser's ability to enjoy to addiction. For exnot only the drugs but ample: also other events in life " Biology. The that previously brought genes that people are pleasure. This decrease born with-in combinacompels the addicted tion with environmental person to keep abusing influences-account for drugs in an attempt to about half of their addicbring the dopamine func- tion vulnerability. Addition back to normal, but tionally, gender, now larger amounts of ethnicity, and the presthe drug are required to ence of other mental disachieve the same dopam- orders may influence risk ine high-an effect known for drug abuse and addicas tolerance. tion. Long-term abuse " Environment. A causes changes in other person's environment inbrain chemical systems cludes many different inand circuits as well. fluences, from family Glutamate is a neu- and friends to socioecorotransmitter that influ- nomic status and quality ences the reward circuit of life in general. Factors and the ability to learn. such as peer pressure, When the optimal con- physical and sexual centration of glutamate is abuse, stress, and quality altered by drug abuse, the of parenting can greatly brain attempts to com- influence the occurrence pensate, which can im- of drug abuse and the espair cognitive function. calation to addiction in a Brain imaging studies of person's life. drug-addicted individu" Development. als show changes in ar- Genetic and environmeneas of the brain that are tal factors interact with critical to judgment, de- critical developmental
stages in a person's life to affect addiction vulnerability. Although taking drugs at any age can lead to addiction, the earlier that drug use begins, the more likely it will progress to more serious abuse, which poses a special challenge to adolescents. Because areas in their brains that govern decision making, judgment, and self-control are still developing, adolescents may be especially prone to risk-taking behaviors, including trying drugs of abuse. Prevention Is the Key Drug addiction is a preventable disease. Results from NIDA-funded research have shown that prevention programs involving families, schools, communities, and the media are effective in reducing drug abuse. Although many events and cultural factors affect drug abuse trends, when youths perceive drug abuse as harmful, they reduce their drug taking. Thus, education and outreach are key in helping youth and the general public understand the risks of drug abuse. Teachers, parents, and medical and public health professionals must keep sending the message that drug addiction can be prevented if one never abuses drugs. Almost every morning, the news media report some form of violence in Columbus neighborhoods or in suburban neighborhoods. They report about shootings, crimes, accidents on our streets and highways, death from overdoses of drugs, and the list goes on. All these acts of vio-
lence can be traced to drug use. The drug list includes marijuana, crystal meth, cocaine, bath salts, opium, heroin and prescription drugs. A few marijuana plants, when processed, are used to treat pain. A derivative of opium is used as a painkiller. All these drugs, mostly illegal, have no benefits to the human body. The illegal drugs impair brain function. When under the influence of drugs, people commit acts they would not if their brain was not impaired. How many vigils and funerals do we have to attend before we become serious about this drug problem? The solution starts with each family unit. Parents, grandparents, and guardians need to step up and take charge of the behaviors that occur in the home. Being in charge is not an easy task and few ever get recognition for being strong parents, grandparents and guardians. Lawmakers need to help. We need stronger laws against drug dealing. We all need to confront this problem. What kind of world are we going to leave to our children and grandchildren? How many of our youth do we have to send to addiction treatment? There is a very small percentage of those in treatment who stay off drugs. Every neighborhood needs to work together and get the drugs and drug dealers out of our neighborhoods. Courtesy: drugabuse
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India vs West Indies: I wish to keep improving on my performances with more consistency, says Lokesh Rahul Ahead of the series, Rahul had hit two consecutive fifties in the warm-up matches the 24-year-old's message for all his fans: "Thanks to everybody for all the love and support. Only wish to keep improving on my performances and be more consistent for my country. Keep the love and blessings coming and hopefully we will win the second Test match and the series," he said.
New Delhi, August 1: Indian cricketer Lokesh Rahul hit a brilliant 158run knock against West Indies in the second Test of the four-match series. The Karnataka batsman, who was included in the team in place of injured Murali Vijay, once again made the best of the opportunity with another stupendous knock.
Djokovic finished with 13 winners as he improved to 51-4 this season
The Serb top seed collected his seventh trophy of the season as he duplicated his win over Asia`s top player three months ago in the Miami final. Djokovic improved to 10-2 in the series as he handed Nishikori a defeat in just 81 minutes. Djokovic now leads the Masters 1000 winner list by two over Rafael Nadal (28). "I had to realize my level," Djokovic said. "I was not feeling that comfortable at
the start of the week. "But I made progress and gained in confidence at the right time." Nishikori was run down in the first hour of play before staking a brief claim on the contest. The Japanese player recovered from a break down in the second set, leveling at 3all and taking his first lead over Djokovic 4-3 in the next game. But Djokovic re-established himself with a break for 65, taking victory a game later on his third match point with a service winner that flew off Nishikori`s racket.
final but it was still a great week for me," Nishikori said. "I`m going to the Olympics next week and I hope to carry this momentum with me." Djokovic credited his serve for seeing him through. "I`m glad I had that weapon today. Kei is one of the best returners on the circuit and a very fast guy -- I had to serve well to win. " Djokovic finished with 13 winners as he improved to 51-4 this season. He now heads to the Rio Olympics to battle for gold: "It`s gonna be a great honor and pleasure to be part of such a renowned and recognized sporting event. The Olympics are really special, I will give my best to fight for a medal." (AFP)
tler failed a second dope test, which was conducted on him on July 5. Narsingh's chances of participating in the Olympics came under a cloud when he returned a positive result for a dope test conducted by the NADA on June 25.
Ahead of the series, Rahul had hit two consecutive fifties in the warm-up matches.
Olympics is not yet sure, the panel said that the 74kg category grappler was unaware of the banned substance which was found in his sample.
Manchester United to challenge for Premier League title this season: Wayne Rooney
In its final verdict, the panel agreed to Yadav's allegations that he was a victim of sabotage and also that there was a conspiracy to dent his chances for the prestigious event.
The panel is yet to reveal the name of people behind this conspiracy. It also remains unclear if the culprit has been identified.
Johannesburg, August 1: Manchester United skipper Wayne Rooney believes his side have been rejuvenated under newly-appointed manager Jose Mourinho and that they currently hold a strong chance to challenge this season`s Premier League title.
While Narsingh's participation in upcoming Rio
The Old Trafford club have made many big signings this time like Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Meanwhile, United has also been reportedly negotiating over the transfer of Juventus striker Paul Pogba, Sport24 reported.
Ontario, August 1: World number one Novak Djokovic defeated Japan`s Kei Nishikori 6-3, 7-5 Sunday to win the Toronto hardcourt tournament and claim his 66th career singles title.
NADA panel clears Narsingh Yadav of doping charges, says grappler is victim of sabotage
New Delhi, August 1: The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) on Monday cleared Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav of the doping charges.
In a video released by BCCI on Twitter, here is
Novak Djokovic beats Kei Nishkori to claim Toronto title
Rio Olympics
Shedding light on the same, Rooney insisted that it feels more like the old United now, especially because of
the presence of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, who made strong impact last season. The 30-year-old also called on the team to put up a strong performance against last season`s Premier League champions Leicester City in their annual Community Shield clash to be played at Wembley on Sunday.
Earlier, Narsingh's hopes of competing in the Olympics had faded further on Wednesday after the wres-
Following this, Narsingh, who was selected to represent the country in the men's 74kg freestyle category ahead of two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar, was handed a provisional suspension. Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh to write to UWW, seeking approval to replace Praveen Rana with Narsingh Yadav in the Indian contingent for Rio Olympics since he has been cleared of all charges.
After blocked toilets, poor wiring facilities, athletes upset with no access to Pokemon Go! The game from Google spinoff Niantic Inc has been launched it more than 30 countries, but not Brazil
Rooney said although it is just a one-off game, his side want to show that they deserve to clinch the trophy. United, who ended their previous campaign on the fifth place, will begin their Premier League title challenge against Bournemouth on August 14. (ANI)
Civil power FC humble Songking B 2-0 ET Correspondent Miao, Aug 1: Civil power Football Club beat Songking B 2-0 in a keenly contested match of the Independence Cup Football Tournament, 2016 organised by Miao Sub-division Youth Organisation (MSYO) at Miao general ground here today. In the first half, both the teams toiled hard but could not score a goal. In the second half, the players of civil power FC came strongly and opened their account through Zauseng in the 55th minute. The goalkeeper of Songking B
got injured himself while collecting a ball and replaced by another goalkeeper. Songking B missed many crucial opportunities. Later, during the injury time, civil power FC scored their second goal by converted a free kick. Down 0-2, Songking B tried to regroup and despite having struck a greater number of shots at the goal, lack of direction and power deprived them of an equaliser. Tomorrow, Miao Bum will lock horn with Namphai-II Football Club.
Rio de Janeiro, August 1: After several complains of blocked toilets and poor wiring facilities, there is a fresh blow for the authorities at the Olympic village.
zil.
Athletes are left disappointed due to Brazil's lack of access of Pokemon Go – the hit mobile game which has taken the world by storm.
Here's what American diver Abby Johnston tweeted:
The game from Google spinoff Niantic Inc has been launched it more than 30 countries, but not Bra-
With no Pokémon available to catch in the area, the athletes are having a tough time at the Village.
"I wish I could run around in the (athletes') village catching Pokemon," New Zealand soccer player Anna Green told The Associated Press. "I just can't get it on the phone. It's
fine, but it would have been something fun to do." Green said she’ll train instead. The Associate Press report further added that Niantic didn’t reply to a request for comment on when the game might be released in Brazil. The opening ceremony of the biggest sporting extravaganza will take place on Friday.
Sushil Kumar delighted with SC verdict on Lodha panel's report, T20 NADA's clean chit for Narsingh series in USA focal points in BCCI meet Yadav – This is what he tweeted
Mumbai, August 1: Even as deadline for their crucial meeting with the Justice Lodha panel is approaching, the bigwigs of BCCI are to meet here tomorrow to discuss the Supreme Court verdict upholding most of its appointed committee's recommendations for sweeping reforms in the Board. The Working Committee of the Board has been convened urgently to discuss this burning issue that is set to shake up the very structure of the BCCI, along with the
"It was a shame to lose the
proposed two-match T20 series against the West Indies in Florida, USA, later this month. Post the WC meet, the BCCI's SGM has been convened on August 5 in Delhi to discuss the Supreme Court order which has shaken up the Board's mandarins, a lot of whom will be impacted by it. The SC-appointed Lodha panel has also invited BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke to meet the committee in
Delhi on August 9 and, as such, tomorrow's meeting would obviously be used to discuss the apex court's verdict threadbare.
Already Mumbai Cricket Association has held a meeting of its managing committee and accepted the SC verdict in toto, although they wanted some clarifications about the one state, one vote order which, the members felt, would impact the way of choosing their teams for tournaments like the Ranji Trophy because of
jurisdiction issues.
MCA president Sharad Pawar had told a press conference post the meeting that they would write to BCCI for clarification on the issue. Also on the agenda of the Working Committee is the proposed twogame T20 series against World T20 champions Windies, hurriedly put up, in Florida. A BCCI source had said that the details of the series have been "more or less" sewed up, but there still are major issues like awarding of broadcast
rights for what's expected to be a moneyspinning rubber and US visas for the players.
According to EspnCricinfo, quoting US cricket sources, the series was "98 per cent" on and the plan was to hold back-to-back games on August 27 and 28. Currently, the Indian Test team is touring the West Indies, engaged in a four-game series with the hosts, which is set to end on August 22. (PTI)
New Delhi, August 1: Smiles on the faces of Indian sports lovers were restored when Narsingh Yadav was cleared of doping charges by NADA. The grappler was found to be a victim of conspiracy, with WFI admitting that his food and drinks were sabotaged with banned substance by someone to dent his hopes of traveling to Rio. The news was welcomed with delight by fellow Indian wrestler Sushil
Kumar, who delightfully tweeted: Meanwhile, Yogeshwar Dutt also took to twitter to express his views on the verdict.
Every Indian now hopes that Narsingh faces no further hurdle in confirming his place at Rio Olympics and returns after earning a medal for the country.
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