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PAGE 10

Vol. II

JOSE MOURINHO SAYS ROMAN ABRAMOVICH 'WAS NEVER MY FRIEND' ON EVE OF CHELSEA RETURN

Spiritual strength is must for character building: CM Sonowal Guwahati, Oct 22: Saying that the youth must be spiritually inclined, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Saturday said that a strong moral character of a person gives him the strength to carry out his duties towards society with dedication and commitment.

Speaking at the Jeewan Vigyan (Science of Living) programme organized by Jeewan Vigyan Academy, Ladnun, Rajasthan in the city on Saturday, the Assam CM said that the Terapanth Jain community under the guidance of Acharyashri Mahashraman has inspired harmony among different communities through the teachings of non- violence and simple honest living.

Jeewan Vigyan is regular curriculum for schools and higher education institutions for instilling the essence of a value based living among the students.

The character building of the next generation is the prime objective of the programme which seeks to contribute to the process of man making for nation building.

Reiterating that the youth must be inspired to develop their spiritual side Sonowal said that in today’s world of materialism and moral degradation the society needs a morally strong generation that would give impetus to development and make it sustainable.

“The discipline required to build a strong moral character is imparted through the teachings of Terapanth Jain community and all people must look to imbibe the same,” Sonowal said.

Minister for Culture Naba Kumar Doley, MLAs Ashok Singhi and Ashok Singhal were present on the occasion among others. (With inputs from agencies)

Issue 97

Dibrugarh, Sunday, October 23, 2016

PARESH BARUAH TRAITOR OF ASSAMESE YOUTH : PART-II

P11

Price -

5.00

HOW TO KNOW THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION

P6

AKDDSU alleges gross anomalies in appointing Multi-Tasking Staff and Multi-Purpose Workers, demands Special Investigation Team A Staff Reporter Itanagar, Oct 22

The All Kra Daadi Students’ Union (AKDDSU) today alleged gross anomalies in the appointment of Multi-Tasking Staff and Multi-Purpose Workers under the Directorate of Health Services for Kra Daadi district and demanded that a Special Investigation Team be constituted to bring clarity on the issue.

Shedding more light on the issue during a press conference here, AKDDSU president Gora Rikam informed that the issue surfaced when a complaint was made by NCP block president Yarda Sagma, who had alleged that some candidates without the required qualifications had appeared for the examinations and had been declared passed.

Reacting to the complaint, a fact finding committee was constituted by Director of Health Services Dr Moji Jini, with DDHS (S&T) Dr Higio Tama as chairman and DDHS Dr Dubom Bagra and Dr Pekba Ringu as members, who later submitted a report to the Director of Health Services that confirmed the doubts of the complainant.

The report claimed that on attempts to check their results on the internet, 11 of the candidates’ certificates were found to be irregular. While some had different names on the website against the certificates they submitted, two certificates could not be verified due to non-acceptance of their roll number on the website.

However, no evidence of bribery of Rs 2.50 lakhs to Rs

3 lakhs could be established as alleged by the block president.

The written examination for the posts of MTS and MPW was held on August 21, the viva for which was held on August 28 last.

Following the report, Rikam informed that the fact finding committee chairman Dr Tama was threatened by some selected candidates of the MTS and MPW examinations on October 15 last at around 7 am.

According to the FIR filed

by Dr Tama, this occurred after he and his team submitted the report and found anomalies in the board proceedings and selection method. Some of the candidates reportedly threatened to burn down his house and forced him to write a report in favour of them.

Standing by his report, Dr

Tama in his FIR said that out of the 56 selected candidates, certificates of 11 candidates were found to be false and fabricated.

The AKDDSU sought to take action when they discovered that the Health Department was not initiating any inquiries or taking any action against the anomalies, and DMO Emo Basar was handing out appointment letters to the candidates since October 20, which included the 11 candidates with irregular certificates.

Rikam questioned, “What are documents required for if the department is not going to cross check them?”, adding that that such malpractices deprived unemployed yet qualified youths and discouraged other students.

He also demanded that the

Traditional headgear Country's first railway with cross gifted to VIPs university in Vadodara: PM angers Arunachal tribe ET Bureau Itanagar, Oct 20

One of the largest tribes in Arunachal Pradesh is upset with the state information commission for gifting traditional Nyishi tribal headgear with a cross to VIPs at a government function.

The headgear — beak and feather of a hornbill atop a cane cap — itself was a conservation issue till an international wildlife NGO helped make a fibreglass beak fashionable more than a decade ago.

The Arunachal Pradesh Information Commission (APIC) had organised the decennial celebration of the RTI Act in Itanagar on Wednesday. The event did not attract

much attention until the chief guest, central information commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu, left the state capital the following day with a Nyishi headgear and other customary gifts.

The base of the fibreglass hornbill beak on Acharyulu’s headgear — as well as those of two other VIPs — bore a Christian cross. State chief information commissioner Joram Begi had presented the headgear.

Members of the Nyishi community that adheres to the indigenous faith criticised the APIC for “distorting” the traditional byopa (headgear).

A statement by the Nyishi Elite Society said, Contd. on Page 4

PTI New Delhi, Oct 22

“Country's first railway university will be set up in Vadodara,” he added.

Modi further expressed his confidence that Vadodara will contribute “a lot” to the country’s tourism thanks to

medical officer clarify why the report of the fact finding committee was not considered for further action against the candidates with fake documents/ certificates before handing out appointment letters. It also alleged the deputy commissioner of being involved in the entire fiasco as he was the chairman in the viva-voice examinations.

When contacted, DMO Dr Basar said that the appointment order was issued by the DHS and not by him. He also said that the committee was constituted to verify the documents of the applicants, but did not find any fake or forged certificates/ documents.

Further, the AKDDSU said that it would meet the state chief secretary soon and hold discussions on their further course of action.

ET Correspondent Digboi, Oct 22

A group of four armed unidentified miscreants looted around 4 lakhs rupees meant for Tea garden payment here at Nazirating Road along the Nazirating Reserve Forest under Digboi Police this afternoon.

According to sources, the incident occurred while the Assistant Manager Bogapani Tea Estate Biswajit Baruah along with one of his employee was carrying the said amount from his Bogapani office to Nazirating unit of the said estate on a Maruti Omni Van bearing No AS23 O 3379 for disbursing payment to the tea garden employees.

Meanwhile, a group of 4 armed motor-cycle borne dacoits appeared on the road

better air connectivity.

“Better air connectivity means more tourists and this means better economic growth. We have limitless opportunities when it comes to tourism in India. I am sure that Vadodara will contribute to that a lot,” he said.

and snatched the amount at gun point from the van and escaped.

However, no arrest has been made so far till the filling of this report. Digboi Police has been carrying the investigation to this effect to ascertain the exact nature of the crime being examined from different possible angles.

Meanwhile, Mr Baruah, his assistant and the driver of the vehicle were being interrogated by the Police for further insight into the incident. Ironically, the employees of the garden have been maintaining mysterious silence from throwing light into the incident which seems complicating the entire episode and as such police is yet to ascertain the nature whether or not the case was of robbery or just a plot for making easy money on the eve of Diwali.

Assam CM inaugurates mentoring programme for youth IPS “andAllIFSIAS,officers

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Saturday said all IAS, IPS and IFS officers of the state should inspire the youth to aim big and become worthy citizens of the country.

PM Modi

P9

Armed miscreant loots tea garden payment in Digboi, suspense prevails

PTI Guwahati, Oct 22

Advocating the need to bring in new technology in railways, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the country’s first railway university will be set up in Vadodara.

“Many innovations have happened in the world; rail is old, but we need to bring new technology to the railways,” Modi said after inaugurating the newly built international terminal at Vadodara airport.

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Inaugurating mentoring programme 'Arohan' here in the presence of 200 IAS, IPS and IFS officers of the state, both serving and retired, Sonowal underlined the importance of the mentoring programme in guiding the youth to show them the correct path to fulfill their career aspirations.

Stating the youth of the state must be mentored by all the

of the state should inspire the youth to aim big and become worthy citizens of the country” CM Sarbananda Sonowal stakeholders so that they can contribute meaningfully to society, Sonowal said quality of education today would determine the quality of life tomorrow.

"Only material riches would

not be enough to give life's satisfaction but character building through spiritual strength is of prime importance in today's world," he said.

Contd. on Page 3

India beats Iran by 38-29, lifts Kabaddi World Cup ET Bureau New Delhi, Oct 22

India continued their winning run in the finals of major international kabaddi tournaments with a resounding second half display to beat 38-29 and lift the World Cup in Ahmedabad for a third time in a row after doing so in 2004 and 2007.

The win also continued India’s winning streak over another Asian powerhouse Iran who were the runners up in those World Cup finals and also finished second in the Asian Games in 2010 and 2014.

The Anup Kumar-led India side had started the tournament with a disappointing and shock loss to South Korea but bounced back with convincing wins in each contest since.

On Saturday, India were made to work hard by Iran with the hosts suffering with their raids in the first half. During this time, Iran’s skipper Meraj Sheykh was on the prowl to

give his side an 18-13 lead at the break.

The second half saw India come back with Ajay Thakur scoring 12 points in total and inflict the most damage on the Iranians.

There was good support by Nitin Tomar from the bench as he scored

six points – four touch and two bonus points which helped India inflict two all outs.

Post the 24th minute, India started to create bigger damage with better attack and strong defensive skills. In the subsequent eight minutes, India scored 12 points to Iran’s two.

Assam school students to experience US Presidential polls

cmyk

As the entire world is closely observing the US Presidential debates and the possible fallouts of the polls, a team of students from Guwahati-based NPS International School are camping in the pollbound US to get first-hand knowledge about the much talked-

about elections.

A team of 21 -- comprising 17 students and four faculty members -- from the school is in Florida, US, closely monitoring the entire process relating to the forthcoming Presidential Polls.

Florida is the 'Tipping Point' of the November elections.

"Apart from monitoring the

electoral process, we have also got the opportunity to discuss various issues with the local populace," said Satabdi Gogoi, a Class XI (Science) NPS student, who is a member of the team.

In the US Presidential elections, the voters do not cast their vote directly for an individual candidate.

Contd. on Page 4

cmyk

ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

P2 Visit of NAAC PEER team at Tengakhat College for accreditation A Staff Reporter Dibrugarh, Oct 22: A Peer Team of National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), Bengaluru has visited Tengakhat College, Dibrugarh for accreditation on 20th – 22nd October, 2016. The team comprised of the Chairperson Dr.J.H.Pancholi, former Pro-Vice Chancellor, Hemachandracharya North Gujarat University, Member Coordinator Prof.Ramesh Dange, Professor & Head, Department of Economics, Shivaji University, Kolhapur and the Member Dr.Haridwar singh, Former Principal, A.N.College, Patna.

On their arrival the Peer Team was given a cordial welcome with Guard of Honour by NCC cadets and felicitated by Teachers of the College. After meeting with the Principal, the team interacted with the IQAC and various departments of the college. In the Luncheon

NAAC peer team led by Chairman Prof JH Pancholi handing over PTR to Dr Kiran Hazarika, principal of Tengakhat College after inspection on Saturday.

Pic. Manoj Pandey meeting the team had a thorough discussion with the members of the governing body, University and government representatives and other members of the management.

During their visit, the esteemed members interacted with the members of various faculties inquiring about their research work,

HOROSCOPE Aries

Taurus

Gemini

Cancer

Romantic relationships may not exactly be going as well as you'd like, Aries, but don't get discouraged. Hang in there and you will find that things eventually come around your way.

You may need to strengthen your internal sense of confidence, since it's doubtful that you will get much support from interactions with the people around you.

It could be that you're trying to communicate with someone in a matter regarding love and romance and it simply isn't working. You're apt to feel like you need a translator in order to get your message across. Both you and your partner need to share responsibility for making sure that the lines of communication remain open. Be practical yet sensitive in your approach.

This is a fantastic time for you for love and romance, Gemini, even if there's a bit of coolness between you and the person you care about. It's possible that there needs to be an element of distance now for you to really appreciate the good thing you have. If you aren't involved with someone now, you should find that you're in a good position to make a move toward someone you feel strongly about.

It's one thing to be a friend and it's another to feed someone's ego just to make him or her happy, Cancer. Make sure that you aren't telling someone lies just because you know that that is what he or she wants to hear.

A true friend is someone who is honest at all times, even if it means that you may temporarily hurt that person's feelings.

Leo

Virgo

It's critical that you not try to gain the love and appreciation of another by controlling their decisions, Leo. It's time to let the people around you set their own rules and boundaries. Give that special person space to decide what's best, then you can take action accordingly. It may be that you discover things about this person that you probably would never have known if you called all the shots.

You might need to put on the brakes today when it comes to love and romance, Virgo. Don't think that this means you have to break off any sort relationship that's in the works, but realize that you may need to take a more realistic approach to how you handle it. The problem is that you may be getting so caught up in the fantasy of things that you aren't tending to practicalities.

Libra

Things should be going quite well for you today, Libra, and you will find that aspects of your life that may have felt disconnected in the past are finally slipping into place.

Have faith that all your painstaking planning and organizing is finally going to pay off. This is especially true in love and romance. Spend intimate time with a close partner tonight.

Scorpio

Restriction and discipline might not be your forte, Scorpio, but realize that this may be exactly the type of thing that you need the most. Try not to expend your energy in too many directions. Focus and channel your efforts into the things you consider the most important.

Make sure that most of your day is spent tending to these things. Have you hugged your loved ones lately?

Sagittarius

Capricorn

Appreciate the good things you have today, Sagittarius.

Don't let another day go by without really paying homage to the people who've helped you grow along the way.

Take a walk. Climb a tree or help a child build a tree house. Connect with your spiritual side that finds satisfaction in where you are now instead of always feeling a need to search for something bigger and better.

When it comes to matters of love and romance, you may need to tone things down a bit, Capricorn. An aggressive approach now may drive your loved one further away from you instead of drawing him or her closer. Remember that love is a two-way street.

Don't just do things the way you'd like to do them.

It's crucial that you consider your partner's thoughts and feelings every step of the way.

Aquarius

You may find that your love is incredibly magnetic now, Aquarius. All you need to do is be yourself and suddenly people flock your way. There are terrific opportunities for you to strengthen the bonds you have with the people you care about the most.

Solidify your relationship with soft romantic words and actions. There is an extra sensuality to your mood and actions now.

Pisces

Consider taking a more conservative approach to your actions today, Pisces, as well as to the way you dress.

Others may be rather put off by something that comes across as too flashy.

Fashion is apt to be a significant concern for you now, which is fine. Don't underestimate the power of personal appearance.

research papers, publications and their plans for future development. The team had an interaction with the students so as to learn about their views regarding infrastructural and academic facilities. Another highlight of the visit was the fruitful parents and alumni interaction. A grand cultural programme was organised

for the Peer team in which the students of the college displayed their talents and their diverse cultural backgrounds in dance and songs.

The Peer team visit concluded with the ‘Exit Meeting’ on 22nd October, 2016 with the welcome address by the Principal Dr. Kiran Hazarika. In the Exit Meeting, the Chairperson of the

Peer Team and other members of the team expressed satisfaction over the growth of the College and stressed on the need of conducting research & innovation by the teachers. They congratulated the college for conducting vocational programs & extension activities for the benefit of the local society. As a rural college having so many draw backs, the Tengakhat College is being success to impart higher education in the area and create awareness among the tribal communities and tea garden labours about various social issues.

They handed over the NAAC Report to the Principal Dr. Kiran Hazarika and appreciated him for the effort and teamwork put in by the institute, expressed gratitude for the hospitality and warmth shown by the members of the College.

The meeting ends with a vote of thanks by Dr.Pranjal Bhuyan, IQAC Coordinator.

Regional Katha Utsav held at Springdale School Bijoy Shankar Handique Jorhat, Oct 22: The Springdale School, Jorhat has organized a two day regional Katha Utsav for the second time at the school campus at Cinnamora in Jorhat here today.

Md. Tinat Masood-story teller, novelist, lyricist, producer and director from Guwahati called upon the participating students to take up creative writing in different forms: story, poem, and passage, essay, slogans, and follow Rabindranath Tagore, Bob Dalen and l Arup Dutta.

She said that every person has got a hidden passion, so one should try to cope and take their skill out with such programs

like Katha Utsav which has been organized for second time by the Springdale School authority.

Jorhat has been selected for participating teams from the entire regions followed by Delhi for North, Hyderabad for South and Bhopal for West. All together nine teams took part from the region for the two days Katha Ustav –an Ustav for creative writing for school children between Class IV to X. After the completion of Utsav in three other places final round will be held at New Delhi.

Due to frequent bandhs and continuous bandh for two days participating team from other North Eastern States

could not arrive as a total of 275 were on fray from North Eastern States, said Saidul Islam –an organizing committee member from Springdale School. The participating school were-Delhi Public School from Numaligarh, DPS Duliajan, DPS Nazira, Koranga Girls HS School, Springdale School, Jorhat, Maria Public School, Guwahati, Bhubenswar DAV, Budding Buds, Tinsukia and Kendriya Vi d y a l a y a - O N G C Jorhat.

Shenaj Ahmed the managing trustee of Springdale School welcomed the participating teams, invitees and guest and wished the teams for all success.

All Assam Tai Ahom Student Union burnt the effigy of PM Modi in protest against citizenship right to Hindu Bangladeshi here in Tinsukia Today. Pic. Sidharth Singh

Orientation programme to improve education A Staff Reporter Dibrugarh, Oct 22: An orientation programme for the principals, headmasters and teachers was organized today at Dibrugarh Bengali High School, Dibrugarh by the District Administration for improvement of quality of education.

Special emphasis is given for improvement of teaching and learning for class X and XII. The programme was attended by Dibrugarh Deputy Commissioner Laya Madduri, Additional Deputy Commissioner

Road mishap claims an AOD employee and a contractual worker in Digboi.

ET Correspondent Digboi Oct 22: In a tragic road accident that occurred on NH 38 at Ultapool area under Digboi Police Station on Friday evening following the head-on collision between a motor cycles and a Bolero , two died on the way to Tinsukia Civil Hopital.

According to sources, the deceased were identified as Promod Chetiya (45) an AOD employee at Digboi Refinery and his pillion rider Deepak Kurmi (28)an IOCL Contractual worker who were returning home from Gupeneri based AOD

LPG Bottling plant on a bike.

The incident occurred when emerging out of the connecting road, the biker collided suddenly head-on with a Bolero bearing No AR 12 3635 on the Highway which was heading from the opposite direction heading towards Makum.

Meanwhile, the injured duos breathed their last on the way while they were being fetched to Tinsukia Civil Hospital for immediate treatment.

The death of the two AOD workers has been greatly mourned by the people of

Principal of the College, Dr. K.M. Bhagawati, inaugurated the programme and faculty members from different colleges of the district participated in the programme.

Dr Bhagawati highlighted the importance of this free training on IT for enhancing the knowledge base of the students of the undergraduate

course.

The faculty of IT department, Sweta Bansal, conducted the session with a power point and video presentation. The entire session was coordinated

by Dr.I Bhattacharya, which was attended amongst others by Vice Principal of DHSK Commerce College, P.K.Sahu and other faculty members.

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Digboi particularly the Assam Oil Company Labour Union (AOCLU) who paid tributes and expressed grief at the loss of two quality resources.

Tarun Chandra Hazarika the President AOCLU who attended the last rites carried out today at Itavata Hindu Cremation Ground along with a host of officials and office bearers of the union while terming the loss as irreparable also expressed concern on the rise of road accidents in the said areas due to reckless driving.

Margherita Journalist Association condole the death of veteran Journalist ET Correspondent Margherita, Oct 22: The members of Margherita Journalist's Association condole the death of Veteran Journalist of Assam Tilak Hazarika who died today at a private hospital

in Guwahati due to prolonged illness. During the time of death Veteran Journalist Tilak Hazarika was 96 years old. Tilak Hazarika has been in the field of Journalism at Assam from more than 6 Decades. All the

members Margherita Journalist's Association have conveyed deep condolence to the bereaved family members of Veteran Journalist Tilak Hazarika and prayed to God so that his soul may live peace at heaven.

Assam Chamber of Commerce & Industries files complaint against Dibrugarh airport director

Programme on Spoken tutorial held A Staff Reporter Dibrugarh, Oct 22: A presentation programme on Spoken Tutorial on IT, which is a sponsored programme by the Ministry of MHRD, was conducted under the supervision of IIT Bombay in association with the college as Nodel College for the Dibrugarh district here at DHSK Commerce College on Friday.

(Education) Ankur Bharali and Semina Y.A.Rahman, Inspector of Schools, Master trainers of RMSA and Secretary, Academic council.

About 300 principals, headmasters and teachers attended the orientation programme.

A file photo for representation purpose.

Dibrugarh, Oct 22: The Eastern Assam Chamber of Commerce & Industries has lodged complaint with the Civil Aviation Ministry against the Airport Director of Dibrugarh Airport for denying plying of Air India’s baggage tractor on the apron area for pulling and pushing the baggage carts.

The denial of plying of baggage tractor of Air India has forced the ground staff of the airlines to do the job of pushing and pulling of the baggage carts manually to and from Air India aircraft.

This practice is causing undue delay for the passengers, who are made to wait for long time to collect their

luggage.

The members of the Eastern Assam Chamber of Commerce & Industries and Dibrugarh Bar Association were recently astonished to see ground staff of Air India doing the job of baggage tractor as the tractor meant for the purpose was not permitted to ply in the area by the Airport Director on the grounds of not having ‘individual’ insurance cover although, all Air India equipment including baggage tractors are plying normally in other airports including Guwahati and Kolkata under same conditions.

In a letter to the Civil Aviation Minister, the traders’ body has said that the Air-

port Director at Dibrugarh Airport cannot stop Air India personnel from using their baggage tractor within the apron area as the Air India had already made payment of the insurance premium amount to the insurer and the authorities of the Air India had already given an undertaking regarding the said payment to the Airport Director.

Moreover, the insurance premiums are paid by the airlines on centralized basis and not on individual basis for each and every equipment.

“The disturbing and arbitrary attitude of the Airport Director of Dibrugarh Airport against Air India is really condemnable,” the organisation stated in the letter. The Eastern Assam Chamber of Commerce & Industries has urged upon the Ministry to intervene in the matter and direct the Airport Director at Dibrugarh Airport to allow plying of the Air India baggage tractor within the apron area of the airport for the speedy service of the passengers. (With input from agencies)

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All Assam Journalist Association annual meet held in Jorhat. Pic. Nakib Ahmed

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

P3

Bodos call for rail roko bandh in Assam wants to follow Andhra Pradesh’s Fiber Grid project Assam on October 24 IANS Guwahati, Oct 22: Several Bodo organisations have given a call for a 12-hour ‘rail roko’ stir on Monday in support of their longstanding demand for the creation of a separate Bodoland state, a senior Bodo leader said on Saturday.

All Bodo Students Union President Promod Boro said rail tracks will be blocked at Basugaon (in

Kokrajhar district) and Udalguri (in Udalguri district) in Assam to press the central and state governments on their demand.

Boro said the 12-hour bandh will begin at 5 a.m. on October 24, in which over one lakh Bodoland supporters will converge at Basugaon and Udalguri.

The protestors belong to the Peoples’ Joint Action Committee for Bodoland Movement (PJACBM), a con-

glomeration of civil society organisations, and National Democratic Front of Bodoland’s (NDFB) protalk faction.

Movement of most of the up and down trains in Assam and other parts of the northeast region will likely be affected since these pass through the Kokrajhar and Udalguri districts.

“We have met Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh at least seven times and Min-

ister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju at least 10 times after the BJP came to power in May 2014. It seems the government is only interested in delaying action on the legitimate demand of the Bodos,” Boro said.

The ABSU leader said they had also reminded Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal of the Bharatiya Janata Party of its poll promise on the matter in the

past.

“However, nothing has happened. We have failed to understand what the government wants? We have been raising our demands in a peaceful way but it seems the government has ears only for violence,” he said.

ABSU on August 30 called for a five-hour blockade of the National Highways across Assam on the Bodoland issue.

Rhino killed in Kaziranga ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: After a lull, poachers struck again at Kaziranga National Park, killing a rhino and escaping with its horn.

The incident came to light after park officials found the carcass of a rhino in the Balipukhri area of the park's Agoratoli forest range on Friday, Kaziranga divisional forest officer Suvasish Das said.

On Wednesday evening, park officials heard the sound of gunshots but could

not find the carcass. Since then, a massive search opera-

tion had been on.

Forest minister Pramila Rani

Brahma, who rushed to Kaziranga to take stock of the situation, said she would determine what needed to be done to strengthen antipoaching measures.

Kaziranga has lost at least 11 rhinos to poachers this year.

The park is home to twothirds of the world's onehorned rhinos.

On August 3, poachers killed a female rhino and her calf just as the park was limping back to normal after the devastating floods in which more than 300 animals were

killed.

Recently, chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal held a meeting with his Nagaland counterpart, TR Zeliang, in Kaziranga and raised the issue of inter-state cooperation to curb poaching.

Poachers often smuggle horns from Assam to Nagaland and then to Myanmar through the border town of Moreh in Manipur.

The horns are in high demand in Vietnam and China where they are used in traditional medicine.

Assam CM inaugurates mentoring Bribe-tainted cops leave police force programme for youth Contd. from Page 1

Sonowal also appealed the top officers to willingly take it as a mission to shape the future of the state by mentoring the youth through dedication and passion so that the

state can make rapid progress in building human resources for the future.

Speaking on the occasion Education Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said along with 'Arohan' another programme

'Gunotsav' has also been started where the IAS, IPS and IFS officers will visit all schools of the state and monitor their functioning, take part in their activities for the day and have midday meal with the students.

Assam: Child-marriage lands groom in jail

ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: An eye raising incident of mysterious child marriage came to light at Dimakuchi of Udalguri district. The incident has revealed the prevailing social menace of child marriage in the area.

Biswanath Rajbhor a resident of 1 No. Suklai area

under Dimakuchi PS married of his 13 year old daughter to a 13 year old son of Guchuba Rajbhor of a neighbouring village on October 18. On October 19, as the news of the child marriage spread to conscious circles irate people thrashed and manhandled both the father of the boy

and the girl.

As the situation turned worst student leaders of Hindi-Vhasi Xuva Chatra Federation rushed the spot and informed Dimakuchi PS. The police took to custody both the children along with their fathers.

The police after prima facie evidence to the case contrary to registering a case of child marriage had registered a case of kidnapping of the girl child by the boy and his father under IPC section 366 (A) vide case no.96/16. The girl child was later handed over to her parents.

The 13 year old child groom was forwarded to juvenile home. It is to be mentioned that both the male and female children are school drop-outs. The incident has raised the need of social awareness in remote areas regarding child-marriage. (With inputs from agencies)

embarrassed

ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: State police have been left searching for answers after two of its officers were arrested by the vigilance and anti-corruption wing this week on graft charges.

The two officers, sub-inspectors attached with the Noonmati and Dispur police stations, were caught taking bribes to tamper with the cases they were investigating.

While Pritish Gupta, investigation officer of a case filed in Noonmati police station, was arrested on Friday for taking Rs 5,000 from a complainant, JK Baniya from the Dispur police station was held on similar charges on Wednesday.

SP (vigilance and anti-corruption) Mukul Saikia said, "Gupta had allegedly demanded money from the complainant before writing the final report in a case of vehicle theft."

Gupta, however, denied the charges and claimed that he had been framed.

The anti-corruption wing has already raided his house in Lal Ganesh.

Baniya, on the other hand, was caught taking Rs 10,000 from a woman complainant who had

sought police's help in a family dispute.

"Baniya was taking money from both the complainant and the accused," a source said.

These are not isolated incidents. Records reveal that men in uniform have been violating rules for years now. In 2015, at least 79 complaints were recorded against Assam Police personnel. However, only eight of them were arrested and only two received any kind of punishment.

According to the State Police Accountability Commission (SPAC), Assam Police personnel were found guilty of misconduct in 57 cases in 2014.

The SPAC defines 'misconduct' as a wilful breach or neglect on part of policemen of any law, rule, regulation which may adversely affect the right of any member of public.

"In a number of cases, policemen were charged with blackmailing, nonregistration of FIRs, causing grievous hurt, illegal detention and delay in investigations," SPAC sources said. (With inputs from agencies)

State government is ready to implement all the promises made in the budget: Himanta Biswa Sarma ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the present State government is ready to implement all the promises made in the budget and asked all departments concerned to send proposals relating to schemes mentioned in the budget to the Finance Department.

Addressing a press conference held on Friday, Sarma said, “The financial position of the State has reached a level from where we can now be able to take steps and fulfil all our budget promises. So, all the departments have been asked to speed up their work,” adding, “Although it was decided as target to spend 25 per cent of the State’s Plan Fund by September 30, we have only managed to spend 16 per cent of the Plan Fund. But we have now set a target to spend 50 per cent

of the Plan Fund by December this year.”

Sarma added that the State government is getting ‘normal funds’ from the Central government on a regular basis, except few adjustments in funds for some Centrally-sponsored schemes.

“The present government has a current liability of

around Rs 10,000 crore in the current financial year, which has been passed on by the previous government in the State, as its legacy.

The 10,000 crore liability is in the form of due money to suppliers, contractors, etc.,” said Sarma, adding, “We have constituted a committee under the leadership of Additional Chief Secretary

to look into the whole matter. Once the committee clears the due money claims, we will start paying them. Around Rs 5,000 crore has been earmarked in the State budget for these liabilities.”

On the Goods and Services Tax (GST) issue, the Finance Minister informed, “From April 2017, the GST

will be implemented all over the country including Assam. After the implementation of GST, we will make some revenue losses that will be compensated by the Government of India, which has agreed to do it. We will receive around Rs 1,500 crore as compensation annually from the Centre for a period of five years.

“Only Apex Bank has Rs 18 crore as non-performing assets yet to be recovered from the employees who have taken loan from the bank, besides other banks in the State. If the government employees, who have taken such loans, fail to repay their loans, it goes against the government discipline.

If these banks provide the list of such defaulters to State treasuries, salaries of these loan defaulters will be stopped till the matter is settled by the defaulters concerned,” Sarma disclosed.

ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: Assam seems to be going the AP way in providing internet to its citizens. A team from the Assam government comprising senior officials led by its IT minister Kesab Mahanta has been in Vizag since a week to study the functioning of AP FiberNet project.

The team also met Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at Vizag on Thursday and discussed the AP FiberNet project and their plans to introduce such a scheme in their state.

“Our team has studied the AP FiberNet project and is

impressed with it. We want to launch a similar project in Assam using the same technology and kind of infrastructure used in AP. We seek the Andhra Pradesh government’s help in this regard,” Mr Mahanta.

The AP government intends to provide internet bandwidth of 10 to 15 mbps speed, telephone connection and cable TV access at Rs 149. In the first phase, that costs around Rs 320 crore. The government used electric poles to run the fiber optic cables. Until now, 9,000 km of optic fiber cable has been laid. AP

State FiberNet Ltd (APSFL) has plans to run 22,000 km of cable to connect every household in the 13 districts of AP. The Assam IT minister also requested Naidu to send a team of officials from APFSL to visit their state to explain about the project to their CM. In Vizag, the team from Assam visited a government high school in Krishna Puram which was connected with FiberNet grid, electronic equipment centre at HB Colony and Network operations centre at AU. (With inputs from agencies)

Autonomous council polls to be held from November 16 ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: Election to the Deori Autonomous Council (DAC) and the Thengal Kachari Autonomous Council (TKAC) will be held on November 16.

State election commissioner HN Bora on Friday said all efforts would be made to ensure free and fair polls. "The model code of conduct comes to force with immediate effect," he said here on Friday.

The last date of filing nomination is October 28.

The nomination papers will be scrutinized on October 31 and the list of valid candidates will also be declared on the same day.

Candidates can withdraw their names till November 2 when the final list will be declared.

Polling for the DAC and TKAC will take place from 8 am to 4 pm in 100 and 152 polling stations, re-

spectively. Counting will take place on November 21.

Bora said there are 18 constituencies in DAC and 22 constituencies in TKAC. Two constituencies in each council - Tengapani and Kinapathar constituencies in DAC and Titabar and Gelabil constituencies in TKAC - have been reserved for women belonging to scheduled tribes. (With inputs from agencies)

Intellectuals join chorus against citizenship bill ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: Intellectuals joined hundreds of protesters in the city on Friday to oppose the Centre's move to regularize the entry of minorities from Bangladesh by amending the Citizenship Act, 1955.

Opposing the BJP government's move to divide illegal immigrants on religious lines, intellectual

Hiren Gohain said a threat loomed large over the future of indigenous people here.

"Peace returned to Assam after both Hindus and Muslims agreed to accept 1971 as the cut-off year for citizenship. Today, the government wants to push the state towards unrest," he said at a convention organized by Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti. He urged people

who arrived in Assam before 1971 to launch a united movement and scuttle the Centre's plan to regularize the entry of Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, the select committee on the bill has invited a two-member delegation of 28 indigenous organizations of the state to state their views on the issue. (With inputs from agencies)

Governor pays rich tribute to Pathorughat martyrs

Governor Banwarilal Purohit

ET Bureau Guwahati, Oct 22: Governor Banwarilal Purohit paid rich tributes to the 140 martyrs of historical Pathorughat Peasants’ Uprising in 1894. He visited the ‘Krishak Swahid Udyan’ in the present Pathorughat and offered floral tributes at martyrs memorial there at the park.

Speaking during the occasion, the Governor termed the Pathorughat peasants’ uprising as one of the glorious chapters of India’s freedom struggle and appealed to the younger generations never to forget the supreme sacrifices of the courageous farmers.

Deputy Commissioner, Darrang, Ashok Kr Barman, Superintendent of Police, Darrang, Sunil Kumar and other senior officials of the district administration also accompanied the Governor.

Earlier in the morning, the Governor partici-

pated in a mass cleanliness drive organised as a part of the Swachh Bharat Abhijan, organised by the district administration at the Mangaldai Sanatan Dharma Sabha premises.

Addressing the people gathered on the occasion, Purohit highlighted the importance of cleanliness in every sphere of life and also urged the people to make the national social movement a big success.

The Governor held meetings with the heads of all Government departments at the Deputy Commissioner’s conference hall in the evening.

He later also met members of the local civic and panchayat institutions, delegates of several nonpolitical local public organisations including Government Pensioners’ Association, Senior Citizens’ Forum, Sahitya Sabha, principals of colleges and Chambers of

Commerce among others. Members of pioneer NGOs of the district Sipajhar Diamond Club, Mangaldai Crystal Vision, NE-CARD and Inner Vision of Duni also held discussions with the Governor on various issues related to the socioeconomic uplift of the district.

“The Governor responded in positive to our demand for setting up of a Children Science Centre and a Day Care Home for the elderly persons at Mangaldai,” said Manabendra Baruah, secretary of Crystal Vision. Similarly, Kamal Nath, Executive Director of Inner Vision also seemed to be encouraged after the meeting of the Governor.

He said “The Governor after hearing of our activities in presence of Sipajhar MLA, Binanda Kr Saikia observed the need of linking the training and marketing of the water hyacinth products, which are being conducted by us with some Government schemes.”

The Governor also emphasised on rectifying the activities of the Red Cross Society with the involvement of young dynamic members of the local voluntary bodies.

Earlier, members of the NGOs greeted the Governor with a beautifully designed memento symbolising rural Assam crafted by local artisans of Darrang. (With inputs from agencies)

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DCM Chowna Mein visits BEMFT- 2016: SFS Bumla (Pass) at Tawang FC enters semi-final ET Bureau Tawang, Oct 22: Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein visited Bumla (Pass), the border point between India and China located at an altitude of 15200 feet along the ‘Line of Actual Control’ some 37 km from Tawang in the sideline of Tawang Festival today.

Bumla is one of the most offbeat passes in the world and is also referred to as the pass from where His Holiness the Dalai Lama entered India escaping from Tibet.

Covered with snow in most part of the year, it is a tourist hotspot and the visit of Civilian tourist of India is permissible only with the permission from Indian Army.

During his visit, Deputy Chief Minister observed that the establishments in the border areas are very Indian and symbolizes Patriotism.

He interacts with personnel of Indian Army at Bumla and expressed his gratitude to the defense personnel for guarding the nation in the border areas under challenging and extreme climate. Lauding the selfless services rendered by them, he said that he honour and

salute the martyrdom, for their bravery and sacrificed in safeguarding the nation.

Col Rajesh of 14 Punjab Regimen appraised the visiting dignitaries about the peaceful co-existence between the armies of two countries along the border areas. He informed that it is

Traditional headgear with cross gifted to VIPs angers Arunachal tribe Contd. from Page 1

“We must be clear that the tradition of a community must not bear symbol of any religion or religious sects which may harm its secular fabric.”

Begi said he did not notice the cross, nor did he have them ordered. “Our staff may have obtained them without noticing the cross sign. Whatever happened

was purely unintentional and we did not mean to hurt sentiments,” he said.

An Itanagar-based church spokesperson denied influencing the APIC to allegedly promote religion.

However, the Nyishi Indigenous Faith and Cultural Society begged to differ.

“Objects of indigenous faith and culture are surreptitiously being given religious symbolism, and they

have crept into official programmes too,” Pai Dawe, a senior member of the society, said.

Christian missionary activity is not allowed in Arunachal Pradesh but the frontier state has seen a steep fall in the number of people adhering to indigenous faiths such as DonyiPolo and Rangfra. (With inputs from agencies)

Assam school students to experience US Presidential polls Contd. from Page 1

In reality, the voters cast their vote for a group of people known as "electors".

The electors are the members of the Electoral College from the various US states and in turn they cast their vote for the preferred candidate. Once the general elections take place, the first phase of the election is completed.

In the second phase, the 'presidential electors' cast the votes to choose a President and a VicePresident. The President is elected if he or she receives an absolute majority of the electoral votes cast.

The NPS students have expressed surprise over the style of the election campaign process of the largest superpower of the globe.

"Unlike India, we have not seen a single electionrelated banner or poster

here. Everything takes place here in a disciplined and planned manner.

People or party supporters throng the university auditoriums etc, to witness the election debate of candidates. General people also closely watch the debates on TV," Jyotirmoy Das of Class VI said.

This is not the first time when the management of the school has sent its student abroad to get foreign exposure. It had sent its students to various front-ranking institutions of Spain, London, Germany, Dubai, Sri Lanka and USA over the years.

"NPS International School is the first school from North East region to visit NASA as well as receive astronomy training there.

The students went for a three-day astronaut training experience (ATX) in NASA whose mission is to pioneer the future in space exploration,

scientific discovery and aeronautics research," J.N. Das, Founder and Chairman of the school said.

During their visit to NASA, students were taken to US Astronaut Hall of Fame where they got a taste of firsthand experience of astronauts for real missions. Students felt the pull of 4gs in the G - Force Simulator, sat in a mission control console, touched a Mars rock and landed the space shuttle.

All of this provided a true experience of Space Flight to the students. NASA scientists also explained to the students about it's vision for space exploration.

"In the year 2015 also, the school had sent its students to NASA's John F Kennedy Space Center, world's gateway to exploring, discovering and understanding our universe," Das added.

(With inputs from IANS)

Ramdev says he was denied US visa PTI Indore, Oct 22: Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, who heads the Rs.4,500-crore Patanjali Group, was once denied a visa to the United States citing his bachelor status and not having a bank account.

But later it invited him and gave him a 10-year visa when he was to address the United Nations, which is headquartered in New York, the Yoga guru revealed today.

Speaking at the Global Investor Summit here, Ramdev recounted how he was first denied a visa and later offered a visa.

"When for the first time I applied for a US visa, I was denied. I asked for reasons, they

said Babaji you don't have a bank account, which I still don't have, and you are unmarried.

"There could be some issues there, they said, but I insisted there is no possibility of any of that. Yet they denied me a visa," Ramdev said.

He, however, did not indicate the year in which he had applied for the visa.

"But when they had to call me for the UN programme, they on their own gave me a 10-year visa," he said. "This is a separate matter".

Ramdev, who shared the dais with several industrialists, including Anil Ambani and Gopichand Hinduja as well as Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, said spiritual leaders are anyways global citizens.

"I was asked by Finance Minister in what capacity was I here as. I am here as a global citizen," he remarked.

His Patanjali group is reported to be considering investing Rs.500-crore in setting up a food processing unit at Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh.

Patanjali Ayurveda is considered among the fastest- growing consumer products brand with products ranging from kitchen staples, nutrition, cosmetics to personal care products.

3 arrested for killing elderly couple PTI Jaipur, Oct 22: Three persons were arrested today for allegedly killing an elderly couple in Vishwakarma area in the city, police said.

Prabhati Lal (70) wanted to sell his land which was in his son's name and had contacted some buyers. One Ramjilal

wanted to usurp the land and hatched a conspiracy to eliminate him," they said.

He along with five others entered the premises of the residence of Lal early in the morning yesterday. While three of them kept a watch outside and the other three entered the house and strangulated Prabhati Lal and his wife Sarju

Devi after forcefully getting the documents signed from Lal, they said.

They also got his thumb impression on papers which led the police to the culprits, police said.

Ramjilal, Hemraj and Rajendra have been arrested, they said, adding the other three are absconding.

one of the officially agreed Border Personnel Meeting (BPM) point between the Military Commanders of Indian Armies and the People’s Liberation Army of China for regular consultations and interactions between the two armies.

The ‘Maitry Sthal’ (friend-

ship point), with halls constructed on Indian side at Bumla is the venue of the Indian BPM which are held on 26th January, 30th May and 15th August by Indian Army and the Chinese BPM on 1st & 30th October by the PLA of China every year. Apart from the military dialogue, the meetings are accompanied by cultural programmes from both sides.

Colonel also informed that the ‘Heap of Stones’ located at Bumla is a symbol of friendship, peace and tranquility, which now prevails at this battle ground of 1962.

DCM was accompanied by MLAs Olom Panyang, Tsering Tashi, Laisam Simai, Dr Mohesh Chai and Kaling Moyong and SE PWD Ambuj Atreya.

The dignitaries also visited famous ‘Galden Namgyal Lhatse’, commonly known as the Tawang Monastery and the Shungatser Lake.

PM draws analogy of 'surgical strikes' for black money campaign PTI Vadodara, Oct 22: Using the analogy of surgical strikes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today wondered what would have happened if the government had adopted similar strategy in the recent campaign against blackmoney, which unearthed Rs 65,000 crores.

"We gave some time to those who had generated black money (to declare it). You will be happy to know that Rs 65,000 crore in black money came into mainstream with payment of tax and penalty.

"Now think, Rs 36,000 crore that was leaking has been stopped (by direct benefit transfer), and Rs 65,000 crore of black money is unearthed, together it is Rs one lakh crore.

"And this Rs one lakh crore has been brought back without launching surgical strikes," Modi said, invoking the term used for recent operation

by Army against terror

launch pads in Pakistanoccupied-Kashmir.

"If we do surgical strikes (in this area), you can imagine what all will come out," the Prime Minister said.

Modi said he has put up a sustained fight against corruption since he took charge.

"Against corruption, without much publicity I have put up a sustained fight.

Government's assistance (now) goes directly in the bank accounts of beneficiaries, cutting out middlemen.

"Just by ensuring that right person gets the benefit and wrong person cannot take it, we have saved Rs 36,000 crore, which used to leak in the form of (subsidies for) gas cylinders, scholarship, pension," Modi said.

Modi, speaking at a camp to distribute 'assistive devices' to over 8,000 `Divyangs' (disabled persons) here, also criticised past governments for not doing enough for the disabled.

204 Indian softshell turtles rescued in Vish'patnam PTI Visakhapatnam, Oct 22: As many as 204 Indian softshell terrapin turtles being smuggled to Odisha were today rescued from a forested area near Mullimetta under Chintapalle forest range here, Andhra Pradesh Forest Department officials said.

The turtles were being smuggled to Odisha. The smugglers, however, escaped, the officials said.

The team found 220 turtles wrapped in a cloth.

Of them, 16 turtles were dead, they said.

The rescued turtles were taken to Indira Gandhi Zoological Park in Visakhapatnam, said Chintapalle forest range officer B Ramnaresh.

For the first time turtles have been seized in this area, he said.

The turtles were to be smuggled to Odisha where there is a demand for their meat for purported medicinal value, the forest officer said.

The rescued turtles are of various sizes, weighing between 200 gm and 1.5 kg. Probe to identify the smugglers was on.

CBI arrests Homeopathy Council chief in bribery case IANS New Delhi, Oct 22: The CBI on Saturday arrested Central Council of Homeopathy President Ramjee Singh and another person on charges of accepting Rs.20 lakh in bribe to give a favourable inspection report for setting up of a homeopathy college.

Singh, who was elected the council chief in 2009, was arrested along with Harishankar Jha during a raid by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) af-

ter a complaint.

Singh has served both as president and secretary of the Homeoopathic Association of India.

The Central Council of Homoeopathy, a statutory body under the Health and Family Welfare Ministry, is a regulatory authority for homoeopathy system of medicine.

It is entrusted with the work of maintaining the register of practitioners and the standards in homeopathic education.

A Staff Reporter Aalo, Oct 22: Nyajum Ete struck the only goal of the game as SFS FC made it to the semi-final of the first Binga Ete Memorial Football Tournament, 2016.

Playing in front of a vociferous crowd at Aalo general ground, SFS FC and Ngomdir PH FC started the match cautiously.

Neither of the two teams tried to breach the rival defence or even create a worthy chance in the first few minutes of the match.

The gritty 1-0 win was possible through an excellent solo goal from Ete. SFS FC will now meet Jummi Combats FC Bene, who earlier beat Gotu TK

Darka by an identical margin, in the first semi-final of the tournament.

The lone goal of the match for last year’s DSA champion was scored by Toni Ragyor.

On Sunday, Memo United FC will play Kabu SC in the first match while MAE FC will take on Sora Bros FC in the second match.

United Students of Pasighat carries out clean drive Staff Reporter Pasighat, Oct 22: In an initiative to help the Pasighat market look tidy and clean, the members of United Students’ Union of Pasighat carried out a massive cleanliness drive at main market today as a part of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

The objective of the mission was to generate awareness about the sanitation and its linkage with the health of common public as untidiness in the market not only harms shopkeepers and vendors, it also largely affects people in general who comes to market for anything requirements.

With the posters and slogans: ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness, Go one step ahead on cleanliness, Let’s make the right choice and use dustbin, Safai mein bhalaai’, the student union

tried to convey and aware the public and marketers to maintain cleanliness and its importance.

Chief Councilor, Pasighat Municipal Council Kaling Doruk and other staff of PMC also attended the clean drive. Doruk has appreciated the noble initiative of the students who has just joined to make Pasighat a better place under clean

Pasighat, Green Pasighat movement. While appealing the student union to carry out more such drive in the township, Doruk has also urged other organizations and NGOs to volunteer and help Pasighat making a beautiful town which is under the making of Smart City. The United Students’ of Pasighat was led by its President, Lenzing Doming.

Motivation cum sensitization programme to improve education system held

Maksam Tayeng Pasighat, Oct 22: A one day motivation cum sensitization programme for all head teachers, PRI Members and SMC Chair Persons of Ruksin Sub-Division was held at Ruskin Kebang Hall today which was attended by local MLA cum Parliamentary Secretary, Er. Tatung Jamoh, DDSE, Pasighat, Jongge Yirang and host of Principals, Headmaster besides good attendance of PRI leaders. .

Speaking as a Chief Guest, Jamoh appreciated the initiative of the DDSE and expressed that, all the key issues required for enhancing the quality of education have been incorporated in the agenda, for which close coordination by school teachers, PRI Members, SMCs and other stake holders is required. He also advised the teaching staffs to introspect and re-dedicate themselves for the cause of coming generation and informed that he is committed to extend all possible assistance from his side.

While dwelling at length on the importance of games and sports, he further said that, it will be a very important part of education which can be used to deviate the attention of students from wrong doings or direction.

He also informed that games & spots are emerging as a lucrative profession which can be adopted by the coming generations to solve the increasing unemployment in the state. As an encouragement he promised to sponsors the block level sports meet of the Ruksin Circle at UPS level and directed the block functionaries to prepare estimates and

submit to him.

While initiating the programme DDSE Jongge Yirang placed the points like, introduction of Pre-Pry Classes in Govt. Schools, re-introduction of kitchen garden in all schools, conduction of complex examination at class V level, motivation & Sensitizations of teachers & Stake holders and introduction of Game & Sports meet in UPS Level.

The resource Persons for the day long Programme were, Tadam Mibang Principal DIET, Mante Koyu Principal GHSS Ruksin, Tagong Sitang Principal GHSS Sille, Okyam Tatin VP GHSS Bilat, Talem Jamoh DPC (RMSA), Talem Tamuk HM GSS Rani, Obang Taloh DPC (SSA), Talem Talom BRP Ruksin & Omir Tatin BRP Ruksin.

After through discussion and deliberations, all the agenda items were adopted unanimously for adoption and implementation. Yirang extended his gratitude for the active participations from all corners and sought the spirit of cooperation in implementing it. He also requested to check out all vulnarable areas within and outside school campus to avoid fire accidents.

Earlier on yesterday, an inter-Departmental meeting of Education and ICDS was held in the conference Hall of Deputy Commissioner under the Chairmanship, Isha Khosla, DC Pasighat to discuss upon finding solution on root cause of declining quality education at the pre- schooling stage.

DDSE, Jongge Yirang said that, children are directed to admit in Class-I at the age

6 Years without learning the primers and there is no scope of learning primers in the curriculum of Class- I. Students are promoted to the next higher class due to NO DETENTION POLICY. He also informs that 0 to 6 years of children are look after by the IDCS Department. So he requested the ICDS Department to work closely with Education Department as the basic objectives of both the Department are same.

On the part of Deputy Director, ICDS Ponung Ering Angu, welcomed the suggestion of the DDSE and said that, ICDS department has already developed the curriculum for ECCE and Pre-schooling and master trainers training has already been completed for training of Anganwadi workers. So it will more practical if both the Department work in close coordination, she added.

While appreciating the effort of both the Department the Deputy Commissioner said that, this new initiative will benefit the children in the long run. She also advised both the departments to review the problems and progresses by sitting together after implementation. At the end, it was decided that children above 4 years to 6 years will be sent to the nearest Govt.

Pry/Upper Pry. Schools along with the Anganwadi Workers. Children in the age group of 4 to 5 years will be placed at LKG and 5 to 6 Years will be treated as UKG. Learning activities will be done under the supervision of the Head Teacher of the School for a maximum of one and half hours daily.

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

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Umroi, Baljek airports to get facelift thanks to UDAN Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: As many as 46 under-served and unserved airports and airstrips in the North East, including Shillong airport, will be put to use under the novel Regional Connectivity Scheme ‘UDAN’ that will enable common men in landlocked and waterlocked states to fly at a subsidised rate, the Civil Aviation ministry announced on Friday.

UDAN, or ‘Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik’, is an innovative scheme to develop the regional aviation market and the airlines will bid for seat subsidies, Civil Aviation Minister P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju said on Friday while unveiling the scheme for the hilly and island states.

The North East, which was the centre of action during the two world wars and the wars with China and Pakistan, has many unserved and underserved airports, reports available at the conference said. The four underserved airports in the region are Shillong, Jorhat, Lilabari and Tezpur.

There are 36 unserved airports and airstrips in the North East, of which 20 are in Assam. Arunachal Pradesh has nine such airports, Meghalaya and Tripura have three each, Manipur has two and Mizoram one. The unserved airports in Meghalaya are in Tura, Shella and Dwara, the reports said.

The scheme, which will be for a period of 10 years, will provide connectivity to unserved and underserved airports through revival of the existing airstrips and airports. Airlines and helicopter operators can start operations on hitherto unconnected routes by submitting proposals to the Centre.

The operators can seek a viability gap funding (VGF), besides various concessions and such route proposals will then be offered for competitive bidding through a reverse bidding mechanism. The route will be awarded to the participant quoting the lowest VGF per seat. The operator submitting the

original proposal will have the Right of First Refusal on matching the lowest bid in case his original bid is within 10% of the lowest bid.

The successful bidder will then have exclusive rights to operate on the route for three years. Support will be withdrawn after three years as by that time, the route is expected to become selfsustainable.

The selected airline operator will have to provide a minimum of nine and a maximum of 40 UDAN seats at subsidised rates for operations through fixed wing aircraft and a minimum of five and a maximum of 13 seats on the flights for operations through helicopters, the minister said.

On each route, the minimum frequency will be three and maximum of seven departures per week. Route networks will also be encouraged under the scheme to achieve economies of scale and optimal usage of aircraft.

“This first-of-its-kind scheme globally will create affordable yet economically

viable and profitable flights on regional routes so that flying becomes affordable for the common man even in small towns,” he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Raju expressed hope that the first flight under the scheme would be able to take off by January next year. He said the scheme was prepared after consultations with stakeholders.

UDAN is also likely to give a fillip to tourism and employment generation in the hinterland. Through introduction of helicopters and small aircraft, it is also likely to significantly reduce travel time in remote and hilly regions and islands.

Meant for the common man, the fare for a one-hour journey of about 500 km on a fixed wing aircraft or for half an hour journey on a helicopter will be capped at Rs 2,500 with proportionate pricing for routes of different stage length or flight duration.

This will be achieved through a financial stimulus in the form of concessions from Central and State governments and airport opera-

tors and a Viability Gap Funding to the interested airlines to kick-off operations from such airports so that the passenger fares are kept affordable, the Minister added.

The partner state governments (other than North Eastern states and Union Territories where contribution will be 10 %) would contribute a 20% share to this fund. For balanced regional growth, the allocations under the scheme would be equitably spread across the five geographical regions of the countryNorth, West, South, East and North East, he added.

The states have a key role under the scheme. The selection of airports where UDAN operations will start will be done in consultation with state governments and after confirmation of their concessions. It may be recalled that revival of dysfunctional airports and starting operations on unserved airports has been a long-standing demand of most states and this will be addressed through UDAN to a large extent.

KHADC chief loyalists 3 convicts escape opt for ‘suspended’ tag from Tripura Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: The factionalism in the Congress became stark on Friday when over a hundred loyalists of KHADC chief PN Syiem from different units of the party declared themselves ‘suspended’ after their leader’s suspension for three years that was extended by the MPCC recently.

Addressing reporters after a meeting with the Congress functionaries at his residence here, Syiem said, “Party functionaries, including presidents, vice presidents and other Congress party workers from Mawsynram, Pyndengsohs aw, Syntein, Sawsymper, Dangar, Lawbah and Phlangwanbroi have unanimously decided to consider

themselves as being suspended after the Congress party suspended me.”

He added that they would not hold any office in the party. However, he was quick to add that the Congress workers have not left the party but they are only considering themselves as suspended.

Contending that the Mawsynram Block Committee Congress (MBCC), of which Syiem was the former president but was removed from that post after the suspension, has been dissolved and is now looking for new office bearers, Syiem said, “The party functionaries have stated that they will not be part of the new office although they are part of the Congress party.”

Trouble for Cong as rebel MDCs set to join BJP Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: Trouble is beckoning the Congress with a few MDCs, who are currently part of the People’s Democratic Front (PDF) in the KHADC, set to join the BJP. Sources said that with the five Congress MDCs on Friday withdrawing support to the PDF led by suspended Congress member and KHADC CEM, PN Syiem, the stage is set for other MDCs who are supporting the PDF to join the BJP. If this materialises, there will be a BJP-led KHADC, which will be a first in the history of the Council.

Sources added that except Syiem, some others who were once part of the Congress will soon join the BJP which in the long run will add more trouble to the beleaguered Congress affecting its prospects in the 2018 Assembly polls.

Since there is no anti-defection law in the KHADC, the members of the council are free to

join any political party.

However, sources pointed out that Syiem will continue to remain with the Congress since he is also a legislator and if he joins any other political party, the anti-defection law will be applicable leading to his disqualification.

If the MDCs join the BJP before the by-polls to seven vacant council seats, this will be a boost to the party candidates who are contesting the council seats.

In addition, this will also boost the BJP’s prospects in the 2018 Assembly polls.

The BJP already has a member in the GHADC after Bhupendra B. Hajong contested and won from Salmanpara in South Garo Hills in the 2015 council polls.

The MPCC action of suspending Syiem had its fallout with five MDCs resigning from the Congress and extending support to Syiem, which was never expected by the party.

“We will meet from time to time to discuss the future course of action,” the KHADC CEM said.

Meanwhile, Banraplang Hynniewta, assistant secretary of MBCC, decried the action of the MPCC and said that Congress lacked discipline. He said, “The MPCC suspended Syiem without any reason.”

P. Wanniang, president of Pyndengsohsaw Area Congress Committee, alleged that the Congress has overlooked the different party units in the State.

Earlier, a group of party workers who have been newly elected to the MBCC, under the new leadership of Khelor Kharnaior, had met DD Lapang after Syiem’s suspension.

Father held for rape of daughter Agencies Tura, Oct 22: Dalu police in West Garo Hills have arrested a man who stands accused of raping his 13year-old daughter on several occasions, according to a delayed report.

The arrest was made possible after a team from the district child protection office visited the village of the accused, Thibapara, this week and met the victim.

The teenage victim reportedly narrated her ordeal wherein the accused father had forced himself on her several times in the past.

The victim is said to have become pregnant from the sexual assault and the clan (Mahari) allegedly tried to contain the incident from going public by attempting a compromise before the administration moved in and arrested the accused father.

Police was called in and on October 19, the accused father, identified as Rasti A Sangma, was placed under arrest while the girl was taken for medical examination and counselling under the care of the district child protection officer. She has since been moved out of the village to a home on the directions of the child welfare committee.

Though reports of sexual assaults are being brought to the fore in recent times from many places in both Khasi and Garo Hills, cases of incest are only now beginning to surface. Just recently, another parent was arrested in North Garo Hills for forcing himself on his minor daughter and his step-daughter as well.

P5

NORTHEAST

Central Jail

IANS Agartala, Oct 22: Three convicts, all serving life-imprisonment since 2012, escaped from the Central Jail in Tripura, police said on Saturday.

"The three convicts -Milan Debbarma, 28; Swarna Kumar Tripura, 22; Rabindra Tripura, 24 -- fled from the jail in Bishalgarh on Friday night. They were found missing during the rou-

tine roll-call," Sepahijala district police chief Sudipta Das said.

He said that a massive search operation was in place and all of the state's 74 police stations were alerted.

"BSF (Border Security Force) were also asked to keep a close watch on the borders to prevent the convicts from crossing over to Bangladesh," Das added.

Dikkanchi case Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: The election petition filed by Congress legislator Dikkanchi Shira against Tura MP Conrad Sangma was partly heard on Friday. The matter was re-fixed for hearing on October 27 and 28.

Dikkanchi, who unsuccessfully contested the Tura Lok Sabha seat during the by-poll, filed the petition challenging the win of NPP candidate Sangma stating that he had used unfair means to confuse voters about distribution of money under MGNREGS.

Notice to DC, SP

High Court of Meghalaya

Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: The High Court of Meghalaya has issued notices to the Deputy Commissioner, and the Superintendent of Police, East Khasi Hills, to prepare the detailed report about the present status of the

hawkers using footpaths and roads for selling their goods. The order was following the hearing on a related case on Friday.The Court also asked them to be present on November 8 which was fixed for hearing.

Mizoram roads in bad condition: PWD PTI Aizawl, Oct 22: Mizoram Public Works Department (PWD) officials on Saturday said that most of the roads in the state were in extremely bad condition due to severe monsoon and lack of fund for maintenance of roads.

Talking to media persons in Aizawl, Engineer-in-Chief of the PWD R. Vanlaltluanga said that the condition of almost all the National Highways in the state were extremely bad as the fund flow from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) for maintenance of the national highways was very low.

Vanlaltluanga also blamed some of the contractors appointed by the MoRTH like Hyderabad-based Gayatri Project Ltd., which bagged the Rs.615.69 crore National Highway No. 44-A between Aizawl and

Tripura border Mamit town, for slow progress of construction work.

The engineers of the state PWD also said that the department could not prepare Work Schedule during the last two fiscals after abolition of the Planning Commission which, earlier, used to allocate funds annually.

Chief minister Lal Thanhawla, had on Friday,

admitted that the roads throughout the state were in bad condition and the state government was aware of it.

Addressing Congress workers, Lal Thanhawla said that the road conditions were bad as it was impossible to undertake repair works during the rainy season and the working season in the state was hardly five months.

Cong withdraws support to PDF coalition in KHADC Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: The Congress on Friday withdrew its support to the People’s Democratic Forum (PDF) coalition led by suspended Congress legislator and KHADC chief P.N Syiem. The party had extended support to PDF during the two-day session.

A press communiqué released on Friday said newly elected Parliamentary Party leader Manstudy Nongrem submitted the letter of withdrawal of support to the PDF following a decision by the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC). The letter was handed over to Syiem.

When contacted, Nongrem said MPCC directed Congress MDCs to resign as Executive Mem-

bers (EMs). He added that he had intimated the information to the three EMs to resign.

When asked why MPCC directed the MDCs to resign and withdraw support to the PDF coalition, Nongrem said the party felt that it had no right to support a suspended member who is the leader of the coalition.

On whether he would resign from the post of Chairman of the Council, he said, “The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Council are elected by the members of the House and not by the PDF and this matter can be decided later.”

Meanwhile, Congress MDC PT Sawkmie resigned from the post of Deputy CEM and submitted the letter to Syiem.

When contacted,

Sawkmie said, “I have tendered my resignation as Deputy CEM and at the same time submitted a letter on my withdrawal from the PDF to Syiem.”

On the other hand, Syiem said he had received the resignation letters of Sawkmie, Lamphrang Blah and Jansing M. Tynsong.

Asked about Nongrem and Donovan Wahlang, the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman, respectively, Syiem said they have not indicated anything.

With the withdrawal of five Congress MDCs, the PDF has the support of two Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) MDCs, 10 independent MDCs and 3 UDP MDCs.

State harps on renewable energy to tide over crisis Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: As Meghalaya faces acute shortage of hydro power leading to load shedding, the State government is now focusing on renewable energy to tide over the crisis.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said the rainfall this year was less than average that has affected the existing generation centres in the State. The peak load factor has gone down drastically as a result of which the generation centres now have limited available power, he added.

Stressing on the need to go for capacity additions in respect of power generation, Sangma stated that the government has started a few progr ammes to save energy from conventional sources, besides ensuring that some villages located far away from generation centres are supported by renewable energy leading to the withdrawal of conventional resources.

The government is also coming up with a programme under which solar lamps will be distributed among students to encourage them to take advantage of renewable sources of energy. The

chief minister said these students in turn will convince the community to opt for renewable energy.

The State will also approach the Centre in this regard. “Initially, we will distribute 15,000-20,000 lamps to classes X and XI students,” Sangma said and added that renewable energy would also reduce the pressure on Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited and even the environment.

Reacting to a query, Sangma said the government is also encouraging use of pellets or waste biomass as an alternative to fuel to generate renewable energy.

‘Rock On 2 will help promote tourism in State’ Agencies Shillong, Oct 22: Meghalaya has finally caught the attention of Bollywood that can help boost the State’s tourism sector.

The upcoming Bollywood venture Rock On 2, which was partly shot in Shillong, will help in promoting tourism here, said actor Farhan Akhtar who was in the city on Friday.

Akhtar, who is in the lead role, said the sequel depicts the culture and natural beauty of the State and this will give an impetus

to the tourism sector in the same way as movies like Dil Chahta Hai and Don did for the cities where they were shot.

The actor and singer further said that instead of travelling halfway across the world, Bollywood can now come to Meghalaya for shooting.

When asked about the song Hoi Kiw sung by local band Summersalt, Akhtar said the Rock On crew was desperate to get a band from Shillong and after deliberations

they decided on Summersalt.

“It would have been incomplete if there was no band from Shillong in our movie,” he said.

Meanwhile, lead actress Shraddha Kapoor, who was fascinated by the beauty of the State, said it was difficult to leave Shillong. “Shillong is becoming my favourite place and everything is amazing here,” she said and added that she would not mind living in Shillong.

Rock On 2 will release on November 11.

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

Today's quote When we face the worst that can “happen in any situation, we grow.

When circumstances are at their worst, we can find our best.

- Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

EDITORIAL P6 Paresh baruah traitor of assamese youth : part-ii Arwind Gogoi

Reorganisation in Uttar Pradesh

Given how little the Congress stands to lose in the elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, the defection of its former State unit chief, Rita Bahuguna Joshi, to the Bharatiya Janata Party should not have caused a flutter. She had already been ignored by the party's new team in leading the election campaign in the State. Even in her glory days, she had drawn her power from little more than her proximity to the Gandhi family. What she brings to the BJP, besides embarrassing the Congress, is therefore uncertain. In fact, the Congress will be watched less for the organisational loss her switch may cause and more for the manner in which it responds to her 'betrayal'. In diverse ways, all four political parties in the fray are being compelled to clarify the organising principles that set them apart. For the Congress, as it picks up the gauntlet with little expectation of electoral success but an overriding ambition to use the stage to demonstrate its capacity to influence the electoral debate, Ms. Joshi's flight poses the questions: What weight do Gandhi family loyalists carry in party affairs? What is the Congress willing to do to show that it can democratise itself and loosen the hold of the "high command"?

Family loyalty has taken on a particularly contentious turn in the ruling Samajwadi Party, with readings of the shift in the fortunes of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his many "uncles" changing by the week. The extent to which the SP patriarch, Mulayam Singh Yadav, can cohesively accommodate the jostling ambitions of his sons, brothers and others is uncertain, in the midst of rumours that Akhilesh Yadav may branch out and launch his own party. The BJP, for its part, appears to be unequal to the opportunity of deepening the development narrative that helped it sweep U.P. in the 2014 Lok Sabha election; it seems to be falling back on Hindutva polarisation to rally its cadres. In what is perceived as a political signal, Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma has announced a Ramayana museum near the disputed site in Ayodhya, while western U.P. continues to simmer with communal tension. The Bahujan Samaj Party may be abandoning the 'grand social coalition' that won it the control of the State Assembly in 2007 for a more focussed pitch to minorities and Dalits, a return to its founding agenda. The rethink is perhaps forced by its performance in 2014, when the party failed to win a single Lok Sabha seat despite polling nearly 20 per cent of the total vote in U.P. Clearly for all four parties, 2017 is a whole new battlefield.

China's tightrope walk

The latest GDP data from China show the world's second-largest economy seemingly in good health.

Third-quarter growth was 6.7 per cent, reflecting the government's continued pump priming by way of increased spending, and a robust property market. That the headline number came in exactly at the same reading as the previous two quarters also signals a level of almost unnatural stability in the economy's performance as expansion has hovered around 7 per cent or very close to it for the last nine quarters, ensuring that there has been no hard landing as the key global growth engine slows. Earlier this decade the Chinese government began a 'rebalancing' of the economy by shifting the focus away from a production and export-led model to an increasingly domestic consumption and services reliant one; it has had some success in this with consumption contributing 71 per cent of GDP growth in the first three quarters of 2016. Still, the high level of government spending and the mounting debt - core debt as a percentage of GDP exceeded 250 per cent in the first quarter according to data compiled by the Bank for International Settlements are causes for concern. With the state leading investment in infrastructure as a means to stabilise growth, public spending climbed 12.5 per cent in the ninemonth period, widening the nation's fiscal deficit. But it is the pace and size of the overall credit expansion that has set alarm bells ringing, including at the International Monetary Fund.

In a working paper titled 'Resolving China's Corporate Debt Problem', the IMF has cited international experiences with similar-sized credit booms to caution that China increasingly risks facing slower growth or a "disruptive adjustment" unless it acts quickly. With both scenarios fraught with danger, Chinese planners will be cognisant of the social costs a sudden, sharper slowdown can extract. Japan's economic doldrums since its 'lost decade' at the end of the last century is a primer of what could ensue from such an economic slowing. That leaves Beijing with the unenviable choice of determining the contours of the 'adjustment' that would need to be implemented post-haste to address the precipitous debt overhang.

The authors of the IMF paper advocate a comprehensive strategy and note: "Risks appear high but manageable if the problem is addressed promptly, but the window is closing quickly." Their prescription includes the political will to identify companies in financial distress, unmindful of whether they are stateowned or private, and standards to get lenders to acknowledge the true levels of bad loans. Steering a large ship through a course-changing turn with precision is never easy, and ensuring that the $10-trillion economy stays on its feet while rebalancing could prove a challenge.

Paresh Baruah was neither naïve nor oblivious to the consequences for the Assamese people when he allied with the Jamait Ul Mujahidin Bangladesh (JMB) to conduct subversive activities like the 2006 NJP train bombings . He always had been extremely shrewd in pursuing his ultimate objective of terrorizing Assamese people to fill up his coffers. The Assamese people however lack even a semblance of the shrewdness or ruthlessness that Paresh Baruah has displayed over the past decades. ULFA's killing tactics have essentially been constant since 1979 and it has never wavered from conducting ruthless massacres even of Assamese people. The discovery of mass graves of Assamese victims from ULFA

camps in Lakhi Pathar & Saraipung in Dec1990, the 2001 Moran polo Club massacre of 14 SULFA cadres in Dibrugarh, the 2004 Dhemaji School bombings which killed 17(mostly children) and Jan 2007 killings of 48 people are a grim reminder of Paresh Baruah's disdain for popular sentiments or his absolute confidence in the gullibility of Assamese people. The ethnic identity of ULFA's victims may have varied, but the bottom line remains constant.

Despite being endowed with rich natural resources and consequent investment by entrepreneurs in the development of tea, oil, coal and other such sectors, the prolonged periods of insurgency since 1979 has led to a general feeling of political instability in Assam which in turn prompted the flight of

capital and investors from Assam. A feeling of insecurity made potential investors look for safer places to do business which stunted development in Assam. Vast amounts of money pumped in by the Central Govt for the development of Assam were diverted from the intended beneficiaries and siphoned off by a nexus of corrupt politicians and Govt servants in collusion with the ULFA thereby leading to the growth of a parallel economy.

ULFA continued to reap incomes from both from the Govt funds and also from its criminal businesses like extortions and gun running. It is the middle and lower classes of the Assamese people that have borne the brunt of this economic loot of Assam.

While Paresh Baruah in collusion with some corrupt state officials continued to rake in the

Moolah, the unemployment rate soared hugely to be amongst the worst in 2014. According to a 2014 report by the National Statistics Commission, Assam ranked second in both urban and rural unemployed youth.

Prolonged insurgency has created 2.5 million unemployed Assamese youth who face bleak prospects for the future.

These unemployed, educated youth are the recruitment pool from which Paresh Baruah is assured of a steady supply of foot soldiers to fill up his cadres. Lest we forget, the Moran youth forms the bulk of the foot soldiers of ULFA who operate for a pittance in Upper Assam whereas Paresh Baruah and his coterie safely ensconced in foreign countries continue to earn huge sums of money. To Paresh Baruah, the Moran youth is an expendable entity whose arrest or death is of no significance as long

as the money keeps coming in.

With the benefit of hindsight, if we the Assamese people were to dispassionately assess ULFA's activities and consequently the legacy we bequeath to our future generations, we emerge as a naïve & gullible people whose faith has been repeatedly abused

by Paresh Baruah. It is glaringly evident that we have inadvertently but in good faith blundered by supporting Paresh Baruah.

While Paresh Baruah himself, his inner coterie, Pakistani ISI and Bangladeshi migrants (in that order) are significant gainers, the only major loser in these entire insurgency episode in Assamese history are the Assamese people whose interests have been ignored and severely compromised by Paresh Baruah led ULFA. The Assamese civil soci-

ety is now aware of these facts but still reluctant to voice their disapproval on public platforms.

Paresh Baruah and his ilk will continue to harm and inflict irreversible damage on the interests of Assamese people unless we come forward fearlessly to expose the malevolence and malice that Paresh Baruah perpetuates under the veneer of fighting for our well being. The moot point therefore is to introspect and arrive at a conclusive decision as to how much more losses we are prepared to inflict on our youth and the future generations for the sake of Paresh Baruah, who has exploited our sentiments for his personal aggrandizement?

DISCLAIMER Views expressed above are the author's own.

Selling a brand named nationalism It's time to worry when an utterly illogical proposition begins to sound half-way logical because it has been repeated over and over again, and because glaring gaps in reason have been plugged with dollops of nationalism. The ongoing cultural war between India and Pakistan, flagged off by a controversy surrounding the screening of a Bollywood film and culminating in a ban by Pakistan of all Indian content, is a case in point.

The Bollywood film stars a Pakistani actor, Fawad Khan, who apparently portrays an important role on the basis of a valid permit to work in India. He cannot be excised from the film without it having to be remade. He has acted in several Indian films without any questions having been asked. No one it seems asked him to swear an oath of loyalty to the Indian flag before letting him work.

From all accounts Khan had finished shooting for the film when an Indian Army camp at Uri, Jammu and Kashmir, was attacked on 18 September by infiltrators from Pakistan.

Tensions between the two neighbors have reached a near fever

pitch, especially after India announced it had carried out a surgical strike on terrorist staging posts across the Line of Control separating the two countries less than 10 days after the Uri attack.

In short, it is all but war and now the frontline troops are cineastes. Earlier this month, an influential group of exhibitors announced they would not screen the film because it featured a Pakistani actor. The tenor of public discourse veered sharply down a nationalistic path with some influential television anchors leading discussion groups into agreeing that India ought to have no truck with actors and other creative persons from a country that has allowed its territory to be used as a base for terrorists.

The scalpel of reason would find several ways to slice up this proposi-

tion. For starters, in the seven decades since the partition of India, the country's film industry has thrived on the work of actors and directors with roots in Pakistan.

Indeed the first post-Independence generation of India's best known actors and directors were mostly born in what became Pakistan. Through the wars of 1948, 1965 and 1971, they worked successfully without their origins provoking nationalists or dissuading fans.

The offspring of many with ancestors in present-day Pakistan still rule the roost in Bollywood, their ruddypink complexions an essential ingredient of the manliness Indian viewers seek in heroes. If a link with Pakistan is the only basis for disqualification, they would all be out of work.

But that is not so much the problem for modern-

Lady Gets on a Bus A lady gets on a public bus. Without saying a word, she gestures to the bus driverby sticking her thumb on her nose and waving her fingers at the driver.

The driver acknowledges the lady, turns to her and uses both hands in the same type of gesture and waves all his fingers at her.

The woman holds her right arm out at the driver and chops at it a few times with her left hand.

Then the driver puts his

left hand on his right bicep and jerks his right arm up in a fist at her.

The woman then cups both of her hands under her breasts and lifts gently. So the driver places both of his hands at his crotch and gently lifts up.

Then the w o m a n frowns, runs a finger up between her derriere, and gets off the bus.

There is another woman sitting in the front row of the bus who witnessed the whole exchange.

She speaks up, "That was

the most disgusting thing I have ever seen on a public bus! What the hell were you doing?"

"Listen lady," states the gruff bus driver, "the lady that got on the bus before was a deaf-mute.

She asked me if the bus went to 5th Street. I said no, we go to 10th Street. She asked if we make many stops. I told her that this was the express. She asked if we go by the dairy, and I told her we go by the ballpark. She said "Shit, I'm on the wrong bus!" and got off."

day nationalists as it is the fact that the film industry - its many excesses, including dubious funding and frequent tomfoolery, notwithstanding - is largely a secular one, and places talent on a pedestal while shunning parochialism.

This was once a source of pride, not just for the industry but for Indians.

But in the strange reasoning that now makes up the dominant discourse in India, a secularist is actually pseudosecular; a liberal or an intellectual must be a Communist and every dissenter is a traitor. To this, add the unstated but implied proposition that every Muslim must be a Pakistani and a choke hold is applied on anyone who dares ask a question.

Not every film personality is secular, liberal, a dissenter or Muslim. But as with every creative

field including journalism, filmdom has several who are one or the other, or in a few cases even all.

Once inconvenient voices are thus labeled up and shouted down, it is easy to see how the leap is accomplished from a contemptible attack on an Army camp to sending a film with a Pakistan actor into the doghouse.

Two plus two doesn't make five because it is wrong but because some people say it is actually six.

This message when deciphered reads as follows Pakistan, an enemy state, sends its terrorists to attack India's soldiers and its actors and performers to corrupt Indian minds. And the oncesoft Indian state, held back for so long by liberals, secularists and dissenters, has now decided to target both terrorist and actor because being from Pakistan, an enemy state, each of them must equally be the enemy. Sadly, an increasing number of people see nothing wrong in this convolution.

But it isn't just the matter of a single film.

Viewing creativity through the nationalistic prism is fast threatening to reach epic proportions on either side of a fractious border.

Earlier this week, an iconic 1959 Pakistani film with Indian artistes was dropped from the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image festival following protests.

Pakistan for its part has announced a ban on all Indian television and radio content and has also stopped the screening of Indian films, presumably including those featuring Pakistani actors. There is a difference though; while the attacks in India come from various groups, they are not at least not yet - the declared policy of the state. In Pakistan though, say reports, the ban is on direct orders of the government, which would presumably translate to being Islamabad's surgical strike on India.

Someone wise once called nationalism the result of state-sponsored branding. Many today in south Asia seem determined to promote their brand at the cost of their audience. And that is the most illogical aspect of this proposition. As the world worries if two nuclear-armed neighbors will go to war, they are busy spitting celluloid on each other.

Pariah status surely not far away The federal government is yet to ratify the Paris Climate agreement, it spends billions of taxpayers' funds paying polluters under its "Direct Action" policy and it has presided over a spike in coal pollution since it removed a price on carbon.

Yet the government still claims to be committed to climate action. This claim has now been completely discredited by modeling showing that the modest emissions reductions purchased at great cost under Direct Action will be wiped out in just over a year if the controversial Adani Carmichael coals mine goes ahead At last year's Paris climate talks we witnessed the unedifying spectacle of Australia, one of the world's worst per capita polluters, desperately seeking to join the "Coalition for Ambition" to save face. There was significant resistance, before other member countries relented. World leaders must now be pondering whether Australia should be ejected and accorded climate pariah status.

Sudip Bhattacharyya East Chowkidinghee Dibrugarh

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

BUSSINESS

P7

Cyber terrorists targeting Indian banks like Sensex retakes 28k, gains never before; time to be on high alert 404 points for the week

New Delhi, Oct 22: The incidents of cyber attacks on Indian banks are on the rise and it's time to be on high alert, warns India's Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), the government's nodal agency that deals with cyber security threats like hacking and phishing.

As per media, India's Computer Emergency Response Team had directed banks to be on high alert for possible cyber attacks emanating from foreign locations.

The agency has been sending advisories to banks and financial institutions about possible breaches in their

Pic for representation purpose. firewalls. Recently, CERTIn had sent warning to banks in months before the attackin July and August- and two weeks ago, "even as a malware infection was

spreading through their networks and spawning the country's biggest known breach of financial data, media reported.

The report said that on July

1, the cyber watchdog advised banks and the other financial institutions about cyber attacks planned on their information infrastructure along with the measures to be taken.

On August 12 and 24, CERT-In sent alerts to banks regarding backdoor Trojans that steal credentials, alerting them to advanced targeted cyber attacks along with how to look for signs of possible security breaches. The latest of these advisories was on October 7, as it warned about 'expected targeted attacks from Pakistan", in the wake of India's

counterstrike across the border follows terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

After the strikes across the border, there was rise in the number of attacks on various Indian websites - some reports put these at 7,000 by Pakistani hackers.

The cyber experts are of the view that Indian systems are not prepared enough to tackle cyber terrorism, and lack quality monitoring.

They are also of the view that India needs to increase spending enough on cyber security if it wants to hold off cyber terrorism.

(Agencies)

India wants pact with UK on India hopeful of pact on shortshort-term visas for students term visas during May's visit

India hopes to reach a deal with Britain for facilitating short-term visas for Indian students London, Oct 22: India hopes to reach a deal with Britain for facilitating shortterm visas for Indian students, academicians and businessmen during Prime Minister Theresa May's visit, Acting High Commissioner to the UK Dinesh Patnaik has said.

"I am hopeful, certain things will happen," he said.

"I hope we will have a deal on Britain facilitating shortterm visas for students, aca-

demicians and businessmen from India and these categories should not be in the migration list," Patnaik told media.

Noting that May's visit is important for India, he said "This is her first bilateral visit and India is her first trip outside the continent.

UK-India, we have a very very long umbilical relationship."

"It is an official visit and she will be heading a high-level

160-strong delegation. The trade delegation also assumes importance because of the Brexit scenario," he added.

"Post-Brexit, they will need it and they want to increase trade outside EU. The discussion will focus on framework of post-Brexit trade deal."

On the Indian side, he said "what we want is ease of doing business - access to the UK, both for students, academicians and businessmen."

He noted that a large number of tourists visit Europe but return home because of visa restrictions.

India wants Britain to extend visa concessions given to Chinese to be extended to Indians - 6 months to 2 years visa for 87 pound.

He said many companies here are shifting their jobs to India. In the next 3 to 4 months, about 2,000 jobs are expected to go to India. (PTI)

New Delhi, Oct 22: India hopes to reach a deal with Britain for facilitating shortterm visas for students, academicians and businessmen during Prime Minister Theresa May's visit, Acting High Commissioner to the U.K., Dinesh Patnaik, has said.

"I am hopeful, certain things will happen," he said.

"I hope we will have a deal on Britain facilitating shortterm visas for students, academicians and businessmen from India and these categories should not be in the migration list," Mr. Patnaik told reporters.

Noting that Ms. May's visit is important for India, he said, "This is her first bilateral visit and India is her first trip outside the continent."

"It is an official visit and she

will be heading a high-level 160-strong delegation. The trade delegation also assumes importance because of the Brexit scenario."

2,000 jobs in India On the Indian side, he said "what we want is ease of doing business - access to the U.K., both for students, academicians and businessmen."

He noted that a large number of tourists visit Europe but return home because of visa restrictions.

India wants Britain to extend visa concessions given to Chinese to be extended to Indians - 6 months to 2 years visa for 87 pound.

He said many companies are shifting their jobs to India. In the next 3 to 4 months, about 2,000 jobs are expected to go to India.

(PTI)

Indore to get Rs 50-crore IT Park

PSUs to soon undergo strategic stake sale New Delhi, Oct 22: After 12-year hiatus, government is set to revive strategic sale of state-owned companies with the Cabinet likely to consider shortly the outright sale of stake in over a dozen PSUs including the profit making ones.

"The strategic sale will come up before the Cabinet very shortly," a top source said.

NITI Aayog has prepared a list of public sector units where the government can sell its majority stake to private companies in order to bring in greater efficiency and professionalism in functioning.

Based on its suggestions, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) has finalised a model of strategic disinvestment.

PSUs identified for strategic sale reportedly include profit-making Bharat Earth Movers and Certification Engineers International as well as loss-making Scoot-

ers India.

The source said that while the government has been shedding a minority stake of 5-15 per cent in stateowned companies across sectors through Offer for Sale (OFS), strategic disinvestment would bring down holding in the PSU to below 50 per cent.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had in his Budget for 2016-17 set a target of garnering Rs 20,500 crore from strategic sales this fiscal.

The last strategic sale took place in Jessop and Co in 2003-04 under the NDA government headed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpyaee, when 72 per cent of government stake was sold to Indo Wagon Engineering for Rs 18.18 crore.

Incidentally, the first strategic sale in a PSU also happened under NDA rule in 1999-2000 when the government sold 74 per cent equity in Modern Food Industries to Hindustan Lever

for Rs 105.45 crore.

During 1999-2000 and 2003-04, the government had strategically divested stake in 16 PSUs to garner a total of Rs 6,344.35 crore.

These included sale of fuel retailer IBP Ltd to stateowned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) for Rs 1,153.68 crore.

Indian Petrochemicals Corp Ltd (IPCL) was sold to Reliance Industries for Rs 1,490.84 crore, Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd to Tata Group firm for Rs 1,439.25 crore and Hindustan Zinc Ltd to Vedanta Group for a total consideration of Rs 768.88 crore.

The source said DIPAM has worked out procedure as well as timelines for the strategic sale.

The NITI Aayog reportedly has submitted to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) a list of profit making as well as sick units that can be divested.

The list has not been made public so far. (PTI)

Trai recommends Rs 3,050 crore fine on Airtel, Vodafone, Idea for denying interconnection facility New Delhi, Oct 22: Telecom regulator Trai on Friday recommended a total penalty of Rs 3,050 crore on incumbent players Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular for denying interconnection facility to newcomer Reliance Jio Infocomm.

Bharti Airtel and Vodafone have been slapped with a fine of Rs 50 crore for 21 circles each (except J&K). Idea faced the same amount of penalty for 19 circles each.

Reliance Jio, which launched its services on September 5, had approached Trai alleging that incumbent players were denying it sufficient number of interconnection ports leading to huge call failures on its network.

The regulator recommended to the Department of Telecom imposing penalties on the big three players after it found that the operators were non-compliant with licence conditions.

Denial of interconnection "appears to be with ulterior motive to stifle competition and is anti consumer", Trai said.

The regulator stopped short of recommending cancellation of their telecom licences saying it may lead to "significant consumer inconvenience".

Reliance Jio has said its customers are facing 75 per cent call failures on Airtel, Vodafone and Idea cellular networks due to insufficient interconnection facility provided by the incumbent operators.

As per the service quality

norms, not more than five out of 1000 calls should fail at the point of interconnect.

Coming down heavily on the erring operators, the regulator went to the extent of saying that the non-compliance of licence terms and condition "warrants" recommendations for revocation of licence.

"However, the authority is mindful of the fact that revocation of the licence will entail significant consumer inconvenience and therefore in view of the larger public interest involved, the authority recommends a penal action of Rs 50 crore per LSA (circle)...," it said.

When contacted, the companies refused to comment on the issue. (Agencies)

Pic for representation purpose.

Indore, Oct 22: In a bid to make the city an 'infotech hub' on the lines of Bengaluru, Madhya Pradesh minister Rajendra Shukla today laid the foundation stone for a Rs 50crore IT park here.

The park, spread over 2 lakh square feet, will be built at a cost of Rs 50 crore. The foundation stone was laid on the eve of Global Investors' Summit (GIS) in the city.

Finance Minister Jayant Mallayya, who is also District Guardian Minister, was present on the occasion.

Shukla said the state gov-

ernment was making efforts to turn Indore into the third most prominent IT destination in the country after Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

The Industries minister said the government was hopeful that IT majors Tata Consultancy Services andInfosys would set up their campuses at Indore by the first half of 2017.

A deadline of 18 months has been set to commission the new IT park, Indore Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam Managing Director Kumar Purshottam said. (Agencies)

Mumbai, Oct 22: Stocks were broadly higher during the volatile week as the BSE benchmark Sensexre claimed the psychological 28,000-level by gaining 403.58 points and Nifty finished well above the key 8,600-level.

The positive opening of the week was wobbled by global nervousness over fresh US Fed rate hike fears before year-end, faltering the key indices to three monthlow.

It was soon to be thwarted by global recovery amid unexpected fall in the US manufacturing index, while three-day GST council meet charged up the sentiment as stocks rebounded biggest single day gain in five months amid hectic shortcovering dominating the momentum.

Pic for representation purpose.

The final phase of the US Presidential debate outcome, ECB monetary policy status-quo and some of quarterly earnings results provided support to the market. But, uncertainty returned amid global volatility after surge in the US dollar index rekindled the fresh

fears of the US rate hike this year.

Also, the domestic petrogiant Reliance Industries saw 23 per cent drop in its second quarter consolidated net profit which further pressured trading sentiment during the weekend trade.

(PTI)

IMF warns of slow growth in Central Asia, Caucasus The 189-nation IMF forecast economic growth in the region in 2016 at just 1.3%, the lowest estimate since 1998

Visitors are silhouetted against the logo of the International Monetary Fund at the main venue for the IMF and World Bank annual meeting in Tokyo.

Washington, Oct 22: The International Monetary Fund warned on Friday of weak growth prospects in Central Asia and theCaucasus and called for active reforms to energise the post-Soviet economies.

In a report, the 189-nation IMF forecast economic growth in the region in 2016 at just 1.3 per cent, the lowest estimate since 1998.

The slowdown is mostly due to low commodity prices that are weighing down energy exporters Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Those economies are expected to grow at an overall

rate of one per cent.

Weaker growth by key economic partners Russia andChina is also a factor.

Energy importers Armenia, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are expected to grow 3.7 per cent, the same as last year.

Next year, regional growth is forecast at 2.6 per cent.

While the IMF noted that the region is suffering from external factors that are outside its control, those trends have only increased the need for robust monetary, financial and structural reforms.

"Policymakers need to take important steps toward promoting strong and inclusive

growth and job creation, much needed to preserve and improve living standards," said Juha Kahkonen, deputy director of the IMF's Middle East and Central Asia Department.

"The protracted nature of these shocks underlines the pressing need to diversify those economies away from their dependence on remittances and commodity exports, so they can more effectively cope with the kinds of economic challenges they're currently facing," Kakhkonen said.

The fund urged regional governments to direct federal spending to education, training and health care in order to fuel economic growth. It also stressed the importance of good governance, accountably and property rights.

"The success of these measures will allow the region to enjoy more sustained and inclusive growth, which will improve living standards and lower poverty rates," Kahkonen said.

Earlier this month, global finance leaders complained that "growth has been too low for too long, benefiting too few," and warned that a backlash against globalisation was on the rise. (Agencies)

Gold covers ground on wedding demand, up Rs 120 New Delhi, Oct 22: Powered by wedding season demand from jewellers and retailers, gold regained some lustre by rising Rs 120 to Rs 30,520 per 10 grams at the bullion market today.

Positive global cues added to the upside.

Silver recaptured the Rs 43,000 per kg mark by climbing Rs 700 on increased off-take by industrial units and coin makers.

Bullion merchants attrib-

uted the traction in gold prices to hardening demand from jewellers as well as retailers, triggered by the ongoing wedding rush.

Globally, gold rose 0.04 per cent to USD 1,265.70 an ounce and silver 0.03 per cent to USD 17.50 an ounce in New York yesterday.

In the national capital, gold of 99.9 per cent and 99.5 per cent purity recovered by Rs 120 each to Rs 30,520 and Rs 30,370 per 10

grams, respectively. The metal had lost Rs 140 yesterday.

Sovereign, however, remained flat at Rs 24,400 per piece of eight grams.

In step with gold, silver ready surged Rs 700 to Rs 43,000 per kg and weeklybased delivery Rs 595 to Rs 42,500 per kg. Silver coins, however, remained unchanged at Rs 73,000 for buying and Rs 74,000 for selling of 100 pieces. (PTI)

SC asks Subrata Roy to deposit another Rs 200 crore to remain on parole New Delhi, Oct 22: Besides Ray, the parole of his son-inlaw Ashok Roy Choudhary and Sahara`s Director Ravi Shankar Dubey too has been extended.

The bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice Anil R. Dave and Justice A.K. Sikri asked the Sahara Group to deposit Rs 200 crore after senior counsel Kapil Sibal submitted a draft of Rs 215 crore, as ordered on September 28.

Sibal said that Sahara was ordered to deposit Rs 200 crore

by September 28 order. "But, instead of Rs 200 crore, they are depositing Rs 215 crore.

Thus, by November 28, they would need to deposit Rs 185 crore only."

The next hearing of the matter would take place on November 28.

Meanwhile, in pursuance of the September 28 direction,

The bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice Anil R. Dave and Justice A.K. Sikri asked the Sahara Group to deposit Rs 200 crore. the Sahara Group on Friday submitted a roadmap for returning the investors` money that according to SEBI stands at about Rs 36,000 crore. The roadmap submitted by Sahara on Friday is spread over 26 months up to December 2018, by which time Sahara proposes to re-

fund the investors` money.

The Sahara Group`s two companies -- Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) -- had raised through Optionally Fully Convertible Debenture (OFCDs) money from about

3.3 crore investors in 2008 and 2009.

The apex court by its August 31, 2012, order directed the SIRECL and SHICL to return the investors` Rs 17,600 crore with 15 per cent interest.

Sibal on Friday informed the court that the proposed roadmap has been shared with market regulator SEBI and amicus curiae Shekhar Naphade, and that there are some areas that need to be discussed.

While allowing a free hand to Sahara to sell its assets,

which are not attached, to raise the money, the court asked the SEBI to consider the fresh bids willing to pay more money for the five properties that have already been put on the block.

Roy was granted parole on May 6 this year to attend the last rites of his mother, who had passed away the previous day. Besides Roy, his son-inlaw Ashok Roy Choudhary, too, was released on parole.

Sahara Director Ravi Shankar Dubey was released on parole on July 11. (Agencies)

Subrata Roy, Ashok Roy Choudhary and Ravi Shankar Dubey were sent to judicial custody to Tihar Jail on March 4, 2014, for the failure of SIRECL and SHICL to comply with the court`s August 31, 2012 order on repayment of depositors` money.

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

INTERNATIONAL P8 Pakistan govt to appoint new army Russia Cyber Hacking To Undermine chief soon: Senior minister Democracy Globally: US Expert HIGHLIGHTS The Pak government will appoint a new army chief within a week or 10 days, a senior minister has said General Raheel had announced several months ago that he will not seek a second term

Pak army chief General Raheel Sharif.

Islamabad, Oct 22: The Pakistan government will appoint a new army chief within a week or 10 days to replace incumbent General Raheel Sharif who is poised to retire by end of November, a senior minister has said.

"The government has not yet decided [as to who will be the new army chief] but is likely to announce his name in week or ten days' time," Associated Press of

Pakistan quoted State Minister for Capital Administration Tariq Fazl Chaudhry as saying.

General Raheel had announced several months ago that he will not seek a second term unlike his predecessor General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.

The government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been under pressure+ to rename the successor of General Raheel to end uncer-

Nawaz Sharif govt has been under pressure to rename the successor of General Raheel to end uncertainty tainty amidst domestic and external security challenges.

Under the law, it is prerogative of the Prime Minister to appoint the new army chief.

His power is absolute in this regard but outgoing chief can give his advice.

Prime minister can pick any of the senior lieutenant general as army chief and he is not bound to follow he seniority of the officers.

(PTI)

Trump talks numbers, promises to deliver 4% GDP growth for US Washington, Oct 22: Compares India's high GDP growth rate with America's 1%, says will create 25 million new jobs over next decade Comparing India's high GDP growth rate with America's one per cent, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has promised to deliver four per cent GDP growth and create 25 million new jobs in the US over the next decade.

"Indians are not satisfied growing at the rate of eight per cent whereas for the United States and its people, a low growth of one per cent is considered fine," the real estate tycoon said at an election rally in North Carolina.

Underlining the need for economic growth, Trump said that high growth rate is essential for the US to become a strong and great nation again.

"Strength will also require growth. Right now our

economy is not growing at all. We had only around one per cent growth last quarter.

GDP is a disaster. When China has one per cent it is over, but they don't have one per cent. They have seven per cent, that is considered terrible," he said.

Trump, 70, also said that his rival and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton will lead America to negative growth rate.

"If Hillary gets in she is going to raise your taxes and the one per cent is going to be negative and that is going to be almost unheard of," he said.

"If she (Hillary) gets in, you are going to have such negative growth, you will have problems like you have never had before, and our companies and our jobs will flee," he added.

Trump, who is a billionaire himself, promised to deliver high growth rates if elected to the White House in No-

vember elections.

"I am going to get us to four per cent growth and create 25 million jobs over a 10year period," Trump said.

"Your jobs will come back under Trump administration. Your incomes will go up under Trump administration. Your taxes will go way, way down under a Trump administration," he said.

"Your companies won't be leaving North Carolina under a Trump administration.

There will be consequences for that. We will be strong and a really strong and powerful nation again," Trump said.

Asserting that American military is depleted, he said, "We gonna build it up.

America has grown weak, and so weak that the Philippines have broken with decades of pro-American foreign policy, to instead leave for the orbit of China and Russia," said the Republican leader. (PTI)

Washington, Oct 22: The hacking into the Democratic Party server and emails of the Clinton Campaign's officials by Russians is part of the grand design to challenge the democratic system, a well-known American cyber expert has said and warned that any retaliation by the US would escalate the situation probably triggering a dangerous global cyber war.

"What the Russians probably want to make the election seen illegitimate. So, they are stealing documents from politicians, from individuals, leaking secrets from around the world. The reason they are doing that is to make democracy seen like a bad system," Christopher Porter, a top intelligence lead from FireEye's iSIGHT team, told Press Trust of India.

"It is not like they are trying to get one particular candidate elected. They want to make it look so that who-

ever loses feel that this was not a fair election and people would not trust the results of the vote. Ultimately they want to break democracy itself in India and around the world wherein it is seen like a less legitimate system. That's their ultimate goal to send message to the public that democracy cannot be trusted," Porter said.

He said there is "no doubt" that the Russian government is behind these latest cyber hacking into the Democratic Party and those of the top officials of the Clinton Campaign.

FireEye's iSIGHT team for the past several years has tracked and analyzed the two Russian state-sponsored groups behind this attack - APT 28 & APT 29.

FireEye is a publicly listed enterprise cybersecurity company that provides products and services to protect against advanced cyber threats such as ad-

large as 400 people.

State media yesterday reported a smaller batch of detentions, saying 11 suspected attackers were arrested on October 18, including Musta Ahmed, who was allegedly involved in the third and final October 9 attack on the Ngakhuya outpost. Security forces also found a single firearm and 11 bullets inside the home of a suspected militant who was not there when they conducted a raid on his residence, the report said.

Military mouthpiece Myawady also reported that a soldier was ambushed by two men with swords on October 19. The news outlet said the soldier fought back and killed one of the men, while the other escaped.

U Kyaw Kyaw Oo, a senior official with the Maungdaw district administrative department, said he was unable to confirm the total number of suspected attackers detained so far.

"We also know only the numbers the government has revealed so far, haven't heard any more," he said.

With the President's Office pinning the attack on members of a little-known Islamic extremist group, Aqa Mul Mujahidin, it is likely that most if not all of the detainees are selfidentifying Rohingya

Muslims. The stateless group is a majority of the population in northern Rakhine State and has faced years of persecution, with the manhunt for the October 9 attackers now under wayraising concerns among human rights advocates that further abuses to innocent civilians could be taking place.

On a visit to Maungdaw on October 17, Home Affairs Minister Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe told media that law enforcement was taking care to respect detainees' human rights while in custody and during interrogations.

"We are doing it lawfully and without human rights violations as well as open the door for any in the international community to observe them, including the ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross]," he said.

At least 30 people have been killed by security forces as they have combed northern Rakhine State in search of militants.

A senior military official this week defended the killings as self-defence in the face of what he described as hostile, weapons-wielding aggressors.

A group of Rohingya rights groups, however, released a statement on October 16 accusing security forces of "crimes against humanity" and al-

vanced persistent threats and spear phishing.

"I believe that APT 28 knew that they would be traced back to Russia, when they did the operation and that is kind of trying to send the US Government a message.

It is definitely the Russian Government and they wanted the US Government to know about it as well," Porter claimed.

Noting that the Russian

Government's hacking groups are good as anyone in the world, he said they are lead hackers and they can get into very sensitive secrets.

"They can get into companies. They can conduct attack that can disable critical infrastructure like power plants. Their only limit is what the Government is willing to do. They are among the best in the

Typhoon Haima makes Shocking levels of pollution in landfall in China India, China: Astronaut Kelly Scott Kelly had a meeting with US President Barack Obama in the Oval Office of the White House.

People are sprayed by water from a crashing wave as they stand next to a coastal barrier as Typhoon Haima approaches Hong Kong during a typhoon signal eight warning on Friday.

Beijing, Oct 22: Typhoon Haima made a landfall in south China's Guangdong Province triggering sudden downpours in several cities even as authorities rushed to issue warnings against floods, landslides and other weather-related disasters.

At least five counties and cities in Guangdong experienced heavy rainfall on Friday night, state run Xinhua news agency reported.

Haima made a landfall in Shanwei in the province on Friday, according to information released by local meteorological services.

It has weakened as it travelled further north, it said.

Shanwei disaster relief office said gales and rain from the typhoon has caused 59 dike rup-

tures, damaged 21 dam gates and 179 water facilities.

A shoe factory was inundated in nearby Huizhou city trapping 21 people inside. They were transferred to a safer location after rescue operations were conducted.

Heavy rainfall has been forecast for the last two days in several cities.

He Guoqing, a senior official with the provincial disaster relief office, warned that the water level at most of the province's dam were at dangerous levels and the ground especially on mountain slopes, was still saturated from the last typhoon.

China had earlier issued a red alert and closed down offices, businesses and schools in the southern city of Shenzhen. (PTI)

19 more suspected attackers arrested over two days in northern Rakhine Myanmar, Oct 22: The arrests were made as police and Tatmadaw soldiers were conducting clearance operations around Ngakhuya village in Maungdaw Township, according to a senior police officer with the Maungdaw Border Guard Police.

Police Major Soe Naing Aung of the local Border Guard Police told media yesterday that 13 suspected attackers were arrested on October 18 and six more were detained the following day. Two of them subsequently died of asthma-related health problems, he said.

The suspected attackers are being interrogated and will soon be transferred to a penitentiary in neighbouring Buthidaung Township, where another 30 suspected attackers are being held, he added.

"All were [arrested at] Ngakhuya village but it is not confirmed yet that they are all Ngakhuya villagers," said Pol Maj Soe Naing Aung.

The early morning October 9 raid on three border guard posts killed nine police officers and eight of the attackers. The coordinated assault involved more than 100 assailants, according to state media, and the government has since said the group responsible could be as

Hacking into Democratic Party server by Russians is part of grand design to challenge democratic system.

world," he said.

Porter said FireEye has observed Russian interference in elections for many years now.

"This is not a new activity.

It is new only in the US. They routinely undertake cyber operations against democracies in Eastern Europe and other neighbors in the region, mostly to affect turnout, to spread propaganda, and to make the election seen less legitimate. We have not seen them directly altering votes and their candidates do not usually win the election even with their meddling," he said.

However, he said, "I am not aware one way or the other" of Russian meddling into Indian election system. APT 28, which is the same group that got into DNC (Democratic National Committee) probably took documents and leaked them, has also conducted cyber operation claiming to support ISIS. (Agencies)

leging that approximately 100 Rohingya were "extrajudicially killed" in the crackdown.

With access to the conflict zone tightly restricted for media and humanitarian aid organisations, The Myanmar Times has been unable to independently confirm either narrative.

The government designated Maungdaw district a "combat zone" on October 14 and the security presence in the area has been heavy.

Colonel Htein Lin, state minister for security and border affairs, said Tatmadaw operations were focused on clearing northern Rakhine State of militants and retrieving dozens of firearms seized by the attackers during the October 9 raids.

According to the Rakhine State Information Department, more than 3000 ethnic Rakhine have fled their homes since the attack, most from Maungdaw Township's shared border with Bangladesh, and have taken up shelter in Sittwe.

"The government arranged to shelter fleeing ethnic residents in four areas in Sittwe town recently and will be working to have them returned to their home places as soon as possible," said U Min Aung, head of the Rakhine State Information Department.

But with many Muslim villages largely empty in the attacks' aftermath, still unclear is where their inhabitants have gone.

According to the Maungdaw district administrative department, there are more than 150 Muslim villages in the northern part of Maungdaw where two of the attacks occurred, with a Muslim population of nearly 200,000.

U Ye Htut, an official with the Maungdaw district administrative department, said Muslim families may also have fled in fear of their safety, but their whereabouts remain unknown.

"We announced that they can stay normally in the village if they did not commit the attack and cooperate with security forces while the forces are asking questions," he said.

"However, nobody did it - I think because they have anxiety as well," he told media.

Soe Naing Aung, the Maungdaw police major, said Muslim villagers could have fled by water routes, or taken up hiding among northern Maungdaw's attimes forbidding terrain.

"We still could not track into the deep knolls because it is difficult to reach there. Therefore, we don't know any information on where they fled," he said. (Agencies)

Washington, Oct 22: Astronaut Scott Kelly, who has the distinction of having spent a year in the space, has said that the level of pollution in China and India is shocking.

"Seeing places like China and India, and the pollution that exists there almost all the time is quite shocking," Mr. Kelly said in a brief media appearance with US President Barack Obama in the Oval Office of the White House on Friday.

"There was one day last summer, the summer of 2015, when I was in space I saw the eastern side of China was perfectly clear.

And I'd never seen that before in all of my time in space, and I'd spent well over a year in space, total, at that point," he said.

"I could see all these cities that are - there's like over 200 cities in that part of China, with over a million people. And it was at dusk, and I could just, for the very first time, I was able to see them, and it was quite shocking," he added.

"I didn't really understand it until the next day I heard that the Chinese government had turned off a lot of the coal-producing power plants, stopped the cars from running in that part of the country for this national holiday, and the sky had completely cleared," Mr. Kelly said.

"So it's interesting to see just how much of a negative impact we have on the environment, but also how

In this image from video made available by NASA, astronaut Scott Kelly speaks to reporters on Earth during a news conference held on the International Space Station.

quickly we can have a positive impact on it if we decide not to mention the atmosphere is very, very thin and scary-looking when you see it from space," he said.

Describing him as an American hero, Mr. Obama said a while back, Mr. Kelly completed what was the longest period of time that any US astronaut has ever spent in space - almost a year.

"What made this so important was not just to break a record, it gave us an opportunity to learn how Scott, as an astronaut, is impacted by lengthy stay like that. And we've got somebody to compare him to - his twin brother Mark, also an astronaut," he said.

"So as a consequence, what we were able to learn is how the body adapts, what kinds of physiological impactspsychologically, from what

I understand from Scott, he was pretty good. But all this allows us to start thinking about long-term manned space flight," he said.

Mr. Obama said the next American goal is to get to Mars.

"Obviously, we've got a lot of work to do technologically to figure out how to get there, what kinds of space craft's allows us to do that most effectively," he said.

"But if we're going to do a manned flight, then one of the keys is making sure that our astronauts who are going out into space for that long period of time are also then able to come back - what kinds of environments do we need to create for them, what are the biological sciences, and other elements that will allow for a successful mission," he added. (PTI)

Thailand aims to minimise 'mourning' impact on tourism

Suspicious envelope found at Clinton campaign office: Police

Bangkok, Oct 22: Thailand is trying to minimise the impact of year-long national mourning for the passing a way of King Bhumibol Adulyade on tourism, which contributes directly and indirectly to almost a fifth of their annual GDP. Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) was busy communicating extensively to the tourists about certain restrictions that required to be followed during the period as in the festive holiday's lot of Indians make outbound travel.

"Major tourist's attractions are operating normally except of Wat Phra Kaeo (Temple of Emerald Buddha) and the Grand Palace as they will be the venue for royal funeral rites," TAT India director Isra Stapanaseth said here on Saturday.

Washington, Oct 22: An envelope containing a white powdery substance was sent to one of White House hopeful Hillary Clinton's campaign offices in New York, though police initially ruled out any danger.

The envelope was first delivered to Clinton's offices in Manhattan, where campaign workers then transferred it to her Brooklyn headquarters, New York Police Department Lieutenant Thomas Antonetti told media.

"The preliminary investigation determined that it was negative in terms of containing a hazardous substance," he added, noting the Department of Health was conducting further evaluation to determine the nature of the substance.

Antonetti said the envelope also contained writing, but no death threats.

"We're trying to determine what the substance was. For right now, we can at least rule out any poisonous or deadly nature of the substance," Antonetti said. (Agencies)

The tourists are also advised to wear respectable attire in public.

The tourism department believes though the restrictions are for a brief period, overall number of tourist inflow will continue to grow.

For 2016, Thailand has a target of 33 million international tourists of which India accounts for 1.10 million.

The King passed away on October 13 and the country wants tourists to refrain from boisterous performance and outdoor entertainments at least for a month, till mid-November, before TAT reviews the situation and gives fresh guidelines.

Many Indian wedding receptions take place in Thailand and they can continue if held indoor, the TAT India director said. (PTI)

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

EDUCATION

P9

How to Know the Importance How to Create an Educational Scholarship Fund of Education

Getting an education is important, as most career paths require at least some education and training.

Though the decision to continue your education is a personal choice, it's worth considering if knowledge and experience are important to you. If you have any career goals, you will most likely need an education to achieve those goals. Learning the importance of an education can help motivate you to learn more and achieve great things.

Preparing for Your Future Decide on your career goals If you've thought about your future at all, you probably have some idea of what you want to do as a career.

No matter what your goal is, it will probably require some degree of education. · Search online for information about your desired career, or talk to professionals working in that field.

There is a good chance that anyone you talk to will tell you that you'll need an education in order to enter that field. · In the United States, only 27 percent of jobs available nationwide require less than a high school degree. By contrast, students who have graduated from high school are deemed qualified for 39 percent of jobs available nationwide. · Many people drop out of school thinking that they would rather work than be in school, but statistics show that the majority of high school dropouts are unemployed and have little or no source of income.

Get a better job Even if the career you've chosen doesn't require an advanced education to break into the field, you will most likely need an education if you want to get promoted or earn a higher-paying job. · People who have completed an advanced education typically make more money than people who have not gone to school. For example, in the United States, median weekly earnings in 2014 for

people with only a high school diploma were $751 (men) and $558 (women). In contrast, the median weekly earnings for people with least a bachelor's degree were $1385 (men) and $1049 (women) in 2014. For people with an advanced degree, the median weekly wage was even higher: $1630 (men) and $1185 (women). · Having a high school diploma dramatically increase the chances of earning a job over high school dropouts. That number continues to rise as students pursue higher education through college and graduate school.

Find better opportunities Getting an education opens a lot of professional doors for you. It can help you learn new skills, make professional connections, and generally have greater success.

Studies have shown that having an education - even a primary education - can help low-income workers earn more money and find a better economic situation. · Employers look for educational achievements.

Even having a high school degree will reduce the risk of unemployment and increase the average lifetime earnings of most working adults. · In the United States, 54 percent of high school dropouts between the ages of 16 and 24 are unemployed. For high school graduates, that number decreases to 32 percent of people in the same age bracket, and it decreases even further to 13 percent of college graduates.

Live a better life Beyond the professional opportunities that an education affords people, hav-

· People who have completed an advanced education often have more and better opportunities available to them because of their education. · Even if you have not completed a high school diploma, completing vocational training (education emphasizing a particular trade, such as electrician) will likely increase your income level and ability to find a job. If you have a high school education and vocational training, you are a much more attractive candidate for jobs.

Overcoming Inequality Overcome income inequality

ing an education may also be correlated with living a better life in general. Some studies suggest that people who stay in school are less likely to end up having legal troubles later in life. · College graduates with a bachelor's degree earn an average of $1.64 million dollars more than high school dropouts over the course of a lifetime. High school graduates earn an average of $429,280 more than high school dropouts over the course of a lifetime. · Having an education (and subsequently getting a better job) may make people less likely to commit crimes for fear of losing what

they've worked for. · The average high school dropout in America has a one in 10 chance of being arrested, whereas the average high school graduate only has a one in 35 chance of being arrested. · Some studies suggest having an education can also make people more patient, and therefore less likely to be overcome by anger or violent tendencies.

Help your family. Having an education is typically associated with an increased ability to provide for your family. That means not only being able to help financially support your family, but also providing younger relatives with a positive role model, and inspiring them to pursue an education.

Recognizing the Social Benefits of an Education Live a longer life Some studies suggest that having a higher education can help you live a longer life. This may be because of better working conditions that come with an education, or it could be because earning an education helped remove people from adverse domestic situations. Whatever the cause, many studies show that even earning a high school education significantly decreases the likelihood of dying young. · Young men who graduate high school statistically live an average of seven years longer than male high school dropouts. Young women who graduate high school live an average of six years longer than female high school dropouts. · Young men who graduate college statistically live an average of 13 years longer than male high school dropouts, and an average of six years longer than male high school graduates who do not go to college. Young women who graduate college live an average of 12 years longer than female high school drop-

outs, and an average of six years longer than female high school graduates who do not go to college.

Be happier in life In addition to living a longer life, people who pursue an education tend to be happier in life. That's because having an education has been shown to make people better problem solvers who are better equipped to manage day-to-day problems. · Some studies suggest that simply earning an education, regardless of subsequent income or job contentment, helps people have better mental health later in life Find more fulfillment in life Some studies suggest that people who have completed an education are more likely to pursue things that offer personal fulfillment. · Flow, a term used to describe meaningful and satisfying absorption in a task, is often associated with educational advancement. In other words, having an education may help you find hobbies or passions that give you a sense of fulfillment. · Many schools encourage flow, whether intentionally or not, by offering a stimulating learning environment and meaningful extracurricular activities to students who might not otherwise have those opportunities. (Wikihow)

Setting up an educational scholarship fund can be a meaningful way to give back to your community or to honor a loved one. There are a number of things to consider when planning a scholarship, including how to fund and administer it.

In addition, you will need to devise selection criteria, design an application, and plan to maintain the scholarship.

Planning for the Scholarship Determine the purpose of your scholarship Founding a successful scholarship depends upon identifying the reason for awarding it, as well as the target student audience it can potentially help. Normally, your scholarship will carry a name that characterizes its purpose, such as “The Jane Doe Memorial Scholarship,” “The Michigan Rural Community Scholarship,” or “The Leaders of Tomorrow Scholarship.” Common reasons for founding scholarships include: · Memorializing a loved one by helping students with a scholarship in that person’s name · Providing financial aid to students studying in a particular field, such as medicine, writing, or social work · Providing financial aid to students who attend a particular school or type of school · Helping students who have financial or personal hardships to overcome · Awarding students who excel in a sport, activity, or academic field · Honoring students who have completed an essay on a topic of interest · Honoring students who have made a significant impact in their community · Honoring students based on personal characteristics such as ethnic or cultural background, gender, or geographic origin Set a timeline for the scholarship There is a lot of planning that goes into starting an educational scholarship, and you will need to think ahead. Typically, if you want to award a scholarship by a summer prior to a given academic year, you should begin planning for it the previous summer.

Steps to factor into your timeline include: · Program development · Fundraising · Advertising · Evaluating applications · Awarding the scholarship Determine the duration of the award Some scholarships make a one-time award to one or more students, while others offer them support for multiple years. In addition, scholarships may be awarded only during one year, or they may become an ongoing program with application cycles each year, or on some other set cycle. The duration of your scholarship will depend upon your financial abilities and intentions.

Determine the scholarship terms.

It is a good idea to specify the details of your scholarship in writing. You may decide to award a certain amount, or leave the amount open. The latter

method allows you flexibility in determining the number of students to award each year.

Plan how to fund the scholarship Actually providing the funds for your scholarship is very important. You may decide to fund it entirely on your own, or with the aid of corporate, community, or educationally-based donors. · Depending on your scholarship terms, donors may be able to receive tax benefits for making contributions to your scholarship.

Contact an accountant or talk to a school’s financial aid office for details.

Raise funds for your scholarship If you or someone directly involved with the project cannot finance the scholar-

· Raffles for items or perks (each participant pays a fee to enter the raffle; one or more entries is chosen as the winner of a prize) · Bake sales · A game night (bowling, board games, etc.) where participants pay a donation to enter · A crowdfunding campaign, where people from anywhere in the world can donate online to your scholarship fund Determine how the funding will support the scholarship Scholarships can be based on a one-time gift. This award can be divided and distributed across multiple years, if desired, until the funding is depleted. Scholarships may also be based on an endowed fund. In the case of an endowed scholarship fund:

select an advisory board to help with investing and other financial planning required by an endowed scholarship.

Choose the criteria used to award the scholarship When you advertise a scholarship, you may have many applicants, and you will want to choose criteria that will help you select the most deserving applicant(s) to receive the award. The criteria used for selection will vary based on the purpose of your scholarship, but common ones include: · Financial need · Academic achievement, shown by grade point average, test scores, etc. · Extent of community involvement · Leadership skills

ship alone, you will need to do some fundraising to get the project off the ground.

If you are working with a school to develop the scholarship, it may already have a network of donors to contact. If you will be raising funds on your own, start by making a list of potential donors, such as businesses and community organizations. Draft a flyer, letter, email, or website to let these potential donors know about the purpose of your scholarship. Your promotional materials can also request a donation or let potential donors know about fundraisers you can host, such as: · Auctions, where items such as antiques or artwork are sold to raise funds · Offering perks (such as a free dinner at a restaurant) to those who donate

· A gift of a fairly large amount is set aside as a principal balance and invested. · Scholarships are then awarded by drawing from the interest earned on the principal, and any remaining interest is reinvested to grow the principal and the balance that can be awarded for future scholarships. As a reference point, a scholarship awarding $1000 per year may need an endowment fund of $20,000$25,000. · If you choose to create an endowed scholarship, you should talk to a trusted investment broker about creating a sustainable plan for the scholarship. · You will also want to talk to a tax advisor, since there are usually restrictions on how awards can be administered. · You may also wish to

· Work history · Writing skills, demonstrated by an application essay or otherwise · Achievements in particular fields (sports, debate, performing arts, etc.)

Find a scholarship administrator Creating and reviewing applications, selecting recipients, and making scholarship awards can be time-consuming. You may be able to do all of the work yourself, but selecting a scholarship administrator to assist is very helpful. Your options include: · Creating a board of community members. · Letting a particular school administer the scholarship, with or without your input. If you choose this option, contact a school’s financial aid office or gifts office to create a plan for administering the scholarship. · Using a third-party scholarship administration service. These professional services specialize in assisting with scholarships, and can streamline the process.

However, most will charge a fee (even if they are nonprofit), ultimately cutting into the amount you can potentially award to students.

A school’s financial aid office may have information about finding a scholarship administration service, if you would like to choose one. (Wikihow)

NATION

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

P10

Rahul Gandhi reaching out to Varun says charges against him false, frivolous farmers' through recorded message, promises 'debt waiver' New Delhi, Oct 22: In a recorded voice message, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi is reaching out to farmers of Punjab and "promising" to waive their agriculture debt if his party comes to power in the state after the 2017 assembly elections.

Rahul's 'message', conceptualised by Congress poll strategist Prashant Kishor, is part of the party's mega farmer outreach programme 'Karza Kurki Khatam-Fasal Di Poori Rakam' where it promises farmers, who sign 'Maang Patr' (debt waiver form), that their loans will be waived if it forms the government in the state.

In the message, the Congress leader, while thanking farmers for being "associated" with 'Kisan Abhiyan', says, "You are aware that farmers are facing problems. When our government was in power, we helped them a lot. We raised MSP and you may be remembering that in 2008 we helped farmers by waiving off Rs 70,000 crore as debt. I promise you that

Rahul Gandhi.

Congress will hear out the voice of growers. When our government comes, we will waive off the debt".

After he finishes his message, a jingle in Punjabi is played where the singer "promises" that happiness will "return" to the state"Phir to ek var, Chaunda e Punjab, Captain di Sarkar."

"Farmers, who are signing 'Maang Patr' during the Kisan campaign, are asked to give a missed call to a number given to them. A recorded voice message of Rahul Gandhi will be sent to each of them,"an IPAC member said.

Congress, which has been

eyeing to wrest power from Akali-BJP regime, is wooing Punjab's small and marginal farmers which form the major chunk of the vote bank in the state.

Earlier, Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh had undertaken a 500-km long 'Kisan bus yatra' in seven districts, including Moga, Faridkot, Ludhiana and Bathinda, to assure the the farming community that his party would "safeguard their interests and alleviate their sufferings".

Aam Aadmi Party, which had already released its farmers manifesto, had also promised loan waiver. (Agencies)

Pak pounds IB hamlets with mortar bombs Due to firing and shelling in the border areas, over 1000 people living close to the IB in Hiranagar and other places have migrated to safety

Parts of mortar shells found after heavy shelling from across the LoC in Manjakot Sector of Rajouri district in Jammu on Saturday.

Jammu, Oct 22: Escalating cross border firing, Pakistani Rangers overnight pounded border hamlets and outposts with mortar shells and opened fire from automatic weapons in R S Pura sector of Jammu district.

"There has been heavy firing and mortar shelling along the IB in R S Pura belt during the night", Inspector General of BSF, D K Uphadayaya said on Saturday.

The fresh firing and shelling comes after Pakistani Rangers violated the ceasefire six times on Friday. Seven Pakistani Rangers and a terrorist were killed and three others seriously injured in retaliatory firing by BSF troops along the International

border.

The IG said the areas which came under fire along the IB include Karotana Khurd and Abdullian.

"We have asked the authorities to ensure safety of the people as firing and shelling exchanges have increased.

We do not want civilians to suffer", the IG said.

He said Pakistani Rangers tried to snipe at a jawan on a Observation tower but he jumped from it. The jawan injured his feet in the process.

Due to firing and shelling in the border areas, over 1000 people living close to the IB in Hiranagar and other places have migrated to safety. Due to firing and shelling four cattle were killed, he said.

"Apart from firing, Pakistani

Rangers fired 60 and 81 mm mortar bomb shells intermittently from 11 PM and it continued till early morning in Bidipur and Karotana in Suchetgarh sub-sector", Deputy Commissioner Jammu Simrandeep Singh said.

The DC said people have been advised to stay indoors during the day time also as there is likelihood of shelling even during the day.

"Officers have been asked to close all the schools in villages which are vulnerable as a precautionary measure", the DC added.

As many as 50 to 80 schools in these border areas have been directed to be shut by the district administration as a precautionary measure, DC said.

Pakistan troops had on Fridya violated the ceasefire six times.

Pakistani troops targeted five sectors of R S Pura (Jammu), Hiranagar (Kathua), Samba, Pargwal (Jammu) along IB and Rajouri and Mendhar (Poonch) along LoC by resorting to small arms firing and mortar shelling resulting in serious injuries to a BSF jawan.

There have been over 37 ceasefire violations along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir after surgical strikes by Army troops in PoK to dismantle terror launching pads. (Agencies)

Modi government working for certain industrialists: AAP New Delhi, Oct 22 :The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday accused the central government of working for certain industrialists and not for the country's farmers. It said the AAP will soon raise the issue of farmers' plight across the nation and corner the BJPled central government.

Addressing a press conference here, AAP leader Ashish Khetan said Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh's statement that the Centre cannot ensure 50 per cent profit over input cost to farmers is a betrayal of their trust.

Khetan was referring to media reports which quoted the union Minister as saying that ensuring 50 per cent profit over the input cost to the farmers is not feasible. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party election manifesto promised 50 per cent profit to farmers over the input cost through the Minimum Support Price mechanism. The AAP leader, who is also ViceChairman of Delhi Dialogue Commission, said the BJP had now officially announced that they are going back on the promise made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the

farmers during the 2014 elections. The AAP leader said the Narendra Modi government is backtracking on its promise only to ensure that the business of particular business houses is not affected.

"The picture is clear now.

Modi 'sarkar' is a government of Adani and Ambani and not the farmers," he said. "We will raise this issue in Punjab, where assembly elections are scheduled next year. Either the Modi government should fulfill its promise or they should apologise to the farmers," Khetan added.

(Agencies)

New Delhi, Oct 22: BJP MP Varun Gandhi, who is in the eye of a storm for allegedly leaking defence secrets to controversial arms dealer Abhishek Verma, on Saturday rejected the charges against him as false and frivolous and said he will take legal action against those who deliberately sought to tarnish his reputation The Sultanpur MP issued a detailed statement addressed to "my fellow countrymen," in which he made point by point rebuttal to the allegations levelled against him as he insisted that there is "no one grain of truth or one shred of evidence" in them While he was a member of both the Defence Standing Committee and the Defence Consultative Committee

from 2009, he said he never attended a meeting of the Consultative Committee and very few of the Standing Committee "Clearly, I was neither actively seeking out nor passing on any information.

Had there been any hidden agenda or motivation as alleged in the letter it would have been reflected in my attendance..

"I would like to point out the false and frivolous nature of its (letter) charges, and the impossibility of these allegations." Gandhi said Swaraj Abhiyan leaders Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav had on Thursday released a letter written by Edmonds Allen, a New York-based lawyer, to the PMO last month that Varun was honey trapped

BJP MP Varun Gandhi. and compromised by Verma He alleged that Verma "blackmailed" Varun, a member of the Defence Consultative Committee, into sharing sensitive information on crucial arms matters Allen, who was a partner of Verma, fell out with him in

2012. Verma is facing trial in the 2006 Naval War Room leak case "I have never met Edmonds Allen, who has written this letter containing these allegation. Nor do I have any details of who he is, not what he does except as has been reported in the press

of him being a former associate of Abhishek Verma," Gandhi said in the statement "I first made acquaintance with Verma whan I was a college student in England.

He was introduced as the son of late Veena and Shrikant Verma, both Members of Parliament from a reputed family. We met socially over a short period of time It has been many years since we last met. At no point did we ever discussed work, neither his nor mine," he said Bhushan alleged that despite having all the details, BJP government did not blacklist Thales, the company that sold scamtainted Scorpene submarines, as Dassault acquired it. (PTI)

Three killed; 41 J&K unrest: Curfew lifted hurt in road mishap from six areas of Srinagar Nashik, Oct 22: Three persons were killed and 41 others injured in an accident involving a luxury bus, truck and a tractor at Khopadi on SinnarShirdi road here, police said today.

The mishap took place around 9.30 PM last night, a official of Wavi Police Station said.

The incident occurred when the bus, proceeding toShirdi dashed with a truck in an attempt to overtake a tractor, killing three

persons including the bus driver and injuring 41 persons, mostly bus passengers, police said.

Also, vehicular traffic on the road remained disrupted for long following the accident.

The deceased have been identified as bus driver Ravindra Ingale (50), Rahul Bhavar (35) and Sudhirkumar Behera.

The injured have been admitted at various hospitals at Sinnar and Nashik. (PTI)

Activist, aide booked for 'spreading rumours' on Jaya's health Chennai, Oct 22: Cases have been registered against social activist 'Traffic' K R Ramaswamy and his aide Fathima for allegedly spreading rumours about the health status of Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, police today said.

A top police official told PTI that cases have been registered under various IPC sections including section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot).

Police have already arrested eight persons on the charge of spreading rumours about the health of Jayalalithaa, undergoing treatment at the Apollo Hospitals here since September 22.

They had warned of stern action against those spreading rumors on the chief minister's health and have already registered around 50 cases in this connection. (PTI)

Geelani's son arrested, family barred from meeting ailing leader Srinagar, Oct 22: Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday arrested the elder son of Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani and stopped his younger son from entering the octogenarian leader's residence, virtually cutting him off from all family contact, sources told IANS. Naim Geelani, a doctor at a government hospital here, was arrested at around 10 a.m. when he was on his way to the Hyderpora residence of the hardline Hurriyat leader.

"He was not allowed inside the house and police arrested him," a family source told IANS. The arrest came ahead of the senior Geelani's scheduled "address to the nation" over telephone on Saturday afternoon. The address could not take place due to the jammers placed by the state authorities around the Hyderpora residence.

Geelani's younger son, Naseem Geelani, an assistant professor at the SheriKashmir Agricultural University of Science and Technology, was stopped by policemen from entering his father's house in the morning. "You are not allowed to meet Geelani," the police told Naseem.

Naseem later took to Facebook to vent his anger. In an emotional attack on Jammu andKashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, Naseem posted, "I want to ask one simple question to Mohtarma Mehbooba Mufti. When someone even mentions your father's name, you break into tears. What about my ailing father who waits to see me everyday?"

The 88-year-old Hurriyat conference chairman is suffering from heart ailment, kidney problems and respiratory issues, family sources told IANS. "He has a pacemaker in heart, is surviving on half a kidney and has multiple other health issues. We (sons) need to see him daily and take his care. But we are not allowed," Naseem said.

"Even my elder brother has been detained," Naseem told IANS, adding, "He has been taken to Humhama police station".

The police has barred the entry of the senior Geelani's family members, media and most visitors to his residence.

"Authorities have also installed jammers at the residence to block all phone connectivity," the source added.

Geelani, who has been leading the unrest in Kashmir Valley since the July 8 killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani, has been under continuous house arrest.

Geelani along with other separatist leaders, including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik, has been issuing the "protest calendars" every week under the banner of "Joint Resistance Leadership".

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had in mid August summoned Naim Geelani and questioned him in connection with a Preliminary Enquiry registered by the probe agency.

Of late, the state police and security agencies have arrested hundreds of separatist leaders and party workers, including those the government feels are "instigators" of the violence. (ANI)

As many as 85 people, including two cops, have been killed and several thousand others injured in the ongoing unrest in the valley Srinagar, Oct 22: Curfew was on Saturday lifted from six police station areas of the city but normal life remained affected in Kashmir for the 106th straight day due to the separatist-sponsored strike. Curfew was imposed yesterday in six police station areas of the city.

A police official said the situation in the summer capital and elsewhere in the Valley was under control, even as a youth died during clashes between protestors and security forces in Budgam district of central Kashmir on Friday. The official, however, said restrictions on assembly of four or more people were in place throughout the valley for maintaining law and order.

Security forces have been deployed in strength at vulnerable spots and along the main roads as a precautionary measure, the official said. Meanwhile, normal life remained affected in Kash-

Srinagar: BSF jawans stand guard during curfew in Srinagar. mir due to the strike.

Shops and business establishments remained shut in the Valley, but are expected to open today as separatists have given a 14-hour relaxation in the shutdown from 5 PM. The ongoing unrest in Kashmir has affected the education as schools, colleges and other educational institutions continue to remain shut in the Valley. The govern-

ment has decided to hold board examinations as per the schedule next month, drawing criticism from students and parents who accused it of being insensitive to lack of academic activity due to shutdown.

As many as 85 people, including two cops, have been killed and several thousand others injured in the ongoing unrest in the valley. (Agencies)

J&K terror crackdown: Two local JeM militants arrested in Baramulla Jammu, Oct 22: In a massive crackdown on terrorism in the valley, two Jaishe-Mohammad militants have been arrested in Kanispora area of Baramulla district in Jammu and Kashmir.

The militants were nabbed in a joint search operation launched last night by the 52 Rashtriya Rifles and Special Operation Group (SOG) Baramulla.

Ammunition besides an AK 47, a pistol and grenades were recovered from them, including Jaish and Hizbul Mujahideen stamps.

Meanwhile, in a major breakthrough regarding national security, a Pakistani spy was arrested in Samba sector of Jammu and Kashmir as he was making attempts to escape.

The spy named Bodh Raj was held along with two Pakistani SIM cards and a

map showing deployment of forces was also seized from him.

The Samba District Police said that based on the information received from Military Intelligence with regard to the involvement of Bodh Raj for his espionage activities and passing on vital information regarding deployment and movement of security forces to Pakistan, a special operation was conducted to nab him in the border area of Ramgarh.

"This is a major breakthrough so far as national security is concerned and the arrest of some more persons is also likely in the days to come," the Samba Police said in a statement.

Earlier, a massive house-tohouse search operation was launched in Baramulla after security forces received intelligence of ac-

tive terror hideouts.

One such operation was held earlier as well in which Chinese and Pakistan flags were recovered besides some arms and ammunition. the Army and the J&K Police are sweeping through the area to locate after receiving wind of untoward elements as the entire city of Baramulla is on lockdown.

Earlier, terror group Laskare-Taiba had warned the Baramulla SHO for carrying out an operation in which at least 44 were arrested for terror-related activities.

The crackdown was part of a joint operation by the Army, the BSF, the CRPF and police in several localities, including Qazi Hamam, Ganai Hamam, Taweed Gunj and Jamia, considered safe havens for terrorists. (PTI)

Tribal killed in Jharkhand police firing Ranchi, Oct 22 : A tribal person was killed and three others injured in Jharkhand on Saturday as clashes took place between the police and tribals going to attend a rally here to protest amendments in two land acts. According to the police, tribals in Khuti district made policemen hostage and reinforcements had to be sent to rescue them. Two policemen were also injured in the clashes.

All the three critically injured persons were referred to a hospital here. The Adivasi Sangharsh Morcha (ASM) had called the Akrosh rally in Ranchi for Saturday to protest the Raghubar Das-led Bharatiya Janata Party government's decision to amend two land acts having significance for the tribal population in the state

The Jharkhand government promulgated an ordinance in July to amend the Chotangpur Tenancy (CNT) Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Act. Once the ordinance gets clearance from the President, the agricultural land in the state could be acquired for non-agriculture purposes such as building roads and setting up power projects.

Both laws were formed during the British era to protect land rights of the tribal people.

ASM convener Karma Oraon alleged that the state government was adopting repressive measures to prevent people from attending the rally.

"Buses booked for the rally have been cancelled. People have been prevented from reaching Ranchi. The govern-

ment is playing with sentiments of the tribal people.

Our democratic right to protest and hold rally is being threatened by using the state machinery," said Oraon.

Thousands of tribal people participated in the rally despite heavy arrangements by the police here to thwart their attendance. The tribals carried banners and posters demanding withdrawal of the proposed amendments. The opposition parties, BJP alliance-partner All Jharkahnd Students Union (AJSU) and some BJP tribal legislators have been opposing the amendments. This was the third police firing in the last two months during protest over land acquisition and proposed amendments in the two land acts. (ANI)

cmyk

cmyk

DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

P11 Panaji, Oct 22 : Neymar Jr's Five, which reflects the star footballer's dynamic style of playing, has made its entry to India again.

This five-a-side football game carries the objective of scoring as many goals as fast as possible and outplaying the players of the opposing team.

The team that concedes a goal has to send one player off the pitch, and each game continues until one team has lost all five players, or for 10 minutes, whichever comes first.

The first ever qualifiers for the tournament in India were held earlier this year as Winning 5, with a young team from Bangalore - called Dream Team - emerging victorious, and subsequently travelling to Brazil to compete in the Neymar Jr's Five World Finals in July this year.

The format returns to India this year when the city qualifiers will be held in 12 cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Shillong, Kolkata and Goa, a release issued here said today.

Winners from each of these qualifiers will then go on to compete in the national finals early next year, taking them one step closer to the coveted ticket to Neymar Jr's own backyard. (PTI)

ISL:ATK hand Delhi Dynamos their first loss of the season Kolkata, Oct 22 : Atlético de Kolkata handed Delhi Dynamos FC their first loss of Hero Indian Super League 20016 after a 1-0 win at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday. Delhi’s Marcelinho missed a penalty 15 minutes from time after Henrique Sereno conceded a spot-kick and was sent off for a foul on Richard Gadze. Kolkata went straight up the other end after the Lions’ miss and won a penalty through Sameehg Doutie.

Iain Hume made no mistake as he netted the winner from the spot and became the highest scorer in the history of the league.

Hume threaded through a wonderful pass in the fifth minute to carve open Delhi’s defence after the Canadian striker had picked up the ball in his own half. Lions goalkeeper Toni Doblas was quick off his line though and got to the ball before Doutie to clear the danger.

It took 17 minutes to register the first shot of the game on goal and when it did come, it went the visitors’ way after Bikram Singh gave away a freekick in a dangerous position.

Marcelinho’s effort on goal from the free-kick, however, was parried away for a corner

by Debjit Majumder in ATK’s

An action movement of Atlético de kolkata . goal.

The Dynamos were in on goal again a minute later thanks to a Florent Malouda ball, which Marcelinho ran on to before dinking it over an outrushing Majumder in goal.

Only a Prabir Das clearance from inside the six-yard box kept it at 0-0.

Juan Belencoso headed ATK’s first shot on target in the 32nd minute after Lalrindika Ralte’s cross from the left found the Spaniard on the edge of Delhi’s box.

Belencoso’s header went straight into Doblas, allowing him to collect comfortably.

Delhi should have broken the deadlock in the 35th minute with Malouda, Gadze and Marcos Tebar forcing

Majumder into a triple save in his area before Sereno blocked Rupert Nongrum and conceded a corner.

Kolkata’s biggest chance came six minutes before the break courtesy of quality cross by Doutie to Belencoso from the right flank. The Spaniard failed to test Doblas as he headed fractions wide of the target. Doutie squared another good pass to set up Hume just outside Delhi’s box three minutes later but the Canadian striker shot wide of the target as the sides went in 0-0 at half-time.

Gadze should have scored in the first minute of the second period with Marcelinho flicking on a header to put the Ghanaian in on goal. Majumder saved once again to deny the Dyna-

mos and Gadze the game’s opener. ATK had a chance two minutes later after Doutie produced another wonderful cross from the right, which Hume headed just over the crossbar.

The hosts missed a huge opportunity of getting the breakthrough 20 minutes later when an unmarked Tiri headed Doutie’s corner straight at Doblas for the Spanish Custodian to collect comfortably.

It could have been crucial as Gadze soon found himself up against Sereno, ATK’s last line of defence. The Portuguese defender brought down Gadze in the box to concede a penalty and was also sent off for picking up a second yellow.

Marcelinho stepped up and sent his spot-kick sailing over the crossbar to give the hosts a lifeline.

It proved to be costly as ATK received a penalty of their own in the 77th minute for a Kim Kima foul on Doutie inside the box. Hume stepped up and sent Doblas the wrong way to send Kolkata’s 10-men 1-0 up with 12 minutes to spare.

Delhi forced a goal-line clearance from ATK late in the game but the home side kept possession of the ball for the rest of the match and clinched their first victory at home in Hero ISL 2016 and remain the only undefeated side of the season.

There is no proper planning in Delhi cricket, blasts Bhaskar Kolkata, Oct 22 : Delhi chief coach KP Bhaskar today blamed the maladministration that has plagued DDCA asa reason for teams poor show against a formidable outfit like Karnataka. Delhi succumbed to a humiliating innings and 160run defeat at the hands of Karun Nairs boys. An irate Bhaskar pulled no punches after the match. "In Under-23, we had 45 players playing. So how long is it going to take for them to reach to the Ranji Trophy level? If things dont improve, there might be a situation, where 50 players will be playing for Delhi in the eight Ranji Trophy games," Bhaskar stated. "Things need to be put in place but at least theres a start with Justice Mudgal taking some initiative. lets hope things improve." Pointing out

that the team was short on practice as they did not play any tournaments in the build-up to season, he said:"See we are used to playing 40-over games.

We dont have three-day formats, we dont really play the Buchi Babus and the KSCA (tournaments). "I got the team two days before (the start of the season). There was not much of mental preparation.

Whatever was happening is whatever they were doing on their own. So I really dont know. So that is something which we need to work on, the system has to fall into place, we have to have more opportunities of playing exposures and try to build a team before getting into the Ranji Trophy."

Asked about Ishant Sharmas performance whos returning after recovering from

Chinkungunya fever, he said: "He had certain issues. He didnt really go flat out. He tried his best but I expected that from him. He did well but I think they batted really well, to be honest. They didnt give any chances, they played as per merit, they batted well." Hitting out at their batsmen, Delhi coach KP Bhaskar today said their "messed up and silly batting" was really disappointing for a state that has set standards giving talents Mohinder Amarnath, Virender Sehwag and Virat Kohli. "I always tell these boys when you represent Delhi, youre not just representing yourself or your state.

You are representing the whole cricket fraternity. Youre talking about people like Sehwag, Kohli, Amarnath and Madan Lal... Theyve set some stan-

dards, theyve had character," the former Delhi captain said, critcising the batting of Gautam Gambhir and Co. After being skittled out for 90, Delhi foled for 164 in their second essay to lose to Karnataka by an innings and 160 runs inside three days the Ranji Trophy group B match at Eden Gardens today. "The wicket was perfectly fine, I wouldnt blame the wicket for it -- it was not a 90run wicket, to be honest. The toss was a factor, there was a little bit of moisture on the pitch, that was definitely there. But as I said, it wasnt a 90-run pitch. We didnt apply at all. We threw our wickets away, twice. Today was absolutely silly. I dont think anybody got out because of the pitch." On their batting in the second innings, he said:

"It was all (because of) stupid shots, shots that you dont expect from a Ranji Trophy player. You need to show a lot of character, you need to show from what really the past has been." Batting second after opting to bowl, Karnataka had posted 414 in their first innings and Bhaskar said the pitch was perfect and it was stupid batting that cost them the humiliating defeat. "Bad batting, thats all... We batted very badly, we did hara-kiri, the application wasnt there at all, which is something that is very surprising because the last two games that we played we really showed character, we were very focused and somehow, this game, we just messed it up."

(PTI)

Jose Mourinho says Roman Abramovich 'was never my friend' on eve of Chelsea return London, Oct 22: Jose Mourinho has claimed that he was "never friends and never close" with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich but insisted he has no intention of "washing his dirty linen" in public by divulging the details behind his sacking by the club.

Mourinho returns to Stamford Bridge as the Manchester United manager on Sunday for the first time since being dismissed by Abramovich last December, seven months after leading Chelsea to the Premier League title.

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Mourinho said he did not want a "very good reception" from Chelsea fans because he will be "defending a rival club" but claimed he would not hold it against them if they booed him and vowed not to celebrate like "a crazy kid" out of respect should United score.

"He [Abramovich] was never my friend," Mourinho said. "We always had the relationship of owner-manager - a very respectful relationship. We were never friends. We were never close to each other. So, no, he is just a person that

Jose Mourinho says Roman Abramovich 'was never my friend' on eve of Chelsea return .

I keep very respected.

"If I go to his house I just go for professional reasons. If we see each other it is only because of that. We never shared anything personal. We were not friends maybe because I was really respectful to the position of the owner, also in terms of his profile to the manager. We didn't have problems but we were not close. When he made the decision that I was not the right man for his club, it is the power that he has. I just have to accept it."

Having guided Chelsea to three Premier League titles during two spells at the club, Mourinho claimed it would be impossible to "delete" him from their history but is adamant he left with no

ill feeling.

"When some managers leave clubs, they like to … I don't know the right saying but in Portuguese it is 'wash the dirty clothes'," Mourinho said.

"It means speak about what happened. Go back and speak and speak and speak.

"I leave clubs with a very good feeling, the feeling of doing everything to succeed. I gave everything to the club. I don't like to go back and speak, especially about the bad things. I want to keep the good things and at Chelsea I had so many good things, in terms o Having guided Chelsea to three Premier League titles during two spells at the club, Mourinho

claimed it would be impossible to "delete" him from their history but is adamant he left with no ill feeling.

"When some managers leave clubs, they like to … I don't know the right saying but in Portuguese it is 'wash the dirty clothes'," Mourinho said.

"It means speak about what happened. Go back and speak and speak and speak.

"I leave clubs with a very good feeling, the feeling of doing everything to succeed. I gave everything to the club. I don't like to go back and speak, especially about the bad things. I want to keep the good things - and at Chelsea I had so many good things, in terms of Mourinho said he would show every respect towards the Chelsea crowd. "I don't expect a negative reaction [from the Chelsea fans]," he said. "Even if I go with a Man United badge and I go to fight for Man United, there is no reason for a bad reception I think. If they are going to give me a very good reception, I hope not.

I'm not their manager now. I'm defending a rival.

"I played there with Inter Milan. I tried to do my job. If you ask me if my team score a goal, am I going to celebrate like a crazy kid? No. No. I think I can control the emotion of that situation.

Am I going to have a negative reaction if the crowd has something negative with me? No. "It doesn't matter their reaction but I will be grateful always. We shared some unbelievable moments - so many happy and historical moments.

"What I keep is the bad moments where they stuck with me. We played a Champions League match at home after a home defeat with people speaking about sacking [me] and for the whole of the match they were just singing my name all the time. ."

Mourinho said he expects the title race to go down to the wire .

"My feeling is it will be close and probably one team that you think is playing for the title in March, probably in May doesn't finish in the top four. I think it is going to be really tight." (Agencies)

Lionel Messi

Messi returns for Argentina qualifiers vs. Brazil & Colombia Buenos Aires, Oct 22 : Having fully recovered from a groin injury, Barcelona star Lionel Messi was named on Friday in Argentina's squad to face Brazil and Colombia in the next round of World Cup qualifiers.

Messi has been in fine form for Barcelona since coming back from his latest niggling injury, scoring four goals in two matches, including a superb hat-trick against Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday.

He has not played for his country since scoring the

winner in a 1-0 win against Uruguay on Sept 1.

In his absence, Argentina drew 2-2 away to Peru and lost 1-0 at home to Paraguay, putting it in fifth place and out of the top four positions that ensure a direct spot for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Messi's return will be in Belo Horizonte against leaders Brazil, which has won its four first matches under new coach Tite.

Five days later, Edgardo Bauza's Argentina side hosts fourth-place Colombia. (Agencies)

Squad: Goalkeepers: Nahuel Guzman, Sergio Romero, Geronimo Rulli; Defenders: Martin Demichelis, Mateso Musacchio, Nicolas Otamendi, Ramiro Funes Mori, Gabriel Mercado, Facundo Roncaglia, Emanuel Mas, Pablo Zabaleta; Midfielders: Javier Mascherano, Guido Pizarro, Lucas Biglia, Ever Banega, Enzo Perez, Nicolas Gaitan, Angel Di Maria, Julio Buffarini, Marcos Acuna; Strikers: Angel Correa, Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain, Paulo Dybala, Sergio Aguero, Lucas Pratto.

Goa given green light to host FIFA U-17 World Cup India State joins Kochi and Navi Mumbai in list of venues; FIFA team to head to New Delhi to inspect Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Fatorda, Oct 22: Goa today joined Kochi and Navi Mumbai as one of the venues to host next year's FIFA U-17 World Cupafter it received the green signal from a high-level delegation of football's world body.

A 13-member FIFA delegation along with the Local Organising Committee (LOC) today made an inspection to ascertain the readiness of Goa to host matches and training sessions at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017.

Following the visit, LOC and FIFA experts expressed their satisfaction with the work which has been put in at the venue and ratified Goa as the third venue to host the event after Kochi and Navi Mumbai.

Tournament director Javier Ceppi, who has overseen the progression of preparations at the venue, said: "Goa hosted the AFC U-16 Championship, which helped it get into very high infrastructure compliance levels and gives us enough confidence to ratify it as a venue for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017.

"Now it is the moment to start focusing on all operational aspects to ensure a flawless delivery of the Event."

Also present at the event were Ramesh Tawadkar, Minister Sports, Government of Goa, VM Prabhudesai Executive Director Sports Authority of G o a , Shrinivas Dempo, Vi c e President, AIFF, Joy Bhattacharjya - Project Director LOC and Tracy Lu - Project Lead FIFA U17 World Cup India 2017.

Describing the preparations at the venue, Lu said, "We last inspected the venue in February and I am delighted to see the progress on all fronts over the last six months.

"The venue in fact has already been tested through

the AFC U16 Championships and from what the reports suggest, they did a great job.

"That adds to Goa credence and thus the venue certainly deserves to be a venue for the India's first FIFA World Cup." With Goa's culture and love for the beautiful game, Sports Minister Ramesh Tawadkar was ecstatic at the prospect of the State hosting its first ever World Cup. (PTI) "Goa just hosted the AFC U16 tournament, where the four Asian qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup were decided, needless to say we are extremely proud to be given this opportunity to host the tournament; it will most certainly be the next feather in our cap," he said.

The team also visited the training sites proposed for the next year's event - Tilak Maidan Stadium, Cana Benaulim Ground, Bambolin Stadium and Utorda Ground.

The delegation will now travel to New Delhi tomorrow to inspect the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

Drogba fined by league over Impact no-show New York, Oct 22: Didier Drogba has been fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Soccer chiefs after his refusal to play for the Montreal Impact last weekend, the league said Friday.

Former Chelsea and Ivory Coast star Drogba stunned the Impact by demanding to be left out of the squad for their game against Toronto FC on Sunday after discovering he was not in the starting lineup.

Although Impact President Joey Saputo said on Tuesday the club had settled its differences

Didier Drogba.

with Drogba, the 38year-old's no-show has brought a league fine.

"Consistent with the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Drogba has been fined an undisclosed amount for his

failure to appear for the Montreal Impact's match against Toronto FC on October 16," the MLS said in a statement.

In a separate ruling, the MLS said it had fined New York City FC player Diego Martinez for an undisclosed sum after he was found to have sworn at a DC United ball boy on Sunday.

However, the league said that an investigation involving interviews with multiple witnesses had found no evidence that Martinez used a homophobic slur against the individual. (PTI)

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Football tournament Neymar Jr's Five returns to India

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DIBRUGARH, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23

PAGE 12

The verdict is finally is out by MNS (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena) on the 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' controversy that was making headlines for a long time now and MNS has apparently decided that they will not oppose the release of Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'.

Today, the MNS chief, Raj Thackeray, and filmmaker Karan Johar had a meeting with the Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over the release of 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' which was also attended by Film & Television Producers Guild of India president, Mukesh Bhatt.

Though Raj Thackeray has agreed to the release of 'ADHM' without any ban, the MNS chief has now demanded that every pro-

Aditya Chopra's directorial venture 'Befikre' has everyone talking about the movie's leading couple Ranveer Singhand Vaani Kapoor. The recently released song 'Nashe Si Chadh Gayi' has been receiving rave reviews too.

The song which sees Ranveer and Vaani displaying their killer dance moves has impressed one and all, including one of ducer who has cast Pakistani artists will give Rs. 5 crore to Army relief fund.

The film that features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan ran into trouble after Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) said it won't allow the release of any movie in India that featured Pakistani artistes. However, now the

Parineeti Chopra: My stamina has increased.

I can work 18 hours now as opposed to the six-hour shifts before

The actress who turns 28 on Saturday has just returned from a break and after wrapping up one film; will get started on Homi Adajania's next from November.

On Monday, Parineeti Chopra announced that she has begun reading sessions for Homi Adajania's Takadum with co-star

Sushant Singh Rajput.

The film which she describes as a dramatic love story with music at its core, kick-starts in the first week of November in Mumbai. "It's a fantastic script, an intense film with a stellar cast and Homi will be in his elements," she promises, admitting it requires a lot of prep. "But

film is out of controversy and will not face any threats from MNS. Today, after Mahesh Bhatt's constructive talk with Fadnavis over the issue, The Film & Television Producers Guild of India has assured that they will not work with any Pakistani artistes in the future. In lieu of that,

MNS Raj Thackeray has now demanded an official letter regarding the same.

Mukesh Bhatt added that Karan Johar had said that he will run a special slate honoring the martyrs before the start of the movie as it will be a tribute to our soldiers. The Producer's Guild will also contribute to the Army Welfare Fund.

everyone on board is passionate about the project and I am sure we'll have a great time shooting for it."

The actress collaborates with Sushant for the second time, after Maneesh Sharma's 2013 romcom Shuddh Desi Romance and asserts that he is one of her favourite coactors.

"He is extremely talented and very dedicated towards his craft. I never have to nudge him and say, `Come on, let's do this and let's try that'. He's so charged up and motivated all the time. He keeps me on my toes," she exults, adding that they kept their phones switched off during the reading sessions.

"We know each other's rhythm a lot better now and it will be a great collaboration."

Irrfan Khan plays Sushant's rockstar-mentor and she is both nervous and excited to work with the internationally acclaimed actor."It's go-

ing to be challenging but in a beautiful way," says Parineeti who is open to singing in this film too even though she is not playing a singer. "I might just do it for fun."

The actress will bring in her 28th birthday on October 22 and though she is not a party person and usually celebrates with a lunch with family and friends, this time it'll be a small house party on the night of October 21 with a few friends. "We'll catch up, dance and probably go out. I have been on a strict diet and have been waiting for my birthday because on that one day I can eat whatever I want," she laughs. Last year was dedicated to fitness and getting into prep mode. Now it's going to be all work. She's just wrapped up a film with Ay u s h m a n n Khurrana in which she plays an aspiring singer.

Bollywood's best dancers Hrithik Roshan. Duggu is super impressed that Vaani trained in such a complex dance form and performed it with such ease. He also revealed that Vaani is one the best dancers he's seen yet.

Reacting to his compliment, an elated Vaani said that she's ecstatic that the "God of Dance" himself appreciated her.

She also added that she hopes to be half as good a dancer as him someday.

Surveen Disha Patani: My Chawla suf- favourite thing in fering from NCR is food malaria Disha Patani, 'Parched' actress Surveen Chawla also had to be rushed to the hospital after she was diagnosed with malaria. A source reveals that she was in Sydney, Australia, last week to attend an event when she took ill.

"She had to be hospitalised as soon as she returned to Mumbai.She has been advised bed-rest for the next couple of days," her spokesperson confirmed.

Sayyeshaa is keeping her fingers crossed for 'Shivaay'

Jacqueline Fernandez to host opening ceremony of JIO MAMI Film Festival

'Beiimaan Love' box office collection: Sunny Leone-starrer receives a poor response

Jacqueline Fernandez has been riding high on success with back to back hits.

The dazzling beauty will be seen hosting the opening ceremony for the JIO MAMI film festival.

The actress was unwell and is recuperating from the illness, but being a professional with umpteen dedications towards her work, she will be seen hosting the JIO MAMI opening ceremony.

The actress is excited to spot some new films of varied genres.

Jacqueline is looking forward to host the opening ceremony of the prestigious film festival, MAMI that return with the 18th edition of the festival which will be held from 20th - 27th October, 2016.

Comprising of Indian and International premieres, documentaries and restored classics the platform is shorthand for virtuosity in cinema.

Jacqueline is currently working on her untitled next with Sidharth Malhotra and judging d a n c e r e a l i t y s h o w, 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa.'

Richa Chadha gets ready for 'Fukrey 2' with special diet

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Actor Varun Sharma, who had a memorable outing in 'Fukrey' recently, said that he hopes to create the same magic in the sequel. His co-star Richa Chadha, who

played the character of Bholi Punjanban in the film, is excited for 'Fukrey 2' as well. She fell ill after returning from a work-related trip to Japan earlier this

month but it seems like the actress is no mood to take rest.

The 'Cabaret' actress reportedly is taking a special diet to look fit for her part in the sequel. She is

a vegan and likes to have organic stuff grown on a farm in Nashik. It was also reported that every alternate day, food is delivered to her Versova residence.

the actress from'M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story', was in the capital to walk the ramp at the recently concluded fashion week.

Disha spoke to us about her connect to NCR. Not many would know that the actress was once a student of a Noida college, doing her B.Tech. "I was doing B.Tech in Noida, but I dropped out in my second year. I was in the capital for just six months, and the only thing that I enjoyed the most was the food in NCR. That's the only memory I have of Noida. People may say different things about Noida, but I had fun when I was staying there. But since I don't have many friends here, I don't have many stories to share," she said. It was the first time that Disha walked the ramp at the fashion week in Delhi, and said, "It was a lot of fun dancing on the ramp. I was nervous initially, but once I was on the ramp, everything was cool."

Sayyeshaa who is all set to make her Bollywood debut withAjay Devgn's 'Shivaay' is keeping her fingers crossed for the movie as the actress does not have an alternative career option.

She was quoted as saying that as the movie date is coming closer, the only insecurity she has is

whether the audience will like her or not. She further added as she does not have an alternative career option than this, she hopes that the movie will work for her.

The movie is slated to release on October 28 and will clash with Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'.

Rajeev Chaudhari's erotic thriller, 'Beiimaan Love,' starring Sunny Leone, Rajniesh Duggal and Daniel Weber in lead roles, has received a poor response at the box office, with the film having collected just Rs 1 crore in

its first weekend. After the failure of 'Mastizaade' and 'One Night Stand,' this is another setback for Sunny Leone in the year 2016.

'Beiimaan Love' had opened with a surprisingly low figure of Rs 30 lakh.

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Editor: Prahlad Hammey

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We will not oppose 'ADHM's release: MNS after Raj Thackeray, CM Devendra Fadnavis and producers' meeting

Hrithik Roshan impressed with Vaani Kapoor's dance moves in 'Befikre'