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2 Downtown/State
THE ECHO OF INDIA• SILIGURI
Thursday October 16, 2014
Tea Board asked to allow
mini and micro tea factories
GUWAHATI, OCT 15/-/
The Assam government and
tea stakeholders in the state
have requested the Centre
to direct the Tea Board to
ensure that small tea growers are allowed to set-up
mini and micro tea factories
within their plantation
area.
Chief Minister Tarun
Assamese film actress and brand Ambassador of Leo expo Nishita Goswami (L) along
with Leo expo official addressing a press conference in Guwahati on Wednesday
ahead of the 14th International Leo expo coming up in Guwahati from 31st October to
16th November.
Trinamool holds rally
slamming opposition parties
SILIGURI, OCT 15 /--/
The Siliguri unit of the
Trinamool Congress today
organised a rally in town
protesting against opposition
parties for spreading false
information and hampering
the government’s work. The
rally started from NJP and
covered several areas including Ward 35 before culminating into a roadside
meeting. TMC leader Sujay
Sarkar handed out party
flags to 29 erstwhile Congress supporters and welcomed them into the party
fold.
Darjeeling
district
Trinamool committee president Krishna Chandra Pal
said the CPM, Congress and
the BJP have joined forces
against the development
works initiated by the state
government in Siliguri and
its adjoining areas.
“The time has come for
TMC supporters to come forward and give a fitting reply
to the opposition. They will
never succeed in their plot
to defame the government
and the development works
being done by us,” said Pal.
(HS)
Deb backs environmentalists
over ban on plastic bag usage
SILIGURI, OCT 15 /--/ North Bengal Development Department minister Gautam
Deb has backed environmentalists over a
ban on the usage of plastic bags in the region. Speaking today to reporters at
Uttarkanya, Deb said he supports the idea of
banning plastic bags from the plains and hill
regions of North Bengal and will discuss this
with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and
state Environment minister Sudharshan
Ghosh Dastidar. Several environment protection organisations and nature lovers recently
organised a campaign against the usage of
plastic bags and had called on the people to
participate actively. “The state government
will give all the support required to stop the
usage of plastic bags,” asserted the minister.
(HS)
Firearms seized from NBSTC bus
Gogoi has requested the Union Ministry of Industry
and Commerce to take this
step at the earliest as this
will lead to improvement in
quality of tea.
"Quality of made tea
will definitely improve as
handling of tea leaf will be
much less while processing
in own factories," Gogoi
said. He urged the Centre to
ensure that the Tea Board
should effectively carry out
one of its core functions of
financial and technical assistance to the unorganised
small growers.
The post of Director in
the Directorate of Small
Tea Growers, however, has
not even been created till
date which has hampered
its function of supporting
small tea growers.
The Chief Minister
called for creation of the
post and appointment of a
suitable person to it urgently.
The Assam government
had formulated a Cess Utilisation Policy exclusively
Bodies of two Noble gesture by Namchi District Hospital
non-tribals
found
AIZAWL, OCT 15/-/ Bodies
of two non-tribals, believed
to be from Assam were found
near Tuikhurhlu hamlet,
about 30 km east of Aizawl,
on Wednesday, the police
said.
Though the identities of
the two deceased persons
were yet to be ascertained,
they surmised that one was a
truck driver and another his
helper and both might be
from Kamprup district of
Assam, according to the police.
"Both of them, according
to initial inquest report,
seemed to be killed with
sharp weapon and we were
waiting for the autopsy report to ascertain the cause of
death," a police officer said.
Eye-witnesses said that they
were killed this morning and
with machete or knife. PTI
Poorva Express stopped
for smoke in
coach
KOLKATA, OCT 15/-/ The
New Delhi-bound Poorva
Express from Howrah was
detained for nearly two
hours on Wednesday owing
to a mechanical glitch in the
under-carriage of a coach at
Durgapur station.
"12381 Up Poorva Express was delayed for nearly
two hours owing to roller
seize in the undercarriage of
S-7 sleeper coach," Eastern
Railway CPRO R Mahapatra
said.
The train left for its destination after the coach was
replaced, he said. PTI
The meal for the monks
NAMCHI, OCT 15 /--/ Doctors and staff members of
Namchi District Hospital on Wednesday organised a meal for
the monks and devotees participating in the 7th Vajra Guru
Dhondrup mantra recitation at Solophok. The team headed
by DMS Dr. Barun Subba made this gesture to thank the
monks praying for universal peace. More than 150 Buddhist
monks and 200 devotees are reciting the Vajra Guru mantra
since the past 12 days. (EOIC)
Food minister to tour Jalpaiguri,
Alipurduar districts today
JALPAIGURI, OCT 15 /--/
State
food
minister
Jyotipriya Mallik will be visiting
Jalpaiguri
and
Alipurduwar districts for an
official tour on October 16.
The minister will be attending a free ration distribution
programme for the Toto people in Madarihat and also
launch the construction of a
warehouse to store rations
for the Totopara region.
He will preside over a
similar programme later in
the day for workers of the
closed
Red
Bank,
Surendranagar
and
Dharnipur tea gardens in
Dhoklapara and Banarhat. In
the evening, Mallik will inaugurate the food department’s block-level office in
Nagarkatta.
The information about
the food minister’s visit was
provided after a meeting in
Kolkata by TMC Jalpaiguri
district committee president
Sourav Chakraborty. (HS)
Illegal Bangladeshi immigrant
Barun Roy as
arrested in Balurghat
Principal Secretary, NBDD
The seized firearms
MALDA, OCT 15 /--/ The
Malda Customs on Tuesday
night seized five 9mm pistols
and Rs5,000 in cash that had
been wrapped in a black
cloth from under a seat of a
Malda-Balurghat bound
North Bengal State Transport Corporation bus. However, no one has been arrested.
Malda Customs deputy
commissioner Rajib Ranjan
today exhibited the firearms
at a press conference informing his staff members had
rushed to the Malda NBSTC
terminus upon receiving a
tip-off. Although the targeted
bus had already departed for
Balurghat, the officers gave
chase and intercepted the
vehicle at the Publigunj area
on the Malda-Balurghat state
highway.
When
they
searched the passengers and
their baggage, one of the officers noticed a rolled-up
piece of cloth under a seat.
“We have reason to believe the consignment was
meant to reach someone in
Balurghat, but we cannot be
sure whether the consignment was meant for a terrorist group,” said Ranjan. (HS)
KOLKATA, OCT 15/-/
Jalpaiguri Divisional Commissioner Barun Roy will
have the additional charge
of Principal Secretary,
North Bengal Development,
according to a PTI report on
Tuesday quoting West Bengal
Home
Secretary
Basudeb Banerjee. Principal
Secretary, North Bengal Development, M K Agarwal
would now take over as Principal Secretary, Home (Personnel) and Administrative
Reforms replacing Bardhan.
It is a part of an administrative reshuffle, transferring
four IAS officials.
Provisional
Five Katihar bound pasvoters’ list for sengers drugged, robbed Vehicle
Darjeeling
plunges down
released
roadside in
SILIGURI, OCT 15 /--/
The district administration
on Wednesday released the
provisional voters’ list for
Darjeeling district. As per
the list, the Siliguri,
Naxalbari and Phansideva
assembly areas have a total
of 3,02,491 voters. Siliguri
SDO Deepa Priya told reporters that the list is provisional and the final one will
be released on January 5,
2015.
“Before the final list is
released, addition and deletion of names will be conducted. Those whose names
have not featured in the provisional list can enlist themselves from October 25 to
November 10,” she informed. (HS)
MALDA, OCT 15 /--/ Five
Katihar bound passengers in the Hatbazaar Express who had boarded
from Sealdah were today
found heavily dr ug g ed
and robbed of their belongings, GRP sources
said. The victims, believed to be daily wage labourers working in New
Delhi, were returning to
their villages in Katihar
district of Bihar when
they were reportedly befriended by a gang of
cheats last night. The
cheats offered the five
some tea that was laced
with intoxicants and they
soon became unconscious. The robbers then
alighted from the train at
a pre-determined spot
with the entire belongings including cash and
valuables of the victims.
The incident came to the
notice of the GRP when
the
train
reached
Katihar. All five were admitted at the Malda Medical College and Hospital
as they had not yet regained consciousness. Incidents of drugging innocent passengers and looting their belongings in
long distance trains surge
in Bihar ahead of the festive season every year,
causing serious concern
to the railway authorities. Despite several public awareness campaigns
and advice to passeng ers
against accepting any
eatables offered by strangers, the plea seems to
have fallen on deaf ears as
such cases have continued
unabated over the past
several years, noted the
GRP. (HS)
for the development and
welfare of small tea growers
in 2011. North East Tea Association (NETA) also
called for the setting up of
micro and mini Tea factories by a small tea grower or
a group of small tea growers
which was already decided
at the Tea Board's Board
meeting last year. PTI
BALURHAT, OCT 15 /--/ A Bangladeshi
who had entered India illegal was today arrested from the East Chapali area of
Balurghat. The youth was found carrying
forged identification certificates, some Bangladeshi and US currency, six Bangladeshi
SIM cards and more false papers. According
to government advocate Devasish
Majumdar, the youth was presented at the
Balurhat CJM court and subsequently sent
to police custody till November 6. Police
sources said the man was staying at a rented
flat in the East Chapali area. Further investigations to ascertain whether he is related to
any extremist organisations are being conducted. (HS)
E Rly spl train for Deepawali & Chhat
KOLKATA, OCT 15/--/To
cater to the rush of passengers during Deepavali &
Chhat festival Eastern Railway will run five more pairs
of
Howrah-GorakhpurNautanwa Janasadharan
Special trains leaving
Howrah on 19, 26 October &
2, 9, 16 November and leaving Nautanwa on 20, 27 October & 3, 10, 17 November,
2014. 03067 Up HowrahGorakhpur-Nautanwa
Janasadharan Special leaving Howrah at 22:50 hrs will
arrive at Nautanwa station
at 22:30 hrs. on the next day.
In return Journey, 03068 Dn
Nautanwa-GorakhpurHowrah Janasadharan Special train leaving Nautanwa
at 23:45 hrs will arrive at
Howrah station at 20:15 hrs
next day. This train will have
all General Second Class accommodation. (EOIC)
Rape accused
caught
NAMCHI, OCT 15 /--/
Prem Bahadur Lama (35), accused of raping a 17-year old
girl, was today arrested by
the Naya Bazaar police from
Garethang , West Sikkim.
Lama had been absconding
since October 8 when the
crime came to light. He is
from Chumbung in West
Sikkim and had reportedly
sexually assaulted a girl of
the area. DIG Dr. DM Tulli
said the Naya Bazaar police
had been working to trace
the culprit and managed to
catch him within a week.
Lama has been booked under section 376 of the IPC for
rape and the Protection of
Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. (HS)
Boy drowns
in Teesta
GANGTOK, OCT 15 /--/ A
17-year-old boy yesterday
drowned in the Teesta at
Lower Singbell in East
Sikkim. He had entered the
river for a swim when the
mishap occurred. The boy’s
body has been handed over
to his relatives after an autopsy. (EOIC)
Man arrested
on dowry
88 per cent voting in Nagaland by-poll
harassment
case
south Sikkim
KOHIMA, OCT 15/- -/Around 87.53 per
cent voters exercised their franchise in the
by-election to Northern Angami-two Assembly constituency in Kohima district today.
The bypoll was held peacefully, Chief Electoral Officer of Nagaland Sentiyanger
Imchen told reporters. Imchen said that
repoll would be recommended tomorrow if
anomalies were detected after scrutiny of
documents of presiding officers and sector
magistrates. The by-election was a straight
contest between the ruling Nagaland Peoples's Front candidate Dr Neiphrezo Keditsu
NAMCHI, OCT 15 /--/ A
Mahindra Maxx vehicle
bearing taxi number SK04J/0012 yesterday met
with an accident near
Mangbrue School in
South Sikkim. It plunged
nearly 150 feet below from
the road. There were four
people including the
driver when the accident
took place. They were initially admitted at the
Ravangla PHC and later
on the driver and one of
the passengers were
taken to the Namchi District Hospital as their condition worsened. (EOIC)
GUWAHATI, OCT 15/--/
Assam Chief Minister Tarun
Gogoi today clarified that he
was not following the footsteps of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi by launching the 'Clean Assam Campaign' but was involved in
cleanliness programmes
since his school days. "I am
not following the footsteps of
PM Modi in Clean Assam
Campaign but inspired by
Mahatma Gandhi. I joined
Kalyani Sangha (a social organisation) when I was a
school student way back in
and BJP candidate Visasolie Lhoungu, both
of them first-timers. Seven companies of security personnel, including four central
para-military forces and three companies of
Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB-NAP) were deployed for the by-poll. The bypoll became a
prestige issue for the ruling NPF as the seat
had been continuously held for five terms by
three-time Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio from
1989 till May 2014. The seat fell vacant following Neiphiu Rio's win in the Lok Sabha
election in May, this year. Counting of votes
will be taken up on October 20. (PTI)
Not following Modi’s footsteps in cleanliness campaign: Gogoi
1951 and swept the Sweepers' Colony in Jorhat," the
chief minister tweeted on
the occasion of the launch
of 'Pariskar Aru Seuj Asom
Khajagota Abhijan'. "When I
became chief minister, I
wielded the broom and
swept the streets of
Guwahati during the Clean
Guwahati Campaign in 2012.
Then I took part in the Clean
Assam Campaign that
kicked off in Guwahati on
October 5, 2014," he said.
Launching the the week-long
'Pariskar Aru Seuj Asom
Khajagota Abhijan (Cleanliness and Green Assam
Awareness Campaign)', the
chief minister announced a
wage hike of Rs 200 per
month to those engaged in
cleaning job so that the
'Clean Assam Campaign' was
taken up in a vigorous way,
an official release said.
Gogoi had yesterday in another tweet praised Modi's
ambitious 'Saansad Adarsh
Gram Yojana' (SAGY), but
said it would take more than
50 years to cover six lakh villages in the country.
SILIGURI, OCT 15 /--/
The Pradhan Nagar police
today arrested a man
named Samtaj Ali for allegedly harassing his wife
for dowry. According to
the FIR, Samtaj had married Sabana Khatun in
March of this year and
since then he had been torturing her physically and
mentally for dowry. Frustrated by the repeated torture, Sabana on Tuesday
left him and went to her father’s home. When she
narrated her plight to her
f ather, he filed an FIR
against Samtaj at the
Pradhan Nagar police station. Acting upon the
complaint, Samtaj was arrested from his residence
in Pradhan Nagar and
presented at the Siliguri
court which sent him to
judicial custody. (HS)