Regional IMPHAL, SATURDAY 10 JANUARY, 2015 NDFB-S militants accused of Assam killings arrested Press Trust of India GUWAHATI, Jan 9: Two dreaded NDFB-Songbijit militant leaders responsible for the massacres of Adivasis have been arrested along with four of their associates and a large quantity of arms seized from their possession, a senior police officer said on Friday. "NDFB-S Kokrajhar platoon 'second-in-command' Mithinga and Khuren along with their four associates were arrested from Serfunguri in Kokrajhar district of Assam last night," IGP LR Bishnoi told media. They were accused of massacre of the Adivasis at Pakriguri in Kokrajhar district on December 23. The extremists led the police to the jungles in Thaisuguri area where they had buried a large quantity of weapons, explosives, medicines and army uniforms, Bishnoi said. The recoveries include one AK-47 rifle, an HK-33 rifle, one M-16 rifle, six magazines, four 9 mm-pistols, four hand grenades, 300 rounds of ammunition, four sacks of medicines and several battle fatigues, he said. Stating Mithinga and Khuren had themselves fired upon the people at Pakriguri, the IGP said their arrests were a major success in nabbing the perpetrators of the December 23 killings. At least 81 people, mostly Adivasis, were killed in Kokrajhar, Sonitpur, and Chirang districts by heavilyarmed militants belonging to the Songbijit faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB). Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had announced while visiting Assam after the killing that NIA would probe into the carnage and the agency has started their investigation. BJP to move EC against Rs 1.4 crore donation to TMC KOLKATA, Jan 9 BJP on Thursday said it will demand a probe by Election Commission (EC) into funds received by Trinamool Congress. BJP alleged that the ruling party used small companies to divert chit fund money to fund its campaign for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. BJP national secretary Sidharth Nath Singh said that BJP will lodge a complaint with EC soon and submit all relevant documents. A number of political parties recently submitted their annual reports of donations over Rs 20,000 received by them, as stipulated under Section 29C of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. The act enables recognized political parties to get tax exemptions on this income. According to the report filed by Trinamool national secretary Mukul Roy on September 25, Rs 1.4 crore had been donated by Trinetra Consultant Private Limited — a British Indian Street company — to it. This is Trinamool's only external donation over Rs 20,000. Singh said, "The audit report and the balance sheet of the company show that in 2011-12 its revenue was just Rs 19,000, in 2012-13 it was Rs 16,000 and it was Rs 33,000 in 2013-14. How can such a company donate such amounts? According to company rule, only 5% of the average net profit can be donated. The papers have Mukul Roy's signature. He should explain how he received the money. We think it is chit fund money, which was routed through such companies." Singh also said that one of 13,000 persons held in Dec for violating railways law PATNA, Jan 9 : The Railway Protection Force (RPF) launched a vigorous drive against miscreants under all five divisions of East Central Railway (ECR) in December and arrested about 13,000 persons for allegedly violating various provisions of law. A sum of Rs 48.8 lakh was also realized from them as fine, said ECR CPRO Arvind Rajak. In a major crackdown on the miscreants, RPF sleuths arrested 671 persons in December alone from different places falling under ECR for creating nuisance on railway platforms or running trains. Altogether 247 persons were detained under RPF Act for trespassing railway premises while 20 were arrested for their alleged involvement in obstructing train movements under different divisions of ECR, the CPRO said adding 342 persons were penalized by RPF men for smoking on railway platforms. Alarm chain pulling (ACP) continues to a major bottleneck in the smooth movement of trains in ECR. RPF personnel arrested more than 200 persons for their involvement in ACP incidents as well as carrying luggage on trains without booking, the CPRO said adding a sum of Rs 2.6 lakh was realized as fine from them. Total 10,522 persons were arrested in December for travelling without tickets, ECR CPRO Arvind Rajak said adding RPF drive was continuing in January. Star Cement Spreads warmth at relief camps GUWAHATI, Jan 9: Star Cement, the Premier Cement Brand of North-East & East India, distributed over thousands blankets at relief camps in BTC area. Hoping to warm bodies and warm hearts, a motorcade lead by Star Cement officials stopped at Hamukjuli LP School relief camp, Hamukjuli Church relief camp and Tinikhuti Madhya English School relief camp to bring a smile and a blanket for people staying there after Bodo bloodshed. Shri Agarwal said that the winter months are especially harsh and blankets make all the difference. The initiative was triggered by reports of dearth of blankets in these relief camps which housed those who were seeking shelter post the violence in Bodo area. the directors of the company was a director of at least 61 other companies. "We fear that chit fund money is being channelized to the party through this mechanism," Singh said. Roy was unavailable for comment and party spokesperson Derek O Brien said he couldn't comment on the matter until he knew the details. Singh also mocked the Bengal Global Business Summit, saying that it should have been named 'Central Aid Summit' as most of the investments that the state claimed to have received were from the central government organizations. "The chief minister claimed that the state has received investments worth Rs 93,000 crore. Out of this, Rs 78,700 crore has come from the central government and its enterprises," he claimed. -TNN In Jharkhand, sterilisation operations done under torchlight JHARKHAND, Jan 9 At a state-run health clinic, guided by torchlight, surgeons in Jharkhand sterilised nearly 40 women because there was no power on Wednesday night. The women were then moved out of the operating theatre and made to lie down or sit on the ground in a corridor. There were no stretchers or blankets; no attendants to offer any postoperative care. An inquiry has been launched to determine who is responsible for the negligence that was filmed by a local journalist in the Chatra dis- trict. "The lights had gone out at the operation theatre. But the torches were only being used for dressing. we have ordered an enquiry regarding the bad arrangements," said Dr C P Singh, senior government doctor. Savitri Devi, who brought her daughter-in-law for the surgery from a nearby village said, " There are no arrangements at all. No medicines, we are being treated like animals." In November, 13 women died after attending a sterilisation camp in Chhattisgarh - they were among 80 women who were operated on by the same surgical team in a single stretch. Tablets linked to the deaths of some of the women were found to have contained a chemical compound commonly used in rat poison. India is the world's top steriliser of women, and efforts to rein in population growth have been described as the most draconian after China. Sterilisation is popular because it is cheap and effective, and sidesteps cultural resistance to and problems with distribution of other types of contraception in rural areas. The government offers cash incentives to health workers and women who sign up for the procedure. Government officials are set targets for how many sterilizations must be performed every year; critics says that drives them to ignore basic safety rules and guidelines. Health officials in Chatra claim their sterilisation target for this month for the entire district is 3000 surgeries, and that 25 percent of that target has already been met. Gauhati HC stays Centre’s food subsidy order GUWAHATI, Jan 9 Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday welcomed the decision of the Gauhati High court to stay an order of the Centre to stop supply of foodgrains from the state's allotment to tea garden managements for distribution among workers from December 31, 2014. The State Government Order to act against Indian insurgents in B'desh: Delegate AGARTALA, Jan 9 Instructions have been given to launch operation against Indian insurgents using the soil of Bangladesh for carrying out "subversive" activities in India, a delegate for the ongoing two-day Indo-Bangla Joint Border Conference said today. "We were instructed to launch operations if any Indian insurgents use the soil of Bangladesh for causing subversive activities in Indian side. We have also conducted a number of operations against them," Director of 54 Border Guard Battalion of Bangladesh Lt Colonel Kazi Mahamudunnabi said. Bangladesh has decided to set up five more border outposts in the Chittagong Hill Tract areas bordering Dhalai district of Tripura for better vigil and stop cross border movement of insurgents, he said. Md Hasanujjamad Kallol, Deputy Commissioner of Comilla said, "We want proper sharing of water from the Gomati, which flows through Comilla." The 30-member Bangladesh team leader District Magistrate of Feni Humayan Kabir Khanderkar said, "We work at the district level and face various border-related issues and such meetings will help us to address them through dialogues." The Bangladeshi team comprises five district magistrates, representatives of police, paramilitary forces and border guards. From the Indian side, Dr Prashant Kumar Goyal, District Magistrate of Sipahijala said "We have discussed issues like joint border management, border smuggling, human trafficking, border crimes, infiltration and cross border movements of insurgents or terrorists." "We pledged to cooperate with each other in this regard. Both side attached importance for better coordination ingrassroots level to address the issues and improve relations between the two countries," he said. had objected to the Centre's order on the ground that it was a pre-Independence practice to facilitate distribution of foodgrains at highly subsidized rates to tea garden workers. Under the system, tea garden owners purchase rice from the state's allocation at Rs 8.30 per kg and distribute the same to garden workers at 50p per kg. Gogoi also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to review the decision, but there was no response from the PM's office. Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha, the trade union body of tea garden workers, had moved the high court with a writ petition seeking a stay on this order. -PTI BSF nabs 8 Bangladeshi criminals WBYouth Congress demands CM resignation SHILLONG, Jan 9: Eight Bangladeshi criminals were apprehended by the Border Security Force for allegedly crossing the international border in Meghalaya's South Garo Hills district, BSF officials said today. These criminals were caught after a long and strenuous operation by the BSF at the border last evening, the official said. According to the BSF spokesperson here, the criminals hailing from opposite Mymensing district were involved in kidnapping and extortion in villages along the border. They were identified as Ashraf Md, 19, Abu Hanifa, 18, Md Abul Hossain, Rafiqul, 20, Abdul Rahim, 30, Suruj Miya, 25, Md Sadiqul, 25, and Nazmul Hasen, 25. A 7.65 mm pistol with magazine, 1 round and 1 Khukuri and 2 mobile phones were recovered from their possession, the BSF said. BSF also apprehended 2 Indians and 5 Bangladeshi nationals on Meghalaya border during the past week and also seized 224 Wooden logs, 529 bottles of Liquor, 9 boats, 50 bottles of phensedyl, 31 cattle and other contraband items, worth over Rs 18 lakh. KOLKATA, Jan 9: The youth organization that groomed Mamata Banerjee and helped her walk into Writers' in 2011 has demanded her resignation. West Bengal Youth Congress (YC) supporters walked from Vidhan Bhavan to Rani Rashmoni Avenue on Thursday demanding that the chief minister step down. "The rally is a continuation of our statewide protests against the alleged involvement of senior Trinamool leaders in the Saradha scam. The CM has come in the way of the CBI probe and hassupported tainted leaders. Mamata has no right to rule the state anymore, said YC state president Arindam Bhattacharya. This rally comes days after YC put up a blockade on the same demand. However, on Thursday, it voiced its opposition to issues other than the Saradha scam. -TNN CISF head constable killed by subordinate SHILLONG, Jan 9: A head constable of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) was stabbed to death by his junior colleague at the Airport near here and the accused was arrested, police said Thursday. Amal Raj hailing from Tamil Nadu was stabbed at the back of his head and found dead last evening while on duty. A case was registered and after initial investigation, constable B K Singh hailing from Uttar Pradesh, was arrested, Reddy said, adding, personal issues may have been the cause of the murder. -PTI DISTRICT DIGEST Jiribam, Jan 9 Photo exibition Dr Harmit Singh Pahuja, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Jiribam inaugurated the first photo exhibition by an individual artiste today at Jiribam Higher Secondary School auditorium hall, reports Jiri News Network. The programme is jointly organised by Jiri News Network (JNN)and Lens Film, Imphal. The opening ceremony of the exhibition had Dr Harmit Singh Pahuja, Sarat Thokchom, JNN president, N Tombiraj, AMWJU advisor, L Ranjit Kumar Singh, Principal, Jiribam Higher Secondary School and Nilotpol Choudhury, Editor, Manipur Chronicle as chief guest, functional president, guest of honour and special guest of honour respectively. JNN, Jiribam general secretary Romeo Moirangthem delivered the welcome address during the opening ceremony. Delivering the key-note address, Bijoy Kakchingtabam, former president, AMWJU encouraged photographers of Jiribam to take up photo jounalism as an occupation. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Harmit Singh Pahuja said photo jounalism is a tough occupation to opt for. The photos which are being put up in the exhibition relates the achievements of the photograher during his career. Senapati, Jan 9 Karong youth shot, injured by suspected NSCN-IM man A youth was shot and injured by a suspected NSCN-IM cadre at Khabung Karong yesterday at around 6.45 pm, reports The Hornbill Express. According to sources, the victim identified as Saloni( 25), s/o Panii of Purul Akutpa presently residing at Karong was returning with a friend after participating at the village annual sports meet when they came across a local youth on a bike quarelling with three persons in a white Bolero(registration number MN-05A-2867). Intending to pacify the situation, the victim intervened but was shot by one of the occupants of the Bolero which was stated to be driven by another local lad. After the gun fire, the Bolero took a U-turn and fled towards Senapati DHQs. The victim was rushed to Senapati District Hospital where he was treated for thigh injury and is stated to be out of danger. The victim is an engineering student and came home for vacation. Agitated locals turned out in huge number and gathered at the main Karong bazar to identify the vehicle which they managed to locate and identify the occupants of the Bolero. However, sources stated that, the culprit identified as NSCN-IM self styled Captain R Huimai Remai alias Solomon fled towards DHQ town areas leaving the two at Senapati-Phaibung road. Till the time filing this report, the Karong villagers in large number also met the victim at the hospital and descended upon the house of the accused located at Viewland colony. Sources informed that, some vehicles have been dispatched towards SP road to nab the culprit. The situation at Karong area is tense as a mob has turned out in large number to demand that the culprit be booked. More details are awaited. No case has been registered at Senapati police station till the time of filing this report. Hail storm damages houses A heavy hail storm damaged at least 50 houses at Kharam Pallen village under Saitu Assembly Constituency, Senapati district between 10 pm and 1 am today. Kharam Union, in a statement issued to the press today said that they saw at least 20 houses destroyed which need to be reconstructed. A number of domestic animals including chickens and ducks were found dead. Some birds were also found killed. The vegetables and houses in the area were found covered with hail. The banana farm, measuring about 30 hectares and which served as the main production of the village was also found destroyed in the hail storm. At the moment, members of 20 houses have been rendered homeless said the Kharam Union, Manipur and appealed to the department concerned to extend whatever help it can to the affected people. Thoubal, Jan 9 Youth camp concludes A three-day Youth Leadership Residential Camp held by All Thoubal District United Clubs Organisation (ATDUCO) under the aegis of All Manipur United Club’s Organisation (AMUCO) from January 7 at Universal College, Yairipok concluded today with a small closing ceremony. The closing event was attended by DD-News Imphal assistant news editor Chabungbam Birendra, ATDUCO advisor L Subhaschandra Singh and AMUCO advisor KT Rahaman, AMUCO vice-president W Gonendro Singh and Ph Devan as chief guest, functional president and guest of honour respectively. Resource persons Keisham Ingocha, lecturer, Kha Manipur College, Kakching and Nonibala Narengbam, convenor, Women in Governance (WinG), Manipur spoke on the topics of ‘HIV/AIDS and Gender’ and ‘Women Empowerment and Causes and Prevention of Crime Against Women in Manipur’ during the event respectively. The three-day Youth Leadership Residential Camp was attended by a total of 200 youths from Thoubal district. Participation certificate was also handed over to the campers during the closing ceremony today.
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