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Last updated : WEDNESDAY 31 DECEMBER 2008

 

Bangladeshi design to annex Asom

By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: The problem posed by the unabated influx of Bangladeshi migrants into the State is bound to assume greater dimensions in the future with several hard-hitting revelations coming to light.
For instance, Bangladesh has allegedly taken up a scheme worth Rs 15 crore wherein students in selected madrassas are taught Asomiya and its various dialects. This scheme has been adopted so that Bangladeshis migrating into India do not have to face any language problems.
Over the years, lakhs of Bangladeshis are believed to have illegally migrated to Asom. A proper set-up for transporting people from across the border is also in place in Bangladesh. Bangladeshi agents reportedly charge around Rs 1,500 for transporting a person into the Indian side. These revelations are part of a CD which was prepared by a senior Indian journalist from outside the Northeast a few years back. The journalist had submitted the CD to the then Asom Governor Lt Gen (Retd) SK Sinha for his perusal. An updated version of the CD has now found its way into the hands of the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP). The CD has been updated till the devastating October 30 serial bomb blasts.
The CD also contains video footages of seminars being held in interior areas of Bangladesh to justify migration to India. Besides asserting that Asom is a part of Bangladesh, the idea of a greater pan-Islamic state, comprising Pakistan, Bihar, West Bengal, Bangladesh and Northeast India, was also discussed in the seminars.
After watching the CD today, AGP president Chandra Mohan Patowary told The Sentinel, “It is really shocking to watch such seminars being held in Bangladesh. This is sure to spell doom for Asom.”
Stating that the Central Government should take the threat posed by Bangladesh very seriously, Patowary said, “We knew that a senior journalist from outside the State had given a CD to former Asom Governor SK Sinha, but we had never seen it.”
The AGP president said, “After the Asom serial blasts and the Mumbai terror attacks, Parliament has finally woken up to the threat posed by the neigbouring country. The Centre should immediately hold discussions with the Bangladesh Government.”


A huge quantity of explosives recovered from a garbage dump near Notboma in the Sijubari area in Guwahati on Tuesday on display at Hatigaon police station. According to police sources, the explosive materials were kept by suspected militants. (Sentinel)


 

Omar to be next J-K CM
NEW DELHI, Dec 30: National Conference chief Omar Abdullah will be the next Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir after his party and the Congress stitched an alliance today to form a coalition government in which they will be “equal partners”. The NC, which bagged 28 seats to become the single largest party, and the Congress with a haul of 17 struck an agreement after Omar, the third generation Abdullah family member, met Congress President Sonia Gandhi in the capital. The NC-Congress combine has 45 seats, one seat more that the number required for a majority in a House of 87.
Emerging from the meeting, 38-year-old Omar who had his education in Lawrence School Sanawar, Mumbai and Scotland said, “It has been decided that I will lead the coalition government in the State of which Congress will be a part of.” Asked about the details of the new government and whether it will be a three-year term each for NC and Congress, Omar, who will be the State’s youngest Chief Minister, said a committee would be formed by both the parties to go into the nitty-gritties of the alliance. “There were no talks or formulation on the details,” said the son of NC veteran Farooq Abdullah, who has thrice been the Chief Minister of the border State. The two parties were part of an alliance previously in 1987.
AICC general secretary and J and K in-charge of the party, Prithiviraj Chavan said, “Omar Abdullah called on Congress President and proposed formation of a coalition government. “The Congress president has accepted the proposal. The government would be headed by Omar Abdullah,” said Chavan addressing reporters along with Omar. “This is going to be a government of partnership. It is going to be a partnership, a coalition between the National Conference and the Congress. We are equal partners. We have an equal stake,” said Omar. PTI

 

Investment scene bright despite terror: Gogoi
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: “Despite a number of achievements in many sectors during 2008, the ethnic clash in Udalguri and Darrang districts and the October 30 serial blasts in the State continue to disturb me even today. There were other incidents also, but their impact was not felt as that of the ethnic clash and the serial blasts.” This is how Asom Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said on the year gone by while talking to The Sentinel today.
When asked on the fate of the ceasefire agreement with the NDFB in the aftermath of the involvement of the outfit in the serial blasts coming to light, Gogoi said: “We have been studying the nature of involvement of the outfit in the serial blasts — whether the entire rebel group was involved or a section of it. On its own, the Centre has also been studying the nature of involvement of the NDFB in the serial blasts. The decision on the ceasefire with the NDFB that is going to expire tomorrow depends much on the outcome of the study being conducted by the State Government and the Centre with their respective agencies.”
On the performance front, Gogoi said his government has many success stories like laying of foundation stones of as many as three medical colleges in the State in 2008. There were many other developmental activities in the health sector, Gogoi said, and added: “We did a lot in the education sector too. We got a huge amount of Central funds for various PWD schemes. Though we don’t have adequate staff to absorb the amount of funds being poured from the Centre in the PWD sector and other sectors, we implement them gradually. Earlier we couldn’t measure our strength, since we did not face any challenging situation. Now we have come to know our strength and will do better in the year ahead.”
Gogoi said he has full faith on the youths. “The youths have realized the fact that there is dearth of government jobs in the State, and hankering after government jobs will lead them nowhere. So the youths have started to take the challenge by taking to self-employment avenues. In the year ahead, we will lay more emphasis to encourage the youths for such ventures.” Though there were ethnic clash and serial blasts in the State in 2008, outside investors have been keen to invest in the State, Gogoi said. “We hope this interest of investors will be visible in 2009. We have already opened an investment cell in the State Industry Department so as to streamline the process of investment in the State,” he said. The Chief Minister expressed his hope that militant groups, including ULFA, which have not declared any ceasefire with the government will come to the negotiation table soon.

Massive victory for Hasina and her allies in Bangladesh
DHAKA/NEW DELHI, Dec 30: Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the nine-party alliance led by her Awami League recorded a landslide victory on Tuesday, winning 259 seats of the 299 seats that figured in Bangladesh’s ninth general election. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh promptly congratulated her, and expressed the hope bilateral ties would be strengthened.
In Monday’s poll, the Awami League (AL) alone won 230 seats, and the alliance got 259 out of the 299 contested, leaving Hasina’s arch political rival Begum Khaleda Zia with only 29 seats and Zia’s Islamist ally Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) with two. There were four independent winners.
Bangladesh has a 300-seat Parliament. Elections were rescheduled in Noakhali-1 following the death of a candidate.
The poll results were a crushing defeat for Zia and her Islamist allies who together enjoyed a two-thirds majority in the last elected parliament (2001-06).
Hasina and Zia represent two competing political legacies and have dominated the Bangladesh political scene since the 1980s. While Zia ruled for two terms — 1991-96 and 2001-06 — Hasina ruled during the intervening period.
While Hasina counselled calm as results poured in, Zia complained of irregularities in 220 seats in the Monday poll, hinting at rigging.
Both the women contenders, as also the caretaker government and the Election Commission tasked to conduct a free and fair poll, had on Monday expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the poll.
The international observers, among them the European Union (EU), also testified to a fair poll that saw an estimated 70 per cent turnout of the 80 million electorate.
Hasina’s chief ally, Jatiya Party of former military ruler Hossain Mohammed Ershad, won a surprising 27 seats.
All three - Hasina and Ershad, as also Zia - scored stunning victories in the multiple constituencies they contested from.
A major BNP loss was that of the speaker of the last elected Jatiya Sangsad (National Assembly), Barrister Jamiruddin Serker, who lost in Pachagarh-1 in northern Bangladesh.
Also defeated were several former Zia ministers, including finance minister M Saifur Rahman and Maudud Ahmed.
The Awami League (AL) victory spelt triumph for a number of minority Hindu nominees. Among them were Suranjit Sengupta (Sunamganj-1), a member of AL Presidium, Narayan Chandra Chanda (Khulna-5), Ramesh Chandra Sen (Thakurgaon-1) and Monoranjan Gopal Sheel (Dinajpur-1).
Minority voters in different areas in Chittagong received threats from workers of Zia’s four-party alliance despite huge preparations and safety measures for a free and fair election.
A significant number of voters, especially the indigenous people and Biharis (non-Bengalis) could not vote as they were not on the new voter roll, Star Online said on Tuesday.
Among the winners were two former army officers who fought for the country’s liberation.
Major (retd) Rafiqul Islam, winner of top gallantry award Bir Uttam, won from Chandpur-5, while Col. (retd) Oli Ahmed, a minister in Zia’s government who fell out with her, won from Chittagong-13.
AQM. Badrudozza Chowdhury, a former president, who fell out with Zia and floated his own party, lost at the hustings.
Bangladesh’s military-backed caretaker government will transfer power to the victors of the Monday poll in a week, a senior official said on Tuesday.
Adviser (minister) M Anwarul Iqbal said the newly elected government will take office in seven days through a gazette publication.
“The new government will be formed after the members-elect take oath as MPs, then the caretaker government will hand over charge to the incumbent new administration,” Iqbal said.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday congratulated Sheikh Hasina and expressed hope about strengthening bilateral ties in the years ahead.
“The Prime Minister said that India looks forward to working with the government and people of Bangladesh in the years ahead for the mutual benefit of the people of the two countries,” a statement from the prime Minister’s Office said in New Delhi.
With terrorism in the region a pressing concern, specially after the Mumbai attacks, the victory of Sheikh Hasina has brought some comfort to New Delhi as she took some tough steps against the anti-India militant groups when she was in power in the mid-1990s.
The 61-year-old Sheikh Hasina, whose father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman led the nation to independence, returned to power after spending months in custody on murder and corruption charges. IANS

‘Strip militant leaders of citizenship’
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: The Assam Public Works (APW) today said the ULFA, NDFB and other militant groups should be given a chance to come to the negotiation table, and if the rebel groups do not come for a peaceful solution to their problems, they should be shot dead wherever they stay. Talking to newsmen here today, APW director Abhijit Sarma said: “If the militant groups don’t come for peace process, they should be stripped of their Indian citizenship. Pakistan is blamed by the world for the terror attacks in Mumbai, and if the ULFA and NDFB carry out such attacks in other countries, India will be at the receiving end from the world community.” Launching a scathing attack on the Asom Government and the Police Department for their failure to trace escaped drug lord Pakhi Miyan, the APW warned the Government of massive attacks, planned by Miyan, if he is not arrested.


Rijiju moves Chidambaram
From our Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Dec 30: Arunachal Pradesh MP Kiren Rijiju has strongly protested and lodged a complaint against the Asom officials who, he alleged, destroyed a check-post and granaries of innocent Arunachali people by using excavators at Gumto village under Papumpare district of Arunachal Pradesh. In this connection, Kiren Rijiju met Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and urged him for immediate intervention of the Centre to take action against the erring officials. Kiren Rijiju informed the Home Minister that seven top-level Asom officials from North Lakhimpur districts, including the Deputy Commissioner and the Police Superintendent with around 400 other officials, entered Doimukh area at Gumto village inside Arunachal Pradesh and destroyed the check post and granaries of people with excavators.

 

Unilateral ceasefire by KLNLF
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: The KLNLF has today announced a two-month unilateral ceasefire with the government from January 1 to March 1, KLNLF chairman P Dilli said.

Grenade attack on natya club
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: A miscreant lobbed a grenade on Surya Natya Club at Lamb Road in the Ambari area under Latasil police station in Guwahati this evening, but the grenade failed to detonate. The local people chased the miscreant, but he escaped. The people, however, caught an accomplice of the miscreant and handed him over to the police. The police took the grenade.

 

SAKP meets Gogoi
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 30: Leaders of the SAKP today had a meeting with Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi in his office chamber at Dispur and raised a number of demands, including payment of salaries in the Central Government scales from January next, release of arrears DA and regularization of services of 8,000 muster roll, casual and fixed pay workers. Sources at Dispur said the Chief Minister is likely to announce some sops for the employees of the State on January 1.

 

I will teach Gogoi a lesson: Ajmal
From our Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Dec 30: “I will teach Asom Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi a lesson in the forthcoming Lok Sabha election,” said AUDF president Badruddin Ajmal while talking to The Sentinel after a meeting at the Islamic Centre in New Delhi today. Ajmal said Gogoi and some Congress leaders of Asom have been out to malign the image of the AUDF by carrying out a false propaganda against the party. He further said preparations for the third front is under way in Asom, and the AUDF will field nine candidates in the coming Lok Sabha polls. He, however, refused to name the seats where the party will field its candidates.

 

Happiness is infectious!
Getting connected to happy people improves happiness. Among other benefits, happiness has been shown to have an important effect on less risk of death, pain relief, and better heart function. To explore how happiness spreads, researchers from America analysed data on 4,700 people who were being followed since their childhood. Facts regarding the births, marriages, death, and divorces of the participants were tracked. The participants also listed contact information of their closest friends, co-workers, and neighbours.
The researchers assessed happiness using a simple, four-question test, which included - how often during the previous week they - enjoyed life; were happy; were hopeful about the future; and felt as good as other people. The 60 per cent of people who scored highly on all four questions were rated as happy, while the rest were designated unhappy.
It was found that people with the most social connections - friends, spouses, neighbours, and relatives - were also the happiest. The researchers also found that happiness is more contagious than unhappiness. Having a happy social contact increases the likelihood of a person’s happiness by 15 per cent while having every extra unhappy friend increases the likelihood that you would be unhappy by 7 per cent.
The above findings show that happy persons make others happier and that happiness is contagious.

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