Page 38 - Assam

Govt must be given latitude to make adjustments crucial to save nation: SC

Observing that several northeastern states are affected by insurgency and violence, the Supreme Court Wednesday said the government must be given "latitude and leeway" to make adjustments necessary to save the nation. Referring to section 6A of the Citizenship Act applicable exclusively to Assam, a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said governments have to make compromises for the overall well-being of the nation. "We must also give the government that latitude. Even today there are parts of North East, we may not name them, but there are states affected by insurgency, affected by violence. We have to give the government that leeway to make adjustments necessary to save the nation," Chandrachud said. He made the observation after senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that section 6A operates in a "blanket manner" and rewards illegal immigrants who continue to stay in Assam in violation of the citizenship law. "Assam

Assam immigration: SC hears pleas to examine validity of Citizenship Act

A five-judge Supreme Court bench on Tuesday commenced hearing on 17 petitions to examine the constitutional validity of section 6A of the Citizenship Act relating to illegal immigrants in Assam. The Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud is hearing submissions advanced by senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for petitioners, in the matter. Besides the CJI, Justices Surya Kant, M M Sundresh, J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra are part of the bench. Divan is presently referring to the historical background of the litigation and the 2014 judgement of the apex court by which the pleas were referred to the larger Constitution bench. Section 6A in the Citizenship Act was inserted as a special provision to deal with the citizenship of people covered by the Assam Accord. The provision provides that those who have come to Assam on or after January 1, 1966 but before March 25, 1971 from specified territories, including Bangladesh, as per the Citizenship Act amended in 1985,

Over 75% UAPA cases in 2022 from J-K, Manipur, Assam, Uttar Pradesh: NCRB

Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, Assam and Uttar Pradesh together registered over three-fourth of all UAPA cases in India in 2022, while one-fourth of sedition cases were registered in West Bengal alone, according to the latest NCRB data on 'Offences against the State'. Altogether 20 cases of sedition under the Indian Penal Code section 124A were lodged across India in 2022 while 1,005 were registered under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), which functions under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, showed in its annual crime report. Notably, sedition cases have come down since 2020 while those lodged under the UAPA saw a rise in the last three years, according to the data. In 2021, 76 cases of sedition and 814 cases of UAPA were lodged in the country, while in 2020 the figures for the same were logged at 73 and 796, official data from corresponding years showed. Among states and Union Territories, the maximum number of UAPA

Assam illegal immigrants: SC to examine Citizenship Act's validity on Dec 5

The Supreme Court is scheduled to commence hearing on December 5 to examine the constitutional validity of section 6A of the Citizenship Act relating to illegal immigrants in Assam. Section 6A in the Citizenship Act was inserted as a special provision to deal with the citizenship of people covered by the Assam Accord. The provision provides that those who have come to Assam on or after January 1, 1966 but before March 25, 1971 from specified territories, including Bangladesh, as per the Citizenship Act amended in 1985, and since then are residents of Assam must register themselves under section 18 for citizenship. As a result, the provision fixes March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date for granting citizenship to Bangladeshi migrants in Assam. As per the cause list uploaded on the apex court website, a five-judge constitution bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, Justices Surya Kant, M M Sundresh, J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra would take up the matter for hearing on ...

Uttarakhand tunnel: 21 workers from Jharkhand, Odisha, Assam reach home

It was a grand homecoming for 21 Silkyara tunnel workers from Jharkhand, Odisha and Assam who reached their respective states on Friday. In Jharkhand capital Ranchi, 15 workers, who spent 17 gruelling days inside the tunnel in Uttarkashi, were given a rousing welcome when their plane landed shortly after 8pm from Delhi. State Labour Minister Satyanand Bhokta who received the workers at the airport said, "A big mission has been accomplished. The government will extend all help to them." The workers were taken to Chief Minister Hemant Soren's residence in a special bus where he interacted with them and enquired about their wellbeing. Interacting with workers, Soren said, "Glad you all have returned to Jharkhand after emerging victorious from the Uttarakhand tragedy. The whole country was praying for all of you. All of you will be connected to employment related and other schemes of the state government. I have given instructions about this to the officials. I will keep taking ...

Assam govt employees to intensify agitation for Old Pension Scheme

Lakhs of Assam government employees on Monday resolved to intensify their agitation demanding the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Leaders of opposition political parties and prominent personalities of the state have also lent their support to the demand of the government employees, claiming that adequate pension is a right of the workers. The decision was taken at a meeting organised by the All Assam Government NPS Employees Association (AAGNPSEA) and supported by the Joint Coordination Committee for OPS Assam and the Joint Forum for Restoration of OPS Assam here, a release said. The AAGNPSEA, along with other workers' bodies and unions, have been carrying out phased agitations for the restoration of OPS in the state. Among the resolutions adopted at the meeting was the demand to cancel the National Pension System (NPS) and to provide pensions to all workers, employees and teachers of the state government under the OPS. The meeting also demanded the repeal of the Pens

Would be different, if Modi had been PM: Assam CM on 26/11 anniversary

Meanwhile, PM Modi on Sunday paid homage to the victims of the dastardly 26/11 terror attack

75 army personnel who entered Mizoram taken back to Myanmar: DGP

Two major camps were overrun and because of that around 75 Myanmar army personnel entered Mizoram. We rescued them and also handed over them to our border guarding force Assam Rifles :DGP

CM Shinde consents to Kamakhya temple proposal in Maha: Himanta Sarma

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that his Maharashtra counterpart Eknath Shinde has given consent to a proposal for providing land for the construction of a Kamakhya temple in the western state. While interacting with a group of visiting journalists from Maharashtra recently, Sarma said he plans to build a Namghar, a place of worship for Vaishnavites, along with the temple. "We want to build a good Kamakhya temple in Maharashtra. I have already spoken to (Eknath) Shinde. Maharashtra CM is a big devotee of Maa Kamakhya," he said in a video of the meeting shared on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday. The Kamakhya temple atop the Neelachal hill on the bank of the Brahmaputra river is one of the biggest and oldest Shakti Peeths in the country. This temple of Goddess Kamakhya is an important pilgrimage centre for tantric worshippers and Hindus. When Shinde had visited Assam last time, Sarma requested him to provide land to construct a Kamakhya temple and Namghar in Maharasht

Unchecked construction

Himalayan projects need better regulation

Sikhs in their infinite variety

"The Assamese Sikhs have often been belittled because they cannot speak or read Punjabi and are hence also referred to as spurious Sikhs or kachche Sikh," says Singh

Oil India's Q2 profit drops 80% to Rs 2,363 cr by litigation charge

Oil India took on charges related to an ongoing litigation over a service tax demand raised in the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Rajasthan

Meghalaya retains less than 2% of total rainwater it receives: CM Sangma

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said the northeastern state receives 63 billion cubic litres of water annually through rainfall but is able to retain only 1 billion cubic litres of water. He said this on Wednesday while launching the Meghalaya Water Smart Kid campaign, an initiative under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to create awareness about water conservation among children. "Meghalaya is one of the wettest places on earth. We receive about 63 billion cubic litres of water annually, of which 31 billion cubic litres flow to Bangladesh and 31 billion cubic litres flows to Assam," he said. The chief minister said to address the issue of water conservation and sustainability, the state government has taken various interventions, which are supported by externally aided projects (EAPs) and the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. He informed that 1,000 water reservoirs are being constructed across the state, to harness water and increase the groundwater table through .

Assam Accord: SC to hear Sec 6A of Citizenship Act challenge pleas on Dec 5

The Assam NRC is meant to identify illegal immigrants in the State who migrated from Bangladesh after March 25, 1971

'SC/ST House panel satisfied with condition of both communities in Assam'

Chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Kirit Premjibhai Solanki on Monday expressed satisfaction on the overall social condition of these two communities in Assam. He, however, stressed on the need to improve different parameters such as education and jobs besides ending practices like manual scavenging in which mostly people from Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) are engaged. Talking to reporters at the end of a three-day study tour of the panel to the state, Solanki said, "Discrimination based on caste is less in Assam and the entire northeastern region compared many other parts of the country. We have learnt that cases of atrocities on SC/ST are also few here." Solanki, who was accompanied by 14 out of total 30 members of the committee, held discussions with state government representatives including chief secretary and several PSUs such as LIC, ONGC, OIL, Northeast Frontier Railways and IIT-Guwahati. The ...

SC to hear on the validity of Citizenship Act's Sec 6A on December 5

The Supreme Court on Monday said it will commence hearing on December 5 to examine the constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act relating to illegal immigrants in Assam. Section 6A in the Citizenship Act was inserted as a special provision to deal with the citizenship of people covered by the Assam Accord. The provision provides that those who have come to Assam on or after January 1, 1966 but before March 25, 1971 from specified territories, including Bangladesh, as per the Citizenship Act amended in 1985, and since then are residents of Assam must register themselves under section 18 for citizenship. As a result, the provision fixes March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date for granting citizenship to Bangladeshi migrants in Assam. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud deferred the matter after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the matter. "I am mentioning on my behalf and on behalf of the Attorney General for India. The case coming up tomorrow is th

Puri inaugurates ONGC-funded hospital in Assam built for Rs 483 crore

Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday inaugurated a multi-speciality hospital built at a cost of Rs 483 crore in Assam's Sivasagar district. The Siu-Ka-Pha Hospital has been funded by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) under its CSR commitments, and will be managed and operated by Aurangabad-based Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Vaidyakiya Pratisthan (BAVP), a statement said. Speaking at the inauguration function, Puri said the hospital is expected to improve the healthcare services for the people of upper Assam as well as other parts of the Northeast. Reiterating the BJP-led NDA government's thrust on the development of the region, he said, "Driven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to the Northeast, government and public enterprises like ONGC are committed to improving lives here. "Prioritising healthcare, ONGC's Siu-Ka-Pha Hospital, with its state of the art medical infrastructure, will bring in substantive enhancement in healthcare capacity of not only upper

Assam mulls providing subsidised tea to ration card holders from 2024

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told reporters on Saturday that his government was mulling providing tea to ration card holders at Rs 100-150 per kg from 2024 onwards

Congress and AIUDF have relationship of votes with Muslims: Himanta

The Congress and AIUDF have a "relationship of votes" with the Muslim community in Assam and over the years votes have been sought from them by creating an "atmosphere of fear", Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said here on Saturday. Both the parties have a relationship with the Muslims of migrant origin till they get the votes but they have not taken any steps for their development or in the areas where they live, Sarma said at a press conference here. They have not constructed any roads, bridges, schools, colleges for them, he said. 'As a first step, we have taken measures to improve the living conditions of the indigenous Assamese Muslims and a survey will be soon conducted on them', he said. For the remaining Muslims (migrants) also the state government has taken steps to stop child marriage and madrasa education along with setting up new schools, colleges and health institutions, bridges to improve communication and electrification, the CM said. 'We are working for this sec

Bhutan King begins 3-day visit to Assam, offers prayer at Kamakhya Temple

Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuk on Friday began his maiden three-day tour to Assam with a visit to the famed Kamakhya Temple atop the Nilachal Hills in Guwahati. Earlier in the day, the 43-year-old king of the neighbouring Himalayan country arrived at the Lokpriya Gopinath International Airport here and was received by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, his cabinet colleagues and state government officials. Sarma welcomed the king with the traditional Assamese 'Gamosa' (hand towel). The royal visitor greeted the chief minister and his cabinet colleagues with folded hands. From the airport, the king went to the Kamakhya Temple where he was received by priests, Assam Tourism Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah, senior officials of the state and the Kamrup Metro district administration. The king, draped with a traditional Buddhist yellow robe, prayed at the 'garbhagriha' (sanctum sanctorum) and did 'parikrama' (circumambulation) of the temple, besides lighting earthen lamps in ..