Development / Assam

DIBRUGARH, Feb 8 — Just days before Wireless in Local Loop (WLL) services of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) was to start off in Assam, the defence and frequency allocation mandarins have decided that the facility has to be kept under wraps in the State. The reason? These “specialists” think that the militants would use the technology for subterfuge! Before going into a bit of a detail, it would be pertinent here to note that the Government of India had declared earlier that all the villages of the country would be linked by telephones by March 2002. Given the dismal track record of...

NEW DELHI, Feb 6 –Assam has defaulted in securing release of the second instalment of majority of the rural development schemes, even as only 22 days remain for the states to submit proposals and utilisation certificates for fresh allocation of Central funds in the current financial year. No release of funds for different programmes would henceforth take place in the month of March, Union Rural Development Minister, M Venkaiah Naidu said here today, addressing a press conference. This decision is designed to resolve the problem of large opening balances in the month of April, since it is not...

GUWAHATI, Feb 4 : The State government has entrusted the Chief Vigilance Commissioner, Assam, with the job of investigating into the large-scale financial irregularities in the Assam Livestock and Poultry Corporation. This was disclosed by the Veterinary Minister, Sri Hem Prakash Narayan today. Addressing a press conference here today, Sri Narayan said that a case has also been registered with the vigilance and anti-corruption branch of the Assam police in this regard.

Sri Narayan said that large-scale financial irregularities over the years have crippled the corporation. He expressed the...

NEW DELHI, Feb 4— The Rural Development Ministry has released funds to the tune of over Rs 37.51 crore under two schemes including drinking water scheme to Assam. A spokesman of the Ministry here this evening announced the decision to release Rs 21.72 crore to eight districts of Assam under the National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) during the current financial year (2001-2002). Of these, six districts including Karimganj (Rs. 25.89 lakh), Morigaon (Rs. 19.43 lakh), Nalbari (Rs. 32.38 lakh), Dibrugarh (Rs. 33.18 Lakh), Karbi Anglong (Rs. 24.29 lakh) and Tinsukia (Rs. 32.38 lakh) would be...

GUWAHATI, Feb 3 – A huge sum of central fund granted for the Integrated Tribal Development Projects (ITDPs) has been diverted by the state government. The funds meant for the development of the poor tribal people had been spent for disbursement of the salaries by the previous AGP-led government which affected the schemes of the IRDPs. The state government had set up 19 ITDPs in order to carry forward welfare schemes for the tribal people, but due to shortage of funds, the ITDPs are now facing severe problems.

According to official statistics since 1998-2000, the state government had released...

GUWAHATI, Jan 20 — Despite an order by the Gauhati High Court and declaration of the Borsola Beel and Sarusola Beel, the natural reservoir for storm water drainage of Guwahati city, as reserved wetlands, the concerned authorities have so far failed to evict the encroachers on to prevent fresh encroachments on the wetlands. The inaction of the authorities concerned may aggravate the water-logging problem in the central Guwahati areas in the coming rainy season. Not to speak of evicting the encroachers from the Sarusola Beel area, the authorities concerned have even failed to prevent fresh earth...

GUWAHATI, Jan 18 — Disappointed with District Rural Development Agency’s (DRDA) failure in utilising the Central funds, the Union Minister of State for Rural Development, Sri Anna Saheb MK Patil has asked the Assam Government to utilise the funds by February next to get further instalments from the Centre. Addressing a press conference at Kahikuchi after ending a two-day visit to the State, Sri Patil said that the Centre has been providing funds regularly in order to accelerate the ongoing schemes, but most of the funds have remained unutilised affecting the schemes for the rural people...

NEW DELHI, Jan 17 — In what could go a long way in better flood management in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, China has agreed to share information on a real-time basis. The information on flow of water in Brahmaputra would be provided to India twice daily. Describing the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs with China on flood fore casting as a big step, the Union Ministers of State for Water Resources, Bijoya Chakraborty said that it would have direct impact in Assam and its neighbouring States. According to the terms of the MoU, the China would be providing India with real-time...

GUWAHATI, Jan 12— The State Government would receive a total fund and foodgrains of Rs 630.10 crore under the new centrally sponsored scheme, the ‘Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY), an official release stated. This was disclosed by a senior official of Union Ministry of Rural Development who too part in a discussion held with the Project Director, DRDA of the State regarding implementation of Rural Development schemes in the state through Panchayati Raj Institutions organised at SIRD today.

According to sources, the break of the total allocation would be Rs 134.91 crore under the EAS and...

GUWAHATI, Jan 12— The State Government has decided to formulate a ‘web policy’ in view of the increasing relevance of information technology in governance and development sector. Senior Cabinet Minister in charge of PWD, Sri Sarat Borkataky while inaugurating a computer education centre at Fatasil Ambari areas in the city today, announced that the State Government was focusing on exploiting information technology advantages in governance as well for economic activities in the State despite the constraints at this moment. He announced that a ‘web policy’ was soon going to be announced while the...