Economy / Assam

TEZPUR, June 4 ? Eight security personnel including one Lance Naik of Assam police and seven Home Guards constables were placed under suspension after they failed to protect the life of two tea executives of Sapoi tea estates, who were dragged out of their residences by irate tea labourers and burnt to death on May 30 last.

The two tea executives were Anthony Unger (40) deputy manager and Susmit Kumar Singh (45) senior assistant manager of Sapoi tea estate under Dhekiajuli revenue circle. Debashis Chakraborty, secretary Assam Branch of India Tea Association (ABITA) Zone 3 talking to this...

GUWAHATI, June 1 ? Floods caused by the rivers Brahmaputra and Barak and their 52 major tributaries cripple the socio-economic development of Assam and according to a report prepared by the State Water Resources department, floods claim more than 40 lives a year. According to the report, more than 1950 persons lost their lives in floods during the period from 1954 to 2000 and highest number of 221 persons were killed in the year 1988. The total damage to crop and public utilities during the period was estimated to the tune of Rs 4,391.94 crore. During the same period, more than five lakh...

GUWAHATI, May 29? Digboi refinery, the oldest refinery in the country, has not been able to produce speciality products to its full capacity due to lack of demand in the North-eastern region. Digboi refinery sources revealed that the refinery produces speciality products like MTO, JBO, Solar Oil, wax oil, binder oil, rhino shine, indo coat, indo paste, wood oil etc to cater to the requirements of the tea companies, paint industry, shipping industry, jute industry and various other industries. But some industries are still using such products imported from outside mainly due to lack of...

GUWAHATI, May 23? About 300 employees of the Assam State Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development Bank Ltd (ASCARD) have been going without regular salaries for the past 22 months. The headquarters of the bank in a highrise building at Ulubari is in a state of utter despair. A sense of gloom prevails everywhere. For years, the bank has done little. For years, the bank has been unable to recover crores of rupees due to it from its creditors. Among the defaulters are some of the ?respectable? persons of the state. According to office bearers of the ASCARD bank employees union, over Rs 6.81...

Guwahati, May 22: After failing to either revive or sell off the loss-making gardens of the Assam Tea Corporation Ltd (ATCL), the Tarun Gogoi government has decided to lease out these properties for 25 years.

The chief minister had personally requested four tea majors to bail out the ATCL, but none of these wanted to buy the sick gardens.

A committee was constituted recently to ascertain the lease value and liabilities of all the gardens owned by the corporation.

Sources said the cumulative value of these 15 gardens was estimated at Rs 750 crore, while the liabilities had been pegged at Rs...

GUWAHATI, May 21 ? Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) has netted a profit of Rs 174.63 crore during the year 2002-03 registering an increase of 42 per cent compared to last year?s profit. The Board of Directors of the NRL has recommended payment of 30 per cent of the net profit as dividend for the year 2002-03 to shareholders of the company including Assam Government, BPCL, OIL and Oil Industries Development Board (OIDB). The sale of the company during the year 2002-03 rose by 24 per cent to Rs 2805 crore from the previous year?s sale of Rs 2261 crore, lower crude throughput due to lower N-E...

GUWAHATI, May 15 — With the BJP-led NDA government determined to go ahead with the disinvestment of government shares in the public sector Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), the future of the Assam Accord Numaligarh Refinery in which BPCL controls 63.3 per cent equity is shrouded in uncertainty.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and Members of Parliament from the State concerned at the development have already urged upon the Union Petroleum Minister Ram Naik to safeguard the status of the Accord refinery as a public sector unit (PSU). Expressing apprehension that delay in taking timely action...

GUWAHATI, May 7 — The tea giant multi-national Williamson and Magor which owns about 30 big tea estates in Assam, recently paid Rs 10 lakh to the proscribed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) to buy peace. This was admitted by NDFB ultras Sunil Brahma and his associate Indra Mohan Basumatary before a large group of newsmen here this afternoon.

The NDFB ultras who were apprehended by Kolkata police recently, were brought to the State today by sleuths of Special Operation Unit (SOU) of Assam police. The duo were produced before the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate here immediately...

Calcutta, May 5: Calcutta police on Monday said that they would charge all four tea companies headquartered in Calcutta with business interests in Assam with indulging in “anti-national activities” for funding the Bodo militant outfit.

The police have also learnt that these companies had been funding the NDFB rebels not only for the last two years, as initial interrogation had revealed, but at least for the last seven to eight years.

Without naming the four tea companies, Calcutta detective department chief Soumen Mitra said, “We are collecting evidence against these tea firms and we shall...

GUWAHATI, May 4 — The State government has identified five thrust areas during the 10th Five Year Plan for accelerated growth of the State. Three thrust areas include – infrastructure including roads, power and communication, agriculture and allied services including dairy, pisciculture, irrigation, services including information technology, tourism and health care, human resource development including education; skill development and management and industrial development with emphasis on trade and commerce, agro industry, handloom and handicrafts etc.

During his recent discussion with the...