Environment / Assam

NEW DELHI, March 20: Planning Commission has put on brake sin flood control works in the Brahmaputra Valley by holding back sanction of schemes worth Rs 85.50 crore drawn up last year. The rionchalant attitude of the Planning Commission has spelt trouble for the Union Minister of State for Water Resources, Bijoya Chakravorty, as three ambitious projects sanctioned last year by the Ministry were shown the light leaving the State's lone minister in the NDA high and dry. The impasse forced the Parliamentary Standing Committee attached to the Water Resources Ministry to remark that it was...

GOLAGHAT, March 18: Migratory birds at the Dolakharia Beel, a bird sanctuary within Golaghat district 5 kilometres off Golaghat town are in danger of falling prey to some insensitive people of the area. It may be mentioned here that birds like Indian Darter (Moniori), sarali, kamcharai, dalmura, etc., visit Assam during the autumn and spring seasons. The Society for Environment Education-Northeast (SEE-NE), a nature protection organisation of Golaghat, since the last couple of years has been constantly working for the protection of the flora and fauna in Golaghat district. SEE-NE has been...

NEW DELHI, March 14: The proposal to include the Majuli island in the World Heritage Site Map by the UNESCO would be taken up afresh by the Government of India in the next timetable of the UN body that starts from 2002-2003. The proposal would now be taken up jointly by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest and Union Tourism and Culture Ministry. The Tourism and Culture Minister. Ananth Kumar faced with criticism from members in the Rajya Sabha members here this morning, for the delay in pursuing the case, agreed to jointly take up the proposal with the Environment and Forests ministry...

UDALGURI, March 7: Fifty dreaded rhino poachers surrendered in front of the forest officials of Darrang district and police staff of Silbari police station and members of Aranya Surakhya Samiti, Orang at Orang recently. According to a report of Aranya Surakhya Samiti, Orang, 50 poachers of rare one-horned rhinos of Orang National Wildlife Sanctuary surrendered in a public meeting recently at Orang which was attended by Chittaranjan Bhobora, district forest officer, Darrang, Labanya Ramchiary, range officer of Orang National Wildlife Sanctuary and Pradip Borah, officer-in-charge of Silbari...

GOLAGHAT, March 6: The Kaziranga National Park, home to about 65 per cent of the world population of one-horned rhinos, is gradually returning to normalcy after it was ravaged by floods last year. Highly-placed sources in the park informed that out of a total of 94 rhinos killed last year, 39 died in the floods while only eight were killed by poachers compared to 12 in the previous year. Incidentally since the inception of the park, this would be the first instance when the number of rhinos killed by poachers might remain in single digits. Sources informed that census of rhinos is undertaken...

GUWAHATI, February 26: The State Government today sought a detailed report from the West Bengal government on the mysterious disease that took the lives of a number of people including two doctors in the Siliguri area. The State Health Minister, Kamala Kalita told this correspondent here this evening that the West Bengal Government has been requested to provide the details of the disease including the steps taken to control the disease. Kalita today reviewed the situation in the state in a meeting with the senior officials including the health secretary and director of Health Services. Talking...

DIBRUGARH, February 24: Its a case against modern medical science, if Voltaire's words could speak aloud : "The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while Nature cures the disease." Not many would agree that Nature, which takes as little as possible of anything, can provide a cure for all ailments. But when patrons of herbal medicine guarantee a cure for some incurable malady like diabetes and asthma and camp in your city unless the efficacy of their herbs is proved, sceptics might score their own goal. The Bhils of Madhya Pradesh have been treating their ailments with herbs and...

GUWAHATI, February 21: The Pollution Control Board, Assam (PCBA), has made the Cachar Paper Mill of the Hindustan Paper Corporation (HPC) at Panchgram to make an assurance through a court affidavit to abide by the pollution control norms by May 2 next and to deposit a security amount of Rs 5 lakh on the issue. Following this, the closure notice served on the Paper Mill has been withdrawn temporarily. Disclosing this, at a press conference here today, PCBA chairman Lakhsminandan Bora and its member secretary Mohini Sarma said that similar steps are also initiated against the Digboi Refinery and...

DIPHU, February 19: The mega-size Amtereng hydro-electric project which is under construction at Hamren in Karbi Anglong district, is now fraught with security hurdles what with ultras threatening the labourers from outside the State working at the site to leave the area and are reportedly serving demand notes to the companies working at the project. The only big size hydro-electricity project (under construction) is located in the Amtereng site of Hamren sub-division of Karbi Anglong district. When completed this project is likely to generate and meet the entire requirement of electricity of...

BEHALI, February 17: The timely intervention of the Sonitpur district administration and stiff objection by the Assam Government to its counterpart Arunachal Pradesh has led to the deferment of the proposed inauguration ceremony of Tarasoo revenue circle inside the Behali Reserve Forest in Sonitpur district which the Arunachal Pradesh government claims as their own territority. Talking to The Assam Tribune, the deputy commissioner of Sonitpur, Naba Kumar Chetia said that all preparations were completed by the Arunachal government to inaugurate the circle today by the Chief Minister of...