Insurgency / Assam

TEZPUR, August 3: Kaziranga was notified as a National Park in 1974 and is today a world re-known wild-life sanctuary housing endangered species like the one-horned rhino, swampdeer, wild buffalo, elephant, tiger, hoolock gibbon, gangetic dolphin, sambar, florican and the great Indian hornbill. Situated 85 km east of Tezpur, the Park stretches over 430 sq km of riverine terrain along the south bank of the mighty Brahmaputra. Due to its location, the park is annually ravaged by the fury of floods causing extensive loss to wildlife and property. In 1998, 80 per cent of the Park was submerged...

GOLAGHAT, July 30: Naga extremists have stepped up their extortion drive in the 'B' and 'C' sectors of the Assam Nagaland border within Golaghat district. The poor villagers living in the 'B' and 'C' sectors are forced to spend sleepless nights due to the threats received from the extremists. The villagers of Natun Raja Pukhuri, Ranipukhuri, Chetiagaon, Chandalachung, Dolipather within Dhansiri sub-division alleged that the district administration is doing nothing against the extremists who have continued killing, kidnapping and looting the non-Naga people. The Naga extremists have resorted to...

GUWAHATI, July 30: Twelve bogies of a goods train carrying cement from Satna in Madhya Pradesh to New Guwahati were derailed in a powerful explosion on the railway line in between Rangiya and Ghograpar Railway stations around 5.10 am today. The engine of the train was also damaged in the blast. However, no one was injured, according to reports received here. Railway sources said that the powerful explosion created a crater of 10 metre diameter and five meter depth in the area and damaged 200 metres of the track, cutting off train communication between Guwahati and the rest of the country...

JORHAT, July 29: The four Williamson Magor Group officials, who were arrested on July 18 for their alleged links with the banned ULFA, were yesterday granted bail against a surety bond of Rs 10,000 each in the court of the district and sessions judge here. The quartet, Mohbandha Tea Estate Manager Aswini Sarma, Gajen Gogoi, driver Gajen Bhuyan and mechanic Haren Saikia, were earlier denied bail in the Chief Judicial Magistrate's court and remanded to judicial custody by the Sub-Divisional Judicial magistrate here. The garden officials are alleged to have helped Ratul Dutta alias Sangram Koch...

NEW DELHI, July 28: In what can be described as a major setback for Assam, the 11th Finance Commission has not given any special concessions to tide over its financial crisis resulting from fighting insurgency. While Assam, for that matter other insurgency affected north-eastern states were not shown any special favours, the same is not the case with Jammu&Kashmir and Punjab, as the two states were given enough support to sort out their financial mess. "Expenditure incurred on security by the state of Jammu and Kashmir prior to 1991, may be assessed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and...

JORHAT, July 29: In a first-ever incident of its kind in recent memory, two disciples of Uttar Kamalabari Satra in Majuli were arrested in the wee hours today for maintaining alleged links with the ULFA. The arrested disciples, Krishna Ram Hazarika and Holiram Bora, landed themselves in the soup as the police recovered an SBBL gun and a bagful of ULFA-related documents from their Satra premises. The police swoop comes in the backdrop of vital information being provided by the ULFA cadre Pinku Dutta alias Manoj Gogoi, during interrogation. The militant was arrested by the Jorhat Police while...

GUWAHATI, July 27: The United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) is giving arms training to the militants belonging to the Kamatapur Liberation Army (KLA) in the headquarters of the 709 Brigade of the ULFA located at Kalikhola in Bhutan, police sources said here. Police sources said that Dhubri Police recently arrested the second in command of the 709 Brigade of the ULFA, self-styled Sgt Major Ananta Nath alias Rajiv Barman alias Bangkok and questioning of the militant unearthed vital information regarding the strength of the 709 Brigade of the outfit. Sources said that Ananta, along with Khitish...

GUWAHATI, July 26: ULFA militants hiding in Nagaland have to ward off the security forces, waiting for them in Assam, and malaria, reportedly wreaking havoc in their camps. Two militants have already succumbed to the disease. Biplab Borthakur alias Amulya Barua, chief of ULFA's Dhansiri unit which looks after operations in Upper Assam, has died of malaria. Two unidentified persons brought his body to his Gorumora village home in Jorhat district this afternoon. A Jorhat police team later sent the body for autopsy. Ratul Dutta succumbed to malaria on 15 July on his way to the Assam Medical...

GUWAHATI, July 25: A handful of United People's Democratic Solidarity (UPDS) militants with the help from NSCN(IM) rebels and ULFA have terrorised the non-Karbi populace in Karbi Anglong district especially in Hamren sub-division. The Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, Dilip Kumar Bora during a recent visit to violence-hit Kheroni area in Hamren sub-division told this correspondent that there were only 50 trained "boys" in the UPDS a combined force of Karbi National Volunteers (KNV) and Karbi People's Force (KPF). They have received training from the NSCN(IM) and procured arms from...

NEW DELHI, July 25: Assam Government owes a whopping Rs 45.62 crore to the various Central para-military forces currently engaged in anti-insurgency operations in the state. This information was tabled in the Lok Sabha today by the Minister of State for Home Affairs C Vidhyasagar Rao. Assam is among the handful of 18 states which owes a staggering Rs 980.37 crore to the various Central forces. Assam is the lone state from the region as other Northeastern states of Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Manipur and Mizoram have been exempted from paying any charges. Assam is, being charged 10 per cent of...