SHILLONG, March 6 ? The North Eastern Council (NEC) has accorded administrative approval to schemes worth over Rs 46.81 crore and sanctioned for release of Rs 6.69 crore for implementation of various schemes in the North Eastern States during February this year. A press release issued by the NEC said administrative approval has been accorded to the work pertaining to the revised estimate for construction of Dhodar Ali Road from 6th to 17th km at an estimated cost of Rs 446.72 lakhs. NEC has sanctioned for release of grant of Rs 135 lakhs and a loan of Rs 15 lakhs to Assam Government towards...

GUWAHATI, March 6 ? US Ambassador to India Robert D Blackwill today said that for facilitating a condition for foreign investment in the North East region of India a political solution to the region?s insurgency problem is a must. Blackwill, who is on a hectic tour of the NE region, said that though the region has immense potential for economic development, particularly in the agriculture, handicrafts and tourism sectors, impediments like insurgency, remote location and lack of infrastructure, are standing on the way of its attaining prosperity. The factor of insurgency-related violence is...

GUWAHATI, March 6 ? The Comptroller and Audited General of India (CAG) has pointed out that the loss suffered by majority of the State public sector undertakings (PSUs) exceeded their paid-up capital. CAG, in its report for the year ended March 31, 2001, which was tabled in the State Assembly yesterday, said that the State has 42 PSUs comprising 38 government companies of which, 10 are non-working companies and 28 are working, and four statutory corporations. The total investment in the working PSUs increased from Rs 3569.17 crore as on March 31, 2000 to Rs 3649.37 crore as on March 31, 2001...

GUWAHATI, March 6 ? The State Government will initiate steps to regularise the land encroached by the tea gardens by imposing penalty, if necessary, said the Revenue Minister, Sri Devananda Konwar. In reply to a question by Sri Girindra Kumar Baruah (AGP) in the State Assembly today, the Minister said that it would be difficult for the Government to take over the encroached land, where plantations exist and the best way out is to regularise the same to boost the land revenue collection.

Sri Konwar revealed that Assam has 1081 tea gardens covering an area of more than 26,98,275 bigha and the...

GUWAHATI, March 5 : Beginning April 5, Air India (AI) will commence its twice-a-week operation from Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi (LGB) Airport here on Thursdays and Mondays with a 200-seater Airbus 310. Addressing a Press conference here this afternoon, the Air India Director (Public Relations), Jitendra Bhargava informed that at the initial two months the AI would operate international flight in Mumbai-Kolkata-Guwahati-Bangkok route at ?affordable rates? although he refused to divulge the exact rate of fares at this moment. He informed that AI in collaboration with all State Tourism...