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                     Vol.2, No.27  [*] June 27, 1997
                     -------------------------------

      Many people have delusions of grandeur but you are deluded
           by triviality.  - Eugene Ionesco, Exit the King
   ---------------------------------------------------------------------

1  MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH FOR POLICE: HARD-CORE ULFA NABBED   [AT:27-JUN-97]
   ----------------------------------------------------
   
   A  self-styled  corporal of the ULFA and action commander of Sonitpur
   district, Krishna Kanta Hazarika was apprehended from a restaurant at
   Tezpur on the evening of June 24 by Tezpur  police.    The  hard-core
   ULFA  is suspected to be involved in the assassination attempt on the
   Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta near Kamakhya gate in  Guwahati
   on June 8.
   
   During  interrogation  by  the security forces including the Army, it
   was revealed that the militant, a close associate of Raju Baruah, the
   Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the ULFA, was directly involved  in  the
   killing  of Lt Gen M.N.Karla and two Army jawans in the Ganesh Temple
   in Tezpur town on March 16, and was involved  in  the  killing  of  a
   Deputy  Commandant  of  SSB  near  Salonibari  airport  of  Tezpur on
   December 5 and of a Subedar Major of Pioneer  Company  near  4  Corps
   headquarters, Tezpur on December 9 last year.
   
   Police  sources  said  that the militant was an employee of SSB for a
   short period of about six  months.    Several  vital  documents  were
   recovered from the possession of the militant, who reportedly planned
   to kill one sub-inspector of Tezpur.


2  MAHANTA SAYS DRDA FUNDS GOING TO ULFA POCKETS	[UNI:26-JUN-97]
   ---------------------------------------------
  
   Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta disclosed that extremists
   outfits  had  extorted  huge  sums  of  money  from block development
   offices (BDO) from the fund allotted for  development  works  in  the
   State.   He  pointed  out that the ULFA demanded lakhs of rupees from
   BDOs of Tinsukia and Rangiya recently and said that  each  block  was
   now   getting   about   Rs.15   million   annually   for  undertaking
   developmental work.  This was disclosed by the CM while addressing  a
   convention  of  the  Nagaon  District Village Defence Organisation at
   Nagaon on June 26.
   

3  TWO KILLED IN MiG CRASH AT CHABUA		         [PTI:24-JUN-97]
   ---------------------------------
   
   Two pilots died in  a  midair  collision  between  two  MiG  aircraft
   seconds  before  landing  at  the  Chabua  IAF  airbase  in Dibrugarh
   district on June 22.  The two pilots failed to bail out  due  to  low
   altitude.   Mistiming  during landing was believed to be the cause of
   the mishap.  Investigations were on.
   

4  BOAT-HOSPITAL, COBALT UNIT COMMISSIONED		[S:25+26-JUN-97]
   ---------------------------------------
   
   The second 'mobile boat-hospital' of the  State  was  inaugurated  on
   June  24  at  Baitamari  ghat  of  Kamalabari in Majuli by the Health
   Minister Dr Kamala Kalita.  The minister said  that  the  move  would
   benefit people  living  in the 33 'chaparis' of Majuli.  An ambulance
   would also be provided for the hospital within July, he added.    The
   minister   on   June   25,   commissioned  the  Rs.11  million  worth
   cobalt-therapy sophisticated machine 'Thyratron 780 tele-cobalt unit'
   at  the  Radiology  Department  in  the  Assam  Medical  College   in
   Dibrugarh.
   

5  JORHAT ENGINEERING COLLEGE IN THE DOLDRUMS	           [S:25-JUN-97]
   ------------------------------------------
  
   Abject negligence of the authorities  towards  the  problems  of  the
   Jorhat  Engineering  College  (JEC)  has  left this premier technical
   institution of the State in the doldrums.    Lack  of  equipments  in
   laboratories,  lack  of  proper  water supply facility, power crises,
   dilapidated conditions of the class rooms, hostel buildings  and  the
   teachers'  quarters have become common problems which the authorities
   concerned have take little care of.  According to sources,  about  30
   posts of  teachers  have  been  lying  vacant  in  the  college.  The
   teachers union said that the State Government has  not  released  any
   funds for purchase of laboratory equipments.
   
   Meanwhile, the students of JEC observed a protest day on June  23  in
   support  of  their  various grievances which are threatening imminent
   closure of the  institution.    They  also  met  the  local  MLA  and
   submitted a memorandum in this regard.
   

6  STEPS TO IMPROVE EDUCATION 			           [S:27-JUN-97]
   --------------------------
   
   The   Education  Department,  Government  of  Assam  has  constituted
   screening  committees  (with  one-year  terms)   comprising   eminent
   educationist  and  experienced  teachers  of  the State to review the
   existing school textbooks and make  suggestions  for  development  of
   child-friendly  textbooks  keeping  in  view  the  modern  trends  in
   education and the aspirations of the people, according to an official
   press release in Guwahati.  In another  notification  the  Government
   has asked the various state and district-level government educational
   establishments  to  inspect  and  supervise  elementary  schools  for
   improving the quality of teaching-learning process.
   

7  NEDFi CLEARS FOUR PROJECTS WORTH RS.40.9 MILLION       [AT:25-JUN-97]
   ------------------------------------------------
  
   The North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Limited (NEDFi) has
   sanctioned  four  different  projects  in  Assam,  Arunachal Pradesh,
   Manipur and Nagaland.  The NEDFi assistance for the projects will  be
   Rs.21.4 million  out of a total project cost of Rs.40.9 million.  The
   projects are:  Mechanised brick manufacturing plant  at  Imphal,  the
   Oking  Hospital  and  Research  Clinic  at Kohima, Hotel Dream Valley
   Resorts at Ziro and Daisajoori Tea Private Ltd.  at Doomdooma.    The
   projects were sanctioned at a NEDFi Committee of Directors meeting on
   June 23 in Guwahati.
   

8  WOMEN OF ACTION REPAIR ROAD			          [AT:27-JUN-97]
   ---------------------------
   
   Without  waiting  for the authorities to come to their help the women
   of the Salbari area  under  Dispur  constituency  came  out  to  help
   themselves  and  in  cooperation  with  the people repaired about 100
   metre of the main road in the area.  They also constructed a roadside
   drain to flush out accumulated rain water.
   
9  NEC GRANT TO SPORTS BODIES			          [AT:26-JUN-97]
   --------------------------
   
   The  North  East Council (NEC) has allocated a grant of Rs.190,000 to
   three organisations of the State for sports coaching.    The  Silchar
   District  Sports  Association  was granted a sum of Rs.100,000, while
   Karimganj DSA  has  been   given   Rs.50,000.      A   Guwahati-based
   organisation  Smriti  Sangha  has  been  allocated  Rs.40,000, inform
   Swapnanil Baruah, Director of Sports, Assam.
   

10 ASSAM TEAM FOR ALL-INDIA KARATE MEET		           [S:24-JUN-97]
   ------------------------------------
   
   Ten  karatekas  were  selected  to  represent  Assam  in  the  second
   all-India karate championship to be held at Talkatora indoor stadium,
   New  Delhi  from  June  30, an All-Style Karate-Do Association, Assam
   press release said.


______________________________[Mozz-BG]_________________________________
Compiled from newspaper and agency reports for private circulation only.
      [S=Sentinel, AT=Assam Tribune, Agencies = UNI, PTI, PIB]
              http://www.cyberspace.org/~mozz/aol.html  
  http://piglet.uccs.edu/~kalita/assam/news/news-from-assam-index.html
________________________________________________________________________