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                    Vol.2, No.55 [*] November 19, 1997
                    ----------------------------------

             I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance.
                              - Socrates
   ---------------------------------------------------------------------

1  CIA, ISI AIDING INSURGENTS SAYS VHP WORKING PRESIDENT   [S:18-NOV-97]
   -----------------------------------------------------
  
   Vishwa  Hindu Parishad working president, Mr Ashok Singal warned that
   attempts were there to establish theocratic States in the  NE  region
   of  the  country to serve the designs of European as well as American
   rulers.  American intelligence agency CIA is working in  tandem  with
   its  Pakistani  counterparts ISI to make these designs successful and
   has also been aiding and abetting the militant outfits  operating  in
   the region.
   
   He charged that Xatradhikar were being killed, Namghars being defiled
   and  their  lands  were being encroached, upon in the State while the
   Assam Government was turning  a  Nelson's  eye  to  these  activities
   despite a  court  order. 
   
   Mr  Singal  alleged  that  the  United   States   through   Christian
   missionaries  wanted  to  meddle  in  the  Naga  insurgency  problem,
   jeopardizing the nation's sovereignty.  He said that there were  more
   than  80,000  Christian  and  more  than  20,000 Islamic missionaries
   working in the area trying to increase their followers.
   

2  BHRIGU'S CALL TO CLEAN UP PARTY			   [S:18-NOV-97]
   -------------------------------
   
   Suspended AGP leader and a contender for chief ministership Mr Bhrigu
   Kumar  Phukan  appealed  to  all partymen to utilize the 'opportunity
   coming their way to clean up the party,' following reports that Chief
   Minister and AGP president had been named by the CBI as an accused in
   the LoC scandal.  Talking to newsmen in Guwahati on  November  17  Mr
   Phukan  said the party had suffered for far too long a period and its
   image had got a severe beating because of corruption by  the  leaders
   at the top.  Asked if he would stake claim for chief ministership, Mr
   Phukan  evaded  a direct reply and said he would never accept a Rabri
   Devi for Assam.
   

3  ULFA'S THREAT TO BLOW COLLEGE 			 [PTI:18-NOV-97]
   -----------------------------
  
   The ULFA has demanded 10 girls from the hostel of Alipurduar  College
   in  Jalpaiguri  district of West Bengal and has threatened to blow up
   the college and the hostel if the demand is not  met,  RSP  MLA  from
   Alipurduar, Mr  Nirmal Das, said in Calcutta on November 18.  He told
   newsmen at the West Bengal  Secretariat  that  the  banned  insurgent
   outfit had set the deadline at 7 pm on November 26.
   
   The letter, purportedly signed by ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa  on
   its  letterhead and addressed to the hostel superintendent, said, 'We
   need ten girls of your hostel...  Our colleagues will be  present  in
   and around  the hostel premises on November 26, 1997 at 7 pm.  Unless
   you obey our order,' it said, 'we shall plunder them along  with  you
   and demolish your hostel and college by charging grenades.'
   

4  ULTRAS FIRE AT BRIGADIER IN BARAK VALLEY		   [S:18-NOV-97]
   ----------------------------------------
   
   Brigadier  B.Kelson  of the 57 Mountain Division attached to Masinpur
   Army cantonment, 8 km from Silchar received bullet  injuries  on  his
   left  arm  when motorcycle-borne ultras fired at him from close range
   at 8:30 am on November 17.  According to eyewitnesses, the  militants
   shot at the Brigadier when he halted his car near the cantonment.  On
   hearing gunshots,  a crowd chased the militants.  The militants fired
   in the air to scare away the crowd and managed  to  escape  on  their
   motorcycle.  The identity of the militants in respect to their outfit
   could not  be  known.  This is the first incident in the Barak Valley
   where an Army officer was target of militants.
   

5  PROBE INTO CBI'S 'LETTER' ON LOC			   [S:18-NOV-97]
   --------------------------------
   
   The  Home  Ministry  has  started  investigations  into  the  case of
   'leaking' to the Press a letter from the CBI allegedly written to the
   Assam Governor, S.K.Sinha, requesting him to sanction prosecution  of
   Chief  Minister P.K.Mahanta in the LoC case, official sources said in
   Guwahati on November 17.  In the recent flood of speculative  reports
   about  the  LOC case, a section of the Press had quoted the number of
   the forged CBI letter.
   

6  GOODRICKE MANAGING DIRECTOR INTERROGATED		   [S:19-NOV-97]
   -----------------------------------------
   
   Sleuths  of  the  CID 'questioned' the managing director of Goodricke
   Group, Mr S.K.Bhasin on charges of having paid 'protection money'  to
   the banned  NDFB,  CID  sources  in Guwahati said.  The tea major had
   paid Rs.200,000 to the  NDFB  (erstwhile  Bodo  Security  Force)  for
   securing release of one of its assistant managers in early 1992.
   

7  MOBIKE-LIFTER RACKET BUSTED; STUDENTS HELD		   [S:19-NOV-97]
   ------------------------------------------
   
   The Guwahati city police have, in  a  major  breakthrough,  busted  a
   racket  comprising  mostly school and college-going students involved
   in stealing two-wheelers, particularly motorcycles, and selling  them
   to  customers  in the neighbouring hill States of Meghalaya, Nagaland
   etc. The police have arrested 10  such  criminals  and  recovered  15
   motorcycles  so far and expect to recover many more. They also expect
   more arrests.
   
   The arrested  criminals  are:    1.Bhaskar  Kakati,  19,  student  of
   S.B.Deorah  College, son of late Dipak Kakati, Nabin Nagar, Guwahati;
   2.Nihar Debnath, 20, student of Assam Engineering Institute,  son  of
   Nikunja  Debnath,  Silpukhuri; 3.Sujit Brahma, 17, student of Bhaskar
   Vidyalaya, son of late Dilip Brahma, Bhangagarh, Guwahati; 4.Debkumar
   Saharia, 19, son of Jew Ram  Boro,  ex-MLA,  passed  HS  examination;
   5.Rahul  Amin,  20,  son  of  Hazi  Raman Ali of Baihata Chariali; 6.
   Deepesh Rava, 20, son of Santuma  Rava,  Assam  House,  Shillong;  7.
   Dinesh  Kalita, 25, son of Hari Chandra Kalita, Hengrabari, Guwahati;
   8.Bharat Bhushan Agarwalla, son of Manu Ram  Agarwalla;  9.Rubul  Ali
   and 10.Hudu Ali, both of Baihata Chariali.
   

8  MOVE TO PRIVATIZE BTPS OPPOSED BY JCTU		   [S:18-NOV-97]
   --------------------------------------
   
   The  Joint  Council  of  Trade  Unions  (JCTU),  Kokrajhar   district
   committee  in  a  memorandum submitted to the Chief Minister, through
   the Deputy Commissioner, Kokrajhar on November  10  strongly  opposed
   the  Letter  of  Understanding (LoU) between the State Government and
   the Odgen Power Energy Inc, USA on  leasing  the  Bongaigaon  Thermal
   Power  Station  (BTPS)  considering greater interest of the people of
   Assam.
   
   The memorandum said that BTPS still has got sufficient  potential  to
   survive,  if  necessary  repairing  and  overhauling  are  done which
   requires only Rs.630 million in five installment  for  renovation  to
   run the project smoothly.  And suggested that if the Assam Government
   was  not  in  a  position  to  provide  the  required fund, the State
   Government may arrange the fund either from Power Finance Corporation
   or the Asian Development Bank.

9  MORIGAON NAVODAYA VIDYALAYA FACES CLOSURE		   [S:19-NOV-97]
   -----------------------------------------
  
   The  Jawahar  Navodaya  Vidyalaya (JNV), Morigaon under the Union HRD
   Ministry faces imminent closure due to irresponsible attitude of  the
   Navodaya Vidyalaya  Samiti  (NVS)  based  in  Shillong.   The problem
   occurred in the wake of the threat by the local district unit of AASU
   to 'lock out' the  school  in  protest  against  the  NVS  appointing
   teachers  of  lower  standards  from  outside despite availability of
   local eligible candidates.  The NVS  'verbally'  ordered  the  school
   authority to  close down the school in a telephonic message.  Most of
   the resident students have been already taken away by  guardians  due
   to the development.

10 JOYSHREE NOMINATED TO GU EXECUTIVE COUNCIL	          [AT:19-NOV-97]
   ------------------------------------------
   
   The  Assam  Governor, S.K.Sinha nominated Dr Bhagawan Lahkar, founder
   principal of  Gauhati  Commerce  College,  Dr  B.K.Gohain,  education
   Secretary,  Assam  and  Dr  Joyshree Goswami of Cotton College to the
   Executive Council of Gauhati University for a period of  three  years
   with  effect  from November 7 in exercise of the powers vested in him
   as the Chancellor of the University.

11 RADIO-PLAY WEEK OF AIR GUWAHATI			   [S:19-NOV-97]
   -------------------------------
  
   The  All  India Radio, Guwahati has announced the Radio-play Week '97
   as a part of its golden jubilee celebrations.  A  series  of  popular
   Radio-plays,  authored  by  a  bevy of illustrious playwrights of the
   State, will be broadcast from November 24.  The  plays  include  Maaj
   Nixar  Chinyor  (Mahendra  Barthakur),  Setubandhan  (Munindra Nath),
   Annya Ek Addhya (Arun Sarma), Othelo (adaption in Assamese  by  Satya
   Prasad   Baruah),   Natun   Natak  (Phani  Talukdar),  Urukha  (Sayed
   Shadulla), Putalar Namaskar (Padma Borkotoky).

______________________________[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
________________________________________________________________________