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                        Vol.3, No.20  [*] April 18, 1998
                        --------------------------------

             Only if we are secure in our beliefs can we see
                    the comical side of the universe.
                          - Flannery O'Connor
   ---------------------------------------------------------------------

1  ASSAM UPPER HOUSE BILL DURING BUDGET SESSION	          [AT:18-APR-98]
   --------------------------------------------
  
   Decks for constituting Legislative Councils in Assam  and  two  other
   States  have  been  cleared,  with  the  BJP-led coalition Government
   announcing its decision on April 17 to table  the  Bills  during  the
   forthcoming  session  of  Parliament  schedule  for last week of May.
   Once the Bills are passed by the Parliament, it will  take  at  least
   six  months  for  completion of necessary work including selection of
   electoral college before the Upper House is formally constituted, the
   Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ram Naik told `The Assam
   Tribune' in New Delhi.
   

2  BJP HESITANT OVER IMDT REPEAL			  [AT:17-APR-98]
   -----------------------------
  
   Though the BJP, in its manifesto,  promised  to  repeal  the  Illegal
   Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, now it seems that the party
   is having  second  thoughts  over  the  matter.   Prime Minister Atal
   Behari Vajpayee, who addressed a  press  conference  in  Guwahati  on
   April  15,  admitted that the IM(DT) Act failed to deliver the goods.
   He said that he would have discussions with the alliance partners  of
   the BJP  and the Opposition parties for taking corrective steps.  The
   Prime Minister, however did not give a specific reply as  to  whether
   the Act would be repealed or not.
   

3  ULFA VICE-CHAIRMAN PRADIP GOGOI FLOWN TO GUWAHATI      [AT:18-APR-98]
   -------------------------------------------------
  
   Vice-chairman of the ULFA, Pradip Gogoi, who was arrested in Calcutta
   on  April  8  was flown to Guwahati on April 17 in a scheduled Indian
   Airlines flight.  Gogoi is in police custody for  interrogation  amid
   tight security  arrangements.   The arrested ULFA leader is likely to
   be produced before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Guwahati by April
   21.   Chief  Metropolitan  Magistrate,  Calcutta  had  directed   the
   Calcutta police  to  hand  over the ULFA leader to Assam police.  The
   Court directive followed a prayer to that effect by the Assam  police
   which also produced an arrest warrant by the CJM, Guwahati.

4  ATTACK ON AASU ACTIVISTS: TWO KILLED		          [AT:17-APR-98]
   ------------------------------------
  
   A  road  mishap  involving  a scooter and a bicycle led to the tragic
   death of two AASU activists and injury to six others at the hands  of
   miscreants  at  Bhentarghat  village under Krishnai police station in
   Goalpara district on April 14.  According to police, after  the  road
   mishap,  agitated  people  of  the  locality assaulted the scooterist
   Babul Hussain who was on his way to Bhentarghat from Krishnai.
   
   Following the incident a group of eight AASU activists from  Krishnai
   went  to  Bhentarghat  in an Ambassador car to meet the local people.
   But when they reached the village, they were gheraoed and attacked by
   a mob with lethal weapons.  The car was set ablaze by the miscreants.
   The injured AASU activists were rushed to the Goalpara Civil Hospital
   where two succumbed to their injuries.  Police arrested 22 persons.
    

5  CONDITION OF ULFA DETENUS IN JODHPUR JAIL DEPLORED     [AT:18-APR-98]
   --------------------------------------------------
   
   The 13 ULFA detenus booked under the National Security Act (NSA)  and
   lodged  at  Jodhpur  Central  Jail  are  made to live under sub-human
   condition, alleged advocates Nekibur Zaman  and  Bhaskar  Dev  Konwar
   quoting the  detenus.    The advocates met the detenus on April 13 as
   per a Gauhati High Court order.   
   
   According to the advocates, the detenus  told  them  in  presence  of
   Senior   Jailor   of  the  Jail,  Central  Intelligence  Officer  and
   intelligence officers of the  Rajasthan  Government  that  they  were
   provided with only two `chapattis', a little rice and `dal', and were
   compelled to  sleep  on  the  bare  floor of a dingy cell.  They also
   alleged that there were confined to the cell for 22 hours  in  a  day
   and forced  to  do rigorous labour for the rest two hours.  Seriously
   ill detenus like  Rabin  Neog  are  deprived  of  the  basic  medical
   facilities, the detenus alleged.
   

6  VAJPAYEE OPENS NARANARAYAN SETU			  [AT:17-APR-98]
   -------------------------------
  
   The Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee underlined  the  need  to
   bridge the gap between all sections of the society while inaugurating
   the  Naranarayan Setu, the third bridge over the river Brahmaputra at
   Jogighopa on April 15. 
   
   The Union Minister for Railways Nitish Kumar announced  ex-gratia  of
   Rs.100,000  each  to  the  next  of  kin  of  those killed during the
   construction of the bridge.
   
   Although the Prime Minister was scheduled to inaugurate  the  railway
   line  of  the  Naranarayan  Setu,  yet he asked Mr Harbhajan Singh, a
   railway employee to flag off the train on his behalf.
   

7  RENOWNED JOURNALIST BADAN BARUA PASSES AWAY	          [AT:17-APR-98]
   -------------------------------------------
  
   Mr Badan Barua, a renowned senior journalist died at 2:30 pm on April
   16 at his residence at Jorhat after a prolonged illness.  He was  76.
   Barua started  his  career as a sub-editor of Janambhumi in 1951.  He
   served as General Manager of the Janambhumi group from 1960 to  1973.
   He  also  served  several  newspapers  and  news  agencies  as Jorhat
   representative which included United Press of India,  UNI,  Times  of
   India, The  Statesman  and Dainik Asam.  He also served Ajir Asam and
   The Sentinel.
   

8  HEAVY STORM, RAINS DAMPEN BIHU SPIRIT		  [AT:17-APR-98]
   -------------------------------------
   
   The  dreams  of  the  Guwahatians  for  enjoying a cosy and warm Bihu
   function in the city were dashed by an untimely and heavy storm  with
   wind  speed  of  80  km per hour that ravaged the city thoroughly for
   about an hour at around 8 pm on April 16.  Heavy winds accompanied by
   squalls caused havoc with the audiences at the 98 odd `Bihutolis'  in
   the city.   People  were  seen running for cover.  Within no time the
   roads and fields clogged with ankle-deep water.    The  roof  of  the
   Uzanbazar `Bihutoli'  was  blown off.  An accompanying power cut made
   the situation even worse. Power supply could  not  be  restored  till
   late in the afternoon of April 17.
   

______________________________[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://www.assam.org/assam/news/index.html
________________________________________________________________________