— The controversy over drilling by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) within the precincts of the historic Ahom-age amphitheatre, Rang Ghar, in Sivasagar district has subsided with the tendering of an apology by the oil major that it was a mistake on its part to start operations at the protected site. Had the ONGC seen reason earlier, it could have avoided the controversy and not drawn the ire of the people in the process. The spontaneous reaction from the public and different organizations following the drilling operations was understandable but the ONGC chose to ignore it for quite some time. Even a more serious lapse on the part of the ONGC was to feign ignorance about the sanctity of the monument protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 that prohibits any construction and mining activities within a radius of 300 metres of such monuments. Now, the ONGC has undertaken to contribute to the upkeep and maintenance of all historic sites in Sivasagar district, which is most welcome.
A common grievance of many organizations has been that the various public sector majors having operation in the State have been far from liberal when it comes to contributing to the cause of the State. Even during the ongoing floods, the issue of discrimination against the State by the PSUs in the matter of financial assistance has become a heated debate. The common accusation is that these PSUs have contributed to Bihar, another State ravaged by floods this year, in a much bigger way than they have done to Assam. Apparently, the criticism has some merits but resorting to violence to force a donation is perhaps not the ideal way to ensure charity. Some organizations have gone to the extreme of stopping flood relief-laden trucks going to Bihar. While this act in itself is irrational and unfortunate, we ought to also remember that we are only hampering our own prospects of getting similar help from outside during our times of crisis. If the PSUs indeed need persuasion, our actions have to be guided by reason and not aggression. Harassing the PSUs for hefty donations for mundane causes by varioius organizations has emerged as an unhealthy trend in the State. source: assam tribune
A common grievance of many organizations has been that the various public sector majors having operation in the State have been far from liberal when it comes to contributing to the cause of the State. Even during the ongoing floods, the issue of discrimination against the State by the PSUs in the matter of financial assistance has become a heated debate. The common accusation is that these PSUs have contributed to Bihar, another State ravaged by floods this year, in a much bigger way than they have done to Assam. Apparently, the criticism has some merits but resorting to violence to force a donation is perhaps not the ideal way to ensure charity. Some organizations have gone to the extreme of stopping flood relief-laden trucks going to Bihar. While this act in itself is irrational and unfortunate, we ought to also remember that we are only hampering our own prospects of getting similar help from outside during our times of crisis. If the PSUs indeed need persuasion, our actions have to be guided by reason and not aggression. Harassing the PSUs for hefty donations for mundane causes by varioius organizations has emerged as an unhealthy trend in the State. source: assam tribune
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