‘Low-quality border fence can’t stop influx’

‘Low-quality border fence can’t stop influx’

From Our Correspondent BADARPUR, June 25 – A four-member delegation comprising former MLA Ajoy Dutta and representatives of Barak-Brahmaputra Upatyaka Samannay Samiti (BBUSS) recently visited the Indo-Bangladesh border here and took stock of the situation in the sensitive area.They claimed that the low quality of the fencing erected by the Government cannot check unabated illegal infiltration from across the border.Taking exception to the deplorable condition of basic civic amenities in the area, the delegation was taken aback on witnessing the pitiable condition of roads, lack of culverts and drainage, besides the absence of watch towers. The four-member team was of the view that it must have been intentional on the part of New Delhi and Dispur to keep the border inhabitants languishing at the mercy of the Bangladeshi infiltrators, who in recent times were backed by trained cadres of various Dhaka-based militant outfits.Making a comparative assessment with the quality of boder fencing erected in Jammu and Kashmir, the delegation wondered how an ‘open’ border can check illegal infiltration. After the team toured several localities of Badarpur, including the Assamese-dominated village Bargol, it was felicitated by many organisations. Interacting with members of the public, the delegation concluded that peace and amity among the Assamese and Bengali communities was a continuing phenomenon in the district. Apart from ex-MLA Ajoy Dutta, who is an adviser of BBUSS and vice-president of Save Guwahati Build Guwahati, the team comprised social worker Dhiren Baruah, who too is an adviser of BBUSS and president of SGBG, BBUSS president Kailash Sharma, and GS of SGBG and BBUSS member Satyen Doloi. Source: assam tribune

South Hailakandi people facing surface communication problems

South Hailakandi people facing surface communication problems

From Our Correspondent HAILAKANDI, June 23 – A large number of people of entire South Hailakandi, mainly in the Assam-Mizoram bordering areas of the district, are facing extreme difficulties due to the dilapidated conditions of the bridges on NH - 154.The Assam-Mizoram bordering point in Bairabi is about 70 km away from the nearby Lala town of Hailakandi district and there are 14 bridges in between Lala and bordering village Bairabi in NH - 154. Of them, only two bridges are concrete and rest are wooden. The conditions of all the wooden bridges are very bad and some of the bridges have also become outdated for pedestrians also.The wooden bridge at Baldabaldi near Jamirabazar was damaged completely two months back but till today no action has been taken by the authorities to restore the communication of this part of NH 154. The construction of a bamboo sub-way is now under way for local people. Due to the collapse of this Baldabaldi bridge, the communication with Mizoram via Bairabi has totally been snapped. From Baldabaldi to Bairabi, the residents of about 35,000 people are cut off from the rest of the country.Namar Ali, a senior citizen of the Gharmurra locality, said that they were very much hopeful after the construction of inter-state National Highway 154 that their communication will be developed in this area but then though the road has been constructed no wooden bridges have been repaired or replaced. A doctor, who plies everyday on this road through transshipment system due to the collapse of bridge in Baldabaldi area, alleged that the people of the area are totally silent and have not raised their voice against this sort of snapping of road. Only a few people of the locality are concerned about the collapse of the bridge.The CRPF personnel of the Gharmurra camp are also facing extreme difficulties to reach their destination due to this.It is alleged by the daily passengers that a section of local small traders and touts are intentionally creating disturbance on both sides of the damaged bridges in order to earn some money. The people of the locality have also criticised the role of the Panchayat of the locality in this regard. A group of people of the locality have met the Excise & Border Areas Development Minister, Gautam Roy, the area also falls under his constituency, and sought his intervention to repair all the damaged bridges in this route including the closed one at Baldabaldi and he reportedly assured that he has asked the National Highway Division of State PWD in Silchar to take up the matter on priority basis.The deputy commissioner of Hailakandi, Tapan Chandra Goswami, said that he has also asked the concerned authorities to make alternative arrangements to improve the plight of the people.Officials visit Bilaipur area: A team of high officials from Guwahati comprising Dr Chiranjeev Kakoty, regional co-ordinator (North-east), and Dr BC Bhagawati, State surveillance officer, Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP) recently visited the diarrhoea-affected Bilaipur area of Hailakandi district to assess the situation of the area. The joint director of health services, Hailakandi, Dr Samir Kumar Das, district surveillance officer of Hailakandi, Dr Tapan Kumar Bhattacharjee, data manager, Bijon Das and a team from Lala Block Primary Health Centre (BPHC) accompanied the team in the various inaccessible hilly villages of Bilaipur area.It may be mentioned here that the inhabitants of Kundanullah and adjoining villages are mostly Reangs who migrated from Tripura in 1962 and settled down there. The population of the area is about 2200 and Kundanullah village has no modern communication facilities including drinking water, roads, electricity etc. The life style of the people is also very unhygienic and the village has no sanitation system. The two officials of Guwahati later held meeting with the officials of all the BPHCs of the district and the officials of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) at the office chamber of the joint director of health services. They suggested to organise medical camps on regular basis in the area and also to provide some common drugs on diarrhoea, dysentery, malaria, fever etc. They observed that there were some cases of fever, jaundice and diarrhoea also in this area. The laboratory investigation done by the district hospital reveals this, they said. They also found that some of the deaths occurred in earlier dates. They praised the action taken by the Health Department of Hailakandi immediately in this regard. They stressed the need of the monitoring of the situation on day to day basis as the area is malaria endemic and the attention of the department is needed particularly on impregnation of bed nets. For this, they said that the manpower of Lala BPHC must be strengthened.Earlier the deputy commissioner of Hailakandi, Tapan Chandra Goswami also visited the area and suggested the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department to set up Tara pumps and low cost sanitary latrines there. Source: http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=jun2408\State1

Arms being smuggled through Barak Valley

Arms being smuggled through Barak Valley

From our Staff Reporter Sentinel assam
SILCHAR, June 20: A group of ULFA cadres belonging to the outfit’s 709th battalion is currently camping at Unokoti along the Tripura-Bangladesh border with a consignment of Chinese grenades, intelligence sources here revealed. The group has been waiting for several days for the right moment to sneak into Asom, added the sources.

According to the sources, Bangladeshi arms traffickers are active at Unokoti under the cover of the sizeable Muslim population living in Khasi hamlets of that area. A recent report of the Genes Intelligent Review (GIR), a leading US based defense analysis wing, claims that Chinese arms and ammunitions have started to reach the hands of north-east militant outfits in huge quantities through Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Illegal consignments of arms are being smuggled from the Unokoti foothills in the bordering Kailashar district of Tripura to Guwahati through Badarpur of Barak valley, the sources said. The huge consignment of arms recovered at Jorabat about six months back had also come through the same route, the sources claimed.

The Unokoti-Badarpur-Guwahati corridor is believed to be one of the four “safe passages” passing through the Barak valley. The valley, considered to be an island of peace, is used by various militant outfits of the region for illegal trafficking of arms and narcotics. Besides the ULFA, the KLO and the Maoists are using the Bhairengti (Mizoram)-Bhairabi (Hailakandi district)-Meghalaya-Asom route as their arms supply corridor, the sources revealed.

The other two favorite routes of the militants are the Moreh border at Manipur to Asom via Jiribam (Manipur) and Silchar, the district headquarter of Cachar district. The sources said that Silchar, surrounded by hilly terrains, also falls in another arms smuggling corridor from Kamalpur (Bangladesh)-Dimagiri (Mizoram) border to Guwahati via Lailapur and Bagabazar in Cachar district.

It is believed that several consignments of illegal arms and ammunitions are trafficked under the cover of essential commodities in goods carrier vehicles and this can be intercepted if the police becomes more vigilant. According to the sources, the Kanakpur Road leading to the National Highway in the outskirts of Silchar town is one such vulnerable area.

‘Steps taken to complete border fencing work at Karimganj’

From Our Correspondent KARIMGANJ, June 14 – Karimganj town on Indo-Bangladesh border would be excluded beyond the border fencing is the reponsibilities of Central Government not the responsibility of the State Government. While speaking to media persons Bhumidhar Barman, Revenue Minister disclosed this fact at Karimganj. “AASU has created tremendous pressure on the State government for quick execution of the border fencing works”, said the Minister. He said, “State Government has already taken up all necessary steps to complete the construction works within the stipulated time. But there are some problems arising in construction of border fencing in Karimganj town”.According to the Indira-Mujib agreement both the countries would leave 150 metres of land beyond the border fencing. If Assam Government follows this agreement, then vast areas of the town will fall in ‘no-mans’ land. Daspatti, East bazar, Bepin Paul Road, Charbazar would fall in ‘no-mans land’. Barman informed that State Government has already communicated the matter to the Central Government. To construct border fencing in Karimganj town the centre will have to discuss the matter with the Bangladesh govern-ment. However, the State Government arranged strict security arrangement on Assam-Bangladesh border so that infiltration from Bangladesh could be checked, said Dr Barman. “All matters relating to International boundary will be taken up by the Central Government”, he said.

Source: assam tribune

Night curfew along border

Night curfew along border
SANTANU GHOSH
Silchar, June 14: The Karimganj district administration has clamped a nine-hour curfew beginning 8pm along its 92-km stretch of Indo-Bangladesh border.

The order was issued by district magistrate B.N. Sarma yesterday afternoon to curb transborder movements of militants and smuggling of contrabands.

A government release issued last night stated that an embargo on movement of people with or without goods within a 1-km radius of the international border in Karimganj had also been declared, invoking Section 144 of the CrPC.

The stretch is a safe haven for militants from the Northeast who go to Bangladesh for advanced training in arms and return thereafter.

Official sources in the district headquarters town of Karimganj today said the measures had been taken on the basis of intelligence reports by central agencies and the state’s special branch.
Sources in the BSF said on an average, 15 infiltrators from Bangladesh are caught every month.
The curfew order also banned night plying of boats on the Indian side of the riverine stretch of the Kushiara, following intelligence inputs that infiltrators often use the waterways.

The order aims at bolstering the existing preventive measures adopted by the BSF and the customs to foil smuggling.

Areas under the jurisdiction of the Karimganj municipality will, however, remain out of the purview of the curfew order.

Sources said a restriction has been imposed on the movements of vehicles within a 1-km radius of border settlements such as Lakhibazar, Tillabazar, Churaibari, Kathaltali, Chandkhira and Adamtilla.