HC poser on plastic bag ban

Gauhati High Court today asked Dispur to file its response to a public interest litigation (PIL) alleging violation of the ban on plastic bags in the city.

A division bench of Chief Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Arup Kumar Goswami issued notices to the Assam government and Pollution Control Board, Assam to furnish replies to the PIL, filed by Rotary Club of Guwahati.

On behalf of Rotary Club of Guwahati, its president Gajendra Nath Khound filed the PIL (number 21 of 2013), seeking strict enforcement of the ban on manufacture, sale and use of certain categories of plastic bags.

The petitioner’s counsel, G.N. Sahewalla, said the state government and the pollution board have been asked by the court to file their replies in the form of affidavits by April 23, the next date of hearing of the PIL.

Saint bridges Great Wall - NGOs request translation of book on Sankardev

It is one step forward to taking Assam’s Vaishnavite saint Srimanta Sankardev across the Great Wall.

A university in China is translating a book on Sankardev into Chinese language. It is expected to be released this year.

Kunming University in Yunan province of China is translating Srimanta Sankardev: Vaisnava Saint of Assam written by Bimal Phukan. The university is the only “comprehensive professional university” in the province and was set up with approval of the ministry of education of the People’s Republic of China.

The initiative came after a team, formed by two NGOs, Byatikram MASDO from Assam and Saraswati Online from West Bengal, visited the university in December last year to participate in the Sino-Indian Cultural Exchange Programme. The team requested the university to bridge the cultures of the two countries through translation of the book.

Matric turnout relief for Seba in riot zone

The Board of Secondary Education, Assam, (Seba) today stated that most examinees appeared for the matric examination on the first day today in the violence-hit Rabha Hasong areas in Goalpara district.

Seba secretary Dayaram Rajbongshi told that though the board had made all possible arrangements for the examinees to sit for the exams without any hassle in the Rabha-Hasong council area, there were doubts about them actually turning up at the examinations centres.

“According to reports received so far from the Goalpara district administration and the inspector of schools, most of the examinees sat for the exam. The district administration had arranged special buses to ferry the examinees from relief camps to examination centres,” Rajbongshi said.

Northeast Briefs

1. Leopard attack Sivasagar, Feb. 18: Tension prevailed at Lakily and Malow Gaon under Borhat range after a leopard attacked and injured two persons at Lakily Gaon. Police managed to control the mob from killing the animal.
2. Truck hit Sivasagar: The Simoluguri-Dibrugarh passenger train on Monday hit a truck at Hahnsora Kunjibali.
3. Encounter Tinsukia: A satellite phone and a Chinese grenade were recovered from Nakathalgurie during an encounter between a joint team of police, CRPF and the army and Ulfa rebels of the Paresh Barua faction on Monday.
4. Holiday courts Jorhat: Holiday courts will be held at the CJM court, additional CJM court, sub-divisional sadar judicial magistrate court and Majuli judicial court (mofussil) on February 23. Traffic rule violations, state excise law violations and police laws violations cases will be disposed of.
5. Stray bullet Golaghat: A stray bullet hit the shutter of a pharmacy Bhabani Medical at the Stadium Road here on Monday.

More takers for Dhemaji study centre - 176 students take test

Altogether 176 higher secondary students of Assam’s Dhemaji district appeared in the annual entrance test for district administration’s yearlong career coaching at Dhemaji study centre yesterday.

According to local administration records, altogether 196 students who will appear in the upcoming higher secondary first year exam applied for the coaching, of whom 176 students appeared in the test yesterday.

The administration will select 50 candidates who will then be provided coaching for different state-level and national tests in which they can appear after completion of their higher secondary course.

Dhemaji deputy commissioner M.S. Manivannan said all possible steps were taken to ensure quality training, including recruitment of resource persons from outside the state to provide more useful inputs to the students regarding national tests.