Assam HRC Chairperson stops using red lights
Guwahati: Assam Human Rights Commission Chairperson Justice Aftab Hussain Saikia has stopped the use of red light on his official vehicle in view of the Supreme Court judgement on Tuesday on the use of red lights with or without flashers. An AHRC press release here on Wednesday said that Justice Saikia, former Chief Justice of the High Courts of Sikkim and Jammu and Kashmir, has also restricted the use of sirens by his pilot and escort vehicles. The instruction has come in spite of the status of the Chairperson of a State Human Rights Commission being equivalent to that of a Chief Justice of a High Court, the release said. A clarification in this regard is also being sought from the Assam Government pertaining to the entitlement of the use of red lights with or without flashers by the Chairperson of the Assam Human Rights Commission in the light of the Judgement of the Supreme Court, it said. (PTI)
Woman teacher killed in accident
Morigaon: A lady school teacher was killed in a road accident on Wednesday in Assam’s Morigaon district sparking protests, blocking of a state highway and torching of the truck involved in the accident. The teacher of a local school was travelling as a pillion rider on a motorcycle when the truck hit the bike from behind throwing the woman on the road and killing her instanteously in front of GKB College on Jagiroad-Morigaon State Highway, police said. Angered by the accident, the local people set the truck on fire and blocked the highway for three hours halting traffic on both sides, the sources said. The district deputy commissioner, Rakesh Kumar rushed to the site with high police officials and brought the situation under control. The woman was identified as Rupali Gogoi (30), they added. (PTI)
Three militants killed in Manipur encounter
Imphal: Three suspected Kuki militants were on Wednesday killed in an encounter with a combined team of police commandos and 21st Para troopers personnel in Manipur’s interior Thoubal district, police said. The security personnel who were patrolling Nongpok Keithelmanbi area were fired upon by suspected Kuki National Front (Nonlun) faction militants in the early hours on Wednesday. The security personnel returned the fire during which the three militants were killed, the sources said. Additional security forces from the district headquarters in Thoubal have rushed to the spot. Official reports from the district headquarters said that the exchange of fire was still continuing. (PTI)
UNC calls 48-hr general strike in Naga areas of Manipur
Imphal: Hill-based United Naga Council (UNC) has called a 48-hour ‘general strike’ in Naga-settled areas of Manipur from midnight tonight for formation of a separate administrative unit, UNC sources said. Official sources said the 48-hour general strike was likely to affect the movement of essential items-laden trucks from outside the state as both the national highways (Imphal-Jiribam-Silchar and Imphal-Dimapur-Guwahati) pass through Naga-settled Tamenglong and Senapati districts. The sources said additional forces would be deployed along the highways to enable the trucks pass through the highways smoothly. The strike was also likely to impact the yearly ‘Orange Festival’ at None in Tamenglong on December 14 causing disappointment to hundreds of farmers who would not be able to sell their fruits. UNC sources said they would impose a ‘ban very soon’ on the construction of all national projects being implemented in the Naga-setted areas of the state. Official sources said representatives of UNC, central and state governments had earlier held tripartite talks on the demand of the UNC but no solution could be arrived at because the Naga body ‘almost wanted to break up’ the territority of the state to have ‘an alternative arrangement’ (separate administrative unit for the Nagas). (PTI)