One person apprehended for extortion in Haflong
Haflong: A person demanding extortion money from a construction company in Dima Hasao district of Assam has been nabbed, a top police official said on Saturday. The person identified as Nitin Longmalai (18) was apprehended from Gaijon village yesterday, Dima Hasao Superintendent of Police Bedanta Rajkhowa said. Longmali had demanded Rs 20 lakh over phone from Satnam Construction Company of the Dalmiya group at Umrangshu a few days ago, Rajkhowa said. On the basis of an FIR filed by the company on Thursday, the police yesterday launched an operation and apprehended the person with intelligence input and by tracking his mobile number, he said. The SP also said that many anti-social elements were trying to extort money in Dima Hasao district. The police was monitoring the situation and taking all measures to curb such activities, he said. (PTI)
Drug peddler arrested
Itanagar: Lohit district police arrested a drug peddler from Chongkham I Village and seized 300 grams of Brown Sugar from his possession. The arrest was made yesterday during a raid by police along with members of Chongkham Village Youth in the house of the peddler following a tip off, Chongkham police station OC Thomas Pertin informed on Saturday. Pertin disclosed that during the interrogation the person revealed that the drug was smuggled from Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts of neighbouring Assam. A case has been registered and investigation is on, he said while appealing the people to keep away from such drug abuse for better future. “Police and youth of the district are making all out efforts to eradicate the prevailing drug menace in the area,” he added. (PTI)
BJP flays PPA for RS poll defeat in Arunachal Pradesh
Itanagar: Accepting its crushing defeat in the Rajya Sabha election, opposition BJP has charged People’s Party of Arunachal (PPA) of “dishonoring” the coalition dharma in a parliamentary democracy. The party in a statement on Saturday said, it was anticipated that the regional party PPA, which is part of the North East Regional Political Front (NERPF), having pre-poll alliance with the NDA in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections would uphold the very spirit in the biennial election for lone Rajya Sabha seat from the state. “It is unfortunate despite such an alliance with the BJP-led NDA; the regional party barrenly dismembered the spirit of opposition,” said BJP spokesperson Techi Necha in a statement. The BJP’s nominee Tapen Siga lost the Rajya Sabha election to ruling Congress’ member Mukut Mithi by a big margin of 37 votes. The polling for the lone RS seat was held on June 19 last at the State Legislative Assembly Secretariat premises and result declared the same day. Meanwhile, senior PPA leader Laeta Umbrey, who unsuccessfully fought the 2014 assembly polls as the party’s chief ministerial candidate, on Friday resigned from the party protesting the act of his party’s legislators for supporting the Congress nominee in the Rajya Sabha election. (PTI)
Gogoi criticises Modi government for railway fare hike
Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Saturday criticised the Union Government for its decision to hike the railway passenger fare and freight charges. Addressing a press conference, the Chief Minister said stiff hike of 14.2 per cent railway passenger fare and 6.5 per cent freight charges as declared by the Union Government even before the presentation of the Railway Budget has thoroughly exposed the sincerity of the NDA government for the welfare of the common man, who normally travel by train. Gogoi said, “the hike is bound to trigger further price rise of essential commodities.” “The people of India did not expect that the new government within a short span of time will forget their promises of better days and better future ahead if they are voted to power,” he said. The Chief Minister said after coming to power “such a blow to common man is nothing but the breach of trust that the common people of the country have reposed on them by giving a big popular mandate in the last Parliamentary Elections”. The Chief Minister urged the Union Government to keep up their promise and withdraw the hike. (UNI)
Nagaland CNTC asks Govt. to upkeep assurances on Foothill road
Kohima: The Central Nagaland Tribal Council (CNTC) has called upon the Nagaland Government to act with ‘integrity’ and uphold the assurances made by the Government regarding construction of the Nagaland Foothill Road, which will connect the state from south to north. A press release from the CNTC President Ntsemo Ngullie and General Secretary Imtinochet issued today informed that this demand was tabled at an Executive Meeting of the CNTC on Saturday, the meeting resolved to voice out its concerns regarding what it termed as ‘confusion and distortion created in the smooth construction of the Foothill Road.’ The CNTC questioned the ‘credibility of the Department concerned and the Government,’ and stated that the assurance and commitment made with the Nagaland Foothill Road Construction Committee (NFHRCC) during last year’s meeting in the presence of the former Chief Minister, Neiphiu Rio and other officials have not been honored. It stated that the construction of the first phase of motorable road from Dimapur to Tizit was to be initiated by the NFHRCC, to which end, it said that the committee has undertaken ‘tireless efforts in negotiating with the general public in the affected areas and the National Workers for exemption of any land compensation and taxation.’ It further apprised the public that the proposal for the Foothill Road construction project has come up under ‘extraordinary circumstances, where the general public has enthusiastically participated to make this dream a reality.’ It added that the government is also fully aware of the situation under which the Foothill Road construction has come up and as such called upon the former not to deviate from the assurance made. The CNTC further called upon the Nagaland Government to honor the ‘genuine demand of the 10 tribes to revoke the work order issued through open tender and allot the work order to the NHFRCC recommended contractors to complete the first phase work.’ (UNI)