Journalist looted
Rangiya (Assam): The personal belongings of a journalist, including two laptops, was looted from P Jodhpur-Bikaner Express on Saturday, Railway police said. The journalist, Swati Parekh, of a fortnightly newspaper ‘Gaon Ki Suban’ was travelling from Jaipur to Guwahati with her family members when her belongings were looted near Rangia Railway station, Officer in Charge of Rangia GRP Pradip Talukdar said. Parekh who was sleeping noticed that her bag, containing two laptops, clothes, gold ornaments and Rs 10,000 was missing, after waking up at Rangia railway station. She filed an FIR with the GRP who launched an operation and later nabbed an youth, identified as Swapan Rabha, and recovered the bag and a laptop but the other belongings were still missing. Rabha named some of his alleged accomplices and the police have launched a search to nab the others and recovered the looted items, Talukdar added. (PTI)
One injured in bomb blast
Imphal: A person was injured in a bomb blast near a oil pump at Moirang in Manipur’s Bishenpur district on Saturday. Official source ssaid the bomb was hurled by unidentified persons and the man received minor injuries.Police has launched a seacrh for the culprits, the sources added. (PTI)
Poacher killed in Kaziranga Park
Kaziranga: A poacher was killed in an encounter with forest guards in Kaziranga National Park in Assam, a forest department official said on Saturday. On a tip off about the entry of a 6-7 member group of poachers into the Park, the security guards launched an operation in Bagori Range Friday night, the official said. On coming face-to-face with the forest guards near the main elephant safari point, the poachers fired and in the encounter one poacher was killed, he said. A 303 rifle was recovered from the slain poacher, while the rest fled under the cover of darkness. Patrolling against poaching in the World Heritage Site has been intensified after one rhino was killed on January one this year and two on January four, forest department officials said. (PTI)
Assam govt for minimum wages in all industries
Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Saturday directed the concerned authorities to ensure payment of minimum wages in all industries as fixed in the Minimum Wages Act. The Chief Minister directed Labour and Employment department’s Commissioner and Secretary Employment to ensure payment of the minimum wage of Rs 169 per day as fixed in the Minimum Wages Act in all the industries, including the tea industry, an official release said here. Gogoi asked the department to strictly enforce the provisions of the Act through a time-bound action plan and to take stringent action against the erring for non-compliance. Payment of minimum wages in the tea sector has been a matter of concern with the state government earlier warning of punitive action against those tea gardens which fail to implement the Act. Advisor to Chief Minister P P Varma had also made an in-depth study of the working conditions in tea gardens of the state and came up with recommendations for certain improvements, especially in the health and education sectors. The state government has also made it mandatory that a tea garden must have all the facilities under the Plantation Labour Act before it can be sold off. (PTI)
Five people arrested for violating Liquor Act
Aizawl: At least five people have been arrested for violation of the Mizoram Liquor Prohibition and Control Act, 2014 enforced in the state from Thursday last, state excise and narcotics department officials said. The newly-legislated act replaced the Mizoram Liquor Total Prohibition Act, 1995, in force in the state since February 20, 1997 and lifted prohibition of consumption of liquor for the first time after 17 years. The first offender was Lalremliana (26) who was arrested on Thursday in south Mizoram’s Lunglei town for creating public nuisance in an inebriated state. Lalremliana was convicted by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Lunglei district and sentenced to a prison term of one month. Four other offenders were from Aizawl and were convicted by Chief Judicial Magistrate of Aizawl district Sylvie Ralte for drunken driving. After being proven guilty by breath analyser, one of the offenders was released after paying fine while the other four were sentenced to do public service for three days. The two convicts were assigned to clean the premises of the Aizawl Civil Hospital while the other two would clean the compound of the Aizawl District Court under the supervision of policemen. Meanwhile, state commissioner for excise and narcotics L Hmunsanga told PTI that almost 20,000 people have taken application forms for permits for purchase of liquor. (PTI)