Timber smugglers assault scribe in WKH
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: Timber smugglers in West Khasi Hills assaulted a freelance journalist when he was trying to take photos on Tuesday night.
In a statement to the media, president of Meghalaya Electronic Media Association (MEMA) Kyrmenlang Uriah said Biplab Dey was assaulted in Athiabari around 10.30pm when he was taking photos and trying to record the illegal transportation of timber from Garo Hills to Assam.
Dey’s mobile phone and camera were snatched, Uriah added.
The assailants allegedly belonged to the All Rabha Students Union that controls timber smuggling in the region.
Terming the assault as “an attack on the fundamental right of freedom of speech and expression of the press”, the MEMA statement urged the state police to take action against the group so that media persons can work without fear.
The Shillong Press Club also condemned the incident and asked for fast action against the perpetrators. Wishing Dey a speedy recovery, the press club asserted that journalists should not be cowed down by incidents like this.
The vice-president of the United Democratic Party, Allantry Franklin Dkhar, in a statement issued on Wednesday, appealed to the government to “arrest the culprits fast and prosecute them as per law”.
“Such acts should never be tolerated and should be dealt with an iron fist,” Dkhar added.
Workshop on transparency in MGNREGS held
SHILLONG: A state-level workshop on ‘Good Governance Initiative in Administration of Indicative Framework and Sharing of Best Practices’ was held recently at Yojana Bhavan Auditorium.
The programme, organised by the State Rural Employment Society in association with the nodal office, was aimed at inculcating a sense of responsibility in bringing about transparency in the implementation of MGNREGA. The workshop also deliberated on the maintenance of the T+8 register that was introduced as an additional record to be maintained at the block level. This process is expected to curb the delay in payment of wages to MGNREGA beneficiaries.
Poultry Seed Project launched
SHILLONG: The ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region launched a project named ‘The Poultry Seed Project’ (PSP) which was funded by ICAR in Umiam on Wednesday.
The project was launched in presence of Ram Muivah, Secretary, NEC, Meghalaya and R.N. Chatterjee, Director, ICAR-DPR, Hyderabad who were present as the chief guest and guest of honour respectively.
K.K Baruah, head of livestock production division, gave a brief outline of the entire project. Sunil Doley, Principal Scientist and Principal Investigator, Poultry Seed Project spoke about the project and informed the gathering that its sole aim is to provide improved germplasm to the capacity of about 1 lakh birds per annum which would benefit not only the farmers of the state but also the region as a whole. M. Niranjan, Principal Scientist, Livestock Production Division presented the formal vote of thanks.
Woman’s body found hanging
NONGSTOIN: The body of a woman was found hanging in her rented house at Shallang in West Khasi Hills on Wednesday afternoon.
The woman has been identified as Sajena Islam, who was a resident of Mankachar in Assam. The incident happened around 2.30pm. A case has been registered by the women’s cell of the local police station.
Directive on energy efficient appliances
SHILLONG: The government has released the Meghalaya Energy Conservation (Energy Consumption Standards for Equipments and Appliances) Regulation, 2017, that stipulates purchase of BEE star-labelled appliances and equipment, which are energy efficient, and LED lamps for public buildings.
For all new installations or replacements of three-phase transformers up to 200 KVA, BEE star-labelled transformers have to be used with approval from the Inspectorate of Electricity. The full notification can be viewed on www.msda.nic.in.