TURA: The ASAK rebels led by former GNLA commander Reding T Sangma kidnapped nine traders from Assam who were on their way to a weekly market at Dumnikura in South Garo Hills on Friday morning.
This is the second kidnapping case in a span of a month. On September 29, nine traders from Assam’s Mankachar were kidnapped from near Chokpot in South Garo Hills.
The setback to the security apparatus comes less than two days after police in the district busted a hideout of a breakaway GNLA faction at Nangalbibra killing one rebel and seizing a huge cache of weapons.
The traders kidnapped on Friday were also from Mankachar. They were travelling in a mini truck to the local weekly market when six rebels stopped the vehicle near Dumnikura around 8am and took them hostage, police said.
The rebels had initially picked 10 traders but let one go as he was a small-time trader and would not have been able to pay ransom.
The driver of the vehicle who was also allowed to go said one of the rebels had a “large firearm”, possibly an AK-47 rifle, while others were carrying pistols.
A combing operation has been launched to rescue the kidnapped traders.

Cleaning rivers, market a priority

SHILLONG: Urban Affairs Minister Ronnie V. Lyngdoh has put forward a practical and immediate plan to make the city a better place to live in.
At a time when the euphoria over smart city is gripping the nation, including Shillong, Lyngdoh stressed on the need to make the city a habitable one by eliminating the existing shortcomings.
The minister said the Wahumkhrah and the Umshyrpi have turned into drains in the last few years and revival of these rivers should be a priority. “How about cleaning these two rivers first,” he said. Referring to the appalling condition of Iewduh, Lyngdoh said the accumulating filth in the market is a cause for concern.
Also, in case of a disaster in the market that has no emergency exit point more people are likely to die in a stampede. “Let us make these places more habitable, clean and hygienic with proper entry and exit points,” the minister said.
Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, who visited Bara Bazar (Iewduh) last month, had also emphasised on the need to give facelift the market a facelift.
Land availability is a must for implementing the Centre’s smart city scheme but the city does not have enough land for even road expansion and construction of pavements, Lyngdoh pointed out. “The government could have thought about smart city if it had a huge land bank but the entire population of Shillong cannot be relocated to pave the way for the smart city project,” he said.
Reacting to a query on hawkers and street vendors encroaching on footpaths and roads, the minister said the Government wanted to address the problem of hawkers.
“Hawkers should have a livelihood but even pedestrians and motorists have the right to use pavements and roads. If you are encroaching on the footpath, you are also infringing on the rights of the people,” he said.
When asked about the funding pattern of smart city, he said the Chief Minister has taken up the matter with the Centre saying Meghalaya does not have resources like other states to fund the project on a 50:50 basis and unless it is 90:10, it would be difficult for the State to go ahead with the project.
The Centre recently announced the third list of smart cities and Shillong was not on it.

Engineers visit Mawphlang electrocution site

SHILLONG: Hundreds of old and rusty electric poles in the city stand precariously but Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) does not have enough money to replace them all.
An official of MeECL said on Friday – a day after six members of a family, including an infant and a pregnant woman, died from electrocution in Mawphlang – that the State power company is “on the job” to address the issue but fund constraint is a problem.
Engineers from MeECL on Friday visited the locality where the electrocution took place on Thursday to inquire about the cause of the accident. A report on how the electrocution happened will be submitted soon, an MeECL official said.
On Friday, some residents complained that two electric poles in Pynthorumkhrah near Gandhi Buniyadi School are on the verge of collapsing and that calls were made to the complaint cell of the MeECL office in the area.   However, the official who picked up the phone was not willing to take the complaint and said a letter with details of the electric poles should be submitted to the office on Monday. When the complainant insisted, the person took down the complaint and assured that the problem would be addressed.
There are also complaints that MeECL officials rarely pick up calls to the number 2222222 on Saturdays and Sundays and it is not known if the helpline is active 24×7 or functions only on weekdays.
Last week, a live wire snapped at Iewduh and shopkeepers in the area made several calls to the helpline that went unanswered.

SHILLONG: Three persons died in two separate road accidents in East Khasi Hills district on Friday.
In the first incident, a truck (AS01 DD 2979) fell into a gorge near Umkhen Bridge on the Shillong Bypass in East Khasi Hills shortly after midnight on Friday. The driver and handyman of the truck died on the spot.
In the second incident, a truck (AS01 AC 3987) driven by Ninamani Das, 24, plunged into a gorge at Ryndangbriew in East Khasi Hills. Das and his handyman, Vijay Rai, 22, sustained injuries and were shifted to Shillong civil hospital, where Rai died. The driver was later shifted to NEIGRIHMS.

SHILLONG: In the wake of the electrocution tragedy that killed six of a family in Mawphlang on Thursday, the United Democratic Party (UDP) on Friday asked Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) to inspect different parts of the city to find out if high tension wires are posing danger.
UDP working president Jemino Mawthoh said there are several localities where high tension wires are hanging over buildings putting lives at risk.
Mawthoh said many people build houses carelessly without taking into account the electricity wires and that MeECL should conduct awareness programmes to ensure that houses do not come up haphazardly.
“We also feel that the authorities concerned should discourage issuing permissions for construction of houses near transformers and wires,” Mawthoh said.
Condoling the death of the woman and her five children, the UDP leader said preventive measures should be taken to avert accidents in the future. “This incident happened due to complete lack of insensitivity on the part of MeECL and the residents,” Mawthoh said.
The district administration has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident and the Mawphlang BDO has been asked to submit his report within four days.
The funeral of those who were electrocuted took place on Friday.
Meanwhile, UDP will also discuss the public transport system of the city among other issues  during its  general council  to be held on today at Deva Kumar Das Memorial Hall at Sankar Dev College.
UDP General Secretary,  Allantry Franklin Dkhar   said that    council will also   receive reports from  different  constituencies   and a resolution will be adopted at the end of the meet.
The council will also renew the  officer bearers.

SHILLONG:  Sloan Pala, President of Foreign Trade Chamber of Commerce Meghalaya has informed  the organization has no objection to the weighbridge set up by the government at  Sohkha
“We  are all ready and willing  to cooperate with the government in weighing limestone  meant for  exporting to Bangladesh”, Pala said.
According to the chamber of commerce, not only Dawki Land Customs Station (LCS), the government should  utilize  all the LCSs  for export purpose.
Weighbridge anomaly
Meanwhile, after the Meghalaya International Exporters’ Chamber of Commerce approached the state government on Monday related to the functioning of weigh bridges, the concerned authorities on Friday inspected Dawki weighbridge for weighing boulders from Pynursla before they are exported to Bangladesh.
The Chamber of Commerce was surprised to know that the weighbridge at Sohkha is weighing the lime stones without any transport challan from the forest department which is illegal.

SHILLONG: Police, on Friday, averted a robbery after apprehending three criminals who were plotting to rob bank customers in the city
East Khasi Hills SP M Kharkrang said that the group of criminals were planning to rob bank customers who leave the bank with the money.
On October 6, one Harku Thapa was robbed of Rs. 50,000 by the same gang inside the UCO Bank, GS Road, Police Bazar.
According to Kharkrang, the gang’s modus operandi is to drop a few notes on the ground with the intention of distracting their target and telling them they have dropped the money. “As soon as the person picks up the money, another person from the gang snatches the bag and walks away with it. They are all from outside the state who come in the morning and leave the city immediately after committing the crime,” Kharkrang said.
The public have been asked to remain cautious while coming out of banks after making cash withdrawals.
The arrested persons have been identified as Raj Yadav, Raman Das and Aman Singh, hailing from Bihar and Assam.
In similar instances, Shillong police caught four boys who looted Rs 10 lakhs from a person who had withdrawn the money. The gang involved also hailed from Bihar and West Bengal.

SHILLONG: The West Jaintia Hills district administration has banned fishing competition in the district.
In a statement issued to the media, the district administration said that there have been growing number of fishing competition  in West Jaintia Hills district.
Some of them are having so frequent competitions that personal greed has taken precedence over lives of aquatic species, the DC said.
“ The fishes need breeding  and spawning time. The unscientific harvesting of fish will prove to be dangerous in times to come. Villages like Jarain are having fishing competitions literally every month earning huge revenue at the expense natural resources”, the deputy commissioner said .
“Therefore, after careful consideration, it has been decided that no fishing competitions can be arranged by any of the above and others without specific written permission from the Deputy Commissioner, West Jaintia Hills District, Jowai and the Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil) Amlarem Sub-Division as the case may be”, the statement said.
Superintendent of Fisheries will certify whether the competition is feasible or not, the statement said, adding that all fishing competitions are banned till such time the permission is obtained.
The deputy commissioner added that failing to comply with the order will invite action as per the law.

TURA: West Garo Hills District Magistrate, Pravin Bakshi, has, under section 144 CrPC, prohibited the use of polythene bags within 300 meters from the boundaries of historical monuments and archaeological sites in the district with immediate effect.
This order was issued in response to the directions of the Union Ministry of Culture to ensure that the areas in and around historical monuments and archaeological sites are “polythene-fee” and that high standards of sanitation are maintained around such areas.

SHILLONG: On October 24, Ram Kumar, a manager of a stone quarry from Pillangkata in Ri Bhoi district, was reportedly abducted from Pillangkata. However, on October 27, around 3.30pm, the victim was released by his abductors, reportedly, after his family members had paid a ransom of Rs. 3 lakhs. The matter is under investigation .