The Civil Society Alliance – Assam, a solidarity group committed to the cause of promoting and defending indigenous peoples’ rights for peace, justice and equality is expressing to voice its deep concern regarding the proposed financing development model of privatizing the historical monuments of Ahom Kingdoms of Sivasagar district and kaziranga National Park of Assam being crafted through the ambitious ‘adopt a heritage’ in the state. CSAA believe that this kind of aggressive project pose greater challenge to sustainable and people-oriented development which institutionalize the private control over the resources and divert the government attention from addressing the social concerns in a new form of advancing neoliberalism. It is also a thought-provoking matter of concern now for the indigenous people because such privatize sector move may facilitate human rights violation, including land grabbing and displacement of the native community in the long run.
The Alliance group is also deeply concerned about increasing private sector involvement in the state in various forms are becoming an increasingly important actors in social development process. This kind of PPP model which is known is also a privatization by other means in the state run system which has gained momentum since the failure of privatization programs initiated by the International Financial Institution (IFI) such as World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other bilateral and multilateral institutions across many counties earlier.
In a solidarity statement, CSAA would also like to urge that Government of India to comply its international human rights commitments and obligation of Rights of Indigenous Peoples as drawn in United Nation Declaration of the Rights of the Indigenous People, adopted by the General Assembly in 2007 (UNDRIP, Article 11) that Indigenous peoples have the right to practice and revitalize their cultural traditions and customs. This includes the right to maintain, protect and develop the past, present and future manifestations of their cultures, such as archaeological and historical sites, artefacts, designs, ceremonies, technologies and visual and performing arts and literature.
The Civil Society Alliance – Assam, a collation of NGO, Community Based Institution, indigenous Peoples Organisations & social activist, being connected to this land by virtue of aboriginal are urging to withdraw the current proposal of privatizing modality of corporatizing the historical monuments & national park of Assam instantly to address the negative consequences in order to defend the community control over the basic services and resources for development justice. The alliance also would like to urge the Government for its policy towards the use of development resources for private financing implementation to replace with greater and more democratic public sector leadership with the enforcement of regulatory mechanisms to ensure transparency for people. The press release has been shared which is being endorsed by North-East Affected Area Development Society (NEADS) – Jorhat, United Women Rights Protection Forum, - Upper Assam, Chutia Yuva Sanmilan, Assam – Jorhat District Committee, People Right Forum - Dhemaji, The EAST, Tezpur and Social Activists of the state.
ULFA strongly takes on Zubeen Garg after the popular singer spoke ill of the outfit on the appeal to confine to the traditional Assamese.Talking to a section of television news channels over telephone on Friday, ULFA supremo Paresh Barua said that the singer is reacting in a manner which does not behove for a promising star. Barua said that the scene was created by the singer himself.
Call for SubmissionThe Northeast Green Journalism AwardHonouring outstanding reporting on the environmentAssam Times seeks submissions from mid-career/ mid-level journalists in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura on environmental reporting for the First Northeast Green Journalism Award, 2013.The award will be given to professionals associated with print, online, radio, television and photojournalism.Journalists must submit:Five samples of their original work for print and online; three samples for radio and television; four sets of complete photographic narratives for photojournalism; or four samples of a combination of all....
Guwahati: Journalist Forum Assam (JFA) has expressed serious concern at the closer notices issued by the management of two Assam based daily newspapers and urged Assam government to take initiative for possible re-launching both the newspapers owned by the Kolkata based by Saradha Group. The forum also asked the management to release the outstanding salaries to the journalist and non-journalist employees at the earliest. In a press statement issued by the JFA president Rupam Baruah and secretary Nava Thakuria, the organization revealed that the management of Sakalbela, a Bengali daily and Seven Sister’s Post, an English daily published from Guwahati had issued closer notices recently...
Security forces claimed to have killed a hardcore ULFA militant at an encounter in Tinsukia on Friday. Identified as Raktavij Asom he was killed early in the morning. The encounter took place during a combing operation launched at Kordoiguri on Thursday evening. A police sub inspector also was killed in the encounter. Another ULFA leader is hiding at a house. Operation is going on.
Chief minister Tarun Gogoi strongly came in defence of Zubeen Garg after ULFA slammed the popular singer for not adhering to the diktat on Hindi performance in bihu functions. Talking to reporters in Bokakhat on Thursday Gogoi said that ULFA diktat has no basis and that all artists are free to perform in any language. Gogoi further said that if asked for the government is ready to provide him security force.
Braving ULFA diktat Zubeen Garg peformed in Hindi in the bihu function in Guwahati. The popular singer sang in Hindi one after another songs at two functions on Thursday evening. Hours before it, he made it clear that he wont act on any diktat and that he would perform in Hindi. He said that culture has no barrier in language. He dared ULFA to take action against him after the outfit took on him for Hindi performance at the Latashil function.
Noted Singer Zubeen Garg takes on ULFA saying that he would always sing against terrorism in all forms. Reacting to ULFA threat on Ya Ali performance in Latasheel Bihu function he said that it was the popular demand that forced him to do so. He said that he won’t perform from the next year in Bihu programmes.Before that Ulfa, threatened the noted Assamese singer for singing Hindi songs on stage during a Rangali Bihu function at Latasheel in Guwahati. The Paresh Baruah-led faction of the banned outfit condemned the singer for disobeying their earlier diktat preventing singers from singing Hindi songs at Bihu functions.
The United Liberation Front of Asom has strongly criticized Zubeen Garg for performing in Hindi at the Latasheel function.In a statement released to media on Thursday, the outfit alleged that the artist has downplayed the appeal.The Paresh Baruah faction of ULFA has warned Assam singers from singing Hindi songs in the upcoming Rongali Bihu functions and the organisers to desist from holding dances set to Bollywood songs.
In a bizarre incident, a huge number of fishes are found floating dead at a historic pond in Hajo.The scene caught the notice of the local people from Wednesday evening where the fishes started floating dead while many tortoise were fluttering in the Madhav temple. Theexperts have yet to ascertain the reasons.
Yet another tremor jolts the state on Tuesday. The tremor, which is second one during the last 10 hours in the north eastern region took place at 2-10 in the afternoon.The quake was moderately felt in Dibrugarh, Sivasagar, Tinsukia, Jorhat and Dibrugarh districts after it originated in Arunachal Pradesh along the Indo-China border. There is no report of any loss of life and property.
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