Indigenous leaders of Assam have strongly condemned what they described as "barbaric atrocities" by Assam Police on members of the Koch-Rajbanshi community at Golokganj in Dhubri district on September 10. They demanded an impartial judicial inquiry and strict action against the culprits, urging the state to ensure that such incidents are not repeated when communities raise their democratic rights.
At the same press conference, the leaders also expressed outrage over the detention of Bhanu Tatak — a young activist and legal advisor of the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum — at Delhi’s international airport on September 7. Tatak, who had been invited to Dublin City University in Ireland for a three-month program beginning September 9, was subjected to prolonged questioning and barred from boarding her flight despite valid documents. The leaders demanded clarification from the Government of India and safeguards to prevent such treatment of Northeast’s indigenous representatives.
Tracing historical grievances back to the 1826 Yandaboo Treaty, which brought Assam under British rule, the forum said that despite independence in 1947, the indigenous peoples of the Northeast continue to suffer displacement, economic marginalization, and cultural erosion due to immigration, neglect, and divisive policies.
To address these issues, the organization placed a 10-point charter of demands before the Centre and the state, including:
Recognizing February 24, 1826, as the constitutional base year for defining indigenous people of Assam and the Northeast.
Formation of a separate ministry for indigenous ethnic communities.
Granting autonomous statehood and creating legislative councils to ensure dignity in governance.
Extending the Inner Line Permit system across all eight Northeast states.
Revising the cut-off year for identifying foreign citizens in Assam from 1971 to 1951.
Official recognition of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007).
Promotion and official status for indigenous languages under UNESCO’s International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–32).
Inclusion of Koch-Rajbanshi, Tai, Karbi, Mishing, Dimasa, Rabha, Deori, Hajong, Kuki, Bodo, Rengma, Garo, Tiwa, Kamrupiya, and Mar languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
Declaring Assam a tribal state under the Sixth Schedule.
The statement was signed by Khagendrajit Thakuria, President in Charge, and Anup Arandhara, Secretary General.
In a bid to ease tensions along the Assam–Arunachal boundary, senior officials from both states held a joint meeting at Narayanpur in Assam’s Lakhimpur district on Thursday, adopting a series of measures to improve coordination and maintain peace.
The meeting was attended by officials from Assam’s Lakhimpur and Biswanath districts and Arunachal’s Papum Pare district. Both sides agreed to stop all new construction and encroachment until the final demarcation of the interstate boundary is completed. To ensure smoother communication, the states will appoint nodal officers as official points of contact, while a dedicated WhatsApp group will be created to allow quick information-sharing among...
Assam has been ranked among the bottom five states of the country in crucial development indicators including health, education and economic growth, according to a fresh NITI Aayog assessment.
The report placed Assam 26th in health and well-being, 25th in education, and 23rd in economic development. On gender equality and zero hunger, the state was positioned at 25th and 22nd respectively.
The poor performance has raised concern over the state’s planning and budgetary priorities, despite official claims of inclusive growth. Experts have pointed out that school enrolment, institutional health services and poverty reduction continue to remain below the national average.
NITI Aayog’s...
Guwahati, August 23: The Rotary Club of Guwahati, in collaboration with the North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Ltd. (NERAMAC), organized a major plantation and sapling distribution initiative this week.
On Tuesday, August 21, a total of 3,000 medicinal and fruit-bearing saplings were distributed among local villagers of Bijoynagar and adjoining areas at the premises of 28 Nahira Primary School and Kongdang Primary School. The program witnessed enthusiastic participation from villagers, teachers, Rotarians, and NERAMAC officials.
Continuing the green initiative, a tree plantation drive was also conducted on Friday, August 22, at the NERAMAC office premises...
The Press Emblem Campaign (PEC), a global media safety and rights organization, has strongly condemned the misuse of the “PRESS” symbol by armed combatants in conflict zones such as Syria and Gaza. The PEC expressed deep concern over incidents where individuals posing as journalists have used the emblem as a shield for violent activities.
In southern Syria, Islamist fighters were seen wearing jackets marked “PRESS” while vandalizing a Druze household in Suwayda, as shown in a widely circulated video on social media. While PEC cannot independently verify the authenticity of the video, it emphasizes that under no circumstances should the press emblem be used as cover for armed combatants...
The number of journalists killed worldwide has surged dramatically in the first half of 2025, according to the Press Emblem Campaign (PEC). Since January, 86 media workers have been killed across 26 countries, marking a 16% increase compared to the same period last year.
Gaza: Epicenter of the Crisis
The ongoing conflict in Gaza is the primary driver behind this spike. At least 31 Palestinian journalists were killed in six months by the Israeli army, accounting for more than a third of the global toll.
“The Israeli government is directly responsible for this tragedy, which targets civilians reporting on the situation in Gaza. The Israeli soldiers involved in these war crimes must...
Guwahati: – A transformative capacity-building workshop, “Learning from the Land: Participatory Knowledge Harvest from Assam and Meghalaya,” was held at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Guwahati Off-Campus, on Friday, June 27, 2025. Organized by TISS in collaboration with UNDP-SGP, the event brought together over 50 NGOs from Assam and Meghalaya to exchange grassroots knowledge and strategies for sustainable land use, agroecological practices, and environmental conservation.
The workshop aimed to empower local communities by enhancing skills in biodiversity conservation, land restoration, rural development, sustainability, and climate change adaptation. Prof. Jagannath Ambagudia...
Guwahati: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) has accused the BJP-led state government under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of driving tea garden workers into a severe health crisis, with the average worker’s body weight dropping below 50 kg due to malnutrition and anemia. In a press conference on Wednesday at Rajiv Bhawan, APCC Working President Roselina Tirkey, joined by tea tribe leaders Raju Sahu, Etowa Munda, and Pranjal Ghatowar, condemned the government for neglecting workers’ welfare and plotting to dismantle Assam’s tea industry.
Raju Sahu emphasized the alarming health decline, stating that malnutrition and anemia have rendered many tea workers unfit to donate blood...
In Assam, the land of the Brahmaputra, tea gardens, and vibrant indigenous cultures, a troubling pattern has emerged. The state’s push for development—solar plants, thermal power stations, cement factories, and urban restoration—has come at a devastating cost to its original inhabitants, the Khilonjiya. These indigenous communities, including Karbi, Bodo, Dimasa, and Adivasi, are being displaced from their ancestral lands to make way for wealthy industrialists and corporate giants like Adani. While rich outsiders are welcomed with open arms, the Khilonjiya bear the burden of uprooted lives, lost livelihoods, and erased heritage. This blog chronicles few recent land disputes, exposing the...
Guwahati: Expressing concern over the Sivasagar crude-oil well gas leakage in the last few days, a northeast India based forum of graduate engineers have urged both Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India Limited (OIL) to come clear about the so-called ‘abandoned’ wells, which have the potential to harm human life, property and environment, as the concerned private parties operating such wells often do not come forward to take responsibility. All Assam Engineers Association (AAEA), in a statement, also appealed to the Union government in New Delhi to hold the concerned ONGC/OIL officials accountable for any disaster at an oil or gas well after having declared it '...
On May 26, 2025, Gaurav Gogoi, a three-time MP and son of former Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, was appointed President of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC). His appointment marked a generational shift in Assam’s Congress leadership and was seen as a strategic move to reinvigorate the party ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. Gogoi’s clean image, recent Lok Sabha victory from Jorhat by a margin of 1.44 lakh votes, and appeal among youth positioned him as a serious contender against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Gogoi's appointment replaces Bhupen Kumar Borah and is backed by a team of working presidents including Jakir Hussain Sikdar, Roselina Tirkey, and Pradip Sarkar....
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