Braving inclement weather, people of Guwahati turned out in large number to receive the Queen's Baton, on the country wide relay of the 2010 Commonwealth Games at Delhi. The Baton, arrived here this afternoon, and was received ceremonially by Assam Olympic Association General Secretary and Forest Minister Rockybul Hussain at a brief function held at the Nehru Stadium.The Baton was then handed over to the state Chief Secretary N K Das and Director General of Police Shankar Barua who in turn handed it over to several veteran and present international and national players from the state before it was carried in a convoy to the state secretariat at Dispur.Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi received the Baton at the state secretariat and after a brief felicitation of players from the state, the baton was handed over to Arjuna awardee table tennis player Monalisa Barua Mehta.Mehta resumed the last leg of the rally here to the Srimanata Sankardeva Kalakshetra, the premier cultural hub of region, and was joined by Assam Director of Sports and Youth Welfare Sanjiv Gohain Boruah and Sports Authority of India's North East Director Subhas Basumatary enroute.A colourful cultural function and fireworks display was held at Kalakshetra before the Baton was handed over by Assam Sports Minister Bharat Narah to the Chef de Mission of the Indian Commonwealth team and Rajya Sabha MP Bhubaneswar Kalita and Baton Relay Director Colonel Kuldip Singh for its onward journey to the Meghalaya capital Shillong.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Protesters block India-Bhutan road
The movement of vehicles between India and Bhutan was halted for over five hours on Monday by several students and social organisations near Rangiya in Assam in support of their demands. The protesters blocked the international road at Kumarikata near Rangiya in Kamrup (Rural) district, stopping road communication between the two countries, official sources said.They were peacefully demanding the repair of the road and protection against the ongoing erosion by Barnadi river in the area, the sources said.The demonstrators included among others, All Assam Students Union (AASU), All Bodo Students Union (ABSU), Gorkha Students Union, Bengali Students Federation and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad.
Nagaland farmers participate in Potato Expo
A team of potato farmers from Nagaland participated in India International Potato Expo 2010 held recently at Pusa in New Delhi. According to an official release, the expo mainly focused on the topics such as the role of research and development for sustainable use of new technology, selection of quality seeds for better yield in potato and global scenario of food security and role of potato production and business development.The state team also visited exhibition stalls made by various state governments and reputed companies in the country.The exposure tour was sponsored by State ATMA and Agriculture department.
