He came, saw, and left…
Recently one Md. Rejaul Karim Sarkar, ex-president of AAMSU and a very vocal leader of the linguistic minority community, joined Congress in the presence of APCC President Gaurav Gogoi. While doing so in his usual style, Sarkar very emphatically promised to make Sivasagar and Tinsukia another Dhubri, the epicentre of Assam’s linguistic minority community. His very promise stirred the hornets’ nest across the state, drawing massive protests from all indigenous populations along with nonpolitical groups and a few political parties, BJP in particular. Interestingly, ‘Three Gogois,’ who claim to be sentinels of the ‘khilonjiya’ people, have kept mum so far, distancing themselves from this issue. Their silence is very obvious, as they would rather not offend their die-hard supporters, i.e., the linguistic minority community, under whom there are more than 20 assembly seats. There also appears to be a rift among senior Congress leaders on this issue.
Ultimately Sarkar, fearing massive protests, decided to resign on his own within 72 hours of joining Congress, which he proudly claims he joined at the invitation of a few senior Congress leaders.
We anticipate more such action-packed dramas from our political leaders in the coming days.
Rajaul Karim Sarkar came, saw, and left.
Dr Ashim Chowdhury,
Guwahati
Guwahati’s Smart City Goals
and Civic Infrastructure
Guwahati is often described as a smart city, yet many basic civic issues continue to trouble its residents. Poor drainage leads to waterlogging after even moderate rainfall, roads remain damaged for long periods, waste management is inconsistent, and flooding has become a yearly concern. These problems affect daily life and raise questions about planning and execution.
From my side as a responsible citizen, I believe improvement is possible if both authorities and residents work together. Proper and regular cleaning of drains before the monsoon can reduce flooding to a great extent. Road repairs should be timely and monitored for quality, not just completed for formality. Waste segregation at the household level must be encouraged, while the municipality ensures regular collection and strict action against open dumping.
Citizens should also cooperate by avoiding littering, reporting civic issues, and respecting public property. A smart city is not built only by projects and banners, but by accountability, planning, and public participation.
With sincere effort from all sides, Guwahati can become cleaner, safer, and truly smart.
Bhaskar Deka,
Pragjyotish College, Guwahati
Racism’s scourge
Last year in December, a 24-year-old young man, Anjel Chakma, from NE’s Tripura, was beaten and stabbed by a gang of thugs who abused him with the ‘usual’ racist epithets in Dehradun. Later, he succumbed to his injuries, and his brother, who suffered head and other injuries, lived to tell the tale. Although a few arrests were made, demonstrations and outrage followed; yet, a question arises as to what we should do now to make sure that such incidents do not happen again. We need a long-term behavioural change approach based on exposure to better information, education, experience, and peer examples. There is a need for a monitoring cell in the Ministry of Development of the Northeastern Region to be set up with area specialists and stakeholders to review the quality of skill training and output given to many young people coming to metros from the NE region. There is another need for continuous teaching for mutual respect at homes, schools, colleges, offices, and industries, as well as respect for the law, especially for those upholding it, so that they go fiercely after those who abuse innocent people’s right to equality in public life. Let us hope that the Angel Chakma incident will be the last racial death in India.
Iqbal Saikia,
Guwahati