SIBSAGAR, August 17: They take pride in identifying themselves as Assamese. They speak proudly about their glorious heritage. But, when asked to speak out their preference categorically in matters related to personal interest and archaeologically important sites they are encroaching upon, they prefer their personal interest to the archaeologically important sites or monuments, be it the Momaikata Garh, the Talatal Ghar, the Kareng Ghar, the Rang Ghar or the Phakuwa Doul (Jaymati Doul), among others. The state revenue department has armed them with "Myadi Patta" in most of the cases, making unauthorised occupations authorised ones. On the other hand, some political leaders and members of the intelligentsia took the lead in paving the way for large scale encroachments on the land belonging to the historical monuments. There are also cases when officials of the state archaeological department and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) have been either threatened or assaulted. In one case, the unauthorised occupants of a monument's land in Sibsagar district served a pleader's notice on the archaeology department! It is alleged by members of the Committee for Celebration of the 770th Anniversary of Chau-Lung Siu-Ka-Pha that due the unholy nexus between some corrupt revenue department officials and the management of the Charaideo Tea Estate, about 80 bighas of the Charaideo "maidam" land were shown as the land of the tea estate in government land records and the "Myadi Patta" was also issued to the tea estate for the purpose. Several "maidams" (graves of Ahom nobles) are in the plot. The historic Jerenga Pathar, where princess Joymati was tortured to death for her refusal to divulge the whereabouts of her husband prince Godapani, has been allotted to private patta holders and public institutions without any attempt on the part of any of the authorities concerned to locate specifically and preserve the particular place where Joymati was tortured by the Chaodangs, the Ahom kings' executioners, for about 14 days. Joymati was buried at a place now located in the Jayanagar locality of Joy Sagar area. A "maidam" was built over the grave by prince Godapani who ascended the throne with the name of Godadhar Singha. But today the revenue department has issued pattas in such a way that the state archaeology department has been finding it difficult to get even a three feet wide and about 60 feet long passage to connect the "maidam", known as Phakuwa Doul, with the main thoroughfare running through the Jayanagar locality. The inhabitants of the area are mostly college teachers and bank employees. These people have knowingly or unknowingly started destruction of another unidentified "maidam" by taking away the bricks and soil from it to improve the thoroughfare running through the locality. The revenue department has added one more feather to its cap by obliterating the Kalugaon Jagaddhatri Doul from the Sitha map. In no other place on the earth such a development was witnessed, lamented archaeology department officials who were threatened with dire consequences by the encroachers when an attempt was made to preserve the Doul, adding, the water area of the historical tank located beside the monument has only been shown as reserved in the revenue documents. Apart from all these problems, lack of proper maintenance of the monuments presently under the control of the ASI and archaeology department has also been posing problems for the conservation of the Sibsagar monuments. Lack of adequate number of staff and vehicle have been cited as the common problems by the ASI and archaeology department people in this connection. Meanwhile, the district administration of Sibsagar has undertaken a drive to conserve the cluster of temples - Shiva Doul, Bishnu Doul and Devi Doul on the bank of the Sibsagar tank and to beautify the temple campus with the help of the Birlas. The ASI has also undertaken a special campaign as per the Prime Minister's directive to conserve and beautify several historical monuments and historically important sites in Sibsagar District. (Ajit Patowary; The Assam Tribune; Guwahati; ust 17, 1999)

AGARTALA, August 18: The Agartala bench of the Gauhati High Court has admitted a public interest litigation challenging the practice of giving preference to state officials in the allotment of Indian Airlines quotas and directed the government to reply within a month. Justice HHK Singh admitted the litigation, filed by Dr Ashok Sinha, a medical practitioner and human rights activist and Manas Paul, local journalist, on Tuesday, and asked the Tripura government to explain within a month. The petitioners alleged that senior officials were given preference on the busy Calcutta-Agartala-Calcutta route even when they were not on official duty while the claims of serious medical patients, advised for higher treatment were ignored. (PTI; The Assam Tribune; Guwahati; August 19, 1999)

DUBRUGARH, August 19: Residents of several villages of the Rohmaria area have resorted to an indefinite oil blockade at an oil rig located in the place, demanding immediate erosion-control measures and thus save property worth hundreds of crores of rupees on the northeastern fringes of Dibrugarh. Lending "unstinted support" to the agitation, the Dibrugarh district unit of Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chhatra Parishad on Wednesday submitted a memorandum to the deputy commissioner here, urging the Assam government to initiate urgent steps on erosion control at Rohmaria. The AJYCP has warned that unless the people's demands are met, the agitation would intensify and spread to other areas of the district. The Brahmaputra has been eroding hundreds of acres of prime agricultural land on its south bank around Rohmaria over the past several years. The situation has deteriorated since last year, and at present, the erosion is steadily eating away dozens of bighas of land everyday. Last year, the historic Tamuli Ali (which once connected Dibrugarh with Tinsukia) was eroded by the Brahmaputra near Oakland. Moreover, since last year, hundreds of ethnic Assamese families have been rendered homeless by erosion at Rohmaria. The district administration has offered a pittance in the name of rehabilitating the homeless (each family was given Rs 1,000 and seven sheets of corrugated iron roofing), which has infuriated the farmers. The state flood control minister, Promode Gogoi told the people of Rohmaria last year that the state government could do nothing to control erosion unless the Centre provided the funds. He went on to comment on the Brahmaputra's "general southward trend" and that the only remedy was multipurpose hydro projects (each costing upwards of Rs 10,000 crore) in Arunachal Pradesh. (Correspondent; The Assam Tribune; Guwahati; August 20, 1999)

SIBSAGAR, August 20: Deplorable is the only word left to describe the condition of the Assam Tai Museum at Sibsagar. For, it has got about 150 of its special display-effect lamps fused for the last several months, it does not have the fumigation and chemical treatment establishments, nor does it have the camera and the display boxes worth the name resulting in the damage of many items and failure of the museum authorities to collect more items for display. The outwardly magnificent building, where the museum is housed, is having in its interior the display items so amateurishly arranged, that visitors simply get stunned when faced with the arrangements of the items there. The Museum was started in 1972 by the Sadou Asom Mohan, Deodhai Bailung Sanmilan. It was handed over to the state government in 1982 and subsequently placed under the state cultural affairs directorate. Its own building was opened for visitors on the Medam-Me-Phi day of January 31, 1992. But absence of fumigation and chemical treatment arrangements in the Museum has by this time led to damage of a lot of manuscripts, dresses and wooden and cane and bamboo items. The metal items on display in the museum have also lost their glaze. The Museum authorities' pleas for the replacement of the fused display-effect bulbs with the cultural affairs directorate have also fallen on deaf ears. The replacement of these bulbs with new ones is to cost the directorate only Rs 4,500. (Ajit Patowary; The Assam Tribune; Guwahati; August 21, 1999)