Assam Agitation memorial nearing completion: Minister
He maintained that the state government is also actively implementing various clauses of the Accord, which was signed in August 1985 at the end of the mass movement.
"To honour the brave martyrs of the historic Assam Movement, the State Govt under the visionary leadership of Hon'ble CM Dr. @himantabiswa is nearing completion of the Swahid Smarak Kshetra & Udyan at Pachim Boragaon, Guwahati," Bora said in a post on X on Saturday after reviewing progress of the work.
He was accompanied by a delegation of All Assam Students' Union , among the signatories of the Accord.
Bora said the memorial will feature a 67.2m tower, busts of all martyrs, a light and sound show, cycle track, food court and other attractions, across 116 bighas .
"Today, after inspecting the site, I also participated in a review meeting to evaluate the latest progress and instructed the authorities concerned to complete all remaining construction work swiftly," the minister said.
Bora maintained that "to safeguard the interests of the indigenous people of Assam", the state government is also "actively implementing various clauses of the historic Assam Accord".
"As part of the implementation of Clause 6 of the Accord, the state government has already taken steps to implement 52 recommendations from the report submitted by the Justice Biplab Sarma Committee," he added.
Clause 6 of the Accord deals with political, economic, cultural, linguistic and other safeguards for indigenous people of the state.
AASU chief advisor Samujjal Kumar Bhattacharjya, who was part of the students' body's team, also in a post on the social media site said, "To ensure that the sacrifices of the 860 martyrs and the public are duly portrayed, the AASU delegation offered its suggestions."
"The AASU is thankful to the state government for undertaking this project at our request," he added.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
32 minutes ago
- The Hindu
BJP leader Amit Malviya's ‘no language called Bengali' jibe sparks outrage, leaves Trinamool fuming
A day after a communication from the Delhi Police, describing Bangla as 'Bangladeshi language', evoked strong criticism from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Amit Malviya's remarks on Monday that there was no language called 'Bengali' sparked further outrage in the political and social circles of West Bengal. Mr. Malviya, who heads the BJP's IT cell and is the party's co-observer in West Bengal, justified the Delhi Police's description in a social media post. 'There is, in fact, no language called 'Bengali' that neatly covers all these variants. 'Bengali' denotes ethnicity, not linguistic uniformity. So when the Delhi Police says 'Bangladeshi language', it's shorthand for the linguistic markers used to profile illegal immigrants from Bangladesh — not a commentary on Bengali as spoken in West Bengal,' Mr. Malviya said. The remarks left the Trinamool Congress leadership fuming, with several leaders of the party condemning them strongly. The TMC accused the BJP of 'systematically promoting xenophobia and othering, with Bengalis being deliberately targeted across states'. 'Such dangerous narratives must be condemned and resisted at every level,' the party said. Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh equated the remarks to 'linguistic fascism'. 'The BJP is hellbent on erasing one of the richest, oldest, Constitutionally-recognised languages of India just to whitewash the Delhi Police's bigoted profiling tactics. This is linguistic fascism, plain and simple. We dare the BJP to say this on the floor of the Parliament. We dare them to erase Bengali from the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. We dare them to call Kobiguru's [Rabindranath Tagore] Jana Gana Mana a foreign song,' Mr. Ghosh said. West Bengal Minister Shashi Panja described the BJP leader's assertions as an attempt to erase, belittle, and vilify the culture, history, and pride of Bengal. 'In his usual cocktail of arrogance, ignorance, and deep-seated hatred, @BJP4India's certified troll and keyboard mercenary @amitmalviya has now declared that 'there is no language called Bengali'. This is a calculated attempt to erase, belittle, and vilify the culture, history, and pride of Bengal,' Dr. Panja said. 'The BJP is threatened by Bengal. By its intellect. By its spine. By its refusal to bow down. And so, they try to delegitimise our language, our people, and our very existence,' she said. Apart from leaders of the ruling party, prominent people of the State criticised the BJP leader's comments. The controversial remarks have come at a time when the TMC has been raising its pitch in protest against the alleged targeting of migrants from the State over the past few months. The party has called for a 'language movement', and invoked Bengali asmita (identity) over such protests. More migrants return In another development, a group of migrant workers hailing from West Bengal's Dakshin Dinajpur district returned from Delhi. In a video shared on social media by the State's ruling party, the workers said that some men in uniform wanted money from them. The Trinamool Congress said they were being subjected to brutal torture simply for speaking in Bangla. 'They were beaten, abused, and extorted by @DelhiPolice, which allegedly demanded bribes of ₹5-7 lakh for their release. These are Indian citizens, targeted solely for their language and identity. This is a hate-driven crackdown on the Bengali identity, enabled and emboldened by the Bangla birodhi (opposed) BJP regime,' the party posted on social media. A few days ago, 12 youths, of whom 10 were from Pingla, and the remaining two from the Sabang police station area of Paschim Medinipur district, returned from Gujarat and alleged torture by the Gujarat Police.
New Indian Express
41 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
'Scandulous': Mamta Banerjee reacts sharply on 'Bangladeshi language' row; Stalin shows solidarity
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee sharply criticized the Delhi Police's reference to Bengali as 'Bangladeshi language' in a correspondence related to the arrest of eight alleged Bangladeshi nationals in the capital. TN CM echoed her sentiments in the fight against the assault on 'non-Hindi' languages at large.
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
Did Muhammad Yunus doom Bangladesh's democratic future?
One year ago, the skies over Dhaka blazed not with celebration, but with fire. In the days leading up to 5 August 2024, Bangladesh was in open revolt. As Sheikh Hasina fled the country by helicopter - driven out by an overwhelming wave of student-led protests and a nation wearied by authoritarianism — it appeared, for a fleeting moment, that genuine change had arrived. The streets erupted in Democracy, it seemed, was within reach. Yet twelve months on, hope has given way to uncertainty. Violent communal unrest, deepening youth unemployment, a resurgent Islamist movement, and an overstretched interim government have together stalled Bangladesh's revolution in a dangerous state of limbo. A Revolution Without DirectionThe uprising that shook the country was never just about quotas for government jobs. It was about years of pent-up frustration - a sidelined youth, silenced dissent, and an economy that benefited only the privileged few. The civil service quota reform protests were merely the spark. The explosion was long than half of civil service roles were reserved for groups including women, families of war veterans, and the disabled. But beneath the figures lay a deeper discontent: the widespread belief that Bangladesh's meritocracy had been dismantled - and that in Hasina's Bangladesh, hard work held no costs were catastrophic. According to the United Nations, over 1,400 people lost their lives in the July–August 2024 uprising. Streets became warzones. Police stations were set ablaze. Students were gunned down. Entire neighbourhoods were reduced to rubble. This wasn't merely a protest — it was a that void stepped Muhammad Yunus - Nobel laureate, microfinance pioneer, and the reluctant head of an interim regime. Backed by elements within the military and opposition leaders, Yunus promised a national reset: eleven reform commissions, national unity, and a pathway to Meets ParalysisYet democracy requires more than ousting the old guard — it demands the creation of something new. And there, Bangladesh continues to flounder. The student movement that dismantled Hasina's regime now finds itself sidelined. Political parties that were expected to usher in a new chapter - including the BNP - remain gridlocked over election timing. The interim government insists on April; the BNP demands February. There is no consensus. No roadmap. Just the economy is disintegrating. The youth who marched in the streets — the unemployed, the desperate, the hopeful - remain suspended in limbo. Today, around 30% of Bangladeshi youth are neither in employment nor education or training. Among women, unemployment sits at 23%, with even higher figures in rural regions, where farms struggle and factories economic backbone — its garment industry - is haemorrhaging. The Beximco Group, one of the nation's largest conglomerates, has shut down over a dozen factories, resulting in over 40,000 job losses. Business leaders linked to the previous regime have either been imprisoned or fled. Trade unions have warned of systemic collapse. No relief has make matters worse, the global stage has turned hostile. Late last year, the United States imposed a crippling 35% tariff on Bangladeshi garment exports. More recently, another 20% tariff was introduced — and foreign aid has dried up. Over 20,000 development workers have lost their jobs. Foreign investors are summits and training schemes, the interim government has failed to restore economic confidence. Private investment has dipped from 24% to 22.5% of GDP. Hope is evaporating - and so is forward Deferred, Divisions DeepenedNowhere is the collapse more keenly felt than among the young students and workers who risked everything a year ago. They marched for dignity, fairness, and a better future. Today, many are unemployed, unheard, and increasingly unsure of why they fought at the failures of the transition are not just economic - they are moral. In the vacuum left behind by Hasina's fall, a new threat has emerged: Islamist like Jamaat-e-Islami, long banned from public life, are now staging enormous rallies. Their rhetoric is louder, more militant, and more visible than at any point in the past decade. And they are not merely shouting. They are acting - within communities, in the streets, and through rising acts of Hasina's departure, there has been an alarming spike in anti-Hindu violence. Over 1,000 incidents were reported within weeks of the collapse. Mobs looted homes, burned down businesses, and desecrated more than 150 temples. Twenty-three Hindus were killed. Thousands have been displaced.A State Retreating From Its PeopleThe state has largely remained silent. Police presence was minimal. Arrests were scarce. Justice - even scarcer. While the interim government acknowledges 88 major communal incidents between August and October 2024, human rights organisations estimate the real figure is significantly attacks have largely been traced to radical Islamist groups emboldened by the power vacuum. With the secular Awami League gone, Bangladesh's minorities - especially Hindus - now find themselves it's not only Hindus. Sufi shrines have been desecrated. Secular bloggers hounded. Women's rights groups threatened. Bangladesh's already delicate pluralism is being ripped apart by a surge of majoritarianism and populist religious warn that any future government — whether the BNP, a student-led coalition, or another alliance - may be forced to pander to these Islamist forces. That would likely mean rolling back reforms, watering down human rights protections, and suffocating dissent even repeated denials from the interim government, on-the-ground reports suggest radical clerics now hold more influence in many villages than state officials. In some areas, they are reportedly intimidating voters, silencing opposition voices, and usurping state authority is not a democracy in progress - it is a democracy in Are the Reformers Now?With the Awami League dismantled and the machinery of the state in chaos, minority communities are leaving. Some flee to India. Others disappear into Dhaka's sprawling slums. The homes, businesses, and temples they leave behind are often the original student revolutionaries are splintering. Some have entered politics, demanding a new constitution before elections are held. Their platform calls for secularism, equal rights, and meaningful reform. They refuse to participate in elections without these is a bold position - but one rooted in reality. The system that collapsed with Hasina's exit was broken long before her helicopter lifted off. Cosmetic changes will not suffice.A Nation at the EdgeSo where does Bangladesh go from here? The options are few and fraught. Rush elections — and risk violence, low turnout, or a chaotic mandate. Delay them — and invite accusations of dictatorship and interim government must walk a tightrope. It cannot appease all factions, but it must restore legitimacy before collapse becomes that brings us back to the core question: was it worth it?The revolution brought down a powerful regime. It was born of hope — for justice, dignity, and democracy. But in the aftermath has come only disorder: broken promises, rising extremism, economic are not judged by what they destroy — but by what they create. One year after Bangladesh sought to reset its future, that reset remains unfinished. The ideals of equality, tolerance, and opportunity are still out of as the promise remains unfulfilled, the next generation — the ones who risked everything - may lose faith. The story of Bangladesh is not over. But it stands at a critical juncture. The decisions taken in the months ahead — about elections, reforms, and justice — will determine whether this remains a nation in transition, or devolves into protesters climbed the palace roof last August, they didn't just bring down a ruler. They raised the bar of expectation. If those expectations collapse - the next fall may be far more dangerous.- EndsTune InTrending Reel
