Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma took oath as the 15th Chief Minister of Assam on Monday at Srimanta Sankardeva Kalashetra. He was administered the oath by Governor of Assam Professor Jagadish Mukhi. The swearing-in ceremony has been attended by former Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, BJP National President JP Nadda, Union Minister Jitender Singh, National General Secretary V.L. Santosh, Arun Singh, Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar among others.
Along with the newly inducted Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma, 13 ministers also took oath on Monday at Srimanta Shankardeva Kalashetra. The ministers who took oath are Chandra Mohan Patowary, Ranjeet Kumar Dass, Atul Bora, Parimal Suklabaidya, Keshab Mahanta, Ajanta Neog and Pijush Hazarika. Dr. Ronuj Pegu, UG Brahma, Sanjay Kishan, Jogen Mohan, Ashok Singhal and Bimal Bora. CM of Tripura Biplab Deb, Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma, Manipur CM N Biren Singh, and Nagaland CM Neiphiu Rio is also present at the swearing-in ceremony. Former Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal also attended the ceremony.
The first cabinet of the new ministry formed in Assam will be held on Tuesday, informed Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma. Addressing a press conference after taking the oath as the Chief Minister, Dr. Sarma said that the main aim of the new government is to bring Assam in the 5th position in India amongst the best state. "Our main aim will be to make Assam free from COVID-19 pandemic and flood. From Tuesday itself, the new cabinet will start its work for the development of the state," Dr. Sarma added. The new chief minister also urged the armed organizations to come forward for peace talk and also urged ULFA (I) Chief Paresh Baruah to come into the mainstream. "The government's first move will be to control the COVID situation in the state and we will take all possible measures to prevent any further spread of the pandemic," the chief minister said.
Principal Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Assam, Samir Sinha has been appointed as the Principal Secretary of the new Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Sinha has replaced former Principal Secretary Paban Borthakur. Meanwhile, Paban Borthakur has been appointed as the Additional Chief Secretary of the Cultural Affairs department.
Ajoy Sahu, the principal of Dibrugarh's Salt Brook Academy has reportedly died of COVID-19 on Monday. He was 52. A resident of Moran, Sahu was admitted in Assam Medical College and Medical (AMCH) after testing positive for the virus. As per reports, he had diabetes with hypertension and chronic obstructive airway disease. On Monday morning, Sahu's health deteriorated and died shortly after. Dibrugarh reported 216 fresh cases of COVID-19 on Sunday out of 2,590 tests. The positivity rate stood at 8.34 %.
In a tragic development in Covid-related fatalities that has raised serious concerns in Aligarh showed that as many as 34 professors of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) have passed away to Covid or Covid-like symptoms in the last 18 days. As per several reports, on April 20, the first death of a professor was recorded. All the deceased professors lived in different areas of Aligarh city. In a letter to the director-general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), VC Tariq Mansoor said, 16 serving and 18 retired teachers besides other employees of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) have succumbed to the infection in the past 18 days. There is a possibility that "a particular variant may be circulating in areas around the AMU campus and surrounding localities, which has led to these deaths", he said, stressing the need for the study to control the spread of the virus, as reported by The Outlook.
A lookout notice has been issued by Delhi police against wrestler and Olympic gold medalist Sushil Kumar in connection with the murder of a junior international wrestler at Delhi's Chhatrasal Stadium. The wrestler is currenly absconding and efforts are being made to trace him. Several locations were raided in Delhi as well as in Haryana. "Several teams have been formed to trace suspects, including Sushil Kumar. We are investigating the role of the wrestler as allegations have been made against him, we sent our team to his house but he was not found," Dr Guriqbal Singh Sidhu, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police-I, North West District, Delhi told a news agency. Last week, the 23-year-old junior wrestler, one Sagar Dhankar, had died during a brawl that broke out at the stadium. He was allegeldy beaten up by a group of fellow wrestlers. Some were also injured and were admitted to a hospital. Meanwhile, several eyewitnesses have made certain allegations against Sushil Kumar, after which an FIR was filed naming him and few other suspects.
In a shocker from Bihar, as many as 150 corpses were found dumped in Ganga river in Buxor district. As per reports, the dead bodies are said to be of COVID patients. Visuals show bodies piling at Ganga ghat in large numbers triggering anger among netizens with many calling it insensitivity on part of the government. Locals fear the bodies would later be eaten by stray dogs and could further spread coronavirus. Meanwhile, this led to a blame game between Uttar Pradesh and Bihar with both the states denying claims. India has recorded over three lakh Covid cases daily for nearly three weeks and hit record deaths, over 4,000, last week.
As many as seven COVID-19 patients, who were on ventilator support due to their critical condition, died at King Koti Hospital here on Sunday. Relatives of the patients alleged that delay in the oxygen supply is the reason behind these deaths. The oxygen tanker which was supposed to come to the King Koti Hospital was accidentally diverted to another hospital, the police have confirmed. Speaking to ANI over the phone, Additional Superintendent of King Koti Hospital, Dr Jalaja said that all the seven patients were in critical condition due to COVID-19 infection and hence they have been put on ventilators. "All the seven have been in critical health conditions due to the COVID-19 infection and for this, they were put on a ventilator. The deaths have not taken place at one time, but over the day, all the seven have lost their lives," she said. However, Dr Jalaja denied allegations of oxygen shortage and said that patients died due to critical condition of their health. She claimed that oxygen was available for these patients. She further added that the oxygen tanker, which was supposed to reach King Koti Hospital in the morning, arrived in the evening.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated Himanta Biswa Sarma soon after he was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Assam and stated that the state will set a benchmark of peace, progress and prosperity under him. The Home Minister expressed confidence in him saying that the state will set up a new benchmark of peace, progress and prosperity under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guidance and your leadership. "Congratulations to Himanta Biswa Sarma on being sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Assam and all those who took oath today. I am confident that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guidance and your leadership, the state of Assam will set a new benchmark of peace, progress and prosperity," Shah said. Sarma was sworn in as the 15th Chief Minister of Assam at 12 noon today, replacing former Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. He is considered to be the charioteer of BJP's growth in the Northeast.
There has been a barrage of international support for India amidst the devastating second wave of COVID-19 that has gripped the nation. On Monday, INS Kolkata reached Mangalore with medical supplies including liquid medical oxygen from Qatar and Kuwait. As per a report, the ship brought 400 bottles of Oxygen and two containers of 30 MT Liquid Medical Oxygen. The consignment has been delivered to Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) for necessary actions. Additionally, another Indian Navy ship, INS Airavat, reached Vishakhapatnam with a consignment of Eight 20 T cryogenic oxygen tanks (empty), 3,150 oxygen cylinders (empty), 500 Filled oxygen cylinders, seven oxygen concentrators, 10,000 Rapid Antigen Test kits and 450PPE kits from Singapore.
Assam based social worker Lukie Choudhuri has passed way on Sunday due to age-related ailments. She was 81. She breathed her last in Gurugram today morning. Choudhuri was involved in many social work in Guwahati as well as in Kolkata, where she spent her early days. Choudhuri is survived by her son, daughter, son-in-law,daughter-in-law and granddaughter.
Prime Minister on Monday lauded the governance of outgoing Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal in the last five years through a tweet. The tweet came in as Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma took oath as the 15th chief minister of the state. The prime minister said his valued colleague Sarbananda Sonowal contribution in strengthening the party and Assam's progress has been immense. "My valued colleague @sarbanandsonwal Ji was at the helm of a pro-people and pro-development administration over the last five years. His contribution towards Assam's progress and strengthening the party in the state is immense," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
In a major breakthrough, due to the devastating situation of the second year pandemic, the Higher Secondary First Year Examination scheduled to be conducted from May 4 which was postponed has now been cancelled and the students have been promoted to the higher secondary second year class. An order issued by Assam Higher Secondary Education Council (AHSEC) dated May 7, read: "…the Higher Secondary First Year Examination, 2021 scheduled to be held from May 4, 2021 which was postponed has now been cancelled and all the students, who have filled up online applications for the same are hereby declared to have been promoted to the Higher Secondary 2nd Year Class for the academic session 2021-22". Meanwhile, examinations for class 10 and 12 have been deferred and any update related to the cancellation of examinations are yet to be announced by the Assam government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma on taking oath as Assam chief minister. Dr. Sarma was sworn in as the 15th chief minister of Assam today. Modi expressed confidence that he and his team of ministers will add momentum to the development journey of the state and fulfill people's aspirations. Congratulations to @himantabiswa Ji and the other Ministers who took oath today. I am confident this team will add momentum to the development journey of Assam and fulfil aspirations of the people. Further Home Minister Amit Shah congratulating Dr. Sarma and the 13 ministers who took oath today said, " I am confident that under PM @NarendraModi ji's guidance and your leadership, the state of Assam will set a new benchmark of peace, progress & prosperity".
