NIA court awards death for 2, life term to 2 others in 2014 killings
Guwahati, Sep 15: A special court of National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday awarded death sentence to two and life imprisonment to two others in the mass killings triggered by terrorist outfit National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) in 2014.
A statement issued by the NIA said that while two accused, Bishnu Narzary alias N Berema and Ajoy Basumatary alias B Buhumbua, have been awarded death penalty, two others, Sanju Bordoloi alias Sibigiri and Nitul Daimary alias D Naihab, have been awarded life imprisonment.
Although the court had convicted the four in the case on August 29, the quantum of punishment was pronounced on Saturday.
On December 23, 2014, NDFB militants had indiscriminately fired upon villagers of Hatijuli Shantipur village in Sonitpur district of Assam killing six persons instantly and injuring two others.
The Assam government had handed over the case to the NIA which registered a case on December 30 the same year under various sections and the Arms Act.
A charge sheet was filed against the accused on July 22, 2015.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
