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Curfew lifted in Guwahati after a week, broadband internet services restored

On December 11, curfew was imposed in Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Tinsukia and a few other cities of Assam and Army was also deployed.

Curfew lifted in Guwahati after a week, broadband internet services restored

Protests against Citizenship Amendment Act in Assam (File Photo: IANS)

After almost a week, the authorities have lifted the curfew in Guwahati, Assam and restored the broadband internet services on Tuesday as the situation has improved, officials said.

The situation in the state was on boil over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 in Guwahati as massive protests broke out after the government passed the controversial Bill giving ease to apply for citizenship to six non-Muslim communities who migrated from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

On December 11, curfew was imposed in Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Tinsukia and a few other cities of Assam and Army was also deployed.

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“The decision to lift the curfew in Guwahati was taken at a law and order review meeting presided over by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal late on Monday evening. In Dibrugarh, the curfew has been relaxed for 14 hours from 6 a.m. on Tuesday,” an Assam Home Department official said.

“The situation would be further reviewed later in the evening.”

He also said that the broadband-based internet services were restored while the suspension of mobile internet would continue till 9 am on Wednesday.

According to a report of IANS, a senior police official told that all the government and private offices, banks and business establishments remain open.

Conditions are reported to be stabilised in the city as the vehicles have also started plying on road.

However, the schools will remain close at a few places in Assam including Kamrup Metro till December 22.

The Chief Public Relations Officer of the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) Subhanan Chanda said that all efforts are on to fully normalise the train services in the state. He said that 11 local passenger and inter-city trains were running within Assam on Tuesday.

The Airport Authority of India’s (AAI) Regional Executive Director Sanjeev Jindal said that since Sunday, flight services were fully operational in all the 10 airports in northeast India, including six in Assam and one each in Tripura, Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Earlier, the curfew imposed in Dibrugarh in the wake of major protests across the state over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, was on Tuesday relaxed from 6 am to 8 pm by the district administration.

Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the curfew imposed in Assam will be relaxed only during day time while it will remain in place during the night until the situation is reviewed by the government.

Earlier on Saturday, curfew imposed in Guwahati — which has been a hotbed for violent protests against the citizenship law — was relaxed for seven hours.

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