Farewell to Arms

When 16-year old Jugal Kishore Mahanta joined the United Liberation Front of Assam in 1983, he dreamt of a sovereign Assam where the people ...

When 16-year old Jugal Kishore Mahanta joined the United Liberation Front of Assam in 1983, he dreamt of a sovereign Assam where the people would shape their own destiny with the plentiful natural resources of the state. Twenty years later, he is a first class contractor registered with the flood control and public works departments of the government of Assam and an empanelled contractor with the public sector Oil India Ltd.

‘‘I realised the futility of arms and came back to the mainstream in 1992 after serving as president of the combined districts of Dibrugarh and Tinsukia. I dabbled in all sorts of businesses before finally settling down to government contracts,’’ says Mahanta, who regrets not having completed his B.Com.

Son of a reputed schoolteacher in the Upper Assam industrial township of Namrup, Mahanta recalls then CM Hiteswar Saikia offering him a liquor shop licence as part of the rehabilitation scheme. ‘‘But my parents objected to it, asking how can a teacher’s son sell liquor,’’ he says.

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Mahanta, a six-footer and a very handsome man, underwent rigorous training in arms and ammunition in Myanmar as well as China for two years, and was described in police dossiers as one of the finest marksmen of the militant group. The government has withdrawn all cases against him as part of the amnesty policy announced in 1992. Happily married, he now lives in Guwahati.

Brew for Peace

RAMESH Saikia is one of the most successful tea planters of the new generation. He is also a former president of the combined Jorhat-Golaghat district of the ULFA.

Choosing the ULFA over his BSc in 1986, Saikia went on to train in Myanmar under the supervision of the NSCN. He surrendered along with Mahanta and others in 1992.

Saikia’s Bijulee tea estate in Golaghat, close to the Kaziranga National Park employs over 400 people, and the garden, spread over 100 hectares, last year produced 8 lakh kgs of green leaf. He sells the green leaf to companies having factories in the vicinity. He also owns a bonded warehouse and is a wholesaler of IMFL for two districts. This apart, he also started a weekly newspaper from Golaghat.

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‘‘I am a happier man today, because I have been able to contribute to society by way of providing employment to so many people,’’ says Saikia.