August 30th, 2016

C M Y K

www.morungexpress.com

tuesDAY • AuGust 30 • 2016

DIMAPUR • Vol. XI • Issue 238 • 12 PAGes • 5

T H e

ESTD. 2005

There is no respect for others without humility in one’s self Kashmir: Teacher starts makeshift schools

By Sandemo Ngullie

NSCN (IM) takes ‘serious note’ of August 12 assault DiMApur, AugusT 29 (MExn): The NSCN (IM) today said it has taken “serious note” of the August 12 incident in Wokha Town wherein “its officially assigned tax collectors were assaulted while on duty by a group of persons with vested interest.” “The unruly mob aggravated the incident as they assaulted the cadres who by chance were saved by the Police. They ransacked the Town Command Office and destroyed the government properties and burned down documents, which is very serious in nature,” stated an ‘information’ note from S Among Lim, Secretary to the Ministry of Kilo Affairs, NSCN (IM). The ‘information’ note said that Maj. Nrikhon, Naga Army, was “officially assigned” as Zonal Tax Officer, Wokha.

It added that, “while exercising his assigned duties certain vested interest persons have been obstructing from carrying out his duties.

Further an FIR was lodged against him to the Indian State Police and thereafter they have been on witch hunt.” Thus, “in the event any untoward incident against Maj. Nrikhon, Naga Army, the persons concerned shall face the law,” asserted the NSCN (IM).

AYO settles August 19 case

C M Y K

kohiMA, AugusT 29 (MExn): The Angami Youth Organisation (AYO) has amicably resolved the matter of physical assault on one of its members by the GPRN/NSCN. On August 19, a member of the AYO, Pelevilie Kuotsu was assaulted by Region Commander of the Angami Region, GPRN/NSCN. Following a series of meetings of AYO representatives and GPRN/NSCN, headed by its Chairman Angami Region and Deputy Kilonser Home, the matter has been resolved amicably “in the spirit of brotherhood and oneness,” stated a press release from AYO Vice President Kekhrievolie Keyho and its General Secretary Rokoketuo Sechü. “In the admittance of regret over the incident” and agreement to “fulfill the demands” of the AYO, made on behalf of the victim, the matter was declared settled in the presence of both accused and victim, the AYO informed. The AYO further urged all organizations/ unions that had come forward to extend solidarity to the victim to “kindly endorse” the settlement made, “which was concluded in the best interest of all.”

T R u T H

Sindhu, Sakshi, Dipa, Jitu conferred Khel Ratna awards

PAGe 02

PAGE 12

india and Myanmar seek to it is right time to solve the build an era of partnership protracted problem: Gov kohiMA, AugusT 29 (MExn): Governor of Nagaland State PB Acharya has congratulated the Konyak Union for their “sincere appeal and efforts” to bring a ceasefire between NSCN (K) and the Government of India (GoI).

A press release from the PRO to the Governor felt that it time now to “work together for permanent peace in Nagaland and it is taking shape with the signing of Framework Agreement” between the NSCN (IM) and GoI. Under the “dynamic leadership” of Narendra Modi, stated the press release, “it is right time to solve the protracted problem.”

In that, the Governor appealed to all political parties, NGOs, Students’ Organizations and Civil Society to take a “positive transThe President of Myanmar, Htin Kyaw being received by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee and the Prime parent step for meeting the different concerned group leaders Minister, Narendra Modi, at the Ceremonial Reception, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on August 29. to interact for a positive dialogue on the need to remain sensiThe first Panglong confer- eration in the field of traditional and for a respectable solution, tive to each other’s strategic in- ence was convened by Suu Kyi’s medicine. terests and concerns. “To this father and then Myanmar PreApart from this, Modi said end, the President and I agreed mier Aung San in 1947. that some other concrete exto work together for the safety Modi said India-Myanmar amples of the two countries’ and security of our people,” he partnership was defined not partnership included the Kasaid. “And, actively cooperate to just by good words and pure ladan multi-modal transport combat the common challeng- intent. “Its extent and depth is project connecting Mizoram es of terrorism and insurgent shaped by a robust develop- with Sittwe port in Myanmar, the kohiMA, AugusT 29 activity in our region.” ment cooperation partner- Myanmar Institute of Informa- (MExn): A group of three tribes During External Affairs ship, which has a strong ‘people tion Technology, the Advanced have written to the Chief MinisMinister Sushma Swaraj’s day- first’ philosophy,” he said. “In- Centre of Agricultural Research ter of Nagaland asking for the reslong visit to Nay Pyi Taw on Au- dia’s nearly $2 billion develop- and Education and smaller proj- ervation policy in the State to be gust 22, the leadership of the ment assistance is touching ects in health, education and in- “reviewed and re-examined.” eastern neighbour assured that the lives of the common man dustrial training sector.

The Angami, Ao and Lotha it would not allow Indian in- of Myanmar. “Our engagement “We have also agreed to students’ bodies stated this while surgent groups to operate from is supporting projects in con- work towards a long-term and attempting to intervene in the Myanmar territory. nectivity, infrastructure, capac- a mutually beneficial arrange- NSEE-II selection of MBBS and On August 19, a heavy ex- ity-building education, health- ment for trade in pulses,” the BDS candidates for the session change of fire took place be- care and many other sectors.”

Prime Minister said. Pointing 2016-17. They maintained the tween the Indian Army and the Following the bilateral talks, out that power supply to Tamu opinion that “to provide reserNational Socialist Council of India and Myanmar on Mon- in Myanmar commenced in vation superseding merit would Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN- day signed four agreements.

April this year, Modi said India itself defy logic and the very purK) insurgents after the soldiers The first agreement pertains was ready to substantially scale pose of medical profession itself.” raided some villages in Mon to construction of 69 bridges on up electricity generation to its The letter was signed by Dievi district of Nagaland along the the Tamu-Kalewa section of the eastern neighbour.

Yano, President of the Angami India-Myanmar border. trilateral highway connecting “We are also ready to restore Students’ Union, Amos Odyuo, During Monday’s talks, In- India, Myanmar and Thailand. other historic monuments and President of the Lotha Students’ dia also conveyed its full supThe second agreement is pagodas, which were damaged in Union and L Jemti Longchar, port to the peace initiative un- on upgrading the Kalewa-Yargi the earthquake which hit Myan- President of the Ao Students’ der the “21st Century Panglong section of the trilateral highway. mar just last week,” he said. On Conference.

Conference” between the The third agreement is on his part, President U Htin Kyaw “It is our expressed desire Myanmar government and eth- cooperation in the field of re- said both sides agreed to bring that reservation within reservanic armed organisations sched- newable energy, while the about overall socio-economic tion in professional and techniuled from August 31. fourth agreement is on coop- development of the people. cal examinations requires urgent

Development aid, tackling insurgency figure in India-Myanmar talks

Premature? But my wife is ready, she is the key decisions-maker at home, she decides when I should bath, brush, wash the utensils, sweep, mop feed the cattle ....

o F

— Henri Frederic Amiel

Committee on NH appeals KU to withdraw petition

PAGe 08

reflections

P o W e R

nEw DElhi, AugusT 29 (iAns): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday assured Myanmar, which has newly attained democracy, that India will stand by it every step of the way in its bid to develop as a modern nation even as both sides agreed to cooperate in the fight against terrorism and insurgency in the region.

“Your great nation has entered a new era,” Modi said during a joint press conference with visiting Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw following bilateral talks between the two sides.

“An era defined by maturity of your leadership and commitment of your people to democracy,” he said. “And, which is accompanied by a clear vision and a strong desire of your leadership to make Myanmar a stable and economically prosperous country in the region.”

This is the first presidential visit from Myanmar after Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in March this year after its historic victory in the general elections in November last year.

Modi said that as the new government of Myanmar started its journey to grow its agriculture, develop its industry and infrastructure, strengthen its education, skill its youth, build new institutions and strengthen existing ones, secure its society, seek a firm path to economic prosperity and pursue an ambition to build a modern nation, “every step of the way, 1.25 billion people of India will stand by you -- both as partners and as friends”. Observing that Myanmar held a unique position in India’s neighbourhood, he said: “It is a land bridge that connects India with southeast Asia.”

Modi said that during his talks with President U Htin Kyaw, both sides discussed the whole range of bilateral engagement. He said both sides agreed

join the ongoing peace talks.”

“All the political parties in a democracy, NGOs and Civil Organizations have to open up their mind and retrospect what they are doing at this crucial hour to bring all the groups to a negotiating table. Our action should be transparent to win the confidence of the people of Nagaland,” the Governor noted.

Further, he stated that we have to “show our capacity and sincerity to convince all the concerned group leaders to have dialogue with Central Government for a permanent solution of Nagaland problem.” The Civil Society, Naga Political Groups and NGOs have to “express themselves unanimously for a respectful solution,” he reiterated.

He also hoped that the ongoing visit of the President of Myanmar, U Htin Kyaw, will help to bring the NSCN (K) to table for talks.

Angami, Ao, Lotha students want State reservation policy reviewed redressal. This reservation and quota policy if not reviewed will murder professionalism and it is a dangerous trend especially in the field of medical science and many other technical subject matter as there are irrefutable factors which cannot be dealt as a mere clerical responsibility,” the representation to the CM stated.

Registering their dissent over the “recent MBBS & BDS issue,” the three bodies stressed their stand to be that the “latest declared result must stand and necessary proceedings be initiated at the earliest so that the students’ careers are not hampered.”

Asking for the reservation policy to be reviewed, the three bodies noted that “it holds no meaning when Backward Tribes reservation share is actually higher than that of the general category, as in this case has amply displayed.”

‘Random’ selection and allocation of MTLT unlocks Power office projects affect sports in Nagaland with terms and conditions

DiMApur, AugusT 29 (MExn): The response to an RTI query has now shown that the Nagaland State Youth Resources & Sports Department (YRSD) has left five projects to the tune of Rs. 13,38,00,000/-(Rupees thirteen crore, thirty eight lakhs)—all released—either “unaccounted” for or are “nonexistent.”

The response also indicated that the YRSD, a department for development of sports infrastructure in the State, has spent an amount of Rs. 522,93,37,000/- (Five hundred twenty two crore, ninety three lakhs, thirty seven thousand) from 2009 till 2015 on 72 different projects/schemes in the State.

The RTI application had been filed by Aheto V. Yeputhomi, Hukavi T. Yeputhomi, Kitoho S. Rotokha, L Khevishe Achumi and S Zhevishe Sumi, all former presidents of the Sumi

Kiphimi Kuqhakulu (SKK).

They maintained in a press release today that until and unless “thorough analysis and probes” are initiated in the “random” selection and allocation of projects based on alleged “personal whims and fancies” of the authorities concerned and the policy implementations are “completely overhauled” in the YRSD, Nagaland State can “never ever produce eminent sports men and women even for centuries to come.”

Giving an instance, they noted, Dimapur district availed 24 different projects out of which 17 projects/schemes were allotted to Sovima village alone for an estimated amount of Rs. 91,08,37,000/-(Ninety one crore, eight lakhs, thirty seven thousand); whereas, district headquarters of Tuensang and Longleng got two projects each for Rs. 2.50 Crore each, Zunheboto two projects for Rs. 2.35

Crore, Wokha two projects for an estimated amount of Rs. 1.50 Crore and Kiphire got 1 project for Rs. 2.00 Crore (See table).

“These facts are the hard realities of the (un)judicious implementation of developmental projects implemented by the successive Government for the overall round development of the Sports infrastructure in the State,” stated the five leaders in their press release.

“Such policy implementation, purely for self aggrandizement in the name of development has marginalized Naga societies beyond repair and that equal distribution of developmental projects, wealth, opportunities and the failure to adhere the professed policy of all round development in the state without any discrimination has completely dejected the upcoming generations on their future and on any Government of the state,” the leaders asserted.

MTLT officials along with district administration, police and DBs after unlocking the offices of the power department on Monday, August 29. (Photo/Media Cell MTLT)

Mokokchung, AugusT 29 (MExn): The Mokokchung Town Lanur Telongjem (MTLT) has unlocked the offices of the Mokokchung Power Department following a written response from the Secretary (Power), Government of Nagaland, as intimated through the Deputy Commissioner, Mokokchung. This was in addition to the appeals made to the MTLT by the district administration as well as the MokokcProject/Scheme Allocation Under Youth Resources & Sports – District Wise (2009-10 TO 2014-15 FY) hung power division.

SL. SANCTIONED AMOUNT DISTRICT BALANCE NOs. PROJECT In a press note from its PresiNO AMOUNT RELEASED dent Imkummeren Jamir and 1 DIMAPUR 24 Rs. 416,72,37,000 Rs. 218,98,59,000 Rs. 197,73,78,000 Convenor of its Grievances 2 MOKOKCHUNG 12 Rs. 8,30,00,000 Rs. 7,80,00,000 Rs. 50,00,000 3 KOHIMA 10 Rs. 58,84,00,000 Rs. 51,06,00,000 Rs. 7,78,00,000 Cell, Aolong Imchen, the MTLT, 4 PHEK 5 Rs. 9,74,00,000 Rs. 9,45,00,000 Rs. 29,00,000 however, noted that the “Secre5 PEREN 4 Rs. 3,40,00,000 Rs. 3,40,00,000 NIL tary’s (Power) reply is not satis6 MON 3 Rs. 3,50,00,000 Rs. 3,50,00,000 NIL 7 TUENSANG 2 Rs. 2,50,00,000 Rs. 2,50,00,000 NIL factory.”

8 LONGLENG 2 Rs. 2,50,00,000 Rs. 2,50,00,000 NIL “The offices have been un9 ZUNHEBOTO 2 Rs. 2,35,00,000 Rs. 2,35,00,000 NIL locked with the assurance of co10 WOKHA 2 Rs. 1,50,00,000 Rs. 1,50,00,000 NIL operation from the concerned 11 KIPHIRE 1 Rs. 2,00,00,000 Rs. 2,00,00,000 NIL department as well as its accep12 NON EXISTING PROJECTS 5 Rs. 13,38,00,000 Rs. 13,38,00,000 NIL tance of bearing the risk of ex72 Rs. 522,93,37,000 Rs. 316,62,59,000 Rs. 206,30,78,000 pediting the matter. This is just *** Total Nos. of Project/Scheme – 72 *** Total Sanctioned Amount – Rs. 522,93,37,000/- (Rupees five hundred twenty two Crore, ninety three lakhs, thirty seven thousand) a temporal goodwill gesture of *** Total Amount Released – Rs. 316,62,59,000/- (Rupees three hundred sixteen Crore, sixty two lakhs, fifty nine thousand) the MTLT and hence, any failure to execute the assurance will ne*** Total Balance Amount – Rs. 206,30,78,000/- (Rupees two hundred six Crore, thirty lakhs, seventy eight thousand) cessitate further drastic steps in *** 5 Projects/Schemes unaccounted for an amount of Rs. 13,38,00,000/- (Rupees thirteen Crore, thirty eight lakhs)

the interest of the public,” stated 33/11KV power transformer the MTLT. will be installed in MokokcHowever, the MTLT dehung. PowerGrid of India has clared that it will not withdraw been assigned to execute the its endorsement of the All Ward project by Ministry of Power, Union Mokokchung (AWUM) GOI and not the State Power to withhold electricity bills to Department. Tendering prothe government from July 2016. cess is going on and fully manIt also reiterated wholeheartaged by PowerGrid of India. ed support to the AWUM as to The State Power Department “whatever action the Union will write to PowerGrid to exmight take with regard to the pedite the execution of the power crisis in Mokokchung.” project.

For future reference, the • With regard to the District CoMTLT reminded the Secretary ordination Committee, De(Power) on the lines of its charpartment of Power will take ter of demands. They are: necessary follow-up action as • The 2.5MVA was upgraded to required in compliance with 5 MVA in October 2015. This the IE Act 2003. is in line with the MTLT’s de- • The proposal for exclusive/ mand in 2015. dedicated transmission line for • Additional 33KV transmisMokokchung town is ideal but sion line from 132KV Sub limited resource is an issue.

Station at Aolijen to Mokok- • Detailed report will be shared chung is provisioned in the as the same are being sought NERPSIP scheme funded by from CEs/Division Office GOI and World Bank. with regard to sanction/work • Under NE Region Power Sysorder/payment of 50 lacs to tem Improvement Project Mecavo Power Works as al(NERPSIP) funded by GOI/ leged. No UC is on record with WB two (2) nos. Of 10MVA the Department.

2

tuesDAY 30•08•2016

NAGALAND

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

committee on nh appeals KU to withdraw petition

MEx File Phek-Losami road cleared

the Committee tendered its Mon, August 29 dismay and disapproval over (MExn): The Tobu-Mothe action of KU to “destabipong-Longching Area Joint lize and deliver unfair treatCommittee For NH.702 & ment to the people of the 702B has appealed to the aforementioned areas.”

Konyak Union (KU) to imThe Commitmediately withdraw its petition Threatens non-cooperation tee cautioned that failing to act submitted on June positively on its if Konyak Union fails 15, 2016 requestappeals, the 34 ing the Minister, National High- to act positively on appeals villages and 5 administrative ways, Government of Nagaland to do the by the Union Ministry of Headquarters under three re-mapping of NH.702 on or Road Transport and High- KU Branch will “move for ways has been “put under a non-cooperation against before August 31, 2016.

In a letter to the President, uncertainty with arbitrary the apex KU as per the resoKonyak Union, the Commit- action by means of insisting lution (c) Clause I,II.III) adtee also urged KU to “vehe- to partially divert the NH.702 opted on August 24, 2016.”

The letter was appendmently pursue” for retention to Aopao junction/Aopao of the diverted NH.702B as Changle and inconsider- ed by Aknyu Konyak, Conately neglecting the total di- venor, AM Kaiba Konyak, Governor of Odisha SC Jamir, who is presently in Nagaland, called on Governor PB per the original DPR. The letter lauded the ef- version of NH.702B to Mo- Co-Convenor, and Hong- Acharya at Raj Bhavan, Kohima on August 29, 2016. They discussed different issues fort of the Konyak Union to kokchung district.” For this, naw HA Konyak, Secretary. regarding Nagaland. integrate the Konyaks and its land through all positive means in the past. However, it expressed surprise to learn that the above mentioned highways approved

BJP Mandal, Pughoboto on NPF Youth Wing’s representation

Pughoboto, August 29 (MExn): The BJP Mandal, Pughoboto has responded to the representation of the NPF Central Youth Wing to the Commissioner & Secretary, Health & Family Welfare, Government of Nagaland dated June 6, 2016. The representation demanded termination of all appointments made without Gov-

ernment approval from November 1, 2015 to April 30, 2016 in the Medical department.

While appreciating the action taken by the NPF Central Youth Wing to curb the practice of backdoor appointments, which it acknowledged is a trend in almost all the government departments and needs intervention from all sec-

tions of the society, the BJP Mandal in a press release questioned why the officials of the NPF Central Youth Wing sought for termination of only those appointments made during November 1, 2015 to April 30, 2016.

“Was it for their personal vested interest(s)? Or was there some pressurizing force behind them with

ulterior motives, which compelled them to sought action only for a particular period of time and against one department?” it asked.

Whatever the case may be, the release said, any organizations while taking any steps to check corruption should do so without bias and partiality. “But the action taken by the NPF Central Youth Wing has

created much apprehension in the minds of the people as their target was very specific,” stated the release issued by Jevishe Y. Assumi, Press Secretary and Jevito Achumi, President of BJP Mandal, Pughoboto.

Therefore, BJP Mandal, Pughoboto said it is necessary that the NPF Central Youth Wing come out

PhEk, August 29 (MExn): The PWD road between Losami and Phek, which was blocked by heavy landslide since June 28, has been cleared with the initiative of Losami VDB and Deputy Commissioner, Phek. Various individuals and organisations contributed in the clearance work, informed a press release from Kezuwelo Akami, Village Council Chairman, Losami. It was stated that the landslide caused untold suffering to many travellers as all private vehicles, taxis and heavy truck ply on the said road. The same area was blocked with landside on August 3, 2015, the release added.

Govt extends committee’s tenure kohiMA, August 29 (DiPR): Government of Nagaland has extended the tenure of the committee constituted to examine 33% backward reservation and issue of Indigenous Inhabitant Certificate and Schedule Tribe Certificate to Tikhir till August 31, 2016.

KNSK celebrates Foundation Day Mon, August 29 (DiPR): Konyak Nyupuh Sheko Khong (KNSK) celebrated its 30th Foundation Day on August 28 with SDO (C) Mon, Illika as the guest of honour at KNSK office, Mon. Addressing the gathering, the guest of honour congratulated the founding members of KNSK and also those leaders who have worked tirelessly and contributed towards KNSK over the years. She reminded that education is the key to everything and it needs to start from the family. In this regard, she requested the KNSK leaders to give extra effort to girl education and also urged the women to choose a capable leader and support each other to have a voice. She further encouraged the womenfolk to discover their inner capabilities, shine high and be stronger women.

clearly and make known to the people if they are applying the same yardstick in other Government departments also so as to clear the doubts in the minds of the people. “Otherwise, in the guise of justice, if only certain sections of people Refresher course on new pedagogy are being victimized, it would create more divi- kohiMA, August 29 (MExn): A teachers’ training – sion and misunderstand- ‘Refresher course on new pedagogy’ – was organized by Trinity School, Kohima on August 27 at the school preming amongst the people.” ises. The training was conducted by resource persons from DIET, Chiechama, namely Visedeü, Lecturer, Vikesenuo, Lecturer, Megoriano, Sr. Lecturer, and Kennyühule, Sr. Lecturer. The training was classified into four sessions (topics), Professional Ethics & Professional Growth, human values and dignity.

The ceremony was chaired Mathematics Education, Science Education, and Profiby Zuthungbemo K Ngul- ciency in English. 40 teachers from Trinity School, Kolie, General Secretary, hima and Nagaland Police Central School (NCPS) took part in the training. The programme was chaired by NUSU(L).

Mohammad Ali from Vingosale, invocation prayer was pronounced by MatDepartment of Zoology thew Tsathong, Headmaster, Trinity School. Kevin Solo, and Lemteshi from De- Administrator, Trinity School, delivered the opening repartment of Geography marks, while Kikruvonuo, Headmistress, NCPS, gave the were announced as Mr and closing remarks.

Miss. Fresher 2016 later in the evening session.

Chumukedima Area G.Bs' Association Fresher’s Social in NU, Lumami conducts consultative meetings LuMAMi, August 29 (MExn): Nagaland University Students’ Union, Lumami (NUSU(L)) celebrated the 19th varsity campus Fresher’s Social on August 24 with NPCC President, K. Therie as the chief guest.

Therie urged the students to avoid bribery, corruption, while requesting them to be honest and be true to

Members of Chumukedima Area G.Bs' Association during the consultative meeting at Padumpukhuri on August 24.

DiMAPuR, August 29 (MExn): With a view to promote co-ordination and understanding among the member villages for all round development of the area, the officials of Chumukedima Area G.Bs' Association held consultative meeting with all the 58 constituent villages.

The interactive meetings, held in four phases, started on August 3 at Diphupar 'A' with participation of 15 villages followed by Seluophe Village

on August 10 with 11 villages, Chumukedima Town on August 17 with 13 villages, and Padumpukhuri on August 24 with 19 villages.

During the interactions, members expressed the need to closely work collectively to bring the people of the area together, setting aside tribalism, considering the fact that the area being within the District Administrative Headquarters is home to all the tribes of Nagaland, stated a press release from the Association. The

meeting also stressed on the need to collectively work towards ushering in peace and maintaining public order in the area, it added.

It was resolved that a general body meeting will be held at the earliest to chalk out plans and find ways and means to develop the area through proper coordination of the member villages.

The release was issued

by Tokishe Y. Achumi, President and Atso Gwizan, General Secretary.

themselves. He hoped that honest people will start to emerge from Nagaland.

Meanwhile, Prof. BK Konwar, Vice Chancellor of NU exhorted the students to bring transformation within the country.

Asserting that students are responsible for a better tomorrow, he encouraged the students to popularize

Meetings & Appointments

Stolen phoneS recovered

NCSGEA emergency meet

kohiMA, August 29 (DiPR): Mobile loss or theft is fast becoming a regular affair owing to the increasing penetration of Information Technology into our society. The recently established Cyber Crime Police Station, which is based at the Police Headquarters, Kohima, has informed that in the past two weeks, 6 mobile phones have been recovered based on complaints received from the public. Nagaland Police has cautioned against re-

Committee on Government Assurances

Police caution against buying/receiving or using stolen phones ceiving/buying or using stolen mobile phones, which is an offence under the Indian Penal Code, let alone stealing of them.

The PRO of Nagaland Police, M. Tungoe, IPS, informed that for any assistance regarding lost/stolen mobile phones, the public may contact 09485239076 or 07085377565 or nagalandpolice16@gmail.com or www.facebook.com/Nagalandpolice with their IMEI number or last used phone number for recovery. Police

has further advised the public to note down their IMEI numbers and keep them in some place safe.

The IMEI number may be obtained through the following ways: Type in the short code *#06# on your mobile phone and press the call key; Remove the battery from your mobile phone and look for the code on the back of your device; Check the purchase receipt or warranty paper or the box containing the device.

All the office bearers and tribal executive council members of Nagaland Civil Secretariat Grade IV Staff Employees’ Association (NCSGEA) have been informed that there will be an emergency meeting on August 31, 10:00 am at the association’s office room near PHE Department Secretariat to discuss various issues regarding Grade-IV staffs. A press note issued by Y. Shakam Chempang, President NCSGEA, has requested all the members to attend the meeting without fail.

N. Thomas Lotha, MLA and Chairman of the Committee on Government Assurances (2016-2017) has fixed the committee’s first introductory meeting and adoption of the 90th & 91st Main Reports of the Committee on Government Assurances (2016-201 7) on September 1, 11:00 am in the Committee Room of Assembly Secretariat. All members of the Committee on Government Assurances have been requested to attend the meeting positively.

‘Media highly important for churches & ministries’ HIV/AIDS training held for DYRS officials

DiMAPuR, August 29 (MExn): Way2kingdom (W2K) media ministry organized a media workshop under the theme ‘Media highly important for churches & ministries’ for the youth department of Nagamese Church Kuda Village, Nagarjan on August 27.

Dilip Kujur, Founder and Director of W2K, was the main resource person for the workshop. In the past, Dilip has also conducted related media workshop in different churches around Dimapur Town, informed a press release received here.

Dilip talked about calling, talents & gift of God, media language, media literacy, negative & positive effects of media, understanding media in biblical way and its importance in churches and ministries.

According to the release, Dilip is also working on another workshop on the topic “Addiction on social media, internet & online games”. This workshop is designed for school and college students. Schools and colleges interested in the workshop can contact +917308602867/ way2kingdom@ gmail.com

Youth of Nagamese Church Kuda Village along with their pastor, Mosed and Dilip Kujur on August 27.

kohiMA, August 29 (MExn): A one-day sensitization and training on HIV/AIDS was held for the Department of Youth Resources and Sports (DYRS) officials on August 24. Conducted at the conference hall of the Directorate of Youth Resources and Sports in Kohima, the training was jointly organized by Nagaland State AIDS Control Society (NSACS) and Directorate of Youth Resources and Sports.

In her welcome address, Asangla Imti, Director, Department of Youth Resources and Sports said that youth is the most important section of population, and therefore the involvement of the Department is essential in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Stating that the Department of YR&S is the appropriate forum for NSACS to co-ordinate and create awareness, she requested the NSACS officials to work with five of the six wings under the Department of YR&S, namely, the NSS, NYKS, Bharat Scouts & Guides, NCC, and Music Task Force. She also urged the Youth Resources and Sports officials to address the issue in their annu-

al calendar.

The training covered current HIV scenario and various services available in the state, basics of HIV and AIDS and stigma & discrimination, need for mainstreaming of HIV and AIDS programme, experiences and joint activities undertaken in the field of HIV prevention and discussion on the need for strengthening of Joint Working Group for Youth on HIV and AIDS. The resource persons included Dr. Bernice D. Thapru, Joint Director (TI) NSACS, Dr. Mehokhu Zao, SMO, ART Plus Centre, NHAK, C. Theyo, State NSS Officer, Youth Resources and Sports, Metevinuo Sakhrie, Joint Director (IEC) NSACS, and Ainato Yeptho, Asst. Director (YA) NSACS .

The training concluded with vote of thanks by Tarepnokcha Jamir, Dy. Director (MST), NSACS. Altogether, 42 participants comprising of officers of the Directorate of YR&S, sports coaches of various disciplines, officials of NSS, NCC, Youth Resource officials and Sports officials attended the programme.

(LEFT) Students of Immanuel College, Lingrijan, Dimapur showcasing various cultural performances before the National Assessment and Accreditation Class 10 students of Christian Hr. Sec. School, Dimapur went on an off campus study tour to Council (NAAC) team comprising Prof. Mohammad Raziuddin as (Chairperson), Prof. E Ramganesh as (Member Coordinator), and Dr. M Naga Raju (MemCement Corporation of India, Bokajan, Assam on August 27. The tour was carried out under ber) at the college premise on August 29. The team arrived at the college on August 29 for three-day evaluation and assessment for NAAC accreditation. the topic 'Manufacturing Industries'.

(RIGHT) The NAAC team lighting a lamp before the programme. (Morung Photo)

TuesDAY 30•08•2016

NORTH-EAST

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

3

NPF MLa’s residence attacked in Imphal Newmai News Network Imphal | August 29

A

bomb explosion took place here at the private residence of a Naga People's Front (NPF) legislator in the wee hours of Monday, but there were no human causalities.

Police said some miscreants triggered the blast at the Deulahlane (Imphal) private residence of Naga People’s Front (NPF) legislator Samuel Risom around 1 am. The explosion has done some damage to the adjoining house and a car parked in the garage.

The police said they are

investigating the incident.

No group has claimed responsibility so far.

In 2014, militants exploded a hand grenade at the residential gate of legislator Samuel Risom representing Ukhrul constituency. One person had sustained injuries in the explosion.

Lawyer-turned politician, Samuel was not available for comments.

NPF has four MLAs in the 60-member Manipur Assembly, but they resigned en masse at the height of the tribal protest against the three "anti tribal bills" passed by the Manipur state assembly in August last year.

North east Briefs Facebook post attracts FIR in Mizoram aizawL, august 29 (NNN): A facebook post has attracted an FIR in Mizoram. Two most powerful student bodies in Mizoram, Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) and Mizo Students’ Union (MSU) have filed FIR with Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) against private school teacher for allegedly making baseless allegation and defamatory post on social networking site.

The FIR was filed against H. Lallianmawia alias Mawia HL or Mawitea, who is an assistant manager cum smart class coordinator in Educom company and presently working at Divine Intervention School, Luangmual.

In a Facebook post, Mawitea had slammed the student bodies for the alleged "resistance" of the move to honour Khaungchera (Mizo) as an "Indian freedom fighter" and burning the effigy of state BJP president Prof JV Hluna for allegedly spearheading the move to honour Khuangchera. Mawitea also accused some MZP and MSU leaders of taking Rs 1 lakh as bribe from a political party during the agitation.

Reacting to the allegation, the student bodies said it was baseless and a complete lie and "therefore viewed as an attempt to distort the reputation of the two student bodies".

A statement issued by the student bodies said that they have been working relentlessly for the welfare of Mizo people and good system and added that any attempt to disgrace the student bodies by making baseless allegation shall be strongly dealt with. The student body in a statement also said that they have filed FIR with the chief judicial magistrate to find out the truth and asked the authority to make "massive efforts" in unveiling the truth behind the allegation and take appropriate disciplinary action against Mawitea.

Second round of Hmar peace talks in September aizawL, august 29 (Pti): The second round of peace talks between the Mizoram government and Manipur-based Hmar People's Convention (Democratic) will be held in September, officials said today.

The two sides have agreed to hold parleys in Aizawl in mid-September, but may defer the talks to third week of the month if any unavoidable circumstances come up, they said. The first round of the talks was held here on August 10 which, according to the officials, ended on an optimistic note with both the sides expressing sincerity to find amicable solution to the Hmar imbroglio. HPC(D), formed soon after the Mizoram government and the original outfit HPC signed an agreement in 1994, has been demanding a separate autonomous district council under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution by carving out areas adjoining Manipur.

NPF demands action from Manipur State govt Kohima, august 29 (mExN): Naga People’s Front (NPF) Central has condemned the attack on the residence of NPF MLA Samuel Risom and the party office in Imphal and called for immediate action from the Manipur State Government. In a condemnation note, NPF Press Bureau stated that such senseless acts of threat to the people should not be viewed complacently. It further appealed to the authority concerned to expedite immediate befitting action and provide impartial security. “This kind of lawless and excessive social menace must be curbed with utmost austerity by concerned authorities and stringent measures be affected to root out all such evil designed lawlessness, and thepeople be allowed to toil in peace,” NPF stated.

Meanwhile, the Manipur unit of NPF said it strongly condemned the explosion at the legislator Samuel Risom’s residence and party office at Deulahlane today.

A statement released by party general secretary Honreikhui Kashung said, “Such lawlessness can no longer be tolerated.”

It ridiculed the "irresponsible remarks" of Congress MLA K Ranjit Singh, who is also the treasurer of Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), "against NPF terming it as the frontal group and political wing of NSCN (IM)" during a public meeting on August 28.

“He (Ranjit) should

siLiguRi, august 29 (Et): Politics is pushing Darjeeling's ground level problems to back bench. If not managed well immediately, these problems can ruin the approaching festive season travel business of the tourism hotspot.

The political temperature in the hills is shooting up mainly due to the power tussle between Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) and TMC. GJM, the de-facto term dictator in hills on practically everything, is desperate to save its own existence by arresting departure of its leaders. On the other side, TMC, the ruling party in Bengal that does not have strong ground level support base in hills, is desperate to grab administrative power there by taking departing GJM leaders under own clutch.

But this political game has thrown many important issues out of attention of the policy makers.

"Our Government has made Darjeeling smile with overall development," said TMC Supremo and state CM Mamata Banerjee.

But the ground reality remained different.

Entire Darjeeling hills and foothills in West Bengal are highly dependent on tourism business worth around 350 crore per annum. "Festive season, that begins on 15th September, is too important to us. Usually it contributes around 30% to our annual business here," said senior travel advisor Raj Basu.

But, both of the two main road links of the hill stations are closed.

It is taking even 8-9 hours to reach Darjeeling through alternate routes from the nearest gateway town Siliguri. Those routes are also not very stable and often get cut off.

Water is another age old crisis of Darjeeling. Despite many up-

Meghalaya Court records statement of former Bangladesh Minister shiLLoNg, august 29 (iaNs): A court in Meghalaya on Monday recorded the statement of former Bangladesh Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, who was arrested here for trespassing into India on May 11, 2015.

"The court of first class judicial magistrate D. Sohtun has recorded the statement of Ahmed under section 313 of CrPC. He (Ahmed) has submitted to the Court to allow him to submit his list of defence witnesses," Public Prosecutor I.C. Jha told IANS after the hearing. In the past hearings, the court had recorded the statement of ten witnesses, including two doctors from the Civil Hospital. Ahmed, Communications Minister during the government of Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Khaleda Zia from 200106, was arrested on May 11

85 Martyr's Day of Haipou Jadonang observed

after people alerted authorities about some suspicious movements by a man in an area here. Police have registered a case against him under the Foreigners Act on charges of illegally entering India after he failed to produce his travel documents.

He also did not have any papers to prove his identity and citizenship. After his arrest, Ahmed has been admitted in various hospitals here, besides at Medanta, Gurgaon, for his various illnesses.

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No. 330 (56) I MRS. KUPEUNA W/o ILETLUNG a resident of DUNGKI, PO & PS Jalukie, Peren Dist. Nagaland hereby declare that the names KUPEUNA and KUPEUNA I is of same person. I hereby declare that my correct name is KUPEUNA and shall be used for all official purposes in the future.

Deponent 1st Class Magistrate

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No. 330(56) I, Mr. Iletlung S/o Sampubak a resident of DUNGKI, PO & PS Jalukie, Peren Dist. Nagaland hereby declare that the names Iletlung and Iletlung Iluheing is of same person. I hereby declare that my correct name is ILETLUNG and shall be used for all official purposes in the future.

Deponent 1st Class Magistrate

People paying floral tribute at Jadonang Park in Imphal on August 29.

sion. It will be passed in the assembly and so I seek support from all sections to ensure timely approval of the propose bill from the Centre,” he further appealed.

He urged upon all concerned to perform burial service of the nine people whose bodies are still lying in the mortuary of Churachandpur District Government Hospital. They were killed by security forces during protest that erupted following the passing of three "anti-tribal bills" in the state assembly in August last year. The tribal people have maintained such bills as ‘anti-tribal.’

On the occasion, Deputy Mayor of Imphal Municipal Council Maibon Phaomei, chairman of Haipou

public,” the NPF, Manipur unit statement accused.

It said the Congress government should own up responsibility and apologise to the public for the ‘barbaric act.’

NPF said the “cowardly act” committed by any group or individual needs to be condemned by all right thinking citizens,

Politics is pushing Darjeeling’s ground level problems out of focus

th

imPhaL, august 29 (mExN): The 85th Martyr's Day of Haipou Jadonang was observed today at various places in Manipur. The main programme was organised at Haipou Jadonang Park in Imphal (Keisampat) by the Haipou Jadonang Statue & Park Development Committee, Manipur.

The day was observed in commemoration of the hanging of Haipou Jadonang by the then colonial British on this day in 1931. Jadonang was one of the leaders who opposed the British rule in the region.

Manipur Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam, who was present at the event, led the other participants in paying floral tributes to the statue of the legendary freedom fighter.

A two-minute silence was observed as a mark of homage to the departed soul of Haipou Jadonang.

Gaikhangam in his speech made a fervent appeal to the people protesting against ILP related bills to withdraw their stand.

“The government will soon be tabling a new bill to safeguard the indigenous people of the state in the ensuing assembly ses-

know that NPF is a recognised political party in Manipur which is growing from strength to strength.

The remarks has proved that the Congress government headed by Okram Ibobi Singh seems to be instigating miscreants to carry out such crimes at his will and creating hatred amongst the general

Jadonang Statue & Park Development Committee, Manipur Ph Thambaljao and member of Manipur State Women Commission Rajita Golmei and several people from the Zeliangrong community were present.

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No: 1537/16 Dated: 29th Aug. 2016 I, Shri. Viyito Sema, R/o.

H.No: 148, Civil Defence & Nagaland Home Guard, Toluvi Purana Bazar, Dimapur: Nagaland do hereby solemnly declare and affirm that I have changed my former name Viyito N Sumi to Viyito Sema and shall be used in all purpose in the future.

AFFIDAVIT

Regd. No: 1787/2016

Dated: 29/08/2016

I, Mr. Asakho @ Ashihrii Asakho, Son of Mr. Ashihrii, permanent resident of Makhan Khullen, Senapati, Manipur and presently residing at 4th Mile, Dimapur, Nagaland do hereby solemnly affirm on oath and declare :1. That, I am a bonafide and law abiding citizen of India.

2. That my name is entered as Shri. Asakho at staff selection Commisssion (SSC CAPF SI). Whereas my real and actual Christened name is Ashihrii Asakho which has been recorded and registered in all my educational documents which is true and correct.

3. That however for my future correspondences and convenience, I hereby declare that I shall be known and recognized by my real and actual name Shri. Ashihrii Asakho.

Sworn and declared before me.

Deponent Notary Public, Nagaland

gradations, the water infrastructure created long back can hardly suffice the need of highly grown up populace. During the tourism season, the shortage increases manifold.

Sanitation and garbage management of Darjeeling also demands immediate attention before the festive season when the city becomes crowded with visitors.

If not taken care of immediately, these will make the visitors leave Darjeeling with negative opinion and that will ruin tourist arrival in next seasons.

But most importantly, any major turmoil like bandh or scuffle between political rivals now will initiate cancellation of bookings of the tourists. That will be difficult too for us to handle.

"Hope political leaders will keep all these in mind," said tour operators.

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No. 107 I, MR. DILIA S/o RANGTHI a resident of DUNGKI, PO & PS Jalukie, Peren Dist.

Nagaland hereby declare that the names DILIA and DILIA ELUNGHEING I is of same person. I hereby declare that my correct name is DILIA and shall be used for all official purposes in the future.

Deponent 1st Class Magistrate

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No. 120 I, MR. HUTALAKBO S/o a resident of NZAU, PO & PS Jalukie, Peren Dist. Nagaland hereby declare that the names HUTALAKBO and HUTALAK is of same person.

I hereby declare that my correct name is HUTALAKBO and shall be used for all official purposes in the future.

Deponent 1st Class Magistrate

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No.127 I, Mr. Kedibamgum s/o Iteibe resident of New Jalukie PO & PS Jalukie, Peren Dist.

Nagaland hereby declare that the names Kedibamgum and Kedibangumbe is of same person. I hereby declare that my correct name is Kedibamgum and shall be used for all official purposes in the future.

adding the party which has been fighting for the rights and justice for the people has no grudge with any individual or party and is ready to deliberate on any issue of the state rather than resorting to cowardly acts.

The party reminded that the Autonomous District Council (ADC) chairmen of Senapati, Ukhrul and Tamenglong districts have requested the government time and again that security protection be provided to them but

the demand has remained neglected.

It said the Congress Autonomous District Council (ADC) chairmen and members are provided adequate security protection by the government which is another clear example that the Manipur government under Ibobi is “communal.”

It warned, “If any untoward incidents happen to NPF led District Council chairmen and members and the setup, the government shall be held responsible for it.”

DECLARATION

Mr. Shanjothung alias Angoto who has been residing with me has left the house at his own will and risk. Henceforth, I shall not be responsible for any of his deeds, robbery, loan etc.

KHOTOVI SEMA

OFFICE OF THE

PFUTSEROMI VILLAGE COUNCIL PHEK: NAGALAND

APPRECIATION

The Pfutseromi Village extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation to the visiting team of NSCN/ GPRN under the leadership of Mr.K.Chawang, Convenor,CFMG for taking the initiative in organising a consultative meeting of the Tenyimia leaders at Pfutseromi Village on 24th August. 2016. The meeting briefed the public and elaborated on the latest political development of the ongoing peace talk between the NSCN (IM) and the Government of India (GOI).

While appreciating the NSCN Government for clarifying our doubts, the Pfutseromi Village also wish and pray that the Almighty God would grant long life to the Ato Kilonser and his team, and also the Tenyimia leaders, so as to bring about a lasting and an acceptable solution to the Nagas at the earliest, thereby fulfilling the aspiration of the Naga people.

Neikhwetso Mero, Chairman

HUMAN BONDINGS BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES OF NORTH EAST Good works should always be appreciated. It is late but better late than never. So the Yimchungru Women Organisation(YWO) highly appreciate M.S. Col. Chahal the ex. C.O. of 15 Assam Rifles Shamator for his timely support and guidance towards the Naga students of Lovely Professional University, Jalandar at the time of the Naga students accident at Ambala on 09/08/2016.

The three Naga students of LPU along with two Naga students of Delhi boarded the ill fated taxi from Delhi for its destination to Jalandar. The taxi was passing through the area of Kurukshitra (NH- 1A) which banged into another vehicle and the casualty resulted in the spot death of both the drivers and two students. The other three students were seriously injured. One of the local man took the initiative of checking their mobiles and contacted one of the students of LPU and passed on a very scanty information.

The students understood there was a serious accident but did not know the location and the details of the students. Feeling totally helpless and confused one of the Yimchunger student of LPU contacted Col. M.S. Chahal the ex. commandant of 15 A.R. Shamator who was always ready to help and a true friend of Nagas when he was in Nagaland. As and when he was informed of the incident he acted upon immediately and arranged to evacuate the injured to the nearest hospital and also arranged the dead bodies to be taken to the civil hospital in Kurukshitra.

After which he informed the details of the injured and dead to the students of LPU. The next day he and his wife visited the patients and extended further support and guidance. This would be one of the rare examples of carrying on a true human relationship and displaying selflessness for the cause of humanity. We are extremely grateful for such action of kindness that helps saving lives of the injured students. This proved the fact that Assam Rifles are not only friends of the hill people in NE but also the relationship extends beyond the boundaries of North east.

Alula Z Thsanso, President YWO

Deponent 1st Class Magistrate

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

DIRECTORATE OF SCHOOL EDUCATION NAGALAND: KOHIMA

NO.ED/SCHO/PMS-4/2015-16

Dated Kohima, the 29th August 2016

NOTIFICATION ON PRE-MATRIC SCHOLARSHIP SCHEME UNDER MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

The Directorate of School Education would like to serve this notice as final information to all the students and Institutions that:1. The Govt. of India has directed all the States and Union Territories to on-board into the National Scholarship Portal i.e. http://scholarships.gov.in compulsorily.

2. Aadhar number has been made mandatory therefore all the scholarship beneficiaries are asked to link their Aadhar Number with their Bank Account through their respective Banks.

3. The last date for online submission of application has been extended up to 30th Sept.2016.

4. Supporting documents for Pre-Matric Scholarship (Minorities) are to be kept at the Institutional level for verification and record, Documents to be submitted to the Institutions are as below:a) Domicile/Residential Certificate. b) Students Photograph. c) Institution verification Form. d) Self declaration of Income Certificate by the students. e) Self declaration of Minority Community/Religion Certificate by the students. f) Self attested certificate of previous academic mark sheet. g) Admission and Fee Receipt of current year course. h) Proof of Bank Account in the name of student. i) Scanned copy of Aadhar Card.

5. Institutions within Nagaland are directed to obtain their respective USER ID and PASSWORD from the Directorate of School Education.

6. Institutions have to verify the documents submitted by the students using their given USER ID and PASSWORD. 7. The following numbers may be contacted for any information during office hours only. a) 9436064560 b) 8974813848 (WONTHUNGO TSOPOE) ADDL. DIRECTOR (HOD).

4

TuesdAY 30•08•2016

business

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Upheaval, blockade push Nepal’s trade deficit to new records KATHMANDU, AUgUsT 29 (ReUTeRs): Nepal’s trade deficit grew to a record $6.5 billion in the financial year to mid-July, an increase of 2 percent, as political upheaval, a blockade of its border with India and the lack of industrial development all weighed on foreign trade.

Exports fell by 17.8 percent to $655.3 million while imports grew by 0.1 percent to $7.2 billion in the year, data from the central Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) showed, making grim reading for the Himalayan nation as it tries to recover from two earthquakes last year that killed 9,000 people and caused extensive damage.

Landlocked Nepal depends chiefly on India for transit of overland cargo to third countries.

But movement of goods came to a near halt for five months as trucks were held

A shopkeeper closes his shop as opposition supporters (not pictured) chanting slogans protest against the proposed constitution during a nationwide strike, called by the opposition parties in Kathmandu, Nepal September 20, 2015. REUTERS

up at the border due to protests by ethnic minority Madhesis, objecting to a new constitution, that left more than 50 dead before

Airtel cuts data prices, launches innovative packs for pre-paid users New DelHi, AUgUsT 29 (AgeNcies): Country’s top mobile operator Bharti Airtel has launched a set of innovative data packs for its pre-paid customers allowing them to save on data costs substantially on subsequent recharges.

Airtel has launched a Rs 1,498 pack which offers 1GB 4G/3G data upfront with a validity of 28 days. Post exhaustion of this data limit, the customer can have 1GB 4G/3G recharges for Rs 51 over a period of 12 months. There is no limit on the number of recharges during the period.

Similarly, the Rs 748 pack offers 1GB 4G/3G data upfront and post exhaustion of this data limit, customers can get 1GB 4G/3G recharges for Rs 99 over a period of six months.

Ajai Puri, Director – Operations (India & South Asia), Bharti Airtel said, “With these innovative packs, we are redefining the value proposition on our data packs and allowing our customers get a lot more within the same budget.”

These prepaid packs are live in Delhi currently and will get launched across circles by August 31, 2016.

Jio Preview Offer now on Sony, Videocon and Sansui smartphones Meanwhile, Popular smartphone brands Sony, Videocon and Sansui on Monday announced to partner with Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited to make the Jio Preview Offer available on their 4G smartphones.Consumers buying these 4G smartphones can avail the Jio Preview Offer at all Reliance Digital stores including Digital Xpress and Digital Xpress Mini.

As part of the offer, customers can enjoy unlimited access to Jio services for 90 days from the activation of Jio SIM. Jio’s 4G-LTE services include unlimited HD voice calls and video calls, unlimited SMS, unlimited highspeed data and a host of Jio Premium apps such as JioPlay, JioOnDemand, JioBeats, JioMags, JioXpressNews, JioDrive, JioSecurity and JioMoney.

ending in February.

“If the deficit was due to rising imports of capital goods and machinery for productive purposes

it would not make much difference,” said Shankar Pandey, a member of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Com-

merce and Industry. “But our trade gap is caused by increasing imports of consumer goods which is alarming,” he told Reuters.

Nepal’s reliance on imports of raw materials saps the competitiveness of export industries like garments and carpets - making them up to 40 percent more expensive than products from Bangladesh, China or India, say business officials.

Investors have steered clear of the impoverished country, deterred by a lack of market information and revolving door politics that has seen eight changes of government in as many years since the abolition of the monarchy in 2008.

The widening trade deficit also reflects a shift by entrepreneurs from manufacturing to trading that entails fewer business risks and brings higher profits,

Vijay Mallya deliberately didn’t disclose full assets: Banks to Supreme Court New DelHi, AUgUsT 29 (PTi): A consortium of banks including SBI on Monday told the Supreme Court that beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya had deliberately not made full disclosure of his assets including $40 million which he received in February from a British firm.

Attorney general Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the consortium of banks, told a bench of justices Kurian Joseph and RF Nariman that Mallya has not disclosed the amount which he received in February while he had filed the reply in March.

The attorney general said that as per the Supreme Court rules, Mallya has to appear before the court after a notice has been served upon him in a contempt petition.

Rohatgi said that since Mallya had not been granted exemption from appearance, he should not be heard anymore.

Senior advocate CS Vaidyanathan, appearing for Mallya, told the bench that they have filed a petition for recall of apex court’s earlier order and said that no contempt has been made.

He also said that the apex court’s earlier order to disclose the assets has been complied with.

The bench then asked the attorney general to file a response to Mallya’s petition for recall of its earlier order and posted the matter on September 27.

Earlier, on July 25, the apex court had issued notice to Mallya on plea of consortium of banks which alleged that he had not disclosed his full assets including $40 million received by him from a British firm.

The apex court, after noting the submissions by attorney general, had issued notice to Mallya and asked him to respond.

On July 14, Rohatgi claimed that Mallya had provided wrong details of his assets in a sealed cover to the apex court.

He further said a lot of information had also been concealed, including a cash transaction to the tune of Rs 2500 crore, which amounted to contempt of court.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had sought details of assets from Mallya in a sealed cover.

Recently, the consortium of banks had alleged that Mallya was not cooperating in the investigation of cases against him and was averse to disclosing his foreign assets.

In a rejoinder affidavit to Mallya’s

leisure

ACROSS 1. Tucks away 6. Valuable metal 10. “Darn!”

14. Hearing-related 15. Chocolate cookie 16. Hawkeye State 17. Commencement ceremony 19. Knife 20. Sign up 21. French for “Summer” 22. Spring 23. Reddish brown 25. Heart artery 26. A Maori club 30. Courtyard 32. Tilting 35. Slang for infantryman 39. Mysterious 40. Chest 41. Walks unsteadily 43. Public toilet 44. Group of three 46. Makes lace 47. Water balloon sound 50. Slander 53. Relating to urine 54. Vigor 55. Providing 60. “Gee!” 61. Frugal 63. Competent 64. Anagram of “Note” 65. Run away to wed 66. Marsh plant 67. Winter precipitation 68. Feel DOWN 1. Wise one 2. Change direction 3. By mouth 4. Dry riverbed 5. Partially melted snow 6. Snagged 7. The far east 8. Body suit

CROSSWORD # 3698

MUMbAi, AUgUsT 29 (iANs): Reserve Bank of Governor (RBI) Raghuram Rajan on Monday ruled out any further interest rate cuts till such time the inflation came down to the comfort zone, and once again asked commercial banks to lower the cost of credit to their customers.

“Inflation projections are still at the upper limits of RBI’s inflation objective,” Rajan said in his last Governor’s Foreword to Annual Report released here, referring to the government-mandated level of 4 per cent annual retail inflation, plus or minus 2 percentage points.

“With the Reserve Bank needing to balance savers’ desire for positive real interest rates with corporate investors’ and retail borrowers’ need for low nominal borrowing rates, the room to cut policy rates can emerge only if inflation is projected to fall further,” he said.

In any case, the task of taking a call on the interest rates is to be handed over to a new Monetary Policy Committee, that will comprise three representatives from the central bank -- including the RBI Governor as its chair -- and three others to be chosen by the government.

Rajan also said the willingness of commercial banks to cut lending rates was muted, since the level of corporate investment had reduced the volume and scope of new profitable loans for banks. The stressed assets of the lenders was also preventing them from taking fresh exposures freely.

As regards growth, he said, while the economy was showing signs of picking up, it was still below the levels that the country was capable of.

“The key weakness is in investment, with private corporate investment subdued because of low capacity utilisation, and public investment slow in rolling out in some sectors,” said Rajan, who is scheduled to demit office on September 4 and hand over the reins to Deputy Governor Urjit Patel.

SUDOKU

Simple Rules - There is just one simple rule: “Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.”

Game Number # 3684

Answer Number # 3683

The Raven ANgELS BEAk BEgUILINg BIRd BLACk BLEAk BURNINg BUST ChAmBER CROAkINg dARkNESS dECEmBER dOOR dREAmS dREARY EBONY ENTRANCE EYES FEAThER FIENd FLITTINg FLUTTER FOwL ghASTLY gRIm hEART hORROR LATTICE LENORE LORE

reply, the banks had said that disclosure of overseas assets by him and his family was significant for recovering the dues.

Rohatgi had earlier said that the beleaguered businessman has also not agreed to deposit “substantial amount” as part of of Rs 9,400 crore loan due on him to establish his bonafide”.

Mallya had said the banks had no right over information regarding his overseas movable and immovable assets as he was an NRI since 1988.

He had also claimed that as an NRI, he was not obliged to disclose his overseas assets, and added that his wife and three children, all US citizens, also need not disclose their assets.

The court on April 7 had directed Mallya to disclose by April 21 the total assets owned by him and his family in India and abroad while seeking an indication from him when he would appear before it.

It had asked Mallya, who owes over Rs 9,000 crore to around 17 banks, to deposit a “substantial amount” with it to “prove his bonafide” that he was “serious” about meaningful negotiations and settlement.

Daily Cross WorD

Rajan rules out rate cuts unless inflation tamed

Reserve Bank of Governor (RBI) Raghuram Rajan. (File Photo)

Commerce Department official Hari Narayan Belbase said.

“There is no entrepreneurship, manufacturing is hit by energy shortages and trade unions,” he said.

Exports carry no duty except a nominal service charge.

Traditionally, Nepal has been able to bridge its trade gap with remittances from millions of workers abroad who have helped keep its overall balance of payment in surplus.

Workers’ remittances increased by 7.7 percent and stood at $6.2 billion during the year, the central bank said.

“The government is basking in remittances and export promotion is not its priority,” said Anup Malla, who exports handmade woollen carpets.

“There is no encouragement to exporters.”

mAIdEN mELANChOLY mIdNIghT mORTAL mYSTERY NAmELESS NAPPINg NEPENThE NEVERmORE OmINOUS PALLAS PALLId PERChEd PLACId PLUmE PLUTONIAN PROPhET QUAFF QUOTh RAdIANT RAPPINg RAVEN RUSTLINg ShAdOw ShUTTER SOUL TAPPINg VISITOR wEARY wINd

W

o

R

D

S

E

9. Accomplished 10. Soreness 11. Turbine part 12. Expect 13. Small drum 18. Consumed food 24. Henpeck 25. A quantity of no importance (archaic) 26. ___ du jour = Meal of the day 27. Relating to aircraft 28. Diplomacy 29. Uncommitted 31. Greek letter 33. Unreactive 34. Roman emperor 36. operatic solo 37. Camber 38. X X X X 42. Semiconducting material 43. Chemist’s workplace 45. A loose robe 47. Sweetener 48. Investigate 49. Fine thread 51. Conceit 52. Not lemons 54. Ex-servicemen 56. Wicked 57. Computer symbol 58. Short sleeps 59. Delight 62. Not used ANSwER TO CROSSwORd 3697

RBi employees to join sept 2 industrial strike KolKATA, AUgUsT 29 (PTi): Reserve Bank of India workers and employees have decided to join the September 2 nationwide day-long strike called by central trade unions. All India Reserve Bank Employees’ Association (AIRBEA) and All India Reserve Bank Workers’ Federation in a joint statement said: “Reserve Bank employees all over the country will participate in September 2 industrial strike in support of the demands of the country’s working class.” On March 30, central trade unions including INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, among others, had given a call for a day-long nationwide strike on September 2 to protest against the Modi government’s “unilateral labour reforms and anti-worker policies”.

AIRBEA general secretary Samir Ghosh said the strike will be a total success as RBI officers are in moral support for the cause and are likely to abstain from work. “Many important works of RBI have been outsourced or eliminated like public debt management. RBI’s powers to decide country’s monetary policy, which was its exclusive preserve since inception is being abrogated by the mechanism of a Monetary Policy Committee where government will hold sway,” he said. In the name of recapitalisation of banks suffering from huge bad debt to corporates, government plans to drain out RBI Reserve Fund of Rs 2 lakh crore overriding RBI objections and crippling RBI financially, he claimed.

Admission open

NABA BOYS HOSTEL Limited Seat Walkable distance to PCC,Pranab, SD Jain, Burma Camp opp. FUN CINEMAS Contact: 8974760600,8014326311,9862887362

EXCEL COACHING & COMPUTER CENTRE Regd. No .HOME-SRC/6646

kOhImA

Mission Road, Near North Police Station Ph: 0370-2290672, 9863143388, 9436071373

dImAPUR

City Tower, Near Lotha Church Ph: 03862-248030, 9436830572, 9436831033

Admission started for:

-NPSC/UPSC (Prelims- 2016-17) Repeaters: Class X (All Subject) Class XII (Arts, Sci., Comm.)

• SCC, Banking, Railways, etc.

• Medical/Engineering (2016-17) – NEET-II/AIPMT, JEE • Computer Courses : CCA,DCA,DTP, PGDCA, Tally • Spoken English & Hindi, Soft Skill • CBSE/NBSE Tuition: Class-VIII to X & XI-XII (Arts & Comm. & Sci.) • Stenography & Typewriting • Music : Piano, Guitar, Violin HOSTEL AVAILABLE FOR BOTH BOYS & GIRLS

dImAPUR Civil Hospital:

STd COdE: 03862 232224; Emergency229529, 229474

MH Hospital: Faith Hospital:

227930, 231081 228846

Shamrock Hospital

228254

Zion Hospital:

231864, 224117, 227337

Police Control Room

228400

Police Traffic Control

232106

East Police Station West Police Station

227607 232181

CIHSR (Referral Hospital)

242555/ 242533

Dimapur hospital

224041, 248011

Apollo Hospital Info Centre:

230695/ 9402435652

Railway:

131/228404

Indian Airlines

229366

Chumukedima Fire Brigade Nikos Hospital and Research Centre

282777 232032, 231031

MoKoKCHUNG: 0369-2226225/ 101 (o) 8415830232 (oC)

Nagaland Multispecialty Health & Research Centre

248302, 09856006026

PHEK: 8414853765 (o) 8413822476(oC)

kOhImA

Police Control Room: North Police Station: South Police Station: Fire Brigade: Naga Hospital: oking Hospital: Bethel Nursing Home: Northeast Shuttles

DIMAPUR: 03862-232201/ 101 (o) 9856156876 (oC) CHUMUKEDIMA: 7085982102 (o) 8732810051 (oC) wOkhA: 03860242215/101 (o) 8974322879 (oC)

100/2244279 2222222 2222111 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202 08974997923

MoN: 03869-251222/ 101 (o) 9862130954 (oC) kIPhIRE: 8414853767 (o) 9436261577 (oC) PEREN: 7085189932 (o) 9856311205 (oC) LONgLENg: 7085924113 (o) 9862414264 (oC)

Toll free No. 1098 childline

wE4wOmEN hELPLINE 08822911011

Police Station 2 :

A

R

C

H

zUNHEBoTo: 03867-280304/ 101 (o) 9436422730 (oC) TUENSANG: 8414853766 (o) 9856163601 (oC)

ChILd wELFARE COmmITTEE

Police Station 1:

KoHIMA SoUTH: 0370-2222952/ 101 (o) 9402003086 (oC) KoHIMA NoRTH: 7085924114 (o)

STd COdE: 0370

mOkOkChUNg:

FIRE STATIONS

STd COdE: 0369

9485232688 9485232689

Police Station Kobulong :

9485232690

Police Station Tuli :

9485232693

Police Station Changtongya :

9485232694

Police Station Mangkolemba :

9485232695

Civil Hospital: Woodland Nursing Home:

2226216 2226263

Hotel Metsüpen (Tourist Lodge):

2226373/2229343

TAHAMzAM (formerly Senapati) STD CoDE: 03871 Police Station: Fire Brigade

CURRENCY NOTES

222246 222491

BUY(Rs)

SELL(Rs)

US Dollars Sterling Pound Hong Kong Dollar Australian Dollar Singapore Dollar Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen

65.65 86.06 8.19 49.48 48.19 50.4 63.94

68.61 90.24 9.12 51.90 50.56 52.86 67.54

Euro

73.46

77.01

Thai Baht Korean Won UAE Dirham (AED) Chinese Yuan

1.83

2.04

0.0565

0.063

17.3

19.27

9.5

10.58

TuesdAY 30•08•2016

NAGALAND

AR apprehends NSCN (K) Cadre NCSU Phek expresses resentent Lerie Panchayat appeals over contract and supply order

Dimapur, august 29 (mExN): A NSCN (K) cadre was arrested by a joint team of 9 and 18 Assam Rifles along with representative of Nagaland Police on August 26 at Jalukie Town.

A press note from the Assam Rifles informed that the joint team tracked and arrested him near Veterinary Colony, Jalukie Town after receiving specific information regarding the presence of the cadre.

The AR identified the cadre as Kuria Liegise, an alleged “SS Sgt Maj” of NSCN (K) from Benreu Village under Peren District.

The team also recovered

one 7.65 mm Pistol, three rds, one magazine and six extortion slip of NSCN (K) from his possesion, it said.

During the initial questioning, the cadre revealed

that he is an active member of NSCN (K) and has been working independently at Jalukie, Peren and been receiving orders to collect tax, it added.

Dimapur, august 29 (mExN): Expressing its widespread resentment against those departments awarding contract/supply works without open tender thereby sidelining the standing Government order, the NCSU Phek division has called for implementation the same in both “letter in spirit” Maintaining that even after repeated reminders of Government’s memorandum, the department are flouting the same, Nagaland Contractors and Suppliers Union (NCSU),

Phek division called for immediate halting all such “illegal activities” and said that no contract/ supply works should be awarded to any person without producing NCSU ID cards.

In a press statement, the division President Kuzhosheyi and Secretary Razou Lohe further said that it would henceforth check those departments not adhering to the government standing order and report such illegal practices to the Head Office "so that proper action

could be initiated against defaulting departments."

This is as per the guidelines of the NCSU head office, it added.

Meanwhile, it also expressed gratitude to all the attendees of its general meeting on August 25 at G.A Rest House, Phek and the Deputy Commissioner, Phek Murohu Chotso for allotting same to the Contractors' fraternity.

The Phek Division further reiterated its full support to the NCSU Head Office under the leadership of Pele Khezhie.

SVGEUKD cleans Kiphire Cemetery

Members of SVGEUKD clear the overgrown weeds at Kiphire Cemetery on August 29.

KiphirE, august 29 (mExN): As part of its Social Service Objective, Seyochung Village Government Employee's Union, Kiphire District (SVGEUKD) carried out a cleanliness drive at Kiphire Cemetery in the morning of August 29. About 76

members of the union participated in the cleanliness drive. A press release from SVGEUKD President, Daniel Sechopi Sangtam and General Secretary, K Alipa Sangtam stated that Kiphire Cemetery located at Kipongya Ward has not been maintained for long and is

densely covered with thick bushes and all kinds of weeds. The union took the initiative to clear the jungle voluntarily. The union wished that all concerned stakeholders – wards/ Town Council will take initiative to keep the cemetery properly maintained.

a district level science seminar on the topic “Pulses for sustainable Food security: Prospect and Challenges” was organised by District Education Office, Dimapur at its office premises on August 29. 10 schools under DEO Dimapur competed at the event based on the topic. Kikasangla, a Class X students of St. Stephen Higher Secondary School secured the first position while Hassan, a class X student from Government High School, Lengrijan was bagged the second prize. R Amongla Jamir, DDEO Dimapur also exhorted the gathering.

Development & Entrepreneurship. M. Sangtam, Director. Besides senior officers from the department represented the Government apart from Zynorique Initiatives and YouthNet. The YOCW was initiated after Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang declared 2016 as the ‘Year of Construction Worker’ at the Nagaland Youth Summit held in March this year at Kohima.

“YOCW would prioritize skilling and encouraging the local youths of Nagaland in the construction sector and securing them 100% placement in the lo-

cal market,” a press note from YouthNet informed.

Mmhonlumo Kikon has announced that a Nagaland Construction Academy would be launched and certification curriculum for training of construction workers has also been designed by the Government of Nagaland, it added.

The certificate course for construction workers will begin immediately and unemployed youths of Nagaland will be benefited, it further claimed, adding that the committee will also meet with the NCSU for collaborating with the private partners.

as part of their training, the 46th batch of secretariat service Foundation Course (ssFC) trainees were sent to Mon and Tuensang districts on august 26 morning by Lithrongla G. Chishi, IAS, Director and officials of ATI, Kohima. The trainees will study the functioning of various Government offices in the two districts. Besides, they will also visit and stay for 2 days in the villages to study the various aspects of village life. out of 42 secretariat assistants (nss) trainees, 19 will study Mon district, while 22 will study Tuensang district.

Governor, others condole late Rev. L. Bizo butions to the people of Nagaland and Northeast,” the Governor added.

“I convey my heartfelt condolences to you and other members of the family and pray to the Almighty God to grant them strength to bear the irreparable loss,” he said. “May the departed soul rest in peace.”

NSCN (I-M): The NSCN (I-M) has also conveyed shock over the sudden demise of late Rev. L Bizo. “The GPRN feels the loss immensely. He was humble and yet a staunch advocate of peace, a Godfearing, dedicated church worker,” a press note from

ANSTA Pungro unit mourns The All Nagaland School Teacher's Association, Pungro unit has mourned the unexpected demise of Y. Solomon Yimchunger of Zaonger Village, who was serving as a Primary Teacher at Government Primary School Luthur Village under Pungro subdivision.

The Association grieved the loss of its active member, who was also a sportsman, social activist and student leader.

A press note from the unit President, K Mukamchim further extended condolences to the bereaved family members and prayed that the departed soul rest in peace.

MIP NSCN (IM) stated. As a member of Senior Citizen Forum, his contribution towards restoring lasting peace and goodwill was huge and he always stood committed towards promoting lasting peace that can emerge from pursuing correct line of Naga common polity, it added.

“With our anguish spirit, our hearts and love go out to the near, dear and all loves ones he had left behind,” it said, adding, “May the love and promise of resurrection and love through our Jesus Christ abide in the family…”

CNSC: The Concerned

Naga Senior Citizens (CNSC) has expressed sadness over the sudden demise of its member, Rev L. Bizo on August 28. Late Rev. Bizo was a man of great wisdom and a guiding figure in the organisation who possessed far sightedness and steadfast belief in the right cause with clear vision, CNSC said in a press note.

In his death, CNSC added, it has suffered a great lost and the vacuum caused by his demise will take years time to be filled. “We pray to the almighty God to grant solace to the bereaved family and rest in peace to the departed soul.”

Late Rangtalak Rangkau NPF Women Wing: NPF Central Women Wing has condoled the demise of Late Rangtalak Rangkau, elder brother of Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang, on August 24.

Describing Late Rangkau as a humble leader; the Women Wing conveyed deepest condolences to the bereaved family members at their time of grief and prayed that the departed soul rest in eternal peace Azo: MLA Kuzholuzo Nienu expressed shock and pain over the sudden demise of Rangtalak Rangkau. Remembering him as a God fearing man, Azo said his compassionate personality and service rendered to the people will always be cherished. He conveyed

ment of Municipal Affairs 2. Public Information Officer: Kevekha Kevin Zehol, NCS, Joint Secretary, Department of Municipal Affairs 3. Assistant Public Information Officer: SentiyangerPongen, Under Secretary, Department of Municipal Affairs. RTI officials appointed for municipal affairs.

Rubber Board training

CondolenCe Messages Dimapur, august 29 (mExN): The Governor of Nagaland, PB Acharya has condoled the demise of Rev. L. Bizo, former Baptist Minister in North East India, on August 28 at CRDS Campus, Darogajan, Dimapur.

In a condolence note to his son Sihu Meyase, Acharya described late Rev. Bizo as a great preacher and a social worker who worked with various Baptist Churches not only in Nagaland but also in North East India.

“In his death, the Northeast has lost a great missionary and he will always be remembered for his contri-

parties concerned, it further maintained.

It is hoped that developmental agencies undertaking developmental works shall conform to higher standards, justifying the professional expertise and the substantial budgetary allocations placed at their disposal and accelerate and also the civic minded responsible members to take action for the common good in their respective localities, it added.

Meanwhile, the Panchayat lauded individuals and residents who assisted in varous capacity in construction of the drainage nullah in the colony covering a distance of over 2500 feet record time.

With the arrival of the rains and in the absence of a functional drainage Nullah, anxiety levels were on the rise but thanks to the conscientious members and residents freely contributed financially, materially, physically, and encouragement, it said.

The Panchayat also expressed grateful to nonresident well-wishers such as Dr. Nicky Kire and Kezha Kire for extending financial assistance;, Rovilatuo Mor, DC Kohima for donating 50 bags of Cement; Metekhriele Mejura for 1 truckload of Chipping Stones; and Aketuo Belho for donating two truckloads of stones.

RTI officials appointed for municipal affairs Kohima, august 29 (Dipr): The Government of Nagaland has appointed the following officers as Appellate Authority, Public Information Officer, Assistant Public Information Officer for the Department of Municipal Affairs.

1. Appellate Authority: Menukhol John, Commissioner & Secretary, Depart-

The process for 'Year of Construction Worker' gathers momentum Kohima, august 29 (mExN): The Nagaland Government on Monday held its second meeting for the ‘Year of Construction Workers’ (YOCW) to discuss the next steps for its implementation.

The YOCW committee is headed by Parliamentary Secretary, Labour and Employment, Mmhonlumo Kikon as the convener and aims “to train and equip the work-force for the state”.

The August 29 meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Pankaj Kumar, and chaired by M. Patton, Commissioner & Secretary, Labour & Employment, Skills

Dimapur, august 29 (mExN): The Lerie Panchayat, Kohima has informed that the while solid waste management plant at Lerie Colony is operational and is being utilized, few genuine concerns have emerged regarding its usages.

In this context, the Panchayat Chairman James Liezietsu in a press note has appealed the colony residents and responsible parties engaged in sanitary management in their respective wards to take note of certain norms and ensure its implementation.

Among other, it requested that the vehicles are covered well and spillage of waste matter on the colony roads is avoided.

The Panchayat also urged the respective agency to avoid the transportation of waste materials through Lerie Colony during the rush hours i.e. from 07:30 AM-9.30 AM and instruct their drivers accordingly.

This will reduce traffic congestion during the rush hours, affecting the school going Children, educational institutions, office goers, etc, it added.

The queuing of such vehicles in the traf would be an ungainly sight, create a noxious environment as well as health hazard and cause inconvenience all

his deepest condolence to the bereaved family and also prayed that the departed soul rest in eternal peace.

Rengma Hoho: The Rengma Hoho has also expressed its pain over the untimely death of Rangkau. Late Rangkau was a committed, dedicated and God fearing leader who worked tirelessly in different capacities for the peace and unity of Zeliangrong, it said in a condolence message, adding that his death has left a deep void and irreplaceable vacuum for the Zeliangrong community. The Hoho further prayed for strength and comfort of the bereaved family and loved ones and an eternal rest in peace for the departed soul.

Dimapur, august 29 (mExN): Rubber Board has proposed to conduct different categories of training in North East region (Agartala) from September 26 to 29 for industrial sector. A press release from Deputy Rubber Production Commissioner, Rubber Board regional office, Dimapur informed that interested candidates may contact Rubber Board, regional office, Di-

mapur for further details.

Training will be held on the following topics: Sheet rubber processing and grading – Course fee- Rs. 500/- + 15% service tax; Latex goods manufacture – Course fee- Rs. 1000/- + 15% service tax; Dry rubber goods manufacture – Course fee- Rs. Rs. 1000 + 15% service tax. For SC/ ST candidates, there will be a 50% concession in the course fee.

Citizen rights awareness in Kohima Kohima, august 29 (mExN): A team of students from Kohima Law College led by Professor-in-Charge Kezhokhoto Savi conducted citizen rights awareness at Konyak Baptist Church, Kohima on August 27. The team, which consisted of Tekalong Jamir, Paiwang Konyak, Kelengu-u Rutsa, Peter Rana, Aliba Ozukum, P. Mhonbeni Ezung, and Ayeho Sumi, covered various topics such as National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013, RTI, Lokayukta, Consumer Awareness, Food Safety & Standard Act 2006, Child Protection, and Human Rights.

It was highlighted that the NFSA 2013 is currently implemented in only two districts of Nagaland - Dimapur and Kohima and that the Guidelines of the Act is not being strictly followed in the implementation. Overcharging beneficiaries for rice, villages taking advantage of getting rice at cheaper rate and hoarding them, and some genuine people left out to become beneficiaries were some issues brought up. It also cited cases of few bags of rice simply taken away by few individuals not on the basis of either AAY or PHH (Priority Household) Cards.

These anomalies, the

The team from Kohima Law College with others.

team said, were happening because the government, particularly the department concerned, did not identify card holders properly, a press release from Kezhokhoto Savi informed.

It maintained that the department concerned has to work harder, especially in identifying beneficiaries, so no genuine beneficiaries are deprived. It was pointed out that already more than 2.16 crores of ration cards were detected to be bogus in the country.

The government has to immediately constitute ‘Food Commission’ and designate the district officer to entertain and look into the grievances of the beneficiaries, it was added.

On Food Safety & Standard Act (FSSA) 2006, the team presented that over the years the need for change and modification

of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act 1954 & Rules 1955 was felt and thus the Food Safety and standard Act 2006 was made for laying down science based standards for articles of food and to regulate the manufacture, storage, distribution and sale of food, to ensure safe and wholesome food for human consumption. “This is an Act to ensure prevention of fraudulent, deceptive or unfair trade practices which may harm the ‘Consumer’ and unsafe, contaminated or sub-standard food.” In implementing the Act, the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) was constituted on September 5, 2008.

The FSSA was implemented in Nagaland in 2012 and accordingly the State government has prohibited the preparation,

sale, exposure for sale of unsafe food items, including imported foods in the state.

The team further stressed that it is every citizen’s right and duty as a consumer to question the distributor of food as every consumer is buying for consumption. “Food safety means an assurance that the food is acceptable for human consumption according to its intended and standard means the relation to any article of food as in the standard notified by the Food Authority,” they stated.

For further query, the release asked consumers to call Nagaland State Consumer Helpline Toll Free No. 1800-345-3701 or visit the office situated at Old Nagaland State Legislative Assembly building, Kohima during office hour.

6

Tuesday 30•08•2016

IN FOCUS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express volume Xi issue 238

Self Determination In Education Policy

T

he word ‘education’ derived from the Latin word ‘educare,’ when literally translated means ‘to bring forth’ or ‘to lead forth.’

Its true meaning shows that the source of learning originates from that which is stimulated from within. It is through the process of percolation that increases understanding and allows knowledge and wisdom to have relevance in daily life, rather than being based on an inadequacy where information is forced into people’s minds.

The pedagogy necessary ‘to bring forth’ is one of the decisive factors that both catalyzes and facilitates human development. Consequently, education involves more than books and skills, tests and examinations, as it is about nurturing and developing persons to grow with purpose in order to live a full and dignified life.

Alfred Taiaiake, an indigenous writer, in a compelling statement points out that, “One of the major consequence of colonialism was the loss of our ability to think of ourselves; thus, many of our leaders and communities rely on others to think for them. The cost of delegating intelligence is enormous in terms of the misinterpretation or misappropriation of indigenous knowledge and perspectives.”

One example of this was found in the Hong Kong school system’s focus on student discipline, called ‘school discipline.’ Students are conditioned to blindly obey authority and are not allowed to challenge an idea or anything that represents authority.

Consequently, over the past more than 160 years, those in power, especially government authorities, regardless of their performance or governance capabilities, have not been seriously questioned. In this education model students are taught only to pass examinations with high grades in order to secure admission to good universities, and, if graduating with high honors, then another guarantee of having a well-paid job is achieved. Within this emphasis on school discipline, success is measured narrowly under strict conditions where students are negatively conditioned through regimented disciplinary practices. These conditions partially account for how the outdated political system has been maintained to the present today. These practices reflect a culture that is bankrupt of inculcating human values and principles through repressing independent, creative and critical thinking.

The present education pattern concentrates on filling students with information and concepts that are not relevant to daily life because they are falsely conditioned to believe that they are inadequate and lacking something. Paulo Friere, a Brazilian educator in his book, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, called this the “banking education” model. He said, “Education is suffering from narration sickness. The teacher talks about reality as if it were motionless, static, compartmentalized, and predictable; expounding on a topic completely alien to the existential experience of the students; and to fill the students with the narration-contents which are detached from reality, disconnected from the totality that engendered them and could give them significance. Words are emptied of their concreteness and are hollow, alienated, and alienating wordiness.”

The scope of the ‘banking’ concept of education extends only as far as receiving, filing, and storing the deposits into the students’ brains. The banking concept destroys the individual’s natural capacity to be self-determining, as it suppresses a student’s innate ability to learn and contribute creatively and positively to community life.

Friere further reminds us that, “In the banking concept of education, knowledge is a gift bestowed by those who consider themselves knowledgeable upon those whom they consider to know nothing.

Projecting an absolute ignorance onto others, a characteristic of the ideology of oppression, negates education and knowledge as processes of inquiry.” He emphasizes pedagogy where education begins by offering the solution to the teacher-student contradiction and dichotomy which, in essence, reconciles the polarity which frees teachers and students to learn from each other.

An education approach developed by the Palestine Ministry of Education adopted a student-centered pedagogy that acknowledges and utilizes the pluralism of intelligence and diversity of learning styles in the learning process. This Ministry embarked on a plan to redesign the teacher-centered system into one of learneroriented education; from an academic education which is foreign to the learner’s needs, aspirations and interests; to an education for life and sustained development, from a confining learning environment to a humane one with features of care, responsible freedom, positive interaction, involvement and co-operation.

Nagas, too, can design its own unique model for learning that includes the richness of Naga history combined with our aspirations for attaining a harmonious shared humanity as an expression of self-determination.

lEfT wiNg |

IANS

Your brain is better at math that you think it is

W

e may not know it but our brains are actually pretty good at math and they constantly perform complicated calculations to make sense of the world , researchers have found.

Our brains combine complicated observations from our surroundings into a simple assessment of the situation that aids our behaviour and decisions, the study said. "Our implicit computations are so much better than our explicit computations," said study co-author Kenneth Norman, Professor of Psychology at Princeton University in the US. The researchers found that our brains can accurately track the likelihood of several different explanations for what we see around us. They traced these abilities to a region of the brain located just behind our eyes known as the orbitofrontal cortex. To study these implicit computations, the team tracked the brain activity of participants as they explored a virtual "safari park" split into four zones -- blue, green, pink and yellow.

Each zone contained a different assortment of elephants, giraffes, hippos, lions and zebras.

The task forced the brain to use previous observations of these animals to decide in which coloured zones various arrangements of the animals were likely to be found.

First, participants saw a series of pictures of the animals in each zone -- a collection of 30 to 40 animals shown one after the other.

After getting a sense of how the animals were distributed across the different zones, the participants viewed a new series of animal pictures that showed between one and six animals. They were asked which of two zones the animals were more likely to have come from.

Participants were consistently able to correctly choose the more likely of the two zones. What is more, participants' accuracy did not suffer when choosing between two zones which were not the most likely overall, indicating that they could track the relative likelihood of all four zones.

To find out where the brain performs this feat, the researchers had participants perform the task while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which reveals the regions of the brain that are most active at a given time.

The researchers expected the brain to track the situation as a series of four probabilities -- one for each zone -- so they looked for brain regions in which the pattern of activity changed together with the four probabilities. The best match for this search was the orbitofrontal cortex, a brain region implicated in carrying out complex plans, learning how a setting or situation has changed since last seen, and high-order thinking.

The findings were published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

C O M M E N T A R Y

Anastasia Moloney Thomson Reuters Foundation

Colombia's war victims urge forgiveness as society splits over historic peace deal

K

idnapped and kept in chains for more than seven years in a jungle camp controlled by Colombia's FARC rebels, Alan Jara knows how hard it is to forgive and reconcile with the past.

One of countless victims in Colombia's fivedecade war, Latin America's longest, Jara was released by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in 2009.

He went on to be elected provincial governor three times, and now heads the government body tasked with giving reparations to nearly 8 million victims of a war that was as notorious for disappearances, abductions and sexual violence as killings.

Jara eventually decided to forgive his captors.

He believes there can be no lasting peace without reconciliation.

"Not to forgive would keep me captive and not allow me to get rid of the anger and move on," Jara told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a telephone interview.

"For peace to exist, Colombians have no option but to forgive."

After nearly four years of peace talks in Cuba, President Juan Manuel Santos' government and the FARC announced late on Wednesday they had reached a final peace accord to end a war that has killed at least 220,000 people and uprooted millions of others.

Santos has staked his political legacy on bringing peace to Colombia, saying any peace agreement reached would be put to the people to accept or reject.

The plebiscite, which Colombia's constitutional court recently ruled could go ahead, is widely expected to take place within weeks.

DIVIDED NATION The battle lines have already been drawn with Colombia caught in a heated campaign between supporters and opponents of the peace deal being negotiated in the Cuban capital, Havana.

Colombians are deeply divided about how and what concessions to make to rebels, what kind of justice rebels should face, if they trust FARC's 7,000 fighters to hand in their weapons, and whether demobilized rebels can hold elected office.

Many city dwellers, living far from the remote rural and jungle areas where the conflict has been played out, are ambivalent towards peace talks and are more concerned about jobs, good education and healthcare and rising inflation.

Santos has said he is confident a 'yes' vote will prevail. But surveys by seven national pollsters this month show widely different results.

A poll by Ipsos in early August showed that 50 percent of Colombians would vote 'no' in any plebiscite, while 39 percent said they would vote 'yes.'

A more recent Aug. 18 poll by Datexco showed a tighter contest, with 32.3 percent saying they would vote 'yes' and 29.1 percent 'no'.

Jara said Colombians who have been directly affected by the war, including families whose relatives have been killed, are often the most willing to forgive and back the peace talks.

"The reason for this is victims don't want what happened to them to happen to others. You wouldn't want anyone to go through what you've had to suffer," he said.

Isaac Valencia, who was forced to flee his home as a boy by FARC rebels, said he will vote in favour of the peace deal because it is the only way for Colombians to begin healing.

"This is the best opportunity we have to stop the war so there won't be any more victims and displaced people. Colombians have to unite,"

T

he most recent Labour leadership hustings briefly touched on the issue of 'talking to terrorists' and then returned to more domestic issues. But the issue of alternatives to war remains at a time when the horrors of what is happening in Syria, let alone the violence in Iraq and Turkey, have once more brought to the fore the search for more peaceful solutions. In this context the Adam Curle Symposium at Bradford University on 5 – 6 September is all too relevant, especially given Adam’s own commitment to the peaceful resolution of conflict. This commitment was rooted in extensive personal experience, including mediation efforts in the Biafra war and the Indo-Pakistan confrontation in 1971.

Adam Curle was the founding professor of peace studies at Bradford University, coming from a chair in education for development at Harvard in 1973 to start what would become Britain’s first full university department devoted to peace education and research. The symposium marks the centenary of his birth, and brings together peace researchers and practitioners from around the world. The keynote speakers are John Paul Lederach, Cynthia Enloe and James Thompson, and leading thinkers and practitioners include Wolfgang Dietrich, Kevin Clements and Irene Santiago.

The driving force behind the symposium is Jenny Pearce, who has set the scene powerfully: “We are coming together at a moment of intense suffering from war. I have noted in my own teaching experience in Bradford, that each cohort of

the 33-year-old said.

JUSTICE AND PEACE More than a quarter of Colombia's 47 million people have suffered in some way as a result of the war involving rebels, right-wing paramilitary groups and government troops.

Jara said seeing the FARC behind bars was not a prerequisite for peace and justice.

"For me, my life isn't going to get fixed by seeing (the FARC) in jail," he said.

"What's more important is the guarantee that there is no more suffering. And the best way to guarantee that is to end the conflict."

But not all Colombians want, or are ready, to forgive the FARC and support peace talks. Many are skeptical and uncertain about the terms peace negotiators have agreed on so far.

"I want my grandchildren to see peace," said Alba Gomez, who was driven from her home by the FARC a decade ago.

"But the FARC are a bunch of assassins and jail is the very least the guerrillas should get for all the suffering they have caused to so many people. Without that, there's no peace."

Opposition to the peace talks is led by Colombia's main opposition party - the right-wing Centre Democratic party of former president Alvaro Uribe, who in office dealt heavy blows against the FARC in a U.S.backed counterinsurgency campaign.

The FARC's insurgency began as a peasant revolt before rebel commanders branched into the cocaine trade with kidnappings for ransom helping to fund their operations.

Uribe, whose father was killed by FARC guerrillas, insists he and his party are not against peace but rather the terms agreed so far in Havana, and vowed this month to actively campaign for a 'no' vote in the plebiscite.

Uribe believes the peace deal is tantamount to impunity for the FARC, and has led a campaign of "civil resistance" that has seen his supporters collect signatures against the peace process in public squares across Colombia.

So far under the peace deal, fighters who admit to war crimes such as sexual violence and forced disappearances, will have their "freedom restricted" for five to a maximum of eight years.

Those who refuse to admit to crimes and are then found guilty will face up to 20 years in jail, decided by judges in special tribunals.

Uribe and his supporters say such terms allow FARC commanders to evade prison altogether and receive lenient sentences for human rights violations.

Santos has said such provisions do not amount to impunity.

But the latest polls suggest he faces a struggle to convince people otherwise - with 88 percent of Colombians polled by Ipsos in early August saying FARC commanders must serve jail time, and 75 percent saying they should be banned from politics.

Analysts say the government has done a poor job of explaining the peace deal to Colombians.

"There's a lot of misinformation and confusion about the peace talks," Jara said.

"Many people don't know in detail about what has been agreed on and this has created a climate of polarization."

Adam Curle, peace scholar: a centenary symposium Paul Rogers

Bradford University's department devoted to peace education and research, the first of its kind in Britain, is honouring its founding professor.

The world's conflicts make it a timely event students is deeply influenced by the global wars and violences that dominate their youth. In 1973 when Adam Curle was appointed chair, the world was in the midst of the cold war; it was in the wake of the Nigeria civil war, where Adam had been a mediator, and the Vietnam war. It was also the year of the Chilean military coup. When I joined peace studies in 1991, the world was reeling from the 1980s wars in central America – El Salvador, Guatemala, and the United Statesbacked Contra war in Nicaragua. These were the formative memories of the first cohort I taught.

“And in the 1990s, while it was the end of the cold war, the Balkans brought new images of war, of the mass rape of women, along with the Rwanda genocide and the so-called ‘new wars’ such as Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Sudan. The new millennium has given my current

intake of students their main reference point of 9/11 and the ‘war on terror’.

Afghanistan and Iraq dominated the headlines, South Sudan erupted again after a peace process, and the situation has continued to be tense in the Ukraine. Protracted war in Colombia and the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict have remained permanent ‘backcloths’. And today, an entire generation will be marked and scarred by Syria and the images screened directly from the Aleppo frontline as this symposium gets underway – of babies killed, maimed and traumatised by barrelbombs and chlorine gas.

“That these atrocities take place while we gather for this symposium, gives our encounter an extraordinary urgency and poignancy. Even more so, because some of the international humanitarian agreements, which many felt had been won forever, have unravelled. The use of chemical weapons for

wRiTE-wiNg

instance, and starving civilians into surrender, and the failure to protect those fleeing warzones. Thousands of refugees have drowned trying to reach the coast of Europe; those who survived find themselves living infrahuman lives in camps and receptioncentres not fit for purpose. At least the longest civil war in the western hemisphere, Colombia, looks set to reach a negotiated end, and we have dedicated some symposium time to the Colombia peace process.

“Yet while Adam Curle had a lot to say about war, his contribution was much, much broader and in a sense more profound. He asked us to look into ourselves and our relationships with others. Hence, this symposium is not ‘about war’ as such, although our launch event reminds us of that context, linking the symposium in the university to the city of Bradford (via collaboration with the National Media Museum) and involving the Syrian refugees who have sought haven here.

“Rather, the symposium brings into focus Adam’s wider understandings of the conditions for peace, exploring how our relationships after war do or do not change; how art and peace intersect; how peace is ‘made’ or ‘built’; how nonviolence can challenge inequalities, racism and oppression; and whether and how education can contribute to peace. Adam was particularly mindful of the impact on his thinking of women, and our final panel will open up a discussion on whether a feminist theory of knowledge can offer new insights into the theory and practice of peace.”

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The morung express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: morung@gmail.com All letters (including those via email) should have the full name and Postal address of the sender.

Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

tuesday 30•08•2016

PERSPECTIVE

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Political Passion of Eva longoria David Rennie

“I

t started with this book. I read this book, and I wrote to the author, and he said ‘come and meet me’,” says Eva Longoria, recalling her political awakening. The book is “Occupied America” by Rodolfo Acuña, a firebrand professor of Chicano studies, (as some call Mexican-American studies, notably since 1960s and among the West Coast left).

His book is a densely argued blast written to awaken his students to centuries of colonial oppression and white racism. Longoria met Acuña, and he suggested that she should take his introductory course. “I was so unfamiliar with the word ‘Chicano’. Growing up in Texas where ‘Tejano’ was the term. And also ‘Chicano’ was a very politicised term.” She took Chicano 101 and only became more curious. “So then the next semester he said, you should take a Chicano feminism class, so I took Chicano feminism, and Chicano art.” At the time, Longoria was filming “Desperate Housewives”, then the biggest TV show in the world. “From the set of ‘Desperate Housewives’ I would drive an hour to the school, take a class from seven to ten at night, then be on set at six in the morning. I would be doing my homework behind the sets.”

Even in today’s Hollywood, where liberal politics is de rigueur and activism fashionable, Eva Longoria is unusual. She has campaigned for Democratic presidential contenders since 2004. In 2012 she was a co-chair of President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign, speaking at the Democratic National Convention, and, at the height of the campaign in Florida, she addressed seven cities in one day.

Political types, Longoria says wryly, call every election the most important of their lifetimes. But in 2016 she is sure that the stakes are unusually high. This time one of the Republican front-runners, Donald Trump, says he would build a wall on the Mexican border and make Mexico pay for it and claims – fantastically – that his government would deport the estimated 11m immigrants in America without legal papers. His chief Republican rival, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, whose own father arrived as a penniless student from Cuba, has promised to rescind the executive orders with which Obama has shielded millions of migrants from deportation, notably those brought to America as children and educated in the country.

But the election will also be a test of confident predictions that Hispanics will soon be a demographic block capable of deciding who occupies the White House. The Pew Research Centre, a non-partisan think-tank, predicts that a record 27.3m Hispanics will be eligible to vote in the elections of 2016 – with enough of them concentrated in a series of battleground states to swing the election results in places such as Nevada, Colorado and Florida. Yet Hispanics have, so far, failed to realise their potential power. Turnout among Latinos is woeful.

Longoria hopes to change that. She has endorsed and campaigned for Hillary Clinton in her drawn-out primary contest against a left-wing rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

She is the co-founder of the Latino Victory Project, which is trying to build a pipeline of Hispanic candidates in elections at all levels of government, and ideally from both parties, so that Democrats and Republicans alike have an incentive to think about what concerns Latino voters.

Attend a Trump rally, or listen to angry nativists snarling on conservative talk radio, and the world seems very categorical: borders are boundaries that can never be too secure, as they fortify all that is precious at home from a frightening, alien Other. American identity itself is presented as fragile and threatened by newcomers with foreign ways who will not speak English.

Growing up in south Texas, Longoria learned from an early age that labels and borders can be surprisingly arbitrary. A favourite family outing when she was young involved daytrips to Mexico – shopping and lunch, then a short walk across the bridge back to America. Passports were not needed in those innocent times, just a toll fee of a few coins and a confident declaration of two magic words – “American citizen” – to the waiting border guard.

Longoria remembers gazing at a different line of travellers that moved more slowly. Why do they not say the magic words, she recalls asking her father, not understanding that these were Mexican nationals, unable to breeze through the border controls. They cannot, they were born on the other side, her father would explain. Why were we born on this side? Longoria would retort, prompting the grave answer: “Because we were lucky.”

Longoria’s ancestor, Lorenzo Suárez de Longoria, reached the New World in 1603, and in 1767 Pedro Longoria moved to what is now Texas. She is too polite to note that this makes her more American than Trump, whose grandfather emigrated from Germany to New York only in 1885. Her family owned a ranch that has been governed by six different powers – Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the United States and, during the civil war, the Confederate States of America – without ever moving from the same patch of sun-beaten Texan land. “My family never crossed the border, the border crossed us.”

She arrived in Los Angeles at the start of a “Latin explosion” in the entertainment industry, as Hispanic stars such as Ricky Martin crossed into the mainstream American market. Longoria ran foul of Hollywood’s desire to label and categorise, being told she was not Latino enough. Like many Tejano children of her generation, Longoria grew up speaking only English. Her parents – her father worked on an army base and her mother was a teacher – spoke Spanish to one another, and her grandparents little else. But her elementary school had told them that as their daughters would not be allowed to speak Spanish in class, “don’t speak it to them at home”. At auditions Longoria was asked if she could speak with an accent or if she could get a tan.

Growing up the youngest of four sisters little Eva never stopped asking questions, and the habit has lasted. In her first years in California, “before I was famous”, Longoria was taken up by a group of Mexican-American activists, among them Dolores Huerta, a pillar of the Hispanic civil-rights movement since the 1960s. In her early days, Huerta was often overshadowed by crowdpleasing men, as she organised farm workers into a trade union with her colleague, César Chávez, and campaigned alongside Robert F. Kennedy. These days Huerta is lionised on the left. Even as Longoria chased bitparts on TV shows, she peppered her new friends with questions about Mexican-American civil rights and

7

Is secularism at threat in Indian Democracy?

Lilly humtsoe

I

the Chicano movement. Raised in conservative south Texas, she says that she arrived knowing little about the fights hailed as landmark battles in Chicano history: the struggles over conditions for Mexican farm workers in the Bracero guest-worker programme that ran from 1942 to 1964, or the federal government’s mass deportations of Mexican-Americans during the 1930s, some of them American citizens. “I would be the annoying kid, I would ask ‘why?’” she says. She began fund-raising for farm workers’ legal-defence funds, and attending activist meetings. Then Huerta suggested she read Acuña’s book, and she started to study seriously.

Lots of successful people have libraries lined with smart but unread books. Some of them dabble in politics. Longoria’s study is a messy, paper-strewn workplace. Her volumes of anthropology, immigration policy, Chicano poetry and Latino politics bristle with colour-coded Post-it bookmarks, and their pages are dense with highlighter pen notes. In 2013 she received a Master’s degree in Chicano studies and political science from California State University, Northridge. This was not an honorary degree, but one earned by three years of study, including a Master’s thesis on the obstacles that keep young Latina women from studying science, mathematics and engineering.

At times, the contrast with her Hollywood career – the job that pays for this large house on a quiet, wooded hillside – can feel jarring. The year 2006 saw her researching labour conditions in the citrus industry of Florida, speaking to members of Congress about higher-than-usual death rates among Latino children with cancer – and appearing in a tiny bikini on a giant replica magazine cover staked out in the desert outside Las Vegas, on a scale supposedly visible from space. The cover strapline, for Maxim magazine, had her greeting aliens as “TV’s sexiest Earthling”. Her private life – she has been married and divorced twice, to a soap-opera actor then to a professional basketball player, and is engaged to a Mexican television boss – has filled many tabloid columns.

In her study on a spring morning in 2016, a large mounted poster of her stands to one side of her desk. The poster, still in its clear delivery wrapping, advertises her latest network TV show “Telenovela” (described by its makers, NBC, as a “big, fun and flashy” comedy, in which Longoria plays the star of a Spanish-language soap opera). In the poster she wears a scarlet ballgown and stands with one leg wrapped around a co-star, flanked by bouffant-haired rivals. The real-life Longoria, a shade over five foot tall in jeans and a sweater, ignores her TV incarnation as she pushes the poster aside to reach for a thick book on the Aztec empire, talking all the while about a mini-series she is making about the Spanish conquest of Mexico. She has brought a pile of Chicano textbooks to this interview, most of which is conducted at an outdoor dining table next to her swimming pool.

Longoria’s brand of politics throws up puzzles. She proudly reads aloud the inscription inside her dogeared copy of “Occupied America”, in which Acuña tells her: “It is refreshing to have an actor not run away from the Chicano identity.” But as a Democratic Party activist Longoria has made different choices. She has endorsed Hillary Clinton. Her closest friends in politics include a trio of young, publicity-savvy moderates: Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, and identical-twin brothers from Texas, Julián Castro (who was mayor of San Antonio, now serves in the Obama government as housing and urban development secretary and is a possible running mate for Clinton) and Joaquín Castro, who is a congressman for San Antonio. Die-hard leftists, such as those allied with Sanders, distrust Booker and the Castros. They see the trio as representatives of the pragmatic, pro-business Clinton wing of the party (though Dolores Huerta is a long-time Clinton ally).

For a clearer understanding of Longoria’s politics, her Master’s thesis is a surprisingly useful startingpoint. It is sprinkled with the academic jargon of the campus left, at one point “examining the intersectionality of race, gender and class” through the framework of “Critical Race Theory” – the belief that, after years of entrenched white, male privilege, it is not enough to call on the world to become race-neutral, gender-neutral or colour-blind. But Longoria’s interviews with young Latinas in the fields of science and engineering – conducted in between shoots for “Desperate Housewives” – ring more with common sense than dogma. The actress records the sexism faced by her interviewees, as they tell her about the professor who comments on their bodies when they stand in front of the class to solve problems at a board, or the male students who ask why they are not studying a woman’s profession like nursing. Long-

oria hears about the students’immigrant parents who never finished school, and how they struggled to help their clever daughters succeed in their studies (one interviewee, a mechanical engineer, recalls her all-butunschooled mother testing her on her times tables in the car, as her only way of helping).

The thesis ends with pragmatic recommendations: it would help to have more women professors, Longoria suggests; schools should understand when under-educated parents want to be supportive but do not know how. In 2012 she founded a charitable outfit, the Eva Longoria Foundation, to promote entrepreneurship and education among Latinas. Among its works is a scheme offering micro-loans so women can start small businesses – a project co-funded by Howard Buffett, a farmer, philanthropist and son of the investor Warren Buffett. Another offers Hispanic parents nine-week courses in navigating their children’s schooling, including how and why Americans ask to meet a child’s teacher and how to help with homework.

Longoria takes a similarly practical approach to the work that will consume a good chunk of her 2016: finding Latinos eligible to vote, registering them and then persuading them that they need to go out and cast ballots. The Latino vote is at once a source of gleaming-eyed excitement to political scientists, as they contemplate its potentially large impact on American democracy, and a source of gloom to those whose job it is to ensure that they turn out.

Some 800,000 Hispanics come of age every year. Latinos make up around a sixth of America’s population; by midcentury they will make up a quarter. But at the last presidential election, only 48% of those eligible to vote made it to the ballot box compared with 67% of blacks and 64% of whites. Longoria loathes the phrase often associated with the growth of the Hispanic population: that “demography is destiny”, as if Hispanic voter power is pre-ordained. She fears apathy among politically active Latinos, who boast that they’re going to decide who is the next president. “No, we’re not, if we don’t show up,” she says crisply.

Politicians have to adapt campaign messages to Latinos, Longoria urges, filling them with personal stories that resonate. Her voter drive involves compiling “Firsts” – stories told by Hispanics about being the first in their family to attend college, or to finish high school. “Sharing narratives is extremely inspiring to Latinos. They like to see me on the screen, because they go – if she can do it, I can do it.”

That means finding more figures like the Castro twins to put in front of voters, she thinks. Young Latinos are activists more than they are voters, and need to be shown that causes can be won and lost at elections. Before the 2012 Democratic National Convention, she was sent a speech to deliver – “the campaign writes everybody’s speeches” – and to her it sounded like celebrity bombast. She persuaded Team Obama to let her talk about her days as a college student selling fast food to pay the bills at college, as a way of criticising Republican tax cuts skewed to the rich. “The Eva Longoria who worked at Wendy’s flipping burgers, she needed a tax break. But the Eva Longoria who works on movie sets does not,” she told the convention.

Some commentators, watching Mexican-American voters smashing piñata models of Donald Trump and seething at the tycoon’s allegation that Mexico sends rapists and other criminals to invade America, predict that persuading Hispanics to vote this time will be easy.

Longoria worries that such predictions of a “Trump effect” are a little unrealistic. Anger is not enough, she says, a candidate also needs to explain that “this is the future we are going to build.”

Asked if she might enter elected politics herself, Longoria says not, and offers an explanation that speaks of inside knowledge: it is tricky for politicians to “hold true” to their own opinions and values. Even at her rarefied level of activism – a world of fund-raisers in Los Angeles mansions and meetings for Latino leaders hosted by the president – labels intrude. “Sometimes people go, you’re an actor, stay out of politics. And then I go, well you’re a dentist, stay out of politics.”

Suddenly her band of all-women assistants is calling her – she is running late for lunch with a network–TV boss, and the house is in motion. Small dogs are being shooed out of the way, helpers are brushing invisible specks from Longoria’s clothes. “Your occupation is what you do, not who you are,” she says as the interview nears its end. “Who I am is an American, and I do have something to say.” On paper the words look a bit diffident. In person, Longoria is all doe-eyed, disarming charm, but there is steel in there. Appearances matter a lot in politics as in Hollywood, but they don’t tell the whole story.

David Rennieis The Economist’s Washington bureau chief and Lexington columnist

St. Joseph's College, Jakhama Assistant Professor Dept. of Political Science

ndependent India is one of the largest states in the world. This vast population is made up of people professing different religion like Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, Buddhism, etc. India being the largest democratic country in the world, adopted secularism as one of its core principle in the constitution.

In India, the term secularism implies equal treatment of all the religion by the state. India wants her citizens to practise any religion they like without any government interference and this noble decision of the Indian government is proclaimed in the 42nd Amendment, 1976. The preamble reads as, “we the people of India, having solemnly resolve to constitute India into sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic, republic,” etc. Some of the series of articles in the constitution which underline the idea of secularism in India are Article 14 to 16, Article 19, 21, Article 25- 30 etc. These precepts show that our law does not discriminate between citizens on ground of religion.

This is a great advance and one of the most precious legacies of our freedom struggle and one of the best results of the spread of modern, liberal democratic ideas in India.

Secularism is no doubt the ideal principle in a democratic country but in practise it is not so easy to follow. In India, the reality is quite disappointing. The majority community as also the minorities are totally disillusioned with the working of secularism in India.

Some of the issues which raise serious doubts about how secular India is, to name few: (a) non-separation of politics from religion (b) continued widespread communalism and communal violence in several parts of the country which lead to many deaths (c) banning of cow slaughter leading to curtailment of freedom of persons to eat and restricting their freedom to carry on any profession and trade, etc.

Communalism has been one of the biggest threats to Indian secularism. Religious intolerance and communal riots are on the rise today and it has challenged not only the democratic credentials of the Indian polity but a great threat to the unity and integrity of the nation. Communalism is not a phenomena confined to only one community, the followers of all religious denominations have been susceptible to its influence. Yet, the organisational advancement, social reach, political and ideological influence that Hindu communalism achieved during the recent years are so extensive that it could succeed the government.

Of late, the attack towards minority religious groups is not only confined to the Muslims but also to the Christians too. Every now and then, India witnesses sustained periods of gruesome communal violence and violates human rights that question the very secular fabric of the country and its history of peaceful co-existence.

Certain Political parties in India use religion and caste factors for the promotion of their political interest despite a ban on the communal electorates and use of religion for soliciting votes. The various political parties and groups have frequently made use of communal factor to get into power thus undermining the secular value of the country. During election, many political parties completely forget the ideal of secularism and woo the votes on communal and caste lines. In this regard, both the minorities as well as majority communities are equally to be blamed.

Many leaders lack in true commitment to secularisation of Indian society and in developing rational and scientific temper. This failure of leadership has thwarted the progressive separation of religion and politics in India.

Today there is a huge confusion between ‘Hindu’ and ‘India’. Many ceremonies and public rituals are perceived by Hindus as cultural and nationalistic expression but to the non-Hindus, these are manifestation of Hindu culture. Such rituals are performed even in state functions and therefore, create unnecessary misgivings about the neutrality of the state.

Of late, an attempt has been made by few sections of Indian society to equate Hindu cultural symbols as national culture. This is possibly the expression of what has been called the ‘Hindu backlash’, which is believed to be the consequence of the rise in Muslim and Hindu fundamentalism. Such action destroys the credibility of the secular character of the state and question democracy.

In a secular state, religion is expected to be a purely personal and private affair and the state is not expected to interfere in the life of the individual. But sadly, today there are incidents where an individual cannot even enjoy a beef meat just because the Hindus considered cow as a sacred animal. The most recent incident was the lynching to death of Muslim man in Dadri, UP by a Hindu mob because he was suspected of having beef in his home. Violence around consumption of meat need not even have a communal angle. Food habits cannot be dictated because it is essentially a part of one’s own culture.

States like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, MP, Delhi, Maharashtra, U.P, Karnataka etc. has banned cow slaughter but, the basic question is, whether a total ban on slaughter of cow is justified on any ground at all except that of religious sentiments of Hindus. Most importantly, such a ban is not in keeping with secularism and democracy.

In recent times, serious questions are being raised about India’s secularism. No society can be at peace and can prosper, if one-fourth of the population feels neglected, deprived and unwanted. If we want a Secular Society, we have to stop identifying oneself by religion, caste, or language and start thinking ourselves as equal citizens of one nation both in theory and practice. This involve mutual obligation between the state and the citizens. A great deal remains to be done if secularism is to become a way of life in Indian democracy.

Readers may please note that, the contents of the articles published on this page do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

8

tuesDAY 30•08•2016

INDIA

West Bengal assembly passes resolution proposing name change KolKAtA, AUgUst 29 (IAns): The West Bengal Assembly on Monday passed a resolution proposing the name of the state be changed to 'Bangla' in Bengali or 'Bengal' in English. The government resolution under rule 169 - moved by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chattopdhyay - was passed amidst a walk-out by the Congress and opposition from the Left Front and the BJP. The resolution said the state should be rechristened 'Bangla' in Bengali, 'Bengal' in English and 'Bangal' in Hindi. Backing the motion, state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee referred to the "history and culture" associated with the name Bangla and said she did not have problem with the name Banga also. "But most people prefer Bangla, which is a part of the colloquial language. So we have also accepted it."

She said as the state will be called Bengal in English, there won't be any confusion with the neighbouring country Bangladesh. "Moreover, outside the state, we are known as people of Bengal." Later, she told mediapersons that the proposal would be sent to the central government for ratification by Parliament.

"I request the Centre to speed up the process and urge them to pass the resolution in the next Parliamentary session," she said. Banerjee also spoke to union Home Minister Rajnath Singh urging him to ensure the proposal was ratified quickly "showing due respect to what the State Assembly has passed."

Riled over the opposition not supporting the move, Banerjee said: "They oppose for the sake of opposition.

It is a historic blunder on their part. They keep on repeating such mistakes." Responding to a query that the state BJP has warned it would not allow the resolution to be passed by Parliament, she said: "They continue to create obstacles at every step. Who are they? It is a matter between Central and state government."

She recalled the state earlier proposed to change the name to Paschim Banga, which was still pending before the central government. "Before the adoption of this resolution, we informed the Centre that the earlier proposal should not be considered and the state will give the details after adopting the fresh resolution in the state assembly," she said.

BJP MP triggers row with beef remarks, clarifies new delhI, AUgUst 29 (PtI): BJP MP and Dalit leader Udit Raj today triggered a row after he tweeted that champion Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt went on to win nine Olympics gold despite being born in poverty after his trainer advised him to eat beef twice a day.

His tweet raised a few eyebrows within the party, which is avowedly against beef consumption, and drew sharp response from the right-leaning people on Twitter, prompting him to claim that his comments were "misconstrued" and that they were meant to "inspire" Indian athletes and convey that they can excel in adverse circumstances.

"Usain Bolt of Jamaica was poor and trainer advised him to eat beef both the times and he scored 9 gold medals in Olympics," the Lok Sabha member from North West Delhi tweeted.

As a row erupted, he tried to scotch it, saying that he merely repeated what Bolt had said and all that he meant was India athletes can find a way to excel despite adversities and they should not blame circumstances for their failures.

"All I wanted to say that giving excuses that we don't have infrastructure or there is corruption should be done away with and lesson, dedication should be learnt from Usain Bolt... What I wanted to say is our players should find ways and means as he found ways and means," he said, adding there is no lack of facilities for sports persons here.

The government spends huge money on them compared to nations like Jamiaca or Kenya, he said, steering clear of any mention of beef.

A statement from his office later said he did not comment on anything related to consumption of beef, but his tweet is now being misconstrued and misinterpreted by some media outlets to say that he advocates consumption of beef.

"Udit Raj is well aware that food habits cannot be dictated to anyone, both as per our social traditions as well as per the provisions of the Constitution of India.

"He was saddened to learn that his views were more misunderstood than understood. This statement is being issued to elaborate his views on the subject and put an end to this artificially created controversy," it said.

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Kashmir: Teacher starts makeshift schools

sRInAgAR, AUgUst 29 (ReUteRs): Wedding halls and prayer rooms have been turned into classrooms in Indianadministered Kashmir as families struggle to provide children with a normal life after more than 50 days of the Muslim-majority region's worst violence in years.

At least 68 civilians and two security officials have been killed and more than 9,000 people injured, according to official tallies, in clashes between protesters chaffing at Indian rule and security forces.

Authorities trying to stifle protests that erupted after a young militant leader was gunned down by the security forces on July 8 ordered schools and colleges to close two days later.

There's no sign of them re-opening.

Teacher Ghulam Rasool Kambay, seeing children becoming increasingly restless cooped up at home, decided to do something.

He opened a tutorial centre in a village on Aug. 3 and now has more than a dozen of them in villages in a district south of the region's main city of Srinagar.

"The response is good.

We have about 800 stu-

Curfew lifted in Valley, Rajnath to head all-party team on Sep 4

A girl looks out from a window of her house during a curfew in Srinagar, July 24, 2016. (REUTERS File Photo)

dents in these centres. Parents are eager to send their children as they have no option right now," Kambay told Reuters.

Students find their way to the makeshift schools in small groups through back lanes, careful not to attract the attention of police. They often sit on the floor as there are not enough desks and share books.

"It's more like a selflearning exercise, just a way to keep in touch with books," said Muneer Wani, 16, at his temporary school at a mosque where classes begin after morn-

ing prayers. Muneer said it was the only place to meet friends and study. "We can't even go outdoors."

Disputed Kashmir is claimed by both India and Pakistan and has been a flashpoint for more than 60 years, sparking two wars between them.

Militant groups have taken up arms to fight for independence from Indian rule or to merge with Pakistan. India has blamed Pakistan for supporting the violence. Pakistan denies that.

Thousands of teenage boys defy a curfew every day and gather in groups

to throw stones at police.

Almost all of the deaths have been caused by security forces shooting at protesters.

On the streets of Srinagar, people have scrawled “Go India, go back”. Zubair Ahmad said he was too worried about the safety of his two children to send them to classes at a nearby mosque.

His wife has been teaching them at home instead, but the children were getting restless, he said.

"It is very difficult for children ... they've become aggressive."

After 91 yrs, RSS changes - to full pants nAgPUR, AUgUst 29 (IAns): Over nine decades after it was founded by Kesava Rao Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh will finally drop its khaki shorts and change into a new uniform comprising full-length dark khaki pants from Dassehra Day this year.

A consignment of the first lot of 10,000 sets of the new 'ganvesh' (uniform) - comprising the regular white shirt, black cap, a black leather belt, a pair of dark brown socks and black shoes, the trademark bamboo cane - and now, including full-length dark khaki trousers - went on sale at a shop near the RSS headquarters in Reshimbaug here on Monday.

The decision to effect the most visible change in attire was taken in March this year at the RSS's Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) held in March 2016 in Nagaur, Rajasthan, presided over by Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat.

However, the actual change comes after nearly a decade of debates, nationwide feedback from the grassroots activists and internal surveys.

Earlier, changing with the times, the RSS, way back in 1940, had changed from a khaki shirt to a white shirt, and in 2010 from the coarse canvas belts to thick leather belts.

The latest change has evoked mixed reactions from

among the veteran RSS activists and the new generation - a young activist proudly posed in the new outfit for media persons at the outlet.

The new full pants - costing around Rs 250 - have been tailored by an RSS regular stylist, in Akola, Rajasthan, and his 40-strong team plans to send around 50,000 pieces to Nagpur by Dassehra (Vijayadashmi) to be celebrated in October this year.

Thousands of RSS activists, who will gather for the annual Vijayadashmi Rally in Nagpur, will be seen formally attired in the new uniform first time on October 11 in the presence of Bhagwat.

sRInAgAR, AUgUst 29 (IAns): After 51 long days, the Kashmir Valley on Monday saw curfew lifted from most places as police said the overall law and order situation generally remained calm.The development comes ahead of an all-party delegation, headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, arriving here on September 4 to speak to various stakeholders so that the present cycle of violence is broken. Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said in Jammu that violence would yield no positive result and a peaceful dialogue remained the only way possible to resolve the Kashmir imbroglio that has seen over 70 people killed in clashes with security forces following the July 8 killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani.

After curfew was lifted, private vehicles and threewheelers moved freely in uptown areas of summer capital Srinagar on Monday as markets also opened in some interior areas. Main markets and public transport, however, remained closed in Srinagar city and elsewhere in the Valley.

Police said 11 people were injured in clashes with the security forces in different places where youth pelted stones, but no serious injury was reported from anywhere. Authorities had to reimpose curfew in Batmaloo area of Srinagar city where youth came out to start a protest march immediately after curfew was lifted. Independent MLA Engineer Rashid was detained in Raj Bagh area of Srinagar city when he was going to a police station in the city along with some of his supporters.The MLA had announced that he would lodge an FIR against the army in a local police station for forced labour of youths in south Kashmir. When asked to identify the places where the army had allegedly forced youths into labour, the MLA told IANS: "I am acting on the statement of the state Chief Minister who recently said she had been responsible for freeing youths from forced labour by the army in south Kashmir.

Most doctors prefer partners from medical profession: Survey new delhI, AUgUst 29 (IAns): Around 69% doctors prefer their spouses to be from the medical profession, the results of a medical app-based survey have revealed.For the survey, Curofy, a networking app for doctors to connect with other doctors, discuss complicated cases and seek a second opinion, approached 1,273 doctors and found that the majority of them preferred their partners from the same profession."Being a doctor your life is extremely busy and if your better half is also from a medical background, there is more understanding between the two. My wife has stood by me through my long working hours and untimely duties," said Rohan Khandelwal, oncologist at W

Pratiksha Hospital in Gurgaon.

"Our communication is efficient, we are empathetic to each others needs and we understand emergencies. We share responsibilities which makes it easier," said Anshuman Kaushal, Unit Head, Bariatric Surgery at Max Healthcare.However, the rest 31% of the doctors rejected the notion of having a doctor as their spouse, stating that the same hectic work schedule makes it difficult to cope with the family pressure. "The survey apparently reveals the interest of doctors to have a life partner with the same medical background for a happy, fulfilling, and smooth married life," Mudit Vijayvergiya, Co-founder, Curofy, said in a statement.

Mahesh Sharma's skirt comment forced him to issue a clarification new delhI, AUgUst 29 (PtI): Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma on Monday, found himself in the middle of yet another controversy for his remarks that foreigners travelling to India should avoid wearing skirts, forcing him to issue a clarification. Sharma said his comments were "advisory in nature" and were meant for those tourists who were visiting religious places. Talking to reporters on Saturday in Agra, he had said, "For their own safety, women foreign tourists should not wear short dresses and skirts... Indian culture is different from the western (culture)."

The remarks evoked a sharp reactions with Congress leader Manish Tiwari terming them as "most uncultured remarks" and

Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal saying that the comments reveal a very "horrible and pathetic mindset".

Clarifying his remarks, Sharma said, "It is country with different cultures, different eating habits and different dressing senses which change on every 100 km.

We have a tradition (of saying) Atithi Devobhava (the guest is almost like God). Such a ban is unimaginable. I said this as an advisory when going to religious places. Like when we go to gurudwara, we cover our heads, when we go to temple, we remove our shoes," Sharma said.

"I am a father of (two) daughters. I have not said what one person should wear or not wear, neither it is desired nor I am authorised to say so. I have only said

this as an advice when they visit to religious place," he added.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also took a dig at Sharma, saying "Women had greater freedom to wear clothes of their choice in Vedic times than they have in Modi times. Criticising Sharma, Tiwari said, "If Mahesh Sharma has his way, he will put every women in burqa..."

Sharma also faced the ire of Maliwal, who said such remarks reveal "horrible and pathetic" mindset and "not expected" from a central minister. "It (the remark) reveals a very horrible and pathetic mindset. Mindset that completely runs in our society. Fact is that two year olds are getting raped... They are also wearing shorts, so because of that they are getting raped. It's

a completely sad and medieval kind of thought process. At least it is not expected from a central minister..." she said. Maliwal was of the opinion that onus is on girls for whatever unfortunate happens to them and questioned the administration about the security and conviction.

Sharma's comments came on Saturday, when he was responding to questions on the government's steps for tourist safety in popular destinations like Agra as he was speaking about the list of dos and don't for visitors to India. He said when tourists arrive at the airport, they will be given a welcome kit which has a card with dos and don't and instructions like if they are in small areas, they should not roam around alone at night or wear skirts. The welcome

kit mentions about clothing but does not specifically says anything about avoiding wearing of skirts.

"Some parts of India, particularly the smaller towns and villages, still have traditional styles of dressing.

"Dress codes for some religious places can include covering your head, being barefoot, etc.

"Do find out about local customs and traditions from the tourism office or concerned authorities while visiting such places," according to the "Tips for Travelling in India" on "clothing" that is provided with the welcome kit to foreigners at the airports.

Last year also, Sharma found himself in the middle of controversy when he had said that girls wanting a night out was "not acceptable in India".

Maharashtra to give women slum dwellers joint ownership rights Marital rape: Sexual intercourse by MUMBAI, AUgUst 29 (thoMson ReUteRs FoUndAtIon): Maharashtra will give women slum dwellers equal ownership rights with men, the first such move by the state where millions live in the very poor neighbourhoods.

About 55 slums in the city of Nagpur will be regularised under a plan to recognise the more than 25,000 families who live there as legal residents.

Each family will be given a land title that gives joint ownership to the man and woman, a senior official said.

"We have given land titles in the past to slum dwellers, but this time the titles will have the name of the woman as well," said Shrawan Hardikar, commissioner at the Nagpur municipal corporation.

"We wish to empower women with equal rights to property as men. Especially for the poorest of the poor

Windows of various shanties in Dharavi, one of Asia's largest slums, are seen in Mumbai January 28, 2015. (REUTERS File Photo)

who live in slums, land and property are a means of security," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Hundreds of millions of people live in slums in Indian cities because they cannot afford to buy or rent a home. They are often migrant workers who move in search of better economic

opportunities.

Many live in shacks with no running water or toilets, under the constant threat of eviction or displacement.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis last week said Nagpur's lead may be applied to slums across the state.

While Indian law gives women equal ownership rights to land and property, women are seldom aware of their rights and are often denied access, said Shivani Chaudhry, executive director of advocacy group Housing and Land Rights Network in India.

"We welcome this

move to give joint ownership titles, but while these rights exist on paper, in reality women aren't allowed to access these rights," said Chaudhry.

"These steps need to be accompanied by ways to increase women's awareness of their rights and some measure of protection of these rights. Implementation also needs to be monitored to ensure women are really able to access these rights," she said.

India ranked 59 of 128 countries in the International Property Rights Index 2016. The index measures factors including the legal and political environment, physical property rights and intellectual property rights.

India fared particularly badly in areas such as gender equality that measured women's access to land and to bank loans for property, as well as inheritance rights for widows and daughters.

man with wife not rape, Centre to HC

new delhI, AUgUst 29 (IAns): The Union government on Monday defended, before the Delhi High Court, the Indian Penal Code provision that says sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, who is not under 15 years of age, is not rape.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhigra Sehgal was told by the government, through an affidavit, that "exception 2 (to Section 375 IPC) deals exclusively with private affairs of husband-wife based on traditional social structure and hence can't be said to be unconstitutional and violative of Articles 14 to 21 of the Constitution".

Section 375, which defines "rape" also contains the exception provision which states that the rape law would not apply to assault or sexual intercourse

by a husband on his wife who is above 15 years.

The government admitted before the court that "although the age of consent is 18 years and child marriage is discouraged, marriage below the permissible age is avoidable but not void in law on account of social realities. It is submitted that the social, economic and educational development in the country is still uneven and child marriages are taking place."

The affidavit also stated that it has been "decided to retain the age of 15 years under exception 2 of section 375 Indian Penal Code so as to give protection to husband and wife against criminalising the sexual activity between them".

The affidavit of government also pointed out that legal prohibition on marital rape must also be accompanied by "changes in the

attitude of the prosecutors, police officers and those in society generally".

The government's response came on a PIL filed

by NGO RIT Foundation challenging Indian Penal Code's section 375, saying it does not consider sexual intercourse of a man with his wife as rape.

The plea has said that the law as it stands today amounts to a state-sanctioned license granted to the husband to violate the sexual autonomy of his lawfully wedded wife and is therefore, a violation of the Right to Privacy guaranteed to the wife under Article 21 of the Constitution.

"The exception to section 375 arbitrarily discriminates between women as it keeps the age of consent at 15 years for women who are in a wedlock whereas the same is 18 years in case of any other woman," it stated.

TuesDAY 30•08•2016

WORLD

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

9

Myanmar peace talks seek to defy weight of history James Hookway Wall Street Journal

New peace talks between Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and Myanmar’s myriad guerrilla armies beginning Wednesday are designed to end decades of bloodshed and set the country on a new path.

The outcome could be significant, helping to determine what happens for decades to come in a country where China, the U.S. and India are vying for influence. United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to attend, and China’s President Xi Jinping signaled his support for the peace process during a joint press conference with Suu Kyi when she visited China earlier this month.

The gathering in the capital, Naypyitaw, however, is weighed down by lofty expectations.

Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate who spent years under house arrest, has made a point of trying to bridge the country’s political and ethnic fault lines since her November election win. Since then, she has said her main goal is to bring an end to decades of civil strife. During her recent visit to China, she told a press conference that “without peace there can be no sustained development.”

People gathered in front of Yangon city hall on Sunday to celebrate the new peace talks beginning in Naypyitaw on Wednesday. The peace talks are known as the 21st Century Panglong Conference, after the town where Aung San Suu Kyi’s father, Gen. Aung San, met with ethnic groups in the 1940s to discuss government of post-independence Myanmar. (European Pressphoto Agency: Photo)

Wednesday’s meeting will take place nearly 70 years after Suu Kyi’s father, Gen. Aung San, met with the country’s different ethnic groups in the town of Panglong to discuss how to share power after independence from Britain. (Back then, the participants sketched out a tentative

plan for a federal union, but Gen. Aung San was assassinated and the country slid into dictatorship before it could be put into practice.)

This time, Myanmar’s government and its disparate groups are searching for a formula that would allow peoples such as the Shan, Wa and Kachin to

manage their own affairs.

While the government has been tight-lipped ahead of the talks, the hope is that devolving power and autonomy to these groups could help keep the peace and ensure stability, providing a foundation for economic growth.

It won’t be easy. Del-

egates and officials regard the first meeting on Aug. 31 as just the beginning of a long process.

“There are still several barriers to overcome for the country to reach the end of decades of war,” Yangon-based risk consultancy Thura Swiss said in a research report. Armed

ethnic groups continue to battle one another in some areas, while skirmishes still occur between guerrillas and government troops in the far north.

The overlapping ethnic conflicts in Myanmar have claimed upward of 130,000 lives since independence from Britain in 1948, according to an estimate by University of Massachusetts researchers. Continued conflict has acted as an economic brake on what was once one of Asia’s wealthiest countries and enabled the military to entrench itself in a political role. Even today, after breakthrough elections last year which brought Suu Kyi’s party to power, the army has direct control of Myanmar’s defense and interior ministries.

Myanmar isn’t the only Southeast Asian nation plagued by armed conflict.

The Philippines is home to communist and Islamist insurgencies, while security analysts and police say separatists from the mostly Muslim south of Thailand are most likely behind a series of blasts in August which killed five people.

Homegrown terrorism continues to threaten Indonesia and Malaysia. Scores of militants, many inspired by compatriots who joined

Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq, have been rounded up recently as security forces attempt to get a grip on the problem.

The conflicts in Myanmar are messier than most. Since colonial times, armed ethnic groups have been at loggerheads with the military and government, which are dominated by the country’s largest ethnic group, the Burmans.

Disputes over how to share natural resources add to the tension; Myanmar’s minorities often live in areas where there are rich deposits of jade, gold and tin. Shan groups in the past week warned that a Chinese-backed hydropower dam project on the Salween River in Myanmar’s east risks worsening the conflicts there, while the Kachin group in the north remains opposed to the resumption of another Chinese venture, the $3.6 billion Myitsone dam, which was suspended by the previous government.

Beijing will need the buy-in of the local Kachin if it is to have any hope of building the dam, analysts say, and that might mean Myanmar’s government allowing the Kachin to negotiate directly with China.

By committing to peace talks, Suu Kyi appears anx-

ious to build on these first steps and address international concerns about the country’s ethnic tensions— particularly the plight of the country’s stateless ethnicRohingya Muslims, who won’t be attending the peace conference—before she visits the U.S. in September. The Rohingya aren’t attending because the government doesn’t consider them to be Myanmar nationals.

Other ethnic groups might not be there, either.

Three groups, the Kokang militia, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army, have said they wish to attend, but Myanmar’s army insists they disarm first—what could be an impossible request, in the eyes of the insurgents.

Wan Wansai, a political activist from Shan state, said Myanmar’s army should wipe the slate clean and declare a unilateral cease-fire to allow all the warring parties to participate. Last year, the army signed a truce with eight of the largest groups after lengthy negotiations.

“It is a must, a necessary step,” he said, but also a step that might be a little too far for the army. Military leaders couldn’t be reached for comment.

Kidnapped aid worker ‘SE Asia needs to up its game to combat Zika’ Suicide bomber kills LuM- said it tested only 1,000 people in checks at main airports and in Afghanistan freed BANgKoK/KuALA 54 in Yemen attack PuR, August 29 (Re- the past year - a tiny number in ports, including in Batam,” the

sYDNeY/KABuL, August 29 (ReuteRs): An Australian aid worker kidnapped in Afghanistan four months ago was freed following a raid by Afghan special forces near the eastern city of Jalalabad, officials said on Monday.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop confirmed in a statement that Kerry Jane Wilson, who was taken by two armed men from the offices of a charity in Jalalabad in April, had been freed and was “safe and well”.

A spokesman for Australia’s foreign ministry declined to provide details but Afghanistan’s National Directorate for Security said in a statement Wilson had been freed on Sunday night after a raid by special forces. Four people were arrested.

“I deeply appreciate the work of the authorities in Afghanistan whose support and assistance facilitated her release,” Bishop said, adding that no further details would be provided about the circumstances of the release.

Kidnapping for ransom has long been a problem in Afghanistan, affecting Afghans more than foreigners, and it has become a lucrative source of income for militant Islamist groups in recent years.

The question of whether to pay ransom is hotly debated. Australia does not pay ransom to kidnappers, as a matter of policy, Bishop said in April.

This month, an Australian and an American, both teachers at the American University of Afghanistan, were kidnapped in the capital, Kabul. They are still missing.

Since June, two Indian aid workers have been kidnapped in Kabul and released after being held for several weeks each. At least two other foreigners were kidnapped in Kabul last year and later released.

Mediterranean diet good for heart disease patients LoNDoN, August 29 (IANs): The Mediterranean diet is associated with a reduced risk of death in patients with a history of cardiovascular disease such as coronary artery disease and stroke, says yet another study on the diet’s impact. “The Mediterranean diet is widely recognised as one of the healthier nutrition habits in the world,” said one of the researchers Professor Giovanni de Gaetano from IRCCS Neuromed Institute in Pozzilli, Italy.

“We found that among those with a higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet, death from any cause was reduced by 37 per cent in comparison to those who poorly adhered to this dietary regime,” de Gaetano said.

While beneficial effects of the Mediterranean diet is well documented, research so far has focused on the general population, which is mainly composed of healthy people. So the researchers wanted to explore if the this diet is optimal for those with a history of cardiovascular diseases as well. The patients were among the participants enrolled into the Moli-sani project, a prospective epidemiological study that randomly recruited around 25,000 adults living in the Italian region of Molise.

“Among the participants, we identified 1,197 people who reported a history of cardiovascular disease at the time of enrolment into Moli-sani,” lead author of the research Marialaura Bonaccio said. Food intake was recorded using the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (EPIC) food frequency questionnaire. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was appraised with a nine-point Mediterranean diet score (MDS).

During a median follow-up of 7.3 years there were 208 deaths. A two-point increase in the Mediterranean diet score was associated with a 21 per cent reduced risk of death, the findings showed. The top category (score sixnine) of adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with 37 per cent lower risk of death compared to the bottom category (zero-three).

The researchers deepened their investigation by looking at the role played by individual foods that make up Mediterranean diet. “The major contributors to mortality risk reduction were a higher consumption of vegetables, fish, fruits, nuts and monounsaturated fatty acids -- that means olive oil,” Bonaccio said. The findings were presented at the ESC (European Society of Cardiology) Congress 2016 in Rome.

uteRs): The spread of the Zika virus across tropical Southeast Asia is likely to be significantly under-reported as local health authorities fail to conduct adequate screening, regional experts said on Monday.

International travel hub Singapore confirmed 41 locallytransmitted cases of the mosquito-borne virus on Sunday and said it anticipated more, raising fears about how quickly it could disperse throughout the region.

Other parts of Southeast Asia have reported dozens of cases of Zika, which in Brazil has been linked to thousands of suspected cases of microcephaly, a rare birth defect, but there are fears the true numbers are masked.

“Zika is under-reported and under-diagnosed,” Khin Myint, head of the emerging virus research unit at Indonesia’s government-funded Eijkman Institute, told Reuters.

The World Health Organization (WHO) lists Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam as countries with “possible endemic transmission or evidence of local mosquito-borne Zika infections in 2016.”

But the Jakarta-based Eijkman Institute, the main body testing for Zika in Indonesia,

Southeast Asia’s most populous country. It found just one positive case, despite reports that Zika is prevalent in the country.

Thailand has recorded the highest number of cases in the region at almost 100 infected people across 10 provinces this year.

Vietnam has recorded three cases of Zika infection, all locallytransmitted, while Cambodia has reported seven cases. Hong Kong confirmed its first case of Zika on Friday, in a woman who had traveled to the Caribbean. A major difficulty is that while Zika can cause mild fever, a rash and red eyes, an estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms.

There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which is a close cousin of dengue and chikungunya and is transmitted by mosquito. There have also been a small number of cases of sexual transmission reported in the United States and elsewhere.

MIXED RESPONSE Some countries in the region began ramping up protective measures following the outbreak in Singapore.

Muhamad Subuh, a senior Indonesian health ministry official, said authorities are “in the process of stepping up health

island closest to Singapore.

Indonesia introduced thermal scanners at airports targeting arrivals from Singapore over the weekend, and plans to roll them out to ports. Authorities are also handing out printed warnings to all incoming passengers, noting Zika has an incubation period of around 10 days before presenting any symptoms.

Malaysian Health Minister Subramaniam Sathasivam said travelers who enter Johor Bahru, where up to 200,000 people commute daily to and from Singapore, will go through thermal screening at border checkpoints.

People crossing in private vehicles will not be scanned but handed a pamphlet detailing the symptoms and asking them to report to authorities if they develop those. Malaysia is also stepping up vector control mechanisms including fogging and larvicidal spraying in Johor Bharu.

Other countries were not responding so quickly. In Thailand, the Department of Disease Control said it was screening athletes returning from the Olympic Games in Brazil, but otherwise not changing its prevention methods. Vietnam and Cambodia made no immediate changes to their border controls.

ADeN, August 29 (ReuteRs): A suicide bomber killed at least 54 people when he drove a car bomb into a militia compound in Aden on Monday, the health ministry said, in one of the deadliest attacks claimed by Islamic State in the southern Yemeni port city. The director general of Yemen’s health ministry in Aden, al-Khader Laswar, told Reuters that at least 67 other people were wounded in the attack in the city’s Mansoura district.

The militant Islamic State group said in a statement carried by its Amaq news agency one of its suicide bombers carried out the bombing. “Around 60 dead in a martyrdom operation by a fighter from Islamic State targeting a recruitment centre in Aden city,” the statement said, without giving further details.

A security source said the attack targeted a school compound where conscripts of the Popular Committees, forces allied to President AbdRabbu Mansour Hadi, were gathered for breakfast. Witnesses said the suicide bomber entered the compound behind a truck that had brought breakfast for the conscripts, who had queued for the meal.

Ambulance sirens wailed throughout the morning as they

ferried casualties to a hospital run by medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), which was overwhelmed by the number of casualties. An MSF spokesperson said the hospital received at least 45 bodies and more than 60 wounded people. Islamist militants, including Islamic State, have exploited an 18-month-old civil war between the Houthi movement and Hadi’s supporters, attacking senior officials, religious figures, security forces and compounds of the Saudi-led Arab military coalition which supports Hadi.

Last month, the governor of the southern Yemeni city of Aden survived a car bomb attack targeting his convoy, the latest attempt on the city’s top official. In May, a suicide bomber killed at least 40 army recruits and injured 60 others when he rammed a booby-trapped car at recruits lined up to enlist for military service at a compound in Aden. Hadi’s supporters, who accuse former President Ali Abdullah Saleh of using Islamist militants to target the internationally-recognised president, have launched a series of raids in recent weeks to try to stem the violence, seizing dozens of people suspected of involvement in attacks across the city.

Islamic State “connected” to Bangladesh, says Kerry DHAKA, August 29 (ReuteRs): The United States believes that elements of Islamic State are “connected” to operatives in Bangladesh, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday, promising help with intelligence and law enforcement after a wave of militant attacks.

Kerry’s blunt statement followed the July 1 attack on a cafe in an upscale district of the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, in which 22 people were killed - mostly nonMuslims and foreigners, including one American.

It directly contradicted the narrative of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, which has blamed homegrown militants and denied a foreign hand in the hostage taking at the Holey Artisan Bakery that was claimed by Islamic State.

The cafe raid was the most shocking of a series of atrocities that has included killings of atheist intellectuals, people from religious and sexual minorities and foreigners, raising fears over the stability of the mainly Muslim nation of 160 million.

Responding to questions after giving a speech,

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry addresses a news conference in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on August 22. (REUTERS Photo)

Kerry said he had a “very candid” conversation with Hasina.

He said that Islamic State had wide contacts around the world, including in South Asia, adding: “They are connected to some degree with some of the operatives here, and we made that very clear in our conversations.”

As Kerry’s motorcade headed to the U.S. embassy for meetings with opposition leaders, a government

minister directly contradicted him.

“I told him that there is no such terrorist or militants from outside or who are connected with the (Islamic State), but there are militants inside our country and they are homegrown,” Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told Reuters.

ued to enjoy the West’s support despite mounting concerns over its handling of the escalation in militant activity.

Bangladesh’s security response has, say analysts, been colored by a political standoff with the Islamistleaning opposition that boycotted the last general election and is suspected by the government of links “EYE OFF THE BALL” to local militant groups.

Bangladesh’s secular Michael Kugelman of government has contin- The Wilson Center, a Wash-

ington-based think tank, said the U.S administration had not paid enough attention to the growing terror threats in Bangladesh, which is now impacting Americans.

“It has arguably taken its eye off the ball even as this threat has begun to directly affect Americans,” he said.

Police believe that Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, a local militant group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, was involved in organizing in the cafe attack.

Two days before Kerry’s visit, security forces said they had killed three militants, including a Bangladeshi-born Canadian citizen called Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury who was suspected of being the mastermind.

Chowdhury is reported to have been the subject of a profile in an Islamic State journal called Dabiq that identified him as its top operative in Bangladesh. The Syria-based militant group also published “selfie” photos of the cafe attackers on its propaganda channels while the hostage crisis was continuing.

SECURITY COOPERATION Kerry said “there is much we can do to cooperate” in the fields of intelligence and law enforcement to address security threats from both domestic and trans-national organizations.

“That’s the nature of the beast that we are dealing with today,” Kerry said.

“I’m absolutely confident that we will build additional capacity and it will be effective.”

In a speech, Kerry also touched on the need to uphold democratic principles “to defeat terrorists” and expressed concern over upholding the rights of workers.

Bangladesh’s economy depends heavily on the fortunes of the $28 billion garment industry, which is struggling to improve a poor safety record epitomized by the Rana Plaza disaster of 2013 in which a factory collapse killed more than 1,100 people.

Kerry was making his first visit to Bangladesh.

His armored SUV hit a gate in front of the U.S. embassy, but he was not hurt

10

tuesDAY 30•08•2016

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

djokovic, Nadal and phil collins Kick-off us open

New York, August 29 (AFP): Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal get their US Open campaigns under way on Monday in the shadow of Arthur Ashe Stadium's spectacular $150 million retractable roof and alongside rock music legend Phil Collins.

Defending champion Djokovic and fellow twotime winner Nadal come into the season's final Grand Slam with injury concerns.

World number one Djokovic, the 2011 and 2015 champion, admits he is "not 100 percent" after suffering a wrist injury on the eve of the Olympic Games where he was a shock first-round loser.

The 29-year-old has also said "personal problems" contributed to his third-round exit at Wimbledon which ended his hopes of going on to capture the first calendar Grand Slam since 1969.

Nadal, meanwhile, is also battling the effects of a left wrist problem which forced a mid-tournament withdrawal from the French Open and sidelined him until the Olympics where he was a gold medal winner in the men's doubles.

The injury concerns, combined with the absence for the first time since 1999 of five-time winner Roger Federer, have put 2012 champion Andy Murray in the position of favourite.

Djokovic starts his bid for a third major of 2016, and 13th of his career, against Polish giant Jerzy Janowicz, who was a Wimbledon semi-finalist in 2013.

A serious knee injury has limited Janowicz to just six matches all year and seen his world ranking collapse to 228.

Nadal, the 2010 and

dilshan indicates he did not get support during captaincy

Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sri Lankan batsman, recently announced he will retire from all forms of cricket after the Australia series.

Novak Djokovic with the now retired Flavia Pennetta - 2015 US men's and women's singles champions.

2013 champion in New York, tackles Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan.

The Spaniard has a 4-0 career record over world number 107 Istomin, including a win over the Russian-born player at the 2010 US Open.

Nadal closes the daytime session on Ashe while Djokovic starts the evening entertainment. In between, the tournament will stage its opening ceremony with Collins, making his first concert appearance in six years, headlining the occasion by reprising his "In the Air Tonight" hit.

Play on the cavernous Ashe stadium starts at 1500GMT with 2015 women's runner-up Roberta Vinci, the Italian seventh seed, facing Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam.

Vinci stunned Serena Williams in the semi-finals in 2015 before losing the championship match to Italian compatriot Flavia Pennetta who retired in the immediate aftermath of her first and only Grand Slam win.

World number two Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion who can dethrone six-time US Open winner Williams as world number one in New York, opens against Polona Hercog of Slovenia.

Action on Louis Armstrong Stadium starts with 2014 champion Marin Cilic against Rogerio Dutra Silva of Brazil.

That's followed by former major winners Francesca Schiavone and Svetlana Kuznetsova.

They played the longest ever women's match at the Australian Open in 2011, a four-hour 44-minute epic won by Schiavone after saving six match points.

French Open champion Garbine Muguruza, the Spanish third seed, faces Belgian qualifier Elise Mertens. The brand new Grandstand arena kicks off with Taylor Townsend of the United States facing two-time runner-up Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark.

Serena Williams and 2012 champion Andy Murray will get underway on Tuesday.

Colombo, August 29 (AFP): Sri Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan, who has just retired from ODI cricket, suggested he did not have enough support from his team-mates during his 10-month stint as captain and was "hurt" by the manner in which he was removed from the post.

Addressing the post-match press conference after the loss to Australia in the third ODI last night, Dilshan lamented that two former captains gave him no support when he assumed captaincy in 2011. "When I was hit in the fingers and was unable to play the two former captains refused to captain the side. One of them agreed only after a lot of convincing," Dilshan said without naming either Kumar Sangakkara or Mahela Jayawardena.

Sangakkara did lead in the third Test in Rose Bowl when Dilshan was forced out of the team by injury. He said that the current captain Angelo Mathews had refused to bowl citing an injury during Dilshan's captaincy.

"I was surprised that he started bowling just a week after I was taken off captaincy," Dilshan said. Though Dilshan said the manner of his ousting did cause hurt, he insisted he did not let "personal issues" affect his cricket. Sri Lanka's first assignment after the South Africa tour was the 2012 tri-series in Australia. Dilshan top-scored in that tournament, hitting 513 runs at an average of 51.30.

"At the end of that South Africa series, I put everything aside. I went to Australia, scored 500 runs, and became Man of the Series. It didn't matter to me who was captain. I wasn't concerned about who ousted me as captain. I always play for my country. I didn't worry about those personal things, but I was hurt."

He said he retired after a 17-year career as he wanted to give a younger lot chance to make an impression.

Dilshan retired from Test cricket in 2013 and continued playing in ODIs and T20Is. There will be no cricket until Sri Lanka tour South Africa in January. "For me I see no point in just training with the squad," he said. He is expected to play in the two T20 internationals coming up against Australia next week.

Sri Lankan cricketer Tillakaratne Dilshan (C) receives a farewell from the crowd after declaring his retirement from One Day International cricket during the third ODI match between Sri Lanka and Australia at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket stadium in Dambulla on August 28. (Getty Images)

Sri Lankan cricket board apologises for crowd chaos in Dambulla ODI

Colombo, August 29 (IANs): Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Monday issued an apology for inadequate crowd control measures during their third One-Day International against Australia in Dambulla.

Australia won a close contest by two wickets at the Rangiri Stadium on Sunday to pull ahead 2-1 in the five-match series. The fourth match is also to be held at Dambulla on Wednesday. Over-enthusiastic cricket fans climbed trees, walls and scaffolding to get a glimpse of the match and, according to SLC's estimates, around 45,000 people thronged the venue which has a capacity of only 18,000.

Part of the overzealousness is believed to be the fact

that it was the first day-night One-Day International at the venue in six years, Cricket Australia said in a report on its website on Monday.

Fans sought unusual spots around the ground to view the proceedings. Those with reserved seating at the Press Box End found themselves in much discomfort as officials struggled to manage the demands of the ever-growing crowd.

"Sri Lanka Cricket sincerely wishes to announce that it regrets the inconvenience caused to the ticket holders and cricket fans who could not get to their allocated seats at yesterday's 3rd ODI match played in Dambulla," SLC said in a statement. "Having the capacity of accommodat-

ing 18,000 spectators, over 45,000 cricket fans attended the match as per the SLC security estimates. Therefore, the security staff and the ushering teams lost the crowd control systems which was in place to assist the spectators as usual." "Due to the above situation, contingency measures were taken to protect the playing area and the two teams, which was considered as a priority for the continuation of the game," it added.

"SLC wishes to state that it will take adequate measures to ensure that proper security and ushering will be in place for the upcoming matches and apologise once again for the inconvenience caused to our fans."

public discourse

The Catastrophe and the Apathetic Authority HORNBILL FESTIVAL: THE MEGA EVENT

T

he recent unfortunate catastrophe that obliterated people’s lives, which are left to feral, adding to extreme poverty and the apathetic attitude response from the authority is appalling and outraging.

These flood affected areas under Bokajan subdivision of Karbi Anglong, especially the Rengma Naga inhabited areas and its surrounding villages have been reeling under extreme poverty sans basic amenities where people die needlessly and yet this lackluster attitude response in times of catastrophic from authority is inhuman.

Where is disaster preparedness and crisis response? Why repeatedly demand for relief needs to be placed to the authority for such unfortunate havoc that haunted people and destroyed everything? This sort of cruelty is the pro-

ductive source of pauperism and a hinder to progress. Sitting at comfy desk with folded arms, waiting people come crying begging to offices, as if it’s none of the business! Or is it because you are not responsible for the flood, hence, hands off? Is it for the reason that, it is interior rural areas and is sans any network connectivity, where average creatures and Medias are impassable, your reason and excuse to pretend not known?

People have lost homes, farms, agriculture produce, personal valuables and livestock, all of which they depend on for livelihood. Rivers are contaminated with debris which is the main drinking water source. The whole area poses risk with numerable water borne diseases, such as malaria, dengue, diarrhea etc. Despite of begging to the authority, only lack-

luster response shown, and this speaks volume and is clear that no interest to protect the most vital asset, its people.

Since Indian Independence, followed by the inception of KAAC, literally zero development took place in the region. If it was the authoritative and indifferent attitude of the British towards the Indian, the spirit of nationalism gained ground which led to the national movement and if the primary cause of the Indian movement was to sought and creates an Indian state that was free of Tyrant British rule and to conduce tranquility among all citizens irrespective. If so, what pragmatic changed does this anyway facilitated us? To this day, we are still struggling, fighting for the basic amenities such as Roads, Electricity, and Water; forget about hospitals, fighting to avail dispensary for the last 70

years! I kindly ask the Assam government and the KAAC to name one dispensary in the Rengma inhabited areas.

With what immunity do we survive naturally in these undetectable fatal uncountable diseases spreading around us and the natural disasters adding to the misery? How do we progress without basic key amenities? Due to this, neglected to the feral, people die needlessly. If this is the attitude and intention of the government, leave our land and the responsibilities to our shoulders to decide.

Once again, pleading the authority to humanitarianly implement its errands immediately with proper assessment, the scale of destructions, and provide all necessary relief and rehabilitation to the unfortunate victims of the disaster and help restore back to normal life.

John Rengma Karbi Anglong, Assam.

WHAT is HoldiNG us bAcK??

H

ave you ever wondered what resists you from attaining excellence? Have ever pondered about the reasons that keep you behind from others? We have certain emotional resistance like fear, unwillingness to take risk, excuses and blaming others, procrastination, living too much in comfort zones, lack of persistence, competitive spirit, positive attitude and not learning from the past mistakes.

These resistances resist us from attaining excellence and achieving our goals.

A couple of weeks back I shared my desire to write an article to publish in the college bulletin to one of my friends. She intimated, “Yes it will be good if you write well but if you do not write well, it will be a shame.” Actually this is not the opinion that I expect

from her. This opinion of her is a product of fear. Fear actually is a destroyer of our potential and ability. It is stunting. Different kinds of fear like fear of failure, unknown, being unprepared, rejection etc dominates us.

Fear of failure is worse than failure itself.

We are so scared of making mistake(s) that we are not bold enough to take risk. The person who never attempts anything risky makes no mistakes.

However not making an attempt is often a bigger mistake than making an attempt and failing. “Once a man asked a farmer if he had planted wheat for the season. The farmer replied, No. I was afraid it would not rain.The man asked, “Did you plant corn?” The farmer said, “No. I was afraid that insects would eat the corn.” Then the man asked, “What did you plant?” the

farmer said, “Nothing. I placed it safe”. Don’t keep your potential and ability safe! Make use of it!

Unwillingness to accept failure and blame make us to have the habit of making excuses and blaming others for our failure and for our circumstances. We blame everything and everyone for where we are in life. When we failed, we lament, “Wish I had been taught well in the school by our teachers.” We dispraise that, “The school is weak” or regretted, “Wish I had little more time.” When we ponder upon all these, these are all an excuses. Excuses and blames are self built roadblocks that keep us from achieving what is possible. Procrastination is simply a delaying or postponing of the work that we need to do today for tomorrow. But the sad news I have for everyone is that,

“Tomorrow never comes.”

When we procrastinate, we put our vision, desires and goals on hold. We end up always waiting for tomorrow, nothing done today.

We procrastinate only to regret later.

Living in comfort zone is very comfortable. We enjoy it very much. But we don’t realize that it is a stumbling block towards achieving success and goals. Our comfort zones may be Smartphone, Television, games etc.

Lack of persistence, competitive spirit, positive attitude and not learning from the past mistakes are also some of the factors that are holding us back.

Avoidance of the aforementioned points and doing contrary of them will help us to achieve excellence and succeed our goals.

M. Mashungmi Senapati District.

T

hus far we have come! Congrats to the organizers. My humble suggestion to the organizers- why not we widen up the activities (scope) of the festival to a larger area so as to fulfill our dreams and uphold the adage- Land of Festivals. By widening our activities we will directly give a boost to the tourism industry, which is in our Government's agenda right from the inception of this mega event. Let us do away with the 'get rich overnight syndrome' so as to boost the tourism industry of Nagaland: check forced hikes in the commodities, travel fares, lodging rents etc.

How friendly can we get to the tourists coming from mainland India as well as those coming from abroad?

It is a festival of our state and so why not we share the festivities amongst

ourselves?? I am sure by widening the scope of our activities we will be rewarded manifold for 'many heads are better than a few'. Better episodes lie in wait from other Districts of our small state. We need to sustain the land of festivals by exhibiting a friendly and hospitable outlook towards visitors.

These consistencies will go a long way towards boosting the tourism industry of our state. Admittedly, our State has a very poor connectivity and this is one of the reasons that hampers the progress of our tourism Industry. Comparatively, our State does not have a lot to showcase our tradition/culture too. The little that we have is just for our "consumption" and therefore we need to do some soul-searching and come up with some better ideas/alternatives to

achieve our dream of realizing Tourism as an Industry. Besides this Mega Event that lasts for about a fortnight or so, let us also give thought to organizing year-long activities so as to enhance the Tourism Industry eventually adding up to the coffers of our poor state.

The Hornbill Festival currently being concentrated only within the precints of Kohima is, frankly, perceived as a "storm in a tea cup" to the rest of the land of festivals. Come see and experience the varieties that other districts too can showcase. With criticisms abound lately, it is saddening to see this Mega Event (the pride of Nagaland) gradually running out of steam as of now. Spread out! Let us supplement and rejuvenate this Grand Event.

Imliwati Imchen, Mokokchung.

Youth: Blessings or Curse for tomorrow lies in Us N. Imtitoshi Longkumer

A

s per the report of the United Nations, India rank first with the largest youth population in the world, in fact which is a proud time for us, a time when our economy is in a crucial stage. Young people are the innovators, creators, builders and leaders of the future (tomorrow-as we often refer to). In this largest youth population country we the young Nagas also represent a portion and we are a part of it, a part of that strength. We will be the pillars of our government, our churches and societies and that leadership will be determined on how young people act and live today. We cannot expect a better tomorrow if we are messing today be it in political field or any other. We will be who we are today.

Nagas as we all can see it and hear everyday are in chaos and everything seems wrong if we look around. Nothing seems to be in its proper track. To name a few which are basic to our modern life are in a way denied. For instance, are there any good roads in Nagaland where you and I can travel without hitting your head on the roof of your car? Is there any place in Nagaland where you can at least charge you cell phone up to 10% without being disturbed by electricity? Is there any government office where corruption doesn’t exist? Can we really find a true political leader who truly cares for the people? Here I do not intend to generalize the whole issue(s) rather to provoke every right thinking citizen to ponder upon those pertinent issues that threats the very existence of our society and which hampers the growth of our State. Social media is

playing a vital role in educating and sensitizing about the happenings of our state which is appreciated. However, many turn to be just a mouth piece and an empty vessel in barking aimlessly without giving an iota of praxis; they become just the social media doers/speakers and so it don’t happen in the real world. And those people will never change the world which they proudly shout at in the virtual reality world.

Today, with the issues and awareness being circulated through printed media as well as social networking, many young people are raising their voice be it in political, churches, educational institutions or in any other field where transparency and sincerity is neglected even to the extent of lies turning to truth and viceversa. Everything that happens in Nagaland looks to be unseemly and our souls cries day and night thinking as to what and where it went wrong.

We proudly talk about our fore parents who were honest, truthful and having a sense of community first instead of me/I first but today everybody seems to be lost and blinded with greediness and SELF has been the dominant and foremost priority for every individual and thence corruption which we talk so much starts then and there. We blame the politicians for the bad road, electricity and lack of basic facilities for the people and the politicians blame us (the common people) for the money we took in terms of tens of thousands during election and hence the blame game goes on. We need to pause for a moment and ask ourself who is to be blamed? Them, us or we? Can we really solve our today’s problem/cor-

ruption by blaming the others? Then where to we start? Let us quit this blame game and work for a common good be it the politicians, bureaucrats, church leaders or the common people.

Young people has a greater task ahead of us in cleansing this mess that burdens our society to the core and that task is to genuinely with courage raise our voice together against any corrupt leader(s) or to any corruption which are visibly hidden in our society. Our strength in standing for truth will bear good fruits tomorrow but if we are complacent in our own comfort zone and be still since something does not affect you/us as of now then it will bounce back to you/us sooner or later with regrettable outcome. There is hope for tomorrow in the young people- a hope with no back door appointments, a hope of not taking money during election, a hope where politicians and bureaucrats are transparent in their work with commitment working for the people and not for his/ her kins alone, a hope where we can travel in good road, a hope with good basic facilities for the people, a hope where you and I don’t have to buy a job but compete, a hope where tribalism does not poke in every issues, a hope where there is no extra taxation being levied even before a business is established and a hope where young people toil with sweats for their lives.

Let us fight for a better Nagaland, a place where you and I will proudly say that I am a Naga. Let us end this blame game and corruption and root it out from our society once and for all for a brighter and better Nagaland.

God bless my Nagaland. Kuknalim.

Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

Tuesday 30•08•2016

EntErtainmEnt

dominates

B

eyonce, on Sunday, dominated the MTV Video Music Awards as she took home top prizes and awed the audience in a fiery dance medley with a subtle political touch. The singer won Video of the Year for Formation, the most outspoken work of her career, as well as Best Female Video for Hold Up. The two tracks appeared on Lemonade, Beyonce's latest album which she released in a surprise tie-in with a film of the same name that paid tribute to African American women.

Beyonce stole the spotlight at the gala party in New

York's Madison Square Garden by performing a Lemonade medley of more than 16 minutes, managing even to change outfits in a set that culminated in the stage erupting in fire.

In one of the most striking moments, the sound of a single gun-shot rang out as her circle of angelic-clad dancers each collapsed in a fog of red.

Formation, directed

by Melina Matsoukas, offered solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality with officers depicted raising their hands as if under arrest. "I dedicate this award to the people of New Orleans. God bless

you guys," Beyonce said as she accepted the award for Formation, which was musically inspired by the southern city's bounce hiphop scene.

Singer Alicia Keys offered another of the night's powerful moments as she recited a poem she said was inspired by civil rights hero Martin Luther King Jr. who delivered his landmark "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington 53 years ago Sunday.

and taking away their role models," said Kanye, who started his speech by deploring street killings in his native Chicago.

Kanye Talks Kanye The Video Music Awards, broadcast to more than 120 countries, have long been known more for their on-stage antics than the winners, and this year MTV decided to let the artists loose.

In one of the night's most anticipated moments, rap superstar Kanye West - who last year used the occasion to declare his intention to run for president in 2020 - delivered a nearly stream-of-consciousness speech about empowerment.

As the audience chanted his stage-name 'Yeezy,' Kanye said that unnamed wealthy white people warned him against comparing himself to Apple founder Steve Jobs and entertainment pioneer Walt Disney. But Kanye said that the pair were among fewer than 10 true artistic heroes, and that the slim list also includes himself.

"Three keys to keeping people impoverished are taking away their esteem, taking away their resources

Full list of winners Video of the Year: Beyonce - Formation Best Female Video: Beyonce - Hold Up Best Male Video: Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna - This Is What You Came For Best Collaboration: Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign - Work From Home Best Hip Hop Video: Drake - Hotline Bling Best Pop Video: Beyonce Formation Best Rock Video: twenty one pilots - Heathens Best Electronic Video: Calvin Harris & Disciples - How Deep Is Your Love Breakthrough Long Form Video: Beyonce Lemonade Best New Artist: DNCE Song of Summer Presented by Verizon: Fifth Harmony featuring Fetty Wap - All In My Head (Flex) Best Art Direction: David Bowie - Blackstar Best Choreography: Beyonce - Formation Best Direction: Beyonce -

Rihanna Honoured MTV presented its Video Vanguard Award - named after late King of Pop Michael Jackson - to Rihanna, in recognition to her contributions to pop culture. In an acceptance speech, Rihanna pledged never to forget her native Barbados.

Formation Best Cinematography: Beyonce - Formation Best Editing: Beyonce Formation Best Visual Effects: Coldplay - Up&Up Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award: Rihanna

Hillstar NOW SHOWING FLYING JATT

Source: AFP

Jackie Chan looking for an Indian Abiogenesis performs in Mumbai actress for ‘Skiptrace’ sequel

J

ackie Chan surely seems to be totally smitten by India.

After working with Sonu Sood and Amyra Dastur in 'Kung Fu Yoga', Jackie Chan is reportedly looking for an Indian actress to play a major role in a sequel to 'Skiptrace', the film which is set to release next month.

As per reports, his team is already in Mumbai looking out for an Indian face for the sequel.

It is easy to guess that the actor would go for his 'Kung Fu Yoga' co-stars Amyra Dastur and Disha Patani for the film but it is being said that Chan's team is looking for a fresh face with striking Indi-

an features. Auditions for the film are already in progress and a few actresses have auditioned for the part. The top contenders for this part reportedly are Sobhita Dhulipala and Tillotama Shome, but since Chan is the producer of the film he will be taking the final decision on the actress.

11:00 am | 0200 PM 08:00 PM

MECHANIC 2

Source: TNN

Will Smith enjoys Bollywood night out in Mumbai C M Y K

H

ollywood icon Will Smith is in India, and he got a taste of Bollywood glamour when he joined a star-studded party hosted by actor Akshay Kumar here on Sunday night. The American actor-singer-producer, best known for films like "Independence Day" and "Men In Black", is all smiles in some of the photographs that have emerged online, from the party.

Akshay and Smith seem to be at ease in each other's company, and look happy to pose for the cameras.

Their jovial mood reflects in the images. Akshay hosted the party for his friends to enjoy the successful

run of three of his films "Airlift", "Housefull 3" and "Rustom", all of which have surpassed the Rs 100 crore mark. His wife Twinkle Khanna was excited to host Smith.

"Guess who came over for dinner last night?

Now I have to stop saying that I have no Willpower:) #freshprinceofbelair," Twinkle posted on Twitter on Monday with a photograph featuring her all smiles with Smith.

While the social media is abuzz with Smith's party hopping in India, the actor has not shared anything about his trip to the country in the virtual world.

As far as Smith's visit is concerned, there is no

A

information yet about why he is in India. This is not the first time he is in the country. He helped launch Sony's Pix channel in India back in 2008,

and "The Pursuit of Happyness" star also became a part of reality show "Indian Idol" for an episode of a past season.

Source: IANS

Ileana D'Cruz on the importance of Mental Health

A

ctress Ileana D'Cr uz says people should be aware of their mental issues and not avoid mental check-ups.

In an interview to a digital platform, the Barfi! actress said she has been dealing with anxiety and depression over her body for several years. She finally sought relief in therapy and now vouches that it's important for people to get themselves checked for a sound mental health.

On the side-lines of the Lakme Fashion Week WinterFestive 2016, where Ileana walked for designer Ridhi Mehra, IANS asked her about how celebrities are opening up about their mental issues to motivate people to deal with such issues

biogenesis, the folk fusion band from Nagaland, enthralled the crowd with Naga Howeymusic and the Bamhum at the daylong ‘Songs and Dances of North East 2016’ festival on August 27 in Mumbai. The festival held at CIDCO Exhibition and Convention Hall, Vashi showcased the North East region and its rich and vibrant culture – food, songs, dances, attires, etc. in one platform.

The festival was jointly organized by Government of Arunachal Pradesh and North East Council (NEC),

Ministry of DoNER, Government of India. Conceptualized and designed by NEC, the event aims to bind together the diverse culture and heritage of the North East on a common platform and connect it with the rest of India. It began in the year 2015 and is held by rotation in different parts of the country as part of the series of events planned by NEC and DoNER. The first edition of the festival was hosted by Meghalaya and held in Delhi.

Welcoming everyone to the festival, Chief Minister Pema Khandu said

Salman Khan's

better.

She said, "It is a problem only if you are not aware of your issues.

A lot of people should probably get into a little bit of mental check-up, like you get your physical check-ups done every year. "Mental check-up is something you tend to overlook.

I just think people need to be aware, because if you do not realise it that you can be holding back, (but if you get yourself checked), maybe workwise or professionally, or even your personal life could get lot better."

Her issues aside, Ileana's career seems to be going in the right direction. Her latest release was Rustom, in which she shared the frame with Akshay Kumar. She also stays in touch with her fans through social media. "What is nice about the social media is that alman Khan's "Being people get a glimpse into you, the SalMan: The Official natural you. So that when they see Game" is now out for me without make-up, they don't the fans of the Bollywood freak out," Ileana quipped.

Source: IANS superstar to enjoy. Salman

'Being SalMan' game out

S

announced the launch of the game and introduced it with a 45-second video, on Twitter. "My official game, 'Being Salman' game is out

the event was a great opportunity for the people of western India, especially Mumbai, to know and understand the cultures of North East India and a step towards national integration.

Chief Guest Rijiju asserted that the Center is giving full attention to the North East region in infrastructural development.

He also assured that a similar conglomeration of North-East students studying in Maharashtra will be arranged in collaboration with Maharashtra government in November next. now! Khelo," the 50-yearold captioned the video.

The video gives a glimpse of the special effects and the look of the game. The "Dabangg" star has also introduced three characters or avatars of himself in the game. "Let me introduce you to my action game. Legend has it that on this planet, all have seven lookalikes. We are not too sure about seven, but we found three. Their lives are very different, but their life's objective is exactly the same.

"Come let's meet 'Chulbul Pandey' (first character). His aim is to knockout injustice from the world.

'Tiger' (second character), his objective is to eliminate terrorism, once and for all. 'Prem' (third character), whose aim is to wash away all dirt," Salman says in the video. All three are inspired by Salman's on screen avatars. The game is available for both Android and iOS users.

Source: IANS

05:00 pm

Now ShowiNg

03862-237226 Ticket Counter (09:00 AM - 09:00 PM) www.BookMyShow.com Ward 5 (6), Burma Camp, Dimapur.

Landmark: J. K Hospital/ Power House.

12

tuesDAY 30•08•2016

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Sindhu, Sakshi, Dipa, Jitu City, United, Chelsea shine, Bayern hit six conferred Khel Ratna awards EuRopEan RounDup

Reuters Photo

lONDON, August 29 (ReuteRs): Heavyweight trio Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea kept up their 100 percent starts to the Premier League season this weekend while Bayern Munich made a six-goal start to the defence of their Bundesliga crown.

C M Y K

when they beat Athletic Bilbao 1-0 thanks to Ivan Rakitic's first-half header.

Surprise packages Las Palmas are top on goal difference after crushing Granada 5-1 while Real survived another week without injured talisman Cristiano Ronaldo to beat Celta Vigo 2-1, Toni Kroos' late missile proving the difference.

Atletico Madrid were held to a goalless ENGLAND Raheem Sterling scored twice as Man- draw at newcomers Leganes and have chester City's 3-1 win over West Ham failed to win their first two games of the United took them to the top of the Premier season for the first time in four years.

League on goal difference from Chelsea and Manchester United. All three teams ITALY Napoli squandered a two-goal halfhave a 100 percent record after three games.

The outstanding Eden Hazard scored time lead before scoring two late goals to the opening goal as Chelsea beat promot- beat nine-man AC Milan 4-2 in a stormy ed Burnley 3-0 while young striker Mar- Serie A match that featured eight other cus Rashford's last-minute goal gave Jose bookings.

Champions Juventus won 1-0 at Lazio Mourinho's United a 1-0 victory at Hull City.

Champions Leicester City achieved their to claim their second straight victory of the first win this term, 2-1 against Swansea City. new season.

Sami Khedira grabbed the only goal in the 66th minute to extend Juve's 13-year GERMANY Robert Lewandowski's hat-trick unbeaten run against Lazio. helped give coach Carlo Ancelotti a flying start to his first Bundesliga campaign as FRANCE Champions Paris St Germain suffered a Bayern Munich cruised to a 6-0 win over shock 3-1 defeat at Monaco, suggesting they Werder Bremen at the Allianz Arena.

Xabi Alonso, Philipp Lahm and Franck may find it harder to retain their Ligue 1 crown Ribery were also on target for the Bavarians. after last season's complete domination.

PSG won the title by 31 points in May, losPierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice to give Borussia Dortmund, last sea- ing only two games, but they were outclassed son's runners-up, a 2-1 victory over Mainz 05. by Monaco who finished third last term.

Monaco are top of the table, level with Guingamp and Nice on seven points from SPAIN Title holders Barcelona joined Las Pal- three matches and one ahead of PSG who mas and Real Madrid at the top of La Liga won their first two games of the season.

New Delhi, August 29 (iANs): Rio Olympics medallists -- shuttler P.V. Sindhu and wrestler Sakshi Malik -- and gymnast Dipa Karmakar along with shooter Jitu Rai were conferred the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna awards -- the country's highest sporting honour -- here on Monday.

President Pranab Mukherjee presented the awards amid thunderous applause at the Darbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of National Sports Day. This was the first time in the history of the National Sports Awards that four athletes were chosen for the Khel Ratna award. In 2009, boxers Vijender Singh and M.C. Mary Kom and wrestler Sushil Kumar were given the award together.

Sindhu scripted history by winning the silver in women's singles badminton in the recently concluded Rio Olympics, while Sakshi took bronze in the women's 58kg freestyle category at the Games.

Sindhu's coach Pullela Gopichand has already received the Arjuna Award in 1999. He has also been conferrd with the Dronacharya Award in 2009 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.

Shooter Jitu failed to impress at the Rio Games, but the 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medallist had won numerous tournaments, including a gold at the Asian Games in Incheon.

All the Khel Ratna awardees received a medal, certificate and cash prize of Rs.7.5 lakh each.

President Mukherjee also gave away the Dronacharya awards to Dipa's mentor Bisweshwar Nandi, along with Indian cricket Test skipper Virat Kohli's coach Raj Kumar Sharma, athletics coach Nagapuri Ramesh, boxing coach Sagar Mal Dhayal, Pradeep Kumar (Swimming, lifetime) and Mahabir Singh (wrestling, lifetime).

They were given certificates and a cheque of Rs.5 lakh each.

Apart from this, 15 sportspersons were given the Arjuna Awards.

Among them were Olympian runner Lalita Babar, boxer Shiva Tha-

(From left) Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna awardees Sakshi Malik, Jitu Rai, Dipa Karmakar and P. V. Sindhu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

pa, shooter Apurvi Chandela, and hockey players V.R. Raghunath and Rani Rampal.

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who was stretchered out after dislocating her right knee half-way into the first period of her 48kg quarterfinal fight, was also given the Arjuna award.

Cricketer Ajinkya Rahane missed out on the ceremony as he is still in the US after the conclusion of the T20 International series against the West Indies.

Goalkeeper Subrata Paul was the lone footballer in the list of Arjuna awardees.

Veteran athlete Satti Geetha, hockey player Sylvanus Dung Dung and rower Rajendra Pralhad Shelke were conferred the Dhyanchand Award.

PM Modi spoke of his hope that sportsmanship will carry the country's society forward.

"On National Sports Day, I congratulate all sports lovers across India & hope sports & sportsmanship will always shine in our society," he wrote on Twitter on Sunday.

Sindhu, Thapa and other

sportspersons thanked the Prime Minister for taking the initiative to develop sports in the country.

"It's a great initiative started by the Prime Minister and I want to thank him for taking huge steps for the benefits of the athletes. This will definitely help because if you are eyeing a podium finish then preparations have to be started now," Thapa said.

Dipa said that the joy has doubled as her coach Bishweshwar Nandi also received the Dronacharya award.

"It really feels great to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award. Its a dream for every sportsperson in the country. The joy is doubled as my coach also got the Dronacharya award, I am very happy for him," Dipa said after receiving the award.

Hockey stars Raghunath and Rani Rampal were elated to have been given the Arjuna award.

"This kind of recognition will only boost the morale of a player and also of the team. I am very happy that this time players from both the men and women's team have

been recognised. Someone told me this is the first time after 1997 that a hockey player from Karnataka is getting the Arjuna Award so this is doubly special for me. Receiving the Arjuna Award from the honourable President is a matter of pride and this will only motivate me further in my career," Raghunath said in a Hockey India statement.

"When I started my journey as a hockey player at the age of nine in Shahbaad, I had never imagined I would scale such heights and be part of the Indian team that would play at the Olympics after 36 years.

To be part of the Rio contingent was like a dream," Rani said.

"I would like to thank Hockey India for their support and the Government of India for recognising my efforts. To receive this award among such high profile dignitaries and fellow sports people inside the Rashtrapati Bhavan is a huge honour and my parents and family are very excited for me.

This award will help me stay motivated and ensure the team qualifies for the Tokyo Olympics," Rani added.

India can become top test team by end of season: Dhoni

lAuDeRhill August 29 (Pti): Limited overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni believes that India's Test side led by Virat Kohli can regain it's top ranking in longest format by the end of the home season in which they play 13 Tests against New Zealand, England, Australia and Bangladesh.

Dhoni feels the team is shaping up well under skipper Virat Kohli and the fact that all the Indian fast bowlers are fit and doing well will held the team in good stead in the upcoming Test matches.

"I think the Indian Test team is shaping up well. It seemed we were more settled in T20 and ODI but now our team had a good batting experience. If you notice, for the last 2 and a half years, we had the same batting unit, barring one or two changes. So you learn a lot. Test remains the ultimate format," Dhoni told reporters after the 2nd T20I was washed out on Sunday.

"On top of it, one plus point is that all our fast bowlers are fit now and the way they are bowling. We have 10 proper fast bowlers and it's an asset.

Now we will be playing a lot of match-

es, so we can rotate our fast bowlers if we want to," he observed.

Dhoni is happy that talent is now getting transformed into performance. "As far as performance is concerned, the talent and experience of the team has started to get reflected in the performance and in the times to come, this season we will be playing 13 Tests and I think by the end of it if everything goes well, touchwood, we will be the number one team in the world and the gap between the first and second team will be substantial," he added.

Coming back to the short T20 series, Dhoni said while the pitch remained same where the bowlers were belted for 245 in the first game, it was the addition of an extra spinner in Amit Mishra, which paid off as the World T20 champions were bowled out for less than 150.

"I don't think the wicket changed a lot. It is same as the last wicket. It is the exposure that they had in the last game, it gave them the ability to go back and think about their own game plan and often when there is no break between two matches, it ac-

tually helps the bowlers to quickly go back and plan," said the 35-year-old from Ranchi.

"It is the execution that matters and I think it was great. Addition of a spinner also paid off well. Mishra bowled really well. I felt it was the whole bowling unit who could restrict them to 140, it was a brilliant effort," he added.

Dhoni said there is plenty of positives to take away from the short series. "There is plenty to take away. The way we chased down 244 odd (245) and came close in the last game was a difficult one. The reason being once you have so many runs to chase, it puts you under pressure to score right from the start and the batsmen did it pretty well," he said.

"When it comes to bowling, the first game was tough for the bowlers but the way they came back in the second game, it was fantastic, it showed a lot about the character of the bowling unit. We have a more experienced unit. They have played a lot of Test cricket and also have the experience of playing at IPL and shorter format.

NE Shooting Championship begins Morung Express News Dimapur | August 29

The 4th North East Zone Shooting Championship (NEZSC) got underway at Aries Sports Complex, Bamumpukhuri-I, Dimapur, with National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) honorary secretary and Manipur Rifle Association senior president M. Rajendra Singh as the chief guest on Monday.

Singh said that the Government of India has taken a serious decision in order to nurture and train shooters and other sportspersons so that they may win international medals, especially in Olympics.

He said that NRAI was now supplying arms and ammunitions which were of international standard that will greatly enhance the performance of the shooters. The country is coming up with schemes

Championship officials and jurists for the event pose for lens in Dimapur on Monday. (Morung Photo).

to improve the sports infrastructure, arms, ammunition etc, he said.

According to an official list prepared by the championship officials, a total of 162 shooters including 117 male and 45 female from

the North Eastern states of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland will be competing in the 6-day event.

The events include 10 metres rifle, 10 metres pistol, 50 metres rifle prone

(PS/OS), 50 metres pistol, 50 metres rifle (3 positions), 25 metres standard pistol, 25 metres sports pistol and25 metres centre fire pistol.

The events begin at 8:30 am daily.

Published, Printed and Edited by Dr. Aküm Longchari from House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur at Themba Printers and Morung Publications , Padum Pukhuri Village, Dimapur, Nagaland.

RNI No : NAGENG /2005/15430. House No.4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur 797112, Nagaland. Phone: Dimapur -(03862) 248854, Fax: (03862) 235194, Kohima - (0370) 2291952

For news email: morung@gmail.com and for advertisements and circulation contact: (03862) 248854, Fax-235194 or email : morungad@yahoo.com

PO Reg No. NE/RN-722