December 30th, 2015

T H e

ESTD. 2005

You never find yourself until you face the truth Iraq PM vows to defeat IS in 2016

By Sandemo Ngullie

P o W e R

o F

T R u T H

— Pearl Bailey

LSU celebrates platinum jubilee with ‘Nüklasen’

United draw with Chelsea, Arsenal go top

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rEflEcTions

www.morungexpress.com

WednesdAY • december 30 • 2015

DIMAPUR • Vol. X • Issue 353 • 12 PAGes • 4

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communities Explore, Engage, Evolve RNSU holds 54th General Conference cum Golden Jubilee Commemoration Morung Express news

said Phenpiga Himbü, Pres-

A-Jongpha (KA) | December 29 ident of the RNSU, while

In a unique show of solidarity, Naga, Karbi, Ahom, Gorkha, Bengali and Bhojsame husband, same job, puri students came togethsame government same ‘no er at the small unconnectsalary’! Happy new Year!!! ed Rengma Naga village of Akhoiphuta-Jongpha in The Morung Express Karbi Anglong, Assam, on 28.

Poll QuEsTion December On the occasion of the Vote on www.morungexpress.com 54th General Conference SMS your anSwer to 9862574165 cum Golden Jubilee Commemoration of the RengCan Nagas overcome our current victimma Naga Students’ Union, mentality and bring Karbi Anlgong (RNSU), about positive change young leaders showed in 2016? Why? that peace and solidarity in the region is possible Yes no others through humble gestures and interventions. With The Morung Express to the theme ‘Explore. Engage. Evolve.’, the RNSU cost `5 from Jan 2016 ended its tenure 2012-15 managing to bring togethDear Readers, This is to inform you er diverse communities that the cover price of through its core message The Morung Express will ‘marching towards unity, be `5 beginning, Janu- peace and prosperity’.

“The RNSU has been ary 1, 2016. The primary consumed by the explorafactors affecting the paper’s production costs tion of reality of the Rengma Naga people living in Assam are that all items related today—but it is the explorato printing the news- tion of possibilities that has paper have steadily in- kept us moving forward,” creased, in combination with the poor economy.

Also, print materials are imported from outside Nagaland as they are not readily available here.

Please know that this SYDNEY, DECEMBER was a difficult decision 29 (IANS): In an indication to make and ask for your that transmissible cancer support offsetting these may not be as rare as gencosts and greatly appre- erally believed, researchers ciate your committed have identified a second, readership throughout genetically distinct variety in Tasmania devils, iconic the years. small dog-sized carnivores We thank you for that are only found in the your support and un- wild on the Australian isderstanding. land state of Tasmania.

Scientists had earlier The Morung Express discovered one form of transmissible cancer in the devils that causes them facial tumours.

"The second cancer causes tumours on the face Morung Express news that are outwardly indistinguishable from the previDimapur | December 29 ously-discovered cancer," Three men were arrested said study first author Ruth for abducting the son of a Pye from University of Tasbusinessman for ransom in Dimapur. The abduction occurred on December 23, while three people, who executed the abduction, were arrested the next day. According to a delayed report from the police, the victim, AgARtAlA, DECEMa school boy in his teens, BER 29 (ANI): A senior was picked up from Murgi CPI-M leader and former Patti on December 23 at Member of Parliament of India has said the church around 1:30 pm. The ab- has been used by various ductors then ransomed the external agencies for the boy’s father. Initially, the pumping in of funds for ransom was Rs. 2.5 lakhs organising militancy and but the amount was nego- separatist movements in tiated down to Rs. 88,000. Tripura.

The boy was released by Khagen Das was speakthe abductors reportedly at ing with reference to the around 8:00 pm after the fa- militant activities and the ther handed over the nego- ongoing demand for a septiated amount. The trans- arate tribal land within Triaction occurred near the pura by a newly float tribal Dhansiri Bridge at Nagar- party Indigenous People's jan, stated the police. The Front of Tripura (IPFT). police was informed of the "During the communal riincident by the father after ots of 1980 and during the the transaction. Follow- extremist activities for 30 ing the verbal complaint years, it is on record that from the father, the police apart of church, they were tracked down the abduc- involved. Money was being in flown to India by church tors to a location at Paipi- to extremist," said Das. jang village the next mornDas said that a section ing from where they were of the church has been acarrested. The accused were tively supporting and fuidentified as Atoshe Kinimi elling tribal insurgency in (34 years), Manik Roy (24 not only the state but also years) and Srijoy Acharjee the region. However, he (19 years). According to the denied mentioning any police, Atoshe is a ‘captain’ specifically name or details in the GPRN/NSCN. about what step his gov-

speaking at the Commemoration. He termed Terming the event an “opportunity to explore possibilities of peace, justice, reform and progress,” Himbü called for the Western Rengma people, and their neighbours, to begin imagining where they will be in, say, 2030.

Once this is done, “let us engage with each possibility,” he noted.

In Rengma Naga villages, not only do roads remain reflections, but schools operate without teachers or teachers without schools. The closest government healthcare from some villages is three rivers away. There are no government initiatives to preserve and promote the Western Rengma language. While the people have been taking their own initiatives to tackle with these subjects, without critical engagement from the both the government and neighbours, the Rengma Nagas living in Karbi Anglong could face a serious threat to survival.

“The RNSU was cre-

leaders of students’ welfare organisations from Assam, Manipur and nagaland came together in a unique show of solidarity for the 54th General Conference cum Golden Jubilee Commemoration of the Rengma naga students’ union, Karbi Anglong (Rnsu) at A-Jongpha on Monday, December 28. (Morung Photo)

Phenpiga Himbü re-elected as RNSU President

T

he Western Rengma people have re-elected Phenpiga Himbü as the President of the Rengma Naga Students’ Union, Karbi Anglong (RNSU) for the tenure 2015-18.

With a rapport of making the RNSU a mediating body between the government and the people, as well as people to people particularly during times of conflict, Himbü was brought back to the leadership uncontested and in one voice by the voters. The election was held following the 54th General Conference cum Golden Jubilee Commemoration of the RNSU at Akhoiphuta-Jongpha on December 28.

General Secretary, Thangshi Jishing, Assistant General Secretary, Mercy Seb and Treasurer, Jowel Seb, were also re-elected to the said positions. Jimmy Seb was elected Finance Secretary, Levi Nandu the Games & Sports Secretary and Songrhe Jishing the Cultural Secretary.

ated in 1961 as a response to the social, political and economic challenges faced by our people. This is evolution. Let us create an environment where our

people can further evolve and emerge fit enough to survive in the long run,” asserted Himbü, while calling for necessary political representation for

the Rengma Nagas in the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) to begin with. It may be noted that the Western Rengma people are not politically

represented in any unit of governance under the Government of India.

Chief Guest on the occasion, AJ Barooah IPS, DIGP, Central Range, Diphu, said that the evolution of the Rengma Nagas in Assam is entirely possible by “remaining true to our roots” without which “we will drift apart and become neglected.”

In that, he called for the retelling of history through story telling as done by the ancestors of the Rengmas and Ahoms that had built a strong friendship between the two communities.

Spirit of the collective On behalf of the 16 Naga tribes of Manipur, Seth Shatsang, President of the All Naga Students’ Association, Manipur (ANSAM), called for this opportunity to “reclaim the spirit of the collective which has been invested upon by elders.”

While saluting the pioneers of RNSU, Shatsang welcomed the solidarity shown by the student organisations of the region that helped each understand the other’s challenges. He urged the bodies to keep the solidarity alive for future work in claiming rights.

“Let us seize this commemoration to reaffirm our commitment to the issues that the Nagas are

presently engaged with at this defining moment. We have a strong belief that this gathering will provide the vital sense of responsibility in the building of the Naga nation,” he maintained.

Leeon Engleng, President of the Karbi Students’ Association (Inglongpho), stated that it is time for the RNSU and KSA to come together and engage. He acknowledged how thousands of crores are being misused by the KAAC; money meant for roads and hospitals in Karbi Anglong are going into building several storey private houses.

Noting that Karbi Anglong was created to have all the indigenous people here live together in peace, Engleng promised the KSA’s support to have one Rengma person nominated as Member of Autonomous Council in the next KAAC elections.

Hoping for peace among communities, solidarity messages were shared by Subenthung Kithan, President of the Naga Students’ Federation, Bikash Gogoi, President of Ahom Royal Youth Federation and Ankit Paul, President of the All Assam Bengali Students and Youth Federation. Present on the occasion were also the All Assam Gorkha Students’ Union and Bhojpuri Students’ Organisation.

Contagious form of cancer discovered NTC urges inclusiveness for lasting peace

C M Y K

3 arrested for abducting boy

mania, Australia.

"So far it has been detected in eight devils in the south-east of Tasmania," Pye noted.

Transmissible cancers -- cancers which can spread between individuals by the transfer of living cancer cells -- are believed to arise extremely rarely in nature.

"Until now, we have always thought that transmissible cancers arise extremely rarely in nature, but this new discovery makes us question this belief,” senior author on the study Elizabeth Murchison from University of Cambridge, noted.

In 1996, researchers observed Tasmanian

Church funded, fuelled militancy in India: says former CPI-M MP ernment had taken against that section of the church but in support of his statement he said that from the declaration made in the court by Kim Davy, who is wanted in the famous arms dropping case in Puralia of West Bengal it is clear that church has been used for funding and arms support to militants especially in Northeast India.

Das added, "The man (Kim Davy, Peter Bleach and his team) who dropped arms in West Bengal's Puralia, was in the dock in his country and making a statement that I was not only dropping arms in Puralia, in 1995 and 1996 I had supplied arms to the northeast extremist particularly to Tripura extremist." He thanked people of Tripura for not supporting such militant activities and bring the Left Front in power in various elections. According to him the landslide victory of the Left Front is a message to the BJP government in Delhi that Tripura is showing a new path for the nation.

devils in the north-east of the island with tumours affecting the face and mouth; soon it was discovered that these tumours were contagious between devils, spread by biting.

The cancer spreads rapidly throughout the animal's body and the disease usually causes the death of affected animals within months of the appearance of symptoms.

The cancer has since spread through most of Tasmania and has triggered widespread devil population declines.

To date, only two other forms of transmissible cancer have been observed in nature: in dogs and in soft-shell clams.

DIMAPUR, DECEMBER 29 (MExN): The NTC Nagaland Tribes Council (NTC) today stated that there is no better alternative to bring lasting peace among the Nagas than inclusiveness. “Solution can become honourable and acceptable when all stakeholders are taken into confidence in its pre and post settlement,” said a press note from the NTC. The NTC made reference to a statement from the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) published on December 21, 2015, wherein the FNR expressed concern that “a settlement that may turn out to be the best for the Nagas under

today’s circumstances is in real danger of being characterized only as an IndoNSCN(IM), not an IndoNaga settlement. Such an interpretation could give rise to violence”.

Acknowledging the immense contribution of FNR towards bridging the gaps between NPGs and the achievement of the subsequent calm that had intervened on the otherwise years of internal conflict in Naga society, the NTC agreed with the FNR that ‘A renewal of conflict will become too heavy a burden for the Naga people to bear….’ in the post settlement.

“There is no argument

on the dialogue that has been going on during the last 18 years between GOI and NSCN (IM) exclusively and not with any other NPGs. Consequently, the 3rd August 2015 ‘Framework Accord’ was between these two entities,” the NTC said.

It further stated that the Naga public is not aware of the conditions so far agreed upon in the ‘Framework’.

“Whereas, FNR’s statement is an indicative of its confidence that the ‘settlement’ out of the ‘framework’ will be ‘the best for the Nagas’.

This implies that FNR is well aware of the contents of the ‘framework’ and therefore volunteered to

vouch and sternly warn the Nagas,” the NTC said.

“Whereas, the said dialogue and its ultimate ‘framework’ had excluded the rest of other NPGs, it has to be said likewise and understood so. Whereas, FNR has warned that the said process should not be ‘characterized only as an Indo-NSCN (IM)’ but accept it as ‘Indo-Naga settlement’. The parlance contains sufficient calories of imposition including threat that such branding of the ‘framework’ as exclusive ‘could give rise to violence’. It is for sure that there are better vocabularies befitting the role of mediation,” the NTC added

‘Education – thE way forward’ our Correspondent Phusachodu | December 29

Parliamentary Secretary for Housing, Er Levi Rengma today stressed on the need for people to exercise collective responsibility and act responsibly.

“Every situation, where youleavetruth,youaregiving birthtocorruption,nomatter how simple or how complicated is the matter,” he said, while addressing the 63rd general session of Phusachodumi Students’ Union (PSU) as the chief guest.

He said that corruption takes birth in a society when citizens fail to believe that the nation is common property of all citizens and the generations to come.

He further termed the session theme “Educationthe way forward,” as a well thought topic and most appropriate, relevant to today’s world. “The theme is a vast topic touching all our daily lives both individually and socially,” he said.

Rengma added that it is natural that whenever there is talk about “change” there is anxiety and confu-

Er levi Rengma and others at the 63rd general session of Psu at Phusachodu village in Phek district on December 29. (Morung Photo)

sion, until people fully understand what is meant by change. “We all know that the world is changing, that too at faster rate and were also trying to grasp the challenges that are confronting us,” he said, calling for evolution of the education system in order to adapt to the requirements of the present age.

“The challenge is to redefine what has been successful in the past and apply those concepts to the

new demands and expectations,” he said adding that the challenges are real.

“Let’s be honest, school is no more a place just to send our children and hope that they absorb education.” He said education is the process of instruction aimed at the all overall development of individuals, providing the necessary tools and knowledge to understand and participate in day to day activities of today’s world.

“Education once acquired is the only wealth which cannot be robbed; it builds character, provides strength of mind and increases knowledge. Education can sustain human values of individuals and collective well-being,” he added. Rengma said the education enables people to become more responsible and informed citizens, with political voice to participate in a democracy.

Rengma further

stated that corruption, along with global warming, and environmental change are the major issues plaguing the world.

He said natural calamities like volcanoes, earthquakes, floods caused untold miseries to the people and damage to properties to tune of millions, while noting that the natural environment has changed in the last few decades.

Rev Dr Chekrovei Choo, Associate Professor of Applied Theology, Oriental Theological Seminary Bade, Dimapur and Er Akule Pusa Chuzho, SDO, PWD (Housing), New Capital Complex Division, Kohima also spoke during the occasion.

Earlier, PSU President, Zhoto Khamo delivered the presidential address, while Phusachodu Village Council Chairman, Duporuh Theluo delivered the welcome address.

Meanwhile, Veduvolu Kotso and Vekhoselu Chuzho were declared winners of a prepared speech and essay writing competition that was held during the event.

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WednesdAY 30•12•2015

NAGALAND

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

LSU celebrates platinum jubilee with ‘Nüklasen’ Morung Express News Mokokchung | December 29

Longpa is a small village located in the Asetkong range of Mokokchung district, about 30 kilometers off Mokokchung town, and is surrounded by three of the biggest Ao villages namely, Mopungchuket, Sungratsu and Longjang.

The village is known for its areca nuts, jackfruits and litchi production. Though small in size, the village is well known nonetheless and was one of the first villages to accept Christianity and along with it education too. The village has produced a good number of leaders and tall personalities over the years.

This year happened to be the platinum jubilee year of the village’s student body, the Longpa Kaketshir Telongjem (LKT) and a befitting celebration was organized by the vil-

lagers to mark the milestone in the village.

The platinum jubilee of LKT was held December 28-29, 2015 under the theme ‘Nüklasen’ (New Vision) with Akok Walling, principal of Wangkao College Mon as the main speaker who spoke on the jubilee theme. The event was graced

by Dr. Imtiwapang Aier, Parliamentary Secretary for Geology & Mining, Nagaland as the chief guest on December 29.

A peculiar aspect of the jubilee celebration was the presence of a large contingent of delegates from Thronger village, a Sangtam village under Tuensang district who also presented a special number.

It is said that Longpa village sponsored the evangelization of Thronger village during the 1930s and the two villages has since then maintained strong relationship between them.

Dr. Imtiwapang Aier, Parliamentary Secretary for Geology & Mining, Nagaland releasing the platinum jubilee souvenir magazine of the Longpa Students Union, Longpa, Mokokchung, December 29. (Morung Photo)

The chief guest Dr. Imtiwapang Aier while addressing the villagers today stated that celebrating attainment of 75 years of existence is a sign of maturity

and questioned the villagers if they have matured enough in the past so many years and challenged them to introspect and retrospect. Saying that Dr. Clark

founded the mission centre in the area (Asetkong) and thus the people of the area were among the first to achieve education and modernity, Aier also ques-

tioned the villagers and the people of the area what their contribution as pioneers was for the benefit of the society.

Expressing his concern at the prevalence of massive unemployment problem in the state today, Aier mentioned that there are more than 70000 unemployed youths in Nagaland today who are all educated. He stated that the government cannot accommodate or provide jobs to everyone and encouraged the students to “strive hard” as there is a lot of competition.

Gaining knowledge, he also said, was important for the economic development of the state and encouraged the students to build a “knowledge based economy” in the future.

While saying that “knowledge we gain today will play a major role in the transformation of the state’s economy,”

Aier exuded hope in the “unexplored power, untapped potential, innovative mind and valuable knowledge” of the younger generation to transform the state’s economy. “We are leading a phase of transitional period,” he said, and added that the students needed to work harder to overcome the “complications” in order to have a bright future. He also hoped that the young generation can play a crucial role in the positive transformation of the society.

Apart from cracking competitive exams, Aier also encouraged the students to explore entrepreneurship and other avenues as the “situation has become such that we need to become self-reliant” and disclosed that both the state and the union governments were emphasizing on promoting private enterprises.

Longleng ‘Together Towards Tomorrow’ Community Graveyard at Lekromi Village inaugurated KVK celebrates Jai Kisan

Dr. Dietho-o Yhoshü speaking at the Kigwema Students’ Union 67th Annual General Conference held at the Village Council Hall, Kigwema. (Morung Photo) Morung Express News Kigwema | December 29

Under the theme, ‘Together Towards Tomorrow’, the Kigwema Students’ Union (KSU) held its 67th Annual General Conference with Dr. Dietho-o Yhoshü as the Speaker. The Conference was held at the Village Council Hall, Kigwema.

Linking the theme of the conference with the use of power, Dr. Dietho-o Yhoshü spoke on three powers that is the Supreme Power, the human power and the power of the mind. “History is going somewhere and we all have our claim and share. We must move forward with zeal and enthusiasm,” said Dr. Dietho-o.

Reminding the students about the Naga political movement and the changing history, Dr. Yhoshü noted, “Nagas are a people, though small in size and number but we have a significant history.” The Nagas having experienced both the two World wars where Naga ancestors were C M Y K

exposed to the world of technologies, cultures of other nations, it set the prelude for the Naga political movement.

The speaker took the students to the history of the Naga political movement till the current recent developments of the movement, and added how human power in the form of political groups, economic and social groups and leaders has changed the course of history. However, one power that cannot be undermined is the power of the human mind, where Dr. Yhoshü encouraged the students to make the best use of their minds to empower themselves and the community.

With the rapid change of history, Dr. Dietho-o exhorted the students that they must move along ‘together towards tomorrow’ as a community and a people through the proper utility of the three powers aforementioned. The speaker concluded with a word of encouragement to the students saying, “What is good, what is challenging, what is difficult, Go there.”

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Today, 30th December, 5 years ago. Molung, you left us.. without any farewell words.

No time to say goodbye. You were gone before we knew it.

And God only knows why, our hearts still ache in sadness and secret tears still flow.

What it meant to lose you no one will ever know. God broke our hearts to prove to us he only takes the best…….

Loving parents and brothers

Phek, December 29 (mexN): A community graveyard with multichambered facility was inaugurated at Lekromi Village in Phek district on December 28. According to the Village Chairman, the graveyard is a concrete multi chambered facility which can accommodate upto 80 people in the first phase of construction.

This will be further developed as per the Master Plan in due time.

Lekromi Village Council Chairman, Kewete Mero in a press release said that this was inaugurated and dedicated for use with effect from January, 2016 by Rev. Z. Mero.

In the inaugural speech, a nonagenarian and the minister in charge of the programme, Rev. Z. Mero, the Church Advisor of Pfutsero Town Baptist Church said that “this is perhaps the first of its kind not only in Phek District but even in Nagaland.”

He lauded the sincere efforts of the Village authorities for bringing out such an innovative project in the greater interest of the

Jai Vigyan Day

The community graveyard with multi-chambered facility which was inaugurated at Lekromi Village in Phek district on December 28.

community. He shared that as believers of Jesus Christ, death is but a new beginning of life and those buried are like a nursery bed that will one day sprout up and bear fruits and new life on the day of resurrection.

“Therefore, one need not fear nor have negative attitude towards the tombs of the dead like the times before the Christian era,” said Mero.

R e v. Ke d o u n g u l o Mero, Mission Director of Chakhesang Baptist Church Council, in his

short speech said that for believers death is liken to promotion of the present life to God’s glorious life.

He explained the Christian concept of being “Promoted to Glory” adding that Jesus is the resurrection and the life. He added that Christian Graveyards reminds us of the hope and eternal life that Jesus offers to all those who believe in Him and encouraged the Christians to ever be prepared to meet our Creator any time. Mese Kapfo, Headmaster of Phusa-

chodu Government High school lauded the Village authorities and assured full support on behalf of the Village Gazette Officers Forum.

Earlier the inaugural function was chaired by Mero Chairman Lekromi Village Council and Pastor Khroto Mero offered opening prayer while Neipechulo Kapfo VDB secretary proposed vote of thanks. The programme ended with a community feast organized by the Village council.

CSU Conference from Jan 5 to 8 Hokah festival on Jan 8 & 9 kohima, December 29 (mexN): The Chakhesang Students’ Union (CSU) will hold its 69th general conference at Chozuba village from January 5 to 8, to be hosted

by Chozuba Students’ Union.

The main speakers of the conference include; V. Lucas Meyase, Rtd director school education, Dr. Zavise Rume, president All Nagaland Counselors’ Association, Rev. Dr. Phuveyi Dozo, president United College of Missions & Theology and Tavehii Thingo, president Chakhesang Cultural Organization.

Armstrong Pame, joint secretary Tribal Affairs & Hills, PHED, Government of Manipur and Rozelle Mero, Managing Director, The People Channel will be the resource persons for seminar while Aolemla Imsong and Muletolii Vero will be the resource persons

for the workshop on “Social Responsibility.”

Presidential meeting will take place on January 5 at 2:00 PM which will be followed by introductory session at 4:00 PM. Inaugural session will take place on January 6 from 10:00 AM onwards. Greetings will be shared

by Naga Students’ Federation while Chakhesang Public Organization president will also exhort the gathering. The conference will also witness cultural dance competition and folk song competition at 2:00 PM, which will be followed by assembly. Chozuba session will take place on January 7 from 9:30 AM onwards. Seminar will take place on the same day by 1:00 PM. Workshop will take place on January 8 at 9:00 AM which will be followed by election at 1:00 PM and valedictory function at 3:00 PM.

NokLak, December 29 (DiPr): Hokah festival of Khiamniungan community will be celebrated on January 8 and 9, 2016 at Public Ground, Nokhu, EAC headquarter organized by Nokhu Range Public Organization. Minister for Health and Family Welfare, P. Longon will grace the occasion as the Chief Guest while Parliamentary Secretary for Land Resources, V.G and Women Resources Development, L. Khumo will grace the valedictory function as the chief guest.

Mangkolemba SDPDB meeting

maNgkoLemba, December 29 (mexN): The first monthly Mangkolemba Sub Divisional Planning and Developmental Board meeting for the year 2016 will be held on January 5, 11:00 am at ADC office.

Additional Deputy Commissioner, Mangkolemba has informed all members to compulsorily attend the meeting since work distribution and programme for Republic Day 2016 celebration will be chalked out.

LoNgLeNg, December 29 (mexN): Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Longleng organized ‘Jai Kisan-Jai Vigyan Day’ on December 29 at KVK office premises for the celebration of birthday of Chaudhry Charan Singh (December 23) and Shri Atal Bihar Vajpayee (December 25) as a mark of their immense contribution in promoting use of science for the welfare of the farming community.

Dr. P. Chowdhury, SMS (SWCE) in his inaugural speech explained the contribution made by Chaudhry Charan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpyee for the development agriculture and India as a whole. He explained different new technologies for enhancing agriculture productivity and profitability. He explained the aims and objectives of Soil Health Day (SHD), Mera Gaon Mera Gaurav (MGMG), Saansad Adarsh Gram (SAG), Neem Added Urea, Digital Agriculture (Agro-advisory through mobile), National Agriculture Market (for assuring farmers profit) and Lab to Land (Dissemination of New Technology in the farmers field). He appealed the farmers for wide-scale adoption of KVK extended new technologies in their field. The programme ended with the vote of thanks.

Altogether 30 progressive farmers from Hu k p h a n g , L i n g t a k , Namching, Pongching, Bhumnyu, Orangkong and Dungkhao villages of Longleng attended the gala occasion.

This was stated in a press release issued by SMS (SWCE) KVK, Longleng P. Chowdhury.

WedneSdAY 30•12•2015

NORTH-EAST

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

BJP's rise in Manipur worries Congress Imphal, December 29 (IaNS): The local body polls in Manipur on January 11 are viewed here as a keen fight between the ruling Congress and the BJP which last month opened its account in the assembly by winning two byelections.

The outcome of the election for 18 Municipal Councils and eight Nagar Panchayats will have a direct bearing on the Assembly elections in March 2017.

The Congress, with 47 members in the 60seat Manipur assembly, has been in power in the state for three consecutive terms.

The local bodies going to polls on January 11 correspond to 40 assembly segments in the four valley districts of Manipur.

Altogether 279 councillors for the Municipal Council and Nagar Pan-

chayat Wards and 558 Ward Development Committee Members would be elected.

BJP's win in Thangmeiband and Thongju assembly byelections has heated up the state's politics, making the Congress feel challenged and worried ahead of polling on January 11.

"In a democracy, we should honour the verdict of the people. Time has come for the Congress workers to do some introspection as to why the party has distanced itself from the people," said Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh.

Ibobi Singh said the people had taught the leaders a lesson by electing other candidates in the byelections, but the Congress was still on track to winning a majority in the local body elections.

However, lack of confidence among Congress leaders is quite evident.

The party is not contesting all the local bodies' seats.

Deputy Chief Minister and PCC president Gaikhangam Gangmei put on a brave face, saying there was no "(Narendra) Modi wave" in the state.

"Most of the politicians in Manipur are turncoats; they all used to be in the Congress. All the chief ministers in the state were from the Congress. We have been in power for almost 14 years and the party will form the next government."

The BJP national leaders, however, have their own plans for the state.

BJP president Amit Shah has extended the term of state party chief Thounaojam Chaoba Singh who was to retire in November. This was obvi-

ously done to allow Chaoba Singh to quarterback electioneering in the upcoming local body polls.

There was much heartburn following the entry of former chief ministers and ministers into the BJP. Reports indicate that Chaoba Singh was not amused since some of these new members were the ones likely to soon try to elbow him out.

He was conspicuous by his absence from the felicitation function to welcome the entry into the BJP of former chief ministers R.K. Dorendra Singh and Radhabinod Koijam.

"The byelection results showed that money and muscle power could not influence the people," said Chaoba Singh.

"The BJP shall come to power and will root out corruption. All corruption charges against the Con-

gress government shall be probed and the guilty suitably punished," he added.

Ibobi Singh has hit back saying that in a small state like Manipur, people know who was corrupt and who was not.

Some reports said the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) had started looking into the Rs.400 crore "scam" in clearing water hyacinths in the Loktak lake. The probe has been promised by Chaoba Singh and some BJP national leaders.

L. Bhagaton, the project director of Loktak Development Authority, has denied that there was any inquiry against the authority.

Khumukcham Joykishan, who won the Thangmeiband byelection, has upped the ante, accusing all ministers of the Congress government of being corrupt, targeting Social

Welfare Minister Akoijam Mirabai Devi in particular.

Joykishan has accused Mirabai Devi of committing a breach of legislature's privilege by giving a false reply to a question he had asked in 2012 in the assembly about some malpractices.

"Mirabai Devi misled the assembly. If she can prove otherwise I shall retire from politics. If not, she should accept the challenge and retire from politics."

There has been no rejoinder yet from the minister.

The gradual change in political climate is already discernible in some northeastern states and Manipur is no exception, political observers aver.

Ibobi had in fact recently admitted publicly that in view of the political developments he was having sleepless nights.

3

Bourses intensify financial literacy in East and NE KOlKaTa, December 29 (pTI): In the wake of ponzi scheme scams, National Stock Exchange has intensfied its financial literacy programme to ensure financial inclusion in the eastern and north-eastern region.

The number of awareness programmes has seen a substantial jump in 2015, the exchange said. From 211 in 2014, the number has more than doubled to 459 in 2015, a NSE release said. These programmes were conducted in West Bengal, Odhisa, Jharkand, Bihar and in northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim and in Andaman and Nicobar, it said. The maximum number of programmes were conducted inJharkhand (142), followed by Odhisa (120) and West Bengal (109), it said. Several districts of Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Andaman and Nicobar, among others were covered

by NSE officials for spreading financial literacy among the people, the exchange added.

NFSA to be implemented in Mizoram by Feb 2016

aIZaWl, December 29 (pTI): The Mizoram government has been making preparations to implement the National Food Security Scheme by February next year, said state Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister John Rotluangliana today. Rotluangliana said the scheme could not be implemented during September last, the deadline fixed by the Centre and the state government was compelled to defer the implementation for two times due to unavoidable circumstances. He said the last attempt to implement the scheme in November fizzled out due to complaints from Opposition parties on the appointment of village-level selection committees. Of the 1.1 million population of the state, a little over 7,06,000 people would be covered by the scheme under which each person would be and not for taking up develop- entitled to receive five kgs of rice at the rate of Rs three a kg.

The state government has been making arrangements to ment work.

"Recently, External Affairs provide food to the entire population of the state at a higher Minister Sushma Swaraj came rate of Rs 15 a kg, he added. to Assam, and held a meeting with businessmen only. What business does a foreign minister have with businessmen of Guwahati," the chief minister asked.

"I welcome her (Sushma aGarTala, December 29 (TNN): The Tripura Swaraj's) visit to Assam. But government has decided to provide shelter to over 86,000 she should have met with the homeless families by 2017-18 under various government state government to discuss schemes, an official said on Monday.

After holding a meeting with the district magistrate, issues like cross-border infiltration, militant activities in chief minister Manik Sarkar instructed the administraMyanmar and the issue of Chi- tion to ensure housing of the homeless from sponsored na building a dam on the Brah- schemes of rural development, panchayat and forest demaputra. But she had no time partment. Officials said so far, more than a lakh of homeless and landless people have been provided with housto meet us," he said.

Gogoi slammed Irani, say- ing benefits under like Indira Awas Yojana. However, ing the human resource devel- another 86,000 odd families would still have to be covered opment minister has failed to under the schemes.

"Let us ensure that the remaining homeless families bring any new package to educational institutions of Assam. are provided permanent housing facilities by the end of March, 2018," Sarkar told the officials. He also asked them to ensure availability of drinking water and road connectivity, especially in rural and hilly areas of the state.

Manipur CM inaugurates Assam women in better condition two power-sub stations than in BJP-ruled states: CM Gogoi Our Correspondent Imphal | December 29

Manipur state Chief Minister, Okram Ibobi Singh today inaugurated two 33/11 KV power sub-stations at Sinzawl in Thanlon subdivision of Churachandpur district, bordering Mizoram; and Sivapurikhal in Jiribam subdivision of Imphal East.

The Sinzawl station function was held amidst a boycott call given by the Churachandpur JAC. The JAC had announced to boycott the event saying no Ministers and MLAs would be allowed to enter the district until the controversial three ILP Bills were withdrawn.

The Bills were passed by the state assembly on August 31 this year.

Nine protesters were killed in police crackdown in Churachandpur following the passage of the Bills which the tribal communities in the state have considered to be ‘anti-tribal.’

The functions were organised bythe Manipur State Power Company Ltd (MSPCL). The Chief Minister’s team reached the two venues by a helicopter.

Health Minister Phungzathang Tonsing, Hill Areas Committee (HAC) Chairman Dr Chaltolien Amo and Parliamentary Secretary Vungzagin Valte accompanied the Chief Minister during the functions, officials said.

A team of MSPCL officials were prevented from heading towards the venue in Churachandpur by a large number of people supporting the JAC’s boycott call. Movement of MLAS, Ministers and MSPCL officials was obstructed at New Lamka, Mission Compound and Bungbol.

Also yesterday, womenfolk blocked the Guite and Tipaimukh roads in the district to stop government officials from going to the venue.

GuWahaTI, December 29 (IaNS): Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Tuesday came out with statistics in BJPruled states to claim that the condition of women was better in Assam than in many states, a day after union HRD Minister Smriti Irani attacked the Congress government in the state over atrocities on women.

Gogoi said that in 2014, as many as 19,139 cases of atrocities against women were registered in Assam, while BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh registered 28,678 cases of crime against women during the same year.

"In Maharashtra, 26,690 cases of crimes against women were registered in 2014," he said.

At a public rally in Nalbari district on Monday, Irani said 75,000 cases of atrocities

against women have been registered in Assam in the last 10 years and that women were not safe in Congress-ruled Assam.

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Gogoi said: "The number of women committing suicide in Assam was 1,036 in 2014. The statistics for women's suicides in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat was 3,678, 4,474, and 2,672, respectively, during the same year."

"Assam has also done well as far as female literacy, which is 63 percent compared to 52 percent in MP, 62 percent in Gujarat and a mere 45 percent in Rajasthan," Gogoi said.

He slammed the BJP and said the party has been sending union ministers to Assam and other parts of the northeast just for the sake of politics

Passport offices in all Northeastern states soon aGarTala, December 29 (IaNS): The external affairs ministry has decided to set up passport offices in remaining northeastern states to ensure passports are issued in much easier and swift way, official said here on Tuesday.

"Currently a passport office in Guwahati and a Passport Seva Kendra in Imphal are functioning. A Passport Seva Kendra would be set up in Agartala on Thursday," an official of the Tripura government's political department said. Referring to the ministry's decision, the official said either passport office or a Passport Seva Kendra would be set up in the capital cities of the remaining north-

eastern states. The official said Minister of State for External Affairs V.K. Singh would inaugurate the Passport Seva Kendra in Agartala on Thursday, fulfilling the long pending demand of the Tripura government.

"At present on an average 15,000 passports are being issued yearly to the people of Tripura. After setting up the Passport Seva Kendra in Agartala, the number would at least double," the official added. The Kolkata regional passport office issues passports to Tripura residents and applicants. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, addressing a public meeting in Silchar on Monday, announced that a regional passport

centre would be set up in Silchar to ease the problem faced by the people of southern Assam also known as Barak Valley.

Director of Passport Seva Project (PSP) A.K. Sobti during his recent visit to the state said handwritten passports have become invalid across the world since November 24. Sobti and three other officials came here to oversee the arrangements to set up the passport office in Agartala. An official circular said the government was issuing machine readable passport (MRPs) since 2001. Those issued before 2001, particularly in the mid90s with a validity of 20 years, fall into the non-MRPs category.

Tripura plans to build houses for all by 2018

Tripura CPI-M leader, who committed suicide, cremated

aGarTala, December 29 (IaNS): The body of veteran CPI-M leader and five-time legislator Sunil Kumar Chowdhury, who committed suicide on Sunday, has been cremated with full state honours, official said here on Monday. According to police, Chowdhury, 85, a former Tripura assembly deputy speaker, committed suicide by hanging himself at his residence in Sabroom town on Sunday. "His body was cremated with full state honours on late Monday evening at his residence in Sabroom " a south Tripura district administration official said. Sabroom is in southern Tripura and 140 km from here. Chowdhury joined the Left party in 1953 at the age of 25. He was elected to the state assembly five times since 1962 and became deputy speaker of the Tripura assembly in 1993.

C. Khel Pangti Nzyu Ethan Soying/Okho ji 2017 lo nzyu tinyan bena evamo ji tsukona yanko kyong oyani evan elani hapoi evan topvu na myanta nzontsu thyutasanta jilo oyi therungta ley to jonjia ntsijantala.

Meta – Yankho Volleyball Ground Yuta – 1:00 PM Tsungon – 03/01/2016

the Gomati and the Meghna has been released,” said Samarjit Bhaumik, Transport Secretary of the government of Tripura.

Bhaumik told newsmen, “The State government has to submit detailed project reports (DPRs) to develop waterways between the Gomati and the Howrah with the Meghna.”

To expedite Indian

Arunachal film festival from Feb 17, to promote North East diversity ITaNaGar, December 29 (TNN): Movie buffs in Arunachal are eagerly waiting for February when the state will host 'Film Northeast 2016', the much hyped and popular film festival of the region.

The event, to be held from February 17 to 20, will promote the diversity in cinema in the northeast. Organized by the information and public relation department in association with Film Federation of Arunachal (FFA), the four-day event, coinciding with the Statehood Day celebrations on February 20, was formally announced by chief minister Nabam Tuki on Monday during a press conference held at the Press Information Centre at the new civil secretariat here.

"Though Arunachal is a new entrant in the field of film making, with the setting up of Film and Television Institute (third in the country) at Jote near here, the youths

of the state could compete with their contemporaries in other parts of the country.

The festival is part of a project of the institute to expose the talents of the state," Tuki said. Bollywood director Vishal Bharadwaj, actors Saheed Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan and Kangkana Ranawat who would visit the state in February to shoot their film 'Rangoon'.

The caste would attend the festival's award ceremony on February 20. Information and public relations parliamentary secretary Bamang Felix said the festival was aimed at showcasing the state's rich tribal culture and tradition and hospitality. With 67 films to be screened, in all, in both competitive and non-competitive categories, including children's category, the festival would provide a platform for filmmakers to interact, engage, showcase and nurture talents in making cinema.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Act East Policy, India is prioritising multimodal connectivity in the northeastern region, including water connectivity. Already sixteen waterway projects, mostly involving Bangladesh, have been approved for this region. Four inland water routes between India and Bangladesh are currently operational.

Acknowledgment The Organizers of the 3rd Edition of Dimapur Night Carnival 2015 would like to acknowledge the following sponsors and individuals for contribution towards the grand success of the event.

mIlItARY engIneeR SeRVIceS e-PRocURement tendeR FoR mUkHYAlAYA 137 nIRmAn ABHIYAntHA HeAdQUARteRS 137 woRkS engIneeRS, c/o 99 APo HQ 137 Works Engineers, C/O 99 APO on behalf of President of India invites electronic bids form MES enlisted contractor/un-listed Contractors for following works:“MANNING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF PUMP HOUSE NOS 1,2,3,4 & 5 AND MAIN PUMPING LINE AT ZAKHAMA MIL STN” estimated cost of the work as per contract is 27.00 Lakhs (8984/E8).

For details refer “www.eprocuremes.gov.in” the prospect/likely contractors are requested to look up the website “www.eprocuremes.gov.in”. These tenders are being received bases on e-tendering system, manual offers/bid for these tenders will not be accepted in any circumstances, only electronic offer/bids shall be accepted. Tender information is also available in www.mes.gov.in.

Call: 03862-249225

Davp 10102/11/2747/1516

official in Agartala. “Responding to the Tripura government’s proposals to develop a waterway link between Tripura’s Gomati and Howrah rivers and the Meghna river of Bangladesh, the India government’s Ministry of Water Transport and Shipping has sanctioned 125 million Indian rupees for the project. The first instalment of 20 million rupees to link

mOrIGaON (aSSam), December 29 (pTI): Prohibitory orders under Section 144 CrPC has been promulgated in Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam today banning the use of microphones and musical instruments in and around it. The order was promulgated by Morigaon district administration as the use of loudspeakers by picnic groups outside the sanctuary creating sound pollution is harmful to wild animals inside. In a separate order, Morigaon district additional deputy commissioner Pranjit Gogoi promulgated a prohibitory order banning poaching, capturing, selling and consuming migratory birds in the district.

c. kHel PAngtI golden JUBIlee

India funding new waterway to connect NE with Bangladesh NeW DelhI, December 29 (aGeNcIeS): The India government has released the first installment of its agreed funding to open a new waterway link between its Northeastern region and Bangladesh.

The waterway is designed to facilitate the movement of people, goods and machinery and to hugely help the landlocked region, said a senior

Use of microphone banned at Pobitora

> SBI > Chabou & Co > N.N. Nagi School > K. Zhimo Associates > TATA Motors > Apex Motors > Symbios Creations Pvt. Ltd. > J.D. House > Synergy System

4

WednesdAY 30 •12•2015

Business

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Amway India signs Farhan Akhtar as brand ambassador for India

Kohima, DeCember 29 (agenCieS): Amway India, country’s largest direct selling FMCG company, has signed Farhan Akhtar, one of the most talented and versatile Bollywood actors, as the brand ambassador to promote the Nutrilite range of the products. Nutrilite is the world’s no 1 selling brand of vitamins and dietary supplements.* Speaking on the occasion, Anshu Budhraja, CEO, Amway India, said, “Studies in India indicate that nine out of 10 Indians consume less than adequate protein daily. The fact is that majority of people are not consuming the World Health Organization’s minimum recommendation of five servings (400 grams) per day of fruits and vegetables thus missing out on important nutritional benefits. This indeed is a matter of concern. We needed a strong and credible face who could help people understand the role of supple-

Anshu Budhraja, CEO - Amway India, along with Farhan Akhtar, Brand ambassador for the Nutrilite brand in India

mentation in addition to balanced diet and exercise as part of leading a healthy lifestyle. Farhan Akhtar was an obvious choice.”

“In India, Nutrilite has firmly established itself as the leading brand in the vi-

try. We plan to launch a high decibel 360 degree campaign in early 2016 to leverage the association of Farhan Akhtar with Nutrilite,” added Anshu Budhraja.

Talking about Farhan Akhtar as the brand Am-

Lamborghini Urus set to be the world’s fastest SUV

India Post payment bank to be operational by March 2017 new Delhi, DeCember 29 (agenCieS): India Post, which was among the eleven applicants to have received approval from RBI for payment banks in August, will start its service by March 2017, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

About 40 international financial conglomerates including World Bank, Barclays and ICICI have shown interest to partner with the Postal Department for the payment bank, the minister said.

The Department has 1,55,015 post offices across the country, of which 1,39,144 are in rural areas. It plans to float a wholly-owned subsidiary to open payment bank.

MTNL will offer free incoming to all its users when on roaming starting next year, he said. The other state-run operator BSNL already offers free roaming for its users.

Asked about the controversial Free Basics initiative by Facebook in partnership with Reliance Communication, the Minister said he is awaiting the report of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on the subject of net neutrality.

He was speaking at an event organised by Department of Electronic and Information Technology to celebrate good governance week, where he launched 23 products and e-services including wifi hotspots at Har ki Pauri in Haridwar and Dargah Sharif in Ajmer, e-payment portal, online labs for students, mobile app of digital locker and BPO promotion scheme.

tamins and dietary supplements category. The brand contributes more than 50% of Amway India’s turnover.

We are confident that Farhan’s association will provide a further fillip to the Nutrilite brand in the coun-

new Delhi, DeCember 29 (nDTV auTo): The Lamborghini Urus has generated a lot of interest ever since its debut as a concept at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, with the auto industry and car enthusiasts eager to find out more details about the exotic SUV. And as Lamborghini finalises production plans for the car, it has revealed that it will be the fastest SUV in the world.

The Urus will trump the likes of the Bentley Bentayga - currently the fastest SUV in the world - and the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S. It will also be the first Lamborghini with a turbocharged engine.

Stephan Winkelmann, CEO, Lamborghini said: “Our car will be the first time Lamborghini has a turbocharged engine, a V8, and it will be the fastest SUV for sure. That has been a key objective.”

Speaking at the launch of the new Lamborghini Huracan LP580-2 in Qatar, Winkelmann added: “In terms of top speed, in terms of acceleration, in terms of everything (it will be the fastest SUV). It has to be, it’s a Lamborghini.”

Apart from the highoutput twin-turbo petrol V8 engine version, the Urus is likely to get a hybrid variant later. “We are looking into the opportunity of making the Urus the first Lamborghini ever to have (the option of) a second engine. It’s a big challenge to cover the life cycle of any car with one engine; with the Urus, one of the obvious scenarios is hybridisation,” he said.

Winkelmann also confirmed that a hybrid Urus would be done primarily for eco reasons. “The car we have at launch, the V8 turbo, will be all about perfor-

_

LEISURE

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.”

SUDOKU

bassador for Nutrilite, Sundip Shah, Chief Marketing Officer, Amway India, said, “Besides being talented and versatile, Farhan is physically fit with a stature and youth appeal that resonates well with Nutrilite’s world class image offering the best of nature and the best of science for optimal health. Consumer response to the association of Farhan with Nutrilite has also been very positive.”

Commenting on the association, Farhan Akhtar, said, “Nutrilite is an iconic and innovative brand which has pioneered and led the supplements category for the past 80 years across the world. I am delighted to be their brand ambassador in the country. I strongly believe that it is important to take care of one’s daily nutritional needs for a healthy and long life. People should understand the virtues of being fit, healthy and eating right.”

Game Number # 3447

mance, and the other one will be more about reduction of emissions than absolute performance, but also because packaging-wise, and power-to-weight-wise, a car like the Urus is far more suitable for, let’s say, a first attempt at hybridisation than one of our super-sports cars.”

Lamborghini will construct a separate facility altogether to build the Urus.

The factory will be close to its current Sant’Agata Bolognese facility and will see an investment of more than $400 million. The new SUV plant means that the carmaker will also hire 500 more people, which is a big expansion for the company.

The Lamborghini Urus is all set to be launched in 2018, with around 3,000 units of the car expected to be sold every year. The SUV is likely to make it to India as well.

Bankers to strike work on January 8 Chennai, DeCember 29 (ianS): Around 340,000 bank employees across the country would strike work on January 8 to protest the violation of bilateral settlement by the five associate banks of the State Bank of India (SBI), a top leader of All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA) said here.

The five associate banks of the SBI are State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Hyderabad and State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur.

“Nearly 340,000 bankers would strike work on January 8. The strike is to protest against the violation of bilateral settlement by the five associate banks of SBI and their attempt to force unilateral service conditions on employees,” C.H. Venkatachalam, AIBEA general secretary, told IANS here on Monday.

According to him, it is the AIBEA that has given the strike call.

Explaining the rationale behind the strike call, Venkatachalam said the service conditions in the SBI are different and based on the agreement between the SBI management and the employees’ union.

On the other hand, the service conditions of the five SBI associate banks are common with those of other banks.

“In May 2015, a common settlement was signed between Indian Banks’ Association (IBA-management body) and All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA) which defined the duties and remuneration of the employees for undertaking various jobs in the banks,” Venkatachalam said.

He said the five SBI associate banks are parties to the settlement and hence governed by the settlement terms.

“But the managements of the five associate banks are implementing the service conditions of the SBI, which is illegal and violation of the settlement,” he said.

Asked why the strike has been called early in the year, he said the union had deferred the strike call given for December 1 and 2, 2015, on the intervention of deputy chief labour commissioner, Delhi.

“The bank management is forcing its rules without any discussion with the unions from the New Year onwards and hence we are forced to respond,” Venkatachalam said.

Govt to increase maternity leave in pvt sector from 12 to 26 weeks new Delhi, DeCember 29 (agenCieS): The union government is set to increase the maternity leave for women employed in private firms from the existing 12 weeks to 26 weeks.

Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi Monday said the Ministry of Labour has agreed to increase maternity leave to six-and-a-half months. “We had written to the Labour Ministry asking that the maternity leave be extended taking into account the 6 months of breastfeeding that is required post childbirth. The Labour Ministry has agreed to increase it to six-and-a-half months,” said Maneka.

The Ministry of Labour is expected to amend the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, which presently entitles women to 12 weeks of maternity benefit whereby employers are liable to pay full wages for the period of leave.

Officials of the WCD Ministry said they will push for extending the leave to eight months, or 32 weeks, for women employed in both private and government sectors.

But WCD officials said the Labour Ministry has expressed reservations about increasing the maternity leave any further as they perceive that doing so will adversely affect the employability of women.

“The Labour Ministry has decided on six-and-a-half months following meetings with various stakeholders. We, however, feel that eight months of maternity leave — for women in government as well as private sectors — is required. We will move a note to the Cabinet Secretariat in this regard. Six months of exclusive

DAILY CROSS WORD

CROSSWORD # 3459

Answer Number # 3446

breastfeeding is very important to combat malnutrition, diarrhoea and other diseases in infants and to lower infant mortality rate,” said a WCD official.

The International Labour Organisation recommends a minimum standard maternity leave of 14 weeks or more, though it encourages member states to increase it to at least 18 weeks. At 26 weeks, India is set to join the league of 42 countries where maternity leave exceeds 18 weeks. It, however, falls behind several East European, Central Asian and Scandinavian countries, which have the most generous national legislation for paid maternity leave.

Women employed in government jobs in India get a 6-month maternity leave as per the Central Civil Service (Leave) Rules 1972. The last circular in this regard was issued in 2008, when it was increased from four-and-a-half months. If the WCD Ministry’s recommendations to the Cabinet Secretariat are accepted, the Department of Personal & Training will have to issue orders to enhance it to eight months.

Moreover, women government employees are allowed to take childcare leave of up to 2 years in phases at any point till their child turns 18 years old.

The Seventh Pay Commission recently recommended that only the first 365 days of leave should be granted with full pay, while the remaining 365 can be availed at 80 per cent of the salary. But Maneka recently petitioned Finance Minister Arun Jaitley against the proposal, terming it a regressive step at a time when women are trying to become more economically independent.

DIMAPUR Civil Hospital:

STD CODE: 03862 232224; Emergency229529, 229474

Metro 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

Nagaland Multispe- 248302, cialty Health & 09856006026 Research Centre

W

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RelAxAtiON

E N O I T A T I D E M V L B L E Y G J E

MEDITATION VISUALIZATION NUTRITION COPING BIOFEEDBACK EXERCISE BREATHING ASSERTIVENESS STRESS DISTRESS POSITIVE ANTICIPATION CHALLENGES MEDICATIONS DIVERSIONS ACTIVITIES PRESSURE METABOLISM ENERGY DISTRACTION HEADACHES ENVIRONMENT SOCIAL HYSIOLOGICAL THOUGHTS FIGHT FLIGHT

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

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R A N R Z P H H P L N W A G V D B K H A

Z W G O G P G R Q U E N A O P I K O I C

STD CODE: 0370 100/2244279 2222222 2222111 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202 08974997923

ACROSS

1. Woodworking tools 6. Steals 10. Circle fragments 14. Boredom 15. Type of sword 16. Harbor 17. Coral island 18. Extent 19. Comply with 20. Insubordinate 22. Easy gait 23. Lather 24. Acts 26. Roman emperor 30. G 31. Soak 32. Smell 33. Terminates 35. Variety show 39. Opposed 41. Seeking 43. Row of shrubs 44. Stair 46. Within 47. Fury 49. Crimson 50. Murmurs 51. Restitution 54. God of love

DOWN

1. Back 2. Pot 3. Prig 4. Whimper 5. Thresholds 6. Inhabitants 7. Dissented 8. Boyfriend 9. Detects 10. Sorry 11. Android 12. Paper with a crinkled texture 13. Infections of the eye 21. Toboggans 25. Eve’s opposite 26. Ark builder 27. Border

28. Street 29. To begin with 34. Steepness 36. Italian for “Wine” 37. “Do ___ others...”

38. Prima donna problems 40. Egghead 42. Hairstyles 45. Molasses 48. Anagram of “Russet” 51. San Antonio fort 52. Country estate 53. Electronic letters 55. Small fatty European fish 58. Unusual 59. Lubricate 60. Dogfish 61. Gestures of assent 62. Tall woody plant Ans to CrossWord 3458

DIMAPUR: 03862-232201/ 101 (O) 9856156876 (OC) CHUMUKEDIMA: 7085982102 (O) 8732810051 (OC)

MOKOKCHUNG: 0369-2226225/ 101 (O) 8415830232 (OC) PHEK: 8414853765 (O) 8413822476(OC) ZUNHEBOTO: 03867-280304/ 101 (O) 9436422730 (OC) TUENSANG: 8414853766 (O) 9856163601 (OC)

KIPHIRE: 8414853767 (O) 9436261577 (OC) PEREN: 7085189932 (O) 9856311205 (OC) LONGLENG: 7085924113 (O) 9862414264 (OC)

Toll free No. 1098 childline

WE4WOMEN HELPLINE 08822911011

MOKOKCHUNG:

KOHIMA NORTH: 7085924114 (O)

MON: 03869-251222/ 101 (O) 9862130954 (OC)

CHILD WELFARE COMMITTEE 56. Tibetan monk 57. Transfer 63. A Freudian stage 64. Dash 65. Gossip 66. Drudgery 67. Website addresses 68. Put up with 69. Paris airport 70. Views 71. Make fun of

KOHIMA SOUTH: 0370-2222952/ 101 (O) 9402003086 (OC)

WOKHA: 03860242215/101 (O) 8974322879 (OC)

Chumukedima Fire 282777 Brigade Nikos Hospital and 232032, 231031 Research Centre

KOHIMA

FIRE STATIONS

STD CODE: 0369

Police Station 1:

2226241

Police Station 2 :

2226214

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

64.77 96.29 8.09 46.64 45.99 46.39 53.17

67.74 101.02 9.01 48.97 48.27 48.68 56.19

Euro

70.64

74.11

Thai Baht Korean Won New Zealand Dollar Chinese Yuan

1.74

1.94

0.0533

0.0594

44.00

46.19

9.58

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WednesdAY 30•12•2015

Squadron celebrates ‘We cannot inherit the tradition of killing’ glorious 25 years Morung Express News Dimapur | December 29

Squadron band performing live on stage at the Squadron silver jubilee celebration at Imkongmeren Sports Complex, Mokokchung.

Our Correspondent Mokokchung | December 29

One of the longest surviving bands in Nagaland, Squadron, celebrated its silver jubilee in a grand event organized by the Mokokchung Town Lanur Telongjem (MTLT) at Imkongmeren Sports Complex, Mokokchung.

The event, Squadron 25 years Bash, was a free concert organized to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the band. Over a thousand fans gathered to watch their favourite home band on stage. Various artists also paid tribute to the band by belting out songs which the band played during their many tours and concerts.

Minister, Mechanical Engg & National Highways and Elections, Nuklutoshi, graced the event as chief guest. He congratulated the band for not giving up on their dreams in spite of all the hardships they had to undergo during the early stages of their career. He said that music is one of the rich

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et us first begin on a brutally candid note. India has thus far achieved to instil doubt and apprehension, distrust and insecurity in the minds of the Nagas.

DOUBT: for having played unscrupulous 'divide and rule' political games with the Nagas for the past 69 long years with questionable integrity and sincerity towards finding a realistic solution; APPREHENSION: a deep rooted suspicion that India's callous indifferent dealings with the Nagas is subconsciously being dictated by its comparative geographical and manpower advantage and its comfort option of nuclear arsenal capability to obliterate the Naga race from the face of the earth if it so chooses. If so, it would yet again be another costly error in judgement because when push really comes to shove Nagas would rather die fighting for their freedom than submit to an unjust foe as unequivocally exemplified in the mid 50's. DISTRUST: due to absolute consistency of inherent contempt, disrespect and misconduct on the part of the Government of India by unilaterally violating the past agreements with the Nagas as a people even before the ink is dry e.g. (June 1947, Sir Akbar Hydari...9-Point Agreement); Non-fulfilment of an important clause even in the existing agreement entered into e.g. (16 Points agreement on 'integration'; Unilaterally reverting Nagaland Affairs from Foreign Affairs Ministry to Home Affairs and quashing funding pattern to Nagaland from the Consolidated Fund of India).

These events have only helped to vitiate and erode the level of trust in India as a sincere honourable Nation in the psyche of intellectual Nagas. INSECURITY: because of the escalating violent intolerance of Hindus supremacists like the RSS impudently taking the National stage under the condescending patronage of BJP Central Government at the helms against the minority communities and their religious beliefs. The amalgamated picture depicts a defenceless creature being cajoled to enter the lion's den with an insincere assurance of safety without credibility.

In absence of a healthy respect acknowledging the basic status of human beings as equals between two conflicting

cultural heritages of the Nagas and it has nurtured immense artist and musicians.

“Mokokchung should be proud to have produced a band like Squadron”, he added pointing to the many accolades the band has brought to the town. They are the pioneers of music in Mokokchung who have inspired many people and they have also nurtured and encouraged young artists, he stated. He added that the band is not just a performing band but an achieving band. He concluded by saying that music is the language spoken by all and that music can bring peace and people together.

The band while onstage thanked the MTLT for organizing the silver jubilee celebration concert. They also thanked the tribute bands from all over Nagaland and the fans and supporters for the love and support. Squadron consists of five members – Wati Imchen as the frontman, Lanu Aier on bass, Bendang Jamir and Temsu Imsong on guitars and Mar Tzudir on Drums.

Expressing pain over the killings that are taking place in the Naga society, Secretary, Finance, Government of Nagaland, Y. Kikheto Sema IAS said that the Naga people cannot afford to inherit killings and pass it on to the next generation.

Speaking at the 36th annual session of Diphupar Sumi Kiphimi Kuqhakulu (DSKK) at Diphupar on Tuesday, Kikheto said there is a time for everything – for hatred, animosity, peace. “Now is the time for Nagas to make peace and not war,” he added.

Referring to the motto of DSKK, “Live for Value,” the Secretary said that living a valuable life meant that one should value life. However, Kikheto rued that the value of life was drastically eroding with rampant killings in the Naga society. He called upon the Nagas to forgive and forget the past and to move on together as one, toward a greater future. “Let killings be the past

Secretary, Finance, Y. Kikheto Sema IAS addressing a gathering at Diphupar on Tuesday.

(Morung Photo)

and let peace and unity be the future,” he appealed.

Describing Diphupar as a cosmopolitan area where al-

most all Naga communities reside, he encouraged the Sumi community inhabiting the area to set positive examples and promote peace and unity.

According to Kikheto, setting any positive example should begin from the inside which would gradually begin to glow and would be noticed by people. “It is not the external that makes you a person but the inner qualities which actually defines a person,” Kikheto said. He advised the students to be humble as they climb the ladder of success and contribute their part to the society.

Delivering a brief speech, Diphupar Naga Students’ Union, President, Sakulemba Jamir lauded the support and contributions rendered by the DSKK towards Diphupar village and its constituents.

The inaugural programme of DSKK annual session was attended by a host of former officials from Sumi Kiphimi Kuqhakulu, Western Sumi Hoho representatives, Sumi officers and other dignitaries. The annual session will culminate on December 30.

condolence meSSageS SAPO: The Southern Angami Public Organization (SAPO) has expressed shock to learn of the sudden death of Kevimhal John Thaprii s/o Vizosal Thaprii following a tragic accident with a truck near Khuzama village with some of his family members on December 21.

In a condolence note, SAPO stated that Kevimhal John Thaprii was a promising youth leader, an energetic sportsperson and an active member of various organizations.

SAPO conveyed its deepest condolences to the bereaved family members and also extended prayers of speedy recovery to those who were seriously injured.

Further, SAPO has appealed to the concerned authorities to take immediate action as deemed fit against the culprits responsible for the accident.

Y Patton: Nagaland Home Minister Y. Patton has expressed extreme pain to learn of the untimely demise of Abemo Ovung of Pongitong Village, Wokha at Kolkata on Monday. The Home Minister along with his wife conveyed heartfelt condolences to the beSumi region and Konyak re- reaved family. gion, NSCN (K) viz., Major Shitokhu, Captain Atoka, LHD: The Lotha Hoho Captain Kimiyeto, Lieuten- Dimapur has condoled ant Tovi, 2nd Lieutenant Vi- the sudden passing away of Abemo Ovung. Late tolo, 2nd Lieutenant Hekato, Ovung’s contribution to Sergeant Anyak, Captain M.C. the Lotha community of Naga, Captain Thong, Lieuten- Dimapur in particular was ant Wanglem, Sergeant Romes, multidimensional, and Sergeant Nahpan, Captain will be cherished and reWangjoh, Sergeant Nahpoh membered by the people, a and Sergeant Apo. condolence note from the The “home comers” also Hoho stated. brought some arms and ammunitions “to defend the Naga na- PVSU: The Pongidong tion,” the NSCN (R) stated.

Village Students Union

NSCN (R) welcomes 25 cadres Dimapur, December 29 (mexN): The NSCN (Reformation) has welcomed 25 members from other Naga Political Groups into their fold.

According to a press release from the NSCN (R), over twenty workers from different factions joined its fold within one week.

“The home coming brothers stated that, they had chosen the right leadership who will lead the Nagas in future,” the NSCN (R) release stated.

“They also said that, they have no bad intention against any-

body. However, their joining the NSCN (R) is the right decision taken in the interest of the Nagas,” the release added.

Pochury Region NSCN (U) joined the NSCN (R) in toto led

by Tatars and Colonels viz., Tatar Abel, Tuzale R.A.O., Colonel Jackson, Lieutenant Colonel Whuchitu, Major Eleazer, Major Lunsoba, Sergeant Turhule, Corporal Athong K., Lieutenant Nokpo and Sergeant Major Chenkai.

The others who joined the NSCN (R) are cadres from

(PVSU) has also condoled the demise of late Abemo Ovung. In a condolence note, PVSU recounted late Ovung as the First Graduate from Pongidong in 1968 with distinction from U.C.C. Barapani, Shillong.

He had also served the union as General Secretary from 1961-62.

Tohanba: Parliamentary Secretary for Municipal Affairs and Economics & Statistics, R. Tohanba, today mourned the sudden demise of Late I. Shokum Yimchunger, Retd. Assistant Commandant of 3rd NAP Tuensang who passed away after prolonged illness at Dimapur. Tohanba, in a condolence note, recalled late Shokum as a “statesman” and a “practical person”.

YUD: The Yimchungru Union Dimapur (YUD) has expressed shock and grief over the demise of Late L. Shokhum Yimchungru.

YUD conveyed deepest condolences to the bereaved family members and prayed for eternal peace for the departed soul.

Jacob Zhimomi: Parliamentary Secretary for Irrigation and Flood Control, I. Jacob Zhimomi, has expressed deep shock at the untimely demise of late K. Kakiye Zhimomi. In a condolence message, Jacob described late Kakiye as an “upright” and “selfless” village headman and public leader who was the “voice of the people” at the grassroots. Jacob further stated that the departed leader’s immense contribution towards the uplift and wellbeing of society would be remembered for a long time to come.

Public SPace

entities as a foundry, solution will remain a distant dream. In the context of Indo-Naga imbroglio, this elementary principle of human respect for the Nagas by Indians is unmistakably missing in a rather significant manner. From the very beginning the long frontier bordering India and Burma (now Myanmar), was defined as a 'no-man's land' by no less a personality than Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, disdainfully writing off the natives who dwelt in this territory to a status of sub-humans. Nevertheless the so-called "No man's Land" unambiguously leaves behind a recorded evidence that this territory did "not belong to India or Myanmar" as confirmed by Pdt. Nehru himself during the Couplan Plan review. When Christopher Columbus claimed discovery of America, the resident Native American Indians were left hopelessly perplexed with a very unpalatable question: "Who are we then?!" It is the same old analogy. This so called 'no man's land' had human beings living in it but was nevertheless ruthlessly divided between India and Myanmar in the early 50's without an atom of human recognition and respect for the inhabitants of this frontier. That human rights, views and sentiments of the defenceless people living in this long frontier did not merit consultation is amply exhibited. It induced an enormous human tragedy of separation within families, Clans and Tribes who woke up one fine morning to discover that their kith and kin have become foreigners. A clear edification of disrespect towards the Nagas by India and Myanmar can well be seen on the ground at Longwa village to this day. The arbitrary International boundary between India and Myanmar runs right through the centre of the Angh's (Village Chief) residence and this gentleman crosses the International boundary every other minute without a passport or a visa.

Superiority complex of India nurtured through the comfort zone of military might have been dictating unequal terms to the Nagas devoid of human rights, human dignity and human understanding. When Nagas declared their Independence on the 14th August 1947, India grossly misread the

VISION OF PEACE

situation and concluded that it was simply a case of a few educated Nagas instigated by foreign Missionaries fermenting a sentiment of independence that the masses knew nothing about. While being academic nonentities in the literary sense, Nagas were staunch graduates groomed through hardships of life's experiences and steel- tempered by 'Professor Nature'. Therefore, India could not comprehend that the rudimentary looking Nagas had a fierce sense of independence flowing in their bloodstreams across the board and would sacrifice their lives for freedom that they had otherwise inherently enjoyed over the centuries. This critical flaw in understanding led India to conclude that the insignificant movement of the Nagas for independence could be crushed in a few months time through their military might against ignorant unarmed civilian population.

How tragically wrong could one get? This extremely costly miscalculation was perpetuated by the so-called "Intellectual Indians" at the helms of National affairs at that crucial time. They knew nothing about the people being confronted on the other side of the fence. They sadistically caused inhuman atrocities against the defenceless Nagas and sacrificed thousands of precious Indian and Naga lives on a misjudged myopic whim in the process.

After hard fought decades India has finally woken up to the ultimate truth and has planted its feet on ground reality by acknowledging the 'unique history of the Nagas' needing solution not through a military confrontation but through political discourse is a welcomed paradigm shift that all peace loving people applauds. It is the hope of the people of Nagaland that the "New Intellectual Indians" will have divorced the 'Old' habits of misjudgement and has their ears planted closer to the ground.

As an elder neighbour, it is incumbent upon India to sensibly learn instructive lessons from its past costly misadventure and act with honourable maturity by honestly understanding the core political sen-

timent of the Naga people with due respect to universal human rights. The first lesson that Government of India and the people of Mainland India needs to acknowledge with humility is that Nagas are not fighting a 'Secessionist War' against India.

Historically, Nagas have never been a part of India so how does one secede from something one was never a part of? This is akin to a story of a small defenceless boy lovingly holding on to his ice cream in an ice cream parlour when along comes a mighty bully and snatches the ice cream away from him. This little boy knows for sure that he is no match for the physical prowess of the bully but his indomitable spirit refuses to be cowed down by the bully's unjustifiable arrogance and lashes out regardless against this humiliating injustice perpetrated against him. It ought not to be too difficult for the intellectuals to discern who the bully might be and who...the boy. For the Nagas, this is purely a struggle for preservation of freedom as they knew it and owned it for centuries before the damnable effort of usurpation by a domineering neighbour wanting to eclipse that freedom of the weaker neighbour. The irony of this drama lies in the fact that India fought the Colonial British for the very same reason but chose to unscrupulously emulate the same colonial oppressors upon salvaging their own freedom.

Acknowledging the "unique history" of the Nagas is the first positive step towards conflict resolution and opting to find a solution to this vexed problem through an amicable negotiation rather than a military one is the icing. It is now of critical importance that India sees the problem through the prism of enlightenment by respecting the true spirit of the Nagas as human beings and as equals.

The Nagas of Nagaland with honourable principles see the "Framework Agreement" signed on 3rd August 2015 between GoI and the NSCN (IM) with an apprehensive sense of scepticism because of its nontransparent disposition. For a change, this is a momentous timeframe for India to sensi-

tively understand the internal equations between the Tribes as never before if it sincerely wants to cross the bridge towards lasting peace. In the traditional past 'bravery' and 'honour' were two elementary values treasured and respected by our ancestors. Despite the moral erosion in the value system of the present Naga generation weakened by a different kind of head hunting called 'easy money hunting'...deliberately and liberally injected by the GoI without accountability for a long term defilement of the Naga society ... those old values still holds true and forms a conscious basis of determining respect and trustworthiness of an individual or a Tribe. Admittedly NSCN (IM) is without doubt the predominant faction steering the negotiation. That the decision making upper echelon of this organization is dominated by the Tangkhul Tribe from Manipur under the iron clad control of Mr. Th. Muivah in the guise of a "Collective Leadership" is sufficiently clear beyond doubt. The absence of any worthwhile recognizable personality from other Naga Tribes of Nagaland within its fold tends to generate a great deal of subconscious discomfort. Mr. Isac Swu has thus far been the balancing scale and has performed his duty for his people with respectable honour under the circumstances.

At his age however, he is now determinedly fighting an entirely different kind of a battle for personal survival induced by nature. With his active participatory capability in the ongoing negotiation with the GoI visibly reduced coupled with the troublesome lack of transparency in the framework agreement, the quantum of suspicion has multiplied and compounded exponentially. The unnerving question playing in everyone's mind is whether this non-transparent negotiation is being tilted towards 'Southern Naga solution' at the cost of the Nagas of Nagaland? The historical fact that our Tangkhul brothers from Manipur joined the Naga National Movement (NNM) only after 1964 Cease Fire Agreement with the GoI, when extreme danger of the

bloodiest period of sacrifices made by the Nagas of Nagaland was clearly over, lingers on in the memory of the Nagas. The fact that Nagas of Nagaland had failed to ignite the political consciousness amongst our Tangkhul brothers from the South despite sincere efforts made add to the overall distaste. Their wilful abstention from the NNM during the worst period of Naga National trials would go down as a despicable picture of "cowardice" in the parlance of Tribal honour. Even the fair minded Tangkhuls would honourably admit to this fact. Therefore, arrogantly sweeping their shabby past under the carpet and sanctimoniously dictating to the GoI from honourably and officially bringing those solely responsible for having initiated the NNM in the first place to the negotiating table is extremely distressful and difficult for any honourable Nagas of Nagaland to swallow. The Tribal sense of honour would also define such an attitude of NSCN (IM) as an embarrassing insult unless it redeems itself by actually bringing home sovereignty and integration...nothing more, nothing less... but are they? The "Opportunistic Endorsement" on the framework agreement committed by the Apex Organizations including the elected representatives (MLAs) without even knowing what it is all about, can never be considered a legitimate endorsement without first consulting the people who have helplessly/ fearfully been cowed down by AK-47 and bludgeoned with their extortion in the name of 'sovereignty tax' all their lives.

It is here that India must seriously recognise and analyse the deeper intricate background of faction ridden complications among the Tribes and the intrinsic value system that apply. I am inclined to state with all the conviction at my command that history will repeated itself if India gambles on NSCN (IM) being the sole proponent in ironing out this mess without formally bringing all the other factions on board before the final solution... especially if the twin issue of 'sovereignty' and 'integration' is not a part of the final settlement. Government of India must know that the philosophy of sovereignty as envisioned then by the Nagas in the 20th century has undergone a modicum of shift in

the 21st century. Nagas are reasonably aware of the global village concept and perhaps not averse to the new concept of sovereignty as experienced in European. Nagas are not blind to a good neighbourly existence as long as their internal security, their economic welfare, their rights and their dignity as a people are inviolably guaranteed within a Federated relationship with India. This kind of conclusion can however be sustained only when a consensus endorsement of all the armed NPGs, barring none, is achieved. Despite sincere overture of the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) to reconcile all faction under one umbrella as equals, NSCN (IM) has adamantly walked away from this unity efforts. NSCN (IM) expects all the other NPGs to first confess their commissions before being allowed the privilege of joining them...as if they have not been guilty of any wrong doings themselves. In the absence of equality even within our own kitchen, Naga honour will never allow any NPG to approach this high arrogant pedestal without a loss of face and therefore FNR's call for unity is a nonstarter. If GoI also concede a free hand to NSCN (IM) to non-transparently scuttle rational Tribal sensibility and balance it can only spell disaster. It is for the Government of India to make an enlightened call on this.

In conclusion I have often stated that if all the NPG factions are formally taken into confidence along with the NSCN (IM) in the negotiation, Nagas would celebrate full-heartedly even if they collectively bring home a chicken. For this to happen, the onus squarely rests with NSCN (IM) to bury their insufferable ego and open the door to mainstream platform of equality with the rest of the NPGs of Nagaland. This is the ultimate road to lasting peace and will conversely reduce the possibility of another bloody civil war in the aftermath.

Khekiye K. Sema IAS (Rtd) Forest Colony, Kohima

The following article on "vision of peace" is being submitted for the 2nd National Peace Convention, being held in Dimapur on 30th January 2016 - 1st February 2016 as requested by the Organisers ... being shared with the readers for feedbacks if any. E-mail ID: kksema@gmail.com

The Morung Express is introducing “Public Space” as part of our intention to provide deliberate space for the opinions of the people to be expressed and heard through this newspaper. Nonetheless, The Morung Express points out that the opinions expressed in the contents published in the “Public Space” do not reflect the views and position of the newspaper or the editor.

WednesdAY 30•12•2015

IN FOCUS

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THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express X issue 353X issue 185 Thursday 9volume July 2015 volume By dr. asangba Tzüdir

On Juvenile Justice

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he Juvenile Justice (Care and protection of children) bill that provides for lowering the age for trial paves the way for a new juvenile system in which the age of criminal culpability will now be 16 years, subject to some conditions.

The Juvenile Justice is the area of criminal law applicable for persons not enough to be held responsible for criminal acts. It was a subject of heated debates until finally the bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha with the left parties staging a walkout which wanted to be sent it to a select committee. Critics have seen the passing of the bill as an emotionally charged hasty response to the release of the juvenile convicted in the Delhi gang rape who now is an adult. The move to lower the age was also opposed by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) saying that it was based on previous datas without duly considering other factors.

The Delhi gang rape that happened on 16th December 2012 became a pertinent marker where one of the accused was some few months shy of 18 years. As such he was tried in a juvenile court. What then followed was the filing of a PIL by a BJP politician in the Supreme Court of India seeking that the boy be tried as an adult in a court. What ensued was that the Supreme Court asked the juvenile court to delay the verdict.

When it was finally asked to do, the juvenile court gave the verdict of sentencing the boy to three years in a reform home. The victim’s mother criticized the verdict saying that by not punishing the juvenile the court was in a way encouraging other teenagers to commit crimes.

Though the main goal of the juvenile justice system is rehabilitation rather than punishment it has rather sparked debates on the issue of culpability of those committing the crime. On another level lowering the age from 18 to 16 years is also not free from legal implications that go beyond the scope of culpability. Wherein, under the age of 18 years being considered a minor, besides other rights, he or she is not allowed to vote, sign a contract or engage a lawyer because he or she is not considered matured enough to make such decisions. Will such rights be granted after attainment of 16 years?

On the issue of justice, what is also important is to see beyond the age factor where the nature and degree of crime committed warrants due scrutiny. There are a whole lot of intricacies that comes into play on the ‘actions’ involved. A minor can commit a crime intentionally but he or she may not be matured enough to understand or foresee the consequences of one’s actions.

As a nation with the largest population of children in the world, there is need to analyse as to why children turn to crime rather than simply trying to lower the age. The issue related to ‘neglect’ in relation to child care and protection cannot be ignored. What is more pressing is to educate the children and give them proper care rather than punishing the child after a crime being committed. Every child needs to be given proper guidance, corrective treatment, healthcare and most importantly education and be given a chance to a better life especially those children who have been deprived of parental guidance and education. Producing a child before court or sending one to prison for the crime committed may not produce the desired effect. There is little assurance that the life in the prison would reform the child considering that there are no rehabilitation or reform policy measures in the prison or where the prisoners are treated as criminals rather than as human beings. Considering the fact that the Juvenile Justice seeks basically to care and protect children, it should really look at giving care and protection beyond what is written in theory.

Again, simply lowering the age of culpability will not be able to address or solve the problem which has related legal implications of lowering the age. Children need to be given due care and protection by catering to their basic needs through proper care, protection, development, treatment, social integration, and by adopting a child friendly approach that best suit the interest of the children and for their rehabilitation.

On the whole, there can be ‘exceptions’ to rule depending on the nature of crime and justice because at the end of the day both justice needs to be delivered irrespective of a person being a juvenile or an adult as much as a child needs to be cared and protected.

(Dr. Asangba Tzüdir is Editor with heritage publishing House.

He contributes a weekly guest editorial to the Morung Express.

Feedback and comments can be mailed to asangtz@gmail.com)

lEfT wiNg |

IANS

Anxious people fare much better in a crisis

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he brain devotes more processing resources to social situations that signal threat than those that are benign and anxious people process those threats using regions of the brain responsible for action, says a study.

The study that may help explain the apparent "sixth sense" we have for danger found that "low anxious” people process the threats in sensory circuits, responsible for face recognition.

It was previously thought that anxiety could lead to oversensitivity to threat signals. However, the new study showed that the difference has a useful purpose.

Non-clinical anxiety shifts the neural 'coding' of threat to motor circuits, which produce action, from sensory circuits, which help us to recognise faces, the researchers explained.

Facial displays of emotion can be ambiguous but the researchers managed to identify what it is that makes a person particularly threatening.

They found that the direction a person is looking in is key to enhancing our sensitivity to their emotions.

Anger paired with a direct gaze produces a response in the brain in only 200 milliseconds, faster than if the angry person is looking elsewhere.

"In a crowd, you will be most sensitive to an angry face looking towards you, and will be less alert to an angry person looking somewhere else," said lead author Marwa El Zein from the French Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM).

Similarly, if a person displays fear and looks in a particular direction you will detect this more rapidly than positive emotions. Such quick reactions could have served an adaptive purpose for survival.

For the study, electrical signals measured in the brains of 24 volunteers were analysed while they were asked to decide whether digitally altered faces expressed anger or fear.

"In contrast to previous work, our findings demonstrate that the brain devotes more processing resources to negative emotions that signal threat, rather than to any display of negative emotion," El Zein noted.

The study appeared in the journal eLife.

C O M M E N T A R Y

Sakiko Fukuda-Parr

It’s About Values: Human Rights norms and tolerance for inequality

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his debate on inequality as a human rights issue has so far focused on the instrumental importance of human rights to inequality and vice versa, rather than on the intrinsic value of equality as a human rights norm. While Samuel Moyn argues that the human rights regime and movement have little to contribute as means to combat inequality, Philip Alston, Juan Pablo Jiménez, Radhika Balakrishnan and James Heinz argue that inequality obstructs the realization of human rights. Yet it is in articulating equality as a valuable social norm—and inequality as an injustice—that human rights theorists and practitioners can make a vital contribution to these contemporary social and political debates.

Social attitudes on inequality are a critical factor in the politics of change. Unless inequality is seen as a problem, there would be no support for redistributive measures. Is inequality bad? How much inequality is acceptable? Few would argue for a completely egalitarian society. Inequality that results from differences in effort and ability is just reward, and provides necessary incentive for hard work. At what point does public opinion turn to find inequality “excessive” or “extreme”? Surveys show wide variation across countries and individuals on attitudes towards inequality as a problem.

Research on tolerance for inequality has approached the issue as individual grievances over one’s relative income position in the framework of Rational Choice Theory and not as an ethical issue and a social concern. Key economic theories (e.g., the median voter theorem, or Hirschman’s “tunnel effect”), built on the assumption of the self-interested individual, theorize that attitudes towards inequality and support for redistribution depend on an individual’s position in the overall income/wealth distribution, and tolerance depends on whether s/he feels aggrieved by this position, either at a given point of time or in terms of future mobility. Intolerance for inequality would likely rise with increase in the level of inequality. Yet research has not found much empirical evidence to support these propositions.

This approach takes no note of concern people have over inequality as an undesirable state of the society they live in—a concern not due to having less than others, but because they adhere to egalitarian values. As Amartya Sen points out, attitudes to inequality are a part of an individual’s ethical values—

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urely we can all look back and say that was a good year that was. If we set aside our tendency to incessantly harp on the bad and the ugly, we just might find out that the good overshadows the bad and the ugly. Many good things were initiated in 2015 and we haven’t seen the last of these good things. Nor should we forget to give credit to all those fine men and women who have been working throughout the year to make Nagaland a better place to live in. Notably the younger generation.

We haven’t heard enough about the good that our young got up to this year, because good news is not considered saleable news in the media world. But thankfully Naga media does not follow that trend. I think we should definitely say a very big thank you to ’Project 72 hours,’ the initiative of a few young Naga men and women! to clean up colonies in Kohima town. In an admirable project of community service they went around cleaning the town’s streets and getting rid of waste that people had thrown carelessly around dustbins, instead of into dustbins. They took on colony after colony. This is such a noble project. It makes you believe in a better tomorrow: that is how good it is. It makes you realise that the future is much better off in the hands of the young. They care about their town and they make the time to keep

Using principles of nondiscrimination and status equality, human rights have the potential to fill the ethical void in economics a view on what is morally right or wrong. People reject extreme inequality as unfair, regardless of one’s own economic position and self-interest. Such views are often socially constructed and shaped by cultural norms, which vary considerably across societies and time periods. Some empirical studies have emerged that show that it is cultural values that can explain the difference in the tolerance for inequality. For example, Marc Suhrcke finds important differences between East and Western Europe, attributable to a difference in historically entrenched cultural norms about inequality. Using data from 26 countries, Malte Lübker finds that intolerance for inequality and public support for redistribution is not driven by the level of inequality. He argues that this is attributable to social justice norms, concluding that, “traditional rational choice theory is ill-equipped to understand a phenomenon that involves value judgments and moral considerations”.

Indeed, current public debates about inequality turn on the immorality of inequality at the levels that have been reached today. The outrage is targeted at what extreme inequality stems from—unjust institutions that create and recreate inequality of income and wealth but also opportunities and political power. Advocates for reducing inequality from Joseph Stiglitz to Oxfam do not argue that inequality is excessive in the abstract, but in context as it relates to the capture of democratic political processes and market competition.

The groundswell of protests around the world reveals a grievance against injustice and failures of democracy that extreme inequality manifests.

A study of worldwide protests (843 protests in 84 countries covering 92% of the world’s population and in all regions) occurring between January 2006

to July 2013 concludes that, “the majority of global protests for economic justice and against austerity manifest peoples’ indignation at the gross inequalities between ordinary communities and rich individuals/corporations”. Even the wealthy and powerful are concerned. Based on a 2014 survey of 1,500 global leaders in business, academia, government and civil society, the World Economic Forum reports widening income disparities to be the second most pressing worldwide concern identified after tensions in the Middle East.

Current concern with inequality is about the injustice of inequality which economics is ill equipped to articulate. The tools of economic analysis help design effective policies to combat inequality. They can also reveal the destructive effects of inequality on economic growth and human development.

But they are silent on the intrinsic value of equality as a social norm, and inequality as injustice. Human rights norms and principles can help fill this ethical void in economics. The principles of status equality and non-discrimination anchor an alternative framework for analysis of inequality, one that is based on the intrinsic value of equality as a social norm, and one that explores unjust institutions as the source of inequality.

Ironically, this is the motivation for this openGlobalRights debate and how each of the contributors sees the problem—starting with Alston, whose opening sentence states that the current level of inequality is “obscene”. Yet he goes on to make a case for inequality as a human rights issue on instrumental grounds, that inequality obstructs the realization of rights. The principle of status equality—that all persons are born free and equal in dignity and rights—should not be dismissed as the only human rights reference to inequality. It has far reaching implications for policies in wide ranging policies—equal rights to education, to health care, to voice and so on. It is a vital contribution to these current debates and to research on the politics and economics of inequality.

What is needed now is a more coherent articulation of human rights norms and inequality as injustice, which is currently underdeveloped, if not entirely absent. Reducing inequality and winning public support for redistribution requires shifts in social values. The critical role of the human rights community is to spread the norm of equality of rights.

The good, the bad and the ugly easterine Kire it clean. May their tribe increase! May their example never die out. Merry 2016 ‘Project 72 hours’!

Now that Kohima is on its way to becoming a smart city, we need many more civic minded citizens.

And schools should devote some class hours to taking care of garbage. If we cannot teach adults and parents, teach the children so they can go home and teach their parents. That’s what I always say.

Next a subdued but sincere appreciation to the organisations led by men who did not repeat the March 5 incident of killing accused rapists.

Our society experienced rape again in the year, but there was restraint in dealing with the accused who was apprehended and imprisoned. No one

tried to take the prisoner out of prison and execute their own brand of justice upon him. Instead a rally was announced, and though it rained as only rain can rain in Kohima (in buckets from heaven’s thrown open windows), the rally was not cut short. The crowd gathered to show solidarity, and also to listen to peaceful and lawful ways of bringing justice to our women.

How we value these kinds of peaceful movements to get justice for women.

There won’t be room to list all the good reasons that make me proud of the good among us. Let it suffice to say that they are appreciated for all the ways in which they are striving to make our towns better places to live in, and restoring right pride in what it

wRiTE-wiNg

means to be a Naga.

All those young Naga entrepreneurs pioneering the way for others and showing that it’s possible for Nagas to start and run their own businesses deserve a big shout! They have not run after government jobs but made it the hard way, enduring knocks and bruises, yet never stopping to believe in their dreams. More and more are joining the ranks of Nagas starting their own businesses and that is the way it should be. I have seen some very good printing presses that are purely focused on quality.

This is admirable in our entrepreneurs that they are more interested in quality than in raking in lots of profit.

It is a trait we need to nurture so that it will offset the quick money solutions which result in shoddy production. A round of loud applause to all the quality minded business persons in our homeland. And an additional round to the creative entrepreneurs who have taken on online shopping for all parts of Nagaland as well as beyond. Way to go guys!

This is not an exhaustive list and if there are any who feel left out, it is unintentional and you should pat yourself on the back and be proud of any contribution you have made to making Nagaland a better place to live in. Let’s keep it that way.

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.

WednesdAY 30•12•2015

PERSPECTIVE

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Christmas Revolution Peter Wehner

B

New York Times

ECAUSE the Christmas story has been told so often for so long, it’s easy even for Christians to forget how revolutionary Jesus’ birth was. The idea that God would become human and dwell among us, in circumstances both humble and humiliating, shattered previous assumptions. It was through this story of divine enfleshment that much of our humanistic tradition was born.

For most Christians, the incarnation — the belief that God, in the person of Jesus, walked in our midst — is history’s hinge point. The incarnation’s most common theological take-away relates to the doctrine of redemption: the belief that salvation is made possible by the sinless life and atoning death of Jesus. But there are other, less familiar aspects of Jesus’ earthly pilgrimage that are profoundly important.

One of them was rejecting the Platonic belief that the material world was evil.

In Plato’s dualism, there was a dramatic disjuncture between ideal forms and actual bodies, between the physical and the spiritual worlds. According to Plato, what we perceive with our senses is illusory, a distorted shadow of reality. Hence philosophy’s most famous imagery — Plato’s shadow on the cave — where those in the cave mistook the shadows for real people and named them.

This Platonic view had considerable influence in the early church, but that influence faded because it was in tension with Christianity’s deepest teachings. In the Hebrew Bible, for example, God declares creation to be good — and Jesus, having entered the world, ratified that judgment. The incarnation attests to the existence of the physical, material world. Our life experiences are real, not shadows. The incarnation affirms the delight we take in earthly beauty and our obligation to care for God’s creation. This was a dramatic overturning of ancient thought.

The incarnation also reveals that the divine principle governing the universe is a radical commitment to the dignity and worth of every person, since we are created in the divine image.

But just as basic is the notion that we have value

because God values us. Steve Hayner, a theologian who died earlier this year, illustrated this point to me when he observed that gold is valuable not because there is something about gold that is intrinsically of great worth but because someone values it. Similarly, human beings have worth because we are valued

by God, who took on flesh, entered our world, and shared our experiences — love, joy, compassion and intimate friendships; anger, sorrow, suffering and tears. For Christians, God is not distant or detached; he is a God of wounds. All of this elevated the human experience and laid the groundwork for the ideas of individual dignity and inalienable rights.

In his book “A Brief History of Thought,” the secular humanist and French philosopher Luc Ferry writes that in contrast with the Greek understand-

ing of humanity, “Christianity was to introduce the notion that humanity was fundamentally identical, that men were equal in dignity — an unprecedented idea at the time, and one to which our world owes its entire democratic inheritance.”

Indeed, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (blessed are the poor in spirit and the pure in heart, the meek and the merciful), his touching of lepers, and his association with outcasts and sinners were fundamentally at odds with the way the Greek and Roman worlds viewed life, where social status was everything.

“Christianity placed charity at the center of its spiritual life as no pagan cult ever had,” according to the theologian David Bentley Hart, “and raised the care of widows, orphans, the sick, the imprisoned,

and the poor to the level of the highest of religious obligations.” Christianity played a key role in ending slavery and segregation. Today Christians are taking the lead against human trafficking and on behalf of unborn life. They maintain countless hospitals, hospices and orphanages around the world.

We moderns assume that compassion for the poor and marginalized is natural and universal. But actually we think in this humanistic manner in large measure because of Christianity. What Christianity did, my friend the Rev. Karel Coppock once told me, is to “transform our way of thinking about the poor and sick and create an entirely different cultural given.”

One other effect of the incarnation: It helps those of us of the Christian faith to avoid turning God into an abstract set of principles. Accounts of how Jesus interacted in this messy, complicated, broken world, through actions that stunned the people of his time, allow us to learn compassion in ways that being handed a moral rule book never could.

For one thing, rule books can’t shed tears or express love; human beings do. Seeing how Jesus dealt with the religious authorities of his day (often harshly) and the sinners and outcasts of his day (often tenderly and respectfully) adds texture and subtlety to human relationships that we could never gain otherwise.

Christians have often fallen short of what followers of Jesus are called to be.

We have seen this in the Crusades, religious wars and bigotry; in opposition to science, in the way critical thought is discouraged and in harsh judgmentalism. To this day, many professing Christians embody the antithesis of grace.

We Christians would do well to remind ourselves of the true meaning of the incarnation. We are part of a great drama that God has chosen to be a participant in, not in the role of a conquering king but as a suffering servant, not with the intention to condemn the world but to redeem it. He saw the inestimable worth of human life, regardless of social status, wealth and worldly achievements, intelligence or national origin. So should we.

Peter Wehner, a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, served in the last three Republican administrations and is a contributing opinion writer.

A Roadmap for Peace in South Sudan

As the world's youngest country enters its third year of civil war, there are new hopes for a durable peace Daniel P. Sullivan

T

Foreign Policy in Focus

he news out of South Sudan over the past two years has been devastating. And as we mark the beginning of the third year of conflict, the risk of famine and further atrocities remains grave.

But not all the news is bad. In 2015, a peace agreement was signed following increased regional and international efforts. The coming year has the potential to see that peace consolidated — if the country’s leaders follow through.

Below are three pieces of good news that came out of South Sudan in 2015 and three steps that must be taken to ensure that 2016 ends the trend of violence in the world’s newest nation.

2015 Highlights A Peace Deal Signed – It took immense international effort and far too long, but in August 2015 the Compromise Peace Agreement was signed laying out a road map for democratic transition. Key to the deal is a power-sharing arrangement in which rebel leader and former Vice President Riek Machar returns to the capital Juba as a deputy in a 30-month transitional period leading up to new elections.

A Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) was set up led by former President of Botswana Festus Mogae and with strong backing by the UN and African Union. Implementation has already been delayed and the ceasefire violated on both sides, but the road map remains and with sustained international attention progress can be made.

Civilians Protected – The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has prioritized protection of civilians and continues to shelter over 180,000 people in protection of civilian sites around the country. Despite government protests, UNMISS’ civilian protection man-

date is set to be renewed and its force strengthened with additional peacekeepers. While challenges remain in maintaining the sites, this remains an unprecedented move that has saved tens of thousands of lives.

disarmament and demobilization of troops. As stated by former U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, Princeton Lyman, a key first step will be strengthening the Ceasefire Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism and UNMISS to enFamine Averted – UN agencies have sure international monitoring prevents released dire warnings of looming a return to conflict at the fragile early famine, including as recently as Octo- stages. ber. Thanks to an outpouring of international aid and continued pressure Establishing a Transitional Governfor humanitarian access, the worst has ment – A Transitional Government of been avoided. Still, the Internation- National Unity was supposed to be set al Committee of the Red Cross warns up by November but has now slipped to that hundreds of thousands of people January, partially due to security conin South Sudan still face “severe food cerns by the opposition as many troops shortages and an alarming hunger sit- remain in the capital. As an advance uation.” International efforts have pre- team arrives in Juba ahead of Machar’s vented the situation from being much first return since the conflict began, worse and are worth celebrating. But steps must be taken to quickly begin they should also serve as a reminder the official 30-month transition period. of what failure to implement peace can Counterproductive moves by President mean and thus help to ensure that such Kiir, like setting up 18 new states and emergency efforts do not need to be re- further restricting civil society space, peated. must be rejected and focus turned to establishing a new constitution.

What’s Needed for 2016 Security Arrangements – One of the Accountability, Hybrid Court – An first signs of progress in implement- essential part of the peace agreement ing the peace agreement was the be- was the establishment of a hybrid court ginning of removal of government and to ensure accountability for the atrocigovernment-allied Ugandan troops ties committed during the conflict in from the capital Juba. In order for a South Sudan. There has been no progtransition to take place, a whole series ress on this point so far and if there is to of steps must be taken — from removal be reconciliation and peace that works of remaining troops outside of Juba to this will be needed. A first step will be the formation of Joint Police Units and appointing a head of the Hybrid Court.

This is by no means an exhaustive list. It should go without saying that humanitarian access should be improved and both sides held accountable for blocking of aid and harassment of aid workers. Fighting corruption will be an essential part of establishing peace and security. Government and opposition calls for funding will have to be measured against desires to buy more weapons and carefully calibrated with serious steps taken to consolidate peace.

The Way Forward Ultimately, implementation of the key aspects of the peace agreement will come down to the will of South Sudan’s leaders. If they are unwilling to put the lives of their citizens ahead of political and financial gain, then the countries that helped forge the agreement, particularly South Sudan’s neighbors, must be willing to hold them to account. Further regression will require new pressure whether in the form of an arms embargo or targeted sanctions on those responsible for getting in the way of peace.

As dire as the situation remains, the fact that a road map toward peace exists with backing by regional and international players is already an improvement from last year. But there is no time to lose in ensuring that road map is followed. The people of South Sudan cannot afford to wait.

Daniel P. Sullivan is the director of policy and government relations at United to End Genocide

7

The Newspaper with an Opinion The Morung Express

When our young Naga students go out to study in mainland India or abroad, they feel the reality of how it is like being a “nonlocal”. Our experiences differ from sometimes being treated equally, discriminated or privileged. In Nagaland too, we have people from different parts of India living here and many others who have made Nagaland their home. A “non-local’s” experience is different from a natives, and they are often caught between two worlds. Yet, as we read below, a “non-local” is just as much a “local” in love with the land and people they can call “home”.

BEING A “NON-LOCAL” Anjan K Behera, Asst Professor, Department of English

B

orn and brought up in Nagaland, and living the life of a “non-local”. It is a statement resonating with many residents of Nagaland. The state is home to many nonNagas or “non-locals”, as they are referred to in popular lingo.

Nagaland became the 16th state of the Republic of India in 1963. The fast growth of trade in the state has allowed several Mainland Indians to settle in different parts of Nagaland, with the concentration being in the commercial district of Dimapur. It is a fact that the economy of the state would be unrecognizable without these Mainland Indians setting their shops in the region. In the history that I have learnt, the Nagas always wanted a political union of their ancestral and native groups. This demand went unheeded by the Government of India, giving rise to violence in the state which continues to this day, and a buildup of hostility towards Mainland India.

I am of a Mainland Indian origin. My parents were born and brought up in the coastal state of Orissa. They have been living in Nagaland since 1986 and have been contributing to the academic sphere of the state. I have been born and brought up here, which complicates my identity as an individual. I often face situations which compel me to question, where am I from?

Am I a Mainland Indian who is foreign to this land? Or do I belong to this state? I term myself as a diasporic Indian living in Nagaland, facing a ‘neither here nor there’ situation.

My family visits our relatives in Orissa once a year on an average, spending around 15 days together at the most. I have never been able to establish any emotional attachment towards Orissa. It’s not like I dislike my relatives, but to think of Orissa as my native land seems like such an alien concept. The first thing that comes to my mind when someone asks me “Where are you from?” is Dimapur. Yet the reality is that I am politically and constitutionally from Orissa. I cannot appear the exams for the government jobs in Nagaland, and neither can I in Orissa. While I can manage to speak rudimentary Oriya, I am a stranger to the script of the language. I can neither read nor write Oriya.

This is a major issue that I face as a diasporic Indian. I once had to board a bus from Cuttack to Balasore, both districts in Orissa. There are route maps in Oriya in flashing neon lights around the bus. Naturally, I had to bear the judgmental looks of the conductor when I asked him in Oriya if this bus was going to Balasore. To him I looked literate, I believe, and perhaps he couldn’t comprehend why I wasn’t able to read the signs on the bus. My mother had attempted to teach me Oriya during one of my school summer vacations. As a child, I felt this was a complete waste of my time since I would not be using the Oriya script anywhere. As a grown up, I keep telling myself that I would teach myself the language from a self learning book, but it has never materialized. Perhaps on some level I still identify Oriya as a foreign language.

While I was pursuing my higher studies in Bangalore, happiness would enthrall me on meeting a Naga. Bangalore, like any other metro city, has pockets of the Naga community blending amidst the façade of congested streets and high rent apartments.

Those few moments spent talking in Nagamese would lighten my heart. I was a regular at the Zingron Restaurant located in Koramangala, owned by a Naga family. Savouring the bamboo shoot pork and king chilly chutney would remind me of ‘home’, my Nagaland which I so terribly missed. During my Masters, we had a paper titled ‘Indian Literature in English’. I was disgruntled to find that the paper included no fiction from Nagaland. I remember having a lengthy discussion with the teacher questioning the justification behind Indian Academia leaving out Naga Literature from formal education. As a teacher today I always encourage my students to read novels and poems by Naga writers.

The myriad of my experiences will sound similar to all the ‘non-locals’ who have been born and brought up in Nagaland. There are times when we feel awkward and ashamed, like for instance when there was a surge of revulsion towards the Mainland Indian community on different social media in the days following the March 5 incident. I am certainly not implying that the Nagas are intolerant towards the Mainland Indians. When my mother had to undergo a surgery last year in Nikos Hospital and needed blood urgently, most of the donors who lined up were Nagas. The reason why I sometimes feel that I am a Naga by heart is because the Nagas I have come across have been so wonderfully accepting. For my parents, living away from their hometowns for decades has been possible only because of the love and support of the Nagas.

Perhaps someday these lines dividing the children of God will vanish, and we will all be one in spirit. It is a fantasy yes, but when has reality been kinder?

“Degree of Thought is a weekly community column initiated by Tetso College in partnership with The Morung Express. Degree of Thought will delve into the social, cultural, political and educational issues around us. The views expressed here do not reflect the opinion of the institution. Tetso College is a NAAC Accredited UGC recognised Commerce and Arts College.

For feedback or comments please email: admin@tetsocollege.org”.

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

WedneSdAY 30•12•2015

INDIA

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Only five-star hotel bars can serve liquor in Kerala, government upbeat ThiruvananThapuram/new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): Tipplers in Kerala were left wringing their hands in despair as the Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the state's policy to restrict service and consumption of liquor to only bars in five star hotels. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said they will now be able to "tackle the evils of alcoholism" and dared the Left opposition to tinker with the policy in case they come to power.

An apex court bench of Justice Vikramjit Sen and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh dismissed the petitions challenging the liquor policy upholding the Kerala High Court judgment in the matter.

Under the policy, sale and consumption of liquor at bars in hotels below five star is prohibited.

The Kerala government was quick to hail the verdict.

"What all did they (Left) say when this policy was first unveiled. They said this was made without any logic and one without any substance. They said this was framed to help some people," Chandy said.

"The liquor policy of ours was not evolved in a day, instead it was one that took a proper shape and moved forward right from the days when K. Karunakaran, A.K. Antony and later when I headed the government (2004) and it reached this stage... when we decided to eradicate the social evil with our new policy," Chandy told reporters after the weekly cabinet meeting in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday.

"We feel this policy is one of the most prominent ones because through this, we will be able to tackle the evils of alcoholism.

"The Left should come forward and tell the people

whether they would tinker with the now Supreme Court-cleared liquor policy, if they come to power," Chandy added.

Asked about the rehabilitation of workers in the now-closed bars in other hotels, he said: "We are sympathetic towards such people who have lost their jobs and are prepared to do anything for them. They will be adequately compensated."

Just after the court verdict, Excise Minister K. Babu told reporters in Thiruvanathapuram: "We are happy that the Supreme Court has upheld our decision. From now on, we will be going ahead very strongly with our anti-liquor campaign programmes as we want this habit to be removed from our society."

Only 27 five-star hotel bars in Kerala will be able to serve liquor.

In March, the Kerala

Felling of trees: Himachal High Court takes cognizance

High Court upheld the liquor policy and dismissed a petition of the Kerala Bar Hotel Owners Association.

Following this, the hotel association approached the apex court.

Bar owner Elegant Binoy told reporters: "The liquor policy of the state is an annual exercise and there are just three more months for this policy.

From April 1, 2016, there has to be a new policy, so we will wait and see. Before that, we will also sit down and discuss what other legal recourse there is before us."

In August 2014, the Chandy government announced that it was deciding to go for total prohibition in 10 years and had issued notice for closure to all 710 bars in the state.

Liquor, however, will be available through 305 retail liquor shops owned by the Kerala government.

Here too, 10 percent of these shops would be closed down every October, the new policy statement says. Till now, 78 shops have already downed their shutters.

Defending the ban on serving liquor at other hotels, the Kerala government said liquor was available at retail outlets and people can buy and drink at home.

The state government had told the court that drinking at home in presence of wives and children would discourage drinkers from pursuing the habit.

The apex court on September 11, 2014, had asked the Kerala High Court to decide on the challenge to the notification directing bar owners below five-star hotels to shut their business. The high court by its March 31 order upheld the policy, terming drinking at bars a luxury.

Security situation in Jammu & Kashmir improved in 2015: Army Jammu, December 29 (ianS): There has been a significant improvement in the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir during 2015, the army said on Tuesday. In its assessment of the security situation during 2015, Udhampur-based headquarters of the northern command said: "Ascendancy over terrorists was continued during 2015 despite the dynamics of Pakistan's involvement in the state."

The army said 100 terrorists were killed during the year, including some top commanders like Abu Qasim of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). "The counter-terrorist grid continued to maintain dominance and deny any space to terrorists. Synergised hard intelligence-based joint operations with state police and central paramilitary forces have been the hallmark of these operations.

"During the year... over 100 terrorists have been neutralised, including some top terrorist commanders like Abu Qasim, LeT, who was responsible for the Hyderpora attack on an Army convoy in 2013," an army statement said.

The army said "there has been significant improvement in the counter-infiltration profile along the LoC. This year, as per assessment of various agencies, there has been significant reduction in infiltration".

"In 2014, there had been 221 infiltration attempts on the LoC while this year up to September 30, the number of infiltration bids came down to 92."

"The number of ceasefire violations by Pakistan on the LoC during 2014 was 583 and up to June 2015 these came down to 199. Four soldiers were martyred in ceasefire violations last year while two were killed in these violations this year," according to statement.

It said enhanced vigilance levels and increased security measures have restricted terrorist-initiated incidences this year, and added that 350 weapons and 40 IEDs were recovered in operations in 2015. The assessment, however, admitted that continuing of local recruitment by various terror groups in the state still remains an area of serious concern for the security forces.

The statement said the situation on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China was stable and the mechanism of border personnel meetings (BPMs) between the two countries was working well.

The army expressed satisfaction over its efforts to win the hearts and minds of the people through promotional programmes in education, women's empowerment, tours, disaster management, relief, and rescue.

Colonel S.D. Goswami, spokesperson of the army's northern command said: "Though there has been an overall improvement in the security situation in the state, this cannot be construed as return of normalcy as Pakistan continues to abet terrorism to keep the situation volatile."

PMO denies accepting Sanjiv Chaturvedi's award money new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): The Prime Minister Office (PMO) has denied accepting $30,000 donated by Magsaysay Award winner and bureaucrat Sanjiv Chaturvedi, saying conditional donations are not accepted.

Refuting the PMO's claim, Chaturvedi, the Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer, said he never put any conditions and threatened to take the matter to court.

"Donations can be made towards Prime Minister National Relief Fund (PMNRF) through cheque/demand draft... It is apprised that PMNRF does not

Shimla, December 29 (ianS): Taking suo motu cognizance of reported felling of Deodar trees by farmers for raising apple orchards, the Himachal Pradesh High Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the state to file a fresh status report in the case. A division bench of Chief Justice Mansoor Ahmad Mir and Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan directed the chief secretary, the principal secretary of revenue and forests and others to file the status report regarding encroachments by 40 farmers in Chaithala village in Kotkhai tehsil of Shimla district within eight weeks.

It listed the matter for next hearing on March 22. The court acted on a letter written by a resident of Chaithala, who alleged the farmers have raised apple orchards on around 500 bighas of government land after axing the Deodar trees. He said some of the farmers have even availed financial help from the government for constructing apple grading and packing house and water storage tanks. He alleged the government has also provided the encroachers electricity and water connections.

Earlier in August, the high court observed that an "encroachment on one inch or on thousand inches is an encroachment and the encroachers are liable to be evicted and dealt with under law". The court directed the state to clear encroachments on forest land by fruit growers and disconnect their electricity and water connections. new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): An Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel, who was lured into spying for Pakistan's spy agency ISI while chatting with a woman on Facebook, was dismissed from service and new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): Prime Minister Nar- was arrested from an airbase in endra Modi on Tuesday said his government is working for the Punjab, a police official said on empowerment of Dalits and only industrialization can benefit Tuesday. them. "Our government is your government. We are working "We have arrested an IAF for your benefit and empowerment. Financial inclusion is at personnel from Punjab on the core of our focus. We want to create job-creators, not job- charges of spying for ISI," Joint seekers," Modi said inaugurating the National Conference of Commissioner of Police (Crime Dalit Entrepreneurs at the Dalit Indian Chambers of Com- Branch) Ravindra Yadav said merce and Industry (DICCI) here. here. Ranjith K.K., hailing from Speaking about Ambedkar's vision of industrialization in Kerala, was arrested from PunIndia, Modi said: "Babasaheb rightly said that industrialization jab at the Bathinda airbase as he will give maximum benefit to our Dalit sisters and brothers." was spying for Pakistan's Inter"We all know Babasaheb Ambedkar was the architect of our Services Intelligence (ISI), poconstitution, but not many know that he was an accomplished lice said. economist too," he added.

An IAF official said Ranjith, He also mentioned about the Venture Capital Fund for who was a Leading AircraftFirst Generation Entrepreneurs. Speaking on the occasion, man with the Indian Air Force, the prime minister recalled his recent "Mann Ki Baat" prowas dismissed on Monday evegrammes, where he exhorted people to talk not just about their ning after evidence was found rights, but also about duties.

He also pointed out that this gathering of Dalit entrepre- against him for sharing sensineurs is one which has not just talked about their duties, but tive information with others.

"It was a long drawn case. has successfully fulfilled them. The prime minister also preAfter an internal administrative sented five business excellence awards to Dalit entrepreneurs inquiry, we dismissed Ranjith on the occasion. around 5.30 p.m. on Monday," the IAF official, on condition of

accept conditional donations," says a letter written by the PMO to Chaturvedi, suggesting that no money has been received from the bureaucrat.

Chaturvedi - who won Magsaysay Award 2015 for his "exemplary courage" in exposing corruption - decided to donate his award money to the PMNRF after AIIMS-New Delhi, under the union health ministry, stonewalled his donation which he had meant to be used for the treatment of cancer patients.

He is currently the deputy secretary at AIIMS, having been removed from the post of Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) of the

institute in August 2014, much before the completion of his tenure which was to end in 2016.

In his letter to the PMO making the donation, Chaturvedi said he decided to donate the Magsaysay Award money to the PMNRF after he failed to get the health ministry to accept it.

The bureaucrat's request to donate the money to AIIMS for the treatment of the cancer patients was initially kept on hold and later refused to be accepted.

Replying to the latest letter from the PMO, Chaturvedi said that there were never any conditions from his side in making the donation and urged the of-

ficials to go through his letter once again.

"I reiterate that the said donation is absolutely without any conditions. In spite of my freedom fighter family background and my service career being the biggest testimiony, the hypothetical inferences that have been drawn disregarding the material facts are very unfortunate," wrote Chaturvedi.

The letter questions the intention of the PMO officials in examining his documents and the cheque that Chaturvedi said he had submitted to the PMO on December 5.

"It appears that either the

concerned authorities of the PMO have not bothered to go through my letter and documents or the said cheque has been misplaced," he wrote.

"In either case, you (PMO) are requested to timely confirm the non-receipt of cheque No.343000 dated 5th December 2015 to the PMNRF, so that I may cancel the same and issue a fresh cheque of the said amount in favour of the PMNRF." The bureaucrat has been widely perceived to have a tough stand on corruption and has as a result incurred the displeasure of the political bosses and suffered frequent transfers.

IAF personnel spies for ISI, sacked, arrested Newspapers, periodicals in

Government working to empower Dalits: Modi

Early earthquake warning system to be launched in India

new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): India is set to get its first early earthquake warning and security system with the launch of an advanced technology by Germany-based Secty Electronics early next year, the company said in a statement.

Currently operational in 25 countries, the system is being launched in India as a result of a joint venture with New Delhibased Terra Techcom Pvt. Ltd. "The system proposed by us is a complete and only system in the world for early earthquake warning along with all in one security features which includes building management system," said Bijender Goel, managing director, Terra Techcom.

Secty Electronics developed the early earthquake warning and security system about a decade ago with the collaboration of GFZ-Postdam German Research Centre for Geosciences.

"It is the right time for Indian Government to introduce this technology to the people. Department of Earth Science is responsible to look after of all such inventions. We are looking forward to have the approval and implementation of this technology by Indian Government so that we could serve our nation," Goel said.

"Our system is not only a seismic switch for on-site early warning but capable of releasing early warning of an earthquake. It gets activated automatically and takes step automatically for the security and safety of people and infrastructure by shutting off lifts, electricity, gas supply, water supply, opens emergency gates and warn people of an earthquake by giving alarm," Goel said.

He said the system was able to provide warning 30 seconds in advance of 2010 Chile earthquake.

It is a matter of record that there is no such technology available in the world that can pre-alarm much in advance of an earthquake.

anonymity, told IANS. Joint Commissioner Ravindra Yadav said Delhi Police Crime Branch officials, who have already been probing the ISI espionage racket since the arrest of some people earlier this month, had shared information with the IAF about Ranjith's suspected links with ISI. "Ranjith was later detained by the IAF and handed over to us. We arrested him on Monday and brought him to Delhi on transit remand," Yadav said.

He said the modus operandi was basically a "honey trap".

The official said Ranjith was trapped in the spy ring through an unidentified woman with whom he had begun to chat over Facebook, a social networking site. He was in touch with a person having a Facebook profile of "Damini McNaught", who portrayed that she was an executive of a Britain-based magazine.

The woman said the magazine wanted some information about the Indian Air Force, and promised pecuniary benefits in exchange.

Yadav said Ranjith, who had joined the IAF in 2010, has admitted to having "passed airforce related information pertaining to recent Indian Air Force exercises, movement of aircraft and deployment of various units in the IAF".

He also said that in return, Ranjith had received monetary benefit in his bank account.

As per investigations, Ranjith was "befooled by crossborder spies and had received a few VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) calls on his mobile numbers in which the ... female with British accent introduced herself as Damini McNaught".

"She interviewed Ranjith and then assigned him the task of getting the information. She deceived him by saying that the information will be published," said Yadav. Ranjith is the sixth person to be arrested by Delhi Police for being part of an espionage racket backed by ISI. Five other people, including a serving and a former army personnel and a serving BSF personnel, were arrested earlier this month.

India register 5.8% growth

new Delhi, December 29 (ianS): The registered publications in India recorded growth of 5.8% over previous year with Hindi publications claiming a combined circulation of over 25 crore followed by English at over 6 crore, according to the latest annual report of RNI, released here on Tuesday.

Bengali newspaper Ananda Bazar Patrika is ranked the largest circulated daily in the country. Releasing the Registrar of Newspapers for India (RNI) report, Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley said that media has vastly expanded and there are different angles to the same news.

"The dividing line between news and opinion is becoming very weak. It is time for the print media to strike back," Jaitley said.

The minister said that newspapers mainly accounted for overall growth of 5.80% recorded by registered publications and contribution by periodicals was less.

According to Press in India 2014-15, the 59th annual report of Registrar of Newspapers for

India (RNI), there were 1,05,443 registered publications in total.

The number of new publications registered in 2014-15 was 5,817.

It said 3 largest circulated dailies were Anand Bazar Patrika, Bengali, (Kolkata edition) 11,78,779 copies, Hindustan Times, English (Delhi edition) 10,18,367, and The Times of India (Delhi edition) 9,72,180.

The Times of India, English (33 editions) was the largest circulated multi-edition daily with 46,30,220 copies per publishing day followed by Dainik Bhaskar, Hindi (34 editions) at 36,94,385.

Press Registrar and head of RNI S.M. Khan said the annual report is based on the information furnished by the publishers in their online annual statements as required under the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867.

For the annual report of 2014-15, 23,394 publications filled their annual statements online.

The top three states having the largest number of publications were Uttar Pradesh (16,130), Maharashtra (14,394) and Delhi (12,177).

Minor's gang rape: Soldier sent to custody, army assures cooperation KolKaTa, December 29 (ianS): A West Bengal court on Tuesday sent to seven days police custody a soldier arrested for the gang rape of a teenaged girl inside a train, while the army assured assistance to police in nabbing two of its personnel alleged to have committed the crime.

The 14-year-old girl, hailing from Dum Dum in Bengal's North 24 Parganas district, was allegedly raped by two army men after forcing her to drink alcohol inside a reserved military compartment of the HowrahAmritsar Express.

The girl, who boarded the train from Howrah on her way to Ludhiana, was rescued in a joint effort by Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel at Madhupur station in Jharkhand on Monday.

While two of the alleged culprits managed to escape, the third personnel, accused to have forced the girl to drink, was arrested by the GRP and handed

Woman raped in Infosys toilet, 2 nabbed pune, December 29 (ianS): A woman was allegedly raped by two men who also filmed the act at the sprawling campus of IT major Infosys here in Maharashtra, police said on Tuesday. The matter came to light after the woman, working as a canteen cashier inside Phase I of the 115-acre campus, filed a complaint with police in Hinjewadi on Tuesday.

Moving swiftly, police nabbed two people -- who are part of the contractual housekeeping staff of a partner of Infosys on the campus. Inspector V. Khule told media persons that the 25-year-old woman had gone to the washroom when she was accosted by the duo and raped.

While one of the two accused raped her inside the lavatory, the other filmed the act on his mobile phone, and threatened to make the clip public if she informed anyone about the incident, Khule added. The duo has been identified as Paritosh Baugh, 21, and Prakash Mahadik, 30 -- both working in the Infosys canteen at its campus at the Rajiv Gandhi IT Park here.

In a statement, Infosys said it was working closely with police to help in the investigation. "We have stringent security measures and zero-tolerance policy against sexual harassment, extending to contractual staff too. The company will take necessary action as per policy," the statement assured. The accused duo will be produced before a magistrate court. over to the Howrah GRP which has now taken over the investigation.

Charged with several offences including under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the arrested accused -- identified as Manjrish Tripathi -- was presented before a court in Howrah which sent him to police custody for seven days.

The girl, who identified the accused in a video footage, also deposed before the magistrate.

"We had sought seven days custody of the accused which the court granted us. We are studying the video footage of the train to ascertain the identity and locate the two absconding accused. We are confident of apprehending them soon," said a GRP officer.

"The victim also recorded her statement before the magistrate and we are interrogating the accused to gather more information about the two absconding accused," the officer added.

A medical examination conducted on the girl confirmed rape.

The girl was rescued after the GRP received a complaint from

her father that she fled home and boarded the train.

According to the family, the girl had left her house unannounced to meet a man in Ludhiana whom she had befriended on a social networking site.

The army, which has initiated a probe in the matter, assured it would assist police in locating the accused soldiers.

"We have assured full cooperation to the Howrah GRP which is now investigating the case. We have also initiated a probe into the matter. We are assisting the investigators in identifying and tracking the two accused," said an army source.

Meanwhile, the All India Democratic Students' Organisation (AIDSO), a students' organisation affiliated to the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist), staged a demonstration in the city demanding capital punishment for the alleged rapists.

Staging the demonstration outside Raj Bhavan here, some of AIDSO activists were arrested after they clashed with police.

WednesdaY 30•12•2015

WORLD

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

9

Iraq PM vows to defeat IS in 2016

BAGHDAD, DecemBer 29 (reuters): A triumphant Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared on Monday that the coming year would see his forces defeat Islamic State, after his military achieved its first major victory since collapsing in the face of the fighters 18 months ago.

Iraqi forces flew the national flag above the main government complex in Ramadi earlier in the day, declaring they had recaptured the city, a provincial capital west of Baghdad, which fell to Islamic State in May. “2016 will be the year of the big and final victory, when Daesh’s presence in Iraq will be terminated,” Abadi said in a speech broadcast on state television, using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State that the hardline group rejects.

“We are coming to liberate Mosul and it will be the fatal and final blow to Daesh,” he added. Mosul, northern Iraq’s main city, is by far the largest population centre in the self-proclaimed caliphate Islamic State rules in Iraq and Syria.

The army’s apparent capture of Ramadi, capital of Anbar province in the Euphrates River valley west of Baghdad, marks a major milestone for U.S.-trained forces who crumbled when Islamic State fighters charged into Iraq in June 2014. In previous battles since then, Iraq’s armed forces operated mainly in a supporting role beside Iranian-backed Shi’ite militias.

Soldiers were shown on state television on Mon-

Strike that killed rebel chief complicates peace talks push

A member of the Iraqi security forces gestures at a government complex in the city of Ramadi, December 28, 2015.

(REUTERS Photo)

day publicly slaughtering a sheep in an act of celebration. Gunshots and an explosion could be heard as a state TV reporter interviewed other soldiers celebrating the victory with their automatic weapons held in the air.

U.S. President Barack Obama, vacationing in Hawaii with his family, received an update on Monday on the Iraqi forces’ progress in Ramadi, the White House said.

“The continued progress of the Iraqi Security Forces in the fight to retake Ramadi is a testament to their courage and determination, and our shared commitment to push ISIL out of its safe-havens,” the White House said in a statement, using an acronym for

Islamic State.

Congratulating the Iraqi government, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said: “The expulsion of ISIL

by Iraqi security forces ... is a significant step forward in the campaign to defeat this barbaric group.”

In a statement, Carter added: “Now it’s important for the Iraqi government ... to seize this opportunity to maintain the peace in Ramadi, prevent the return of ISIL and other extremists, and facilitate the return of Ramadi’s citizens back to the city.”

American officials said the U.S.-led coalition backing Iraqi forces had carried out more than 630 air strikes in the area over the past six months and provided training and equipment.

The U.S.-led coalition, which includes major European and Arab powers, has been waging an air campaign against Islamic State positions in both Iraq and Syria since a third of Iraqi territory fell to the fighters in mid-2014.

The Iraqi army was humiliated in that advance, abandoning city after city and leaving fleets of American armoured vehicles and other weapons in the militants’ hands. One of the main challenges of the conflict since then has been rebuilding Iraq’s army into a force capable of capturing and holding territory.

Baghdad has said for months it would prove its forces’ rebuilt capability by rolling back militant advances in Anbar, a mainly Sunni

province encompassing the fertile Euphrates River valley from Baghdad’s outskirts to the Syrian border.

After encircling the provincial capital for weeks, Iraqi forces launched an assault to retake it last week and made a final push to seize the central administration complex on Sunday. Their progress had been slowed by explosives planted in streets and booby-trapped buildings.

Security officials said the forces still needed to clear pockets of insurgents in the city and its outskirts.

KEEPING CONTROL Authorities gave no immediate death toll from the battle for the city. They have said most residents were evacuated before the

WAsHINGtON, DecemBer 29 (reuters): Russian air strikes like the one that killed a top Syrian rebel leader last week send the wrong message to groups engaged in a political dialogue to end the conflict and complicate efforts to begin negotiations, the U.S. State Department said on Monday.

Syrian rebel chief Zahran Alloush, the leader of Jaysh al Islam who commanded thousands of fighters in the Damascus suburbs, was killed on Friday in an air strike that rebel sources said was carried out by Russian warplanes.

Jaysh al Islam was a participant in the Riyadh conference where Syrian opposition groups agreed on common aims for proposed political negotiations to end the country’s civil war and chose a former Syrian prime minister to represent them in the dialogue. assault.

Finance Minister Hoshiyar Zebari told Reuters the capture of Ramadi was “a done deal,” but said the government had to do more to rebuild the city and encourage displaced people to return.

“The most important thing is to secure it (Ramadi) because Daesh can bounce back,” he said in an interview in Baghdad.

Iraq’s army took the lead in the battle for Ramadi, with the Shi’ite militias prominent in other campaigns held back from the battlefield to avoid antagonising the mainly Sunni population. Washington had also expressed reluctance about being seen as fighting alongside the Iranian-backed groups.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the United States did not provide support to Alloush’s group and had concerns about its “behaviour on the battlefield,” but noted that Jaysh al Islam had fought Islamic State rebels and was participating in the political dialogue to end Syria’s civil war.

“So the strike on Alloush and others in Jaysh al Islam and other opposition groups do in fact complicate efforts to bring about meaningful political negotiations and a nationwide ceasefire,” Toner said in response to questions at a State Department briefing. “We need progress on both these efforts in the coming weeks.”

“It doesn’t send the most constructive message to carry out a strike like that,” he added, noting that the United States hoped the attacks would not reverse progress towards negotiations.

Abadi took office in September 2014 after the Islamic State advance, pledging to reconcile Iraq’s warring sectarian communities. While he initially swung behind Shi’ite militias to help halt Islamic State’s onslaught, he has since tried to implement reforms to reduce the power of sectarian parties, angering many political leaders.

Members of Islamic State, also known by the acronym ISIS, are ultrahardline Sunnis who consider all Shi’ite Muslims to be apostates. They swept through northern and western Iraq in June 2014 and declared a “caliphate” to rule over all Muslims from territory in both Iraq and Syria, carrying out mass killings and impos-

ing a draconian form of Sunni Islam.

The battle against the group in both Syria and Iraq has since drawn in most global and regional powers, often with competing allies on the ground in multi-sided civil wars.

Abadi’s government plans to hand over Ramadi to local police and a Sunni tribal force once it is secured, to encourage Sunnis to resist Islamic State.

Such a strategy would echo the U.S. military’s “surge” campaign of 20062007, which relied on recruiting and arming Sunni tribal fighters against a precursor of Islamic State. Anbar, including Ramadi, was a major focus of that campaign at the height of the 2003-2011 U.S. war in Iraq.

Beware! E-cigarettes may lead to cancer Australian minister resigns NeW YOrK, DecemBer 29 (IANs): Marketed as a safer alternative to conventional tobacco cigarettes, electronic cigarettes could actually damage cells in ways that could lead to cancer, suggests new research.

In laboratory tests, the researchers found that even nicotinefree versions of e-cigarettes could make human cells cancerous.

“Based on the evidence to date, I believe they are no better than smoking regular cigarettes,” said one of the lead researchers Jessica Wang-Rodriquez, professor of pathology at University of California, San Diego, US. “Our study strongly suggests that electronic cigarettes are not as safe as their marketing makes them appear to the public,” the researchers said.

The research team created an extract from the vapour of two popular brands of e-cigarettes and used it to treat human cells in Petri dishes.

Compared with untreat-

smoking addictive. There is also some evidence it can damage cells.

The team found that the nicotine versions caused worse damage, but even the nicotine-free vapour was enough to alter cells.

“There must be other components in the e-cigarettes that are doing this damage.

So we may be identifying other carcinogenic components that are previously undescribed,” WangRodriguez pointed out.

The team is now trying to sort out those other substances and their specific effects. There are nearly 500 brands of e-cigarettes on the market, in more than 7,000 flavours. So scientists have their work cut out for them identifying all the potential problems.

The study was published in the journal Oral Oncology.

‘Electronic cigarettes not as safe as their marketing makes them appear’ ed cells, the treated cells were more likely to show DNA damage and die.

In the main part of the experiment, the team used normal epithelial cells, which line organs, glands, and cavities throughout the body, including the mouth and lungs.

The scientists tested two types of each e-cigarette: a nicotine and nicotine-free version.

Nicotine is what makes

Myanmar activist jailed for after Hong Kong bar incident ‘ridiculing’ army and uniform

sYDNeY, DecemBer 29 (reuters): Two ministers in Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government resigned on Tuesday, one of them standing down after a female public servant complained about his behaviour in a Hong Kong bar during a recent official visit.

Jamie Briggs said he was resigning as Minister for Cities and the Built Environment after the unnamed woman raised concerns about his inappropriate behaviour towards her at a “popular and as it transpired very crowded bar” in the Chinese city and former British colony. Briggs, who was promoted to the front bench by Turnbull earlier this year, said nothing illegal had been alleged, but declined to comment in detail about the incident.

“I’ve apologised directly to her but after careful reflection about the concerns she raised and the fact that I was at a bar late at night while on an overseas visit, I have concluded this behaviour has not met the particularly high standards for ministers,” Briggs told reporters in Adelaide.

Turnbull said a second minister, Mal Brough, was also standing aside while police investigate his role in revelations about a political rival that were leaked. “In offering to stand aside Mr Brough has done the right thing, recognising the importance of the government maintaining an unwavering focus on jobs, economic growth and national security,” Turnbull said in a statement.

The ministers’ duties will be taken up by other ministers.

Turnbull is riding high in opinion polls, with a Newspoll survey out on Tuesday showing 61 percent of voters preferred him as prime minister, versus 17 percent for opposition Labor party leader Bill Shorten.

Sentenced under telecommunications law enacted in 2013 YANGON, DecemBer 29 (reuters): A Myanmar court jailed a woman for six months on Monday for a Facebook post “ridiculing” the country’s army chief and the colour of a new uniform, the latest in an escalating crackdown on free speech.

Chaw Sandi Tun, a member of Aung San Suu Kyi’s election-winning National League for Democracy (NLD) party, was found guilty by the Ma-ubin Township Court in Ayeyawady Region, lawyer Robert San Aung told Reuters.

She was sentenced under the telecommunications law, enacted in 2013 as part of an opening up of the telecoms sector.

The act contains a broadly worded clause that prohibits use of the telecoms network to “extort, threaten, obstruct, defame, disturb, inappro-

priately influence or intimidate”.

Chaw Sandi Tun’s post compared the light green new uniform for army officers with that of a “longyi”, a traditional Myanmar skirt worn by Suu Kyi. She was arrested in October. The same month, Patrick Kum Jaa Lee, an NGO worker, was arrested for a Facebook post that mocked the army.

He faces up to three years in prison if found guilty.

Critics say the arrests are part of a wider crackdown on social media posts deemed offensive to the military and government.

Myanmar has been ruled by a quasi-civilian government since 2011 following five decades of military rule and has been widely praised for ushering in a series of economic and political reforms.

But in recent months critics have accused the military and government of returning to junta-era tactics, amid arrests over social media posts and a violent police crackdown on a student protest earlier this year which left scores wounded.

Famed Japanese architect Shigeru builds quake-proof homes from rubble in Nepal tOKYO, DecemBer 29 (reuters): After twin earthquakes in April and May claimed 9,000 lives and left vast swathes of Nepal in ruins, survivors worried if they reused the brick rubble, they would end up with the same vulnerable, seismically unsound structures.

Renowned Japanese architect Shigeru Ban - who helped bring global attention to humanitarian architecture and continues to influence fellow architects and disaster-relief workers - devised a solution.

“Each disaster is different, so I have to go there to find out the particular problems to solve,” said 58-year-old Ban, who built paper emergency shelters in Haiti after the 2010 quake and the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan two years ago.

The prototype for his latest humanitarian housing project in Nepal consists of standard timber door frames joined together and reinforced with plywood. The frames are filled in with brick rubble, and the roof is covered with a

plastic sheet and thatched for insulation. The resulting structure is strong enough to meet Japan’s stringent earthquake standards, he said in an interview at his office in Tokyo.

“I’m hoping people will copy my design. If we make 20, some other NGO might make more. I’m encouraging people to copy my ideas. No copyrights,” Ban said, noting he always tries to enlist the help of his houses’ future inhabitants.

“If they’re involved in the construction, if the structure needs maintenance, they will know how to do it themselves.”

CREATIVE AID Ban, who in 2014 won the Pritzker Prize, architecture’s top award, has also built shelters for Rwandan refugees in 1994, Sri Lankan survivors of the 2004 tsunami, and victims of major disasters in Japan.

Fellow Pritzker prize winners Thom Mayne and Frank Gehry teamed up with Ban to work with actor Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation, a non-profit group set up in 2007 to help

rebuild New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward after Hurricane Katrina.

Ban’s work has pushed aid agencies to take on challenges differently, said Brett Moore, a shelter, infrastructure and reconstruction advisor for World Vision International.

“Ban’s approach to humanitarian work prompts the entire humanitarian community to think outside the box, to reject generic and inappropriate responses to vastly different contexts, and to approach the work with individuality and creativity,” Moore said.

His emphasis on reusing materials also fits with a broader trend, as aid agencies try to rebuild sustainably after disasters.

“There’s a lot more concern now than there has been in past decades on reuse and recycling.

That is something for us as humanitarian agencies to look into,” said Sandra D’Urzo, who works on shelters and settlements for the International Federation of the Red Cross in Geneva.

While Ban said he enjoys working on grand

projects commissioned by privileged people, he also wants to help people who have lost their homes, and is encouraged that many architects have followed in his footsteps.

After the massive 2011 earthquake and tsunami ravaged the Japan’s Tohoku region, Ban noticed an increase in architects on the ground compared to the aftermath of the Kobe quake.

“When I was working in Kobe in 1995, there were no architects in the disaster area, but in Tohoku after the earthquake, there were so many,” he said.

“I’m very happy that now, even young architects and students are interested in what I’m doing, which was Japanese architect Shigeru Ban (C) shows a prototype of the Nepal House Project in Kathmandu October 19. (REUTERS Photo) not the case 20 years ago.” fuel shortage. had to tweak his original be procured again.

“The strength of the ADAPTING TO LOCAL Ethnic Madhesi groups, prototype.

His initial goal to build building itself has nothing CONDITIONS protesting that Nepal’s conInstead of construct- 30 homes in Phatakshila to do with the strength of After the quakes hit stitution adopted in Sep- ing the roof frame with in the Sindhupalchok dis- the material. Even a conNepal, Ban said Nepali tember marginalises them, his signature cardboard trict in central Nepal in the crete building can be destudents in Tokyo and his have been blocking trucks tubes - as he used after the coming months is moving stroyed by an earthquake friends around the world from India. The blockade quake in Christchurch, forward. very easily, but a building hastened to raise funds for has led to acute shortages New Zealand, for a cardWhenever possible, he made of paper sometimes his project. “It moved rap- of fuel and medicine. board cathedral - the fuel uses locally available ma- cannot be destroyed by the idly at first, but not as rapBan is used to adapting shortages led Ban to make terials, and prefers renew- earthquake,” he said, sitting idly as I wished because to harsh local conditions trusses from timber, until able resources such as tim- in a chair of his own design of the local situation,” Ban when building for disaster factories are up and run- ber and paper to concrete made of cardboard rods as said, referring to Nepal’s victims, and in this case he ning and cardboard can and steel. solid as wooden dowels.

10

WednesdAY 30•12•2015

sports

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Arsene compares astonishing Ozil to Bergkamp

LONDON, DECEMBER 29 (AFP): Arsene Wenger hailed Mesut Ozil as the best player in the Premier League and an equal of Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp following another influential display in a 2-0 win over Bournemouth.

German midfielder Ozil made one goal and scored another at the Emirates Stadium on Monday to help Arsenal back to the top of the table, leaving pundits running out of superlatives to describe his performance.

Ozil's statistics are astonishing even by his own high standards.

So far this season he has made 16 assists and scored five goals in the Premier League -– closing in fast on the all-time record of 20 assists set by another Arsenal great Thierry Henry.

Against Bournemouth he set another mark, too, creating nine goalscoring opportunities for team-mates -– the highest figure registered in the league this season.

No wonder Gunners boss Wenger was happy to suggest his midfielder has been peerless in the league this season.

When asked if Ozil is now the best player in the Premier League, he said simply: "Look at the number of the assists and they speak for him."

The Frenchman also acknowledged comparison with Dutch forward Bergkamp, who was such an inspiration in Wenger's early days in north London.

"Bergkamp was more of a goalscorer than him. But now Ozil becomes a goalscorer too. They could be comparable," he said.

All this from a player who last season was labelled as a luxury by some onlookers, singled out

by Henry as a someone who needed to "step up his game" and accused of drifting out of matches by German legend Lothar Matthaus.

Throughout it all, however, Wenger remained staunchly loyal to a player he signed from Real Madrid, insisting that Ozil would eventually become a Footballer of the Year in England.

Focal point "Ozil was the focal point of our team," Wenger said after goals from the German and defender Gilberto, from an Ozil corner,

Barcelona B team footballer sacked after offensive tweets BARCELONA, DECEMBER 29 (iANS): Within hours of signing for Barcelona B team, footballer Sergi Guardiola was sacked after the team management came across some offensive antiBarcelona tweets he had posted two years back.

Guardiola was given a contract on Monday afternoon but then by evening Barcelona officials cancelled it.

"FC Barcelona has decided to terminate the contract signed with Sergi Guardiola, after finding that he had published offensive tweets about the club and Catalonia," Barcelona said in a statement.

Guardiola had posted on Twitter calling the Catalans, ‘a bit**’ and wrote in support of arch-rivals Real Madrid, "Hala Madrid".

“Hala madrid puta cata-

luna,” his tweet read.

The 24-year-old later apologised for the tweets but added they were posted by a friend.

“I know I made a mistake.

I apologise to Catalonia and Barcelona. I understand the decision, I'd do the same,” Guardiola was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

“I want to make clear I didn't write those tweets. A friend took my phone and did it. It's a misunderstanding. The tweets are from 2013, a joke from a friend, I didn't even know the tweets existed.”

“Barcelona have treated me very well. I understand their decision. Now I'm going home, we'll see what happens.”

“Once you're a professional, you support the team that plays best, and that's Barcelo-

na. Joining them was a dream, now it's broken.”

“I'm from Mallorca. I'm not anti-Catalan or anti-anything. I couldn't write those tweets,” he added.

They have also reinforced their squad for the second half of the season with the arrival of two new players.

"The duo of Xemi and Moises Delgado completed their medical examinations on Monday and will train with the rest of the group from Tuesday," the club said in its website.

Midfielder Josep Miquel Fernández, better known as ‘Xemi’, arrives from UE Cornellà where he scored five times last season in Segunda B. Left-back Delgado arrives from Sevilla Atletico, where he has played 17 games this season.

clinched a crucial victory against Bournemouth that sent Arsenal one point clear at the top of the Premier League.

"I don't know if it was his best performance, I have seen a few good games from him this season.

"What is important is that he convinces everyone he's not only a fantasy player, but he's a player who is ready to work for

the team very hard.

"He's added scoring goals to his assists as well. Overall he's a complete player."

Ozil's transformation into Arsenal's talisman has been fascinating to watch, but what has impressed most this season is his level of consistency –- and at the age of 27 Wenger does not yet believe he has reached his peak.

"What's important is that he becomes as good as he can be -and he's on the way. Is there a lot left? I don't know but at the minute what he's doing is absolutely fantastic," Wenger said.

"In a career you have to be better every game. Some people manage to have that focus, that consistency -- and some cannot.

"He shows that he is always consistently going upwards."

Ozil is not the only player at Arsenal setting records.

Goalkeeper Petr Cech reached a new Premier League mark of 170 clean sheets in his career by keeping out Bournemouth, drawing praise from his manager ahead of a home game against Newcastle on Saturday.

"I think he can be very proud of that," said Wenger. "It's a remarkable achievement. People don't realise how much commitment, how much focus is behind that.

"And on top of that he's a remarkably talented goalkeeper.

"Consistency for me is the most important achievement for somebody."

20th Winter Cricket Challenge begins WOKHA, DECEMBER 29 (MExN): The 20th Winter Cricket Challenge (WCC) began today at public ground Wokha. The first day of the event was graced by Dr. Yan Murry, CEO Pinnacle Skills and Atha Angami ‘B’ Level Coach BCCI as Chief Guest and guest of honour respectively. In opening match, valiant vs 17 supreme AR, valiant won the toss and opted to bat first. They made 92 runs in 18.1 overs, where rumokhon scored 32 runs. The 17 supreme AR won by six wickets. Man of the match was shailendra kumar of 17 supreme AR with 23 runs and 1 wicket. Earlier, Leonard Mozhui Asst Professor BBC chaired the opening ceremony programme, invocation was pronounced by Nchumbemo Kikon, Pastor Spirit of Faithf Church Wokha, welcome note by Khyolamo Humtsoe President SNK, and special songs by Zareni Kithan and acknowledgement said by Khamongo Humtsoe. Altogether 17 teams are participating in the tournament.

State lass wins bronze medal in National event DiMAPuR, DECEMBER 29 (MExN): The Nagaland State Women’s Team participated in a National Women Level Competition which was held at Jammu & Kashmir from December 12 to 15. Nagaland’s Aungkali won a Bronze medal in High Jump (Athletics) after managing a jump of 1.58 metres. A total of 9 players led by Athletic Coach B. Awala Walling, participated in the National level competition.

Australia defeat West Indies, seal series MELBOuRNE, DECEMBER 29 (REuTERS): Australia's bowlers had to work hard for their wickets but completed an emphatic 177-run victory before the close of day four of the second test against West Indies on Tuesday, taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.

Wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and captain Jason Holder built a brave 100-run stand after tea to slow Australia's march at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, but all-rounder Mitchell Marsh broke the partnership with some fiery pace bowling and took 4-61 to complete the triumph.

Chasing an imposing 460run target for victory, the West Indies batsmen battled hard in sublime conditions but were bowled out for 282 in the penultimate over of the day.

Having beaten New Zealand 2-0 at the start of the

home summer, Australia captain Steve Smith celebrated his second series win in charge following the retirement of Michael Clarke.

He was disappointed, however, that his bowlers let three wickets go begging by overstepping the crease, adding needless burden to the task of securing victory on an unresponsive pitch.

"We probably let ourselves down a little bit, obviously with the no-balls," he told reporters.

"I don't think we dropped our level, it was a tough wicket to take wickets on. You really had to grind it out and work extremely hard.

"We got the job done."

West Indies captain Jason Holder, who top-scored for his side with a defiant 68, said the loss "hurt" but he was comforted by his team's improvement from Hobart, where they were

thrashed by an innings and 212 runs and roundly condemned for a perceived lack of effort.

All the West Indies' top seven batsmen made starts in the second innings but only Holder and Ramdin made it past 50.

More concerning, their bowlers could take only six wickets in the match and allowed Smith's men to pile on 551 runs in the first innings.

"We probably showed a lot more belief when we went into bat," Holder told reporters.

"Obviously our bowlers still need to be a lot more disciplined."

Smith declared Australia's second innings closed at 179-3 before the start of play on day four but it was slow going, with only opener Kraigg Brathwaite falling for 31 in the first session.

By tea, three more wickets had tumbled and victory was in sight for the Australians.

Spinner Nathan Lyon, named man-of-the-match after taking seven wickets, dismissed West Indies' last specialist batsman in Jermaine Blackwood for 20 shortly after the break and Marsh had Ramdin caught behind for 59.

Lyon returned to bowl Carlos Brathwaite for two, knocking off a single bail, leaving the last three batsmen to deal with the new ball.

Although Holder soaked up another half-hour with fellow paceman Kemar Roach, he spooned a catch off Marsh straight to mid-on in the day's 87th over and it ended quickly from there.

After dismissing Roach, paceman James Pattinson ran in from long leg to complete a fine catch after Jerome Taylor slogged Marsh high into the sky, and the Australians celebrated finishing their work a day early.

'Bridging gaps should begin Chennai Open 2016: Wildcards for Ramanathan, Somdev, Jeevan & Sriram at football clubs level' THiRuvANANTHAPuRAM, DECEMBER 29 (iANS): India football team's assistant coach and sports scientist Danny Deigan believes the gap between domestic and international level is huge and it needs to be bridged from the club level itself.

“The gap between football at the domestic level and the international level is huge and for us the biggest challenge is to bridge the gap. It can never be bridged within a span of ten days. For that, it needs to begin at the clubs,” Deigan said on Tuesday.

“It’s up to us to guide the players to understand, gauge and do that extra part to keep themselves going at the level if we are to attain world standards. Otherwise...” he said.

Deigan put forward some figures from GPS used by the national team and the comparison to world standards.

“I have a data of over 200 lines on the team and each individual and how it relates to everything -- right from the risks of injury which they can suffer to their performances, the improvements and even the downward curve which is never encouraging,” he stated.

“A wing-back as per world standards cover 10,400 metres in a match; a central defender 9,650 metres; a midfielder 11,200 metres and a forward 10,400 metres,” Deigan said, seeking more development of Indian players.

India take on the Maldives in the first semi-final of the SAFF Championship on Thursday, following their thumping win over Sri Lanka (2-0) and Nepal (4-1).

“In the match against Iran in Bengaluru, where we used the GPS for the first time, our wing-backs covered a distance of 9507 metres; central defenders 9,100 metres; midfielders 10,872 metres and the forwards 10,137 metres,” he said.

“In our last match against Nepal in the SAFF Cup, the wing backs covered 10,476 metres, central defenders 9,435 metres; midfielders 11,298 meters while the forwards 10,600 metres,” Deigan pointed out.

When asked if the Indian players are already close to world standards, the sports scientist said, “You understand it’s improving. But in some matches, you also need to understand it is strongly influenced by team tactics and the opposition, and can even be influenced by poor positioning of the player and the distance he needs to cover as a result of that."

“You need to take into consideration the distances covered by a player at a high speed, over 14 km per hour.

That’s a big part of where we need to improve if we are to go forward,” he concluded.

CHENNAi, DECEMBER 29 (AGENCiES): Always known to support promising young talent, and hailed as the springboard of champions, the 20th edition of Aircel Chennai Open today announced the wildcards for the upcoming tennis tournament to be held from 4th-10th January at Chennai’s Nungambakkam Stadium.

In the singles main draw, Ramkumar Ramanathan gets a wildcard.

The young Chennai lad, with a current singles ranking of 248, will be participating in the tour-

nament for the 5th year in a row. With an impressive following of tennis fans on home ground, Ramanathan will be looking to build on the home advantage and put on an impressive performance to go deep into the draw. Earlier this year, he reached a career-high of 208 in the singles rankings.

The other two wildcards in the singles main draw will be given to the Russian duo of Karen Kachanov (ranked no.

152) and Andrey Rublev (ranked no. 172). Aged 19, Kachanov turned pro in

2013, and has been playing tennis since he was three years old. He won the U-18 European Championship title in July 2013 in Switzerland. He counts Marat Safin and Juan Martin del Potro amongst his tennis idols growing up. An avid football and basketball fan, Kachanov is working hard to break into the top 100 club in 2016, and to eventually be world no. 1.

Young Russian Andrey Rublev, is aged 18, having turned pro only in 2014.

He reached a career high ranking of 172 in the world earlier this month. Fondly

known as ‘Rubl’, Rublev has been playing tennis since he was three years old, and counts among other sporting pleasures, boxing and basketball as his favourite sports.

In the doubles main draw, 2 Indian pairs have been given wildcards – Somdev Devvarman & Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Ramkumar Ramanathan along with Sriram Balaji will see themselves in the main doubles draw, adding to the excitement of seeing local talent right here, in the heart of the tennis capital of the country.

For upcoming young talent, the Aircel Chennai Open has also granted wildcards to India’s very own, Sanam Singh and Vijay Sundar Prashant for the Qualifying Singles draw, and aiming to qualify for the singles main draw. The talented duo will be looking to capitalize on this opportunity and further their tennis, getting a chance to play against some of the best in the game, right here in Chennai.

ACO 2016 will witness an exceptional lineup of top talent at the US$ 480,000 prize money

tournament. The impressive player field for the region's most exciting and hard-fought tennis tournament will see World No. 4 Stan Wawrinka vying for a hat-trick of titles, Chennai-debutant World No. 12 Kevin Anderson, World No. 19, ATP's Comeback Player of the Year 2015 Benoit Paire, World No. 25 Roberto Bautista-Agut, along with Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Gilles Muller, Vasek Pospisil, Borna Coric, and Aljaz Bedene representing nine players from amongst the top 50 in the world.

Dale Steyn ruled out of bowling for rest of test DuRBAN, DECEMBER 29 (REuTERS): South African fast bowler Dale Steyn will not bowl again in the opening test against England at Kingsmead after his shoulder spasm failed to clear up overnight, officials said on Tuesday.

The decision is a further blow to the home side, who have their backs to the wall as they seek to avoid defeat in the first of the four-test series.

Steyn bowled just under four overs in England's second innings on Monday and although a scan on his right shoulder revealed no tear, he was ruled out after experiencing discomfort before the start of the fourth day's play.

Steyn had twice left the field at Kingsmead in mid-

over in obvious pain on Monday as England built a potentially match-wining lead. "Dale experienced some discomfort in his right shoulder after the first day's play and lot was probably because of the long layoff he's had, coupled with the fact there was a great bowling load on him on the first day," explained team manager Mohammed Moosajee.

"We took him for a precautionary scan, which was inconclusive. There were no tears to any muscles, tendons or ligaments." The world's top-ranked test bowler, only just back after a groin injury which kept him out of three tests in India last month, clasped his shoulder on his follow-through after two balls of his fourth over in England's second

innings and was sent off the field by his captain Hashim Amla for treatment.

He came back out 50 minutes later and was brought on to bowl again but managed just three balls before departing the arena, throwing an object to the ground in obvious frustration as he walked to the dressing-room. After his scan during the afternoon session, he returned to field until the close of play, limiting his time off the pitch in case he was passed fit to bowl on Tuesday, which did not happen. The absence of Steyn, who took four wickets in the first innings, was keenly felt as England built up a 261-run lead over South Africa overnight and took a firm grip on the test match.

Wednesday 30•12•2015

indihut Music Awards 2015 'The Big

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Bang Theory' makers accused of stealing song

he first ever indihut Music Awards is scheduled to be held as part of the New Year Countdown Bash at Upstairs Cafe, Opposite Mahindra Showroom, Walford, Dimapur on 31st December. The Upstairs New Year Countdown will witness the best artists in the music industry along with the glitterati of the city to celebrate the new year's eve with live performances from Dj Ina and AkummikA along with the pop sensation Virie and other Dj's.

The event will start from 8:30 pm with the Awards at 9:30 pm, followed by the one of the biggest EDM countdown bash of the year.

The indihut music award winners are: 1. Best Artist of the Year - Alobo Naga In 2015, Alobo Naga is one of the few artists in India to have toured and performed 148 shows all over the country and abroad.

Alobo has become a pivotal force and a ambassador for the new Naga generation to the rest of the world. This music icon is also actively involved in charity by raising funds for orphanages and working with church ministries in other States and even in China to motivate and encourage young people from different communities.

Along with the three most powerful artists on indihut, Dj Ina, Tetseo Sisters and Alobo Naga to-

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gether have notably turned the Naga Music Industry into reality by generating a combined annual revenue of more than Rs. 95 lakhs in 2015, only from tours and live shows.

(Calculated at average performance fees of Rs.40,000 with 238 live shows combined for only these three artists) 2. Best Collaboration of the Year - 'Silver Lining Skies' by Virie feat Polar Lights 3. Best Folk/Fusion Act Tetseo Sisters 4. Best EDM Act - Dj Ina 5. Best Rock Act - Polar

lawsuit has been filed against the makers of TV show "The Big Bang Theory" over the ownership of the song "Soft kitty".

The song has become the show's character Sheldon's comfort whenever Lights 6. Best Pop Act - Shalo he's sick or troubled.

Late poet Edith NewKent 7. Best Instrumental Act Tubescreeamer 8. Most Promising Artist - Jano Nyekha and Zuchobeni Tungoe 9. Best Music Video of the Year - Bubbleheads by Tuden 10. Best Hard Rock Act - Ambush(Karbi Anglong) and Akokla Imchen 11. Best Rap/HipHop Act - Rugks Ngouri 12. Best Electro-Rock Act - AkummikA 13. Best Music Event of the Year - Oztronic.

lin wrote lyrics of the song "Warm kitty" in 1937. Her daughters, Margaret Perry and Ellen Chase, thought

Miranda Lambert dating Singer Anderson East

in Manhattan, saying the "The 'Soft kitty' lyrics have played a prominent role in the development and portrayal of one of the central characters in the programme."

Newlin's lyrics say: "Warm kitty/ soft kitty/ little ball of fur/ sleepy kitty/ happy kitty/ purr purr purr."

The one used on the show only changes the orCBS should pay royalty, re- der of the lyrics and the rest ports aceshowbiz.com. are the same. It was first They filed a lawsuit on sung in a 2008 episode by Monday in a federal court both Sheldon and Penny

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inger Miranda Lambert Has Reportedly Moved On From Her Broken Marriage To Blake Shelton And Is Dating Musician Anderson East. ambert and Shelton divorced in July (15) after four years of marriage and he has since moved on with singer Gwen Stefani. Since the split, Lambert has kept a low profile amid multiple dating reports, but sources tell Us Weekly magazine, she has been quietly seeing

East for a month.

"They are really enjoying each other's company," a source tells the publication. "(They) are spending New Year's together."

"She couldn't have picked a better dude to have fun with," another source adds. "Anderson is the coolest guy."

Lambert has yet to comment on the dating rumours, but she recently opened up about her divorce to Cosmopolitan

Guns N’ Roses fuel reunion rumours with cinema trailer

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eports suggesting the original line-up is reforming for a world tour have been circulating for months, but speculation was stepped up over the holidays when

the band's website was changed to show the classic Guns N' Roses logo.

Clips from a Guns N' Roses gig have also reportedly been shown in cinemas ahead of screenings of

the new Star Wars movie.

The mysterious teaser trailer, which shows the audience during a rendition of Welcome To The Jungle, reportedly appeared in theatres across

the U.S. over the holidays, fuelling gossip about a potential reunion involving original members Axl Rose, Slash, Steven Adler and Duff MCKagan.

Motley Crue star Nikki

Sixx recently appeared to have given away one of the biggest secrets in showbusiness by telling fans the original Guns N' Roses line-up would be reuniting.

The bassist, who works with former Guns N' Roses member DJ Ashba in side project band Sixx:A.M., made the admission during a question-and-answer session with fans on Twitter.com. When one of his followers asked whether he thought the former stars of Guns N' Roses should get back together for a series of shows, Nikki replied, "They are. Everybody knows."

Guitarist Slash, who left the band in 1996, has denied the reunion rumours on numerous occasions in recent months, but over the summer (15), the musician suggested he has reconciled with frontman Axl after a bitter war of words ended their friendship five years ago.

"It was probably way overdue, you know," he told Sweden's Aftonbladet TV. "But it's... you know, it's very cool at this point. You know, let some of that, sort of, negative... dispel some of that negative stuff that was going on for so long (sic).

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days before his death.

A post on the band's Facebook page reads: "There is no easy way to say this… our mighty, noble friend Lemmy passed away today after a short battle with an extremely aggressive cancer.

"He had learnt of the disease on December 26th, and was at home, sitting in front of his favorite video game from the Rainbow (bar in Los Angeles) which had recently made it's way down the street, with his family. We cannot begin to express our shock and sadness, there aren’t words.

We will say more in the coming days, but for now, please… play Motorhead loud."

In addition to cancer, Lemmy had been suffering from hematoma and was fitted with a defibrillator to correct an irregular heartbeat in 2013.

Born Ian Fraser Kilmister

magazine, saying, "I'm still processing everything and figuring out where to go and what happened. It's (marriage) a tough business, and we gave it our best college try... If I ever were to get married again, which is completely not on my radar at all right now, I feel like it's not about it being a step in life. It's not about a piece of paper or a diamond. It's the way you feel about somebody and the commitment in your heart."

Cate Blanchett to step away from hollywood to raise daughter

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he Blue Jasmine star and her husband Andrew Upton adopted a girl named Edith in February (15), adding to their brood of three biological boys, and Cate is planning to take time out from her award-winning career to focus on the new addition.

She tells Britain's Harper's Bazaar magazine, "We got a phone call earlier this year and we adopted a little girl... You're on the list and then you get the call... You don't know anything about the child you're going to meet."

When asked if her earlier parenting experience helped, she replies, "It's always the first time. Always... I'm not planning on

working much in 2016 either... Our three biological children have been extraordinary. It's been wonderful watching them become a little brood."

Cate also reveals she enrolled in the adoption process in America rather than Australia because she doesn't believe the laws in her native country work in the best interests of the children.

The actress is convinced the Australian adoption system needs overhauling because there is still a "hangover" from the Stolen Generations, children from Aboriginal tribes who were taken from their families by the Government up to the 1970s.

"The laws have to shift

Motorhead Star Lemmy loses battle with cancer he hard-living heavy rock legend has battled serious health issues in recent years, forcing him to scale back on his fabled alcohol intake and prompting his band to reschedule concert dates.

But he recently urged fans to stop worrying about him, insisting he was doing fine.

He told Classic Rock, "I'm sick of the f**king, 'Are you going to die?' line of questioning. It's getting really old, that question. I’m alright. I'm going out there and doing my best. I have good days and bad days but mostly I've been doing alright. The last tour of the States was very good."

Lemmy's manager confirmed the news the rocker had died on Monday afternoon (28Dec15), revealing the Ace of Spades singer learned he was battling cancer just

before it was repeated in seven more episodes.

"The Big Bang Theory" made the song so popular that CBS made a merchandise out of it, including coffee mugs, hoodies, T-shirts, toys and key chains.

The lawsuit said: "The 'Soft kitty' lyrics are among the best known and most popular aspects of 'The Big Bang Theory'. They have become a signature and emblematic feature of the show and a central part of the show's promotion.”

in Staffordshire, England in 1945, Lemmy once served as a roadie to the Jimi Hendrix Experience. After spending much of his youth playing in a number of bands, he joined rockers Hawkwind in 1972, becoming the British band's singer and bassist.

He was fired from the group following a drug possession arrest during a North American tour.

He co-founded Motorhead in 1975 and appeared on all the trio's 20 studio albums.

Truly influential, the band inspired hard rock supergroups Metallica, Guns N’ Roses and Foo Fighters, among others, with many of today's leaders of the genre naming Lemmy among their heroes.

A true hard-living rock icon, he once claimed he had guzzled a bottle of Jack Dan-

iel's bourbon every day since turning 30. In recent years, poor health forced him to cut back on his boozing and he recently confessed he had swapped whiskey for the occasional glass of red wine.

"Apparently I am still indestructible," he told The Guardian last year (14).

Paying tribute to his fellow heavy rock legend, Ozzy Osbourne was among the first stars to offer his thoughts on Lemmy's passing. He took to Twitter on Monday evening (28Dec15) and wrote, "Lost one of my best friends, Lemmy, today. He will be sadly missed. He was a warrior and a legend. I will see you on the other side."

Lemmy's death comes a month after the passing of original Motorhead drummer Phil Taylor, who died on 11 November (15), aged 61.

towards the best interests of the children," she adds.

"Otherwise, what happens is these children end up being shunted back and forth through the foster system, and ultimately if that goes on until the child is five or seven, then the damage is (done)...

"In Australia, it's an understandable hangover from the Stolen Generations. When a country has a history of children being immorally and insensitively ripped from their parents and their place of origin and it doesn't get resolved, the adoption laws swing, understandably, not in favour of the child."

Cate is also mother to boys Dashiell, Roman, and Ignatius.

Hillstar NOW SHOWING

11:00 AM | 02:00 pm | 08:00 Pm

05:00 PM

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WednesdAY 30•12•2015

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

United draw with Chelsea, Arsenal go top LONDON, December 29 (IANs): The match between Manchester United and Chelsea at the Old Trafford ended in a goalless draw, while Arsenal managed to wrest control of the top position in the English Premier League (EPL), at least for the day and now eagerly await the results of Tuesday's game between Leicester and Manchester City.

The result on Monday was United coach Louis Van Gaal's sixth consecutive game without a victory in the league, and it almost ended in a loss for the Red Devils but for the stupendous form of their keeper David de Gea, reports Efe. Chelsea, on the other hand, just about seem to be checking their freefall as they enjoyed their second consecutive draw since Dutchman Guus Hiddink and Chelsea 14th, with 30 took over the reins of the and 20 points respectively. club.

The top spot was seized United are in sixth place by Arsenal on Monday as

they routed Bournemouth, Gabriel Paulista for the first with a stellar performance goal and scored one himby Mesut Ozil who pro- self to clinch the game 2-0. vided an assist to Brazilian Leicester, who are in the

second spot with 38 points and trailing the Gunners by one, have a chance to reclaim their position on top

of the table against Manchester City on Tuesday.

Tottenham Hotspur, joint third with City, on Monday won their away game against Watford 2-1, with goals from the Argentine Erik Lamela and the Nigerian Odion Ighalo.

Crystal Palace are in fifth place despite their goalless draw at home against Swansea; West Ham United defeated Southampton 2-1 and are now seventh in the leader board followed by Watford and Stoke City, who overcame Everton 4-3.

At the other end of the table, Aston Villa remain glued to the bottom spot with just eight points from 19 games; Monday was business as usual as they suffered yet another defeat against Norwich 0-2.

As Leicester gear up to face City on Tuesday, Wednesday will witness Sunderland taking on Liverpool.

Blatter gives up on FIFA, says fighting for his honour

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ZurIcH, December 29 (reuters): Banned FIFA president Sepp Blatter feels "abandoned" by the global soccer body and will now focus on clearing his name, the 79-year-old Swiss told German magazine Bunte.

FIFA's watchdog last week banned Blatter and UEFA boss Michel Platini for eight years for ethics violations. Both men immediately denied any wrongdoing and said they "I now no longer fight for 17 years, said according would appeal to the Swissbased Court of Arbitration for FIFA," Blatter, who led to a preview of an interview soccer's governing body with Bunte. "They abanfor Sport.

doned me. I am now only fighting for myself and my honour."

Blatter had come out swinging against the ban, holding a news conference to tell reporters that he was sorry only that the president of FIFA was being treated as a "punching ball", adding: "I will fight for me and I will fight for FIFA." He told Bunte that he was re-energised by the "false claims" against him.

"After Christmas I will start to fight back," Blatter said.

The inquiry by FIFA's

ethics committee began after the Swiss attorney general's office opened criminal proceedings against Blatter over a 2 million Swiss franc ($2.03 million) payment to Platini in 2011.

Switzerland's prosecutor is also investigating FIFA's award of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals to Russia and to Qatar, a small, wealthy desert country with no real soccer tradition.

The ethics committee said it had not found evidence that the payment, made at a time when Blat-

ter was seeking re-election, constituted a bribe, which meant the men were spared potential lifetime bans.

In the United States, prosecutors have indicted 27 current or former soccer officials over allegations that they ran bribery schemes connected to the sale of television rights for soccer competitions..

These include eight former FIFA Executive Committee members and the current heads of both the North and South American federations.

I won't quit, says defiant Van Gaal

LONDON, December 28 (reuters): Underfire manager Louis van Gaal said he would not quit after Manchester United extended their run without a victory to eight games in all competitions with a 0-0 draw with champions Chelsea in the Premier League on Monday.

Sixth-placed United produced an improved display at Old Trafford, having limped to a 2-0 defeat at Stoke City on Saturday, enjoying two-thirds of the possession without being able to break down Chelsea's defence. Asked about the constant media speculation over his job, Van Gaal told BT Sport: "I cannot have any influence on that.

I can only work with my players and you have seen my players are fighting for me and they have given a good performance.

"Even after this result, the fans were applauding so I cannot say I am very much concerned but in this football world you never know.

"I have full confidence in the board and in my players. When the players can give such a performance under this pressure, then it

is not any reason to resign for me. Maybe the media wants that but I shall not do that," added Van Gaal.

The Dutchman said United should have been given two penalties after Chelsea midfielder Willian handled the ball and when Cesar Azpilicueta challenged his former team mate Juan Mata in the box.

"We hit the post twice when the keeper was beaten, had a big chance in the second half and two penalty cases ... so we are forcing the luck but don't have the luck we need," explained Van Gaal. "Against Stoke I said in the first half we didn't dare to play but that's a big difference today, we dared to play and pressed a lot.

"We were the dominant team, we created chances, we shot on goal and only gave three chances away.

Against a team like Chelsea ... that's not bad."

United supporters have been critical of Van Gaal, his tactics and the players in recent weeks but the Dutchman was heartened by their reaction on Monday.

"They applauded the players ... and they were enthusiastic," he said.

PCB rejects ODI captain Azhar's Media campaign against Real Madrid: Benitez resignation over Amir's inclusion

LAHOre, December 29 (IANs): Pakistan One-Day International (ODI) skipper Azhar Ali, who resigned over tainted paceman Mohammed Amir being included in the national training camp, on Tuesday finally agreed to continue leading the side after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan intervened in the issue.

The players, including Azhar Ali and Mohammed Hafeez, had even refused to join the national camp, protesting the presence of left-armer Amir, who was found guilty in the 2010 spot

fixing scandal.

"Azhar Ali met the PCB chairman (Shaharyar Khan). He tendered his resignation. The chairman didn't accept his resignation, Azhar Ali agreed and he will continue as captain," the PCB said in a statement.

Amir, 23, served a five-year ban after being indicted in the scandal during a Test series in England and was allowed to bowl in domestic cricket by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Amir is in the selection mix for the first time after his fiveyear ban for spot-fixing. He was one of the 26 probables named

for Pakistan's pre-season conditioning camp.

Azhar and Hafeez were originally scheduled to join the camp after completing domestic matches, but they did not do so.

Azhar went on to state that he would not attend the camp "as long as Amir is there".

PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan then persuaded both Hafeez and Azhar to join the camp.

“I do respect their concerns but some of them, I told them, are not acceptable. So they understood and confirmed that they are on the same page with us,” the PCB chairman said.

mADrID, December 29 (reuters): Under-pressure Real Madrid coach Rafa Benitez believes there is a campaign against him and the club and that the team is not playing as badly as is being made out ahead of the La Liga game against Real Sociedad on Wednesday.

Speculation has been rife in the Spanish capital over the future of Benitez who has failed to win over many fans with his team's results and style of play this season. “There is a campaign against (president) Florentino (Perez), Real Madrid and me,” Benitez told a news conference on Tuesday. “Ev-

NTF brings laurels to state Medals: International Championship Individual Sparring Menuodilhou Maurice Usou Moba Phom Obed Khiamniungan

: Gold (64-71 kg) : Gold (>50 kg) : Silver (50-57 kg)

Individual Patterns Menuodilhou Maurice Usou Obed Khiamniungan

: Gold : Silver

National Championship Katopu Zhimo Limakhumba Aonok Abishek K R Hika Chophy Raj Rosily Tolto Sham Singh

: Silver : Bronze : Bronze : Bronze : Bronze : Bronze : Bronze

erything is criticised that can be and where not it is manipulated which anyone can see.

This is particularly clear if you look at the situation from the outside.”

Real face Sociedad on the back of a crushing 10-2 win over Rayo Vallecano but the result was distorted by two sendings-off for the visitors who looked strong early on and held a 2-1 lead. Although they have scored freely against the more modest sides, Real have generally been unable to beat stronger opponents and a humiliating 4-0 loss to arch-rivals Barcelona last month was particu-

larly damaging for Benitez.

Real are two points off joint leaders Barcelona and Atletico Madrid with 33 points from 16 games, but the Catalan side have a game in hand after playing in the Club World Cup. “Everything is being magnified and I have a lot of experience coaching so I know to be distracted as little as possible,” Benitez said. “I have 24 players in the squad but when I leave out one player then it is made out that it is something personal and a load of speculation is built up.

The team is a lot better than people think.

“My relationship with the

players is infinitely better than what you read in the press.

There is a communications department that keeps me informed. The team is doing some things well and others not so much.” Benitez said he was able to relax over Christmas which he spent with his family in northern England where he used to manage Liverpool. “It was calm. I had a short holiday as we are playing again on the 30th,” he said.

“Fortunately, the English press do not exaggerate as much and so it was relaxing with the family and concentrating on how to beat Real Sociedad and win trophies this year.”

DImApur, December 29 (mexN): The Nagaland Taekwon-do Federation (NTF) participated in the 30th National Taekwon-do Championship and the 6th International Martial Arts Games Championship which was held at Thygaraj Stadium, New Delhi recently.

Three Taekwondo players from Nagaland qualified to represent India in the International Championship in which participants from over 40 countries took part. The Indian team was headed by Sujit Roy, 4th Degree Black Belt from Nagaland as National Team Coach. The Nagaland Taekwon-do Federation (NTF) players won three gold medals and two silver medals.

In the National Taekwon-do Championship, nine fighters from Nagaland took part and bagged seven medals. The team from Nagaland was headed by Limakhumba Aonok, 2nd Degree Black Belt, as Head Coach.

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