February 29th, 2016

C M Y K

www.morungexpress.com

monDAY • februArY 29 • 2016

DIMAPUR • Vol. XI • Issue 57 • 12 PAGes • 5

T H e

ESTD. 2005

P o W e R

Life is tough, and if you have the ability to laugh at it you have the ability to enjoy it Ten years of RTI in Nagaland: NVCO studies its use & impact

PM says Budget presentation is his ‘exam’ PAGE 08

o F

T R u T H

— Salma Hayek

Teenager Rashford inspires United to win over Arsenal

PAGE 02

PAGE 12

shillong Accord naga ‘Anomalies in Food & Civil Supplies Dept - I’ spear on sale on eBay Morung Express news Dimapur | February 28

(lEFT) Engraving on the naga spear that was on sale on eBay. it was reportedly presented to the British Defence Adviser Maj. Gen. TA Richardson for his “assistance with” the shillong Accord of 1975 by then Governor of nagaland, lP singh. (RiGHT) Major General Thomas Anthony Richardson MBE.

Morung Express news Dimapur | February 28

A Naga spear has been on sale on eBay for seven days now, at a bid that starts at GBP 399 (Rs. 38,013) and goes up to a maximum bidding price of GBP 560 (Rs. 53,352). The item—titled ‘Antique Nagaland Ceremonial Spear’—ran out on its bidding time on February 28 with zero bids.

Curiously, the Naga spear is said to have been presented to Major General Thomas Anthony Richardson MBE, a British Defence Adviser (to the British High Commission at New Delhi), by the then Governor of Nagaland State, Lallan Prasad Singh, for the former’s “assistance with” the Shillong Accord of 1975. eBay Inc. is an American multinational corporation and e-commerce company, providing consumer-toconsumer and business-to-

reflections

By Sandemo Ngullie

consumer sales services via the internet.

The seller of this Shillong Accord Naga spear described it in his notes on eBay as an “Incredible piece of British foreign policy history,” and an “Amazing piece of British and North East Indian memorabilia and truly one of a kind!” The spear—part of the seller’s ‘Tribal Art Collection’—stands at 2 meters and is “made of metal and woven with traditional Naga goat’s hair.” It is currently located at Saffron Walden in the UK. When asked, the seller stated that he bought the piece at an auction in the United Kingdom (not from the family of Richardson) and was unaware of how it exchanged hands. For him, the spear represents “a significant memorial to such an historical event.”

Richardson, who reportedly passed away in

2015, was one of the last remnants of India’s colonial legacy, “the last ever” British General to hold post in independent India, the seller informed.

The Shillong Accord of 1975 remains a controversial part of Indo-Naga political history whose embers continue to burn feet till date.

The whole episode “sheds a little light upon the handiwork of British collaborators and their role against their former Naga World War 2 allies in deference towards India,” stated Naga Vigil’s David P Ward in a press statement, while taking note of the eBay sale.

“The presentation of such an artefact by a non Naga to a non Naga renders it worthless in indigenous terms. However, both must take some responsibility for the subsequent killing spree and internecine blood letting that ensued as a result of the infamous Shillong Ac-

JAc of affected landowners formed Morung Express news Dimapur | February 28

The affected landowners of the 4-lane Highway Dimapur by-pass on Sunday formed a committee to pursue with the authorities for full payment of land compensation.

The committee was formed in the name and style of 4-Lane Affected Landowners Joint Action Committee during a meeting of the landowners at Old Showuba Village on Sunday. The Committee is headed by Keron Janger You’re here to sell vegeta- as Convenor and Zubeni Patton as Secbles, or to talk about your unemployed husband’s degrees?

Public Information

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Editor, The Morung Express

The Morung Express Poll QuEsTion

Vote on www.morungexpress.com sMs your answer to 9862574165 Are you satisfied by the performance of the new generation of Naga politicians and bureaucrats? Why?

C M Y K

Yes

no

others

Do you believe and have hope that Nagas can overcome tribalism and factionalism?

Yes

43%

no

50%

others

07%

Details on page 7

cord,” he maintained.

For Ward, it is only apt that this “misappropriated and misused” status symbol serve as a “poignant reminder” to the Nagas to be “aware of such accords that are principally designed to sow the seeds of discord in order to divide and rule—a policy the British have refined to a fine political art in both colonial and contemporary history.”

It remains a mystery why a British high official, a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), would have assisted in signing an accord on the sub-continent 28 years after India shed itself free of British colonial rule.

Thus, cautioning people to “beware of Greeks bearing gifts,” David Ward said, “there are any number of Trojan Horses already in position in Nagaland that will wreak havoc for generations to come.”

Various anomalies have been detected in the appointments of Grade III staff in the Department of Food & Civil Supplies, Government of Nagaland from January 2003 till November 2015.

The anomalies were unearthed through an RTI application filed by social activist, Wedieu Kronu who persistently approached the Department to furnish complete and satisfactory answers with regard to staff appointments, public distribution system and stockists of BPL, APL, AAY Kerosene, Sugar etc.

Besides delays in furnishing the required information, most of the replies provided by the department were incomplete, unsatisfactory or requiring additional RTI applications to higher authority.

This first series of ‘Anomalies in Food & Civil Supplies Department - I’ will focus on the “irregular appointments” made by the Department without requisitioning it to the NPSC. Out of the 117 (originally 118 in Annex ‘A’ but it is reproduced here as 117 since one name was repeated) appointments of Grade III staff made in the Department during the period 2003-2015, only eight of them were appointed through the NPSC. The Department appointed the rest 109 persons without requisitioning it to the NPSC as was required.

Of the eight, six were Inspectors while the other two were a Store Keeper (SK) and an LDA. While proper information like NPSC advertisement, declaration of NPSC results etc were furnished in respect of the appointments of the six Inspectors, no documentary evidence was provided for the appointments of SK and LDA, although their appointments were stated to be made “Through NPSC.” The appointments of SK and LDA (serial no 98, 99) were shown to be made on 31/8/2012 but lacked documentary evidence unlike that of the six Inspectors whose appointments were also shown to be made ‘Through NPSC’ and accordingly substantiated by documentary evidence and proof.

“If all the six Inspectors, SK and LDA were appointed through

retary along with other members and village representatives.

During the meeting, Zubeni highlighted on the sanction of Rs 174.36 Crore approved by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highway on January 12, 2016 for the land compensation. She, however, said that the National Highway Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and other authorities had initially talked of providing only Rs 100 crore to the landowners. She said that the landowners had demanded full payment but with the passage of

Rio wants Nagaland in ‘Rurban Mission’ our Correspondent Kohima | February 28

Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio on Saturday wished to see that Nagaland is included in the list of the new concept of cluster villages called “Rurban” launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The National Rurban Mission aims to spur social, economic and infrastructure development in rural areas by developing a cluster of 300 Smart Villages over the next 3 years across the country.

Under Rurban Mission, he said the area people can come together and for tribal and hill area within the population of 15,000 plus can come together, so that these areas are turned into townships with infrastructure support from the government.

The MP said this during the second day of Nagaland Youth Summit here Saturday.

He said that in foothills, starting from Tizit, Naginimora, Tuli, the Rurban concept can be brought, where clusters of villages can come together and get help from the GoI. This, according to him would also provide opportunities for young entrepreneurs to develop township and commercial activities.

Rio said that in three years, the Centre is going to select 300 Rurbans in the country. This opportunity will be starting from next financial year in April, he said.

“We should see that Nagaland enters into this Rurban map,” he said adding that this will be a new opportunity to start a fresh, coming together as cluster of villages and build up townships and commercial hubs.

time, the authorities had said that compensation would not be paid unless land acquisition problem was solved in neighbouring Assam.

Demanding full payment, the affected landowners held placards some of which read, ‘NHIDCL no more excuses,’ ‘pay us immediately,’ ‘we demand full payment,’ ‘NHIDCL don’t fool the landowners’ etc.

The newly formed Committee has been entrusted to take the responsibility of communicating with the authorities for full payment of land compensation at the earliest.

NPSC, then why was no documentary proof provided in the case of SK and LDA unlike the appointment of six Inspectors?” queried Wedie Kronu, who is also the President of recently launched Nagaland Public Rights Awareness and Action Forum (NPRAAF). She said that the issue of anomalies and irregularities in F&CS Department would be taken up under the banner of NPRAAF. Subsequently, the Forum would also take up similar issues in other departments and public establishments.

Of the 109 appointed, the maximum were SKs totalling to 51, 32 LDAs, 23 Sub Inspectors of Supply and 1 Driver.

An astonishing case of mode of appointment in respect of serial no 110 as furnished by the department in Annexure ‘A’ read like this, “As per the Administrative approval of the Govt. Vide No. SPLY – 10/04/2013 (Pt) dt. 30/2/2014.” However, the date 30/2/2014 is non-existent in calendar of the year 2014.

Further, out of the 109 appointed, the Department furnished approval/ appointment letters only for 36 of them.

Most of the 36 appointments were made against retirement, promotion and demise of employees. The rest 73 appointed were not supported with approval/appointment letters even as the Department was requested to furnish it. Out of the 73 appointed, one appointee has expired.

The information furnished against some of these appointments also pointed to irregularities as the dates of appointments superseded official order/approval of appointment issued by the Department as in the cases of serial nos 66, 67 and 68. The appointments for the mentioned three serial numbers were shown to be made on 23/8/2010 and 24/9/2010. However, the decision of the P&AR Department to appoint them was arrived at only the next year, which was dated 5/3/2011.

“Such abnormalities clearly showed that some appointments were already made even before the Department issued appointment orders,” pointed out the RTI applicant.

Except merely mentioning the modes of appointments, the Department did not produce complete

necessary documentary evidence or proof to substantiate its replies.

The dates of appointments were not mentioned in the cases of serial nos 116, 117 and 118. Some other appointments did not show, as through which letter and date were they appointed.

The Department was also asked to furnish the question papers, mention interview board members, date, venue and time of exam/interview conducted. However, such details were also not furnished in detail.

Almost all the dates of appointments shown in Annexure ‘A’ and ‘C’ against the same persons did not match. This raised question regarding their actual date of appointment, as the two annexure provided different dates of appointments, some of which were years apart.

One case as shown in serial no 7 under ADS Office Zunheboto had mentioned the date of birth as 12/08/1979 while the date of appointment was shown to be 09/01/1980, thus projecting that the employee was hardly five months old infant.

“There are numerous other mistakes in the information furnished by the Department and it clearly shows that the officials had tried to cover up irregularities by providing contrasting and misleading information,” the NPRAAF maintained.

“Whereas it is subject to strict scrutiny as to whether the 36 appointments (with endorsing letters) were made under the provisions of certain percentage reserved for internal appointment against promotions, retirements etc, the Department must immediately cancel all other backdoor appointments which were not routed through NPSC,” NPRAAF demanded.

The NPRAAF has affirmed to pursue the matter until the appointment irregularities and other errors committed in the Department are comprehensively addressed. “Until all backdoor appointments and other irregularities are brought to logical conclusions, the issue will not be put to rest,” affirmed the NPRAAF President.

As per the information furnished in Annexure ‘C’ there are a total number of 535 employees under F&CS Department in the Directorate and districts combined.

This report is part one of a series

Thane man kills 14 family members, hangs himself Thane, February 28 (IanS): A 32year old man killed 14 members of his family, including seven children, and later hanged himself in a house here on Sunday, police said. The gory incident took place in the city’s Kasarvadavli area when assailant Hasnain Anwar Warekar slit the victims’ throats with a large knife one after the other around 1.00 a.m. after lacing their food with drugs.

Though the motive behind the massacre is unclear, preliminary inquiries point towards a family dispute over some property matters. Those killed also included minors as young as a three month old. The lone woman survivor, identified as his sister, Sabia Yusuf Bharmal (22), was rushed to a local hospital where her condition is

described as “critical”.

“Prima facie, evidence suggests that the accused bolted all the doors and windows of the house and killed his family while they slept. Later, he hung himself near a staircase in the bungalow and the knife he used was found near his body,” Thane Joint Police Commissioner Ashutosh Dumbare said. Sabia’s loud screams prompted some youths in the locality to break open the doors and windows of the house and rescue her, he said.

Warekar worked as an income tax consultant. Locals claimed that a couple of years ago, Warekar had allegedly attempted to poison his family and six members were rushed to a hospital. They fortunately survived.

labourers shot and injured, chumu civil society call for business shutdown Morung Express news Dimapur | February 28

Civil society organisations of Chumukedima have called for a 12-hour business shutdown at Chumukedima on February 29 in protest against the shooting and wounding of two labourers.

The shutdown was jointly called by the Chumukedima Chambers of Commerce and Trade Association (CCCTA), Chumukedima Town Mothers Association, Chumukedima Town Youth Organisation, Chumukedima Students Union, Chumukedima Tribal Union and Chumukedima GBs. While condemning the shootings, the CCCTA in a press release informed that the decision was arrived at a joint emergency meeting held on Sunday. The victims – Abdul Sukur and Ainul Haq sustained gunshot wounds on the leg

and were admitted to the District Hospital, Dimapur. The release said that Haq and Sukur were shot in their residence by a gunman at the Mile Khuova Road junction at around 7:30 pm on February 27.

“It is learned that a demand/ taxation letter was received on 1/02/2016 demanding Rs. 1,00,000 (one lakh) to be paid in one week time, and the refusal to pay the demand led to this incident,” the CCCTA release stated.

The demand letter was reportedly received by a bamboo enterprise where one of the victims worked.

Reaffirming its stand on the “One Govt. one tax” resolution jointly adopted by the Chumukedima public on February 13, 2014 as called by the ACAUT Nagaland, the CCCTA release demanded the Nagaland state government to arrest the perpetrators of the shooting. It further appealed the

government to grant medical compensation to the victims.

While stating that the shutdown will affect business establishments of Chumukedima area only, the release appealed the police department to enhance security deployment to prevent deterioration of law and order.

ACAUT Nagaland allege dereliction of duty by DH

Meanwhile, the ACAUT Nagaland has alleged the District Hospital, Dimapur of “dereliction of duty.” Visiting the victims at the hospital today, ACAUT said that the two patients (victims) were not provided the requisite medical attention on time by the hospital.

According to the ACAUT, the victims were brought to the hospital at around 10:30 pm on February 27. The emergency doctor attended to the victims and

admitted them. However, the ACAUT said, “No doctor attended to them till 2:30 pm today (Sunday),” while adding, “There has been a clear cut case of dereliction of duty.”

One of the victim’s attendants told the media that he asked one of the nurses in the morning why doctors were not attending to them. The query was responded with “Today is Sunday. Doctor has gone to Church.”

The ACAUT, maintaining that the injured were victims of unrequited monetary demand said, “They were shot because tax demand was not acknowledged.”

While extending support to the Chumukedima civil society, it held that the shooting was “an attempt to spread fear psychosis by picking on soft target in the lead up to the beginning of annual tax collection.”

2

monDAY 29•02•2016

NAGALAND

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Ten years of RTI in Nagaland: NVCO studies its use & impact

Paddy rice being dried in the sun at Phugwih village in Phek district. The villagers of Phugwih practice terrace cultivation on large scale. Morung Photo by Chizokho Vero

Contractors appealed to finish NH 202 work on time

TueNsaNg, February 28 (mexN): Three Chang unions have observed that the road construction on National Highway 202 stretching from 88km-93km has stopped since January and the road is in deplorable condition for vehicles to ply.

Therefore, the contractor responsible for the stretch of road has been requested to start the construction work at the earliest.

The three unions - Chang Union, Saksi, Chang Students' Union, and Sector Union 13th Ward of Saksi NAP Sector Tuensang - had visited the ongoing road construction of National Highway 202 within their jurisdiction from Eshou Gate colony to KT colony on February 24.

The road stretching from 93km-107km is going on presently within Saksi 3rd NAP jurisdiction, the unions said in a press release.

The unions further appealed to both the contractors (M/S L. Pukhato Sohe &

Nagaland Public Rights Awareness and Action Forum launched DimaPur, February 28 (mexN): A new organization called ‘Nagaland Public Rights Awareness and Action Forum (NPRAAF)’ was formally launched in Dimapur on February 27, 2016 with the motto, ‘Justice for All’. The Forum was launched with the main objective of providing a stable platform for the deprived and suppressed sections of the society, a press release from NPRAAF stated.

The Forum, according to the release, was formed by “like-minded individuals comprising social activists, lawyers and scholars who will unwaveringly and strongly work towards the delivery of justice for all strata of the society.”

To be a mouthpiece for the unspeakable, NPRAAF will provide a platform for any individual or group whose due rights are denied in any public, private or government establishment, the release stated, adding the Forum will endeavour to create awareness on public rights, benefits and responsibilities.

“As such, NPRAAF will entertain genuine grievances of any individual or group and highlight their plight to the appropriate authorities to ensure that their problems are addressed conclusively. Legal assistance will also be provided where rights and privileges are denied by the system unlawfully.”

NPRAAF further asserted it will strongly fight for the genuine rights of citizens in a democratic way and within the established law. It will also carry out welfare programmes that will directly or indirectly benefit the citizens.

NPRAAF headquarters will be based in Dimapur from where its wings will be spread across the State.

The NPRAAF is composed of seven office bearers headed by Wedieu Kronu as President and Hito Swu as Secretary. For more information, one can contact the following: email - npraaf16@gmail.com, phone -9862271646.

Sons and M/S Vertex Construction) to complete the construction works within the stipulated time as per the DPR/ Contract Specifications.

They also appealed to the department concerned (NH Div-3 PWD Tuensang) to continuously monitor the workmanship of the construction as per the specifications and also requested the general public to cooperate with the authority/ contractors for the smooth completion of the works.

According to the release, the three unions will be inspecting and monitoring the progress and quality of the construction works from time to time and will extend its full co-operation towards the project.

The release was appended by H. Wongto Chang, Vice President, Chang Union, Saksi; Nato Y. Chang, President, Chang Students' Union; O. Somba Chang, President, 13th Ward Tuensang.

Kohima, February 28 (mexN): Nagaland Voluntary Consumers’ Organisation (NVCO) has conducted a study on the use of RTI and its impact in Nagaland in the last ten years since its implementation in the State in 2006. However, the organisation admitted that the study was not intensive.

According to a press release from Media Cell, NVCO, the study found out that several individuals and organisations were filing RTI application just for the sake of filing as they do not read and study the information obtained through the powerful Act. The awareness level in the district headquarters is still low, but is even lower in villages. NVCO maintained that basic knowledge of the RTI Act is required in the rural areas where more disclosure is needed in various schemes/ projects meant for villagers, especially those below poverty line

(BPL). “We came across the maximum misuse of funds in MNREGA, Public Distribution System (PDS), etc. and therefore, the citizen must learn RTI so that transparency and accountability can be questioned by obtaining information through RTI,” NVCO stated.

The organisation also informed that certain village authorities had fined their citizens for filing RTI application without consulting village authorities.

This is happening due to lack of awareness amongst the citizens,” it added.

NVCO also observed that maintenance of records or official documents by the government departments was much better with the implementation of the RTI Act in the State.

“But when it comes to the level of corrupt practices especially in public sectors we did not see any improvement rather it is becoming worse.” The study also did not find much im-

provement in public infrastructural developmental works. Rather, it detected “so much of illegality in spending public funds in not following the norms and procedures including illegal deduction of certain percentages in the name of ‘commission’.”

During the study, NVCO also observed good number of success stories, the release said. On the other hand, there were cases of some applicants filing RTI just to extract money from public authorities, public authority attempting to bribe the applicant, using RTI to harass the public authorities or certain department, offering huge sum of hard cash to applicant where applicant refused, public authority manipulating public documents while furnishing to the applicants, NVCO said.

The release further said that the government had conducted several trainings for government em-

ployees, especially the PIOs and APIOs, but least bothered to take initiative to create awareness for the general public. “Still many PIOs and APIOs don’t encourage the applicants rather they still have negative attitude towards the RTI applicant or the RTI Activists and many of them take advantage of the one month period although the information can be furnished within a few days time,” it claimed.

Delay in furnishing the required information, the NVCO added, affects the applicants where he/she is seeking a stay order from the courts especially in the issue of awarding work order in contract works without following certain required norms.

The maximum RTI applications filed in various departments were related to recruitment of employees in public sector (backdoor appointments), contract works, among others,

the release said.

The study was done through conducting awareness campaign, meeting and interview in the various district of Nagaland covering colleges, district administration, civil societies, public organisations, women organisations, churches, etc, following media reports on how other organisations were contributing in promoting the RTI Act in the State by filing RTI applications, fighting against the illegality and shortcoming of procedures based on information/ documents obtained through RTI. NVCO had even filed several cases such as Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench and even to the apex Court in the country.

Meanwhile, the President of NVCO Kezhokhoto Savi has urged every citizen to participate in promoting RTI in their own capacity to achieve the objective of RTI Act.

‘Unless the Naga issue is resolved, no peace will be there in our land’ Kohima, February 28 (NePs): Minister for National Highways and Mechanical Engineering, Nuklutoshi has reiterated that unity among all the sections of the Naga people is prerequisite towards finding a final and lasting solution to the longstanding complex Naga political issue.

Disclosing this in Kohima on Saturday, the Minister, who was part of the 19-member Parliamentary Working Committee (PWC) of Nagaland that recently met various leaders of national political parties and NSCN (IM) leaders in Delhi, said the PWC told Th Muivah, General Secretary, NSCN (IM) and other high profile functionaries of NSCN (IM) that for any “final settlement to the longstanding Naga political issue,” all the Naga Political Groups should be involved in the process.

“We told him and their senior leaders that in order to have a final settlement to the longstanding Naga political issue once and for all, all the Naga Political Groups should be involved,” he said. “Because our stand is very clear that any solution should be total and not a piecemeal one.”

Nuklutoshi said Muivah responded that he was ready and willing to “forgive and forget” the past mistakes and wanted to move forward in the name of God.

With regard to meetings with the leaders of various national political parties in Delhi, the Minister said they sought their support as and when the Naga peace process reaches for a final solution once and for all.

“So we as elected representatives mandated by our people are doing what is our responsibility,” Nuklutoshi said and further disclosed that they respected all the NPGs and also their stands for the final solution of the Naga political issue with the Government of India.

Although the Nagaland legislators are only “facilitator and not stakeholder” to the Naga peace process, he stated as Naga legislators representing their people and with their “mandate” they have the “right to work for peace and development.” “So our understanding is that unless the Naga issue is resolved, no peace will be there in our land.

And once such understanding is there and start working in that direction, our future will not suffer.”

So instead of criticizing and fault-finding, they all should work together for “unity” of the Naga people.

“It is not only our (Naga legislators) responsibility but also the responsibility of every single Naga to work for unity and solution for the Naga political issue when the door is open by

IRCS Wokha conducts free medical camp

‘Community Concern & Service Day’ held at Amaluma Piggery cluster under NERLP Peren launches sale of pork

WoKha, February 28 (mexN): The Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS), Wokha branch conducted free medical camp at Hankvu village on February 19 in the presence of Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police, Wokha respectively. Altogether, 120 villagers were treated by a team of doctors and medical personnel led by Dr. Enrithug Kikon, Chief Medical Officer, Wokha, a press release informed.

Happy anniversary to apo & azu

May the love of God continue to grow in your years….

"For the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him". Psalms 103:11 -From your children

the Government of India,” he stated.

Stressing on the importance of having unity among the Naga civil societies, Nuklutoshi said "when they could not unite, how can we expect NPGs to unite.”

Also, calling upon the Naga younger generations to be aware of the Naga political issue because “their future is doomed if the Naga political issue is not resolved today,” the Minister asserted that every single Naga must be “an agent for the unity of the Nagas because only through unity, we will be able to solve the Naga political issue.”

He, however, explained that 100% unity among the Naga people might not be possible but they should hold 100% consultations among the Nagas before any final settlement to the Naga political issue is arrived at. “All 100% Nagas may agree or may not agree to such consultations but 100% consultations are needed.”

“By solving the Naga issue, peace will prevail in their land and only peace can attract investments and industrialists to our land,” he stated. “And only through investments and industries in our land, development can come in and that will solve almost all issues confronting them.”

MLA Namri Nchang and others during the celebration of Angami Sekrenyi (Phousanyi) festival 2016 at Tuophema village in Kohima district on February 26. (Morung Photo)

KPC concludes Mokokchung trip; to meet DPC soon

Kohima, February 28 (mexN): The two-day trip of Kohima Press Club (KPC) to Mokokchung to meet Mokokchung Press Club (MPC) members concluded on Saturday. The KPC members also met Deputy Commissioner of Mokokchung, Sushil Kumar Patel at his residence, a press release from KPC Joint Secretary, Ng. Solomon Sha informed.

In the course of interaction, KPC President Xavier Rutsa said that the tour aimed to foster good relationship among the press fraternity and also encourage each other in serving the public through the profession by moving out of the comfort zone. Rutsa also informed that the KPC members will visit the Dimapur Press Club in the coming days.

Meanwhile, the DC of Mokokchung informed the visiting team that the district is maintaining good relationship with the neighbouring state and the law and order has improved much except some petty is-

Mokokchung DC (centre - standing) with KPC members, DPRO, MPC General Secretary at the DC’s residence in Mokokchung on February 27.

sues. Patil said he is keeping good relationship with the Deputy Commissioner and people of Assam by meeting and interacting with them frequently to avoid any unwanted incident.

While lauding the job of the media in Nagaland, Patil also encouraged the media to play positive role in extend-

Patkai Christian College Model United Nation members along with CAN Youth officials and volunteers and teaching staff and School Management Committee of GMS, Amaluma.

DimaPur, February 28 (mexN): A joint team of Patkai Christian College Model United Nation (PCCMUN) and CAN (Community Avenue Network) Youth organized a daylong ‘Community Concern & Service Day’ on February 27 at Amaluma village under Dhansiripar in Dimapur.

According to a press release from Coordinator, Project Youth Voluntarism, CAN Youth, the team interacted with the teaching staff, School Management Committee, village council, GBs and parents of the students of Government Middle School (GMS), Amaluma.

The interactive session raised and discussed issues regarding the development of the school and its education system and bringing good governance in the village council and School Management Committee. The Teacher In-charge of the school also raised the issue of irregular teachers and shortage of teaching staff, the release said.

The joint team, the release added, expressed that there is no point blaming oneself for the prevailing condition. The team also stressed that it should be a group effort, but individual concern, to

bring changes in the education system for the development of the village.

The programme was led by Samuel Walling, Secretary, CAN Youth and Chingthiankim Simte, President, PCCMUN. After the interaction hour, the team organised some fun activities with the students and distributed gifts and stationeries, which were contributed by Patkai Christain College MUN. The daylong program ended with vote of thanks by Thangnodao Naiding, Chairperson of the School Management Committee.

ing better cooperation by the public in government’s activities. He further informed that the administration is helping some students from neighbouring district to write their examination in Mokokchung Town due to the tense situation in their place. The DC also lauded the effort of district NGOs, public, me-

PereN, February 28 (mexN): The piggery cluster promoted under North East Rural Livelihood Project (NERLP) in Peren district launched its first sale of pork on February 26.

It was inaugurated by Peter Lichamo, Deputy Commissioner of Peren.

NERLP is implemented in Nagaland in the two districts of Peren and Tuensang under Ministry of DoNER, Government of India, supported by World Bank. Its objective is to improve rural livelihoods, especially that of women and unemployed youths and the most disadvantaged in the project implementing states, according to a press release from District Project Manager, NERLP Peren.

The project to improve the rural livelihood through promotion of piggery as one of the livelihood options in Peren district promoted 150 households covering five villages under Six Self Help Group Village Federation. The project’s objective is to promote quality breeding units to supply quality piglet and produce quality pork for marketing and create provision for credit linkage for promoting piggery as a liveli-

dia and police in extending their cooperation to maintain peace in the district, the release added.

District Public Relations Officer (DPRO) of Mokokchung and MPC General Secretary also accompanied the KPC members while meeting the Deputy Commissioner.

hood option.

Earlier, the Deputy Commissioner of Peren expressed happiness that the pork which the Nagas love to consume had made positive impact in the district. He encouraged the community to carry forward the new learning and make it a model for people in the other parts of the district and the State.

The District Project Manager of NERLP Peren, Ruuvilie Kotsu expressed pride that through the active participation of the community, the first sale of 1000 kgs of live weight pig was made in Punglwa village.

He also highlighted that pork meat of 300 pigs will be ready for sale in the market within March 2016.

The launching programme was chaired by Heirangheing, Block Project Coordinator, Peren Block of NERLP, welcome address was delivered by Secretary, Self Help Group Village Federation Punglwa Sector B, and Piggery Cluster Committee Secretary of Punglwa Sector B village shared the piggery cluster story. State Coordinator of NERLP also delivered a brief speech.

MonDAY 29•02•2016

NORTH-EAST

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Congress MLAs in Manipur revolt against home minister

Imphal, February 28 (IaNS): At least 20 MLAs of the ruling Congress party in Manipur have taken up cudgels casting aspersions against the dubious role of Home Minister Gaikhangam in suspending five police commandos to appease the Naga Students' Federation.

"We held an emergency meeting at my residence on Saturday night. We resolved to urge Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh to take up appropriate actions against Gaikhangam," N. Biren, an MLA, said on Sunday. "We are demand-

ing a special meeting of the Congress Legislature Party on Monday to discuss the issue," the MLA added.

The angry MLAs were in agreement on the growing suspicion that Gaikhangam has a hidden agenda in the U-turn he took in this issue.

The five police commandos who were on duty on February 14 at Mantri Pukhri near Imphal had flagged down the vehicles bringing the NSF delegates for the seed sowing festival in Ukhrul district.

The commandos were charged with harassing and snatching the mobile

handsets of the delegates.

Making a statement in the assembly, Gaikhangam said: "If the NSF delegates had extended cooperation nothing would have happened. They refused to get down from the vehicles.

There was no beating or detention."

Demanding action against police, the NSF imposed ban on the movement of the vehicles owned by the non-tribal Manipuris in the "Naga inhabited areas" from February 23.

Police in Senapati district of Manipur have drawn flaks since they did

RNPO, RCN condemn rape

DImapur, February 28 (mexN): The Rongmei Naga People’s Organisation (RNPO) and Rongmei Council Nagaland (RCN) have expressed “shock” and “deep sorrow” at the demise of the 6-and-a-half year old girl who was raped at Chiningkhul under Bishnupur Police Station, Manipur on February 15.

The RNPO and RCN in a joint statement strongly condemned the heinous crime and said, “Such dastardly act on a minor girl allegedly by a 14-year-old boy is unimaginable. It can only happen from a person with perverted and morbid mind.”

The two organizations urged the law-enforcing agency to through the case thoroughly and award “befitting and exemplary punishment” to the culprit so that such dastardly act does not occur in future. The organizations also extended solidarity to the parents of the victim and prayed for the departed soul to rest in peace.

nothing when the NSF activists came to the district to take law in their own hands.

The 20 Congress MLAs, the All Manipur Students' Union, other students' organisations and civil societies have orchestrated their demand to make an explanation as to why the police commandos were suspended on February 25 despite the home minister's statement that no excesses were committed.

Khomdram Ratan, convener in charge of Joint Committee on Inner Line Permit System said: "It is a

shameful surreder to the NSF by the Manipur government. The NSF delegates had come to assist the Nagaland Chief Minister T.R. Zeliang who had spewed venom among the different communities here on the occasion of the festival.

Since Saturday night, Ibobi has been fire fighting in a bid to control the 20 MLAs. Sources said that there is no much success since these MLAs are happy with the accolades they are getting from all sections of people.

Elephant shot, tail chopped off in Lakhimpur tezpur, February 28 (ptI): An elephant was shot at and its tail chopped off by unidentified persons in Assam's Lakhimpur district, a forest official said here today.

The elephant received eight bullet injuries and was struggling for his life in Kashjuli under Harmuti forest Range near Ranga Reserve Forest bordering Arunachal Pradesh.

Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Krishna Patgiri alleged the elephant

was shot and injured by suspected poachers from Arunachal side of the reserve forest.

The forest department received information yesterday evening and took initiative to provide treatment to the elephant.

A three-member team from the Assam State Zoo was scheduled to reach the spot today and tranquilise the elephant.

A hunt has also been launched to nab the poachers, forest officials said.

Rape victim succumbs to injuries, JAC submits memo to Manipur CM Imphal, February 28 (ptI): The minor victim who was raped by a juvenile on February 15 last in Chiningkhul village, today succumbed to her injuries at RIMS hospital, the police said. A Joint Action Committee (JAC) was formed soon after the news of the death spread, which later on submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister's office. The JAC demanded

ItaNagar, February 28 (ptI): Apalled at the delay in construction of new Civil Secretariat and Legislative Assembly buildings by over 10 years, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul has set deadlines and directed officials to ensure their completion within the time. Pul has set April 20 and August 14 as deadline for the completion of the Secretariat and the Assembly, respectively, an official release said here today.

He said the next Assembly session would be held in the new building in September. Pul, who inspected both the buildings yesterday, issued directives to

the PWD and construction agencies to work round the clock to meet the deadline.

Instructing construction agencies to increase manpower and work in three shifts on eight-hourly basis, he directed officials to monitor the pace of work.

Surprise inspections would be made and action would be taken on the spot against erring officers, Pul warned. The original cost of the Civil Secretariat building which was Rs 91.86 crore in 2009, escalated to Rs 198.56 crore in 2016, the Chief Minister said. For the Assembly building, five figures ranging between Rs 51.81 crore and Rs 119.50 crore were found as original estimated

Kalikho Pul

cost, projected revised cost modified revised cost, etc, and he directed the Chief Secretary to verify the matter and place it before him for appropriate action.

Hinting at an inquiry in this regard, Pul said funds would be provided for completion of the two projects as the state and its people

Tripura's Left Front sweeps Village Committee elections agartala, February 28 (IaNS): Tripura's ruling Left Front led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist on Sunday swept the Village Committee (VC) polls, winning 520 of the 587 committees under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC).

The VCs, falling in areas under the politically significant TTAADC, are equivalent to Gram Panchayats outside the council areas.

The Left parties, which have a substantial base among the tribals, got majority seats in 520 VCs followed by the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) in 25 VCs, Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT) in 20, the Congress in 9, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in four, and the Tripura People's Party (TPP) in two. The fate of remaining seven VCs remains unsettled.

The elections to constitute 587 elected VCs under the TTAADC were held on February 24 and the counting of votes began on Saturday. The final results were declared by the State Election Commission (SEC) on Sunday.

SEC secretary Tamal

Majumder told reporters that the polling was held in 528 of the 587 VCs. The ruling Left Front parties have been elected unopposed in 59 VCs; so elections were held for 3,695 seats of 528 VCs. The IPFT, INPT and TPP are all local tribalbased parties.

Majumder said the CPIM secured 3,798 seats while its ally Communist Party of India got 18, Revolutionary Socialist Party 13 and the Forward Bloc 9 seats.

Among the tribal-based parties, IPFT, INPT and TPP managed respectively 340 seats, 199 seats and 12 seats. Another Tribalbased party, Tripura State Party, got 22 seats but did not secure majority in any of the VCs. The Congress, the main opposition party in the state, bagged 91 seats only while the BJP, an emerging political force in the Left-ruled Tripura, obtained 75 seats.

In the last polls in 2011, there were total of 527 VCs and opposition parties together had got majority in 52 VCs against 67 out of the 587 VCs this time.

In all, 8,194 candidates from national and local parties contested the elections.

The ruling Left Front led by the CPI-M put up 3,697 candidates.

The Left Front retained the 30-member tribal autonomous body (TTAADC) for the third consecutive term in last year's elections.

After the formation of the TTAADC 34 years ago under the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution, its constitutional and legal powers were upgraded in August 1984 to protect and safeguard the political, economic and cultural interests of tribals.

These tribals constitute a third of Tripura's 3.7 million population.

The TTAADC governs two-thirds of Tripura's 10,492 square km area.

to work for development, there is no dearth of funds."

The Union MoS for youth affairs and sports Sarbananda Sonowal said, "The satradhikars of the Vaishnavaite monasteries in Majuli wanted a bridge over the Brahmaputra."

He added, "The Centre will take steps to declare Majuli a Unesco World Heritage Site. We have asked the state government to prepare the dossier on the island."

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Majuli gets bridge over Brahmaputra Jorhat, February 28 (tNN): Nitin Gadkari on Saturday laid the foundation of the Jorhat-Lakhimpur, via Majuli, bridge over the Brahmaputra in Majuli island in Jorhat. He laid the foundation of the bridge at 2 pm on the playground of Majuli college near Doriadubi. Gadkari said, "I can assure that we will do a lot of infrastructure development work in the country in five years. If there is a will

should not suffer due to faults of a few. He directed the Principal Secretary, Finance, to release Rs 20 crore each for the Secretariat and Assembly buildings.

The statement said the Chief Minister was upset by the substandard works undertaken in the secretariat as the locks, tower bolts and door handles were broken while there was no water facility in the washrooms. He directed officials to ensure the faults were immediately rectified.

Asking the department to make provisions for using solar energy in the buildings, he also stressed on the arrangement of security for employees.

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the accused 14-year-old boy who was earlier produced before the juvenile court be treated as an adult and punished as per law, Panti Golmei, secretary of the JAC, said.

On February 15 the victim was found shivering after a massive manhunt at Chiningkhul village with injury marks and was admitted to District Hospital Bishnupur, but was later shifted to RIMS.

68th death anniversary of Semsonsing Ingti DIphu, February 28 (mexN): The Hills People’s Cultural Forum (HPCF) observed the 68th Death Anniversary of Ru Semsonsing Ingti at Kala Kendra, Diphu.

According to a press release, the Hills People’s Cultural Forum, formed with organisations of different Tribes/Communities of Karbi Anglong Autonomous District, Assam, observed the anniversary along with representatives of organizations/NGOs. Chairing the program, HPCF Chairman Laichan Engleng spoke about marching with a positive mindset and expressed his views to build a momentum in creating peace among the brothers for a just nation.

The gathering paid homage to Semsonsing Ingti by lighting candles and observing a minute of silence.

A brief biography was shared to the gatherings

'Complete Assembly, Secretariat bldgs on time' Trader rescued, 6 arrested SIlchar, February 28 (tNN): Five days after he was abducted, Abdul Kalam (52), an affluent trader of the Lamajuar area in Karimganj, was rescued on Friday night by police. Kalam was whisked away by a gang of armed criminals on the midnight of February 21, from a place near Janakibazar in Hailakandi district, when he was returning home in a car.

Acting on a tip-off, police launched an operation in the dense forest of Ichakhauri near Ramkrishnanagar in Karimganj district. The teams could find him on Friday in a hole in the jungle with

3

his hands and legs tied with ropes.

Police have rescued him unhurt, said a senior police officer on Saturday.

He added that Kalam was later sent to Karimganj civil hospital for a check-up.

Later, he was interrogated at the police station and sent home.

The police officer said, following an operation, six miscreants, including two women, were arrested for their alleged involvement in the abduction. A hunt is on to nab the rest.

by Amlong Ingti, Secretary General, HPCF, after which from leaders from different Tribes and Communities delivered speeches.

During the event, a resolution was taken by the Forum to declare Semsonsing Ingti as the “Father of Karbi Anglong District”.

His ideologies and principles were also discussed during the event, the release stated.

In this, the HPCF appealed to all the peoples of Karbi Anglong District to follow the life of Ingti in rebuilding a prosperous Karbi Anglong. The forum also appealed to the educated youths as well as citizens of Karbi Anglong to come forward united “with a common goal, a vision to excel and promote communal harmony; eradicate anti-social elements which is the need of the present generation.”

Phenpiga Rengma, Vice

Chairman, HPCF stressed on the power of Unity, selfless attitude, and how, regular exchange of cultures binds the differences among the Hills Peoples into Peace, Harmony and development in the region.

Participants of the event included representatives from Karbi Students’ Association (KSA), Rengma Naga Students’ Union (RNSU), Dimasa Students’ Association (DSA), Kuki National Assembly (KNA), All Assam Bengali Youth Students’ Federation (AABYSF), Axom Jatyabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), All Assam Gorkha Students’ Union (AAGSU), Karbi Anglong Bhojpuri Students’ Association (KABSA), Manipuri Cultural Society, Karbi Anglong (MCS), All Adivasi Students’ Association of Assam (AASAA), Chakma Cultural Society (CCS), Kuki Students’ Organisation (KSO), Women groups and NGOs.

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THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Budget 2016: PC, mobile makers expect Delhi HC to pronounce verdict on steps to boost domestic manufacturing TRAI’s tariff order on call drop NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (PTI): IT and telecom hardware makers expect the government to extend differential duty structure on mobile phones for 10 years while bringing personal computers under the regime to give a boost to domestic manufacturing.

The government in the last budget announced differential excise duty structure for mobile handsets, which gave domestic manufacturers cost benefit of about 11 per cent over imported phones.

“Duty structure on mobile handsets and tablets should be continued for another 10 years. Similar duty structure may be introduced on parts, components and accessories of mobile handsets and tablets,” Indian Cellular Association National President Pankaj Mohindroo told PTI. Mohindroo is also Chairman of Fast Track Task Force – a joint body between industry and government, to promote manufacturing of mobile devices in India. The panel has set to achieve manufacturing target of 500 million handsets and generation of 15 lakh jobs by 2019.

PC makers like Dell, Lenovo and Intel have also

sought extension of similar duty structure to encourage manufacturing of the products in the country.

“Several IT hardware players have their manufacturing facilities in India that are currently under-utilized due to weak demand. The suggested duty differential will spur the domestic consumption leading to increased production, thereby boosting manufacturing by these players,” Intel South Asia Director Marketing and Market Development Sandeep Aurora said.

Lenovo India Director for Integrated Operations Vinod K Srivastava said that he hopes that the government rationalises the tax

structure to promote manufacturing of desktops and notebooks, as has already been done for tablets and mobile phones.

The Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology (MAIT) and the ICA have also sought government to come up with tax structure that promotes manufacturing of components used for PCs and mobile devices in the country.

As per a MAIT study, measures of the Union Budget 2016-17 to boost production of personal computers in India can potentially generate 4,00,000 jobs in the Indian IT manufacturing sector if estimated demand for 30 million

PCs per annum is fulfilled entirely through domestic production over the next five years.

In the last Budget, the government announced excise duty structure for mobile handsets at 1 per cent without Cenvat credit, or 12.5 per cent with Cenvat credit. Under the duty structure, imported goods attract 12.5 per cent duty.

However domestic manufacturers are required to pay 1 per cent duty if they do not avail CENVAT (Central Value Added Tax) credit on taxes paid on inputs.

The duty structure led to over 90 per cent jump in manufacturing of smartphones in India.

The world’s biggest contract manufacturer Foxconn led the investment followed by Optiemus Wistron joint venture and mobile handset companies like Gionee,Xiaomi, Lava, Karbonn, HTC, Datawind, started production of their handsets locally.

Mobile phone companies are likely to invest up to Rs 650 crore by March and production of handsets in value terms is expected to cross Rs 40,000 crore by the end of current fiscal.

As per the Indian Cellular Association, the production of mobile phones in India during current financial year is expected to cross Rs 40,000 crore compared to the production of Rs 18,900 crore during 2014-15.

Besides this, over 30,000 new jobs have already been generated in this industry during the past 7-8 months and an additional 8,00010,000 jobs are expected to be generated by the end of current fiscal.

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (PTI): The Delhi High Court is likely to pronounce tomorrow its verdict on pleas challenging tariff order of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) making it mandatory for cellular operators to compensate subscribers for call drops from January onwards.

A bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath would pass the judgement on a bunch of petitions filed by the Cellular Operators Association of India, the association of Unified Telecom Service Providers of India and 21 telecom operators, including Vodafone, Bharti Airtel and Reliance.

(Read:Call drops: Telcos performance worsens in July-Sep qtr) TRAI had earlier told the high court that consumers have a right to get compensated for call drops and this was different from the quality of service guidelines that

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and incentives for farmers, Modi said it was not the case with his National Democratic Alliance government.

"Farmers look towards governments after God and it is imperative on us to ensure that the farmers are looked after well," the prime minister said.

"I exhort all state governments that they should work on the road map before them and I am sure that my dream and your dream will succeed," he added.

Elaborating on his

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ficer, said that Sunday's pact includes the sale of two plants in central India that were part of an earlier agreement. UltraTech said on Friday it had scrapped that deal because it fell foul of regulations restricting the transfer of mining rights.

Under the new agreement, UltraTech will buy Jaiprakash's broader cement business, allowing the transfer of limestone reserves - a major raw material for cement - along with the plants, Daga told Reuters.

Jaiprakash, which has interests in roads, property and is best-known as the builder of India's Formula One racing track, has been trying to sell its cement business to reduce debt and placate its banks.

In a statement, Jaiprakash said it "has taken these steps to effectively address the subject of debt reduction".

Credit Suisse said in a note this month that Jaiprakash, which it said had debts of 753 billion rupees at the end of the 2015 financial year, had failed to earn enough to cover its interest payments for 11 consecutive quarters.

UltraTech and Jaiprakash said the transaction was subject to definitive agreements and regulatory approvals.

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UltraTech to buy Jaiprakash l e i s u r e cement plants for $2.4 bln

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERS): UltraTech Cement Ltd, part of the Aditya Birla conglomerate, has agreed to buy Jaiprakash Associates Ltd's cement plants for an enterprise value of 165 billion rupees ($2.4 billion), the companies said on Sunday.

UltraTech, beating competition from domestic and international bidders for the assets, and Jaiprakash said they had signed a memorandum of understanding for 12 plants whose capacity totals 22.4 million tonnes a year.

Jaiprakash said the agreement included a grinding unit currently being constructed, and that it would receive an additional 4.7 billion rupees to complete the facility.

The agreement will increase India's biggest cement maker's installed annual capacity by one-third to 90.7 million tonnes, and provide infrastructure firm Jaiprakash with much-needed relief to pare its debts.

Other companies who were interested in Jaiprakash's plants included Irish building materials group CRH and Dalmia Cement, sources told Reuters this month.

Atul Daga, UltraTech's chief financial of-

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dream, Modi said by 2022 when India completes 75 years of its independence the income of the farmers would be doubled.

He then asked farmers whether his dream would be realised.

Modi said it was not a very difficult target.

Citing the example of Madhya Pradesh, a Bharatiya Janata Partyruled state, he said though it did not figure in the top five states of agriculture, now there was a complete turnaround in the agriculture sector.

compensation regulation was a “knee-jerk reaction” which penalised them without proving any wrong-doing.

The telcos had termed the regulation as “arbitrary and whimsical” and contended that providing compensation to the consumers amounted to interfering with the companies’ tariff structure and this could be done only by an order and not a regulation. Earlier in an affidavit, TRAI had told the court that a technical consultation paper was sent to all stakeholders, including telecom firms, on the call drops issue and all their representations were considered before the rule was made.

TRAI had on December 22 last year told the high court that no coercive steps would be taken against telecom firms till the next date of hearing on January 6 for not complying with the call drop compensation norms.

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My dream is to see farmers double EXCEL COACHING & COMpUTER CENTRE their income by 2022: Prime Minister BAREILLY, FEB 28 (IANS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he dreams of seeing farmers' income getting doubled by 2022 when the country completes 75 years of its independence.

Addressing a big gathering of farmers during a 'Kisan Rally' here, Modi highlighted various initiatives undertaken by his government for their welfare.

Stating that while most of the governments wait for the election year to roll out welfare schemes

cellular service providers have to follow under the licence conditions. However, the telecom companies had argued that even if the consumers were facing a problem, a regulation without statutory backing cannot be created. The telecom firms had claimed that everyone was prejudiced against them, while referring to some of the pleas filed by consumer groups in support of the TRAI’s October 16 regulation last year which mandates cellular operators to pay consumers one rupee per call drop experienced on their networks, subject to a cap of Rs 3 a day.

The operators have sought quashing of the regulation. TRAI had earlier termed the call drops as a “pervasive problem”, saying it amounted to “harassment” of consumers as well as breach of contract that telcos had with subscribers. The service providers had contended that the TRAI’s call drop

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MondAY 29•02•2016

NAGALAND

to host North Transformation crusade underway in Kohima Nagaland East NSS youth festival

Kohima, February 28 (mexN): The ongoing Transformation Crusade saw an assembly of few thousand people each day at Kohima Local Ground from February 26-28, according to a press release received here.

On February 26, Rev. Zotuo Kiewhuo, the speaker, shared his message on the theme ‘Arise and Shine’ (Isaiah 60:1). Stating that "Satan is a spirit of darkness and cannot withstand light," he said, "Jesus is the light and His light must shine in us”.

He further reminded that Jesus is the light of the world and whoever follows Him shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life.

The press release further informed that counselling and deliverance for “satanic worshipping influenced and alcoholics” will be available at the ground

Praise and worship team leading the congregation during the evening service of the ongoing Transformation Crusade on February 27 at the Kohima Local Ground.

starting from 12:00 noon.

Meanwhile, on February 27, Rev. Moa Longchari, Senior Pastor, Baptist Mission Church preached on God’s love and salvation.

Testifying his earlier disbelief in miraculous healing, he exhorted that God is able to do anything as “he is the greatest physician and the Chief Doctor.” He fur-

ther said that faith accompanied by action brings miracle and called upon the congregation in need of physical and inner healing. Hundreds responded to the call and testified about receiving healings, the press release stated.

Sharing about how God used Noah despite his rebellious character, Rev. Moa

said that the qualification to receive God’s love is to receive it as unmerited favour.

Further, elaborating on the love of God and the need of God’s grace, he reminded the people present that no one is perfect or completely good or bad; therefore, everybody needs God’s grace.

“God does not accept you for your perfection but for your

belief in Jesus Christ and his love is so true indeed that he never leaves anyone though a sinner,” he added.

Rev. Moa further reminded that God is always ready to forgive like Noah.

“Therefore, when God is not in you then you will feel the emptiness which cannot be filled by anything and whoever has not tast-

ed God’s love and power has missed the greatest thing in life,” the speaker expounded.

On February 28, the sermon was delivered by Rev. Zotuo Kiewhuo, who emphasized on the importance of worship. Stating that worship has different forms like songs, giving, preaching, meditation, etc, he said knowing to worship leads to know and understand God. Rev. Zotuo further said true worshippers worship the father in truth and in spirit, and Satan is afraid of true worshippers.

“The more time you give for worship, the better you know God and draw closer to him,” the speaker added.

According to the release, 117 people of all ages have been counselled in the crusade so far, while the “prayer warriors” consisting of 29 prayer groups continue to hold prayer chain round the clock.

NLA Select Committee meeting Sericulture department conducts training Kohima, February 28 (mexN): The meeting of Select Committee on ‘Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion & Regualtion of Online Games and Skills Bill,

2015’ has been fixed on March 2, 11:00 am at Committee Room of Assembly Secretariat. A press note from Nagaland Legislative Assembly Secretariat Additional Secretary K

Sekhose informed that the meeting will examine the Bill and requested the Committee members concerned to attend the aforementioned meeting without failure.

Online registration facility for Army recruitment Dimapur, February 28 (mexN): In order to facilitate online registration for Army Recruitment Rally for the aspiring candidates, the Army Recruiting Office Rangapahar, Dimapur has opened four counters.

Informing this in a press

note, the Secretary, Rajya Sainik Board and Director, Sainik Welfare & Resettlement Nagaland Brig KK Roy Choudhury, SM, VSM (Retd) said these counters will be available on all working days during office hours and are free of cost.

Candidates who are unable to register their names online have been requested to avail this facility.

Online registration is mandatory for upcoming Army Recruitment Rally to be held from April 5-7 in Kohima.

Participants and resource persons during the technology up-gradation training on post cocoon technology held on February 24 at the District Sericulture Office, Dimapur.

Dimapur, February 28 (mexN): The Department of Sericulture, in collaboration with Central Silk Board Guwahati, conducted a one-day technology upgradation training on post cocoon technology on February 24 at the District Sericulture Office, Dimapur.

The training was con-

ducted under the supervision of the District Sericulture Officer, Yashimeren.

The resource persons were Aswatha Reddy, ScientistD and Biren Dutta, Assistant Technical Officer from RSTRS, CSRTI Guwahati.

The Director of Sericulture, Chandan Basera, who was also the chief guest, gave

Our Correspondent Kohima | February 28

Nagaland is all set to host North East NSS Youth Festival 2016 from March 1 to 5 at Indira Gandhi Stadium, Kohima. The festival will be marked by cultural dances, cultural songs, Yoga session, seminar on youth & creativity, environment, enterprise and disaster management, literary competition, quiz competition and sightseeing. As part of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, a cleanliness drive will be undertaken at IG Stadium and Naga Heritage Village Kisama. All seven north eastern states, including Sikkim, will join the festival. The inaugural function will take place on March 2 at 10:00 am with Chief Secretary Pankaj Kumar, IAS as the chief guest. Welcome

address will be delivered

by C. Theyo, State NSS officer while keynote address will be delivered by Sunil Kumar Basumatary, Regional Director, NSS, North Eastern Region, Guwahati.

Special number will be presented by Khrüküdülü Swüro, special appearance

by Christina Lalruatpuii and theme song by Don Bosco College, Kohima.

Pete Z. Krose, Vice Principal Kohima Bible College, Kohima will pronounce invocation while Sungjemmongla Jamir will compere the function. Valedictory function will take place on March 4 at 3:30 pm with Menukhol John, Commissioner & Secretary for Youth Resources & Sports, NEPED as the chief guest.

The function will be followed by musical entertainment by DGP Band.

ZTYO supports demand for good roads ZuNheboto, February 28 (mexN): In the backdrop of the indefinite bandh proposed by the ZCCI and HATOA on goods trucks plying from Lumami to Zunheboto, the Zunheboto Town Youth Organization (ZTYO) has expressed support to the demand for good roads stating the present roads are in deplorable condition. ZTYO in a press release issued by its Media Cell urged the BRO to take the matter into serious consideration. The youth organisation further stated that the BRO should take care of not only the roads from Lumami to Zunheboto, but all the surrounding roads which fall under its jurisdiction. Meanwhile, the ZTYO reiterated that the price of essential commodities in the market should not be hiked as a result of the Chakka bandh. In case of an unfortunate public outcry due to the inconveniences caused, ZTYO stated that the organisations and the department (BRO) concerned should be able to render public explanation and take stock of the situation.

the welcome address.

The main objective of the programme was to promote and improve the weaving sector with the latest technologies and innovations in sericulture.

A total of 80 weavers and R Tohanba expresses sadness spinners from eleven districts of the state attended Kohima, February 28 (mexN): Parliamentary Secretary R Tohanba today expressed shock and sadthe training. ness over the demise of R Shokheamba Yimchunger of Huker village under Shamator sub-division on February 28. Late Shokheamba was among the first group in the first NAP Battalion Chumukedima, Tohanba informed steps in mushroom culti- in a condolence message. He also rendered his service vation and its marketing to for the uplift of Huker village in different capacities, the farmers. Altogether, 16 including Advisor, Chairman, Managing Board, Govwomen farmers from the ernment Middle School, Huker and Village Council village attended the train- Secretary. He guided and advised every society and oring. Inputs like mushroom ganization of Huker village throughout his life, Tohanba spawn and polythene bags added. Shokheamba was 103 years and is survived by were distributed for the two sons, four daughters, and grandchildren. The Parfarmers to continue the liamentary Secretary further extended condolences to practice of mushroom cul- the bereaved family and prayed that the soul of the detivation in the village. parted rest in peace.

Mushroom cultivation training held at Thekrejuma

Kohima, February 28 (mexN): ICAR Research Complex NEH Region, Nagaland centre, Jharnapani conducted a hands on training on “Mushroom Cultivation: An alternate option for entrepreneurship development” unStudents of Government Middle School Old Showuba, Dimapur pose for photograph der TSP on February 27 at Thekrejuma village in with their Mid-Day Meal.

Kohima district. Dr. G. Rajesha, Scientist (Plant Pathology) briefed about mushroom with respect to its nutritional importance, daily demand for mushroom and the economics of cultivation in Nagaland, a press release informed.

Budhin Kachari practically demonstrated the different

Public SPace

Y

Memorandum

JNU Controversy undercurrents

es, a meeting at JNU to commemorate the presumably unjust hanging of Afzal Guru was organised by a student group called DSU along with Ex DU teacher SarGilani, acquitted in Parliament attack case due to want of evidence by the Supreme Court of India, where many Kashmiri students and activists had arrived for the meeting.

Sensing a possible disturbance or clash with ABVP, permission was withdrawn by the VC and that led to anti India sloganeering by some of the assembled members who perceived a conspicuous biasness against their cause. However, it went against the law and attracted a prompt police action.

Nevertheless, the Govt. and the BJP messed up badly. Its senior leaders and the Home Minister himself loomed large over the law enforcing agency and preposterous statements were made to further vitiate the picture in contravention to rule of law. Some even went ahead of the Court of law in pronouncing who is guilty and what quantum of punishment is to be awarded in the way one BJP MLA and lawyers beating up the arrested JNU president, other students and Journalists at the court premise itself.

Unlike what is generally observed in mature democracies where public figures try to control and bring objectivity to sensitive situations, Indians failed to stand together and douse the conflagration. Here, the BJP and her student wing ABVP wanted to project themselves high on nationalism and build a strong case of sedition against the JNU students. Unfortunately, they overdid in their act and gave a heavy political colouring.

Had police been allowed to do their job quietly, the accused if found guilty could have been punished accordingly and public at large would have accepted the objectivity though JNU may have protested loud and noisy.

Now, the worrying question is why such aberrations are taking place now and then? JNU case is not an isolated one. Uproar against Hyderabad Univer-

sity VC and HRD Minister for biased victimisation of Dalit Students resulting to committing of suicide by one of them, over a clash with ABVP, has hardly died down. Under this present regime, Universities across the country are experiencing a heighten activism of ABVP disturbing academic peaceful environment. Why would the regime patronise such activism and the JNU drama?

The answer is not difficult to find. It’s the function of 03 woes of Indian Politics.

The first woe is Negative electoral Party Politics. Political parties jostle for space to capture power as it is a number game in the first pass the post electoral system.

Political parties, irrespective of different hue and shades indulge in wooing votes in grey area of communal ideology, extreme regionalism, community or caste arithmetic etc. Lately, election is free from muscle power excepting few disturbed areas and role of money power is being minimised but the Election Commission is still baffled in tackling against wooing votes in the grey area.

In this context, the BJP govt. cannot be expected to reign in against the Sangh activities, as they share a common ideology and the former derives her political strength from the latter. In order to stay afloat politically, polarising agendas of Hindutva and Akhand Bharat are indispensable for the ruling party.

The second woe is promise by political class to restore past lost glory and pride of India in international community, within a minimum time. Middle class and rural gentry have taken the agenda seriously and expect the govt. of India to be strong headed all the time in all matters concerning foreign affairs, economic partnership, territorial disputes and internal political problems.

Consequently, little progress has been made in many vital fronts as every Party that comes to power at Central and State found themselves hemmed handed in dealing with foreign powers and rebel groups in a manner that involve give and take negotiation least the electorate perceive them to be compromis-

ing the interest and pride of India. Opposition would, given a chance, gladly hammer the last blow though prudent and amply beneficial the act may be for the country in long run.

The unrealistic approach towards nationalism has re-coiled them badly.

But still, many have not learned the hard lesson and it is very evident that the BJP is still playing the fire ball for short term gain. No modern nation would compromise on nationalism but what that matters is how do you harness the feeling from the citizens and for what purpose you use it.

The third woe is that the State has been arrogated a role bigger than it can deliver. May be it came about with Nehruvian socialism and Communist movements. As the country was and is still a nation of the needy and ignorance, the state is believed to be capable of delivering every need. In reality, even God himself doesn’t do that. Populist politics further accentuated the misleading.

The negative fallout is, firstly, it makes the govt. and bureaucrats appear to be omnipotent and give them opportunity to misuse resources and power.

Secondly, it kills individual initiative and community based initiative in social development. Not much work is moved on the ground owing to corruption and lack of resources. The result is failure to deliver welfare and the public angst is directed fully to the public agencies. This Impossible promise has to be withdrawn and let the public share the responsibility as well.

The misgoverning effect of the three woes at work has created a miserable situation in the country. Against this backdrop, the JNU row is no doubt a clash of ideologies and approaches vis-a-vis subjugation of the poor in the country.

Leftist students deeply believe in power of the State in doing social good if the govt. of the day is honest and propoor and also have perception that the establishment in the country is to perpetuate domination by few haves and higher castes. They also have a feeling

that problems including Kashmir issue are being perpetuated without any seriousness for solution. The university and students voice for alternative approach of how the country is being governed.

While on the other hand, the BJP and the Sangh are determined to dislodge the left from the vantage point and find a foothold in Universities for Hindutva ideology. They have Political support base and finance capable of winning elections but in the sphere of intellectual arena their intellectual stand and sense of history still sounds fictitious and hollow.

This is one of the reasons why ABVP is being pushed and VCs friendly to them are being appointed but the back door tactics is creating a tense situation in Campuses.

The JNU anti India sloganeering and the alarmist reaction by the rightist have polarised the nation. There are people calling for unqualified display of nationalism, zipping up freedom of speech and shutting down of JNU and there are those who seek restrain and want some soul searching exercise to exorcise the resident devil that disturbs harmony in the country.

In conclusion, the take away from this unhappy episode is that priorities and compulsions are there for every political Party as India is a complicated polity but there is no excuse to shy away from moral responsibility and exercise restraint on sensitive issues that affect greater interest of India. The onus is on the political parties to restrain themselves from activities though lucrative in political dividend but toxic to democracy.

Also, every Public figure in all walks of life, should know where to stand and work together for greater common goal of the country. Ideologies are important, issues may be dear to one’s heart but peace and harmony of India comes first for every faithful citizens of this country.

Problems will never end but how one sees it and tries to tackle the situation is what that matters. The same goes for Nagaland and the Naga community.

Ellin Raingam Lumding

To, The Hon’ble President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee (Through Governor of Nagaland and forwarded by Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, Nagaland) Subject: MEMORANDUM Hon’ble President, Taking serious note of the incidents that has happened in two of the most prestigious Universities in our Country, we the Alumni of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Hyderabad Central University (HCU) Nagaland Chapter, jointly organized a SOLIDARITY WALK AND SIT-IN PROGRAMME on the 22nd February 2016 in Dimapur, Nagaland with the three broad objectives: 1. Against curtailment of freedom of Speech and Expression.

2. Against growing intolerance in the Country 3. Against attack on Media and Press Freedom That sir, India being the largest democratic country in the world, we too believe in the ideals of India as a democratic and secular country. We believe in the great Constitution of India; we believe in the plurality and diversity of India; we believe in a free India where everyone is entitled to express one’s opinion and ideas freely.

It is really saddening that the democratic and secular fabric of India is being threatened especially in prominent educational institutions - institutions that has been producing one of the finest students, scholars and academicians over the years in our Country; institutions that has helped develop critical thinking in the minds of the students towards promoting diverse cultures of knowledge and knowledge of cultures.

The greatest challenge that confronts India as a democratic and secular Nation is the growing incidents of intolerance and violence in the Country and it is OUR APPEAL TO ALL THE CITIZENS OF THE COUNTRY to resort to peace rather than violence as envisaged by our own great father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhiji towards safeguarding and defending India as a secular, diverse and democratic Nation. Therein lies the voice of hope and justice, the voice of truth and liberation and the voice of freedom emerges.

That Hon’ble sir, as you head the largest democratic Nation, India, we pray for a strong and unified India as envisaged by our great Rabindranath Tagore “Where the mind is without fear, and the head is held high Where knowledge is free…

Into that Heaven of freedom, My father Let my country awake.”

Long Live India!!!

In Camaraderie and Solidarity, (Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Alumni Nagaland) (Hyderabad Central University (HCU) Alumni Nagaland)

The Morung Express “Public Space” is to provide 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.

MonDAY 29•02•2016

IN FOCUS

6

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express volume Xi issue 57 By moa Jamir

The harvest is ripe at home too Where are the labours?

T

he recent initiative by ‘Parliamentary Working Committee of Nagaland Joint Legislative Forum on Naga Political Issue’ (PWC) to garner support for urgent solution to the protracted Naga political issue is laudable and makes sense as there is anticipation in many quarters that a Bill pertaining to the issue might be introduced in the ongoing budget session of the Indian Parliament.

Against the backdrop, in a joint statement, five Naga Political Groups (NPGs) have condemned the activities of the PWC questioning its wisdom and “blindly” propagating the August 3, 2015 Framework Agreement.

In its rejoinder, the PWC said that they’re not issuing a “blank cheque” to the ongoing negotiations and before signing an agreement, all important stakeholders would be consulted in the spirit of oneness and unity to strengthen the Naga political cause.

The present PWC was an outcome of a meeting held on May 25, 2015, where 60 legislators of the Twelfth Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) decided to constitute Nagaland Legislators’ Forum on Naga Political Issue as the “voice of the House to all sections, including the Government of India and the Naga nationalist groups.” Subsequently, the PWC was constituted consisting of representatives of all political parties, a successor to erstwhile Joint Parliamentary Committee on Naga Political Affairs formed in November 26, 2009 by a joint sitting of the NLA. The basis for this was ‘The Covenant of Reconciliation, 2009’ and ‘The Naga Concordant’ signed on August 26, 2011 facilitated by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation whereby the top leadership of three NPGs resolved to “work towards unity and towards formation of one Naga nationalist organisation.”

The NSCN (IM) have also time and again appealed to other groups to “forget and forgive” and find common ground for a solution and its commitment that “we shall come back to the Naga people for consultation on all important matters when the time comes to decide the final political agreement with the GoI.” Nevertheless, for the sake of probity, any belligerent party will not make a direct overture.

In this context, if an opposition-less government was formed in Nagaland purportedly for “acting as a facilitator to the peace process,” so far their homework at home has been found appallingly wanting. As a facilitator of peace process, has the PWC ever brought the contending parties together to the negotiating table? The ‘art of diplomacy’ requires this tactful manoeuvring for any entity to be called a “facilitator to the peace process.”

Forget tactfulness, any steps towards Confidence Building Measures to bring other stakeholders to the negotiating table are missing. The sidelining of the FNR from the whole process is unfortunate. Devoid of such measures, the consultation process post signing of the Framework Agreement has been arbitrary, if one were to go by media reports on the same.

By virtue of being the elected legislature from the State, is the team unilaterally deriving its legitimacy and mandate as the representative of the “collective voice of the people” and astoundingly pedalling the agreement as a ‘leap of faith’?

Does it imply that once an ‘agreement’ is arrived at with the ‘largest’ and most influential NPG, backed by the existing State machinery, the longest ‘freedom’ movement in independent India will finally come to a logical conclusion?

If so, couple of possibilities are imaginable. First, the ‘final agreement’ would be so good a solution that instead of resisting, all stakeholders will lap it up without any qualms. Second, once an agreement is done, it will be imposed arbitrarily setting aside concerns from other quarters.

Either way, for the Indian Government it would be an ideal outcome. On one hand, it can pat itself for ushering a peace process many consider as the most pertinent. On the other hand, it can conveniently wash its hands off any eventualities that arise, justifying their position easily – That the Nagas are not capable of governing themselves, an old colonial adage ironically used by the British to justify their presence in pre-independent India.

Right after the announcement of the Framework Agreement, this column had commented on the anxieties over the ‘non-disclosure of specifics,’ asking whether it would accommodate the notion of political relationship founded on genuine federalism and the aspiration of competing imperatives amongst the various stakeholders or will history repeat itself.

On hindsight, the concerns seem legitimate, as the recent collective statement by five NPGs suggests. Therefore, the PWC, to justify its legitimacy, must up its ante and get its act together. Else it runs the risk of being called an ‘opportunist’ entity trying desperately to validate its relevance in face of an impending change. Conversely, despite an ‘Agreement,’ a permanent solution would still remain elusive.

For any comment, drop a line to moajamir@live.com

lEfT wiNg |

Sugandha Rawal IANS

A new life to 'The Jungle Book'

B

uilding on the structure of Rudyard Kipling's timeless classic and the power of the 1967 animation film, director Jon Favreau has given a new vision to "The Jungle Book" backed by cutting-edge technology.

The director says he has blended technology with the old story to honour the original and at the same time appeal to new audiences with his animation offering.

The director also asserted that with the film, which will come out in Indian theatres on April 8, a week before it releases in the US, he has tried to push the envelope by embracing new technology to create a virtual world.

Favreau sat down to explain his vision at Hollywood's The El Capitan Theatre here with selected mediapersons from all across the world. Why remake a classic? Why give it a technological twist? These are the questions that Favreau set out to answer around Disney's film, which brings a story straight from the enchanting forests of India and presents a modern take on Kipling's classic, originally published in 1894.

Favreau said that he was motivated by Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn to take the technological route for the film.

"The idea of going out to the jungle and shooting this, it just felt like it wouldn't have the magic that the 1967 film had had.

There was a dreamlike quality to it... And so I wanted to make sure we preserved that.

The live-action epic adventure showcases Mowgli's journey of self-discovery when he's forced to abandon his home in the forest. And Neel Sethi, who traces his roots to India and plays Mowgli, is only just being in an otherwise animation film. The film is supported by a stellar voice-over cast including Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson and Christopher Walken.

So, how was the film made?

"We went back to the structure of it and saw what Kipling did because he offered a lot. We kind of picked between the two. The story structure of the 1967 film was good and offered a lot; so I stuck to it as much as I could. What I have tried to do is to focus on the images that I remember from it before going back to look at it again," he said.

C O M M E N T A R Y

Samir Dayal OpenDemocracy

The billionaire, big data and net neutrality: FACEBOOK & DEMOCRACY IN INDIA

F

acebook’s founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is to many a hero of the Information Age, and he has been at the forefront of a new era of philanthropy, joining the ranks of other multibillionaires who “give back and give big” such as Bill and Melinda Gates of the Gates Foundation and their collaborator Warren Buffet and his son Howard Buffett whose own philanthropy, as the world’s third richest person, has been touted by Bloomberg Markets magazine as having embarked on a “philanthropic mission to end global hunger.”

This new grand-scale philanthropic movement is encapsulated perhaps nowhere more vividly than in the Gates’ moral commitment and foundation called “The Giving Pledge” whose aim is to inspire the world’s wealthiest to give away most of their net worth either at the time of their death or during their lifetime. By December 2015, over 141 individuals or couples had pledged to the initiative. Yet neither their philanthropy nor their considerable contributions to the world of big business – indeed to the business of the whole world – have managed to escape controversy, including, as noted recently in an article on openDemocracy, charges of (especially American) neo-colonialism. Oddly, some of these controversies have emerged as the inseparable obverse of their contributions to society.

Zuckerberg, in particular, has received praise but also criticism following his pledge to give away 99% of his Facebook shares, worth a mere $45 billion today (in a letter to his newborn daughter, Max). His largesse, whose grandly stated goal is to “enhance[e] human potential and promot[e] equality” has no match even among the philanthropic advance guard. But his plan to fund particular, personally approved institutions has been viewed with not a little suspicion. More recently Zuckerberg once again discovered that the relation between contribution and controversy is analogous to that between recto and verso in a book, during a town hall meeting at the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi, Oct. 28, 2015 where he was the chief guest. It must have caused some chagrin to this celebrity innovator and philanthropist that despite Facebook’s goals, in line with Zuckerberg’s avowedly philanthropic intentions to enhance human potential and promote equality, Free Basics has been permanently banned from India.

Under the admirable goal of enabling a “connected India,” Zuckerberg had proposed to offer Free Basics to Indian citizens, calling it a “first step to connecting 1 billion Indians to the opportunities online— and achieving digital equality in India.”

The application, or “app,” was originally called the Internet. org app; it is now part of Facebook’s broader Internet. org mission to offer free net access, closing the digital divide that puts at a disadvantage some less well-off users who cannot afford or do not have connectivity. Under the new name the “zero-rated” Free Basics app provides not only access to the internet but also to other (third-party) services that generally increase connectivity.

On the face of it, this goal is unexceptionable, and moreover it is analogous at least in principle to the Unique Identity initiative (the UID or “Aadhaar” project), which has already been put in place and which has at least informally been accepted as a dimension of India’s progress towards universal access for India’s billion-plus citizens to institutions such as banking – as an instance of digitally enhanced democracy in a modern India.

The Aadhaar project has not yet received official approval but it has nonetheless made significant headway already in its goal of providing a unique digital identity to every Indian citizen.

Yet, despite Facebook’s claims that it would help Indians to gain access to the global internet community, “serving as a bridge to the full, paid internet” in a way that would be “non-discriminatory, non-exclusive and open to all developers” (just as the Aadhaar project claims to be universally inclusive, and to offer an open platform accessible to all developers of secondary apps, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), led by Chair R.S. Sharma, was hostile to Facebook’s bid – a partnership with India’s Reliance Communications group – to introduce Free Basics.

Initially, TRAI issued a statement on “Over The Top Services,” which elicited a million Indian users to email TRAI their responses. Then, TRAI followed on with a “Consultation Paper” on “Differential Pricing for Data Services,” in December 2015, shortly after Zuckerberg’s appearance in New Delhi. That paper received over 5 lakh responses from the public. On February 8, 2016, it issued a “Prohibition of Discriminatory Tariffs for Data Services Regulations, 2016,” forbidding Internet Service Providers from offering or charging “discriminatory tariffs for data services on the basis of content being accessed by a consumer.”

The Net Neutrality debate – a debate about the principle that Internet service providers should be neutral

about network applications and content and not discriminate against or block some while preferentially treating others by for example charging different rates or providing different bandwidths – arose first when the phone service provider, Airtel, proposed to charge separately for voice-over-internet (VOIP) calls, but was forced to retreat in the face of the ensuing public outcry against Airtel’s “zero-rating” plan and against telecom industry plans to offer discounted rates for selected websites (selected by the telecom industries, effectively advantaging some sites over others).

Facebook’s equivalent proposal to offer Free Basics prompted a similar public protest from users, who insisted that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) should not discriminate on the basis of which content or service is being provided online.

TRAI agreed with the idea that consumers deserve “unhindered and non-discriminatory access to the internet.” It determined that differential pricing or data tariffs for internet content and apps is unacceptably discriminatory, as is differential pricing based on the source of those apps or that content (the Internet Service Provider) – except in some exceptional circumstances such as national crises. A penalty of up to Rs. 50 lakhs a day would be levied on any violators.

However, it recognized that true net neutrality requires ongoing vigilance and can be achieved only piecemeal and over the long term. At the same time it acknowledged the importance of institutionalizing a clear set of principles or rules, “a case-by-case approach based on principles [standards] or rules would “fail to provide much needed certainty to industry participants….service providers may refrain from deploying network technology” and perversely “lead to further uncertainty as service providers undergoing [the] investigation would logically try to differentiate their case from earlier precedents.”

This victory for net neutrality comes thanks in some measure to the many volunteers at Save the Internet (such as Apar Gupta, Raman Chima and Kiran Jonnalagadda and many others) and “associated NGOs, movements, entrepreneurs and activists who organized millions of Indians to stand up and petition TRAI to preserve some

of the underpinnings of the Internet.”

Thanks , but no thanks?

But in the light of these developments and the final decision by TRAI, how should we read the avowedly egalitarian rhetoric produced by Facebook to provide universal access to a billion Indians? After all, that looks prima facie like a laudable ambition, coherent with Zuckerberg’s own philanthropic rhetoric and at least on the surface consistent with democratic values also espoused by the Aadhaar initiative. And if we cast suspicion on Facebook’s apparently egalitarian rhetoric, should we read Zuckerberg’s philanthropic rhetoric with equal suspicion?

In fact, a close look at Facebook’s bid does invite skepticism about the rhetoric. Facebook’s bid came under suspicion primarily for its campaign to get users to send an email to TRAI, perhaps inspired by the crowd-sourcing model so popular in other campaigns to garner support for a host of causes both small and large; the resulting deluge of communications almost inundated the TRAI, prompting some to describe it as a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack.

Rohin Dharmakumar noted the irony that many of those who were recruited to mount this DDoS attack were unaware of having been involuntarily conscripted as “botnets.” After all the alleged “attack” visited upon TRAI seemed to have been initiated almost exactly 24 hours after TRAI published the aforementioned Consultation Paper on Differential Pricing for Data Services.

Across the nation, users began to see an alert pop up in their notifications, which read: “Act Now to Save Free Basics in India.”

As Dharmakumar writes on his Times of India blog, “Those who clicked the alert were taken to a specially designed page where Facebook, using emotion-laden, fear-inducing messaging like “Without your support, it could be banned in a matter of weeks”; “Unless you take action now, India could lose access to free basic Internet services” and “A small, vocal group of critics are lobbying to have Free Basics banned on the basis of net neutrality”, asked them to register their support for Free

Basics by sending TRAI a pre-drafted email.

Even the “free” in “Free Basics” invites scrutiny.

While signing on to Free Basics was indeed going to be “free,” the user would need to sign deals with individual ISPs and telecoms. In country, users would have no option but to use Reliance Communications – Facebook’s partner in this venture – as their sole mobile network. Now, that has been ordered terminated by TRAI. Furthermore, while Facebook had presented Free Basics as having a “zero rating,” such a rating is a violation of the principle of net neutrality. Before India’s net neutrality regulations had been formulated, the Department of Telecom had ordered a ban on such ratings.

But that was not the end of Facebook’s bending of the rules. Dharmakumar notes that “many Facebook users complained on Twitter that merely scrolling through Facebook’s Free Basics page on their phones caused Facebook to record their support, and then message that “support” to their friends in turn, thus rapidly spreading the Free Basics campaign across social circles. One user even said Facebook sent him a notification that his deceased uncle had supported Free Basics and so he should too.” Dharmakumar points out that what seemed most underhanded in Facebook’s messaging was its avoidance of any mention of the phrase “differential pricing,” which was highlighted in TRAI’s paper title; it was thus a rhetorically suspect attempt to sidestep the substantive issue of the case.

To obfuscate this rhetorical sidestep, Facebook “started expanding [its] campaign of deliberate disinformation to other media—SMSes, roadside hoardings, 2-page advertisements in every major newspaper almost every day, WhatsApp promotions, online video ads and radio. The messaging kept evolving, becoming progressively more and more “ vague, misleading and emotional.” Strangely, the messaging included not only pseudo-democratic exhortations such as “Support a connected India” but also such irrelevant gems as “Support Rahul [Gandhi?]” and even “Support Ganesh”!

Dharmakumar also notes that a Tamil-language SMS sent to mobile users in Tamil Nadu said “Free Basics provides all basic Internet services for free” and asked them to make a “missed call” to a number provided, registering their support. This is dishonest because while Free Basics of course does provide Facebook, it does not provide all basic Internet services (not even Google!), but Facebook was now hijacking those users’ mobiles to send responses to TRAI—up to 5.5 million responses.

Dharmakumar concludes with a warning: “If Facebook’s DDoS att e mp t s g o u n checked, why will a Google or Microsoft not want to leverage its Android/Search or Windows/Office users to hijack public policy agendas at scale? DDoS-ing a website is a criminal activity in most countries.

DDoS-ing a regulator should be no less.”

Facebook’s manipulations of language may not have been strictly legal, political, or criminal but they can be interrogated as possibly ethical missteps. They are in the first instance rhetorical manipulations or abuses. But they are not merely rhetorical, as if “rhetorical” were somehow to be opposed to “real.”

While we may find ourselves cheering the reconscientization of the world’s billionaires (as perhaps Paolo Friere might put it, were he alive today), their new resolve to give back some of the enormous wealth they have accumulated, that re-conscientization does not necessarily lift the burden of conscience in the realm of business, the source of that wealth, nor does it necessarily render unquestionable, excuse or launder the means through which that wealth was accumulated. Facebook’s grand rhetoric of “democratic access” and universal “equality” should not be allowed to stand without at least rhetorical interrogation or even deconstruction.

Yet that was not Facebook’s worst rhetorical blunder. To make matters worse, Facebook’s director Marc Andreessen took the high road, tweeting that “Denying world’s poorest free partial connectivity, when today they have none, for ideological reasons, strikes me as morally wrong.” Then, he went further – indeed too far, suggesting that India would have been better off had it remained under British rule! Suspicion about the neocolonial tendencies of the richest nations in the west are rife in the regions of the non-west that have only recently shaken off the yoke of colonialism, as L.K. Sharma notes in his article on openDemocracy.

In response to protests following his remarks, Andreessen may have apologized and retracted his comments as inadequately considered. But what he cannot erase is the fact that such neocolonialist rhetoric provides scaffolding even for the ideological revisionism of economic historians – who surely have had the luxury to consider their rhetoric more carefully – such as Niall Ferguson.

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.

MonDAY 29•02•2016

PERSPECTIVE

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

7

Why understanding the history Rural Youth Can Be Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs of nonviolence is essential We devote countless time to learning about wars and violence, but little to nonviolence. Two new books rectify this

Tristan Husby friend of mine who is an organizer and nonviolent trainer has a favorite exercise called “10-10,” which she uses when introducing nonviolence to new activists.

She divides the students into groups and tells them to write down, as quickly as possible, 10 wars. Afterwards, they review all of the different wars that people have recalled. While there are a number of wars that are repeated, often each group has come up with some war that other groups have not thought of at all. When I first participated in this exercise, I was excited to contribute the rather obscure Corinthian War. Then she asks the groups to write down 10 nonviolent struggles. This task always takes longer and some groups run out of time before they can complete the task.

The point of the “10-10” exercise is to drive home how our society pays close attention to wars and violent conflicts: We devote countless news articles, books and classes to retelling the history of these violent events. It is not surprising then that for the past 40 years much of the literature on nonviolence has been historical: Scholars and writers have uncovered, recorded and preserved examples of nonviolent struggles from across the world and from many different time periods so that activists can know for themselves and convince others of the efficacy of people power. Other writers, such as the philosopher Todd May and the theologian Ronald Sider, have adopted this idea of historical research being necessary to argue about and promote nonviolence in new books that they have each published.

Sider is an activist, teacher and writer, most famous for his 1977 book Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger. As a practicing Mennonite who bases his politics on his faith, Sider eschews the usual allies: Conservatives bemoan his comments on the need to redistribute wealth while those on the left are uncomfortable by his comments on queer relationships and abortion. While Sider comes to nonviolence through his faith, his approach is ecumenical and open to other points of view. In “Nonviolent Action: What Christian Ethics Demands But What Most Christians Have Never Really Tried,” Sider retells well-known examples like the Indian independence movement, as well as lesser known struggles like the movement to oust Liberian dictator Charles Taylor. These descriptions both benefit from and are constrained by Sider’s decision to focus on a key individual in each movement.

This focus allows him to include small details, like Leymah Gbowee’s nighttime doubts about her ability to rally women to oppose war in Liberia.

Sider also highlights the importance of prayer and spiritual resolve, perhaps most clearly in how Cardinal Jaime Sin and Catholic nuns helped organize Filipino people to stand up to dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ army in the 1980s. However, this focus on a great individual works against Sider’s concluding argument, which is that the power of nonviolence will be even greater if it is supported and practiced at an institutional level.

Sider’s call for the creation and maintenance of nonviolent institutions is the core of his conclusion.

Even though the title of Sider’s book indicates that he is specifically addressing Christians, his arguments do not rely on his readers having a Christian perspective on violence or anything else. Indeed, Sider refuses to directly address questions about the morality of violence, instead exhorting readers to consider the moral superiority of nonviolence. With this moral superiority in place, he then uses historical examples to show that nonviolence can accom-

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plish the goals that people usually assume require violent means, such as overthrowing governments and casting out occupiers.

Sider does not attack those who think that violence is justified for such goals, but thinks that they primarily hold this position because they do not realize how effective nonviolence can be. But since nonviolence is effective and morally superior to violence, it at least deserves the training, funding and building institutional support that our society currently gives to explicitly violent methods.

In other words, Sider imagines a world in which peace studies departments match the size of military academies and volunteers at nonviolent organizations outnumber soldiers.

It is not surprising that Sider holds this vision, considering — as he noted in his account of peacemakers in Nicaragua — he has, on occasion, put himself in danger in order to prevent war. As part of an organization called Witness for Peace, Sider went to Nicaragua in order to put himself between the warring Contras and Sandinistas. Sider also chronicles the history of similar organizations, including groups such as Christian Peacemaker Teams and Nonviolent Peaceforce.

May’s book, Nonviolent Resistance: a Philosophical Introduction, is likewise inspired but not focused on the author’s own experience with nonviolence. In the preface, May explains that he was prompted to reflect about nonviolence in part because of his experience protesting U.S. nuclear arms in the 1980s. His book is not framed as a demand that political struggles be nonviolent, but rather as a philosophical investigation of nonviolence. To answer this question, May turns to a variety of thinkers, including Martin Luther King and Gandhi, but also Michael Rosen, a historian of ideas, and the philosophers Kant and Rancière. For May, the moral preference for nonviolence is the result of how it rests on and interacts with dignity and equality. It is a form of struggle that grants both the oppressed and the oppressors chances to become better people.

While such a description runs the risk of marking May as a wishy-washy sentimentalist, he is far from it. Rather, he points out that nonviolence creates opportunities in which oppressors can act out of purely selfish reasons that nonetheless benefit the oppressed. For instance, when the Filipinos confronted the army in order to oust Marcos, May notes the soldiers may have disobeyed Marcos’ orders because they wanted to avoid being vilified for shooting on innocent protesters. This kind of moral calculation was not done with the interests of the Filipinos in mind, but nonetheless protected the Filipinos and helped their campaign. In addition to the movement against Marcos, May also philosophizes on historical examples such as the Estonian struggle against the Soviet Union, the Egyptian ouster of Hosni Mubarak and Occupy Wall Street.

Since May’s book is an introduction to the philosophy of nonviolence, the jargon is kept to a minimum. Nevertheless, his analyses of the relationship between oppressors and the oppressed is sophis-

ticated, elegant and worthy of rereading. This elegance is in part a result of May’s careful work on definitions, including what kind of violence nonviolence rejects. He considers various kinds of violence, such as psychological violence, violence to property and structural violence. Two particularly important questions that May addresses are whether violence can be moral (May answers yes) and whether nonviolence can be coercive (again, yes).

May ends with a view towards the future, specifically the work of overthrowing neoliberalism.

While May believes that nonviolence offers the best tools to oust this economic system, he is also honest that it will be quite different than using nonviolent struggle to oust dictators, mainly because a dictator has a human face while neoliberalism is a complex series of relationships between workers and bosses, owners and property.

May and Sider do not have the historical examples to show that nonviolence can do what they hope it can do, namely stop future wars and create a just economic system. But this doesn’t have to be a problem. As Nietzsche wrote, “The historian looks backwards; ultimately he also believes backwards.”

In other words, to use nonviolence to make a better future one does not necessarily need a solid understanding of its history. Indeed, as May’s and Sider’s own historical examples show, one does not need to know the history of nonviolence to harness its power. But a solid understanding of what it is and why it works is critical.

In regards to their thoughts on nonviolence rather than history, May’s writing is more useful than Sider’s. May’s thoughts on nonviolence are at times quite wonky, however his arguments should provide new appreciation even for those who know a great deal of the history of nonviolence or who have practiced it for many years. Perhaps more importantly, his words and ideas have the potential to support the dedication of an activist through harrowing times. Sider’s book is less likely to have the same kind of impact. Since Sider does not explore why nonviolence is moral, his preference for it is based on unstated ideas about the immorality of violence. By not condemning violence, Sider opens his book to a wider audience, but his use of historical examples to propel his argument hints that Sider has doubts about the persuasive power of theology.

That May and Sider both felt that their books needed to include a great deal of history is unfortunate, as neither are particularly strong historians.

Both books share the problem of being very removed from the original events; that is, neither have conducted original interviews or looked at primary documents such as governmental records. Instead they write their stories based on the narratives provided by historians, journalists or social scientists.

As the “10-10” exercise shows, many people do not know that nonviolence even has the power to overthrow dictators. Does nonviolent resistance have the power to overthrow neoliberalism and stop war, as May and Sider argue that it does? The future, not history, will answer this question.

The Morung Express

Nteranya Sanginga Inter Press Service

olstering widespread prosperity in Africa is a key necessity if the world is to achieve its commitments to eradicate poverty and hunger by 2030.

The sheer numbers indicate the scale of the challenge, and also strong hints as to the path to pursue.

The continent’s population has doubled in three decades, and while urbanization has moved at a blistering pace, it has not offset the number of people living in rural areas. Agricultural productivity has in fact increased faster than the global average, but not fast enough to resolve the paradox of the continent with a majority of the world’s unfarmed arable land remaining a net importer of food.

Those are the facts. And they highlight some basic principles: Africa has huge potential, but progress must include the rural and agricultural sectors. Smallholders contribute around 80 percent of sub-Saharan Africa’s food supply, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and these are the critical enterprises that must be tapped to produce incomes, jobs and opportunities.

Much work is being done by governments and international organizations to shore up food security, through social protection and targeted agricultural development programs. What we at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture think is essential is that people themselves have to be enabled to truly leverage their own and their continent’s potential. While there is absolutely a role for public policies and large private-sector initiatives to make this happen, individual empowerment is also essential.

On the surface, that is obvious. While our core mandate is to be the lead research partner facilitating agricultural solutions for hunger and poverty in the tropics, our core vision is based on the idea that the connecting links for the broad array of initiatives around the land, not always perfectly coordinated, are entrepreneurs.

Family farmers are far and away the world’s largest investors in agriculture. Likewise, bottom-up business activity is the most efficient way to maximize efficiency. That is why IITA is investing heavily in spreading our Business Incubation Platform, a model closely linked to our Youth Agripreneurs programs and aimed at accelerating the rollout of a series of useful services to be offered along the value chain. Our approach is particularly geared to fostering productive and profitable opportunities for youth, especially rural youth. Not all youth, after all, can permanently migrate to cities; and if they were to do so, the countryside would suffer from an ageing work force.

Let me emphasize that the goal here is to make money, not just spend it! I jest, but only to hammer home the point that real sustainability requires viable networks that can carry research ideas to positive fruition.

Consider NoduMax, one of our Business Incubation Platform’s star developments. This is a legume inoculant for soybeans that allows them to access more nitrogen from the air – which ultimately also improves soil fertility – and thus lead to up to 450 kilograms of additional yield per hectare. It’s easy to use and affordable.

The technology was developed in our Business Incubation Platform in Ibadan. Now the time is ripe to produce it in larger quantities and for sales networks to spread the word. All of this is a form of sustainably intensifying agricultural production and creating greater food security, and its driving force does not involve touching a till or needing to own new land.

We’re also developing aflasafe strains to combat the aflatoxins that are such a scourge to major staple crops across Africa.

Aflasafe is a natural biological control product developed by IITA and partners to fight aflatoxin contamination. Again, we incubate its development, but it can easily be transferred to the private sector and scaled up in multiple sites, meaning more jobs in construction, manufacturing and as laboratory analysts.

Both products also of course increase the food supply – through yields or reduction of losses – and thus catalyze further commercial opportunities.

Projects in the works include an innovative fish-pond system and food-processing activities for our mandate crops: cassava, soybean, cowpea, yam, plantain and banana.

Operating our business incubation platform also means individuals naturally network, meeting partners, potential funders and others useful to an array of enterprises, which may range from innovative risk-sharing or credit-supply services to the discovery and establishment of new markets for both inputs and specialty crops. These “externalities” are intrinsic to the whole idea that agriculture is not an ancestral destiny for the poor but an exciting frontier that can be conquered by Africa’s burgeoning demographic group: Youth.

While policy makers have a lot of work to do to create enabling environments for smallholder farmer families to prosper, those environments must also be populated, and that is what we are trying to do.

POLL rESULTS

Do you believe anD have hope that nagas can overcome tribalism anD factionalism?

Some of those who voted YES had this to say: • Yes. Nagas are reasonable people with the exception of some fringe elements who are rebellious and blind to reasoning. If the majority of the Naga do not allow these fringe elements to dominate over us, if we jointly fight these elements, hope is there.

• Yes why not. We need a dynamic leader who will rise above everything else and just concentrate on development. When peoples mindset are developed and we see development everywhere than all this isms and factions will die a natural dead. This gen will have to work hard to overcome all these obstacles for a better tomorrow. We all can start by saying I am from Kohima or Wokha instead of I am Angami or Lotha tribe • Yes...if we naga from four corner come into one roof with common goal objective... With good faith n trust..

• Most of us are pessimistic with unity and reconciliation because our leaders have failed to put their personal ego and differences aside. But I say YES, because we have no other way to go. Nagas have no choice but to overcome our tribalism and factionalism. We need to recognize that Nagas can achieve our rights and our freedom only when we are able to over come factionalism and rise above our tribes.

• Yes in the next 20-30 years.

• Yes. Provided that the mentality of the people are change by concentizing the masses about the beauty of communal harmony. Tribalism and factionalism should actually be two different topics to discuss.

• Yes, we need people with a vision and hope • Yes, if only the uneducated people starts to educate the educated people on this issue • Yes we can. The demand for good governance is getting louder and louder. Tribalism thrives when there is weak governance and lack of qualitative education. Nagas are lagging behind in many things.

However education is not one of them. We are mov-

pected from the state government.

• NO. The introvert mindset from the people will hardly blow away. It is already in the blood and the people has least concern for others existence.

• No. Already in our blood we are a proud people who have no respect and regard for others. How Some of those who voted NO had this to say: • I don't think so. I was born and educated in Naga- can egoistic people like us bow down.

• I'm not optimistic about land, but when I had any this one. Factions and argument sometimes with tribalism will remain. But my Naga friends they me so long as the Nagas can shit non-locals and even admit our differences, my school principal also and be willing to come use abusive words .. to the reconciliation table • At least not in the next based on the goodwill of decade, excuse my skepthe Nagas as a whole, ticism though there's some possibil• No. Nagas cannot overity. Nevertheless, at the come tribalism until and present moment, factions unless people stop stayseems to be birthing more ing we are Angamis, they and more groups annualare Aos, we are Sumis, ly and isms are popping they are Lothas and so up somewhere in and on. When people don’t around our boundaries. like to share their powers So for the moment, I say, with others, there will be NO. more factions or groups • No.. it's getting worse, which may divide Naga nothing better to have society and we may be a hope in overcoming, separated. May God save ism's or factions.

Nagaland.

YES NO OTHER • Well with tribalism no • Impossible. Everybody its already like an instinct Say Big Big words against Tribalism on social media but in reality Ism is every- though it may remain dormant in space itll always find its path to express There are also measure to keep this where! Land of Ism...

• Nagas are from different tribes so tribalism will be at temperament. Factionalism i believe it cn b overthere. We should respect each other and live as come though not absolutely. good neighbours. As for factionaism; for some it is • No. As of now, the future looks bleak. Our “EGO’s either their way or nothing else so there will be more EGOS” have become too big. and more especially when there is nothing good ex- • No tribe or nation can overcome this. Leave ing ahead at a reasonable comfortable pace. In due time, quality education will give rise to good governance. When there is good governance. There is no or very little space for tribalism to sneak in.

43%

50%

07%

about Nagas. It is a part of social construction and norm.

• No. “ISMs” is trending … what we have become?

For now, we don’t seem to be heading at looking one another above tribalism and factionalism.

• A big No! this ism will never go away how much we developed and move forward. The biggest crunch is the society not politics as we make a union within a union inside the union creating more division. Just look at the amount of unions in the tribes breaks up the villages then comes the clans. Not a single iota of hope to overcome what we have already created.

Some of those who voted OTHERS had this to say: • This is an important question that does not have any easy answers. Whatever the outcome, the fact is that Nagas will always be forever one nation.

Along the way there will be many bumps, but in the end we shall overcome.

• Yes, Factionalism but not tribalism lol • Is there hope? Where can we go? We need to learn to live together. Let us stop this blame game.

Some of our politicians, bureaucrats and retired bureaucrats and underground leaders keep dividing us further with their words and by labelling Nagaland Nagas, Manipur Nagas, Arunachali Nagas. Such language is divisive. I can assure you that many of them were born as Assamese Nagas because the State of Nagaland was formed only in the 60s. So its better that they don’t point fingers at others. We need to stop following leaders that keep dividing us.

• Until and unless the entire Naga facebook groups are closed, tribalism will increase everyday.

Groupism and tribalism are escalating day by day in different Naga facebook groups which becomes additional ingredient.

• As long as there are tribes, tribalism is forever in Nagaland and factionalism goes hand in hand with it. I don't 'believe' but 'hope' is cheaper.

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

MondAY 29•02•2016

INDIA

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

PM says Budget presentation is his 'exam' CBFC should do away with the NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (PTI): "I have an exam tomorrow," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today referring to presentation of General Budget in Parliament as he gave a pep talk to motivate students appearing for board exams for which he even roped icons like Sachin Tendulkar and Vishwanathan Anand.

Modi said he was "full of confidence" ahead of his "examination" by 125 crore people, a trait which he wanted students to emulate when they appear for their examinations for Class X and XII starting Tuesday.

In his monthly radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat', he emphasised that students should appear for the exams with a "positive approach" having free and calm mind without any anxiety. He also asked parents not to put pressure on them.

In this context, he cited his example in the context of presentation of Budget which all the countrymen closely monitor and analyse.

"Friends, your exams are starting. I too have exam tomorrow. The country's 125 crore people are going to take my examination," the Prime Minister said, while pointing out that Budget is being presented tomorrow.

"But you must have seen how healthy I am feeling, how full of confidence I am. Let my exams take place tomorrow and yours day after and may all of us succeed so that the nation succeeds...Move ahead with a free mind, without any tension of success or failure," he said in his 35-minute programme.

To lay stress on a positive and tension-free approach, Modi roped in Sachin, Anand besides Bharat Ratna scientist C N R Rao and spiritual leader Murari Bapu, whose messages were played during the programme. They gave their own examples of how they approached their exams in their respective fields, keeping tension aside.

Underlining that "positive approach" and "positive frame of mind" help in all aspects of life, the Prime

term 'censorship': Member

Minister talked about himself and said when he comes across some issues which he is not familiar with, he concentrates to deal with them.

"Sometimes I feel tension within. Then I feel that I should relax a bit so that I feel good. So I have developed my own technique. I do some deep breathing.

I take deep breath three times, five times. It may take a few seconds but my mind becomes ready to deal with the situation with a calm mind. This may be my experience but this may help you too," he told the students.

Modi, a practioner of yoga, also referred to this art and mentioned how it helps in improving concentration and strengthening inner peace.

To motivate the students, the Prime Minister also invoked Thomas Alva Edison, who invented electricity, and J K Rowling of Harry Potter fame, saying their success had possibly come after many failures.

"There is success in failure too" if there is a positive approach, he said, while asking students to have dedication, determination and diligence to achieve success.

Giving example of Sachin, Modi asked students not be burdened by expectations of others but set

their own targets with "free thinking, free mind and independent capability".

He told students that nobody can stop them if they set out to break their own records. The students should link their efforts to acheive big goals like Sachin and even if the targets are not achieved, do not be demoralised but try harder, Modi said.

Sachin, in his message played during the programme, said, "I understand that exams are starting in a few days. Many of you must be tense....I want to say that your thinking needs to be positive, then positive results will follow.

So be positive. God will give you good results... Write the exams with free mind and results will be good."

He said there will be many expectations of the students from their parents, teachers, family members and friends who all will keep enquiring about their preparations and their expected percentage.

"I will only say that you yourself set your targets and don't come under pressure of expectations of others. Work hard but set a realistic achievable target and try to achieve it," said the cricket icon.

Giving his own example, he said, "When I played cricket, there were many expectations from me. In

the last 24 years, there have been many tough moments and at times good moments also. But people's expectations kept rising with time. So I had to find a solution. I thought that I will keep only my expectations and set my own targets.

"If I am able to achieve those targets, then I am able to do some good for the country... I always focussed on the ball and with time my targets were achieved.

Emphasising that students should have sound sleep before appearing for exams, the Prime Minister said himself sleeps less, which was his "shortcoming" and he was trying to rectify it.

"I agree that sleeping on time and deep sleep are as important as other activities during the day.

I am lucky that I sleep less but I have deep sleep. This helps," he said.

Underlining the need for discipline and focus in life, Modi gave the example of world chess champion Vishwanathan Anand, saying his concentration is always intense when he plays the game and checkmates others, like Arjun's target of the eye of a fish.

Anand asked students to have good sleep, eat well and be calm when they appear for examinations.

"It is important not to put too much pressure on yourself, don't keep your expectations too high. Just see it as a challenge... Don't be over-confident. But don't be pessimistic either," he said.

Modi added that if a person lacks confidence, then there is no peace within, which affects work. Rao asked students to decide what they want and try to achieve it through their "doggedness, dedication and tenacity. With all these qualities, you will succeed in all examinations and all other endeavours."

The Prime Minister noted that the country today celebrates the National Science Day to commemorate the announcement of Nobel Laureate C V Raman's discovery 'Raman Effect' in 1928.

This year's theme is 'Make in India Science and Technology Driven Innovations', he said as he pitched for innovation.

He also said that Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) was being established in India, becoming only the third country in the world to have it.

He lauded the Indian scientists for being part of the recent discovery of Gravitational Waves which had confirmed Einstein's theory.

AgRA, FEBRUARY 28 (IANS): Urging the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to drop the term 'censorship', Vani Tripathi Tikoo, a member, has said that the board should stick to certification of films rather than meddling with the creative freedom of the filmmakers.

Speaking to IANS on Saturday on the sidelines of the Taj Literature festival, Tripathi said the whole process of film certification needs revamping. The third edition of the festival was inaugurated on Friday.

"The term 'censor' is coined by the British and it's high time we did away with it. CBFC is a film certification body and its only duty is to ensure that the movies which go out for public viewing should be deemed suitable for the age of the audience," said the actor-turnedpolitician.

Tripathi also felt that the CBFC should stop taking the high moral ground and refrain from interfering with creative works. "We, the members of the board, think that

we are the guardians of morality in the country.

We take ourselves too seriously ... we have no business to take creative decision on any creative work," added the BJP leader.

Maintaining that certification of cinema is a sociological issue, she said that banning an artwork is unacceptable.

"We are not here to delete or add. The context of the narrative of the movie is of prime importance when you are certifying," she said.

Citing the example of the movie "Bandit Queen", made in 1994 by Shekhar Kapur and which was banned on grounds of obscenity, she said the board shouldn't take positions on any films. "'Bandit Queen' was banned for a scene for frontal nudity which was intrinsic for the narrative of the movie. Finally, when it got a nod from the Supreme Court after a year, pirated copies were already out," she said.

She also maintained that the freedom to watch a movie should be left to the adult audience. "In

the US, X-rated films are showed in theatres after midnight. If we have the right to choose a government at 18 years, then we should be given the freedom to watch movies of our choice too," she said.

CBFC came under criticism last year for banning a set of cuss words in movies. It was also rocked with allegations of political appointments including chairman Pahlaj Nihalani, who is allegedly a Modi acolyte.

However, Tripathi refuted allegations of political interference in the affairs of the CBFC. "There is no political pressure of any sort. The chairman has never interfered in the matters of the board," she maintained.

Tripathi also said that she is looking forward to the recommendations of the Shyam Benegal Committee, appointed to recommend steps to revamp the CBFC. The committee comprises filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, advertising expert Piyush Pandey and critic Bhawana Somaya, among others.

Congress, CPI-M leadership issues THIRUvANANTHAPURAm, FEBRUARY 28 (IANS): Who will lead the Congress and the CPI-M in the coming assembly elections in Kerala? Both parties appear to be unsure.

Over the years, power has changed hands in the state between the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) headed by the Communist Party of IndiaMarxist (CPI-M).

The Left has two frontrunners, both from the CPI-M. One is the 92-year-old former chief minister V.S. Achuthanandan, the other is long-time rival, Pinarayi Vijayan, 71. The former is considered widely popular and the latter is seen a party strongman.

Vijayan has just ended a successful month-long tour of the state during which he covered all 140 assembly constituencies.

CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury, whose closeness to Achuthanandan is well known, and party leader S. Ramachandran Pillai will take part in party leadership meetings here on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The CPI-M has to decide whether both Achuthanandan and Vijayan need to contest the elections and, if yes, who will lead the battle, party sources said.

Within the Congress, despite a full-term run by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, state Congress president V.M. Sudheeran and Home Minister Ramesh Chen-

nithala are expected to give Chandy a fair challenge.

Chandy, whose UDF has 72 seats in the 140-member Kerala assembly, surprised many when he became the first Congress chief minister after K. Karunakaran (198287) to complete the full five-year tenure.

While it has not been decided yet if Sudheeran should contest the election, Chennithala, who withdrew at the last minute in 2011, is certain to throw his hat into the ring this time.

If that happens, there may be more than one claimant for the post of chief minister - if the UDF comes on top again. Similarly, if both Vijayan and Achuthanandan contest, the CPI-M will also face a dilemma.

Youth groups demand removal of Irani, Dattatreya from cabinet India to establish lab to study gravitational waves: Modi

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (IANS): Eleven youth organisations on Sunday demanded the removal of union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya as well as Hyderabad University Vice Chancellor Appa Rao Podile over the Rohith Vemula suicide case.

The also announced the formation of a joint platform -- Youth Against Communalism -- against what they dubbed the "atrocities of the communal forces".

"We demand the removal of Smriti and Dattatreaya from the union cabinet and Podile as vice

chancellor," Communist Party of India-Marxist MP and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) president M.B. Rajesh told reporters here.

"We strongly condemn the attacks on universities unleashed by the Sangh Parivar and central government throughout the country. The Hyderabad University and Jawaharlal Nehru University are the latest victim in this ongoing series of communal attacks,” he added.

Rajesh also demanded the withdrawal of sedition case against JNU Students Union president Kahaiya Kumar and others.

“Certain rowdy lawyers who assaulted journalists, JNU teachers and students at the Patiala House court (on February 15) and the JNUSU president (February 17) should also be arrested and strict action taken against them,” Rajesh demanded.

He also sought strong action against Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi as "he was responsible for the entire fiasco in the court complex".

“The government is spreading blatant lies about the incidents in the JNU and Hyderabad University.

Even morphed videos were created as evidences. We

are launching this forum to unite the democratic youth organisations against the atrocities of the communal forces,” Rajesh said.

This joint forum will hold an all-India convention here on March 15. It will launch protests across the country from March 23 to March 31.

The Youth Against Communalism includes representatives of the Democratic Youth Federation of India, All India Youth Forum, Revolutionary Youth Front, youth wings of political parties like Janata Dal-United, Rashtriya Janata Dal and MDMK among others.

Vinod Rai appointed first Chairman of Banks Board Bureau NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (PTI): Former CAG Vinod Rai was today appointed first Chairman of the Banks Board Bureau, which will advise the government on top-level appointments at public sector lenders and ways to address the bad loans problem among other issues.

Besides, ICICI Bank's former Joint Managing Director H N Sinor, Bank of Baroda's former CMD Anil K Khandelwal and rating agency CRISIL's former chief Rupa Kudwa have been appointed members.

In a statement, the government said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the proposal of the Department of Financial Services for

the constitution of Banks Board Bureau (BBB) with the named persons as "part-time Chairman/ Members, besides the exofficio official members, for a period of two years".

There was no immediate comments from Rai, who is currently in Singapore. The bureau has been set up at a time when public sector banks are grappling with a huge problem of bad loans with their collective gross NPAs (Non Performing Assets) approaching Rs 4 lakh crore level.

Rai was the Comptroller and Auditor General between January 2008 and May 2013, during which a number of CAG reports led to various scams including in the telecom and coal sectors coming to light.

The bureau will give recommendations on appointment of directors in public sector banks and advise on ways to raise funds and mergers and acquisitions to the lenders.

There are 22 stateowned banks in India including SBI, IDBI Bank and Bhartiya Mahila Bank.

The BBB was earlier proposed by the government as a body of eminent professionals and officials, which will replace the Appointments Board for appointment of Whole-time Directors as well as non-Executive Chairman of PSBs. They will also constantly engage with the Board of Directors of all the public sector banks

to formulate appropriate strategies for their growth and development.

The bureau will search and select heads of public sector banks and help them develop differentiated strategies of capital raising plans to innovative financial methods and instruments.

It would also be responsible for selection of non-executive chairman and non-official directors on the boards.

Besides, the body will also steer strategy discussion on consolidation based on the requirement.

The government wants to encourage bank boards to restructure their business strategy and also suggest way forward for their consolidation and merger with other banks.

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 28 (IANS): India has decided to establish a Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) where gravitational waves can be studied, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Sunday.

In his monthly radio programme Mann ki Baat, Modi said Indian scientists

were also in the research team that studied gravitational waves.

The laboratory will be third of its kind in the world after Hanford in Washington and Livingston in Louisiana, both in the US. "Recently the Gravitational Waves have been discovered by the scientific community of the world,

which is indeed a major achievement. We should be proud of the fact that Indian scientists were also part of it. Keeping this in mind, we have taken a decision to open a LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) in India," said Modi.

LIGO is a national facility for gravitational-wave

research, providing opportunities for the broader scientific community to participate in detector development, observation, and data analysis.

The prime minister announced that within its limited resources India will also participate and contribute in the research through the LIGO.

'Won't take power unless for people's prosperity' SRINAgAR, FEBRUARY 28 (IANS): Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presiden, Mehbooba Mufti said on Sunday that her party would not assume the reins of power in Jammu and Kashmir unless it is certain that doing so would bring peace and prosperity to the common man.

Addressing a rally of PDP workers in Anantnag district, she said: "You have trusted my father (Mufti Muhammad Sayeed) with eyes closed; please trust me only with open eyes.

"It would never be my aim to assume the reins of power in the state so that I and my ministers have sirens, flags and cavalcades of pomp and show.

"If I choose to assume power, it would have to be for peace. It would have to be for friendly relations between India and Pakistan which is essential for peace in Jammu and Kashmir.

Noting that "these things are presently threatened", she noted: "Youth are getting disgruntled with the situation and some of them are taking to the gun.

This is a serious develop-

ment."

Citing the recent destruction of the Entrepreneurship Development Institute in a gunfight between militants and security forces, Mehbooba said that there was a "legacy that is being threatened and destroyed".

"The main challenge for my party is not the National Conference or power. It

is to ensure continuing the legacy of my late father who would tell me towards the end of his life that he felt sorry for having done very little for the workers who trusted and relentlessly supported him. My challenge is that," she said.

There is intense speculations in Kashmir that a PDP-BJP coalition government would assume power

in the state after the union budget which is being presented in parliament on Monday.

These speculations also say the union budget is likely to contain a financial package for the state announcing two smart cities for the state and financial assistance for buying back two hydro power projects from the NHPC.

MondaY 29•02 •2016

WORLD

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

9

Iran’s pragmatic Rouhani cheers election wins TEHRAN, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERs): Iranian President Hassan Rouhani won an emphatic vote of confidence and reformist partners secured surprise gains in parliament in early results from elections that could accelerate the Islamic Republic's emergence from years of isolation.

While gains by moderates and reformists in Friday's polls were most evident in the capital, Tehran, the sheer scale of the advances there suggests a legislature more friendly to the pragmatist Rouhani has emerged as a distinct possibility.

A loosening of control by the anti-Western hardliners who currently dominate the 290-seat parliament could strengthen his hand to open Iran further to foreign trade and investment following last year's breakthrough nuclear deal.

A reformist-backed list of candidates aligned with Rouhani was on course to win all 30 parliamentary seats in Tehran, initial results released on Sunday showed. Top conservative candidate Gholamali Haddad Adel was set to lose his seat.

"The people showed their power once again and gave more credibility and strength to their elected government," Rouhani said, adding he would

work with anyone who won election to build a future for the industrialised, oil-exporting country.

The polls were seen by analysts as a potential turning point for Iran, where nearly 60 percent of its 80 million population is under 30 and eager to engage with the world following the lifting of most sanctions.

"Based on the votes that we have so far it looks like the principlists will lose the majority in the next Majlis (parliament) shy of 50 percent. The reformists gained 30 percent and independent candidates did better than before, gaining 20 percent," said Foad Izadi, an assistant professor at the Faculty of World Studies in Tehran University.

Principlists, otherwise known as hardliners, hold 65 percent of the outgoing parliament and the rest is divided between reformists and independents who traditionally support Rouhani.

Izadi said the reformists' strong lead was prompted by Rouhani's success in reaching a nuclear agreement between Iran and international powers, the removal of most of the punitive sanctions that had strangled the country's economy over the past decade and restoration of relations with the West.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani attend a news conference with Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann in Tehran on February 27, 2016. (Reuters Photo)

"It is a sweeping victory for Tehran but for other cities it is not yet clear cut. It is beyond expectations," he added.

Etemad, a reformist newspaper whose managing-editor Elias Hazrati won a seat in Tehran, has chosen the first headline of “clean up in the parliament.”

"The next parliament will be like no other parliament in the history of Iran as no political faction will have the absolute say," the newspaper said on its front-page.

Millions crowded polling stations on Friday to vote for parliament and the Assembly

of Experts, which selects the country's highest authority, the supreme leader. Both bodies have been in the hands of hardliners for years.

Supporters of Rouhani, who promoted the nuclear deal, were pitted against hardliners close to Supreme Leader Aya-

tollah Ali Khamenei, who are mad-Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi apwary of detente with Western peared unlikely to win a seat, countries. according to partial results.

The results were initially anACUMEN nounced as final in an official Rouhani and key ally and statement. A later statement former President Akbar Hash- said the results were partial emi Rafsanjani were leading the and a final tally would be anrace for the Assembly of Experts nounced in due course. with most votes counted, and appeared to be sure of winning INFLUENCE seats, early results released on A Reuters tally, based on offiSaturday showed. cial results published so far, sugUntil now, the contest for gested the pro-Rouhani camp this seat of clerical power was and allied independents were an unremarkable event, but not leading in the parliamentary this time. Because of Khame- vote. Some moderate conservanei’s health and age, 76, the new tives, including current speaker assembly members who serve Ali Larijani, support Rouhani. eight-year terms are likely to A breakdown of the results choose his successor. The next had independents on 44, releader could well be among formists on 79, and hardlinthose elected this week. ers on 106, the tally showed. A Rafsanjani is among the number of seats will be decided founders of the Islamic Re- in run-offs in late April because public and was its president no candidate won the required from 1989-1997. Nearly always 25 percent of votes cast. Eight of at the centre of Iran's intricate the initial winners were women. webs of power, the arch-fixer is Analyst say the large numfamous for his pragmatism and ber of independents may be sigpolitical acumen. nificant as they could cooperate Two prominent hardliners across ideological lines with Rouwere on course to be elected hani's government. Whatever the with lesser scores in the experts outcome, Iran's political system assembly race: Ahmad Jannati places much power in the hands was in 11th place and the as- of the conservative Islamic estabsembly's current chairman, lishment including the GuardMohammad Yazdi, was 15th. ian Council, which vets all laws Arch-conservative Moham- passed by parliament.

EU’s Tower of Babel may fall while leaders distracted PARIs, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERs): It's little wonder the European Union can't find common solutions to Europe's urgent problems when its main members are having such different national conversations.

Like the biblical Tower of Babel, Europe's ambitious construction is in danger of toppling because its peoples are not speaking the same political language.

Tune in to Germany and the fierce debate is all about how to cope with an influx of a million migrants, whether to limit the numbers and, in some quarters, how to stop them coming.

Switch to France and you're listening to a nation that thinks it is at war, still living under a state of emergency and in shock after last November's attacks

by Islamist militants that killed 130 people in Paris.

Flip to Britain and the talk is all of national sovereignty and a possible Brexit in the build-up to a June referendum that might end the country's schizophrenic membership of the EU. Look east to Poland and people are arguing over the new government's moves to curb the media and the constitutional court, over who may have been a Communist informer 40 years ago, and over the perceived Russian threat to eastern

Europe today.

Around central Europe the discussion is about how to resist German pressure to take in a share of refugees.

Turn south and the Italians and Portuguese are engrossed in domestically focused debates about how to revive economic growth despite the EU's budgetary corset while cleaning up legacy bank problems.

Spain meanwhile is preoccupied by Catalan separatism, political paralysis and the risk of a breakup of the country.

When those countries' leaders come to Brussels, they often cannot even agree what they should be discussing.

For the last two EU summits, Britain wanted the focus to be on its demands for a renegotiation of its membership terms to give Prime Minister David Cameron a "new settlement" he can sell in a June 23 referendum on whether to stay in the bloc.

He secured a deal on Feb. 19, but many fellow leaders were frustrated at having to spend time on what they see as side issues and rhetorical formulations when their house is on fire.

"Everyone in the room and corridors was rather irritated that here we are dealing with some rather obscure issues of child

benefits indexation, while we have real problems in Syria, member states closing borders, major issues we should really be on instead of this," a diplomat involved in the talks said.

G erman Chancellor Angela Merkel, fighting for her political life against domestic critics of her open door for refugees, wanted the EU to concentrate on urgent measures to secure Europe's external borders, register migrants, send home rejected asylum seekers and share out refugees among EU states.

Desperate to find a common "European solution" to the migration crisis, she has forced yet another European summit on March 7 with Turkey, days before three German regional elections in which anti-immigration rightists could make big gains.

French President Francois Hollande, for his part, goes to Brussels seeking more cooperation against terrorism and support for military action against Islamic State in Syria and Libya.

His prime minister, Manuel Valls, irked German officials by using a trip to the Munich Security Conference to criticize Merkel's welcome for refugees and declare that Europe could not take any more migrants.

A young Syrian refugee screams in pain while he and hundreds of others line up at the Greek-Macedonian border as the border crossing is reopened briefly near the Greek village of Idomeni. (Reuters Photo)

Dozens killed, wounded in Afghanistan suicide attacks KABUL, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERs): A Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up near the Afghan defence ministry in Kabul on Saturday, causing heavy casualties just hours after an attack in the eastern province of Kunar killed 13 people and put prospects for new peace talks in doubt. The attack in Kabul killed 15 people and wounded 33, most of them defence ministry staff leaving their offices, according to ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri.

Witnesses at the scene, where a large plume of smoke spiralled into the sky, said they had seen a number

of bodies on the ground. The area was sealed off as police and army vehicles surrounded the blast site.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which the movement's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said had killed 23 officers and wounded 29 others. He said there were no civilian casualties. The highprofile attack came as officials from Afghanistan, Pakistan, the United States and China have been pressing for a resumption of the peace process, interrupted last year, between the Western-backed government in Kabul and the Taliban.

But it remains unclear whether the Taliban, struggling to contain deep internal divisions, will take part in direct peace talks that the four-nation group hope will be held in Islamabad as early as next week.

In a statement issued after the attack in Kunar, President Ashraf Ghani said his government would not conduct peace talks with groups that killed innocent people and said security forces would step up the fight against terrorism. The Taliban, fighting to restore hardline Islamist rule in Afghanistan, has conducted a series of attacks in Kabul and oth-

er areas this year and has pressed its military campaign in the southern province of Helmand, where it has forced government troops to pull out of a number of districts.

Earlier on Saturday, a suicide bomber killed a local militia commander and at least 12 others outside the governor's compound in Asadabad, the provincial capital of Kunar, near the border with Pakistan. Provincial Governor Wahidullah Kalimzai said the bomber rode up on a motorcycle to the entrance of the compound and blew himself up, wounding at least 40 people.

South Korea Clinton trounces Sanders before "Super Tuesday" Record-breaking filibuster runs beyond 100 hours

COLUMBIA, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERs): U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton crushed rival Bernie Sanders by almost 50 percentage points in the South Carolina primary on Saturday as African-American voters helped propel her into next week's crucial "Super Tuesday" voting.

The rout of Sanders solidified Clinton's status as the strong front-runner to capture the party's nomination for the Nov. 8 election in her quest to become America's first woman president.

With more than 95 percent of the votes counted in South Carolina, Clinton led Sanders by a 48-point margin, dramatically reversing her 28-point loss in the state to President Barack Obama during their bitter 2008 primary battle.

The former secretary of state decisively established her strength among black voters, a crucial Democratic constituency, giving her the upper hand on Super Tuesday in six Southern

states with big black populations.

After the win, Clinton appeared to look ahead to a general-election matchup with Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the billionaire whose campaign slogan is "Make America Great Again" and who promises to build a wall on the border with Mexico.

“Despite what you hear, we don’t need to make America great again, America has never stopped being great," she told cheering supporters in Columbia after the win. "Instead of building walls, we need to be tearing down barriers."

The result was Clinton's third victory in the first four Democratic contests, and raised more questions about whether Sanders, the democratic socialist U.S. senator from Vermont, will be able to expand his support beyond his base of predominantly white liberals.

Sanders, who has energized the party's liberal wing and brought young people to the polls by attacking in-

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to supporters at a primary night party in Columbia, South Carolina, February 27, 2016. (Reuters Photo)

come inequality and Wall Street excess, needs a breakthrough win in a key state in the next few weeks to keep his hopes alive.

"The door is closing fast for Bernie Sanders," unaligned Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis said.

"Movement candidates are about momentum and excitement, and losses sap that momentum. That's his problem right now."

national contest. Eleven states, including six in the South with large minority populations where polls show Clinton with big leads, will vote in the Democratic nomination fight on Super Tuesday and four more over the next weekend.

“Today you sent a message,” Clinton said. “In America, when we stand together, there is no barrier too big to break.”

Sanders admitted deNATIONAL RACE feat in South Carolina early The Democratic race in the night.

"Let me be clear on one now becomes a broader

thing tonight. This campaign is just beginning. We won a decisive victory in New Hampshire. She won a decisive victory in South Carolina. Now it’s on to Super Tuesday," he said in a statement.

In the Republican race, Trump and rival Marco Rubio accelerated their political slugfest during dueling appearances in Arkansas and Georgia, exchanging an onslaught of personal insults that began on a debate stage on Thursday.

"The majority of Republican voters do not want Donald Trump to be our nominee, and ... they are going to support whoever is left standing that is fighting against him to ensure that we do not nominate a con artist," Rubio told reporters in Georgia.

Trump, speaking in front of his private plane in Arkansas, belittled Rubio and accused the first-term U.S. senator from Florida of being fresh.

"I watched this lightweight Rubio, total lightweight, little mouth on him,

'bing, bing, bing' ... and his new attack is he calls me a con artist," Trump said. "The last thing I am is a con man."

In South Carolina, exit polls showed Clinton winning big with almost every constituency. She won 9 of every 10 black voters, as well as women, men, urban, suburban, rural, very liberal and conservative voters. Sanders won among voters between ages 18 and 29, and among white men.

Clinton's camp hoped the big win in South Carolina, after more narrow victories in Iowa and Nevada and Sanders' clear win in New Hampshire, will set her up for a big night on Tuesday, when about 875 delegates will be up for grabs, more than one-third of those needed to win the nomination.

Recognizing his steep odds in South Carolina, Sanders had spent most of the past week in states that will vote in March.

As the results rolled in on Saturday, he held a rally in the Super Tuesday state of Minnesota.

sEOUL, FEBRUARY 28 (REUTERs): South Korean opposition lawmakers seeking to block a government-backed "antiterrorism" bill pushed their record-breaking filibuster into a sixth straight day of speeches in the parliamentary chamber on Sunday.

The filibuster began on Tuesday and had continued around the clock for more than 115 hours by Sunday afternoon, making it the world's longest, according to the Kyunghyang Shinmun newspaper.

The marathon filibuster easily surpassed a 58-hour session by 103 members of Canada's New Democratic Party in 2011.

By Sunday afternoon, 23 lawmakers had spoken for an average of five hours each in opposition to a bill they believe will threaten personal freedoms if passed. Many carried boxes of documents to the podium at the National Assembly, some wearing sneakers.

Earlier this month, President Park Geun-hye's office

called for parliament to pass the stalled security bill, part of tough action taken by her government amid heightened tension with North Korea following its test launch of a long-range rocket this month and its fourth nuclear test last month.

The opposition wants the removal of a provision in the bill that would give South Korea's intelligence agency authority to monitor private communications.

Lawmakers from the conservative ruling Saenuri party, which controls 157 of the assembly's 293 seats, have expressed dismay that the speech-making is causing other bills to be delayed ahead of parliamentary elections due in April.

Opposition lawmaker Jung Chung-rae spoke for 11 hours and 39 minutes on Saturday, the longest speech of the filibuster thus far. Some lawmakers have come to tears during their speeches, while one of them sang and another read aloud from George Orwell's "1984," according to a South Korean newspaper.

10

monDAY 29•02•2016

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

curry ties record for FiFA head Gianni infantino must NbA: threes in a game with 12 mend bridges, sort out finances

ZuriCH, FebruAry 28 (reuTers): Gianni Infantino will mark his first working day as president of soccer's governing body on Monday by playing in a soccer match with Swiss-based FIFA employees battered for months by an unfolding corruption scandal.

The match symbolises a return to the primary focus of FIFA that for some has been lost in tales of highliving by top executives and abuses that culminated in the banning of Infantino's veteran predecessor Sepp Blatter for six years.

When he walks into the presidential office at FIFA's headquarters on a Zurich hilltop, the new incumbent will quickly have to deal with financial and administrative problems, bring back sponsors, motivate a demoralised work force and engage with clubs and players who are growing increasingly disillusioned.

Previously general secretary of European soccer's governing body UEFA, Infantino must also dispel the notion he was elected to represent only the interests of his own powerful continent. Some had expected a Bahraini rival to win the post in a tilt towards Asia for the sport.

FIFA has been the subject of criminal investigations in the United States and Switzerland, although these will be lurking uncomfortably in the background rather than an immediate worry.

The same goes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, awarded to Russia and Qatar in a highly controversial vote in 2010 and the subject of the Swiss investigation.

One of the Swiss national’s earliest tasks will be to appoint a secretary general to take charge of day-to-day operations, a post Infantino has already indicated will go to a non-European.

Another priority will be to lift the morale of the 400-odd employees at FIFA, many of whom are highlyqualified and have soldiered on for the last eight months trying to ignore the chaos at the top.

"They went through a difficult time, a difficult period and I want to tell them that I count on them, that I believe in them and we will do great things together," Infantino told a news conference after being elected.

PLAYERS' DISCONTENT FIFA’s lack of credibility has made it difficult to sign new sponsorship deals and it is facing a $108 million deficit for 2015, according

Blatter warns Infantino of FIFA backstabbers

Newly elected FIFA President Gianni Infantino attends a news conference during the Extraordinary FIFA Congress in Zurich, Switzerland February 26. (REUTERS)

to Suketu Patel, who sits on the independent audit and compliance committee.

Patel said there was a shortfall of $530 million between the budgeted revenue and actual contracts signed so far for the 2015-18 cycle.

Jerome Champagne, one of Infantino's four rivals in the election, has said that two of the eight sponsorship slots for the 2018 World Cup and 20 out of 27 slots for other competitions remained unfilled. FIFA did not comment on the figures.

Infantino will have to come good on the generous promises of development funds for FIFA's 209 member associations made during his electoral campaign.

"The sponsors need to regain trust and confidence in FIFA and, if we can achieve this, then revenue streams will increase and FIFA will not have to worry about the future,” he said. "I have vast experience in this area and ….my track record showed that UEFA didn't go bankrupt at all, on the contrary revenue increased."

He must also mend bridges with the clubs and players, who complained they were left out of the process which led to a sweeping reform package passed before Infantino was elected.

FIFA's competitions depend on a delicate agreement signed with the clubs who release their players for national team games on certain dates stipulated in an international calendar.

The international players' union FIFPro last year launched a legal complaint at the European Commission against football's transfer system, which could have wide-ranging ramifications.

FIFPro did not even congratulate Infantino on his election, instead unleashing an angry statement saying it took a "dim view" of the whole process.

"FIFA’s system of governance has been based on favour swapping and financial inducements, not to mention obstructing external oversight from governments and the game’s key stakeholders," said FIFPro. "The players, much like the clubs, leagues and fans, were ignored in the latest reform."

It added that the rights of the world's 65,000 professional players were "often blatantly overlooked and exploited as a result of FIFA’s monopolistic structure".

FIFA’s unity is another important matter.

Large parts of Africa and Asia voted for main rival Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa and even Infantino's South American allies admitted there were issues over the drain of their top players to European clubs.

"We have told Infantino that clearly there are opposing interests because of the way the European market operates," Uruguayan soccer chief Wilmer Valdez told reporters.

public discourse

Jalukie Chief presages advent of Mlei-Ngyi Festival

T

he Jalukie Pumling Nko presages the advent of Mlei-ngyi festival, one of the most important festivals of the Zeliangrong people usually celebrated during the month “Mdui” (March: beginning 9th March until 11th March). The festival marks the advent of a new farming season and a time of self cleansing to invoke God’s blessings for a productive farming year. The festival is a 5 (five) day event involving a sequential day-by-day activities like traditional fire-making, merry-making and traditional games and sports and which are highlighted as follows.

The office of the Jalukie Pumling Nko Nagaland, while pronouncing observance of “Mlei-ngyi” festival in its land from 9-11 March 2016, also coveys Mlei-ngyi greetings to its people and wishes everyone a bountiful blessings from the almighty God for a prosperous year.

Prelude to festival: Hengyi-sa: The village high priest/ harbinger conveying all good wishes to his community, proclaims the arrival of festive season and sets the date of the festival to enable for preparation of self, food, drinks, dresses etc. Preparatory agricultural activities such as jungle clearing for current jhum and millet cultivation in fallow jhum areas are supposed to have been completed well ahead of the commencement of the event.

Kecimpu: This is an act of self cleansing and purification ahead of the festival and involves cleaning of clothes and belongings, seed treatment so that seeds sown after the festival are vigorous and healthy.

Mlei zautau: This involves preparation of local rice brew especially meant to be served to the traditional fire makers.

Main Festival events: Day 1; Mlei-teu: This event marks the commencement of Mlei-ngyi festival and is usually performed by the clan headman (kizeu-pei) of each dormitory, who will make fire by using strands of bamboo (mlei-ria) and bamboo fine fibres and keep the flame burning until culmination of the festival. During the entire festive period, the clan headman (kizeu-pei) will abstain from having any indulgence with wife and family and maintain a separate hearth.

Heteu hebak dap/ Leidi: This event involves slaughter of domestic animals meant for food during festival in different dormitories. The evening also witnesses engaged couples being invited to their respective would-be-in-lows for dinner and blessing; boy invited to would-be-wife’s home and vice versa and this dinner invitation by village folks usually continues during the entire festive period. All male members usually with their cup of beer and meat preparations from home, while entering their dormitory usually make a howl as “Aoo...yieee… ketyei kesak ngyi, kehing kelia ngyi… aki, mlia pungla”…which means “festival of food and drinks, festival of prosperity and longevity”… Dreams were also interpreted the next day.

Day 2; Rodi: In the early morning hours, some matured male members from the two major clan viz.

Heu and Hau, forays into the jungle to make wooden totem (Herie) for each clan which is usually a 6-8 feet length wooden plank split and shared one each from a single tree. The plank is then brought to the village with each clan carrying their respective wooden totem and placed on a clean predestined location in front of each dormitory. Then all male members in traditional attires gather to howl around the totem thence proceed to play ground for traditional games and sports like Hedau (kicking the plank), Heram (high jump), Tsugi (shot put), Hesim (long leap), Hejo (long jump), Hepo (wrestling) etc… This event usually witness wide participation and stiff competition from capable youngsters and the event marks the best athletes of the village for the year. The sporting event culminates with a traditional howl (Nroh) by male members congregated around the field (Hejo-pung).

Day 3; Bamsak: The day is significant with families sharing Hengyi-dom (festival food package) to family members living out of the village. The evening hours are occupied with male members visiting female dormitories and calling them out by name and having verbal exchanges. Interpretation of dreams follows the next day.

Day 4; Tsingpo nsa: The day is marked with different clan collecting firewood and piling in their respective dormitories and the headman serving dormitory wine to members. In the evening hours, female dormitory members, usually singing soulful ballets visits male dormitories and perform traditional Heba-lia (finger identification), Heriang teu (tug-o-war) and Tsingpo-nsa (firewood snatch).

Day 5; Zausa: Merry making in respective dormitories prevails.

Day 6; Gwangnim: The final day in which the clan headman (Hegwangme) douses the Mlei-mi (festival fire). Members of the female dormitories collected Kemniebi (sticky rice) from respective households and after cooking shares it with male dormitories as well as each female member including young girls.

Post festival events: Regapa: The event after the festival when male members begin agricultural practices of burning their jhum fields and in the process any wild animals and birds killed or captured are gifted to female dormitories. Female members collect meat from their homes and cook in dormitories. Discarded pieces of meat and bones (Hailodum nsa) are collected by younger boys.

Gaipia mna: Boys and girls together have recreation and merry making with bride-to-be by singing soulful ballets and conundrum. The bride-to-be along with friends from her dormitory selects a married man to lead during Nta (traditional dances) and gives him mouthful of salt and wine.

Mtim: A day for facilitating and solemnizing traditional marriage ceremonies akin to Christian holy marriages and involves marriage feast for the entire village folks.

Irai Hingleu, President Jalukie; Nagaland

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.

PAris, FebruAry 28 (AFP): Sepp Blatter warned Gianni Infantino on Sunday that miracles will be expected from him as the newly-elected FIFA president but there will be plenty of backstabbers if he fails to deliver.

Blatter, currently serving a sixyear suspension from football, saw his 18-year reign as FIFA chief officially end Friday when 45-yearold UEFA secretary-general Infantino was voted in as football's most powerful man.

But in an open letter to the Swiss-Italian lawyer, Blatter warned his successor to be wary of the pitfalls that come with the job.

He also said he was ready to offer his help if required.

"I congratulate you, but remember however that this position you wanted will not be easy.

Miracles will be expected," Blatter wrote in an open letter published in French newspaper, Journal du dimanche. "I had these expectations for the last 18 years at FIFA which I served for 41 years."

Blatter said that the package of reforms which will be implemented at the scandal-hit body will help Infantino as he embarks on his new era.

"The miracles will be helped by the vote overwhelmingly taken for the reforms which I had also started. "If by chance, you want an opinion or advice, do not hesitate.

For now, stay calm. You have two months to implement the decisions taken."

Blatter said Infantino will be allowed a period of grace but could face stormy waters if reforms are implemented too slowly for the patience of federations and sponsors.

"Prepare yourself well but be vigilant. While everyone supports you and tells you nice words, know that once you are the president, friends become rare."

The veteran official added that he was looking forward to other challenges in the future now that he is no longer the FIFA chief.

"At 18:01 on Friday, when you were elected, a weight lifted from my shoulders. I have now less responsibility and more time in my life. I am no longer president."

Stephen Curry’s game-winning shot helped Golden State clinch a playoff berth with more than six weeks to spare. (AP Photo)

Los AngeLes, FebruAry 28 (AFP): Stephen Curry keeps finding new ways to come up with clutch game winners, nailing a three pointer in the dying seconds to lift Golden State to a 121-118 overtime win over Oklahoma City.

Curry not only hit a 32-foot dagger with six tenths of a second left on Saturday night but also tied an NBA single game record shared by Donyell Marshall and Kobe Bryant with 12 three pointers.

The records just keep coming as Curry's 12th three pushed his total to 288, breaking his own single-season record of 286 with 24 games to play.

Curry finished 12-of-16 from threepoint range as the Warriors secured a playoff spot for the fourth straight season.

Curry, who tweaked an ankle, tallied 46 points and guard Klay Thompson added 32 for the Warriors who improved to 53-5.

Forward Kevin Durant had 37 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Thunder. Guard Russell Westbrook tallied 30 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds.

Oklahoma City (41-18) lost for the fourth time in its last five games.

The Thunder scored five quick points to start overtime, but four straight points from Curry got the Warriors to within one.

Both teams kept finding ways to answer. Westbrook set up Andre Roberson for a layup. Then Golden State's Thompson drove hard and scored on a threepoint play to tie the score 118-118 with 29 seconds left. Westbrook missed a jump shot, setting the stage for Curry to hit another heroic winner.

Hawks end losing streak The Boston Celtics may have lost out on the Joe Johnson sweepstakes, but they showed Saturday they can beat the team that snatched him.

On the day the Miami Heat acquired the seven-time all-star Johnson, Celtics

guard Marcus Smart scored eight points in the final 10 minutes as the Celtics defeated Miami 101-89 at the Boston Garden arena.

"He played with unbelievable energy," forward Jae Crowder said of Smart who was one of a half dozen Celtics who finished in double figure scoring. "He just made plays and that's how coach (Brad Stevens) rolled him throughout the whole fourth (quarter)." Smart finished with 15 points for Boston (35-25), which picked up its 10th straight victory at home and is now one win shy of tying its longest home winning streak since the 2012-13 season.

Celtics forward Jared Sullinger had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, Crowder scored 14, and swingman Evan Turner came off the bench to score 14 points and nine assists.

Johnson was waived by the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday and cleared waivers during Saturday's game. Dwyane Wade welcomes the addition of a multi-faceted scorer. "To put somebody on the floor that can shoot the ball, can score different areas of the floor, make plays -- it just adds to what we're trying to do," Wade said.

Johnson rebuffed reported interest from the Celtics, the club that drafted him with the No. 10 overall pick in 2001.

Walker provides finishing touch Chris Paul played through the pain of a variety of minor injuries as he scored a season-high 40 points to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 117-107 victory over the Sacramento Kings. Paul added 13 assists and eight rebounds for the Clippers who scored 20 consecutive points in the third quarter. Los Angeles led by double digits for all of the final quarter.

Paul injured his forearm on Wednesday against Denver and missed practice Friday to get treatment on his right arm.

He is also dealing with a bruise on his left thigh and an injured left calf.

india will be tough to beat Pakistan greats laud Virat match-winning effort in World T20 says smith Kohli's KArACHi, FebruAry 28 (PTi): ForsyDney, FebruAry 28 (reuTers): Australia skipper Steve Smith is determined to secure the one major international cricket trophy his country has never won but thinks India are going to be tough to beat when they host the World Twenty20 next month.

The Australia squad, world champions in 50-overs cricket and number one in the test world rankings, flew to South Africa on Sunday morning to prepare for the March 8-April 3 tournament.

Their best result in the five previous versions came when they reached the 2010 final, however, a 3-0 drubbing by India in a recent Twenty20 series has given them plenty of food for thought.

"On any given day in T20 cricket any side can be dangerous, an individual can take a game away from you," Smith told reporters at Sydney airport. "(But) I think India in Indian conditions are going to be very tough to beat. They're a very good side as we saw out here in the three Twenty20s we played in Australia so I think they're going to be right up there."

No Australian cricket captain goes into a tournament or series believing victory is impossible, though, and Smith is no exception.

"It's one that's alluded us, the T20 World Cup, and it would be great to win that trophy, that's our goal," Smith added. "It's going to be a tough tour in India, in conditions that are foreign to us. But it's really exciting and I think we've got the squad to give that tournament a real shake."

Deprived of the advantage that their pace bowling brings them on home soil, Australia will look more to the batting line-up to make the difference in India - even if Smith is not yet sure how it will look.

"I'm not really sure of the make up of our top three or four yet, obviously, there's a lot guys who that fill those position," Smith said.

"We've got three games to have a look at that before the World Cup. We've got some very destructive and talented batters up the top of the order that we can choose from." Smith said all four injury concerns - Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, James Faulkner and Nathan Coulter-Nile - were "tracking well" and should be in contention to feature in the three matches in South Africa. Australia get their World T20 campaign underway against New Zealand in Dharamsala on March 18.

mer Pakistan players Hanif Muhammad, Javed Miandad and Muhammad Yousuf have praised India's Virat Kohli for playing a sensible and mature innings on a difficult pitch against a top bowling attack to guide his side to victory over the arch-rivals in the Asia Cup. The three greats said Pakistani batsmen also needed to show the same game sense in the Asia Cup as Kohli had done in Saturday s match. "Our batsmen need to give respect to the bowlers and conditions where necessary. They didn’t do this against India and paid the price," Hanif Muhammad said in an interview. Miandad said Pakistani batsmen needed to improve themselves technically and learn to be apply themselves and be patient. "No number of coaches can teach a batsman how to bat at the international level. It is for the individual to work on his game and gain inspiration and guidance from top players," Miandad said.

"I think the Indian batsmen work very hard on their own game and are hungry for runs. Kohli is an example." Muhammad Yousuf said Kohli had shown how to bat on a testing track. "Batsmen from every country struggle on pitches where bowlers get assistance but top players learn to adjust and improve their technique to counter these things. Our batsmen lack this.

Chakhesang wrestlers prepare for 25th NWA meet Our Correspondent

Kohima | February 28

Altogether, 43 Chakhesang wrestlers comprising 22 Naga style and 21 Freestyle are undergoing extensive coaching camp at Indira Gandhi Stadium Kohima as part of preparation for the forthcoming 25th anniversary meet of Nagaland Wrestling Association (NWA) from March 10 to 11 at Kohima. The coaching camp was started on February 24 and it will continue till March 4.

Hukhonieyi Soho and Chisazo Dawhuo are assisting as trainers with Vekhriyi Chuzho and Shurhonieyi Soho as team leader. Team Manager: Kukhoto Venyo. Team Coach: Vecusuyi Chuzho.

Earlier, the Chakhesang Baptist Church Minister’s Hill Kohima had a fellowship with the wrestlers today and prayed for them.

The selected wrestlers for Naga style includes; Vechita Khesoh, Venuzo Dawhuo, Vekutho Soho, Küku-o Getsa, Vezhopa Chüzho, Besuhvo Vadeo, Vekuzo Vezhü, Surhoneyi Soho, Vetazo

Chakhesang wrestlers with Chakhesang Wrestling Association (CWA) officials and others during the ongoing coaching camp in Kohima on February 28. (Morung Photo)

Veswu, Venuzo Vadeo, Rukusü Lohe, Zanuo Vadeo, Vecüta Cükhamu, Putuzo Keyho, Vekuzo Vero, Vekhosazo Dozo, Külüveto Venuh, Vekhriyi Chüzho, (OB

Quota), Vevohü Swuro, (OB Quota), Reka Mero, (OB Quota) and Besuhveto Chüzho, and Wekhrote Kapfo, as reserved.

Monday 29•02•2016

EntErtainmEnt

Tere Bin Laden Dead or Alive movie reviewA flimsy comedy

Jennifer makes SHOCKING revelations about divorce

A

ctress Jennifer Garner says despite what everyone else may think, her ex-nanny had nothing to do with her divorce from husband, actor Ben Affleck. In a no-holdsbarred interview with Vanity Fair magazine, the 43-year-old actress has opened up about her relationship with Affleck and his alleged affair with their children’s nanny, 28-year-old Christine Ouzounian.

S

kating on thin ice is one thing. But trying to conjure things up out of thin air is quite another.

Abhishek Sharma's 'Tere Bin Laden Dead or Alive' does much more of the latter. The outcome is inevitably fluffy. Even when the film does a bit of the former, which is quite often, it is obviously always in danger of slipping. And it does. It seeks to poke fun at everything from the US war on terrorism to the violent depredations of the Taliban. In between, it throws in, for good measure, plenty of jibes at Bollywood. But the humour is too laboured to hit home.

Overall 'Tere Bin Laden Dead or Alive' comes across as a flimsy spoof that has bitten off much more than it can chew and digest. The 2010 original that found instant takers was marked by a lightness of touch and a mirthful plot that did not lose its way in an over-indulgent maze. The trouble with this over-plotted sequel is that it attempts to extract tongue-in-cheek hilarity from outlandish situations that tend to overstay their welcome.

Among the many butts of ridicule in the film is no less a personage than the US President. Played by Barack Obama impersonator Iman Crosson, he orders his right hand man David (Sikander Kher), who revels in aping Jim Carrey when he does not launch into Punjabi-inflected Hindi, to secure documentary C M Y K

proof of Osama Bin Laden's death.

The story actually begins with an Old Delhi boy Sharma (Manish Paul), who dreams of making a name for himself in Bollywood. In Mumbai, he stumbles upon Osama lookalike Paddi Singh (Pardhuman Singh) and has a brainwave. But Osama's death puts paid to his plans to make a film on the al-Qaeda chief. His and Paddi's life takes a dramatic turn when both the US agent and a terror outfit led by a man named Khaleeli (Piyush Mishra) launch a hunt for them. One wants Paddi dead, the other wants him alive.

The ensuing mayhem is only intermittently amusing not funny, mind you as Sharma and Paddi and their Bollywood mates (Sugandha Garg, Rahul Singh, Chirag Vohra) are caught in the crossfire. There are moments in the film when the actors appear to be having a lot of fun, but with little in the screenplay to cling on to in order to stay afloat, they are reduced to clutching at straws.

When a wacky and wild absurdist comedy is delivered with a degree of control, it can work wonders. But Tere Bin Laden Dead or Alive has none of the spark of the original. It works on the principle that a madcap caper can get away simply by pulling out the stops. The end result is a riot all right, but it is singularly without the laughs.

Here are 9 revelations Garner made about the divorce, nanny scandal and Ben Affleck‘s newest tattoo… # “Let me just tell you something. We had been separated for months before I ever heard about the nanny. She had nothing to do with our decision to divorce. She was not a part of the equation,” Garner said. # Garner admitted that “nannygate” wasn’t easy, especially for their three children, Violet, 10, Seraphina, 7, and Sam, 4. ”Bad judgment? Yes. It is not great for your kids for (a nanny) to disappear from their lives. I have had to have conversations about the

meaning of ‘scandal’ (with my children).” # In June 2015, Affleck and Garner announced their plans to divorce, which immediately sparked a media frenzy around the beloved couple. ”I turned on CNN one day and there we were.

I just won’t do it anymore. I took a silent oath to myself last summer to really stay offline. I am totally clueless about all of it.” # The actress insisted that despite what has been reported, she was in a “real marriage” with Affleck, also 43. ”It was a real marriage. It wasn’t for the cameras.

And it was a huge priority for me to stay in it. And that did not work.

I didn’t marry a movie star; I married him. And I would go back and remake that decision. I ran down the beach to him, and I would again.” # For Garner, Affleck is still the “love of her life”. ”You can’t have these three babies and so much of what we had. He’s the love of my life. He’s the most brilliant person in any room, the most charismatic, the most generous.” # That being said, the motherof-three doesn’t deny that her es-

tranged husband is a “complicated guy.” ”When his sun shines on you, you feel it. But when the sun is shining elsewhere, it’s cold. He can cast quite a shadow,” she said. # While Garner speaks highly of Affleck, 43, she doesn’t offer any hope that her marriage can be salvaged, though she understands why outsiders remain hopeful. ”When Jen Aniston and Brad Pitt broke up, I was dying to see something that said they were getting back together,” she said. # Garner said she has now accepted a future without Affleck as her husband. ”The main thing is these kids. Sure, I lost a dream of dancing with my husband at my daughter’s wedding. But you should see their faces when he walks through the door. And if you see your kids love someone so purely and wholly, then you’re going to be friends with that person.” # Garner didn’t shy away from giving her opinion about Affleck‘s post-split tattoo of a rising phoenix that covers his entire back. ”A phoenix rising from the ashes. Am I the ashes in this scenario? I take umbrage. I refuse to be the ashes.”

Russian fans present Leonardo DiCaprio with a homemade Oscar

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ome what may at the Academy Awards, Leonardo DiCaprio will have an Oscar or at least a close replica of the coveted statue. Fans in Russia's Far East, have made a statue for DiCaprio that bears close resemblance to the Oscar prize and is made from donated metals. Nearly 150 Source: IANS DiCaprio fans from the Ya-

kutia region donated the 1.5 kilograms of silver and 4 grams of gold to make the statue for the American, who is nominated in the best actor category for his role in ‘The Revenant’.

A fake Oscar statue made by residents of Russia’s far eastern Yakutia region, is on display in Yakutsk, about 4,800 kilometers east of Moscow. One

fan, Anna Ivanova says, Even if DiCaprio does not receive an Oscar, he will still be our favourite. DiCaprio, whose grandmother was Russian, is popular in the country, and he met with Vladimir Putin in 2010 to discuss tiger conservation.

The actor has earned his fifth Best Actor award nomination for his performance as Hugh Glass in ‘The Revenant’. Although he is up against some stiff competition from Bryan Cranston, Matt Damon, Michael Fassbender and Eddie Redmayne, fans and online polls suggest that this trophy might finally be his to keep. The Revenant is leading the race for the 2016 Oscars with 12 nominations, with Mad Max Fury Road scoring 10.

Source: Deccan Chronicle

Sacha Baron Cohen says FBI started following him on 'Borat'

A

ctor Sacha Baron Cohen faced a lot of legal troubles while making is popular mockumentary comedy 'Borat' with FBI following him the biggest one. The 30-year-old, who was traveling in an ice cream truck, with producer Azamat (Ken Davitian) while filming the project, said the FBI got a lot com-

Shraddha Kapoor finds spot in Forbes 30 under 30 Asia List

plaints, reported Entertainment Weekly. "(The FBI) got so many complaints there was a terrorist traveling in an ice cream van. So the FBI got so many complaints that they started compiling a little file on us and eventually they came to visit us at the hotel. "I obviously went missing when I heard because

A

Source: PTI

My life isn't about Justin Bieber: Selena Gomez

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inger Selena Gomez has made it clear that she didn't want to talk about her they were like 'FBI's film was about Kazakh TV to report on the greatest ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber downstairs. Sacha, dis- talking head Borat, who is country in the world. appear'," Cohen said. The sent to the United States Source: PTI anymore. The Hands to myself hitmaker recently threatened to delete her Instagram account after some fans accused her of dissing the Sorry singer in her latest post, which she later deleted, reports aceshowbiz.com.

The drama began when the 23-year-old singer up-

ctress Shraddha Kapoor is humbled to find a spot in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, and says it comes as a motivating factor for her to push the envelope.

“It has not been easy to reach this level in order to feature in this prestigious list of achievers. I am humbled and motivated to keep pushing myself, Shraddha said in a statement.

Shraddha is said to be the only name from Bollywood in the list, which also features names like cricketer Virat Kohli and international actor Liam Hemsworth. The 26-year-old star features in the 2016 magazine issue, and the list features other 300 of the top promising young leaders from 10 different sectors.

The “Ek Villain” star is listed under the entertainment and sports sector. Back home, the daughter of actor Shakti Kapoor is known for her acting, dancing as well as singing skills. This would mark her second time on a Forbes list. Shraddha has earlier ranked 57th on the 2015 Forbes Indian Celebrity 100 with annual earnings of $1.3 million.

On the film front, she is now prepping for “Rock On 2” and “Baaghi”.

loaded on Instagram a video of herself singing to rapper Lil Wayne's song Single while driving. Out of nowhere, she suddenly said I sure did go through that motherfker's st. I'm single.

Her words led her followers to speculate that she was dsing Bieber. As more people accused her of her ex-beau, the Same old love singer posted her reaction in the comments section.

She fired back at haters by dropping a comment

Jackie Chan to shoot in India for Kung Fu Yoga

The India-China co-production, which also stars Hindi movie actor Sonu Sood, was cleared by the government for shooting in the country.

I

nternational superstar Jackie Chan is set to shoot in India as the Narendra Modi government has given its go-ahead for the shooting Source: IANS of the movie Kung Fu Yoga.

The India-China co-production, which also stars Hindi movie actor Sonu Sood, was cleared by the government for shooting in the country.

The multi-lingual ac-

tion-adventure film is understood to have completed several rounds of international shooting, includes in China and Dubai.

The film is directed by Stanley Tong, who also directed

in all caps. That's a joke.

I was singing back to Lil Wayne. My life isn't about my ex, she said, implying that the video had nothing to do with Bieber. She later threatened to delete her account after some Instagram users told her that her post could cause some drama. I want to delete my Instagram. There's no drama. Everyone else creates drama. Including this post, she wrote.

Source: IANS

Hillstar

Rumble in the Bronx, and is scheduled to be released later this year.

Also starring Indian actresses Amyra Dastur and Disha Patani, the film features Jackie Chan as a professor of archaeology who teams up with an Indian professor to locate India’s lost Magadha treasure in Tibet. The film was announced by Chinese film regulators as part of an India-China co-production agreement during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China last year.

In all three films were commissioned under a filmmaking agreement between China and India, signed during President Xi Jinping’s 2014 India visit.

Meanwhile, another India-China co-production, based on Xuan Zang, a noted Buddhist monk during the Tang dynasty (618-907 AD) who made an arduous journey to India to study Buddhism, has also been cleared for shooting in the country.

NOW SHOWING

Source: Deccan Chronicle

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monDAY 29•02•2016

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

CRWA elects new team Kohima, February 28 (mexN): The Chozuba Range Wrestling Association (CRWA) has elected its new team of office bearers for the tenure 2016-2020 with Kukhoto Venyo as President and Sevoyi Swuro as General Secretary. The others are: Vice President- Velangoyi Sapuh, Assistant General Secretary- Khwiisoyi Swuro, Finance Secretary- Thiipuciyi Keyho, Treasurer- Keyho Tetseo and Publicity & Information Secretary- Miiliisa Medeo.

Teenager Rashford inspires United to win over Arsenal Tottenham close gap at top by beating Swansea

Wawrinka wins Dubai Tennis Championships Dubai, February 28 (iaNS): Swiss World No.4 Stan Wawrinka won the Dubai Tennis Championships 6-4, 7-6 (13) after an hour and 54 minutes against World No.57 Marcos Baghdatis from Cyprus here. The Swiss needed four matchpoints in the tie-break of the second set to bring victory home on Saturday, reports Xinhua. The players, both 30, started at almost the same level and dared some spectacular shots but the Cypriot committed more unforced errors than the World No.4. However, Baghdatis had more support from the audience in the notcompletely sold-out Aviation Club. "Marcos! Marcos!" many were shouting while the few Swiss fans were rarely audible. Followed by Argentine football legend Diego Maradona from the tribune of honour, the match remained on a medium level with rare breathtaking shots. It was also a fair encounter when at the start of the second set, the Lausanne-born smashed a high volley and hit the Cypriot with his white headband in his stomach. The Swiss immediately apologised under loud applause of the audience. The two opponents almost mutually avoided direct attacks at the net and relied on their baseline shots. Wawrinka cashed in $511,750 and fireworks enlightened the sky above the stadium. "It was a tough match and I am really happy to win this year's Dubai Championships. Marcos played a great game and I thank everybody who came here," said Wawrinka.

Iranian businessman becomes biggest shareholder of Everton C M Y K

LiverpooL, February 28 (iaNS): Iranian businessman Farhad Moshiri is to acquire 49.9 percent stake of the club, making him the biggest shareholder. The deal is conditional only on the Premier League approving his investment, Everton FC said in an official statement on Saturday, reports Xinhua. Bill Kenwright, who will remain as chairman of the club, said: "After an exhaustive search I believe we have found the perfect partner to take the club forward. I have got to know Farhad well over the last 18 months and his football knowledge, financial wherewithal and True Blue spirit have convinced me that he is the right man to support Everton."

Moshiri commented: "I am delighted to take this opportunity to become a shareholder at Everton with its rich heritage as one of Europe's leading football clubs." Moshiri on Friday sold his stake in London club Arsenal for a reported 200 million pounds to business partner Alisher Usmanov. That sum also matches the 200 million pounds price tag for Everton. On social media, Everton fans are welcoming the announcement, saying it could help boost the fortunes of the club, both on and off the pitch.

Kohli fined for showing dissent mirpur, February 28 (iaNS): Explosive Indian batsman Virat Kohli was on Sunday fined 30 percent of his match fees for a Level 1 breach of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Code of Conduct during his side's Asia Cup Twenty20 match against Pakistan here on Saturday evening. The India Test skipper was found to have breached Article 2.1.5 of the Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel which relates to "showing dissent at an umpire's decision during an international match". "The incident happened in the 15th over of India's innings when Kohli, after being given out leg before, displayed dissent by first showing his bat and then leaving the crease while looking back at the umpire and uttering some words that were contrary to the spirit of the game," said an ICC statement.

"On Sunday, Kohli admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by Jeff Crowe of the Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees. As such, there was no need for a formal hearing." For all first offences, Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50 percent of a player's match fee.

Ronaldo issues climb down from team-mates rant maDriD, February 28 (aFp): Three-time World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo has backtracked on critical comments of his Real Madrid team-mates following their 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid. The derby defeat on Saturday realistically ended Real's title challenge as they now trail leaders Barcelona by nine points having also played a game more. Ronaldo lambasted his team-mates by suggesting Real would be top if everyone was as good as him. "If everyone was at my level, we would be top," he said. However, Ronaldo issued a subsequent statement to Madrid sports daily Marca claiming he was referring to his fitness levels having not missed a minute of La Liga action this season. "When I said this I was referring to my level of fitness, not play. I am not better than any of my team-mates." Ronaldo had in particular questioned the role of Madrid's squad players in the absence of the injured Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Pepe. "I don't want to undervalue any of my team-mates, but when the best aren't there it is difficult to win."

Maradona urges life imprisonment for Blatter, Platini LoNDoN, February 26 (reuterS): Former Argentina captain Diego Maradona says longtime FIFA president Sepp Blatter and European soccer chief Michel Platini should have been given life imprisonment rather than six-year bans from soccer for ethics violations. The pair were suspended for eight years -- reduced to six this week -- for a payment of 2 million Swiss francs ($2.03 million) made to the Frenchman in 2011 by FIFA with Blatter's approval for work done a decade earlier. Both men deny any wrongdoing.

"It seems like the FIFA ethics committee was wrong," Maradona, 55, told Reuters TV. "Having so much evidence against these people and having seen how they were robbing for so many years, they should have given both life imprisonment." Maradona, who earned 91 caps for Argentina and won the World Cup in 1986, believes Blatter's replacement at FIFA should not be motivated by money. He also branded presidential candidate Gianni Infantino, the UEFA general secretary, a "traitor" for not standing by UEFA president Platini. "He is an absolute traitor because he kept working as if nothing was happening while his boss (Platini) was between a rock and a hard place, or almost behind bars," said Maradona.

Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford heads in his second goal of the match. (Reuters)

maNCheSter, February 28 (ap): Teenage striker Marcus Rashford continued the dream start to his Manchester United career, scoring two goals and setting up another in a 3-2 win over titlechasing Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday.

Only playing because of United's chronic injury crisis, the 18-year-old Rashford marked his league debut by scoring in the 29th and 32nd minutes to put his team 2-0 ahead three days after a double in the Europa League against FC Midtjylland on his senior United debut.

After former United striker Danny Welbeck replied for Arsenal, Rashford set up Ander Herrera for a shot from the edge of the area that deflected in off Laurent Koscielny.

Mesut Ozil made it 3-2 in the 69th but fifth-place United held on comfortably to move three points off the top four. Arsenal, which put in an off-color performance against a young and injury-hit United side, dropped five points behind leader Leicester. The North London side hasn't won in the league at Old Trafford since 2006.

LoNDoN, February 28 (ap): Tottenham survived an early scare and scored two goals in eight minutes to beat struggling Swansea 2-1 Sunday and stay in pursuit of Premier League leader Leicester. Swansea went ahead in the 19th minute at White Hart Lane through Alberto Paloschi but the Welsh visitors paid for their defensive approach in the second half when Tottenham substitute Nacer Chadli equalized in the 70th after being set up by Kyle Walker. Danny Rose put Spurs ahead in the 77th when Swansea failed to clear a corner properly. It was almost 3-1 when Harry Kane, playing with a mask to protect his broken nose, set up Walker, whose goal was ruled offside. Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski made several impressive saves in the game. Tottenham is second on 54 points, two behind Leicester.

United manager Louis van Gaal, under much pressure amid the team's troubles this season, delivered some light relief when he fell to the ground theatrically while remonstrating with the fourth official in the technical area. The Old Trafford crowd roared with laughter, adding to an atmosphere that was buoyant throughout the game as United's youngsters proved too energetic for Arsenal.

Rashford must think professional soccer is easy. In his first two games as a pro - both of them high-profile ones - in the space of

three days, the striker has scored as many goals as Radamel Falcao did in a whole year for United last season.

He is showing no fear on the biggest stage and demonstrated to Van Gaal that the Dutchman has had a goal poacher at his disposal all along during the team's rough patch this season. Injured pair Wayne Rooney and Anthony Martial are among the strikers unavailable to Van Gaal at present.

Rashford was given a standing ovation by United fans when he was substituted after 80 minutes.

Bisping beats Silva in wild ending at UFC Fight Night

LoNDoN, February 28 (ap): Michael Bisping survived a wild ending to the third round and beat Anderson Silva with a unanimous decision in the main event of UFC Fight Night 84 on Saturday night.

Silva and numerous ringside officials thought Silva had won the fight near the end of the third round after Silva knocked down Bisping with a Muay Thai knee just before the bell.

Just before the blow, Bisping (18-7) had signaled to referee Herb Dean after losing his mouthpiece, and Dean ruled the fight would continue to the fourth round. To add to the tension, Bisping was struck with a low-blow, while Silva (16-3) was inadvertently poked in the eye.

Bisping was bleeding from several cuts on his face by the end, but the final scorecard had him winning unanimously 48-47.

"I wanted this fight my entire life," Bisping said. "I don't know what to say. I'm crying. "I worship this guy.

This guy is the greatest martial artist of all-time. That's why I'm so emotional right now."

Earlier, Gegard Mousasi landed the majority of significant strikes in his war of attrition with Thales Leites, coming out on top via unanimous decision after three

rounds of lackluster action.

"My standup was better," Mousasi said. "I played it smart because (in) the last fight, I took chances, and I paid for it."

Tom Breese's victory over Keita Nakamura showed neither man in a positive light, with the outsized Nakamura mostly holding on to the Englishman, and Breese hardly looking like a fighter with a previous 9-0 record in MMA competition.

"It was very frustrating," Breese said. "I told every-

one, this guy's a tough guy. ... I've got to get more cage time."

In the opening contest of the main card, Londoner Brad Pickett took a split decision victory over Francisco Rivera. The American was picking off "One Punch" in the first round, landing accurate blows, but Pickett rebounded in the second and controlled the fight on the ground in the third.

"I want to be someone within the sport, and if I felt I couldn't compete — not

just compete at the level but win at this level — then I would've hung my gloves up tonight," an emotional Pickett said. "I had a lot of inner demons that I was fighting, and I am so happy to come away with the win."

On the preliminary card, Davey Grant beat Marlon Vera by unanimous decision despite suffering a nasty forehead cut in the first round, while Makwan Amirkhani made it three wins out of three in the UFC with a unanimous decision win over Mike Wilkinson.

Dhoni unhappy with umpires using ear piece mirpur, February 28 (pti): The use of umpiring devices like earpiece doesn't please India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni at all as he feels such a technology prevents the on-field officials from hearing snicks and edges in a packed stadium.

Bangladeshi umpire SIS Saikat failed to detect a nick from Khurram Manzoor's bat off Ashish Nehra's bowling in yesterday's India-Pakistan Asia Cup clash and Dhoni wasn't happy about the goof-up.

Asked about umpiring, a sarcastic Dhoni said, "You don't want me to get banned before World T20.

You have all seen umpiring.

It's your call." "(But) One thing certainly should be done. Umpires now use walkie talkies as well as wear ear piece in one ear which effectively means they are umpiring with one ear. It's a difficult job. One needs to consider this. They are hearing with one ear. I believe there is no point having a ear piece when the bowler is bowling as you don't need to use it then," the Indian skipper said at the post match press conference late last night after India's five-wicket win over Pakistan.

Rohit Sharma undergoes x-ray after being hit on toe mirpur, February 28 (pti): India opener Rohit Sharma today underwent a precautionary x-ray after being hit on the left toe in the very first ball he faced against Pakistan.

Rohit was hit on the left toe by pacer Mohammad Amir in the very first ball of India's chase yesterday.

The left-arm pacer's next ball was another full length inswinger, trapping Rohit in front of the stumps for a duck. India eventually won the high-pressure match by five wickets. India play their next match against Sri Lanka on Tuesday and a call on Rohit's inclusion will be taken by the team management.

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