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SaturDaY • JanuarY 16 • 2016
DIMAPUR • Vol. XI • Issue 14 • 12 PAGes • 5
T H e
ESTD. 2005
P o W e R
Of all human activities, man’s listening to God is the supreme act of his reasoning and will Why China’s marines are training in the desert
68th Asetkong Mungdang Culminates
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reflections
By Sandemo Ngullie
Daily three caps before meal, three tablets after meal, pep injections for 15 days, drink lots of water and no pork. But doctor, you haven’t even checked me yet!
Petrol price cut by 32 paise, diesel by 85 paise
NEW DELHI, JaNuary 15 (PTI): Petrol price was cut by 32 paise per litre and diesel’s by 85 paise per litre on Friday—the fourth reduction in rates in six weeks on the back of softening global oil prices. “The current level of international product prices of petrol and diesel and rupee-US dollar exchange rate warrant a decrease in prices, the impact of which is being passed on to the consumers with this price revision,” IOC said in a statement. State-owned fuel retailers IOC, Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd, and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd revise rates of petrol and diesel on the 1st and 16th of every month based on average oil price and foreign exchange rate in the preceding fortnight.
o F
T R u T H
— Pope Paul VI
Rohit ton in vain again as Australia beat India
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sc: is AfsPA in Manipur eternal?
NEW DELHI, JaNuary 15 (TNN): The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Manipur government how long the Army should be deployed in the state and enjoy unaccountable power under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and whether 35 years of the Army’s presence had improved the law and order situation. The court had appointed a high-level inquiry committee headed by an ex-judge of the SC to inquire into allegations that the armed forces had carried out over 1,500 extra-judicial killings in the last 30 years and police were refusing to file FIRs because of AFSPA. AFSPA was imposed in Manipur on September 8, 1980 to tackle the lawlessness created by four main insurgent groups through dacoity, ransom and killings. Petitions by an NGO ‘Extra-judicial Execution Victims Families Association of Manipur’ and former director of Manipur Health Services Th Suresh Singh had sought withdrawal of AFSPA. After getting the report and hearing the petitions, a bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and U U Lalit told the state government, “AFSPA was supposed to be a temporary measure. But it has been there for the last 35 years. Two generations have grown up under the presence of Army. It was supposed to only aid the democratic government in tackling law and order situation created by insurgent groups.” Appearing for the Congressled Ibobi Singh government in Manipur, senior advocate V Giri told the court that AFSPA was still needed to maintain law and order as insurgency continued to thrive in the state given its porous inter-
AFSPA benefits only the corrupt: AHRC
In this July 23, 2015 File Photo, students participate in the Naga Students’ Federation rally in Kohima demanding for the repeal of the AFSPA and the Disturbed Areas Act from Nagaland. (Morung File Photo)
national border. When AFSPA was imposed, there were four prominent insurgent groups, after 35 years, there were more than a dozen prominent insurgent groups in Manipur, he added. The bench said, “AFSPA was imposed after declaring the state a disturbed area. You mean to say that in 35 years of Army presence in the state, the situation has not improved to remove the disturbed area tag from the state? Has nothing changed on the law and order front for the last three decades?” Giri meanwhile said: “The test is whether the general public is fed up with AFSPA? The answer is, it is not so. Democracy is alive and kicking in the state. Should the elected representatives not take a decision whether AFSPA should be withdrawn or not?
People are not disgusted with Army presence in the state. The Army is not in conflict with the people.” However, he admitted before the court that not many FIRs were registered on complaints accusing Army personnel of extra-judicial killings. The bench said, “One can discount one or two aberrations in the operations carried out in insurgency affected areas, but not in 70-odd cases. In all these cases, the complaint of the commoners or victims’ families had not been converted into FIRs.” It reminded Giri that Tripura has decided to do away with AFSPA. Petitioner Suresh Singh had said, “People of Manipur are not against the armed forces and, in fact, majority desires the Army to protect them against external aggression but everyone is against
AFSPA which has been often misused.” He had also sought quashing of a notification declaring the entire state as a disturbed area except for the municipal limits of capital Imphal, saying, “In the name of disturbed area status, widespread deployment of armed forces has created an alarming environment in which exceptions have become the rule.” The petition filed by the NGO through Babloo Loitongbam said, “The legal mechanism has failed to ensure remedial measures relating to abuse or misuse of powers by the armed forces’ personnel, who are not held accountable for their illegal and inhuman actions robbing citizens of their most basic right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.”
DIMaPur, JaNuary 15 (MExN): The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) today stated that the enforcement of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) has only been used so far to intimidate the local population, which has lost confidence in their government. “Only corrupt state officers, politicians and the omnipresent and armed militant groups of Manipur will benefit from the impunity provided by the AFSPA,” said a statement from the AHRC. The AFSPA, it said, “should not be enforced in Manipur to support organized lawlessness benefitting illegal drug and weapon smuggling cartels.” “Uncontrollable insurgent activity in Manipur,” the AHRC opined, is the direct result of “failed state administration.” Militancy also benefits from the poor management of the international border between India and Burma, it added. The AHRC, it stated, has documented cases of police officers, government officers, and politicians sharing illegal profits obtained from the black-marketing of essential commodities in the state. “Armed militant groups often snatch at distribution points or from the road, food grains and other essential commodities like kerosene, and arrange these goods to be sold in the black-market. A share of the sale proceeds is then split
between the militant group that organises the heist, government officers, and local politicians,” it revealed. The AHRC noted that militant groups in Manipur run “extortion syndicates, right under the nose of the state police.” “It is a common sight in the state where militant groups are seen operating check-posts on public roads to collect illegal toll from drivers. Police officers openly share the ransom collected by the militant groups at these toll booths.” It further accused state police and state government officers of colluding with militant groups in drug trafficking and illegal smuggling of timber through the international border, where officers, politicians, and militant groups exchange information and share profit. The AHRC lamented that many victims of extrajudicial executions are those “who have fallen foul with these cartels, or are persons shot dead after illegal raids conducted by the armed forces stationed in the state at the behest of the state police.” Regarding the petition filed against AFSPA by an NGO ‘Extra-judicial Execution Victims Families Association of Manipur’, the AHRC opined that the SC has been presented with adequate supporting evidence to prove that the AFSPA has not in any way contributed to building peace in Manipur.
Psc serves 15-day ultimatum ‘Drive Safe, Be Safe, Obey Traffic Rules’
DIMaPur, JaNuary 15 (MExN): The Phom Students’ Conference (PSC) has served a fifteen (15) day ultimatum to the Nagaland Public Works Department (NPWD) and M/s Chabou & Co to commence the construction of the Longleng-Ladigarh NEC (group ‘c’) road. A press statement received from PSC on Friday said since the day the work order for the construction of the road was issued, the contractor has failed to implement the same. Irked with the negligence and indifferent attitude of the implementing agencies, the Phom Students’ Conference said it had been voicing its concern since 2011. The office of the Chief Engineer NPWD
(R&B) had issued “an assurance letter vide. CE(R&B)/ TR/MISC/200-11/196 indicating that the department shall “blacklist if the concerned contractor fail to complete the construction as per the work order.” With the contractor failing to complete the construction of the road within the stipulated time frame, the PSC had resorted to agitation demanding for blacklisting of the contractor in October, 2011. Eventually the agitation was called off after the NPWD assured PSC at a consultative meeting on October 27, 2011 that the work would be completed within March 31, 2013 or the department would blacklist the contractor if work was not completed
within the time frame or the work was found unsatisfactory. Present during the meeting was Er R Temsu Aier, Superintendent Engineer, Kohima, Er V Kihei, Additional Chief Engineer, Kohima, Akheto Sema EE Longleng with K Libanthung Lotha the then DC Longleng as the witness, the press statement reminded. At the meeting, the department further assured that maintenance of the road for 6 (six) months after its completion would be strictly implemented. The department also assured that it will not release the final bill until and unless the contractor completes the work. However, PSC lamented that the department had never imple-
mented the assurances made, and added that it had also served four reminder letters in the month of March, September and November, 2013. Despite repeated plea for fully implementation of the resolution, the construction of the LonglengLadigarh NEC road on group ‘c’ has been abandoned by the concerned contractor and the progress of work on the whole stretch of road is nil, it stated. In this connection, the PSC has issued a 15 day ultimatum to the NPWD(R&B) for commencement of the construction of LonglengLadigarh NEC (group ‘c’) road maintaining all necessary norms and procedures on or before January 30, 2016.
Nagaland gets first Passport Seva Kendra Morung Express News Dimapur | January 15
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Union minister of State for External Affairs, Gen (retd) VK Singh, today assured that the time taken for issuance of passport to people from Nagaland would not be more than two weeks like the rest of the country. The Minister also promised to find a solution to the arduous and time-taking verification process faced by people of Nagaland while applying for passport. Singh said one of the priorities of the BJP-led NDA government after coming to power was to change the interface of the government with the people and opening of Passport Seva Kendras in several towns and cities, including in the North East Region, is a significant step towards that direction. The Minister was addressing a public reception after inaugurating the Passport Seva Kendra Dimapur, the first in the state, at the New DC Office Complex, Chumukedima.
Minister of State for External Affairs, Gen (retd) VK Singh in Dimapur today.
He said to ensure better and speedier facilitation of passport system, the central government had notified that issuance of passport should be completed within two weeks and that this should also be applicable to the state of Nagaland. Singh also said Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, is committed to the ‘Act East Policy’ and focused on Nagaland becoming a “prosperous” state in the country. “I look forward to
Nagaland which is rich, positive and as good as the rich cultural heritage of the Naga people”, the former Chief of Army said in his concluding remark. Earlier, Nagaland Chief Minister, TR Zeliang, in his address highlighted the problems faced by passport seekers from the state including the SIB verification, which usually takes 2-3 months. “If this additional verification (SIB) has been done away in other NE states, why not in Nagaland?” Zeliang said and urged the Union Minister to look into this genuine grievance. Joint Secretary, Passport Seva Project and Chief Passport Officer, Government of India, Muktesh K Pardeshi, said presently there are 37 passport offices and 86 PSKs in the country issuing 1.2 crore passports annually, the third highest in the world after China and the US. Pardeshi expressed optimism that the PSK would soon be connected online to the police districts in Nagaland to make issuance of passports faster and more transparent.
Obersving the Road Safety Week, Traffic Police seek public co-operation Morung Express News Dimapur | January 15
It is that time of the year when India observes the Road Safety Week. It is a time when the Traffic police soften its stance on violators, rather focussing on spreading awareness and sensitising commuters on the significance of obeying road etiquette. Breaking lane, parking in ‘No Parking Zones’ and disregarding signals at traffic points are a few of the many instances of disobedience that Traffic police constables have to deal with, often without success. “This week we have reduced the frequency of MVCP and have given more emphasis on spreading awareness,” stated ACP (Traffic Zone I) relaying the intent of the Road Safety Week, which is observed from January 11-17. One of its main objectives being to promote road safety measures in the community, schools, colleges, work places, on roads etc. While the width of the roads remain unchanged, the number of vehicles grow and mishaps become frequent, the Traffic police have a harrowing time managing vehicular movement in a place (Dimapur) known to posses almost 2/3rd of the vehicle population in the state of Nagaland. It is further compounded by road users, who have a knack for flouting rules and disagreeing when confronted by enforcement personnel. “People have a tendency to do things for one’s own convenience without considering the inconvenience the act would have on others,” said Lance Naik Nagatoli Chishi, who was inducted into the Dimapur Traffic police along with 26 other women personnel from the 15th NAP (IR) Mahila battalion in mid-2014. This bunch of women has unsuspecting-
Members of Bharat Scouts and Guides take part in a road safety awareness drive conducted by the Dimapur Traffic police as part of the National Road Safety Week 2016.
ly become a beacon of the Dimapur Traffic police with the public in general welcoming their no-nonsense approach to the assigned task. “Seriously, they are more efficient than their male counterparts,” was the remark of a police officer, who wished to remain anonymous. Chishi and two other colleagues – Havildar Christy Kikon and Constable Niukali Yeptho - were granted a few minutes break from work on January 15 to share their experiences of managing traffic in Dimapur on the occasion of the Road Safety Week. The three, all in their 20s, said being women has been no deterrent to enforce the rules. “We tend to be a bit more courteous in our approach… we try to refrain from being rude,” commented Niukali, when asked what makes them appealing to the public. That however does not imply that they are not firm in their resolve. They have also had difficult days. Niukali recalled one incident when a man went ballistic after being asked to move out of a ‘No Parking Zone’. She said that the man was so enraged that he even beat his chest, adding
that probably he could not stomach the thought of being ordered by a woman. The man eventually had to move his vehicle after backup arrived as Christy added, “When things go overboard we call for backup.” Then there are those who claim to be a son of a Minister or a high ranking official or an NPG member. They also observed that students are not far behind when it comes to flouting of traffic rules, followed by middle-aged men. Asked how they deal with off-duty uniformed personnel flouting the rules, for instance not wearing helmets, they said that they have no option but to enforce the rule. While acknowledging the significance of the Road Safety Week, they said that the awareness should go beyond the 7-day period. The message should reverberate all throughout the year in the minds of everybody, they said. “Help us to help you. Remember that by parking in a ‘No Parking Zone’ you are inconveniencing other commuters. And more so, general disregard for traffic rules endanger the lives of people on the road.”