The Morung Express

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The Morung Express

A Daily Publication of Morung for Indigenous Affairs & JustPeace

Dimapur VOL. III ISSUE 329

Open till 7 – KMC to shops KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): In view of the forthcoming Hornbill Festival, the Kohima Municipal Council and the Kohima Chamber of Commerce & Industry have requested all the shops in Kohima to remain open till 7:00 PM from December 1 to the 7th.

A note received here also asked any person, club, association or union desiring to open a stall, to contact the KMC for stall permits. Stalls will be allowed at the Old NST and New NST station areas. It was also cautioned that no form of intoxicants will be allowed in the areas with stalls. All the shops, especially from the Old MLA Hostel junction to Razhu point have been requested to follow the timing for their shops to remain open till 7:00 PM. Further, all building and house owners in the main town are requested to decorate ‘as best as they can’.

The best-decorated shop will be awarded a prize.

All the shops are to ‘light up’ throughout the night.

They are also to whitewash or paint shutters and walls as well as place at least one dustbin in front of their establishments.

“

-Korean Proverb

ing would be deliberated tomorrow by the federation.

DNSU force shutters down

Naga Students Federation activists and students throng the Nagaland Civil Secretariat complex, during the NSF’s second phase agitation on the superannuation issue, November 26. (Morung Photos)

NOTWITHSTANDING YESTERDAY’S “assurance” of the state government over the ongoing superannuation tussle, the Naga Students’ Federation has decided to go ahead with the stir, rather, intensifying

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The open interview for selection of beneficiaries to the Chief Minister’s Corpus Fund for Dimapur (2008-2009) will be held from December 2 to the 4th from 10AM onwards. The interview will be held in the conference hall of the deputy commissioner of Dimapur, the DC informed all applicants of the CMCF today. All applicants are informed to bring along their original documents for the interview. For roll numbers and date of interview, the District Planning Machinery may be contacted. No separate calling letters shall be issued, the DC added.

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Thursday, November 27, 2008 12 pages Rs. 3

STATEWIDE BANDH ON DECEMBER 1

Dimapur | November 26

Dimapur’s CMCF test from Dec 2

Catch not at the shadow, and lose the substance

SUPERANNUATION: NSF to intensify Stir

Morung Express News

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it. While the proposed picketing of the Secretariat has been called off, the NSF will be clamping the movement of all government vehicles in the state on November 28.

On December 1, a statewide bandh will be imposed, NSF chief Imchatoba Imchen said today.

Over yesterday’s letter

from the state government, Imchen said the “assurance” is actually the same one given last year on December 12, so nothing doing for the NSF but to go ahead with the stir. The NSF informed that the Home Minister had invited the organization tonight but the matter that proceeded in the meet-

The Dimapur Naga Students’ Union this afternoon forced the closure of shops and business establishments in Dimapur, causing major confusion among the people, who were mostly out shopping. As reports came in about the closure, the district administration and the police took stock of the situation, telling shop-keepers to reopen their shops. However, in some areas of the town, shops were seen shuttersdown despite orders from the police and administrative officers. Accordingly, the deputy commissioner of Dimapur and the Superintendent of Police met DNSU leaders at the SP office to resolve the matter.

However, the Dimapur Naga Students’ Union, in a press note said the closure was carried out “as per the directives of the Naga Students’ Federation” but one “which was relaxed immediately for consideration of public convenience”. Pointing out the reason for its action, DNSU claimed it was “for fighting for the welfare of next generation”.

Continued on page 3

A child takes a moment off to soak in the surrounding hills, from a ‘machan’ at the newly created Aizuto tourist destination. (Morung Photos/Chizokho Vero)

‘UPA branding army as terror outfit’

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): Raising pitch on terrorism in poll-bound Delhi, BJP today accused the Congressled government of “branding” the army as a “terrorist” outfit in a veiled reference to the arrest of a serving army officer in the Malegaon blasts case. Addressing his sixth election rally in the city, the saffron party’s firebrand leader and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi said Congress is taking up what Pakistan had failed by “spending crores of dollars” to portray Indian Army as indulging in terrorist activities.

Modi said Pakistan has been telling the international community that Indian Army was “indulging in terrorist activities. The foreign countries have refused to believe their claims.

“What Pakistan was not able to do in the last 20 years, the Manmohan Singh government

has achieved in just 20 days. They have succeeded in branding our soldiers as terrorists,” Modi said in a veiled reference to the arrest of a Lieutenant Colonel in the Malegaon blasts case. Continuing campaigning for the second day, Modi, addressing the meeting in southwest Delhi’s Najafgarh, asked voters to get rid of “aged” Congress which cannot fulfil the dreams of youth. “Congress is a burden which do not have a leader or policy that could lead the country to better fortunes. The time has come to put a lock on Congress so that it could not be opened again,” Modi said.

Claiming that Mahatma Gandhi had expressed his wishes for the disbanding of Congress after attaining freedom, Modi said the 125-year-old “aged Congress cannot carry on the aspirations of youth and could not change their fortunes”.

Naga Reconciliation: Accusations, Provocations and Arrests Unacceptable FNR calls for release of arrested cadres

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): While acknowledging that the Naga Reconciliation process has been able to make constructive headway, the Forum for Naga Reconciliation has nevertheless expressed disappointment over what it termed as “emerging accusations, counter-accusations, provocative language and the arrest of cadres between the Naga political groups”.

“The Forum for Naga Reconciliation is therefore disappointed and disheartened with the emerging accusations, counter-accusations, provocative language and the ‘arrest’ of cadres between the Naga political groups.

Such actions threaten to undo the painstaking progress that has been made and it is not in the interest of the Naga people. These acts are unacceptable to the Naga Reconciliation process and constitute a breach of mutual trust” the forum reminded.

“Therefore in the interest of Naga Recon-

ciliation and for the sake of the Naga public’s desire to end all forms of violence among Nagas, the Forum for Naga Reconciliation calls for an immediate end to all negative and destructive confrontation taking place among the Naga political groups; and to release the “arrested cadres” unharmed on humanitarian grounds and in the name of the Naga reconciliation process”, the FNR stated.

Since the Naga Reconciliation Process was initiated in March 2008, the Forum for Naga Reconciliation and the Naga “political” groups (factions) have weathered many daunting challenges, the forum said. In the spirit of genuine reconciliation, the Naga political groups have also honestly engaged each other on difficult issues that stand in the way to Naga Reconciliation, the forum said. Yet the mudslinging and “arrests” have the potential to undo whatever progress has been made, it reminded.

/ www.barak2008.wetpaint.com

Continued on page 3

Little England in Akumen village

Imkongtoba and Alemchiba seen here with their restored WW-II medals by the England team as prayers are being offered by Reverend Lynda Hulcoop.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): A tiny village named Akumen (Lirmen-C village) situated at the foothills of Mangkolemba sub-division in Mokokchung is being helped by the Southwick Christian Community Church from England since 2005.

A team of 15 members arrived at Aku-

men village last Monday to carry forward some of its community development works including a water project for the entire village.

Interestingly, Akumen is also proud in having two senior citizens who were employed by the then Royal British Army during World War-II.

During those unfortunate times in the then Naga Hills in the 1950s, the Indian Army had burnt and destroyed houses in Lirmen village under operation Gouping. In the process, certificates and medals of these two heroes were also razed. Knowing these circumstances, the England team had contacted the British Legion of WW-II office at London and traced the records of Imkongtoba and Alemchiba of Akumen village. The two were restored their WW-II medals including the Burma Star medal through Reverend Lynda.

In a simple but emotional function held this morning at Akumen, the medals were given away to the living heroes by the visiting England team with elders from the Akumen Baptist Church and village council members and citizens in attendance.

It all started in the year 2005 when a women delegation from the Southwick Christian Community Church in UK led by a Naga lady Alemla Twiss and her family accompanied by Reverend Lynda Hulcoop visited this village. There, the humanitarian vision took shape. In the later years, the UK team in consultation with the Akumen Baptist Church and the village community undertook several community developmental works for the uplift of the village.

Continued on page 3

CONCEPT NOTE The Northeast – a land of diverse cultures, scenic landscapes, warm peoples and a land of youth and energy cannot but be attracted to idealized beauty and feminine charm. The glow of youth which radiates from a people infatuated with its own youthfulness expresses itself most effectively in beauty pageants.And such events seek to find the one young lady from among the many who possesses not only beauty, but wit, charm, intelligence and talent. She must represent raw but wholesome cultural, personal and family values. As such, she is more than just a beauty; she is a symbol of the complete woman.

The Seven Sisters Miss Barak 2008 contest with the theme “Peace Through Culture and Identity “is an all inclusive attempt not only to showcase the beautiful people of the Northeast but also to find

out ‘the’ lady from among the bevy of delightful women, representing all the states in the region. The challenge here will be to applaud beauty of the rare kind that lightens the mind, refreshes the eyes but most importantly one that defines the identity, culture, beauty and charm in all its aspects of the people of the Northeast. We believe that it is through a comprehensive understanding of this beauty that will create a sense of togetherness among the people in the region.

In the midst of all kinds of turmoil and insecurities, this event is also an endeavor to highlight ‘beauty from ashes’. Beauty is radiance: it sends forth light and dispels the darkness of confusion, indecision, hatred and chaos. Beauty promotes peace. The Seven Sisters Miss Barak 2008 contest, will, therefore, put forth,

both, a proposal and an agenda for peace among all the people in the region.

The Northeast has more than often been described as a region of ‘fear’. To the outside world, through this Pageant, we want to press home the message that ours is a land of serenity seen through the prism of the hearts of the people. It is a region that radiates joy in its very being and like an eagle spreading its auburn wings of spring; the land opens out its arms to all people of the world welcoming them into an experience that is archaic, undemanding yet heartwarming. Just as the Barak River murmuring through and sustaining the heart and souls of many a people in the Northeast, this event seeks to uphold the virtues by which the rich diversity of the land is bound. All are welcome.

By buying this Newspaper, you are contributing to the process of positive Social Change and supporting the non-profit activities of the Morung Foundation

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Dimapur

LOCAL

Thursday 27 November 2008

MEx File

Combined attestation parade on November 28 DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The combined attestation parade of the 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th NAP (IR) Bn. will be held on November 28, 2008, at 9:00 am at NAPTC Stadium, Chumukedima. Home Minster Imkong L Imchen will grace the parade as chief guest.

Informing about the parade, I Toshitsungba Aier, IPS, Commandant of 13th NAP (IR) Bn, Chumukedima, in a press release added that the total R/Cs, 1108 from India Reserve Battalions, would pass out after completing 9 months of intensive basic training at the NAPTC complex in Chumukedima, under Commandant 13th NAP (IR) unit.

DC to inaugurate ANTA Mkg office MOKOKCHUNG, NOVEMBER 26 (DIPR): Deputy Commissioner Mokokchung, Bendangkokba, will formally inaugurate a new office building of the All Nagaland Taxi Association, Mokokchung zone, at Sungkumen Ward on November 28 at 2 pm. The following members will give exhortation in the function, former President of the Association, Repa Imsong, Village Council Chairman of Mokokchung Village, Chairman of Sungkumen Ward, and Chairman of Tapayong Ward. Rev. Yashi, Pastor, will pronounce the invocation and the programme will be chaired by the President of the Association, Alem. In this regard, all members of the association are informed to attend the programme.

DMC on renewal of Trade licence, Permit

The Morung Express

Chumukedima responds to mass social work

Morung Express News Dimapur | November 26

IN VIEW of the festive season, the Chumukedima Town Council (CTC) in coordination with the Chumukedima Students’ Union (CSU) and the Dimapur District Auto-rickshaw Drivers’ Union (DDADU), Chumukedima Branch, conducted a mass social work on Wednesday to provide a facelift to Chumukedima town.

CTC Chairperson, Neichü Kuotsü, informed all business establishments to decorate their shops on or before December 1 next and also directed that the signboards of the shops be replaced with new ones, while light bulbs be put in front of the signboards. He further informed the shopkeepers to keep their shops open till 8 pm, from December 1 to January 1 next year.

CSU president, Pelesavi Rürhei has also informed that shopkeepers would be provided with stars by the union at minimal cost. The mass social work saw participation by the CTC Deputy Chairperson and Mehevil Thakro, vice-president of DDADU, Chumukedima Branch.

Members of the Dimapur District Autorickshaw Drivers’ Union (DDADU), Chumukedima Branch, conducting mass social work at the auto parking area at Chumukedima town, on November 26. (Morung Photo)

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): Holders of All Dimapur Municipal Council Trade Licence and Trade Permit are informed that the renewal of DMC Trade licence, Trade Permit for the year 2009, with new revised rates on certain categories of Licence as per the Provision of Nagaland Municipal Act 2001 under section 396 (4), will commence from December 2, 2008. D P Angami, Deputy Chairperson of DMC, has directed those in concern to renew their respective licences and permits by January 31, 2009.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): Informing consumers of PHED water supply in Dimapur regarding renovation work being undertaken on the filter house, inlet and outlet pipes at PHED Treatment Plant, Chumukedima, the PHED Chumukedima SubDivision has expressed inability to release water for approximately five days w.e.f. from November 25, 2008. A press release from K Kuhato Yepthomi, Sub-Divisional Officer, PHED Chumukedima Sub-Division, further requested that the public bear with the department.

SMCSU postpones raffle draw

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Students of the City Law College, Dimapur, along with Judicial Magistrate and Traffic personnel conducting ‘Motor Vehicle Adalat’, as part of the ongoing Lok Adalat in Dimapur, at the Patkai Bridge, Chumukedima, in Dimapur, on Wednesday. Checking of valid documents of vehicles had taken place at Patkai Bridge and Kuki Dolong areas, in order to ensure proper vehicular traffic in Dimapur town. Further, conceding with Lok Adalat week, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal Dimapur & Peren cases were taken up on November 25 and altogether 41 MACT cases were disposed off. L. K Achumi, member MACT informed that the disposed cases amounted to Rs. 79, 80, 615. (Morung Photo)

SSU seeks clarification from Kma Excise Dept DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Sasta Students’ Union (SSU) through a press release has asked the Excise Department, Kohima, to “retract the statement in regard to arrest, and subsequent publication, of Kakuto Chishi, s/o Vikaho Chishi of Sasta Village P.O/ P.S, VK Town Zunheboto District dated November 23,” as published in a local daily under the caption ‘State Excise seize liquor’. Kajeto Labo, President of SSU, has stated that ‘nei-

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The management of the recently-opened family eatery and café in Dimapur, Jumping Bean, has taken strong exception to the report in a local daily today that the café sells alcohol. The café was opened to Dimapur, just yesterday.

The proprietors of the café, Sarah Pongen and Nokcha Aier today made clear the café is strictly meant to provide quality light eateries and snacks for families, friends and citizens seeking a ‘quiet time over a cup of coffee’.

“We are strictly a café that focuses on quality coffee, tea, other hot beverages and healthy refreshing drinks with light snacks to go with it,” Jumping Bean’s proprietors clarified in a rejoinder today. The sole purpose of the café, the management said, is to offer a friendly and quiet atmosphere where families, children and friends can come and have a good time over a cup of coffee. “We do not intend to sell any form of alcohol at any given time,” Jumping Bean added.

The management had also informed earlier that the café focuses on children and that a book-reading club alongside various activities, is in the offing. Jumping Bean, apart from its light eatery staple of coffee, soft drinks and light food, would also be open for literary purposes like seminars and conferences.

Principals taught Mon lines up activities for Legal on UGC schemes KOHIMA, NOVEMBER Services Week 26 (MExN): As a drive to-

PHED informs on water supply

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Sakus Mission College Students’ Union has informed that the raffle draw in aid of the educational tour scheduled for November 22 has been postponed to December 16 at 10:00 am in the college campus. This was informed in a release issued by Shikuto N Ayemi, General Secretary of SMCSU.

Jumping Bean clarifies

ther Kakuto Chishi, the accused, nor Vikaho Chishi, the father, belongs to Sasta Village.’

Asking the concerned department to retract its statement as “labelling such accusation to any village or society without proper verification amount to injury of reputation,” the Union further warned that “failing which the Union will be compelled to invite its course of action as per the ensured right to the bonafide citizens.”

MON, NOVEMBER 26 (DIPR): With the declaration of November 24-28 as ‘Legal Services Week’ in the state by the State Legal Services Authority, Nagaland, the Mon District Legal Services Authority will also observe the week along with the rest of the state.

The activities assigned for the week includes Lok Adalat, Motor Vehicle Adalat, Seminar on topics such as ‘Plea Bargaining’, ‘Rights of weaker Section in the Society (Women & Children)’, ‘General Provisions under the Legal Services Authority Act, 1987’ and ‘Consumer Rights’. Poster Campaign has started at Mon on November 24.

The Lok Adalat will be conducted at the Sub-Jail, Mon, on November 27 and Motor Vehicles Adalat-cumSeminar on Legal Awareness will be held on November 28 at Government Higher Secondary School, Mon, and the program will be chaired by Deputy Commissioner Mon, Dinesh Kumar, IAS.

wards capacity building by the department of higher education, Nagaland, an orientation on University Grants Commission Schemes was imparted to the principals of 36 secular colleges on November 24 in the Directorate Conference Hall in Kohima.

Dr. S C Ray, Deputy Secretary at UGC, North Eastern Regional Office Guwahati, attended the Orientation as the resource person. A M Toshi Jamir, Director for Higher Education, Kohima, in a press release informed that Commissioner and Secretary for HE, Directors, College Development Council, NU, and other officials also participated at the orientation programme.

NCF comes alive with ‘Festival of Praise’

‘KARMA RIDERS’ THE GERMAN CYLCE EXPEDITION TOURS

(Left) A section of the congregation singing along with the NCF team (right) as they lead the worshippers in Praise and Worship at the ‘Festival of Praise’ of the Naga Christian Fellowship, Bangalore, on November 22.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The fifth edition of the Naga Christian Fellowship, Bangalore ‘Festival of Praise’ was held on the evening of November 22 last at the All Saints’ Church premises.

NCFB Pastor, Zhabu Yimsung, before pronouncing the invocation, talked on mercy and faithfulness of God upon NCF ministry as the rea-

son for holding the festival.

More than a thousand plus believers attended the festival, which highlighted solos, duets, male voices, choreography and high quality instrumental and folk musical performances. Besides the NCF, groups that participated included the Mizo, Zomi and Fountain Gate Fellowships. Another attraction of

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Lions Club of Dimapur is organising its 2nd ‘free Eye Screening Camp for Lionistic Year 2008-09’ for IOL Surgery (Cataract), in association with the Jorhat Lions Eye Hospital. The Camp will be held on November 29 and 30 next from 7:00 am onwards at the Lions Health Centre, Midland, PWD Rd, Dimapur. The medical team belongs to the Jorhat Lions Eye Hospital.

Lion Rajendra Khadria, Chairman,

DIMAPURIANS WHO HAVE CYCLES JOIN THE DIMAPUR TOUR AT 9.00 AM FROM AIDA COMPLEX (DON BOSCO) WITH THE MESSAGE OF SOLIDARITY, FRIENDSHIP, SELF-RELIANCE AND ADVENTURE CYCLING 5000 KM - AN EXHIBIT OF THE POWER OF YOUTH DETERMINATION AND PERSEVERANCE!

Sight Conservation & Work with Blind, Lions Club of Dimapur, in a press release informed that patients would be provided with free medicines and advice. No spectacles will be provided, he added. The operation for IOL Surgery (Cataract) to be conducted at Jorhat Lions Eye Hospital will be sponsored by the Lions Club of Dimapur. Patients will be registered on the spot on first come, first serve basis, and there will be no charges for any service provided, the release assured.

Nagaland attends NE Music Fest at Agartala

COME, CHEER AND ENCOURAGE THEM AS THEY CYCLE THROUGH OUR STREETS BETWEEN 9.00 AM TO 11.30.AM ALONG WITH DIMAPURIANS ON 28.11.2008!

QUERIES? Contact Don Bosco Alumni Dimapur at dba_dmr@gmail.com dbadimapur@gmail.com

Naga Students' Union, Bangalore.

“It was quite obvious that a lot of efforts had gone into the preparations for the evening. The flurry of activities in the kitchen bear testimony to the care and dedication each of the food stall managers gave to put their acts together,” the release added.

The comperes for the program were Abokali and Alitumen.

Free Eye Screening Camp on Nov 29, 30

COME, RIDE WITH US!!

PROGRAMME 27.11.2008 3.30 PM - RECEPTION AT NAGALAND GATE ON NH-39 28.11.2008 9.00 AM - FLAG-OFF OF DIMAPUR TOUR ON CYCLE 10.00 AM - INTERACTION WITH DIMAPURIANS AT CIRCUIT HOUSE DIMAPUR

the festival was the variety of delectable Naga and Continental cuisine. The program ended with the NCF Praise and Worship Team taking the stage to bring the festival to a close.

The organising members in a press release commended the enthusiastic cooperation of all members of the NCF and various sub-units of

Date: Friday 28th November 2008 Time: 3:00pm Venue: DC Court

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 26 (DIPR): The North East India Music Festival 2008 organised by All India Radio at Nazrul Kalakshetra, Agartala, was held on November 20-21. Minister for ICAT and Higher Education, Government of Tripura, Anil Sarkar, and Minister for Rural Development, Forest, Industry & Commerce, Government of Tripura, Jitendra Choudhury, graced the occasion as

the inaugurator and chief guest respectively.

A total of 19 delegates from Nagaland, which included 14 representatives from Zeliang (Liangmai) community and 5 representatives from Angami tribe, attended the 2 days’ festival.

Hornbill dance and folksongs were presented during the festival. Team leader Rutmak expressed gratitude to the AIR Kohima, especially the Station Director of

AIR Kohima, N Nakhro, for enabling both the tribes to participate in the North East India Music Festival 2008.

The team also appreciated the AIR staff, N Silubo and Krowhel, for leading the troupes and rendering financial assistance throughout the festival. The team also stated that if the other departments also organised such kind of programme it would be beneficial for the young generation in future.

LOCAL

The Morung Express

Thursday

27 November 2008

Reservation: Chakhesang MLAs meet CM

Kuzhovesa Soho

Kohima | November 26

A DELEGATION of Chakhesang legislators, Chakhesang Public Organization, Chakhesang Students’ Union leaders and senior citizens met Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio at his official residence early this morning in Kohima and submitted a representation seeking immediate consideration and implementation of a proportionate ratio of Backward Tribe reservation quota to all the 9 tribes.

While appreciating the move of the state government to review the existing job reservation policy, the delegation noted the government’s notification of 1977. The delegation stated that the notification dated January 11, 1977, stipulated 25% of all non-gazette, non-technical posts under the government of Nagaland to be reserved for members of seven tribes

Naga Reconciliation…..

From page 1 The forum said: “In these nine months the Naga political groups have collectively and publicly demonstrated their commitment to Naga reconciliation; and behind closed doors they continue to work together in finding ways to resolve the intricate issues that have created chasm between them. The Naga Reconciliation Process has been able to make constructive headway due to the generosity of spirit and the willingness for the Naga political groups to reconcile on the basis of the historical and political rights of the Nagas towards a peaceful political solution”. The forum urged the leaders of the Naga groups to exhibit statesmanship by constructively building upon the progress that has been made in the journey to Naga reconciliation.

who are “educationally and economically very backward and had insignificant representation in the services, for a period of 10 years”. The tribes are the Chakhesang, Konyak, Sangtam, Phom, Khiamniungan, Chang and Yimchungers. The number of tribes was increased to eight with the inclusion of the Zeliang tribe, the delegation reminded. The reservation was then enhanced to 33% on 16th August, 1979 and subsequently the number of BTs increased to nine with the bifurcation of the Pochury tribe from the Chakhesang tribe. The Pochury tribe was then included in the reservation list on March 24, 1994.

The reservation policy had placed all the nine tribes in the same category till the cabinet in its sitting on June 12 and the13th, 2008 divided the BTs into two categories of reservation with class.

The six tribes from the four districts of Mon, Tuensang,

Appeasement policy lamented

Kiphire and Longleng were suddenly given a huge 25% and the other three excluded tribes (Chakhesang, Pochury and Zeliang) were left with a mere 8%. “The decision of the cabinet has indeed created a huge disparity and discrimination and has evoked tremendous reaction from different sections with shock and resentment”, the representation reminded the CM. “It is well aware that 33% job reservation for the 9 BTs in the state of Nagaland is aimed at helping those tribes that are educationally and economically very backward and are insignificantly represented in the services of the state, so that they too can come at par with the advanced tribes” the Chakhesang delegation stated.

Further, the team stated, the existing policy of 33%

Vegetable vendor arrested for kidnapping minor girl Morung Express News Dimapur |November 26:

IMRALJUL HUSSAIN, aged 22, residing at Super Market near Circuit House, was apprehended by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) at Lumding Railway Station on November 22 for kidnapping a local minor girl of thirteen years from Dimapur. A Special Team from the Women Cell, Dimapur apprehended them the next day.

The modus-operandi was simple as Hussain, a petty vegetable vendor by profession, lured the minor girl under the pretext of going for sightseeing at Nowgong and later to be married at Guwahati. The Women Cell has informed that he will be

Dead body found DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26, (MExN): A dead body was found by Diphupar Police personnel from 3rd Mile, Dimapur on November 26. The body is said to be in the Civil Hospital Morgue. Identification of the body is not known and further investigation is on.

Little England in Akumen village

From page 1 These included setting up and sponsoring a community dispensary with a visiting doctor and a midwife; repair works of the village’s approach road and a construction for two RCC small bridges; sponsorship for an additional teacher in LP School which is supervised by the VEC under the communitization program; imparting various vocational trainings to women folk of the community for self-employment; sponsorship for animal and chickenrearing for as an economic means for every family; Christian education and greeting card-making initiatives for children; rain water harvesting and construction of a large craft and training centre hall and so on.

With the active participation and support of the Lirmen citizens living in different towns and cities, the community of this village is very much thankful to the English sponsors who are selflessly contributing to the community’s development. Located in a remote region, the village is almost “inaccessible from governmental aid”.

mounting by the day but the government remains insensitive in addressing the issue.

Reminding the government that the state has no industry to absorb the educated youths while the general vacancy is dominated by “old age groups”, the DNSU strongly demanded that the government should address the issue “to avoid antisocial element industry.”

The government is also being blamed for being ‘misled by a few vested bureaucrats’. DNSU said the government is not using judiciously its authority and that the Constitution of India which under Article 309 provides central and state governments the authority to legislate any age or length of services, is being

ties or tribe as “backward” or “advanced” is unfair. Because, areas under the same community may not necessarily fall in the same situation both educationally and economically, the Chakhesang civil society reminded.

“Some BTs may be equal or even better than some advanced tribes who otherwise should be placed in the advance category… there is no guarantee to say that the advanced will remain advanced or backward to come at par with those advanced tribes may depend on the situation at that particular period of time”.

The Chakhesang leaders had this word for the CM: “Without prejudices, allow us to say that some areas of Chakhesangs, Zeliangs, Pochurys, Changs, Sangtams etc may even in a better situation than some particu-

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One person arrested for possession of banned drugs DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Excise Narcotic Cell Enforcement duty party on November 19 arrested one Moinul Haq, s/o Abdul Koni, a resident of Purna Lohorijan, Assam, from Dimapur railway station at 7:40 pm for illegal possession of 846 capsules of Spasmo Proxyvon and 50 tablets of Nitrosun. Alem Ao, Deputy Commissioner of Excise (NC), in a press release, said investigations

revealed that the accused had bought the drugs from Hojai, Assam, for sale in Dimapur.

Accordingly, the accused was remanded to judicial custody and booked under the relevant section of D&C Act 1940. The Enforcement duty party was led by Benjong, AIE, Thathang, AIE, Chingmak H/C, Khriesizo, Senka, Anglong, Khetoshe, Bendang, Nkhyingsao and Phongtin, all constables.

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Condolence message

Sangtam Union Dimapur

AST, Kiphire

The Sangtam Union Dimapur has mourned the death of L.I Sangtam, Retired Deputy Commissioner of Excise, Nagaland.

He was the Executive Chairman of Sangtam Union Dimapur and also the vice president of Likhum Bunji till his death. The Union in a condolence message expressed that his death has lost a sincere diligent and dynamic leader.

SUD President V. Kashiho Sangtam on behalf of the Union conveyed heartfelt condolence to the bereaved family and pray that the Almighty God will grant solace to the departed soul.

The Akehda Sangtamlarü (AST) expressed condolence on the demise of Late Yanger Sangtam who was among the first generation of educated Sangtams and later retired as the Deputy Commissioner of Taxes. He has served as vice president of Sangtam tribal council and was president of Chari Village Union, Dimapur. AST General Secretary in a condolence message has extended condolence to the bereaved family and prayed for the departed soul to find solace in Almighty God.

Pusa mourns demise of Vihosa Mikha

Imraljul Hussain who lured a minor local girl of thirteen years. He is to be charge sheeted today.

chargesheeted under 363, 419, 366 (A) IPC Act. Further investigation is on.

Superannuation: NSF to intensify Stir From page 1 The union urged the state government to “understand the uncertain destiny” of thousands of educated unemployed youths in the state and meet the demands of the Naga Students’ Federation. The NSF and its units are agitating against the government’s decision to enhance the superannuation age of the employees. The DNSU warned that it would “resort to any extent that may bring inconvenience in days to come while carrying out its moral duty and it shall not bear any responsibility if the government remains unethically ignorant”.

Stating that political will is essential to address the issue at hand, DNSU said the number of unemployed youths is

job reservation for the nine BTs in the state of Nagaland has been in operation without any major review which otherwise requires a review at the interval of 10 years to be updated in consonance with the changing times. This is to fully realize the entire reservation policy to do away with ambiguity and to update with the changes and is imperative to have periodic reviews of the policy to achieve its objective, the representation reminded.

Expressing its resentment over the ‘abrupt cut in percentage of the reservation’ without proper study by the committee, the representation urged the chief minister to rationally review the policy to suit changes with time. Also expressing discontentment, the CPO and the CSU felt that generalizing entire communi-

lar areas of Sumis, Rengmas, Angamis, Lothas and so on.”

Expressing serious concern, the representation urged the government to conduct a spot study by certified technical experts, of all the Naga tribes in order to appreciate the progress and achievements made so far by the competent commission. This is to evaluate and research the situation on ground to work out the methodology and basis of general review, the Chakhesang leaders stated.

However, in the event of the state government deciding to maintain the reservation of 6 BTs in the 4 districts to 25%, the other tribes which are similarly in the same category should be given equal and proportionate reservation till such time a total review is completed to effect rational changes” the leaders said. The delegation assured that the Chakhesang community will continue to strive for justice and equality.

Dimapur

‘tactically interpreted by few bureaucrats to their “wish and will”’. This is depriving the able youth and this is a “crime”, the DNSU said.

“In our state, human resources are measured by favoritism and nepotism thus occupying public office forever without giving a chance to the merits,” DNSU said and held it will stand out against such unacceptable practices. The DNSU also threatened to “resort to any extent that may bring inconvenience in days to come while carrying out its moral duty and it shall not bear any responsibility if the government remains unethically ignorant”. The public is appealed to, to understand the position and cooperate with the students’ community.

KUHUBOTO GHAKHU SUMI TOTIMI HOHO 3RD ANNUAL SESSION At Kuhuboto Town on 28th Nov. 2008 from 9:00 am onwards.

Chief Guest: Shri. Tokheho Yepthomi, MLA Guest of Honour: Mrs. Hokhuli Wotsa, CEO, Faith Hospital All the GB’s, Chairman, Public Leaders and Elders under Kuhuboto area and well-wishers are invited to attend the programme.

Shikheli K. Yeptho, President, KGSTH

5th General Conference of the Network of Nagaland Drugs & AIDS Organizations (N Naga DAO) *** Theme: ‘Communication’ Date: Nov. 29-30, 2008

Supported by : UNDAIDS, NLFA,CRS, EHA-Project ORCHID, The Nossal Institute for Global Health, and NSACS.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): MLA K V Pusa, President of Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC), has expressed shock at the demise of Vihosa Mikha. Late Vihosa Mikha was one of the first teachers of Khuzama village, an edu-

cationist and a pioneer in the field of education in Southern Angami area, stated KV Pusa in a condolence message.

He was also chairman of the Khuzama village council after his retirement as teacher. With Mikha’s death, the Southern Anga-

G R AT I T U D E The Jalukie Town Ao Baptist Church would like to express our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to IGAR (N), DIG,5 Sector and colonel S.C.Rana KC,Commandant 28 Assam Rifle for donating 2 (two) Computers (full sets) along with chairs and tables worth Rs. 1,00,000/- (one lakh). Also special mention to colonel S.C.Rana KC,Commandant 28 Assam Rifle for gracing and inaugurating the computers on the 26th Nov.’08 at the Church premises. I on behalf of my Church would like to state that India being secular state and known for its religious tolerance has been reiterate through the kind gesture of the esteem and honorable defense personnels.We have nothing to give in return but we invoke Gods bountiful blessings and protection in all your noble ventures.

(IMTISANGBA LONGCHAR) Pastor, Jalukie Town Ao Baptist Church

TEACHERS WANTED Maths, English, Clerk & Typist and Computer Salary: Rs. 5500 with quarter facilities.

Qualification:

BA English, Bsc Maths, PGDCA with B. Ed Apply with all details or contact in person

Principal Christ King Hr. Sec. School, Kohima (PB-13) Mob. 09436010738

mi people have lost a great man, Pusa in a condolence message stated, and shared grief and conveyed heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family, with prayer to Almighty God to grant solace to them and peace to the departed soul.

DC Zbt informs on CMCF DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26(MExN): An interview for selection of beneficiaries under Chief Minster’s Corpus Fund Zunheboto District will be conducted on December 4 and 5 at 1:00 am in the Office chamber of the DC, Zunheboto. C. M Tsanglao, DC & Vice Chairman (DPDB) Zunheboto has informed all applicants to come for the interview accordingly with all necessary original documents. The candidates will not be issued separate calling letter for the interview.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF ENGINEER: PHED NAGALAND: KOHIMA

NO.CE/PHE/ACCTT/DA-390

Dated Kohima, the 25th Nov.2005

OFFICE ORDER

Whereas, a Memorandum issued vide NO.PHQ(BII) DE/50/2007/240 Dated 30/6/2008 to Shri P. Tiakumba Jamir (U/S) proposing to impose on him the penalty of dismissal from service.

And Whereas, Havildar P. Tiakumba Jamir (U/S) received the Memorandum on 16/09/2008. However inspite of giving him time to respond to the Memorandum, the NCO (U/S) appear to be least bothered.

Now, therefore, the undersigned in exercise of the powers conferred by Rule 7 (IX) of the Nagaland Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules 1967 hereby imposes on Shri P. Tiakumba Jamir Havildar (U/S) of DEF Kiphire the penalty of dismissal from the service with immediate effect.

In the interest of public service, the undersigned had decided to constitute a committee to identity genuine Work Charged employees under Longleng PHED Sub Division, who had not been given their wages for the month of Aug/1997 and Sept/1997 during 1997-1998 under following terms and conditions.

1. (i) Chairman…… (i) Mr. K.K Rengma, Superintending Engineer (PHED) Kohima, Circle- II, Kohima Town, Nagaland (ii) Member……

(1) Mr. Anil Pradhan, Executive Engineer (M), O/O the Chief Engineer (PHED) Nagaland, Kohima.

(2) Mr. Moakaba Longchar, Executive Engineer (D) O/o the Chief Engineer, (PHED) Nagaland, Kohima.

(3) Mr. P. Jakpu Khamn, Executive Engineer (PHED) Tuensang Division, Nagaland.

(4) Mr. K. Punyu, SDO (PHED) Sub-Division Longleng under Tuensang Division.

2. Committee will have to identify each Worked charged staff in person whoever turns up personally with their surrendered Identity Card available in the office of the Chief Engineer (PHED) Nagaland, Kohima.

3. Any retired staff must produce their release order copy to the Committee in addition to identification through Identity Card.

4. For a dead/expired staff, a succession certificate duly authenticated by Executive Engineer (PHED) Tuensang Division or SDO (PHED) Longleng Sub-Division and concerned Administrative Officer be produced to the Committee to entertain their claim which should be supported by Identity Card No. 5. The Committee will enlist all identified/authenticated staff rank wise and paid them on the day of verification.

6. The verification should be done on 14/01/2009 and the report should be submitted to the office of the undersigned within 15 days.

It is to notify that no said work charged staff claim will be entertained after 14/01/2009 what so ever be their reason.

Sd/- (J. CHANGKIJA) IPS Director General of Police, Nagaland: Kohima

(K. KHETOVI SUMI) Chief Engineer: PHED Nagaland: Kohima

Dr.R.R. Das MD DM (Neurology) from Guwahati will be available for consultation on the 29th of November 2008.

Please contact the reception for registration. # (03862) 231864, 230889, 227337 GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE NAGALAND: KOHIMA

NO.PHQ (B-II) DE/50/2007/1600

Dated, Kohima the 31st Oct.2008

ORDER

C M Y K

4 BUSINESS Govt to set up outlets India markets crash dashes middle class dreams to sell drugs cheap Dimapur

Thursday

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Now popular medicines like antibiotics, painkillers and anti-allergics will be sold to consumers at half the market price. With efforts to finalize a draft pharma policy and to extend price controls on essential medicines coming to a naught, the government has now devised a policy to offer essential drugs at discounted rates by setting up its own retail stores in every district across the country.

In this first-of-its-kind initiative, the government plans to set up 24x7 retail outlets in states, starting with Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. Delhi is expected to have its retail store over the next few weeks. Sources said that unbranded versions of generic medicines (sold under the chemical name), including popular antibiotics, pain-killers, cough and cold medication will be sold at these ‘Jan Aushadhi’ stores.

To start with, these stores are coming up in Ludhiana, Mo-

hali, Jallandhar and Bhatinda and will later spread to the other parts of the country.

After debating various modalities of providing medicines at affordable rates for ‘aam admi’, the government finally decided to go-ahead with the plan of setting up these stores for providing generic (unbranded) medicines in every district. “Our objective is to provide popular and essential medicines at prices even less than 50% of the maximum retail price (MRP),” official sources told Times of India.

So, for instance, anti-allergic drug Cetirizine which is sold at Rs 37 per strip in the market, will be offered at Rs 2.50; a Paracetamol strip, prescribed for fever, will be sold at Rs 2.30 at the government store, and anti-biotic Ciprofloxacin-500 mg strip at Rs 29, which has a MRP of Rs 155. State governments, along with certain non-profit organizations like Red Cross will be roped in for managing these stores.

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (REUTERS): Sunil Kapadia would regularly borrow from banks to invest in India’s stock markets, seeing them as a one-way ticket up the middle-class ladder as the economy hummed along at near double-digit growth rates.

But his dream of easy riches lay wrecked as the country’s main stock index tumbled to three-year lows last month, taking its losses in 2008 to more than 50 percent, forcing him to move his family to a cramped suburban apartment.

“In the quest for jam, I have lost my bread and butter,” said 48-year-old Mumbai resident Kapadia, who lost 20 million rupees ($400,000) in share trading this year. Thousands of small investors were lured into booming stock and commodity markets as the economy soared along at growth rates of 9 percent or higher in the past three fiscal years and the government spoke of lifting the increases into double digits.

Now, with the vicious collapse of the market, their savings are lost and they are unable and unwilling to invest again. The crash has also hit commodities, with prices of goods from edible oils to metals dropping by 40 to 50 percent over the past four to five months. It is a

hard blow to the confidence of India’s aspiring middle classes, and their curtailed spending has also unsettled the foreign firms and investors who were queuing up to do business in the $1 trillion economy.

“At the moment, investors are scared of their own shadows, and it will take some time for them to be back,” said Vikram Bhatt, head of brokerage firm Ajmera Associates Ltd of Mumbai. Most small investors were lured by a seemingly unstoppable bull run in the stock market. The main 30-share index on the Bombay Stock Exchange rose by six times in the five years to the end of 2007, bolstered by foreign funds.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs), having bought a record net $17.4 billion of stocks last year as the market rose 47 percent, have sold more than $13.5 billion of stocks in 2008. Brash traders became a symbol of India’s modernising economy, and stocks were so popular among retail investors that some could eke out a meagre living on the sidewalks by selling IPO and mutual fund applications for a few rupees (cents).

But small investors have largely disappeared as the market imploded. From a record high just above 21,200 points in January, the BSE index crashed to just be-

Nokia touch phone launched in India

N

okia’s much-awaited touchscreen phone finally comes to India. The much speculated and talked about phone -Nokia 5800 XpressMusic -- is touted as the company’s answer to Apple iPhone.

Seems, the world’s top cellphone maker took some cues from Apple iPhone’s pricing in India, Nokia 5800 is reportedly priced at Rs 21,800 (almost Rs 9,000 less than 8GB iPhone and Rs 14,000 less than 16 GB iPhone). Nokia 5800, which can handle as many as 60 different languages, will be in shops early January 2009. The phone will also feature Nokia’s Comes With Music service, which challenges Apple Inc’s dominance in the digital music market. Wondering what are the other specs that Nokia’s contender in the touchscreen phone market offers?

Read on to find out.

C M Y K

Looks On the looks front Nokia 5800 has same rounded corners and similar screen like iPhone. The screen size is 81mm (3.2-inch) diagonally, with 640x480-pixel touchscreen display that can play multiple types of video at a high resolution. Measuring 111 x 51.7 x 15.5 mm, the Nokia 5800 weighs 109 grams. Positioned as a music phone, the phone will be available in black, red, and blue variants. The phone supports both finger and stylus touch.

Storage and battery Nokia’s touch phone comes with 81MB internal memory, 8GB microSD memory card, capable of storing approximately 6,000 songs. The memory can be further expanded upto 16GB. Nokia 5800

is equipped with the Symbian S60 interface which Nokia showed off last year.

The battery life is reportedly as much as nine hours (GSM) or five hours (HSDPA), 35 hours for music playback or three hours of video. The company claims that the standby time is up to 17 days.

Multimedia features Nokia 5800 has 3.2 megapixel camera with a Carl Zeiss lens and a dual-LED flash with 30 fps video recording. It also has a second backward facing camera.

Nokia 5800 has built-in surround stereo speakers, Nokia Maps, GPS, Wi-Fi, stereo Bluetooth and a top-mounted 3.5mm headphone socket. Unlike the Apple iPhone, the Nokia 5800 has Flash support, a programme used to power many online video services and websites. The phone has a Media Bar, a drop down menu that provides direct access to music and entertainment. A new Contacts Bar lets users highlight four favorite contacts on their homescreen. There is also an option to track digital history of recent text messages, email, phone logs, photos and blog updates. Nokia 5800 also has an accelerometer for display rotation. However, the phone’s biggest miss is the ability to download extra software and applications, which is possible in both Apple iPhone and Google G1.

Cost Reportedly priced at Rs 21, 839, Nokia’s touchscreen phone will be available in India beginning 2009. However, in India Nokia sell phones with no operator lock, unlike Apple iPhone with Bharti and Airtel. So, seems Nokia 5800

Xpress Music is all set to give tough competition to Apple iPhone which retails at Rs 31,000 for 8GB and Rs 36,000 for 16GB in India. Google phone G1, said to reach India by December end, is also likely to be priced above Rs 20,000.

Supports 3G Like the iPhone and other smartphone rivals including BlackBerry Storm and Samsung Omnia, Nokia’s touch phone too offers support for 3G. This enables faster Web browsing and downloading. The handset is a GSM/ EDGE/HSDPA 3G device along with 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth (with stereo audio) and USB 2.0 connectivity.

It also has A-GPS and Nokia Maps for voice-guided navigation.

High on music Billed as a music phone, Nokia 5800 comes pre-loaded with a vast range of music collection. The phone will feature Nokia’s Comes With Music service which will let users download music for free for a year from a catalog that includes 4 million songs. Nokia’s music download package is its first major push into the services business. The company said that all major music labels and most independent labels will offer their tracks as part of Nokia’s ‘free’ music bundle “Comes with Music,” raising the total number of tracks to around 5 million.

The phone support Playback protected WMA, AAC and MP3, and is reportedly compatible with Windows Media Player 11. Other music features include stereo speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack, stereo Bluetooth, and a guitar pick stylus.

B D Z J F L E V X J R T CME F O Y R L E R E C WO N K D I Z DG Y U H G F T G S L P J Q D UM AWD D N P V J S F K Q

K A Q A V J S T F I V C O B H C P O V C

E E Q H T N G O S N C E Y J D F G L X N

R

D S

J A O F NW WO O A R P K B S D L L I E C T I J A D F J E B C I W L N L Z Y R X

Z I R N G K J Y K N M R R E P I P X V H

H K P J X L D E R H A O Z C Z Z A I WV E H F U AW E M M K P O X G H C L H P N

E S C S R A T O I Y P T U S D D P N H P S

T W I T K T V L H I E H B D C Y W E S E

A J E H S U O M A F C V O I P X A T N Y G

V B H T T E S U A T B Q P N R A N P C J

R U K U A B I L I T U E K I L K P T E T Y

ARTIST

NIGHT

BEAUTIFUL

NOW

C

Q B T BWV MWS Y S E H V L I A X L A I P L N H E R R E S U T P W I E X N N Q F D E B S S M H J H Q T C E T L W L B F

BED

ONE

BILLY

PEOPLE

low 7,700 last month. Although statistics show only 2.5 percent of India’s 1.1 billion population invests in stocks, experts say the number of investors was growing steadily when the market nosedived. “I want to sell off my apartment to pay off my loans, but word has spread that I have fallen on bad times and the offers are not good,” said Abhijit Choudhury, a share investor from Kolkata, who lost two million rupees in a month.

“I am ruined and not coming back to the stock market,” said Choudhury, unemployed for years before striking gold in the markets. Risk-averse investors now favour the safety of fixed deposits. Bank deposit rates have risen to more than 10 percent in the last two to three months. “The market will continue to downslide as most of the money was flowing in from FIIs and the insurance sector all this while,” Vinod Kumar Sharma, head of research at Anagram Capital Ltd said. “The impact on stocks have been huge.”

“Until the markets revive again to a level where people are comfortable, investors will keep away from the markets and will opt for fixed income and fixed deposits,” said Sharma. Analysts have downgraded forecasts for India’s

economy, although growth is still expected to be around 7 percent in the fiscal year ending next March.

As a result many traders and investors in the once booming sector, who had booked luxury cars and plush apartments with bank loans, are now struggling to meet the expense of their children’s education or monthly grocery bills.

“I used to drive a Toyota Innova car, but nowadays I prefer to take a three-wheeler scooter to work,” said copper and brass trader Dharmesh Dave, referring to the mechanised rickshaws that wriggle through Indian streets. “I wanted to buy a house, but my capital has now been held up in business. In any case, the way stocks markets have crashed, it is quite likely that property prices would follow.”

Some experts say stock markets may rise after a year or so, if global markets stabilise, but only 20 to 30 percent over the main index’s current level of around 9,000 points. “It is not likely to climb to the record level of 20,000 to 21,000 points reached in January, as the impact of the global financial turmoil is expected to linger even after a year until the FIIs return,” said Chandra Mohan Mukherjee, director of Ace Financial Services in Kolkata.

H X P S D R A N Q S O I N U G T N F S J D

K D Z J I E I P F N L O M F P G O L J F

SUDOKU

Indian carriers withdraw ticket transaction fee MUMBAI, NOVEMBER 26 (REUTERS): Top airlines in India have withdrawn a transaction fee on air tickets effective Wednesday for tickets sold through call centres, websites or city offices. Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines have withdrawn the fee, which ranges from 350 rupees on a domestic economy ticket to 1,200 to 10,000 rupees on first class international tickets.

“We are withdrawing the transaction fee for tickets sold through our offices, airport counters or websites, effective today (Wednesday), a Jet spokeswoman said.

“For tickets booked directly with us through our website, call centre or city offices, there will be no transaction fee levied,” a Kingfisher spokesman said. “The fee ranges from 350 rupees for domestic fares to 10,000 rupees for long haul first class international flights,” the Kingfisher spokesman said. State-run Air India said late on Tuesday it has withdrawn the fee for domestic and international air tickets effective Wednesday. The move comes after the federal aviation minister Praful Patel said that domestic airlines should cut fares on easing jet fuel prices.

Sonia keen on fuel price cut; Prime Minister cautious NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Petroleum Minister Murli Deora’s statement saying petrol and diesel could be cheaper right after the Assembly election will now have to be defended before the Election Commission. The BJP has charged the Petroleum Minister with violating the model code of conduct. But the statement has also exposed the differences within the UPA over when prices should be cut. The Prime Minister and his economic team have been arguing for more caution in cutting prices in a hurry. The Congress party knows its good politics and wants a decision sooner rather than later.

On their part, the BJP on Tuesday termed the Centre’s announcement to reduce petrol and diesel prices after the assembly polls as an attempt to woo voters and said it will take up this “violation of model code of conduct” with the Election Commission. “This is a violation of the model code of conduct aimed at wooing the voters ahead of the assembly elections in many states,” senior BJP leader and party’s chief ministerial candidate in Delhi V K Malhotra told reporters in New Delhi on Tuesday. Petroleum Minister Murli Deora earlier said the government will cut petrol and diesel prices after December 24 when the Assembly elections are over. “The international prices have fallen and there is an expectation that prices need to be reduced. I am also of the opinion that they should be reduced and that will happen after December 24,” Deora said. Asked whether BJP will approach the Election Commission on the issue, Malhotra said the party will file a complaint with the Commission. Malhotra maintained that people in Delhi are fed up with the Congress’ “misrule” and stressed that his party will bounce back to power this time after sitting in the opposition for ten years.

Suzuki Motorcycle India Joint Managing Director Katsumi, right, and Vice President Sales and Marketing Atul Gupta, left, pose next to the newly launched Suzuki Hayabusa in New Delhi, Wednesday, November 26. Suzuki Motorcycle India launched the Hayabusa sports bike and Intruder M1800R cruiser in India at a price of Rupees 1,250,000 (US $25,510). (AP Photo)

DAILY CROSS WORD

LEISURE W O

The Morung Express

27 November 2008

CROSSWORD # 1164

The Morung Express number game

Sudoku # 1147

DIMAPUR

Civil Hospital: Metro Hospital: Faith Hospital: Shamrock Hospital Zion Hospital: Fire Service: Police Control Room Police Traffic Control East Police Station West Police Station CIHSR (Referral Hospital)

STD CODE: 03862

232224; Emergency- 229529, 229474 227930, 231081 233044, 228846 228254 231864, 230889 232201 228400 232106 227607, 228400 232181 242555/ 242531

KOHIMA Police Control Room: North Police Station: South Police Station: Fire Brigade: Naga Hospital: Oking Hospital: Bethel Nursing Home: Answers to CROSSWORD #1163

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

Yesterdays answer Sudoku #1146

STD CODE: 0370 2244279 2244923 2242897 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202

CHEVROLET CARS PRICE LIST NOVEMBER’ 2008

CAR MODEL

PRICE

SPARK 1.0 BASE

268,648

SPARK 1.0 PS

289,992

SPARK 1.0 LS

304,641

SPARK 1.0 LT

334,123

U-VA 1.2 BASE

401,753

U-VA 1.2 LS

444,299

U-VA 1.2 LT

484,090

SRV 1.6 OPT. PACK

790,100

AVEO 1.4 BASE

606,461

AVEO 1.4 LTD EDI

661,631 754,930

CHICAGO

PICTURES

AVEO 1.4 LT OPT.PACK

DAY

SICK

TAVERA 2.5 LT 9S BS3

877,748

TAVERA 2.5 SSD1 7S (C) BS3

993,249

OPTRA ROYAL 1.6 LT (PETROL)

967,686

OPTRA MAGNUM 2.0 LT ACC (DIESEL)

1,074,547

CAPTIVA 2.0 LT VCDI

1,812,688

DRAWS

SON

FAMOUS

SPENDS

ACROSS

FATHER

STAYS

FELL

STILL

FLOOR

THEM

LIKE

THINKS

LIVES

WHAT

MEDICINE

WONDER

MONEY

WORKS

1. A ___ in sheep’s clothing (4) 3. Snakes and ___ (7) 9. One good turn deserves ___ (7) 10. Day and ___ (5) 11. Less ___ more speed (5) 12. Aided and ___ (7) 14. From rags to ___ (6) 16. No man is an ___ (6) 20. A ___ audience (7) 22. ___ and uncles (5) 24. ___ influence (5) 26. ___ and lightning (7) 27. Act in haste, repent at ___ (7) 28. A ___ end job (4)

DOWN 1. Under the ___ (7) 2. If ___ could kill (5) 4. At home and ___ (6) 5. Song and ___ man (5) 6. Like a red ___ to a bull (3) 7. Say ___! (6) 8. ___ poker (4) 13. ___ and sympathy (3) 15. ___ and saucer (3) 17. The ___ quo (6) 18. To achieve the ___ effect (7) 19. A red ___ day (6) 20. Join the ___ (4) 21. Any more bright ___? (5) 23. A ___ and a wink (5) 25. Do or ___ (3)

For details contact: Urban Station, Near NSC Petrol Pump, 6th Mile Dimapur. Ph No : 240994

CURRENCY EXCHANGE

CURRENCY NOTES US Dollars Sterling Pound Hong Kong Dollar Japanese Yen /1000 Malaysian Ringtt Singapore Dollar Thai Bhat / 100 U.A.E. Dirhams Euro

BUY(Rs) 48.65 74.73 5.41 498.51 12.23 30.23 135.05 12.46 63.12

SELL(Rs) 51.19 78.84 7.42 551.46 15.17 35.37 146.55 14.59 66.42

REGIONAL

The Morung Express

Thursday 27 November 2008

Dimapur

5

Mizoram shows how to hold election

AIZAWL, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): It is hard to believe that Mizoram goes to the polls in less than a fortnight. There is no customary fanfare associated with elections to be seen or heard here. Party flags can be seen occasionally and are mainly those of the Congress, which is usually given its full name here, the Indian National Congress (INC).

Other visible signs of an imminent poll, officials, are nowhere to be seen, since many officials are close relatives of candidates in the electoral fray. Friends and family are all out in their respective constituencies, rustling up voters for elections due on December 2. An official in the chief minister’s office said: “The CM will now be back only after the polls,”

indicating that everything is now on hold.

However, while the state goes to the polls in December, some of its electorate has already cast its vote. These are the Bru tribals now in Tripura, who cast their votes in two phases, the first on November 24. The second round will be held on November 26, Lalmalsawma, chief electoral officer, Mizoram, said.

“We have clubbed them into two categories, with three camps in south Tripura and three camps in north Tripura. For the duration of the postal ballot, we will send two teams, one based in Mizoram to cover the north Tripura camps and the other based in Kanchanpur sub-division for the other camp,” he said.

Mizoram’s just under 6 lakh electorate comprises 3.08 lakh women voters and 2.90 lakh men. However, despite women voters out-numbering the men, there are only nine women candidates of a total of 206 candidates contesting the 40 seats.

The Congress is fielding 40 candidates, the Mizo National Front (MNF) 39, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janata Party (LJP) 39, the United Democratic Front (UDA) 38, with 36 Independents. This is the first time there are so many Independents, mainly people who were denied tickets by their respective parties.

While the state’s chief electoral officer admitted to some worries over the movement of armed insurgent groups from Manipur into

Mizoram, he said the EC has turned down the state’s request for additional security. The Assam Rifles mans the international border with Burma and the Border Security Force is deployed on the Bangladesh border. The low decibel campaign, local residents claim, is the norm and not an aberration.

“Door to door campaigning is frowned upon since it makes it easier for candidates to use money power. Instead, candidates hold street corner meetings where voters can ask questions. Also, candidates are using cable television to hold debates moderated by journalists,” said a resident. The televised debates are civil and each candidate is allowed a full say with no interruptions or raised voices.

PM evokes 'Gandhi magic' in Mizoram AIZAWL, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): At a packed Assam Rifles ground in Aizawl, PM Manmohan Singh unleashed a bitter attack on Zoramthanga's MNF Government, charging it with failure on every count particularly the education and power sectors. Saying that Congress did not believe in a pointless blame game, Manmohan said the failure of Zoramthanga's government was there for all to see.

Manmohan also called himself a man from the Northeast and said: "It's always a proud moment for

me to re-affirm the enduring ties of love and affection that bind Congress with the people here. As you know, I am an MP from Northeast and consider myself an adopted son of the region."

Continuing his tirade against the MNF government, the PM said, "The Central Government made grants of more than Rs 3,800 crore to Mizoram between 2004-08. But its utilization by the state government has been poor." It was not Congress's policy to discriminate between states as far as financial assistance was concerned, he added.

Referring to the various

schemes of the UPA government, Manmohan said the MNF government got its rightful share which was squandered.

The PM said he was alarmed to see that even programmes meant for the poor were mismanaged. "There are allegations of irregularities by the state government machinery even in NREGS and the loan waiver scheme; funds meant for tribal welfare have been squandered," Manmohan Singh alleged.

He appealed to the Mizo people to form a Congress government and punish the MNF for its failures.

Donning a typical Mizo

waistcoat and a traditional Mizo bag, Manmohan drove home the point that he was perfectly aware that the Mizos have a soft corner for the Gandhi family. He, therefore, did not forget to mention the "Gandhi magic" during his first election meeting in Mizoram. "Mizoram has a close relationship with Congress. Our beloved former PM Rajiv Gandhi was instrumental in ending years of insurgency and violence in the state," he said, adding, "The people of Mizoram responded magnificently to the call and wholeheartedly joined the national mainstream."

BJP alleges Cong hand in Assam blast

GUWAHATI, NOVEMBER 26 (UNI): The BJP today accused the Congress of having a hand in the serial blasts in Assam on October 30, which left more than 80 people dead. Releasing a series of photographs of the main accused Bimal Mushary with several topmost leaders of the Assam state Congress, BJP national vice-president Bijoya Chakravarty and MP Rajen Gohain alleged that the Congress had a definite hand in the blast. The main accused, Bimal Musahary, is a Congress activist and very close to Assam Revenue Minister Dr Bhumidhar Burman, who is also the senior most in the Cabinet after Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi. ''These photos clearly show that mastermind of the blast Musahary was patronised by state leaders like Dr Bhumidhar Burman and state general secretary Haren

Das. These are not private photos but all of them are from public functions,'' Rajen Gohain said, while addressing a news conference. He asserted to raise the matter on the floor of Parliament when it reassembles after the recess. ''It is a very serious matter. The Congress has a clear agenda and they want to lay the blame on a particular tribe for all the violence in Assam while protecting its own vote bank,'' Chakravarty said.

Police has already arrested Bimal Mushahary and has been consistently maintaining that Bodo militants were behind the blasts and a dozen of them were also rounded up, but the confusion has not been cleared yet. ''The investigation has been politically handled by Congress. They somehow want to protect the Jehadi elements for their vote bank. They had been doing it since the last Udalgiri com-

munal violence and masterminded it to happen in such a manner that during the election the Muslim votes come in their favour,'' Gohain said.

He alleged that Jehadi elements were constantly being encouraged by Congress ministers like Rakibul Husain and said the minister had done so to win the vote bank.

However, he did not furnish any proof on this statement. ''The Congress, for the sake of power, has compromised national security. Now what more proof do you need when the main culprit of the Assam blast was a Congress functionary,'' Chakravarty said.

Meanwhile, Congress, on the defensive, admitted that Musahary was a Congress Seva Dal office bearer but he was no longer with the party. ''He was a Congress Seva Dal leader but was no longer with us,'' Assam government spokesman Pradyut Bardoloi

said. However, Mushahary's family members admitted that he was fully involved with the Congress and produced certificates. His wife alleged that ''in this hour of crisis, the party abandoned my husband after using him''.

The Congress had been alleging that BJP and RSS activists were involved in instigating mob violence at the sites after the blasts. ''This is false.

I arrived on the scene almost ten minutes after the blast. As a former MP I was supposed to be there and I had gone there.

No public leaders dared to come there for more than hour.

Yes, I voiced the same feeling as that of the thousands of others that this government failed to protect,'' Chakravarty said.

The Congress had alleged that Chakravarty had tried to storm the Assam capital complex with the charred bodies of the victims, which allegedly Members of the All Manipur Working Journalists Union and various civil organization took part in a mass protest rally in the streets of Imphal, Manipur on November 26 condemning the killing of K. Rishikanta. (UB Photos) sparked the mob violence.

Reang refugees refuse to cast vote SC appointed panel meets Assam carnage victims MORIGAON, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): The Supreme Court-appointed Haresh Manda Commission on Wednesday visited the areas hit by 1983 Nelli carnage in Central Assam's Morigaon district to inquire about the compensa-

tion received by the riot-hit people. Manda individually met the local people in Muladhari and Borbori villages in Nelli to know first hand from them about government compensation.

The apex court had appointed the commission to

look into the matter of compensation in the wake of a case filed in the court by the Victims' Families Coordination Committee alleging proper compensation was not provided to them. On February 17, 1983, hundreds of Bangladeshi immigrants were killed

in a clash with indigenous people in Nelli area. At that time the All Assam Students Union (AASU) had sponsored the movement against "illegal foreigners" and called for a boycott of the general elections alleging the aliens' names were included in the voters list.

Admission Notification for NIRD’s Post Graduate Diploma Programme in Rural Development Management (PGDRDM):2009-10 The National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD), an Organisation of the Ministry of Rural Development, Govt. of India is a premier national center of excellence in rural development with its Head Office at Hyderabad. Recognised internationally for its excellence in training and research in Rural Development and HRD, it builds capacities of the rural development functionaries, elected representatives, academicians and young students through inter-related activities of training, research, teaching and consultancy.

Reang refugees shout slogan against the Election Commission of India in protest against the missing of names of voters from voters list and proper ballot papers in place of postal ballots in Kanchanpur area, 200 km northeast of Agartala on November 26. (UB Photos) Newmai News Network Aizawl | November 26

ACCUSING THAT there have been discrepancies in ballot papers, over 8,000 Reang refugees who are staying in refugee camps in Tripura and Mizoram, stayed away today from casting votes as a mark of protest. Though the people of Mizoram will go to poll on December 2, the Election Commission of India had fixed November 26 and 27 for the postal ballot voting.

There are at present six refugee camps of the Reangs

in Tripura and two of them in Mizoram. Regarding today's development, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Mizoram said that the Reangs' decision not to cast vote was to protest against the absence of party symbols against the names of the candidates in ballot papers.

It is worth noting that following the pressure from the Mizoram government on the Election Commission of India (ECI), the latter had decided to have postal ballot for the Reang refugees who are in Tripura and in the remote

areas of Mizoram. There are altogether 8,226 eligible voters of Reang refugees in these two states. The postal ballot voting will very much help the Reang refugees to be able to cast their votes without facing any hardship.

In the past, Reang refugees had to track all the way from Tripura to Mizoram just to cast their votes. Because of this reason most of these refugees failed to participate in the past elections.

The introduction of postal ballot voting will not only reduce the hardship of the Re-

ang refugees but it also will save money for the voters.

Talking to NNN, the Joint CEO of Mizoram, said the Reang refugees will not be able to vote even tomorrow, the last day of the casting of postal ballots though new papers with necessary rectifications are being printed.

The Reangs, also called the Brus have been staying in the refugee camps in Tripura in the past 11 years following the communal clash with the Mizos. It has been reported that over 35,000 Reangs are sheltered in Tripura.

Assam announces ex-gratia for slain journalist

GUWAHATI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Tuesday announced an ex-gratia grant of Rs three lakh for the family of Jagajit Saikia, a journalist with a local daily who was killed on Saturday. Gogoi said Saikia’s wife would be given a government job.

Asserting his government was concerned about the lives of both journalists and citizens, Gogoi assured that the culprits would be nabbed soon. Saikia was the Kokrajhar correspondent of Assamese daily Aamar Asom.

Meanwhile, journalists here demanded a CBI inquiry into Saikia’s killing, besides insurance and a special law for their protection in the state, where 20 scribes have been killed in the past 17 years. The journalists held a meeting at the Guwahati Press Club and took out a procession to the Deputy Commissioner’s office to submit a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil. Similar protests were also held in Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Jorhat, Sonitpur, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Kamrup (rural) and other districts.

In Kokrajhar, the ‘shradha’ of Saikia was held where former chief minister and AGP leader Prafulla Kumar Mahanta and his wife Jayashree, were present.

The Assam Press Correspondents Union there sent a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Gogoi demanding Rs 10 lakh as ex-gratia for Saikia’s family, a government job to a member of his family and security for journalists.

In a message to the Guwahati Press Club, Editors Guild president Rajdeep Sardesai said “The Editors

Guild has noted with increasing dismay the spate of violent incidents involving journalists in the northeast and has brought this to the notice of the Union Home ministry.”

Kolkata Press Club Secretary Sudhir Karmakar, Sikkim Press Club Secretary Bhim Rawat, Agartala Press Club Secretary Prana Sarkar, Shillong Press Club President David Laipphnang, All Manipur Working Journalists Union President S Hemant and Reporters Without Borders also condemned the killing.

The NIRD announces its second fully residential One Year ‘Post Graduate Diploma Programme in Rural Development Management (PGDRDM)’ with an aim to create a committed and competent cadre of Rural Development professionals in the country. For more information on PGDRDM, please visit www.nird.org.in / pgdrdm_web_page / home page.mht Graduates in any discipline from a recognised University can apply for the Diploma Programme. Students who are in the final year and expect to complete all the requirements of graduation before 1st August, 2009 may also apply. Some seats are reserved for the in-service candidates with at least two years of work experience in rural development and allied sectors who have to apply through their employers.

Selection will be through All-India Entrance Test, Group Discussion and Personal Interview.

Duration: One year, August, 2009 to July, 2010 COURSE FEE: Rs. 1.25 lakh. The Board and Lodging expenses will be approximately Rs.75, 000/Merit and need based scholarships may be made available to deserving candidates. NE students may get financial support from the North Eastern Council subject to two students per State. Bank loans will also be facilitated by the NIRD for needy students.

Reservations for the SC/ST/OBC and Persons with Disability (PWD) will be made as per Government of India’s policies.

The Entrance Test will be conducted on 18.01.2009 at the following centers in NE Region:: Agartala, Aizawl, Dibrugarh, Gangtok, Guwahati, Imphal, Itanagar, Kohima, and Shillong.

PLACEMENT: NIRD will endeavour to make placements on successful completion of the PGDRDM, but does not guarantee.

The prospectus cum application form can be obtained from the Admissions Officer, Centre for Post Graduate Studies (CPGS) free of cost. Request for applications by post should reach along with self addressed envelope of size 12”x10” by 10.11.2008 Application forms will also be given at NIRD-NERC office at Khanapara, Guwahati, Tel:0361-2304791. It can also be downloaded from the NIRD’s website www.nird.org.in .

The filled in application form should be submitted along with the application fee of Rs.1000/- (Rs.500/- for SC/ST and PWDs through an ‘Account Payee’ Demand Draft drawn in favour of NIRD, Hyderabad, to the Admissions Officer, Centre for Post Graduate Studies (CPGS), National Institute of Rural Development, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad-500 030 (A.P) so as to reach on 15.12.2008.

Professor & Head Centre for Post Graduate Studies Tel: 040-24008522, E-mail: pgdrdmnird@gmail.com pgdrdm@nird.gov.in

6

IN-FOCUS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express THURSDAY 27 NOVEMBER 2008 VOL. III ISSUE 329

Referendum, The Way?

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n the last decade, we have seen the birth of two new countries, East Timor and Kosovo; both of which gained their independence not through negotiations but through internal processes of referendum where people sturdily asserted their call for independence with the active support and lobbying efforts of the international community. Today, history witnesses the making of another nation, as the people of Greenland overwhelming voted for self-rule, a mandate which has been articulated as a step toward independence. This participatory process of referendum has proven to be more inclusive than negotiations, which are usually more exclusive and has the tendency to be bogged down by legality. The referendum process addresses core political issues and is being perceived as a critical aspect in solving protracted political conflicts.

Within this same time frame of the last ten years, the international community has borne witness to the continuing failure of a number of critical peace negotiations, some of which have entirely collapsed and returned to war, while others are on the brink of resuming armed confrontation after having reached an impasse.

A number of peace processes around the world which had been projected as possible ‘road maps’ by the international community have failed miserably to find a solution; and are now being seriously questioned. The important point therefore is: Are negotiations an effective method to solve political conflicts? The last ten years have proved otherwise. Rather the approach of seeking the will of the people by way of a referendum or plebiscite has been successful in modern politics; and the process of exercising one’s will is consistent with values of democracy.

While the art of negotiations are an essential component of diplomacy, the dynamic of international politics has failed to empower and enable negotiation processes to become an effective means of conflict transformation. One of the drawbacks of negotiations is the disturbing fact that very often the process is taken out of the hands of conflicting parties who are in negotiation and because of this lack of ownership, the outcome often does not lie with the conflicting parties. Real politik and state control are the other contributing factors that create deadlocks in negotiations and often do not encourage the process to provide out-of-the box options. Naturally such a limited approach only causes further distrust and polarization and rather than resolving the issue, it only further complicates them.

Keeping in mind the consistency in which negotiations have only ended in renewal of political violence or an impasse that stubbornly refuses to think and act outside of the conventional point of view, the need for alternative ways to address protracted conflicts of a political nature has become fundamental to conflict transformation. It is in this light that the question of referendum as a means to break the impasse cause by protracted negotiations has become affective in creating new and viable options for political solutions.

The relevance of referendum in conflict transformation has been proved and within 2008 itself two cases have exercised them.

Nelson Mandela has been proved right when he stated that “only free men can negotiate;” and perhaps in an irony twist of fate, the referendum may prove to be the most effective way to resolve political conflicts in modern history.

LEFT WING |

Amit Dwivedi

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE: Back-bone of Indian economy “Who said agriculture is a business of loss. I am saving more than Rs 80,000/- (about USD 1,750) every year and providing bread & butter to my 11 family members who are dependent on me,” said Prabhavati Devi, who lives in Sardar Nagar block of Gorakhpur district.

She has one and half acres land in which she is producing more than 86 types of crops annually. Prabhavati Devi is doing organic farming, which is a very reliable method of sustainable agriculture resulting in high production at low cost. According to her, ‘12 years back I too was doing chemical farming and had no idea about this model of sustainable agriculture which involves an efficient management of time and land available for farming. However, when I came in contact with Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, GEAG (A Eastern UP based Non-Governmental Organization), I learned how to use indigenous-technical knowledge.’ She further said that, ‘although my husband and other family members are not supportive of my agriculture work, I have shown them how a woman farmer can make agricultural production a sustainable and financially viable activity.’ She is also the head of ‘Yamuna Self Help Group’ which has now become a Federation having five committees. She is also provides training to other farmers all over India. Thus Pravhavati Devi has become an ideal other women farmers.

According to Dr. Sheema Tripathi, working in GEAG, “sustainable agriculture should not be confused with organic farming as both are very different form each other. Sustainable agriculture means not only the withdrawal of synthetic chemicals, hybridgenetically modified seeds and heavy agricultural implements, it also tries to simulate the conditions found in nature. Sustainable agriculture involves Multiculture, intercropping, use of farmyard manure and remnants, mulching and application of integrated pest management. If this is followed then there is no reason why agriculture cannot be an economically viable activity in addition to being environmentally sustainable.’ She further said that, ‘Sustainable agriculture is very profitable in terms of money and soil conservation in the long run. Without doubt, it can meet the requirements of the country. GEAG tried to study this issue in eastern Uttar Pradesh and found that very few farmers follow the whole set of practices required in sustainable agriculture. However, thousands of farmers across the state use chemical pesticides.’

According to The United Nations Population Fund, (UNFPA) report India is projected to be the most populous country in the world by 2050, overtaking China. Its population, now 118.6 crores, is projected to be 165.8 crores in 2050. Increasing population growth is likely to reduce the area under agriculture. The major thrust of the agricultural development programmes in India is on efficient use of scarce natural resources like land, water and solar- energy. This can be achieved only through improved productivity in a cost-effective manner, which alone would result in the welfare of the farmers and agricultural labor. Balanced and integrated use of fertilizers, agricultural credit, institutional support, accelerated investments in agriculture, enhancing the competitiveness of agro-exports, creation of additional irrigation facilities etc. are being given encouragement through various schemes and activities of the Government of India.

‘Most people in rural India depend directly or indirectly on farming for their livelihood. Despite this, not enough attention has been given to agriculture to overcome poverty. The agriculture sector has a vital place in the economic development of India. However, very little interest has been shown by the policy makers to strengthen sustainable agriculture in India,’ said Dr. Shiraj A. Wajih, President of Sustainable Agriculture Network (SANUP), a network of more than 200 NGOs working in agriculture sector in Uttar Pradesh. SANUP is the only network in Uttar Pradesh which is directly working with the farmers to strengthen their knowledge of sustainable agriculture growth. However, it is a matter of concern that even the government, along with the multinational companies, seems to be aggressively promoting chemical farming in order to make quick profits. This is violating the basic norms of sustainable agriculture and will be counter-productive in the long run.’ He further said that, ‘the biggest and most important achievement of sustainable agriculture network has been in sustainable agriculture literacy in bringing about a change in farmers thinking and perceptions.’ India is a land of agriculture and which needs to be strengthened in a sustain way. The government should make farmer-friendly policies and should encourage farmers to adopt low input cost and high production methods. In this way agriculture will become not only a means of subsistence for the poor but will also become the back-bone of Indian economy.

THE EDIT PAGE

C O M M E N T A R Y

Georg-Sebastian Holzer

Somalia: Piracy and Politics

The increased hijacking of international vessels off the Horn of Africa reflects the world’s neglect and misjudgment of Somalia’s internal conflicts

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ver bolder pirate attacks have - out of nowhere, it has seemed - put Somalia on the frontpages and screens of international media. This world attention has a bitter aftertaste, for it comes after a long period of neglect by this selfsame media of persistent internecine warfare and humanitarian crisis in the country. The current phase of attention was triggered by the seizure on 15 November 2008 of the giant Saudi oil-tanker Sirius Star, carrying a $110-million cargo of crude oil on its way to the United States. The Sirius Star, 330 metres in length, is the biggest ship ever hijacked. But if this was the most spectacular of a series of such attacks, it was far from the first. From the hijacking of a French yacht in April 2008 to that of a Ukrainian tank-carrying freighter in September, the crisis that is now drawing the attention of western navies and policy-makers has been long brewing.

The involvement of Somalis in piracy is rooted in the circumstances of an internal conflict that has lasted since the early 1990s. There has for years been no authority to enforce and regulate Somalia’s fishing area along its coast - itself the most extensive in the whole of Africa. The result has been that local Somali fishing-fleets have no protection or rights over the country’s seas, and that international fleets have been able to command the waters and hoover up the country’s fishing-stocks. The grievances over this issue led local Somalis to seek to extract “licence-fees” from the international fishermen. Over time the situation escalated, with foreign fishing-crews being held to ransom.

The story of poor Somali fishermen trying to survive by engaging in piracy may never have told the whole story - and today, for sure, it no longer holds true.

For the situation now is also one of heav-

ily armed pirates operating from larger mother-ships in the open sea, far away from the Somali coast. In 2008 alone, they have extracted an estimated $150 million in ransoms, which have allowed them in turn to purchase more sophisticated equipment used to capture large merchant vessels.

The Sirius Star incident was preceded by the capture of the Ukrainian ship with thirty-three tanks and other weapons on board, heading for the Kenyan port of Mombasa. Both these high-profile assaults are classical examples of the operation of a war economy, where warlords and well organised criminal gangs profit from the vacuum of legitimate government, security and the rule of law (see Roger Middleton, Piracy in Somalia: Threatening Global Trade, Feeding Local Wars, Chatham House, October 2008).

Most of the current pirate attacks are organised in port towns like Eyl in the semi-autonomous Puntland region. After several years of relative stability in Puntland, in 2008 the general security situation there has deteriorated. An increase in criminality and violence means that the regional authorities are ever less able to control their own territory.

Local, Global The security vacuum in Puntland is linked to the national political environment, and in particular the local authorities’ close affiliation with the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Many Somalis see the TFG as a puppet of invading Ethiopian troops, who have been installed in the country since December 2006.

Many of the soldiers of the Puntland army were sent south when Abdullahi Yusuf, Puntland’s president from 1998 to 2004, became president of the TFG. Now, with the advancing Islamists on the verge of taking over the capital Mogadishu and bringing the final cur-

tain down on the TFG, Puntland is under increased pressure from the radical Islamist al-Shabab militia. The coordinated bombings on 29 October 2008 in northern Somalia which killed around forty people in Bossaso (the Puntland port town) and in Hargeisa (the capital of the other notionally autonomous territory of Somaliland) are striking examples of the Islamists’ attempt to control the whole country and send a powerful message - nationalist and pan-Somali as well as religious - to these relatively successful Somali regions.

Somalia’s strategic position at the Horn of Africa means that pirates are now able to assert their presence and conduct operations along one of the lifelines of world trade. Around 20,000 cargo ships a year transit the Gulf of Aden and the strait of Bab el-Mandeb, the Red Sea and the Suez Canal - the shortest sea-link between Asia and Europe. Because of the increased risks, insurance premiums are rocketing. This effect will multiply if shipping companies have to reroute their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, which prolongs the journey by twelve to fifteen days. As prices in the transport business are calculated at the margin, it is only a matter of time that commodity prices in Europe and the US will also see an increase.

The current global economic downturn makes the political and economic concerns of Europe and the United States about this situation understandable. Already, several warships in the Gulf of Aden are trying to foil pirate attacks - with more to come. The Combined Task Force, set up during the war in Afghanistan, and Nato together command twelve warships. The European Union agreed to deploy an air and naval force of four to six ships from December 2008 onwards. These are hardly sufficient to conduct “maritime security operations”

in an area that is larger than the Mediterranean Sea. Offshore, Onshore It is clear that the pirate attacks need to be confronted militarily where they are occurring: at sea. Such action, however, will at best manage to a limited extent - rather than solve - the problem of piracy in the Horn of Africa and its consequences for world trade. For the root causes of the problem lie in Somalia itself.

In that country, 2,5 million people (a third of the population) are now on the verge of starvation, and approximately 1 million are internally displaced. It is only a question of time before the now comprehensively discredited TFG falls.

The question is: what will come after?

Until now, the United States especially) has seen Somalia solely through the prism of the “war on terror. In so many areas - and Somalia is one - this approach has achieved an outcome opposite to that intended. A new policy towards Somalia’s crisis is needed. One of its requirements is developing an open mind sufficient to contemplate bringing moderate Islamists into some sort of power-sharing government.

Before that can happen, however, the international community will need to overcome its stance of benign neglect visà-vis Somalia. The signs here - even after the high-profile attention on the piracy issue - are not promising. The United Nations Security Council’s promise (when renewing the African Union’s peacekeeping mandate for a further six months in August 2008) to consider peace operations “subject to political process and improvement in the security situation” reads, after all, like a charter for permanent inaction.

If the roots of Somalia’s enduring crisis are to be addressed, the international community must find ways to play an active and constructive role in partnership with the Somalis themselves.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR On superannuation issue

the said article who claimed themselves to be known as “Save Nagaland Team” also stated that the meeting took place inside the chamber of a certain secretary to the government and one of the members who wrote the said article was witness of the meeting. But the NSF which has been opposing the said issue for reason best known to them let off the legislation be made in the State Assembly last year. But whatever be the past blunders or failures, if the present move against the said issue was succeeded then the allegations against those student leaders may be proved false and rascal. Therefore, I for one would like to encourage and support the NSF to see that the present move against the unilateral decision of the government should be achieved by hook or crook. Be it as individual I strongly support the move of NSF for the betterment of our younger generations to bring changes. Unless the changes are brought about however we talk of modern life or standard that can never solve the problem of the present society.

Secondly, nobody knows what is going to come or happen for him of the future days if he misses the present opportunity that God has limited his time for now and never to come. For those who are already in the service may not be comfortable with what is stated here, but if any one thinks for others too, one should understand that, to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. I therefore feel that this write up is for one and all to balance our society of the present trend and also for the good of the future generations.

•Sir- Since it was enacted in the State Assembly it is like wild goose chase to shout now, yet it is imperative to say that the State Government’s decision to enhance the superannuation age of the employees is like adding salt to the injuries for the fact that unemployment problem is at the saturating point. It is very unfortunate on the part of the state government for hasty decision to enhance the superannuation age of the state employees without taking the people into confidence. There is no logic behind the enhancement of the superannuation age, but rather discrimination and denials of the present educated youths to get employment. Such a sensitive issue is worth debatable even outside the state assembly if the government felt to take the people into confidence, because the government is for the people, of the people and by the people. Therefore, the students body (NSF) to go against the state government’s decision to enhance the superannuation age is very much appreciated and appropriate. However, it was also a failure on the part of the NSF which body is representing the younger generation for not taking up the issue in time when the state government was critically examining the issue to pass the bill in the Assembly. It was also said that during the crucial period when the state government was about to pass the superannuation bill, rumours were doing the round that the NSF leaders were bribed and so the bill was passed, but no refutations from the NSF officials was ever seen in any local papers. The Northeast Herald on 2nd H.K. Zhimomi May 2008 issued stated that (Quote) the Social Activist government was reluctant to concede the demands in view of the strong opposition by the NSF in the past. But some Govt should not back track handful officers in order to achieve their interest by hook or crook means secretly •Sir- It is sad to note that application of invited NSF President and Gen. Secretary length of service for retirement of Govfor discussion of the issue. The writers of ernment servants from service was bur-

ied more than a decade ago and on top of this, the Government through another Act has enhanced the superannuation age from 57 yrs to 60 yrs which is like putting salt in the wounds for the student community.

But surprisingly, exactly after completion of one year of the enhancement of Superannuation, the student community kick started its rally and demonstration.

And during the rally held on 18/11/08, the student community was seen appealing and addressing to the government servants as grandpas and grandmas to vacate their chairs to give them chance to serve.

Here I want to clarify that no doubt there are some Government servants who are putting forty plus years of service but they are not at their seats on their own, but it is because of the government policy for which they are bound to keep serving. So instead of hurting the sentiments of others, the student community should negotiate with the Government which is the appropriate authority to decide what is good and what is bad for the younger generation.

But I strongly believe the government will not backtrack from its decision and the Government will also not take decision to reopen the 33 yrs of service age issue as this will attract contempt of court. Hence it will be like crying over spilled milk.

I still wish good luck to the student community for better tomorrow.

C.K. Lotha Kohima Town

Who is to be blamed?

Sir- As a daily reader of your esteemed paper, I as an educated unemployed youth of Nagaland for the last four years would like to pinpoint the truth behind this superannuation issue, which has become a burning topic among our educated youths.

Firstly, the Government of Nagaland should have extended the year of service in a civilized orderly manner i.e. step by step, so as to say one year at a time in an experimental way, so that the flow of retiring Government officials and the creation of post would be available yearly for everyone. But since the Government has extended the year of service from 57yrs to 60yrs (three years) without any pre-condition, the flow of retiring Government official in between these years would be like a huge landslide. This would eventually create thousands of post that will be a blessing for some and a dead end for those of us who by the time these officials retire our service entry age will be over as those who are lucky enough to get a job would all retire i.e., after 60 years.

So there will always be a gap, or rather a regression. Alas! I pity our younger generation who are still in college. Well considering all this, the NSF stands right in their demand for 33 years as the length of service.

Secondly, NSF as the apex student body of Nagaland should have looked into the matter long before the Government extended the year of service from 57yrs to 60yrs; were you guys sleeping or are there some inside issue that kept you guys silent after a brief period of strike and demand?

Why are we asking 33 yrs as the length of service, nearly after a year, when we could have demanded the length of service at the time the Government issued its order as 60yrs as the retiring age?

Did we realize a bit too late? I am sorry to say this but we are one step behind. However in a democratic country, Government is for public and public is for Government, so for the interest of the public the Government may like to reconsider for a better future.

Lastly, who is to be blame?

Victor Chakhesang Agri Farm Colony, Kohima

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THURSDAY

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

27 NOVEMBER 2008

7

PERSPECTIVE NEWS ANALYSIS, FEATURE AND DISCOURSE

Death of a Dogma

John Samuel

“It is over”. That’s a succinct way of describing the death of greed-driven neoliberal capitalism. And that is how one Wall Street analyst described the fall of Lehman Brothers on September 15, 2008. The fall of Lehman was a visible signifier of the tsunami that has hit Wall Street and the world of high-profile financial trade and investment. It was the story of a disaster foretold.

That morning a painter called Geoffrey Raynold landed up in Manhattan and unveiled a large canvas titled The Annotated Fuld, showing Richard Fuld, the beaten Chairman and CEO of Lehman Brothers, with sunken eyes. The painter invited Lehman employees and others to scrawl their message on the canvas. Someone scribbled “This sucks”. The next day the painting was sold for 100,000 dollars.

The rise and fall of Lehman Brothers is symbolic of the rise and fall of the neoliberal economic policy paradigm. When the financial market roared, speculators, traders and typical financial intermediaries played in the global casino as if the good days would never end. The rich laughed their way to the bank.

They dined, wined and partied with perpetual cheer as the stock market index climbed to the sky. Many were seduced into the red-hot stock market. The percentage of Americans owning stock rose from 16% in the 1970s to more than 50% by 2005. Everyone wanted a piece of the cake.

It’s true that Lehman Brothers is a 158-year-old brand. However, it is actually a 14-year-old company that was spun off by American Express in 1994. In 1994, Lehman Brothers had a relatively small capital base. But the ambitious captains of Lehman were thirsty for profit and capital. To make more profits, they borrowed huge sums in relation to their real size.

Lehman’s debt became 35 times more than its capital – surely an unsustainable ratio. But they were making profits and they jumped into the lucrative real estate market with new financial instruments – derivatives -- to make more quick money.

Credit-rating agencies too played the casino game. The top credit rating agency Moody and Standard and Poor gave top AAA-ratings to the greedy nexus. It was a clear conflict of interest when the bankers themselves paid Moody and S&P to give their respective banks a good credit rating. It was a lie waiting to explode in the scandal of sub-prime lending -- easy mortgage given away to anyone ready to buy real estate, unmindful of their economic capacity to repay the loans. These intermediaries were betting someone else’s money -- if they gained, they made a huge bonus. If they lost, it was someone else’s loss. No wonder Richard Fuld made US$ 490 million as the CEO of Lehman Brothers, making the best use of stock options.

Those whiz kids called investment bank-

ers went for risky deals and quickie profits as they too made their millions through stock options and moved on. Now the party is over. More than a trillion dollars worth of stock market wealth vanished in a single day. They call it a financial meltdown. It was the beginning of the end.

Dogmas are authoritarian doctrines. Neoliberalism emerged in the early-1980s, and became a dogma over a period of ten years.

The dogma was that the market knows best.

Neoliberalism consisted of tax cuts for the rich, more indirect taxes (which affect ordi-

ers looked like sexy guys with lots of money.

Globalisation became a fashion statement for many countries. The World Economic Forum became an extension of Wall Street.

Political leaders and corporate executives went there for their annual pilgrimage. The deadly dogma preached growth and growth, and toasted the new billionaires. Newspapers told the rags-to-riches stories of the new billionaires. Billions of poor were swept under the carpet. Poverty and inequality did not make it to the front page. Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and Laxmi Mittal smiled at

nary people), deregulated financial markets, easy money with low interest rates and free markets with forced liberalisation of economies, markets and financial sectors across the world. Anyone who questioned the dogma was marginalised as a heretic.

In fact, by the late-1970s, markets were saturated in the US and Europe. They required new markets for the movement of finance capital as well as manufactured goods. Unless the market was expanded to the emerging economies and unless there was a free flow of capital, Anglo-Saxon capitalism in the early-1980s would have faced a deep crisis. The State too was saturated and fat. That is how the neoliberal agenda, along with the neo-conservative politics of the Reagan era, entered the scene. Many developing and poor countries were in a debt trap resulting from the oil price shock of the 1970s. So the USA and its allies used the World Bank and IMF as strategic institutions to force many debt-driven countries to open up their markets and deregulate their economies. By the early-1990s it came to be called the Washington Consensus, a neat packaging of neoliberal dogma, pushed across the world by the Word Bank and IMF. The charismatic face of Bill Clinton and the glib talk of Tony Blair gave the neoliberal dogma a “human face’.

This was a time when investment bank-

us from the TV. The upwardly mobile, upper-caste and urban classes in India’s metros celebrated their new world with a saffron glow -- India Shining. Governments competed to show how much they were committed to the neoliberal dogma. Any sceptics were dumped as relics of the past or the residue of a Left in disarray.

When neoliberal finance capitalism, initiated by the Reagan-Thatcher combine, pushed towards us the new order of the day, their wholesale agents the Word Bank and IMF pedalled neoliberal policies as the medicine for all ills in all countries. By the early-’90s, neoliberal globalisation and deregulation became the mantra of the day. Politicians wanted to be in the good books of Uncle Sam and bureaucrats wanted to be in the good books of Brettonwoods institutions. When the Soviet model too collapsed, the neo-conservative intellectuals began to pedal old wine in new bottles -- the End of History, the Clash of Civilisation and There are no Alternatives. There emerged a deep nexus between Wall Street and the US treasury.

It is not a mere accident that Hank Paulson, the Treasury Secretary, was the former Chief Executive of Goldman Sachs. Many of the top executives in the government and Word Bank came from Wall Street.

Money-driven corporate politics and the agents of investment banks in the corri-

dors of power and their media minions created the myth of the growth engine -driven by unbridled finance capital.

During the last 25 years, politics in many countries was corporatised, driven by money, media, fund managers and agents of big corporations. Policymaking too was subcontracted to the votaries of neoliberal dogma. Though many of them talked about “freedom” they were actually in the business of denying dignity and fudging freedom. Meanwhile Forbes magazine kept celebrating the increasing number of billionaires – never mind the billion who went to bed hungry every day. Many warned that the wolf was on the way. George Soros, one of the original gurus of financial capital markets, warned about “market fundamentalism”. Warren Buffet, old hand at Wall Street, called derivatives the “financial weapons of mass destruction”. But who listened in the midst of the party?

In an ethical liberal democratic system, the State is expected to determine the boundaries of the market and citizens are expected to determine the boundaries of the State.

But the dogma reiterated that “Markets know best”. Thus the market began to determine the boundaries of the State and the State began to determine the boundaries of citizens. Then markets were captured by speculative finance capitalists and investment banks. Finance markets were increasingly detached from real people, real wealth and the real economy. The market was driving governments.

Ironically, now government is forced to bail out and nationalise the losses, while the rich get away with their fat profits. The US federal government had to take on the huge burden of two of the biggest mortgage companies and dumped more than USD 5 trillion of the debt of the companies into the lap of taxpayers -- almost doubling the amount that the US owes to its lenders. This is termed the biggest transfer of debt in the history of money. Almost a couple of trillion has been pumped into the economic system to keep those sinking ships afloat.

Ultimately it is the people who end up paying for the indulgent excess of the rich and powerful in the global casino of the so-called free market. The free market was never free and now the toxic burden is dumped on the people. Bush presided over a brutal war and a deadly financial casino.

US unilateral militarism prostituted the term “democracy” and “freedom” by bombing people and countries. Unbridled neoliberal finance capitalism bulldozed ahead with greed -- till it crashed. Within weeks, the American dream became a nightmare.

The dogma is dead, buried under the debris of the famed investment banks. There is no more consensus in Washington. Karl Marx must be laughing in his grave in London.

DID BRITAIN JUST SELL TIBET?

Robert Barnett

T

he financial crisis is going to do more than increase unemployment, bankruptcy and homelessness. It is also likely to reshape international alignments, sometimes in ways that we would not expect. As Western powers struggle with the huge scale of the measures needed to revive their economies, they have turned increasingly to China. Last month, for example, Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, asked China to give money to the International Monetary Fund, in return for which Beijing would expect an increase in its voting share. Now there is speculation that a trade-off for this arrangement involved a major shift in the British position on Tibet, whose leading representatives in exile this weekend called on their leader, the Dalai Lama, to stop sending envoys to Beijing - bringing the faltering talks between China and the exiles to a standstill.

The exiles' decision followed an announcement on Oct. 29 by David Miliband, the British foreign secretary, that after almost a century of recognizing Tibet as an autonomous entity, Britain had changed its mind. Miliband said that Britain had decided to recognize Tibet as part of the People's Republic of China. He even apologized that Britain had not done so earlier.

Until that day, the British had described Tibet as autonomous, with China having a "special position" there. This formula did not endorse the Tibetan claim to independence. But it meant that in the British view China's control over Tibet was limited to a condition once known as suzerainty, somewhat similar to administering a protectorate. Britain, alone among major powers, had exchanged official agreements with the Tibetan government before the Chinese takeover in 1951,

so it could scarcely have said otherwise unless it was to vitiate those agreements.

After the People's Republic of China joined the United Nations in 1971, British politicians refrained from referring to their country's recognition of Tibet's autonomy

that frames the international order and could provide the basis for resolving China's dispute with Tibet. The British government may have thought the issue of no significance to Britain's current national interests and so did not submit it to public debate.

to avoid embarrassing Beijing. But that didn't make it less significant. It remained the silent but enduring legal basis for 30 years of talks between the Dalai Lama and Beijing, in which the Tibetans have called only for autonomy and not independence - a position that a conference of Tibetan exiles in India reaffirmed on Saturday.

Miliband described the British position as an anachronism and a colonial legacy. It certainly emerged out of a shabby episode in colonial history, Francis Younghusband's cavalier invasion of Tibet in 1903. But the British description of Tibet's status in the era before the modern nation-state was more finely tuned than the versions claimed by Beijing or many exiles, and it was close to the findings of most historians. Britain's change of heart risks tearing up a historical record

But the decision has wider implications. India's claim to a part of its northeast territories, for example, is largely based on the same agreements - notes exchanged during the Simla convention of 1914, which set the boundary between India and Tibet - that the British appear to have just discarded. That may seem minor to London, but it was over those same documents that a major war between India and China was fought in 1962, as well as a smaller conflict in 1987.

The British concession to China last month was buried within a public statement calling on Beijing to grant autonomy in Tibet, leading some to accuse the British government of hypocrisy. It is more worrying if it was a miscalculation. The statement was released two days before the Da-

lai Lama's envoys began the eighth round of talks with Beijing on their longstanding request for greater autonomy, apparently because the British believed - or had been told - that their giveaway to Beijing would relax the atmosphere and so encourage China to make concessions to the Dalai Lama.

The result was the opposite. On Nov. 10, China issued a damning attack on the exile leader, saying his autonomy plan amounted to ethnic cleansing, disguised independence and the reintroduction of serfdom and theocracy. The only thing that China will henceforth discuss with the exiles is the Dalai Lama's personal status, meaning roughly which luxury residence he can retire to in Beijing.

The official press in China has gleefully attributed European concessions on Tibet to the financial crisis. "Of course these European countries are at this time not collectively changing their tune because their conscience has gotten the better of them," announced The International Herald Leader, a government-owned paper in Beijing, on Nov. 7. It added that the financial crisis "has made it impossible for them not to consider the 'cost problem' in continuing to 'aid Tibetan independence' and anger China. After all, compared to the Dalai, to as quickly as possible pull China onto Europe's rescue boat is even more important and urgent." Britain's concession could be China's most significant achievement on Tibet since American support for Tibetan guerillas was ended before Nixon's visit to Beijing. Including China in global decision-making is welcome, but Western powers should not rewrite history to get support in the financial crisis. It may be more than banks and failed mortgages that are sold off cheap in the rush to shore up ailing economies.

Robert Barnett, the director of the Modern Tibetan Studies Program at Columbia, is the author of "Lhasa: Streets With Memories."

A Brave New World Awaits David Isenberg

If nothing else, the latest report of the United States National Intelligence Council (NIC) makes a prophet of Kishore Mahbubani. His book, The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible Shift of Global Power to the East published at the beginning of the year foreshadowed one of the main conclusions of the NIC report released last week. Among the assessments of the report, Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World, is that "the unprecedented transfer of wealth roughly from West to East now underway will continue for the foreseeable future". This projection coincides with US president-elect Barack Obama's announcement of an economic team with deep experience of managing international economic crises in the past decade. His string of appointees, including Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary, may be a strong indication of Obama's awareness of the changing world - as well as how he intends to govern.

Geithner, appointed just days after the release of the Global Trends reports, worked previously at the International Monetary Fund, and was under secretary of the Treasury for international affairs during the administration of Bill Clinton, where he played a key role in dealing with the Asian financial crisis of 1997-8. Global Trends is the fourth unclassified report prepared by the NIC in recent years that takes a long-term view of the future. Like previous reports, it was prepared to stimulate strategic thinking about the future by identifying key trends, the factors that drive them, where they seem to be headed, and how they might interact. Like the old Chinese curse, the not-so-far-distant future looks to be a very interesting time, with both opportunities and perils. And the Asian region is going to be a very big part of it. Among the report's "relative certainties" is that "a global multipolar system is emerging with the rise of China, India and others". Similarly, among the key "uncertainties" are: • Whether advances toward democracy occur in China and Russia.

• Whether regional fears about a nuclear-armed Iran trigger an arms race and greater militarization.

• Whether the greater Middle East becomes more stable, especially whether Iraq stabilizes, and whether the ArabIsraeli conflict is resolved peacefully.

• Whether Europe and Japan overcome economic and social challenges caused or compounded by demography.

If the report is correct, the world finds itself in the midst of a transition to a place where the political and economic structure will be markedly different. The report finds that the "international system - as constructed following World War II - will be almost unrecognizable by 2025, owing to the rise of emerging powers, a globalizing economy, an historic transfer of relative wealth and economic power from West to East, and the growing influence of non-state actors. By 2025, the international system will be a global multipolar one with gaps in national power continuing to narrow between developed and developing countries."

And therein lies a danger. The report notes that historically, emerging multipolar systems have been more unstable than bipolar or unipolar ones. While it doesn't predict the destruction of the international order, like the one that led to World War I, it does not rule out a 19th century-like scenario of arms races, territorial expansion and military rivalries.

Economically, in the future when Asia speaks the world will attentively listen. Growth projections for Brazil, Russia, India and China (the BRIC countries) indicate they will collectively match the original Group of Seven's share of global gross domestic product (GDP) by 2040-2050. Asia will also be the region producing the major share of the future middle class. Over the next several decades, the number of people considered to be in the "global middle class" is projected to swell from 440 million to 1.2 billion - or from 7.6% of the world's population to 16.1%, according to the World Bank.

Most of the new entrants will come from China and India.

In a sense, China and India are restoring the positions they held two centuries ago when China produced approximately 30% and India 15% of the world’s wealth. China is poised to have more impact on the world over the next 20 years than any other country. If current trends persist, by 2025 China will have the world's second largest economy. Both China and India's gross national product (GNP) is expected to exceed that of the US in 2035, but they will continue to lag in per capita income for decades. But it will not be an Adam Smith-type economy.

Generally, China, India and Russia are not following the West's liberal model for self-development, but instead are using a different model, "state capitalism"; the system of economic management that gives a prominent role to the state.

And, if demography is destiny, Asia will also be where the future lies. World population is projected to grow by about 1.2 billion between 2009 and 2025, from 6.8 billion to around 8 billion people. Demographers project that Asia and Africa will account for most of the population growth until 2025, while less than 3% of the growth will occur in the "West".

The largest increase will occur in India, representing about one-fifth of all growth. India's population is projected to climb by around 240 million by 2025, reaching approximately 1.45 billion people. From 2009 to 2025, China, is projected to add more than 100 million to its current population of over 1.3 billion. That is not to say there won't be problems. Around 2015, the size of China's workingage population will start to decline. The onset of larger proportions of retirees and relatively fewer workers is being accelerated by decades of policies that have limited childbirth and by a tradition of early retirement. By opting to slow population growth dramatically to dampen growing demand for energy, water and food, China is hastening the aging of its population. By 2025, a large proportion of China's population will be retired or entering retirement. About the same time, due to growth in India's densely populated northern states, its population is projected to overtake China's.

Asia is also projected to be the region where various conflicts might erupt. The report states that over the next 15-20 years, reactions to the decisions Iran makes about its nuclear program could cause a number of regional states to intensify these efforts and consider actively pursuing nuclear weapons.

On the plus side, the report says, "We see a unified Korea as likely by 2025 - if not as a unitary state, than in some form of NorthSouth confederation." In this future world the United States will find itself as just one of a number of important actors on the world stage, albeit still the most powerful military nation. But advances by others states in science and technology, expanded adoption of irregular warfare tactics by both state and non-state actors, and proliferation of long-range precision weapons, and growing use of cyber warfare attacks increasingly will constrict US freedom of action. This constrained US role raises questions about how effectively new agenda issues will be addressed. Despite the recent rise in anti-Americanism - which the report now thinks is beginning to wane somewhat - the US probably will continue to be seen as a much-needed regional balancer in the Middle East and Asia. Other countries still expect the United States to play a significant role in using its military power to counter global terrorism or provide leadership on climate change. Yet the future proliferation of influential actors and distrust of vast power mean less room for the US to call the shots without the support of strong partnerships. Thus Barack Obama and future US presidents will need to be doing a lot of talking with other national leaders in the future.

BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Dear Ammikhro W. Mekrisuh On this day, the November 26, we wish you a bountiful happiness.

-Mum and Dad

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.

C M Y K

8

Dimapur

NATIONAL

Thursday 27 November 2008

The Morung Express

‘Indian navy destroyed Thai fishing boat, not pirate vessel’

KUALA LUMPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (AFP): A maritime watchdog said Wednesday that the vessel sunk by the Indian navy in the Gulf of Aden was a Thai fishing trawler and not a Somali pirate vessel as was first announced. The Indian Navy won international praise for taking on the Somali pirates , who have turned the vital Suez Canal trade route into the world's most dangerous waterway. But Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) piracy reporting centre, said the vessel it attacked was a Thai-operated fishing boat which had been seized by Somali pirates off Yemen on November 18.

"We can confirm that the incident has taken place.

One Thai crew member died In this Nov. 11, 2008 file photo made available by Indian Navy, Indian warship INS Tabar, right, escorts the MV Jag Arnav during the attack by the Inship to safety after rescuing it from a hijack attempt by Somali pirates. The pirate "mother ship" sunk last week by the dian navy, on the same day Indian navy's INS Tabar was actually a Thai fishing trawler seized hours earlier by pirates, a maritime agency says, but the vessel was hijacked by the Indian navy defends its actions, saying it fired in self-defense. (AP Photo/Indian Navy, HO, File) Somali pirates," he told AFP.

Choong said that one Cambodian crewman was rescued by passing fishermen four days later, but 14 other crew on the Kiribati-registered vessel are still missing.

India's navy defended its actions, saying Wednesday that the vessel its stealth frigate fired on had been hostile.

"The Indian navy ship asked them to stop for investigation on repeated calls. The vessel responded by saying it would blow up the Indian ship," navy spokesman Commander Nirad Sinha told AFP in New Delhi. "Pirates were seen roaming on the deck with rocket-propelled grenade launchers," he said, adding that the Indian navy only opened fire after being fired upon. Choong said that photographs of the Thai vessel had been sent out to the coalition naval forces and other agencies when it was hijacked as "the fishing boat was actually an ideal mother

vessel for the pirates."

"The Indian navy may have not received this information as they are not part of the coalition forces and we have no direct link with them," he said. The downed boat was owned by the Thaibased Sirichai Fisheries and was being held by heavily armed pirates at the time the Indian frigate, the INS Tabar, opened fire. Sirichai Fisheries confirmed the deep sea trawler Ekawatnava 5 had been destroyed and said the crew were tied up when it opened fire. "The ship was hijacked early in the day and was sunk in the evening," its managing director Wicharn Sirchaiekawat told AFP in Bangkok. "Based on the surviving Cambodian crew member's account, all of them were tied up except two – the captain and translator – during the attack."

Wicharn said the Thai foreign ministry had sum-

moned the Indian ambassador to Thailand to hand over a complaint. "We want to know the details – why it was sunk and why the Indian navy did not rescue the crew," he said. Choong said that naval ships operating independently in the region should make efforts to obtain information on hijacked vessels, and link up with coalition forces to avoid confusion in the future. "Hopefully this tragic incident will not happen again, and more importantly it should not hamper existing anti-piracy operation by the navy," he said.

Choong said that coalition forces and Yemeni authorities are searching for any survivors from the Thai fishing boat. The IMB said 96 ships have been attacked so far this year off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden, with 39 hijacked and 15 still being held with more than 300 crew aboard.

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Indian navy said on Wednesday that a ship it attacked and sank in the Gulf of Aden was hostile, after a maritime watchdog said the vessel was a Thai fishing trawler and not a pirate ship. "The vessel was similar in description to what was mentioned in vari-

waterway.

But Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) piracy reporting centre, said on Wednesday the vessel attacked was a Thai-operated fishing boat which had been seized by pirates off Yemen on November 18. Another Indian navy official, speak-

ing on condition he not be named, dismissed the IMB's account. "Photographs of the attack and sinking of the vessel show a huge fireball.

This shows there was ammunition carried on board, otherwise how could it have been such a great explosion?" the Navy official said.

"If it was a fishing trawler, it

could not have resulted in such a huge explosion." An Indian defence ministry official said: "They tried to attack us and our actions were in defence of that – whichever the ship was."

"It was a pirate vessel in international waters and its stance was aggressive," the official said.

NEWS FILE Ship we attacked was hostile, says Indian Navy IAF helicopter crashes, one killed

LUCKNOW, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): An Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter crashed in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district killing one crew while the other received serious injuries, the police said Wednesday. "The mishap took place today (Wednesday) at around 12.30 p.m. in Oonchagaon village in Bareilly," district police chief Vinod Kumar Singh told IANS on phone. The injured crew has been admitted to the district hospital, he added. According to the police, minutes before the incident, the chopper moved jerkily in the air and fell into the Ramganga river in the village. Bareilly is about 300 km from Lucknow. "There were only two people, a pilot accompanied by a co-pilot, inside the chopper," said Singh. Air force officials have been informed, he added.

Lt Col Purohit suspended from Army

C M Y K

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Following laid down procedural guidelines; the Indian Army on Wednesday suspended, Malegaon blast suspect, Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Srikanth Purohit from service on disciplinary grounds. Though he cannot wear Army uniform until he gets a clean chit from the court, Purohit would still be entitled to the half of his salary. Arrested under MCOCA, Purohit is being questioned by Mumbai ATS in connection with Malegaon blast. However, Purohit is not expected to get any relief for six months as person booked under MCOCA cannot apply for bail for six months. Another accused in the case Swami Dayanand Pandey is due to be produced in court today. Earlier, yesterday, special MCOCA court had directed the Maharashtra government to file its reply on the allegations of physical and mental torture levelled by Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Lt Col Prasad Purohit and other accused in the Malegaon blast case by December 3. Sadhvi, Purohit and other accused had alleged in the court that they were tortured physically and mentally by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officials. The court had also refused to grant ATS the custody of the accused and remanded them and four other accused in judicial custody till December 3.

Centre’s spectrum policy comes under judicial scrutiny NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): The spectrum allocation policy followed by the Centre in recent years has come under judicial scrutiny as the Delhi High Court today sought response from the government on a petition challenging the policy. A bench comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justice S Muralidhar issued notice to the government and fixed the matter for further hearing on December 10. The petition filed by an NGO, Telecom Watchdog, contended that the government alloted the spectrum without following any policy and cellular operators were provided excess spectrum without charging them for the scarce resource since 2001. “The government should withdraw the excess spectrum from the operators by applying the tougher of the two spectrum allocation norms suggested by TRAI and TEC,” contended advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO. The Court, however, refrained from issuing notice to cellular companies.

Pune JCP confirms threat to ATS chief’s house PUNE, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): An anonymous caller, who used a PCO to contact Pune police, threatened to blow up the residence of Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) Chief Hemant Karkare “within a couple of days”, a top official confirmed on Wednesday. The caller who spoke a few lines in Marathi on November 24 evening cut the line after giving the threat, Rajendra Sonavane, Joint Commissioner of Police (JCP), told reporters. The call was later traced to a Public booth in Sahkar Nagar area of the city, he added. Asked whether it was being seen as a ‘hoax’, Sonavane said police were taking all such threats seriously in the present scenario and the Mumbai ATS had been informed duly about the threat call. However, the police control room, when contacted last night, had denied receiving any such threat to Karkare.

50 persons from Orissa seek shelter in Kerala THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Fifty people from Orissa have sought shelter in Kerala in the wake of recent communal violence that rocked Kandamal and other places in that state, Kerala Social Welfare Minister P K Sreemathi said on Wednesday. They had been put up in various rehabilitation homes under the Social Welfare Department in Ernakulam and Thrissur districts, with the state bearing the expenses for their food and clothes, she said in a written reply in the Assembly. Efforts were on to ascertain the details of their kin and would be sent back to their native places. For this, the services of a person knowing Oriya had been enlisted, she said.

ous piracy bulletins," an Indian navy spokesman, Commander Nirad Sinha said.

"The Indian navy ship asked them to stop for investigation on repeated calls. The vessel responded by saying it would blow up the Indian ship... Pirates were seen roaming on the deck with rocket-propelled

grenade launchers." He said the Indian navy only opened fire after being fired upon, and that "exploding ammunition was also seen" on the target. The Indian navy won international praise for taking on the Somali pirates, who have turned the vital Suez Canal trade route into the world's most dangerous

At least half a dozen ‘crorepatis’ Maninder Kohli gets life term in in fray for Jammu Kashmir polls Hannah Foster rape-and-murder SRINAGAR, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): There are at least half-a-dozen 'crorepatis' (millionaires) in the fray in the first three phases of elections in Jammu and Kashmir, including some with assets in the national capital region. Former minister and Independent candidate from Handwara Sofi Ghulam Mohiuddin has assets worth over Rs four crore, mostly comprising agricultural and non-agricultural land.

Former power minister and Congress candidate from Leh Segment Nawang Rigzin Jora is another 'crorepati' in the list of candidates whose affidavits have been displayed on the Election Commission website. Jora owns a hotel worth Rs 2.40 crore and a flat worth Rs 50 lakh at Rajinder Nagar in Delhi. He also has immovable properties valued at Rs 15 lakh.

Shabnum Gani Lone, daughter of slain Hurriyat Conference leader Abdul Gani Lone, who is contesting from Kupwara which goes to the polls in the third phase, is also a millionaire.

Lone, a lawyer by profession, has declared total assets of Rs 2.24 crore, including land worth Rs 70 lakh, a house in the city and a flat in Faridabad worth Rs 60 lakh and Rs 20 lakh respectively, fixed deposit of Rs 56 lakh and nearly Rs three lakh in savings. She owns three vehicles

Notification for seventh phase of assembly polls in JK issued

SRINAGAR, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): The notification for the seventh and final phase of assembly elections in 21 constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir spread over three districts of Srinagar, Samba and Jammu was issued by the State Governor N N Vohra today, an official spokesman said here.

The constituencies – Hazratbal, Zadibal, Idgah, Khanyar, Habba Kadal, Amira Kadal, Sonawar and Batamaloo in Srinagar district, Samba and Vijaypur in Samba district, Nagrota, Gandhinagar, Jammu East, Jammu West, Bishnah, R S Pura, Marh, Suchetgarh, Raipur Domama, Akhnoor and Chhamb in Jammu district – will go to polls on December 24.

While December 3 will be the last date for filing of nominations, scrutiny of the papers will be held the next day and the last date for withdrawal of candidature has been fixed as December six. As many as 1,872 polling stations valued at Rs 11 lakh.

Faqir Mohammad Khan, the Congress candidate from Gurez constituency, does not have any bank deposits like most of the con-

would be set up for an electorate of 16,91,797 in the 21 constituencies. While voters of ten constituencies spread over four districts of Bandipora, Leh, Kargil and Poonch registered their choice on November 17, electorate of six constituencies of Rajouri (four) and Ganderbal (two) cast their ballots on November 23 in the second round.

The electorate of five constituencies of Kupwara district will vote on November 30 in the third phase, while voters of Baramulla, Budgam, Reasi and Udhampur will exercise their franchise in the fourth round on December seven. Voters of 11 constituencies covering Pulwama (4), Shopian (2) and Kathua districts (5) will vote on December 13 and in the sixth phase voters of Kulgam district (four), Anantnag (six), Kishtwar (two), Doda (two) and Ramban (two) will cast their vote on December 17. Counting of votes would be held on December 28. testants. However, his wife has a bank balance of Rs two crore and also owns land worth Rs 7.5 lakh. Khan's only possession is a plot of land worth Rs 10 lakh.

LONDON, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): A former van driver Maninderpal Singh Kohli was today given a life term and will spend a minimum of 24 years in jail after a British court held him guilty of rape-and-murder of a young British schoolgirl Hannah Foster bringing the curtains down in the sensational case.

Kohli (41) was convicted in an unanimous verdict pronounced by a 12-member jury in the case marked by a protracted legal battle and an intense manhunt across India. The former delivery driver for a sandwich firm held guilty for bundling the 17-year-old teenager in the back of his van, raping and strangling her before dumping her body in a ditch in Southampton in 2003 will spend a minimum of 24 years behind bars before he could be considered for parole.

Amid dramatic scenes at Winchester Crown court, the jury, including four women, pronounced the verdict after deliberating for five and a half hours. The sensational case had hit headlines in Britain and India where Kohli, a father of two, had fled after the murder.

Kohli changed his name there but was finally apprehended in Darjeeling and extradited to Britain in July 2007 following a media campaign orchestrated by Hannah's parents and the Hampshire police.

Kohli had claimed he was innocent and that he had been abducted, blindfolded and tied up on the night of Hannah's death and forced to have sex with the teenager.

Hannah Foster

Maninderpal Singh Kohli

Cyclone Nisha to hit Tamil Nadu, 3500 people evacuated from coastal areas CHENNAI, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): The metrological department have sounded an alert in the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu as Cyclone Nisha is expected to hit between Nagapattan and Vedranyam coasts by afternoon. As many as 3,500 people have been evacuated and moved to the safer place. The wind speed at the coastal areas was at 50km/hr.

The alert was issued after heavy rains accompanied by gusty winds swept parts of Tamil Nadu forcing authorities to close schools and colleges in Chennai and three other districts on Wednesday.

Twenty eight people have lost their lives in Tamil Nadu so far as heavy rains under the influence of a depression over the Bay of Bengal lashed different parts of the state, throwing normal life out of gear.

The depression, centered about 50 km off the Vedaranyam coast, is likely cross the coast today evening between Vedanrayam and Pamban, Laborers push a pontoon to construct a temporary bridge the Meteorological office said. over the River Ganges for the upcoming Magh Mela fes- Tamil Nadu would continue tival in Allahabad, Wednesday, November 26. The month to experience rains till tomorlong festival will begin in Allahabad on Jan. 14. (AP Photo) row, they said. Police said most

of the deaths were either due to electrocution or wall collapses.

Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has instructed ministers, MPs and MLAs to involve themselves in flood relief work. In a statement, he said that the Tamil Nadu cabinet, at its meeting here tomorrow, would discuss the flood relief work and announce relief measures. Reports from the Cauvery Delta districts, which bore the burnt of the rains, said standing crops in most areas are under knee-deep water.

Collectors of Chennai, Nagapattinam, Thanjavur and Tiruvarur have declared holiday for schools and colleges in their districts, official sources here said. Met officials said here that during the period isolated heavy rain was likely to occur over coastal Tamil Nadu while isolated rain is likely over interior parts of the state.

Fishermen have been warned not to venture into the sea as strong onshore winds with maximum speed reaching 45-55 km is likely to sweep along Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast during the next 24 hours. A report from

Rameswaram said wind with a speed of 67 km per hour lashed the island and the cyclone is expected to cross Tamil Nadu coast between Nagapattinam and Pamban on Wednesday night. Residents in Rameshwaram, already battered by six days of continuous rain, said they had never seen trees waving so wildly and never experienced such a difficulty even to walk on road.

The RameswaramChennai express train, which was scheduled to leave Rameswaram at 5 pm, did not leave the station.

Rameswaram-Madurai Passenger, scheduled to leave at 5:30 pm and RameswaramChennai Sethu Express scheduled to leave 8:20 pm also could not move out of the station as the wind was heavy and the waves were touching the Pamban Bridge. Officials said the trains would leave only after clearance from the authorities. Trains are normally not operated if the wind speed exceeds 55km/hour, they said.

The third storm cone had been hoisted here after a gap of 44 years, they said.

28 people killed in heavy rains in TN

CHENNAI, NOVEMBER 26 (PTI): Twenty eight people have lost their lives in Tamil Nadu so far as heavy rains under the influence of a depression over the Bay of Bengal lashed different parts of the state, throwing normal life out of gear.

The depression, centered about 50 km off the Vedaranyam coast, is likely cross the coast today evening between Vedanrayam and Pamban, the Meteorological office said.

Tamil Nadu would continue to experience rains till Thursday, they said. Police said most of the deaths were either due to electrocution or wall collapses. Chennai city is experiencing heavy rains since last night, from which there has been no respite. Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has instructed ministers, MPs and MLAs to involve themselves in flood relief work. In a statement, he said that the Tamil Nadu cabinet, at its meeting on Thursday, would discuss the flood relief work and announce relief measures.

The Morung Express

INTERNATIONAL

Thursday 27 November 2008

Dimapur

9

Thai army chief ask govt to step down

(Left): An anti-government protester, right, shows a banner to tourists during a protest at Suvarnabhumi international airport during a protest Wednesday, November 26, in Bangkok, Thailand. The protest have forced the cancellation of outgoing and incoming of both domestic and international flights and stranding thousands of tourists when protesters demand the immediately resignation of the government of Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat. (Right): Anti government protesters in front of the departure terminal at Suvarnabhumi airport, Bangkok in the early hours of Wednesday November 26. Outbound flights at Suvarnabhumi International Airport were temporarily suspended at 9 p.m.

Tuesday, authorities said, shortly before hundreds of demonstrators _ some masked and armed with metal rods _ broke through police lines and spilled into the passenger terminal. Airport manager Serirat Prasutanon said airport authorities had tried to negotiate with the protesters “but to no avail.” “For the safety for passengers, we have to stop flights out of the airport temporarily until the situation returns to normal,” he said in a statement, adding that incoming flights were still operating. The anti government protesters are demanding the resignation of Thailand’s Prime Minister, Somchai Wongsawat. (AP Photo)

BANGKOK, NOVEMBER 26 (REUTERS): Thailand's army chief told the government on Wednesday to step down and call a snap election as a way out of a deepening political crisis, but the government and protesters rejected the call. Army chief Anupong Paochinda also pledged he would not launch a coup only two years after the military removed Thaksin Shinawatra as prime minister.

At a news conference in Bangkok, he told the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest movement to

end its crippling siege of Bangkok's international airport and cease its anti-government campaign. "The prime minister should dissolve parliament and call a snap election," Anupong said in outlining a fourpoint plan to end political crisis now in its fourth year.

Anupong and other top military brass made a similar intervention on national television last month, fuelling frenzied speculation of another military takeover in the coup-prone country.

Now, as then, the government dismissed the idea.

"The prime minister has said

many times that he will not quit or dissolve parliament because he has been democratically elected. That still stands," government spokesman Nattawut Saikuar told Channel 3 television.

PAD spokesman Suriyasai Katasila also rejected the plan. "We won't pull out, we won't leave if Somchai does not quit," he told reporters.

Somchai, whom the PAD accuse of being a puppet of Thaksin, his brother-in-law, landed in the northern city of Chiang Mai on his return from an Asia-Pacific summit in Peru, TPBS TV said.

Thai media reports speculated he may declare a state of emergency in Bangkok, where the PAD stormed Suvarnabhumi airport on Tuesday night, stranding thousands of travellers after airport officials cancelled all flights.

After masked PAD members stepped up their action by breaking into the control tower at Suvarnabhumi airport, a rival pro-government group said it would launch its own street action, raising the prospect of clashes.

"What they have done are terrorist acts," Jatuporn Prompan, a ruling party politician

and leader of the anti-PAD Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), told a news conference. One senior DAAD source said the movement would consider any retreat by the government to be a military coup, and immediately launch a counter street offensive against the army.

"There will be war for sure," the source told Reuters.

The unrest forced the stock market and Thai baht lower in early trade as investors feared it would exacerbate the problems facing the economy, but stocks turned higher by the close amid spec-

ulation Somchai would quit.

Thailand's finance minister has said the protests could cause a recession in an economy that depends on tourism and exports, both vulnerable to the global economic slowdown. The government forecast this week that the economy would grow just 4.5 percent this year, its slowest rate in seven years.

Thousands of passengers slept overnight on benches and luggage carousels at Suvarnabhumi, many angry that airport staff fled when the PAD demonstrators, dressed in the movement's

yellow shirts, invaded the terminal. "We came here and we saw all these people in yellow. We thought they were football fans. Now we're just waiting," said a Dutchman who gave his name as Mark.

Thai Airways, the national carrier, said 16 inbound flights had been diverted to Bangkok's old airport Don Muang, 45 km from Suvarnabhumi, and another three flights to a Vietnam War-era airbase 150 km southeast of Bangkok. Most airlines halted services to the Thai capital, a regional hub with 125,000 passengers passing through

Suvarnabhumi daily.

Police have gone out of their way not to escalate the tension by confronting the PAD, although gunfire broke out on the streets on Tuesday as armed PAD members took on government supporters.

At least 11 people were hurt, officials said, in scenes shown on Thai television that are likely to undermine public support for the PAD, which claims the backing of Bangkok's urban middle classes and elite. Broadly speaking, Thaksin and the government have the support of rural voters and the urban poor.

Deep sleep ups creativity, memory

In this photo released by NASA, astronaut Steve Bowen, STS-126 mission specialist, participates in the mission's fourth and final scheduled session of extravehicular activity (EVA) as construction and maintenance continue on the International Space Station on Monday November 24. During the six-hour, seven-minute spacewalk, Bowen and astronaut Shane Kimbrough, unseen, mission specialist, completed the lubrication of the port Solar Alpha Rotary Joints (SARJ) as well as other station assembly tasks. Bowen returned to the starboard SARJ to install the final trundle bearing assembly, retracted a berthing mechanism latch on the Japanese Kibo Laboratory and reinstalled its thermal cover. Bowen also installed a video camera on the Port 1 truss and attached a Global Positioning System antenna on the Japanese Experiment Module Pressurized Section. (AP Photo)

‘Fall of Tamil Tiger Greenland rebel HQ imminent’

COLOMBO, NOVEMBER 26 (REUTERS): Sri Lankan soldiers would soon capture the headquarters of the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels, the military said on Wednesday, and had reached the outskirts of the key town as an assault in the north ground ahead.

The battle for Kilinochchi, the self-declared capital of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), has intensified in the two weeks since the army seized the entire western coast from the rebels for the first time since 1993.

"The fall of Kilinochchi is very imminent," defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told a media conference. "Troops are in the outskirts of Kilinochchi and consolidating the power." The LTTE could not be reached for comment. Independent confirmation is all but impossible since both sides limit media access to the war zone. Rambukwella declined to say how far away soldiers are from the town, located 330 km north of the capital Colombo. Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara confirmed that clashes were continuing on Wednesday.

Since early September, soldiers have been battling through earthen defences and bunkers on the southwestern edge of Kilinochchi. The military now says other units are

approaching it from the west and north. Speculation intensified this week that President Mahinda Rajapaksa would announce the town's seizure on Thursday to upstage LTTE leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran's annual speech.

Prabhakaran, who turned 54 on Wednesday, traditionally uses his Heroes' Day speech to rally backers, including those in the global Tamil diaspora who have helped fund the LTTE for years. Rajapaksa's government has captured more ground than any other in the 25-year-old war, one of Asia's longest-running rebellions.

That has led to calls by allies to hold early elections to capitalise on his military success, which analysts say would help him sidestep criticism over an ailing economy.

Since 1983, the Tigers have fought to create a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's minority Tamils, many of whom have complained of discrimination by governments led by the Sinhalese ethnic majority for all 60 years since independence from Britain. The LTTE is on U.S., E.U. and Indian terrorism lists after decades of assassinations and widespread use of suicide bombings. Rajapaksa has rejected the LTTE's latest offer of a ceasefire, saying they must surrender or be wiped out.

WASHINGTON, NOVEMBER 26 (AP): Just in time for the holidays, some medical advice most people will like: Take a nap. Interrupting sleep seriously disrupts memory-making, compelling new research suggests. But on the flip side, taking a nap may boost a sophisticated kind of memory that helps us see the big picture and get creative.

"Not only do we need to remember to sleep, but most certainly we sleep to remember," is how William Fishbein, a cognitive neuroscientist at the City University of New York, put it at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience last week. Scientists increasingly are focusing less on sleep duration and more on the quality of sleep, what's called sleep intensity, in studying how sleep helps the brain process memories so they stick. Particularly important is "slow-wave sleep", a period of very deep

that a new word containing that character meant "princess" and not "ape".

Conversely, Wisconsin researchers briefly interrupted nighttime slow-wave sleep by playing a beep — just loudly enough to disturb sleep but not awaken — and found those people couldn't remember a task they'd learned the day before as well as people whose slowwave sleep wasn't disrupted.

That brings us back to fragmented sleep, whether from aging or apnea. It can suppress cell birth in the hippocampus, where memorymaking starts — enough to hinder learning weeks after sleep returns to normal, warns Dennis McGinty of the University of California, Los Angeles.

McGinty found that rats with disturbed sleep could only randomly stumble upon an escape hole in a maze that their counterparts detected easily by using room cues.

votes in favour of Self-Rule

This is a July 2007 file image of a Inuit seal hunter Dines Mikaelsen as he touches a dead seal atop a melting iceberg near Ammassalik Island, Greenland. Greenland voters overwhelmingly approved a plan to seek more autonomy from Denmark and take advantage of oil reserves that may lie off the glacial island, official results showed Wednesday November 26. The Arctic island's election commission said 76 percent of voters supported the referendum, which sets new rules on splitting future oil revenue with Denmark. The vote was seen as a key step toward independence for the semiautonomous territory, which relies on Danish subsidies. (AP Photo)

NUUK, NOVEMBER 26 (AFP): Greenland voted massively in favour of self-rule in a referendum that paves the way for independence from Denmark and gives it rights to lucrative Arctic resources, final results showed. A total of 75.54 percent voted "yes" to greater autonomy, while 23.57 percent said "no."

sleep that comes earlier than better-known REM sleep, or dreaming time.

Fishbein suspected a more active role for the slowwave sleep that can emerge even in a power nap. Maybe our brains keep working during that time to solve problems and come up with new ideas. He taught 20 Englishspeaking college students lists of Chinese words spelled with two characters — such as sister, mother, maid. Then half the students took a nap, being monitored to be sure they didn't move from slow-wave sleep into the REM stage.

Upon awakening, they took a multiple-choice test of Chinese words they'd never seen before. The nappers did much better at automatically learning that the first of the two-pair characters in the words they'd memorized earlier always meant the same thing — female, for example.

So they also were more likely than non-nappers to choose

A self-rule proposal hammered out with Denmark earlier this year gives Greenland, which was granted semi-autonomy from Copenhagen in 1979, rights to potentially lucrative Arctic resources, as well as control over justice and police affairs and, to a certain extent, foreign affairs. The new status will

take effect on June 21, 2009.

The head of the local government Hans Enoksen hailed the outcome in an emotional televised address. "I say thank you to the people of Greenland for this overwhelming result. Greenland has been given a mandate to take another step" toward independence, he said. In Nuuk, the capital that

is home to a quarter of the island's 57,000-strong population, fireworks lit up the night sky even before the final results were announced.

Opinion polls prior to the referendum had suggested the result would be a clear "yes." Anne Sofie Fisker, a voter in her 60s, was prophetic as she left a Nuuk polling station earlier in the day. "It's a day to celebrate, a historic day, one that I have waited for for years and years," she told AFP. "It was time for us for to regain our rights and freedoms that were stolen from our ancestors, a people of free and proud hunters whose lands were colonised"

by Denmark 300 years ago, said David Brandt, a former fisherman. Others however, including Johannes Mathiassen, feared the self-rule "is too early, and the country is not ready to assume these new responsibilities."

There are potentially lucrative revenues from natural resources under Greenland's seabed, which according to international experts is home to large oil and gas deposits. Melting ice in the Arctic owing to climate change could make the region more accessible to exploration in the future. The countries ringing the Arctic Ocean -- Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the United States -- are currently competing over territorial claims in the region and Greenland is keen to garner its share.

A Danish-Greenlandic commission that studied which policy fields would be transferred to the local government in Nuuk in the event of self-rule proposed among other things that "the revenues from activities related to raw materials be distributed to Greenland"

in return for reducing annual subsidies from Copenhagen.

"Self-rule will bring with it only good things for Greenland," said Lars-Emil Johansen, who was prime minister of the island from 1991 to 1997 and who helped bring about its semi-autonomous status in 1979.

Home to the US Thule radar base, Greenland will also with its new status be consulted on foreign and defence policy, which are now decided

by Copenhagen, but Nuuk would not have the final say and little is expected to change in that area.

Greenlanders, who voted to withdraw from the European Union in a 1982 referendum, will be also be recognised as a distinct people in line with international law, and Greenlandic will be recognised as the official language. Most of the parties in the local parliament were in favour of self-rule, but a fringe movement, backed by a single political party, the Democrats, had opposed it. "With such a tiny population it is impossible to provide the human contributions needed to turn Greenland into a modern and independent state," politician Finn Lyng said. With its 2.1-million square kilometre surface, 80 percent of which is covered by ice, Greenland is the world's largest island and contains 10 percent of the world's fresh water reserves.

It counts 57,000 inhabitants, 50,000 of whom are native Inuits. In 2007, the territory received subsidies of 3.2 billion kroner (540 million dollars) from Denmark, or about 30 percent of its gross domestic product. The local government said 71.96 percent of the island's 39,000 eligible voters had cast ballots.

10

Dimapur

SPORTS

Thursday 27 November 2008

The Morung Express

Ecclestone expects gold medals in place for 2009

Hornbill Festival Motor Rally on December 4 & 5 DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Hornbill Festival Motor Rally 2008, organized by Nagaland Adventure and Motor Sports Association (NAMSA), supported by the Government of Nagaland and sponsored by JK Tyre, India is slated to be held on the December 4 and 5.

This year, the rally will be of DST (Time Speed Distance) format with a distance of approximately 160 kms undisclosed route between Kohima and Dimapur informed a release issued by Vikishe Shohe, President NAMSA. Special trophies will be awarded for the female category (Coup-de-dames) and for the best decorated car and bike, best family team, best department/institution and best sports person. The prize money including trophies for the event will be more than 2 lakhs, the release added.

The last date of registration will be December 2 at 12:00 hours therefore, interested participants are asked to submit 3 nos. of passport size photos along with the entry forms. Entry forms can be downloaded from www. namsa.co.in or collected from M/s Desmodromic, High School Junction, Kohima (9856065060) and M/s Screw Driver, Opposite DDSC Stadium, Golaghat Road, Dimapur (9436004129).

For further information, contact Vikishe Shohe at 9862572374 or NAMSA office, 116 Duncan, Opposite The Morung Express office, Dimapur and Thongde Imlong at 985612017 or E-mail to info@namsa.co.in.

Legislators vs Bureaucrat match postponed DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The first inter-block basketball and volleyball match which was scheduled at the Secretariat ground on November 26 has been postponed. The scheduled inauguration of the basketball court, constructed under Military Civil Action Project, at the Secretariat Plaza and the volleyball exhibition match between the Legislators and the Bureaucrats has also been postponed. The department of Youth Resources and Sports has disclosed that the postponement had been necessitated due to unavoidable circumstances. It also stated that a fresh date for the exhibition match would be announced later.

Bernie Ecclestone, Chief Executive Officer of the Formula One Group speaking at an announcement that LG Electronics will be a Global Partner of Formula 1, in London on November 26.

Ecclestone expects his proposal for the world drivers' championship to be decided by the number of gold medals awarded to race winners to be implemented next year. Ecclestone said Wednesday he expects FIA, motorsport's governing body, to agree to the switch from the traditional system of championship points to be approved at its general meeting next month.

The move will reward the driver who wins the most races, not the one who like Lewis Hamilton this year earns the most points by finishing consistently high. (AP Photo)

LONDON, NOVEMBER 26 (AP): Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone is confident his proposal for the world drivers' championship to be decided by gold medals awarded to race winners will be implemented next season. Ecclestone said Wednesday he was moved to act by Lewis Hamilton's tri-

umph, when he clinched this year's title by finishing fifth at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix.

Under the proposed system, which Ecclestone said should be approved by motorsport world governing body FIA next month, Felipe Massa would have won the title because he beat Hamilton

6-5 on race wins. "It's going to happen," Ecclestone said.

"All the teams are happy. The reason this happens is that I get fed up with people talking about no overtaking.

"It's just not on that someone can win the world championship without trying to win the race." Under the current system, the winner of

each grand prix race earns 10 points in the championship standings, with second place worth eight points and third place worth six. Each of the top 10 drivers in every race earn points. Although the new system is designed to add to the drama of F1, Hamilton's title win was already hugely dramatic. Hamilton lost the

fifth place he needed for the title when he was passed by Sebastien Vettel with two laps to go in the season-ending Brazilian GP, but managed to overtake Timo Glock on the last corner of the last lap to become F1's youngest ever world champion.

The 23-year-old Briton beat race-winner Massa by

a single point in the overall standings. Ecclestone was asked if it didn't seem unfair that under his new system, someone could finish second in every race over the season and lose the title to a rival who got lucky and one a single GP. "You'll have to try harder next year," Ecclestone said.

Cesc Fabregas wants Peru football president refuses to step down fresh start for Arsenal LIMA, NOVEMBER 26 (AP): The president of the Peruvian Football Federation refused to resign despite the deepening crisis in the country following its suspension by FIFA. Manuel Burga's re-election in October 2007 has not been recognized by the Peruvian government, leading to FIFA's action because its rules prohibit political interference in football affairs.

"I'm not going to submit to blackmail or any of those kinds of pressures," Burga said. "I've done everything legally and I don't have any reason to run." Burga told

Lima-based CPN radio that the dispute would not be solved by his resignation.

He said the government violated FIFA's statutes and blamed Peruvian Sports Institute head Arturo Woodman for the suspension.

Renzo Reggiardo, head of Peru's congressional sporting committee, told The Associated Press that the government banned Burga from running for re-election after he failed to comply with a law that required more votes for provincial and amateur clubs in the Peruvian Football Federation's electoral

committee.

FIFA said Peru would be allowed to return to international football only after negotiations with Burga and the federation's board.

"FIFA regrets that the Peruvian government sports authorities have not taken up any of the numerous invitations to dialogue," the governing body of world football said in a statement.

FIFA gave the sides a month to settle their differences before its executive committee discusses the issue at a Dec. 19-20 meeting in Tokyo. It could choose to expel Peru from its mem-

bership entirely.

The spat could cost Peru participation in the 2010 World Cup qualifying tournament. Last in the 10-nation South American group, Peru has already been virtually eliminated from qualifying for the final tournament in South Africa. The team's next qualifying match is scheduled for March 28 against Chile.

The dispute has already cost Peru hosting rights for the South American under-20 championship next year. Venezuela has stepped in to stage the tournament instead.

Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas, left, vies for the ball with Dynamo Kiev's Tiberiu Ghioane, right, during their Champions League Group G soccer match at the Emirates Stadium, London, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2008. (AP Photo/Tom Hevezi)

LONDON, NOVEMBER 26 (REUTERS): Cesc Fabregas hopes the beginning of his tenure as Arsenal's club captain can signify a fresh start and a turning point in their season. The 21-yearold Spaniard gave an assured display in a 1-0 win over Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday, pulling the strings in midfield to seal Arsenal's place in the last 16 of the Champions League. Tougher tasks await, none more so than a visit to Stamford Bridge on Sunday to play Premier League leaders Chelsea, but Fabregas believes the north London club can recover from the malaise that has threatened to wreck their season.

Five domestic league defeats have left Arsenal 10 points off the pace while the removal of Frenchman William Gallas as club captain at the weekend for his comments about the team in the media hinted at dressing room disharmony. "I'm not a big shouter and, to be honest, I will not change my playing style now that I am captain," Fabregas said in his first programme notes for Tuesday's game. "I will try to lead by example first of all. I have always tried to do that on the pitch, anyway -- armband or no armband.

"Away from the pitch I will try to be normal, be myself, and with the help of everyone else at the club I'm sure we can get through this

bad period and have a fresh new start this season." Fabregas was quick to praise Gallas after the game, despite an erratic performance from the France defender. He will need everybody on board if Arsenal are to challenge for silverware. However, Fabregas picked out former captains Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira as the examples he would like to follow.

"I will speak to Thierry on the phone occasionally and I will ask him about it," he said. "Patrick Vieira was a truly amazing captain. He never said too much before the games but on the pitch you always knew you could count on him to go into war with you." Fabregas provided the pass for Nicklas Bendtner to score the winner against Kiev three minutes from time at the Emirates -- a goal that calmed the jitters in Arsenal's injuryhit side. Manager Arsene Wenger, who gave Fabregas his chance to shine in the first team as a 17-year-old, said he was not surprised at how well the midfielder had handled the occasion.

"He was very good for me," said Wenger. "Focussed for 90 minutes in the game, he worked hard. "The best way to help your team as captain is to play well yourself, then the rest follows. I have never met someone who was a born leader. But I believe Cesc can develop it."

Dr. T. Ao Trophy from Dec 2 KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): Dr. T. Ao Trophy 2008 (the 18th Inter District Football Championship) under the aegis of Nagaland Football Association (NFA) will kick start from December 2 here at the Indira Gandhi Stadium, Kohima. Informing this, Hony. Secretary of NFA, K. Neibou Sekhose disclosed that the cash prizes for champion is Rs. 3 lakh, runners- up for Rs. 2 lakh while third place and fourth place will get Rs 60,000 and Rs. 40,000 respectively.

All the 11 districts have confirmed their participation in the championship.

Review meeting for Half Marathon KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The final review meeting of the sub-committee members including representative of KMC, Royal Club and Classic Club for Naga Half Marathon 2008 will be held on December 3 at 11:00 am in the conference hall of the Directorate of Youth Resources and Sports, Kohima. Important issues will be discussed for the half marathon, according to a release issued

by Beiu Angami, Director, Youth Resources and Sports.

All the members have been requested to attend the same without fail.

PDSC meeting held DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 26 (MExN): The Peren District Sports Council (PDSC) meeting, presided over by Deputy Commissioner, was held on November 25 in the Deputy Commissioner’s Chamber.

During the meeting, PDSC adopted a new constitution which comes into immediate effect and also as per the written directive of the constitution, the present vicepresident was promoted to President and Asst. Secretary to General Secretary. The members present also selected Dr. Ndangkie as Assistant Secretary and L. Johnson as Vice President of PDSC. Abui Liegise was also selected as the Joint Secretary of Peren Circle where as the Joint Secretaries of the other Circle will remain same, informed N.Mesen, DC Peren in a release.

Also as financial help, the members decided to give Rs.10000 to PDSC for the ongoing under-14 and under16 selection in Peren district for onward selection to the state cricket team.

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, center, holds a replica of the Davis Cup trophy, which is awarded to participants of the tournament final, as he poses with Spanish tennis players Rafael Nadal, left, Feliciano Lopez, second from left, Fernando Verdasco, second from right, and David Ferrer, right, at the Moncloa Palace, Madrid on November 26. Spain defeated Argentina in Mar de Plata to win the Davis Cup, but the team trophy will not arrive in Spain until next week. (AP Photo)

Felipe Scolari fury at Drogba Inter link LONDON, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has reacted angrily to reports linking striker Didier Drogba to Inter Milan. It has been alleged that Drogba met Inter sporting director Marco Branca and Jorge Mendes, agent of the club's manager Jose Mourinho, on Monday.

Responding to the claims, Scolari said: "I do not sleep with Drogba.

Where he was? I don't know.

I'm not a policeman for my players."

Ex-Chelsea boss Mourinho insisted he has no plans to sign the 30-yearold. "I don't know where Branca was, I was at dinner at Cernobbio," stated Mourinho on Tuesday. "I know absolutely nothing about this story. I know on the other hand that Drogba is part of the history of Chelsea and, from afar, it seems to me that he is and will be a Chelsea player."

When Scolari was asked at a news conference looking ahead to Wednesday's Champions League tie at Bordeaux if Drogba had been given permission to be in the company of Branca, the Brazilian was visibly annoyed. "Ask Peter Kenyon [chief executive], ask Roman Abramovich [Chelsea owner]," he said. "I don't know, I am only the coach."

Ivory Coast international Drogba, now fit after recently being sidelined for

over a month of the season because of a knee injury, was heavily linked with a move from Stamford Bridge in the summer but decided to remain at Chelsea.

Drogba has been banned for three matches by the Football Association for throwing a coin into the crowd towards Burnley supporters earlier this month but he is available to play against Bordeaux as Arsenal's William Gallas reacts during their Champions the suspension only applies League Group G soccer match against Dynamo Kiev at the to domestic football.

Emirates Stadium, London on November 25. (AP Photo)

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E n t / Ta b l o i d

The Morung Express

Thursday 27 November 2008

Dimapur

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Another model hunt hits Here, Bollywood meets Hollywood Dimapur City A bhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta, Sonam Kapoor will rub shoulders with Nicolas Cage, Brendan Fraser, Salma Hayek and Goldie Hawn at the Dubai International Film Festival.

The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), which turns five this year, will see Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta and Sonam Kapoor attending the event and rubbing shoulders with international celebrities like Nicolas Cage, Brendan Fraser, Salma Hayek and Goldie Hawn, the festival’s official website said.

Apart from this film-maker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra will unveil the first look of his film Dilli 6 during the festival that runs from December 11-18.

Abhishek and Sonam, the lead actors of Dilli 6 will unveil the first look. Actors Anil Kapoor and Freida Pinto will also fly to Dubai to promote their film Slumdog Millionaire. Nandita Das will promote her directorial debut Firaaq and south Indian superstar Mamooty will also grace the event.

The fest also has a Cultural Bridge Panel comprising film-maker Deepa Mehta, Canadian journalist Cameron Bailey, the iconic singer Harry Belafonte and Algerian novelist Mohammed Molessehoul.

Other prominent names from the West like the three-time Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone, legendary character actor Danny Glover, Nanny McPhee star Eliza Bennett, producer Charles Roven (who will receive a Film-maker of the Year award) and three-time Oscar nominated actor Laura Linney will also be present.

Audition today & Dec 5 at Aroma Eatery

S

tar Ex Grooming School and Modeling management is presenting one of a kind model contest on December 13, 2008 at Town Hall for both male and female. The contest is open to all local and non-local community of Nagaland; ‘keeping in consideration that there should be oneness, unity and equality in the society.’ The contest will be held under the theme “Glam Shine’ and it aims to provide a platform to the aspiring models who wishes to make it to the national modeling scene.

“Interested individuals will be groomed at every aspect to be more confident and to have poise and charm to fit in the world of glamour,” said Vili G Chophi, Director Star Ex Grooming School and Modeling Agency. The contest will also provide a platform to the local designers to show case their designs and creations. Auditions will be held on November 27 and on December 5 at Aroma Eatery Khermahal Junction, Dimapur from 12 noon onwards. The dress code will include western casuals for male and skirts above knees for female.

Designers, models, artist who are interested in the contest can contact at these numbers: 9615082932 or 9856319424.

Beyoncé: Too Traumatized for Babies?

Cruise learns from B past mistakes

A

merican actor Tom Cruise has admitted that he has made some mistakes in the past, and that he could have handled certain things better. The actor’s stellar Hollywood career had begun to crumble when his behaviour started becoming more and more erratic,

which even cost him the support of his fans.

Cruise’s image in the public’s eyes went down even further after he announced that he would eat his baby’s placenta, and also for slamming actress Brooke Shields for using anti-depressants.

The final nail in the coffin came when Paramount Stu-

dios axed its unique 14-year deal, and when he had to take a pay cut for Mission: Impossible 3.

However, after two years, the Top Gun star, who is married to Katie Holmes, 29, and has a daughter with her, now feels back in control. “There are things that I could have done better. I could have handled things better,” the Mirror quoted him as confessing during an interview held in his suite at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

“I was surprised at the criticism but it brought everyone closer together: Katie’s entire family and my family. “Going through that stuff is not pleasant and I think it hit an extreme, but Kate’s a very sure and confident and strong woman. She gets it, you know. "She is incredibly wise and very, very strong and confident, even though she is a very gracious and elegant person.

“As a father and a husband you want to protect your family and tell them not to worry because it is all going to be OK. You just learn from it and move on and I know that. “I have a blessed life because I have a happy family and children that I adore and everyone knows how I feel about Kate. It just brought us even closer together,” he added. Cruise, 46, has three children, two-yearold biological daughter, Suri, from Holmes, daughter Bella, 15, and son Connor, 13, he and Nicole Kidman adopted during their marriage.

eyoncé Knowles says married life is "great" – but she's still in no rush to have kids. "One day, maybe," the singer – who wed rapper Jay-Z in a supersecret ceremony last April – tells Ellen DeGeneres during Tuesday's show. What's holding her back? Watching her sister, Solange, give birth in 2004. "I was there in the delivery room and it kind of traumatized me," Beyoncé admits. "I said please don't have me in the room. And she said, 'You have to. I'm your sister. Stop being so silly.' Well, I was right!" Still, the

Cadillac Records star says she definitely will have kids someday. "A couple, maybe."

Beyoncé has been notoriously tight-lipped about her marriage – refusing for months to even confirm the union. But she chatted happily with fellow newlywed DeGeneres – who gave the singer towels and a coffee maker as belated wedding gifts. "It feels great," Beyoncé says of married life. "Oh gosh, listen to me about to start yapping. We've been together a long time – it's been about seven years."

Why did they wait so long to tie the knot? "I'm

only 27 so I was really young [when we started dating]," she explains. "And I feel like it's important for woman and men to have their goals and their own life before they can complete someone else. So we took our time."

Not that Jay-Z was putting on the pressure. "He's a great guy," she gushes. "He's a cool guy. He's patient." The hiphop star knows when to give up on a lost cause, though – like Beyoncé learning to cook. "He actually, after me cooking a couple of times, he said, 'Just don't do it,'" she recalls. "It's ok."

Jolie 'three months pregnant' I feel lost without all the attention, says ‘Vogue’ girl Katrina A

U.S. magazine claims Angelina Jolie is three months pregnant with her seventh child.

Weekly magazine In Touch - which broke the news of Jolie's second pregnancy with twins - is adamant that the actress is expecting another child in the new year. In an 'exclusive' report the magazine, which hits news stands tomorrow, states: 'An excited Angie can't stop talking about the new baby. So why doesn't Brad seem thrilled?'

Jolie and partner Brad Pitt's spokesman has denied the claims, leading other U.S. outlets to rubbish the claims. However In Touch has consistently repeated the reports in recent weeks. Jolie and Pitt are already parents to three adopted children and three biological children, with twins Vivienne and Knox just four months old. In recent weeks Jolie has given countless interviews about her desire to expand their family even further.

At the launch of the DVD for Kung Fu Panda last week she told reporters: 'Anything could happen. We're open to anything, we love kids and we're having a great time. 'It's chaos in our house, but it's so much fun. We'll definitely have more.' And she added that she couldn't be happier with Pitt. 'He's the best daddy and we have fun, so whenever it gets hard we can just look at each other and find a way to laugh about and just appreciate that they're only little once, and we should enjoy every minute.'

B

ollywood’s uptown beauty Katrina Kaif has side tracked all her worthy contenders to become the leading lady of the glam world. Her glamorous and trendy style statements have made her the most

sought after celeb of tinsel town and the ad world. Her latest venture is being the covershot of the hottest issue of ‘Vogue India’ this December.

Her grandeur has become a craze for her ardent fans and perhaps that’s exactly why Vogue brought the sparkling beauty on the cover for the second time in a year. Katrina had earlier graced the February issue.

Katrina is seen sporting top international labels such as Cartier, YSL, Donna Karan and Manolo Blahnik and few others for the magazine. And, that’s not all, the issue also carries a heart-to-heart interview with the actress. In the course of the interview, Katrina confesses her love for the Peking Duck at a suburban Mumbai restaurant, aversion to clubbing saying, “My body can't afford regular clubbing”, and also how she craves for ‘attention'.

“Actors feel lost without all the attention.

I'm most comfortable in front of 300 people on a set. Otherwise, I'm lost. It's too much quiet, too much alone.” Well said Kat. Well, she’s undoubtedly the most talked about celebs these days, both on screen and off screen. Her latest movie ‘Yuvraaj’ is the talk of the town as she stars opposite her real life lover Salman Khan. Her striking looks and lustrous face is conceivably the very essence of the movie.

PRIME TIME TV GUIDES 06:00 - The Making Of The Return 06:15 - Painkiller Jane 08:00 - Hollywood One On One 17 08:30 - BASEketball 10:15 - Hidden Camera 12:00 - The Avengers 13:45 - Hollywood’s 10 Best 14:15 - EdTV 16:30 - The Making Of Superman 16:45 - No Escape 19:00 - Evan Almighty 21:00 - The Replacement Killers 22:45 - Final Destination 3 00:00 - Final Destination 3 00:30 - The Temp 02:30 - Babylon 5: The Lost Tales 04:00 - As You Like It

06:00 - Equator 07:00 - Teleshopping 08:00 - The Planet’s Funniest Animals 08:30 - Lords of the Animals 09:00 - Life of Mammals 10:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 10:30 - Lemur Street 11:00 - Max’s Big Tracks 12:00 - Predation!

13:00 - Corwin’s Quest 14:00 - Equator 15:00 - Planet Wild 15:30 - Up Close And Dangerous 16:00 - Wild Africa 17:00 - Life of Mammals 18:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 18:30 - Lords of the Animals 19:00 - Max’s Big Tracks 20:00 - Eye Of The Hunter 21:00 - Planet Wild

21:30 - Up Close And Dangerous 22:00 - Animal Planet Safari 23:00 - Wild Africa 00:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 00:30 - Lords of the Animals 01:00 - Teleshopping 02:00 - Petsburgh USA (II) 03:00 - Monkey Business 7 04:00 - Petsburgh USA (II) (Entertainment) 05:00 - Monkey Business 7

6:00 - The 4400 7:00 - Flipping Out 8:00 - PUSHING DAISIES 9:00 - The 4400 11:00 - Early Edition 12:00 - Pirate Master 1:00 - Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! 2:00 - Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles 3:00 - Sports Disasters 6 5:00 - Flipping Out 6:00 - The 4400 7:00 - PUSHING DAISIES 8:00 - Pirate Master 9:00 - Video Zonkers 10:00 - Amazing Race Asia Memories 11:00 - Moonlight 12:00 - Video Zonkers 1:00 - Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles 2:00 - 24 3:00 - Early Edition

06:00 - Telebrands 06:30 - Telebrands 07:00 - Animal Camera - Surveillance On Survival 07:30 - Amazing Baby Videos 08:00 - Wild Discovery 09:00 - Science Frontiers 10:00 - Michael Wood: The Story of

India 11:00 - Mega Builders 12:00 - India With Sanjeev Bhaskar 13:00 - Wild Discovery 14:00 - Michael Wood: The Story of India 15:00 - Dirty Jobs - Season I 16:00 - Hunters 17:00 - Mega Builders 18:00 - Wild India 19:00 - Wild Discovery 20:00 - Wildest 21:00 - Life In Cold Blood 22:00 - Into Alaska With Jeff Corwin 23:00 - Extreme Machines III 00:00 - The Beauty of Snakes 01:00 - Telebrands 01:30 - Telebrands 02:00 - Extreme Machines III 03:00 - Wild India 04:00 - Into Alaska With Jeff Corwin 05:00 - Extreme Machines III

06:00 - Global Tele Mall 07:00 - Body And Soul 07:30 - Tvc Sky Shop 08:30 - Instant Khichdi 09:00 - Hatim 10:00 - Shaka Laka Boom Boom 10:30 - Son Pari 11:00 - Mum Tum Aur Hum 11:30 - Shararat 12:00 - Ssshhhh Phir Koi Hai 13:00 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge IV 14:00 - Dill Mill Gayye 14:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum 15:00 - Movie 18:30 - Anu Ki Ho Gayi Wah Bhai Wah 19:00 - Dill Mill Gayye 19:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum 20:00 - Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai 20:30 - Dill Mill Gayye 21:00 - Mile Jab Hum Tum 21:30 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge 22:30 - Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai 23:00 - Dill Mill Gayye

23:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum 00:00 - Siddhanth 1:00 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge IV 02:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum 03:00 - The Great Indian Laughter 04:00 - Ssshhhh Phir Koi Hai 05:00 - Mile Jab Hum Tum

06:00 - Seva Ganga 06:30 - Vignan Shashwat Sukh Ka 07:00 - Sangam 07:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat 08:00 - Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 08:30 - Kayamath 09:00 - Kumkum 09:30 - Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii 10:00 - Kis Desh Mein Hai Meraa Dil 10:30 - Hamari Devrani 11:00 - Grihasti 11:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat 12:00 - Bidaai 12:30 - Kis Desh Mein Hai Meraa Dil 13:00 - Kumkum 13:30 - Hamari Devrani 14:00 - Karam Apnaa Apnaa 14:30 - Grihasti 15:00 - Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 15:30 - Kayamath 16:00 - Sangam 16:30 - Santaan 17:00 - Kasturi 17:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat 18:00 - Bidaai 18:30 - Hamari Devrani 19:00 - Sangam 19:30 - Santaan 20:00 - Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat 20:30 - Kis Desh Mein Hai Meraa Dil 21:00 - Bidaai 21:30 - Kasturi 22:00 - Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii 22:30 - Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 23:00 - Kayamath 23:30 - Karam Apnaa Apnaa

00:00 - Kasturi 00:30 - Kumkum 01:00 - Bidaai 01:30 - Kis Desh Mein Hai Meraa Dil 02:00 - Grihasti 02:30 - Kayamath 03:00 - Hamari Devrani 03:30 - Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii 04:00 - Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi 04:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat 05:00 - Disney Time

06:00 - Fashion House 07:00 - Friday Night Lights 08:00 - Seinfeld 08:30 - Friends 09:00 - Rock 09:30 - Scrubs 10:00 - Friday Night Lights 12:00 - Jimmy Kimmel 13:00 - Shark 14:00 - The Ellen Degeneres Show 15:00 - Fashion House 16:00 - Cold Case 17:00 - Grey’s Anatomy 18:00 - Friday Night Lights 19:00 - The Ellen Degeneres Show 20:00 - Seinfeld 20:30 - Friends 21:00 - Rock 21:30 - Scrubs 22:00 - Brothers and Sisters 23:00 - Jimmy Kimmel 00:00 - Friends 00:30 - Seinfeld 01:00 - The Simpsons 01:30 - My Wife And Kids 02:00 - Grey’s Anatomy 03:00 - The Ellen Degeneres Show 04:00 - Cold Case 05:00 - The Simpsons 05:30 - Kenneth Copeland

0:00 - FIFA: Futbol Mundial 0:30 - UEFA Champions League :- Bor-

deaux v Chelsea 3:15 - UEFA Champions League :- Liverpool v Marseille 5:15 - ICL World Series HLs - India v World 7:30 - UEFA Champions League :- Liverpool v Marseille 9:30 - ICL World Series HLs - India v World 11:30 - Great Centuries : - Mohammad Yousuf - 191 12:00 - UEFA Champions League :Bordeaux v Chelsea 14:00 - ICL World Series - India v Pakistan 22:00 - Sportsnight 22:30 - WWE: Raw

06:00 - Indian Rendezvous 06:30 - Adventures Of The Ladies Tailor 07:00 - Monster Garage 08:00 - The Presidential Tour 09:00 - Madhur Jaffrey’s Flavours of India 09:30 - Hairy Biker’s Ride Again 10:00 - Cover Shot 10:30 - Beautification With Ruby And Millie 11:00 - While You Were Out 3 12:00 - Biker Build-Off 13:00 - Kylie Kwong: My China 13:30 - Take Home Chef 2 14:00 - Feast Bazaar Year 200 - 6 14:30 - The Hairy Bikers Cookbook 15:00 - Cheese Slices 15:30 - Living With The Future 16:00 - Monster Garage 17:00 - Kylie Kwong: My China 17:30 - Lawrence Of America 18:00 - Beach Blast 19:00 - Chhattisgarh 19:30 - Madhur Jaffrey’s Flavours of India 20:00 - Monster House 21:00 - Anthony Bourdain No Reservations Season 2 22:00 - La Ink

23:00 - Project Runway 2 00:00 - Three Sheets 00:30 - Thirsty Traveler 4 01:00 - Food Paradise 02:00 - Around The World 03:00 - I Do, Let’s Eat! 03:30 - Nigella Express 04:00 - Beautification With Ruby And Millie 04:30 - Cover Shot

06:00 - Film Citizen Verdict 07:30 - Infomercial 08:00 - Film The Whole Ten Yards 10:00 - Film Hell Boats 12:00 - Beaches 14:40 - Eye of the Needle 17:00 - Hollywoods 10 Best 17:30 - Raising Helen 20:00 - Epk 20:15 - A Life Less Ordinary 22:30 - Dark Water 00:45 - Epk 01:00 - Americano 02:15 - A Day in October 03:45 - Basic 05:15 - Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple

06:00 - Hum Ladkiyan 06:30 - Jai Hanuman 07:00 - Telebrands 07:30 - Teleshopping 08:30 - Film Kaal 12:00 - Hum Ladkiyan 12:30 - Aathvaan Vachan 13:00 - Boogie Woogie 13:30 - Sujata 14:00 - Meet Mila De Rabba

14:30 - Hum Ladkiyan 15:00 - Aathvaan Vachan 15:30 - Boogie Woogie 16:00 - Babul Ka Aangann 16:30 - Sujata 17:00 - Meet Mila De Rabba 17:30 - Aathvaan Vachan 18:00 - Hum Ladkiyan 18:30 - Babul Ka Aangann 19:00 - Jai Hanuman 19:25 - Idol Hot And Fever Capsule 19:30 - Sujata 20:00 - Meet Mila De Rabba 20:30 - Hum Ladkiyan 21:00 - Aathvaan Vachan 21:30 - Babul Ka Aangann 22:00 - Yeh Shaam Mastani 23:00 - Comedy Circus 00:00 - Telebrands 00:30 - Teleshopping 01:00 - Sujata 01:30 - Meet Mila De Rabba 02:00 - Babul Ka Aangann 02:30 - Aathvaan Vachan 03:00 - Hum Ladkiyan 03:30 - Meet Mila De Rabba 04:00 - Devi 04:30 - Jai Hanuman 05:00 - Babul Ka Aangann 05:30 - Aathvaan Vachan

04:40 - Little Fish 06:30 - Three Men and a Baby 08:30 - Terminator 2: Judgment Day 11:05 - Anchorman - The Legend Of Ron Burgundy 13:00 - Partition (Film) 15:15 - Hav Plenty 17:05 - Leonard Cohen - I’m Your Man 19:10 - Wide Awake 21:00 - Signs 23:05- Species 01:10 - Anchorman - The Legend Of Ron Burgundy 02:45 - Tom Yum Goong 04:35 - Hollywood Shootout 05:05 - Film Hav Plenty

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MORUNG SPORTS

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Flawless India demolish clueless England despite KP’s heroics ensured that their target was accomplished with 6 wickets and 38 balls in hand. England bowlers failed to make any early in roads as Indian opener stuck to their task while chasing 271 for victory. Sehwag-Tendulkar pair added 136 when Tendulkar was dismissed after scoring

yet another ODI fifty. Sehwag who kept the fielders busy at the other end was unstoppable at the other end before missing a Broad delivery at 91.

Yuvraj Singh who was in tremendous form throughout the series missed with the bat. The stylish left-

hander just managed 6 runs of the 9 balls he faced. Ravi Bopara took a simple caught and bowled chance as Yuvraj took the long walk back to pavilion. Earlier, Chasing 271 runs for victory against England, Team India started off the proceedings on a rather cautious note.

Virender Sehwag, right, and Sachin Tendulkar greet each other after scoring a boundary during the fifth ODI cricket match between India and England in Cuttack on November 26. (AP Photo)

CUTTACK, NOVEMBER 26 (AGENCIES): Invincible won’t be the miss-appropriate word for Team India at the moment. A experi-

mental Team India played flawless cricket and ensured that India continues its winning spree. Chasing 271 for victory under lights, India

dle

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