The Morung Express

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The Morung Express

A Daily Publication of Morung for Indigenous Affairs & JustPeace

Dimapur VOL. III ISSUE 305

Is Assam blasts a part of BADMAN?

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SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): The mysterious 'BADMAN' theory propagated in the internet has come to the fore yet again with the Assam serial bombings, with many now concluding that the next target of the terrorists could be a place that starts with the letter 'N'. The 'BADMAN' code was first circulated by an anonymous internet user immediately after the Delhi blasts at the social networking site mumbaihangout. org, a member of the networking community said.

The user who posted the topic - many believe he could be one of the terrorists - abbreviated the words in 'BADMAN' in serial order of the target places i.e. Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Delhi.

Now after the blasts in Malegaon and Assam blasts, the theory continues to hold significance and now analysts say the next target could be a place whose name begins with 'N'. Interestingly, an anonymous user also posted the topic in the networking site Orkut in the second week of September, raising curiousness of the users.

Later, however, the user who posted it deleted his profile from the site. When contacted, a well-placed official in the IB said the intelligence agencies were looking into the matter, but nothing concrete has emerged as yet.

The official said that most of the suspects in the serial blasts across the country were found to be net-savvy.

Security agencies investigating the Assam blasts also suspect that the SMS by the ISF (IM) that claimed responsibility for the blasts was routed through the internet. According to security analysts, terrorists of late have been found to be techno-savvy and there were instances of them being frequent users of the internet.

24-Hr Assam bandh today DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) have called a 24-hour Assam bandh on November 3 in protest against the October 30 serial bomb blast in Assam which rocked the nation. The bandh will begin at 5 am and ‘all essential services have been exempted from its purview’.

Vihokhu GB passes away DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MEXN): The Gaon Bura of Vihokhu village, Vikheshe Zhimomi who is the uncle of Naga Hoho Speaker, HK Zhimomi passed away after a prolonged illness at his residence in Vihokhu this evening at 9 pm. He was 84 and leaves behind his wife, a son and three daughters. Informing over the phone, Naga Hoho Speaker HK Zhimomi said that the funeral service of Vikheshe Zhimomi will be held at Vihokhu at 12 noon tomorrow.

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” The Nagas’ and the Kashmiri parallel

Everyone speaks well of the bridge which carries him over

-Chinese Proverb

Nagas are very ‘diplomatic’ and ‘political’

Longrangty Longchar Dimapur | November 2

People take part in a candlelight peace procession to protest against violence in Gauhati on Sunday. Police have arrested three people and are investigating whether local militants received help from other terrorist groups in carrying out coordinated attacks that killed at least 81 people in India’s troubled northeast, officials said. (AP Photo)

Ukrhul echoes with Reconciliation cry

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Keeping hope alive, planted on ‘A Common Journey of Hope’ for reconciliation, thousands of Tangkhuls on Sunday gathered at Ukhrul to pray for healing and reconciliation for the “Naga political groups” (factions). The prayers invoked strengthening the hope of unity among the Naga tribes through the unity of the Naga groups in particular and harmonious existence with all neighboring communities. It also sought to reach out each other through healing hands . The Naga Reconciliation Meet

of Tangkhul sector was organized by Tangkhul Committee on Peace and Confidence Building (TCPB) as a follow-up of the series of Naga reconciliation meets initiated by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation. The prayers were held also in the backdrop of the factional killings among the Naga underground factions.

Ukhrul has had its share of rallies and meetings over the Naga political movement and the peace process with the Government of India. However, nothing evoked more emotion than Sunday’s Naga Reconciliation meet

when the public cried for all the past misdeeds and looked for a room for reconciliation and peace.The Tangkhuls’ desire for peace and unity through reconciliation was empirically expressed by the prayer program’s two main Speakers. Grace Thumra Shatsang, president of the Naga Women’s Union Manipur and Rev. Dr. Mingthing, director of the Tangkhul Theological Association highlighted the need for introspection to save the Naga nation from impending doom from factional clashes and self-annihilation. continued on page 3

ITS NOT every day, that Kashmiri journalists get to visit northeast India especially Nagaland where the longest running political conflict in South Asia is on. There is a parallel: both the regions are heavily militarized and have a long history of political conflict with India. The states of Kashmir and Nagaland recently had an unusual opportunity of opening up each other’s socio-political and economic situations during a Panos South Asia study trip of veteran Kashmiri journalists.

They visited the north-east, particularly Kohima, Mon and Lungwa village bordering Burma recently in October. The Kashmiri journalists did apparently draw a parallel between the Naga political struggle and the Kashmiris, much as there is a similarity there are stark dissimilarities.

The most significant difference that the Kashmiri journalists noted (with a sense of regret, in the context of politics) was that the Nagas are Christians while the Kashmiris are Muslims when it comes to political struggle.

“Unfortunately we are Muslims,” said Khurram, a very eloquent and soft-spoken man who has lost one of his legs to a blast in 2002.

Delving into the sense behind the lamentation about being Muslims, Khurram said there is a war on terrorism and the Muslims are being branded as ‘terrorists’. So world bodies like the USA are not keen to openly support the Kashmiri cause. However, this is not so with the Naga political problem as Nagaland is a Christian state and that any form of forceful repression would be strongly condemned by European countries and America.

However, going by the international status of the conflict, Kashmir is on the upper hand as the United Nations Organisations has also

recognized the dispute as an international issue.

“In no UN map, Kashmir is depicted as belonging to India or Pakistan…it is always marked in red…as a disputed area,” the journalists said. Khurram’s friend Hilal, attached with the Greater Kashmir daily said just like Kashmir, Nagaland is also a militarized state.

However in Kashmir the ratio of soldiers and civilian is 1:14, he said. Khurram, who lost his leg during the last Kashmiri elections in 2002, asserts that the Kashmiris simply want “independence”. They don’t want to be with India nor with Pakistan. It’s simple as that.

But the Kashmiri did display some admiration about the Nagas and said that the Nagas are very ‘diplomatic’ and ‘political’ when they talk about the Naga issue, which is not so with the Kashmiris. The Kashmiri are blunt to the point of being ‘brazen’, the journalists said.

The role of women in the Naga society also caught the attention of the Kashmiri scribes.

They lamented that it is not so with Kashmiri women as they are not encouraged to take the lead, for Kashmir is a Muslim-dominated society. Though Kashmiri woman play a pivotal role in their political problems, yet they are discouraged to take the lead, unlike the Naga Mothers’ Association and such various Naga women organizations.

The rich culture of the Nagas did get the respect and admiration of the Kashmiri people who have only heard of the Nagas through the Media. It was a rare chance for the people of the two states to meet face to face and learn from each other during the trip which was closely monitored and followed by Intelligence Bureau agents. The Naga way of life, culture and tradition earned the respect of the Kashmiris who confessed to have never seen the Nagas in their lives.

Muslim community reels under fear No Dmp shops closure today DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): There would be no closure of shops on November 3 in protest against the killing of a businessman in Dimapur yesterday. Reliable sources informed that the district administration and the police requested the business community especially the Dimapur Chamber of Commerce not to shut shops in protest against the targeting of businessmen in Dimapur. The business community has agreed and decided to give the police time to investigate into the killing the businessman, sources informed.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Altogether four ‘bonafide’ Muslim businessman owning shops in New Market Dimapur have been killed within a span of eight months this year. This is a cause of great concern for the Muslim Council of Dimapur which believes that if the present trend continues, the community would face serious problems in the future.

Podurul Islam, a poultry trader was abducted and his body recovered at 4th mile on February 2; former Muslim Council president Furkanuddin Ahmed was shot dead on March 3; Fukrul Isam, a second hand dealer, was shot dead at his shop on April 23 and the most recent one, Moklisur Rahman, was critically injured in the head on November 1 and later succumbed to his injuries at Faith Hospital on November 2 early morning.

Not a single perpetrator involved in the four killings have been arrested, the Muslim council of Dimapur lamented. Even the motive behind the killings have not been ascertained, although the police usually suspect most of the killings to be related with “extortion”cases.

“This is the worst year for our (Muslim) community,” said A Rahman, the working president of the influential Muslim Council. Besides, the global phenomenon of Muslims being termed ‘terrorists’ and ‘Jehadis’, what is more unsettling for bonafide Muslim members in Dimapur is the general feeling among the populace about the menace created by illegal Bangladeshi immigrants from neighbouring areas especially Assam state. continued on page 3

Who ask for us, nowadays?

Age does not deter their spirit: Some of the old licensed porters at Dimapur Railway Station. (Morung Photo/Zakir Hussain) Zakir Hussain Dimapur | November 2

THE DEMAND for ‘coolie’ in Dimapur Railway Station, is declining these days.

“Who asks for us, nowadays?” instantly replies a coolie, to a query on how much they manage to earn. They are distinct by the red shirts and a piece of cloth tied around their heads.

Ever ready to offer their services, the coolies, who wait at platforms of trains stations, are being ‘replaced’ by easy carrybags, rock-size bags, wheeled suitcases and so on. “We manage to earn around Rs. 2,000 in a month and sometimes even lesser than it,” said Jogi Shah, who is 55 years old and one of the oldest licensed porters at Dima-

pur station.

For porters, life is not easy as they start work from 5:00 in the morning and stay up till late afternoon, working or to find work.

“We remain awake for most of the time and rush in and out of the station to find some work,” said Ram Babu, another porter at the station. He added that “despite the low demand, porters continue to function as per the trains or the railway timetable”.

“We guide passengers about the right train and the right platform,” said Babu,.

“But we do not have any union or association to highlight our grievances” he added. “But often porters are paid less for their services; now, we depend less on passenger trains but more on good trains,” Ram Babu explained.

They do not have proper beds for sleeping, in their housings at the station, the porters pointed out further. “We do not have even toilet facilities,” informed the porters.

Many porters suffer from fatigue due to the long hours of ‘standing or walking and carrying heavy loads’. These have taken toll on their health. Some of them have even fallen addicted to banned substances.

It is not surprising that porters of Dimapur Railway Station were thrilled when Union Minister for Railways Lalu Prasad Yadav announced ‘in his budget speech’ and ‘in his speech at Dimapur’ as well that they would be engaged as ‘gang-men’. As gangmen they would be Class IV Central Government employees earning a safe income of Rs 7,000-8,000 in a month. continued on page 3

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Dimapur

Monday 3 November 2008

‘The real political rhetoric’

LOCAL

The Morung Express

Rio to inaugurate Chozuba ADC HQ

NPF refutes Paphino’s criticism

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The NPF of Kohima has termed R Paphino’s criticism that the DAN government’s development and progress was just political rhetoric and that their performance was dismal, as false and misplaced criticism. In a rejoinder issued by associate press secretary, Shilumar Ao, the NPF stated that it was unfortunate that Paphino was making such statements just after his admission into the Congress, which had been his bitter political enemy for his entire career.

“If his memory serves him right, he will recall that just a few months back it was he who made several statements upholding the tremendous level development and progress achieved by the DAN government un-

der the leadership of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and NPF president Dr. Shurhozelie,” states the rejoinder.

In fact, the release stated, he had been critical of the poor governance and stagnation in development of Nagaland during the years of Congress rule.

The associate press secretary of NPF observed that Paphino’s opinion seemed to have suddenly changed as he changed his “party colour”. The release also noted that the accuser’s own contribution towards his people and development of his constituency was dismal when he was an elected member, and stated that all along he had been a regional party man, but on being denied a ticket, he had left the party fold to rejoin it after the NPF-led DAN had been

voted into power. Again, in 2008, when the party did not give him a ticket, he had joined the Congress, the release stated and added that today, as a Congressman, he was contradicting himself in every statement.

The rejoinder further held that the people were the best judge of integrity and that as far as the level of development achieved

by DAN was concerned, the growth and progress could be seen by everybody. The mandate given to the DAN coalition through the recent polls was testimony of the fact that DAN had performed admirably and people have placed their trust under DAN leadership, Shilumar stated, and added that the misplaced view of Paphino was in fact the real political rhetoric.

Naga women who form part of the cultural troupe are seen here on the first day of the annual Autumn festival at Polo Ground, Shillong, on Saturday. (Caisii Mao)

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio will inaugurate the ADC Headquarter, Chozuba Sub-Division at Chozuba Town, on November 5 at 11:00 am. Minister for health & family welfare, Kuzholuzo (Azo) Nienu, and parliamentary secretary for social welfare & women development, Chotisuh Sazo, will also deliver a speech on the occasion.

Commissioner of Nagaland, H K Khulu, IAS, will chair the function.

Yesonu Veyie, president, Chakhesang Public Organization, will deliver the welcome address while welcome song will be presented by the Chakhesang Cultural Research Institute, Chetheba.

The occasion will also witness folksongs from Khutsami village, Runguzu village, Thevopisu village, Therutsusu village and Phuhgwimi village.

Further, folkdances will be preformed

by Phusachodu village, Chozuba village, Yoruba village, Dzulhami village, Ruzazho village and Yhobulumi village. The function will be followed by a community feast.

Workshop on e-Governance in Kohima today Inter-collegiate seminar held at Salesian College

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): A two-day ‘Capacity building workshop on e-Governance’ will start from November 3 here at the Zonal Council Hall under the aegis of the Nagaland State e-Governance Society, Directorate of Information Technology & Technical Education.

Day one is designed for legislators, administrative heads of department, members of commissions, secretaries, additional secretaries and deputy commissioners, while day two is set for joint secretaries, heads of departments and departmental IT nodal officers. Governor K Sankaranarayanan will address the inaugural function at 9:30 am while Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio will deliver the keynote address. Chief Secretary La-

lhuma will chair the inaugural session.

The main speakers at the workshop include Sanjay Murthy, IAS, vice president, NISG, Hyderabad, Ashish Sanyal, Sr. Director, DIT, Ministry of IT&C, Prof.

Subhash Bhatnagar, IIM, Ahmedabad, Piyush Gupta, General Manager, NISG, Muralidhara Honnur, GM, WIPRO, and T V Ramesh, GM BSNL (SSA) Dimapur.

The main objective of the workshop is to sensitise those concerned on the principles of e-Government, to disseminate holistic understanding of e-Government and build capacity to address the challenges in conceptualising and implementing e-Government projects, to emphasise the importance of Change Management and leadership, to un-

derstand issues related to government transformation by way of Government Process Re-engineering (GPR) and Public-Private-Partnership (PPP), and to give an understanding of the National e-Governance Plan and the State’s eGovernment Road Map (EGRM).

The workshop will dwell on overview of National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), conceptualisation of a State Mission Mode Project, impact of e-Governance Projects and critical success factors, e-Government initiatives of the Government of Nagaland such as eModop project, and core infrastructure for e-Governance besides discussion on challenges and issues in implementing e-Governance projects in Nagaland.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): An inter-collegiate seminar was organised by the Department of Philosophy at the Salesian College of Higher Education, under the theme ‘Life is Sacred’ on October 31 last.

Students of three colleges participated, namely Salesian College, Patkai Christian College and Trinity Theological College. The students presented five papers on the same theme. The topics dealt on abortion, war and violence, cloning, suicide and euthanasia.

For the seminar, the college had invited four experts with qualifications in various fields. The panel of experts consisted of Rev. Fr. Dr. Solomon Vizo, Rector of Good Shepherd Seminary, Dr. Behera, HoD of Philosophy, Patkai Christian College, Dr. Sedevi Angami, Medical Superintendent CIHSR, and Dr. Kavito Zhino, Principal of Trinity Theological College, Dimapur.

The second session, a panel discussion, saw a number of students came up with their questions on

MEx File DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Eastern Nagaland Pre-Service Teachers’ Association (ENPSTA) for four districts, including Tuensang, Mon, Longleng and Kiphire, was formed on October 25 last in a joint meeting at the DIET conference hall. The association will be led by S Heno Khiam as president, Mansheen Konyak as vice-president, and Chemai Chang as general secretary.

This was stated in a press note issued by T Yangthsase Sangtam, press and information secretary of ENPSTA.

State BJP appoints GS C M Y K

gift that God has given out of His immense love. Therefore terminating life through any means can be a heinous crime against God and Humanity.

Young people of today should be well informed about the realities of life. In most of the colleges, importance is given only to intellectual formation, and human maturing is neglected. Young people today are either confused or have no knowledge of certain basic realities of life like the sacredness of life, love, forgiveness etc…,” added the press note.

Education deptt announces school academic calendar 2009

ENPSTA formed

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Nagaland State Unit, on October 31 appointed T L Merry, Vice President of BJP Nagaland, as General Secretary (Administration) BJP Nagaland state with immediate effect.

Informing this in a press note, the Nagaland state BJP president, Ato Yepthomi, stated that T L Merry shall relinquish the post of vice president and take up assignment as General Secretary (Admin) BJP Nagaland with immediate effect, “and work hard keeping in line with the rules as enshrined in the party constitution.” The state BJP president further wished T L Merry all the best in the joint effort to strengthen the party.

life issues, like morality and legality of abortion, euthanasia, suicide, cloning, just war, etc. Informing this through a press release, Leeborki Dhar, SDB, Salesian College, stated that the participants were enlightened on the theme, and became more aware that life is a precious gift of God and He alone has the right to take life, and that abortion is the killing of the most helpless human being in the world.

“From time immemorial people always considered life as sacred, and a precious

Langurs caught taking rest on the branch of a tree at the Nagaland Zoological Park at Rangapahar in Dimapur. (Morung Photo/Zakir Hussain)

PWD workcharge employees’ association informs on termination

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The All Nagaland PWD (R&B) and (H) Workcharge Employees’ Association has notified on the termination of membership of Kuhoshe Sumi, general secretary, and Guovi Angami, vice-president, on April 14, 2008. “The reason behind it is that they have deducted W/C ADA arrears under PWD (R&B) Construction Division Chiephobozou without the knowledge of other office bearers in the Association. It is for this reason that they have no voice/right after termination whatever the case may be,” stated a press statement issued by Khrielakuo Mepfuo, president of the association. “It also informed all unit office bearers W/C Employees as well as VRS applicants under NPWD (R&B) & (H) department not to confuse or misunderstand it that they have expelled from the association,” the statement concluded.

Further, it has been made manKOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Directorate of School datory for all institutions (both govEducation has announced the school ernment and private) to observe the academic calendar 2009 for compli- National Holidays declared by the ance by all registered schools (both state government. An institution can government and private) under the declare only two days’ holiday for lodepartment of school education, cal festivals in a year. The results of Nagaland. It also notified that a the final examination must be declared before common calthe school closendar has been * Re-opening of school after winter es for the winter prescribed for vacation: Between Jan 20 to Feb vacation. greater coor6, 2009 “All regdination be* Mid terminal examination: Beistered institween the State tween May 26 to June 10, 2009 tutions of the Council of Ed* Summer Vacation: 15 days within department of ucational ReJune and July 2009 education shall search & Train* Final Examination: Nov 18 to Dec submit their ing Kohima, 5, 2009 working calenthe Nagaland * Winter vacation: Dec 18, 2009 to dar to the State Board of School Jan 20/Feb 6, 2010 Education, the Council of Educational ReDirectorate of search & TrainSchool Education and its subordinate offices with ing, Kohima, the Nagaland Board of School Education, the Directorate their registered institutions.

Flexibility in reopening of institu- of School Education, the concerned tions and summer vacation has been District Education Officers and given for better administration by the the concerned Deputy Inspector of institutions. This should not be mis- Schools on or before 30th November used by them, a notification received 2008,” instructed Director Nipusilie here said. Admission to any regis- Angami in a notification.

The District Education Officer tered (both government and private) school must be completed before it re- and the Deputy Inspector of Schools opens. Full classes are to begin from are to see that all registered instituthe second day of the academic year, tions under their respective juriswhile the minimum number of work- dictions follow the calendar. Timely ing days must be strictly adhered to. reports must be submitted to ensure The minimum number of working that the calendar is followed, the nodays for higher secondary, secondary tification stated adding, “Failure to and middle schools shall be 200 days follow the instructions shall lead to disciplinary action. with 20 contingency days.

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Timing from 7:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.

(Left) The DABA Choir at the Worship Concert held on Sunday at the Dimapur Ao Baptist Church. (Right) Pianist and harp teacher in Singapore, Wong Kae Chee, plays the harp during the Worship Concert on Sunday. (Morung Photo)

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Following the music and worship workshop on Saturday, a Worship Concert was held this afternoon at the Dimapur Ao Baptist Church (DABA).

The speaker of the evening, Dr. Jonathan Seet, Pastor of the Pentecost Methodist Church in Singapore, em-

phasised that since God is a Spirit, it is important to worship Him in the spirit.

The pastor explained that God being a spirit meant that He was not limited by place and time, therefore He could be worshipped from any place, and that God is able to perform miracles He had performed in the past.

Dr. Seet also added that the Spirit of God did not limit Himself to methods of worship and therefore urged the congregation to come to God “just as you are”.

“If you are sad, come to Him in tears… or in joy… or reflective silence, and God will meet you there,” iterated Dr. Seet. The pastor also put

on record that God did not limit Himself to receiving physical things but was looking for the offering of spirit and love. “God is looking not for service but for people who will serve him with love,” stated the speaker as he urged the gathering to surrender their lives to God, which is the meaning of worship.

The resource persons at the Workshop and the Concert were Mrs. Simon Chan, Voice teacher of Trinity Theological College Singapore, Wong Kae Chee, pianist and harp teacher in Singapore, Kendrick Liew, Chinese American musical graduate from Boston School of Music, and Dr. Jonathan Seet.

LOCAL

The Morung Express

Monday

3 November 2008

SAKD outraged by assault DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Sumi Aphuyemi Kuqakulu Dimapur (SAKD) in a clarification note received here today “is deeply outraged to learn of the atrocity committed against an executive member along with two bona fide members of the SAKD by the Chumukedima Town Command of the NSCN (IM).”

The SAKD in the note stated that, “On the said day the 1st of November 2008, Mr. X. Lukiye Swu, an executive member of SAKD and teacher were accompanied by K. Zhetovi Assumi, a businessman and general secretary of Ghokimi Kuqakulu Dimapur and Vikheto Assumi, a class XII student of Zakiesetuo Memorial Higher Secondary School and Jt. Secy of Ghokimi Kiphimi Kuqakulu.

The trio had gone to pay ‘Auto Tax’ to the ‘proper authorities’ of the GPRN, feeling reluctant to do the transaction through a middleman,” adding further that “after failure to meet the ‘authorities’, they were on their way back when they were forcefully abducted causing serious injury in one case and released.”

Vikugha Kappo, President and Shikato Shoh, Gen secretary SAKD in a joint clarification note stated, “It has come to light that the abduction and physical assault were perpetrated on the grounds of suspicion

Assumi, a businessman and general secretary of Ghokumi Kuposhukulu Dimapur and Vikheto Assumi, a class XII student of Zakiesetuo Memorial Higher Secondary School and Jt. Secy of Ghokimi Kiphimi Kuqakulu were apprehended by the Town Command on suspicions that they were members of some rival factions.

They were coming back after failing to meet the ‘proper authorities’ of the GPRN to pay ‘Auto Tax’, feeling reluctant to do the transaction through a middle man.”

P Vihoto Shohe, Chairman and Ghoshivi Wotsa, Jt. Secretary GKD deeply regrets that “the perpetrators committed the act inspite of the repeated plea of innocence by the victims”. GKD further stated that “the sole purpose” of this clarification is to validate “the identity of the victims”.

that they were members of rival factions.” The SAKD rues the fact that such “acts of aggression” can be committed solely on the basis of “mere suspicion” and therefore urged upon “the perpetrators of the act” not to repeat similar mistakes in the future. SAKD cautioned that such acts cannot be justified and added that “no amount of clarifications, apologies or compensation can bring a

person back to life again.”

SAKD reiterated that the clarification was necessitated to authenticate the real identity of the victims and “not to create further ill-will between the involved parties”. It added that the purpose of this clarification was “to place it on record beyond any doubt that all three victims are outstanding citizens and bona fide members of Sumi Aphuyemi Kuqakulu Dimapur”.

Concept Relations launched in Kohima KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Concept Relations (CR), an innovative idea initiated with an aim to bridge the people of Nagaland in Public Relations was formally launched on November 1 here.

Under the motto Bridging the gap’, the Concept Relations (CR) was initiated out of the urgent need for an alternative PR in the prevailing environment in the state, and is truly dedicated to public relations in the fast growing sophisticated markets in the state. CR aims to bring to the public a deeper understanding and sharp insight into the complexities of the state to offer an authentic, indigenous interpretation of the art and social science of integrated communications.

Concept Relations (CR) offers innovative, cost-effective communications programs devised specifically for prospective clients with a focus on tactical public relations, publicity and collateral material. The services offered

by CR include logistic PR services such as organising media team for coverage of functions/events, marketing and

promotional programme.

CR also plans to seriously invest in these unique features by creating one of the best think-tanks, which would be able to implement sustained and dynamic public relations campaigns for government departments, public and private sectors and also non-profit-making organizations (NGOs) at different levels. For further information, one may contact: + 91 9436001665 and + 91 9612153370.

From page 1

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) farmers seen trapping grasshoppers at Naga United Village organized by Department of Agriculture. IPM is a pest control strategy that uses an array of complementary methods: mechanical devices, physical devices, genetic, biological, legal, cultural management, and chemical management. These methods are done in three stages: prevention, observation, and intervention. It is an ecological approach with a main goal of significantly reducing or eliminating the use of pesticides.

GHS Wakching celebrates golden jubilee DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The golden jubilee of the Government High School, Wakching in Mon district was celebrated on October 31 last, with MC Konyak, Minister for Forest and B Thawang Konyak, IAS, Secretary as the chief guest and guest of honour respectively.

Konyak, in his address, said that the invaluable knowledge of good and hardship that he imbibed through his association with elders and continued that “failing to do so, would be injustice on his part.” He also asserted that “to rule the earth education is required.” “We must all pursue knowledge. We must worship education, as only those who strive for education shall rule the world,” he added. While

As a pledge to work for healing through reconciliation of all the Naga tribes in particular and neighboring communities Rev. E. Shaiza, general secretary of the Tangkhul Naga Baptist Convention (TNBC) administered an oath to the public: according to a declaration of the reconciliation meet, every Tangkhul man and woman will work for the healing of spirits through forgiveness.

Sunday’s Naga reconciliation meet was attended by the headmen of all Tangkhul villages as well as pastors, students, youth and women leaders apart from others. The pres-

ident of Tangkhul Wungnao Long (Tangkhul Headmen’s Association) Kaphungkan Shimray invoked the creator (in the Naga custom of yodelling) and appealed for “inroad of good things and the exit of bad things” from the Nagas.

Among the thousands who attended the meeting today at Tangkhul Naga Long ground, Muivah’s fellow-villagers from Somdal marked a strong presence. Reiterating the Tangkhuls’ cry for healing through reconciliation among the warring Naga political groups, hundreds of balloons with a banner “Healing of Our Spirit” was released into the sky.

Who asks for us, nowadays?

From page 1

But their dream dampened, since many of them turned out to be ineligible as they were illiterate, old or medically unfit. “Out of 81 licensed railway porters in Dimapur Railway Station, only 33 get selected for the job of gang-men,” said Ram Babu.

Expressing his opinion, Babu demanded that young porters be given some training to help them meet the requirements for the post of gang-man.

“A lot of old people continue

Workshop on rural economy through banking KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): A one-day workshop on ‘Prospect of rural economy through banking’ under the aegis of the Nagaland State Co-operative Bank Ltd. will take place on November 5 at Phek at 10:00 am.

Phek Deputy Commissioner Z Thele will grace the occasion as the chief guest. The keynote address will be given

by B K Thadani, Managing Director, NSCB Ltd. Short speech will also be delivered by Chubawati Chang, SDO (C) Phek, and Khosapa Venuh, president of Phek District Co-operative Union. The function will be chaired by Kekhwengulo Lea, Board of Director, NSCB Ltd., while vote of thanks will be tendered by A Chibonimo, Assistant Branch Manager, Phek. The VCCs, VDB secretaries, chairmen, cooperative societies, chairman Phek District Farmer’s Union, and Pastors under Phek district have been invited to the workshop.

rewarding Moishen, for securing a position in the top ten of the PU exams, Konyak promised that he would honour such Konyak achiever.

“We cannot compromise with education and yet, there are teachers who are in the habit of absconding their duties.

Such practices must be stopped forthwith,” said Konyak, stating “Teachers’ task is painstaking, tough and holistic profession and hence, we must all give them due respect.”

“We are celebrating 50 years jubilee of Wakching GHS today, in an old, dilapidated school building, it is my zeal that very soon we should be celebrating in a new school building. But to usher in progress and developments, collective cooperation must be given

to the officials manning the various government departments,” Konyak added.

Thawang while stating that jubilee is a time of celebration, stated that it is also a time of reflection about the past and maintained that it is only by the sincere approach and ingenuity of the teachers the pupils can be moulded into capable and responsible members of the society. “Let us try to build a good institution out of this school through the efforts of all concerned and leave a good tradition for the posterity of this school to follow despite many possible adversities that may be faced,” he concluded. This was stated in a press note issued by TL Merry, vice-president and Spokesman of BJP Nagaland.

Ukrhul echoes with Reconciliation cry HRA Dimapur condemns

From page 1

working as coolies though their health doesn’t permit.

Therefore, the children of such persons be given jobs in the railways,” he opined. However, Jogi Shah said their licenses should be transferred to their children so that their children would be able to apply for the job of gang-men.

“The 33 porters who got the job are presently working at the railway construction site at Silchar in Assam,” said Ram Babu to a query where the porters were working,

adding “During the time of submitting the application forms for the job”, he along with his 20 odd porters were out of station so they have applied for the job recently and waiting for the response from the NFR Maligaon.

Jogi Shah said that the porters were used for loading goods in trains, cleaning the stations and removing human waste from the tracks earlier.

But, he added that “unfortunately, today, most of these jobs are contracted out.”

DC Kiphire notifies technical deptts

KIPHIRE, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): Referring to a notification from the Kiphire DC’s Office to all the technical departments of the district to report to the DC on October 29 for briefing, and for the spot verification to be conducted on October 30, the office stated that during the monthly DPDB meeting held on October 18, the DC had reminded the technical departments of the same. The joint spot assessment was to be done on the area proposed to be acquired for the LHEP. However, departmental officials from the district

3

Muslim community reels under fear

GKD clarify mistaken identity

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Ghokimi Kuposhukulu Dimapur (GKD) today issued a clarification in “the aftermath of the abduction and physical assault of three of its members by the Chumukedima Town Command of the NSCN (IM)” on November 1.

In a note appended by its chairman and Jt. secretary received here, GKD categorically stated that the “three persons concerned were not members of any political organisations nor do they engage in any antisocial activities but they are upstanding (sic) citizens and bona fide members of the GKD.” Reiterating that the three were assaulted on mistaken identity the GKD stated that, “On the 1st of November 2008, Mr. X. Lukiye Swu, Mr.K. Zhetovi

Dimapur

fishery office and deputy ranger, forest department, failed to attend the briefing, stated the release issued

by Dr. Tinojongshi Chang, NCS, EAC Kiphire.

In this regard, the HoD of these two departments have been directed to report to the DC Kiphire on or before November 5 to explain the absence of the officers.

The release warned that in case of any failure or delay in assessment and payment of compensation to the landowners, the department in concern would be held solely responsible.

National Re-dedication Day observed

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (DIPR): Along with the rest of the country, Nagaland observed the National Rededication Day on October 31 in the Conference Hall of the Nagaland Civil Secretariat with Chief Secretary of Nagaland, Lalhuma, IAS, on the chair. The introductory speech was delivered by the chairman and followed by administering of the pledge of National Rededication and Pledge of Vigilance Awareness Week.

The National Anthem was sung, led by Addl. Chief Secretary, Lalthara. Earlier a two-minute silence was observed to pay homage to Chief Secretary of Nagaland, Lalhuma, IAS, administering the pledge of National Rededithose killed in the serial cation Day and Vigilance Awareness Week to the officers and staff of the Nagaland Secblasts in Assam. retariat on October 31, at the Secretariat Conference Hall. (DIPR)

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Hoteliers and Restaurant Association (HRA), Dimapur, strongly condemned the recent incidents of kidnapping, killings and extortions taking place in and around Dimapur.

A release issued by its president and secretary expressed serious concern over the plight of businessmen who have been griped by fear owing to the recent incidents, which are fast becoming a routine affair.

HRA noted recent incidents where a young businessman Suresh Kumar Yadav was

kidnapped and later killed, including the kidnapping of a manager of Breeze Restaurant on October 28 last who was later released.

In this regard, HRA stated that the “Association shall come out openly to protest any act done or meted out to the HRA, Dimapur,” and added that “the administration and the police shall also be responsible,” if such acts occur in future. HRA Dimapur also notified its members to inform the said office of any such incidents of kidnapping, etc. being faced by them.

“Over the years, the Muslim population in Dimapur has increased so much and the Muslim Council Dimapur has not been able to fully check the population,” admitted Rahman. He asserted that there are many law-abiding and bonafide Muslim citizens of Dimapur who have settled in the city for so many years and who have also been grated the Non-Naga Indigenous status by the government. However, the Muslim Council is disturbed by the large number of Bangladeshi migrants in the city from small pockets in Assam.

“What the bonafide Muslim community are worried about is the large influx of migrants from other areas outside Dimapur.” Not ruling out the possibilities of migrant Muslims in the crimes happening in Dimapur, Rahman appealed the Nagas to differentiate between the bonafide Muslim citizens and the migrants, saying that most of the problems can be solved that way.

“The eventualities of what

happens in Dimapur are not their concern since they (migrant) return to their places in the evening and don’t live in the city,” he said.

Rahman opined that Nagas are very hospitable and cooperative by nature and that ‘people take advantage of it’. Interestingly, A Rahman disclosed that he has been targeted by the migrant Muslims since he advocated among the bonafide Muslim citizens of Dimapur to distance and separate themselves from the migrant Muslims by having a separate Mosque, burial grounds etc.

As the law enforcing agencies grapples with the law and order situation, Muslim community in Dimapur who make up the bulk of the business community in Dimapur are a worried lot, caught between being branded jehadis and law abiding citizens. “We have been living here for so many years since the 1900’s…and when Dimapur became part of Nagaland, we decided to come under Nagaland…we love this place…we are also law abiding citizens,’ said Rahman.

Annapurna rice for Kma, Chiephobozou KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Annapurna rice for two months will be distributed to the approved beneficiaries of both Kohima and Chiephobozou Centres from the ADS Office Godown, Kohima. This was informed by Temsu Jamir, Assistant Director, Food & Civil Supplies, Kohima, Nagaland.

The distribution will be made from November 3 to 14 between 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The concerned beneficiaries have been directed to produce their ration cards to collect their quota within the stipulated period. The beneficiaries who find difficult to collect by them may authorize their respective Village Council chairman/secretary for collection by producing ration cards.

SITUATION VACANT Wanted dedicated born-again Christian for warden (male and female) Qualification : B.D/M.Div with B.Sc degree and above Starting Salary : Rs 6000 PM with fooding & lodging Apply to the undersigned with detail bio-data including Baptism Certificate

Director

St.John Hr.Sec.Residential School Diphu Road, P.B No: 120, Dimapur- 797112 Nagaland: Ph: 9436006373

SELF EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRIME MINISTER EMPLOYMENTGENERATIONPROGRAMME(PMEGP) Applications are invited from Rural and Urban unemployed youths, who fulfill the following qualifications and other eligibilities, in the prescribed format available with Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC), Nagaland Khadi & Village Industries Board (NKVIB), and District Industries Centers (DICs) of the respective Districts of Nagaland, for establishment of new Enterprise to be financed by the Banks with beck-end subsidy arranging from 15% to 35% of the project cost.

Eligibility Conditions of Beneficiaries: 1) Any individual, above 18 years of age 2) There will be no income ceiling for assistance for setting up projects under PMEGP 3) For setting up of project costing above Rs 10 lakh in the manufacturing sector and above Rs 5 lakh in the business/service sector, the beneficiaries should possess at least VIII standard pass educational qualification 4) Assistance under the Scheme is available only for new projects sanctioned specifically under the PMEGP 5) Self Help Groups (including those belonging to BPL provided that they have not availed benefits under any other Scheme) are also eligible for assistance under PMEGP 6) Institution registered under Societies Registration Act, 1860 7) Production Co-operative Societies, and 8) Charitable Trusts Existing Units (under PMRY, REGP or any other scheme of Government of India or State Government) and the units that have already availed Government Subsidy under any other scheme of Government of India or State Government are not eligible.

The Application form will be made available with the respective Departments i.e, KVIC, NKVIB and DIC of the respective District, from 13th Nov.2008 onwards, which will be issued to those candidates. who fulfill the criteria under PMEGP scheme, on submission of 02 copies of Passport Size Photograph.

Application complete in all respects should be submitted to respective District Offices, KVIC, NKVIB & DIC. For further details, please contact KVIC, NKVIB and DIC of the respective District, on any working day.

Asstt. Director I/C, State Office, Khadi & V.I. Commission Dimapur: Nagaland

C M Y K

4

Dimapur

BUSINESS

Monday 3 November 2008

The Morung Express

“China and India will reshape the world”

News Corp. Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch gestures as he delivers the 2008 Boyer Lecture series "A Golden Age of Freedom" in Sydney, Australia, Sunday, November 2. Media tycoon Murdoch says the ongoing metamorphosis of China and India from historic backwaters into economic powers will help reshape the world in the next few decades. The Boyer Lectures is a series of talks by prominent Australians chosen by the ABC Board to present ideas on major social, scientific or cultural issues. The lectures have been broadcast on ABC Radio for more than 40 years and have stimulated thought, discussion and debate in Australia on an astonishing range of subjects. (AP Photo)

SYDNEY, NOVEMBER 2 (AP): Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch says the ongoing metamorphosis of China and India from historic backwaters into economic powers will reshape the world in the next few decades. The News Corp. chief gave an upbeat assessment of the future and made a vigorous case for free markets despite troubled economic times and what he called "naked, heartless ag-

gression" in the world.

In the first of a series of speeches in his birth country of Australia, Murdoch spoke Sunday of "the great transformation we've seen in the past few decades, the unleashing of human talent and ability across our world, and the golden age for humankind that I see just around the corner." He said China and India are great countries whose people are only recent-

ly emerging from long histories of being "incarcerated by communism or caste." The rise of their economies is creating a new middle class that would be 3 billion strong within 30 years and is setting a new benchmark for global competitiveness, he said.

"The world has never seen this kind of advance before," Murdoch said. "These are people who have known deprivation. These are peo-

ple who are intent on developing their skills, improving their lives and showing the world what they can do."

Murdoch, whose New Yorkbased conglomerate includes Twentieth Century Fox, Fox News Channel, Dow Jones & Co. as well as newspaper stables in Australia and Britain and the online networking site MySpace, described the global financial crisis as one of many challenges fac-

ing Australia.

He urged Australia to embrace internationalism and touched on a range of global issues, from international security to the commercial opportunities offered by the world's need for cleaner energy. Murdoch's comments were in the first of six radio lectures that will be aired nationally by the Australian Broadcasting Corp., this year's edition of an an-

nual series of talks by prominent Australians. Murdoch said that in another speech he would give his opinions on the future of newspapers, which are suffering a severe downturn, especially in the United States, as advertising revenue is lost to the Internet.

He made a strong pitch for freer trade between countries, taking agriculture as an example and saying that reducing artificial barriers is a moral and strategic issue. "So we must continue to leverage our connections and continue to push when others have left the conference table," he said.

"The global trade dialogue should echo with Australian accents." Touching on security, he chided Europe for appearing to have "lost the will to confront aggression" and said NATO should be reformed into a group based on common values, not geography, and include countries like Australia as members.

"In this promising new century, we are still seeing naked, heartless aggression - whether it comes from a terrorist bombing in Islamabad or a Russian invasion of Georgia," Murdoch said.

"We can lament these developments, but we cannot hide from them," he said, noting Australia's contribution of troops to Afghanistan and Iraq. In an interview published in The Weekend Australian on Saturday, Murdoch said governments have only limited power to fix the financial crisis, though they could make it worse.

Murdoch warned that a rise in protectionism in the United States "could add to all sorts of tensions in the world financial system and the world trading system and eventually all the way down to employment."

Home, car loans to get cheaper NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Interest rates could fall soon, making loans cheaper and saving less attractive, following a slew of measures by the RBI on Saturday. The central bank cut the rate at which it lends short-term funds to banks by half a percentage point and infusing an extra Rs 1,20,000 crore into the banking system. Pressure on banks to cut rates has risen sharply in the past few days with the RBI making clear the crisis could only be resolved if banks followed up with measures to boost demand and sustain spending. This would mean home, car and other consumer loans becoming cheaper by half a percentage point. Companies too can look forward to similarly lower lending rates. But, for depositors, the flipside of a rate cut is lower interest rates on savings.

Senior officials of public sector banks unanimously told STOI that rate cuts would follow very soon, perhaps within the week. They said they would follow through on the RBI’s move to contain the slowdown, even though they face a severe liquidity crunch because the central bank continues to suck cash worth $500 million every day in order to support the rupee. Punjab National Bank chairman KC Chakrabarty said that banks are likely to take their cue from RBI’s decision to cut rates.

On Saturday, the RBI in its mid-term review of policy announced that the repo rate — the rate at which banks can borrow short-term funds from RBI — will fall from 8% to 7.5% from November 3. This would make it easier for banks to cut interest rates for consumers. Simultaneously, there will be a two-stage cut by November 8 of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) — the proportion of deposits banks have to maintain in cash with the RBI. It will fall from 6.5% to 5.5%.This will give banks access to an additional Rs 40,000 crore to lend.

In another liquidity infusing measure, RBI in effect brought down the statutory liquidity ratio — the proportion of deposit money that banks mandatorily have to invest in government securities — by two percentage points. While the SLR is formally currently at 25%, various temporary relaxations that allowed banks to borrow from RBI against their holdings of government securities meant that it is effectively at 23.5%. Further relaxations announced on Saturday brought down the effective SLR to 21.5%, though the formal rate has been reduced only to 24%.

The effective two percentage point cut means an addition of Rs 80,000 crore to the kitty available to banks for lending. With the CRR cut, that makes a total of Rs 120,000 crore in extra liquidity. One of the key relaxations was that banks can now borrow up to 1.5% of their deposit base from RBI to lend to mutual funds and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) facing shortage of funds to repay their investors.

Non-deposit taking NBFCs that are deemed to be “systemically important” have also been allowed to get short-term foreign currency loans from abroad subject to their meeting certain prudential norms and getting approval from RBI. Reacting to the RBI’s announcement, Union Bank of India chairman M V Nair pointed out that this was the second time that RBI had cut the repo rate within a fortnight. Prior to this, RBI had cut the repo rate by one percentage point to 8%. Since banks will find their cost of funds going down, he said they will pass on the benefit to the customer.

Airfares hikes leads to bonanza for Railways PM Manmohan Singh to discuss ways to lift economy

C M Y K

NEWDELHI,NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): The sharp increase in airfares and consequent fall in number of air travellers has come as a boon for the Railways, with even AC first class reservations going up by nearly 20 per cent. Sources in the Railways acknowledged that the rise in demand for upper class reservations has been driven mainly by air travellers, who hit by the rise in ticket prices were switching over to trains. “What we are witnessing is a gradual shift of air travellers towards Railways ...

And the rush for a berth in AC-

first class explains it all,” said a Rail Ministry official.

He said that in September alone (a non-peak month), Railways earned Rs 17.11 crore from AC-first class tickets as against Rs 13.89 crore earned during the same period last year. Already bookings in AC-first class coaches alone have touched the Rs 100 crore mark during the first six months of the ongoing fiscal, which is a 26.45 per cent jump compared to the corresponding period last year, he said.

This is in sharp contrast to a period not so long back

when AC-first class coaches ran with few passengers on board. In fact, going by the bookings for the next two months, almost all the major trains with AC-first class compartments are running to 80-90 per cent capacity.

The rush is even more pronounced in Rajdhani Express trains, notwithstanding the high ticket rates. “I have been trying with various travel agencies for a confirmed ticket to Mumbai in Rajdhani but in vain,” said garment exporter Manoj Dubey, a frequent flyer.

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): As part efforts to shore up confidence eroded by the global financial rout, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will on Monday meet leaders of India Inc in New Delhi, which may seek more measures to tide over the liquidity crunch.

Ratan Tata, Anand Mahindra, Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, KP Singh, Sunil Bharti Mittal and Deepak Parikh are among those expected to attend the meeting -- two days after RBI decided to inject another Rs 85,000

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Z F O L L A B E S A B K W B E A M R A D I O D I S N E Y L S

SUDOKU

The Morung Express number game

Sudoku # 1126

CROSSWORD # 1142 1

2

16

14

15

17

18 19

21

C N O I A O A E H R H D Y D S

20 22

23

24

A G B R P R M C N R A T E B N

25

26 27

N E L T B S Y H E A U Y S R A

28

I B O A N E Z K A B G J S O L

29

ACROSS

D O O P N U 3 F H N J O V T Y O B M S S I M P S O N S M H D

ORLANDOBLOOM PATRIOTS RADIODISNEY RAVEN REDSOX SELENAGOMEZ SHREK3 SIMPSONS SPONGEBOB

6

12 13

I O D O N V L V L A S S B E P

E S U O R P S E L O C C O S F

5

9

11

R P N T L E E I E O N I C K R

Y D S U R Y C Y E L I M H R Z

4

8

E S A S S T V N X S E N V A O

L Z I I K C A L B K C A J E J

3

7

10

M N L X D E T N A H C N E N U

AMERICANIDOL BASEBALL BRAVES COLESPROUSE DEVILRAYS DISNEYCHANNEL DYLANSPROUSE ENCHANTED HANNAHMONTANA JACKBLACK KCA MILEYCYRUS NAKEDBROTHERS NICK

inter-bank lending rates are still quite high. The RBI move to pump in money into the economy is in line with several central banks across the world providing more money to their cash-starved financial institutions.

While the government has given assurances on the safety of Indian banks, high interest rates ranging between 14-17 per cent have particularly impacted sectors like real estate and automobile. The aviation industry, which was provided a much needed help in the

DAILY CROSS WORD

LEISURE W

crore into the financial system by revising downward short-term lending rate and key deposit requirements for banks.

Presidents of the three apex chambers -- Assocham, CII and FICCI -- Sajjan Jindal, KV Kamath and Rajeev Chandrasekhar will also participate in the deliberations.

With the RBI providing Rs 2,65,000 crore in the last one month, one of the industry’s main demands has largely been met. However, industry sources feel more was required since the overnight

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 #1125

1. Desert river-valley (4) 4. Silver four penny piece (5) 7. Sexless (6) 8. Recedes (4) 9. Draught? (2,3) 10. Sloping script (6) 11. Sharp spasm (4) 12. Dispossess (5) 13. Light cavalryman (6) 16. Agreement (4) 18. Juicy fruit (4) 19. Collapse (6) 21. Voice range (5) 22. Per item (4) 24. Pandemonium (6) 25. Model, - - - Campbell (5) 26. Composer, - - - Novello (4) 27. Add spices (6) 28. Combine (5) 29. Bloodstained (4)

DOWN 1. Pup (5) 2. Perception (7) 3. Needle (6) 4. Shopkeeper (6) 5. Contour, shape (7) 6. Racing tout (7) 14. Former French coin (3) 15. Noah’s boat (3) 16. David - - British film producer (7) 17. Frankness (7) 18. Gazing (7) 19. Contusion (6) 20. Livestock enclosure (6) 23. Debbie - - - Blondie singer (5)

Answers to CROSSWORD #1141 Across: 1. Bighorn, 7. Dowdy, 8. Ecuador, 9. Crunch, 11. Smile, 13. Sink, 14. Martina, 15. Kelp, 16. Baggy, 17. Reheat, 21. Footman, 22. Pluto, 23. Cheated.

Down: 2. Incomplete, 3. Headlamp, 4. Riot, 5. Boer, 6. Eden, 9.

Claim, 10. Centigrade, 12. Grant, 13. Samantha, 18. Help, 19.

Ants, 20. Loch.

form of cut in jet fuel prices, is reeling under high cost of operations. Business leaders are concerned over the plunge in industrial growth to 1.3 per cent in August from a high of 10.9 per cent in the same month a year ago, mainly on account of poor performance by the manufacturing sector which expanded by a mere 1.1 per cent.

For the five month period (April-August 200809), the industrial production growth rate stood at 4.9 per cent, down from 10 per

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)

cent during the corresponding period last year. CII will seek setting up of a special purpose fund from foreign exchange reserves for meeting the foreign currency requirements of Indian banks.

The chamber is also seeking a guarantee from the government for bank deposits and a special corpus fund for small and medium enterprises.

FICCI will ask for a review of FDI caps in telecom, multibrand retail and aviation. It is also seeking raising longterm money with an NRIbond issue.

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:

STD CODE: 0370 2244279 2244923 2242897 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202

CHEVROLET CAR PRICE LIST

CAR MODEL

SPARK 1.0 BASE SPARK 1.0 PS SPARK 1.0 LS SPARK 1.0 LT U-VA 1.2 BASE U-VA 1.2 LS U-VA 1.2 LT SRV 1.6 OPT. PACK AVEO 1.4 BASE AVEO 1.4 LTD EDI AVEO 1.4 LT OPT.PACK TAVERA 2.5 LT 9S BS3 TAVERA 2.5 SSD1 7S (C) BS3 OPTRA ROYAL 1.6 LT (PETROL) OPTRA MAGNUM 2.0 LT ACC (DIESEL) CAPTIVA 2.0 LT VCDI

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268,648 289,992 304,641 334,123 401,639 444,184 483,975 790,100 606,461 661,631 754,930 877,748 993,249 967,686 1,074,547 1,812,688

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) 47.40 76.55 5.90 475.00 12.34 31.45 134.70 12.70 60.20

SELL(Rs) 50.70 82.05 6.60 509.00 15.27 34.95 146.20 13.95 64.45

Monday

REGIONAL

The Morung Express

3 November 2008

Dimapur

5

There are foreign hands in the blasts: Gogoi

Newmai News Network Guwahati | November 2

THE ASSAM government has urged New Delhi to put pressure on the neighbouring foreign countries of Assam, whose soils were being used to carry out anti-Indian activities. Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Sunday linked the Thursday’s serial blasts to some anti-Indian forces in the foreign countries.

“There are foreign hands in the blasts and I have told the Prime Minister on Saturday to put pressure on our neighbouring countries so that their soil is not used to destabilize Assam and the country as whole,” said the chief minister.

“No doubt that there are foreign hands behind the Thursday’s blasts and so long the foreign soils are used against us it is very difficult to have a total check on similar activities,” Gogoi said. “The centre has already been taking up the issue with the neighbouring countries but I have repeatedly requested the Prime Minister over this,” he said.

The chief minister also defended the intelligence agencies and said that there were intelligence inputs that there could be blasts. “However, the inputs were not ‘actionable inputs. But I agree that we need to improve our intelligence network,” he said. The Thursday’s serial blasts in Assam, which were stated to be the biggest ever in recent times had however, forced the state government to think of raising an elite commando force, specifically to handle the investigation of the

terrorism and terrorist related incidents.

“We are planning to raise a specialized battalion in the lines of the Greyhounds commandos of the Andhra Pradesh to tackle the problems of terrorism in the state,” said Gogoi. “We are planning to raise the battalion in the lines of the Andhra Pradesh model, which has proved to be very effective,” said Gogoi while adding that the modalities for raising the battalion would be completed very soon.

“We have also been planning to put in force some tough laws in the state to tackle the problems. The state cabinet had already decided to specialized bomb detection squads in the lines of the NSG of the government of India to deal with the bombs, IEDs and other explosives,” said the chief minister.

The state government has also decided to strengthen the police force and setting up of a research and analysis wing of the police within the Special Branch of the state police, he said while adding that the government is also planning to institute one Security Advisory Council for the state who can advise the government machinery over these issues.

The chief minister further announced award of Rs 5 lakh for those persons who could give information regarding the Thursday’s blasts and the suspects. The state and central government had earlier announced ex-gratia payment of Rs 7 lakh each to the family of the deceased persons Rs 1 lakh to the injured persons.

Bangladesh refutes ‘baseless’ reports

A group of artists and activists walk in a peace rally during a strike to protest Thursday’s explosions in Guwahati on November 1. Police have arrested three people and are investigating whether local militants received help from other terrorist groups in carrying out coordinated attacks that killed at least 77 people in India's troubled northeast, officials said Saturday. (AP Photo)

DHAKA, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Dismissing as “baseless” reports about suspected involvement of the Bangladesh-based outlawed HuJI militant group in the deadly Assam blasts, the government here has said it would never allow this country’s territory to be used to aid attacks on other nations.

“The allegations are totally baseless and, as in the past... (there is) no evidence to back them up,” the Bangladesh Foreign Office said in a statement issued last night.

It said Bangladesh has adopted the strictest measures against terrorists and would “never allow her territory to be used to aid attacks on other countries.”

“This is no time for finger-pointing without proof. Instead, all efforts should be directed at apprehending culprits and bringing them to justice. Bangladesh has strongly condemned these acts of cowardice and shares the pain of the people of India in this sad horror,” the statement said.

The Bangladesh Foreign Office reaction came as Indian security officials probed a possible link between Harkat-ul Jihad (HuJi) and the United Lib-

eration Front of Assam (ULFA) behind the Thursday blasts in Assam that claimed 77 lives. A senior Home Ministry official in Dhaka preferring anonymity earlier said the allegation about the HuJI engagement was being made without any proof which “is an irresponsible act.”

“The Indian authorities earlier also could not come up with any evidence to prove the engagement of any Bangladesh-based outfit in terror attacks on their territory,” he said. A spokesman of the elite anti-crime Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) said the outlawed HuJI has lost its “organisational strength” due to a massive security clampdown in the past two years leading to the arrest of most of its top leaders, including its chief Mufty Hannan.

Immediately after the Assam bomb attacks, the interim government’s Foreign Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury sent a letter to External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee condemning the blasts and conveying Bangladesh’s condolences to the members of the victims’ families. “It is a cowardly act of terrorism. Violence cannot be a

Rallies held in Delhi Army intercepted “Attack Guwahati” message against blasts in Assam

NEW DELHI (PTI): Hundreds of Assamese people residing in the national capital, including students and youths, took part in a peace rally and condemned the October 30 serial bombings in Assam that snuffed out 81 lives.The rally began from Assam Bhawan to Gyarah Murti (11 statues) last evening as slogans like ‘Terrorism - down, down’, ‘We want peace’, ‘Terrorists - Hang them’ and ‘This country is ours’ rent the air.

The participants condemned the terrorists’ strikes and demanded safety of the people in Assam and other parts of the country.

“The Assamese citizens of Delhi are concerned at the lawlessness and helpless-

ness of the state machinery in tackling terrorist attacks.

The scale at which the strikes were made and the impunity with which the terrorists executed their plan, have shaken the confidence of the citizens,” former general secretary of Assam Association, Delhi, Manoj Das said.

Another rally was organised by Assamese students at Delhi University campus.

Few more such rallies are being organised at Jantar Mantar and India Gate.

In the deadliest terror attacks in Assam, at least 81 people were killed and over 400 injured in 13 near-simultaneous blasts in Guwahati and Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon and Barpeta districts.

GUWAHATI, NOVEMBER 2 (THE TELEGRAPH): The army yesterday told the Prime Minister it had intercepted a message from Calcutta a week before the October 30 Assam blasts that said: “Attack Guwahati.” At an evening meeting at Guwahati airport, the army also told Manmohan Singh it had known about the impending terror strikes in western Assam towns for six weeks and had tried to prevent them.

Chief minister Tarun Gogoi, who heads the state’s unified command that includes the army, corroborated this at the meeting with Singh who made a short trip to Guwahati yesterday. Lt Gen. B.S. Jaswal, GOC, 4 Corps, told Singh the army had received “non-specific” information on September 17 about possible strikes in Guwahati, Barpeta Road and Kokrajhar, according to state minister Bharat Narah.

Gogoi admitted his govern-

ment knew all of this but did not anticipate the scale of the blasts that killed 81 people and injured over 300 in these three places and Bongaigaon. The government today formed a special team, headed by inspector-general of police (special task force) R. Chandranathan, to probe the blasts and report within 30 days.

The police detained three persons, including the suspected owners of a car and a motorbike used in the blasts. The third detainee was a young man whose address tallied with that on the application for a mobile connection that was used to send yesterday’s text message claiming responsibility for the attacks. However, the suspect’s face did not match the photograph on the application, suggesting someone else may have used his name and address.

IGP (law and order) B.J. Mahanta said the three Guwahati

bombs were all planted in Marutis, and the one used in the court blast belonged to Tikendra Saikia of Nagaon and was registered in his wife’s name. Saikia claimed he had sold his car through Pallavi Motors, a Maruti dealer, for Rs 92,000 but was detained. “He first said he sold it in 2001 and later changed the date to 2006,” Mahanta said.

Biswa Borgohain of Guwahati’s Kahilipara was held because the motorcycle used in the Bongaigaon blast was registered in his name. The suspect told the police the bike had been stolen on October 22 and that he had lodged an FIR at Dispur police station. The car used in Guwahati’s Ganeshguri was bought in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, Mahanta said. “We are in touch with Arunachal police.”

Yesterday, the police had detained three men linked to a motorbike whose registration number

matched that of the car used in the Panbazar blast in Guwahati. However, the last digit of the car’s chassis number could not be retrieved.

“We are in touch with Maruti Udyog Ltd to help us retrieve the last digit,” Mahanta said.

Sources said the cabinet today pulled up state police chief R.N. Mathur over the frequent blasts in places like Ganeshguri — which has seen 19 bombings in six years — and Paglastan in Bongaigaon.

At the airport meeting, Lt Gen. Jaswal said that after receiving the terror inputs, a galvanised army had killed 25 militants and arrested 89. The defence PRO, Col Rajesh Kalia, confirmed Jaswal’s statements to the Prime Minister.

Jaswal heads the operational group of the unified command, made up by the army, police, paramilitary and state and central intelligence and engaged in counter-insurgency operations in Assam.

Imphal | November 2

WHILE REACTING strongly to the flip-flop press statement of the Kuki Liberation Organisation/Kuki Liberation Army (KLO/ KLA) with regard to the October 23 passenger bus burning incident in Assam where two passengers hailing from Zeliangrong community were killed, the Zeliangrong Students Union, Manipur (ZSUM) terms the Kuki outfit’s move as that of undermining the Zeliangrong community.

Robert Goimei and Mrs Ginthailiu Gangmei were ‘roasted’ to death in the incident, according to ZSUM. This statement of ZSUM Archers participating in a shooting competition at the Shillong Autumn Festival on has come following the two November 1. (UB Photos)

Two more arrested for Assam blasts GUWAHATI, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Two prime accused in the Assam serial blasts case were arrested on Sunday taking the total number of arrests to five.

The accused Muzamul Haque and Anwarlul Haque were arrested from Lakhimpur following clues gathered from the detained persons, police said. The duo were in car theft racket and involved in duplicating the names of the owners of the vehicles which were used for the blasts in Guwahati and Bongaigaon, they added.

The accused are being brought to Guwahati for interrogation by the SIT formed to probe the incident. Three persons were arrested on Saturday and several detained in the serial blasts that rocked Assam on October 30 leaving 81 people dead.

Drive to check identities of tenants in Manipur IMPHAL, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Manipur police today began a drive to find out identities and antecedents of tenants at various localities as precautionary measures in view of recent serial blasts in Assam, official sources said. DGP Y Joy Kumar has instructed the DSPs and police stations in Imphal east and Imphal west districts to step up checking of identities of tenants at different places, the sources said. Police have also directed all house owners to submit full particulars of their tenants at police stations of their locality, the sources added.

press notes of the KLO/ KLA issued on two separate occasions which were contradictory to each other, according to the Zeliangrong students’ body.

ZSUM said that on October 25, the KLO/KLA had claimed responsibility through the media by the outfit’s information and publicity secretary Malsawn Kuki saying that the burning of a passenger bus in Assam was the handiwork of the Eagle Claws unit of the KLO/KLA. “However, on the October 31 through the media, the KLO/KLA denied its involvement in the October 23 bus burning incident,” said the ZSUM while adding, “The KLO/KLA ‘s commander-in-chief Robinson Kuki had said through

Meghalaya being developed as a tourist destination

SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 2 (ANI): The State Government of Meghalaya is taking initiatives to promote the State as an attractive tourist destination for visitors from across the country and world. The State government is presently giving top priority to infrastructure development for tourism purposes. Special measures are being taken to develop the West Khasi Hills and Garo Hills Districts that have been facing neglect in the past.

“Meghalaya is called the Jewel of North East in context of tourism.

Inspite of lack of all the amenities tourists arrive here from outside.

Our Department has chalked out a programme which the experts have advised to develop as a master plan on tourism,” said T. D. Kar, Director of the Tourism Department for Meghalaya.

Many wonderful places and landmarks are being developed as new tourist places. For instance, two of the longest caves in Asia, located in Meghalaya, are being developed for tourist attraction.

The inflow of the tourists (domestic as well as international) has witnessed a growth rate of 10 to 15 percent with

each passing year. In 2007, Shillong alone had 187,000 tourists visiting this fascinating State capital. “When I come to see Shillong I feel very nice. It is neat and clean. I enjoy the weather, it is cold,” said P. T. Heni, a Manipuri tourist.

As part of developmental projects, the Tourism Department of Meghalaya has set up five new resorts and constructed several canopies for panoramic viewing. Besides, several other projects have been initiated in different parts of the State for promotion and development of tourism. Apart from Shillong, the other famous tourist spots of Meghalaya are Cherrapunji, which until the late ‘60s was famous as the place with highest rainfall in the world. Now it is at Mawsynram, also located in Meghalaya, the abode of clouds.

Known as the Scotland of the East, Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya has been a popular tourist destination in the north-eastern India. Located in the pristine evergreen hilly terrain, Meghalaya means abode of clouds in Sanskrit language and is also described as the Jewel of the North East. During the British Raj, Shillong had be-

the newspapers that the passenger bus was burnt down by a gang whose members’ identities are Seikhohao alias Malwin Khongsai of Thingkanphai, Churachandpur, Ngamlet alias Jamdil Khongsai of Changkipot, Churachandpur, Paokholen Haokip s/o Nehthang of Checkon, Imphal, Letkhogin alias Hegin of Terakhong near Andro and Henkholen alias Steward of Bethany village, Sapermeina.”

Such stance of the KLO/ KLA undermines the Zeliangrong community, fumes the ZSUM. The Zeliangrong students’ body then said that executing or targeting innocent and unarmed civilians and torching a passenger bus by armed group such as the KLO/KLA is a clear

Assam still remains tense The overall situation remained tense in Assam on Sunday even though a massive hunt is on by the security forces to apprehend the culprits involved in Thursday’s serial blasts at 12 places killing over 70 people and leaving over 300 injured.

People are still scared to move out to crowded places in the blasthit Guwahati, Kokrajhar, Barpeta Road and Bongaigaon, according to reports.Markets and other business activities remained almost closed since the incidents took place on Thursday. The State Home Department has indicated that there is clear evidence of the United Liberation Front of Ahom (ULFA)-jihadi hand behind the blasts.

Intelligence official reportedly stated that Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami (HUJI) carried out the blasts. Indian Mujahideen, a frontal organisation of HUJI and Lashkar - e Toiba - has claimed responsibility for Assam serial blasts. It made the claim in an SMS sent to a local TV channel.

Army worried over jehadi, home-grown militants nexus

SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Jehadi elements are getting logistical support from home-grown terrorist organisations in the Northeast and the army is taking steps to revamp the entire security system in the region to deal with threats in future, a senior Army official said. “Home-grown terrorist organisations active in the Northeast are aiding jehadi elements with logistical support and to break the backbone of this destructive force, the nexus has to be broken,” GOC of Army’s 101 Area Maj Gen K S Sethi told reporters here last night.

Denying any security lapse in Assam, Maj Gen Sethi said security forces were taking necessary actions to avert any such attempts in Meghalaya. Dismissing reports that Meghalaya could be a target, he said, “The entire security apparatus in the region is undergoing a revamp to deal with any such threats in future.” The Army official also called for strengthening of various security agencies, especially the intelligence wings.

Flip-Flop stance of KLO/KLA fumes Zeliangrong students

Newmai News Network

tool for achievement of political objectives,” Chowdhury said in a statement.

case of violating of any civilised human standard which is against humanity. The ZSUM further stated that organised gruesome crime committed by KLO/KLA is against regional and international laws and conventions viz, the Geneva Conventions for armed opposition groups which are tantamount to genocidal activities.

“The tactic silence maintained by Kuki apex body such as the Kuki Inpi further adds to the insult to the Zeliangrong community,” said the ZSUM. “The Kuki apex organisation should initiate for an amicable resolution through Zeliangrong customary laws before things go out of hand,” cautions the Zeliangrong Students Union, Manipur (ZSUM).

Massive drive against illegal migrants in Meghalaya

SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Launching a massive drive against illegal migrants, administration and police officials of Meghalaya on Sunday rounded up three truck loads of suspected infiltrators from Shillong. Official sources said altogether 190 people, mostly migrant labourers and construction workers, were detained after early morning raids in the Polo area of the city. The people were herded up at the Sadar Police Station and their credential checked. However, they failed to furnish any valid citizenship documents.

Police said the people claimed they had come from places in Assam and Bihar. They would be pushed back to places from where they claimed they had come, the sources said. The drive comes in the wake of mounting pressure on the state government to act against illegal migrants, especially after the serial blasts in neighbouring Assam which have been blamed on “outside” forces.

Assam blasts a blow to North-East’s image: FIPO

SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Alleging lack of timely political intervention and mature efforts, Foreign Investment Promotion Organization (FIPO) has described the serial bombings in Assam as a fatal blow to efforts made to promote Northeast as a potential business destination.

“The unfortunate and tragic serial bombings in Assam is the most dastardly act designed to derail the positive progress the region has been making in the last few years,” FIPO

Chairman I Nochet Imcha said in a statement here. The blasts, he said, was a very costly wake-up call and reminder for both the central and state governments that the prevailing strategy on terror needed to be refocused and bold political decisions taken if the region was to achieve its social and economic objectives.

Claiming that lack of timely political interventions and mature efforts facilitated avenues for anti-national elements to take advantage of the feeling

of alienation among the people of the region, the FIPO said it was time for every government in the region to confront headon the issues that threatened to tear apart the social fabric.

“To the outside world, Assam represents an overall image of the region and if the present trend of terror was allowed to continue, nothing could be more tragic for the entire region,” Imcha said. FIPO is an organisation that helps bring in foreign investments including in the north-eastern region.

come a second home to scores of Englishmen stationed in Assam and Bengal with many settling down here instead of returning to Britain.

Spread over an area of 22,429 square kilometers, Meghalaya has retained its natural scenic beauty, thanks to the low density of population which is just 78 per square kilometer.

Mainly three tribes, the Khasi, Jaintias and Garo are the indigenous people of the State. As for Shillong, it boasts of fascinating waterfalls in and around the city, a beautiful lake with boating facilities, over a dozen scenic picnic spots and a sprawling golf course.

“I have seen many beautiful places but I have never seen a place like Shillong and this is the place where one must come and see the fascinating scenes, waterfall and enjoy the pleasant weather here,” said Bobita Chetia, a tourist from Assam.

The people of Meghalaya are well known for their warm hospitality and friendly nature. Another added asset of Meghalaya is its diverse cultural heritage. The State has Winner of Miss Kut 2008 Minerava Moirangthem (Middle), 1st runners up Soibam Itali (Right) more then 17 currently noti- and 2nd runners up Ningthing Haokip (Left). The Miss Kut 2008 Beauty Pageant was held at fied tourist hot spots.

1st M.R. Ground, Imphal on November 1. (UB Photos)

6

IN-FOCUS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express MONDAY 3 NOVEMBER 2008 VOL. III ISSUE 305

Truth and Legality

T

he supposed ‘global village’ is filled with internal contradictions, which if not addressed constructively could have detrimental consequences to the question of human co-existence. The more aggressively the ‘global village’ heads towards the direction of globalism, the greater the chasm between contradicting entities. And ultimately, the ones that suffer most are the common people, who are struggling to survive. Such has become the situation of the human condition itself.

The supposed war on terrorism is globalized and yet the definition of an ‘act of war’ is not. The definition of what constitutes an ‘act of war’ is selective and dependent upon the power of the perpetrator or the status of the victim. The missing perspective in this power struggle is the fact that the people are not just against terrorism, but are searching for the realization of a genuine peace, which demands the transformation of unjust structures. It is here that we must draw the distinction between legality and legitimacy; after all, what is legal is not necessarily legitimate.

The understanding of the rule of law is quire essential while drawing the difference between legality and legitimacy. For instance the Laws and Policy of Apartheid were considered to be legal by the government of South Africa, and yet they were very illegitimate in the face of the international community. Over the years, there is an increased stipulation demanding that the rule of law of a country to be consistent with acceptable universal standards that respect the dignity of people.

The tension between legality and legitimacy causes a dilemma to the notion of truth, both philosophically and practically.

Such a dilemma results in the dichotomy of truth. According to Mamdani the two kinds of truth are – ‘truth that brings unresolved tensions to light; and truth that obscures, hides veils, masks the unpleasant facet of reality’ Tragically a status quo of power promotes and constructs a truth which obscures and suppresses the unpleasant facet of reality, which becomes extremely difficult in the context of conflict where even what the conflict is about, is contested.

The reductionist ‘use’ of truth in situations of an unjust status quo, is often equated to that of an act when an admission of guilt or wrong doing is acknowledged. This limits the usage of truth to an act of acknowledgement. While the essence of truth as a component of the acknowledgement process is fundamental, yet the reductionist use effectively nullifies the understanding of truth as an essential virtue that is required to liberate the status quo. In other words, truth – the holistic truth – is crucial towards transformation.

Truth is the key to transformation because it brings to public expression the consequences of human subjugation and the inequalities that are further intensified by the initial injustice.

Truth is not an outcome, but an underlying virtue existing within a process to ensure that all the core issues of contention are addressed in a positive way, so that the ideals of a shared humanity becomes possible. Truth is that aspect which is necessary to create accountability, to enable closure of the past; and to sow the seeds of peace. It would be wise not to confuse legality with truth!

LEFT WING |

Fatima Ayub

Not my grandfather's country

A

suicide bomber attacked the Ministry of Information and Culture on October 31. The building, decrepit though still in use after Afghanistan's many wars, was blown apart. It was just another security incident in Afghanistan's downward spiral, except that my grandfather, 35 years ago, served as head of this ministry, shortly before Afghanistan fell prey to revolutions, occupation and endless war. The contrast between Afghanistan then - progressing, optimistic - and Afghanistan today - violent, besieged, uncertain - could not be sharper, or more disheartening.

Once upon a time, Afghanistan was on the cusp of change.

A spell of reform before Mohammad Daoud Shah's 1973 coup seemed to promise a new and better future. But it was merely a last breath of air before an unrelenting choke hold of war and violence. My grandfather, an outspoken journalist and proponent of political freedoms, was taken prisoner for two years at Kabul's infamous Pul-e-Charkhi prison during the upheavals following the 1978 Communist coup.

Lucky to be released with his life under a surprise political amnesty, my grandfather fled. The rest of my family - parents, aunts, uncles - trickled out over the months and years following the 1979 Soviet invasion. Using forged documents and passports, hiring traffickers, my parents followed my grandfather to Pakistan, then to Germany, and finally to the United States. From Soviet occupation, Afghanistan plunged into civil war, snuffing out the flickering hopes my grandfather had for returning to work in Afghanistan.

In my childhood, Afghanistan was only an idea, a place "over there," with war and orphans and mujahedin. It was no place I ever intended to visit, and it carried an indefinable mythical quality. Thousands of Afghans in the diaspora were desperate to visit their homeland after the fall of the Taliban in 2001; my parents were not among them. Friends of mine went and came back; some spent several years working under the new transitional government or with international agencies. Precious few Afghans from the diaspora come to Afghanistan anymore now that the original allure has faded into the ever-thickening mists of war.

I never "returned" to Afghanistan, as I had never left. I simply came. Traveling to Afghanistan in 2007 for the first time as a researcher for a human rights organization, I came with no sense of national pride or longing for the land of my ancestors, but merely the same sense of curious wonderment that endured from childhood. Though I came with no expectation, I could not and cannot easily process the realities of life in Afghanistan. Crushing poverty, growing violence, inept governance and the corresponding collapse of hope suggest a grim future for the average person in Afghanistan today.

The general consensus, after seven years of a haphazard nation-building process, is that the country is now more violent and conflicted than before the fall of the Taliban. Kabul, formerly a safe haven, is now rocked by violence that was inconceivable four years ago. That the insurgency, once limited to the Afghan-Pakistani border, has literally infiltrated the halls of government is explosive in more ways than one. Last year, much of the debate in the international community was whether Afghanistan had reached a turning point. They should not have to look any further for an answer. Afghanistan has again turned a corner, but it has not been for better.

No doubt, in the last seven years, Afghanistan has seen a number of luminaries, thinkers and activists dedicated to meaningful, lasting development and political progress - not simply for the benefit of their own ethnic group or region, but for every citizen of the nation. They are and will remain in the minority. The international community in Afghanistan still fails to acknowledge its first critical missteps, as early as 2001 and 2002. Supporting a heavily centralized government in Kabul, failing to encourage the growth of legitimate government at the local level and drawing former paramilitary leaders - many of whom are accused of widespread human rights abuses - to posts of power , the international advisors in Afghanistan undermined themselves from the outset.

No one, goes the constant refrain among Afghans, wants to live in a country ruled by thieves, murderers and criminals. In no small part, this reckless insurgency owes its survival to the corrupt and inefficient apparatus that is the Afghan government.

Tonight, almost exactly eight years to the day of my grandfather's passing, I stand disconsolately in front of the Ministry of Information and Culture, its windows shattered and dark, its entrance blown open. Thirty-five years after my grandfather walked through the halls of this very building, I try to resurrect his vision and his pains for his country. I find only death and dust. Fatima Ayub is a researcher on human rights in Afghanistan. Her grandfather, Sabahuddin Kushkaki, served as minister of information and culture in 1972-1973 under Prime Minister Musa Shafiq.

THE EDIT PAGE

C O M M E N T A R Y

Katherine Coon

The Food Crisis and Gender

S

tatistics on the most recent global food crisis are well known. In the three years leading up to June 2008, food prices rose 83%. Although declining since, they are still 60% higher than in 2006. There is little prospect of returning to the cheap food regimes that characterized the world prior to 2005 anytime in the foreseeable future. So far, the food crisis has pushed an estimated 75 million people into chronic hunger since 2005.

Women and children, particularly girls, have been hardest hit by the food crisis. In part, this disproportionate impact is because women in poor rural communities have less access to resources, transportation, and communication networks. Any effective resolution to the food crisis — and to reinforce food security more generally — must incorporate an understanding of this differential impact on gender roles.

Rural Poverty Most chronic hunger in the world is a failure of entitlement rather than supply. People within nations, and often nations as a whole, are unable to secure the income needed to produce or purchase enough food to meet their basic needs.

Today, almost a billion people live on less than $1 a day and suffer from food insecurity. Although half of the global population lives in towns and cities, threequarters of those subsisting on less than $1 a day live in rural areas of the global South, depending on either small-holder farming, selling labor, or a combination of both to survive. They are also net food buyers, spending up to 80% of their income on food. Not coincidentally, three-quarters of everyone suffering from chronic malnutrition also live in these same rural areas.

While rising food prices affect urban and rural poor alike, the impact on the rural poor is particularly devastating because of their geographic, economic, and political isolation. The productivity of smallholder farms is low in most of the world.

This is due to the spread of trickle-down "market fundamentalism," the political marginalization of whole regions within nations, and the widespread failure to understand the importance of small-holder farming systems to poverty reduction. Because of these factors, governments and international financial institutions have failed over the long term to invest in rural infrastructure or sustainable technologies appropriate to small-holder farming systems, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where many countries are now dependent on food imports to survive.

As a result, opportunities for work in many rural areas are few, and frequently involve either the seasonal or long-term migration of at least one able-bodied adult, amplifying the burden on adults left at home. Transportation is limited, imposing high transaction costs even to reach local markets. Local and even regional markets often reflect this isolation in the form of excessive price swings between harvest, when most small-holder households are net sellers, and the rest of the year, when they are net buyers. The poorer the household, the more expensive these negative rural biases become, making it impossible for many households to reverse the tide and dig out of poverty. Because rural livelihoods are so fragile, the global rise in prices for basic cash grains, fuel, and fertilizer can trigger vicious cycles of deepening pauperization, especially when combined with long-term stresses caused by climate change or ongoing civil conflicts.

Vulnerability of Women and Children Women and children (especially girls) are more vulnerable to food, fuel, and fertilizer price increases, and to rural poverty

generally, than men. This is, of course, not intended as gender one-upmanship; men also experience hardship caused by the marginalization of rural societies. But because rural agrarian societies are gendered in terms of property rights, the division of labor, direct knowledge of the natural resource base, and access to and control over productive resources, an understanding of gender in rural households and communities is a prerequisite to informed critiques of development policies and strategies.

Compared to men, women's independent property rights, legal protections, and social networks are fragile and contested in much of the world. Women have less access to or control over resources, transportation, or communication networks than men. As a consequence, female-headed households are sometimes disproportionately among the poorest of the poor in rural areas. And because rural poverty, civil conflict, and HIV are exacting their toll in the form of migration, suicide, debilitating illness, and mortality among primeage adults, households legally or de facto managed by women now comprise 30-60% of all rural households in parts of eastern and southern Africa. Furthermore, these households tend to face the additional challenge of caring for sick adults and feeding and educating young children. In places that have been affected by repeated shocks over the long term, especially in eastern and southern Africa, women have become the primary farmers and managers in their communities. The main face of rural society has become female.

When women are engaged in serious cash- or staple-crop farming, systematic biases against acquisition and enforcement of secure property rights can mitigate against their capacity or willingness to make longterm investments in their farms. When women's husbands are absent due to longterm migration, they must obtain his approval — which can be time-consuming or impossible — before they can make changes in farm management. Additional biases against women's access to training, inputs, capital, and transportation also make it more difficult for them to produce or market as much as male-headed households with similar assets. To the extent that day-to-day survival of female-headed households depends on selling labor to purchase food, fuel, and fertilizer, price spikes in these commodities can mean total destitution and starvation.

In married-couple households, women typically provide labor on husband's farms — usually for market-oriented crops — while also providing childcare and running the household. In most places, the latter includes provision of water, fuel, and meals for the family, so women are ultimately responsible for family food security. In most traditional systems, men are normatively responsible for giving wives staple carbohydrates and income as their contribution to household food security and consumption. But long-term erosion of assets, productivity, and income among small-holders has led to crises in traditional norms and male gender identities, as increasing numbers of men are either unable or unwilling to provide enough food or income to tide their families over from one harvest to the next. When crops do come in, men frequently have to sell them to pay off debts and secure loans needed to plant the next season's crops — leaving little in the way of either food or cash for family consumption.

This dynamic is an important driver of adult labor migration. But whether or not men literally leave home, the burden of filling in the breach to "make ends meet" frequently falls on women in their traditional roles as day-to-day caretakers of the family hearth. Depending on

their situations and resources, women resort to a variety of strategies to keep their families alive from one harvest to the next. For example, in sub-Saharan Africa women are typically responsible for providing the "sauces" that go with staple carbohydrates at meals. Thus, women are the primary farmers (or gatherers) of legumes, groundnuts, vegetables, oil-nuts, and other sauce ingredients for family consumption. When households are stressed, women sell their sauce crops to buy cheaper carbohydrates for family consumption, which reduces family dietary diversity and, depending on relative prices, overall energy intake.

The same dynamic applies to households fortunate enough to own poultry or livestock: increases in prices of basic staples translates into less consumption of their own eggs, milk, or meat.

When price or other shocks (such as HIV/AIDS, climate change, or conflict) intensify pressures on rural livelihoods over longer and longer periods of time, it eventually leads to asset stripping.

Households sell livestock and other essential assets such as seed or tools just in order to survive. Because of underlying gender biases, female-headed households — or married women's assets — may be more vulnerable to stripping than maleheaded households or men's assets.

In a common survival strategy of economically stressed rural households, women try to intensify production of "foodsecurity crops" such as cassava, and/or to seek part-time trades or seasonal employment. Because poor women have greater difficulty accessing training and capital than men they tend to get unskilled, lowpaying jobs. In the formal sector, because they are considered more pliable and easily controlled than men, women are preferred as laborers in agro-export industries — such as cut flowers or high-end vegetables — where they are paid very little and have no job security or benefits.

Since even relatively better-off rural women are already overloaded work-wise, additional pressures on their time and energy caused by intensifications of household poverty mean a reduced ability to care for children. This reduction in childcare translates into greater malnutrition among children under the age of five. And since early childhood malnutrition affects children's lifelong cognitive capacity and ability to learn, it also affects their longterm chances of climbing out of poverty.

Likewise, as mothers increase the work they do outside the home, they are more likely to pull their daughters out of school to fill in at home. Since female education is highly correlated with virtually all measures of children's welfare, it’s likely this cycle of extreme poverty will continue from one generation to the next.

Factoring Gender In Even before the current spike in food prices triggered food riots in cities in Haiti, Bangladesh, Egypt, and other developing countries, the World Bank and private foundations began to acknowledge the urgency of investing in agriculture, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.

The 2008 World Development Report "Agriculture of Development," and the recent IAASTD Synthesis Report on Agricultural Knowledge, Science, and Technology for Development both place investment in agriculture at the center of poverty reduction, and recognize that small-holder farming systems need to be at the heart of the new generation of agricultural development policies. Still, investments need to reach regions and groups that are politically marginalized — and so must be held to high standards of transparency and accountability regarding project development, investment

decisions, contract awards, and fund distribution if benefits are to actually reach small-holder farmers.

If this is true generally it’s doubly true for women, who are marginalized by gender in addition to poverty. Unless women's roles in small-holder farming systems and rural food security are factored into the design of agricultural development projects, we will once again fail to address the root causes of chronic food insecurity and hunger. Organizations developing agricultural policies, funding research, sector initiatives and projects must explicitly build in gender guidelines, standards, and indicators to ensure women have equal access to all training, resources, and opportunities.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation recently established a gender policy for agricultural projects they are funding to ensure women access activities and benefits, and to track project impacts on the welfare of women, children, and communities. Likewise, the World Bank has just published the Gender and Agricultural Livelihoods Sourcebook — which contains an extensive compendium of best practices for gender-sensitive approaches to agricultural development.

Although these actions are a first step, the reality of pro-poor, gender-sensitive agricultural development lags behind the rhetoric — both in resources needed to mainstream gender into foundation-funded projects and in mainstreaming gender in the development portfolios of large international financial institutions (IFI).

Scarcity of technically trained professionals in agriculture, forestry, and irrigation, who are also skilled in gender analysis and gender sensitization, is affecting gender mainstreaming in foundation grants. On the IFI side, there is no system for ensuring World Bank project or loan-development processes incorporate gender-sensitive approaches into Bank portfolios.

While gender policies are important, the models of agricultural development themselves must support the integration of rural women's roles as nurturers of families and communities, managers of natural resources and biodiversity, and producers of wealth. Although marketoriented production should be directed toward robust and diversified local and regional food systems, farming systems producing for local and regional markets must adapt to the reality of women's lives.

Women need to be able to manage water, rebuild soil fertility, and produce fuel, livestock, and diverse crops close to their homesteads, so they can care for their families while also growing and processing crops for food security and income.

When women (and men) are empowered with modern training and technology needed to transform homesteads into sustainable, poly-culture farms, they improve their food security and resilience in the face of climate change and price fluctuations. Biologically based techniques for building soil fertility, minimizing pests, and harvesting rainwater help small-holders extend the growing season, improve yields, and increase profit margins by reducing dependence on purchased fertilizers and pesticides. Polyculture farms provide multiple species of micro-nutrient rich plant and animal foods close to home, so households are not as dependent on volatile and hard-toreach markets. When small-holders producing on intensive poly-culture farms form marketing groups to aggregate and sell their products, they are also able to make significant contributions to local, regional, and national markets — thereby improving resilience to climate change and price fluctuations in global food supplies of their countries as a whole.

Worst Forms of Pollution Killing Millions

G

old mining and recycling car batteries are two of the world's Top 10 most dangerous pollution problems, and the least known, according a new report. The health of hundreds of millions of people is affected and millions die because of preventable pollution problems like toxic waste, air pollution, ground and surface water contamination, metal smelting and processing, used car battery recycling and artisanal gold mining, the "Top Ten" report found. "The global health burden from pollution is astonishing, and mainly affects women and children," said Richard Fuller, director of the New York- based Blacksmith Institute, a independent environmental group that released the list Tuesday in partnership with Green Cross Switzerland. "The world community needs to wake up to this fact," Fuller told IPS. In previous years, the Blacksmith Institute has released a Top Ten list of toxic sites. The Institute continues to compile a detailed database with over 600 toxic sites and will release the world's first detailed global inventory in a couple of years. However, this year, rather than focus on places, it wants to bring specific pollution issues to world attention. And in particular highlight the health impacts -- a 2007 Cornell University study that 40 percent of all deaths worldwide are directly attributable to pollution, he said.

Remediation and preventing much of this pollution are not only possible but cost-effective, especially when compared to other international efforts to improve health in developing countries. Sometimes it is simply a matter of information and alternatives, as Fuller learned on a recent investigation in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, where children had died from lead poisoning. "Women from some poor areas of Dakar were hoping to make some money recycling car batteries and ended up accidentally killing their children," he said.

In the tropics, car batteries only last a year or two and so there is a thriving recycling industry. However, much of this is done by very poor people who break open the bat-

teries with axes and melt them down on open fires. Lead dust fills the air and children playing nearby inhaled the toxic lead dust, and some died. "It is very difficult to die from lead poisoning, it takes an awful lot of lead," Fuller said. Fuller and colleagues measured the lead levels in the blood of surviving children and found levels 10 times the maximum allowed in the U.S. Lead is a potent neurotoxin and children are especially sensitive, as it affects their developing nervous systems and brains. "These are now the brain-damaged children of Dakar," he said.

Blacksmith arranged to have the site in Dakar cleaned up but because it is an important source of income for the poor, the batteries are still collected but are now being shipped to proper recycling facilities. The World Health Organisation is trying to treat the affected children, he said. "There is no simple, universal solution. It has to be solved on step by step, one place at a time basis," Fuller noted.

Another of the biggest overlooked pollution issues comes from artisanal and small-scale mining involving some 15 million miners, including 4.5 million women and 600,000 children, the report finds. As much as 95 percent of the mercury used to recover the gold ends up in the environment.

That mercury represents 30 percent of all mercury emitted into the global environment each year from all sources including power plants, according to the U.N. Industrial Development Organisation. "It's an enormous problem that transcends boundaries. That mercury ends up in the tuna we eat here in North America," Fuller said. Mercury is another potent neurotoxin and is dangerous in extremely small quantities. Hundreds of kilogrammes are used every day for gold recovery. "Artisanal miners are the poorest of the poor and you can't just tell them to stop," he said.

There are safer and more effective ways of recover gold using a simple tool called a "retort" but education and retraining is required. Blacksmith and its partners have had good success in teaching and then paying a leader in the community to

WRITE-WING

train local miners on the safer technique. "It doesn't take that much money to solve these pollution problems," he said. And the pollution that affects the health of nearly a billion people and impairs countries' economy development could be fixed in just 20 to 30 years with a concerted effort by the international community. "Governments are becoming interested in this.

I'm cautiously optimistic," Fuller said. Education and other international development assistance efforts will fail without reducing the pollution burden that affects the mental and physical capacity of so many people. Even with a downturn in the global economy, the argument for cleaning up pollution is so "compelling that it will not stop countries from taking action".

"Clean air, water and soil are human rights," he said.

The World's Worst Pollution Problems list is unranked and includes: • Indoor air pollution: adverse air conditions in indoor spaces • Urban air quality: adverse outdoor air conditions in urban areas • Untreated sewage: untreated waste water • Groundwater contamination: pollution of underground water sources as a result of human activity • Contaminated surface water: pollution of rivers or shallow dug wells mainly used for drinking and cooking • Artisanal gold mining: small scale mining activities that use the most basic methods to extract and process minerals and metals • Industrial mining activities: larger scale mining activities with excessive mineral wastes • Metals smelting and other processing: extractive, industrial, and pollutant-emitting processes • Radioactive waste and uranium mining: pollution resulting from the improper management of uranium mine tailings and nuclear waste • Used lead acid battery recycling: smelting of batteries used in cars, trucks and back-up power supplies Stephen Leahy Inter Press Service

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The Morung Express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: editor@morungexpress.com.

All letters (including those via email) should have the full name and Postal address of the sender.

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

7

MONDAY

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

3 NOVEMBER 2008

PERSPECTIVE NEWS ANALYSIS, FEATURE AND DISCOURSE

The Morung Express

POLL RESULTS

Is the voting card system the best and fair way to choose Naga Idol?

56% •

27% 17%

YES

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NO

OTHERS

Some of those who voted YES had this to say: •

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It is a good way to get the people of Nagaland involve in some way. So its a good idea but not the best too. At least it will make us hook to the proceedings which will surely up the Idol status.

I don’t think there will be such a thing as perfect voting system. But what this voting card has done has been to eliminate those proxy votes that come through sms. There will still be some proxy through voting card, but since it cost more than sms, it will reduce proxy votes.

The best thing done. Sure, the organizers must be minting some money out of the voting card, and they deserve it since there are no big sponsors; but this will reduce the thousands of sms proxy voting.

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Some of those who voted NO had this to say: •

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No, because most Nagas still take decisions along tribal lines. Moreover people with money have an advantage over those who come from poorer backgrounds.

ABSOLUTELY NOT!! Its easy to criticise but I am sorry there are too much of loopholes in this system of voting card for the Naga idol. Certainly it does not do justice to one who has talent and potential but does not have the strong financial backing of voters.

No, it’s a rich men’s game. Please stop this system for the sake of poor men’s talent.

Some good and really talented individuals are eliminated this way.

Voting card system is the murder of character and is like a day light robbery. This system should be changed. This system is not a Naga idol, it is a rich men’s idol I think the voting system should only be a criteria to evaluate how much a specific performer appeals to the public in general.

It should only give some idea to the panel of judges how the public is judging them.

The final judgement should depend solely on the panel of judges. That will be fair then, Since the inception of voting cards I have been totally against it. I'm not so sure how much weightage it has to the final outcome. The voting numbers should carry

KW Longkumer

A

few days back I was reading the editorial of Morung Express dated Oct 13, 08, Unchanged Hearts in a Changing World, and I had to agree with the writer how the recent economic indicators that show a boom are many a times superficial. It felt good to read such critical analysis in a popular newspaper in Nagaland. If it was written a few years back then many of us would have just discarded it as “Pious readings but impractical”. The times have changed and humans are now critically viewing the notions that were presumed true for many decades in a significant way. Moreover, working in a US based MNC compels me to keep an eye on the world events and the changing demographics in business and how we Nagas can learn from it.

In many quarters especially in economics a rethinking process is underway forced by the current financial crises threatening the world. The world is questioning the policies of extreme deregulation and privatisation started by the Republicans and the Conservative party in the USA and UK respectively and later on by Clinton and Blair. The recent speech by author Naomi Klein (The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism) against the policies of Milton Friedman and the move to oppose a new research center in the University of Chicago named after him is also noteworthy. She argues that repression was employed to make the Chilean economy work. In fact in the USA there are now many of its citizens and intellectuals critically commenting on the economic policies of the American Government. On the other side of the Atlantic too we are witnessing the ramifications and many commentators stated that the whole idea behind the formation of the EU is almost dead at present because the member states wants to protect their interest firsts. World economy is also driven by globalization and consumerism and this is what Jonathan Porrit the promi-

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Nagas will never learn to play straight. only a few percentage, added to the overall • We are a race of people who have a habit package as judged by the panels. It will be of cheating and politiking. Am sure there unfair if a good performer didnt get more is going to be lots of proxy votes. Nobody votes but an average one tops the voting knows proxy's better than us. counts.

• See around! All the politicians we have, No, the voting card system alone is not fair won their elections only by proxy votes. Do to choose the Naga idol. It should be either you realise we have all the wrong people 50-50 (judge+vote) or by the judge itself. doing the job? Do you want someone who No, sms voting should also be incorporated is not fit to be an Idol gets the wrong proxy into the voting system votes? Nagas can do anything to cheat.

No, No. It’s a shame that unlike American • I think the selection criteria can do withidol an individual is being made to vote as out the voting cards. Somebody is bound to much as he could. This encourage chaos cheat. and partiality. After all we are imitating the • Naga Idol for sale. These voting system will American why not exactly be like them or never be fair. better, if not, this has to be stopped. Please one man one vote.

It is never the best system and far from Some of those who voted OTHERS had this to say: fair. SMS voting will be better and fairer.

• In some way the organisers get some revenues Selling tickets for fellow contestant from through the sale of voting cards. Unlike othown tribe from door to door is a wastage of er places, we dont have big corporates backtime, promotes tribalism and most undeing them. Kudos to the organisers. But they sireably richest contestant/tribe becomes should see that the cards are not only to get idols ignoring all genuine talents is against revenues but something to get people involved the spirit of true competition, belittles and in the contest in good spirit. renders the comments/judgements of the • This time am going to sponsor anyone one of judges useless. But a good platform for muthe contestant who is willing to give me at least sic lovers.

50% of the winning prize. That way he or she No way. This is too embarrassing and dewill become an Idol and i too make some profspicable!! If it does not stop, the Naga idol its out of my principal share. Nice idea ha!! I will only be Naga idiot bought with money shouldn't have given this idea. I know some of

by Naga idiots. And there is nothing exagyou are going to bid out with me because its gerated here. It is plain simple. so hard to earn legally. To be rich you need to The first thing will be, ARRE? Itumanu tu be crooked and ruthless. Naga Idol is going to ki manu ase ho? If he/she is not the tribe give me a breakthrough. Am so excited ho! you like will you still vote? That is our • If ever i knew there was going to be voting problem. cards system i should have taken part. I will The participant themselves can buy as buy all the cards in the market and cast it all much they want. in my name.And presto! Am the next Naga Nah coz its not da voice they hear but its Idol. What foolish idea it is to have voting sysonly n only about da money tem. Dont you know Nagas are the best cheatWhy do they need the voting cards? what ers in the world(next only to bengalis) are the judges doing then. The previous two • No where in the world do you pay for your episodes saw all of the judges giving only own votes. Why do the cards need to be sold positive comments. That does no good to in the first place? Somebody please stop this the performer .There has been an improvenonsense. ment this time. The judges are doing great • Ha ha ha aha!! Hats off to the organisers. Did a job. Give constructive criticism when you you guys thought selling the voting cards will feel so. Your job is to see that the right perdo? If you dont have revenues, why have the son is selected. Tell him or her straight on whole show? We have better things to do with the face, ala Simon Cowell of American our money than buy the cards for our own Idol if he or she is no good. Then you wont votes. need the voting system.

• The other day somebody brought the cards Nagas for one are too good in proxy votings. and sold to me by force. I had to oblige as he Even in the general election where we have was insisting>I thought he is getting some all the security people and voting agents percentage too. I cursed the whole show and around and we still manage to cast proxy dish out the money for the whole pack of couvotes at will. What in this case where nopon. I think these is like politics in Nagaland. body knows who is casting the votes can do.

Canvassing for the money thing only. Who One person will cast all the cards available cares who wins. in the market. Is this fair?

• I i had known that I could be an Idol by votThe semas will vote for a sema, an Ao for ing cards too, I should have enrolled myself. I Ao, lotha for lotha and so on. Ultimately we know that with a little politics and proxy votcan't escape this "ISM". In the end what we ing I will surely win. I know some big shots in get is a biased outcome which is not a crithe Govt, some ministers, some Underground teria to choose an Idol. We nagas will never people, and lots of local goondas to sell my get over of these 'ism' syndrome, so better voting cards. do away with the voting cards.

• Its so easy to become a naga idol. Tell our CM The voting cards are one way to get some to recommend me (he wont refuse, I have votrevenues for the organisers. What! when I ed for him too),bribe the organisers, Buy all can't spare a rupee for myself why should the cards in town, print out some extra copies I buy one to cast my vote? Have you ever in duplicates and cast it all in my name. And heard of paying to cast a vote? Instead the Bingo! am the next Naga Idol. organisers should pay us to do so. Then ev• Infact the contestant should pay us for voterybody will be sincere and interested. ing them rather than we paying for the cards.

Some of us will surely get through the back Nagas really know how to collect money from doors and cast all the cards there is for a parothers. Don’t we have enough of those lottery ticular person. Nagas are too good for that. tickets, fund raising tickets, banquet tickets, Who knows that person might have some etc etc? connection with the big shots in our set up.

nent English Environmentalist had to say in one of his TV documentaries, “If all six billion people here on earth were to consume at the same level as we ourselves do here in the UK, we would need two other planets to provide all the necessary energy, soil, water, raw materials to make that possible.” In other words it means the whole world cannot have the “American Dream”.

So tucked away in a corner in India Nagas at the moment are influenced only in a small way by the global scenario, but the scenario will obviously change in a few years’ time due to the rapid advancement in transport and communication. This calls for the Nagas to chart out a broad based bi-partisan socio-economic roadmap before it is too late. This is the right time for Nagas to have a vision and with an objective of achieving it within the next 15 -20 years. The vision could be on the lines of the MDGs formulated by the

eas from now on or else Nagas will face the fallout, as evident from around the world, in the very near future.

A new system based on the strong social structure of the Nagas should be taken into account and the gaps that we are experiencing at present be duly filled. Nagas also need to start standardising and writing down the customary laws and wipe out the grey areas and try to bring some degree of uniformity among the villages and the tribes. Moreover if Nagas want to rise up as a people in the 21st century then a review of our customary practices is required and should be made at par with the UN Declaration of Human Rights. It is only when we accept the declaration in spirit and in practice among ourselves that we could also truly fight the perpetrators against us. A serious review is also required on the present relationship between the villages and the government.

At present it can be said mostly as a “one-

Can We Have A Dream?

UN namely Poverty and Hunger, Primary Education, Equality for Women, Child Mortality, Maternal Health, HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases, Environmental Sustainability and Development. With the MDGs as the basis we can further expand and tweak it to make it work with the unique issues in Nagaland. The project can be a collaborative effort by the Naga intellectuals particularly the subject matter experts in their respective fields. The politicians should also take the assistance from the intellectuals and stop socio-economic policies from being formulated only within bureaucratic and political circles. At present, immediate measures are required to control the growth of power and money of only a few vested interests and businesses.

It should be curbed at the initial stages by making appropriate laws. The government needs to ensure uniform growth in all ar-

way traffic”. Even the existing link between the villages and the civil administration is only a dotted-line and we end up having completely autonomous institutions. Economic packages for the rural areas and the villages in particular should also be streamlined and critical riders included to check the accountability of the village councils.

The present method of giving packages to villages, both economic and developmental, in Nagaland can be rightly construed more as a political tool to appease the incumbent council members but very less to do with actual improvement in human development. We are sadly still relying on a model designed for sustained control started during the conflict years in our history; it is in effect a ‘wartime interim model’ and not meant for permanence and very little has changed over the years since the Britishers left. Nagas need to come up with a new vi-

sion and a changed model to reach our goal.

For instance, reliable sources indicate that even the much acclaimed VBD system is filled with political intrigues in the remote villages across Nagaland except for the few award winning villages.

These kinds of activity no doubt need a monumental shift in our thinking but not unachievable if it can be made into a partnership between the government and the civil organisations or NGOs. The strong community based society that we have would in reality make it easier for us to mobilise and educate the people. The current advancement in technology and the media boom in Nagaland can be leveraged to disseminate information and educate the masses. Text books on civics can be improved upon to include more of the Naga system and stop the overdose of teaching other’s system. We should do away with the tendency of Nagas learning all about the rest of world but nothing about ourselves. Nagaland requires an educational system that strikes a balance between our age old traditional knowledge and the ideas of modern world.

However all these can only be achieved only when we can set a few things in place.

We can wait for that almost supernatural legendary god-like "Naga Leader" who will solve all our problems. That charismatic, visionary, humble and righteous Naga Leader for whom everyone is waiting for. Many of us have even stopped dreaming as it is not required because we still believe that this "Leader" will set everything right for everyone. We can either still wait for that leader or stop it immediately and do something.

Let us come to a consensus by shedding the 'narrow domestic walls' that we have built between us over the years and work together for a common dream. We need to realise that everyone is follower but at the same time everyone is also a leader. Moreover leaders need not be an individual; it can be a political party, tribal body, student’s body or any civil organisation. Nagas need to dream again, dream together and work together to achieve this dream because so much is at stake if we stop dreaming.

&

Politics Peace Yossi Alpher

THE FALL of Ehud Olmert’s government and the resulting election campaign are something of an anomaly in Israeli politics. Every other Israeli coalition over the past two decades collapsed over the peace process, whether it was controversy over negotiations with the Palestinians, agreements, pullbacks or violence. The difference this time is hardly a happy one, given that Olmert’s ouster was precipitated by corruption charges against the prime minister.

But it is the peace process that will again dominate the incipient campaign. Tzipi Livni, of the Kadima party, argued that she failed to form a new coalition because she refused to make the concessions - particularly regarding peace talks with the Palestinians - which had been demanded of her by a hawkish potential coalition partner.

Livni has been as unsuccessful at negotiating a peace deal with the Palestinians as any of her predecessors, and there is little to indicate that her chances will improve in the near future.

But she now presents herself as someone uncompromisingly dovish on key issues of peace, such as the need to discuss the future of Jerusalem. Those who favor a twostate solution in which Arab parts of Jerusalem serve as the capital of a Palestinian state can draw encouragement from the fact that “dividing Jerusalem” is finally a legitimate issue of debate.

This will not, of course, prevent Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu from pouncing on the Jerusalem issue. He has already declared that Jerusalem and the Palestinian refugee question are non-negotiable, and has suggested an “economic” (rather than territorial) peace with the Palestinians. It is as if the Likud has not repeatedly tried and failed to energize a peace process with the Palestinians precisely on these dubious points of departure.

The Likud and Kadima are running neck-and-neck in early polls. Far behind is Labor’s Ehud Barak, whose peace platform appears to be based on a broader regional approach that embraces the controversial 2002 Arab Peace Initiative spearheaded by the Saudis. Unfortunately for Barak, the Saudis and other moderate Arabs are prepared to do precious little to make good on their initiative until Israel and its Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese neighbors first make peace on their own.

To this list of key actors we must add Olmert himself.

By refusing to declare himself unable to continue in office due to his legal difficulties, he remains acting prime minister and leaves Livni out in the cold during her upcoming campaign.

Were he to step aside, she would automatically replace him, with all the advantages this would give her in the campaign. Moreover, by pursuing his own peace initiatives with the Palestinians and Syria despite his lame duck status and abject lack of a mandate, Olmert threatens to become a factor in these elections.

Another key factor in the campaign is the American election. If Barack Obama is elected president, this could influence some middle-of-the-road Israeli voters to pull to the left.

Israelis traditionally want their prime minister to be on close terms with the president of the United States, and they punish those who are not. Recall, for example, Yitzhak Shamir’s defeat in 1992 and Netanyahu’s in 1999 the former was perceived as the object of President George H.W. Bush’s pique, while the latter roused the ire of President Bill Clinton, in both cases due to the expansion of West Bank settlements.

Obama is perceived in Israel as more likely than John McCain to play an active role in Israeli-Arab peace issues, so his presidency could positively affect the chances of Livni or Barak, while a McCain victory could help Netanyahu.

Whoever forms the next Israeli and U.S. governments, they are likely to confront a conundrum: It will be very difficult to negotiate with a fragmented Palestinian leadership, whereas it will be very tempting to accept Syrian President Bashar Assad’s persistent invitations to do a deal with him.

A Syrian-Israeli peace agreement would not resolve the heart of the conflict, and the Palestinian track would still have to be vigorously pursued, if only to avoid backsliding and greater chaos. But a peace between Syria and Israel currently appears far easier to attain than a final-status agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

If the next U.S. administration agrees to play a serious role, there is a reasonable chance that a Golan Heights-forpeace deal with Damascus could remove Syria from the Iranian orbit and neutralize its support for terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.

Assad and his regime may be repugnant to many of us, but in view of Middle East realities a deal with him could generate a far greater short-term peace payoff for both Jerusalem and Washington than we can expect on the Palestinian track. Indeed, whether Netanyahu or Livni, Obama or McCain, Syria is the best peace option for 2009.

The unsung lullaby “To our beloved first son whose journeys begin and end from the womb prematurely” As the glimpse of an eye was your journey of nine months The moment you formed, joy and tears brightened our life The strike of a second, a minute, an hour of the clock, The days, weeks and a month of the calendar were remarkable Heaven knows how we waited…

You come into our lips with delight You were in the royal bed of womb Never know boy or girl, we gave you a rare name….

As you moved and stretched in your throne We respond with a fondle fingers and your pet name…

Heaven knows how we waited….

In this hi-tech world we were choosy For your school of intellect We stored CDs to entertain you Our eyes were captured by the cloth stores of infant dresses, our wallet never ceases to flow for your cause and luggage filled with fine dresses to wrapped you summer and winter.

We were disciplined to all medications for your well-being As we bow our heads for prayer you come into our lips We waited and waited, prematurely we noticed your long silence They said you’ve slept for eternal in your royal bed, Adamant, pale and fragile, we were made to accept the unbelievable You are in our hearts but not in our lap We are to repeat after Job the faithful man of God, ‘The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, May the name of the Lord be praised’.

N Suhuto Chishi and Lydia Purana Bazar, Diampur

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

Monday 3 November 2008

NEWS FILE German girl undergoes medical test

PANJIM, NOVEMBER 2 (NDTV): The German minor girl, who was allegedly raped in Goa, has undergone a medical test at the Goa medical college. Her lawyer has said that doctors have confirmed rape. The medical report will be handed over to the police by 5 pm on Sunday. Earlier, the girl’s statement was recorded by the judicial magistrate in Mapusa on Saturday. It was an in-camera recording before the judge. Though the statement is in English, the girl has apparently spoken in fluent Konkani. The accused Rohit Monserrat also gave a statement to the police on Saturday. A month back, a German researcher Fadela Fuchs had filed a complaint of rape against her daughter. Later, she also filed a complaint against Rohit Monserrat, son of Goa Education Minister Babush Monserrat for sending obscene SMSs to her daughter.

IAF to deploy radar for Taj Mahal security NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Taj Mahal will get a watchful eye right over its dome to keep a tab on possible aerial attacks to the 17th century monument of love. IAF will deploy its newly-acquired Aerostat radar for strengthening the security cover over Taj Mahal in Agra from the third dimension to ward off any threat from aerial platforms similar to 9/11 WTC twin tower attacks. “We are planning to deploy an Aerostat radar specifically for providing aerial security coverage to the Taj Mahal,” a senior IAF officer told PTI here today.

Aerostat radars are early warning and control phased-array radars mounted on balloons, tethered to the ground and designed to detect hostile approaching aircraft from afar, especially when they fly at low altitudes. IAF plans to put one of these radars in its inventory over Agra, as it found that the present assets in place for Taj Mahal’s aerial security were inadequate to tackle threat from lowflying aircraft. Such straying civilian aircraft were used by terror mastermind Osama bin Laden’s men to bring down the twin WTC towers in New York on September 11, 2001, an event which led to the US’ “War on Terror” campaign in Afghanistan. The Lankan guerrilla group LTTE’s newly-acquired air capabilities that have attacked the island nation’s airbases have also made India wake up to aerial threats from non-state actors to its vital installations and infrastructure.

The Morung Express

Government let us down, lament Orissa bishops

BHUBANESWAR, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Asserting that the Orissa and central governments had “failed miserably” to protect Christians from the violence unleashed by Hindu rightwing groups, five top bishops in the state said they were “agonised” by the belated response for help.

“We are agonised over the tardy manner in which both the state and central governments have responded to the ongoing violence against Christians in Orissa. We are sorry to state that both these governments have failed miserably in discharging their constitutional obligations,” said a pastoral letter that was read out to the laity in churches across Orissa for Sunday mass. While coming down heavily on both the governments, the letter drafted jointly by the bishops of Balasore, Sambalpur, Bhubaneswar, Rourkela and Berhampur

demanded that “the guilty be punished and the affected people be protected and adequately compensated”.

Anti-Christian violence that swept through western Orissa in the last two months has left at least 38 people dead and rendered more than 20,000 people homeless, many of whom are living in relief camps now. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal have been blamed for the violence against Christians, the majority of whom are tribals, after the two organisations retaliated following the Aug 23 killing of VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides.

“In this time of crisis and conflict, we come to you through this pastoral letter to express our solidarity with you, to pay homage to those brothers and sisters who have laid down their lives for the sake of their faith, to comfort

those who have been injured, to be with those who have been traumatised by the violence and mayhem unleashed on Christians,” the letter says.

“We stand by those whose rights have been violated and to assure that justice will be done to all who have suffered by the violence against the Christians of Orissa.”

While condemning “all forms of violence” the bishops exhorted the government to do more for the security of Christians in Orissa. “Adequate security be provided to all, relief and rehabilitation be undertaken in full measure, life in the relief camps be made more human; to demand from the government that the guilty be punished; to demand from the government that an adequate compensation package be announced and undertaken.”

While individual priests have reacted to the violence in Orissa, this is the first time that five bishops have come to-

gether to collectively address worshippers during Sunday prayers. Also condemning the killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in “strong words”, the letter demands that “the culprits be identified and punished. We reiterate the fact that no Christian, no church institution or leadership is involved in this murder”. In the same breath it said, “We condemn in strong words the lies that are propagated by some vested interests that the Christians were behind the killing of the Swami.”

“We are going to meet with the representatives of the Church of Orissa and would reflect about the violence and come out with short-term and long-term plans to respond to violence.” The pastoral letter was drafted by Rev. Thomas Thiruthalil, Rev. Raphael Cheenath, Rev. Alphonse Bilung, Rev. Lucas Kerketta, Rev. Sarat Chandra Naik and Rev. John Barwa.

India wishes to address all issues with Pakistan

TEHRAN, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Observing that it has been pursuing a policy of “positive and substantial” engagement with Pakistan, India today said it wishes to address all issues that have affected bilateral ties and make progress towards enhancing physical connectivity and upgradation of economic ties.

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said here that New Delhi wanted to see peace, stability and development in Pakistan as it is in India’s interest. He, however, said terrorism is a major problem for the region as well as world and in this regard referred to the attack on Indian Embassy in Kabul in July in which five personnel of the mission, including two diplomats, lost their lives.

“In recent years, India has pursued a policy of positive and substantial engagement with Pakistan,” Mukherjee said inaugurating a seminar on ‘India and Iran: Ancient

Money, not fanaticism luring youth to terror NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (CNN-IBN): The report of two suspected terrorists from Kerala, who were recently killed in Kashmir, has led investigative agencies to conclude that the state is now a major recruitment centre for terrorists.

Sources say it’s not religious fanaticism, but monetary incentive that’s turning unemployed youngsters from Kerala to terror.

Alexander Joseph is still in shock after learning of his son’s past. Twenty eightyear-old Mohammed Yasir, brought up as Verghese Joseph in Kannur, was shot dead while he trying to infiltrate into Kashmir. “One

day he received a phone call, after which he immediately left for Calicut. Few days later, he returned with a different religion Muslim. He was Muslim. We didn’t like that change. That day he gave us lots of money,” Yasir’s father Alexander Joseph says.

Bapinu has a similar tale to tell. Policemen often visit his home. They say his son Abdul Jabbar helped terrorists from Pakistan. Many such households across Kerala are weeping for their youngsters today. While majority of them say they had no idea about the activities of their children, perhaps, a few of them did know about it but chose to keep quiet.

Perhaps money was playing a vital role here.

Sources say organisations like the Lashkar-eToiba pay as much as Rs 25 lakh as start-up money to turn jobless youth into jehadis. They believe a man called Mohammad Faisal to be the kingpin of this terror recruitment cell. “These fundamentalists are given motor bikes and a monthly allowance. They even give a small amount to their families as a share of their wages,” SP, Kazargode, Subash Babu, says. For state police, which till now has handled crimes of a smaller nature, terror has certainly come as a rude awakening.

India UN troops patrol Sunday November 2 near Rutshuru, some 80 kms north of Goma in the eastern Congo. Tutsi-led rebels have tightened their hold on newly seized swaths of eastern Congo, forcing tens of thousands of frightened, rain-soaked civilians out of makeshift refugee camps and stopping some from fleeing to government-held territory. (AP Photo)

Safety of working women, never a priority Sadhvi to be produced in court today

C M Y K

Hindu couples participate in a mass marriage ceremony in Hyderabad, November 2. Tirumala Tirupati Devastanam trust board organized a mass wedding ceremony for economically backward girls in Andhra Pradesh state and around 8,000 couples are estimated to have participated in the ceremony. (AP Photo)

SC outlines terms for granting bail in heinous offences NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): In cases involving serious offences like murder, dacoity and rape, the nature of accusation and evidence against an accused be examined by courts before granting bail, the Supreme Court has said. According to the apex court, bail should be granted by the sessions and high courts after examining the nature of accusation, severity of punishment in case of conviction and the nature of supporting evidence. Before granting bail, the courts should evaluate if there is a reasonable apprehension of an accused tampering with the evidence or threatening the complainant. A bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and C K Thakker re-emphasised on the parameters for granting bail to an accused while quashing the bail granted to an accused charged with carrying out “supari killing” of a person under Ashiyana police station of Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow district. It was alleged that the accused had paid Rs 10 lakh through a conduit to two persons for shooting down the victim Chandra Pal Singh on September 21, 2006. Though the sessions court had dismissed the bail plea of the accused, the Allahabad High Court granted bail by passing certain observations against the prosecution’s claim. Aggrieved by the grant of bail, family members of the deceased filed a SLP in the apex court seeking cancellation of the bail.

Toxic waste kills 23 cows GHAZIABAD, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Twentythree cows have died after consuming poisonous industrial waste that was reportedly dumped near the Meerut Road Industrial Area, on NH-58. PFA (People for Animals) Society’s Ghaziabad coordinator, Ashima Sharma, however claimed that 30 cows had died and several other were under treatment. More than 50 cows had reportedly grazed in the area on Friday afternoon, when the poisoning occurred. Although the cattle showed symptoms of poisoning, their owners could not gauge the reason.

Teams of doctors from District Veterinary Hospital and PFA reached the spot immediately on the directions of the administration to save the animals. “We are interrogating several industry owners of the area who dump their manufacturing waste. We have arrested one contractor who was hired by these industries to dispose of their waste. The companies have been asked to produce the contract agreement, failing which action would also be taken against them. A complaint has been lodged at Sihani Gate police station in this connection,” said Senior Superintendent of Police L. Ravi Kumar. Livestock Extension Officer, Aijaz Shamim, said, “Primary post-mortem reports have indicated the consumption of poison. Viscera has been dispatched to the Agra laboratory to further ascertain the type of poison.” The doctors were able to save 20 cows that were administered antidote on time.

civilisations and modern nations’ here.

“We wish to address issues that have affected our ties over the last several years,” he said, adding, “we also wish to make progress in areas such as enhancement of physical connectivity and upgradation of economic ties.” He said through the mechanism of the composite dialogue, the two countries have addressed a number of serious issues of bilateral interest.

On terrorism, Mukherjee said it constitutes one of the “most serious threats” to global peace. Citing the case of Kabul Embassy attack in which 50 people, including several young Afghan girls, were also killed, he said “terrorists may claim to act on behalf of religion, but in truth they have no religion, because the essence of religions is peace and universal brotherhood, and not violence and the violation of human rights.”

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Not only have they stormed many a male bastion but also do not hesitate to undertake duties that require them work at late hours – an adventure indeed in the metros.

As periodic attacks on women employees hit the headlines, women activists and employees feel safety of women working late hours has never been priority of any government. Be it Delhi where recently a television journalist was found murdered or Mumbai or Chennai or Bangalore – the story is the same – the safety index is going down.

The truth is that safety of women working for late hours has never been a priority for the concerned stakeholders including employers, feel working women. Many feel that television journalist Soumya Vishwanathan could have been saved

had a proper system in place to ensure that she and many like her those working till late hours reach safe and sound after on the job.

A recent study conducted by the ASSOCHAM Social Development Foundation (ASDF) in all the major metros says that about 53 per cent of working women feel insecure, especially during night shifts.

“Vishwanathan’s murder by some unidentified assailants on a deserted roads has once again triggered a debate on the need for safety of the women,” says a female journalist with a news channel.

Requesting not to be named she says many times she had driven on the desolate stretches and Soumya’s murder comes haunting back as she drives out at late hours. At least what could have been assured was effective police patrolling, she feels.

NASHIK, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur along with two other accused, who were arrested by Maharashtra ATS in connection with the September 29 Malegaon blasts and remanded to ATS custody till November 3, will be produced again in a Nashik court on Monday.

ATS has so far arrested five persons, including retired major Ramesh Shivji Upadhyay and Abhinav Bharat office bearer Sameer Kulkarni, in connection with the blasts, which killed five persons. The custody of three accused – Prgya Singh Thakur, Shivnarayan Singh Kalsangram and Shyam Bhawarlal Sahu is ending tomorrow and they are likely to be produced in Nashik court tomorrow, while custody of two others – Upadhyay and Kulkarni – will end on November 10, court sources said.

Meanwhile, Diwakar Kulkar-

ni, Secretary of Bhonsala Military School (BMS) while talking to reporters yesterday said that a meeting of Abhinav Bharat activists was held at BMS on September 16 for which the BMS had provided place. “Our leading 70-year-old educational institute had no connection with said meeting,” he said adding that the name of BMS is unnecessarily being implicated into the case.

ATS has detained the retired army officer along with BMS commandant Shailesh Raikar and clerk Rajan Gaidhani yesterday but our institute will stand firmly behind them, he added. The Nashik court had allowed ATS to carry out scientific tests of brain-mapping, narco and polygraphy tests of both Upadhyay and Kulkarni. Earlier, the court had also granted similar tests of Pragya Singh.

WB CM escapes assassination bid SHALBONI, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): West Bengal’s Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Sunday escaped an assassination bid when a landmine blast occurred after his convoy passed from Shalboni in West Midnapore district. According to recent reports, naxalites masterminded the blast in which Bhattacharjee remained unhurt but six policemen got injuries.

The Chief Minister was returning from Jindal Steel plant’s opening ceremony in Shalboni. Union Steel Minister Ramvilas Paswan was also present at the occasion. A police vehicle has been reportedly damaged in the blast.

Girl suffers head injury at DMRC site

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (CNN-IBN): A threeyear-old girl suffered serious head injury after an iron rod fell on her at a Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) site in Lajpat Nagar area late on Saturday night. Bhawna was strolling in the area with her cousin when the mishap occurred. She was rushed to the AIIMS trauma centre where her condition is said to be critical. “We had gone for an evening walk when suddenly an iron rod fell on Bhawna and me. DMRC workers ran away without helping us,” A nomadic Gujjar family walks on the Jammu-Srinagar highway, on the outskirts of Jammu, No- Bhawna’s cousin says. vember 1. Members of the tribe are moving out from the hills to escape the cold winter. (AP Photo) Bhawna’s uncle alleges

that he was brutally beaten up when he tried to stop DMRC workers from destroying evidence. “When I tried to stop the DMRC workers from washing off the bloodstains, they started beating me up.

They were trying to manipulate substantial evidences,” Bhawna’s uncle says.

Speaking to CNN-IBN, DMRC spokesperson Anuj Dayal said their chief engineer would be speaking to the family and everybody else who was involved. He, however, insisted that their first priority would be medical care for the child. “We’ll do our best to sort it out. Our

Proposal on anvil to free policemen from non-policing jobs NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): Thousands of policemen across the country will give up non-policing jobs like verification of individuals and administrative work to concentrate on law enforcement and security if a new proposal to outsource such tasks to private agencies is implemented.

A new bill – the Private Detective Agencies (Regulation) Bill, 2007 – if approved, will enable detective agencies to take over verification and administration related works of police.

“Police are already overburdened with law and order job.

They lack manpower. Handing over verification related jobs to private detective agencies will help police in doing their actual duty properly,” a Delhi Police officer said requesting anonymity.

Around 30 per cent of each state police force is involved in

doing non-policing jobs like pre-employment verification, serving summons, passport verification, tenants and domestic help verifications etc. With increasing terror threats and rising instances of crimes, the police have been facing a shortage of manpower to maintain security and peace in the country. “Many discrepancies have been reported so far. Tenants are not being verified properly, cyber cafes are operating without registration and what not.

The department must look at the option available with it,” President of Association of Private Detective Agencies Kunwar Vikram Singh said.

Police regularly do jobs like verification of servant and tenant but they often lack depth.

According to a senior Delhi Police officer, more than 15,000 personnel are involved in doing such jobs in the national capital.

“It is true that many police personnel are engaged in general administrative work which can be shared with competent agencies, leaving security personnel free to engage in maintaining law and order,” Additional Commissioner of Police Rajan Bhagat said.

However, some officers expressed apprehensions on authenticity and transparency, if private agencies are involved in verification. “We may think of involving them. But there are certain modalities and guidelines to be worked out. From credibility to responsibility, we need to ensure many things before any such proposal is finalised,” Bhagat said. If police have only the job of maintaining law and order, the situation then would have been much different,” he said, adding that with cities growing manifold in terms of providing employment opportunities, a strict

check and monitoring is required to keep the capital free from any untoward incident.

In foreign countries, detective agencies play a vital role in assisting investigation and share the workload of the police.

Whereas in our country, detective agency only probe cases given by individuals or organisations privately, said Singh. “We are planning to approach government with a proposal to outsource nonpolicing jobs to detective agencies once the Bill gets passed in Parliament,” he said.

At present the bill is under consideration of a Parliamentary Standing Committee headed

by BJP leader Sushma Swaraj.

“The new bill will help detective agencies to properly shape up their working and operation.

Also, government will have an ease to supervise their work and ensure transparency and credibility,” Singh said.

first attention naturally is the child. We will do whatever is required. DMRC would take care of the all the medical expenses that the child’s family has incurred,” Dayal said.

Earlier in October, one person was killed and at least nine were injured after a section of under-construction flyover for a DMRC flyover collapsed in East Delhi’s Shakarpur area. Dayal said there was no connection between the two incidents.

“The iron got bent; it did not fall down. DMRC is a huge construction project. Today’s incident has no connection with the collapse,” he added.

JK POLLS

80 companies of security forces deployed in Poonch JAMMU, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): With an aim to ensure incident-free elections in border district of Poonch in the first phase of polling, 80 companies of para-military forces and police have been deployed there. As many as 80 companies of security forces have been deployed in the border district of Poonch to ensure free, fair and incident-free polls in the first phase on November 17, police said.

Poonch district, which falls in the category of highly militancy-prone belts in Jammu and Kashmir, has over 70 per cent of sensitive and hyper sensitive polling stations. Security forces have already conducted sensitisation operation in the district and taken position on area domination posts on hill tops and sensitive places in the district, they said. There are 373 polling stations in the district of which 119 are hyper sensitive and 105 as sensitive, they said. Forty six candidates are in the fray in Poonch-Haveli, Mendhar and Surankote assembly segments.

As many as 2,59,580 voters, including 1,32,107 men and 1,27,473 women, will cast their votes during the first phase polls.

INTERNATIONAL

The Morung Express

Monday 3 November 2008

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Obama, McCain hurtle into final 48 hours

Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., notes that there are three days until the election as he addresses the crowd during a rally in Springfield, Mo. Saturday, November 1. (AP Photo)

SPRINGFIELD, NOVEMBER 2 (AFP): Warring White House rivals Barack Obama and John McCain hurled themselves into a Herculean last 48 hours of campaigning before their date with destiny

in Tuesday's election. Obama Sunday was on a three-city tour of Ohio -- a crucial state for both the front-running Democrat and his Republican opponent, after deciding the 2004 election in favor of

President George W. Bush.

McCain, following his own two-day bus odyssey around the rust-belt state, was stepping up the pace with his first midnight rally of the campaign, in Florida, fol-

lowing events in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

Entering the electrifying campaign's final weekend, Obama Saturday promised a "new politics for a new time" and said he had a "righteous wind" at his back as he pursues his quest to become the first black US president.

Basking in a hefty poll lead and the adoration of massive crowds, the 47-year-old Illinois senator is hammering McCain over the US economic crisis and portraying his rival as a faithful sidekick of the deeply unpopular Bush.

In its daily tracking survey Saturday, Gallup had the Democrat gaining momentum and leading 52 percent to 42 percent. A Washington Post-ABC News tracking poll meanwhile put the figure at 53 percent for Obama and 44 percent for McCain. McCain, in turn, is attacking his rival's patriotism as he vies to turn Tuesday into a referendum on Obama's readiness to serve as commander-in-chief as the US military wages two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. "(Obama) said the other day that his primary victory 'vindicated' his faith in America," said the Arizona senator, 72, highlighting a formulation used by the Democrat in his speeches for many months now.

"My country has never had to prove anything to me, my friends. I've always had faith in it and I've been humbled and honored to serve it," said McCain, a former navy pilot who was imprisoned for five years during the Vietnam War. The presidential cam-

paign has narrowed down to battleground states that have been reliably Republican in recent elections, or in the case of Virginia, Indiana and North Carolina, that have not voted for a Democratic hopeful in decades. Flush with a record-breaking fundraising operation, Obama is on the offensive all across the map.

He campaigned Saturday in Nevada, Colorado and Missouri as he bid to lock down Republican states in the west and midwest.

McCain hit the trail in Virginia and Pennsylvania -- probably his only hope of prising a Democratic state away from Obama -- before traveling to New York for an assured cameo on iconic TV comedy show "Saturday Night Live." New Hampshire took McCain to its heart when he ran for the Republican nomination against Bush in 2000. But Obama leads there, as well as in Pennsylvania. Obama had his own star power in the works with rocker Bruce Springsteen due to perform at one of his three rallies in Ohio, in front of what aides predicted would be a monster crowd in Cleveland early Sunday evening.

Obama derided McCain after Vice President Dick Cheney on Saturday hailed the Arizona senator as the right man to lead the country because he "understands the danger facing America." "(Cheney) knows that with John McCain you get a twofer: George Bush's economic policies and Dick Cheney's foreign policies," the Democrat said. McCain

Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., reacts to the cheers of supporters during a campaign rally in Perkasie, PA., Saturday afternoon, November 1.

(AP Photo)

meanwhile said Obama was the wrong choice for a dangerous world where "millions of lives" were at stake, hoping his closing message will sow enough doubt to make voters overlook their stated prefer-

ence for Obama on the economy. The Republican was to wrap his campaign up with a multi-state, whistle stop tour Monday. For his own campaign climax Monday, Obama was heading on a

battleground blitz of Florida, North Carolina and Virginia.

He was then to return to Chicago, to see if his unlikely bet with the American people has paid off.

Foods to prevent disease? Rape victim PARIS, NOVEMBER 2 (AFP): Eating tomatoes to help prevent cancer, garlic to prevent AIDS or drinking fruit juice to ward off Alzheimer’s? Despite a bevy of research, the impact of food on killer diseases remains to be proved.

Scientists agree that a balanced quality diet is key to good health, and most governments in past years have urged citizens to adopt a daily diet of five portions of fruit and veg, and three each of dairy products and starch, while cutting back fats, sugar and alcohol.

Watching what you eat, experts say, does help prevent illnesses such as diabetes, hypercholesterolaemia -- which leads to cardio-vascular disease -- or osteoporosis. But researchers are in disagreement over illnesses not directly related to nutrition, such as cancer, AIDS or neurodegenerative diseases -- though again all recommend a balanced diet. Among the thousands of studies on hand, one European investigation concluded that eating fruit and vegetable fibre might limit the risk of colorectal cancer.

Fruit was tipped as a possible protection against cancer of the lung, and to ward off prostate cancer, the study recommended five cups a day of catechin-rich green tea -- catechins are polyphenolic antioxidant plant metabolites. Industrial -- or processed -- fats, already known to be harmful for the cardiovascular system, could double the risk of breast cancer while soybeans reduced the risk threefold.

But soybeans, which are rich in anti-oxydants that help cells survive, could increase the risk of infertility.

Lycopene, the bright red antioxydant pigment found in tomatoes

and other red fruits, also was found by some researchers to reduce the risk of cancer, but the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says there is no solid proof for the claim.

Alzheimer’s on the other hand could be kept at bay by pomegranate juice, as well as the polyphenols in a glass of red wine. But while fish are hailed for their omega-3, a family of unsaturated fatty acids, fish are also rich in mercury and toxic PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls.

“There are no good or bad foods,” said France’s Afssa food security agency. But eating five fruit and veggies a day and little animal fat “is plain common sense”, said oncologist Dominique Belpomme. Experts at France’s national food and cancer research centre, NACRe, said a varied diet of mainly fruit and vegetables with not too much alcohol would help prevent cancers of the mouth, pharynx, oesophagus, lung, stomach, pancreas, colon-rectum and bladder.

After leafing through 7,000 studies from across the globe, the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) recommends avoiding food and drinks high in sugar, salt or fats and low in fibres, and instead eating fruit, vegetables, wholegrain cereals and pulses.

Eating well is also key to treating HIV-positive patients as malnutrition weakens the immune system, lowering resistance to secondary effects. But good food cannot replace antiretrovirals despite claims to the contrary by South Africa’s controversial health minister -- “Dr Beetroot” -- on fighting AIDS with garlic, lemons and veggies.

stoned to death

A

13-year-old girl who said she had been raped has been stoned to death in Somalia after being accused of adultery by Islamic militants.

Dozens of men stoned Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow to death on October 27 in a stadium packed with 1,000 spectators in the southern port city of Kismayo, Amnesty International and Somali media reported, citing witnesses.

The Islamic militia in charge of Kismayo had accused her of adultery after she reported that three men had raped her, the rights group said. Initial local media reports said Miss Duhulow was 23, but her father told Amnesty International she was 13. Some of the Somali journalists who first reported the killing later told Amnesty International that they had reported she was 23 based upon her physical appearance.

"This child suffered a horrendous death at the behest of the armed opposition groups who currently control Kismayo," David Copeman, Amnesty International's Somalia campaigner, said in a statement on Friday. Somalia is among the world's most violent and impoverished countries. The nation of some eight million people has not had a functioning government since warlords overthrew a dictator in 1991 then turned on each other.

A quarter of Somali children die before age five; nearly every public institution has collapsed. Fighting is a daily occurrence, with violent deaths reported nearly every day. Islamic militants with ties to al Qaida have been battling the government and its Ethiopian allies since their combined forces pushed the Islamists from the capital in December 2006. Within weeks of being driven out, the Islamists launched an insurgency that has killed thousands of civilians.

In recent months, the militants appear to be gaining strength. The group has taken over the port of Kismayo, Somalia's third-largest city, and dismantled pro-government roadblocks. They also effectively closed the Mogadishu airport by threatening to attack any plane using it.

Musicians perform in the cemetery during Day of the Dead celebrations in Patzun, Guatemala, Saturday, November 1. Guatemalans celebrate Day of the Innocents on November 1 and Day of the Dead on November 2, traditions that mix both Spanish and Indian traditions and honor the dearly departed. (AP Photo)

Britain's Prince Charles, center, speaks with officials during a visit to Harapan Rain Forest in Jambi, Indonesia, Sunday, November 2. Prince Charles is in Indonesia on a four day trip highlighting environmental awareness and inter-faith dialogue. (AP Photo)

NKorea releases photos of Kim to quash health rumours SEOUL, NOVEMBER 2 (AFP): North Korea on Sunday released photographs of leader Kim Jong-Il watching a football match, in an apparent bid to quell mounting speculation over the state of his health. The North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and other media carried the undated photos of Kim watching the game between two army teams, according to Seoul's unification ministry, which monitors North Korean media.

One analyst said Pyongyang was struggling to calm jitters about Kim, who Seoul says is recovering from a stroke and brain surgery in mid-August. In one of the photos disclosed by the ministry here, Kim sat smiling on a sofa inside a glass structure wearing his trademark sunglasses, while his full cheeks and bouffant hair looked the same as usual. With his deputies standing or sitting nearby, Kim was wearing a brown winter jacket. Trees near him had autumnal leaves.

The North's state television and Rodong Simnum

newspaper also carried 14 different photos of Kim watching the game, standing and giving instructions to his deputies as well as a soccer pit. None of the North Korean media disclosed when and where the photos were taken. KCNA earlier Sunday reported that Kim watched the match between two army teams, Mangyongbong and Jebi, but did not say when.

The National Intelligence Service, Seoul's main spy agency, said it was analysing the photos, but it refused to elaborate.

"North Koreans are desperately stepping up their efforts to send a message: Mr. Kim is doing well. He is firmly in control," Kim Yong-Hyun, a professor and North Korean expert at Seoul's Dongguk University, told AFP. But Seoul's Yonhap news agency noted there was no single photo of both Kim and the game featured in the same frame. Instead, the released photos carry separate images of Kim or those of the game.

The release of the photographs were the latest effort

by Pyongyang apparently aimed at suggesting the leader is well, following widespread overseas reports that Kim, 66, suffered a stroke in mid-August. Japan's Prime Minister Taro Aso said last week Kim is probably in hospital but still capable of making decisions about his hardline communist state. On Thursday Kim failed to attend the state funeral for former vice president Pak Song-Chol.

Kim's health is the subject of intense speculation since he has not publicly nominated a successor to run the impoverished and nuclear-armed nation. After he failed to attend a September 9 parade marking the country's 60th anniversary, South Korean officials said he underwent brain surgery following a stroke around mid-August but is recovering well. On October 4 KCNA reported Kim watched a stu-

dent football match but did not say when the game was held. On October 11 state television released still photos of Kim inspecting a women's army unit.

US and South Korean officials said foliage shown in the photo appeared to indicate the pictures were taken before his reported illness.

KCNA in its latest report said the army game was held in connection with the close of the 11th People's Sports Contest and Mangyongbong won "by successfully applying the Korean-style sporting method". "After watching the match, Kim Jong-Il congratulated the footballers on their success in the match, expressing great satisfaction over a high level of the game played by them," it said. KCNA said the leader watched the game along with senior army and communist party personnel.

In this undated photo released by (north) Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service in Tokyo Sunday, November 2, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, wearing glasses, watches a soccer game between teams of the (north) Korean People's Army. The news service didn't say the date and place the North Korean leader watched the game in its caption. (AP Photo)

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Monday 3 November 2008

The Morung Express

Chelsea top as Spurs defeat Liverpool

Chelsea's Nicolas Anelka, second right no. 39, shoots to score his third goal against Sunderland during their English Pre- Tottenham's David Bentley, front, vies for the ball with Liverpool's Albert Riera, during their English Premier League soccer miership League soccer match at Stamford Bridge, London, Saturday, November 1. (AP Photo) match at White Hart Lane stadium, London, Saturday, November 1. (AP Photo)

LONDON, NOVEMBER 2 (REUTERS): Liverpool suffered their first defeat of the season on Saturday when Roman Pavlyuchenko scored in injury time to give Tottenham Hotspur a 2-1 comeback win to complete a dream first week for new manager Harry Redknapp.

Chelsea took over at the top of the Premier League after Nicolas Anelka's hat-trick inspired a 5-0 rout of Sunderland. In a thriller, Hull City

came from 4-1 down to push Manchester United all the way before losing 4-3 at Old Trafford.

Arsenal went down 2-1 at Stoke City, a red card for Robin van Persie and a bad injury to Theo Walcott completing their miserable day.

Chelsea have 26 points, the same as Liverpool, but lead on goal difference. United are third on 21, with Arsenal, Aston Villa and Hull all on 20.

Spurs climb off the bottom af-

ter a memorable week.

Liverpool seemed to be cruising after an early goal

by Dirk Kuyt but a Jamie Carragher own goal in the 69th minute opened the door and Spurs, who fought back to draw 4-4 at Arsenal on Wednesday after beating Bolton Wanderers last week, seized their chance.

Last weekend Spurs sacked manager Juande Ramos, instantly brought in Redknapp from Portsmouth and then

secured their first win of the season.

On Wednesday they netted twice in the last five minutes to draw at Arsenal and the next day announced plans for a new 60,000-seater stadium. On Saturday they dumped Liverpool with another last-gasp goal, having seen local rivals Arsenal lose at Stoke. Liverpool will wonder how they lost, having totally dominated and hitting the woodwork three times.

Pavlyuchenko snatched the unlikely winner after David Bentley's shot was parried by Pepe Reina. "I can't believe we lost, everybody could see we were the better team," Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez told Setanta Sports television. "We were controlling everything."

Redknapp said: "We rode our luck at times for sure but once we got a goal back we were back in it."

Asked what he had done

to change things in such a short time, he said: "I just got among the lads and made them believe in themselves a bit. We've had a great week."

Arsenal, stunned at home by Hull a month ago, became the latest team to fall foul of Rory Delap's long throw-ins.

Ricardo Fuller outjumped everyone to head one in before Seyi Olofinjana got the second after another Delap missile left Arsenal's defence flailing.

ManU embarrassed despite victory

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo, right, celebrates scoring against Hull City during their English Premier League soccer match at Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester, England, Saturday, November 1. (AP Photo)

MANCHESTER, NOVEMBER 2 (AFP): Sir Alex Ferguson insisted he was embarrassed by Manchester United's failings in front of goal despite his side's 4-3 victory over Hull City. The United manager had been highly critical of the number of chances his strikers missed during a routine victory over West Ham and, after seeing his side almost throw away a 4-1 lead against Hull on Saturday, Ferguson was again angry at United's failure to kill

off the game.

Cristiano Ronaldo took his United tally to 99 goals after adding to his West Ham double with two more strikes while Michael Carrick and Nemanja Vidic completed the home side's haul. But what should have been a second half stroll turned into an anxious wait for the final whistle for the reigning champions after Bernard Mendy and Geovanni added to Daniel Cousin's first half header as the visitors fought back bravely.

"It was incredible. We should have won by ten and we ended up scrambling a victory," Ferguson said.

"The annoying thing is that we've not taken our chances, we should have scored ten or eleven there. We had clear chances. But you don't put them away and then you are left embarrassed. "The general feeling is a bit low because we should have won the game by more." Ferguson had claimed last week that Ronaldo can match his 42-goal

return of last season despite missing the start of the season with an ankle injury and the Portugese winger's brace took his total to seven, including six in six league appearances.

"His goals were fantastic.

He could have scored four or five. And I don't know how many chances Dimitar Berbatov made," Ferguson said.

"Credit to Ronaldo, he's got two more goals and there was some fantastic football. On the plus side the thing that we can take out of today is that we are creating some good chances and playing some great stuff at times, but we just got ourselves in an embarrassing situation."

Hull have made a habit of upsetting bigger names away from home in their first season in the top-flight with wins at Arsenal, Spurs and Newcastle already under their belts. Their early-season run has already accumulated 20 points and Phil Brown's side came into this game two points ahead of United. United's win reversed that position but Brown drew pride from the fact Hull became the first team since Chelsea three years ago to score three at Old Trafford and believes this display should increase his players belief they can compete at the higher level.

At the San Mames, Italy striker Giuseppe Rossi scored and set up the winner, and Villarreal teammate Jozy Altidore became the first American player to score in La Liga as the Basques lost their fifth straight. Rossi opened for Villarreal in the 24th, but 19th-placed Athletic Bilbao equalized four minutes later through Joseba Etxeberria's header. Rossi shrugged off his marker in the 53rd to pass to Robert Pires, who scored with a left-footed shot that kept Villarreal unbeaten through nine rounds. Spain forward Santi Cazorla slashed a left-footed shot across goal inside the far post in the 59th before substitute striker Altidore notched from inside the area in the 90th for his first goal since an off season move from the New York Red Bulls.

Mohammed Tchite gave Santander the lead for the third time after heading home the winner in the 80th. The Burundese striker put Santander ahead first in the 23rd and then with a powerful shot in the 49th. David Villa scored a penalty for his league-leading 10th goal in the 28th and the Spain striker was unlucky not to be back at the spot again in the second half after being held up inside the area.

Santander goalkeeper

But Hull, who netted earlier through Daniel Cousin, pulled one back through Bernard Mendy and set up a tense last eight minutes with a Geovanni penalty.

"Not many teams will come to Old Trafford, score three goals and come away with nothing," said Hull manager Phil Brown. Chelsea were on song from the start at Stamford Bridge with Alex and Frank Lampard also on target in a dominant display.

Annual Hornbill Rally 2008

Ferrari'S Formula One driver Felipe Massa, of Brazil, celebrates by kissing a TV camera's lens after winning the pole position in the Qualifying for the Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo, Saturday, November 1. (AP Photo)

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Annual Hornbill Rally 2008, organised by the Nagaland Adventure and Motor Sports Association (NAMSA) under the sponsorship of Government of Nagaland will be held on December 4 and 5 next. The event will be of time, speed and distance (TSD). The event will include 4 wheelers and 2 wheelers. The basic format of TSD for 4 wheelers as well as 2 wheelers are, any 4 wheel vehicle having the basic requirements like seat belts, parking lights, third party insurance of the vehicle. A press note issued by the secretary of NAMSA stated that all vehicles must have proper documents as required by the transport department in original, all participating drivers’ navigators must have proper driving license, the event is open to all interested persons and motor sport enthusiasts and there will be prizes according to categories. The entry fee for 4 wheelers and 2 wheelers is Rs. Rs. 2, 000 and Rs. 1, 000 respectively. 4 wheel participants will be allowed 2 additional team members along with navigator and there will be special prizes for best decorated, bikes and lady participants. The entry forms will be available at Screwdriver, Dimapur (9436004129) and Ruguo Kesiezie Desmodromic, Kohima (9856065060). For further information contact, Lima at 9436003727 and Vikishe at 9862572374 or visit www.namsa.co.in.

Phek District Open Football tourney

Members of the Lokomotiv team crash out of their bronze place race in the Team Pursuit Competition during the Track Cycling World Cup at the Manchester Velodrome, Manchester, England, Saturday November 1. (AP Photo)

Barcelona victory march continues

MADRID, NOVEMBER 2 (AP): Xavi Hernandez scored twice as Barcelona beat Malaga 4-1 to top the Spanish league after its 12th straight victory on Saturday. Lionel Messi also scored to ensure Barcelona led the standings, replacing Valencia, which lost its unbeaten record in a 4-2 defeat from Racing Santander. Barcelona has 22 points, Villarreal 21 after its 4-1 win over Athletic Bilbao, and Valencia 20.

Real Madrid, which has 19, can match Barcelona on points on Sunday if it extends an eight-game undefeated league streak with a victory at ninth-placed Almeria. Madrid, without injured striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, would trail Barcelona on goal difference, however. Messi scored six minutes after Duda drew Malaga level on a waterlogged field at La Rosaleda Stadium.

The Argentina winger collected Malaga's clearance in the 19th minute and returned a hard shot through two defenders and goalkeeper Francesc Arnau. Xavi curled a free kick over the defensive wall and into the top corner to open in the fifth. The Spain midfielder's second came in the 52nd, and defender Weligton's own goal in the 81st capped the scoreline.

Arsenal then lost Van Persie, five minutes after he came on as a substitute.

Walcott was carried off on a stretcher clutching his shoulder and striker Emmanuel Adebayor also went off injured. Gael Clichy's late effort was no consolation for manager Arsene Wenger.

Two goals for Cristiano Ronaldo and one each by Michael Carrick and Nemanja Vidic had United seemingly cruising after an hour.

Antonio Rodriguez dropped a cross straight into the path of Joaquin Rodriguez for the second equalizer in the 70th minute at Mestalla Stadium, where heavy rain left the field in terrible shape. Valencia midfielder David Albelda capped the scoreline in the 85th with an own-goal. Also, Sergio Aguero scored twice as Atletico Madrid snapped its league winless streak at four with a 2-0 win over Mallorca and joined Malaga with 13 points. The Argentina striker, making his first start in four matches, headed home Diego Forlan's pass in the 14th and then scored off a rebound from Forlan in the 28th. At La Rosaleda, a steady downpour formed pools of standing water but that didn't slow Barcelona's high-scoring attack, which came into the game with 35 goals in all competitions. Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes denied Adrian Lopez's clear chance but the rebound fell to Duda and the Portugal midfielder curled a left-footed shot into the net.

Substitute Thierry Henry headed Daniel Alves' lofted pass back across goal for Xavi to volley home at the near post.

Alves also hit the post with a Malaga's goalkeeper Francesc Arnau Grabalosa, left, blocks as Barcelona's Lionel Messi from Argentina, right, heads the ball during their Spanish soccer league match at La Ro- powerful free kick in the 67th saleda stadium in Malaga, Spain, on Saturday, November 1. Bellow is Malaga's Weligton before Weligton deflected Alves's free kick into goal.

Robson from Brazil. (AP Photo)

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): The Phek District Open Football tourney will be held from, November 13 and 14 at the Phek district headquarter under the program of District Level Tournament in sponsorship with the Nehru Yuva Kendra (NYK), Phek, organised by the Veteran Sporting Club of Phek. The District Youth Coordinator, Y Laksman Singh and Kedechoyi Venuh, president, VSC, Phek in a press note invited all interested youth clubs and teams on or before November 6 next. For further information contact, 9436645549 and 9436811020.

PDSC meet KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 2 (MExN): All the members of Peren District Sports Council have been informed that there will be a meeting on November 4 at 12:00 noon at DC Office Chamber. The meeting will discuss matter pertaining to the ensuing Dr. T. Ao Football Trophy, felicitation programme and other activities of the Council.

All the members have been requested to attend the said meeting without fail.

‘Adam Gilchrist has lost his mental stability’ NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): In a strong counter attack, Harbhajan Singh today lashed out at Adam Gilchrist, saying the retired Australian has lost his mental stability if he thought he had chickened out of any Test because of the nature of the pitch. "Frankly, I think he has lost it (the stability of mind). Is it an honest comment about me? Even my bitterest critics have never accused me of chickening out of a contest," said Harbhajan over phone from his residence in Jalandhar where he is mourning the death of his maternal grandfather with his family. Gilchrist, in his autobiography "True Colours" has said that Harbhajan had pulled out of the Nagpur Test of the 2004-05 series at the sight of the green wicket on offer. "Harbhajan was out of Nagpur Test with a 'flu', which he seemed to have contracted when he saw the grassy wicket," Gilchrist has written in his book. "If this is how he feels, if this is the only way for him to sell his book, well good luck to him. I would have thought earning the respect of his peers ought to have been his priority," a peeved Harbhajan told PTI. "My only advice to Gilchrist is: please stick to your own mates if selling book alone is his priority. I am sure there would be lot more for him to bare. And all of it would be genuine rather than cookedup facts," he said. The fiesty off-spinner sought to rip apart the cloak of integrity and honesty which Gilchrist has covered himself with, further drummed up by Australian media who have accorded sanctity to it, passing it around as truth.

C M Y K

Ent/Tabloid

The Morung Express

3 November 2008

Nicole Kidman Refuses To Show Off Her Baby

Simon’s Girlfriend Gives Him the Boot

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imon Cowell was celebrating his new-found freedom as Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor last night after splitting from his girlfriend of six years. Sources close to the multi-millionaire X Factor judge said he was ‘hugely relieved’ that the relationship with Terri Seymour was over. They said his first words on hearing that she had confirmed the end of the relationship were: 'Thank God.' The stunning 34-year-old TV presenter, who moved out of Cowell’s £20million Beverly Hills home in the summer, is now believed to be dating 35-year-old Hollywood actor Stephen Dorff, whom she met in September. Cowell, who is one of TV’s highest-paid stars, has given her new love his blessing and has privately said he is delighted to be free of the relationship. 'Simon has basically been waiting for Terri to announce the relationship is over for months,' a friend revealed. 'She has been a weight around his neck for a long time but the problem was that his mother absolutely adored Terri and thought the world of her, so Simon was in a bit of a rut. 'Now, Terri has moved on and found someone else and Simon is hugely relieved. He said, "Thank God" when he heard Terri had gone public with the split and had met someone else.

'He’s been waiting for this day for a long time. He just wants to move on with his life. He’s so relieved, I can’t tell you.

Terri’s finally found someone else which has enabled her to move on. In the end, she was clinging to Simon and something that didn’t really exist between them any more. 'She told him in September that she had met someone, and Simon basically said, "Go for it". I still think there was a bit of Terri that was hoping Simon would say he wanted to marry her.'

In reality, Cowell has made it very clear that he has already moved on - and today he announces that he has new professional goals, too. In an exclusive interview in The Mail on Sunday’s Live magazine, he reveals his ambitions to extend his domination into the world of politics. 'Politics is showbusiness these days,' he said. 'More and more so. I know I could engage that audience, get people involved. Make it interesting, for God’s sake.'

It seems the only ambition 48-year-old Cowell did not possess was to make Terri his first lady. She was notably absent on Wednesday night when Cowell collected a lifetime achievement accolade at the National TV Awards. Instead, the X Factor

Mickey Rourke’s Murder/Suicide Confession

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mastermind spent his finest hour flanked by his co-star Cheryl Cole and his ex-girlfriend, the singer Sinitta. 'Anyone who knows Simon has known that his relationship with Terri was over months ago, but she’s very fragile and he didn’t want to hurt her,' said a source close to Cowell.

'She wanted kids with Simon desperately, but he wasn’t interested in starting a family or getting married. 'All Simon cares about is being the richest, most successful man on the planet. If he wants girls and companionship he can always get them, but it’s really not that important to him. Celebrity and money are all that he cares about.'

Terri will continue to live in the luxury Los Angeles apartment that Cowell, who is worth £130million, bought for her when she moved out of their shared home this summer. 'Things are very amicable between Terri and Simon.

There are no hard feelings,' said the source. 'She has actually done very well out of Simon. He has bought her a house and wishes her every success and happiness. They’ll stay close friends but he couldn’t give her what she ultimately wanted, which was children. 'Her biological clock is ticking and all Terri really wants is to start a family.'

ctor Mickey Rourke was once so depressed he planned to end his life - but only after murdering a man who raped his then-wife. Rourke has revealed that he was determined to commit suicide and even penned a note to his now ex-wife, Carré Otis. But before he went through with his threat, he planned to punish a man who had previously raped Otis.

He tells New York Post gossip column PageSix, "I was about to commit two mortal sins, (I planned to kill) a guy who raped Carré when she was on heroin and beat her up." But the star admits he dropped his ideas of a grisly murder/suicide after visiting his close friend, famed New York priest, Father Pete Colapietro.

Colapietro adds, "(He had) a letter he'd written to Carré - a note of a conciliatory nature.

I told him, 'Let's fold it up and put it behind the statue of St. Jude.'" The duo then talked over Rourke's problems and convinced him not to go through with his deadly plan. Rourke and Otis divorced in 1998.

icole Kidman refuses to show her baby daughter off to the world - because she's keen to keep her precious child as protected as possible.

The actress gave birth to Sunday Rose in July and she insists there won't be any family magazine spread or intimate shots she releases online.

That means, she and husband Keith Urban are willing to fight the world's paparazzi over what has become a topprice first picture of the new baby. She tells the upcoming issue of Parade magazine, "People say, 'Oh, it would be so much easier if you'd just let them (paparazzi) get a photo of her.' And I can't. I'm like, 'I don't want to. I want her to stay out of that.' Maybe that will wane as she gets bigger, and I'll be easier with it. But, for now, I'm keeping her in a bubble."

Meanwhile, motherhood has turned Nicole Kidman

11 PRIME TIME Monday

from an all-action woman to a wary mum. The 41-yearold actress admits her carefree, risk-taking attitude to life has been replaced by the need to take care and be around for as long as possible now she's mum to baby daughter Sunday Rose.

Kidman says, "My relationship with death used to be far more ambivalent, I think, and now it's very much about staying in the world. That's why in the past I could jump out of planes and take a lot of risks."

And she admits Sunday's upbringing will be very different from that of her adopted teenage kids with ex-husband Tom Cruise, Isabella and Connor. She adds, "Bella and Connor were very free and easy, probably because they had parents who were very young and jumping around the world and pretty easygoing.".

Priscilla Presley’s face becomes a mask

Dimapur

06:00 - Fashion House; 07:00 Friday Night Lights; 08:00 Seinfeld; 08:30 - Friends; 09:00 - Less Than Perfect; 09:30 Samantha Who?; 10:00 - Grey’s Anatomy; 11:00 - Are U Smarter Than 5th Grader; 12:00 - Desperate Housewives; 13:00 - Private Practice; 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 - Friends; 19:30 - Seinfeld; 20:00 - Life With Bonnie; 20:30 - According To Jim; 21:00 - Last Comic Standing; 22:00 - UgLy Betty; 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 06:00 - Crocodile Hunter; 07:00 - Teleshopping; 08:00 - Meerkat Manor; 09:00 - Lyndal’s Lifeline; 10:00 Baby Planet; 11:00 - Max’s Big Tracks; 12:00 - Wild Africa; 13:00 - Incredible Journeys With Steve Leonard; 14:00 - Crocodile Hunter; 15:00 - Arctic Exposure With Nigel Marven; 16:00 - The Most Extreme; 17:00 - Lyndal’s Lifeline; 18:00 - Meerkat Manor; 19:00 - Max’s Big Tracks; 20:00 - Wild Africa; 21:00 - Penguin Safari With Nigel Marven; 22:00 The Jeff Corwin Experience; 23:00 - The Most Extreme; 00:00 - Meerkat Manor; 01:00 Teleshopping; 02:00 - Petsburgh Usa; 03:00 - Monkey Business; 04:00 Petsburgh Usa; 05:00 - Monkey Business

Akshar Prem Ke

04:45 - Bewafa Sanam; 07:45 - Gtm Keshyog; 08:00 - Subah Ho Gayi Mamu; 09:00 - Evolution; 11:45 - Jaan; 16:00 Anari No 1; 20:00 - Pratiggya; 23:40 Bluffmaster!; 02:30 - Making Of Zinda; 03:30 - Jhankaar Beats; 03:45 - Dhaai

06:00 - Telebrands; 07:00 - Dirty Jobs; 08:00 - Wild Discovery; 09:00 - New Detectives - The Case Studies In Forensic Scie; 10:00 - Discovery’s Biggest Shows; 12:00 - Amazing Baby Videos; 12:30 - Baby Whisperer 1; 13:00 - Planet Earth; 14:00 - Discover India; 15:00 - Planet Food; 16:00 - Wild Discovery; 17:00 - Untamed Earth; 18:00 - Jeremy Piven’s Journey Of A Lifetime; 19:00 - Planet Earth; 20:00 - Giant Of The Skies: Building The Airbus A380; 21:00 - When We Left Earth: The Nasa Missions; 22:00 - I ShouLdn’t Be Alive; 23:00 - Extreme Engineering 3; 00:00 - Wild Discovery; 01:00 - Telebrands; 02:00 - Extreme Engineering 3; 03:00 - Jeremy Piven’s Journey Of A Lifetime; 04:00 - I Shouldn’t Be Alive; 05:00 - Extreme Engineering 3 06:00 - Seva Ganga; 06:30 - Vignan Shashwat Sukh Ka; 07:00 - Sangam; 07:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi; 08:00 - Kyunki Saas Bhi; 08:30 - Kayamath; 09:00 Kumkum; 09:30 - Kahaani Ghar; 10:00 - Grihasti; 10:30 - Hamari Devrani; 11:00 - Kayamath; 11:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi; 12:00 - Bidaai; 12:30 - Jahan Pe Basera Ho; 13:00 - Kumkum; 13:30 - Hamari Devrani; 14:00 - Karam; 14:30 - Grihasti; 15:00 - Kyunki Saas Bhi; 15:30 - Kis Desh Mein; 16:00 - Sangam; 16:30 - Santaan; 17:00 - Jahan Pe Basera Ho; 17:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi; 18:00 - Bidaai; 18:30 - Hamari Devrani; 19:00 - Sangam; 19:30 - Santaan; 20:00 - Raja Ki Ayegi; 20:30 - Kis Desh Mein; 21:00 - Bidaai; 21:30 - Kasturi; 22:00 - Kahaani Ghar; 22:30 - Kyunki Saas Bhi; 23:00 Kayamath; 23:30 - Jahan Pe Basera Ho; 00:00 - Kasturi; 00:30 Kumkum; 01:00 - Bidaai; 01:30 - Kis Desh Mein; 02:00 - Grihasti; 02:30 - Kayamath; 03:00 - Hamari Devrani; 03:30 - Kahaani Ghar; 04:00 Kyunki Saas Bhi; 04:30 - Raja Ki Ayegi; 05:00 - The New AdventureS Of Winnie Pooh; 05:30 - Little Einsteins 04:55 - Sky High; 06:35 - Bridge To Terabithia; 08:30 - My Baby’s Daddy; 10:15 - The Guardian; 12:55 - Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man; 15:00 - The Touch; 17:05 - The Pallbearer; 19:05 - Daltry Calhoun; 21:00 - She’s All That; 23:00 - Next Stop: Wonderland; 00:55 Prophecy: Uprising; 02:25 - Tom Yum Goong; 04:1 - 0my Baby’s Daddy; 05:35 - The Touch 0:00 - Fifa: Futbol Mundial; 0:30 Gillette World Of Sports; 1:00 - Us Pga Tournament - Ginn Classic - Day 4; 3:00 - Motorsport Asia : Asian Festival Of Speed; 4:00 - Uae Motor Racing Championship- Hl’s: Race Day 1; 4:30 - Scottish Premier League: Rangers V Inverness Ct; 6:45 - Nfl : New England Patriots @ Indianapolis Colts; 10:00 - Icl Hls - Chennai V Mumbai; 11:00 - Icl Hls - Chandigarh V Lahore; 12:00 - Rugby League World Cup 200 - 8 -Live Aus V Eng; 14:00 - Icl Hls - Chennai V Mumbai; 15:00 - Icl HLs - Chandigarh V Lahore; 16:00 - Wwe:experience; 17:00 - Wwe: After Burn; 18:00 - Sports News; 18:30 - Icl 20-20 - Preview: Ahmedabad V Dhaka; 19:30 - Icl 20-20 : Ahmedabad V Dhaka; 22:30 - Icl 20-20 - Review: Ahmedabad V Dhaka; 23:00 Sportsnight; 23:30 - Wwe: After Burn

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t 63 Priscilla Presley's face is taut, ironed and hard, and completely unlined. The former wife of Elvis has been criticised in the past for her 'joker' expression but it appears her love of plastic surgery has yet to fade. Her latest look, with blood red lips, dyed dark hair and white skin, is reminiscent of the cult horror movie Elvira, Mistress Of The Dark. And the photos of Presley, taken yesterday at a launch in Las Vegas, show one eyebrow higher than the other in a Halloween-style shadow of her youthful beauty.

When Presley appeared on Amer-

05:00 - Snakes On A Plane; 07:00 - The Making Of Happy Feet; 07:15 - The Assignment; 09:30 - As You Like It; 12:00 - Recount; 14:15 Hollywood One On One 13; 14:45 - Reign Over Me; 17:15 - Striking Distance; 19:15 - Homie Spumoni; 21:00 - The Covenant; 23:00 - The Cable Guy; 01:00 - Trespass; 02:30 - Hollywood’s 10 Best; 03:00 - Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist; 05:15 - The Making Of Gladiator

ica's Dancing With The Stars earlier this year her face made her a figure of fun, with one TV critic cruelly comparing her to a 'bulldog bitten by wasps'. In March Presley confirmed reports that she had received botched treatment from an unqualified plastic surgeon.

Presley was the victim of an unlicensed doctor, her spokewoman said.

It is believed he injected her with industrial low-grade silicone similar to that used by mechanics to grease car parts. Argentinian born Dr. Daniel Serrano, who also reportedly treated Lionel Richie's ex wife Diane, was only licensed as a nurse when he performed the cosmetic

procedure in 2003. Her spokesperson said: 'Priscilla Presley was one of many documented victims of Dr. Serrano. An investigation which uncovered his misconduct ultimately lead to his imprisonment. Ms Presley dealt with this matter years ago and everything is now well.'

Serrano was investigated after his patients complained the injections caused lumps, paralysis and craters in the face. He was arrested in 2004 and charged in relation to the illegal injections. Serrano was later sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy, smuggling and use of unapproved drugs in 2006.

Colourful Chaga Gadi celebration

06:00 - Sadgamaya; 06:30 - The Faith Show; 07:00 - Enjoying Everyday Life; 07:25 - Exposure Ek Nazar; 07:30 - Sales Slot; 07:55 - Exposure Jhalak; 08:00 - Teleshopping; 08:25 - Exposure Ek Nazar; 08:30 - Jai Ganesh; 09:00 - Ramayan; 09:30 Naaginn; 10:00 - Vivaah; 10:30 - Betiyann; 11:00 Maayka; 11:30 - Saat Phere; 12:00 - Dulhann; 12:30 - Kasamh Se; 13:00 - Chhoti Bahu; 13:30 Rakhi; 14:00 - Teen Bahuraaniyaan; 14:30 - Jhoome Jiiya Re; 15:00 Dulhann; 15:30 - Maayka; 16:00 - Saat Phere; 16:30 - KahanI Ab Tak; 17:00 - Ranbir Rano; 17:30 - Betiyann; 18:00 - Kasamh Se; 18:30 Chhoti Bahu; 19:00 - Vivaah; 19:30 - Parrivaar; 20:00 - Dulhann; 20:30 - Maayka; 21:00 - Kasamh Se; 21:30 - Saat Phere; 22:00 - Betiyann; 22:30 - Ranbir Rano; 23:00 - Waaris; 23:30 - Kasamh Se; 23:55 Exposure Ek Nazar; 00:00 - Asian Sky Shop; 00:55 - Exposure; 01:00 Asian Sky Shop; 02:00 - Teen Bahuraaniyaan; 02:30 - Kasamh Se; 03:00 - Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2009; 04:00 - Vivaah; 04:30 - Urja; 05:00 - Parrivaar; 05:30 - NarsevA Narayan Seva 06:00 - Shararat; 06:30 - Exotica; 07:00 - Body And Soul; 07:30 - Tvc Sky Shop; 08:30 - Instant Khichdi; 09:00 - Shaka Laka Boom Boom; 09:30 - Son Pari; 10:00 - Mum Tum Aur Hum; 10:30 Shararat; 11:00 - Hatim; 12:00 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge Iv; 13:00 - Ssshhhh Phir Koi Hai; 14:00 - Dill Mill Gayye; 14:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 15:00 - Movie; 18:30 - Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai; 19:00 - Dill Mill Gayye; 19:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 20:00 - Anu Ki Ho Gayi; 20:30 - Dill Mill Gayye; 21:00 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 21:30 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge Iv; 22:30 - Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai; 23:00 - Dill Mill Gayye; 23:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 00:00 - Siddhanth; 01:00 - Dill Mill Gayye; 01:30 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 02:00 - Anu Ki Ho Gayi; 02:30 - Dill Mill Gayye; 03:00 - Mile Jab Hum Tum; 03:30 - The Great Indian Laughter Challenge Iv; 04:30 - Dill Mill Gayye; 05:00 - Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai; 05:30 - Mum Tum Aur Hum 06:00 - Mann Mein Hai Visshwas; 07:00 - Telebrands; 07:30 - Teleshopping; 08:30 - Gumrah; 12:00 - Hum Ladkiyan; 12:30 - Aathvaan Vachan; 13:00 - Indian Idol 4; 13:30 - Sujata; 14:00 - Comedy Circus; 14:30 - Hum Ladkiyan; 15:00 - Aathvaan Vachan; 15:30 Indian Idol 4; 16:00 - Babul Ka Aangann; 16:30 Sujata; 17:00 - Comedy Circus; 17:30 - Aathvaan Vachan; 18:00 - Hum Ladkiyan; 18:30 - Babul Ka Aangann; 19:00 - Jai Hanuman; 19:30 - Sujata; 20:00 - Meet Mila De Rabba; 20:30 - Hum Ladkiyan; 21:00 - Aathvaan Vachan; 21:30 - Babul Ka Aangann; 22:00 - Sujata; 22:30 - Comedy Circus; 23:00 - Indian Idol 4; 00:00 - Telebrands; 00:30 - Teleshopping; 01:00 - Sujata; 01:30 - Comedy Circus; 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 6:00 - Numb3rs; 7:00 - The Amazing Race Asia; 8:00 - Chuck; 9:00 - Numb3rs; 11:00 Early Edition; 12:00 - Afterworld; 12:03 World’s Most Amazing Videos; 1:00 - Dante’s Peak; 3:00 - Ultimate Guinness World Records; 3:30 - Ebuzz; 5:00 - Top Design; 6:00 - Numb3rs; 7:00 - Afterworld; 7:03 - Chuck; 8:00 - World’s Most Amazing Videos; 9:00 - The Amazing Race; 10:00 - Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!; 11:00 - Csi: Ny; 12:00 - Afterworld; 12:03 - The Amazing Race; 1:00 - Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!; 2:00 - Csi: Ny; 3:00 - Early Edition; 4:00 - Chuck; 5:00 - Top Design 05:30 - Citizen Verdict; 07:00 - Charlie Chaplin; 07:30 - Infomercial; 08:00 - Eye Of The Needle; 10:15 - Raising Helen; 12:50 Problem Child 2; 14:50 - I-Spy; 17:00 Hollywoods 10 Best; 17:30 - Free Willy; 20:00 - Little Women; 22:30 - Last Dance; 00:50 - Epk; 01:00 - House Of Nine; 02:30 Basic; 04:00 - The Contract; 05:30 - Modigliani

The Morung Express presents a glimpse of colourful Chaga Gadi celebration at The Heritage, Old DC Bungalow, Kohima on October 31. The festival was marked by colourful dances, songs and Chaga feasts in the presence of T. R. Zeliang, minister for planning & coordination, evaluation, veterinary & animal husbandry and parliamentary affairs.

06:00 - Madhur Jaffrey’s Flavours of India; 06:30 - Dream Hotels; 07:00 - Food Paradise; 08:00 - Honeymoon Adventures; 08:30 - Getaway 2006; 09:00 - Chhattisgarh - The Tribal Planet; 09:30 - Feast India; 10:00 - Innertainment; 10:30 - Body And Soul; 11:00 - Amazing Vacation Homes; 11:30 - Superhomes 2; 12:00 - American Chopper; 13:00 - I Do, Let’s Eat!; 13:30 - Madhur Jaffrey’s Flavours of India; 14:00 - Finest Hotels In The World; 14:30 - Indian Rendezvous; 15:00 - Getaway 2006; 15:30 - Hotel By The Bay; 16:00 - Food Paradise; 17:00 - American Chopper; 18:00 - Ballroom Bootcamp; 19:00 - Cruiseline; 20:00 - Great Hotels Iii; 20:30 - Cocktail Kings; 21:00 - Jet Set; 22:00 - America The Wright Way; 23:00 - Hard Rock Treasures; 00:00 - Miami Ink 3; 01:00 - Jet Set; 02:00 Honeymoon Adventures; 02:30 - Getaway 2006; 03:00 - Made To Order 3; 03:30 - Kylie Kwong: My China; 04:00 - Innertainment; 04:30 - Body And Soul; 05:00 - Monster House

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SPORTS

Kotla test ends in tame draw

Indian batsman V.V.S. Laxman, right, drives a ball as Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, center, and his teammate Simon Katich look on, on the final day of the third test cricket match between India and Australia, in New Delhi, Sunday, November 2. (AP Photo)

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): The Indian team was looking to build a sustainable lead to set a challenging target for the Australians. The Indian batsmen were looking to

hold their ground and also attack at the same time so that the flow of runs doesn't slow down.

Rahul Dravid's run of bad form continued as he was dismissed early in the

day by Brett Lee. Dravid's vulnerability against the in swinging delievery was again the cause of his downfall as a fast in coming ball rattled his off stump and made India three down. The

new man in was Sachin Tendulkar. India were 71/3 with a lead of 107 runs.

The partnerhsip of Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir steadied the Indian ship to some extent

as both the batsmen played some aggressive cricket. But Gambhir started to go into a shell and payed the price as he was wrapped on the pads

by Johnson, but the ball was going down the leg side. In-

dia lost its fourth wicket. India were 94/4 with a lead of 130 runs.

After the loss of Gautam Gambhir, Tendulkar and VVS Laxman took the Indian innings forward. Both the batsmen, who love playing against Australia were looking very comfortable in the middle as they were scoring very easily and kept the score board moving. India were 132/4 with a lead of 168.

Sachin Tendulkar fell victim to a soft dismissal as he gave catching practice to Matthew Hayden at first slip from White's bowling.

India lost its fifth wicket.

Sourav Ganguly walked in for the last time at the Kotla.

India were 152/5 with a lead of 188. India were now just playing it easy as the match was headed for a draw. The Indian batsmen were scoring for fun as they tucked the ball for easy single. They were 193/5 with a lead of 229. In a shocking development, Indian skipper Anil Kumble announced his retirement from Test cricket after the Delhi Test.

India made the declaration with a lead of 244, setting Australia a target of 245 with 23 over still to play. It would very interesting to see if the Aussies go after the target or play it safe. The match had an emotional ending as Kumble announced his retirement and the match ending in a draw. The match which was dominated by the bat saw plenty of runs and few wickets. India lead the four match series 1-0 as they head to Nagpur for the final test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Saina clinches World Junior badminton title

Ferrari's Formula One driver Felipe Massa of Brazil, left, and McLaren-Mercedes' Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, of Britain, shake hands during the season end driver's photo prior to the start of the Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo, Sunday, November 2. The Brazilian GP is the last Formula One race in the 2008 season. (AP Photo)

PUNE, NOVEMBER 2 (PTI): Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal today became the first Indian to clinch the World Junior badminton Championship with a straight-game win in the finals here. Top seed Saina got the better of her ninth seeded Japanese rival Sayaka Sato 21-9 21-18 in a lopsided match that lasted just 25 minutes. "It is a great feeling to win it this time.

The last time in 2006, I had lost in the finals but I am happy that I clinched the title this time," Saina, who reached the quarterfinals of the Beijing Olympics, told PTI after the match.

"I never thought that I would play so well. The first game was easier but in the second game she was playing good smashed but I was successful in catch-

ing her on the nets. I played my back hands well and so overall I am satisfied with

my performance. It was an okay sort of a match. "However, I reckon my semifi-

nals match against Chinese Shixian Wang as the toughest in the tournament," she added.

With the Commonwealth youth gold and the World Junior badminton title in her kitty, the world number 11 has now set her eyes on China and Hong Kong Open later this month. "I am next playing China Open and Hong Kong open this month and I am confident of doing well there as well," the national champion said. National coach Pullela Gopichand said Saina played like a champion all through the tournament. "She played like a champion. It is good to see her wining convincingly through out the tournament. She has really done well, hats off to her," Gopichand said.

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Stanford Superstars thrash England to win $20 million

Sir Allen Stanford, right, and captain Chris Gayle of the Stanford Superstars celebrate with the match trophy after beating England in the Stanford Super Series match at Stanford Cricket Ground at Coolidge, Antigua, on Saturday November 1. (AP Photo)

ST. JOHN'S, NOVEMBER 2 (AGENCIES): The West Indies-based Stanford Superstars became instant millionaires when they trounced England by 10 wickets in the richest - and probably shortest - cricket match on Saturday.

For a winner-takes-all US$20 million bankrolled by American billionaire Allen Stanford, the Superstars routed England for 99 off 19.5 overs, then easily topped that by flaying 101 without loss inside 13 overs.

Each of the victorious 11 Superstars - a West Indies all-star side - pocketed $1 million.

Fittingly, captain Chris Gayle ended the match in grand style by hoisting an Andrew Flintoff full toss over long-on to send his teammates racing onto the field to celebrate, and the crowd into a frenzy. England will go home with nothing, but know it has four more annual cracks at the cash after Stanford put up $100 million to fund his five-year Stanford Super Series. Watched by 10,000 at cozy Stanford Ground and an estimated 700 million via TV worldwide, England produced a woeful batting display of careless shots. Seizing the initiative given by their bowlers, and energized by the partisan crowd, Gayle and Andre Fletcher boldly attacked England. Gayle whacked 65 off 42 balls, and along with his barrage of five sixes, he hit five more boundaries.

Fletcher, who made his West Indies one-day debut this year against Australia and hit a 66-ball 90 on Thursday, added 32 off 31 balls, including five fours. The first over was inauspicious. Gayle almost ran out Fletcher off the first ball, and survived the third umpire's decision on a leg-before-wicket appeal. But Fletcher cut loose in the second over when

he spanked three consecutive boundaries off Test bowler Stuart Broad.

England's other quick, Steve Harmison, gave up 22 in the fifth over, including a pair of sixes by Gayle. After that, the Superstars were 49 without loss and it looked like they might not need half of their overs. Gayle also roughed up spinners Samit Patel and Graeme Swann, whom he belted for sixes over long-on as he reached his half-century off just 33 balls. Earlier, Superstars allrounder Darren Sammy, who was named man of the match, set the tone for the superb performance in the field by capturing 2-13, including bowling England captain and danger man Kevin Pietersen for seven. Before Sammy's intervention, pacer Jerome Taylor rocked England by removing openers Ian Bell and Matt Prior in the space of three balls in the fourth over.

Taylor forced Bell to drag a yorker onto his stumps on seven, and knocked back Prior's leg stump for 12 at 22-2. Owais Shah, on four, skied a pull shot off seamer Darren Sammy to deep midwicket at 29-3 in the sixth over, and two of the team's potential match-winners, Pietersen and Flintoff, could not stage a recovery. After Kieron Pollard outfoxed Flintoff for 8 with a slower ball which brushed his off stump, half the side was out for 51 in the 12th over. It took a top score of 23 from allrounder Patel, who was dropped on five, and Paul Collingwood's 10 to prop up the innings before left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn dismissed Collingwood, Swann for one and last man Steven Harmison for six to prevent England from hitting triple figures. Benn finished with 3-16, Sammy 2-13, Taylor 2-24 and Pollard 2-26.

India captain Kumble retires from Tests NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 2 (AFP): Indian skipper Anil Kumble announced Sunday he was retiring from Test cricket with immediate effect, bringing down the curtain on a glorious international career. "The decision to retire was very tough," Kumble, 38, said at a presentation ceremony after the third Test against Australia ended in a draw.

"When you have played the game for 18 years and so competitively at that, it does become difficult."

The ace leg-spinner said the finger injury that he sustained on the third day of the Test helped him make up his mind. "This injury helped me take this decision. I had already made the decision Saturday. I knew I would not be 100 percent fit for the fourth Test in Nagpur and I did not want to let the team down." Kumble, who finished with 619 wickets from 132 Tests and had already given up one-day cricket, thanked his teammates and family for their support. "I shared the dressing room

with some of the great players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Venkatsai Laxman besides the younger lot like Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan.

"It has been a great experience and a great journey."

The Indian stalwart, given a lap of honour by his teammates, said it would have been a fitting farewell had his side won the third Test. "Delhi has been very special to me. I thought it would be fitting if we won the game and the series here.

Ideally I would have liked to bow out with a win. "But I am confident of sealing the series in Nagpur."

Kumble is India's most successful bowler ever. He trails only Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and Australia's retired Shane Warne in the list of the world's highest wickettakers. He picked 337 wickets from 271 one-day internationals before quitting the shorter version of the game last year. Kumble bowled in the first innings here despite

11 stitches on his finger, reminding critics calling for his retirement of his resilience and value to the team.

Australian captain Ricky Ponting hailed the India skipper. "On behalf of the Australian team, I would like to congratulate Kumble for his outstanding career.

He is a great competitor and one of the greats of the game." Kumble, who missed his side's 320-run victory in the second Test in Mohali with a shoulder injury, also bowled with a broken jaw against the West Indies in the Antigua Test in 2002.

His announcement came at a venue where he claimed all 10 wickets in an innings, the only bowler to have attained this feat after England's Jim Laker. He smiled and waved to the crowd from the dressing room while receiving handshakes from his teammates.

He was also given a guard of honour by his teammates when he came out to bowl during Australia's second innings. India lead the fourTest series 1-0.

C Indian cricket team captain Anil Kumble, center, walks down to cricket field for the last time after he announced his retirement from cricket on the final day of the third test cricket match M between India and Australia, in New Delhi, Sunday, November 2. (AP Photo) Y Published, Printed and Edited by Aküm Longchari on behalf of Morung for Indigenous Affairs and JustPeace from House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur at Themba Printers and Telecommunications, Padum Pukhuri Village, Dimapur, Nagaland.

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