13 Jan 2022

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXXII No. 37

DIMAPUR, THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022 Pages 12 ` 5.00

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INTERNATIONAL, PAGE 9

NSDMA issues weather alert

DIMAPUR, JAN 12 (NPN): Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority (NSDMA), home department has informed that scattered light to moderate rain with few intense spells were expected to occur over many parts of Nagaland between January 12 and 13, 2022.

In a press release, NSDMA joint chief executive officer Johnny Ruangmei stated that remnants of western disturbance and humid winds from Bay of Bengal would initiate the weather activities over Northeast region.

NSDMA said that initially rain could cover northern parts of the state such as Wokha, Longleng, Mon, Tuensang, Mokokchung and Zunheboto. However, gradually southern parts of the state would also come under rain activities, NSDMA said, adding that rain activities could be accompanied by thunderstorm and lightning strikes.

It informed that weather would start clearing up from January 14, 2022, but there could be light isolated rains to continue over Southern districts such as Phek, Kohima Dimapur, Kiphire and Peren. Due to rain activities and cloud cover, NSDMA said minimum temperature of the state could increase by 2-3 degree and day temperatures could drop marginally.

It therefore, urged the public to exercise caution to avoid any eventualities during this period.

Gov, CM, Dy.CM extend Poang Lüm greetings

DIMAPUR, JAN 12 (NPN): Nagaland governor Prof. Jagdish Mukhi, chief minister Neiphiu Rio and deputy chief minister Y.Patton have extended greetings to the members of Chang community on the occasion of Pong Lüm.

In his message, Prof.

Mukhi said Pong Lüm festival, which advocates unity, friendship and good trade relations, aims to pass down the rich culture and beautiful traditions to the younger generation.

Extending warm greetings to the Chang community, the chief minister prayed that the Almighty bless the community members with prosperity, peace and unity.

He also wished all a blessed year.

Patton said that the festival is celebrated at the beginning of a new year with the purpose of having a blessed year ahead.

He expressed hope that festival was celebrated with grandeur.

This is it!

“Due to Covid, we have been forced to adapt. We now track crimes virtually.”

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Oting probe report in a day or two: Army chief Appropriate and corrective action will be taken based on the outcome of the probe - Gen. MM Naravane -

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): Army Chief Gen. MM Naravane on Wednesday described as “highly regrettable” the December 4 firing incident in Nagaland’s Mon district in which 14 civilians were killed and said “appropriate action”, as required to uphold the law of the land, would be taken based on the investigation.

Addressing a press conference ahead of the Army Day, Gen Naravane said the Army’s Court of Inquiry ordered into the incident is expected to submit its findings in a day or two.

He said the Army has standard operating procedures (SOPs) that encapsulate its operational experience and “appropriate action” will be taken and corrective measures instituted to further refine the SOPs based on the outcome of the investigation.

In a botched counterinsurgency operation at Oting village in Mon district, 14 civilians were killed on December 4, triggering massive public outcry as also demands to lift the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from the state. The Act empowers security forces, deployed in “disturbed areas”, to conduct operations and arrest anyone without a prior warrant. It also gives immunity to the forces if they shoot someone dead.

“The incident which happened in Oting in Nagaland is highly regrettable.

In the aftermath of the inci-

dent, the Eastern Command was quick in ordering an inquiry. It is headed by a Major General. That inquiry is in its final stages and the findings would be submitted in a day or two,” Gen Naravane said.

Apart from the Court of Inquiry by the Army, the state government appointed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the incident.

“The regrettable incident of December 4 during operations in Nagaland is being thoroughly investigated. We remain committed to the security of our countrymen, even in the conduct of operations,” Gen Naravane said.

The Chief of Army Staff said the force has been cooperating fully with the SIT and both the probe teams are taking the statements from a cross-section of people that will help in having a greater understanding of what has happened.

“Based on the findings of the inquiry, appropriate action will be taken. I would like to clarify that the law of the land is paramount and we will always uphold that and take action as required in upholding the law of the land,” Gen Naravane said.

Gen Naravane said the overall security situation in the North Eastern region remained under control, noting that a robust security posture has significantly curtailed the operational space for terrorists.

Referring to insurgents

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ambushing an Assam Rifles convoy in Churachandpur district of Manipur in November killing a Commanding Officer, he said one incident is not reflective of the overall situation in the North-Eastern region.

“We have taken whatever action is required to deal with that. The bottom line is that the situation in Northeast has improved manifold,” he said.

The Army Chief said there has been a graduated de-induction of Army units from areas where the security situation has improved.

“On the Indo-Myanmar Border, being an important facet of our security calculus, the due impetus to border guarding is being given by the Assam Rifles,” the Army Chief said.

“We intend to progressively increase, the number of Assam Rifles Battalions deployed for border guarding in times to come,” the Army Chief said. Gen Naravane said that as a result of the improvement in the security situation, a number of Army formations involved in counter-insurgency operations, especially in Manipur and Assam, were disengaged from that role.

“Now as they have been disengaged from their CICT (counter-insurgency and counter-terrorists) role, they are now able to totally focus on their primary task, that is the conventional role,” Gen Naravane said.

He said that almost two divisions were relieved from CICT roles, noting that it just goes to show how much the security situation has improved in the region.

“From wherever they have been moved out, the Assam Rifles have taken over the role in these areas,” he said.

SPORTS, PAGE 12

Repealing AFSPA to take time, says Rio Correspondent

KO H I M A , JA N 1 2 (NPN): State chief minister, Neiphiu Rio, said that repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958 (AFSPA) was a process that require time since it was an act of parliament and any decision would have to weigh the consequences over the entire country in general.

The chief minister said this while interacting with media persons on the sidelines of an event at Peducha near here on Wednesday.

Rio reiterated that the Centre has set up a committee to look into repeal of AFSPA in Nagaland and make recommendations on

the Act basing on which it will be lifted from areas identified by the committee.

With regard to AFSPA, Rio said that in the meantime, a system has been put into place under which there would be no army operations even though AFSPA was in place.

On NLA resolution for repeal of AFSPA and CSOs and public making similar demand through a memorandum, the chief minister said the demand was very clear on the issue which the cabinet had also resolved for repeal of the Act from Nagaland.

However, he said since AFSPA was enacted by Parliament, repeal of the Act would have to consider

the fallout over the entire country.

To a query on whether the State government will make the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report public as demanded by Eastern Nagaland Peoples’ Organization (ENPO), the chief minister said he would have to enquire whether there were provisions for such reports to be made public.

Further he said the government will have to explain to ENPO about various norms that were to be followed in such cases besides inclusion of the report from the Army (CoI) expected to be submitted soon.

On the status of the SIT, Rio said everything

State reports massive spike with 199 new Covid cases DIMAPUR, JAN 12 (NPN): Nagaland on Wednesday reported an alarming spike in Covid-19 cases as 199 people had tested positive across the state. The state’s sample positivity rate (SPR) also shot up to 15.58%, a jump by over 11% from Tuesday’s SPR of 3.67%.

According to Health department’s daily Covid bulletin, Dimapur witnessed a massive spurt with 187 fresh Covid cases, 10 in Kohima and two in Mokokchung, taking the total caseload to 32530. The death toll remained unchanged at 703 (including 16 non-Covid deaths).

Samples to be sent for genome sequencing: Taking note of the sudden spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the state, the health department will be sending swab samples of those infected for genome sequencing.

A senior health official informed Nagaland Post that the department has been collecting swab samples to be sent for genome sequencing. As of now, the department cannot say exactly how many samples would be sent for genome sequencing, the doctor said.

Omicron, fuelling the third

wave of the pandemic in India, can be identified only through genome sequencing. However, the results take anywhere between five and 10 days after samples are submitted.

According to News18 report, epidemiologist and public health research specialist Dr Sunil Kumar explained about the process of genome sequencing. “Firstly, it’s the number of samples that reach labs.

Highly equipped labs capable of carrying out a genome sequencing will need at least 300 samples to begin the process. The cost per chip used in the process is Rs 2.5 lakh. If you are testing 10 samples or 300, the expense is the same. Hence, sequencing is not done until at least 100 to 300 samples are chosen.”

“Covid swab samples that have a CT (cycle threshold) below 25 qualify for genome sequencing. Hence, every sample can’t be tested in this method. Many a times, samples aren’t stored appropriately, which further pushes them towards disqualification. Samples with lower CT is always more. In between, there is also a shortage of sequencing kits globally that hamper the speed,” he said.

had been completed except the forensic laboratory reports which were yet to be submitted since the test was done in another state.

On ENSF demanding Rs 1 crore each for the victims' families and Rs 50 lakh each for the injured, Rio said he had communicated the issue with Ministry of Home Affairs and was waiting for the response.

On the issue of cabinet deciding to engage with a third party to look into demand to create Shamator as a district, Rio said a consultation would be held on Thursday before engaging with the third party after which necessary actions would follow.

India: 1.94 lakh Covid cases in last 24 hours NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): India added 1,94,720 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 3,60,70,510 which includes 4,868 cases of the Omicron variant, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.

The active cases have increased to 9,55,319, the highest in 211 days, while the death toll has climbed to 4,84,655 with 442 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

Of the total 4,868 cases of the Omicron variant, 1,805 people have recovered or migrated so far.

Maharashtra recorded the maximum number of 1,281 cases followed

by Rajasthan at 645,Delhi 546, Karnataka 479 and Kerala 350.

The active cases comprise 2.65 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate decreased to 96.01 per cent, the ministry said.

A total 2,11,298 coronavirus infections were reported in a single day on May 26.

An increase of 1,33,873 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 11.05 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 9.82 per cent, according to the ministry.

Don’t treat Omicron as common cold: Centre State govt, CSOs working for lasting peace: CM NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): As many as 300 districts in India are reporting weekly Covid case positivity of more than five per cent, the Centre said on Wednesday as it warned against treating the infection due to the Omicron variant as common cold and urged people to get vaccinated.

At a press conference, Joint Secretary in the Union Health Ministry Lav Agarwal said Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Gujarat are emerging as states of concern due to the rise in Covid cases there.

A sharp rise in CO-

VID-19 infections has been noted in India with the case positivity climbing to 11.05% on Wednesday from 1.1% on December 30, he said.

About the spread of the disease, Agarwal said the number of districts reporting over five per cent weekly case positivity has increased from 78 in the week ending on January 4 to 300 in the week ending on Jan 11.

Concurrently, Covid cases have been rising globally with January 10 recording the highest ever singleday rise of 31.59 lakh cases worldwide, Agarwal noted.

NITI Aayog Member (Health) V K Paul said the pandemic has again become

intense, this time powered by the Omicron variant “which is rapidly replacing or has already replaced” Delta as the dominant form.

“Omicron is not the common cold and we cannot take it lightly just because it is causing mild infections. This variant has led to the collapse of the health system of some countries.

Health workers at some places had to take leave leading to increased pressure.”

Stressing that vaccination is an important pillar in the Covid response programme, Dr Paul said, “We need to be vigilant, get vaccinated and follow Covidappropriate behaviour.”

Correspondent

KOHIMA, JAN 12 (NPN): State chief minister Neiphiu Rio on Wednesday said that the State government and all civil society organisations (CSOs) were working together to bring lasting peace in the State.

Speaking as a special guest at the 50th anniversary of Western Angami ‘D’ Sports Association (WADSA) meet at Kiruphema Ground, Peducha, the chief minister regretted that due to absence of lasting peace, there was an environment of insecurity in the State that was adversely affecting all activities in the society,

Rio along with others after unveiling the monolith. (NP)

including games and sports.

Amidst all these, he observed that the Covid-19 pandemic also became another issue for the people, even as he urged everyone

to get vaccinated in order to stay healthy which, he added, was of paramount importance.

He appealed to the people to follow all Covid-

related safety protocols and directives issued by the Central and the State governments.

Rio remarked that people who had not been affected by the virus might not take it seriously, but he cautioned that the disease was a big threat to everyone.

When the world was yet to fully overcome the virus, he noted that the new variant “Omicron” has started spreading again, creating panic and fear among the people. With restrictions and curfew being reimposed, he urged everyone to be more cautious.

(Cont’d on p-8)

UDA should fulfil genuine aspirations of Yimkhiungs: RPP Ensure adequate buffer stock of DIMAPUR, JAN 12 (NPN): Rising People’s Party (RPP) Wednesday demanded that United Democratic Alliance (UDA) government should, without delay, fulfil the genuine aspiration of the Yimkhiung people for a district of their own.

RPP president Joel Naga and general secretary Amai Chingkhu pointed out that all districts in Nagaland were created along tribal lines. They said “Whether desirable or not” it was a fact and the same criteria under which the “Yimkhiungs are demanding one as well.”

While asserting that Yimkhiungs have “historical precedence” on their side, the RPP slammed the “delay tactics” of the UDA coalition in announcing the formation of a district for Yimkhiungs which it said “does not make any sense at all.” The party warned that UDA was only contributing to vitiating the peaceful atmosphere in the state.

‘UDA should create more districts’: RPP further said as per its own reasoning, the UDA, ought to immediately create four more districts- Aboi, Tobu, Mangkolemba and Bhandari - otherwise,

it would be “illogical and discriminatory” and for which NDPP, BJP and NPF coalition would “further lose all shred of credibility.”

RPP said Niuland district was created based on the premise that it was necessary to better manage state’s border with Assam. On the same logic, RPP said UDA should immediately announce creation of Bhandari district in Wokha and Mangkolemba district in Mokokchung, which were also contiguous with the same disputed area belt (DAB) with Assam.

Further, RPP said that if Chümoukedima district was

created on grounds of administrative convenience and developmental issue, Aboi and Tobu sub-divisions have greater claim as districts than Chümoukedima.

RPP claimed that since statehood in 1963, no central projects were implemented or were implementable in Aboi and Tobu sub-divisions because of the great distance from Mon district headquarters. “Going by the coalition’s own reasoning, the demand for creation of new districts by bifurcating Mon, Mokokchung, and Wokha is justifiable and apt,” RPP asserted.

medical oxygen: Centre to states

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (AGENCIES): Noting the "significant surge" in COVID-19 cases in the country, the Centre on Wednesday wrote to all states and UTs urging them to direct departments concerned to ensure adequate buffer stock of medical oxygen for at least 48 hours and reinvigorate oxygen control rooms.

The Union Health Ministry said the emerging scenario calls for immediate measures by states and UTs to ensure optimal

availability of medical oxygen at all health facilities.

In a letter to states and UTs, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that private health facilities providing oxygen therapy services may be assessed and their medical oxygen infrastructure capacities need to be explored.

A possible strategy and mechanism to leverage the private sector in times of peak of demand can be explored, he advised.

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2

State education system facing challenges: Sukhalu

STATE

CMO Mokokchung conducts training for MOs, HCWs

DIMAPUR: A training on omicron preparedness, Covid -19 vaccination/IPPI/ IMI and RI Microplan was organised for Medical Officers (Mos) and Health Care Workers (HCWs) of Mokokchung district Wednesday at the Conference Hall of Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Mokokchung.

A press release by the department stated that at the training, deputy CMO Mokokchung, Dr. Aonungdok Tushi gave a power point presentation on key strategies of Covid -19 (omicron wave) wherein she reiterated that the state was in the third year of Covid and in the mid of impending third wave one should not be Advisor School Education, K.T. Sukhalu speaking at theSAKK 47th Biennial complacent.

Conference at Tukuliqa village on Wednesday. (DIPR) He said that there was D I M A P U R : A dv i s o r, with 19,079 teachers and ment of education system School Education, K.T total enrolment of 1,66,091 and community driven acSukhalu admitted that Na- students. countability mechanisms. galand education system To bring about the Addressing the was facing several chal- improvement in the man- youths, Sukhalu also urged lenges as reflected in the agement, improvement in them to change their mind- D I M A P U R : N S C N / decline of its student learn- teaching and learning in set if they want to move GPRN (Akato) has coning outcome measured target schools and improve forward. He said develop- veyed warm greeting to the

by National Achievement the pass rate for target ment was necessary but the Chang Nagas on the joyous Survey (NAS). schools in higher classes, most important thing in life occasion of the Poang Lum According to DIPR the advisor said the depart- was to be wise and follow festival. report, Sukhalu was speak- ment with the assistance the dreams according to In a message, NSCN/ ing at the inaugural pro- of World Bank has come one’s liking and interest.

GPRN (Akato) MIP said gramme of the three-day up with the Nagaland EnHe then advised the Poang Lum festival, a post47th biennial conference of hancing Classroom Teach- youths to have a purpose harvest festival, is a preSumi Aphuyemi Kiphimi ing and Resource (NEC- in life and to be sincere in miere festival of the Chang Kuqhakulu (SAKK) held TAR) project. their work and not lose Nagas which marks the celunder the theme, “Let us He said the project their tracks. “Work with ebration of self-sufficiency. reason together” at Tuku- was expected to pilot sev- honesty, integrity and reAs the people usher liqa Village, Wednesday. eral innovations in teacher sponsibility and bring a into the new era, NSCN As per government of management, community- change in our society,” (Akato) hoped that the India Unified District In- accountability and improve urged Sukhalu. festival would bring about formation System for Edu- classroom transactions.

At the programme, good tidings and prospercation (UDISE), Sukhalu Sukhalu said the proj- special song was presented ity to Chang Nagas so that said the total number of ect would develop and im- by Jennifer Wotsa while they may continue to be the government schools from plement innovative models cultural dance was per- frontrunner in every aspect primary to higher second- for technology integration, formed by Ghokimi Cul- and to be an inspiration to ary as per 2021 was 1953 decentralized manage- tural troupe. other Nagas.

NSCN (Akato) greets Changs

Edu deptt. issues directives & advisories this office Notification No.ED/AEI-8/2019 Dated, December 15, 2021.

3. Conduct of normal classes (Offline mode) for students studying up to Class VIII stand suspended/closed till January31, 2022.

4. Schools may resume conduct of Online Classes for students of Classes I to VIII/IX. 5. Conduct of normal classes (Offline mode) for students of Classes IX to XII is permitted subjected to the following condition; Any student of Class IX and above whose age is 15 and above shall be allowed to attend normal/ offline classes only if he/ she has taken at least one dose of vaccine against Covid -19.

6. H e a d s o f a l l High & Higher Secondary Schools under State Board ( Both Govt. & Private) should submit the number of students enrolled in their schools in the Age

Group of 15 – 18 at the Activity Tab provided at the School Monitoring Portal https://school. dosenl.in/ on or before 14/01/2022 without fail.

7. H e a d s o f a l l Schools under CBSE & ICSE Boards (Both Govt. & Private) should submit the number of students enrolled in their schools in the Age Group of 15 – 18 through email to director. se.nagaland@gmail.com on or before January 14, 2022 without fail.

Notification regarding organizing of Special Vaccination Drive for students in the age group 15 -18 will be issued after ascertaining the number of students enrolled in the Age Group of 15 – 18.

The traning in progress.

an increase in Covid cases in few districts of Nagaland in the last few days and warned that by the time omicron was detected, “it would have spread like wildfire”.

“The only way to stay safe from Covid is to follow appropriate behaviours and

to get vaccinated,” said Dr, Tushi. DPO CD-I Dr. Tiasunep encouraged the trainees to focus on vulnerable groups like 60 years above and people with co-morbid conditions. He stressed on the importance of testing Covid for one’s safety, for

DIMAPUR: Mokokchung College of Teacher Education (MCTE) organised one day Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme under the theme, “Re-committing to institutional growth with renewed strength” on Wednesday at Mangkolong Tea Park.

A press release by MCTE stated that the programme was conducted in two sessions, the first part for the teaching faculty and the second part for the non-teaching staff.

Addressing the teaching faculty and nonteaching as the resource person, chief veterinary officer, Dr. B.M. Sunep said “work is worship and

Resource person and members of MCTE.

a calling” and encour- spiritual life of a teacher. derstand their real purpose aged the teaching faculty Dr.Sunep also asked the and to work hard sincerely to be effective teachers non-teaching staff to un- and honestly. and great influencers. He also emphasized on the st

As we mourn the loss of a God-loving, fearing man, a father to many who has fought all the good fights during his entire blessed 91 years of life Lt. Achusangba Longchar; we, the bereaved families express our deepest gratitude to all the organizations and each individuals for your support physically, morally and financially during our difficult times. We cannot thank you enough but it is our humble prayer that may God bless you all.

“Dear father, we shall forever remember your greatness and keep you close in our hearts.”

Loving families.

1 DEATH ANNIVERSARY

Late Atho Felicita Vitsu

07/09/1931 – 04/01/2022

13/01/2021 Time flies fast. Life goes on at its own pace. But some memories can never be forgotten or erased from the mind of the dearest ones. You will always remain in our thoughts. You have always kept the family tied with love, care and affection.

We pray to Almighty that He gives you eternal peace in return.

Your place is in heaven. k-74/22

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Born : 15.03.1979 – Died : 05.12.2021 We, the family members of Late Kuolazotuo (Akola) Sekhose, express our sincere gratitude to all individuals families, friends and well wishers who had supported us physically, spiritually and financially during his brief illness and sudden demise on 05.12.2021.

We sincerely pray that our Lord Almighty shower His abundant blessings upon each and everyone of you.

Loving Wife, Son & Family Members k-78/22

school children and also for school drop outs to open a session at their respective health units.

While speaking on the immunization coverage of the district, Dr.Saku requested the health workers to track the drop outs and include them during the upcoming IMI which was to be conducted in the coming three months i.e., February to April 2022. She also informed that the next IPPI (0-5 years) will be held on January 23 and encouraged all health workers to give the polio drops without missing even a single child. The training was attended by senior medical officers, medical officers, DPM, DCM, BPMs, ASHA co-ordinators and IEC personnel.

MCTE organises CPD programme in Mokokchung

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

dp-176/22

referral and for monitoring.

He called upon the trainees to be more vigilant since delta was still prevalent with the impending omicron wave in the district.

DPO Dr.Ayangla Saku gave a power point presentation on the vaccination of 15-18 years and precautionary dose to HCWs, FLWs and above 60 years with co-morbid conditions.

She said, Mokokchung district has also started the vaccination of first dose for 15-18 years and precautionary dose from January 10 at District Hospital and UPHC and that the vaccines would also be available at the PHCs and CHCs within this week.

Dr.Saku also emphasized on preparing of microplan for vaccination of

Loving Children, Grandchildren and Family Members

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

dp-172/22

DIMAPUR: Principal director School Education, Shanavas has informed all concerned to strictly comply with the directives and advisories issued by the government.

According to DIPR report, following are the directives/advisories” 1. The safety of Covid vaccine on children of age 15 and above has been certified by the competent authority and Covid vaccination drive for children in the age group 15 – 18 has already commenced in many States.

All parents are advised to get their children in the age group 15 – 18 voluntarily vaccinated for Covid -19 at the nearest Government Covid -19 Vaccination Centres free of cost as per the schedule notified by the Department of Health & Family Welfare.

2. Admission for students of Classes I and above shall be done as per the schedule notified vide

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

OBITUARY

1st DEATH ANNIVERSARY Lt. TEKALEPDEN (KHAR)

"Those we love don’t go away; they walk beside us every day.

Unseen, unheard, but always near; still loved, still missed and very dear."

|] 15.11.1926 – 07.01.2022 ]|

1 Timothy 6:12

“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

KUHOZHE ACHUMI

20/02/1978 – 13/01/2021 A year has passed since you left us, yet your memories still lives on.

You are dearly remembered and deeply missed. dc-28/22

K Y M C

dp-150/22

~Loving wife & family members

1960 – 2021 THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND EXPRESSION OF SYMPATHY AND THOUGHTFULNESS. IT IS DEEPLY APPRECIATED AND WILL ALWAYS BE REMEMBERED. HE WILL BE REMEMBERED BY HIS WIFE AND SONS, DAUGHTER IN LAW, SIBLINGS AS WELL AS OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS. db-27/22

The one whom our Lord God loved, accommodating unwavering adept Sentinükshi Imsong (Ex. Pastor Molungyimsen); in completion of the Lord’s assignment in keeping the faith and having fought the good fight as he proceeds back to the Lord’s home to eternal rest.

We the bereaved family would like to thank every individual, families and organizations for your prayers, aid and presence in health as well as during his brief illness.

Even though we are not able to thank you in person, it is our only wish and prayers that may your good deeds in the Lord go not in vain and God’s blessing be yours.

DP-178/22

Loving children, grandchildren and in-laws K Y M C

nagalandpost.com Poll Q.: Will opposition parties be able to forge an alliance for 5 state elections 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

A B C

Zapami Village holds Women’s Day Indigenous games mark Poanglum

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A

B

Yes. No. Can’t Say.

C

47% 50% 3%

NEXT POLL

Q: I s t h e s t a t e g o v t

taking steps to meet likely third wave from Omicron?  Yes.  No.  Can’t Say.

WEATHER FORECAST JANUARY 13

(Temperature in ºC)

Max Min

Agartala Partly sunny

26 16

Aizawl

21 10

Partly sunny

Guwahati Hazy sun

23 12

Imphal

Partly sunny and pleasant

22 10

Itanagar

A brief shower of two

16 10

Shillong

Partly sunny

15

Kohima

A.M. showers; variable clouds 14 6

Dimapur

A p.m. t-storm n spots

Mkg

A stray morning thundershower 16 9

Tuensang Colder; a morning shower Wokha

A morning shower

Zunheboto A morning shower or two

5

20 11 10

3

14 10 13

6

Zapami women during a cultural show on Wednesday. (NP)

Correspondent KO H I M A , JA N 1 2 (NPN): Zapami village under Phek district, celebrated Women’s Day on Wednesday with various activities planned during the two-day event.

On January 11, the village held its cultural day while the second day which was Women’s Day was observed with a theme titled, “Thebvo Nah” which trans-

lates as Thebvo Weaves.

Speaking as the special guest at the event, deputy commissioner (DC) Phek, Razouvolie Dozo said the womenfolk were the keepers and guardians of tradition since everything starts from home. He commended the village for putting an array of cultural and traditional which would play a significant role in teaching the younger generation to learn and keep up

Kenye graces Khomi cultural day

KG Kenye on arrival at the 5th Cultural Day of Middle Khomi on January 12.

DIMAPUR: Middle Khomi Village under Phek district on Wednesday observed its 5th Cultural Day with Kewezii.G. Kenye, MP Rajya Sabha as the special guest.

Speaking on the occasion, Kenye lauded the pioneers and villager elders for their farsightedness and

comprehensive planning, thereby registering a significant growth in the different fields. He asked the villagers to continue to uphold and practice the rich culture and traditional practices, which represents the identity and uniqueness of the Nagas.

Stressing on the need to have unity and peace for

all round development, he urged upon the villagers to be peacemaker and ambassador of peace.

Highlights of the event included, traditional songs and dances.

The programme was chaired by Vekhotso Lohe while vote of thanks was proposed by Vediisii Lohe.

the practices for posterity.

Expressing his concern over drop in customary practices and traditions, Dozo pointed out the need for collective effort to revive and preserve them for the future generations.

He expressed his appreciation to the village for reviving the age old practices and urged them to carry it forward.

Meanwhile, Dozo urged the village leaders to

Peren DPDB meeting held DIMAPUR: The monthly meeting of Peren District Planning and Development Board (DPDB) was held on January 12 under the chairmanship of DC Peren and DPDB vicechairman, Sentiwapang Aier. Reviewing the last meeting minutes, the DC requested the concerned departments which have not submitted the required data for SDG to do the needful at the earliest.

In view of the Republic Day celebration programme, the house decided to conduct a mass social work on January 24.

In the meeting, Dy. CMO Peren, Dr. Lanuakum and DPO UIP/RCH Peren, Dr. Kiholi Assumi gave a brief report on the status of Covid -19 and vaccination coverage in the district.

be accountable with public accounts while also appreciating the village for their successful implementation of programs and schemes.

While pointing out the need to get vaccinated for Covid virus, Dozo called upon the gathering to follow all the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and directives of the state government for the safety of the village.

During the exhortation, Geology and Mining, retired director, SK Kenye, expressed his happiness that a fairly small village like Zapami was able to organise events like the Chakhesang Public Organization Conference and cultural day.

He credited the effort to the womenfolk saying they were the pillars and strength of the village.

He stressed on the need for women to encourage and build each other, both in words and deeds.

Earlier, special guest inaugurated the cultural display showcasing various demonstration such as Thebvo Doh and MenahSütsah

by Women Society, village; NedolehLü by Women Welfare Society, Pfutsero; Thohli Ketshü by Women Welfare Society Kohima.

DIMAPUR: Advisor, School Education, K.T. Sukhalu inaugurated the Ghathashi Town Rostrum at Ghathashi local ground on January 12.

According to DIPR report, Sukhalu congratulated the Ghathashi village people for the successful construction of Rostrum and also thanked MLA, Y. Vikheho Swu for his contribution. He requested each and every individual to be responsible in taking care of the rostrum as it belongs to them.

He also stressed on the need to improve infrastructure and literacy rate, and reduce drop outs in government schools, and expressed desire to help the government school in Ghathashi as and when the state government gets the required resources. Y. Vikheho Swu MLA appealed to the advisor to look into the Higher Secondary School upgradation in Ghathashi, as it was priority for the students. He also apprised the villagers to continue the legacy of clean village recipient

and best performing village council which they were awarded earlier.

He further requested the villagers to continue being honest and truthful and deliver through their actions.

ADC Pughoboto, ThungchanbemoTungoe highlighted the shortage of teachers at Ghathashi Government High school and the need of head master. He also pointed out the need for drinking water facility and toilet for government schools and requested the advisor to look

DIMAPUR: Ajei-AiWhatthat FPO, a Noklak based Farmer Producer Organisation became the first in the state to receive “Mobila Mart” supported

by NABARD in Nagaland.

The Mobile Mart was flagged off jointly by GM/ OIC, NABARD, Nagaland RO, Tiakala Ao and MD, Nagaland State Co-operative Bank Ltd, A. K. Deb. Handing the key of the Mobile Mart to Dr. Chingmak Chang, Secretary, Eleutheros Christian Society, the promoter of Ajei-Ai-Whatthat FPO, Tiakala congratulated the FPO members on the progress and on the aspects of having a strong business plan by working meticulously to achieve it.

She further advised the FPO to avail finance from Nagaland State Cooperative Bank for their

into the matter and address the problem faced by the students. He further expressed gratitude to Y. Vikheho Swu for taking personal initiatives for the overall development of Pughoboto sub-division.

Earlier, the program was chaired by vice chairman, Adhoc Town Council, Hekuto Yepthomi.

Welcome address was delivered by G.B, K.Yeshito Swu and the programme concluded with a vote of thanks by VDB secretary, Tokheho Achumi.

Noklak, Kohima DTFs prepare for Covid third wave

K Y M C

DC Noklak Hiazu Meru addressing the members of DTF on January 12. (IA Noklak)

decided to cover all eligible persons for Covid -19 vaccination and deliberated on vaccination to persons of 15-18 years of age in the district.

The house also decided to strictly enforce the order and SOPs issued by the home department in the district.

Kohima DTF: In the meeting held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioner Kohima, Gregory Thejawelie at DC’s Conference Hall Kohima, the DTF assessed on the

preparedness of the district and general discussion on the current situation for the third wave was taken up.

The DTF, with the past two wave experiences, has informed that the district was well prepared with the set up in NHAK, Covid Care Centres, Testing Centre and other medical centres for any eventualities.

The DTF also decided to take up activities for preventive measures in the district.

On the agenda of social health responsibility,

CMO Kohima, Dr. Vezokholu Theyo said that the omicron variant has very high transmissibility where patients with co-morbidities will be highly affected.

She, therefore, stressed on the importance of finding out the number of comorbidities among the community.

DIO Kohima Dr. Rupert Peseyie highlighted on the district Covid vaccination status including the rolled out vaccination for the age group of 15 - 18 years till date. He informed

Special guest Shami Angh and president of CKS Nungsanglemba Chang being escorted by Naga Happung (Go-Kart) to the venue on January 12. (IA Tuensang)

DIMAPUR: The second day of the ongoing Poanglum Mini Hornbill 2022 on Wednesday witnessed events on Indigenous games and Poanglum Fashion Show at parade ground Tuensang.

The special guest of the indigenous games celebration was president Phom Peoples’ Council, Shami Angh.

A DIPR report stated that the special guest was escorted by Frontier Royal Enfield En-Block (FREE).

FREE also took a ride in solidarity to the victims of Oting incident and for repeal of AFSPA from Nagaland.

Speaking on the occasion, Shami Angh said Tuensang has been known to the people since the time of Indian independence and Chang being an owner was like a mother to all the tribes of the Eastern Nagaland.

He appreciated the forefathers of Changs for guiding and leading them

to be who they are today.

In the Naga Happung (Go-Kart) competition, Thungti and Kusang of Saksi colony emerged as the winner; BesoYemjong and Langpong of Saksi colony and Namang and Lemba of Taknyu village finished in second and third positions respectively.

In the Log Drum beating Competition, the first position was bagged by C/KhelTuensang village and second position by P/ KhelTuensang Village.

NABARD hands over ‘Mobile Mart’ to FPO

Sukhalu inaugurates Ghathashi town rostrum

DIMAPUR: In view of the surge in Covid cases in several parts of the country, the District Task Forces (DTFs) of Noklak and Kohima held separate meetings on January 12 to review the preparedness of the districts.

The meeting of Noklak DTF held at the Conference Hall of Deputy Commissioner (DC) Noklak was chaired by DC Noklak, Hiazu Meru, who is also the chairman of Noklak DTF. According to DIPR report, at the meeting Hiazu said that Covid-19 control room and all Covid-19 related arrangements have been reactivated in the district.

He said this was done due to the rapid surge in Covid-19 cases in the country and with the detection of the variant of concern, omicron and indicating the arrival of the third wave of Covid-19.

Meanwhile, the house

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

that special sessions on request for schools and colleges were also to be taken up. Precautionary dose or boaster dose for the frontline/health care workers and 60+ with co-morbidities who have completed nine months or 39 weeks after taking the second dose will also be taken up in due course of time.

Survilence Medical Officer, WHO, Dr. Shiela Lkr also shared on the Intensified Pulse Polio Immunization (IPPI) with its goal to achieve maximum coverage of routine immunization on booth day (January 23) with 80% coverage and two days of house to house visit.

She also informed on mission Indradhanush programme for three months starting from February 7, March 7 and April 4, 2022 to ensure the increase of immunization coverage in the district.

Tiakala Ao and A. K. Deb flagging off the ‘Mobile Mart’.

working capital requirements.

MD, NStCB assured of arranging the working Capital Loan to FPO and praised the initiative of NABARD in form of the

mobile Mart.

D r. C h i n g m a k thanked NABARD for the support and gave a brief detail about the initiatives of the FPO in the district.

The project is expect-

ed to directly benefit the 380 shareholders of the FPO, who are engaged in aggregation and marketing of agricultural and horticultural produce in Noklak district.

Sub-divisions hold co-ordination meeting for R-Day celebration

(L-R) ADC Chozuba addressing the meeting. The meeting in progress at ADC office Medziphema on Wednesday. (DIPR)

DIMAPUR: Medziphema, Chozuba and Bhandari sub-divisions held departmental co-ordination meeting on Wednesday at respective sub-divisions.

Medziphema: Medziphema sub-division departmental co-ordination meeting was held at Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Office Medziphema.

At the meeting, SDO (Civil) Tokai V Sumi entrusted various work assignments to departments for the Republic Day celebration.

Imsongmeren also reminded the Heads of Offices in delivering their duties sincerely and coordinate for the successful celebration of the Republic Day. Chozuba: Chozuba sub- division co-ordina-

tion meeting was held at Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) office Chozuba with ADC Theodore Yanthan as the chairperson.

The meeting deliberated on the upcoming 73rd Republic Day programme and new Covid-19 restrictions and SOPs issued by the government.

Bhandari: Bhandari sub-division held its departmental monthly coordination meeting at the conference hall of the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Bhandari.

The meeting, chaired

by SDO (Civil) Bhandari, Sulanthung Lotha, reviewed the activities of the Block Task Force (BTF) for Covid-19 and resolved to continuously render their service as

frontline workers.

Lotha called on the medical department to be prepared with all available resources to effectively face any situation which may arise due to the current resurge of Covid-19.

He reminded the officers and staff to continue to remain in the station on regular basis to render their services to the public.

The house also discussed and resolved to hold the departmental sports week and had set up a five-member committee with EAC Bhandari as the convenor to further carry out the necessary measures.

The house also chalked up plans for the upcoming Republic Day celebration and assignments were delegated to the departments.

K Y M C

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NORTHEAST

Blasts at houses of 2 Cong candidates in Mnp

Correspondent

IMPHAL, JAN 12: Bombs were triggered at two aspirant candidates of Congress party on Wednesday as pollrelated violence continue unabated in the poll-bound Manipur.

No casualty was reported in both the blasts in the twin capital districts of the state in the early hours of Wednesday. The aspirant candidate said the blasts were related to the ensuing polls.

According to police, miscreants attacked the residence of former Congress MLA Salam Joy at Naorem Chaprou under Wangoi police station of Imphal West district around 2 am on Wednesday. The bomb suspected to be a hand grenade damaged the main gate of the residence of the former MLA. The former MLA is currently campaigning to contest the ensuing poll from Wangoi AC against state agriculture minister O Lukhoi Singh.

The attack comes at a time when people of Samurou area of the con-

ZUF(J) cadre killed in Mnp

Correspondent

IMPHAL, JAN 12: An alleged cadre of a faction of the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) who was reportedly abducted, was killed by a group of gunmen suspected to be cadres of rival armed group in Manipur’s Noney district, reports said on Wednesday.

The slain cadre was identified as Pouluangai of Rengpang village of Noney district. He was a cadre of the ZUF(J) faction and shot dead at a place between Awangkhul and Warngkhung under Noney police station last night, around 8.30 pm. Police who retrieved the dead body Wednesday morning also recovered an empty case of the 9mm pistol near the dead body, reports said.

Police at the site of a bomb blast. stituency were agitating against the gunning down of two cousin brothers; an active worker of BJP and an IRB personnel , by miscreants on the night of January 9.

People of the area had blocked Mayai Lambi interdistrict road, demanding booking of the perpetrators of the crime.

On Wednesday too, a large number of people came onto the road and blocked traffic by burning debris and stretching poles, bamboos and logs at various places on the stretch of the road. The dead bodies of the duo were lying at

RIMS morgue after families backed by a joint action committee (JAC) formed by the locals refused to accept the bodies, while pressing the government to investigate into the assassination and book the perpetrators.

The residence of the former MLA where miscreants launched a bomb attack last night was only around two kilometer from Samurou where the two deceased hailed from.

The second explosion was at the residence of Khuraijam Ratankumar at Kangla Sangomshang under Lamlai police station, another candidate

contesting from Khurai AC in Imphal East district.

Ratankumar is contesting as a Congress nominee from the assembly constituency currently under BJP. The suspected IED exploded at the gate of the residence of Khuraijam Ratankumar at Kangla around 3 am.

The impact of the powerful blast damaged the main gate, window panes of the house and windshields of a vehicle parked at the front courtyard.

Meanwhile, bullets were also fired at the house of Ningthoujam Herojit at Keirao Bitra in Imphal East district after a group of people pelted stones towards the house late last night.

Family members attributed the gun attack with the ensuing poll while recalling a recent incident in which Herojit’s younger brother of the family destroyed a BJP flag hoisted in their house.

Police who inspected the house in the morning recovered some empty cases and stones which the miscreants used to attack

the house.

Last month, a group of supporters of a sitting BJP MLA had attacked the house after a video of destruction of the BJP flag by Herojit’s younger brother went viral in the social media.

Whereabouts of his younger brother Ningthoujam Yamba who left home following the threat from the workers and supporters of the sitting MLA remained untraceable till date.

Locals of the area staged a protest against the latest gun attack at the house and demanded booking of the culprits on Wednesday.

Poll-related violence has been occurring in different parts of Manipur well ahead of the announcement of the poll schedule, and in a series of violence incidents in Heirok of Thoubal district a student had lost his life.

As per a recent announcement of the ECI, the 60-seat Manipur Assembly will go to poll in two phases –on February 27 and March 3.

Kingpin of inter-state narcotic trade arrested in KA B O K A J A N, J A N 1 2 (AGENCIES): In a major breakthrough, the Karbi Anglong police have arrested a person who it claims to be the kingpin of an inter-state drug racket on Wednesday.

Police further seized a huge quantity of drugs from a tipper truck and some wildlife parts inside his residence.

The driver of the truck was also arrested in connection.

The seized items consists of 795 grams of fine quality heroin worth over 5 Crore in the black market, several wildlife parts and three vehicles, including the tipper truck belonging to the prime accused Baba Hazarika, a resident of Gharialdubi locality under Khatkhati Police Station. According to police, Hazarika operated basically along this part of

Police personnel with the items seized from Baba Hazarika.

Assam-Nagaland border and controlled a network of drug smuggling from procurement to transport and distribution at various levels. Hazarika amassed a huge fortune in the past couple of years and was under police observation since long. Speaking to the media, Pusparaj Singh,

Superintendent of Police, Karbi Anglong said, “ We received information about Baba Hazarika and he was kept under surveillance by a team of Karbi Anglong police since the last three months. His house was being monitored on a daily basis and his movements were tracked. Yesterday,

after receiving a specific information about the shipment of a huge consignment of drugs from Manipur to Hazarika, we place source near his house and about 4:30 am in the morning, a tipper truck entered his compound.

Immediately, our police team arrived and cordoned the entire campus of Hazarika. After thorough search of the vehicle, 60 soap boxes containing 795 grams heroin was recovered concealed in secret chamber inside the fuel tank of the vehicle.” “Meanwhile, the residence was also searched thoroughly and some wild life parts including a pair of elephant ankle bone,3 deer antlers along with skull and a tortoise shell were recovered.

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

Tokyo Olympics medalist Lovlina Borgohain appointed as DSP in Assam Police

Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist boxer Lovlina Borgohain being appointed to the rank of DSP in the Assam Police at Dispur in Guwahati, Wednesday. (PTI) GUWAHATI, JAN 12 (PTI): Olympic bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain was on Wednesday enlisted as a trainee deputy superintendent (DySP) in the Assam Police with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who joined the pipping ceremony, exuding confidence that she will get inducted into the Indian Police Service (IPS) cadre in due course.

An emotional Borgohain thanked the police department and affirmed that she will put in her best efforts to bring more glory to the state.

Speaking at the programme, Sarma said Borgohain winning bronze in boxing at last year’s Tokyo Olympics was perhaps one of the most glorious moments of the state’s sporting history.

Given the pugilist’s age, she should be able to secure a top position within Assam Police Service (APS) some day and subsequently make it to IPS cadre, Sarma maintained.

“We recommend the brightest APS officers for the IPS cadre. She will automatically qualify for it, provided she completes her graduation in the meantime,” Sarma stated.

The chief minister exhorted the 24-year-old to set a shining example of equal dedication to her other responsibilities as well.

Besides her monthly

25-yrs before US heart transplant with pig’s CM of Assam, M’laya to meet HM on border row organ, Assam doc experimented but failed Correspondent

GUWAHATI, JAN 12 (PTI): Global recognition for a medical experiment to use a pig’s heart as a transplant in a human body, now being claimed

by US surgeons could have been in an Assam doctor’s name, and that too 25 years ago, had he submitted his findings for a crucial peer review and sought requisite permissions before his path-breaking operation.

Dr Dhaniram Baruah, a man ‘ahead of his times’, had achieved the nearimpossible in 1997 when he had “successfully” transplanted a pig’s heart and other organs into a person.

However, his refusal to place his findings and procedures before scientific peer scrutiny cost him not only with lack of recognition but also an arrest after the patient in whom he fitted the pig’s heart died after seven days.

“Dr Baruah perhaps thought ahead of his times, but he had to play by the rules of the game. People’s lives are at stake and one has to go through the correct process (of peer review and seeking of permissions before actual transplant),” Dr A Goswami, a leading cardiac consultant surgeon here, said speaking to PTI. He underlined that research on critical surgeries involving the heart takes years and are constantly evolving.

A team from University of Maryland School of Medicine, near Washington DC on Monday said on Monday it had successfully transplanted a genetically modified pig heart into a 57-yer-old patient with

Dr Dhaniram Baruah

terminal illness.

“The US doctors who performed the procedure now have 25 years of more research to work on than Dr Baruah did,” Goswami pointed out.

“Also, medical facilities in 1997 in Assam were primitive compared to the US of today. The process of preparing the heart to be transplanted is a novel process and Dr Baruah perhaps did not have optimal resources at his disposal,” he added.

Dr Goswami stressed on the need for proper review and documentation for any such critical procedures to be undertaken on human beings, an aspect in which Dr Baruah’s research and work lacked and deprived him of any official recognition.

Baruah, an FRCS had transplanted the pig’s heart into a 32-year-old male patient who had a ventricular septal defect or hole in the heart in January 1997.

The surgery which took 15-hours to perform seemed successful.

However, the patient died of multiple infections seven days later, leading to accusation of insufficient research and lack of permission from authorities before taking up the

surgery. Dr Baruah and two others involved were arrested for violating the organ transplantation act.

Dr Raj Dutta, a consultant with Dispur Hospital here, said “research cannot be a stand-alone. It has to be corroborated. “ “Peer review is crucial to ensure that the findings are of optimal benefit, without risk of leading to any harmful side-effects.

Dr Baruah should have submitted his findings to review, which would have helped in knowing how much breakthrough he had actually achieved, ”Dr Dutta added.

A senior Guwahatibased journalist Mrinal Talukdar, who had covered the event and the brouhaha which arose when Dr Baruah had made his sensational claim of the successful transplant, said, “Our question as journalists was whether his findings were peer reviewed. I repeatedly asked him this and he simply evaded a response. “ “Our questions were more on the legal procedural part rather than the medical part, like did he have the permission for carrying out human body part transplantation,” he said.

Talukdar claimed that Dr Baruah did not have the requisite permission, even though the Transplantation of Human Organs Act was passed in the country in 1994.

Dr Baruah, lives in Sonapur on the medical campus where he performed the transplant operation, but has not been keeping well for some time.

SHILLONG, JAN 12: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma and his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday decided to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah before announcing a solution on six out of 12 areas of difference between the two neighbouring States.

The Chief Minister of both the States held their fourth round of talks in Assam State Guest House at Koinadhara to resolve the vexed boundary disputes by January 21, when Meghalaya celebrates its 50th Statehood Day. “More or less, we are almost completed to reach the agreement in those areas whichever we have already inspected.

Now, again both the Chief Ministers have

directed to bring out all the detailed reports and thereafter one more meeting will be held between the two Chief Ministers,” Meghalaya Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said.

“They will also meet Union Home Minister soon and hopefully before January 21. Once they come back the final agreement will be made public to both the states of Assam and Meghalaya,” he said.

The six areas of difference are Tarabari (4.69 sq km), Gizang (13.53 sq km), Hahim (3.51 sq km), Boklapara (1.57 sq km), Khanapara-Pilangkata (2.29 sq km) and Ratacherra (11.20 sq km). Tynsong said that both the Chief Ministers are determined to resolve this issue once and for all and this is for the interest of both the states – Meghalaya and Assam.

MULTI DISCIPLINARY TRAINING CENTRE NAGALAND KHADI VILLAGE INDUSTRIES BOARD KUDA VILLAGE (NAGARJAN) DIMAPUR

No. KVI/MDTC - ADV/57/ 21-22/

Dated Dimapur the 10th Jan. 2022

ADVERTISEMENT The MDTC (NKVIB) Dimapur is organising Normal Training Course for the year 2021-2022 under the following trades of : 1. Khadi Weaving 6 Months Stipendiary (Hostellers Rs. 3000/- Per month Outsiders Rs. 1200/-) 2. Foot wear 3 Months Stipendiary (Hostellers Rs. 3000/- Per month Outsiders Rs. 1200/-) 3. Bee Keeping 1 Month Stipendiary (Hostellers Rs. 3000/- Per month Outsiders Rs. 1200/-) 4. Carpentry Wood 3 Months Non. Stipendiary 5. Laundry Soap 2 Months Non. Stipendiary 6. Tailoring & Embroidery 3 Months Non. Stipendiary 7. Knitting (Hand/Machine) 3 Months Non. Stipendiary The above stated training courses will be commencing from 24th Jan. 2022, applicants are also informed that Hostel facilities' will be provided for both boys and girls.

During the training period numbers of Official holidays will be counted.

Criteria for obtaining forms may produce minimum Class Eight (8) passed/attended proof with Aadhaar card. Interested candidates may collect the form from the office from 17th Jan 2022 onwards, Time 10.00 AM - 1.00 PM on working days. (Vaccination Mandatory).

For more detail, contact Mobile. No. 9856372599/ 9436600527 during Office hours. dc-20/22

PRINCIPAL MDTC, (NKVIB) Dimapur

salary, Lovlina will be given additional Rs 1 lakh per month for her training expenses, he said.

If it gets difficult for her to continue training at Patiala in Punjab, the state government might think of bringing an internationallevel coach for her to Guwahati, he promised.

“We will also soon name a road in Guwahati after Lovlina,” Sarma said.

Referring to enlistment of other sportspersons in the Assam Police since last year, in line with the state’s new policy, Sarma said sports should not be viewed as a co-curricular activity anymore.

“Earlier, parents used to dissuade their children from pursuing sports after a certain age as there was no guarantee of a successful career even if someone excelled in a discipline. We want to change that. We want to prove that sports itself can be a career,” he asserted.

Besides putting a thrust on recruitment of sportspersons in the Assam Police, the government is also working on increasing sports quota in other departments, Sarma pointed out.

He said that priority was being given to construction of sport complexes in different parts of the state, including a Rs 25-crore stadium named after Lovlina in Sarupathar assembly

constituency.

“Coaching, training and talent identification are essential. The government is focussing on early talent identification and giving them scholarships to take such sportspersons forward,” the CM said.

Sarma, who launched a crusade against the drug menace after assuming office in May last year, noted that sports can work as an alternative to engage youths and dissuade them from substance abuse.

The CM said every police station has been asked to form own football and volleyball teams, which can then participate in districtlevel competitions.

He urged upon the district administrations to ensure timely organisation of school-level sports competitions once the pandemic situation eases.

Borgohain, in her brief speech on the occasion, said, “This is a memorable day for me as I am joining the Assam Police.”

“I will give my best in the boxing ring and bring more glory to my state and people,” the Khel Ratna awardee added as her eyes welled up with tears.

The pugilist scripted history last year by becoming the first sportsperson from Assam to win an Olympic medal. She clinched the bronze in the welter-weight category in last year’s Tokyo Games.

IN THE COURT Of DISTRICT & SESSIONS JUDGE ZUNHEBOTO : NAGALAND No. JuD/SuCC-34/19-20/113

Dated Zbto., the 3rd Dec 2021

This Notice Calling Objection for the issue of Succession Certificate

Whereas application has received from Smti Nigholi u/S 372 of the Indian Succession Act, resident of Naghuto Old, P.S. Atoizu for Succession of SBI A/C No- 3133033003, P.P.O. No- NL 1338, Pension benefits & other allowances, debts & securities of Late Kikheho.

Notice is hereby issued for filing objections to all who has interest in the said claims(s) within 45 (forty five) days from the date of publication to this notice.

DP-168/22

Sd/District & Sessions Judge Zunheboto : Nagaland

AffIDAVIT Regd. No. : 1184/21 Date : 31/12/21 I, A/No. 4369042 Oditongdang Jamir, Rank L/HAV of 15 Assam Regiment, C/o. 99 APO, son of yashitemsu Jamir, resident of H/No. 814, Naga united Village, 4th Mile, Dist. Dimapur, Nagaland do hereby solemnly affirm and declares as under:1. That I am a bonafide citizen of India and a resident of the above mentioned address.

2. That in my service document, my name has been inadvertently recorded as Oditongtong Ao instead of Oditongdang Jamir.

3. That the names Oditongdang Jamir and Oditongtong Ao is the same and single person i.e. me.

4. That this Affidavit is sworn for making correction of my name as Oditongdang Jamir in my service document to avoid any complicacy in the future.

I, further declare that the statements made by me herein above are true to the best of my knowledge and nothing has been concealed herein.

Sworn before me on this 31st day of Dec. 2021.

DEPONENT

DP-165/22

NOTARY PUBLIC

DECLARATION Of ACTUAL NAME Regd. No. : 2002/21 Date : 26/11/2021 I, Shri. Zhenito Sumi, S/o Viyito Sumi permanet resident of Keltomi Village, and presently residing at Aghunato Town, Dist. Zunheboto, Nagaland, do hereby solemnly affirm and declare as under:1. That I am bonafide citizen of India, resident of the above mentioned address.

2. That my actual name is Zhenito Sumi which is recorded in my all official documents, but due to ignorance my name is inadvertently recorded as Zhenito Sema in my service Appointment Order.

3. That the above mentioned names Zhenito Sumi and Zhenito Sema are one and same person which referred to me.

4. That from the date of this declaration, my name shall be rectified and corrected as Zhenito Sumi for all official purposes, legal proceeding and at all times and occasions.

5. That the statements made from para 1-4 are true and correct to the best of my knowledge & belief and nothing material has been concealed therein.

DEPONENT

Solemnly affirm and declared before me by the deponent on this 26 day of 11/2021 at Zunheboto : Nagaland.

1ST CLASS MAgISTRATE/ NOTARy PuBLIC DP-169/22 ZuNHEBOTO : NAgALAND

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THUSDAY, JANUARY13, 2022

warrant issued against Swami PM lauds teens for Covid vaccination pace Arrest Prasad Maurya in 7-year-old case

population of India, Modi said the world has accepted India’s demography and democracy as its powers.

“India’s youth along with demographic dividend has democratic values. India sees youth as development driver besides demographic dividend. They are leading the democratic values. In the Indian youth, there is democratic awareness and they have a clarity about the future.”

“Therefore, what India says today the world sees as tomorrow’s voice,” he said.

He hailed Sri Aurobindo, Swami Vivekananda, Bhagat Singh, Chandrasekhar Azad, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and national poet Subramania Bharathy as youth icons and recalled their contribution in the respective spheres.

Kejriwal comes out with ‘Punjab Model’; promises justice in sacrilege cases CHANDIGARH, JAN 12 (PTI): Unveiling his party’s “Punjab Model” ahead of assembly polls, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday promised justice in sacrilege c a s e s, j o b s t o yo u t h , corruption-free governance, and asserted that people want to bring his party to power to break the friendly “partnership” between the Badals and the Congress.

The Punjab model will have a 10-point agenda which will include providing free power to people up to 300 units per billing cycle and controlling the drug menace, he said.

The Delhi chief minister said that with the announcement of polls, people are happy that they have got an opportunity to bring a change.

“In 1966, Punjab became a separate state.

Since then till today, for 25 years Congress ruled the state while for 19 years the Badal family ruled. Both ruled the state in a partnership of sorts.

Whether the Badal party came to power or the Congress, they ran their governments in partnership.

Arvind Kejriwal (PTI)

When their government used to come to power, they never used to take action against each other,” Kejriwal said at a press conference in Mohali.

Accusing the Badal family and Congress of looting the state, he said, “This time people have made up their mind to break this partnership and bring government of common people, common Punjabis”, and added that people have made up their mind to give one chance to AAP. Spelling out the AAP’s agenda if it comes to power, Kejriwal said he, AAP state unit chief Bhagwant Mann and other leaders have been touring Punjab over past many weeks and meeting people and based on the

inputs they got from various sections of people, the party has prepared the “Punjab Model”.

Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu had earlier shared the roadmap about his “Punjab Model”.

“When AAP will form government, we will make a new Punjab, which is prosperous and which will usher in growth,” said Kejriwal, whose party is eyeing to wrest power from the Congress.

Touching upon the 10-point agenda, Kejriwal said employment avenues will be generated in the state and youth who have left for greener pastures including Canada will contemplate coming back once they get jobs in their own state.

He said it will be the AAP’s priority to control drug menace which, he said, is continuing as before as drug mafia enjoys patronage from powers that be.

Establishing peace, harmony and brotherhood in the state and giving justice in sacrilege cases and strict punishment to the culprits involved is also on the party’s agenda, he said.

BJP considering fielding Adityanath from Ayodhya NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): The BJP is considering fielding Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from Ayodhya as its senior leaders meet to finalise candidates for the assembly polls starting from February 10.

Adityanath, currently a member of the legislative council, had recently said that he is willing to contest the assembly polls from wherever the party’s top brass decides.

Sources said the Ayodhya seat has been discussed within the party as the constituency from where he may be fielded but added that a final decision will be taken by the party’s top brass.

The BJP’s Central E l e c t i o n C o m m i t t e e, whose members include Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is likely to meet soon to finalise its candidates for a large number of seats, including in those going to the polls in the first two phases on February 10 and 14.

Ayodhya, Mathura and his traditional constituency Gorakhpur, which he has represented in Lok Sabha a number of times, have been seen as the most likely seat

TMC not averse, but larger Oppn alliance in Goa can’t be forged with ‘big brother’ attitude: Sushmita Dev

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): The TMC is not averse to a larger alliance for opposition unity to take on the BJP in the Goa assembly polls but such a coalition cannot be forged with a “big brother” a t t i t u d e, T M C l e a d e r Sushmita Dev said on Wednesday in an apparent swipe at the Congress.

Dev, the TMC’s coincharge for Goa, also hit out at the Congress for stating that her party was fracturing the anti-BJP vote and said that by that logic, the Congress had tried to cut into the anti-BJP vote in West Bengal.

T h e R a j ya S a b h a member said the Trinamool Congress (TMC) decided to enter the poll fray in Goa at a time the people of the state want to get rid of the BJP and there is a huge sense of “underconfidence” in the Congress for not being able to form the government after the last assembly polls despite being the single largest party. “ T i l l t o d a y, t h e Congress has not been

able to explain that to the people of Goa. When we entered the fray there was a vacuum in a sense -- the people did not want the BJP and they were sceptical and pessimistic about the Congress,” Dev told PTI in an interview.

Assembly polls for all 40 seats in Goa will be held on February 14. The TMC has been carrying out an aggressive campaign, including on social media platforms such as Koo, to boost its chances in a contest involving several players.

Dev said after Mamata Banerjee leading the TMC to a landslide victory in the West Bengal assembly polls over the BJP against all odds, people in Goa now want a strong leader and a party that does not cow down.

Asked about TMC’s Goa in-charge Mahua Moitra’s tweet on Opposition unity that set off speculation over a possible grand alliance including the Congress and the TMC, Dev said, “When you talk about Opposition

Sushmita Dev

unity, it has a huge merit.

But...when you unite with somebody, the nature of that unity depends on the strength of that party.”

Citing the TMC’s alliance with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Par ty, Dev said her party is giving its alliance partner in Goa its due and respect.

“Question is, whether it is the Congress or any other party, if there has to be a larger alliance for opposition unity then any party, whether you are a national or regional, you must realise your strengths and weaknesses. You cannot come with a big

brother attitude,” she said.

Dev said if parties can sit across the table and come up with a strategy to take on BJP, keeping everyone’s strength and weaknesses at the forefront, without the attitude of being a “big brother”, the TMC is not averse to it.

“I would not like to name ‘A’ party or ‘B’ party.

But any alliance should be backed by logic, it must be reasonable. We need to have a mindset of not having a big daddy approach,” she added.

The Cong ress has dismissed talk of alliance with the TMC with AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal tweeting on Monday, “The rumour in circulation that a possible alliance with TMC was discussed by Shri @ RahulGandhi in today’s meeting is completely baseless & untrue.”

“Let me assure that the Congress party is confidentwe will put Goa back on the path to progress soon,” he had said.

Yogi Adityanath

of choice for Adityanath, a key Hindutva face of the party who is also the head priest of the Goraknath Math.

Ayodhya, the sources said, ticks many boxes as the ongoing construction of the Ram temple has boosted its political profile for the BJP. The town falls in the Awadh region, where Samajwadi Party has been traditionally strong, and if Adityanath is fielded from there, then it may boost the Hindutva plan in the area, including parts of the neighbouring Poorvanchal.

The chief minister and other senior party leaders from the state, including two deputy chief ministers and its state unit chief Swatantra Dev Singh, have been holding consultations with the central leadership in the national capital for the last two days.

N E W D E L H I / LU C K N OW, J A N 1 2 (AGENCIES/PTI): A day after UP Minister Swami Prasad Maurya quit the BJP, an arrest warrant was issued against him in a seven-yearold case. The arrest warrant is related to a 2014 case in which Maurya allegedly made objectionable remarks about deities. The matter will be heard on January 24 by a special MP-MLA court.

Uttar Pradesh minister Swami Prasad Maur ya posted his resignation letter on Twitter on Tuesday. In his letter, he alleged negligence towards Dalits, farmers, small and medium scale businesses and unemployed youths by the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar

Swami Prasad Maurya

Pradesh.

A few minutes after Swami Prasad Maur ya posted his resignation letter on social media, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav tweeted a photograph with the leader and welcomed him to his party.

“Maurya has always stood for justice and is a well-known face among the masses. I welcome him

and all the other leaders, workers and supporters into the Samajwadi party,” Yadav said.

After Uttar Pradesh labour minister Swami Prasad Maurya resigned from the Cabinet and the BJP on Tuesday, three other BJP MLAs in the state followed suit and quit the party.

This includes Tilhar MLA Roshan Lal Verma, Bilhaur MLA Bhagwati Prasad Sagar and Tindwari MLA Brajesh Prajapati.

Like Swami Prasad Maurya, Roshan Lal Verma too has decided to join the Samajwadi Party ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election to be held in February and March this year.

Another minister quits UP cabinet

Another Uttar Pradesh Chauhan held the Forest minister, Dara Singh Chauhan, and Environment portfolio. quit the Yogi Adityanath cabinet Asked whether he will on Wednesday, giving a jolt to be join the Samajwadi Party, the BJP in the poll-bound state.

Chauhan said he would consult Chauhan is the second his supporters before the future minister to resign from the state course of action. cabinet, after Swami Prasad “Dalits, backwards and the Maurya tendered his resignation deprived did not get justice in on Tuesday. At least three other Dara Singh Chauhan the present government. That’s MLAs have already announced why I am quitting the cabinet,” that they are leaving the party. he told told reporters.

UP polls: Cong, SP MLAs join BJP NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): Cong ress MLA Narensh Saini and Samajwadi Party MLA Hari Om Yadav, both from Uttar Pradesh, joined the BJP on Wednesday, a day after the ruling party suffered a jolt with the resignation of state government minister Swami Prasad Maurya.

Both Saini and Yadav hail from backward castes, and the BJP’s decision to induct them into its fold appears to be aimed at refuting suggestions that it is confronting challenges in maintaining its strength among the OBCs, a group in which Swami Prasad Maur ya is seen as an influential leader in parts of the state.

The two MLAs along with former Samajwadi Par ty MLA Dhar mpal Singh joined the BJP in the presence of UP deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma, and state party president Swatantra Dev Singh.

Top BJP UP leaders, including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, continued to hold meeting with the party’s central leaders here on Wednesday as they give final touches to the list of

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probable candidates for the initial phases of the sevenphase assembly polls in the state starting from February 10 and deliberate over other aspects of the campaign.

Amid speculation that Adityanath, who is currently a member of the Legislative Council, may also fight the assembly polls, a party leader said it is unlikely that he will contest from

Mathura, as suggested by some reports.

Adityanath enjoys popular appeal among BJP supporters across the state, a party leader noted, adding that the Central Election Committee, whose members include Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top party leaders, will take a final call on whether he should contest or not.

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vaccinated. This exemplifies the sense of responsibility in today’s youth and my confidence in a bright future of the country is further strengthened,” he said.

The vaccination for the children of this age group was launched on January 3.

On increasing women’s legal marriage age to 21 years, the PM said it was based on the principle of equality. “ We k n o w s o n s and daughters are equal.

With this thought, the government, for the betterment of daughters, decided to increase their marriage age to 21 years.

Let daughters too make their career, let them get more time. This is a very significant step in this direction,” he asserted.

Dwelling on the youth

mantra,” he added.

He said the modern youth’s ability is not to be burdened by old stereotypes and that he knows how to shake them.

Modi also stressed on the ‘Vocal for Local’ concept, s ay i n g A t m a n i r b h a r t a (self-sufficiency) will solve many issues including employment and economic growth and urged that buying a local artisan’s product should be high on one’s shopping list.

Extending his festival wishes for Pongal, Makar Sankranthi, Bihu, Lohri, Modi urged that they be celebrated in compliance with COVID precautions.

On the occasion, Modi inaugurated a Technology Centre of the MSME Ministry, established here with an investment of about Rs 122 crore.

He also inaugurated the Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Manimandapam - an auditorium with an open-air theatre, constructed by the Government of Puducherry at a cost of about Rs 23 crore to commemorate the visionary former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, a Congressman respected across political lines. It will have various other facilities as well.

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PM Modi speaks at the inauguration of the 25th National Youth Festival in Puducherry, via video conferencing. (PTI)

T h e yo u t h d u r i n g freedom struggle had sacrificed everything but today’s youth has to live for the country and fulfill the dreams of the freedom fighters, he said.

“Today as country with biggest population of youth and their new dreams, their skill will take the country to new heights,” Modi said.

Quoting from Sri Aurobindo, Modi exhorted the young to be the builder of the new world.

“Today’s youth has a can do spirit which is a source of inspiration for every generation. Due to the youth, in digital payment we are far ahead. India’s youth is writing code for global prosperity. The Indian youth is a force to be reckoned with in the unicorn ecosystem all over the world,” he said.

“India today has a strong ecosystem of over 50,000 startups. Out of which, more than 10,000 startups came up amidst the challenge of the pandemic,” he added.

The unprecedented haul of medals in the latest Paralympics and the good show in the Olympics last year were proof of the youth power.

“Compete and conquer should be India’s new

Db-28/22

P U D U C H E R RY, JA N 12 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday lauded the “sense of responsibility” of the country’s youth and said it manifested in the pace of Covid-19 vaccination in the 15-18 years age group that has covered over two crore children since its rollout this month.

Virtually inaugurating the 25th edition of the National Youth Festival h e r e, M o d i a l s o s a i d his government’s recent decision to increase the legal marriage age of women to 21 years was for the betterment of “our daughters” and ensure that they had a career and also the time.

Hailing the pace of vaccination of the 15-18 years age group, he said this showed the “sense of responsibility” of the yo u n g s t e r s, e s p e c i a l ly witnessed during the pandemic period.

“The role of the youth in the success of our covid vaccination programme is being witnessed altogether at a different level. We are seeing that the youth in the 15-18 years age group are getting themselves vaccinated at a quick pace.

In such a short time, over two crore children have been

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6

OPINION/EDITORIAL

Nagaland Post

Post-mortem

VOL. XXXII NO. 37 DIMAPUR, THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

W

Up for grabs

hile the Election Commission of India(ECI) has not disappointed critics by announcing poll schedules to five states-UP, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab-only after prime minister Narendra Modi had a field day announcing poll bonanzas worth several thousand crores in the poll-bound states; the battle royal in UP, had already begun. UP will have seven-phase polls beginning from February 14 while results for all states will be declared by March 10. The BJP swept the assembly polls in UP in 2017 winning a massive landslide of 312 seats out of 403 and formed the government under Yogi Adityanath. UP has 80 Lok Sabha seats and the BJP won 62 in 2019. It has to win UP if it hopes to retain power at the Centre under Modi.

In UP, caste and religious factors play a role in determining the winning combination. The BJP had steam rolled other parties including the Samajwadi Party in the 2017 assembly elections by copying the social engineering of Dalit-Brahmin combination that the BSP under Mayawati used in 2007. What has happened in UP since announcement of election schedule is that there have been some major defections. Even considering the fact that such defections are routine in UP, the spurt of MLAs switching sides from the BJP to the Samajwadi Party (SP) should worry the ruling party, more so if the party hoppers are from the Other Backward Classes who had been diligently wooed and represented in the BJP to get an edge over the Mandal parties. Recently, high profile Dalit and OBC legislators have quit the BJP for the SP. Even the Congress has suffered defections to the SP. This indicates that the ruling BJP is not going to have it easy as the SP is becoming a powerful challenger. The SP appears to be gathering some steam because of several reasons, one of them is that other political parties such as the Congress and BSP have been reduced to a non-entity because of their own internal affairs. Because of the weakening of other opposition parties, the SP alone remains in the fray. If the BJP loses UP, then no other state verdict would matter. That may not be the beginning of the end of the Narendra Modi government, but it would rejuvenate the opposition. If SP succeeds then it will be a balancing force in the internal battle of the opposition. If BJP retains UP, then its dominance would get reinforced and the battle of 2024 that much more difficult for the opposition. SP exists only in UP and so if it fails there, it will have no other state to go to. Congress would need to retain Punjab and perhaps retake Uttarakhand, to maintain its position as the principal challenger. A defeat in Punjab would bring the Congress stock down and intensify the contest for the principal challenger. If the AAP wins Punjab and overtakes Congress in Goa or Uttarakhand, then it can play a major role on the national stage. If AAP fails in Punjab, then its national ambitions stand extinguished. If the TMC finishes runner up in Goa, then its newly created units in other states can grow roots. But if it fails, then its plans to step outside West Bengal may be stymied. Therefore, the forthcoming polls will influence the capabilities of the parties in the 2024 polls.

DailyDevotion Have You Ever Been Alone with God? (1)

When they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples. —Mark 4:34

Our Solitude with Him. Jesus doesn’t take us aside and explain things to us all the time; He explains things to us as we are able to understand them.

The lives of others are examples for us, but God requires us to examine our own souls. It is slow work— so slow that it takes God all of time and eternity to make a man or woman conform to His purpose. We can only be used by God after we allow Him to show us the deep, hidden areas of our own character. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves!

We don’t even recognize the envy, laziness, or pride within us when we see it. But Jesus will reveal to us everything we have held within ourselves before His grace began to work. How many of us have learned to look inwardly with courage?

We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves. That is always the last bit of pride to go. The only One who understands us is God. The greatest curse in our spiritual life is pride. If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we will never say, “Oh, I’m so unworthy.” We will understand that this goes without saying. But as long as there is any doubt that we are unworthy, God will continue to close us in until He gets us alone.

Whenever there is any element of pride or conceit remaining, Jesus can’t teach us anything. He will allow us to experience heartbreak or the disappointment we feel when our intellectual pride is wounded.

He will reveal numerous misplaced affections or desires— things over which we never thought He would have to get us alone. Many things are shown to us, often without effect. But when God gets us alone over them, they will be clear.

Quotes

It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.

~ Aristotle

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

A

rticle 355 of the Constitution of India enforces a duty upon the Union to protect States against external aggression and internal disturbance. Under the said provision, the Armed Forces (Assam & Manipur) Special Powers Ordinance, 1958 was promulgated by the then President, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, on 22nd May, 1958. It is pertinent to mention that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (‘the Act’ in brevity) erstwhile the Armed Forces Special Powers Ordinance was first promulgated by the British Colonial Government to suppress the Quit Indian Movement on 15th August, 1942. It is a Colonial product enforced upon the Indians to flush the free India movement.

The introduction of the said draconian law was to serve the purpose of the Colonial rule to control, command and reign over India. After about 200 years of suppression under the British Raj and consequently, independence in 1947, India is now the largest Democratic Nation

E

The 28th Act of 1958

with the longest written Constitution in the World.

The adoption of such suppressive and arbitrary authority from the oppressor and implementing the same for almost 64 years under the blanket of ‘internal disturbance’ has attained finality and it’s time for consideration with the change of time.

The recent Oting massacre has endorsed the need to further scrupulously dissect the aims and objectives of the Act in accordance with the prevailing state. The declaration of any area as ‘disturbed’ by the Governor, the Administrator and the Central Government under Section 3 enforces the application of the Act. The very implementation of the Act depends on the declaration of any area as disturbed and the definition of ‘disturbed area’ is provided under Section 2(a) of the Act. As dreadful and vicious the Act is, the definition of disturbed area in Section 2(a), which is the lone source of implementation, does not provide with any sensical illustration.

As a matter of fact, the definition of disturbed area

is not at all represented in its entirety. The objective of the Act simply connotes protection against internal disturbances but the beneficiaries of the same have not been categorized/ classified. Furthermore, Special powers under Section 4(a) of the Act which empowers the armed forces of actions to the extreme of causing death can only be invoked provided the sine qua non viz., due warning, acting in contravention of any law or order in force, carrying weapons, necessary for the maintenance of public order, be made out.

Moreover, Section 6 shields any person exercising the powers conferred by the Act from the liabilities with the requirement of prior sanction of the Central Government for any prosecution. Hence, under such circumstances, AFSPA is a situation akin to Martial Law where every citizens of the enforced Area/State are not safe in toto.

The recent execution of the 14 innocent civilians at Oting Village in the District of Mon, Nagaland under the pretext of militant is unwarranted, irra-

tional and inhumane. In the commission of the Act, history and the World have witnessed that uncountable deaths with infinite missing, properties destroyed, citizen tortured, women raped etc had befallen upon the Nagas.

Despite being from the head-hunter pedigree, the Nagas have always chosen peace over conflict. Yet, the unceasing bullets from the armed forces still continue without any remorse and/or hesitation. The Act which was supposedly enforced to protect and better the condition of the State has always been detrimental to the cause. As such, the Act which is still being placed in the heart of democracy has become instrument of death and citizens are being acted upon without a flinch as the enemy of the State.

Nagas are being misrepresented but the National Crime Records Bureau’s Report 2019 which declared Nagaland as the lowest in crime record in the Country and the safest State for women in the Country shows otherwise. This Act permits and empowers the

armed forces for the purpose of peace and security in the interest of the State but should not be at the cost of the lives of innocent civilians. The cardinal basic principle of the criminal jurisprudence is that 1000 culprits can escape but not one innocent should be punished. Therefore, the Act cannot claim the leeway that it provides. The Rule of Law is supreme and in any given State, citizens cannot be used as guinea-pig. Thus, the cry of the mass for justice and abrogation of the Act should be attended forthwith.

The Preamble of India enshrined as “WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN, SOCIALIST, SECULAR, DEMOCRATIC, REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens: JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and

integrity of the Nation; IN OUR CONSITUTEN ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSITUTION” propagates about inclusive India whilst the enforcement of this barbaric Act in the State of Nagaland in particular and Northeastern States in general differs. The butchery at Oting, inter-alia, by its own security forces, catastrophically reflects the urgency to address the ravages of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. As such, the ‘Golden Triangle’ of the Constitution of India which provides full protection of the rights of citizens is on trial. Hence, this Act is in total contravention of the ‘Basic Structure’ of the Constitution of India.

C. Talimoa President, Nagaland Law Students’ Federation (NLSF) President, Mokokchung Law College Students’ Union (2014-2018) Para Legal Volunteer (PLV), Mokokchung District Legal Services Authority (MDLSA) (2015-2018)

Themes of National Education Policy

ducation is a fundamental requirement for the development of an egalitarian society. In this context, three National Education Policy (NEP), namely NEP 1968, NEP 1986 and NEP 2020 have been introduced in India so far. The new NEP 2020, adopted on 29th July 2020, aims to universalize education from pre-school to secondary level by 2030. It envisions an India-centric education system and provision of quality education and equitable access to all students in a sustainable manner. There are ten themes aligned with the policy objectives of the NEP 2020.

(1) Early Childhood Care and Education : The Foundation of learning Early child development encompasses physical, socio-emotional and cognitive development between 0-8 years of age.

The early years of the learners are critical, as it is the period of life when the brain develops most rapidly and has a high capacity for change, and the foundation is laid for health and well-being for life. The NEP states that, the overarching goal will be to ensure universal access to high quality Early Childhood Care Education (ECCE) across the country.

Special attention and priority will be given to the territories that are particularly socio-economically lagged behind. ECCE shall be delivered through a significantly expanded and strengthened system of early-childhood education institutions consisting of (a) stand-alone Anganwadis, (b) Anganwadies co-located with primary schools, (c) pre-primary schools/sections covering at least age 5 to 6 years co-located with existing primary schools, and (d) stand-alone pre-schoolsall of which would recruit workers/teachers specially trained in the curriculum and pedagogy of ECCE. (2) Foundational Literacy and Numeracy : An Urgent & Necessary Prerequisite to Learning - The ability to read and write, and perform basic operations with numbers, is a necessary foundation and an indispensable prerequi-

site for all future schooling and lifelong learning. NEP 2020 accords top priority to the attainment of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy by all students upto Grade 3. It stresses the need to develop a robust system of continuous formative/adaptive assessment to track each student’s learning. The early grade curriculum will be redesigned to have a renewed emphasis and teachers to be trained, encouraged, and supported to impart foundational literacy and numeracy.

(3) Curtailing Dropout Rates and Ensuring Universal Access to Education at all levels- As per NEP 2020, two holistic initiatives will be taken to bring drop-out children back to school and to prevent further dropout. The first initiative is to provide effective and sufficient infrastructure so that all students have access to safe and engaging school education at all levels from pre-primary school to Grade 12. Besides providing regular trained teachers at each stage, special care shall be taken to ensure that no school remains deficient in the infrastructure sector.

The second initiative is to achieve universal participation in school by carefully tracking students as well as their learning levels in order to ensure that they (a) are enrolled in and attending school, and (b) have suitable opportunities to catch up and re-enter school in case they have fallen behind or dropped out. Suitable facilitating systems shall be put in place to provide equitable and quality education to all children from Foundation stage to Grade 12 till the age of 18 years.

(4) Curriculum and Pedagogy in Schools : Learning should be Holistic, Integrated, Enjoyable and Engaging - NEP 2020 mandates that the learning should be holistic, integrated, inclusive, enjoyable, and engaging.

In order to minimize rote learning and to encourage holistic development and 21st century skills such as critical thinking, creativity, scientific temper, communication, collaboration,

multilingualism, problem solving, ethics, social responsibility, digital literacy, curriculum, textbooks, pedagogy and assessment shall be transformed by 2022. It stresses that in all stages; experimental learning will be adopted, including hands-on learning, arts-integrated and sports-integrated education, story-telling-based pedagogy, among others, as standard pedagogy within each subject, and with explorations of relations among different subjects. To bridge the gap in achievement of learning outcomes, classroom transactions will shift towards competency-based learning and education.

(5) Teachers - Teachers are the frontline providers of quality education.

They represent the key vehicle towards a progressive, just, educated, and prosperous society. It is known that inadequate quality of training, recruitment, service conditions and lack of empowerment of teachers affect their skill and motivation levels. NEP, 2020 has made several provisions to empower teachers and inspire the best individuals to enter the system to ensure the best possible future for our children and our nation. The primary goal of transforming the service environment and culture of schools will be to maximize teacher’s ability to perform their jobs effectively and to ensure that they are part of vibrant, caring, and inclusive communities of teachers, students, parents, principals, and other support staff, all of whom share a common goal, to ensure that our children are learning.

(6) Equitable and Inclusive Education : Learning for All - Sustainable Development Goal 4.0 obliges India to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” by 2030. In tune with SDG goal, NEP-2020 provides a renewed impetus to inclusive and equitable education. It re-focuses on the need to provide children with disabilities, and those belonging to disadvantaged groups and

weaker sections the same opportunities of obtaining quality education as any other child. It is also in full sync with RPwD Act 2016 which mandates that students with and without disability learn together and the system of teaching and learning is suitably adapted to meet the learning needs of students with disabilities. By 2040, India should have an education system that is second to none, with equitable access to the highest-quality education for all learners, regardless of social or economic background. Many schools have already taken initiatives to promote inclusive classrooms. Innovative teaching pedagogy on the subject needs to focus on inclusive practices so that similar initiatives can be taken by other schools.

(7) Efficient Resourcing and Effective Governance through School Complexes/clusters- The establishment of school complexes/clusters and the sharing of resources across complexes will have a number of other benefits, such as improved support for children with disabilities, more topic-centered clubs and academic/ sports/arts/crafts events across school complexes, better incorporation of art, music, language, vocational subjects, physical education, and other subjects in the classroom through the sharing of teachers in these subjects including use of ICT tools to conduct virtual classes.

Improved student support, enrollment, attendance, and performance through the sharing of social workers and councilors, and school complex Management committees (rather than only School Management Committees) for more robust and better governance, monitoring, oversight, innovations, and initiatives by local stakeholders. Building such larger communities of schools, school leaders, teachers, students, support staff, parents, and local citizens would energize and empower the schooling system, and in a resourceefficient manner.

(8) Standard Setting and Accreditation for

School Education - The NEP, 2020 envisions an effective quality self-regulation or accreditation system for all stages of education, including pre-school education – private, public, and philanthropic – to ensure compliance with mandatory quality standards.

To ensure that all schools adhere to certain minimum professional and quality standards, States/UTs will set up an independent, state-wide body called the State School Standards Authority (SSSA). In addition to the standard criterion for accreditation, to ensure academic quality, a separate School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Framework has to be developed by SCERTs. All schools, including private schools, will be assessed and accredited on the same criteria, benchmarks, and processes, with an emphasis on online and offline public disclosure and transparency. Educational outcomes and the transparent disclosure of all financial, academic, and operational matters will be given due importance and suitably incorporated in the evaluation of schools. By ensuring a uniform process of accreditation and quality framework for both public and private schools, the objective of reforming the public education system could be ensured.

(9) Technology in Education : NDEAR - The recent rise in epidemics and pandemics necessitates that we are ready with alternative modes of quality education, whenever and wherever traditional modes of education are not possible. In this regard, the NEP 2020 recognizes the importance of reaping the benefits of technology while acknowledging its potential risks and dangers.

This calls for carefully de-

signed and appropriately scaled pilot studies to determine how the benefits of online/digital education can be reaped while addressing or mitigating the downsides.

National Digital Education Architecture is being envisioned as a digital infrastructure for education that will help not only the government at Centre, State and UTs but the entire education ecosystem including private sector, non-profit and technology players to enhance the quality of education in the country through innovation and experimentation. It is part of the “Digital India” initiative of the Government of India and it endeavors to make lives simpler for students, parents, teachers and administrators.

(10) Reimaging Vocational Education and Skill Building - NEP 2020 aims to overcome the perception of lower social status associated with vocational education and requires integration of vocational education programme into mainstream education in a phased manner. Beginning with vocational exposure in early ages in middle school, quality vocational education will be integrated smoothly into secondary and higher education. It will ensure that every child learns at least one vocation from class 9 onwards and is exposed to many more professions. It will emphasize the importance of skill building, dignity of labour and various professions associated with Indian art and craftsmanship.

(The author is a technocrat & academician. He holds Master in Engineering from M.N. Regional Engineering College, Allahabad/ Prayagraj) Er. Prabhat Kishore

Reader’s Post

Right time to ensure strict COVID SOPs

Sir,

With the sudden spurt in COVID cases on Wednesday- 199 cases, this is the right time for all establishments and offices to enforce the strictest COVID protocols. If we fail to do so, there is a looming danger of the daily COVID cases spiraling out of control. Hope we all work together in our own interest.

Mhabeni Lotha, Dimapur.

Reader’s note: Articles or letters published in any of the columns do not reflect the view of this newspaper nor that of the Editor in any manner.

‘We will continue to deal with PLA firmly’

I&B ministry Twitter account hacked NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (IANS): The Twitter account of the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting wa s c o m p r o m i s e d o n Wednesday.

The account, however, was restored later on. The hacker renamed the account as Elon Musk and tweeted a great job.

The account was restored and posts made by hackers were deleted.

“The account @Mib_india has been restored. This is for the information of all the followers,” the ministry tweeted.

Last month Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Twitter account was compromised for a brief period and a post claiming that India had officially adopted bitcoin as legal tender was tweeted from it.

“The Twitter handle of PM @narendramodi was very briefly compromised.

The matter was escalated to Twitter and the account has been immediately secured.

In the brief period that the account was compromised, any tweet shared must be ignored,” PMO India had said in a tweet.

Gen MM Naravane

also referred to upgradation and development of infrastructure along Northern borders, saying the initiative has been undertaken in a holistic and comprehensive manner.

He also said that major effor ts are under taken to see what all dual-use infrastructure in the border areas can be made use of.

The Ar my chief said the response by his forces to Chinese attempts to unilaterally change the status quo was very robust.

“We are much better prepared to meet any challenge that is thrown up at us,” he said.

When asked about the

14th round of military talks with China that is underway on Wednesday, he said India was hopeful of resolving issues at Patrolling Point 15 (Hot Springs).

Gen Naravane also said the Army’s inquiry report into the December 4 Nagaland firing incident is expected to come out in a day or two.

He said appropriate action will be taken based on the report.

Around 400 terrorists in PoK

As many as 350400 terrorists are present at the launchpads and

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): The BJP on Wednesday accused the Congress government in Punjab of deliberately ignoring the security threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi despite being informed of it by state police personnel, and asked who in the opposition party sought to benefit from the breach.

Union minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani cited a ‘sting’ done by a new channel which purportedly showed some Punjab Police officials saying that they informed their superiors about protestors blocking the route of Modi’s carcade but no action was allegedly taken.

Addressing a press conference, she said, “What is extremely disconcerting is that Punjab Police officials have highlighted how they continuously engaged with the Cong government and administration in Punjab to bring to light the threat to the security of PM and his route.

The question this expose begets who in the Congressled government in Punjab continued to deliberately ignore these threats to the PM’s security?”

Smriti Irani (PTI)

Who sought to benefit in the Congress from the breach to Modi’s security, she asked.

Irani said the then Punjab DGP had given an all-clear message to Modi’s security team and wondered as to why he did so.

She also hit out at the Congress over Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s statement that he had also briefed party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra about the development and questioned his doing so as the Congress general secretary is a private citizen.

Why is that private citizen an “interested party” in the matter of the prime minister’s security, Irani asked.

With Channi often taking aim at the BJP over its concerted campaign against him over the alleged security

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resolved to show ‘Zero Tolerance’ to terror, and commit ourselves to extract dire costs, should that be forced upon us,” he said.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the ‘Whole of Government’ approach has led to progressive improvement in the security situation, he said.

Effor ts to give an indigenous hue to terrorism, by setting up a facade of proxy terror ‘Tanzeems’, have failed miserably, he said, adding that inimical elements have re-energised their attempts at disr upting peace in the Valley by targeting minorities and non-locals.

“However, we have been able to counter these challenges,” he said.

Talking about Siachen, Naravane said that Siachen occurred because of Pakistan’s unilateral attempts.

Explaining how there can be disengagement, the officer said that the Indian Army is not averse to demilitarisation of the Siachen glacier.

“But a precondition is acceptance of the Actual Ground Position Line by Pakistan,” he said.

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (IANS): The Supreme C o u r t o n We d n e s d ay outlined the ter ms of reference for the enquiry committee, headed by retired top court judge Justice Indu Malhotra, to investigate the Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘s security breach in Punjab.

A bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana and comprising Justices Sur ya Kant and Hima Kohli outlined five terms of reference for the committee.

“What were the causes for the security breach for the incident on 5th January 2022? Who are responsible for such a breach, and to what extent? What should be the remedial measures or safeguards necessary for the security of the Prime Minister or other protectees?” it outlined.

“A n y s u g g e s t i o n s or recommendations for improving the safety and security of other constitutional functionaries.

Any other incidental issue that the committee may deem fit and proper,” it added.

The top court asked

Justice Indu Malhotra

the committee to submit its report at the earliest, and directed all records seized, in connection with the PM’s visit, to be handed over to the Chairperson of the committee within three days.

“The Union of India and State Government are directed to provide full assistance to the Enquiry Committee for completion of the assigned task,” it sai.

The top court also stayed the enquiries ordered by the state government and the Centre, into the PM’s security breach, till the conclusion of the enquiry committee.

The other members on the committee are Director General, or his nominee not below the rank of Inspector General of Police, of the National Investigation

Agency, Director General of Police, Union Territory of Chandigarh, Additional Director General of Police, Security, Punjab, and the Registrar General, Punjab and Haryana High CourtMember-cum-Coordinator.

The top court order came on a petition by NGO Lawyer’s Voice, which was represented by senior advocate Maninder Singh. The petitioner had emphasised on the importance of protection to the PM of the country and urged the court to constitute an independent committee to probe the matter.

During the hearing, Advocate General D.S. Patwalia, re presenting the Punjab government, complained against showcause notices to its Chief Secretary and the DGP. He urged the top court to form an independent committee to probe the matter. “Hang me if I am guilty... but don’t condemn me unheard,” submitted Patwalia.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, defended the show-cause notices issued by the Central government.

Who sought to benefit in Congress from Siddharth apologises for ‘rude joke’, Saina says ‘God bless him’ breach to PM Modi’s security: BJP

ADMISSION OPEN

SL. NO

training camps in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, the C h i e f o f A r my S t a f f (COAS), General Manoj Mukund Naravane, said on Wednesday.

Addressing Indian A r my ’s a n nu a l p r e s s conference, the COAS said that the threat at the Line of Control (LoC) from Pakistan has not receded by any means.

“The threat cannot be ignored,” said the army chief.

Along the LoC with Pakistan, after a heightened situation for a prolonged period, the DGMOs’ understanding in Febr uar y last year was aimed at achieving mutually beneficial and sustainable peace, he said. “ Re s u l t a n t ly, t h e situation has witnessed marked improvement,” said the officer, but with a caution.

“However, increase in concentration of terrorists in launch pads across the LC and repeated infiltration attempts have once again exposed their (Pakistan’s) nefarious intents,” the Indian Army chief said.

“We, on our part, have

SC names ex-judge to probe PM’s security breach

TRADE

threat to the prime minister, she accused Congress leaders of trivialising such a serious matter.

Modi’s Punjab visit on January 5 was cut short as he was stranded on a flyover for 20 minutes due to a blockade by protesters.

After the lapse in security, Modi’s convoy decided to return without attending an event at a martyrs’ memorial at Hussainiwala. The prime minister also could not attend a rally in Ferozepur.

Channi has insisted that there was no threat to Modi.The Congress has suggested that the decision to cut shor t the prime minister’s trip was caused by the alleged thin attendance at his rally.

The Supreme Court has constituted a panel to probe the entire incident.

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI, JA N 1 2 ( P T I ) : A c t o r Siddharth has apologised for his unsavoury remark on ace shuttler Saina Nehwal, who said she was happy to accept his acknowledgement of being rude while criticising her expression of concern for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s security recently.

Siddharth kicked up a storm by posting “subtle cock champion of the world” for Saina while commenting on her tweet expressing concern on the Prime Minister’s security breach in Punjab a few days ago.Following strong criticism on social media for his comment, Siddharth said that “nothing disrespectful was intended” but on Tuesday night, he offered an apology acknowledging that his “tone and words” couldn’t be justified.

In an open letter published on Twitter, the “Rang De Basanti” actor

Siddharth and Saina Nehwal

wrote, “Dear Saina, I want to apologise to you for my rude joke that I wrote as a response to a tweet of yours, a few days ago.”

“I may disagree with you on many things but even my disappointment or anger when I read your tweet, cannot justify my tone and words. I know I have more grace in me than that.

“As for the joke... If a joke needs to be explained, then it wasn’t a very good joke to begin with. Sorry about a joke that didn’t

land,” he added.

Saina, who is a member of the ruling BJP, said she is glad that Siddharth admitted to his comments not being in good taste. “He only said it and he is now apologising. I was surprised to see myself trending on Twitter that day. I haven’t spoken to him but I am happy that he apologised,” she said on the sidelines of the ongoing India Open in Delhi.

“ S e e, i t i s a b o u t women, he shouldn’t target a woman like that but it’s okay, I am not bothered about it, I am happy in my space and god bless him,” she added.

The 42-year-old actor claimed to be a “staunch feminist” and asserted he would never say anything to a woman with a “malicious intent”. “...my word play and humour had none of the malicious intent that so many people from all quarters have attributed to it. I am a staunch feminist ally and I assure you there was no gender implied in my tweet and certainly no intent to attack you as a woman.

“I hope we can put this behind us and that you will accept my letter. You will always be my Champion.

Honestly, Siddharth,” he added.

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NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI/IANS): The Indian Army will continue to deal with the Chinese PLA in a firm and resolute manner in eastern Ladakh and it has been maintaining the highest level of operational preparedness in the region, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane said on Wednesday.

At a press conference ahead of the Army Day, Gen Naravane said though there has been partial engagement in the region, the “threat by no means has reduced”.

“We have continued to maintain the highest levels of operational preparedness while at the same time engaging with the Chinese PLA through dialogue,” Gen Naravane said.

The Chief of Army Staff also said that the I n d i a n A r my i s m o r e than adequately prepared to deal with any military ramifications of China’s new land boundary law.

“We will continue to deal with the Chinese PLA in a firm and resolute manner,” Gen Naravane said, adding necessary safeguards are in place to take care of any contingencies.

The Chief of Army Staff

7

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No. 3796 Yesterday’s solution No. 3795

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No. 4772 Yesterday’s solution No. 4771

ACROSS 8. Show (7) 9. Potassium nitrate (9) 13. Loft (5) 14. Smell (5) 15. Portentous (7) 16. Advantage (7) 17. Wear away (5) 18. Very angry (5) 20. Subject (5) 22. Excursion (6) 23. Eternally (6) 25. Voracious fish (7) 27. Chat, informally (7) 30. Lure (6) 31. Market (6) 32. Acute (5) 35. Pulsate (5) 36. Asian country (5) 37. Hard to find (7) 39. Deadlock (7) 41. Greek island (5) 42. Follow (5) 43. Signature (9) 44. Normally (7) DOWN 1. Young cat (6) 2. Particular (8) 3. Disaster (11) 4. Supreme (9) 5. Caressed (7) 6. Antibiotic (10) 7. Threesome (4) 10. Animal (6) 11. Truthfulness (7) 12. Evaluate (6) 19. US state (7) 21. Artist (7) 24. Hospital employee (6,5) 26. Senior churchman (10) 28. Type of picture (9) 29. Mounted troops (7) 30. Involve (6) 32. Cooking vessel (8) 33. Favour (6) 34. Weapon (7) 38. Affront (6) 40. Fruit (4)

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No. 10150 Yesterday’s solution No. 10149

On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 533.15 points or 0.88 per cent higher at 61,150.04, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 156.60 points or 0.87 per cent to 18,212.35.

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MUMBAI, JAN 12 (PTI): The rupee inched higher by just 1 paisa to close at 73.93 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday as elevated crude oil prices offset the impact of weak American currency and positive domestic equities.

Forex traders said the less hawkish-than-expected statement from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell calmed fears of aggressive Fed policy tightening and supported emerging market currencies. However, appreciation bias was capped as crude oil prices continued to strengthen.

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On Tuesday, the rupee surged 11 paise to close at an over three-month high of 73.94 against the US dollar.

WaTer SUPPLy

Earlier, the chief minister unveiled the anniversary monolith and also inaugurated the newly-constructed playground.

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WADPO president Rüüngutuo Sechü extended the greetings and WADSA president Rokoneikho Rhatsu delivered the president’s address while Kevisekuo Sechü presented a special number.

WADSA wrestling secretary administered the oath to all the players. WADSA comprises five villages – Thekrejuma, Mengujuma, Sechü, Kir uphema and Sechüma.

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NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (IANS): Shares of Vodafone Idea have rebounded on Wednesday post a sharp decline the previous session after the telecom service provider approved the conversion of its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and spectrum liabilities into equity.

Besides, the company in a regulatory filing said that following the conversion, it was expected that the Centre would hold around 35.8 per cent of the total outstanding shares of the company. Reacting to the news of equity conversion and the Centre holding stake in the company, the company’s shares fell around 20 per cent on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the shares, however, settled 8.9 per cent up at Rs 12.85 as Vodafone Idea’s Managing Director Ravinder Takkar reportedly said that the Centre would not participate in the management of the company as well as not take over the operations.

homeland then, we have the potential to be on a par with others,” Rio said.

Rio said competing at village levels should not be the aim for sportspersons, but they should work hard enough to succeed in representing the State and even the country.

He lauded the older folks of the community for constructing such a ground, which youth could utilise for honing their skills.

Rio said that even the State government was focused on suppor ting sportspersons through various measures, including establishing Regional Sports Centres at strategic locations.

He disclosed that the government would recognise dedicated sportspersons and help them in their growth.

DP-23/22

Crossword

improvement of digital penetration, 72% expect the quality of infrastructure to improve and 72% expect improvement in government initiatives and policies to drive rural growth.

“CII is of the firm belief that creating geographically distributed economic growth centers, especially in rural India, is critical to promote equitable and sustainable growth, and most importantly achieve the vision of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat,” Chandrajit Banerjee, director general, CII, said.

“The intent of this index is to fill the information void by creating a mechanism that can capture how the rural economy is performing and support strategic decision making,” Banerjee said, adding that this will help all key stakeholders in creating new paradigms and chart new pathways for economic growth in the country.

Rupee ends almost flat at 73.93 against US dollar

DP-139/22

in FY 2018-19 to 4.9 lakh in FY 2020-21) but 33% de-growth by value from Rs 7.25 lakh crore in FY 201819 to Rs 4.83 lakh crore in FY 2020-21), it said.

However, loans by microfinance institutions witnessed a de-growth of 9% by value from Rs 1.23 lakh crore in FY 2018-19 to Rs 1.12 lakh crore in FY 202021 and 19% by volume from 396 lakhs in FY 2018-19 to 320 lakhs in FY 2020-21 during the same period.

The survey undertaken across industry sectors from different geographies highlights that 59% of respondents expect their organizations’ order books to improve affecting businesses in rural India while 48% of respondents expect the profitability of their organization to improve, the CII said.

Further, 54% of respondents expect ease of access to credit to the rural economy to improve 88% of respondents expect the

VI shares rebound as MD rules out Co’s takeover by Centre

(From p-1) The chief minister disclosed that many sporting activities were in the pipeline, but added that all these could get disrupted if the Covid situation worsened.

He said there was a time when might was used as a means to conquer others through wars, but now this had changed in present times as the world’s attention was now focused on games and sports.

He mentioned that there was now competition in the fields of education and sports and countries were facing off each other in sporting arenas.

“Today, the smallest country or State has the capacity to defeat the largest country or State in sports.

Therefore, if we dedicate ourselves and don’t get discouraged by the size of our

DP-171/22

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (AGENCIES): The rural business confidence index for October 2021 stood at 63.9 on the back of enhanced rural credit, leading to industry being optimistic and upbeat on rural economy sentiment, the Confederation of Indian Industry said in its first Rural Business Confidence Index developed in partnership with CRIF High Mark.

According to CII, the index illustrates that despite COVID-19 pandemic, disbursement of retail loans in rural India witnessed a growth of 23% by value from Rs 10.10 lakh crore in FY 2018-19 to Rs 12.45 lakh crore in FY 2020-21and 30% by volume from 506 lakhs in FY 2018-19 to 661 lakhs in FY 2020-21).

Even the disbursement of commercial loans in this period, though being led by small ticket size loans, witnessed about 100% growth by volume from 2.4 lakh

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): Gold in the national capital on Wednesday jumped Rs 228 to Rs 46,812 per 10 grams, reflecting overnight gains in international precious metal prices, according to HDFC Securities.

In the previous trade, the precious metal settled at Rs 46,584 per 10 grams.

“Spot gold prices for 24 carat in Delhi rose by Rs 228 reflecting overnight gains in COMEX gold prices,” HDFC Securities Senior Analyst (Commodities) Tapan Patel said.

Silver also gained Rs 271 to Rs 59,932 per kg from Rs 59,661 per kg in the previous trade.

In the international market, gold was trading marginally lower at USD 1,818 per ounce and silver was flat at USD 22.70 per ounce.

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Industry upbeat about rural economy sentiment: CII

In India, the economic damage caused by the second wave has already been unwound with output effectively back to levels reached prior to the pandemic (2019 Q4) as COVID cases and restrictions subsided, it added.

As per the Global Economic Prospects report, following a strong rebound in 2021, the global economy is entering a pronounced slowdown amid fresh threats from COVID variants and a rise in inflation, debt, and income inequality that could endanger the recovery in emerging and developing economies.

Global growth is expected to decelerate markedly from 5.5 per cent in 2021 to 4.1 per cent in 2022 and 3.2 per cent in 2023 as pent-up demand dissipates and as fiscal and monetary support is unwound across the world.

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narrowing monetary and fiscal policy support,” the World Bank said in its latest Global Economic Prospects report released on Tuesday.

Further, the report said that growth forecast has been upgraded for 2022-23 and 2023-24 to 8.7 per cent and 6.8 per cent, respectively. The upward revision reflects an improving investment outlook with private investment, particularly manufacturing, benefiting from the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme, and increases in infrastructure investment.

“The growth outlook will also be supported by ongoing structural reforms, a better than-expected financial sector recovery, and

measures to resolve financial sector challenges despite ongoing risks,” the report said.

It also noted that consumer inflation in the major economies of South Asia has been above central banks’ targets since late 2019.

In India, easing supply disruptions related to COVID and deficient demand contributed to a return of inflation toward the midpoint of the 2-6 per cent target range since mid-2021.

Core inflation, however, remains at the upper end of the target range.

The report said that following the major setback to health and economic activity caused by the mid-2021 second wave of COVID in South Asia, economic activity has recovered.

New cases of COVID stabilised at lower levels last year but are again accelerating in parts of the region as

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NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): The World Bank has retained India’s economic growth forecast for the current fiscal at 8.3 per cent as the recovery is yet to become broad-based.

As per the first advanced estimates of the national income released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) last week, the economy is projected to grow at 9.2 per cent in 202122, surpassing pre-COVID level in actual terms, mainly on account of improved performance, especially in farm, mining and manufacturing sectors.

“India’s economy is expected to expand by 8.3 per cent in fiscal year 2021/22 (ending March 2022), unchanged from last June’s forecast as the recovery is yet to become broad-based.

“The economy should benefit from the resumption of contact-intensive services, and ongoing but

State govt, CSOs working for lasting peace: CM

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WB retains India GDP forecast at 8.3%

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

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BUSINESS/STATE Gold rallies Rs 228; silver the Omicron variant spreads gains Rs 271 rapidly in early 2022.

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8

Imran Khan

The original 100-page policy, which would be kept under wraps, leaves the door open for trade and business ties with India without the final settlement of the longstanding Kashmir dispute provided there is progress in the talks between the two nucleararmed neighbours, an official was quoted as saying by the paper.

“We are not seeking hostility with India for the next 100 years. The new policy seeks peace with immediate neighbours,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

If there is a dialogue and progress, there would be a possibility of normalising trade and commercial ties with India as it had

happened in the past, the official added.

Ties between India and Pakistan nose-dived after a terror attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in 2016 by terror groups based in the neighbouring country. Subsequent attacks, including one on an Indian Army camp in Uri, further deteriorated the relationship.

The relationship dipped further after India’s war planes pounded a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training camp deep inside Pakistan on February 26, 2019 in response to the Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed.

The relations deteriorated after India an-

nounced withdrawing the special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the state into two union territories in August, 2019.

India has told Pakistan that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Islamabad in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

As the new national security policy seeks a shift in Pakistan’s approach from geo-strategic to geo-economics, there is a renewed optimism of a possible thaw with India, the report said.

“Economic security will be the central theme of the new national security policy,” the official disclosed.

“But geo-economics does not necessarily mean we overlook our geo-strategic and geo-political interests,” the official said, adding the long-standing Kashmir dispute with India has been identified as a ‘vital national policy’ issue for Pakistan.

The official, however, clarified that there were no prospects of rapprochement with India under

the current government in New Delhi.

The official said this would be the first-ever codified national security policy that would cover both internal security as well as foreign policy.

“Only a part of the national security policy will be made public,” the official clarified, saying in the rest of the world such policies often remained classified.

The official said though Pakistan did have defence, foreign and internal policies, the new policy would act as an “umbrella document” providing direction for the future.

It took seven years to prepare this policy, which was started by then-national security adviser Sartaj Aziz in 2014.

“Inputs were taken from all the federal, provincial institutions as well as military and other departments,” the official said.

The official said the Opposition was not taken on board since policy making was the domain of the executive but for a consensus, “we are ready to sit with the Opposition.”

Omicron quickly overtaking Delta globally in terms of circulation: WHO UNITED NATIONS/ GENEVA, JAN 12 (PTI): Omicron is quickly overtaking the Delta variant of COVID-19 and becoming dominant around the world, a senior WHO official has warned, with the global health agency cautioning that there is “increasing evidence” Omicron is able to evade immunity but has less disease severity as compared to other variants.

It could take some time for Omicron to overtake Delta in some countries, because it depends on the level of circulation of the Delta variant in those countries, Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and COVID-19 Technical Lead at the World Health Organisation (WHO) Maria Van Kerkhove said on Tuesday.

“Omicron has been detected in all countries where we have good sequencing and it’s likely to be in all countries around the world. It is quickly, in terms of its circulation, overtaking Delta. And so Omicron is becoming the dominant variant that is being detected,” Kerkhove

said during a virtual questions and answers session.

She further cautioned that even though there is some information that Omicron causes less severe disease than Delta, “it’s not a mild disease” because “people are still being hospitalized for Omicron.”

The COVID-19 Weekly Epidemiological Update, released by the WHO, said that over 15 million new COVID-19 cases were reported globally in the week of January 3-9, a 55 per cent increase as compared to the previous week when about 9.5 million cases were reported.

O ve r 4 3 , 0 0 0 n ew deaths were reported in the past week. As of 9 January, over 304 million confirmed COVD-19 cases and over 5.4 million deaths have been reported.

The highest numbers of new cases were reported

Sri Lanka seeks 1-billion- ‘Sulli Deals, hate speech in India, must be condemned’ dollar loan from India C O LO M B O, JA N 1 2 (PTI): Sri Lanka is negotiating a USD one billion loan from India to import goods from the country, the governor of the Central Bank Ajith Nivard Cabraal said on Wednesday, amidst a shortage of almost all essential commodities.

Cabraal also said that Sri Lanka is negotiating another loan from China as part of an attempt to restructure its debt repayment. The loan amount has not been decided.

He said that Sri Lanka is negotiating a USD 1 billion facility with India to import goods from the country.

Cabraal said that this will also help Sri Lanka in its debt repayment and promote more trade with the respective countries.

Last week, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told the visiting Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi that Sri Lanka would be helped if the debt could be restructured.

“We have an understanding that they would assist us in making the repayments in that form.

So maybe there is a possibility that we would have a new loan coming in order to cushion our debt repayments to China”, Cabraal said.

GENEVA, JAN 12 (AP): Harassment of Muslim women in India through social media apps such as “Sulli Deals” must be condemned and prosecuted as soon as they occur, a UN Special Rapporteur has said.

UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues Dr Fernand de Varennes took to Twitter to raise concern on the issue of minorities in India, saying “Muslim women in India are harassed and sold in social media apps”. “#Minority Muslim women in #India are harassed & ‘sold’ in #socialmedia apps, #SulliDeals, a form of #HateSpeech, must be condemned and prosecuted as soon as they occur. All #HumanRights

of minorities need to be fully & equally protected,” Varennes said in a tweet on Tuesday. The Delhi Police last week arrested Aumkareshwar Thakur, 26, who is believed to be the creator of “Sulli Deals” app from Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, the first arrest made in the case. Hundreds of Muslim women were listed for “auction” on the mobile application with photographs sourced without permission and doctored.

The accused, a Bachelor of Computer Application degree holder, admitted that he was a member of a group on Twitter and the idea to defame and troll Muslim women was shared there. “He admitted that he

had developed the code/app on GitHub. After the uproar regarding the Sulli Deals app, he had deleted all his social media footprints,” a senior police officer said.

In a separate “Bulli Bai” case, the Delhi Police on January 1 registered an FIR in connection with an online complaint submitted by a city-based woman journalist against unknown persons for allegedly uploading her doctored picture on a portal. The case pertains to the creation of the ‘Bulli Bai’ app, which targeted Muslim women by putting up their images online for “auction”. According to Delhi Police, Niraj Bishnoi, 21, who was arrested from Assam, was the alleged mas-

Boris apologises in Parl for attending booze party during lockdown LONDON, JAN 12 (PTI): British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday extended a “heartfelt apology” in the House of Commons in response to growing anger around reports of a “bringyour-own-booze” (BYOB) party in the 10 Downing Street garden during the height of the UK’s first COVID-19 lockdown in May 2020.

Johnson has been under intense pressure from the Opposition Labour Party as members of his own Conservative Party since an email invitation for the event on May 20, 2020 emerged in the media.

Labour Leader Keir

Starmer said Prime Minister Johnson should “do the decent thing and resign” over his “pathetic” excuses and “ridiculous” lies.

The 57-year-old Conservative Party leader expressed “regret” as he admitted for the first time that he did attend the event, which he said he believed fell within the scope of a work event. “I want to apologise. I know that millions of people across this country have made extraordinary sacrifices over the last 18 months,” Johnson said in his statement to the Commons ahead of the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) session.

Boris Johnson

“I know the things they feel with me and at the government I lead when they think that in Downing Street itself the rules are not being properly followed by the people who make the rules. And although I cannot anticipate the conclusions of

the current inquiry, I have learned enough to know there are things we simply did not get right and I must take responsibility,” he said.

He went on to lay out the details of his presence at the garden party “to thank groups of staff before going into my office 25 minutes later to continue waiting”.

“I believed it was a work event. With hindsight, I should have sent everyone back inside, I should have found some other way to thank them and I should have recognised that even if it could be said to be technically within the guidance, there would be millions and millions of people who

Car bomb hits outside Mogadishu airport; 8 killed

Rescuers carry away the body of a civilian who was killed in a blast in Mogadishu, Somalia, Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP/PTI)

MOGADISHU, JAN 12 (AP): A car bomb exploded on Wednesday outside the international airport in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, killing at least eight people and wounding nine others, a local doctor said.

The al-Shabab extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was targeting “white officials” passing by.

Dr. Abdulkadir Adam with the Medina hospital told The Associated Press

about the death toll. Witnesses at the scene said a passing UN convoy appeared to be the target in the blast near a checkpoint leading to the heavily fortified airport, but the UN mission said there were no U.N.

personnel or contractors in the convoy.

The al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab extremist group, which controls parts of Somalia, said via its Radio Andalus that a convoy of “white officials” had been the target. The extremist group often carries out bombings at high-profile locations in the capital.

Mogadishu’s deputy mayor, Ali Abdi Wardhere, told reporters at the scene that his own convoy had been driving nearby at the time but was unharmed. He said an investigation was underway and gave a toll of five soldiers killed and five civilians injured.

The international airport hosts the US Embassy, among other diplomatic offices. The blast occurred amid the latest period of political and security uncertainty in Somalia, the Horn of Africa nation where tensions are rising over an election that has been delayed for almost a year.

simply would not see it that way,” he said, calling on Parliament to wait for the findings of an ongoing investigation into lockdown breaches within government ranks. However, he faced a blistering attack from the Opposition benches, with Labour Leader Starmer leading the charge to demand his resignation.

“Well, there we have it. After months of deceit and deception, the pathetic spectacle of a man who’s run out of rope. His defence that he didn’t realise he was at a party is so ridiculous that it’s actually offensive to the British public,” said Starmer.

Ten dead due to heavy rains in Brazil RIO DE JANEIRO, JAN 12 (IANS): At least 10 people were killed in the past 24 hours after heavy rains lashed the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, and more than 13,000 people were forced to leave their homes, the regional civil defense authorities said.

Among the victims, five were from the same family travelling by car in the capital Belo Horizonte metropolitan region on Tuesday.

A landslide buried their car which carried a couple, their three and six-year-old children and another relative, Xinhua news agency reported.

The rains intensified over the weekend, causing major flooding and landslides, along with the isolation of municipalities due to flooding.

Total 145 out of 853 municipalities of the state decreed an emergency situation, while over 17,000 people have been displaced.

from the US (4,610,359 new cases; a 73 per cent increase), France (1,597,203 new cases; a 46 per cent increase), the UK (1,217,258 new cases; a 10 per cent increase), Italy (1,014,358 new cases; a 57 per cent increase) and India (638,872 new cases; a 524 per cent increase), the update said.

Kerkhove said the 15 million cases reported in the last seven days are a “record high in this pandemic” and are an “underestimate” given the challenges in surveillance around the world and COVID-19 self-tests at home that are not registered.

The WHO update said that the Omicron variant has a substantial growth advantage and is rapidly replacing other variants.

“This variant has been shown to have a shorter doubling time as compared to previous variants, with transmission occurring even amongst those vaccinated or with a history of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection; there is increasing evidence that this variant is able to evade immunity,” the update said.

Felicitation With immense pride and joy, the Nunumi Students’ Union would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to Shri James P Swu on being promoted to the post of Additional Deputy Commissioner.

The Union wishes you God’s abundant blessings and good health in all your future endeavours.

termind and creator of the ‘’Bulli Bai’’ application. He had disclosed during interrogation that he was in touch with the person behind the Twitter handle @sullideals, the alleged creator of the ‘’Sulli Deals’’ app that was hosted on GitHub in July last year.

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Pak new security policy seeks ‘peace’ with India

ISLAMABAD, JAN 12 (PTI): Pakistan is willing to make peace with immediate neighbours, including India, under its first-ever National Security Policy which leaves doors open for trade with New Delhi even without the settlement of the Kashmir issue provided there is headway in bilateral talks, according to a media report.

The National Security Policy, separately endorsed by the National Security Committee and the Cabinet last month, is scheduled to be formally unveiled by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday.

Peace with immediate neighbours and economic diplomacy will be the central theme of Pakistan’s foreign policy in the new National Security Policy, the Express Tribune newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The five-year-policy document covering a period between 2022-26, is being propped up by the Pakistan government as the country’s first-ever strategy paper of its kind that spells out the national security vision and guidelines for the attainment of those goals.

9

INTERNATIONAL

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

Sd/Hiuto Yeptho President, nKK

Sd/niukali V Jimo Genera Secretary, nKK

naGalanD State coMMiSSion FoR PRotection oF cHilD RiGHtS (nScPcR) naGalanD : KoHiMa

ADVERTISEMENT No. SCPCR/APPT -1/2021-22 ::

Dated Kohima the 12th January, 2022

Applications are invited from eligible candidates to fill up the under mentioned posts under the Nagaland State Commission for Protection of Child Rights: name of the Post: item no. 1 : 1 (one) post of Chairperson item no. 2 : 2 (two) posts of members eligibility criteria: a. The applicant should have a degree from any recognized university as his/her minimum educational qualification. b. The applicant should have previous experience relating to the following subjects:i. Education ii. Child Health, Care, Welfare or Child Development iii. Juvenile Justice and Care/elimination of child labor iv. Child Psychology or Sociology v. Laws relating to children c. The applicant should not be a Member of Parliament/State Legislature and should not hold any office of Trust or Profit or be connected with any political party – or if connected with any political party, sever his/her connection with the party. d. The applicant should not have any past record of violation of human rights or child rights. e. The applicant should not have been convicted and sentenced for imprisonment for an offence which in the opinion of the state government involves moral turpitude. tenure: item no. 1 : The Chairperson shall, unless removed from office under Sec 7 of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, hold office for a period of 3 years or till the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. item no. 2 : The member shall, unless removed from office under Sec 7 of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, hold office for a period of 3 years or till the age of 60 years, whichever is earlier.

Honorarium: item no. 1 : Rs. 25, 000/- P.M item no. 2 : Rs. 10,000/- P.M Note 1. The application should be addressed to the Secretary, Nagaland State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Nagaland, Kohima and be submitted to the office of the nagaland State commission for Protection of child Rights, below SP office, officers Hill, Kohima, nagaland during office hours. The Commission may be contacted at 7005798166 for any further queries.

2. Applicants are requested to mention the contact details including e-mail and WhatsApp Number in their application.

3. The date and timing of the interview will be intimated through the given contact details including e-mail/WhatsApp. 4. The Last date for submission of application shall be within 15 (fifteen) days from the date of publication of this advertisement.

(MHoMo tUnGoe) ncS Secretary Nagaland State Commission for Protection of Child Rights dc-29/22

INFOTAINMENT

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F

What are the symptoms of omicron?

or nearly two years, millions of members of the public have been submitting daily health reports to the ZOE COVID Study, helping us to track the pandemic as it unfolds. In particular, the 480 million reports submitted via the study’s app have shown that as the virus has evolved, so too have the symptoms it causes.

Back in 2020, it quickly became clear that the original and alpha versions of the coronavirus caused three very common symptoms – cough, fever and loss of smell – as well as at least 20 others.

These included fatigue, headaches, shortness of breath, muscle pains and gastrointestinal problems, as well as more unusual phenomena such as skin r a s h e s a n d “ C OV I D tongue”.

When delta appeared, we then noticed a shift in the most frequently reported symptoms. Previously common symptoms such as shortness of breath, fever and loss of smell fell down the rankings. Coldlike symptoms – including a runny nose, sore throat and persistent sneezing – became more common, along with a headache and cough, particularly in people who had been vaccinated.

Omicron appears to

be continuing the trend set by delta. It’s causing symptoms that are much more like a regular cold, par ticularly in people who’ve been vaccinated, and fewer general systemic symptoms, such as nausea, muscle pains, diarrhoea and skin rashes.

We looked at health reports from people who reported having COVID in December, as omicron spread through the UK, and compared them with data from early October, when delta was the dominant variant. We then checked our findings from this comparison by also analysing data from a small group of contributors who had been told by the gover nment that their positive PCR results were suspected or confirmed omicron infections.

Our analysis showed no significant difference in the overall symptom profile of delta and omicron, with the top five symptoms in both time periods being a runny nose, headache,

fatigue, sneezing and a sore throat. But when it comes to the overall prevalence of the symptoms, there are some clear differences.

For example, anosmia (loss of smell or taste) was in the top ten in October but has fallen to 17th place. What was once a key indicator of COVID is now only seen in around one in five people testing positive. And according to our data, less than a third of people (29%) will ever experience a fever, which is also far less common than we’ve seen in the past.

Importantly, we found that only half of people with COVID had any of the classic three symptoms of fever, cough or loss of sense of smell, suggesting that the gover nment’s guidance for PCR testing (which suggests that you should get a test if you have one of these three symptoms) is woefully outdated.

How bad is omicron?

This new variant is much more infectious than

previous variants, causing a surge in cases across the UK and in other countries. And although it’s not yet clear whether we will be facing an overwhelming wave of hospitalisations from the disease, it’s important to remember that while omicron and delta may feel like a cold to many of us, it can still kill or cause long-term symptoms that disrupt daily life, especially for people who have not been vaccinated or are immunocompromised.

So far, we’ve seen the majority of cases in younger people, but we’re also now seeing cases rising in older age groups while the overall infection rate remains so high. The recent rise in positive cases in the over-75s is worrying, but we’re hopeful that the high levels of vaccination in the UK in older and more vulnerable groups will continue to translate to milder symptoms and few hospitalisations. The major problem with omicron is more the wave of sickness absence it’s causing in key health staff.

Is it omicron or a cold?

As we head further into the depths of winter here in the UK there are some pretty nasty colds going around, as well as the perennial flu. The ZOE COVID Study app data tells us the symptoms caused

by the current COVID variants are very similar to those of a regular cold.

This means that it’s not possible to know for sure what you’ve got based on symptoms alone. When the rate of COVID is high, a new sore throat, runny nose or unusual fatigue should be treated as COVID until you’ve been tested.

Because contributors to the ZOE COVID Study app log any daily symptoms they’re experiencing, as well as any COVID test results, we’re also able to track the prevalence of non-COVID colds.

Just three months ago, around one in 12 people w i t h n ew r e s p i r a t o r y symptoms tested positive for COVID. However, with omicron around 50% of “new colds” currently are, in fact, COVID. So if you or a family member are feeling unwell, there’s a good chance that it could be COVID, especially if you’re snuffling and sneezing a lot. You should stay home and get tested to be sure. Bear in mind that although lateral flow tests are good, especially if you swab both your throat and nose, they are less sensitive than PCR tests. When you do one, try and repeat it in the following days, as a single negative lateral flow result isn’t a guarantee that you aren’t infected.

(The Conversation)

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

Lata Mangeshkar continues to be under observation: doctor

L

egendary singer Lata Mangeshkar is still under observation in the ICU, three days after she tested positive for COVID-19 a n d wa s s u b s e q u e n t ly admitted to a city hospital, the doctor treating her said on Wednesday.

Mangeshkar, 92, tested positive for coronavirus with mild symptoms and was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) o f t h e B r e a c h C a n dy Hospital in south Mumbai on Saturday.

Sharing her health update, associate professor Dr Pratit Samdani from the Breach Candy Hospital told PTI, “She continues to be under observation in the ICU”.

On Tu e s d ay, Mangeshkar’s niece Rachna

Shah told PTI that the veteran was admitted to the ICU as she requires “constant care”.

“She is mild COVID positive. Considering her age, doctors advised us that she should be in the ICU because she requires constant care. And we cannot take a chance. As a family we want the best and want to ensure she has 24X7 care.

Mangeshkar’s niece added that the singer “will be fine”, but will take time for full recovery from COVID-19, considering her age.

In November 2019, Mangeshkar was admitted to the same hospital after she complained of difficulty in breathing and was diagnosed with pneumonia. She was

discharged after 28 days.

Mangeshkar started her career at the age of 13 in 1942 and has sung over 30,000 songs in several Indian languages in an over seven-decade career. Some of her most loved tracks are “Ajeeb dastan hai ye”, “Pyar kiya to darna kya”, “Neela asman so gaya”, and “Tere liye”.

Considered one of Indian cinema’s greatest s i n ge r s, M a n ge s h k a r received the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, in 2001.

She is also the recipient of several other awards, including the Padma Bhushan, the Padma Vibhushan and the Dada Saheb Phalke Award, and multiple National Film Awards.

(PTI)

PUBG: Battlegrounds is now After 3 years, Oscars to have a host; network doesn’t reveal name free to play on PC, consoles T

S

outh Korean video game developer Krafton on Tuesday announced that its battle royale game PUBG: Battlegrounds is now freeto-play (F2P) on PC and consoles.

Wi t h t h e g a m e ’s t r a n s i t i o n t o F 2 P, i t introduces Battlegrounds

Plus, an optional premium account upgrade that allows players to access a variety of new and exclusive ingame features.

“This F2P transition, which was initially announced last month at The Game Awards (TGA), marks the start of a new era for the globally popular

Daniel Craig says Spielberg made him take on 007 role

b a t t l e r o ya l e g a m e,” the company said in a statement.

While all new players will start with a basic account that offers access to most game features, they can upgrade to Battlegrounds Plus for a one-time fee of $12.99 and gain access to several features. In addition to the F2P transition, update 15.2 is now live in PUBG: Battlegrounds.

The new update introduces Tactical Gear, a new categor y of ingame items that provide new and existing players with various options for improving their in-game performances that do not involve pure gunplay.

(IANS)

hree years after latenight TV talk show host Jimmy Kimmel emceed the Oscars, the world’s greatest movie awards show will finally have a face when the event airs on March 27 on the American TV network, ABC. Craig Erwich, President, Hulu Originals & ABC Entertainment, according to ‘Variety’, made this announcement during ABC’s segment of the Television Critics Association virtual press tour.

But he didn’t elaborate on who it might be. “It might be me,” Erwich quipped, before touting his confidence in Oscars executive producer Will Packer.

“Will really has his pulse on popular culture and

entertainment,” Erwich said. “I know he has a lot in store and we’ll have more details to share soon.”

Jimmy Kimmel served as the last host of the Academy Awards, having emceed the ceremony in 2017 and 2018, notes ‘Variety’. Other hosts over the past decade included Chris Rock (2016), Neil Patrick Harris (2015), Ellen DeGeneres (2014), Seth MacFarlane (2013), Billy Crystal (2012) and James Franco/ Anne Hathaway (2011).

The MacFarlane and Franco/Hathaway stints were seen as a bid by ABC and the Academy to attract a younger audience, but critics were not impressed.

Being the Oscars host was at

one time considered one of the most coveted gigs in Hollywood (particularly in the age of Bob Hope and Johnny Carson), according to ‘Variety’, but the job became regarded as more thankless in the age of social media and the non-stop critiques of whomever is on stage.

The real end of the line for Oscar host, however, came in 2019, when the Academy announced Kevin Hart in the role. Hart later decided to drop out after the organisation asked him to apologise for years-old homophobic tweets; after that, the 2019 event went hostless and actually saw its ratings go up in comparison with the previous ye ar’s.

(IANS)

Akshay and Emraan all set to light up ‘Selfiee’

D

aniel Craig has said that Steven Spielberg made him take on his 007 role.

The 53-year-old actor who bowed out of his role as James Bond in 2021’s ‘No Time to Die’ after five movies - has revealed he only agreed to take on the part of the iconic spy for ‘Casino Royale’ back in 2006 when he bumped into the legendary film director in a hotel by chance.

H e s a i d : “ S t eve n was in the same hotel by chance. Can you get a more Hollywood moment? And I went ‘Would you read this [the script] please? He read it very quickly and said ‘You have to do it’!’”

Daniel went on to explain that it was “very important” for a someone in showbusiness as high up as Spielberg to be “inspired” by the role K Y M C

before he chose to accept it.

Daniel is quoted

by The Sun newspaper as saying: “It was very impor tant to me that someone like him should be as inspired by it as I was.”

H oweve r, d e s p i t e receiving the confidence of Spielberg - who has won Oscars for directing films such as ‘Schindler’s List’ and ‘Saving Private Ryan’ - Daniel still found himself to be “nervous” about taking on the mammoth role, but knew it was “going to be good.”

He said: “I was working with incredible directors in some amazing movies. I was nervous. I thought, ‘I don’t want to do Bond and ruin all that’. But I read the ‘Casino Royale ‘script. It was like, ‘OK, this is going to be good”.

(Contactmusic)

dc-30/22

T

he makers of Akshay Kumar and Emraan Hashmi’s upcoming film ‘Selfiee’ made the announcement of the film through a special teaser on Wednesday.

The film is the Hindi remake of 2019 Malayalam film ‘Driving License’, directed by Lal Jr, which featured Prithviraj Sukumaran and Suraj Venjaramoodu.

Akshay took to his instagram to share the teaser, which starts off with him playing a bulbul tarang before it jumps into a celebratory mood replete with colours, song and dance featuring Emraan as well.

A k s h ay w r o t e i n the caption, “Presenting #Selfiee, a journey that will drive you towards loads of entertainment, laughter & emotions.

Shooting begins soon!”

‘Selfiee’ will be backed by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and helmed by ‘Jugg Jugg Jeeyo’ director Raj Mehta.

The film, which will soon go on floors, will also mark Prithviraj Sukumaran and Magic Frames’ debut in Hindi cinema production.

(IANS)

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India Open: Saina, Prannoy, Sen enter 2nd round

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): Former champion Saina Nehwal, world championships bronze medallist Lakshya Sen and comeback man HS Prannoy registered contrasting wins to progress to the second round of the India Open here on Wednesday.

Commonwealth Games silver medallists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also made winning starts to their men’s doubles campaign.

Former world no 1.

Saina, who missed a lot of tournaments last year due to multiple injuries, moved to the second round after her opponent Czech Republic’s Tereza Svabikova suffered a back injury and retired mid-way while lagging 20-22 0-1 in the opening round match.

“Playing after so long gives you the match confidence...how to pull out those points, because in practice you don’t have the privilege to play points with the same intensity as you do in tournaments.

The quality of some of the points I got today...I hope it somehow helps me tomorrow,” Saina said after her

Lakshya Sen

Saina Nehwal

HS Prannoy

match.

Saina, who is seeded fourth, will meet compatriot Malvika Bansod, who defeated fellow Indian Samiya Imad Farooqui 2118 21-9 in another match.

The left-handed Nagpur shuttler had recently won the All India Senior ranking meet in Hyderabad.

“I am really excited to play against Saina as it will be my first encounter with her, so really hoping to play well,” said Malvika, who had been part of India’s campaign at the Sudirman Cup and Thomas and Uber Cup Finals last year.

On a comeback trail, Prannoy, a former world top 10 player, who had made it to the quarterfinals at the world championships, got the better of Spain’s Pablo Abian 21-14 21-7 and will next face Mithun Manjunath.

Manjunath eked out a hard-fought 21-16 15-21 21-10 victory over France’s Arnaud Merkle.

“Extremely happy to win the first match. Pablo is a tricky player, a fighter but after the first 7-8 points, I could play much better,” Prannoy said.

Third seed Sen, who claimed the world cham-

pionships bronze on debut last month, thrashed Egypt’s Adham Hatem Elgamal 21-15 21-7 to set up a face-off with Sweden’s Felix Burestedt.

World no. 10 men’s pairing of Satwik and Chirag, seeded second, trounced fellow Indian combination of Chirag Arora and Ravi 21-14 2110 to also advance to the second round of the BWF Super 500 tournament at the KD Jadhav Indoor hall.

Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy, seeded second, also entered the

EYL enters the semi-finals in T20 WCC

Trinidad and Tobago sprinter Lendore dies aged 29

D I M A P U R , JA N 1 2 (NPN): EYL has progressed and booked their berth in the semi-finals after defeating the Hurricanes CC at the ongoing T20 Winter Cricket Challenge (WCC) played at local ground Wokha Town on January 12.

Winning the toss, EYL went to bat first making a target of 148 runs in 20 overs losing five wickets.

Nzanthung Mozhui of EYL scored 37 runs facing 26 balls with Janbemo Kikon in 22 balls collecting 34 runs (not out).

Achamo Ngullie in a four overs delivery consisting 17 runs claimed three wickets for Hurricanes CC. Hurricanes chasing the target were short of 36 runs in 20 overs, losing nine wickets.

Nchumthung Ngullie and Mhabemo Odyuo contributed 20 and 18 runs respectively but could not help the team to take down the giants.

EYL in the form of Chumchamo restricted 6 runs in his four over deliv-

Janbemo Kikon of EYL receives the man of the match award from DC Wokha, Orenthung Lotha.

ery claimed four casualty and Alamo Lotha claimed a wicket and a maiden with just nine runs in his four over delivery.

Janbemo Kikon of EYL was adjudged the man of the match award after winning the match by 36 runs in the 20 overs.

Due to a light rain,

only one match was played on Wednesday where EYL played against Hurricanes CC. Due to the bad weather, the second match was later postponed and the last quarter final match of the T20 WCC will be played on January 13 between LCYO Vs Blackcap Tseminyu.

TEXAS, JAN 12 (AGENCIES): Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympic committee said sprinter Deon Lendore has died in the United States at the age of 29.

U.S. media reports said the three-times Olympian, who anchored his country to the 4x400m bronze medal at the 2012 London Games and also competed at Rio and Tokyo, was involved in a car crash in Texas.

Lendore was working as a volunteer coach at Texas A&M University, reports added. The Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee said in a statement that Lendore was an “inspiration and motivation”.

“Deon has flown the Trinidad and Tobago flag with pride, honour, patriotism and an indomitable will throughout his career while helping and inspiring many,” the statement added.

Lendore won silver in the 4x400m relay at the 2015 world championships in Beijing. He claimed individual bronze medals in the indoor world championships in 2016 and 2018.

Savita to lead women’s team in Asia Cup hockey

Indian Women’s hockey team squad for Asia Cup.

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (IANS): Experienced goalkeeper Savita will lead the Indian women’s hockey team in regular skipper Rani Rampal’s absence, while Deep Grace Ekka will be the vice-captain for the Women’s Hockey Asia Cup, scheduled to be held in Muscat from January 21-28.

The 18-member Indian team for the tournament, to be played at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, looks formidable with 16 players from the side that was part of the historic fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympic K Y M C

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

Games 2020.

Defending champions India will battle it out against China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand for the title. The top-four teams from this tournament will qualify for the 2022 FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup to be held in Spain and the Netherlands.

India are grouped in Pool A along with Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.

They will begin their campaign on the opening day against Malaysia and will play Japan on January 23.

India will take on Singapore

in their last pool match on January 24. The semifinals will be played on January 26 and the final match on January 28.

“This is a very important tournament for us and I am happy with the team we have chosen which is a mix of some very experienced players along with talented youngsters who have shown great potential at the international level.

Though we were a bit disappointed with how things panned out for us at the Asian Champions Trophy, we were able to return to camp in SAI, Bengaluru

and put in some good sessions of hockey to prepare well for this challenge,” said chief coach Janneke Schopman on Wednesday.

In the previous edition held in 2017, India beat China 5-4 in a tense shootout to lift the trophy.

The team includes goalkeeper Rajani Etimarpu and defenders Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan, and Udita.

The midfield includes Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Salima Tete, Jyoti and Navjot Kaur, while the forwardline will see Navneet Kaur, Lalremsiami, Vandana Katariya, Mariana Kujur and Sharmila Devi.

Deepika (Junior) and Ishika Chaudhary are the ‘Replacement Athletes’ for the event.

The squad: Goalkee pers: Savita (Capt), Rajani Etimarpu.

Defenders: Deep Grace Ekka, Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan, Udita.

Midfielders: Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Salima Tete, Jyoti, Navjot Kaur.

Forwards: Navneet Kaur, Lalremsiami, Vandana Katariya, Mariana Kujur, Sharmila Devi.

Replacement Athletes: Deepika (Junior), Ishika Chaudhary.

second round after prevailing 21-7 19-21 21-13 over compatriots Janani Ananthakumar and Divya R.Balasubramanian in women’s doubles.

Among other Indians, Aakarshi Kashyap beat compatriot Anura Prabhudesai 21-14 21-14, while Rahul Yadav Chittaboina got a walkover after Spain’s Luís Enrique Penalver’s withdrawal.

Kashyap will square off against Keyura Mopati, who has been promoted from reserve. Mopati beat fellow Indian Smit Toshniwal 15-21 21-19 21-8.

Rahul will be pitted against Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen, who knocked out Ajay Jayaram 19-21, 21-7 21-14 in another men’s singles contest.

Tanya Hemanth also got rid of Sai Uttejitha Rao Chukka 9-21 21-12 21-19 in another women’s singles match.

While Priyanshu Rajawat fell in the opening hurdle, losing 21-15 17-21 14-21 to Lucas Claerbout of France.

PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth and Sameer Verma had reached the second round on Tuesday.

Southampton dominates Brentford in 4-1 win in English Premier League

Southampton players celebrate after their side goal against Brentford.

SOUTHAMPTON, JAN 12 (AP): Southampton earned its biggest Premier League win of the season by beating Brentford 4-1 with the south-coast club’s new owner in attendance on Tuesday.

Jan Bednarek, Armando Broja and Che Adams scored and Southampton added an own-goal from Brentford goalkeeper Alvaro Fernandez in a match

rescheduled from December because of a COVID-19 outbreak in the Brentford squad. Brentford midfielder Vitaly Janelt’s goal canceled out Bednarek’s fifth-minute header off James WardProwse’s corner, but the home team went to halftime up 2-1 after the own-goal.

Southampton’s win in front of new majority owner Dragan Solak moved the team to 11th place — two

spots and one point above Brentford. Solak’s Sport Republic recently purchased the 80% stake that was held

by Chinese businessman Gao Jisheng.

It was the first time since 2017 that Southampton scored four goals at St. Mary’s stadium.

Brentford has lost three of is last four league games and visits Liverpool on Sunday.

Gauff beats Kostyuk, five Americans in Adelaide qtrs A D E L A I D E , JA N 1 2 (AGENCIES): Coco Gauff battled to a 6-3 5-7 6-3 win over unseeded Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk at the Adelaide International 2 WTA tournament on Wednesday to join four other Americans in the quarter-finals.

Madison Keys, Alison Riske, Madison Brengle and Lauren Davis also won their respective matches in the round of 16 earlier in the day to book their spots in the quarter-finals which will take place on Thursday.

Gauff, who pushed world number one Ash Barty before losing their secondround meeting in the Adelaide International 1 event last week, raced ahead 4-1 in the opening set against Kostyuk before grabbing the early lead in the match.

Kostyuk raced to 5-3 in the second set and wasted three set points to allow Gauff to draw level, but dragged the clash into a decider when the third seed sent a forehand wide.

A decisive break in the seventh game of the third set gave Gauff the upper hand again and she held her nerve to prevail.

Voracova followed the rules, visa row ‘unfortunate’: WTA MELBOURNE, JAN 12 (AGENCIES): The Women’s Tennis Association has raised concerns about Renata Voracova’s departure from Australia after her visa was cancelled, saying the Czech player followed the rules and had done nothing wrong.

Like Novak Djokovic, Voracova was granted a medical exemption to compete at the Australian Open despite not being vaccinated against COVID-19.

The 38-year-old doubles specialist had already played a tournament in Melbourne before she was detained by Border Force officials and asked to leave the country in the wake of the cancellation of Djokovic’s visa. “The complications experienced over the past few days where athletes have followed the approved and authorized process of receiving a medical exemption for entry into the country are unfortunate,” the WTA said in a statement.

“Renata Voracova followed these rules and procedures, was cleared for entry on her arrival, competed in an event and then suddenly had her visa cancelled when she had done nothing wrong.

Coco Gauff Earlier, former U.S. Open runner-up Keys hardly broke sweat in her 6-1 6-3 demolition of Czech Tereza Martincova while Riske was equally ruthless as she powered past Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine by a similar scoreline.

Brengle downed Swede Rebecca Peterson 6-3 6-2

while Davis was made to work hard by Jasmine Paolini before coming away with a 4-6 6-4 6-4 win.

Former French Open runner-up Marketa Vondrousova surrendered a match point against unseeded Croatian Ana Konjuh who completed a 4-6 6-2 7-6(3) victory in an epic

Centre Court battle that lasted two hours and 21 minutes.

In the men’s event, Brazilian lucky loser Thiago Monteiro advanced to the quarter-finals after top seed Gael Monfils of France retired while 7-6(2) 3-6 0-1 down.Monteiro will play Corentin Moutet in his next match.

Tournament organisers said later that Monfils retired due to a neck injury.

Earlier, local hope Thanasi Kokkinakis withstood a barrage that included 23 aces from American John Isner before sealing a 6-7(5) 7-6(5) 7-6(4) victory over the second seed to set up an all-Australian clash with Aleksandar Vukic in the last eight.

Russian third seed Karen Khachanov saw off Italian Gianluca Mager 7-5 6-3, while fourth seed Marin Cilic defeated Spain’s Jaume Munar 7-6(6) 6-2.

Cilic will next face the in-form Tommy Paul, who has won 12 of his past 14 matches, while Khachanov will play France’s Arthur Rinderknech for a place in the semi-finals.

4th Supongmeren memorial volleyball trophy concludes

Er. J. Lanu Longcher with the winners and others after the prize distributions.

D I M A P U R , JA N 1 2 (NPN): The 4th Supongmeren Memorial Volleyball Trophy was held under the theme, “One goal, one spirit” on January 11 and 12 at Molungkimong.

The final match was played between MH 10 Kohima and CMC Molungkimong, where CMC Molungkimong emerged as winner by 25-20, 25-19, 25-23.

A total of 9 team participated and the winners walked away with cash price of 50,000, runners-

up received Rs. 30,000 and third price was bagged

by Changtongya Volleyball Association who also received Rs. 20,000 and fourth place by Khar-B and received Rs. 10,000.

The final match was graced by executive engineer, water resources department Kohima, Er. J. Lanu Longcher. In his speech, he urged all players to uphold the spirit of the games and to be disciplined in all walks of life. As the host village also celebrate quasquicenten-

nial of Christianity, he encouraged for forgiveness, peace and harmony among friends and villages.

The volleyball trophy was organised in memory of late Supongmeren who hailed from Molungkimong village under Mokokchung district. He was a torch bearer of Christianity in Ao area, education, peacemaker and writer Ao Naga literature.

The trophy was organised to strengthen the spirit of peace and unity tree to the name of Supongmeren.

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2022

IND vs SA, 3rd Test: India lead by 70 runs Kerala Blasters beat Odisha 2-0

CAPE TOWN, JAN 12 (PTI): Jasprit Bumrah shut his critics with one of his best five-wicket hauls in the traditional format as the Indian fast bowling unit gave the team slight edge over South Africa on an exhilarating second day of the third and final Test here on Wednesday.

Bumrah (23.3-8-42-5) was at the heart of India’s swift and brutal counterattack as he got his seventh five-wicket haul with fine complementary acts from Mohammed Shami (16-439-2) and Umesh Yadav (16-3-64-2) that helped them bundle out the Proteas for 210.

The lead of 13 that India managed was less about the quantum and more about the psychological advantage that they gained and despite losing Mayank Agarwal (7) and KL Rahul (10) cheaply, the visitors scored runs at a fair clip to reach 57 for 2 at stumps.

Skipper Virat Kohli (14 batting) and Cheteshwar Pujara (9 batting), with a cumulative experience of 194 Tests, have the responsibility of taking the team to a winning total.

And while statistics at times are of little or no relevance but Kohli wouldn’t be too unhappy to know that India have never lost a Test match in which his premier strike bowler has taken a

The Indian team celebrates the wicket of Keegan Peterson, left, during the second day of the third and final test match between South Africa and India in Cape Town. (AP/PTI)

five-wicket haul. It was a day when Kohli’s captaincy acumen was worth praising as he made relevant bowling changes at the right time, juggled with subtle field placings and also took his 100th catch in Test cricket.

But someone who would be really smiling at the end of the day is Bumrah, who had a forgettable game at the Wanderers and copped a fair amount of flak for bowling too short and not depending on his strengths. There were analytics showing how his strike-rate (wickets per deliveries) had doubled since a back injury but on Wednesday, he showed that he is skipper Kohli’s real X-factor, the man who makes the dif-

ference between a good and a world-class side.

The delivery that got Aiden Markram was pitched just a shade outside offstump and it seemed to be going straight but suddenly jagged back embarrassing the South African opener, who had shouldered arms.

Whenever Markram sees the replay, he would know that Bumrah made him feel inadequate when it came to knowing where his off-stump was.

On the day, Bumrah slightly altered the length making it slightly fuller on the off-stump and the offstump channel line. The length and bounce was such that batters seemed confused about whether it

would bounce above stumps or come at the stumps.

One such delivery got South Africa’s best performer Keegan Petersen (72 off 166 balls) as it kicked up awkwardly from length but enough for the batter to have a jab at it and Cheteshwar Pujara accepted the offering at second slip.

But credit should also go to Shami, who in the post lunch session, got two wickets in three balls to unsettle the Proteas after Petersen and Rassie van der Dussen (21) had added 67 for the fourth wicket. If Umesh set up the session with a conventional outswinger that saw Van Der Dussen edging one to Kohli at second slip, Shami removed the dogged

Temba Bavuma (28) and Kyle Verreynne (0) with two ideal Test match deliveries in the 56th over. The deliveries had everything, upright seam and pitched fuller on the off-stump with just about adequate movement.

Bavuma was caught low by a diving Kohli while Rishabh Pant had a smart take to remove his opposite number. At stroke of tea, Bumrah settled his scores with Marco Jansen sending his off-stump for a walk.

The best part of the session was skipper Kohli’s adjustment when he, at second slip, decided to stand a few steps ahead of the first slip after realising that the ball was not carrying in full.

There were a couple of times when Shardul Thakur (6-1-21-0) found the outside edge of Petersen’s bat but on both occasions, the ball died down in front of skipper Kohli at first slip.

The bounce available on the Newlands track isn’t as steep as it was at the Centurion and the Wanderers which belong to the Highveld region.

Brief scores: India 223 in 77.3 overs and 57/2 in 17 overs (Virat Kohli 79, KL Rahul 10; Kagiso Rabada 4/73) lead South Africa 210 all out in 76.3 overs (Keegan Petersen 72, Temba Bavuma 28; Jasprit Bumrah 5/42, Mohammed Shami 2/39) by 70 runs

Nishu Kumar of Kerala Blasters FC celebrates after scoring a goal during match 58 of season 8 of ISL played between Odisha FC and Kerala Blasters FC, Wednesday. (ISL/PTI)

VASCO, JAN 12 (PTI): Kerala Blasters FC romped home to a comfortable 2-0 victory over Odisha FC to move top of the table in the Indian Super League here on Wednesday.

Nishu Kumar (28th) and Harmanjot Khabra (40th) netted first-half goals to keep the Kerala juggernaut rolling. Kerala now have 20 points from 11 games while Odisha, who remain in eighth place, have 13 in their kitty from 10 matches.

Kerala looked the far better side from the off, stringing together a series of passes in the sixth min-

ute to show early intent.

Odisha got a chance to take the lead in the 26th minute when against the run of play Javi Hernandez forced Prabhsukhan Gill into a good save from a snapshot. Two minutes later, Kerala nosed ahead.

It was a piece of individual brilliance from Nishu Kumar who sent a curling effort into the top right corner from just outside the box after Adrian Luna set him up beautifully.

Kerala doubled their lead five minutes to halftime, Luna involved again as he swung in a delectable

corner for Khabra to head in.

Odisha tried to up the ante in the second half but Gill was in top form as he pulled off a brilliant save to deny Jonathas Cristian after the hour-mark.

Jonathas got another chance to pull one back when Jerry Mawihmingthanga sent a crisp ball for him in the box but his header fizzed over the bar.

Javi also got a free kick from a good position but his effort sailed over.

THURSDAY’S MATCH Chennayin FC Vs Hyderabad FC Time: 7:30 pm

Unhappy Hamilton undecided on F1 future Phoenix Suns stop Toronto Raptors’ winning streak

LO N D O N, JA N 1 2 (AGENCIES): Lewis Hamilton will not decide whether to return to Formula 1 this season until he sees the results of an inquiry into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Hamilton is “disillusioned” with F1, his Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said, as a result of last year’s title-deciding race.

Hamilton lost the championship to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after FIA race director Michael Masi did not apply the rules correctly in a late safety-car period.

Insiders say Hamilton has lost trust in the governing body as a result.

Mercedes declined to comment on the situation surrounding Hamilton’s future when approached by BBC Sport.

The team and Hamilton are said to be aligned on the issue and waiting to see what action the FIA takes to address the matters raised by the Abu Dhabi race.

The FIA has launched an inquiry into the events at Yas Marina and is aware

Lewis Hamilton both of Hamilton’s unhappiness and that it has a big task on its hands to win back the seven-time champion’s confidence. New president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said he has contacted Hamilton since his election five days after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“I don’t think he’s 100% ready to respond right now,” Ben Sulayem said last week. “We don’t blame him.

I understand his position.”

Some senior F1 insiders are concerned that the governing body has not fully grasped the threat to its credibility created by the final race of the season.

It has been a month

since the Abu Dhabi race.

But when asked about the timing of the inquiry’s findings or what matters it will seek to address, the FIA said it was not yet ready to answer queries.

The FIA admitted in a statement last month that the events of Abu Dhabi were “tarnishing the image” of F1 but also said that it had “generated significant misunderstanding and reactions from F1 teams, drivers and fans”.

Announcing the inquiry, the FIA said it would be done in time for “any identified meaningful feedback and conclusions to be made before the beginning of the 2022 season”.

The first of two preseason tests starts on 23 February, while the opening race is in Bahrain on 18-20 March.

The future of Masi is in doubt as a result of his handling of the race, which came at the end of a season in which there were repeated concerns among teams and drivers over the consistency of application of the rules.

Los Angeles overcame a 25-point, third-quarter deficit to stun visiting Denver.

Los Angeles worked its way back from the 25-point deficit to take an 83-81 lead on Coffey’s 3-pointer with 2:30 remaining. Nicolas Batum connected for another trey to cap a 52-22 burst and give the Clippers a five-point edge with 1:47 to play.

Reggie Jackson and Terance Mann added 13 points apiece for Los Angeles, which scored just 28 first-half points. Denver’s Aaron Gordon posted season highs of 30 points and 12 rebounds and Nikola Jokic added 21 points, 13 Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles the ball as Toronto Raptors forward rebounds and eight assists. Chris Boucher (25) defends during the fourth quarter at Scotiabank Arena. lanciunas had 13 points Grizzlies 116, Warriors 108 Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 13 Pelicans 128, 12 rebounds for New and secured a game-high 11 Timberwolves 125 and Ja Morant scored a Orleans. game-high 29 points and rebounds.

Brandon Ingram Anthony Edwards the Memphis Grizzlies won Stephen Curry notched scored a game-high 33 scored 28 points, 16 in his second triple-double of their 10th straight game, outpoints, including a tiethe fourth quarter, to lead the season, scoring a teamlasting visiting Golden State. breaking 3-pointer with 1.3 Ziaire Williams scored high 27 points and adding seconds left, as host New the Timberwolves. Karlended Minnesota’s Anthony Towns added 17 points, and Tyus Jones 10 rebounds and 10 assists Clippers 87, Nuggets 85 Orleans four-game winning streak. 26 points, Malik Beasley added 17 points and eight for the Warriors. In his secJo s h H a r t a d d e d had 18 off the bench and assists off the bench for the ond game after a 2 1/2-year Amir Coffey registered 18 points, seven as- 21 points, Herbert Jones D’Angelo Russell tallied 18 Grizzlies. Brandon Clarke absence, Klay Thompson sists and four steals and scored 14 and Jonas Va- points and 10 assists. finished with 14 points. scored 14 points.

T O RO N T O, J A N 1 2 ( AG E N C I E S ) : D e v i n Booker hit the go-ahead jump shot with 1:02 to play and the visiting Phoenix Suns went on to end the Toronto Raptors’ six-game winning streak Tuesday night with a 99-95 victory.

Booker’s 19-footer gave Phoenix a one-point lead and Chris Paul followed with a 16-footer with 32.5 seconds left. OG Anunoby’s layup cut Toronto’s deficit to one with 14.1 seconds to go.

Booker restored the threepoint lead with two free throws with 6.5 seconds left.

Booker finished with 16 points before fouling out.

Jae Crowder led Phoenix with 19 points, Deandre Ayton added 16, and Paul had 15 points and 12 assists.

Anunoby had 25 points for Toronto, Pascal Siakam added 22 points, Fred VanVleet scored 21 and Chris Boucher had 13 points and 16 rebounds off the bench.

Tasnim Mir first Indian to claim world no 1 in u-19 girls singles Novak Djokovic facing hostility,

NEW DELHI, JAN 12 (PTI): Young shuttler Tasnim Mir on Wednesday became the first Indian to grab the world no 1 ranking in the under-19 girls singles in the latest BWF junior rankings.

The 16-year-old from Gujarat was rewarded for last year’s stellar run when she had secured titles in three junior international tournaments to jump three places to grab the top position in the junior world rankings.

“I can’t say that I expected this. I thought I will not be able to become no 1 as tournaments were getting affected by COVID-19 but I won three events in Bulgaria, France and Belgium. So I am really excited and happy that finally I could become the world no 1. It is a great moment for me,” Tasnim told PTI from Guwahati.

“I will completely focus on the senior circuit from now on and looking forward to playing at Iran and Uganda next month.

My aim now is to improve my senior ranking. If I can weave some good performances and get into top 200 by end of the year that

Tasnim Mir would be great.”

Tasnim, who is supported by OGQ, is currently ranked a lowly 602 in the women’s singles.

Tasnim’s feat has never been achieved by any Indian girl, including twotime Olympic medallist P V Sindhu and London bronze winner Saina Nehwal.

While Sindhu was world no 2 in her under-19 days, Saina didn’t make the cut for being a junior with the BWF junior rank-

ings starting only in 2011.

Another Indian Samiya Imad Farooqui of Telangana came close but could only reached the second spot in the BWF junior rankings.

In Boys singles, Lakshya Sen, Siril Verma and Aditya Joshi had become the world no 1.

Tasnim was part of India’s campaign at the Thomas and Uber Cup held late last year in Denmark and says it had a huge impact on her game.

“It was a huge moment for me, it was first time that I was among the seniors, playing against world class players in big stadiums, it was a great experience. I also met Viktor Axelsen there, I like his game. I also like to watch players such as Tai Tzu Ying and An Seyoung,” she said.

Tasnim has been training under Indonesian coach Edwin Iriawan at the Assam Badminton Academy in Guwahati for the last four years.

“I have been training for last four years under Edwin, it has been great experience, we get to train with men players, so I has helped to improve my game,” said the teenager, who won the 2019 Dubai Junior International.

Tasnim got her first lessons on badminton from her father Irfan Mir, who is a badminton coach and also ASI in Mehsana police.

“My father is a badminton coach and also works for Mehsana police. He has always been interested in sports and used to take me alongwith him when I was about 7-8 years old,” she said. I Tasnim, whose young-

er brother Mohd Ali Mir, a Gujarat state junior champion, also trains with her in Guwahati, has been an achiever right from her young days.

She won the national junior champion (U-19) at the age of 14 and also claimed the national crown in the under-13, under-15 and under-19 girls’ singles categories.

Tasnim also won U-15 singles and doubles titles at the All-India Sub-Junior ranking tournaments in Hyderabad and Nagpur in 2018.

At the 2019 World Junior Championships in Russia, she could not go past the round of 32 but returned to win the title at the Asian U-17 & U-15 Junior Championships the same year in Indonesia.

She also emerged victorious at the President Cup Nepal Junior International Series 2020 in Kathmandu.

“I will need to work on my stamina and mental aspect of my game, which will play a big role. I have confidence on my shots but it is important to focus on mind,” she signed off.

cold start at Melbourne Park

M E L B O U R N E , JA N 12 (REUTERS): Novak Djokovic is likely to face hostility both on and off court if he is allowed to play at the Australian Open but a former member of the Serbian’s team thinks the world number one is wellequipped to deal with it.

While Australia’s immigration minister continues to consider whether to cancel Djokovic’s visa on Wednesday, the 20-times Grand Slam champion has been pressing ahead with his preparations for his title defence. read more Djokovic’s announcement last week that he had a medical exemption to play despite being unvaccinated was met with uproar in Australia, which is battling an Omicron wave of infections and where more than 90% of the adult population is double vaccinated.

Craig O’Shannessy, who worked as a strategy and tactical analyst for Djokovic, thinks that fury will almost certainly be vocalised by the crowds at

Novak Djokovic Melbourne Park.

“It is not going to be new to him,” he told Reuters. “But even though he has the mental experience and toughness, this has the potential to be at a level, maybe, that we have not seen in tennis.”

The dressing room might not be the most welcoming place for Djokovic either, with some players resentful that he is not vaccinated.

The ATP says 97 of the top 100 men are vacci-

nated and American world number 93 Tennys Sandgren has skipped the Australian Open, which starts on Jan. 17, because of the double-dose mandate.

World number 140 Joao Sousa, who is trying to qualify for the main draw this week, said it was difficult for other players to accept that Djokovic could play without being vaccinated.

“I can be empathetic with what he is going through in Australia, but it is a bit selfish from him to arrive here as the only player unvaccinated,” he told Portuguese news site Bolamarela.

“It is tough for us players to accept that. Many players ... didn’t want to get vaccinated and were forced to do it to be able to play tournaments.

“He is finding a way around those rules.”

Marton Fucsovics, who lost to Djokovic in the Wimbledon quarter-finals last year, expressed similar sentiments.

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