14 Mar 2022

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXXII No. 97

DIMAPUR, MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022 Pages 12 ` 5.00

Russia intensifies assault on Ukraine

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INTERNATIONAL, PAGE 9

China on brink of biggest Covid-19 crisis 17 MILLION RESIDENTS OF SHENZHEN UNDER COVID-19 LOCKDOWN

BEIJING, MAR 13 (AGENCIES): China on Sunday reported more than 3,200 domestic Covid-19 cases including 1,807 symptomatic ones, the highest in over two years, across 19 provinces, forcing new lockdowns and travel restrictions. The 1,807 cases for Saturday were more than triple the caseload of 476 for the previous day.

The nationwide surge in cases in the past few days has health authorities scrambling to control the localised clusters of both Omicron and Delta varieties of the infection.

C h i n a ’s h i g h - t e c h Shenzhen city, which has a population of over 17 million, was the latest to shut down to control the surge of COVID-19 cases, as the government scrambled to contain the worst outbreak of virus cases in the last two years. Shenzhen will seal all communities, villages and suspend bus and metro services from Monday to Sunday due to the latest

No new Covid case, death in Nagaland

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): No new Covid-19 cases or deaths were reported in Nagaland on Sunday.

The Covid-19 caseload and death toll remained unchanged at 35447 and 757 (including 4 non-Covid deaths but with positivity) respectively.

Meanwhile, India on Sunday registered 3,116 fresh cases in the lowest daily rise in 676 days (since May 2020). The country saw 47 deaths in the last 24 hours, the latest data shows.

While the weekly positivity rate currently stands at 0.50 per cent, the daily positivity rate stands at 0.41 per cent.

Residents line up for free nucleic acid testing at the special Information Port in Nanshan District of Shenzhen. (Global Times/IC)

Covid-19 outbreak, state-run China Daily reported on Sunday. Shenzhen which has been battling an Omicron surge since late February, will carry out three rounds of citywide tests next week.

According to a statement by the Shenzhen Municipal Government residents are not allowed to leave the city except in cases of special needs. A negative nucleic acid result within 24

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hours is required upon departure, said the statement.

While China’s count of Covid-19 cases is far lower than those of many other countries, the sharp surge in numbers could complicate Beijing’s “dynamicclearance” policy to suppress the outbreak as quickly as possible.

The city of Jilin has been partially locked down with hundreds of neigh-

bourhoods sealed up, an official announced on Sunday, while Yanji, an urban area of nearly 700,000 bordering North Korea, was fully closed off. Lockdowns have been ordered in several cities while schools in Shanghai, China’s financial capital, have been ordered shut.

The largest number of new infections at 1,412 were reported in Jilin, a city in northeast China’s similarly named Jilin province. “As of Sunday, Jilin province registered a total of 2,052 confirmed cases and 1527 asymptomatic cases, involving at least seven cities within the province, with Jilin city and Changchun having severe outbreaks,” Chinese state media reported.

Zhang Yan, an official with the Jilin provincial health commission, said on Sunday that local authorities’ virus response so far had been lacking.

One reason for the high number of infections in Jilin “…is due to insufficient

medical resources in some regions in the face of a rapidly rising epidemic situation and defective emergence response of some individual governments who failed to test, quarantine, and treat residents as required,” the tabloid, Global Times reported.

A total of 1,455 asymptomatic cases were also reported including 140 arriving from outside the mainland, according to the NHC. The NHC on Friday approved Covid-19 rapid antigen tests for public use after Premier Li Keqiang said the country’s zeroCovid responses would be fine-tuned to avoid disruptions to the economy.

The total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases reported on the mainland, both local and imported, had risen to 115,466 by Saturday, the NHC said.

There were 7,230 patients still under treatment on Saturday, of whom six were in severe condition.

SPORTS, PAGE 12

Sonia to stay as party president, says Congress after CWC meet

Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi during the meeting, Sunday. (PTI)

Spl. Correspondent/Agencies

NEW DELHI, MAR 13: Days after its poll debacle in five states, Congress’ top decision-making body – Congress Working Committee – on Sunday brainstormed over the way forward amid calls for large-scale reforms to revive the party’s dwindling electoral fortunes.

After a four-and-halfhour meeting, the CWC decided that Sonia Gandhi will continue as the party president. This was along expected lines as the CWC is packed with loyalists whose services are crucial for the family to enable it to retain

its stranglehold over the party. Sonia’s continuation is a cover for Rahul to operate as de-facto chief but without responsibility.

An MP speaking on condition of anonymity told this Correspondent, that the continuance of the Gandhis and their favoured few, should be good news for the ruling BJP since under the present leadership the Congress has been steadily losing ground and image.

Apart from Sonia Gandhi, former party chief Rahul Gandhi, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, K C Venugopal, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha

Mallikarjun Kharge, party’s leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and P Chidambaram were among those who attended the CWC meeting.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Mukul Wasnik were the only three from the Group of 23 leaders who participated in the meeting of the CWC, which has a large number of Gandhi family loyalists.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh did not attend the meeting. Senior party leader A K Antony was also not present as he has contracted Covid.

After the party’s working committee meeting, Kharge said, “Congress interim president Sonia will lead us and will take future steps. We all have faith in her leadership.” On how to take things forward, AICC Goa in-charge, Dinesh Gundu Rao said, “Sonia Gandhi continues to be the president of the party.

(Cont’d on p-8)

‘Stop this massacre’: Pope on Ukraine war 32 killed, 134 injured as Russian airstrike hits military base VATICAN CITY, MAR 13 (REUTERS): Pope Francis has issued his toughest condemnation yet of the invasion of Ukraine, saying the “unacceptable armed aggression” must stop.

The Pope’s remarks come amid heightened fighting between the Russian and Ukrainian forces for the 18th straight day. Speaking to thousands of people in St Peter’s Square for his Sunday blessing, Francis also said the killing of children and unarmed civilians was “barbaric” and had “no valid strategic reason”.

He called besieged Mariupol a “martyred city” and again appealed for

Pope Francis on Sunday.

“truly secure humanitarian corridors” to allow residents to leave.

“In the name of God, I ask you: stop this massacre,” the Pope said after the weekly Angelus prayers, adding that Ukrainian cities risked “being reduced to

cemeteries”.

The pope has not used the word “Russia” in his condemnations of the war since Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion on 24 February. However, his choice of words, such as “armed aggression” and “no valid strategic reason”, appeared to be aimed at contesting Moscow’s justifications for the invasion.

Russia calls its action a “special military operation”. Last Sunday Francis implicitly rejected that term, saying it could not be considered “just a military operation” but a war that had unleashed “rivers of blood and tears”.

LVIV, MAR 13 (AP): Waves of Russian missiles pounded a military training base close to Ukraine’s western border with NATO member Poland, killing 35 people and 134 injured.

The strike followed Russian threats to target foreign weapon shipments that are helping Ukrainian fighters defend their country against Russia’s grinding invasion.

More than 30 Russian cruise missiles targeted the sprawling training facility that is less than 25 kilometers from the closest border point with Poland, according to the governor of Ukraine’s western Lviv region.

The training center in Yavoriv is also known as the

The aftermath of what appears to be an attack at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center early on Sunday. (Source: NYT)

International Peacekeeping and Security Center, and has long been used to train Ukrainian military personnel, often with instructors from the United States and other NATO countries.

Lviv governor Maksym Kozytskyi said most of the

missiles fired Sunday “were shot down because the air defense system worked.”

The ones that got through killed at least 35 people and wounded 134, he said.

Fighting also raged in multiple areas of the country overnight. Ukrainian

authorities said Russian airstrikes on a monastery and a children’s resort in the eastern Donetsk region hit spots where monks and refugees were sheltering, wounding 32 people.

Another airstrike hit a westward-bound train evacuating people from the east, killing one person and injuring another, Donetsk’s chief regional administrator said.

Around the capital, Kyiv, a major political and strategic target for the invasion, fighting also intensified, with overnight shelling in the northwestern suburbs and a missile strike Sunday that destroyed a warehouse to the east.

Fire leaves 10 families Stereotyping of NE must end: Naidu Implement district demarcation without delay: DAYO urges govt homeless in Dimapur Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): A round 10 families were rendered homeless after a fire broke at a leased plot containing a shanty at Police Colony, Dimapur Sunday afternoon.

When contacted, fire officials informed Nagaland Post that the fire might have been caused by suspected electrical short-circuit. Around ten families were made homeless.

Sources estimated that the loss of properties was worth around Rs. 30 lakhs, which included a vehicle that was destroyed in the fire. Around two fire tenders were pressed into action to douse the inferno. An LPG cylinder also exploded but no casualty was reFirefighters at the spot. (NP) ported at the time of filing this report.

This is it!

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M Venkaiah Naidu (File)

this would strengthen our national unity,” he said.

Noting that the North East is witnessing an era of resurgence, he urged the national media to bring out a greater number of positive stories happening in that part of the country.

Referring to Mizoram, the vice president said the state has deepened In-

dia’s democratic roots by “peaceful electoral processes, graceful conduct of legislators in the Assembly and sustained, inclusive development endeavours over the last five decades.”

The vice president, who is also chairperson of Rajya Sabha, said he was impressed to know that the sessions of the Mizoram Assembly are conducted with utmost discipline, diligence and decorum.

The beautiful mountainous state of Sikkim, Naidu noted, has shown the way to the rest of the country in organic farming and sustainable development.

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): While welcoming the State government’s decision to create two new districts of Tseminyu and Shamator keeping in mind tribal sensibilities and maintaining that this should have a logical conclusion without bias, Dimapur Ao Youth Organisation (DAYO) also stressed that creation of Nuiland and Chümoukedima districts should not only be for administrative convenience but should also fulfil economic aspirations of common people by taking advantage of the SARFAESI Act. In a press note, DAYO declared full support to the proposed district demarcation and called for its implementation without further delay as it was within the administrative boundary of Nagaland. After required reasonable rectification, it said pragmatic con-

Only `71.09 cr power revenue target achieved out of `150.99 cr: DED Staff Reporter

“Well, we booked the bus to shepherd 30 MLAs but since we won only 5 seats, we’ll take two autos.”

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday lamented that even after several years, the general attitude toward the North East is largely characterised by ignorance, lack of appreciation and “stereotyping” in the rest of India. “This must change,” he said in a Facebook post after his visit to Mizoram and Sikkim.

Efforts must be made, Naidu asserted, to include inspiring stories from the North East in the school curriculum.

“I am sure such efforts will bring positive change in people’s mindset towards North Eastern India, and

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): Though Dimapur Electrical Division (DED) had set a revenue target of Rs 150.99 crore for 2021-22, it had managed to realise only Rs 71.09 crore till February this year – a deficit of Rs 79.9 crore. (See table A) Informing this to Nagaland Post, DED executive engineer Y Akito Sema cited several reasons for the poor revenue collection, non-payment

categorised into four types – bulk, industry, commercial and domestic – and 80% of consumers 2015-16 121.01 46.16 38.15% 2016-17 136.06 40319 29.54% -5.97 -8.61% under DED were domes2017-18 136.06 45.98 33.79% 5.79 4.26% tic consumers.

2018-19 132.07 50.73 38.41% 4.75 4.62% He said consump2019-20 135.41 56.26 41.55% 5.53 3.14% tion of power increased 2020-21 186.15 62.79 33.73% 6.53 -7.82% yearly, but revenue col2021-22 150.99 71.09 47.08% 8.30 13.35% (Till Feb) lection had remained Difference of Tariff Rates between Post Paid and Pre Paid Table B stagnant for years, if not Consumption (Kwh) Post Paid Pre Paid decreased.

0 to 30 4.50 5.15 Holding wrong me31 to 100 5.40 5.15 ter reading as another 101 to 250 6.00 5.15 contributing factor toAbove 250 7.00 5.15 Source: Executive Engineer, Dimapur Electrical Division wards low revenue colof bills by consumers beHe explained that lection, Sema said meters ing one of them. power consumers were not being fixed at the Yearly Target and Achievement of DED Table A Revenue Amount Percentage increased/ Target Percentage Year Collected Increased/ decreased compared to (In Cr) Achieved (In Cr) Decreased previous year

right places, some premises not being accessible, consumers fixing meters inside their rooms and concealed location, etc, led to wrong meter reading.

He said in many instances owners were often not at home when meter readers visited them, for which the latter entered figures as per previous meter reading and power consumption, leading to wrong meter readings.

According to the executive engineer, power

theft by many consumers through hooking, tampering of meters, etc also led to poor revenue collection. Due to this, he claimed that meter readings varied vastly from the actual energy consumed, meaning power consumption was more than the revenue generated.

He said though there were other reasons too for the deficit in revenue collection, these were some of the major reasons for poor revenue realisation.

siderations should prevail over other trivial issues.

DAYO said it expected bona fide citizens to extend their goodwill and cooperation to the government on such major policy decisions.

It said that distribution and delegation of responsibilities, to reach all sections of population, was the hallmark for successful working of any government in modern times.

Noting that India as a welfare State had embarked upon a decentralised policy of development through creation of more districts to reach the remotest parts of the country for equitable access to government’s programmes, polices and schemes, DAYO emphasised that Nagaland too should be a part of this noble principle and vision.

NFHRCC crucial joint meeting on March 18

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): Nagaland Foothills Road Coordination Committee (NFHRCC) has called for a “crucial” joint meeting with all the selected contractors, divisional EEs, PWD (R&B), Doyang Bridge construction firm M/S L Pukato Shohe & Sons, Young Naga Action Committee on Foothills Road and all office bearers of Dimapur based tribal hohos/union on March 18 at 10 a.m. at the NFHRCC office, Khermahal.

NFHRCC said that the meeting will deliberate on the motorable foothills road and completion of the Doyang Bridge projects. Therefore, all the invited concerned stakeholders have been requested (Cont’d on p-8) to attend the crucial meeting without fail.

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2

STATE

Awareness on plant genetic resources

Resource persons and participants at the awareness programme.

DIMAPUR: Two-day awareness programme on plant genetic resources for germplasm conservation was conducted for farmers of Rusoma and Khonoma village on March 7-8.

A press release by Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Kohima stated that the awareness programme

was organised by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)- National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) New Delhi, department of horticulture, School of Agricultural Sciences and Rural Development (SASRD) Nagaland University and KVK Kohima, department

of agriculture.

The main objective of the programme was to educate the farmers about the importance of landraces/ local cultivars and protection of endangered species of crops of the area.

At the programme, NBPGR, New Delhi, administration director Dr.

PK Jain gave detailed information about ICAR-NBPGR activities and objective of the programme.

NBPGR principal scientist Dr. SK Malik spoke on the gradual loss of diversity of agri-horti crops of NEH region, PGR conservation practices and role of national gene bank of NBPGR. He also spoke about the role of community seed banks in supply of local adapted farmer’s varieties, its establishment, operation and management.

NBPGR scientist Dr.Soyimchiten spoke on the importance of germplasm collection of traditional landraces/varieties and conservation in national gene bank.

ACTO (GBP) Dr. Martina Shitiri urged the farmers to visit KVK campus regularly to keep updating on the latest technology in field of agriculture and briefed about various activities carried out by KVK. The problems of farmers were also addressed during farmers-scientist interaction and mini-seed exhibition was also held during the programme.

AR organize activities for students

Students at the weapon display organized by AR Jalukie battalion.

DIMAPUR: Various battalions of Assam Rifles under the aegis of HQ IGAR (North) have been conducting activities for the welfare of the local populace across the state.

On March 11, Kohima battalion, visited and interacted with the children of Sakhabama High School, Kohima.

During the visit, Assam Rifles in coordination with Olive Planet, Dimapur gifted and established RO

DLSAs conduct ‘people’s court’ across the state DIMAPUR: Along with the rest of the country, District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs) under the aegis of the Nagaland State Legal Services Authority (NSLSA) conducted the 4th quarter National Lok Adalat (Peoples Court) 2021-22 across the state on March 12.

In a press release, NSLSA stated that 11 Lok Adalat sitting benches was constituted in the respective district headquarters and a total of 248 cases/disputes were disposed out of the total 1001 disputes/matters/ cases listed for compromise settlement.

The cases included pending and pre-litigation stage mostly in the category of bank recovery, Motor Accident Claim Tribunal (MACT) and criminal compoundable cases. A settlement amount involved in the cases amounted to Rs. 3,66,22,776.

NSLSA said the success of the disposal in cases was achieved through arbitration, conciliation and amicable efforts by conciliators which was presides over by the judges of the subordinate courts in the districts.

W D L S A : Wo k h a

Members of District Legal Services Authorities in Zunheboto.

DLSA conducted the sitting at the District Court Conference Hall where 14 cases at pre-litigation and pending trial were taken up. 13 cases mostly bank recovery cases were subsequently disposed of with a settlement amount of Rs. 24,53,172.

ZDLSA: In Zunheboto the sitting was organised at Zunheboto District Court complex wherein two bank recovery cases were taken up and one case under pre-litigation stage was disposed with a settlement amount of Rs. 3,09462.

MDLSA: Mokokchung DLSA during sitting at the Court premises, took up seven cases of criminal compoundable nature and disposed six cases with a settlement amount of Rs. 27000.

KDLSA: Kiphire DLSA conducted the sitting at Court Premises wherein out of 19 bank recovery cases, four cases were disposed of with a total settled amount was Rs. 94,658.

PDLSA: Peren DLSA conducted the sitting at town hall Peren wherein

a total number of 17 bank loan defaulters at pre litigation stag were taken up. The total settlement amount was Rs 24,42,614 was recorded.

PDLSA: Phek DLSA conducted the sitting at Cooperative Bank, Pfutsero premises wherein a total of 52 cases were taken up and 31 cases settled. The total settlement amount Rs.34,42,289.

DDLSA: Dimapur DSLA conducted the sitting at the District Court C o m p l ex w h e r e i n 5 5 pre-litigation and 35 in

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

pending stage cases were settled. In total, 90 cases were settled. The total settlement amount was Rs. 2,60,20,993.

MDLSA: Mon DLSA conducted the sitting at Front Office, Mon wherein a total of 80 cases were taken up, out of which 23 cases were settled with a total settlement amount of Rs- 2,29,500.

K D L S A : Ko h i m a DLSA conducted the sitting at District and Sessions Court Building wherein 286 was on bank recovery cases and 400 telephone and mobile bill recovery cases.

The sitting disposed of 34 cases with a total settlement amount of Rs. 1,400,964.

TDLSA: Tuensang DLSA conducted the sitting at District Court Tuensang wherein 12 cases were taken up and 10 cases were disposed of with a total settlement amount of was Rs.5,84000.

LDLSA: Longleng DLSA organised the sitting at District Court premises wherein 21 cases under prelitigation stage mostly of bank recovery cases were taken up. 18 cases were subsequently disposed of with a settlement amount of Rs. 2,06500.

water purifier at the school campus.

Head GB, Bijekho and head master, BS Oswal, acknowledged the battalion of Assam Rifles for their continuous support for the welfare of society.

Meanwhile, to commemorate “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” under the theme “Suraksha ka Manaviya Chehra” students of Assam Rifles Public School (H) Jalukie were shown various battalion institu-

tions on March 7 by Jalukie battalion.

The students were also taken to the training area where a demonstration on obstacle course was shown to them.

A weapon display was also conducted for the students. A trekking expedition was also carried out at a nearby hillock as part of adventure activity for the students. The event was attended by 151 students and 11 teachers from the school.

PC organise training on ‘peace building’ DIMAPUR: One day training on “Leadership and Peace Building” for teacher animators, peace club leaders and peace volunteers was organised by Peace Channel at St. Xavier College, Jalukie on March 9 and Charity School, Kohima on March 12.

In a press release, Peace Channel desk stated that the training was organized to promote grassroots movement for peace and harmony in the states. The trainers for the session were Ashela Teresa, Elizabeth Pojar, Manpang Nyiam, and Toviholi Y Yepthomi.

The participants were trained on the module of Peace Club, one of the main activities used by Peace Channel in order to promote peace building through children in Nagaland.

The participants were also intensively capacitated on peace celebration and capacity building which are the two strategies under Peace Club used by Peace Channel. It may be noted that Peace Club was formed among children in partnership with schools and localities.

Girl student achievers in Wokha under BBBP felicitated

DIMAPUR: Wokha district administration and District Level Centre for Women (DLCW) – Mahila Shakti Kendra (MSK) under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP), felicitated girl student achievers and good performing schools under Wokha district on March 10.

According to DIPR report, 20 girl students, who secured the highest percentage in HSLC & HSSLC 2021 under Wokha district, were also awarded cash and certificates. 11 schools with 100% HSLC

results and 28 schools with 100% transition were also acknowledged during the function.

The awards and certificates were handed over

by DC Wokha, Orenthung Lotha. While SDO (C) Wokha, Selemla S Sangtam felicitated the following: Rhondeno P Yanthan (Lotha Subject- DBHS Wokha/HSLC 2021), Emilo A Tsopoe (Lotha Subject- DBHS/HSSLC 2021), Rosy O Ezung (Information Technology Enabled Service- GHSS/HSSLC 2021).

While addressing the felicitation programme, the DC congratulated the schools and teachers for their efforts in molding the students. He also encouraged the achievers to give their best efforts, to work harder and to keep on updating with new skills and knowledge to cope with the fast-changing world.

Delivering a key note address, ANPSA, Wokha, president, K. Edward Ngullie appreciated the organizer for initiating the programme to acknowledge the students and schools.

MSU Dimapur holds freshers’ meet DIMAPUR: Minority Students’ Union (MSU) Dimapur organised 2nd freshers’ meet-cum-social parting on March 12 at Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) Community Hall, Kevijau Colony, Dimapur.

A press release by MSU Dimapur stated that chief guest of the programme, central Nagaland minority wing president, Bishnu Bhattacharjee lauded Minority Students’ Union for the concept to establish a forum of minority students.

He said students and youth were the backbone of the society and that every student should put hundred percent ef-

forts to acquire knowledge to reach the goal and contribute in nation building.

In his speech, Metei community president, Saratsaid Minority Students’ Union should unitedly work together and make the union a “platform of discussion” and raise voice for the rights and facilities of student fraternity.

The release informed that Minority Students’ Union president, Anjali Devi and general secretary, Md Abdul Sahid headed the event under the theme “Be avoice not an echo” with the initiative of other office bearers of Minority Students’ Union.

NEWS IN BRIEF Rehabilitation camp for PWDs: Lions Club Dimapur has informed that assessment and distribution camps for persons/children with disabilities would be held on March 14 at Lions Club, Midland Dimapur.

CMO Longleng informs: Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Longleng has informed that the district medical board has been constituted with CMO as chairman, deputy CMO as member secretary and three other members for the purpose of service confirmation, invalidation and commutation pension in respect of Grade -III & IV employees of the district as well as of the employees posted under Longleng district.

Kiphrie DPDB meeting held DIMAPUR: District Planning and Development Board (DPDB) meeting of Kiphire was held on March 10 under chairmanship of DC and vice chairman DPDB, T.Wati Aier at DC’s conference hall, Kiphire.

According to a DIPR report, the house welcomed the new officersPungro ADC, Mhomo and DPMC Kiphire, Koroto Lotha.

The members also discussed proposal for construction of tourism watch tower at Hakkomute village which was approved and recommended for further action.

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Proposal for construction of concrete wall and gate at Kiphire helipad was discussed and recommended to higher authority of transport department for further action.

Further, agenda for registration of grass root empowerment society was discussed and agreed to recommend to higher authority for necessary action. The members also discussed nomination of Tikhir tribe representative/ member in the DPDB and agreed for induction.

Cooperation department and Employment department highlighted their activities in the meeting.

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nagalandpost.com Poll Q . : Will the Manipur election result impact Nagaland in 2023?

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

A B C

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NFMP JICA organises Block level training for SMC, SMDC in Kohima trg for forest guards

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

A

B

Yes. No. Can’t Say

C

46% 48% 6%

NEXT POLL

Q: I f Ru s s i a c o n t i n u e s

heavy bombardment of Ukraine and causing civilian casualties, will NATO respond ?  Yes.  No.  Can’t Say.

WEATHER FORECAST MARCH 14

(Temperature in ºC)

Max Min

Agartala Hazy sun and very hot

37 17

Aizawl

Sunny and remaining very warm 33 14

Guwahati Hazy sun and very hot

36 16

Hot with hazy sunshine

35 11

Itanagar Hot with hazy sunshine

35 20

Imphal Shillong

Sunny and very warm

28 13

Kohima

Hazy sun

29 15

Dimapur Very hot with hazy sun

35 19

Hazy sun

31 16

Tuensang Hazy sun

24 11

Hazy sun

29 19

Zunheboto Hazy sun

28 14

Mkg Wokha

3

STATE

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

Officials, forest guards and others at the training.

DIMAPUR: Nagaland Forest Management Project (NFMP) Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) organised two-day training for forest guards on March 8-9.

A press release by NFMP-JICA stated that the training was conducted on NFMP concepts, institutional setup, planning and implementation of Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) Processes/PRA exercise, web GIS portal and mobile application The training was organised to improve understanding of ground-level staff for collaborating villagers in decision making by or-

ganising PRA map exercise and collecting forest-related data with help of mobile App. It said the training also helped the key stakeholders on different monitoring and evaluation-related problems with the use of the WebGIS Portal. The release stated that various experts from Project Management Consultant (PMC) and Project Management Unit (PMU) namely PMC team leader, Pranab R Choudhury, PMC GIS expert, Anurag Verma, PMC forestry & biodiversity expert, Dr Arun M Dixit, PMC capacity building expert, Pravanjan Mahapatra and PMU GIS expert, Rashid KV, PMU

remote sensing assistant, Subongchiten Jamir and PMU GIS operator Anamoa Imsong presented various modules of the applications and described their uses during the training. As part of the training a field visit to Ruzaphema village was also organised on March 8.

The release informed that NFMP assisted by JICA headed by chief project director cum CEO, Dharmendra Prakash, was a forestry intervention and biodiversity conservation project, which aims to focus on different project works for livelihood improvement and forest community development.

Consumer awareness programme at Ngwalwa

KOHIMA: Samagra Shiksha Nagaland conducted a block level training for members of School Management Committee (SMC) and School Management and Development Committee (SMDC) under Educational Block Resource Centre (EBRC)L. Khel Kohima on March 9 at D. Khel badminton stadium, Kohima village.

In a press release, the depar tment stated that joint secretary, department of School Education and deputy project director, Nagaland Education Project (NEP)-The Lighthouse, Avelu Ruho highlighted the background of NEP-The Lighthouse.

Ruho emphasised on community participation and collective responsibility of teachers and community leaders such as SMC and SMDC to improve education system and impart

Avelu Ruho speaking at the training programme in Kohima. quality education to students. She appealed to the gathering to give their best in building quality education in their respective schools and villages.

Deputy mission director, state mission authority, Kelhikha Kenye also highlighted various schemes and initiatives of Samagra Shik-

sha and called for accurate school data maintenance on Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE). Stating that every school programme and planning process was now being done through UDISE, Kenye called upon SMC and SMDC to have correct data in order to avail various

facilities for students and to ensure effective management of schools.

At the programme, other resource persons highlighted background of NIPUN-Bharat mission, vocational education (VE), inclusive education (IE), out of school children, school development plan, etc.

HGSAN supports CTAN’s demand DIMAPUR: Horticulture Graduates and Students’ Association of Nagaland (HGSAN) has backed the demand of Combined Technical Association of Nagaland (CTAN) for immediate termination of illegal appointments.

In a press release, HGSAN president, Sedevilie said the association was saddened and appalled by the appointment and attempt to regularise two JSCOs under soil and water conservation department through “nepotistic influences”.

HGSAN said it abhor such influences and appreciated the effort of CTAN to bring about “fairness and transparency”. The association also expressed anticipation and believed that competitive spirits would prevail without any biasness.

Police Baptist Church Chumukedima held its church workers retreat on March 12 at Breezy Bamboo Resort with Hindi Baptist Church Dimapur, pastor Rev. Peuhau as the resource person.

the programme, PDVCO president, Josia Zeliang spoke on “basic rights of consumers” and advised the participants to be aware of their consumer rights.

DIMAPUR: An awareness Zeliang also cautioned programme for mulberry them to be aware of masericulture farmers was nipulated items, sale of organised by Research Exexpiry goods, cheating and tension Centre, Dimapur in sale of goods and comcoordination with departmodities above MRP. He ment of sericulture, Dimaalso encouraged students pur was held on March 10 to form consumer club in at Khushiabil, Dimapur. educational institutions so A press release by the as to create awareness. centre stated that since The programme bespring crop rearing was gan with invocation by Participants and others at the consumer awareness programme. expected to be started from Ngwalwa Village Local third week of March, the DIMAPUR: A “consumer Organisation (PDVCO) in Nagaland on March 12 at Baptist Church Pastor and DIMAPUR: A career farmers were asked to folawareness programme was awareness programme” collaboration with Legal Ngwalwa Village, Peren. concluded with benediclow the package of pracwas organised by Peren Dis- Metrology and Consumer A press release by PD- tion by head GB Ngwalwa organised by Immanuel tices for mulberry cultivaCollege (IC) placement trict Voluntary Consumers protection, government of VCO stated that during Village. cell in collaboration with tion to produce quality Emporium Training and mulberry leaves.

The farmers were also Consultancy (ETC)Pvt. Ltd. on March 9 at the college highlighted on the importance of chawki rearauditorium.

In press release, IC ing and disinfection and stated that resource per- maintenance of hygienic son ETC operations man- condition during the whole ager, Anirbhan Mukherjee period of rearing as well strongly emphasised on the as the late- age rearing importance of skills develop- management practices for ment and said students need successful bi-voltine crop to develop their skills in areas harvest.

The release stated that they are interested in, besides new technologies develconventional education. oped by the central seriHe advised the students not to simply focus culture research and trainon competitive exams but ing institute, Berhampore, to be prepared for any West Bengal particularly alternative option. The use of NIRMOOL, Seriawareness programme was win were also explained Personnel of Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority (NSDMA) during the demo mock exercise chaired by assistant profes- and demonstrated to the farmers. sor, Khrutalu Dozo. on the possible scenario in times of disasters at Phek Headquarters on March 11. (DIPR)

Awareness programme in progress.

The programme was attended by 40 women sericulture farmers from Khushiabil, Dimapur and

neighbouring villages viz.

Bamunpukhuri, Khusiabil, Podumpukhuri and Samaguri.

dc-222/22

IC organises career awareness programme

Awareness for mulberry seri-farmers

K Y M C

K Y M C

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NORTHEAST

Mnp post-poll violence: one killed in blast, house attacked

Correspondent

IMPHAL, MAR 13: A bomb blast at a grocery shop rented by a candidate in the recently concluded two-phase elections killed a salesman while gun shots were fired at a house of another candidate in another post-poll violence incidents reported in Manipur in the last 24 hours.

A police source said that the salesman of a grocery shop identified as Deepak Shah (28) from Bihar was killed when a bomb exploded inside the shop at Zion Street at Churachandpur district headquarters around 7.30 pm on Saturday. The police suspected the owner of the building, James Khuma Hazel contested as independent candidate from Churachandpur AC was the actual target of the blast.

They said that an unidentified person handed over the bomb wrapped in a gift box to be handed over to the owner of the building.

However, soon after the unidentified person left the shop, the salesman noticed smoke coming out of the

2 KRA cadres held in Mnp for poll victory celebration

Rajen takes oath as pro-tem Speaker of Mnp Assembly Correspondent IMPHAL, MAR 13: Paving the way for the constitution of the 12th state Assembly, state Governor La Ganesan on Sunday administered oath to Sorokhaibam Rajen Singh of BJP as the pro-tem Speaker of the Assembly.

The swearing-in ceremony was held at the Darbar Hall of Raj Bhavan in Imphal. Caretaker chief minister N Biren Singh, newly elected BJP legislators like Th Biswajit Singh, former Speaker Y Khemchand Singh, Govindas Konthoujam, state chief secretary, DGP and top officials were among others who attended the ceremony.

The pro-tem Speaker will then administer oaths to the newly elected members of the state Assembly on Monday at 11 am.

All necessary arrangements for the oath taking to be held at the state Assembly have been made, said an official source in the state Assembly secretariat.

Even though the 12th Assembly was about to be constituted, there were no signs of the BJP forming the next government in the next few days.

BJP which got the

box. Upon pouring water on it to douse the smoke, the bomb went off with the shrapnel hitting Sahu.

He was immediately rushed to the district hospital in Churachandpur.

However, due to the critical nature of injuries, he was further referred to a hospital in Imphal and succumbed on the way, reports said.

Police have registered a case to investigate the incident. In another post poll violence incident, miscreants opened fire several rounds gun fire at the house of Lourembam Sanjoy Singh at Yambem village under Andro police of Imphal East district who contested in the recently concluded polls from Andro AC on an NPP ticket.

No casualty was reported in the firing that took place around 10.30 pm but the roof of a front part of the candidate’s house was damaged by bullets.

Police who rushed to the house soon after the firing recovered several empty cases during spot inquiry, reports said.

The gunmen further opened fire several rounds

on the houses of two active workers of the candidate in the neighbouring villages.

Saturday night’s attack was not the first time the NPP candidate was targeted by the miscreants. He has been repeatedly targeted by the unidentified gunmen since he decided to contest the elections.

His father was also shot at by armed miscreants at his house a few days before the polls and is currently being treated at a hospital in Imphal. The voting in the AC took place on February 28 and Sanjoy was defeated

by BJP candidate Th Shyamkumar by a small margin.

The NPP candidate who has been under constant attack drew the attention of the pertinent authorities to take up necessary measures to check repetition of such incidents in the larger interest of the peace and security of the people of the Andro AC. He said that people of the AC, particularly his workers and supporters, were not secure as no stringent measure to book the armed miscreants taken up so far.

IMPHAL, MAR 13: Two cadres of Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA), a Kuki based armed group under suspension of operation truce allegedly involved in gun firing during a victory celebration of a candidate in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district were arrested on Sunday.

The arrested cadres were identified as David Hangshing (37) of Kangpokpi ward no. 13 and Seikhochon Hangshing (39) of Lilen village of Nagaland’s Peren district.

A combined team of Saikul police station and troops of 22 Assam Rifles arrested the two cadres around 1.30 pm on Sunday, a police source said.

They were alleged to be the main accused in the firing of several rounds of gun shots in the air at Lhungtin village, near the designated camp of the KRA around 6.30 pm on March 10.

They allegedly fired several rounds of guns in the air during a victory procession to celebrate the victory of Kimneo Hangshing, an independent candidate from Saikul AC on that very day.

Tripura: Woman chops off husband’s head, arrested

BRO DG inspects infra projects in Arunachal

Four arrested in Meghalaya for looting petrol pumps

Correspondent

AGARTALA, MAR 13: Panic gripped Indira colony, a sleepy village under Khowai district after a 42-year old woman beheaded her husband (52) and hanged the severed head in a Kali temple of their own, reports The Assam Tribune.

Superintendent of Police of the district, Bhanupada Chakraborty said the incident had occurred on the wee hours of Friday and the woman, identified as Sabitri Tanti was arrested next day on the charge of murdering her husband, Rabindra Tanti.

Detailing the experience of horror of that night, the elder son of the deceased, Bishal (14) said, “On Friday night I was sleeping with my father in a bed and suddenly woke up and saw that mother was standing in front of our bed and was muttering something. I convinced her to sleep in her bed. I woke up for the second time and saw that my mother was standing near our cot with a machet (Takkal) and when turned at my father saw that his head

was severed.”

Bishal said, his mother then rushed out of the house and hung the head in the Kali temple on the premise of their house.

When he raised an alarm, the villagers rushed to the house and found that the woman was sitting inside a room with the machet.

On receipt of the information from villagers, police cordoned off the house and arrested the woman on Saturday on the plea that a woman cannot be arrested at midnight.

District and session judge court remanded the woman for fourteen days of jail custody. Chakraborty (S.P) said no reason for the murder was known and the relation of the woman with her husband was cordial.

Police are investigating the case. However, Bishal said, his mother was a vegetarian but forced his father on the day to bring chicken and she consumed it on the day. In Sheoratli, a neighbouring village, where one Pradip Roy had murdered his two daughters, a villager and the Police Inspector on November 26 last year.

ITANAGAR, MAR 13 (PTI): The director general of Border Roads Organization (BRO), Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry, visited Kurung Kumey district of Arunachal Pradesh and inspected the road and bridge construction work being carried out, as part of Project Arunank, along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Huri sector, an official here said on Sunday.

Under Project Arunank, set up in 2008, construction and maintenance of roads are being undertaken by the BRO in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.

Chaudhry, during his visit on Saturday, held interactions with the jawans and officers of BRO, Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), besides some locals, in Damin area of the district. The local population and ‘goan burahs’ (village elders) expressed happiness over the road construction work, which, once completed, will connect Huri with the rest of the country, Brig A S Kanwar, the chief engineer of Project Arunank, stated.

SHILLONG, MAR 13 (PTI): The Meghalaya Police have arrested four miscreants along with arms and ammunition from East Jaintia Hills district for their alleged involvement in looting petrol pumps across the state, an officer said.

Based on intelligence inputs, a police team on Friday raided a hideout of the accused at Ryngsong Shylla near Umlawang village of the district and arrested the four along with one AK-47 rifle, 14 live rounds

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

of AK series ammunition, a machete (big knife) and a motorcycle, the Superintendent of Police, of East Jaintia Hills, Jagpal Singh Dhanoa said on Saturday.

Later the police also detained an accomplice of the four from Guwahati in Assam, he said.

The SP said during preliminary interrogation, the accused admitted to their involvement in the recent incidents of loot of petrol pumps at Khliehriat, Shillong and Ri Bhoi district.

Fire destroys properties worth Rs 1 crore in Assam’s Kokrajhar

KOKRAJHAR, MAR 13 (PTI): A massive fire broke out in a market in Assam’s Kokrajhar town gutting properties worth around Rs 1 crore, officials said on Sunday.

The fire broke out at the Kokrajhar daily market area near the Kokrajhar Railway Station of the district on Saturday night, they said, adding that there is no loss of life or injury to any person.

It is reported that more than 10 shops were completely gutted in the devastating fire, destroying all properties inside them. However, the reason behind the fire is believed to be an electrical short circuit, an official of the Fire and Emergency Services said. “As soon as we got information, several fire tenders rushed to the affected place and doused the fire. There is no loss of life or injury to any person,” he added. Properties worth Rs 1 crore were reportedly engulfed in the fire, the officials added.

S Rajen of BJP taking oath as pro-tem Speaker of Manipur Assembly in Imphal on Sunday. magic number of 32 in the 60-seat state Assembly is yet to elect the leader of its legislator wing who will be the next chief minister of the state.

Even as various sections of the media hinted at a leadership race within the party, elected senior leaders of the party denied any in-fighting for the chief ministerial post.

Talking to the media after taking oath as pro-tem Speaker, S Rajen Singh said that, BJP is a welldisciplined party and all elected members will abide by the decision taken by the party’s high command.

“There is no in-fight for the chief ministerial

post,” he added.

Senior leader Thongam Bishwajit Singh ridiculed news reports about race for the chief ministerial post.

He said that there was no in-fighting or camp among the elected members of BJP for the time being.

He believed that all elected members of the party would adhere to the decision taken by the Party’s Parliamentary Board.

“Within a few days, we will come to know who will lead the new government in the state,” he said.

Even as the party is in the position to form the government of its own, parties like NPF and JD(U)

HNLC welcomes move to facilitate talks

Correspondent

SHILLONG, MARCH 13: The outlawed Banned Hynñiewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) on Sunday described the appointment of interlocutors to facilitate the peace talks as a “positive step” and and hoped that the entire peace process would be taken up in letter and spirit.

“First of all our leadership gratefully acknowledges the invaluable support from the GOM/GOI (Government of Meghalaya/ Government of India) in appointing an interlocutor to carry forward the proposed peace initiative of the HNLC and the GOM/ GOI,” HNLC General Secretary, Saiñkupar Nongtraw, said. In an e-mailed statement, Nongtraw said that the rebel outfit is yet to get an official communication from the Meghalaya government in regard to the appointment of interlocutors Bah Peter.S. Dkhar and A.K. Mishra, Adviser (Northeast), MHA. Nongtraw informed that the leadership of the Khasi rebel outfit has authorised a representative to meet the interlocutors and simultaneously initiate and form a Hynñiewtrep

Peace Committee (HPC), and stakeholders, including church elders, citizens and NGOs shall be a part of the committee so as to ensure smooth functioning of the peace process. “The HPC shall facilitate dialogue between stakeholders, Church elders, the HNLC as well as the GOI/GOM. The HPC shall be confined to participate in an initiative to develop a new set of principles, standards and norms that will fundamentally reshape how the peace processes shall be structured, sequenced and actualised,” the HNLC statement stated.

The rebel outfit also appealed to the Meghalaya government to instruct the police department to suspend all activities, including arrests, raids and harassing of its cadres and also

the aoyimti lanur telongjem (Youth Forum) heartily congratulates Dr. Moanukshi longkumer for getting Doctorate of Ministry from India Baptist Theological Seminary, Kottayam-Kerala.

We are blessed by your accomplishment for bringing laurels to our community.

May the Almighty God continue to uplift you for His glory always.

AGARTALA, MARCH 13 (IANS): A mega rally in Agartala organised by the tribal based party TIPRA (Tipraha Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance) that has been demanding “Greater Tipraland”, displayed their strength ahead of the next year’s assembly elections in Tripura, causing a concern to the major political parties.

T h o u g h T I P R A’s “Greater Tipraland” demand remained vague among the cross section of the people as it has no provision in the Indian constitution, the slogan largely attracted the minority tribals, who constitute

one third of Tripura’s four million populations.

The demand for a ‘Greater Tipraland’ was raised few years back after the ruling BJP’s ally Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) got a massive support from the indigenous tribals when it ahead of the 2018 assembly elections vociferously demanded for “Tipraland” which sought a separate state for the Tripura tribals upgrading the existing Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC).

The politically most important TTAADC has a jurisdiction on over two-

thirds of Tripura’s 10,491 sq km area and is home to over 12,16,000 people, of which around 84 per cent are tribals.

Focusing on the “Tipraland” issue the IPFT in the 2018 assembly polls secured eight of the 20 tribal reserve seats, which over the decades were the strongholds of the CPI-M. After the TIPRA, headed by Tripura’s royal scion Pradyot Bikram Manikya Deb Barman, captured the politically powerful TTAADC in April last year, the political significance of the new party in the mixed populated Tripura has further reinforced.

Mizoram logs 357 COVID cases

AIZAWL, MAR 13 (PTI): Mizoram’s COVID-19 tally rose to 2,20,786 on Sunday as 357 people tested positive for the infection, 46 less than the previous day, a health official said. Three more patients succumbed to the infection, taking the northeastern state’s coronavirus death toll to 671, he said. Mizoram had reported 403 cases and one death on Saturday. The state now has 3,032 active cases, while 2,17,083 people have recovered from the disease so far, including 319 on Sunday, he said.

The recovery rate among COVID-19 patients in the state stood at 98.32 per cent, while the mortality rate was at 0.30 per cent. The state has thus far tested more than 18.64 lakh samples for COVID-19, including 2,003 on Saturday. State Immunisation Officer Dr Lalmuanawma Jongte said that more than 8 lakh people have been inoculated till Saturday, and 6.58 lakh of them have been fully vaccinated.

dp-1165/22

affiDavit

Regd. No. 23/76 I, Shri Madan Poddar, father of deepak Kumar poddar, Resident of public Ground Colony, dimapur, Nagaland, do hereby solemnly declare for full and final after serious thoughts and considerations.

1. That I am citizen of India and resident of the above address.

2. That my son deepak Kumar poddar is in a habit of stealing and cheating assuring people of what he do not have, I have tried to correct him for many years to which he has not correct his way of life and hereby harassing the entire family.

3. That be it known to all men and women that from this day onwards I have close and cut the relationship of family lines with him. I and my entire family shall not be responsible for any of his acts, omission or commission, any body lending him money or any assurances shall be entirely on themselves and him only.

4. That information is once and for all that I and my family and line of heirs shall not be responsible for deepak Kumar poddar in future.

DePonent verification Verified at dimapur on this 7/2/22 that contents of the above affidavit are true to the best of my knowledge and nothing has been concealed therefrom. notary Public DePonent

dp-1163/22

TIPRA supporters holding banners, take out a protest march, demanding ‘Greater Tripraland’, in Agartala, Saturday. (PTI)

ITANAGAR, MAR 13 (PTI): Arunachal Pradesh’s COVID-19 tally increased to 64,481 on Sunday as one more person tested positive for the infection, a senior health official said here.

The fresh case was reported from West Kameng district, the official said. The COVID-19 death toll in the state remained at 296 as no new fatality was reported in the past 24 hours, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said. As many as 64,154 people recuperated from the disease in the frontier state thus far including, three on Saturday, he said. The COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 99.49 per cent, the official said. Arunachal Pradesh currently has 31 active cases.

The Capital Complex region, comprising Itanagar, Naharlagun, Nirjuli and Banderdewa areas, has the highest number of active cases at 16, followed by Anjaw (4), West Kameng (3) and Tawang (2) , the SSO said. The administration has thus far tested 12,66,724 samples for COVID-19, including 271 on Saturday, he said, adding that the positivity rate further dipped to 0.36 per cent from 0.42 per cent, the previous day.

common people on mere suspicion of maintaining links with the organisation.

“Unnecessary harassment of the cadres could again create a perplexing situation which could result in derailment of the entire peace process. We need to respect each others’ stand and also maintain a level of sincerity and trust,” Nongtraw said. Stating that even though the outfit have not declared any kind of ceasefire, the HNLC General Secretary said, “We are serious and we have put in all efforts to end all kinds of violent activities.”

Moreover, he said the organisation believes that it is high time for everyone to lay aside the prejudices and biases, and try to find a common ground for peace to flourish.

Felicitation

Tribal party’s mega rally rocks Tripura politics Arunachal logs 1 COVID case Defeating the BJP and the CPI-M, the TIPRA scripted histor y in the northeastern state by capturing the TTAADC, which is considered as a mini-legislative assembly of Tripura.

Political circles observed that Saturday’s first mega rally of TIPRA was bigger than the BJP’s public gathering on March 8 and CPI-M’s mass rally on February 24.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah and CPI-M General secretary Sitaram Yechury, party’s politburo members Prakash Karat and Manik Sarkar addressed the respective party’s gatherings. TIPRA supremo Deb Barman on Saturday announced to put up candidates at least in 35 seats in the next Assembly election on its own, putting a big challenge to the BJP and the CPI-M. The TIPRA leaders while explaining about their ‘Greater Tipraland’ demand said that under the concept they wanted to improve the socio-economic conditions of the backward tribals living in the northeastern states of India, neighbouring Bangladesh, Myanmar and adjoining areas.

as well as independents have assured support to the government to be formed by the BJP. The NPF, the partner of the BJP in the previous coalition government with four MLAs, won in five seats this time while opened its account in the state JD(U) by securing six seats.

Three independents also won the elections.

Among them, two had already declared their support to the BJP. The NPP, another major partner of the BJP in the previous government ended as the second largest party with seven seats.

Senior BJP leader and chief minister N Biren Singh as well as party state president A Sarda Devi had already ruled out continuation of partnership with the NPP. NPP supremo and Meghalaya chief minister Conrad A Sangma has however thrown the ball of continuation of the alliance in the court of BJP. The Congress that won in five seats is likely to be the only opposition in the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly if the BJP reviews its decision on its stand on NPP.

Declaration

Regd. No. 233/2022 Date: 04/03/2022 I, Shri P. Nokshen Konyak, bearing Army No. 129946391L, 164 INF BN (TA) (H&H), son of Shri. Pangkhah Konyak, do hereby solemnly affirm as under.

1. That I am a permanent resident of Jahjon ward, under Mon district -798621, police station - Mon P.S, Post Office - Mon P.S, Mon, Nagaland.

2. That under mentioned Name, Date of Birth of my father, mother and wife has been wrongly recorded in my service book and the same has been correct as follows:Sl. Incorrect Name Correct Name Incorrect Correct Relation No. DoB DOB 1.

Pangkhak Pangkhah -Na02/06/1963 Father K-Null Konyak 2.

Sheinom Sheihnon -Na12/11/1962 Mother Konyak-Null Konyak 3. Esther Konyak T. Ester 15/08/1986 15/08/1990 Wife Konyak 3. That the Affidavit is made to declare to rectify the above mentioned names and D.o.B in the table before the competent office/authority.

That, the statement made by me from Para 1 to 3 are all true and correct to the best of my knowledge, belief and information and nothing material is concealed therein.

Declarant Solemnly sworn and declared before me on this 4th day of March, 2022.

Advocate & Notary Public dp-1160/22

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

PM chairs CCS meeting to review preparedness

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, FM Nirmala Sitharaman, and EAM S Jaishankar also attended the meeting.

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security to review India’s security preparedness and the prevailing global scenario in the context of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Modi, official sources said, emphasised on integrating latest technology in the security apparatus and reiterated that every effort must be made to make India self-reliant in the defence

sector so that it not only strengthens our security but also adds to the economy.

Modi was also given a detailed overview of global tech usage in the defence sector and India’s advances in it, they said.

An official statement said Modi was briefed on latest developments and different aspects of India’s security preparedness in the border areas as well as in the maritime and air domain.

“The prime minister was also briefed on the latest

developments in Ukraine, including the details of Operation Ganga to evacuate Indian nationals, along with some citizens of neighbouring countries, from Ukraine,” it said.

Modi directed that all possible efforts should be made to bring back the mortal remains of Naveen Shekharappa, who died in Kharkiv.

Shekharappa, an Indian student studying in Ukraine, was killed in shelling following the Russian invasion of the country.

India has been able to evacuate most of its citizens, a large chunk of them students, from the war-hit country.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar were among those who attended the meeting.

NSA Ajit Doval and other senior officials also attended the meeting.

HC restores plea over Mathura mosque row ALLAHABAD, MAR 13 (PTI): The Allahabad High Court has restored a petition seeking the removal of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah Mosque, which is claimed to be built on Krishna Janambhoomi, the birthplace of Lord Krishna.

The main petition was dismissed in default on January 19, 2021 as the petitioner appeared in person and not through a lawyer. The application for restoration was filed immediately thereafter.

In an order on February 17, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Prakash Padia restored the plea on grounds that the application to restore it was filed without any delay.

“For the reason stated in the application, the same is allowed. Order dated January 19, 2021 dismissing the main petition in default is recalled. Let the main petition be now listed as per roster on July 25, 2022,” the court said.

Earlier in 2020, a Mathura court had dismissed a plea seeking the

Post-poll violence at 2 places in UP SP, BJP supporters clash in Budaun; 10 booked BUDAUN/ BHADOHI (UP), MAR 13 (PTI): A political argument between supporters of the Samajwadi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party escalated into a clash and led to stone pelting here, police said on Sunday.

An FIR has been registered against 10 people and three of them have been detained in connection with the incident in Kakarala area under Alapur police station limits here, they said.

“One Mohammad Rustam and Asrar alias Maili, along with their supporters, were involved in a political argument that escalated into violence. Their supporters pelted stones on each other. Four police teams were rushed to the

spot to contain the situation. Those involved in the clash managed to flee from the spot as the police teams reached there. No one was injured in the incident,” Superintendent of Police (City) Praveen Singh Chauhan said.

According to the police, both Rustam and Asrar -- who are yet to be apprehended -- have criminal backgrounds. While Rustam is said to be a supporter of the BJP, Asrar is known to be close to the Samajwadi Party.

Police have detained three suspects and they are being questioned at Alapur police station, Chauhan said. An FIR has been registered and investigation initiated, he said.

“We have lodged an FIR against 10 people, including Rustam and Asrar, along with their supporters.

Efforts are being made to arrest them,” the officer said.

A police team has also been deployed in the area to ensure law and order, he added.

9 injured in clash in Bhadohi; 17 booked

At least nine people were injured in a clash between two groups here, police said on Sunday. Seventeen people have been booked in this connection, they said.

One of the men involved in the clash at Nagmalpur village under Suriyawan police station limits here claimed that it was related to the assembly polls in the state. However, this was not mentioned in the FIR. The police, for their part, said the clash was due to an old rivalry involving two families.

“A group of men attacked another group on Saturday evening. Several police teams were rushed to the spot to maintain law

5

NATIONAL

and order. We have lodged a case regarding the matter and investigation is underway,” Station House Officer of Suriyawan police station Bhuvneshwar Kumar Pandey said on Sunday.

“As per our information, the incident occurred because of an old rivalry between two families and has nothing to do with politics,” he pointed out.

Those injured in the clash were taken to the nearby government hospital for treatment, the official said.

The FIR was registered based on the complaint of one Suresh Kumar Gupta.

“Based on the complaint we have lodged an FIR against 17 men for voluntarily causing hurt (Section 323) and other sections of the IPC,” the SHO said.

“We have identified 10 of the accused. Efforts are on to identify the others,” he said, adding that efforts are on to arrest them.

removal of the mosque.

A group of people had moved the Mathura court over the 17th century mosque they claim was built at the birthplace of Lord Krishna, within the 13.37acre premises of the Katra Keshav Dev temple.

The suit had demanded the annulment of an earlier Mathura court ruling, ratifying a land deal reached between the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan and the Shahi Idgah Management Committee on the mosque.

The suit was filed on behalf of child deity Bhagwan Shrikrishna Virajman, through the “next friend” Ranjana Agnihotri and seven others.

Next friend is a legal term for a person who represents someone directly unable to maintain a suit.

The petition had named the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board; Shahi Masjid Idgah Trust; Shri Krishna Janambhoomi Trust; and Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan as defendants.

Yogi meets PM Modi, BJP president JP Nadda in Delhi

PM Narendra Modi with UP CM Yogi Adityanath, during their meeting in New Delhi. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Sunday, and it is believed they discussed the broad contours of government formation and the structure of the new state cabinet.

Tweeting about the meeting, which lasted for over one and a half hours, Modi said he met and congratulated Adityanath for his historic victory in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

The BJP stormed back to power in Uttar Pradesh, retained Uttarakhand, Ma-

nipur and was the largest party in Goa in the recently concluded assembly polls.

Earlier in the day, in his first visit to the national capital after the party notched up a comprehensive victory in the assembly polls, Adityanath met BJP general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.

Adityanath’s visit also comes in the backdrop of several ministers of the previous Uttar Pradesh cabinet, including Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, losing in the polls.

“In the last five years,

A d i t ya n a t h t i r e l e s s l y worked for the development of Uttar Pradesh,” Modi said in a tweet after the meeting, adding that he is fully confident that in the coming years, he (Adityanath) will take the state to greater heights of development.

After meeting Modi, Adityanath met BJP president JP Nadda and is scheduled to meet Defence Minister Rajnath Singh thereafter.

Set to take oath as the chief minister for a second term, Adityanath’s talks with the top party leadership, including Nadda, is believed to have centred around a host of issues related to the government formation besides being a formal exercise.

He is likely to be here for two days, sources said.

According to the sources, the oath-taking ceremony of the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh is likely to be held after Holi.

The BJP won 255 seats in the 403-member assembly. Its two allies secured another 18 seats.

Uncertainty looms over next Uttarakhand CM NEW DELHI, MARCH 13 (IANS): Uncertainty is still prevailing over the next Chief Minister of Uttarakhand after Pushkar Singh Dhami lost assembly elections. Days after the declaration of poll results, the BJP is still trying to find a suitable formula to select the new Chief Minister of the hill state.

Sources said that despite winning two third majority, the BJP is in a peculiar situation after Dhami lost from Khatima as there are different opinions within the party over giving him another chance, while some are supporting second chance for him, many are saying it will set a wrong precedent which party always opposed.

“A section in the party feels that making a leader Chief Minister who lost the polls will be against the BJP’s practice and it must be avoided this time also. We have questioned West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee after she lost from Nandigram in last year’s state assembly polls. In 2017, the party did not make Prem Kumar Dhumal the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh after he lost the election,” a party leader said.

Another section in the party

Pushkar Singh Dhami addressing the media.

believes that Dhami should be given a chance for his hard work he put in to ensure BJP’s victory. “After several rounds of informal consultation in the state capital, more meetings are likely to take place in the national capital.

It is learnt that the key agenda of the meeting will be to decide criteria for selection of a new Chief Minister.”

Apart from the Dhami’s fate, there are other issues like caste and region to be addressed before finalizing the name of the new chief minister.

The party leadership has to take a call

on whether new chief minister will be from Garhwal or Kumaon and also whether he or she will be Thakur or Brahmin,” a party insider said.

Another critical issue is to decide where the new Chief Minister is an MLA or from outside (non MLA).

Several names have started doing the rounds in the Uttarakhand political circle. Some prominent ones are minister of state for defence Ajay Bhatt, former chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ and Rajya Sabha member Anil Baluni among non MLAs.

Punjab going to get honest CM after years: Kejriwal K’taka CM rejects chances of defection of BJP leaders to other parties

AMRITSAR/ CHANDIGARH, MAR 13 (PTI): AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said after many years, Punjab is going to get an honest chief minister and asserted that his party will also give an honest government to the state.

Accompanied by chief minister-designate Bhagwant Mann, Kejriwal said this at a roadshow organised by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to thank the voters of Punjab for its landslide victory in the just-concluded state Assembly polls.

The AAP registered a massive victory in the Punjab polls by winning 92 of the 117 Assembly seats in the state.

“Tussi kamaal kar dita.... I love you Punjab,” Kejriwal said thanking the voters.

“I am happy that after many years, Punjab is going to get an honest chief minister. He (Mann) is fiercely honest. An honest government will be formed,” he added. The Delhi chief minister said every single penny from the government’s coffers will be spent on the people of the state.

“We will honour all the promises that we have made to people,” he said.

Kejriwal also said if any leader or MLA of the AAP is found to be indulging in anything wrong, he will be put behind bars.

He noted that the people of Punjab ensured that seasoned leaders like Parkash Singh Badal, Sukhbir Singh Badal, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Charanjit Singh Channi and Bikram Singh Majithia tasted defeat in the polls. The AAP supremo

Delhi CM & AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab CM-elect Bhagwant Mann during a roadshow in Amritsar, Sunday. (PTI)

said not only Mann, but ev- AAP which is set to form ery single person in the state the next government. will be the chief minister.

“I feel the way the Aam Aadmi (AAP) worked 13 doctors make it in DelhiParty in various sectors, to Punjab assembly particularly health, instilled Punjab’s health system confidence among doctors. could go under the knife The doctors were excited with 13 doctors making it to and wanted this (Delhi) the state assembly this elec- system in Punjab too.

“We felt if we have tion, including 10 from the

proper infrastructure here, we can deliver better. I was doing a government job and saw the shortcomings there, which we will rectify now,” Baljit Kaur (46), an eye surgeon, commented on many winning AAP candidates coming from the medical background.

Kaur, the AAP candidate from Malout, had defeated SAD’s Harpreet Singh by a margin of 40,261 votes.

The entrance of qualified doctors into the political space has got a thumbsup from various quarters who have called it a “sign of positive change”.

Among the 13 doctors elected to the state assembly, two are women practitioners -- Amandeep Kaur Arora from Moga and Baljit Kaur from Malout -- and belong to the AAP.

BENGALURU, MAR 13 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Sunday ruled out the possibility of anyone from the ruling BJP in the state defecting to other parties.

Regarding chances of leaders from other parties joining the BJP in the state, he said “just wait and see”.

“These (defections) are just speculations, which have no basis. There is no question of anyone from BJP defecting to other parties. Neither earlier, nor now. I can tell you categorically that no one from our party will defect to other parties. As for anyone from other parties hopping onto BJP, just wait and see,” Bommai told reporters here.

To a quer y on the possibility of early elec-

tions following a favourable outcome for BJP in the assembly elections in five states, the Chief Minister dismissed it saying these were only media speculations whereas there were no talks at any level in the party.

Regarding his visit to Delhi for the cabinet expansion as four ministerial berths were still lying vacant, Bommai said he would wait for signals from the seniors in the party.

“Seniors had told me that they will give me a hint (about expansion). They have not given any indications yet. Once they do so, then I will immediately go there (Delhi),” the Chief Minister said.

Against the sanctioned strength of 34, Karnataka has 30 ministers while lob-

bying is still on to grab the ministerial positions, BJP sources said.

Regarding the state tour of the leaders and party programme, Bommai said the party state executive committee is due to take place on March 30 and 31 where these matters will be decided. With regard to bringing medical student Naveen S G’s body from war-torn Kharkiv in Ukraine following his death due to shelling, the Chief Minister said once the bombings in Kharkiv reduces, the government will make efforts to bring back the corpse.

Naveen S G, a fourthyear medical student in Kharkiv, had died in the shelling as he ventured out to get food, water and currency.

Vaiko wants TN Gov R.N. Ravi removed Mamata names Shatrughan Sinha and Babul Supriyo for bypolls

CHENNAI, MARCH 13 (IANS): MDMK leader Vaiko on Sunday called upon the removal of Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi from the post for making political comments.

In a statement on Sunday, the firebrand leader, who espouses Tamil nationalism, said that the Governor’s inaugural address at the South Indian Vice-Chancellors conference, where he said that India was not a “contractual union” unlike the US but an “organic one” was highly deplorable.

Contending that the Governor had exceeded his brief, Vaiko said: “The Governor has gone beyond his

Vaiko

powers making such statements and spoke about political views that are highly condemnable.”

“The Governor was putting across the political viewpoint of the RSS and Sangh Parivar and his big bosses in New Delhi.”

The MDMK leader

said that before the advent of British, India had 565 small kingdoms which was the actual history, and added that even during the Mughal rule, Tamil Nadu was never under the rule of north Indian rulers.

He said that Governors were creating roadblocks in the functioning of elected Governments and cited the example of former Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit who is the present Governor of Punjab as well as the Governor of West Bengal, Jagdeep Dhankar who was constantly creating problems for the West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee.

KOLKATA, MARCH 14 (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday named Shatrughan Sinha as TMC’s candidate for by-poll to Asansol parliamentary seat, and Babul Supriyo as nominee for Ballygunge assembly by-election.

The Asansol seat was vacated by Supriyo, a former Union minister, after he quit the saffron party last year and joined the TMC. The Ballygunge assembly seat fell vacant following the demise of state minister Subrata Mukherjee.

“Happy to announce on behalf of the All India Trinamool Congress that Sri

Shatrughan Sinha and Babul Supriyo.

Shatrughan Sinha, former Union Minister and famed actor, will be our candidate in Lok Sabha by-election from Asansol,” the TMC boss tweeted.

“Sri Babul Supriyo, former union minister and noted singer, will be our candidate in Vidhansabha by-

election from Ballygunge.

Jai Hind, Jai Bangla, Jai MaMati- Manush!” she wrote.

Supriyo, in response, thanked Banerjee for providing him with the opportunity to serve people.

“I want to thank Didi for allowing me to serve the people of the state. I am

grateful to her and would work for the development of the state,” Supriyo told PTI. The former BJP MP had joined the TMC last year, just months after he was dropped as a minister following a union ministry reshuffle.

Sinha, however, could not be reached for comment.

Speculation was rife that the actor-turned-politician would be joining the TMC, as he had heaped praise on Banerjee after last year’s assembly polls.

‘Bihari babu’, as Sinha is often referred to, had said back then, “Politics is an art of possibility.”

A popular Bollywood

hero of the yesteryears, Sinha had joined the BJP in the early 80s when it was a party of two MPs and served as its star campaigner during the Vajpayee-L K Advani era.

He was a union minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry, when Banerjee was the railway minister.

The two-ter m BJP MP from Patna Sahib later walked out of the BJP over differences with the present leadership. He joined the Congress and entered the poll fray from the same constituency in the 2019 polls but lost to former union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.

6

OPINION/EDITORIAL

Nagaland Post VOL. XXXII NO. 97 DIMAPUR, MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

B

Wait until dark

usiness and shopping hours in Dimapur end at around 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. when shops and business establishments down shutters but fish and vegetable vendors extend the deadline in order to cater to the customers. As a growing cosmopolitan city and as the trade and commerce capital of Nagaland, Dimapur’s inhabitants are also cosmopolitan in lifestyle. Evening life in Dimapur is booming for those who are used to eating out while business is also thriving. Many visitors to Dimapur are impressed by the quality of food and also the ambience of the restaurants and kiosks. A recent development that highlighted the community of wild and reckless elements, hell bent on having fun but not understanding that their unruly revelry is certainly not fun neither for themselves or especially the residents around places where they hold such parties. A joint council of two colonies in Dimapur had recently issued a stern warning against those owning food stalls/carts selling food items near Clock Tower Junction(Old City Tower) across Holy Cross School for carrying on their business well past midnight till wee hours the next day. The permit for hand cart/food cart/stall is issued by the Dimapur Municipal Council(DMC) and which may have been issued after verifying the bona fides of the applicants. This business is supposed to promote self-help or self-employment or dignity of labour for livelihood. However, DMC should monitor activities so that rules governing licenses are implemented.

On their part, the administration and police have to be more proactive in maintaining peace and tranquillity by enforcing the law. There are many food bars in and around Dimapur, where people throng to spend leisure time with family and friends. In reality, Dimapur could boast of having among the best food eateries in the region. This clearly reflects the talent of the young people some of who have trained at well known institutes and hotels. If, the state government really wants to promote tourism then it needs to look no further but at the lifestyle of its youth and middle class. The lifestyle reflect the development of entrepreneurship that is at par with the best in the region. There is also potential for night market in Dimapur but there is dire need for providing selected spots for local producers and sellers. It is seen that in the name of promoting local entrepreneurs or local growers etc, the state government has no implementable plan to provide a proper market place for local sellers dealing with organic vegetables, fruits and meat items etc. One of the fastest growing local market is in Dimapur near Naga Shopping Arcade. Hundreds of sellers, some from far away places congregate to sell their wares. The local sellers or vendors have no pace but to spread their wares on the very narrow drain cover supposed to be a sidewalk. There are rows of stalls recently constructed by the side of the Arcade, probably meant for local growers. However, most of the stalls have been sub-let to traders selling the usual clutter of plastic buckets, plastic items and grocery items. The administration and DMC need to take up the matter so that night markets encourage genuine business and where no drug pedlars or liquor smugglers are allowed to hijack it by thinking that, come evening and it’s time for fun and revelry.

DailyDevotion God’s Total Surrender to Us

For God so loved the world that He gave…

—John 3:16 Salvation does not mean merely deliverance from sin or the experience of personal holiness. The salvation which comes from God means being completely delivered from myself, and being placed into perfect union with Him. When I think of my salvation experience, I think of being delivered from sin and gaining personal holiness. But salvation is so much more! It means that the Spirit of God has brought me into intimate contact with the true Person of God Himself. And as I am caught up into total surrender to God, I become thrilled with something infinitely greater than myself.

To say that we are called to preach holiness or sanctification is to miss the main point. We are called to proclaim Jesus Christ (see 1 Corinthians 2:2). The fact that He saves from sin and makes us holy is actually part of the effect of His wonderful and total surrender to us.

If we are truly surrendered, we will never be aware of our own efforts to remain surrendered. Our entire life will be consumed with the One to whom we surrender. Beware of talking about surrender if you know nothing about it. In fact, you will never know anything about it until you understand that John 3:16 means that God completely and absolutely gave Himself to us. In our surrender, we must give ourselves to God in the same way He gave Himself for us— totally, unconditionally, and without reservation. The consequences and circumstances resulting from our surrender will never even enter our mind, because our life will be totally consumed with Him.

Quotes

“You never really learn much from hearing yourself speak.” ~ George Clooney

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

India in churn, pines for new economy, leadership

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he state elections 2022 have elements of surprise, feelings of relief, introspection for the opposition, diminution of smaller parties and a question whether 2024 Lok Sabha would be a cakewalk for the BJP or counter a new challenge.

It is naïve to believe that the personal benefits motivate more for voting a party than a focus on national economy. The path to 2024 can possibly be replicated through sound economic progress, less of privatisation, stable rupee and emancipation that can boost the pride of individual voters – a new order.

The BJP and allies reclaim UP with reduced mandate than 2017 tally of 325 with 41 percent vote; unexpectedly trounce Congress in Uttarakhand though its chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami loses despite replacing three CMs in quick succession; and retain Manipur and Goa. The Congress loses the remaining glory. The Samajwadi Party may not have been that powerful in dislodging but certainly has broken barriers to cut BJP numbers.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) springs the greatest

surprise and shock for the political community bagging 89 of the 117 Punjab Assembly seats rummaging established contenders.

The political tsunami of its leader Arvind Kejriwal started with Chandigarh UT’s local body. In Punjab, AAP demolishes all traditional political powers. It is likely to emerge as a major contender in the ensuing Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections. The move for reunifying three MCDs into one is credited to the rise of the AAP. His rise is a challenge to the entire privileged political class.

It complicates comprehension of the electoral mood. The electorate have gone through a period of turbulence, difficulties, social tension on account of three farmers’ bills, Citizenship Amendment Act 2019, demonetisation, GST, marginalization of SMEs, an acute pandemic that sent at least over 12 crore people trekking back to their homes and Ganga delta dead bodies. It follows severe stagflationary situation, with food, edible oil and commodity prices reaching new highs.

The Samajwadi Party’s 32.05 percent votes denote the simmering anger but Akhilesh Yadav has to

come out of his caste cloak quit the BJP bite the dust to look to new realities in but Apna Dal daughters a changing Indian society. Anupriya Patel and PalThe caste engineering of lavi Patel despite in opposAkhilesh aping camps Shivaji Sarkar could have parently did not work the their kill. wonders.

The BJP leaders The difficult economic Modi-Yogi sharp assault pangs are forgiven not for- on SP’s love for minority gotten by the soothing new could not prevent 35 MusM-Y – Modi-Yogi touch. lims getting elected to UP Or are the people just giv- assembly under a Hindu ing up their comforts for leader Akhilesh against the sake of ration, saashan 24 in 2017. Now it is also and prsashan – food dole being claimed that poorest and the administrative ap- minority labharhis with a proach or is it just being house, gas cylinder and “labharthi” - free benefits, free food, tended by the housing, pension and cash Rashtriya Muslim Morcha doles alleging loyalty to the (RMM) of RSS executive “namak.” salt? member Indresh Kumar Difficult questions but have sailed with the safthe electorate possibly be- fron. So have Christians, lieving that the BJP dispen- including the Nagas, in sation can do better throw Manipur and South Goa their plank with it. This due to the efforts of Indresh leads opposition to raise Kumar. accusations to the extent of The minorities despite expressing doubts over the business relationship with mandate. That the contest the majority community was too close is testified have not been able to share by an array of seats being the social space. Mutual won or lost by hundreds to suspicion, legacy of the thousand votes symbolised Partition, sours the ties

by UP deputy chief minis- leading to polarization ter Keshav Prasad Maurya of the communities. The loss to Pallavi Patel, Apna social tension was palpable Dal founder Sonelal Patel’s at almost every stage of daughter, almost like a the seven phase elections game of see-saw. The likes becoming acute with the of Swami Prasad Maurya, fourth phase in Avadh Dara Singh Chauhan who region Strangely enough

whenever there is blatant minority polarisation, the party being favoured by them slinks to play the second fiddle since 1991.

The RSS-BJP understands the phenomenon leading to Yogi’s sharp blurb that he is contesting for 80 percent and not the 20 percent. It seemingly has paid dividend again despite the touted bonhomie with kisans, Jats and minorities in western UP. Parties like the BSP must be worried with vote share plunging to 12 percent. It means that BSP leader Mayawati is no more the force to lead her dalit vote banks particularly Jatavs despite Amit Shah exchanging niceties with her. Evident new dalit politics is surfacing.

It changes the scenario for BJP too in its march to 2024 elections. If SP acts with vigour, forges effective national alliances with TMC of Mamata Banerjee, NCP of Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena, TRS, the residual Left and may be also the Congress a resistance can be put up. It, however, looks too farfetched. The impending Gujarat and Himachal polls would set the tone. If such alliances remain utopian as Goa experiment of Mamata

Baneerjee, the BJP may remain comfortable.

But such comfort may elude it as a new political order emerges. The challenge in UP from SP-RLD was hackneyed. But an emerging Kejriwal can create a national alternative as voters can break away from identity silos to get their lives improved. Punjab is a lesson. Its rise in 2017 led to rise of the Congress. His Tiranga Yatra burnishes his nationalist credentials. The committed Hindu voter turned against Congress and BJP. They voted along with Sikhs and other communities to usher in the change. Tainted Ram Rahim’s furlough angered dalit voters to vote for AAP. The politics is changing. The voter does not want to remain in the labharthi mode. There has to be economic and political emancipation. The BJP has to realise it and effectively improve its rhetoric into economic action may be drastically away from privatisation and respond to the mundane concerns like junking of efficient cars, imposition of new rules every day, high tolls and prices and a review of National Education Policy.

Indian politics is in a churn and pines for change.

Post-mortem

One World: A Rhetoric , A Mirage, A Maya! 1 in 5 women investing for the

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n e w o r l d a s a have changed the world by and within the nations are a terrain wherein a few c o n c e p t a n d a flattening, so that the frag- widening. Emergence of sharks amassing more theory came into mented terrains be elevated a few countries becoming wealth and profit by elimiprominence in the late on par with developed more powerful controlling nating smaller fishes – a 70s. In 1980s, it gained and wealthiest countries. the regions and borders. cut-throat competition. momentum as a vision all For changes to happen he Expansionistic and empireConspicuously, COover. Then on, it assumed firmly believed technology building tendencies are ap- VID-19 has leveraged and greater importance across as a tool could perhaps be parent across the borders. widened equity and equalthe world. For instance, one of the key factors and Cross-border terrorism, ity within and between Willy Brandt, the then contributors. He argued fighters suddenly intrud- countries. For example, 84 Chancellor of West Ger- vociferously that globaliza- ing the air spaces of other per cent of Africa’s populamany coined a word ‘inter- tion was the force to reckon countries, massive build tion has not got single jab, dependence(ncy)’ which by levelling out all sorts of ups of military tanks and while in some countries eventually became the most inequities and inequali- troops across the borders such as Israel, USA and important development ties within and between have become regular news. others have started givmodel all over. Following nations, and so everyone Conceptions such as unipo- ing booster doses to their which in the early 1990s, should embrace it. lar, bi-polar and multi-polar populace. Omicron has ‘globalization’ as a concept I n o p p o s i t i o n t o world have increasingly furthered the vaccine inswept almost all areas and Thomas L Friedman, been contested. A classic equity within and between sectors of people. It became Mar Leonard in his recent example is what we have nations. Wealthier and dea catchy word. work Age of Unpeace: been witness Russians war veloped countries manifest Since then, globaliza- How Connectivity Causes of Ukraine. vaccine protectionism in tion as a vocabulary has Conflict, argues that gloIt has leveraged our blatant ways. More imporcaptured the imagination balization has a dark side assumptions and under- tantly, countries that are of the economists, politi- as closeness, competition standing. No one knows technologically advanced cal analysists, cultural and and conflict go together. whether the world in which and developed especially social theorists, theolo- He goes on reiterating con- we live is controlled by in times of Omicron are gians and many others. nectedness or connectivity one country, two countries managing well compared Its core philosophical and is a recipe for all sorts of or a combination of few to less developed countries. theoretical emphasis is to problems including global countries or oligopolistic Coronavirus has escaintegrate the disintegrated unrest. He views that in- conglomerates. But what lated digital divide. Highworld into oikumene. To terdependence is caus- we can perceive is glo- tech corporations located integrate the disintegrated ing conflict, rather than balization can simply be in the rich developed counworld, it used liberaliza- minimizing. In the process defined as the survival of tries have been accruing tion, privatization and conflict affects other things fittest – social Darwinism. huge profits. Take any globalization (LPG) as a such as commerce, trade Globalization has made the sector including education, trinitarian magic wand for and host of others con- world into one economic new apps and smart phones progress, prosperity and nected between countries. unit, one shopping mall have become the basic development. To translate It has resulted in arms build and global village wherein requisites to enter into these, it used the multilat- up and most of nations are the entire world can live the prescribed platforms. eral agencies IMF-WB- involved in weaponizing under one canopy/one Those who cannot afford WTO as its instruments. building arsenals. He also family – Vasudeva Kodam- these apps are pushed to One world tentatively unravels that new kinds of bakkam. Inter-dependent the margins. Connectivseems to have been realized coercion include funding paradigm believes that no ity is possible only in and via the forces of globaliza- rebel groups, engaging in country in the world can through communication tion primarily dictated proxy war, misinformation live on its own isolating technologies (CTs). Those through economic policies and hacking. from the rest of the world who control these techand program by the domiThe author candidly and so the countries of the nologies control the world nant free-market economic locates and charts that world are obviously inter- of communication. As a logic. To an extent the as the world moves on dependent. result, those with these forces of globalization has from the industrial to the Globalization has un- techs are well-connected influenced the developing information age, so do the doubtedly did integrate by to the world at large, while countries as regards to conflicts. Today, tech and establishing unregulated others remain outside the what to eat, what types bio-wars leading to weap- free-market economic or- mainstream. of dress one should wear, onizing economic links in der. As a result, it promotEntrenched with inand the system of educa- the so-called ‘interdepen- ed cut-throat competition numerable problems, we tion a society or a country dent world’. He pushes the leading to under-valuing need to reckon with a fact should have. Globaliza- readers how Post-9/11, the leading to the emergence that the world we live is tion has made significant US used dollar dominance of few monopolies hav- inequitable and lopsided. inroads amongst the elite to dictate terms to banks ing absolute control over Notions of one world – Oiand middle classes across and companies around the market violating anti-trust kumene is indeed a rhetothe world. The forces of world, using SWIFT data, laws since they are becom- ric, a maya and mirage. globalization have drasti- whereas China used soft ing more powerful than Every leader, every corcally changed the notions incentives by offering car- some of the nation-states. poration and every nationof development and the rots such as loans, invest- Their enormous growth state want to protect its priorities of the govern- ments, new infrastructure has forced the economi- populace, political-interests ments at large in tune to to build its own dependen- cally powerful corpora- by building walls, enforcing the changing contours of cies. Countries like India tions to be broken. This protectionist policies and the dominant paradigm. leveraged migration – the phenomenon is like ‘law laws, invoking nationalIn tune to it, one of growing proximity of India of the jungle’ in which istic slogans and rhetoric the best-selling books by and the US has much to do the powerful can devour thereby intensely becoming Thomas L Friedman The with the presence of the smaller ones eventually populist and fundamentalWorld is Flat captured the Indian diaspora. becoming more power- ist. In such a context, one attention of world that gave Those who laud inter- ful. For Friedman there world, inter-dependency a comprehensive account dependent world should are only winners. In real- and multiculturalism have of the history of the world look at what is happening ity there are many losers. become redundant for the and the ways with which on the ground levels. In- Globalization is the chief present. the forces of globalization creasingly the gaps between architect to have created Dr. John Mohan Razu Reader’s note: Articles or letters published in any of the columns do not reflect the view of this

first time, amidst Covid-19

S

c r i p b ox , l e a d i n g digital wealth manager, conducted the third edition of their annual survey, to understand the qualitative aspects of women’s investing habits and financial goals. The survey highlights a growing trend of women taking greater control of their money, accelerated by the economic impact of the pandemic.

Women are proactively seeking to educate themselves on money matters, reveals the survey.

Nearly 30 per cent of women share that they had sought to educate themselves on personal finance during the pandemic. Thirty per cent of them rely on digital investment platforms for information on financial planning and investing, 20 percent depend on friends and family and 15 percent refer to articles on personal finance.

Seventy per cent of women (60 per cent in 2021) have said that they are either independently managing their own money (32 percent ) or are actively involved in financial decision-making with their spouse (38 per cent ). Compared to last year’s survey, there is an 11 percent uptick in the number of women who are independently managing their expenses today.

Independence in financial decision-making has led to a sense of personal empowerment in women. This is promoting positive action. Fortyfour per cent women say they prioritised creating a financial plan; 40 per cent say they committed to saving more, while 23 per cent increased their investments. One in five women (22 per cent) have started to invest for the first time amidst the pandemic. Prudence has been the order of the day, with only less than 10 per cent of women resorting to revenge shopping.

Despite these strides taken with investing their money, women continue to be cautious with their savings. Mutual Funds is the most preferred investment instrument and is the choice of 22 per cent newspaper nor that of the

of women surveyed, followed by Shares and Gold.

34 per cent of women prefer to put their money in a mix of traditional investment options like fixed deposits, recurring deposits, PPF and savings account.

“The survey highlights a progressive reduction in gender role gaps and increased independence in women with wealth management. With an increase in awareness and interest in financial planning and wealth creation, we are witnessing a positive shift in investment preferences, goals, behaviours and mindsets.

Women are motivated to save and invest and take control of their financial journey now more than ever. As a digital wealth manager, our aim is to help investors make these informed decisions that allow them to achieve their life goals,” said Atul Shinghal, Founder and CEO at Scripbox.

Long term life goals continue to be a priority. Saving for retirement (20%) and for children’s education (20%) emerged as the most important financial goals for women across India. While women under 35 years wish to make more money as their next financial goal, women over 35 years have said that they would prefer to create an emergency fund.”The simple truth is that being in control of your own money, means you’re in control of your own life. Investing, just like any other skill, needs to be developed. It’s encouraging to see women bring their natural predisposition to action to this important area of their life. Only positive things can come from this change!” said Neela Kaushik, Founder and CEO, GurgaonMoms & a Community Specialist & Columnist.Taking money matters into their own hands helps create a virtuous cycle of benefits. Seventy per cent of women have said that it gave them a greater sense of confidence and independence, and helped improve their overall well-being.

IANS Life Editor in any manner.

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): The second part of the Parliament’s Budget session begins on Monday with the Opposition set to corner the government on a range of issues, including rising unemployment, a reduction in the interest rate on employees’ provident fund and the evacuation of Indians stranded in war-hit Ukraine.

Top on the government’s agenda would be getting Parliament’s approval to the budgetary proposals and presentation of the budget for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present the budget for Jammu and Kashmir in the Lok Sabha on Monday and it is expected to be taken up for discussion in the post-lunch sitting of the House.

The government has also listed the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill for consideration and passing in the Lok Sabha. With the COVID-19 situation easing out considerably, both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya

The first part of the Budget session had begun on January 29.

Sabha will have simultaneous sittings from 11 am, instead of the two separate shifts during the first part of the Budget session from January 29 to February 11.

The session convenes days after the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered victories in the Assembly polls in four states -- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur -while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) stormed to power in Punjab.

The first part of the Budget session had begun on January 29 with President Ram Nath Kovind’s address to a joint sitting

of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in the Central Hall of Parliament, which was followed by the presentation of the Economic Survey.

Sitharaman presented the Union Budget on February 1, which was followed by discussions on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address and the Union Budget. Congress president Sonia Gandhi chaired a meeting of the party’s Parliament Strategy Group at her residence and decided to work in coordination with like-minded political parties during the Budget session.

PM Modi directs to bring mortal remains of Naveen

NEW DELHI, MARCH 13 (IANS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday directed the authorities to make all possible efforts to bring back the mortal remains of Naveen Shekharappa, who died in Kharkiv, Ukraine during Russian shelling on March 1.

The Prime Minister earlier in the day chaired a CCS meeting to review India’s security preparedness, and the prevailing global scenario in the context of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The Prime Minister was briefed on latest developments and different aspects of India’s security preparedness in the border areas as well as in the maritime and air domain.

The Prime Minister was also briefed on the latest developments in Ukraine, including the details of Operation Ganga to evacuate Indian nationals, along with some citizens of India’s neighbouring countries, from Ukraine.

PM Modi had in the past chaired several high level meetings with senior Ministers of the cabinet

MP shocker: Two tribal women sexually molested on road

Naveen Shekharappa

and officials since Russia launched a military operation against Ukraine on February 24 and India began a massive evacuation mission named Operation Ganga to airlift stranded Indian nationals including students.

So far, the gover nment brought back over 20,000 Indians from the war torn country, through the neighbourhood countries of Ukraine.

On March 11, over 600 Indian students, stuck in northeastern city Sumy were airlifted to New Delhi using humanitarian corridor provided by the Russian authority.

These Indian students arrived here on Friday by three flights including one Indian Air Force’s C-17 globe master under Operation Ganga.

Two women were forcibly sexually assaulted by a group of men on broad day light, while others were capturing the incident on their mobile phones.

BHOPAL, MARCH 13 (IANS): Two tribal women were sexualy assaulted by a group of men in a village in Madhya Pradesh’ tribal Alirajpur district, police said on Sunday, adding that two accused have been arrested in connection with the crime.

The incident came to light after a shocking video surfaced on social media, showing the two women, standing beside a vehicle on a busy road in Alirajpur, nearly 400 km away from

Mumbai police quiz Fadnavis for 2 hours in phone tapping case MUMBAI, MAR 13 (PTI): A team of the BKC cyber police in Mumbai recorded senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis’s statement for almost for two hours on Sunday at his residence in connection with a case of alleged illegal tapping of phones, an official said.

IPS officer Rashmi Shukla is accused of tapping phones of political leaders and senior officials illegally when she was chief of the SID. Former Maharashtra chief minister Fadnavis had cited a letter purportedly written by her to the then Maharashtra Director General of Police about alleged corruption in transfers in the police department.

The letter also had details of intercepted phone calls, leading to an uproar with leaders of the Shiv Sena-led ruling coalition alleging that Shukla tapped phones without permission.

Following a complaint lodged by the State Intelligence Department (SID), a case was registered under the Official Secrets Act at the BKC cyber police station in Mumbai last year against unidentified persons for allegedly illegally tapping phones and leaking confidential documents.

Before the FIR was registered, the then Maharashtra chief secretary Sita-

Govt to publicise its social welfare BJP workers burn copies of police notice schemes, benefits

issued to Fadnavis in phone tapping case

Devendra Fadnavis

ram Kunte had alleged in his inquiry report that Shukla had leaked the confidential report.

On Sunday, a team comprising Deputy Commissioner of Police Hemraj Singh Rajput, Assistant Commissioner of Police Nitin Jadhav and two inspectors, reached Fadnavis’s bungalow ‘Sagar’ around noon. They recorded the BJP leader’s statement for about two hours and then left his residence, an official said. Heavy security was deployed outside Fadnavis’s home, where a number of BJP leaders gathered, including MLA Nitesh Rane, MLCs Prakash Lad and Pravin Darekar, and party leader Kripashankar Singh.

The police had issued a notice to Fadnavis in connection with the case and BJP workers on Sunday staged protests and burnt copies of the notice in parts

of the state, including Pune, Pandharpur (in Solapur district), Nagpur, Chandrapur and Sangli.

BJP MLA Ashish Shelar said, “…Let them record it (the statement). The truth never hides and it can never be defeated.”

“In fact, Devendra Fadnavis has brought to light corruption in this case.

It was expected that those who engaged in corruption or are facing corruption allegations were probed in this case. But, the Maharashtra government is somewhere trying to use pressure tactics on the opponents,” he told a news channel. Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative Council Pravin Darekar told another channel that, “He (Fadnavis) brought before the people corruption in transfers (of officials)…now this (state) government is trying to counter that allegation.”

BJP workers on Sunday held demonstrations in various parts of Maharashtra and set on fire copies of a notice issued by the Mumbai police to opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis in connection with the probe into the leak of confidential information on corruption in police transfers and alleged illegal tapping of phones.

A team of the BKC cyber police in Mumbai recorded Fadnavis’ statement for almost two hours on Sunday at his residence. Several BJP leaders, including MLA Nitesh Rane, MLCs Prasad Lad and Pravin Darekar and party leader Kripashankar Singh, gathered outside Fadnavis’ residence in south Mumbai, where a team of the BKC cyber police reached around noon to record the latter’s statement.

BJP workers staged protests and burnt copies of the police notice in Pune, Pandharpur (in the Solapur district), Nagpur, Chandrapur, Sangli, Thane and Palghar. IPS officer Rashmi Shukla is accused of tapping phones

of select political leaders and senior officials illegally when she was chief of the State Intelligence Department. Fadnavis had cited a letter purportedly written by her to the then Maharashtra Director General of Police about the alleged corruption in transfers in the police department.

Speaking to media persons on Sunday, Nitesh Rane alleged the notice was issued to Fadnavis out of political vendetta.

“Anyone who speaks against Dawood Ibrahim, is targeted by the state government and a notice is issued to him,” Rane said.

He was referring to Fadnavis’ allegation that Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate, had links with the fugitive Underworld don.

Earlier in the day, BJP MLA and former state minister Ashish Shelar told a news channel that let the police record statement of Fadnavis, but the “truth can never be defeated.” Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative Council Pravin Darekar seconded Shelar.

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): The central government plans to spread the message on the way various social welfare schemes have benefitted the masses, including women, and people from SC and ST communities. A decision was taken last week to ask the various central ministries to collate the various welfare schemes launched by them in the past seven-and-a-half years and the number of people they have benefitted.

After a thorough review, the government will launch a campaign to amplify the schemes and their benefits extended across India, sources aware of the decision said on Sunday. Various welfare schemes of the government are said to have played a key role in helping BJP win assembly polls in four out of five states, including Uttar Pradesh.

But the decision to ask the ministries to collate data was taken before the voting for assembly polls took place, sources said. According to the government, such schemes as Ujjwala , Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, and rural employment programme have benefitted lakhs of families by way of employment generation, affordable housing, and cooking gas facility.

B H U B A N E S WA R , MARCH 13 (IANS): BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra on Sunday demanded stern action against Odisha MLA Prashant Jagdev who plowed his SUV into a crowd injuring several BJP workers and cops.

Patra, who landed in Bhubaneswar on Sunday morning, visited the injured persons at AIIMS Bhubaneswar. Later, holding a press conference, Patra condemned the incident and said it has maligned the image of Odisha.

Speaking about the incident, Patra said, “As BJP was all set to win both

block chairman seats under Chilika constituency, the BJD MLA was trying to take control over the democratic process of election.

However he failed to do so.

So, out of frustration, the legislator tried to kill around 20 BJP workers including women by ramming his vehicle into the crowd.”

This is a matter of concern that an elected MLA has committed such a crime, that too probably under the influence of alcohol, Patra said.

“This was nothing but attempt to murder... This was not only the attempt of murder of the BJP workers

but also it was an attempt to murder the democracy,” he said.

Describing the suspension of Jagdev from BJD as a drama, he said, “After suspension, he was seen attending BJD meetings and campaigning for the party.”

Despite knowing that Jagdev is a habitual offender and involved in several violent incidents in the past, the regional party (BJD) has not expelled him. He was even given a ticket for the second time by the party, the BJP leader said.

“We want to ask why the BJD did not expel Jagdev. We demand stern action

Mamata slams cut in interest rates on EPF

KO L K ATA , M A R 1 3 (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday slammed the Centre for slashing interest rates on Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), sarcastically stating that it was “gift card” from the BJP government after the party’s victory in Uttar Pradesh.

Baner jee called for united protests to thwart this “anti-people step”.

“After the UP victory, the BJP government comes out with its gift card immediately! It, at once, unmasks itself by proposing to slash the interest rate on Employees’ Provident Fund deposits to a four-decade low,” Banerjee tweeted.

On Saturday, the interest rate on employees’ provident fund deposits was cut to a four-decade low of 8.1 per cent for 2021-22 fiscal

from 8.5 per cent the previous year. “This is amidst the pandemic-hit financial stresses of the middle and lower middle-class workers and employees of the country.” Banerjee wrote.

“The anti-people, antiworker step exposes the crudely lopsided public policies of the current central establishment, which espouses interests of big capital,” she added.

against him,” he demanded.

The BJP leader said his party has won Assembly elections in four states and it has lost in one state Punjab. However, no violence has been reported in any of these states because the BJP workers never indulge in violence.

When it comes to the case of West Bengal and Odisha, such poll-related violence is being reported.

After West Bengal elections, several BJP workers have been killed and in Odisha, so many violent incidents have been reported during the entire panchayat election, he pointed out.

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Sambit Patra demands action against Odisha MLA

Medical Board Examination in Wokha

This is to inform all the State Government Service employees in Wokha district that the Medical board Examination for service confirmation will be held at Chief Medical Officer’s Office Wokha on March 16 and 17. Medical board Examination will commence from 10 am and the employees are requested to produce their appointment order on the said date.

Dr. Tumchobeni db-195/22 Chief Medical Officer, Wokha

Bhopal, being forcibly sexually assaulted by a group of men on broad day light, while some others were seen capturing the incident on their mobile phones.

After verifying viral video, local police said the incident occurred during a popular tribal festival.

The clip shows one of the women appearing to hide behind a vehicle parked on the roadside when a man, passing the spot, grabbed and assaulted her.

She gets rescued by a passerby, who pulled the man away. However, in the meantime, another man grabbed another woman standing at the same spot and molested her.

“A case has been registered against a group of persons. Two persons involved involved the case has been arrested. A search for another accused is underway,” Alirajpur’s Superintendent of Police, Manoj Kumar Singh, said.

FIR against Nitesh Rane for remarks against Sharad Pawar

MUMBAI, MAR 13 (PTI): Mumbai Police on Sunday registered an FIR against Maharashtra BJP MLA Nitesh Rane and his brother Nilesh Rane for allegedly making remarks against NCP chief Sharad Pawar, an official said.

The case was registered at the Azad Maidan police station under various Indian Penal Code section, including 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 499 (defamation), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) based on a complaint of NCP functionary Shrinivas alias Vyankatrao Suraj Chavan.

Chavan submitted to police some video clips in which the Rane brothers, sons of Union minister Narayan Rane, were purportedly seen making the remarks.

In his complaint, Chavan mentioned that Nitesh Rane, while talking to reporters last Wednesday, asked why Pawar had not taken the resignation of Maharashtra minister and NCP’s chief spokesperson Nawab Malik even though he was arrested by the En-

Nitesh Rane

forcement Directorate in a money laundering case. According to the complainant, the BJP MLA had alleged that Pawar may also be an aid of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim. The same day, former MP Nilesh Rane also allegedly made similar comments on Twitter, Chavan mentioned in his complaint. Meanwhile, Nitesh Rane told reporters here on Sunday that, “We will tell the police what we have to if an offence has been registered. What is wrong in what we said? We sided with Hindutva. We have not tried to instigate a riot. If it is a mistake to side with Hindutva, then we will commit that mistake 100 times.”

He said Pawar had alleged that Malik is being linked to Dawood Ibrahim because the minority affairs minister comes from Muslim community.

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

Only `71.09 cr power revenue target achieved out of `150.99 cr: DED

KAKURO

No. 4832 Yesterday’s solution No. 4831

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No. 10210 Yesterday’s solution No. 10209

service to consumers.

He maintained that for a State with a meagre power generating capacity of only 26.54 megawatt (MW), there was no alternative but to conserve energy.

With the poor revenue collection and huge pending arrears of consumers, besides power theft resulting in energy losses and growing customer dissatisfaction, Sema declared that shifting to prepaid metering system would not only improve revenue collection, but also result in a consumer-friendly service and help in energy conservation.

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250 kwh, the rate is Rs 7. (refer table B) Thus, though the postpaid tariff for the initial energy consumption (0 to30 kwh) was cheaper than the prepaid tariff, Sema said total consumption of most consumers was over 250 kwh, adding that switching to pre-paid metering would be more economic and also save energy.

He sought public support and cooperation for transitioning to pre-paid metering system to improve power stability by saving energy and also to avoid the problems of wrong billing and poor bill delivery service. He said pre-paid metering would also automatically improve DED’s

said while speaking to reporters.

Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar also backed the idea to make Gandhi the party chief.

“As I have said it earlier as well, Rahul Gandhi should take up the Congress presidency in a full time role immediately. This is the wish of millions of Congress workers like me,” he tweeted.

Earlier in the day, top Congress leaders discussed the party’s strategy for the upcoming Budget Session of Parliament and decided to work in coordination with other like-minded parties to raise issues of public importance.

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On differences in tariff between prepaid and post-paid metering, he said the department charged prepaid domestic consumers at a flat rate of Rs 5.15 per unit, while per unit charge in post-paid meters increased depending on the total units consumed.

(Refer table B) As per Nagaland Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), a consumer is charged Rs.4.50 per kwh for consumption up to 30 kwh, while the rate is Rs 5.40 per kwh for consumption between 31 and 100 kwh and Rs 6 for consumption between 101 and 250 kwh.

For consumers crossing consumption of more than

(From p-1) Detailed discussion held about the five states elections. We discussed how to take things forward and how we prepare for the forthcoming elections.”

Ahead of the meeting, the chorus for making Rahul Gandhi Congress president again grew louder as several leaders and workers voiced support for him to take on the mantle of party chief.

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said no one was taking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi as Rahul Gandhi does and was fighting resolutely.

In a strange defence of Rahul, Gehlot said: “The prime minister has to start his speech after targeting Rahul Gandhi, you can understand what this means.

All of us want that Rahul ji should take on the mantle of party leadership,” Gehlot

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Crossword

mode without having to stand in long queues to pay bills, avoid unwanted bills and also allow them to be extra cautious about energy consumption, thereby resulting in energy conservation.

For installing a prepaid meter, Sema said it was mandatory for a consumer to clear off his or pending dues and obtain a no-objection certificate from the power department.

It may be mentioned here that there had been complaints from many consumers, especially in town areas, and rent houseowners of being unable to transitioning to prepaid metering as there were dues pending from earlier ten-

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ters and their advantages, the executive engineer remarked that prepaid metering was best for conserving energy as consumers would automatically become conscious of energy usage.

He mentioned that switching to prepaid metering would help consumers know remaining credit as the prepaid meters had a provision to display actual remaining money and also the total kwh consumptions, which automatically would put them in a position to manage their power usage, thereby allowing them to budget their consumption.

He said prepaid meters would help consumers buy electricity through online

dP-1084/22(a)

(From p-1) Sema mentioned that raids were carried out against consumers for nonpayment of electricity bills and against theft of power with assistance from Dimapur district administration and police.

He declared that any person using power illegally would be punished with imprisonment for a term that might extend to three years or fined or both as per the Indian Electricity Act, 2003.

Although, DED was trying to trying to be consumer-friendly, he lamented that many consumers were taking advantage of this.

Pre-paid meters: Asked about prepaid me-

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (IANS): Continued hostilities between Russia and Ukraine as well as rising demand is expected to keep global crude oil prices in the range of $95-$125 per barrel in the short to medium term.

On last Friday, the Brent-indexed crude oil price stood at over $112 per barrel. Just a few days ago, Brent rose to a 14-year high and crossed the $130 per barrel-mark. It neared the $140 per barrel level. Lately, crude oil prices have surged by more than 20 per cent on fears of tight supplies.

Currently, Russia is one of the largest producers of crude oil in the world. It is feared that new and more stringent sanctions against Russia will curtail global supplies and stifle growth. For India, the crude oil price range is a cause of concern as it may add Rs 15-Rs 25 in petrol and diesel selling prices. Till now, fuel prices have been steady since early November 2021, when the Centre reduced excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 per litre, respectively.

“Brent is expected to trade between a broad range of $85 to $125 levels. Geopolitical tension still exists and supply shortage will keep crude oil prices elevated,” said IIFL Securities VP, Research, Anuj Gupta.

“If international prices sustain on higher levels then domestic petrol and diesel prices may increase by Rs 15 to Rs 25 in a staggered manner.” According to Kshitij Purohit, Lead of Commodities and Currencies CapitalVia Global Research: “Crude oil price is retracing from its highest peak of this year. The government has not yet increased the prices of domestic petrol or diesel due to elections in multiple states.

In our view, the government will increase the price of petrol to Rs 120 per litre gradually by next month.”

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ously anticipated 9.2 per cent, according to recent government data.

“At present monetary and fiscal policy has some space to smooth the oil shock in a coordinated manner,” she said, adding that it should be used to sustain the domestic investment cycle and the resulting job growth.

Goyal suggested that avoiding overreaction and excess volatility in rates and responses is important. Replying to a question on high oil prices, she said crisis-related spikes in oil prices have often been sharp and short in the past. She emphasised that the priority should be given to measures to greening the economy in the long-run to reduce dependence on imported oil.

Asked whether the surge in edible and crude oil prices due to the Ukraine crisis could force the RBI to raise its inflation forecast, she said the central bank’s inflation projection is based on the assumption that average oil price for the year will be USD 80.

“Therefore if oil prices persist above this for some months and there is domestic pass through, the inflation forecast would rise,” Goyal said. According to her, international oil prices affect the wholesale price index (WPI) but it is domestic oil prices that impact headline consumer price index (CPI), the RBI’s inflation target.

“And there is policy space to moderate domestic oil prices. Therefore we have to watch developments,” she said.

The retail inflation rate breached the 6 per cent upper tolerance limit of the RBI for the first time in seven months in January, while the wholesale-price index stayed in double-digits for the 10th month in a row.

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account deficit to widen to 10-year high of 3 per cent of GDP,” it said.

India is 85 per cent dependent on imports to meet its oil needs and the recent spurt in international oil prices, which pushed rates to a 14-year high of USD 140 per barrel before retracting, will result in the country paying more for the commodity. Also, higher prices will result in inflationary pressure. The key channel of impact for the economy will be higher cost-push inflation, feeding into broader price pressures, which will weigh on all economic agents — households, business, and government.

Regarding India’s exposure to macro stability risks, Morgan Stanley said even as macro stability indicators

are expected to worsen, lack of domestic imbalances and focus on improving the productivity dynamic will help to mitigate risks.

“As such, we do not expect that fiscal or monetary policy will need to tighten disruptively to manage macro stability risks. The risk would stem from a further sustained rise in oil prices, leading to quick deterioration in macro stability and currency volatility,” it said.

The brokerage expected a repo rate hike in the June meeting of RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee. “But we now expect the April policy to mark the process of policy normalization with a reverse repo rate hike.”

“However, if the RBI were to delay its normalization process, the risk of disruptive policy rate hikes would rise. We see less room for fiscal policy stimulus to support growth given high deficit and debt levels – we see a possibility of a modest fuel tax cut and reliance on the national rural employment program as an automatic stabilizer,” it said.

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): India’s economic recovery from COVID-19 is progressing well, with better than expected growth rates, and the trajectory will continue but persistently high oil prices can play spoilsport, eminent economist Ashima Goyal said on Sunday.

Goyal, who is also a member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the RBI, further said inflation, which has largely remained within the central bank’s tolerance band, was also showing signs of moderating as supply conditions eased because there was no over-stimulus unlike in many western countries.

“India’s economic recovery from COVID-19 is progressing well, with better than generally expected growth rates. Higher growth is not just due to a base effect, because Indian growth in 2021 exceeds that of many countries, which had a worse fall in growth in 2020,” she told PTI. According to Goyal, it points to India’s continuation of reforms as well as good macroeconomic policies. She pointed out that India’s steep fall in growth during the first lockdown received a lot of adverse publicity but IMF’s January growth figures for 2020 and 2021 show many countries to be worse off.

Asked what will be the impact of the Ukraine crisis on the Indian economy, the eminent economist said, “The recovery will continue but persistently high oil prices could cause some moderation in growth.”

Asia’s third-largest economy is projected to grow 8.9 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 31, slower than the previ-

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NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (PTI): As higher oil prices torpedo economic recovery worldwide, Morgan Stanley has cut India’s GDP forecast for the fiscal year beginning April 1 by 50 basis points to 7.9 per cent, raised retail inflation projection to 6 per cent and expects current account deficit to widen to 3 per cent of GDP. “Even as we expect the cyclical recovery trend to continue, we expect it to be softer than we previously projected,” it said in a report. “We believe that the ongoing geopolitical tensions exacerbate external risks and impart a stagflationary impulse to the economy.”

India is affected through three key channels — higher prices for oil and other commodities; trade, and tighter financial conditions, influencing business/ investment sentiment.

“Building in higher oil prices, we trim our F23 GDP growth forecast 50bps, to 7.9 per cent, lift our CPI inflation forecast to 6 per cent, and expect the current

India’s post-pandemic eco recovery With crude hovering around $95progressing well: Ashima Goyal $130, fuel price hike inevitable

MkC-80/22

India GDP growth forecast cut to 7.9 pc: Morgan Stanley

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

BUSINESS/STATE

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inducts J-10C fighter jets from Russia intensifies assault on Ukraine Pak China to counter India’s Rafale WARNS US WEAPONS SENT TO UKRAINE ARE ‘LEGITIMATE TARGETS’

KYIV, MAR 13 (AGENCIES): Russian forces kept up their bombardment of cities across Ukraine on Saturday, capturing the eastern outskirts of a key southern port and waging an increasingly violent campaign with an eye to encircling the capital even as they sought to bring a political veneer to their occupation in cities they have captured, Los Angeles Times reported.

Moscow also signalled it could soon expand the war to embroil Kyiv’s allies, warning the U.S. that it would consider convoys carrying weapons to Ukraine to be “legitimate targets.” A few hours later, the White House announced it would send an additional $200 million in arms and equipment for Ukraine.

While wide-scale Russian bombing campaigns intensified in cities including Mariupol, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Chernihiv, Russian forces planned to conduct a referendum that would turn the city of Kherson — the first major city

Ukrainian soldiers march in formation toward the battle with Russian forces in Irpin.

captured by Russian forces earlier this month — into a vassal breakaway republic, said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

“Given zero popular support, it will be fully staged,” he wrote on Twitter, warning that it was a repeat of Russia’s playbook in 2014, when Russia-backed separatists held a referendum that led to the creation of the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics in eastern Ukraine. “ S eve r e s a n c t i o n s against Russia must follow

if they proceed. Kherson is & will always be Ukraine.”

Sergey Khlan, a deputy in the Kherson Regional Council, said in a post on Facebook on Saturday that Russian authorities were contacting deputies and asking for their cooperation in holding the referendum to create a putative Kherson People’s Republic.

“The creation of Kherson People’s Republic will turn our region into a hopeless hole without life and future,” Khlan wrote.

“Do not give them a

single vote! Do not give them any opportunity to legitimize [the Kherson People’s Republic]. … Enter the history of Ukraine not as traitors whom nobody wants, but truly as citizens whose names will be remembered by the next generations.”

Meanwhile, in Moscow, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Saturday that shipments of Western weapons to Ukraine could be attacked

by Russian forces, according to Russia’s Tass news agency. Western nations’ “thoughtless transfer” of portable air defense and antitank missile systems to Kyiv, Ryabkov said, demonstrated “the escalatory component of Washington’s policy.”

The White House announced Saturday it had approved an additional $200 million in arms and equipment for Ukraine, on top of $350 million President Biden approved last month.

“We have warned the U.S. that the U.S.-orchestrat-

ed inundation of Ukraine with weapons from some countries is not just a dangerous move, but also an action that makes these convoys legitimate targets,” Ryabkov said. The Russian diplomat did not say whether Russian forces would target such convoys in Poland or Romania, NATO countries that border Ukraine.

The confrontational talk came on a day that Russian forces sustained “heavy losses in manpower and equipment” in areas northeast of Kyiv and were prevented from regaining a foothold on previously captured frontiers, according to the Ukrainian military.

Northwest of the capital, the bulk of Russian ground forces were gathered Saturday about 15 miles from the city center, according to the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense. Parts of the large Russian column north of Kyiv had dispersed, the ministry said, either in an effort to encircle the city or limit its risk of Ukrainian counterattacks.

ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (IANS): Pakistan has inducted multi purpose J-10C fighter jets, acquired from China, into its Air Force to improve its combat capabilities.

In a formal induction ceremony on Friday held at Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Base Minhas Kamra in Attock district of Punjab to induct the jet, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said any country would have to think twice before harbouring any aggression towards Pakistan, asserting that the armed forces were well-equipped and trained to defeat any threat.

His statement is a veiled reference about India’s recent procurement of Rafale fighter jets from France.

“Unfortunately, efforts are being made to create an imbalance in the region and to address this, a big addition has been made today to our defence system,” Khan said addressing the ceremony.

J-10C fighter jet

He also stated that induction of J-10 C is a big movement for Pakistan after about 40 years when F-16 provided by the US were inducted into the PAF. Khan thanked China for providing the aircraft in a short span of about eight months when it often takes years to acquire modern jets. The J-10C is a 4.5-generation mediumsized fighter jet and is more powerful than the ChinaPakistan jointly developed lightweight fighter jet, the

JF-17, currently being used by the PAF. Pa k i s t a n h a d a n nounced the display of the new jet on March 23 at the annual Defence Day Parade. J-10C is manufactured by Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) for the Chinese Air Force.

It can carry out air-toair combat including strike missions. Pakistan had requested to buy the fighter jets as far back as 2006. The negotiations finally led to the purchase of 25 J-10C fighters.

‘Wali’, world’s deadliest Anti-war protests across Europe, small rallies in Russia sniper, joins Ukraine’s fight

US film-maker Renaud killed by Russian forces

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been urging foreign nationals to come and join Ukraine’s fight against Russia.

Thousands of nationals from all walks of life from different countries have responded to the calls and have taken up arms to fight Russian fighters. Reports say that among those who have joined Ukraine’s fight is world’s deadliest sniper, ‘Wali’.

Wali, a former sniper

of the Canadian forces, can deliver 40 kills on a productive day. He reached Ukraine on March 4 along with three former Canadian soldiers, according to reports.

According to Express UK, Wali’ recently told CBC News that he was joining Ukraine for “humanitarian reasons”. He reportedly said: “A week ago, I was still programming stuff. Now I’m grabbing anti-tank missiles in a warehouse to kill people...That’s my reality right now.”

Iran suspends talks with Saudi after mass execution

TEHRAN, MAR 13 (AP): Iran has decided to temporarily suspend its secret Baghdad-brokered talks aimed at defusing yearslong tensions with regional rival Saudi Arabia, Iranian state-linked media reported Sunday, a day after Saudi Arabia carried out its largest known mass execution in its modern history.

The Iranian news website Nournews, considered close to the country’s Supreme National Security Council, reported the government had unilaterally paused the talks with Saudi Arabia that have been ongoing in Baghdad over the past year aimed at restoring diplomatic ties.

Iraq’s foreign minister earlier had said the fifth round of talks between Saudi and Iranian representatives was due to resume on Wednesday.

The report did not give a reason for Iran’s suspension, but it comes after Saudi Arabia put to death 81 people convicted of crimes ranging from killings to ties

to militant groups, a group that activists believe included over three dozen Shiites.

Shiites, who live primarily in the kingdom’s oil-rich east, have long complained of being treated as second-class citizens. Saudi Arabia’s executions of Shiites have stirred regional unrest in the past.

Iran, the largest Shiite Muslim country in the world, and Sunni powerhouse Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties in 2016 after Saudi Arabia executed prominent Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.

Angry Iranians protesting the execution stormed two Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran, fueling years of animosity between the nations.

Late Saturday, sporadic protests erupted among Shiites in the nearby island kingdom of Bahrain over the mass executions.

Iran-backed militias also have attacked Saudi targets and launched drones against the kingdom from Iraq.

BERLIN, MAR 13 (AGENCIES): Tens of thousands of people rallied Sunday in cities across Europe to protest against Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, with small vigils taking place in Russia as well despite a crackdown by authorities against such demonstrations.

German trade unions called a protest in Berlin, where sunny weather boosted the turnout. The march led from the city’s Alexanderplatz — a large square named after Russian Tsar Alexander I — to a site near the Brandenburg Gate.

Many participants carried flags in the blue and yellow colors of Ukraine, while others bore banners reading “Stop the War” and “Peace and Solidarity for the people in Ukraine.”

Norbert Herring, who held up a sign that read “What are you doing to your neighbor?” as the crowds filed past the Russian Embassy, said the images from Ukraine reminded him of the bombing of cities during

World War II. Several participants at the Berlin protest said they were Russians ashamed about what their country was doing. “We’re against this war so we wanted to show our solidarity,” said Aleksandra Belozerova, a Russian studying in Germany. “It’s the least we can do in this situation.”

Her friend, Aliia Biktagirova, held a sign with letters for the Russian phrase for “No War” represented as asterisks to reflect the censorship she said is taking place in Russia concerning the conflict.

In Russia, where demonstrations against the war in Ukraine have been typically met with a heavy police response, rights group OVDInfo said more than 668 people had been detained in 36 cities as of late afternoon Moscow time.

There was a heavy police presence at central locations including Manezh Square near the Kremlin, with officers carrying dem-

People attend a pro-Ukraine protest rally in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, March 13. (AP)

onstrators away to waiting police vans, in footage posted by Russian media.

The number of people protesting nationwide appeared to be far fewer than the last major protests a week ago, when OVD-Info listed more than 5,000 people who were detained.

Protests were also staged in Warsaw, London and the German cities of Frankfurt, Hamburg and Stuttgart.

In Rome, Pope Francis decried the “barbarianism”

of the killing of children and other defenseless civilians in Ukraine. He told a crowd estimated by the Vatican to number 25,000 people gathered in St. Peter’s Square for his customary Sunday noon appearance that the attacks must stop “before cities are reduced to cemeteries.”

In Cyprus, dozens of Russian nationals joined Ukrainians in the coastal resort town of Limassol Sunday to protest the war in Ukraine. About 50 Russians converged on Limassol’s

Bus full of Ukrainian refugees overturns in Italy; 1 dead

ROME, MAR 13 (AP): A bus carrying about 50 Ukrainian refugees overturned on a major highway in northern Italy at dawn on Sunday, killing one person, Italian firefighters said.

Italian state TV said there were also five people injured, but none of the injuries was serious, in the accident on the A14 autostrada near Forli’, a town in the Emilia-Romagna region in northeastern Italy. It said the rest of those aboard were safely evacuated.

The bus landed on its side on a grassy slope just beyond a highway guardrail and near a farm field. Firefighters used two cranes in an operation to set the bus

Firefighters work at the scene of an accident where a bus crashed while carrying Ukrainian citizens in Forli, Italy.

upright and remove it.

Italy’s Interior Ministry said the bus had set out from Ukraine and was

heading south to Pescara, an Adriatic port city, when it overturned. The passengers were taken to a nearby

police barracks for initial assistance, and would later resume their journey, the ministry said.

Some 35,000 Ukrainians refugees who fled war in their homeland have entered Italy, most of them through its northeastern border with Slovenia.

Forli’ is in the region of Emilia-Romagna, which borders the Adriatic Sea. What caused the bus to overturn was under investigation. Highway Police official Andrea Biagioli said there were no skid marks. “It could have been (the driver) suddenly falling asleep,’’ Biagioli told state TV, stressing that in any case no cause had yet been determined.

Missiles fired from Iran hit near US consulate in Iraq: US

BAG H DA D, M A R 1 3 (AP): As many as 12 missiles struck near a sprawling U.S. consulate complex in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil on Sunday, in what a U.S. defense official and an Iraqi official said was a strike launched from neighboring Iran.

No injuries were reported in the attack, which marked a significant escalation between the U.S. and Iran. Hostility between the longtime foes has often played out in Iraq, whose government is allied with both countries.

The Iraqi official in Baghdad initially said several missiles had hit the U.S. consulate in Irbil and that it was the target of the attack.

Later, Lawk Ghafari, the

head of Kurdistan’s foreign media office, said none of the missiles had struck the U.S. facility but that areas around the compound had been hit.

The U.S. defense official said it was still uncertain exactly how many missiles were fired and exactly where they landed. A second U.S. official said there was no damage at any U.S. government facility and that there was no indication the target was the consulate building, which is new and currently unoccupied.

Neither the Iraqi official nor the U.S. officials were authorized to discuss the event with the media and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Satellite broad-

A building on Sunday in Erbil, Iraq, that was damaged by missiles. (Reuters)

cast channel Kurdistan24, which is located near the U.S. consulate, went on air from their studio shortly after the attack, showing shattered glass and debris on their studio floor.

The attack came several days after Iran said it

would retaliate for an Israeli strike near Damascus, Syria, that killed two members of its Revolutionary Guard.

On Sunday, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency quoted Iraqi media acknowledging the attacks in Irbil, without saying where they originat-

ed. An Iranian spokesperson rejected the accusation that Iran was behind the Irbil attack. Mahmoud Abbaszadeh, spokesman for Iran’s parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, said the allegation could not be confirmed so far. “If Iran decides to take revenge … it will be very, very serious, strong, obvious,” he said in an interview with a local news website.

The missile barrage coincided with regional tensions. Negotiations in Vienna over Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal hit a “pause” over Russian demands about sanctions targeting Moscow for its war on Ukraine. Meanwhile, Iran suspended its secret Baghdad-brokered talks

aimed at defusing yearslong tensions with regional rival Saudi Arabia, after Saudi Arabia carried out its largest known mass execution in its modern history with over three dozens Shiites killed.

The Iraqi security officials said there were no casualties from the Irbil attack, which they said occurred after midnight and caused material damage in the area.

They spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

One of the Iraqi officials said the ballistic missiles were fired from Iran, without elaborating. He said the projectiles were the Iranian-made Fateh-110, likely fired in retaliation for the two Revolutionary Guards killed in Syria.

promenade prior to joining with other protesters to chant slogans such as “Stop the war, stop Putin” and waving blue and white flags they said where the Russian national flag without the red stripe that represented “blood and violence.”

Protester Evgeniya Shlikava, who has been living and working in Cyprus for five years, told The Associated Press that despite Russian propaganda, Ukraine “didn’t deserve this action from our government” and that protesters demand an immediate end to the war “that we don’t support.”

“I do believe that the person who did the most to make Russia weak and not united is (Vladimir) Putin himself,” said Shlikava who faulted the Russian president and his supporters for bringing the world’s wrath on Russia that is proud of its humanistic values and culture. “But now Russia is the aggressor for the whole world, and we protest it.”

KYIV, MAR 13 (AGENCIES): Brent Renaud, an award-winning US filmmaker whose work has appeared in the New York Times and other outlets, has been killed by Russian forces in the flashpoint town of Irpin, outside Kyiv. A US photographer, Juan Arredondo, was wounded.

Renaud, 51, was hit in the neck and died after coming under Russian fire while working on Sunday, according to local police officials and multiple Ukrainian sources. Jane Ferguson, a reporter for PBS Newshour who was nearby when Renaud was killed, tweeted: “Just left roadside spot near Irpin where body of American journalist Brent Renaud lay under a blanket. Ukrainian medics could do nothing to help him by that stage.

Outraged Ukrainian police officer: ‘Tell America, tell the world, what they did to a journalist.’”

UK: 350 pounds to families welcoming Ukrainian refugees LONDON, MAR 13 (PTI): The UK government on Sunday announced to provide 350 pounds (USD 456) per month allowance to families who welcome Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war zone into their homes.

UK Housing Secretary Michael Gove said during television interviews that he expects thousands of refugees to be able to benefit from additional schemes, which will include 10,000 pounds (USD 13,000) per head grants for local councils to meet the additional needs of those fleeing the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The minister said the refugees would also have access to the taxpayer-funded National Health Service (NHS). “For each individual who comes, just over 10,000 pounds per individual will be available to local authorities,” Gove told Sky News.

“And then there’ll be additional payments for those children who are of school age and need to be accommodated within the education system. Everyone will have access to full NHS care, including mental health,” he said.

The new Homes for Ukraine scheme, in addition to a family scheme in place for UK-based Ukrainians to bring in close family, will open up for online registration of interest from Monday.

People will be encouraged to offer their homes and spare rooms to those

Michael Gove

in need for at least six month and will receive 350 pounds a month in return as a “thank you” from the government. “Matching will be taking place from Friday.

I would expect that in a week’s time we’ll see the first people coming here under the scheme,” said Gove.

Under the sponsorship scheme, individuals acting as sponsors will be able to nominate a named Ukrainian individual or family to stay with them rent-free in their home, or in a separate property.

Sponsors won’t be required to know them in advance – they might find them through posts on social media or otherwise.

There will be no limit on the number of refugees who can come to the UK through this route, and they will be given three years leave to remain in the country, with the right to work and access public services.

Applications would be made online, with sponsors being vetted and refugees having to go through security checks.

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Jane Campion wins top DGA Award for ‘The Power of the Dog’

ane Campion made history at the DGA Awards on Saturday, becoming the second consecutive woman to win the kudo for theatrical feature film director — and only the third in its history.

Campion won for Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog.” (Campion had already become just the second woman ever to receive a second nod from the Directors Guild, following “The Piano” in 1993).

The win gives Campion even more of an edge in the Oscar race as this year’s film awards season heads into the homestretch. Campion won over Kenneth Branagh for “Belfast” (Focus Features), Paul Thomas Anderson for “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/ United Artists Releasing), Steven Spielberg for “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) and Denis Villeneuve for “Dune” (Warner Bros).

The Directors Guild of America’s 74th annual

DGA Awards returned to an in-person event on Saturday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, with Judd Apatow on tap as host. The ceremony, which went virtual in 2021, and is part of a busy weekend on the kudos gauntlet that also includes the BAFTA, Annie Awards and Critics Choice events.

Maggie Gyllenhaal won the DGA Award for first-time feature (making it her first-ever DGA nomination), for the Netflix feature “The Lost Daughter.” “I really am moved, ultimately I got brave enough to say what I wanted,” she said.

Meanwhile, in TV, it was already a foregone conclusion that “Succession” will win drama — because it’s the only nominee this year, via five episodes of the HBO series’ third season. The only question going into Saturday night was which episode would be victorious. It ended up being Mark Mylod, for the

Jane Campion with ‘The Power of the Dog’s Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons at the DGA Awards.

episode “All the Bells Say.” This was the second DGA Award nomination for Mylod, who was nominated in this category in 2020 for “Succession.”

On the comedy side, Emmy winner Lucia Aniello picked up another honor for “Hacks,” this time the DGA Award for the episode “There Is No Line.” Aniello and “Hacks” beat out “Ted

Lasso,” which led with three of the five DGA Awards nominations in the category, along with an episode “The White Lotus” (which somehow landed in the comedy field there). This was Aniello’s first DGA Award nomination.

In the limited series race, Barry Jenkins continued the recent streak of wins for his Amazon

Prime Video series “The Underground Railroad.”

Jenkins won opposite two episodes of Hulu’s “Dopesick” and episodes of “Mare of Easttown” and “Station Eleven.” This was Jenkins’s second DGA Award nomination, following a feature nod for “Moonlight” in 2016.

“Saturday Night Live” veteran Don Roy King (who retired at the end of December from the show after 16 years) continued his streak in the variety/talk/ news/sports—regularly scheduled series category, winning this year for the episode with host KeeganMichael Key and musical guest Olivia Rodrigo.

King said he was proud of his tenure on the show, which he said “held people accountable and did some healing for the people of the country. I was so proud of that work.”

This was King’s 16th DGA Award nomination having previously won the DGA Award in this category

for SNL episodes in 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016 and 2013. King also won the DGA Award for variety/ talk/news/sports – specials for “SNL 40th Anniversary Special” in 2015.

Showtime’s “Attica” won documentar y, for helmer Stanley Nelson.

This was Nelson’s first DGA Award nomination.

The night kicked off with a win in children’s programming for Smriti Mundhra, who won for her work on HBO Max’s “Through Our Eyes,” “ S h e l t e r. ” T h i s w a s Mundhra’s first DGA Award nomination. In reality programs, Adam Vetri won for Discovery’s “Getaway Driver,” “Electric Shock.” This was Vetri’s third DGA Award nomination, and won the DGA Award for reality in 2015 for “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge,” “Gods of War.” In the variety/talk/ news/sports – specials field, Paul Dugdale won

for CBS’ “Adele: One Night Only.” It was his first DGA Award nomination.

Spike Lee received the lifetime achievement award at the ceremony, and gave an epic 23-minute speech about his journey to filmaking; also, Joseph P. Reidy received the Frank Capra Achievement Award and Gerry Hood was given the Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award.

Here are the winners at the 74th DGA Awards: Theatrical Feature Film: Jane Campion - The Power of the Dog (Netflix) Dramatic Series: Mark Mylod - Succession, “All the Bells Say” (HBO) Movies for Television and Limited Series: Barry Jenkins - The Underground Railroad (Amazon) Comedy Series: Lucia Aniello - Hacks, “There Is No Line” (HBO Max) Commercials: Bradford Young - (Serial Pictures x Somesuch) Super.

Human., Channel 4 Para-

lympics – 4Creative First Assistant Director: Jez Oakley First-Time Feature Film Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal - The Lost Daughter (Netflix) Variety/Talk/News/ Sports – Regularly Scheduled Programming: Don Roy King - Saturday Night Live, ”Keegan-Michael Key; Olivia Rodrigo” (NBC) Variety/Talk/News/ Sports – Specials: Paul Dugdale - Adele: One Night Only (CBS) Documentary: Stanley Nelson – Attica (Showtime) Reality Programs: Adam Vetri- Getaway Driver, “Electric Shock” (Discovery Channel) Vetri’s Directorial Team: First Assistant Director: John Esposito; Second Assistant Director: Eric Pai Children’s Programs: Smriti Mundhra - Through Our Eyes, “Shelter” (HBO Max)

Stage set for BAFTA Awards Scientists extend women’s fertility, with Rebel Wilson as show host reverse ageing in human egg cells

T

he 75th EE British Academy Film Awa r d s, b e t t e r known as the BAFTA Awards, will take place in person at London’s Royal Albert Hall on Sunday, with ‘Pitch Perfect’ star Rebel Wilson set to host the event, which will be streamed live from 7 p.m.

GMT (0030 hours IST) by SonyLIV in India.

The red carpet, reports ‘Variety’, begins at 2 p.m.

GMT and the ceremony starts at 5 p.m. GMT. The ceremony broadcast will air a couple hours later at 7 p.m. GMT. The BAFTA social media accounts will also follow the night’s events, including red carpet coverage.

“With Rebel Wilson hosting in front of an auditorium packed full of famous faces, it promises to be a truly unmissable s h ow,” E m m a B a e h r, BAFTA’s executive direc-

S

I

tor of awards and content, said.

‘Dune’ leads the BAFTA nominations this year with 11 nods, while Jane Campion’s ‘The Power of the Dog’, which has just got the Directors Guild of America’s DGA Award for best feature film, scored eight nominations. Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Belfast’ received six, and ‘No Time to Die’, ‘Licorice Pizza’ and ‘West Side Story’, each earned five.

Nominees who con-

firmed their attendance, according to ‘Variety’, include Aaron Sorkin, Ariana DeBose, Benedict Cumberbatch, Caitriona Balfe, Kenneth Branagh, Kodi Smit-Mcphee, Lady Gaga, Mike Faist and Troy Kotsur.

Presenters include Daisy Edgar-Jones, Daniel Kaluuya, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Millie Bobby Brown, Rege Jean-Page, RuPaul, Salma Hayek, Sebastian Stan and Tom Hiddleston. (IANS)

n a major breakthrough, Israeli scientists claim to have extended women’s fertility by successfully reversing the ageing mechanism in eggs using antiviral drugs.

In humans, egg cells begin to accumulate damage to their genetic material when a woman is relatively young. Often by the time she is in her late- hirties, her eggs have accumulated so much damage to the DNA that they are unable to mature and be fertilised.

Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU) showed that antiviral drugs could indeed reverse the process in mouse and human egg cells and return to their former youthful selves.

There has also been similar success using genetic manipulation to insert two genes into the mouse egg cell DNA - the implanted genes produce enzymes which prevent the chain of events that leads to the activation of the damaging parts of the DNA. “Within a decade, I hope we

will be able to increase fertility among older women using antiviral drugs,” said Michael Klutstein, head of the Chromatin and Ageing Research Lab in the Faculty of Dental Medicine at the HU. The findings were published in the journal Ageing Cell.

The team successfully identified one of the ageing processes that prevent the successful maturation of an egg cell.

Most importantly among them is the loss of the regulation processes that normally stop the damaging parts of DNA from becoming active.

The HU team’s research, using mouse and human egg cells, not only identified the details of these processes but showed how they are interrelated and ultimately prevent an egg cell from maturing.

To confirm their findings, the team then used chemicals that mimic the actual processes that stop repression of sections of the egg cell’s DNA and liberate the

‘Mitchells vs. the Machines’, ‘Arcane’ dominate Annie Awards

treaming giant Netflix owned the Annie Awards on Saturday, picking up 20 of the 31 competitive trophies during the virtual show.

The streamer’s ‘The Mitchells vs. the Machines’ was named best animated feature, topping the film categories with eight wins while ‘Arcane’ ruled the TV side with nine, including best TV/media - general audience, reports variety.com.

Neon’s animated documentary ‘Flee’, by Jonas Poher Rasmussen, was named best indie feature.

In addition to the top film award, ‘Mitchells’, from Sony Pictures Animation for Netflix, won awards for writing, FX, character design, production design, voice acting and editorial.

The victory could give it an edge at the Academy Awards, with final Oscar voting set to start Thursday, reports variety.com.

The other wins for ‘Arcane’, a Riot Games and Fortiche Production for Netflix, were for direction, FX, character animation, character design, production design, storyboarding, voice acting and writing.

Other multiple award winners were Disney’s ‘Encanto’, which took home home trophies for character animation, storyboarding and, of course, music, and Netflix’s epic animated series ‘Maya and the Three’ from Jorge Guitierrez, which was named best TV/ media program for children and also won for its score

by Tim Davies and Gustavo K Y M C

Santaolalla.

Trebol 3 Producciones and Maleza Estudio’s stopmotion aBestiaa¿, directed and co-written by Hugo Covarrubias, was named best short subject, giving it momentum going into the Oscars.

Baobab Studios and filmmaker Erick Oh’s short film ‘Namoo’, which was made in both VR and 2D animation, took home the Annie for special production.

Taking home best TV/ media program for pre-

schoolers was Netflix’s ‘Ada Twist, Scientist’, an adaptation of the popular children’s books from creator/producer Chris Nee and Higher Ground, the production company backed by former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.

Mike Rianda, in his feature helming debut, and co-director Jeff Rowe were honored for their direction of ‘The Mitchells vs. the Machines’.

The pair also picked Annie for feature writing.

The film’s production designer, Lindsey Olivares, picked up one trophy for character design and another along with Toby Wilson and Dave Bleich for feature production design.

Voice acting winners were Abbi Jacobson, who voiced Katie Mitchell in ‘Mitchells vs. the Machines’, and Ella Purnell, who plays Jinx in ‘Arcane’.

Christopher Logan, Man-Louk Chin, Devdatta Nerurkar, Pav Grochola and Filippo Maccari shared the award for FX in a feature for ‘Mitchells’, while Greg Levitan, Collin Wightman, T.J. Young, Tony Ferdinand and Bret Allen took home the best editorial trophy for the film.

Germaine Franco and Lin-Manuel Miranda were honored for their work on the music of ‘Encanto’.

Miranda noted the collaborative aspect of animation in his acceptance speech.

Dave Hardin picked up the Annie for feature character animation and Jason Hand the trophy for storyboarding on ‘Encanto’.

Pascal Charue, Arnaud Delord and Barthelemy Maunoury were lauded for TV/media directing for their work on ‘Arcane’, the animated action-adventure series based on the ‘League of Legends’ multiplayer online game. Christian Linke and Alex Yee were hailed for their writing on the series.

‘Arcane’ artisans Julien Georgel, Aymeric Kevin and Arnaud Baudry received the Annie for TV/media production design and Si-

mon Andriveau won for storyboarding.

The show’s Lea Chervet notched a win for character animation and Evan Monteiro picked up the award for character design. The TV/media FX award went to Guillaume Degroote, Aurelien Ressencourt, Martin Touze, Frederic Mace and Jerome Dupre.

Best character animation in a live-action production went to Karl Rapley, Sebastian Trujillo, Richard John Moore, Merlin Bela Wassilij Maertz and Pascal Raimbault for their work on Marvel’s ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’.

‘A Future Begins’ won the best sponsored award while ‘Night of the Living Dread’, by director Ida Melum and producer Danielle Goff, was named best student film.

The night’s other winners were the Insomniac Games Animation Team for character animation in video game ‘Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart’, and Joel Fisher, Graham Fisher, Sharia Davis, Basuki Juwono and Adam Spieckermann, the editorial team behind ‘What If ?’ animated series on Disney Plus.

In addition to the competitive categories, the Annies, presented by ASIFAHollywood, also honored achievements with juried awards. Disney animator Ruben Aquino, computer pioneer Lillian Schwartz and Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki received Winsor McCay Awards for lifetime achievement.(IANS)

DNA-damaging viruses.

Reproducing the ageing processes artificially enabled the team to link the processes of loss of genomic regulation and the expression of damaging elements in ageing egg cells.

The final stage of their re-

search tested ways to reverse the destructive aging processes at work in an egg cell. If viruses or parts of viruses were released and activated in ageing eggs, then perhaps antiviral drugs could prevent this process and the resulting damage, the team said. (IANS)

Aerospace startup unveils rover to carry astronauts to Moon, Mars

U

S-based aerospace s t a r t u p Ve n t u r i Astrolab has unveiled a prototype of an interplanetary rover that is designed to transport cargo and people across the surface of the Moon - and eventually, Mars one day.

Called FLEX, for Flexible Logistics and Exploration, the truck-sized rover can crouch down and lift payloads up from the surface of the Moon, carrying them under its belly before depositing them at their intended location, the Verge reported.

The rover can manoeuvre semi-autonomously, be controlled remotely - or it can even be modified to include a crew interface, allowing astronauts to ride on the rover while guiding it through lunar terrain.

With its “modular payload concept,” it can

also carry many different types of objects, the report said.

T h e c o m p a n y, launched in January 2020, said it plans to build a fleet of these rovers over the coming decade to help NASA and commercial companies establish a long-term presence on the Moon. Both FLEX and Astrolab aim to capitalise on the world’s renewed push to send people back to the Moon,A Jaret Matthews, Astrolab’s CEO was quoted as saying.

Currently, NASA is working to send the first woman and the first person of colour to the Moon through the space agency’s Artemis programme.

Meanwhile, several space firms like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Astrobotic and Intuitive Machines, are developing their own

landers that will be able to take people as well as cargo to the lunar surface.

“Companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin are solving the long haul transportation problem, and we want to solve the local transportation problem - and ultimately set the standard for lunar logistics,” Matthews told The Verge.

A s t r o l a b r e c e n t ly conducted a test drive of a full-scale prototype of FLEX, in the California desert near Death Valley, the report said.

The company used FLEX to pick up and deliver payloads, as well as set up a vertical solar panel -- a critical technology needed for in-space energy that future lunar astronauts will probably need to set up to stay on the Moon long-term, Matthew noted.

(IANS) K Y M C

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NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

Asian Youth & Junior Boxing: Six Women’s WC: Australia thrash NZ by 141 runs Indian junior boxers clinch gold medals

Australian players celebrate during the Women’s WC.

with Ellyse Perry (68) and Tahlia McGrath (57) scoring valuable half-centuries and the returning Ashleigh Gardner (48 not out from just 18 balls) adding the finishing touches on a late Australian flurry with the bat.

But it was with the ball that the Australians really shone, as teenager Darcie Brown (3/22) ripped through the New Zealand top-order and AmandaJade Wellington (2/34) and Gardner (2/15) put the pol-

ish on an impressive team performance.

The result sees Australia regain their place at the top of tournament standings with three wins from as many matches, while New Zealand drop to fourth and remain in a battle to reach the semifinals.

It was Perry that started the rot as she got one through the defences of skipper Sophie Devine (6) in the fifth over of the hosts’ chase, before Brown thrust herself on the international

stage with the big scalps of key batters Amelia Kerr (1) and Suzie Bates (16).

McGrath got in on the act to dismiss Maddy Green shortly after and the game was as good as over when Brown trapped Frances Mackay lbw for one to leave the White Ferns reeling at 35/5. Experienced all-rounder Satterthwaite showed some fight for the hosts with a gritty knock, but it was left to too few as Australia eased home.

Earlier, Perry and McGrath put on 101 for the fifth wicket as Australia overcame the loss of three early wickets and an inspired Lea Tahuhu (3/52) to post a respectable total.

It looked like Australia were going to be held to a below par score, but Perry and McGrath’s acceleration during the middle overs and some lofty late blows from Gardner swung the momentum Australia’s way.

Perry and McGrath’s

partnership was the key to Australia’s innings and it took a piece of brilliance in the field from Maddy Green to break the valuable stand.

All-rounder Perry lifted Tahuhu into the deep, only to watch Green sprint to her left and haul in an excellent diving catch that got the good-sized crowd excited and onto their feet.

McGrath followed shortly after, before Gardner’s late hitting - that included consecutive sixes off Hannah Rowe and four maximums in total - put some valuable extra runs on the board.

Brief scores: Australia 269/8 in 50 overs (Rachael Haynes 30, Ellyse Perry 68, Beth Mooney 30, Tahlia McGrath 57, Ashleigh Gardner 48 not out; Lea Tahuhu 3/53) beat New Zealand 128 in 30.2 overs (Amy Satterthwaite 44; Darcie Brown 3/22, Ashleigh Gardner 2/15) by 141 runs.

Pro League: Indian women beat Germany Super six tennis ball night 3-0 in shoot-out, avenge first leg defeat cricket tourney from Mar 28 BHUBANESWAR, MAR 13 (PTI): The Indian women’s hockey team beat Germany 3-0 in a dramatic shoot-out to avenge their first leg defeat to share the honours in the two-legged tie of the FIH Pro League here on Sunday.

The home side had lost 1-2 in the shoot-out in the first match at the same Kalinga Stadium here on Saturday.

Just like on Saturday,

both the teams were locked at 1-1 at the end of the regulation time, leading to the shoot-out.

India were successful from all their first three attempts in the shoot-out while none of the Germans could score from their three tries with home side skipper and goal-keeper Savita doing a brilliant job to deny the visitors.

Earlier, Felicia Wiedermann gave world num-

ber 5 Germany the lead in the 29th minute through a penalty corner conversion but Nisha equalised in the 40th minute through a field goal.

World number 9 India secured two points from the match, including a bonus point while Germany collected one point.

India’s next matches are against England on April 2 and 3 at the same venue.

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): The first edition of super six tennis ball night cricket tournament organised by Hands of Change will begin from March 28 2022 at local ground, Chümoukedima Town.

A press release issued by convenor Hands of Change, Jenithung informed that the last date of submission will be March 25 after which no team shall be entertained.

Jordan Clarkson erupts for 45 as Jazz outscore Kings

Klay Thompson turned back the clock with his most points since before

his two season-ending injuries, using eight 3-pointers as the foundation for a 38-point explosion that propelled Golden State past Milwaukee in San Francisco.

In a battle of NBA heavyweights, Jordan Poole chipped in with 30 points, Andrew Wiggins added 21 and Jonathan Kuminga recorded his second professional doubledouble as the Warriors won a third straight despite getting just eight points from Stephen Curry.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a team-high 31 points and Khris Middleton 18 for the Bucks, who buried 17 3-pointers but nonetheless were outscored 54-51 from beyond the arc by the hot-shooting Warriors.

Tsitsipas, Nadal, Medvedev advance with hard-fought wins at Indian Wells

FAPD to conduct trials for Dr. T Ao trophy on Mar 19

SALT LAKE CITY, MAR 13 (AGENCIES): Jordan Clarkson and De’Aaron Fox engaged in an entertaining scoring duel Saturday night in Salt Lake City, combining for 86 points in the Utah Jazz’s 134-125 victory over the visiting Sacramento Kings.

Clarkson scored a career-high 45 points to lead Utah to its fourth win over the Kings this season.

The reigning Sixth Man of the Year hit 15 of 21 shots, drained 7 of 13 3-point attempts and made all eight free-throw attempts.

Clarkson, whose previous career best was 42 points, surpassed John Drew’s franchise record of 38 bench points. Bojan Bogdanovic hit key buckets late in the game and finished with 26 points, while

INDIAN WELLS, MAR 13 (IANS): Fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece came within two points of defeat before clawing his way back into the third round of the BNP Paribas Open with a 7-6(5), 3-6, 7-6(5) win against Jack Sock of the US here on Sunday (IST).

Tsitsipas will next meet another American, the fastimproving Jenson Brooksby, who claimed a 6-0, 6-3 win over Olympic silver medallist Karen Khachanov of Russia.

Also, Spanish stalwart Rafael Nadal entered his 15th BNP Paribas Open with a 15-0 record in 2022, his career-best start to a season, needing a great 6-2, 1-6, 7-6(3) escape to keep that streak intact against Sebastian Korda of the US. Russia’s Daniil Medvedev also earned his first victory as the world No. 1 with the 26-year-old defeating qualifier Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the third round. Medvedev will meet Gael Monfils of France, K Y M C

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) looks to drive against Sacramento Kings guard Jeremy Lamb (26).

Donovan Mitchell netted 25 points with six assists and five rebounds.

Fox wasn’t quite as efficient as Clarkson, but still had a monster night by shooting 15-for-32 with five treys and dishing out 11 assists. Hassan Whiteside scored 12 points, hauled in

21 rebounds and blocked three shots in a starting role. Center Rudy Gobert didn’t play because of a left foot strain.

Warriors 122, Bucks 109

Daniil Medvedev, Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

who fired 13 aces in a 6-3, 6-4 win over Serb Filip Krajinovic. Sock, who slammed 28 forehand winners to be on the cusp of his first top10 win since 2017, lost to Tsitsipas’ big-match experience as the American made two unforced errors to let the Greek back into the contest.

Despite serving up nine double faults, world No. 13 Denis Shapovalov of Canada rallied from a set down to defeat Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 to improve to 12-6 on the season.

The Canadian will meet top-ranked American Reilly Opelka, who did not face a break point in his 6-1,

6-4 win over Italian Lorenzo Musetti.

Defending champion Cameron Norrie of Great Britain recovered from an early break in the opening set to claim a comfortable 6-3, 6-3 win over Pedro Martinez of Spain. The Brit next plays Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili, who received a walkover from Italian Fabio Fognini.

Korda held a double break advantage at 5-2 in the third set and twice served for the match against Nadal.

Nadal next faces 27th seed Daniel Evans of the UK, a 6-2, 6-0 winner over Federico Coria of Argentina.

DIMAPUR, MAR 13 (NPN): Football Association Phek District (FAPD) will be conducting selection trials on March 19 at Pfütsero local ground for the upcoming Inter District Dr. T Ao Trophy scheduled to be held from April 18 onwards in Mokokchung.

A press release from FAPD president Colo Mero stated that association had an executive meeting on March 11 in Phek and took the decisions with regard to participation in the upcoming Dr. T Ao Trophy.

The selection of FAPD team will be conducted on March 19 at Pfütsero local ground from 8 am onwards, while refreshments will be provided to the participants.

The shortlisted players will then undergo training at Chizami from March 23 till April 18, 2022. The executive also decided to appoint SP Phek & vice president FAPD, Vesüpra Kezo, as the team manager and property secretary, Mekhalo Lohe as assistant manager. For further information, one may contact at 9862669689.

The champion of the tournament will pocket a cash amount of `20,000 along with running trophy, runners-up `10,000, and more individual prizes `5,000. Tournament entry fee is `3000.

Forms are available at Little Hut office, Bank of Baroda building Ward-6 Chümoukedima.

For further details, one may contact at 96126 70708 or 03862 – 240073.

NEW DELHI, MAR 13 (IANS): Six Indian junior boxers, led by Vini, Yakshika and Vidhi, registered contrasting wins to claim gold medals in their respective weight divisions at the 2022 ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships in Amman, Jordan, on Sunday.

Vini, the diminutive boxer from Hisar, was facing Karina Tokubay of Kazakhstan in the flyweight 50kg final. The Indian boxer started off well and won the first round convincingly before her opponent made a strong comeback in the second, which set the tone for a fierce decider that saw both the boxers exchange a lot of punches. Vini was scoring consistently and moving around the ring en route securing a 5-0 verdict in her favour.

Yakshika (52kg) displayed remarkable courage and temperament against Uzbekistan’s Rakhima Bekniyazova to mount a comeback. The pugilist from Panipat absorbed a lot of punches in the first round and was trailing 0-5.

Yakshika came back strongly in the second round and counter-attacked brilliantly to level the scores.

She continued her aggressive approach in the last round to complete the comeback and win 4-1.

Vidhi notched up a comfortable 5-0 win against Aya Suwindeh of Jordan in the 57kg featherweight final. The Indian boxer was in cruise control throughout the bout and forced the opponent to play at her terms.

Playing at the distance, Vi-

Nikita Chand celebrates with the coaches after winning her final bout against Kazakhstan’s Uldana Taubay on Sunday.

dhi was picking her punches smartly and moved around swiftly throughout the bout, without giving any chance to the local girl.

Defending Champion Nikita Chand (60kg) grabbed the yellow metal again as she dominated her bout against Uldana Taubay of Kazakhstan from the beginning which forced the referee to stop the contest in the third round.

Shrushti Sathe (63kg) was up against Nursulu Suienaly of Kazakhstan, who had no answer for the Indian boxer’s reflexes and strong punches. Shrushti was relentlessly landing accurate punches in the second round and as a result of that, the referee stopped the contest in the second round.

Rudrika (75kg) blanked Kazakhstan’s Shuglya Nalibay 5-0 in a one-sided contest.

Earlier on Sunday, Mahi (46kg) and Palak (48kg) lost unanimously to Jasmin Tokhirova and Zilolakhon Yufova of Uzbeki-

stan in their respective bouts.

Supriya (54kg) lost against Uzbekistan’s Uzukjamol Yunusova as the referee stopped the contest in the second round.

In the 81 kg final, Khushi went down fighting against Kazakhstan’s Kuralay Yeginbaikyzy and lost 1-4. Nirjhara (+81kg) lost to Sobirakhon Shakhobidinova of Uzbekistan by RSC in the second round.

Later tonight, four Indian Junior boxers -- Krrish Pal (46kg), Ravi Saini (48kg), Yashwardhan Singh (60kg) and Rishab Singh (60kg) will be in action.

With 21 medals in junior and 18 in the Youth section, the Indian contingent has secured 39 medals at the prestigious continental tournament where both the age groups of men and women—youth and junior—are being played together.

During the last edition of the tournament held in Dubai in 2021, India concluded their campaign with 39 medals including 14 gold.

1ST DEATH ANNIVERSARY

1st Death anniversary of

Lt. temjen imchen

KALIVI SWU DIED ON 14/03/2021

14th March 2021 “Remembering and honoring you on this day, one year after this world lost a precious soul.”

You will be forever in our hearts Loving wife and children db-190/22

Acknowledgement

“Goodbyes hurt when the story is not finished and the book has been closed forever” Its been a year since we lost you, and though you are no more with us, yet we still cannot accept that you are gone forever.

You are dearly missed. dp-1109

Loving Husband, Daughter, Parents, Brothers, Sisters, In-laws and dear ones.

Remembering Mom On her First Death Anniversary

Late Imkongnokdang JamIr 15th august 1925 – 2nd march 2022 Our beloved father Late Imkongnokdang Jamir (Changtongya) was a man firmly upright in all his ways, He was a respected man who raised his children on sound principles. His notably exemplary life and the legacy he leaves behind will forever be etched in our hearts.

We would like to thank the churches and all individuals, families, friends and organizations for extending your help in cash & in kind and prayers during this time of bereavement. Although we cannot repay you, it is our prayer that the Almighty Lord will bless you all bountifully according to His riches.

Loving children, in-laws, grandchildren and relatives

dp-1152/22

WELLINGTON, MAR 13 (IANS): Six-time Women’s World Cup champions Australia came up with another commanding performance, this time thrashing Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand by 141 runs to go top on the points table at the Basin Reserve here on Sunday.

In one of the most one-sided victories in the ongoing ICC Women’s World Cup, Australia bundled out the hosts for just 128 runs after setting a 270run target for victory. Only the White Ferns’ top-order batter Amy Satterthwaite (44 off 67 balls) could manage to go past 25, even as six of her team-mates fell in single digit.

It was a clinical performance from the the Meg Lanning-led Australia as they successfully defended 269/8 by bowling their opponents out in the 31st over.

There were strong contributions from nearly every member of Lanning’s side,

LATE KHEHONI KINIMI 07.12.1971 – 14.03.2021

Time may pass but this ache within our hearts will never fade. The thought that you’re no longer with us fills our hearts with sadness but we immortalize you in us, holding your legacy of love and values that will stay with us forever.

You’ll always be loved, cherished and missed.

Yours loving Children, Son-in-law and Grandchildren dp-1157/22 K Y M C

12

SPORTS

Lakshya Sen loses in German Open final

MUELHEIM AN DER RUHR (GERMANY), MAR 12 (PTI): World Championships bronze medallist Lakshya Sen’s giant-killing run ended with a straight-game loss to Thailand’s rising star Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the summit clash of German Open Super 300 badminton tournament here on Sunday.

The 20-year-old Sen, who had claimed his maiden Super 500 title at India Open in January, lost 18-21 15-21 in 57 minutes to the three-time world junior champion Vitidsarn in the final match.

World number 12 Sen Lakshya Sen came into the match with a 3-3 head-to-head record Thai in their last meeting at Sen and Vitidsarn matched each other in speed in the against Vitidsarn, ranked Hylo Open last year.

In a battle of equals, rallies to move 4-4 before 20th, having beaten the

the Thai rode on his variations and deception to grab a comfortabe 11-6 lead at the break.

Sen worked up his pace and took control of the net to make it 15-16 but an alert Vitidsarn managed to grab two game points with a overhead cross-court drop. Sen needed medical attention for a blister on his foot even as the Thai came up with a cross court smash to pocket the opening game.

The gruelling semifinal against Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen seemed to have taken a toll on Sen as Vitidsarn jumped to a 7-3 lead in the second game before moving to a 11-5 advantage after the change of sides.

The Indian needed

the doctor’s attention again as he fought his way back with four straight points but Vitidsarn managed to move to 19-15 and then took five match points before sealing the second game and the match in the first chance.

Sen had won two Super 100 titles -- Dutch Open and SaarLorLux Open -- besides three international challenge at Belgium, Scotland and Bangladesh in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic came in the way of his progress.

Last year, the youngster made it to the semifinals at Hylo, reached the knockout stage at World Tour Finals on debut before sizzling at the World Championships with a bronze.

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022

Pink ball Test, Day 2: India declare 2nd innings at 303/9 BENGALURU, MAR 13 (PTI): Sri Lanka were 28 for 1 at stumps on Day 2 while chasing a mammoth target of 447 runs to win the second Test against India here on Sunday.

Captain Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Mendis were batting on 10 and 16 respectively at the close of play, needing 419 more runs to win the match.

India declared their second innings at 303 for 9 during the final session when Axar Patel was out for 9 after India had played 68.5 overs in their second innings.

Mohammed Shami remained not out on 16.

S h r e ya s I ye r t o p -

scored with a 87-ball 67 while star wicketkeeperbatter Rishabh Pant struck a counter-attacking 31-ball 50. Captain Rohit Sharma contributed 46.

Fo r S r i L a n k a , Praveen Jayawickrama was the most successful bowler with figures of 4/78 while Lasith Embuldeniya took three wickets.

Earlier, in reply to India’s first innings total of 252, Sri Lanka were all out for 109 from 35.5 overs with pacer Jasprit Bumrah (5/24) claiming his maiden fifer on Indian soil while Ashwin and Mohammed Shami took two wickets apiece. Sri Lanka resumed at 86 for six but their in-

nings lasted for just 5.5 overs on Sunday, losing Lasith Embuldeniya (1), Suranga Lakmal (5), Niroshan Dickwella (21) and Vishwa Fernando (8) with the addition of just 23 runs.

India are leading the two-match Test series 1-0 after winning the first game by an innings and 222 runs.

Brief Scores: India: 252 and 303 for 9 declared in 68.5 overs (Shreyas Iyer 67, Rishabh Pant 50, Rohit Sharma 46; Praveen Jayawickrama 4/78).

Sri Lanka: 109 all out in 35.5 overs (Angelo Mathews 43; Jasprit Bumrah 5/24) and 28 for 1 in 7 overs.

17-yr-old Kushagra’s double ton propels Clinical Ronaldo hits hat-trick as United edge Spurs 3-2 Jharkhand to 769/9 against Nagaland

KOLKATA, MAR 13 (PTI): Jharkhand made a giant stride towards advancing to the Ranji Trophy quarterfinals as they posted a mammoth 769 for 9 against a struggling Nagaland on day two of their knockout match at Eden Gardens here on Sunday.

The 17-year-old wicketkeeper batter Kumar Kushagra made the most of the listless Nagaland attack to steer his side to a huge total after Jharkhand resumed the day at 402 for 5.

Kushagra, who was 112 not out overnight, kept on his onslaught on the Nagaland bowlers to slam 266 from 269 balls (37x4, 2x6) in his third first-class appearance. It was his maiden first-class hundred.

The youngster, who was a part of the India U-19 team for the 2020 South Africa tour, got to 200 with a boundary off Lemtur just before lunch to complete the milestone in 213 deliveries.

Senior left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem also made hay, cruising to a career-best 123 not out (223 balls; 14x4,

1x6) as the duo put together 166 runs for the seventh wicket after overnight batter Anukul Roy got out for 59.

Looking unstoppable, Kushagra kept on his onslaught against the tired Nagaland bowlers and got to his next 50 in just 39 deliveries.

Kense finally gave the breakthrough and dismissed Kushagra and Sushant Mishra (0) in four balls in a temporary respite. After Kushagra’s departure, Nadeem held the centre stage with number 11 Rahul Shukla (29 not out) en route to his second first-class century.

Nagaland employed seven bowlers with the spin duo of Imliwati Lemtur and Khrievitso Kense returning with three wickets each, while Shrikant Mundhe, Chopise Hopongkyu and Rongsen Jonathn claimed one each.

Brief Scores: Jharkhand: 769 for 9 in 177 overs (Kumar Kushagra 266, Shahbaz Nadeem 123 not out, Virat Singh 107; Khrievitso Lemtur 3/138, Imliwati Lemtur 3/161) vs Nagaland.

MANCHESTER, MAR 12 (AGENCIES): Cristiano Ronaldo answered all the questions about his continuing value to Manchester United with a superb hat-trick to secure a 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur in an entertaining Premier League contest on Saturday.

Just six days after doubts were raised about his injury absence for the Manchester derby and at the end of a week marked by tabloid speculation over his relationship with interim manager Ralf Rangnick, the 37-year-old delivered a reminder of just why United chose to bring him back to Old Trafford.

The five-times Ballon d’Or winner headed the winner nine minutes from time before he was promptly taken off to ecstatic cheers. It was the

807th goal of his career, laying claim to professional football’s all-time leading scorer record.

With the whole stadium chanting ‘Viva Ronaldo’, the atmosphere at Old Trafford, which has endured a disappointing season, was back to the heady days of September when the forward scored twice against Newcastle United on his return to the club.

T h e r e s u l t m ove s United two points above Arsenal and back into fourth place, although the Gunners have four games in hand starting with Sunday’s home match against Leicester City.

Pundits, like former United captain Roy Keane, had questioned whether Ronaldo truly was injured for the 4-1 loss at Premier League leaders City while

Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their first goal. (Reuters)

his decision to fly back to Portugal for his rehab also raised questions.

But the way the team celebrated his goals and the look of determination, almost anger, on the

37-year-old’s Ronaldo’s face after each goal, sent a clear message.

Ronaldo put United ahead in the 12th minute with a spectacular longrange blast from over 20

metres out after he had collected a clever flick from Fred.

But a Harr y Kane penalty brought Spurs level in the 35th, after a cross from Dejan Kulusevski had struck Alex Telles’ arm.

Three minutes later, though, the Portugal forward restored United’s advantage, slotting home after Jadon Sancho broke the offside trap and set up Ronaldo with a low cross.

Tottenham restored parity in the 72nd with an own goal by United captain Harry Maguire who slid in to inadvertently divert a low cross from Sergio Reguilon past David De Gea. But Ronaldo, who had twice tested keeper Hugo Lloris after the break, settled the contest with a powerful header from an Alex Telles corner.

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