23 Mar 2022

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXXII No. 106

DIMAPUR, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022 Pages 12 ` 5.00

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INTERNATIONAL, PAGE 9

Rio present tax free Rs. 2212.74 cr deficit budget Correspondent

A: RECEIPTS

KO H I M A , M A R 2 2 (NPN): Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio on Tuesday presented a tax-free deficit budget of Rs. 2212.74 crore for the financial year 2022-23, even as the current year’s transaction for the year 2022-23 was estimated to result in a positive balance of Rs. 150.30 crore.

Rio, who holds the finance portfolio, presented the State Budget with gross receipts estimated at Rs 24,389.80 crore and gross expenditure at Rs 24,239.50 crore for the financial year 2022-23 on the third day of the Budget Session.

Though transactions for the year 2022-23 were estimated to result in a positive balance of Rs 150.30 crore, Rio said the fiscal was estimated to close with a negative balance of Rs 2,212.74 crore due to the negative opening balance of Rs 2,363.04 crore. See table In his 15 paged budget, he informed the House that during the current fiscal

State’s Own Tax and Non-Tax Revenue 1708.11 State’s Share in Central Taxes 4646.80 Central Assistance (Grants & Loans) 9720.20 Internal Debt (including WMA from RBI) 8313.18 Recovery of Loans and Advances by State Govt 1.51 Total 24389.80

Correspondent/DIPR

KOHIMA, MAR 22 (NPN): As the Naga political issue took centre stage once again in the Assembly, Nagaland chief minister, Neiphiu Rio Tuesday categorically stated that if Naga political settlement cannot be arrived at, then there should be a “fresh mandate” by the people on how to pursue the Naga political issue.

Rio said this during the discussion on matters of urgent public importance on the Naga political issue on the third day of the Assembly session.

Rio said negotiating parties failing to come to a common platform and

(Rs. Cr)

B: EXPENDITURES

(Rs. Cr)

Non Development Expenditure 10410.19 (excluding Servicing of Debt) Servicing of Debt (including repayment of WMA) 8014.18 Development Expenditure (including CSS etc) 5815.13 Total 24239.50 C. BALANCE (A-B) 150.30 D. PUBLIC ACCOUNT (NET) 0.00 E. CURRENT TRANSACTIONS (C+D) 150.30

the State’s share of Central taxes was increased in the revised estimates of the Union Budget by Rs 547.10 crore due to growth of the country’s economy He mentioned that the State’s own revenues were estimated to improve by Rs 42.45 crore, adding that in view of these improvements, 2021-22 was estimated to close with a deficit of Rs 2,363.04 crore as against the earlier budget estimate of Rs

2,679.46 crore.

Rio, who also holds the Finance portfolio, acknowledged that despite all efforts, the State was deeply affected

by Covid-19 pandemic as it caused a huge shortfall in receipts.

Even before the pandemic, he said the State had already suffered a shortfall of Rs 925.42 crore in receipts in 2019-20, resulting in a huge deficit. And 202021 too saw a huge shortfall

in receipts to the tune of Rs 1,341.99 crore over what was reflected in the Union Budget for the State in the share of Central taxes and duties due to the pandemic.

Facing such difficult circumstances, he mentioned that the State government was compelled to resort to drastic measures to avert a financial collapse and took steps like pro-rata cuts of both developmental and non-developmental expenditure, put a halt on filling up of retirement vacancies and banned purchase of vehicles.

He claimed that these measures had enabled the State to continue functioning and fulfilled most of the budgetary commitments, adding that improvement in the finances was witnessed due to these austerity measures, coupled with increased receipts in the share of Central taxes and improvements in its own revenue receipts.

However, in view of the huge losses incurred during the last two years, he

If solution cannot

not being able to accept the agreements, had failed the expectations of the people especially the youths.

He said the youths expecting that a solution was at hand, had joined various Naga political groups in their excitement and in hope that they would be benefitted in the event a solution.

Rio, however, said the hopes and expectations of the people were betrayed when the negotiating parties failed to accept any of the agreements.

He reminded that Naga issue had been discussed in every session of the Assembly while also three resolutions had been passed during the 13th Nagaland

Legislative Assembly, and 17 resolutions since 1964.

Rio also pointed out that the government had held several consultative meetings with all stakeholders and several resolutions had been passed during the process.

However, he said political settlement could not be arrived at. Rio said it was for this very reason that all 60 legislators had come together for early realization of a solution. Nonetheless, Rio said Naga political resolution remains the top agenda of the state government, which was why the state government had been playing an active role as facilitators.

Maintaining that the Church was one platform

where people could come together, Rio called upon the church leaders and civil societies to give a clarion call and make their voice loud and clear, and that settlement should be taken.

Since the basis of the Naga issue had been duly recognized by Government of India as a political issue and the then Prime Minister, AB Vajpayee declaring it as unique, Rio stated that the elected members, Naga leaders, churches and even the youth needed to be included.

Rio therefore appealed to all negotiating parties to actively work for a settlement that is honourable, just, and acceptable to the people.

stressed that it had become necessary to continue with the austerity measures to help stabilise the finances.

Further, the chief minister claimed that the government had also taken various measures to enhance State’s own revenues and increase the resources. He said, following a comprehensive review of various departments that collected both tax and non-tax revenue by a committee, measures had been proposed for enhancement of rates, fees and duties, including measures to enhance efficiency, which included departments like Power, Water Supply, Stamps, Transport, Geology & Mining, Forests & Environment, Land Revenue, Transport, PWD (Housing) and Excise.

He informed the MLAs that the State cabinet had already accepted the recommendations and instructions had been issued to all concerned to put the new measures in place, while the government was also actively exploring the guar-

Imchen seeks Central rule for Naga solution

Earlier, initiating the discussion, NPF legislator Imkong L. Imchen said that the continuous delay in coming towards a negotiated settlement has resulted in frustration among the Nagas and that the people were slowly losing faith in the ongoing peace process.

Imkong, therefore suggested that the House can be kept under animated suspension or even dissolved and President’s Rule imposed so as to conduct speedy negotiation in order to bring about a settlement at the earliest.

This is it!

from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes such as VAT, are likely to continue to rise over the next few days as state oil firms recoup losses from keeping prices on hold for a record 137 days.

While LPG rates were last revised on October 6, 2021, petrol and diesel prices had been on a freeze since November 4 as five states, including Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, went to the polls.

Non-subsidised cooking gas is the one that consumers buy after exhausting their quota of 12 cylinders at subsidised or below market price. However, the government pays no subsidy on LPG in most cities and

K Y M C

ernment must be willing and ready to compensate the expenses incurred by the law-abiding citizens and candidates that had contested the ULB elections then.

Mentioning that the 1964 agreement between the State government and Chi-Mon had been the main reason for non-participation in the ULB election in Mon town, KU demanded that it should not be repeated during the forthcoming ULB election. It appealed to the government to immediately intervene in solving the long-pending agreement to pave the way for development and justice.

Further, fully endors-

Govt to introduce two new schemes Chief Minister’s

BUDGET, 2022 NAGALAND LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY TASK FORCE FOR MUSIC & ARTS (TaFMA)  Hornbill on Tour: Take the Hornbill Festival to different parts of the country & beyond  Centre of Excellence for Music & Arts TOURISM  Experiential tourism  Make Nagaland an off-roading destination in collaboration with Wander Beyond Boundaries HEALTHCARE  New 50 bedded extension at Kohima District Hospital & Impur Hospital Mokokchung  Autonomous society for the new Medical College at Kohima & to ensure that admissions for the college commence from the academic session 2023-24  Work for Mon Medical College to start  The Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme to provide every citizen with hospitalization insurance cover of upto Rs. 5 lakh per annum.

CHIEF MINISTER’S MICRO FINANCE INITIATIVE  Credit more affordable & available to individuals, SHGs & Farmer Producer Orgs. by providing subsidy or interest subvention

against identified activities in agri & allied sector  Processing units, handicrafts & small-scale manufacturing units included  Additional interest subvention over & above what is provided in the existing Central Govt. schemes  Removal of stamp duty on crop loans AGRI & ALLIED SECTOR  Organic produce marketed successfully under the brand “Naturally Nagaland”  Individual Credit linkages & crop loans through SHGs to meet the demands of horti crops & coffee  Model piggery units CREATION OF NEW DISTRICTS  Chumoukedima, Niuland, Tseminyu & Shamator created  Creation of Shamator district helped resolve long-standing conflict between the Yimkhiung & Tikhir tribes EDUCATION, SOCIAL & HUMAN RESOURCES  60 bedded Girls Hostel at Sainik School Punglwa  Implementation of Chief Minister’s grant for journalists, academic researchers & young leaderships program  Upgradation of facilities at

Correspondent/DIPR

KO H I M A , M A R 2 2 (NPN): While highlighting about the Budget presented on Tuesday, chief minister Neiphiu Rio stated that during 2022-23, the government would introduce two new initiative Chief Minister’s Micro Finance Initiative (CMMFI) and Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme (CMHIS).

Rio also stated that a key reform that will significantly impact the functioning and efficiency of the government was the creation of the PIMS database of all Government employees.

Addressing the media after presenting the Budget, Rio said the Covid pandemic had adversely affected the state’s finances over the last two years and it was only during the last quar-

Power dept reminds on disconnection

ing the demand of Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO), the union said Mon town, district headquarters with one of the most populated tribes and a fast-growing urban settlement in the State, must be elevated to a municipality in order to facilitate development due to its remoteness and decades-old deprivation by subsequent State governments.

KU said the State government must appreciate/ acknowledge that Konyaks, as a bono fide tribe, had adhered to the former’s directive of December 21, 2017 and was also ready to abide by March 9, 2022 dec-

(NPN): Power department has reminded that the department would disconnect power supply of the defaulting consumers.

In a press release, Dimapur electrical division executive engineer Y Akito Sema stated that the department had on many occasions informed about disconnection of power supply for all kinds of defaulting consumers (non-payment, tampering of meters, hooking etc.) irrespective of the category of consumers.

The EE stated that government consumers were also served 15-day notice for payment of bills.

Therefore, the department has cautioned that it would disconnect power supply of defaulting consumers without further notice.

Govt loses Rs. 207.25 in 26 misappropriation cases: CAG Correspondent

“I don’t get it. We reduce cities to rubble yet those Ukrainians appear from nowhere to fight us.”

DIMAPUR, MAR 22 (NPN): Konyak Union (KU) has set three preconditions before the State government prior to holding elections to urban local bodies (ULB) with 33% women reservation.

In a statement, the union insisted that if the State gover nment went ahead with 33% women reservation, then the uncounted vote box from 2017 ULB polls with 33% women reservation should be counted, emphasising that no citizen must be crucified for being law abiding.

However, if that did not happen, the union demanded that the State gov-

SPORTS, PAGE 12

(Cont’d on p-8) D I M A P U R , M A R 2 2

Fuel prices hiked by 80 paise ULB polls: KU sets 3 pre-conditions

DIMAPUR/NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (NPN/PTI): Petrol and diesel prices were on Tuesday hiked by 80 paise a litre each while domestic cooking gas LPG rates were increased by Rs 50 per cylinder as state oil firms ended an over four-and-half month election-related hiatus in rate revision, fanning inflation fears.

According to a IOCL website, petrol price in Dimapur rose to Rs. 97.75 per litre and diesel rate climbed to 84.49 per litre. In the state capital Kohima, prices of petrol and diesel increased to Rs. 98.88 per litre and Rs.85.40 per litre respectively.

The rates, which differ

Women’s WC: India crush B’desh by 110-run

KO H I M A , M A R 2 2 (NPN): State government lost a total of Rs.207.25 crore in the last fiscal year ending March 31, 2020 in 26 different misappropriation cases involving 12 different departments, according to data provided in the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG) report, which was furnished during the ongoing 11th session of the 13th Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.

Leading the highest

amount of misappropriation cases was the department of school education with a total of Rs.82.79 crore in two different cases. However, one of the cases is awaiting departmental and criminal investigation for a sum of Rs.70 crore.

Next in the list was the power department with a sum of Rs.25.28 crore in one case, which is currently awaiting departmental and criminal investigation.

In the Public Works Department (Road & Bridges), three misappropriation

cases involving Rs.23.79 crore were detected. All three cases were awaiting departmental and criminal investigation.

Other depar tments with misappropriation cases in order of amount were Planning and Co-ordination (Rs.20.23 cr), Tourism (Rs.14.20 cr), Health & Family Welfare (Rs.13.70 cr), Taxes (Rs.6.45 cr), Public Health Engineering (Rs.5.05 cr), Municipal Affairs (Rs.4.11 cr), Rural Development (Rs.3.07 cr), Land Records and Survey

(Rs.1.24 cr), Technical Education (Rs.1.08 cr) and various unnamed departments (Rs.6.06 cr).

Further, the report cited that according to Nagaland Lokayukta, directorate of Investigation, Nagaland, there had been four cases of loss to government due to theft, misappropriation, loss of government material etc. involving Rs.2.77 crore out of which an amount of Rs.2.54 crore had been recovered.

The concluding remark in the report cited that the

State would lose out on central funds for want of Utilisation Certificates (UCs) since pending UCs violated prescribed financial rules and directives, and reflected poor monitoring mechanism of the State government.

During the year 201920, 91 grants involving Rs.77.61 crore were provided to 20 departments for which UCs were due for submission during 2020-21, the report said.

As on March 2020, there were 104 UCs worth Rs.378.59 crore which were

HIGHLIGHTS Khelhoshe Polytechnic & Seithekiema Polytechnic  Personnel Information Management System (PIMS) for all govt. employees  e-Pay Bill to ensure salaries are prepared as per actual staff strength reflected in the PIMS database YOUTH & SPORTS  Chief Minister’s Music & Arts Scholarships & the Master Art Residencies  Collaborative program with the Indian Navy for empowerment of our students and creation of career opportunities  Country’s first Police Sports Battalion  To host Asian Cross Country Championships, the biggest sporting event with Kohima as the Host City  Nagaland Olympics & Dr.T. Ao tournament to be conducted  State-of-the-art office complex of Nagaland Olympic Association, the first in the NE & one of the best in India  Target Champion Scheme (TACS) for talented sportspersons for scholarship & training  Sports Academies & Centres of Excellence in collaboration with

ter that the state witnessed noticeable improvement in the resource position. He said since the first quarter had started on a negative trend, the government was compelled adopt austerity measures by cutting down 20 per cent of the revenue expenditure. He said the government also decided to defer recruitment to fill vacancies and freeze vehicle purchases for officials.

Rio also said that the last quarter of 2021-22 had seen a huge climb in the GST revenues, resulting in a windfall of Rs. 547.10 crore in receipts under Share of Central Taxes and Duties over what was reflected in the Union Budget (BE) of 2021-22. Even the States revenues witnessed a growth of Rs. 42.45 crore over the Budget Estimates.

However, despite such

state sports associations & the Olympic body  Football stadium at Chumoukedima Police Complex  Indoor multipurpose-cum-wrestling stadium with a capacity of 15,000 to 20,000 at Kohima PUBLIC WELFARE & IMPROVING SERVICES  Separate High Court for Nagaland  SARFAESI Act to be made applicable with the safeguard that land will not be alienated from indigenous inhabitants.  Permission given by RBI for opening of bank branches in the unbanked blocks of Sakshi in Longleng & Chessore in Shamator  Clearance obtained for hydropower projects for 24 MW at Zungki & 42 MW at Lower Tizu  DC office complexes in Tuensang & Noklak  Mini Secretariats in the newly created districts to house DC office & district level offices  Public Parks in all districts.  Re-development of Nagaland House at A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Road, Delhi, on EPC mode  Heritage Complex at Mon  The first Legislature in India to implement National e-Vidhan Application & going paperless

improvements, Rio stated that the State was still struggling to neutralize the huge negative impact of the losses in Share of Central Taxes and Duties incurred during the last two years (Rs. 925.42 crore short during 2019-20 and Rs. 1341.99 crore short during 2020-21).

Rio said that the owing to the various measures mentioned the year 2021-22 is estimated to close with a deficit of Rs. 2363.04 crore and clarified that it was an improvement of Rs. 316.42 crore over BE figure of Rs. 2679.46. He termed it an outstanding achievement at a time when the world was undergoing financial crisis. He also added that the Government will keep working to reduce the deficit steadily to bring it to more manageable levels in the coming years.

Consultative meet to be held on NIDA demand Correspondent

KO H I M A , M A R 2 1 (NPN): Amidst the ultimatum served by Nagaland In-Service Doctors Association (NIDA) to launch three-day mass casual leave from April 18, Health & Family Welfare principal secretary Amardeep Bhatia said the cabinet during its last meeting had considered the association’s demand, adding that the committee headed by chief secretary would hold another consultative meeting with the stakeholders.

Stating that the Naga Students’ Federation and other bodies were not in favour of the NIDA’s demand to extend the age of superannuation, he said wider consultations would

be held in this regard.

Bhatia informed this to the media during the postbudget press conference held at NLA committee room when asked about the status of the NIDA demand.

Chief minister Neiphiu Rio supplemented to Bhatia’s statement by claiming that though Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced increasing the agelimit of service, there was no standing order. Hence, he said some States had implemented this, while some did not.

Citing the instance of Kerala where the retirement age was 58 years, he clarified that while he was aware that there was a need for doctors in Nagaland, especially specialists and super specialists, the State

CPO, WSH plea for inclusion in consultative meetings DIMAPUR, MAR 22 (NPN): Chakhroma Public Organization (CPO) and the Western Sumi Hoho (WSH) have appealed to all responsible to include them in consultative meetings, which they said have become “very important in order to achieve consensus on issues of crucial and urgent public importance.”

In a joint statement, CPO president Vichütuolie Mere and WSH president Shikaho Zhimomi stated that over the years, the active

participation of the CPO and WSH in consultative meetings have been “technically excluded by default” since the tribal apex body/ hoho of the Angami tribe is APO and that of the Sumi tribe is Sumi Hoho.

They said that today, even after Chumoukedima and Niuland both become full-fledged districts, the “same technical defect of exclusion by default” had been highlighted by the joint co-ordination committee (JCC), which has convened K Y M C

2

STATE

Shortage of meat production in state

A resource person with the farmers at the training.

DIMAPUR: Shortage of meat production and live animals in Nagaland was highlighted Tuesday during one day training programme on “augmenting farmers’ income in the NEH region through promotion of entrepreneurship in mithun meat processing and value addition”.

The training was organised by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) - National Research Centre (NRC) on Mithun, Medziphema in collaboration with ICAR-NRC on meat, Hyderabad for farm-

ers and butchers.

A press release by ICAR-NRC stated that chief guest of the programme, deputy director, DMC, Dimapur, Dr. Sentinungla Ao said Nagaland was still short of meat production and live animals which are imported from different states.

Dr. Sentinungla said a large amount of money was being spent every year by the state government to import meat and meat products, especially pork, from outside the state.

Stressing on the need to bring down such large

scale of import to “zero level”, Dr. Sentinungla said this could only be done by implementing piggery, poultry, and mithun rearing schemes in the state and bringing marginal and commercial livestock farmers under one-fold.

Resource persons Dr. Suresh K. Devatkal and Dr. Girish Patil Sfrom ICARNRC on meat highlighted the importance of hygienic meat production and value addition in mithun meat for doubling the farmers’ income.

The resource persons

SJU organises ‘socio logos fiesta-3’

Students of St. Joseph University at the ‘socio logos fiesta-3’ DIMAPUR: Department of sociology, St. Joseph University organised “socio logos fiesta-3” on March 21 at the University Auditorium.

A press release by the university stated that the fiesta was held in four sessions, where in the formal

session the faculties and students were exhorted by SJU registrar, Dr. A. Anthonisan.

He shared the success stories of the State Tamil Nadu in the field of education, science and technology. He also encouraged the students to build themselves

with their knowledge and skills and to become employable by exploring their talents through the given opportunities.

The second session was on declamation followed by third session on narrative drama and fourth on “sociologist got talent”.

NVC condemns ‘assassination’ bid

DIMAPUR: Natsumi Village Council (NVC) has vehemently condemned the alleged “assassination” bid on GB Natsumi Village, Sheni Assumi by unidentified miscreants at Botsa on March 15. In a press release, NVC chairman, Kivixe Khio and VDB secretary, Jevishe Y. Assumi stated that on March 15 at around 11:30 pm, while Sheni along with his accompanies were proceeding towards Shesulimi village from Dimapur, some unidentified miscreants waylaid by blocking the road with wooden logs.

Sensing “malicious and hostile” at-

titude, the GB reversed his vehicle back towards Botsa Town for safety. But the miscreants chased them till Botsa and were fired upon.

Taking the incident seriously, the NVC has appealed to the concerned investigation authority to promptly investigate the case without delay and book the culprits and punish them as per the law. NVC also expressed gratitude to the police personnel of Chiephobozou police station for providing safe travel to the GB and family by accompanying them till Kasha, Pughoboto junction.

said that there was a lot of potential to grow in the meat beat business especially in northeaster states as meat consumption was higher.

They said rapid consolidation in meat processing, more vertical integration and large number of smaller processing units would be the key trends in the future.

Director of ICARNRCM, Dr. Meraj Haider Khan said mithun farming was profitable and that there was a strong need to promote a scientific and alternative semi-intensive method of mithun rearing and encourage the diversified use of mithun for meat and milk, to stop the slaughter of mithun for table purpose only.

He encouraged farmers to take up other small livestock enterprises such as piggery, backyard poultry or goatery for sustainability.

Altogether 20 farmers from the Noklak district, six butchers from Dimapur district, scientists, staff members of the institute participated in the programme.

FGN celebrates ‘Naga Republic Day’

DIMAPUR: Federal Government of Nagaland celebrated “67th Naga Republic Day” on March 22 at two different locations – eastern and western.

A press release by FGN stated that in the western at Dimapur, the “Naga National Flag” was unfurled by FGN kedahge, ‘brig. (Retd)’ S. Singnya. The programme was chaired by FGN secretary general, Ghuvishe V. Zhimomi, who also read out the Republic Day speech on behalf of kedahge. The ongoing Naga political development issue was delivered by FGN kedallo, Zhopra Vero, short speeches were delivered by kilonsers – Hekhuvi Achumi, Litsaba Sangtam, Victor M Thuuand GOC W/C ‘maj.gen.’ Anito Yeptho.

In the eastern, the Republic Day was celebrated at Nokhu Noking village under Khiamniungan region where the “Naga National Flag” was unfurled FGN killokilonser Puthai Lam. The programme was chaired by kilonser, Samuel, welcome note was delivered by kilonser S Aso Yimkhuing, short speech was delivered by “commendation of Naga Army” kilonser TT Sangtam and note of thanks by midanpeyu, Khiamniungan region, Langkhang.

UC organises student research colloquium

DIMAPUR: Department of Political Science, Unity college organised student research colloquium on ‘Understanding Local Self-Governance in Nagaland: Functioning of Village Councils’ on March 21 at College seminar hall.

In a press release, opening remarks were given by HoD Pol Sc, Dr. Rimmei Longmei, who spoke on importance of research and the need to introduce it to students at college level.

Altogether, nine student colloquists presented their research papers - case studies of their respective villages under the village councils.

Closing remarks were given by assistant professor, Vienna Awomi. Colloquium was attended by principal Unity College, Dr. Lichumo Enie, and IQAC coordinator Unity College, Dr. Adani Ngullie and all faculty members.

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Craft bazar underway in Kohima

Zakabo V Rotokha inaugurating the ‘Craft Bazar’ in Kohima.

DIMAPUR: A craft bazar organised by Nagaland Handloom and Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd., Dimapur, Nagaland got underway Tuesday at Gorkha Public Panchayat Kohima, Multi-Utility Hall, GPPK Complex, Chandmari, Kohima. The bazar

will culminate on March 31.

A press release by the department stated that the bazar was sponsored by the office of the development commissioner (handicrafts), ministry of textiles, government of India, New Delhi.

The craft bazar was

inaugurated by managing director, NHHDC Ltd Dimapur, Zakabo V Rotokha.

Altogether 73 participants from North Eastern region state i.e., Assam, Manipur and the host Nagaland are taking part in exhibiting handicrafts products.

One arrested with brown sugar in Mon

Arrested person.

DIMAPUR: Mon women police duty personnel under Mon District Executive Force (DEF) on March 19 arrested one person with 40 grams of suspected brown sugar (street name – sunflower).

In a press release, additional superintendent of police and PRO Mon police, T Ado Yanlem stated the duty personnel acted on a “specific input” and conducted surprise checking within its jurisdiction.

The duty party arrested one person identified as Khampei alias Manching (30) son of Rhanpha of Longwa village and present resident of Jahjon Ward Mon Town, and recovered the suspected brown sugar.

The PRO informed that a case has been registered at Mon police station and further investigation was on.

dp-1296/22

1ST DEATH ANNIVERSARY

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

LATE TIATEMSÜ JAMIR (15/12/1954 - 11/03/2022) Through this column, we, the bereaved family members of Late Tiatemsü Jamir (Longkhum), would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude and deep appreciation to each and every individual who stood by us physically, financially, materially and above all constant prayers at the time of illness and sad demise of our beloved father.

We deeply regret our inability to thank each and everyone individually but it is our earnest prayer that our Almighty God in Heaven bless you all abundantly for your benevolent act of kindness.

- Loving Family Members mkc-86/22

LATE M. YINAVUNGO TSANGLAO 23-03-2021 It’s been a year since you left us but your immeasurable love, support and blessings still live within us. We still cherish your warm presence and the good memories you have left behind. Though far gone, you’re always remembered and we miss you dearly.

Wife, children & family members k-552/22

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

"She confidently trusts the Lord to take care of her."

Psalm 112:7

We, the bereaved family members of Late Mrs. H. Nivili Aye (Purana Bazar) wish to acknowledge the many expressions of sympathy and gestures of kindness shown to us at the sad demise of our dear, beloved mother on 23rd Feb. 2022.

We would like to convey our heartfelt gratitude to every individual, families, churches, organizations, friends and well wishers, who rendered immeasurable support emotionally, physically, financially and through devoted prayers.

We shall always hold your act of kindness and generosity in our hearts. It is our humble prayer that our Almighty God bless you all abundantly. dp-1296/22

K Y M C

Loving Husband, Grandchildren, In-laws & Family Members dp-1311/22

dp-1305/22

K Y M C

STATE

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

‘World Water Day’ observed across Nagaland

Students at the rally in Dimapur.

Staff Reporter/ Correspondent DIMAPUR/LONGLENG, MAR 22 (NPN): Nagaland joined the rest of the world in raising awareness about the importance of water and educating people to conserve it by observing “World Water Day” (WWD) Tuesday under 2022 theme, “Groundwater, making the invisible visible”.

According to United Nations, WWD focuses on the importance of freshwater. It said the day celebrates water and raises awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water.

UN said WWD is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis. A core focus of WWD is to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030, stated UN. Importance of groundwater highlighted Importance of groundwater was highlighted during poster competition and silent rally held to mark WWD at Dimapur Town organised by Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) Dimapur division and Act of Kindness society and sponsored by sanitation and Water and Sanita-

tion Support Organization (WSSO) PHED Nagaland, Kohima.

Flagging off the rally, PHED (Urban) Dimapur executive engineer, Er. Bendangtola Walling deliberated on the importance of ground water asserting that life would not be possible without groundwater.

Er. Walling said most arid areas of the world depend entirely on groundwater and that it supplies a large proportion of the water used for drinking, sanitation, food production and industrial processes.

She said groundwater was also critically important to the healthy functioning of ecosystems, such as wetlands and rivers.

P H E D - D i m a p u r, DWSM district chemist, Tzutipokla Longkumer spoke on conservation and quality of water and water pledge was proposed

by Miss Nagaland 2021, Kawimaningsiliu (Mharoni Khuvung).

For the poster competition which was held at respective school and colleges, winners were handed a cash prize along with certificates.

(Staff Reporter) Students enlightened on water crisis, conservation & recycling Public Health Engineering Department

Officials and participants at Samziuram village.

Officials and students in Wokha.

Students of Sayeang Middle School, Shiyong village

(PHED) Longleng observed “World Water Day” at Good Shepherd School to highlight the importance of safe water and raise awareness on sustainable management of water resources.

Speaking on the occasion, Information Education Communication (IEC) consultant PHED Longleng, Dauom Phom emphasized on the importance of celebrating WWD and enlightened about the current water crisis and shortage of safe drinking water and its contamination.

Member implementing Support Agency (ISA), W. Yimkup Phom while elaborating on the importance of safe drinking water and health aspects, said one must take various measures while protecting water sources from contamination and need water sources to be tested and monitor periodically to check the quality of drinking water. (Correspondent) Zunheboto: DWSM, PHED, Zunheboto division observed WWD at PHED office Zunheboto under the aegis of WSSO,PHED, Kohima.

At the programme, ill effects of consuming contaminated water, negative impacts of water borne diseases and its preventive measures was delivered by

due to rise in temperature.

Tsanglao called for proper maintenance of water bodies and stream so that they are not polluted and utilised wisely.

Raising concern because of the ongoing National Highway Road construction which is polluting the air, the ADC says the district administration has been directing the contractors to sprinkle water twice a day but even then, it gets dried-up in 20 to 30 minutes because of the rising temperature.

Executive Engineer, Water Resources, Wokha, Er. S. Benri Kithan emphasising on the topic “Underground water, making the invisible, visible” said ground water was a very important natural source and has a significant role in the economy, and a main source for irrigation and the food industry as well.

Er. Kithan also highlighted the need for understanding the groundwater system and for proper management and community efforts.

Department of Soil and Water Conservation in a power point presentation gave a brief on the data of average annual rainfall of all observatory and annual rainfall report in Nagaland.

Land Resources Of-

ter works on gravity source and 25 villages on deep tube well. He also called upon for community participation for maintenance and operation of the scheme/project.

Deputy Commissioner Tseminyu, Dr. Zasekuolie Chusi remarked that the problems of water scarcity and contamination exist everywhere and lauded the PHED for undertaking a commendable job.

The DC impressed upon the community to take care of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) scheme as drilling works of 7 deep tubes well have been completed. Mentioning that “water as the elixir of life”, he said the youth along with the community leaders must find ways and means to save water adding that it was possible through the concerted efforts of all to adopt afforestation for sustenance of water.

Chemist PHED Kohima Division Dziesetseinuo Kiso spoke on “ill effects of consuming contaminated water”.

PHED Mon: Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), Mon division observed the day at Sayeang Middle School, Shiyong Village under Wakching Block, Mon. SDO (C) Wakching, L. Samuel Konyak, NCS

NSF observes Naga National Flag hoisting day DIMAPUR: Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) observed the 67th anniversary of Naga National Flag Hoisting Day on March 22 at Parashen, Rengma region, the site where the Naga National Flag was first hoisted in 1956 by Thungdi Chang, C-in-C Naga Home Guard, NNC. In a press release, media cell of NSF stated that a symbolic programme was held attended by members and representatives of the Sendenyu Logvü Students’ Union (SLSU), Sendenyu Youth Organization (SYO) and New Sendenyu village elders among NSF officials.

Delivering solidarity message, NSF president, Kegwayhun Tep reiter-

nagalandpost.com Poll Q.: Is Putin determined to totally destroy Ukraine to a rubble?

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

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C

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Q: Is Putin going to use

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WEATHER FORECAST MARCH 23

(Temperature in ºC)

Max Min

Agartala Hazy, very hot and less humid

39 21

Mostly sunny and very warm

31 15

Aizawl

Guwahati Hazy sun and very hot

36 18

Mostly sunny and hot

34 12

Imphal

Itanagar Very warm with hazy sun

34 20

Shillong

Mostly sunny and comfortable 25 14

Kohima

Partly sunny and pleasant

27 15

Dimapur Mostly sunny and very hot

36 19

Hazy sun

30 16

Tuensang Sunny to partly cloudy

22 11

Mkg Wokha

Mostly sunny

Zunheboto Hazy sun

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29 18 27 14

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ated that NSF will continue to honour “this historic day” in days to come and offered homage to the past leaders for their impeccable contributions and selfless sacrifices to protect and defend the Naga identity.

A brief account on the monumental site and date of significance was delivered by the Rengma Selo Zi and village leaders present.

NSF general secretary, Siipuni Ng Philo chaired the programme while Benjong Longchar said the invocation. The team also visited New Sendenyu Village Primary School and held an interactive session with the teachers and students on matters of academic concerns.

chemist, PHED Zunheboto, Benathung Tsopoe.

Speech on sanitation, negative impacts of unhygienic village condition and its measures, harmful effects of burning plastics and its usage, importance of hand washing with soap, importance of individual household latrine (IHHL) and the ways to keep the toilet clean and its surroundings was delivered by district coordinator, PHED Zunheboto, Kiyeshe Chishi.

Mokokchung: World Water Day was observed at all the AB-HWCs of Mokokchung district. Health education was imparted by community health officers on the importance of safe drinking water, contamination of water, effects of unsafe water on health and prevention of water borne diseases.

Wokha: Guardian Network Foundation, PHED Land Resources, Water Resources and Soil & Water Conservation jointly observed WWD at Tiyi Hall, Wokha.

According to DIPR report, special guest ADC, Wokha, Lankonsen T Tsanglao, while addressing the gathering said water issue was becoming very serious and since the beginning of the year the people are experiencing a very dry time

ficer, Wokha, Tepunol Yore while dwelling on spring- shed management said the department was focussing and working covering in all rural areas in the district to provide and increase water by method of extracting underground water through spring-shed, as spring-shed management focus to recharge underground water.

“Sensitization, awareness & importance on water related topics” was presented by department of PHED and its implementing Support Agency Team Metamorphosis.

Tesophenyu Village: PHED Kohima rural division in collaboration with Tesophenyu Village Youth Fraternity observed World Water Day at Tesophenyu community hall along with WATSAN Committee, Tesophenyu Village Council and the public.

In a keynote address, SDO (PHED) Kohima rural division Er. Mezivil Kikhi stated that water plays a crucial role in various parts of life and the day provides a platform to achieve the UN’s sustainable goal of universal access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene.

SDO(PHED) rural division revealed that out of 113 villages 88 villages have been undertaking groundwa-

CM, ministers lay annual administrative reports

Correspondent

KOHIMA, MAR 22(NPN): Nagaland chief minister, Neiphiu Rio and ministers in-charges of various departments laid the copy of the Annual Administrative report 2021-2022 on the third day of the 11th session of the 13th NLA on Tuesday.

Following were the departments: Fisheries & Aquatic Resources, Water Resources, Legal Metrology & Consumer Protection, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Ser-

vices, Information & Public Relations, Urban Development, Food & Civil Supplies, Personnel & Administrative Reforms, Chief Electoral Officer, Sericulture, Border Affairs, Electrical Inspectorate, Art & Culture, Power, Home, Land Revenue, Transport, Land Resources, Rural Development, Soil & Water Conservation, Nagaland State Mineral Development Corporation Limited, Higher Education and Tribal Affairs.

Rio also laid the following reports/rules: Naga-

land State Disaster Management Rules, 2007, Nagaland Government Printing press (Technical) Amended Service Rules, Nagaland Public Service Commission (Chairman, Members & Staff) Regulations, 2008 (with amendment up to 13-12-2021) and Nagaland Electricity Regulatory Commission Separate Audit Report (SAR) for 2009-10 to 2017-18. He also introduced the Nagaland Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (Fifth Amendment) Bill, 2020 and presented the

following: State Finances Audit Report of the Comptroller & Auditor General of India for the year ended 31st March 2020 (Report No.1 of 2021), Appropriation Accounts 2019-20, Finance Accounts (Volume-I) 201920 and Finance Accounts (Volume II) 2019-20. He also laid Supplementary Demand for Grants for the year 20212022 and a copy of the Review of the Trends in Receipts and Expenditure for the First, Second and Third quarter of the year 2021-22, as required

Peren CSOs observe Lamhainamdi 1st Martyrs’ Day Staff Reporter DIMAPUR, MAR 22 (NPN): Peren Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) on Tuesday observed the 1st Martyrs’ Day (Black Day) at Lamhainamdi village by paying homage to the three Zeliangrong brothers who were brutally murdered by the assailants on March 22, 2021.

Braving the scorching heat, hundreds of people gathered at the Martyrs’ Park, Lamhainamdi, where a monolith was erected to honour the sacrifice of the three victims.

In solidarity with the martyrs, educational institutions and some government offices in the district remained closed except for students writing their exams while business establishments down their shutter till 12 noon.

Speaking at the occasion, Zeliangrong Baudi president, C.R. Zeliang described Zeliangrong people as courageous, truthful and united in the common cause.

Reminding the gathering that they have clear history of their existence in their traditional and ancestral land, he said “we are the legacy holders of our land bequeathed by our ancestors”, adding that they are defenders and that they were morally obliged to defend the land and responsible for the God-given legacy. He said that they shall not conform or subscribe to outside policy forces but will uphold their age-old traditional rights

graced the occasion as the special guest.

T. Pangken Konyak, Chemist, DWSM, PHED Mon spoke on the topic ‘Reflecting on the Value of water’ while Monglong Implementing Suppor t Agency (ISA) spoke on the topic Water, Sanitation & Hygiene interventions on improving health outcomes among school children.

Samziuram Village: Department of PHE under District Water and Sanitation Mission, Peren observed the day at Community Hall, Samziuram Village, Peren.

Kewizailungiu Dailiam, Swachhagrahi from Samziuram Village said that the day was observed annually to raise awareness on the global water crisis.

Speaking on “The importance of Water: how to preserve and conserve it”, Hugiak Gonmei, ISA Rongmai Baptist Association urged the citizens to dedicate themselves by practicing ways to conserve water by following some important and easy ways.

The programme was attended by Village Council members, WATSAN committee members, Women Society and youth from seven villages under Peren District. Tree saplings were also distributed.

Members of Peren Civil Society Organizations at the 1st Martyrs’ Day at Lamhainamdi village on Tuesday. (NP)

over their land.

While commemorating the historic sacrifice event of supreme sacrifice made in defence of the land, he maintained that their sacrifices were priceless and shall go down in the history as martyrs. Zeliang also remembered and cherished the precious eight souls sacrificed 22 years ago in 2000, where they have been massacred, stating that their supreme sacrifices were vivid evidence of their rightful existence in their land. He also maintained that no power or force on earth can erase or deny their history wrought by blood and lives.

Zeliang also said that they have submitted all rhyme and reasons of their rights and position to the government of the day to do their part and that it

was the moral obligation of the government to deliver justice in due time.

He also said that the victims’ families have appealed to Zeliangrong Baudi, Nagaland, seeking help to approach NIA to take up the investigation for the crime committed on March 22, 2021. He therefore hope that SIT set up by the state government would find various limitations to effectively investigate inter-state cross-borders where perpetrators could have been infiltrated and taking shelters. He said that they have accordingly written to the MHA, Government of India and requested the state chief minister to let NIA take up the case and ex-gratia be paid to the victims’ next of kins expeditiously but has been halted due to the recent election in Manipur. “Now

election is over, we hope NIA incharge Nagaland and Manipur would hopefully resume the investigation earnestly”, he stated.

Zeliang further appealed to the citizens of the village in particular and Zeliangrong communities in general to remain steadfast, united and truthful in the hope that they shall soon live in freedom in their land, adding that the truth on which they confide and stand will set them free.

Zeme Council president, Dr. Tumda Newme, in his speech, termed the day as “a day of introspection” and rethink of what was gone. He called upon the people to unite and co-exist together, which was the only way to avert such similar incident and protect their God gifted land.

Newme also called upon the

people to introspect “what they are”, “how they were” and put their heads together with collective efforts to thwart untoward incident in the near future. He informed that Lamhai village had opened their land to the whole Zeliangrong people to establish Zeliangrong village in 2018 but not to particular sub-tribe.

Nagaland Zeliang People Organisation (NZPO), Jalukie zone member, Hauneu Hiekha, who spoke on behalf of its president sought for unity among the people as disunity has made others to look them as inferior.

Lamhai Village Council chairman, Haibamko reminded that exactly a year ago, unforeseen incident took place, where three of its brothers were brutally martyred by assailants. He stated that the Lamhai Village has donated the land to the Zeliangrong people, for which he urged the Zeme, Liangmai and Rongmei brothers to stand united to protect their land.

Dedication and sharing of remarks were ministered by senior pastor, Jalukie Town Baptist Church, Rev. Dr. Among Mpom.

The minister also unveiled the headstones and monolith.

The programme was moderated by Zeliangrong Mipui Organisation, Nagaland secretary, Aluile Hegui. Two minutes of silence was also observed in memory of the three fallen heroes. A time of sharing were also given to the three victims’ families.

under Section 11 of the Nagaland Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act 2005. Deputy CM and minister in-charge of Home, and Roads & Bridges, Y. Patton moved and passed the Nagaland Village and Tribal Councils (Fifth Amendment) Bill 2022 and minister of Soil & Water Conservation, and Geology & Mining, V. KashihoSangtam, moved and passed the Nagaland Groundwater (Regulation & Control of Development and Management) Bill, 2020.

No intent to contest in the organizational elections: Therie DIMAPUR: Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) president K. Therie has said that he has no intent to contest in the upcoming organisation elections of the NPCC. In a press release, Therie said he had served the people of Nagaland and the party as president NPCC since May 2015 with great confidence. During his service to the people, Therie said many unpleasant actions were taken in the interests of the people and party. He however, regretted that there was nothing personnel nor hard feeling in all his dealings.

According to Therie, Indian National Congress is scheduled for total reorganization where elections in the states will begin from April 1, 2022 and will be completed by May 31, 2022 and AICC elections by July.

In this regard, enrolment processes have started since Nov 2021 and will end by March 31, 2022. NPCC has appointed 383 enrollers all over the state, who will be available in all the constituencies. Meanwhile, Therie slammed the 60 MLAs of their decision to vote for BJP in the upcoming Rajya Sabha in the state.

He said that their decision have “converted Nagaland into a Hindutava State Govt”. Stating that the voice of the Christian were crashed, he appealed to all the likeminded people to join hands as the party has open door to all to work together.

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NORTHEAST

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Manipur Assembly Speaker’s election on March 24 FIRST CABINET MEETING OF BIREN GOVT CHALKS OUT ‘100 TASKS IN 100 DAYS’ PROGRAMME

Correspondent IMPHAL, MAR 22: The election for the post of the Speaker of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly will be held on March 24 at 9 am, an official source said on Tuesday.

State Governor La Ganesan fixed the date and time for the election of the office of the Speaker in an order issued in exercise of the powers conferred by the sub-rule (1) of rule 10 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the Manipur Assembly.

Sources said that the Governor fixed the date on the recommendation of the first cabinet meeting of the newly formed government convened by chief minister N Biren Singh Tuesday evening. The state cabinet held its first meeting, after the formation of the new government on Tuesday with chief minister N Biren Singh in the chair.

All the five cabinet ministers - Thongam Biswajit, Yumnam Khemchand, Govindas Konthoujam, NemchaKipgen and Awangbow Newmai – attended

First cabinet meeting of new Manipur government convened by chief minister N Biren Singh in Imphal on Tuesday. the meeting. The cabinet also decided to request the Governor to summon the first session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly on the same day (March 24) at 10 am.

The first session of the Assembly will begin with an address of the Governor. He will address the session at 11 am, after the new Speaker to be elected on the same day takes the chair.

The cabinet further approved a ‘100 tasks in 100 days’ programme, which consisted of various targets set before the government for achieving the same with-

in the first 100 days of the new government.

This included policy decisions, constr uction works as well as systemic improvements. The cabinet decided that there will be a five-day week for government offices, without affecting essential services.

Working hours will be increased on working days.

There will be a change in office timings. Office will start at 9 am. To sync with school timings and enable proper home management as well as ease traffic congestion, school timings will also change with classes starting

early at 8 am. The new system will improve output and productivity of government servants by providing much needed rest and rejuvenation on weekends. It will also enable adequate time for school children to productively use afternoon hours, the CMO release stated.

The cabinet resolved to make Manipur corruption free. Anti-corruption cell in the chief minister’s office will be revived and strengthened, headed by an officer of rank of Additional SP. “CM da Haisi Initiative” will be transformed as part of the anti-corruption

cell, with toll free numbers made available for the public to send complaints.

Vigilance & anti-corruption department under the state government will act on actionable complaints received in the anti-corruption cell within a deadline.

“No person, including any member of the public, will be spared if found to be giving or taking bribe money,” the release said.

The cabinet also resolved to make Manipur drug free. An IGP rank police officer will lead the anti-narcotics task force.

The anti-narcotics division will be strengthened by posting manpower of integrity. Poppy plantation areas will be identified through satellite mapping and drone surveys. The cabinet resolved to pursue lasting peace for the state by reaching out to various armed groups operating in the region.

With a view to reduce the hardship faced by beneficiaries of housing schemes of PMAY in urban and rural areas on account of Central scheme guidelines, the cabinet also decided to

set up a corpus fund for releasing advance money to beneficiaries to enable beneficiaries to start housing construction without waiting for release of 1st instalment from the Centre.

The cabinet further discussed six budget documents for RE 2021-22 and BE 2022-23, the release added.

N Biren Singh took oath as chief minister of the state for the second consecutive term on Monday along with five cabinet ministers.

On the first day of office, Singh reviewed the progress of various projects with the senior government officials. He also held a series of meetings with MLAs including NPP MLAs who visited him on March 22 at the chief minister’s secretariat. The NPP MLAs called on him to congratulate him on taking charge as chief minister for the second term.

A delegation of Naga People Front (NPF) led by its president and former chief minister of Nagaland, Dr. Shurhozelie Liezietsu also met the chief minister on Tuesday at his secretariat.

Nine arrested in Assam fertilizer scam: Police

GUWAHATI, MAR 22 (PTI): Nine persons have been arrested in connection with the fertilizer scam in Assam, a police spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had directed the CID to conduct an inquiry into the procurement and distribution of urea in the state to bring out alleged irregularities.

A c c o r d i n g l y, t h e Criminal Investigation Department conducted the inquiry in February, 2022 and submitted a report on the large-scale irregularities in the disbursement and sale of fertilizers.

After perusing the report, the chief minister had directed the CID to register a criminal case and conduct a thorough investigation.

Raids were conducted

by CID at various places in Morigaon, Kamrup, Darrang, Cachar, Goalpara and Darrang districts recently and nine persons have been arrested so far, the spokesperson said.

Eight of the arrested are owners of various retail outlets who were selling the urea at a much higher price than the rate stipulated by the government and those

who were hoarding and diverting them to middlemen or traders.

The owner of a truck who used to transfer the diverted urea has also been arrested, the spokesperson said.

All the accused are currently in CID custody after being produced before the Kamrup Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court.

According to government rules, a bag of urea must be sold at Rs. 266, whereas these wholesalers and retailers have been selling the fertilizer at a higher rate of around Rs. 350 to Rs 450 per bag.

The inquiry also revealed that these retailers who can sell the urea only to farmers of their panchayat, were selling it to others.

The investigation also found that some of the retailers were hoarding urea to create an artificial scarcity and then selling the fertilizer at a much higher price.

The role of officials of the agriculture department was also under scrutiny.

The investigation is going on a day-to-day basis and is being closely supervised by the senior officers, the spokesperson added.

Assam to set up at least one college 500 bag jobs at job fair in Mizoram, Arunachal highest tobacco in each minority-dominated area M’laya organised by MSSDS use among students in 13-15 age group GUWAHATI, MAR 22 (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said that his government plans to establish at least one college in each minority-dominated area in the state, with a special focus on women’s education.

Similar thrust will also be put on areas inhabited mostly by tribal people and tea tribes, Sarma said while replying to a discussion during the Member’s Hour in Assam Assembly.

After listening to different problems in different constituencies raised by the MLAs, he said, “Our aim is to introduce general education in place of madrassa education in the minoritydominated areas.”

“My plan is to open at least one college in all minority-dominated areas, with special attention on women’s education. There should be a lot of schools and colleges in minority areas,” he said.

The tribal areas and places inhabited by tea tribes will also see similar thrust from the government in the education sector,

Himanta Biswa Sarma Sarma said. “We will sit and prepare a roadmap in this direction. We will see how many schools and colleges are required in these areas,” he said.

The chief minister said that the government will be setting up one model school in every assembly constituency.

He said that the government is working in a ‘saturation model’, targeting to complete whatever task it sets forth to do.

“After we have compiled the list of people who have benefited from our schemes in an area, we will set forth to ensure that those eligible, who were left out, are also brought under its fold.

“We will try to ensure

ASI suspended for beating 13-yr old boy

GUWAHATI, MAR 22 (PTI): An Assistant Sub Inspector of Police has been suspended for allegedly beating a 13year old boy inside the police station for stealing biscuits in Assam’s Morigaon district, police said on Tuesday.

In a video that went viral on social media, it was seen that ASI Upen Chandra Bordoloi was beating up the boy who kept seeking forgiveness but the police official continued assaulting him. Bordoloi was suspended with immediate effect and further investigations were on, a police officer said. This is a second incident within a week of police officials being suspended for indiscipline.

A traffic constable of Paltan Bazar Traffic Branch was suspended last week for allegedly misbehaving with a person who was also arrested for allegedly violating traffic rules.

that maximum eligible people get benefits and the saturation point in each scheme is reached,” Sarma said.

The chief minister said that the government is working towards ‘standardisation’ in all its procedures to ensure greater transparency and quicker execution.

“Transformation (of the state) will be only possible if we come out of our old mentality. The way we are progressing, I am hopeful that Assam will see a big change in five years,” he said.

Sarma also informed the House that the government is reducing the quantum of discretionary funds, like the MLA development fund, as it brings in “privilege” in the system.

He, however, asserted that most of schemes across the departments are implemented as per suggestions of the MLAs, thereby practically infusing more money in the respective constituencies than the amount designated for the MLA area development fund.

Correspondent

SHILLONG, MAR 22: Around 500 number of potential candidates has been shortlisted during the two-day job fair organised by the Meghalaya State Skill Development Society (MSSDS), an official said on Tuesday.

The fair which concluded on Tuesday was held at the at the State Central Library premises facilitated the market relevance of skill development programmes and increasing the opportunities of skilled youth.

Executive Director of Meghalaya State Skill Development Society, Shivansh Awasthi said the gover nment has taken various initiatives being implemented by Society under the Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP), a programme under the Union Ministry of Skill Development Entrepreneurship, towards skilling in the state.

He said the Job Fair witnessed more than two thousand footfalls, as youth participated to explore ca-

was “something we cannot forbear any longer.”

In this regard, NSCN (I-M) has sought “a decisive answer” from the Government of India on the status of “Indo-Naga ceasefire” in Arunachal Pradesh.

NSCN (I-M) stated that on many occasions, the AR had “gone too aggressive” to get the best of the Cease Fire Ground Rules (CFGRs) to suit its “devilish design against NSCN which exercised a gentleman attitude all the way to honor the CFGRs.” MIP stated that AR did not care when it comes to the CFGRs no matter “how abusive it looks from the political perspective which goes into signing the

AIZAWL, MAR 22 (PTI): Mizoram along with Arunachal Pradesh has the highest tobacco use in the country among students in the age group of 13-15 years, an official said.

Addressing a oneday workshop on Global Youth Tobacco Sur vey (GYTS)-4 and TobaccoFree Educational Institutions for media persons here, National Tobacco Control Programme state consultant R. Lalremruata on Monday said at least 58 per cent of students in Mizoram in the age group of 13-15 years use tobacco against the national average of 8.5 per cent.

Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh have occupied the first rank in tobacco use among students of this age group, the official said quoting a report of Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS)-4 conducted in 2019.

The report was released in August 2021.

Lalremruata said that 44 per cent of students in the state are currently using smoked tobacco, while 33 per cent used smokeless

Sikkim: SNPP merges with ruling SKM GANGTOK, MAR 22 (PTI): The Sikkim National People’s Party (SNPP) on Tuesday merged with the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) in the presence of Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang.

Tamang welcomed more than 300 leaders and workers of SNPP into the SKM at a function held at Samman Bhawan here. “It

is a historic day for politics in Sikkim as the Sikkim National People’s Party (SNPP) merged with the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM),” he said.

He urged them to sincerely abide by SKM’s ideology and work to serve the masses and strive towards taking Sikkim to greater heights. SNPP was formed by 61-year-old Delay Nam-

NSCN (I-M) reacts to killing of its cadres in Arunachal DIMAPUR, MAR 22 (NPN): Reacting to the killing of its two cadres by security forces in Tirap, Arunachal Pradesh, the NSCN (I-M) Tuesday said that it has had “enough in the hands of the Assam Rifles (AR)”, adding that it was now time to say ‘enough is enough’.

NSCN (I-M) through its MIP stated that what happened in Tirap has got on its nerve after the Nginu killing more a year ago. However, “this time round”, NSCN (IM) said it was “not going to take the things lying down.”

MIP stated that “deliberately” gunning down two of its cadres despite knowing that they were not NSCN-K (YA) members

reer advice/opportunities and register themselves with 30 employers of the State in the sectors of Banking, Beauty & Wellness, Hospitality, Unarmed Security, Telecom, Fashion Industry, Insurance, and other services.

“Around 500 number of potential candidates has already been shortlisted during the two-day fair,” Awasthi said. He said the Meghalaya State Skill Development Society will be tracking the registered candidates and intimate them on future fairs and job openings as well.

“Employers and recruiters are always looking for potential employees to recruit, and such job fairs provide a platform for them to hire. Similar event shall also be organized in the Garo and Jaintia region in the next few months,” Awasthi said.

Meanwhile a A Haat Bazaar is also being organized by Meghalaya State Skill Development Society on Wednesday in the same venue to facilitate the local artisans and entrepreneurs to showcase and market their produce.

historic Indo-Naga ceasefire in 1997.” NSCN (I-M) cautioned that it was ready to go for “unrestrained fury” to give “sleepless nights” to the AR in Arunachal Pradesh if the “mindless attack against NSCN goes on unabated”.

Fur ther, NSCN (IM) stated that Arunachal Pradesh has been on its radar for quite sometimes when the Arunachal Pradesh chief minister and deputy chief minister entered into “a political conspiracy to erase the ethnic identity of the Nagas in the state.”

NSCN (I-M) affirmed that no stone would be left unturned to disallow “any Naga MLAs/ministers to walk away scot-free on charges of supporting anti-

Naga socio-politico stand.”

NSCN (I-M) said has not sent its forces to Arunachal to “create nuisance or provoke the trigger happy AR”. The group said it was “our right” to exercise prerogative.

Stating that it was its right to contribute building peace in “our land” to fulfil the purpose of signing the ceasefire 25 years ago, the NSCN (I-M), however, said that if the Ministry of Home Affairs “thinks that there is no ceasefire in Arunachal Pradesh, let it be so.”

NSCN (I-M) cautioned that it would waste no time to “unbound” itself from the shackle of the CFGRs, which it believes covers Arunachal Pradesh.

gyal Barfungpa more than 13 years ago to espouse the cause of the native Sikkimese people and it unsuccessfully contested the state assembly polls drawing a blank in two elections. Barfungpa had joined SKM a few weeks ago and requested the chief minister, who is also the president of the SKM, to agree to the merger proposal.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE COMMANDANT 7 NAP BATTALION TH

BHANDARI :: NAGALAND

NO: 7NAP (RO-5) 2021-22/1957

Dated Bhandari, the 21st March 2022.

CALLING NOTICE To,

No : 73922 C/N Ngulkholen Thangeo S/o : Lt. Paominlum Thangeo Village : Molvom PO/PS : Medziphema District : Dimapur State : Nagaland Whereas you have been found absent from Govt. bonafide duty w.e.f. 10-11-2021 and inspite of 3 (three) calling notices issued to you vide T/O Letter No (i) 7NAP / RO-5/2021-22/ 1147 Dated 15th Nov 2021 (ii) No. 1274 Dated 3rd Dec 2021 and No. 1345 Dated 14th Dec 2021 but you failed to report back for duty.

You are therefore directed to report to the office of the Commandant 7NAP Battalion, Bhandari within 7 (Seven) days from the date of publication of this notice, failing which you will be declared as deserter and action will be taken against you ex-parte. This may be treated as last notice. dp-1304/22

Commandant, 7th NAP Battalion, Bhandari :: Nagaland

tobacco, he said.

He said that 35 per cent smoke cigarettes and 4.6 per cent smoke bidi.

He said that the main reason for the high rate of tobacco use among students was due to peer influence. According to Lalremruata, GYTS was conducted in Mizoram in 2019 as part of a national survey by the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

A total of 1,404 students from 21 schools, including 11 private schools,

had participated in the survey, he said.

Among tobacco users, 53 per cent wanted to quit smoking and 50 per cent of smokeless tobacco users also wanted to quit it, Lalremruata said.

About 100 institutions in the state have been now declared “tobacco-free institutions and efforts are on to achieve 100 per cent tobacco-free institutions, he said.

He said that 95 per cent of school heads in the state were aware of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA).

SUMMON FOR SETTLEMENT OF ISSUE (ORDER-V, RULE - 1,5,20)

IN THE COURT OF SMTI. SEYIELENUO MEZHU, CIVIL JUDGE (SENIOR DIVISION)

DIMAPUR : NAGALAND SUIT NO. CIVIL SUIT NO. 12/2021 PLANTIFF : UCO BANK, DIPHUPAR BRANCH DEFENDANTS : SHRI. ATTO ZHIMOMI AND ANOTHER To, 1. Shri. Atto Zhimomi, Son of Akihito R/o. 107, F-Khel, Diphupar Village, Dimapur, Nagaland 2. Smti. Tolito Sumi Wife of Atto Zhimomi R/o. H/No. Lane-3, Block-4, Thilixu Village, Dimapur, Nagaland Whereas the UCO Bank, Diphupar Branch, has instituted a suit against you for recovery of Rs. 6,81,564/You are hereby summoned to appear before the Court in person or by pleader duly instructed and able to answer all material questions relating to the suit on 13th April, 2022 at 10:00 A.M. without fail.

Take notice that in default of your appearance on the date mentioned the suit will be heard and determined in your absence.

Given under my hand and the seal of this Court this 21st day of March, 2022. db-215/22(b)

CIVIL JUDGE (SENIOR DIVISION) DIMAPUR : NAGALAND

SUMMON FOR SETTLEMENT OF ISSUE (ORDER-V, RULE - 1,5,20)

IN THE COURT OF SMTI. SEYIELENUO MEZHU, CIVIL JUDGE (SENIOR DIVISION) DIMAPUR : NAGALAND

SUIT NO. CIVIL SUIT NO. 11/2021 PLANTIFF : UCO BANK, DIPHUPAR BRANCH DEFENDANTS : SHRI. QHEHOYI KIBA AND 2 OTHERS To, 1. Shri. Qhehoyi Kiba Son of late K. Joseph Kiba R/o. 67, H-Khel, Diphupar Village, Dimapur, Nagaland 2. Smti. Ruokuopfhenuo Kiba Wife of J. Qhehoyi Kiba R/o. H/No. 67, H-Khel, Diphupar Village, Dimapur, Nagaland 3. Smti. J. Hetoli Wife of Roushelo Tep R/o H/No. 62-H-Khel, Diphupar, Dimapur, Nagaland Whereas the UCO Bank, Diphupar Branch, has instituted a suit against you for recovery of Rs. 12,70,350.77/You are hereby summoned to appear before the Court in person or by pleader duly instructed and able to answer all material questions relating to the suit on 4th April, 2022 at 10:00 A.M. without fail.

Take notice that in default of your appearance on the date mentioned the suit will be heard and determined in your absence.

Given under my hand and the seal of this Court this 21st day of March, 2022.

CIVIL JUDGE (SENIOR DIVISION) DIMAPUR : NAGALAND db-215/22(a)

Sonia meets 3 G-23 leaders in peace effort NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): Congress president Sonia Gandhi Tuesday held a lengthy discussion with Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari and Vivek Tankha as she stepped up efforts to placate the leaders of the G-23 dissident group to find unity in a party facing an existential crisis.

Sources said they told her the leadership should not rely on a select few to run the affairs of the party and must establish a collective decision-making model, Indian Express reported.

In another reconciliatory gesture, Sonia is learnt to have congratulated Ghulam Nabi Azad, one of the key leaders of the G23, over the phone after he received the Padma Bhushan.

She had met Azad last week.

Rahul Gandhi, on his part, had a frank discussion with former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

The rapprochement efforts by Sonia are seen as an attempt by her to cool

Sonia Gandhi

tempers and not let the situation get out of hand.

To quell the discontent, some of the G23 leaders could be accommodated and given organisational responsibilities; Sonia, however, is learnt to have told the three leaders that a major surgery — in other words, a massive overhaul — is not possible now, given that a new president is to be elected in August-September.

“Minor surgeries”, however, still seem possible.

Sonia Gandhi’s decision to engage with the G23 leadership stems from the realisation that the narrative of the Congress being

a house divided is harming the party no end. Most of the G23 leaders believed that the time was not ripe for an open showdown with the Gandhis, but were deeply unhappy that the leadership did not give them a hearing. By engaging with them, Sonia is trying to ensure that the situation does not go out of control.

Sources said the leaders flagged several issues related to the functioning and decision-making of the party.

They told her that the leadership’s “preference for a few leaders” when it comes to handing out organisational assignments

New Delhi remains the world capital in air pollution: Swiss survey finds NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): New Delhi has topped the list of most polluted capitals in 2021, a dubious first position it has now held for four successive years, according to the World Air Quality Report prepared by Swiss organisation IQAir, reports The Print.

D e l h i i s f o l l owe d by the following capitals — Dhaka (Bangladesh), N’Djamena (Chad), Dushanbe (Tajikistan) and Muscat (Oman).

India is fifth in the most-polluted country category preceded by Bangladesh, Chad, Pakistan and Tajikistan.

“India was home to 11 of the 15 most polluted cities in Central and South Asia in 2021. Delhi saw a 14.6% increase in PM2.5 concentrations in 2021 with levels rising to 96.4 µg/m³ from 84 µg/m³ in 2020.

No cities in India met the WHO air quality guideline of 5 µg/m³. In 2021, 48% of India’s cities exceeded 50 µg/m³, or more than 10 times the WHO guideline,” the report said.

The report grimly noted that India’s annual average PM2.5 levels reached 58.1 µg/m³ in 2021, “ending a three-year trend of improving air quality”. “India’s annual PM2.5 averages have now returned to pre-quarantine concentrations measured in 2019,” it said.

The report pointed out that major sources of

Bank strike on March 28, 29: SBI NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): The country’s largest lender State Bank of India on Tuesday said banking services may get impacted to an extent as various employees’ unions have called for a two-day strike on March 28-29.

SBI said it has been advised by the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) that All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA), Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) and All India Bank Officers’ Association (AIBOA) have served a notice about their decision to go on a nationwide strike.

The strike has been called to oppose the government’s move to privatise public sector banks and the Banking Laws Amendment Bill 2021.

The bank said it cannot quantify the potential loss due to the strike.

5

NATIONAL

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

FILE — Vehicles ply on road amid heavy smog, at NH 9 road in Ghaziabad.

air pollution in India were vehicular emissions, power generation, industrial waste, biomass combustion for cooking, the construction sector, and episodic events like crop burning.

China is doing much better, according to the IQAir report. Air quality in China improved in 2021.

More than half of the cities in China saw lower levels of air pollution when compared to the previous year.

“Pollution levels within the capital city of Beijing continued a five-year trend of improved air quality, driven by emission control and reduction of coal power plant activity and other high emission industries,” the report said.

The 2021 report found that “only three percent of cities and no single country met the latest World Health Organization’s (WHO) PM2.5 annual air quality guidelines. The report analysed PM2.5 air pollution measurements from air monitoring stations in 6,475 cities in 117 countries,

regions and territories”.

Fine particle pollution, known as PM2.5, is accepted as the most harmful and widely-monitored air pollutant. It worsens diseases like asthma, and hastens lung and heart ailments.

PM2.5 leads to millions of premature deaths every year, the report said.

CEO of IQAir Frank Hammes said, “It is a shocking fact that no major city or country is providing safe and healthy air to their citizens according to the latest World Health Organization air quality guidelines.

This report underscores just how much work remains to be done to ensure that everyone has safe, clean and healthy air to breathe. The time for action is now.”

IQAir’s 2021 World Air Quality Report is based on the updated annual WHO air quality guideline for PM2.5, the company said, adding the new guideline released in September 2021 cut the existing annual PM2.5 guideline value from 10 µg/m3 to 5 µg/m3.

was undesirable.

While the G23’s old demands — elections to the Congress Working Committee in line with the party constitution, revival of the Parliamentary Board, and putting in place an elected Central Election Committee (the body which finalises and approves the party’s candidates) — were, of course, discussed, sources said the practice of appointing district Congress presidents from Delhi was flagged as a point of concern.

The group of 23 leaders had originally written to Sonia in 2020, asking the leadership to adopt a model of “collective and inclusive leadership and decisionmaking at all levels” — a demand aimed at checking the trend of unilateral decisions by the Gandhis.

Sources said Sonia responded positively to their suggestions and agreed that there was a need for a change in the way the party functions now to take on the challenges. “It was a very productive dialogue,” one of the leaders said.

One of the leaders told

Sonia that the party cannot function the way it is now, saying there has to be a “newness” in its approach.

Sonia will likely meet some more leaders of the G23 in the coming days.

While some of these leaders said Sonia is trying to shield Rahul Gandhi, most of the members of the group were appreciative of the efforts being taken by her.

“She is a unifier. None of us have any problem with her. She is very affectionate. Her style is to take everyone together. After all, we are one family,” another leader said.

A senior AICC officebearer said the leadership could revive the Parliamentary Board, which will be tasked with taking all key organisational and policy decisions, and accommodate some of the G23 leaders to end the criticism over unilateral decisions.

While Sharma is the deputy leader of the Congress in Rajya Sabha, Tewari is a Lok Sabha member. Tankha, too, is a member of the Upper House.

Let’s reaffirm pledge to save every drop of water: PM Modi

NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday reiterated his call for saving every drop of water on World Water Day and said it is heartening to see water conservation become a mass movement over the last few years. He also appreciated all individuals and organisations working towards saving water.

“On World Water Day, let’s reaffirm our pledge to save every drop of water.

Our nation is undertaking numerous measures like Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure water conservation and access to clean drinking water for our citizens,” Modi said in a tweet.

He added, “Over the last few years, it is heartening to see water conservation become a mass movement, with innovative efforts taking place in all parts of the nation. I would like to appreciate all those individuals and organisations who are working towards saving water.” Modi also posted a video that showed his earlier messages about the importance of water preservation and his government’s efforts

Narendra Modi

in this regard.

“Together, let’s further water conservation and contribute to a sustainable planet. Every drop saved helps our people and enhances our progress,” he said.

Referring to a tweet from the Jal Shakti Ministry, he said the Jal Jeevan Mission, a programme aimed at bringing piped water to every household, is proving very effective in making the lives of women simple.

The resolve of taking water to every house will be fulfilled with people’s participation, he added. The ministry had said that over six crore houses have been given piped water in the last two-and-half years under Modi’s leadership. There was a time when women had to travel a long distance to fetch water, it said.

Akhilesh quits as MP after being elected as MLA NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has chosen to quit as an MP after being elected MLA in the recent Uttar Pradesh election, turning his focus in a big way towards state politics and consolidating his vote-bank ahead of the 2024 national election.

Another Samajwadi Party leader, Azam Khan, has also quit as an MP. The resignations, which bring down the number of Samajwadi Party members in parliament to three, reveal Akhilesh Yadav’s his plan to cement his position as the main challenger to the BJP and to Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh.

Akhilesh Yadav was an MP from eastern UP’s Azamgarh. He contested the state election for the first time in the March-April polls, from family stronghold Karhal in the Mainpuri district. Sources say the former chief minister intends to take on the BJP as opposition leader in the UP assembly, with an eye on the 2027 polls in the most politically significant state in India.

8 burnt alive in Bengal after killing of TMC leader

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): Eight people, including two children, were charred to death as nearly a dozen huts were set ablaze in West Bengal’s Birbhum district early Tuesday in a suspected fallout of the murder of a ruling TMC panchayat official, provoking calls by the opposition BJP for imposition of the President’s rule.

Altogether 11 people have been arrested so far, and the West Bengal government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Additional Director General (CID) Gyanwant Singh to probe the incident, state police chief Manoj Malviya said.

The residents of Bogtui village on the outskirts of Rampurhat town were jolted out of sleep by the deafening sounds of bomb explosions. They tried to douse the flames and called the police and fire brigade for help, as flames leapt from one thatched house

Firefighters try to douse the fire at Rampurhat in Birbhum district, Tuesday. (PTI)

to another, killing seven people including two children, while another person who was rescued died later in a hospital.

Najira Bibi, one of those who managed to survive, told PTI from her hospital bed at Rampurhat, “We were sleeping and suddenly heard the sound of bombs … the miscreants set our houses on fire.

I managed to escape but don’t know what happened to others in the family.”

Chief Minister Mama-

10 judges appointed to Telangana HC NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): Ten new judges were appointed to the Telangana High Court on Tuesday.

The Department of Justice in the Law Ministry issued a notification announcing the appointments. In a tweet, the department said five of those appointed were advocates while the rest were judicial officers. According to the vacancy statement on the Law Ministry website, the sanctioned strength of the Telangana High Court is 42.

ta Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar went for each other’s jugular over the incident, while the Union home ministry sought a detailed report from the state government.

A 9-member delegation of BJP MPs including the party’s national vice president Dilip Ghosh, Locket Chatterjee and Arjun Singh met Home Minister Amit Shah in the national capital and sought his intervention to punish the perpetrators of the incident.

BJP president J P Nadda constituted a fivemember committee, which includes four MPs, to visit the site of the tragedy.

The members of the fact-finding committee are former Uttar Pradesh DGP Brij Lal, former Mumbai police commissioner Satya Pal Singh, former IPS officer K C Ramamurthy, West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar -- all MPs -- and former IPS officer Bharati Ghosh.

The incident, West

Bengal DGP Malviya said, occurred hours after the killing of TMC’s Barshal village panchayat’s deputy chief Bhadu Sheikh around 8.30 pm on Monday.

The Sub-divisional Police Officer concerned an officer in-charge of Rampurhat police station have been removed from active policing duty, the DGP said.

The TMC despatched a three-member team of lawmakers led by minister Firhad Hakim to the spot to take stock of the situation.

Baner jee hit right back, shooting off a letter to Dhankhar, saying “It pains me that you have chosen an unfortunate incident in Rampurhat to pass sweeping, uncalled for comments on law and order situation in the state. This incident is unfortunate.”

Leader of the opposition in the West Bengal assembly Suvendu Adhikari demanded imposition of President’s Rule in the state.

Government of India Ministry of Finance :: Department of Revenue Office of The Commissioner Goods and Services Tax (Central)

5th Floor, Agarwal Tower, Circular Road Dimapur-797112, Nagaland.

Tel: 03862-224171/Fax No. 03862-224503 email:cestdmr061301@gmail.com

C.No. I/(22)/485/ADMN/2021-ADMN-O/o COMMR-CGST-DIMAPUR

Date: 22.03.2022

SHORT NOTICE FOR INVITING TENDER FOR SUPPLY, INSTALLATION AND COMMISSIONING OF 01 NO. OF 40 KVA DIESEL GENERATOR SET FOR CGST COMMISSIONERATE, DIMAPUR. For and on behalf of the President of India, sealed Tenders are invited for Supply, Installation and Commissioning of 01 no. of 40 kVA Diesel Generator (DG) Set for Central Goods & Services Tax Commissionerate Dimapur located at Agarwal Towers, 5th Floor, Circular Road, Dimapur. The terms and conditions are enclosed as Annexure “A” and details of work to be performed are enclosed as Appendix.

Annexure “B” & Annexure “C” are formats for the Technical Bid & Financial Bid respectively. The Tender Notice can be downloaded from the departmental website www.cexcusner.gov.in The tenders should be submitted in TWO separate sealed Envelopes indicating clearly “Technical Bid” containing the information sought in Annexure ‘B’ of the tender document. The “Financial Bid” containing the information sought in Annexure ‘C’ of the tender document. Both the envelops should be placed in a Main Envelope super scribed as “Tender for Supply, Installation and Commissioning of DG Set for CGST, Dimapur” addressed to Additional Commissioner, CGST Commissionerate, Agarwal Towers, 5th Floor, Circular Road, Dimapur. Last date for the submission of tender is 28th March, 2022 at 12:00 pm. The tenders/quotations received incomplete and/ or not properly sealed or submitted after the due date and time shall be summarily rejected. The bidders who wish to be present at the time of opening of Tender/Quotation may represent themselves or authorized representatives with an authority letter. The Principal Commissioner, CGST Dimapur reserves the right to accept or reject any or all tenders without assigning any reasons.

DC-250/22

Sd/(Sashi Wapang Lanu IRS) Additional Commissioner Central GST Dimapur

6

OPINION/EDITORIAL

Nagaland Post VOL. XXXII NO. 106 DIMAPUR, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

I

In the house of elders

t is a foregone conclusion that the BJP candidate will be officially declared as uncontested to the lone Rajya Sabha seat for Nagaland since no other candidate filed nomination. It will also be a historic first for Nagaland that BJP candidate S. Phangon Konyak will become the first woman to represent the state in the Rajya Sabha. The first woman to represent Nagaland in parliament was late Rano Shaiza in the Lok Sabha in 1977. It is 45 years since then that Nagaland will be represented by a woman in parliament. At one point of time, a consensus appeared to have eluded the United Democratic Alliance(UDA) constituents when an important ally, the Naga People’s Front(NPF) party president Dr. Shürhozelie Liezietsu cleared the name of another veteran Naga politician Thenucho Tunyi as NPF candidate for the seat. The BJP was to have been given the Rajya Sabha seat through the 2019 assurance given by chief minister Neiphiu Rio in response to BJP support to the NDPP candidate for the Lok Sabha seat from the state. At that point, the NPF, which was in opposition, had backed the Congress candidate. Some seven NPF legislators broke ranks and openly backed PDA consensus candidate from the NDPP. According to NPF party sources, the party was not part of the decision in 2019 that ceded the Rajya Sabha seat to the BJP. The crux of the matter is that there were too many claimants or candidates even from within the BJP and according to party sources, which included even the party president himself. The other aspect of the Rajya Sabha issue was the challenge thrown by the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) to the NPF and NDPP to prove that they are not BJP proxies. The Congress had taken a pro-religion approach to rouse opinions against allowing the BJP represent Nagaland in the Rajya Sabha. For those who are serious about having a useful representative in parliament, what matters is to have a person who can speak in parliament and also work beyond to pursue any assignment crucial for the state. Nagaland has had many parliamentarians in the past whose performances ranged from effective to defective. It is not easy for a lone MP to be able to get the allotted time to speak. First, even if an MP is from a ruling party, preference will be given to senior leaders. If an MP is from a regional or opposition party then it become more difficult to get the allotted time. Given the fact that the BJP member will represent Nagaland in the Rajya Sabha, the point is whether this is solely to benefit the party politically or does the MP-designate has qualities so far unknown? Hopefully, the MP-designate will prove herself as an effective representative than having got the seat solely as a woman. It is also hoped that as member of the ruling party, the MP-designate will do everything possible to make her presence felt within and outside parliament as a true representative of the state and not just a representative of the party or a gender in parliament.

DailyDevotion The Burning Heart Did not our heart burn within us…?

—Luke 24:32 We need to learn this secret of the burning heart.

Suddenly Jesus appears to us, fires are set ablaze, and we are given wonderful visions; but then we must learn to maintain the secret of the burning heart— a heart that can go through anything. It is the simple, dreary day, with its commonplace duties and people, that smothers the burning heart— unless we have learned the secret of abiding in Jesus.

Much of the distress we experience as Christians comes not as the result of sin, but because we are ignorant of the laws of our own nature. For instance, the only test we should use to determine whether or not to allow a particular emotion to run its course in our lives is to examine what the final outcome of that emotion will be. Think it through to its logical conclusion, and if the outcome is something that God would condemn, put a stop to it immediately.

But if it is an emotion that has been kindled by the Spirit of God and you don’t allow it to have its way in your life, it will cause a reaction on a lower level than God intended. That is the way unrealistic and overly emotional people are made. And the higher the emotion, the deeper the level of corruption, if it is not exercised on its intended level. If the Spirit of God has stirred you, make as many of your decisions as possible irrevocable, and let the consequences be what they will. We cannot stay forever on the “mount of transfiguration,” basking in the light of our mountaintop experience (see Mark 9:1-9). But we must obey the light we received there; we must put it into action. When God gives us a vision, we must transact business with Him at that point, no matter what the cost.

We cannot kindle when we will The fire which in the heart resides, The spirit bloweth and is still, In mystery our soul abides; But tasks in hours of insight willed Can be through hours of gloom fulfilled.

Quotes

Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts. ~Winston S. Churchill

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Post-mortem

NLA: Imkong Imchen’s speech on Naga Political issue M r. S p e a k e r S i r, above all other issues the Naga Political Issue occupies the top most priority for discussion in the House on matters of urgent Public Importance.

Therefore, I humbly submit my Notice Under Rule 50 so that the Hon’ble Members may like to participate in this top most urgent matter of Public Importance on the Naga Political issue even today. Yes, I’m aware of the discussions held during the last 3 - 4 sessions of this 13th House on the same agenda. Mr. Speaker Sir, after forming Opposition less Government the House has constituted the Core Committee on Naga Political Issue comprising of NDPP, BJP, NPF and Independent, with the hon’ble Chief minister as Convenor and NPF Leader Shri. T.R Zeliang, Shri. Y. Patton, Deputy Chief Minister as the Co Convenors. However, it is regretted to say that this Committee could not discuss

H

the core issues by providing quality time to the Members.

In the process, the time has taken its toll consequent upon which Naga people anxieties and enthusiasm for a negotiated Settlement is losing faith with frustration.

It is now 25 years since the Political Talks started and yet there is no sign of progress coming out of the 25 year long Negotiations.

Several unanimous Resolutions were adopted by this successive August House but no semblance of even acknowledgement from any of the Negotiating Parties, including Government of India (GOI). Mr. Speaker Sir, during 2018 General Election there was a concerted effort to put on - hold of the impending General Election to the Nagaland Legislative Assembly under the slogan “Solution not Election”. However, another slogan came from certain National Party “Election for Solution”, so Election was conducted as per their

wish. Five years has gone since then, and yet nothing is coming to our sight either from the Government of India or from the Naga Negotiating Groups. Speaker Sir, if the continuance of Election system in the State is making any negative hindrance in the on - going Political Negotiation, the Government of India may even invoke Article 356 of the Constitution of India after the completion of the present tenure in 2023 so as to eliminate any negative hindrance coming from the Elected Representatives.

The House can be kept under Animated Suspension or even dissolved and imposed President’s Rule so as to conduct speedy negotiation and to bring about a Negotiated Settlement at the earliest. During 2018 general Election, there were two slogans as stated above ( 1 ) Solution not Election ( 2 ) Election for Solution , I don’t know what should be the slogan for 2023 gen-

eral Election in Nagaland because till now there is no indication or signal from the Negotiating Parties that the Solution is about to arrive.

Speaker Sir, I want to refer to the Address of the Hon’ble Governor to this House on the 19th March 2023 Para 4, I quote, “Recently on 9th march 2022, a one - of - its kind consultative meeting has been also held on Naga peace process. It has participation from all the Tribal Bodies, civil society organizations, faith based organizations, women organizations, students bodies, prominent personalities of the State along with political parties and all the members of this House. A resolution was adopted in the meeting reiterating the Naga peoples ‘ yearning for an early political solution. The resolution further called upon all the negotiating parties to earnestly heed to this call and arrive at a political solution that is honourable, inclusive, transparent and acceptable

to the people. It was also resolved to appeal to all sections to make renewed efforts towards unity and understanding in order to work towards One Solution and One Agreement.” unquote.

This Resolution was adopted by the Civil Societies of the State in One Voice - calling for Solution at the earliest. Still no response. Mr. Speaker Sir, under the given situation, I’m proposing to the Government of India to invoke Article 356 of the Constitution of India out of my sheer frustration on the conduct of the Political Negotiation during the last 25 years. Let there not be any Elected Representatives in the scene of the Naga Political Talk but only the Negotiating Parties and the Government of India.

The Naga people can no longer bear the burden of massive extortion inflicted on the people without any reasonable limit besides intimidation and threats; this is the least “ privilege “ Naga

people have anticipated from its own people in the name of fighting for Freedom. Too much innocent blood has been shed with untold stories of atrocities committed by both the Security Forces and Naga Freedom Fighters.

Speaker Sir, I’m not against Democracy or for that matter against Parliamentary Democracy but I’m against the present prevailing Naga Society which is full of violence, intimidation, extortion, threats etc., etc and therefore I still reiterate that invoking of the Article 356 of the Constitution of India may be the rightful answer to the cries of the Naga people. I comment the session to the wisdom of the Hon’ble rest of the Members of this August House.

Imkong L. Imchen, MLA (Speech during “Notice on Matters of Urgent Public Importance on Naga Political Issue” during the Eleventh Session of the 13th Nagaland Legislative Assembly on March 22, 2022)

NPF predicament in fielding candidate for RS

aving observed the Nagaland political scenario for a long time and especially since 2018, I have to say that there is certain section of people who are inherently looking to blame the NPF Party and its Legislators for the misfortune and mis-governance that is rampant in the State of Nagaland since the nexus between the NDPP and BJP begun in the year 2018.

It may be a fact that the NPF Party having been in power for many years did not deliver as expected.

Nonetheless, it is not fair to blame the Party which is not in power for the misdeeds of the present day government.

If we closely analyze, prior to 2018, when the BJP was a coalition partner of the

NPF in DAN government, the central party did not have so much sway over the affairs of the State like it is happening at present with the NDPP leadership, who goes around with tails between their legs and are succumbing to every demand placed before them.

The people of the State are raising their voices at the NPF party for not filing nomination to the Rajya Sabha Election and allowing the State of Nagaland, which proclaims itself as a ‘Christian State’, to send its first BJP MP. But on the flipside, there is a complete silence over the decisions taken by Neiphiu Rio led NDPP in compromising the integrity of the Nagas by secretly knitting unholy

agreements with their BJP partner. This leads me to question as to why people desist from criticizing Rio or his party despite clear indication of his poor decisions. Is NPF so dear to each and every Naga that we feel easier and comfortable ranting at them?

From the decision to help the RSS backed BJP party to increase their seat in the State from 4 to 12 by way of ‘Seat Sharing agreement 40-20’ in 2018 general election to now backing for BJP MP from Nagaland in the Rajya Sabha with another secret agreement entered between the two coalition partner which resulted BJP MP to represent the state in parliament. From what we understand, this Agreement

was also inked years ago when the power hungry CM wanted to cling on to the Chair with total disregard to the future of the Nagas.

But somehow, it has been played out that the NPF party is the one at fault for the decision of NDPP to nominate BJP based on agreements between them.

If we reasonably look at the situation, whether NPF party filed their nomination or not, it was not going to make much difference as they cannot secure enough votes in the Assembly required to elect their candidate. So why are people blaming them as though they are the ones to vote for the NPF candidate? In the name of the Church and Christian values, people have chosen

the choicest of words to criticize the NPF Leaders but the same people and ‘Leaders’ chose to remain a mute spectator when it comes to mistakes after mistakes committed by the Chief Minister.

Sometimes I wonder if all these so called ‘Leaders’ are on a payroll of Rio that they are leaders only to do the biddings of his wishes.

If that’s the case, the future of the Nagas are bleak and we are headed towards our own doomsdays.

Having said that, I am of the personal opinion that we should give the benefit of doubt to the NPF Party and spare them from being the punching bag of the Nagas’ frustration. If voices needs to be raised against the poor and cowardly decisions

taken against the interest of the Nagas, then it should be addressed to the right person who is responsible and not beat around the bush with a wild hope that we could bell the cat somehow. It is time to call spade a spade and be truthful to ourselves and not blame someone out of the blue for we fear to take the bull by the horns.

I think “Rio is the Answer” slogan needs a revisit and see if, what he is doing to the State of Nagaland is really the answer we want. I call for self introspection and dare to speak for the truth no matter how powerful an individual maybe.

Punokro Vitsu Secretary, Central Youth Wing Naga People’s Front

Speeches on Naga Republic Day celebration Speech by Brig. (Retd) S. Singnya, Kedahge, Fgn My beloved Country Men and Women, On this historic occasion of the 67th Naga Republic Day, I greet you all in the name of our Almighty God. It is indeed a great opportunity and a privilege to address you on this red letter day of our nation. At the very outset, I pay my homage and respect to the Founding Fathers of our Nation through whose vision and far sightedness our Nation became a Republic based on the Historical and Political Rights of the Nagas.

Our journey thus far has not been easy but our struggle has withstood the test of time.

It was in 1956 on this day the 22nd of March that Nagaland became a Republic when the Naga National Council convened the First Tatar Hohowhich brought together the Free Nagas represented by the Hongki Government and the Naga National Council representing the then Naga Hills District leading to the establishment of the Federal Government of Nagaland. With the National Mandate entrusted to them in 1951 and acknowledging that the Almighty God alone is the Supreme Sovereign over this whole world, and the authority of the people to be exercised on the territory is a sacred trust from God, our leaders established our National institution based on the modern principles and ideals of Democracy, Justice, Liberty and Fraternity.

Today while commemorating 67 years of our existence as a Republic, as we celebrate the courage and vision of our pioneers who had guided and contributed to the formation of our nation, we also rededicate ourselves to follow in their footsteps, to focus on what we all hold dear to our hearts and to address the issues that are confronting us as a people and a nation.

We need to move forward in the best way possible to achieve our goal and follow the path till our historical rights find full expresReader’s note: Articles

Speech of Naga Mothers’ Association Secretary, Lochumbeni Humtsoe

sion. Rights, whether it be birth R e s p e c t e d C h a i r m a n , repeal of the AFSPA in our Naga culture which is destroying Naga right or historical rights or political Hon’ble Yaruwo and members areas with the govt of India. patriotism in our youth, rights will not change anything of the collective Leadership, rank As women we urge for recToday as Mothers, we pray until those rights are legitimately established. Naga nationalism was and file of the NSCN, Ladies and ognition of Naga women’s rights once again for God’s mercy on to equality, Peace and security. all our wrongs committed and founded on courage, the courage Gentlemen.

On behalf of the Naga MothWe call for peace and respect seek for forgiveness. We pray for to believe that Nagas are different and unique as a people and as a ers’ Association, I convey our amongst our brothers and urge courage and moral strength, a nation, founded on the historical greetings on the 43rd Republic that there must be a meeting of revival of when Nagas first began and political reality of the time. day celebration and thank the all leaders, inclusive of all NPGs, in unity and brotherhood. May We must travel back in time to the Almighty God for bringing all of at the earliest. Let our children be we see soon, true Peace, respect distant past to reclaim our rights us safe from the Pandemic to join allowed to live in a world that is for Naga rights and history and that was declared in unity and trust your celebration here at Hebron free from fear and threats, guns the coming together of all our and deaths. Our dreams of the brothers and to uphold our Naga and struggle together with pride headquarters.

The history of the Naga Naga homeland fair and free tradition of Peace making that and dignity. We strongly believe that there is a future before us and Political struggle has been fraught continues to inspire so many. continues to exist an integral part that it is waiting for those who with so much sacrifices and pain But we also have a generation of our Naga Culture.

May God continue to bless are morally strong, determined and the spirit of patriotism has that is disillusioned by the selfish interest , infighting amongst our and keep all of us united as a kept burning, all these decades. and resolute enough to make it own, undue harassments, our gun Nation and a People.

We acknowledge your dedication their own.

The NNC/FGN firmly be- to the Naga cause and support the lieves that Unity is Strength and the peace negotiations, because we beneed of the hour for the Nagas is lieve our children deserve to live in to unite and to stand united against peace. We urge our leaders here to all odds for the Naga Cause and uphold the principles of reconcilipursue the clarion call of the Na- ation and create an environment of trust and better understanding tion with one voice.

The NNC/FGN as a part and for the greater good of the Naga parcel of the NNPGs continues to people. Our enemies have watched support the Working Committee us for years as we wallowed in Sir, Through your esteemed daily, we appeal to the state Governof the NNPGs for an honorable our disunity and bloodshed. It is solution the Indo- Naga Political time to rise as true warriors, like ment to give at least 3 years age relaxation. If agreed, this will mean problem based on the historical our ancestors, with dedication and 2 years in actuality. It is because the state government in February and political rights of the Nagas, commitment and work towards a 2022 gave 2 years age relaxation but it is to be effective from April the political dialogue for which was sustainable peace and an honour- 2021. So, this year we got the news that we were eligible to apply for concluded on 31st October 2019. able future. As mothers, sisters government jobs last year! Due to no age relaxation, no one above 35 The NNC/FGN strongly ,wives and daughters, we have applied for government jobs in 2021. So, with the so called 2 years feels that it is the bounden duty walked beside our brothers ,our age relaxation, we can apply only once in 2022 because 2021 is over of all right thinking Nagas to men in the believe that one day and with that one year of age relaxation is wasted. But even in 2022, give refuge and humanitarian aids Nagas will be together and live as government job advertisement is hardly coming up. Even the Nagaland wherever necessary to our hapless one people, beyond the imposed Staff Selection Board (NSSB) is yet to start its recruitment. And if the recruitment come late this year, many candidates will miss the Myanmar Naga brethren who in borders of our beautiful lands.

We acknowledge the services age cut-off by months or days. So, the 2 years age relaxation in effect order to save themselves from the intolerable persecutions and of our women national workers, mean just 1 year; and this 1 year too is not that helpful because we human rights violations of the both young and old for the Naga don’t see much recruitment by the government in the narrow window Myanmar army and their desire to nation and we honour each one of few months that we have.

Therefore, the unemployed job seekers will be very grateful if 3 uphold their belief in the Demo- of you, our brave sisters who cratic Principles, have crossed the continue to stand alongside our years age relaxation is given which in effect will mean just 2 years. borders and are now in different brothers, brave and defending our If the readers have misunderstood the government notification, we parts of the Naga inhabited areas. Naga rights. Our land continuous apologize. But we also hope the government will clarify and explain I pray that God will give us to be threatened by militarization the notification more elaborately or accept the appeal of the job seekthe grace and wisdom to be patient and we bear the deep scars of the ers. If the appeal is not accepted then the government should know in times of hardship and to guide Armed Forces Special Powers Act that the age relaxation was a namesake offer because 2021 is over and us in times of hardship as we jour- and continue to live traumatized with it was wasted one year of the age-relaxation it offered; and for ney forward. Happy Republic Day. lives without seeing justice. We this year too we have less hope because we don’t see any government May God bless you all and urge our brothers here, our lead- job advertisements from NSSB coming anytime soon. ers to support our demand for the KUKNALIM L. Singsit, Dimapur or letters published in any of the columns do not reflect the view of this newspaper nor that of the Editor in any manner.

Reader’s Post

Appeal for at least 3 years age relaxation for government jobs in Nagaland

No shortage of Covid vaccine for 12-14 yrs

Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, MAR 22 (NPN): Amidst reports of shortage of COVID-19 vaccine for children in 12-14 age group, the chief medical officer (CMO) Dimapur Dr. I. Moatemjen Tuesday said that there was no shortage of the vaccine, but shortage of beneficiaries.

After due deliberations with scientific bodies, the Centre decided to start COVID-19 vaccination for 1214 years from March 16, 2022. As per the guidelines issued by the Centre, only Corbevax vaccine would be used for the beneficiaries of this age group. Two doses of Biological E’s intramuscular vaccine Corbevax would be administered to the beneficiaries in the 12-14 years age group at an interval of 28

days, the guidelines stated.

When asked why there was shortage of vaccine in certain hospitals, CMO said that the hospital might have not collected sufficient quantity.

On the shortage of beneficiaries, CMO said it could be due to the ongoing examination. Dr. Moatemjen, however, said that after the examination, the drive would begin. He added that

information had been sent to all the schools.

Since the consent of the parents was required before giving out the vaccine, CMO said that those schools willing to carry out the drive will be conducted accordingly. CMO pointed out that target population of children in the age group of 12-14 years in Dimapur was around 17,000.

Since Corbevax vaccine stored at temperature ranging from 2-8 degree Celsius and supplied in 10 mL (20 doses) vial pack, CMO said there should be 20 beneficiaries to avail it or else it would go waste. He, however, said that the department was trying to come up with action plan soon to sort out the issue of availing vaccine by 20 beneficiaries at one go.

7

STATE

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Naga solution: Rio mulls ‘fresh mandate’...

(From p-1) Centre won’t accept separate flag, constitution: Minister for Higher Education and Tribal Affairs, Imna Along, asked why was there delay in coming to a settlement if the Naga political talks had already been concluded.

Along was apprehensive of mass protest by pressure groups and civil society organizations demanding “solution first then election” if solution was not delivered within the next 6-7 months.

He stressed on the need to make compromises at the negotiating table and come to a common ground for the sake of the people. On the issue of the demand for flag and constitution, Along recalled that when he along with the chief minister had met Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, they were told that it (separate flag and constitution) would not happen even in the next 400 years. He remined that the

Government of India can never agree to anything that was beyond the purview of the Constitution.

Joining in the discussion, advisor for Technical Education and Elections, Medo Yhokha said the Naga political movement was a genuine movement which the Nagas had been fighting without wavering for the last many decades.

He said the stalemate on solution should not prolong, as without settlement the future generation would go through the same phase as experienced in the past.

Advisor, Science and Technology, IT and NRE, Mmhonlumo Kikon pointed out that the Nagas were yearning for an early political solution, especially the youths with big dreams and expectations to move ahead.

He also pointed out that the Parliamentary Core Committee constituted by the house, irrespective of

Rio presents tax free Rs. 2212.74 cr deficit budget that this would enable the departments to get their first instalments early and thereby improve implementation of the schemes.

Highlighting the various allocations made by the government, Rio said that keeping in mind the importance of the Foothill Road, the government made a provision for Rs. 30 cr during the current financial year. He said once the tender formalities are completed and works commence, funds shall be released. He also said that preparation of DPR for the East-West Highway, running from Showuba-ZunhebotoShamator-Noklak-Pangsha, and for the Trans Eastern Highway from Mon-Longwa-Pangsha-Kiphire-Avangkhu was already initiated by

the state government along with NHIDCL. Further he said the government has completed the construction of two towers for staff quarters at Dwarka and will start the re-development of the Nagaland House at A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Road on EPC (Engineering Procurement and Construction) mode. Rio said he intended to provide an iconic building which will be one of the landmark in Delhi.

Through the ‘Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure’ in the form of interest free loan for a period of 50 years, the Government of India in the budget announced the allocation of Rs. 1.00 lakh crore for the scheme for 2022-23, to this

Rio proposed to supplement activities under the sectoral allocations or take up specific projects during the year, some of which include-providing access to remote and rural areas, improve facilities in the District and Administrative Headquarters; completion of a football stadium at Chumukedima Police Complex; Development of a Heritage Complex at Mon; Re-development of the Dimapur Town Hall; Construction of an indoor multipurpose-cum-wrestling stadium with a capacity of 15,000 to 20,000 at Kohima.

To establish a separate High Court in the State, he said he will explore avenues for financing to speed up the

construction works at the new High Court Complex, including through the Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure.

Keeping in mind that Nagaland being power deficient state and having to purchase power from outside Rio provided an outlay of Rs. 18.03 crore to the Power sector with special emphasis on projects aimed at exploiting the potential for generation of power in the state.

Rio exuded confidence that the state shall not only become self-sufficient in power but will also be in a position to export surplus power and earn revenue once these projects materialize.

stopping them from coming together.

Taking part int the discussion, Advisor, Justice & Law and SCERT, H. Chuba Chang said all the Nagas were for a solution as talks had already been concluded. He said if the negotiating parties do not have any hidden agenda, then they should come forward and do their part so that Nagas would have a sense of peace of mind. He wondered what legacy would the present leaders leave behind for the next generation if they do not take any concrete decisions on the issue.

NPF MLA Yitachu said that State was suffering from “justice deficiency” and that this was the root cause for so many groups and factions and disunity among the people.

He said that the role of the legislators as facilitators cannot be undermined and to say that the legislators have no role in the Naga

talks was completely out of context.

He said this was the right time to take some definite steps towards and utilize the coming together of all 60 legislators as an opportunity to convince the Centre to take up the issue seriously and come to an amicable settlement at the earliest.

Recalling the hardships that the society had endured, NPF MLA, E.E. Pangteang stated since Naga talk was in its final stage, it was for the NGOs, civil societies, political parties, negotiating parties to unite and take it forward, work on it, so as to arrive at a peaceful solution.

Taking part in the discussion, NPF legislator, Chotisuh Sazo said it was high time that Nagas were freed from this political tangle, and be enabled to move forward on the road to peace, development and prosperity.

Closure of NH-129 A stretch

DIMAPUR, MAR 22 ( N P N ) : To f a c i l i t a t e smooth and timely completion of ongoing twolane construction works along NH-129 A, there would be total restriction of vehicular movement

from Peren to Dimapur along the stretch between Peletkie Junction and Old Jalukie from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily for a period of one month with effect from March 25, 2022.

In an order, deputy

commissioner (DC) Peren Sentiwapang Aier advised all commuters to take the alternate route from Peren town (Bana ward) to Old Jalukie via Mbungkita (Old Road) and vice versa during the restriction period.

CPO, WSH plea for inclusion in consultative meetings

(From p-1) (JCC), which has convened a joint consultative meeting on March 25 at Naga Council Dimapur office to deliberate on the ULB polls issue.

They said that all major bodies including student unions have been invited with the exception of CPO and WSH. They said that CPO and WSH “actually, constitutes as the two main stakeholders” in the three

districts of Dimapur, Chumoukedima and Niuland.

As such, the two bodies said it would be in the interest of the people of Dimapur, Chumoukedima, and Niuland if the particular nomenclature of CPO and WSH is included and clearly mentioned in the list of invitees to any consultative meetings “so as to enable the active participation of the CPO and the WSH.”

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GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND OFFICE OF THE GENERAL MANAGER DISTRICT INDUSTRIES CENTRE LONGLENG: NAGALAND No.DIC/Llg/RAP-1/2014-15 Dated: 21st March2022

ADVERTISEMENT

Applications are hereby invited from bonafide local indigenous candidates for undergoing 9 (nine) months weaving training under Rural artisan programme (RAP) at District Industries Centre Longleng. The training will commerce from 20th April 2022.

Number of trainees will be 10 (ten) and educational qualification for the candidates will be class 8 and above. The candidates will have to appear for interview on 8th April 2022 at DIC Longleng in the office chamber of the undersigned at their own expenses and no separate calling letter will be served.

The candidates should bring their original certificates during the interview.

Documents required: 1.Indigenous certificates 2. Schedule Tribe certificate 3.Certificate of proof of educational qualification 4. Aadhar card and 2 (two) passport photos.

The selected candidates will be provided with stipend of Rs 500/- per month during the training period. The training is being imparted to give self employment opportunities to the unemployment.

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(From p-1) For this, he said a special purpose vehicle was being formed. He said the government had created a comprehensive database of all its employees called the Personnel Information Management System (PIMS), which would help ensure collection of real-time data of all categories of employees, including personal data like date of entry into service and date of retirement. He asserted that the database would also form the basis for budgetary allocation to various departments for salaries and wages and would help to put a check on illegal and excess appointments beyond the sanctioned strength that was becoming a widespread problem.

In addition, he said the Finance Department has recently introduced e-Pay Bill at DDO level to ensure that salaries were prepared as per actual staff strength as reflected in the PIMS database. Eventually, he said the e-Pay Bill would help the Finance Department to get real-time data on cash outgo and check fraudulent payments and other financial malpractices that were frequently being reported

by Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

These measures would go a long way in bringing about transparency and accountability, and prevent malpractices and leakage of public funds, he added.

Rio said despite the difficult times, the last few months had shown a substantial turnaround in the State’s economy. According to him, the country’s GST collections had reached Rs 1,40,986 crore during in 2022 and State’s own revenues also showed a healthy increase. As a result, he said he was in a position to allocate Rs 775 crore for the State Development Outlay for 2022-23 and it represented an increase of 10.71% over last year’s outlay.

In the State Development Outlay for 2022-23, he mentioned that efforts had been made to ensure that priority was given to completion of ongoing projects and to projects that had a multiplier effect in creating livelihoods and local economies.

He said Rs 225.85 crore of development fund was earmarked for various departmental activities, including core activities, while Rs 151.08 crore was earmarked for construction of office buildings or residential quarters and Rs 122.06 crore for road and other infrastructure-related activities.

A higher amount of Rs 276 crore had been earmarked for State’s share to CSS to facilitate access to more Central funds, out of which 30% of the allocation was being provided upfront to the CSS implementing departments to be reflected in their Demands for Grants of 2022-23, Rio said, adding

party affiliation, was to play the role of an active facilitator and that the elected members were working tirelessly for early political settlement-- transparent and honourable to the Naga people.

Advisor, Sericulture, Excise and Minority Affairs, Zhaleo Rio voiced disappointment that after much discussions, debates, consultations with Naga stakeholders and with the Assembly passing many resolutions urging the negotiating parties to come together to work for the good of the people and in spite of talks being concluded on 31st October 2019 things are still not clear.

He said the 60 legislators, as elected members, represented the voice of the Nagas and has the mandate to speak and facilitate for a peaceful settlement. He also questioned that if the national workers were working for Nagas, what was

k-562/22

8

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

BUSINESS/STATE

rate reflects market realities, Fitch cuts FY23 India growth forecast to 8.5% EPFsays FM Nirmala Sitharaman

NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): Rating agency Fitch on Tuesday slashed India’s growth forecast for the next fiscal to 8.5 per cent from 10.3 per cent, citing soaring energy prices and rising inflation on account of the Russia-Ukraine war.

It has revised upwards the GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal by 0.6 percentage points to 8.7 per cent.

“However, we have lowered our growth forecast for FY 2022-2023 to 8.5 per cent (-1.8 pp) on sharply higher energy prices,” Fitch said.

For 2023-24, it is estimated at 7 per cent.

In its Global economic Outlook-March 2022, Fitch said the post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery is being hit by a potentially huge global supply shock that will reduce growth and

push up inflation.

“The war in Ukraine and economic sanctions on Russia have put global energy supplies at risk.

Sanctions seem unlikely to be rescinded any time soon,” the agency said.

Last week, another global rating agency Moody’s had slashed India’s growth estimate for the 2022 calendar year to 9.1 per cent from 9.5 per

cent earlier, saying high fuel and fertiliser import bill could limit capital expenditure.

Russia supplies around 10 per cent of the world’s energy, including 17 per cent of its natural gas and 12 per cent of oil.

“The jump in oil and gas prices will add to industry costs and reduce consumers’ real incomes...

Higher energy prices are a

given,” Fitch said as it has reduced the world GDP growth forecast by 0.7 percentage points to 3.5 per cent.

International oil prices started rising this year and jumped to a 13-year high of USD 140 per barrel earlier this month as an aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Brent was trading at USD 118.59 per barrel on Tuesday.

India relies on overseas purchases to meet about 85 per cent of its oil requirement, making it one of the most vulnerable in Asia to higher oil prices.

Observing that Indian GDP growth was very strong in the December quarter, Fitch said the GDP is more than 6 per cent above its pre-pandemic level though it is still well below its implied pre-pandemic trend.

“High-frequency data indicate that the Indian economy has ridden out the Omicron wave with little damage – in stark contrast with the two previous coronavirus waves in 2020 and 2021,” it said.

Fitch now sees inflation strengthening further, peaking above 7 per cent in the December quarter of 2022, before gradually easing.

The agency expects inflation to remain elevated throughout the forecast horizon at 6.1 per cent annual average in 2021 and 5 per cent in 2022.

“Local fuel prices have been flat over the past weeks, but we assume that oil companies will eventually pass on higher oil prices to retail fuel prices (with some offset from a reduction in the excise duty by the government),” it added.

NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): Defending the decision of Central Board of Trustees (CBT), the highest decision-making body of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), to lower the interest on PF deposits for 2021-22 to a four-decade low of 8.1%, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the rate reflected the current market realities, adding that it was still higher compared to rates offered under other fixed income schemes.

On the approval being sought for additional spending for 2021-22, she said that the government has borne a higher cost of fertilisers through enhanced subsidy instead of passing it on to farmers, Financial Express reported.

Pointing out that the Centre is transferring resources to states promptly, the minister said the revised estimate of Rs 7.45 lakh crore devolution of the state share in central taxes for the current financial year, has already been released.

Comparing the EPFO rate to other schemes, she said Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana offers 7.6% interest, Senior Citizen Saving Scheme 7.4%, Public Provident Fund 7.1% and State Bank of India’s 5-10 year fixed deposits 5.5%. The Central government securities’ average rate across certain maturities is 6.28%, she said.

“For 40 years it has not been brought down. There are today’s realities which do keep us in the context of decisions being taken

by the Central Board of EPFO,” Sitharaman said in her reply to a discussion on Appropriation Bills in the Rajya Sabha.

On March 12, the Central Board of Trustees of the EPFO decided to lower the interest on PF deposits for 2021-22 for its nearly 6.5 crore subscribers. This is the lowest EPF interest state since 1977-78 when it stood at 8%. The PF rate for 202122 will be operationalised after the finance ministry approves it. Responding to questions on the pre-IPO valuation of LIC, the minister said that the embedded value (EV) of the state-run insurer was calculated in an “extremely scientific way” and has been disclosed in draft IPO papers filed with SEBI. The EV is pegged at Rs 5.4 lakh crore.

Govt loses Rs. 207.25 cr in 26 misappropriation... ‘Atmanirbhar’ not leading towards closed economy: NITI

No. 3865 Yesterday’s solution No. 3864

LAND FOR SALE New Showuba Area Near Nuiland Road 10 Puras. Per sq. ft. Rs. 70/(Dry Land) # 9612242850/7642919029

LAND FOR SALE Between Old & New Showuba Close to foothill road and four lane fly over Area : 100 by 120 sq. ft.

Price : Rs. 160 per sq. ft. (fixed) Contact : 8729881352

LAND FOR SALE Plot with House for Sale at 5th Mile Total Area : 14650 sq. ft. with Boundary Wall at Rs 87 Lakhs Contact - 7005821347

FOR SALE Land with House Purana Bazar Near Zion Hospital Rs. 30,00,000/-

Phone No. : 9089388037 7085829927

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PRIME LaNd FoR saLE Dimension : 220x220x100x80 (feet) Location : Between Hoito and Nihoto Villages, near new 4-lane About 5-6 kms from Showuba Junction, Niuland Road Price : Negotiable Contact : 9612247917

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FOR SALE Toyota Fortuner 4x4 2011 (NL) Maruti Gypsy Euro III 4x4 2009 (UR) No brokers, genuine buyers only.

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At Kohima Different locations Road Attached Different rates Contact : 9366754094

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LAND FOR SALE

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Offering with good profit

+91-9863060734/8416061532

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at Naga United Village Near Hope Academy School Price : 285/- per sq. ft. (Nego.)

Genuine buyer may Contact : 9362791737 dp-1317/22

LAND FOR SALE PADUMPUKHURI

Rs. 270 per sq. ft.

50X44, 76X48, 58X38

DUBAgAON

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Land for saLe (IndIsen)

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3. 60x78 sq. ft. @ rs. 340 per sq. ft.

Contact: 9773812027, 8730816229 no BroKer

LAND FOR SALE at Naga United Village, Dimapur Area : 5925 sq. ft., Price : 295/sq. ft.

Near Petrol Pump Genuine buyers Owner's Contact : 8798035482 No Broker

LAND FOR SALE A. 14 Bighas (Any types of Farming Site) Rs. 60 per sq. ft.

B. 9½ Bighas (Paddy Field) Rs. 45 per sq. ft.

C. 17000 sq. ft.

(Two Lane Touched) at Khughovi Village Rs. 140 per sq. ft.

Contact # 9362359477

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No. 4841 Yesterday’s solution No. 4840

ACROSS 3 Meat (5) 8 Natural pigment (5) 10 Conspiracy (5) 11 Hot drink (3) 12 Challenges (5) 13 Acrobat (7) 15 Tag (5) 18 Rubbish receptacle (3) 19 Spanish dance (6) 21 Down payment (7) 22 Poke (4) 23 Sieve (4) 24 Ideal (7) 26 Universe (6) 29 Gone by (3) 31 Iron alloy (5) 32 Prejudice (7) 34 Waterway (5) 35 Also (3) 36 Keepsake (5) 37 Flower part (5) 38 Tries (5) DOWN 1 Give trouble (3,2) 2 Snatched (7) 4 Slightly open (4) 5 Feline mammal (6) 6 Of the nose (5) 7 Provide (5) 9 Edge (3) 12 Indicates (7) 14 Cheek (3) 16 Become (5) 17 Plunders (5) 19 Seem probable (3,4) 20 Glasses (5) 21 Extinguish (5) 23 Child’s vehicle (7) 24 Patrol (6) 25 Ovum (3) 27 Different (5) 28 Deserve (5) 30 Dull cry (5) 32 Defeat (4) 33 Toddler (3)

*Candidate MUST have experience in the relevant field.

Tel: +91 7085099052 Location: 3rd Mile, Dimapur.

WANTED DEALER All Banks Mini ATM

Prime land for sale

in Kuhuboto Town. both side of two lane road 6 kms from Dubagaon village main gate.

Area 17 bighas to be sold in bulk Rate Rs. 70 per sq feet Contact No. 9612247917

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KAKURO

No. 10219 Yesterday’s solution No. 10218

Immediate Requirement for Cafe Kitchen Helper (Male)

to supply green ammonia– a key input in making hydrogen fuel.

“We have also been working very diligently on the hydrogen mission. I know that Japan has made significant advances in the hydrogen economy, Toyota has just launched its own vehicle and I think that is where…my request to our Japanese friends is that when Japan comes up with its tenders for green ammonia, please do invite Indian companies to supply that,” Kumar said. “We have a target of exporting 10 metric million tonnes of green ammonia in the next ten years. And green ammonia is the basis for the hydrogen economy and we are committed to producing and taking green hydrogen power very rapidly”.

LOST NOTICE I, Wangnyem M Konyak am applying for duplicate copy of B.A. III Year Certificate of NU as I have lost it.

Name : Wangnyem M Konyak F/Name : Mohpa Konyak DoB : 10.12.1997 Roll. No. : AG16020069 Regd. No. 16020218, Year : 2016 College : Japfu Christian College, Kigwema Contact : 6009454609

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Su doku

“The Konyak Union is deeply saddened and pained but prays that the sacrifices of those precious souls are not being blown away in vain. The Konyak Union office as a matured institution had remained calm amidst such political chaos and commotions and further advised all concerned to retrospect for tagging the ‘Konyaks’ as ‘anti-Naga’ but sadly those who opposed our stance are following the same today,” the statement noted.

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Crossword

ment and Chi-Mon land donors of 1964.

The union also expressed shock with the March 9 resolution, regretting that when two precious Naga youth had laid down their lives in the fight to safeguard article 371A, their sacrifices were silently engraved.

The tribal endorsement to the March 9 declaration and resolution only reflected the wavering attitude of the Nagas, the union added.

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cation of 2017 to conduct Urban Local Bodies elections with 33% women reservation, elections were held within Konyak jurisdiction in four Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) headquarters of Naginimora, Tizit, Aboi and Tobu, except Mon that had nothing to do with Article 371A of the Constitution of India nor on inclusion of 33% women reservation, but due to nonfulfilment of the agreement between the State Govern-

remains very deeply committed to greater integration with global flows and our regional network,” Kumar said while inviting Japanese firms to invest more in India.

He said that Japan can contribute to every aspect of the Indian economy and help it grow the exports by taking advantage of the global demand and achieve a higher share in global trade and merchandise services growth.

“It will help us accelerate our growth and our employment generation and I think that is where the Japanese companies are very well placed to (help us) achieve this in the coming years,” he added.

Speaking on the transition towards green mobility by promoting clean energy, he said Japan has already taken a lead in this field and it can help the Indian companies by inviting them

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(From p-1) The union also reminded the government how it had stood firm and remained committed to the latter’s notification then and now.

The Konyak Union thus sought the government’s intervention on the issues mentioned above before declaring the Urban Local Bodies elections in Nagaland.

According to the Konyak Union, with the State government’s notifi-

fear at all that the production linked incentive scheme for the Atmanirbhar, the self-reliant India– a call given by the prime minister as a response to the Covid situation and for our economy to come out of it– I want to dispel the fear that it is in any sense leading us towards a closed economy,” Kumar said while speaking at a webinar on the 10th ICRIER-PRI workshop on ‘Policy Responses to COVID-19 in India and Japan and Prospects for Economic Cooperation Going Ahead’.

He said there is no question at all for India to move back from its engagement with the global economy, trade, services, financial and technological aspects among others.

“We are convinced that it is only by a deeper integration for India that we will achieve better results for our people as we go forward.

“And I think what we have done points towards that, whether it the liberalisation of our foreign investment in defense sector, whether it is opening up the defense sector to our private domestic enterprises or liberalisation of our services sector, all that I think points to the fact that India

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ULB polls: KU sets 3 pre-conditions

NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): NITI Aayog on Tuesday sought to dispel the fear that India is favouring a closed economy by promoting ‘Atmanirbhar’ mission, and said the country can achieve better results for its people by having a deeper engagement with the global supply and value chain.

Inviting Japanese investors to set up companies in India on a larger scale under the recently launched production linked incentive (PLI) schemes, NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar said India remains very deeply committed to greater integration with global flows and the regional network.

“We would want the Japanese companies to come and make India an export hub to the rest of the world under the PLI scheme. I think the environment is there to develop it because on the Indian side we have done, and we will continue to do whatever is required to attract Japanese investment into India.

“I do want to take this opportunity to dispel any

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bodies be given further financial assistance by the State government only on submission of final accounts.

Further, the State government should ensure that the controlling officers render the monthly accounts in time to the Accountant General (A&E) in the interest of financial discipline and budget management, the C&AG recommended.

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are in future booked under the appropriate detailed/ object heads of account.

It said the Finance department should consider evolving a system to expedite the process of compilation and submission of annual accounts by autonomous bodies and departmentally run undertakings in order to assess their financial position and persistently defaulting

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signed contingent (DCC) bills within the prescribed timeline as required under the rules.

It suggested that the Finance department in consultation with the Principal Accountant General (A&E) should conduct a comprehensive review of all items presently appearing under minor head 800 and ensure that all such receipts and expenditure

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(From p-1) Rise in the number of keeping UCs pending largely resulted in higher risk of misappropriation of funds, the report pointed out.

Some of the recommendations made by C&AG was that the State government ensure timely submission of all UCs due by the recipients of grants and of detailed counter-

No survivors found in China plane crash

“People on-board the aircraft are still unaccounted for as the rescue work is underway at the mountainous site,” the state television reported over 24 hours after China’s worst air disaster in over a decade.

Answering questions about the rescue efforts, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters in Beijing on Tuesday that he is deeply grieved by the China Eastern Airlines passenger plane crash, adding that search and rescue missions are underway to find out

Pak rakes up Kashmir issue at OIC meet

SL deploys military at fuel stations amidst shortage

environment free of terror and hostility.

Referring to India’s move to abrogate Article 370 in August 2019, Khan said “nothing happened because they (India) felt no pressure.”

Khan said he was not saying that Muslim countries alter their foreign policies but unless “we have a united front (on core issues) these abuses will keep on happening”.

Pakistan has been unsuccessfully trying to drum up international support against India for withdrawing Jammu and Kashmir’s special status on August 5, 2019 and bifurcating it into two Union territories.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 was its internal matter. It also advised Pakistan to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda.

Imran Khan

“We are a divided house and they (Israel and India) know it,” he said.

India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir “was, is and shall forever” remain an integral part of the country.

It also advised Pakistan to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda.

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

India has said the onus is on Pakistan to create an

COLOMBO, MAR 22 (IANS): Army personnel were deployed at all fuel stations run by Sri Lanka’s state-owned Ceylon Petroleum Corporation on Tuesday amidst a shortage that led to long queues of consumers. Military spokesman Nilantha Premaratna said that military personnel were deployed to monitor the distribution of fuel at the filling stations and maintain law and order among the consumers, reports Xinhua news agency. He said two military men were deployed at every fuel station as people had to stand in queues for as long as several hours.

Three people died with one person killed in recent days while standing in the fuel queues in different parts of the country, leading to a tense situation in several areas.

S. Korea’s COVID-19 deaths strain crematories, hospitals

Biden says US must lead ‘new world order’

MOSCOW, MARCH 22 (IANS): US President Joe Biden has raised eyebrows after he claimed a “new world order” would soon be established and that it was up to the US to lead it.

During a speech on Monday at Business Roundtable’s CEO Quarterly Meeting, Biden claimed the world was at “an inflection point” which “occurs every three or four generations” and that it was up to the US to determine the outcome, RT reported.

Digital screens showing safety precautions against the coronavirus in a subway train in Seou Tuesday.

combined capacity from around 1,000 to 1,400 cremations per day.

But that has not been enough to meaningfully ease the backlog of bodies waiting to be cremated in

the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area, which is home to half of South Korea’s 52 million people and the centre of its COVID-19 outbreak.

The backlog has also

trickled down to funeral homes at hospitals and other facilities, where families have struggled to make funeral arrangements because of the longer wait for cremations.

Senior Health Ministry official Son Youngrae said during a briefing that officials will instruct regional crematories to increase furnace operations from five times to seven times a day, which would match the levels at crematories in the greater capital area.

Crematories will also be asked to receive reservations from outside their regions — something many facilities don’t typically do — to reduce the backlog in the Seoul region, Son said.

OFFICE OF THE

Chekiye Village CounCil Dimapur : Nagaland

Ref.No. CVC/INFO-1/2021-2022/

Estd. - 1959

FELICITATION

21/03/2022

The Chekiye Village Council extend our heartiest congratulations to the following individuals who have been elevated to higher positions.

1. Mrs. Tosheli Zhimomi, promoted to the post of Director, Social Welfare, Department, Nagaland.

2. Mr. Hutoi Sema, promoted to the post of Deputy Director, Social Welfare Department, Nagaland.

3. Mrs. Unice Sema, promoted to the post of Child Development Project Officer, Nagaland.

4. Mr. Tohokhu T.Sema, promoted to the post of Child Development Project Officer, Nagaland.

The Chekiye Village Council is elated at your exemplary achievement and it is our belief that same will continue to inspire the young and old to aspire for greater heights.

We sincerely wish the best in all your future endeavours.

(HUKAVI ZHIMOMI) Chairman Chekiye Village Council

(AHOKHU CHISHI) Secretary Chekiye Village Council

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SEOUL, MAR 22 (AP): Health officials in South Korea have instructed crematories to burn more bodies per day and funeral homes to add more refrigerators to store the dead as families struggle with funeral arrangements amid a rise in COVID-19 deaths.

The country has been dealing with a massive coronavirus outbreak driven by the fast-moving omicron variant, which has compromised a once robust pandemic response and is driving up hospitalisations and fatalities.

Officials have already allowed the 60 crematories across the country to burn for longer hours starting last week, which raised their

People examine the damage after shelling of a shopping center, in Kyiv, March 21, 2022. (AP/PTI)

nian troops drove Russian forces out of the Kyiv suburb of Makariv after a fierce battle, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said. The regained territory allowed Ukrainian forces to retake control of a key highway and block Russian troops from surrounding Kyiv from the northwest.

Still, the Defense Ministry said Russian forces were able to partially take other northwest suburbs, Bucha, Hostomel and Irpin, some of which had been under attack almost since Russia’s military invaded almost a month ago.

Russia’s invasion has driven more than 10 million people from their homes, almost a quarter of Ukraine’s

pre-war population, according to the United Nations.

The U.N. has confirmed 953 civilian deaths while saying the real toll is probably much higher.

Estimates of Russian military casualties in the grinding war have been hard to come by and vary, but even conservative figures by Western officials are in the low thousands.

Russia has not given an update since it said March 2 that 498 soldiers had been killed in action in Ukraine.

Russia’s pro-Kremlin Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, citing the Defense Ministry, briefly reported Monday that almost 10,000 Russian soldiers had been killed.

Putin critic Navalny sentenced to 9 years in prison M O S C OW, M A R 2 2 (AGENCIES): Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was convicted of fraud and contempt of court and sentenced to nine years in a maximum security prison on Tuesday, in a trial Kremlin critics see as an attempt to keep President Vladimir Putin’s most ardent foe in prison for as long as possible.

A judge also ruled that Navalny would have to pay a fine of 1.2 million rubles (about $11,500). Navalny can appeal the ruling.

Navalny, who is already serving 2½ years in a penal colony east of Moscow, had been accused of embezzling money that he and his foundation raised over the years and of insulting a judge during a previous trial.

The politician has rejected the allegations as politically motivated. The prosecution had asked for

Alexei Navalny (L) seen on a screen via a video link during a court hearing on March 22, 2022.

13 years in a maximum security prison for the anticorruption crusader and a 1.2 million-ruble fine.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Navalny is expected to serve this sentence concurrently with his current one or on top of it, and which maximum security facility he will be transferred to and when.

Navalny’s Twitter account responded to the ruling with a quote from “The Wire” television series: “(Nine) years. Well, as the charac-

MEDZIPHEMA VILLAGE COUNCIL NOTICE

FOR LAND PATTA RENEWAL

The Medziphema Village Council will renew or issue new registration of Land Patta under Medziphema Village jurisdiction starting from 07.04.2022 to 30.04.2022, time 9.00 am to 4.00 pm and the office will be open weekly Thursdays to Saturdays at Council Hall, Medziphema Village. Patta will be issued to only indigenous persons as per Sec. 162 of the Nagaland Land and Revenue Regulation (Amendment) Act. 1978.

Every concern Patta Holder(s) and New registration under Medziphema Village authority are hereby notified to renew/register your land Patta during the said period.

Required documents :1. Passport size 2 (two) photos 2. Allotment order, sale/gift deed and all relevant documents.

3. Indigenous Inhabitant Certificate and 4. Registration Fee. For further clarification, contact no. : 9383047889, 7005413379

ters of my favorite TV series The Wire used to say: ‘You only do two days. That’s the day you go in and the day you come out.’ I even had a T-shirt with this slogan, but the prison authorities confiscated it, considering the print extremist.”

The trial, which opened about a month ago, unfolded in a makeshift courtroom in the prison colony hours away from Moscow where Navalny is serving a sentence for parole violations. Navalny’s

OFFICE OF THE

YONGSHEI STUDENTS' UNION LONGLENG-798625 : NAGALAND FELICITATION

Office of the Yongshei Students' Union would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to Miss CHINGYAN H. PHOM, D/o Mr. E. Hamkam Phom and Mrs. T. Wanshem for securing Gold Medal in M.Sc (Environmental Science) under Nagaland University for the academic session 2019-2021. We are extremely elated by your success and the Union wishes you all the best in all your future endeavours and is pleased to see you accomplishing far more.

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams" Y. Thedong Ong (President, YSU)

CLARIFICATION

Regd. No 1484 Date: 22/03/2022 In response to the Affidavit Declaration published in Nagaland Post dated 02/03/2022, Page No. 4, in which Shri.T. Yanarao, S/o Lt.Tsenchamo Kikon of Old Aree Village ,Wokha District Nagaland claimed that the PHC building site at Kichanben Hayi in Old Aree Village belongs to Lt. Tsenchamo Kikon brother of Lt. Renpomo Kikon and Lt. Lumbemo Ngullie is absolutely false and baseless.

Referring to Govt. of Nagaland, Office of the Civil Surgeon, Wokha, Nagaland, NO.CSU/1/26/HD/80-81, Dated 16/03/1981, Para-II, clearly declare that the compensation is to be given to the landowner namely: (1) LUMBEMO (2) YANASAO and not YANARAO who is misleading the other with the similarities in name.

It is pertinent to mention here that Lt. Rhonsuo Kikon was a bonafide and one of the founding members who established the Old Aree Village. We the Kiniti descendants of Lt. Rhonsuo Kikon have the rightful ownership of the plot of land. So, nobody can interfere in this site/land blindly without the fact and nothing be said in this matter by any other.

Hence, this site/land of PHC belongs to Lt. Rhonsuo Kikon of Old Aree Village and does not belong to Lt. Tsenchamo Kikon or any other as claimed in the Affidavit but solely belongs to Lt. Rhonsuo Kikon descendants.

Descendants of Kiniti: 1. Mhonbemo Kikon, S/o Lt.Thungmomo Kikon 2. Lirow Kikon, S/o Lt.Zurenthung Kikon 3. Khungdenshan Kikon, S/o Lt.Repyonshan Kikon 4. Zananimo Kikon, S/o Lt.Fuchamo Kikon 5. Enija Kikon, S/o Lt.Thungmomo Kikon 6. Ayilow Kikon, S/o Lt.Zurenthung Kikon 7. Kishamo Kikon, S/o Lt. Repyonshan Kikon 8. Nsemo Kikon, S/o Yanasao Kikon

supporters have criticized the authorities’ decision to move the proceedings there from a courthouse in Moscow, saying it has effectively limited access to the proceedings for the media and supporters.

Navalny, 45, has appeared at hearings wearing prison garb and made several elaborate speeches during the trial, decrying the charges against him as bogus.

Navalny was arrested in January 2021 immediately upon his return from Germany, where he spent five months convalescing from a poisoning he blamed on the Kremlin, a claim Russian officials vehemently denied. Shortly after the arrest, a court sentenced him to 2½ years in prison over the parole violations stemming from a 2014 suspended sentence in a fraud case that Navalny insists was politically driven.

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N. Pongan Shukha (G/Secretary, YSU)

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The team is also thoroughly investigating other aspects, including flight, maintenance, air traffic control, meteorology, aircraft design and manufacturing, Zhu said.

Based on known information, the authorities do not yet have a clear clue to the cause of the passenger plane crash, the official said. Aircraft debris and some personal belongings have been found at the air crash site in Tengxian County of Wuzhou City, but no survivors, state-run CGTN reported.

I S L A M A BA D, M A R 22 (PTI): Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday again raked up the Kashmir issue at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) foreign ministers’ meeting here, saying the 57-member body has not been able to make any impact at all as it’s a “divided house”.

Khan’s comments came at a time when he is facing the toughest political test since assuming office in 2018 as a no-confidence motion has been introduced by the opposition parties against his government.

“We have failed both the people of Palestine and Kashmir,” Khan said in his keynote address at the 48th Council of Foreign Ministers of the OIC at the Parliament House here as he sought to raise the issues of Palestine and Kashmir in the same breath.

Sun was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

The cause of the crash cannot be confirmed immediately and the investigation into the cause is difficult, said Zhu Tao, an official with the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said on Tuesday.

At present, the investigation team is carrying out a full probe in accordance with the procedures, with rescuers exploring the crash site and going all out to search the black boxes, Zhu said.

KYIV, MAR 22 (AP): Ukraine said it retook a strategically important suburb of Kyiv on Tuesday, as Russian forces squeezed other areas near the capital and pressed their attack on the embattled southern port of Mariupol.

Explosions and bursts of gunfire shook Kyiv, and black smoke rose from a spot in the north. Intensified artillery fire could be heard from the northwest, where Russia has sought to encircle and capture several suburban areas of the capital, a crucial target.

Residents sheltered at home or underground under a 35-hour curfew imposed by city authorities that runs to Wednesday morning.

Russian forces also continued their siege of Mariupol after the southern port city’s defenders refused demands to surrender, with fleeing civilians describing relentless bombardments and corpses lying in the streets. But the Kremlin’s ground offensive in other parts of the country advanced slowly or not at all, knocked back by lethal hit-and-run attacks by the Ukrainians.

Early Tuesday, Ukrai-

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Debris marked by numbers is seen at the site of a plane crash in Tengxian County in southern China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Tuesday. (AP/PTI)

the cause of the incident as soon as possible. Meanwhile, rescue work continued on Tuesday night with over 2,000 people involved in the search operations.

The Chinese military has deployed drones to conduct search operations.

A whole lot of machinery, including excavators, have been moved into the mountainous forest area where the crash has occurred.

“The site of the crash in a mountain forest complicates the search for the black boxes and we have to rely mainly on drones and rescue staff,” Zhu Xiaodong, a rescuer, told official media.

Experts from the public security department and the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) are entering the main crash site to search for physical evidence, confirm the identity of the missing persons and find out the possible cause of the accident.

Some personal belongings of the passengers have been collected and numbered. Drones have been deployed to search for more evidence in an area of nearly 680,000 square meters, said Zhang Xueliang, another rescuer.

Ukraine retakes key Kyiv suburb; battle for Mariupol rages

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BEIJING/NANNING, MAR 22 (PTI): No survivors have been found so far among the 123 passengers and nine crew members in the plane crash, a top Chinese official said on Tuesday, as the search continued in a forested mountainous area in the country’s south where the aircraft crashed a day earlier.

Sun Shiying, chairman of China Eastern Airlines Yunnan branch, made the announcement at a news briefing held Tuesday night.

The announcement of no survivors came as hundreds of rescuers carried out desperate search operations in the mountainous regions where the Boeing 737, on its way from the Chinese city of Kunming to Guangzhou, plunged and crashed.

All-out search operation for the black boxes of the crashed passenger plane was underway, Sun said in his first media briefing on the plane crash in Nanning, capital of Guangxi province from where most of the rescue operations are being directed.

Contacts have been made with families of all 123 passengers within 24 hours after the plane crash,

9

INTERNATIONAL

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

STATE

10

Mock drill conduced in Tsg

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Mass social work in Kohima on Mar 23

DIMAPUR: In connection with the South Asian Athletic Federation (SAAF) Cross Country Championships and 56 National Cross Country Championships scheduled to be held in Kohima on March 26, a mass social work would be carried out in Kohima town on March 23 from 6 am to 9 am.

This was decided at the meeting held on March 22 convened by DC Kohima Gregory Thejawelie and attended by all heads of offices, representatives from AKMWP, AYO and ASU. It was also decided that the social work would be carried out with the involvement of State Government employees, general A rescue operation exercise was conducted at old DC’s office complex, Tuensang. public, district departmenDIMAPUR: As part of Vishal Chauhan appreci- to tackle the situations of joint exercise, personnel ated the team effort of disasters of any magnitude. of NDRF and SDRF car- NDRF in demonstrating He encouraged the SDRF ried out rescue operation the evacuation and res- team to be well prepared exercise at old DC’s office cue mission from a high so that if disasters hit the complex, Tuensang on rise building for which he district, the situation can DIMAPUR: Nagaland Two Wheeler Taxi AsMarch 22. also encouraged the SDRF be handled.

According to DIPR team to be confident in NDRF commander sociation (NTWTA) has report, the mock drill on such missions. also mentioned on the inducted new committee disaster was organized by DC Tuensang, Kumar importance of including members for the tenure the DDMA. Ramnikant also advised the NCC and Bharat Scouts 2022-2024 and elected KeDebriefing on the teams for preparedness ex- & and Guides personnel neisalie Belho as the president. The newly elected mock drill, SP Tuensang, ercises and to be equipped in such exercises. members have urged the citizens to refrain from using illegal private two wheeler taxi and warned DIMAPUR: Medziphema Village stated that it had waited for the NHIDCL of legal action against the Council (MVC) has raised concern on authority, engaged in the construction of defaulters. Further as per the incomplete earth cutting at ward-5 the road, to resolve the incomplete earth the directive of the regional Medziphema NH-29 (box cutting) which cutting but no action has been initiated. Transport Office, Kohima, poised danger on vehicles as there was In this regard, MVC said that in the that all riders needs to be in chances of rock debris falling from the event of any unfortunate event leading yellow vests when plying, above. to accidents or damage to any vehicles the association stated that Taking note of the issue, the MVC while passing through the said area, the it will arranged and notify in a short time. secretary, Avitsi Nakhro in a press release NHIDCL would be held responsible.

MOs training on routine immunisation

tal officers, various Civil Societies and Organisations, ULBs, Colonies, Wards and GBs to make all the wards free of any kind of waste, rubble, muck, foliage and overgrowth etc.

Therefore, DC has informed that any kind of waste including debris and building materials, which may be creating public nuisance or giving dirty look along the roads and paths be removed or disposed off.

District officers have been assigned as team leader to monitor and supervise the work at various designated locations and Colonies/ wards to ensure their participation while AYO and ASU have been assigned to mobilize and assist the work.

DIMAPUR: One day refreshers’ training on routine immunisation for Medical Officers (MOs) of Mokokchung and Longleng districts was held on March 22 at Conference Hall, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Mokokchung office.

A press release by the department stated that CMO Mokokchung Dr. R Chubala Aier while welcoming officials from the department of Health & Family Welfare, Kohima, MOs and facilitators from WHO and UNDP, urged the SMOs and MOs to take the opportunity to interact and address difficulties.

She further stressed on the importance of proper documentation, collection of data, reporting and IEC activities. She envisioned

Training in progress at Mokokchung.

that the training would strengthen and improve routine immunization in the district.

The MOs were trained on strategies to improve routine immunization, national immunization schedule and managing immunization schedule, cold chain and logistics management, AEFI, safety and

waste disposal, recordingreporting and using data for action (HMIS, MCTS, SS etc) and communication plan strategies.

The facilitators were DoHFW deputy director, Dr. Rio, SMO WHO, Dr.Sheila, RPO UNDP, Rajesh K Monsang and SPO UNDP, Kingson Kamkara.

NTWTA elects new team

MVC flags concern on incomplete work

Members of National Domestic Workers Movement (NDWM) Nagaland Region at a programme on the discussion on the issues faced by the domestic workers on Tuesday. The programme was jointly organised by ACID and ANDWU.

NSCN/GPRN (K) celebrates Republic Day

Assessment camp for CwSN in Kiphire

(CHONGKHOI K) General Secretary

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workers to once again recommit and rededicate to God and stand true to the commitment “Nagaland for Christ” in spirit and action.

E a r l i e r, t h e p r o gramme chaired by chief secretary GPRN, Vikheho Assumi began with an invocation by jt.secy, Tiatemsu following by flag hoisting by Isak Sumi.

A one minute silent prayer in remembrance and honour the martyrs and departed comrades was also observed.

HAPPY 75th BIRTHDAY OFFICE OF THE

OFFICE OF THE

NERHEMA STUDENTS’ UNION

KIPHIRE VILLAGE COUNCIL

FELICITATION

P.O & DIST. KIPHIRE-798611, NAGALAND

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FELICITATION

With immense pride, we the Nerhema Students’ Union take great pleasure in congratulating the following individuals for their outstanding achievement in pursuit of academic excellence.

1. Miss Keneilhounuo Üsou, D/o Mr. Neitho-o Üsou, recipient of Gold Medal in M.A Sociology, Nagaland University (2016).

2. Miss Thejaneinuo Chadi, D/o Mr. Kezha-o Chadi, recipient of Gold Medal in M.A Sociology, Nagaland University (2019).

3. Miss Pelhouneinuo Kiewhuo, D/o Mr. Neitho-o Kiewhuo, recipient of Gold Medal in M.A English, Nagaland University (2020).

The Union further wishes them the best in all their future endeavours.

Letuozo Patrick Kiewhuo Kesovolie Rutsa Shurhovolie Tsurho President Info. & Publicity Secretary General Secretary

dP-1284/22

on the progress of the Indo-Naga peace process and stated that interlocution state was over and dialogue had been completed since October 31, 2019.

He said that ball was now in the court of GOI and that whole of the Nagas were ready and prepared to accept the solution as envisioned in the draft agreement “agreed position” signed between the GOI and NNPG and Nagas as whole on November 17, 2017. He therefore urged all the

dP-1287/22

DIMAPUR: NSCN/ GPRN (Khango/Isak) observed the 43rd Republic Day-cum-joint consultative meeting with the senior party workers and army officers at its ceasefire office, 3rd mile, Dimapur.

In a press release, MIP of the group stated that the meeting was held under the leadership of ato kilonser col. (retd) Isak Sumi on the theme, “current political scenario”.

In his speech, Isak enlightened the gathering

Congratulations

With great pride, the Pathso Range Students' Union (PRSU) would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to Khuno Samson Khiamniungan, S/o Kiamo of Pathso Nokeng Village for being conferred PhD in the Department of Anthropology from the University of Delhi.

W hile acknowledging his dedication and hard work, the union wishes him all the very best and great success in future endeavours.

(P ZUHING) President

LANUMERI KICHU

Dear Apa, In you, we see a very knowledgeable man, a great counsellor, a devoted teacher and above all, our best role model, May the divine favour of the Lord be richly present in your world. Have a joyful 75th Birthday Celebration!

Wife, Children, Grandchildren & Family Members

Happy 55th Wedding Anniversary Mrs & Mr Khehovi Chophi & Khesheli Aye

Correspondent

KIPHIRE, MAR 22 (NPN): Block level assessment camp for Children with Special Needs (CwSN) including school dropouts and school students in the age group of 18-21 years was conducted on March 18,19 and 21 for Seyochung, Kiphire and Pungro EBRC. The camp was conducted by Samagra Shiksha Dimapur, IED (Inclusive Education).

During the camp, 130 K Y M C

children from 3 blocks were registered where 13 were identified as visual impaired, 102 with visual impaired and 15 with hearing imapired The assessment team was led by IE Co- ordinator Samagra team leader, Sesulu.

The team also included Sound beatz Pvt Ltd, Delhi for hearing aids, TPORC Imphal for Locomotor and Ophthalmic Opticians from the office of the chief medical officer (CMO), Kiphire.

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Assessment camp underway in Kiphire.

Through this column, the Kiphire Village Council would like to convey its heartiest congratulations to Shri. T. Yangseo Sangtam, MLA 60 A/C, PungroKiphire, for being elected unopposed to the most prestigious and dignified post of the Deputy Speaker, 13th NLA, as declared on 19/03/2022.

The Council sincerely acknowledges and expresses its enormous gratitude to the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Nagaland, Shri. Neiphiu Rio, for having confidence and trust in Shri.T. Yangseo Sangtam and thereby elevating him to the post of Dy. Speaker. The citizens of Kiphire Village in particular and the entire populace of 60 constituency in general, are herewith boosted with an amplified vision of high confidence towards the UDA government for paving ways to promote and empower young leaders.

The Council wishes him a robust mind, sound health and wisdom from God to achieve more success in future.

(TSIDONGCHEM) Chairman

(T. CHOPICHUM SANGTAM) Secretary

23.03.1967 – 23.03. 2022

Years and years have passed, yet it feels like you have just begun. The happiness and joy you share brightens up the lives of everyone. God has ordained your respect and enduring love that you have for each other. May the same blessings showered upon you be bestowed upon your children, grand children and try to be cautious in the path that we as your hope towards beautiful yet steadfast future have to step in.

We the children, grand children and great grand children can never understand nor say or express our deepest gratitude to you.

Ipu & Iza Isu & Ipuza

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3rd Test: Pak 90/1 at stumps, trail by 301 runs

LAHORE, MAR 22 (IANS): Pakistan were 90/1 at stumps, trailing by 301 runs against Australia on the second day of the third and final Test at the Gaddafi Stadium, here on Tuesday. Abdullah Shafique (45 not out) and Azhar Ali (30 not out) were unbeaten at the crease, when play ended on Day 2.

Resuming the day at 232/5, Australian batters -Alex Carey and Cameron Green batted through the opening session to regain control of the match. The batters slowly built their partnership, steadily pulling Australia out of the delicate situation.

Both Carey and Green continued to frustrate the Pakistani bowlers, completed their respective half-centuries and took Pakistan to 320/5 at lunch.

Immediately after the lunch break, there was some respite for Pakistan as they were eventually able to break the 135-run partnership. Carey was trapped at the crease by Nauman Ali’s quicker delivery as he walked back to the pavilion on 67. And

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Pakistan’s Naseem Shah after bowling out Australia’s Nathan Lyon.

shortly after, Green was done-in by a brilliant inswinger from Naseem Shah, a delivery that came back in sharply ended his knock of 79.

With two quick wickets of the set batters, Australia were under the pump.

Mitchell Starc and captain Pat Cummins tried to steady the ship. But Starc,

who was batting aggressively, lost his wicket on 13 while trying to hit Shaheen over mid-off. Pakistan cleared the Australian tail easily as Naseem Shah in the very next over dismissed Nathan Lyon (4) with a big reverse-swinging delivery, an ICC report said.

Shaheen with a brilliant inswinging yorker

then dismissed Mitchell Swepson on nine and Australia were bowled out for 391. With their respective bowling figures of 4/79 and 4/58, Shaheen and Naseem starred with the ball for Pakistan.

With tea being taken early, Pakistan started their innings in the final session of the day. The in-

form Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq started their innings looking solid against Starc and Cummins, batting easily through their first stint.

All-rounder Green was brought into the attack and Imam welcomed him with a beautiful drive towards wide mid-off, and Nathan Lyon was introduced into the attack from the other end, and he bowled at an accurate length to keep the Pakistani batters in check.

But a change of end did the trick for Australia, as Cummins, in the very first ball of the 13th over, dismissed Imam on 11, trapping him in front of the stumps. Shafique, joined

by Azhar Ali, then stitched together a solid partnership and ensured that Pakistan were not in any trouble for the remainder of the day’s play.

Brief scores: Pakistan 90/1 (Abdullah Shafique 45 not out, Azhar Ali 30 not out; Pat Cummins 1/27) trail Australia 391 (Usman Khawaja 91, Cameron Green 79; Naseem Shah 4/58, Shaheen Afridi 4/79) by 301 runs

Rafael Nadal out for up to six weeks with stress fracture in rib

M A D R I D, M A R 2 2 (AGENCIES): Rafael Nadal has suffered a stress fracture in his rib and will be out for up to six weeks, the Spaniard’s team said on Tuesday.

Nadal, the winner of 21 Grand Slam singles titles, complained of a chest issue during his run to the final of the ATP 1000 event in Indian Wells, California last week.

Upon his arrival in Spain on Tuesday, Nadal visited his medical team in Barcelona for tests which revealed “a stress fracture of the third left costal arch”.

“This is not good news and I did not expect this,” Nadal said in a statement sent by his team.

“I’m disappointed and sad because after a good start to the season I was coming to a very important part of the year with very good feelings and good results.

“I have always had that spirit of fighting and ....I will... work hard (for) my recovery.”

Nadal’s injur y oc-

Rafael Nadal

curred during his threeset semi-final victory over teenaged compatriot Carlos Alcaraz but he still played the final in which he went down to American Taylor Fritz - his first loss in the season after 20 consecutive wins.

His doctor said that the 35-year-old will be out of action for “four to six weeks”, ruling him out of next month’s Monte Carlo Masters and putting doubts over his participation in the ATP 1000 events in Madrid and Rome in May. The French Open, the year’s second major at Roland Garros where Nadal

has won a record 13 titles, is scheduled to start from May 22.

Nadal started the 2022 season unprepared and with uncertainty looming over him due to a foot problem that forced him to miss a chunk of the 2021 season including Wimbledon, the Olympics and the U.S. Open.

After suffering a bout of COVID-19 before arriving in Melbourne in January, Nadal said he had even considered retiring when the foot problem that has troubled him throughout his career resurfaced last year.

Wrestler Bajrang, Paralympian Amit Fleeing Ukrainian athletes welcomed by clubs in Bosnia, Bulgaria Saroha receive financial assistance NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (PTI): The Sports Ministry’s Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) has approved a financial assistance of Rs 6.16 lakh for Tokyo Games bronze medallist Bajrang Punia for the 18-day special training camp he undertook in Iran.

Bajrang was accompanied by his coach Sujeet Mann.

He is now set to be in action in the selection trials on March 24 at the KD Jadhav Wrestling Indoor Stadium in the national capital.

Bajrang, who will compete in the 65kg category, is looking to register his name for the Indian senior freestyle and greco roman style wrestling teams that will compete at the forthcoming Senior Asian Wrestling Championship in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Bajrang Punia

Amit Saroha

from April 24.

He also has his eyes set on the Commonwealth Games this August and the Asian Games after that.

“Whatever tournament comes until Paris, I’m going to give my best performance and my aim is to change the colour of my medal in Paris 2024,” said Bajrang.

Similarly, the SAI Training Centre in Lucknow too will conduct the selection trials for the

Indian senior women’s wrestling teams on March 25 to pick the team for the Mongolia event in April.

The MOC, meanwhile, has also approved a financial assistance of Rs 2.45 lakh for para athlete (club throw F51) Amit Saroha, under the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) for the fees towards his personal physiotherapist Ankit Rahodia from March 2022 to this year’s Para Asian Games.

VARNA (BULGARIA)/ MOSTAR (BOSNIA) MAR 22 (AGENCIES): Sports clubs in Bulgaria and Bosnia are providing refuge, training and competition for athletes escaping war in another show of global solidarity for Ukraine.

Mihail Minchev, the 34-year-old owner and trainer of Hispano tennis club near the Black Sea city of Varna, was among those responding to the Bulgarian tennis federation’s appeal to help after Russia’s invasion upended lives for millions in Ukraine.

“I had to so do something,” said Minchev, who volunteered to host two families with three teenage female tennis players from another Black Sea city: Odesa in Ukraine.

“I could not just be an indifferent spectator and watch what is happening on TV from my couch as if it is some reality show.”

Varva Koltsova (L) and Olha Kachur (2nd R) from club Balta in Ukraine look on during training with Bosnian teammates from Student Volleyball Club (SOK) on March 21. (Reuters)

One of the new arrivals, 14-year-old Sasha Groza, has won competitions in Odesa, dreams of one day winning the Australian Open, and looks up to British women’s No. 1 Emma Raducanu. “Tennis is my life,” Groza said at Minchev’s apartment before a training session.

She appreciates Varna’s

friendly welcome but cannot quite grasp what has happened. “Our fathers stayed in Ukraine, our grandmothers, grandfathers stayed in Ukraine. It’s very sad.”

Bulgaria’s tennis association has, likewise, helped about 12 families with young tennis players so far. It plans to include them in national tournaments without prior

registration.

S H A R E D WA R TRAUMA In Bosnia, memories of their own devastating conflict three decades ago fuels compassion. “When the girls asked us why we were helping them, we said that we were children of war ourselves, running away with our mothers while others

were helping us,” said Anita Glibic, director of the Student Volleyball Club (SOK) in the southern town of Mostar. SOK is hosting seven players from the Ukrainian club Balta, with four more expected in response to an open invitation to Ukrainian female volleyball players.

The club is providing accommodation, meals and training. “We travelled for four days, ... with long stays on the borders. It was so difficult,” said Varvara Koltsova, who arrived with her three-year-old son.

Another Ukrainian player Olha Kachur said at last they felt safe without war and bombs. “I think that no person who run away from Ukraine now have a plan what to do ... Of course we want to go home to our families, our friends but now we don’t know when war will end,” she said. “I feel little guilty because I’m safe and they are not.”

Dubai World Para Athletics GP: Dharambir, Devendra clinch silver

DUBAI, MAR 22 (IANS): Para athletes Dharambir and Devendra Singh claimed a silver each as the Dubai 2022 World Para Athletics Grand Prix-13th Fazza International Para Athletics Championships commenced at the Dubai Club for People of Determination grounds here. Overall, India took three medals on the opening day on Monday with Jyoti Behera claiming bronze in 400m women’s T37/38/47 final. In men’s club throw final F32/51, Dharambir, the 2018 Asian Para Games

silver medallist in Jakarta, threw the club to a distance of 31.09 metres in his second attempt to finish second behind Algeria’s Walid Ferhah who stayed ahead right from the first throw and saved his best for the last heave -- 37.42m. With the effort, Dharambir also set a new Asian record. Great Britain’s Stephen Miller took the bronze with 29.28 metres.

Devendra settled for silver in men’s discus throw F44 after hurling it to a distance of 50.36 metres in combined F42/43/44 cate-

gory. Kuwait’s Faisal Sorour, the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic bronze medallist, took the F42 gold with a throw of 47.61.m, which was also an Asian record, while France’s Badr Touzi took bronze in F42 with a 39.16-metre throw. “I am very happy with the result here. A few months back I wasn’t sure if I would be competing in the Fazza event due to health reasons. I was down with Covid-19 and hardly trained for the past few months. We have important events this year, so it was good to start

the year with a medal,” said the 28-year-old Devendra.

Six records were broken on the opening day, including a world record, thanks to the efforts of Columbia’s Tokyo 2020 Paralympic champion Jose Gregorio Lemos Rivas, who stole the limelight in men’s javelin final F12/13/38. The 30-yearold hurled the javelin to a distance of 60.58 metres in his fourth throw, for a world record and the gold medal.

The Championships, hosted under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mansoor

bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, kicked off the World Para Athletics’ Grand Prix season with around 500 paraathletes from 43 nations in action at the Dubai Club for People of Determination grounds this week.

The Championships hold significance as athletes will aim to achieve Minimum Qualification Standard for this July’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and Asian Para Games in Hangzhou (China), in October.

Come and witness THE BIGGEST SPORTING EVENT IN NAGALAND’S HISTORY

Virat Kohli joins RCB preparatory camp for IPL

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MUMBAI, MAR 22 (IANS): Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) preparations for the upcoming 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Maharashtra with former skipper Virat Kohli joining the squad on Monday.

With RCB fans seeking information regarding Kohli’s plans for the last many days as the other players had joined the preparatory camp, the RCB on Monday tweeted the muchanticipated good news on Monday. “King Kohli has

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Virat Kohli

arrived! That’s it. That’s the news,” tweeted the official social media handle of the Bengaluru-based IPL franchise.

The franchise also tweeted some photographs of Kohli’s arrival and former India and RCB skipper smiling after settling in his room. Video clips of his arrival at the team’s base too were doing the rounds of social media sites on Monday. Kohli has been with the Royal Challengers since the inception of the league in 2008 and was their skipper for eight seasons before he relinquished captaincy at the start of this season.

The 33-year-old Kohli is the all-time leading batter in the IPL with 6283 runs from 207 matches at an average of 37.39 and a strike rate of 129.54 with the highest score of 113.

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Women’s WC: India crush B’desh by 110-run

HAMILTON, MAR 22 (IANS): Yastika Bhatia scored a half-century, while Sneh Rana came up with allround heroics (27 and 4/30) in a must-win situation as India secure a convincing 110-run victory over Bangladesh in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup league match at Seddon Park here on Tuesday.

The win helped the runners-up of 2017 edition of the tournament move up to third spot on the points table with three wins and an equal number of losses.

But more importantly, it’s the healthy +0.768 Net Run Rate (NRR) that could help India make the semifinal knockouts if multiple teams finish their assignments on identical points.

Not to forget that the Mithali Raj-led India will also have to win their last league game against South Africa at Christchurch on March 27. It wasn’t all smooth sailing for India, though, as they were struggling at 176/6 before Sneh Rana and Pooja Vastrakar finished with a flurry to set Bangladesh a target of 230.

Yastika Bhatia was the star of the show with a patient 80-ball 50. As wickets kept falling, she stitched two

Indian women cricket team players celebrate after defeating the Bangladesh team during their Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 at the Seddon Park, in Hamilton. (PTI)

crucial partnerships with Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh to keep the scoreboard ticking in the middle overs.

Rana was brilliant with the ball as well, finishing with four wickets that broke the back of Bangladesh’s batting line-up. All the Indian bowlers looked unplayable from the word go and were rewarded for their tight bowling with wickets as the required run rate kept climbing for the opponents.

Bangladesh’s chase never took off as only five

batters registered doubledigit scores, with Salma Khatun top-scoring with 32.

Defending 230, India chose to open the bowling with pace-bowling stalwart Jhulan Goswami and spinner Rajeshwari Gayakwad.

Rajeshwari broke through first by dismissing Sharmin Akter while the veteran pacer kept things tight at the other end. India struck once again in the Powerplay through Pooja Vastrakar, who trapped Fargana Hoque in front of the stumps.

With spinners operat-

ing at both ends on a slow track, Bangladesh found getting runs tough. Sneh Rana, who created several chances in her first spell, was rewarded with the wicket of Nigar Sultana, who holed out at mid-on attempting to accelerate.

P o o n a m Ya d av claimed her first World Cup wicket by dismissing Murshida Khatun, whose 54-ball 19-run innings came to an end in the 16th over.

Rumana Ahmed’s stay at the crease didn’t last long either, with Rana picking

up her second wicket of the game as Bangladesh lost half their side. Lata Mondal and Salma Khatun provided some resistance with a 40run stand before Goswami got in on the act to remove Khatun. Rana picked up wickets in consecutive overs and eventually finished with a four-for. Goswami finished things off with a wonderful yorker to dismiss Ritu Moni as Bangladesh fell short by 110 runs.

Earlier, Shafali Verma (42) and Smriti Mandhana (30) got India off to a flying start after they opted to bat first, with the duo putting on 74 for the opening wicket until disaster struck on the final ball of the 15th over.

Mandhana hit Nahida Akter straight to Fargana Hoque and then Ritu Moni got in on the act during the next over to turn the game on its head quickly.

Brief scores: India 229/7 in 50 overs (Smriti Mandhana 30, Shafali Verma 42, Yastika Bhatia 50, Richa Ghosh 26, Pooja Vastrakar 30 not out, Sneh Rana 27; Ritu Moni 3/37) beat Bangladesh 119 in 40.3 overs (Salma Khatun 32; Jhulan Goswami 2/19, Pooja Vastrakar 2/26, Sneh Rana 4/30) by 110 runs.

NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022

Djokovic regains No.1 ATP ranking; Fritz biggest mover

NEW YORK, MAR 22 (IANS): Serbian tennis stalwart Novak Djokovic has wrested back his world No.1 spot on the ATP Rankings from Russia’s Daniil Medvedev -- who slipped to No. 2 --, even as American Taylor Fritz is the top mover this week, climbing seven spots to a career-high No. 13 following his maiden Indian Wells title triumph on Sunday.

The 24-year-old Fritz jumped into the top-15 of the ATP Rankings for the first time after he captured his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title at the BNP Paribas Open, defeating Spanish stalwart Rafael Nadal in the final.

Fritz became the first American man to lift the trophy in Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 2001.

It is the second time he has triumphed after a tour-level event, following his victory in Eastbourne in 2019, according to atptour. com.

Nadal, the winner of a 21 Grand Slams, too moved up a spot after he made it to the title round

Novak Djokovic

a t I n d i a n We l l s. T h e 35-year-old, who clinched the crown in Indian Wells in 2007, 2009 and 2013, earned hard-fought wins against Australian Nick Kyrgios and countryman Carlos Alcaraz to improve to 20-1 this season.

Teenager Alcaraz too hit a career high of No. 16 on the ATP Rankings, with the 18-year-old moving up three sports. The Spaniard defeated top-20 stars

Roberto Bautista Agut, Frenchman Gael Monfils and Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie in straight sets in Indian Wells as he advanced to the semifinals at a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time.

The other notable movers this week are, No. 10 Hubert Hurkacz, (plus1), No. 24 Gael Monfils (plus-4), No. 28 Alex de Minaur (plus-3) and No. 29 Grigor Dimitrov (plus-6).

Badminton world rankings: LeBron James’ triple-double leads Lakers past Cavs Lakshya Sen breaks into top 10 NEW DELHI, MAR 22 (IANS): The All England Badminton Championship runner-up Lakshya Sen has broken into the top 10 of the men’s singles badminton world rankings for the first time. The 20-year-old Lakshya Sen climbed two spots to reach ninth in the latest standings released on Tuesday.

He is now the highestranked Indian in the men’s singles badminton, above world silver medallist Kidambi Srikanth at 12 and Tokyo Olympian B Sai Praneeth at 19.

The 20-year-old shuttler from Almora had defeated defending champion Lee Zee Jia and world bronze medallist Anders Antonsen before he lost in the final against Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen.

This was his third straight final appearance at

Lakshya Sen

a BWF World Tour event since winning the India Open and a second-place finish at the German Open.

Along with Sen, India’s top men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also moved up a spot to equal their career-best ranking of seventh. The Chirag-Satwik duo won

the India Open, finished third at the Super 1000 Indonesia Open and also represented India at Tokyo 2020.

In the women’s doubles, the teenage team of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also reached its career-best ranking of 34, jumping 12 places since the previous update.

CLEVELAND, MAR 22 (AGENCIES): LeBron James erupted for a gamehigh 38 points along with 11 rebounds and 12 assists to power the visiting Los Angeles Lakers to a 131120 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday.

James, who played for the Cavs for 11 seasons, was 17 of 29 from the field.

He came into Monday’s game second in the league in scoring at 29.8 per game in a virtual three-way tie with Philadelphia Joel Embiid and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The Lakers finished 2-2 on their four-game road trip.

Russell Westbrook contributed 20 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, while D.J. Augustin had 20 points off the bench.

Augustin didn’t miss a shot from the field (7 of 7) or the 3-point line (6 of 6), as the Lakers shot a season-high 56.4 percent from the field.

Guard Darius Gar-

third. Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points on 9-for23 shooting as the Jazz saw their three-game winning streak stopped. Jordan Clarkson added 19 and Mike Conley chipped in 18 with seven assists as Utah was held to 44.6 percent from the field.

Celtics 132, Thunder 123

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) reacts to cheers in the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

land was sensational with 29 points and a game-high 16 assists for the Cavs, who were 3-2 in their just-concluded five-game homestand. Garland has scored 20 or more points in 14 of his last 15 games.

Nets 114, Jazz 106

Kevin Durant scored 15 of his 37 points in the third quarter as Brooklyn surged ahead and held on for a victory over Utah in

New York.

The Nets won for the sixth time in seven games following a 3-17 skid as Durant posted his 20th 30-point showing of the season. Bruce Brown added a season-best 22 points with seven rebounds and five assists as the Nets shot 54.2 percent. Nic Claxton filled in for starting center Andre Drummond (nonCOVID illness) and added 11 of his 15 in the decisive

Jayson Tatum scored 36 points to lead Boston to a road win over Oklahoma City. The Celtics swept their four-game road trip and the two-game season series against the Thunder.

Jaylen Brown added 25 points for Boston while Grant Williams added 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Derrick White and Payton Pritchard scored 18 each for the Celtics, who shot 51.2 percent from the field.

Tre Mann finished with a Thunder rookie-record 35 points, going 13 of 21 from the floor and mak-

ing a season-high seven 3-pointers. Shai GilgeousAlexander added 31 points while Darius Bazley scored 22 and Aleksej Pokusevski a season-high 19 for Oklahoma City.

Bulls 113, Raptors 99

Zach LaVine scored 16 of his 26 points in the pivotal third quarter and Chicago defeated visiting Toronto.

Former Raptor DeMar DeRozan also scored 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting from the field for the Bulls, who ended a three-game losing streak.

Nikola Vucevic had 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls, who pulled away in the third quarter after trailing by one at halftime.

Pascal Siakam scored 22 points for the Raptors, who had a six-game road winning streak end. Fred VanVleet added 19 points and nine assists, and Chris Boucher contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds.

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