24 April 2023

Nagaland Post

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Revoke MoU on mineral and border areas with Assam: WC Misfortune of Nagaland due to lack of governance: Jamir

DIMAPUR, APR 23

(NPN): Working Committee (WC), Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs) has demanded that chief minister Neiphiu Rio withdraw from any Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Assam over the disturbed, unresolved boundary areas from any attempt for exploration of mineral resources are they are “guarded by historical and political Naga sanctity and therefore, immoral and unacceptable to stakeholders.”

WC, NNPGs through its media cell, asserted that any MoU signed with the government of Assam at the present crucial juncture would be considered a direct attempt to sell off Naga rights and warned that the “consequences would be widespread and unimaginable”. WC pointed out that both Assam and Nagaland do not have any power to negotiate or enter into mutual agreements on oil exploration or any sharing contract on the unresolved border areas, as the entire matter had been subjected to intense political negotiations between the Centre and WC, NNPGs.

WC, NNPGs also reminded that the subject remained as a core part of “Indo-Naga political talks” which was negotiated and awaiting final agreement between the Centre and Naga negotiators. It said that both Assam and Nagaland governments were only caretaker governments as far as the disputed areas were concerned. WC asked Assam and Nagaland governments not to forget the past

India logs 10,112 fresh Covid cases

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): India on Sunday recorded a single-day rise of 10,112 fresh COVID-19 infections, while the number of active cases increased to 67,806, according to Union health ministry data.

With the fresh cases, India’s COVID-19 tally stands at 4.48 crore (4,48,91,989).

The death toll climbed to 5,31,329 with 29 fatalities, including seven reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 7.03 per cent and the weekly positivity rate at 5.43 per cent.

At 67,806, the active cases now comprise 0.15 per cent of the total infections.

The national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.66 per cent, according to the health ministry website.

history of violence and conflict along the borders that resulted in loss of hundreds of innocent lives and police personnel. It cautioned that the “handshakes should not invite another round of bloodshed”.

According to WC, there were armed revolutionary movements fighting for the right to safeguard their historical political rights in both the regions and therefore the MoU would be premature and unwise as it could not wash away the stain of thousand bloods. It warned that the proposed MoU on Exploration and Production activities in the un-demarcated border would have serious consequences in the areas.

Further, WC advised political leaders not to take the peaceful situation as a licence to do anything they wish on land and resources and warned the leaders that they would be held solely responsible for any repercussion in the disputed areas.

“Let it be known that Nagas are sole land owners in the disturbed area belt and they have every right to adopt any measure to protect historical and custom-

ary rights over land against blatant misuse of power and authority by embezzlers and profiteers,” WC declared.

Further, WC said elected representatives of Nagaland from oil-bearing areas of Mon, Longleng, Mokokchung, Wokha, Niuland, Dimapur and Peren, must understand that the proposed MoU on oil exploration by the “autocratic-like government” was another scam to loot the future of Naga people. Pointing out that the onus was on the legislators to make their position clear on the matter, WC insisted that the commitment to work for Indo-Naga political solution must be applied in letter and spirit. It noted that ignoring the stakeholders, the current dispensation appeared to be creating an economic platform to drain the wealth of future generations.

WC, NNPGs disclosed that it was also disturbed because the “opposition-less government in Nagaland was increasingly exhibiting traits of authoritarianism”. It urged the people to respond when their political and historical rights were shelved into cold storage and societal fabric was

twisted roughly through economic imbalances.

WC also declared that it has not surrendered ancestral land to any neighbouring State and stressed that the political difficulty of Assam leadership in giving back boundaries was a matter to be resolved by them. It said Naga history was clear on this subject and that it believed peaceful resolution of Nagaland-Assam boundary matter would be in the interest of all parties.

WC stated that it anticipated a mutually agreeable position on the matter, claiming that the Centre had clearly understood the Naga position and aspirations on the historical, political and possible administrative realignments. In conclusion, the Naga group urged upon Nagaland chief minister to understand the irrefutable body of work that WC, NNPGs in consultation with Naga tribes and relevant civil society bodies undertook during and after political negotiations with the Centre as all these facts were on the table.

It may be mentioned that Assam and Nagaland chief ministers Himanta Biswa Sarma and Neiphiu Rio had agreed in principle to go ahead with oil exploration in areas along their disputed boundary for the economic benefit of both states. According to PTI report, Sarma and Rio reached an understanding during a meeting Thursday night, hours after Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments signed an agreement to resolve their over fivedecade-old border dispute.

DIMAPUR, APR 23 (NPN): Against the backdrop of serious problem that has arisen over the fate of conduct of polls to ULBs (Urban Local Bodies) in Nagaland ,veteran Naga political leader and former governor and chief minister Dr. S.C .Jamir has laid the blame for the current imbroglio squarely on the leaders of the party in power since 2003.

In a statement, Dr. Jamir lamented that due to lack of seriousness about governance that needed proper planning and vision, some politicians in the state are not serious about it but instead exhibited a propensity to blame New Delhi as an “escape route”.

He further pointed out that the government in power in 2016-17 had committed a blunder with regard to polls to ULBs as it was “clueless on how to run the administration.

Without going into details, Dr. Jamir said “a

whimsical government and its legal officer, gave an undertaking to the Supreme Court for holding polls”. He said that would have been an opportunity to explain to the apex court, “the special political rights Nagaland has.”

However, he regretted that “the opportunity was wasted” adding, if the chief minister lacked the “maturity to gauge public sentiment; then there is something seriously erroneous.”

While admitting that both the womenfolk as well as menfolk may have their understanding over rights, the government should have

acted as a benevolent guardian for the people. However, Dr. Jamir concluded that expecting this would be too much “from leaders and a government, whose hallmark has been to move from one pillar of failure to another post of disaster.”

The veteran politician who served as governor of several states and also as four-time chief minister of the state, noted that some Naga leaders were confused between “patriotism and duty of governance” due to the selfish goals of one or two individuals. He said if these became a substitute for state building and striving towards high positive goals, then there is a problem. In this regard, Dr. Jamir claimed that new districts were created within a week to appease some organisations while another pressure group was encouraged to rush to Delhi “for splitting Nagaland.”

He said on the third occasion, the rulers attempted

to appease tribal bodies by repealing a law in the assembly and forgetting that the matter was subjudice and subsequently inviting contempt of court proceeding.

Dr Jamir asked, under such circumstances, “does the chief minister still deserve to occupy his office?”. He said if the only priority of those in power was to remain in office, then it is people who will suffer.

He said in the past, people sacrificed to achieve recognition of Nagaland as a “Special Political Entity” but for the present leaders, their “self-goals are the hallmarks”.

Dr Jamir reminded all stakeholders that the Nagaland Legislative Assembly is the only competent authority to enact laws for the state and therefore, called for upholding the sanctity of the institution and urged upon the elected government to work out what was best for the people of Nagaland.

(Full text on p-6)

CNTC welcomes govt’s initiative for oil exploration

DIMAPUR, APR 23 (NPN): Central Nagaland Tribes Council (CNTC) has welcomed the initiative of the Nagaland government for oil exploration with Assam government. The council felt that the revenue generated through oil would open up more development activities in the State. Stating that it was also its long-standing demand, the CNTC said resumption of oil exploration and extraction in Nagaland would create employment opportunities and infrastructure. The council explained that it was for this matter that it had taken up the issue and time and again appealed to

the chief minister of Nagaland for resumption of oil exploration and extraction in the State.

However, the CNTC urged the State government to ensure that landowners and stakeholders were taken into consideration before signing the memorandum of understanding for oil exploration so that mistake could not be repeated. It recalled the filing of public interest litigation (PIL) by Lotha Hoho with regard to oil exploration activities in the State due to the failure of the State government in framing proper modalities on oil and natural gas extraction. Hence,

UNTABA irked by decision to explore oil in DABs

DIMAPUR, APR 23

(NPN): United Naga Tribes Association on Border Areas (UNTABA) said it was deeply discouraged over news reports regarding the agreement between the chief ministers of Assam and Nagaland for oil exploration in the ‘Disputed Area Belts’ (DAB) between the two States.

UNTABA chairman Hukavi T Yeputhomi and general secretary Imsumongba Pongen in a statement reminded that the boundary dispute between the two states was sub-judice since the ‘Civil Suit No. 2’ of 1988 filed by Assam government under AGP against Election

Commission of India, Home Ministry and Nagaland government was still pending at the Supreme Court.

As such, they asserted that until and unless the civil suit was withdrawn by the appellant, no positive steps could be undertaken by both the appellant and defendant.

They recalled that the chief ministers of both Assam and Nagaland had announced on January 24, 2022 at Guwahati that the boundary disputes would be settled outside the court, which was a welcome step.

They said a UNTABA team held a meeting with Atul Bora, minister in charge of Border Affairs of As -

sam, on January 26, 2022 at Jorhat and requested him to consider withdrawing the civil suit filed by then AGP government of Assam so that the boundary dispute between the two States could be solved outside the court. They claimed that the minister had admitted that the civil suit was an impediment.

Therefore, UNTABA asserted that any exploration for mineral resources, including petroleum products, in DAB between the two States was uncalled for and impractical since the issue was subjudice and that Nagas would never accept the wrong interpretations of historical facts over their land. They pointed

out that Dissoi valley, Geleki and Merapani areas were not the only disputed areas as reported by the media. In fact, according to them, the historical realities of Naga people over their land covered 4,974.16 square miles or an equivalent of 12,883.07 sqkm, which roughly covered present Diphu, Nagaon, Golaghat, Jorhat, Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts.

They said the issue had been conveyed to the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister, Centre’s interlocutor for peace talks and Naga national political groups on various occasions.

They mentioned that UNTABA had been assured

by the Centre as well as the negotiating parties of NNPGs that an “independent and empowered committee” on boundary issue between the two States would be formed to settle the issue. They claimed that this was assured by Home Minister Amit Shah and then Centre’s interlocutor RN Ravi. Therefore, they demanded that Nagaland government should initiate practical steps to persuade Assam government to withdraw the civil suit first and foremost so that the present intent of the Nagaland government could be implemented. Otherwise, they warned that there would be repercussions.

CNTC appealed the State government to hold consultation with the landowners and stakeholders before the resumption of oil exploration in order to avoid further hindrance. The council assured to extend its full cooperation and support for the initiative.

It may be recalled that the council in a representation to chief minister Neiphiu Rio in June last year, expressed regret that despite having made several appeals in the past on resumption of oil operations in Nagaland, no action had been taken for reasons best known to the government.

According to CNTC natural oil reserves in Nagaland

would become valueless in due course of time due to advancement in technology where usage of fossil fuels would become redundant in the near future.

CNTC said it was therefore, pertinent that the state utilise its natural oil reserve immediately so that there was also sufficient internal revenue generation for the government and also to benefit the land owners.

CNTC also insisted that the State government should also demand all drilling and deviation programme for oilfields in disputed areas from ONGC and recover the royalty that was due to Nagaland.

Nagaland is developed and modernised: Dr. Murugan

DIMAPUR, APR 23

(NPN): Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Dr L Murugan observed that Nagaland was developed and modernised State with huge potential in tourism sector.

Interacting with

DPRO Dimapur after concluding his three-day visit to Nagaland on Sunday at Dimapur airport, Dr Murugan admitted that before landing at Dimapur, he viewed Nagaland to be an underdeveloped state.

However, the minister

Heavy rain lashes Nagaland; Yellow alert issued for NE states

Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, APR 23

(NPN): Torrential rain coupled with cyclonic type storm lashed several parts of Nagaland on Sunday afternoon causing damages to houses, properties and rendering some families homeless.

Besides causing damages to properties, many trees were also uprooted, electric poles damaged, power lines snapped and connectivity including roads affected by the storm.

According to reports heavy rain and hailstones also damaged houses and crops in various districts. When contacted, offi-

cials from the State Disaster Management Authorities said they were yet to receive reports from the district authorities. So far there were no reports of any casualty,

the official added. Official sources opined that there could have been more reports of damages to properties. In Dimapur, sudden gush of rain and wind al-

most proved fatal on some passers-by near Clock Tower after two billboards knocked down by the wind fell on an auto-rickshaw damaging it and narrowly missed people

who were taking shelter in shade from the rain.

Meanwhile, unattended pile of waste clogged the drainage along NL road, inundating the road. Besides affecting smooth flow of traffic, pedestrians also had a harrowing time due to the foul smell emanating from the garbage water flowing on the road. Nearby residents and passers-by were compelled to unclog the drain.

‘Yellow’

warning

Agencies: The Met department on Sunday warned of thunderstorm with lightning and gusty winds are, likely to lash the North Eastern over the next

couple days. According to Regional Meteorological Centre, a cyclonic circulation is lying over east Assam and neighbourhood between 1.5 km and 2.1 km above mean sea level.

Issuing a ‘yellow’ category warning for two days, it said thunderstorm with lightning accompanied by gusty wind reaching speed up to 30-40 kmph is very likely to occur at isolated places over Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura on Sunday. RMC has also warned of thunderstorm with lightning to occur very likely at isolated places over all seven North Eastern states.

said his notion about Nagaland changed after visiting several parts of the state. “Nagaland is developed and modernised and has a huge potential in the tourism sector,” he said. The minister also observed that piggery and fishery sectors had huge scope and asked the concern departments to send proposals to focus on uplifting the entrepreneurs.

While describing Nagaland as a beautiful place with rich cultural traditions, Dr Murugan assured to visit Nagaland during the Hornbill Festival.

Bar council resolution opposes same-sex marriage legalisation

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(ANI): Bar Council of India

(BCI) on Sunday passed a resolution opposing the grant of legal recognition to samesex marriage in the country.

BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra said the resolution has been passed by the Bar after holding a meeting with representatives of all State Bar Councils.

As per documented history, BCI said ever since the inception of human civilization and culture, marriage has been typically accepted and categorized as a union of

Inundated road by garbage and sewerage water after heavy downpour and tree falls on to a transformer.

Dr. SC Jamir (File)

(File photo) Members of the Working Committee of the NNPGs.

BSI Dimapur conference at Diphu

Branch, Those Kraho shared his experiences in the ministry of the BSI and special songs were presented by Kohima Team, Presbyterian Church Youth, Diphu, Birla, Diphu Baptist Church Youth and a solo from Kohima team.

Treasurer, BSI Dimapur Auxiliary, Rev. Tenga Seb presented Acknowledgement Certificates to three branches highest contributions-Kohima, Churachandpur and Mokokchung.

ATMA Satakha organises field day

DIMAPUR: Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) Satakha clock conducted field day on soil and water conservation on jhum cultivation, and trees and bamboo plantation on jhum field, important and preservation of charcoal on April 22 at Vishepu village.

AR observe Earth Day; medical camp

DIMAPUR: As part of Civic Action Programme, Assam Rifles under the aegis of HQ IGAR (North) has been organizing various activities welfare activities for the local populace across the state.

DIMAPUR: Bible So -

ciety of India, Dimapur Auxiliary held its 20th annual thanksgiving-cumbible conference from April 22 – 23 at Diphu Baptist Church, Diphu.

The conference was hosted by BSI Diphu Branch.

Auxiliary Committee members, office bearers of the branches and church leaders from Arunachal

Pradesh, Karbi Along, Nagaland and Manipur attended the programme. On the concluding day, the word of God was shared by Dimapur Auxiliary president, Rev. Dr. N. Paphino. He emphasized that the origin of God’s Word was God himself. He informed that Christianity was the largest religion in the world and Bible Society is the second

Dhai Akhar Letter Writing campaign

Winners of the letter writing competition.

DIMAPUR: Five students from Nagaland have been selected as winners (Northeast Circle) of the annual Dhai Akhar Letter Writing campaign 2022-23 held under different categories.

The winners were: Lutho Theluo (The Vineyard Kohima), Tezeno Kikhi (The Vineyard Kohima), Chemphoa Konyak (Japfu Christian College Kigwema), Leyan T (Japfu Christian College Kigwema) and Imsenna Aier (Jubilee Memorial College Mokokchung)

The winners were felicitated with certificates and cash award at a brief

PCC holds one day career fair

DIMAPUR: Career Guidance Cell and Young Indians of Patkai Christian College (Autonomous) organised a one-day career fair at Bundrock Chapel on April 21.

A press release by PCC stated that resource person, founder, Pinnacle, Dr. Yan Murry, spoke on soft and hard skills and opportunities in central services.

He said that Nagaland has the highest number of educated unemployed youths and stressed on the importance of skills and the need to train in acquiring certain skills. He also dwelled on investments, stock markets and mutual funds.

Founder and director Clefnote music academy, Yi Yuva Chair, Nagaland, Albert A Sangtam, highlighted on importance of human resource management in Nagaland, and spoke on the importance of internship. He encouraged the students to be industry ready, and take every opportunity as challenge, and specified on “don’t be a job seeker be a job creator”.

Meanwhile, SDO PWD (Housing) Tuensang, Er. A Lumtsala Sangtam, encouraged the youngsters to be persistent in their endeavors and passionate about their work rather than considering it as a labor dividend job.

Altogether 11 organisations comprising of educational institutes, career and training institutes, business entities participated in the career fair to guide the students.

largest organization next to United Nations Organization and also second oldest organization next to British and Foreign Bible Society. He pointed out that Karbi Bible was produced in 1952, the first vernacular Bible under Dimapur Auxiliary. Rev. Paphino further reminded the congregation that there was no book that has life, only the Holy Bible. President, Kohima

President Churachandpur Branch, Rev. Vanmawia offered thanksgiving prayer for the Church and individuals and branches.

Earlier, on April 22, Auxiliary secretary, Rev. Dr. Yiepetso Wezah preached the Word of God. He explained the meaning and importance of having Bible Conference as it led to strong faith and evangelism.

Resources person for the demonstration programme were BTM, L. Chichamo Shitiri; ATM, Tovi V Jimomi, ATM ATMA Satkha block, Vialo Sumi and ATM Zunheboto block, Aloi Z Muru.

They gave brief explanation through audio and visual with hand to hand demonstration.

Meanwhile, farmers were encouraged and disseminated the knowledge to focus more in agriculture, as the sector was going to be one of the major impact and the key pillars for the state’s economy.

Earth Day at Jalukie, Peren: Along with the rest of the country, Assam Rifles observed the World Earth Day by organizing a series of cultural and competitive events at Assam Rifles Public High School, Jalukie, Peren on April 22. On the occasion, children performed various cultural events including themed skits, group dances and songs. The event was graced by District Forest Officer, Peren, Dr Prabhat Kumar.

Inter house face painting & drawing competition were also organized where children showcased their talent and innovative ideas towards safeguarding and making the Mother Earth

H&FW organise RCH camp at Mima village

more greener. A total of 14 teachers and 110 children participated in the celebration.

In Peren, Assam Rifles organised a tree plantation event and other awareness programmes based on the Earth Day’s theme, “Invest in Our Planet.

The plantation drive was carried out in Athibung, Bamsikilwa, Impai, Ngalwa and Old Poilwa. Awareness lectures were also conducted for school children and civil populace on adoption of sustainable practices to -

wards environment preservation and plastic pollution. A total of 99 villagers participated in various events. Medical camp at Pessao village: Assam Rifles battalion organised medical camp under “We Care Campaign” at Pessao village, Mon on April 20. At the camp, the medical team attended more than 300 patients including old aged people and children. Medicines were provided to the patients along with clothing items for the villagers.

programme held at the Superintendent of Post Offices, Nagaland in his office chamber on April 21.

The programme was chaired by marketing executive, Sharon Losu and short speech was delivered by Superintendent of Post offices, Nagaland, Razuzakie Phinyo.

It may be noted that the annual Dhai Akhar letter writing campaign aimed to promote the Art of letter writing in the country. Out of 496 participants in the North East, 238 from different schools/colleges across Nagaland participated in the competition.

DIMAPUR: Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Kohima, along with District Health Society, department of Health & Family Welfare, NHM, conducted Reproductive Child Health (RCH) camp at Mima village on April 21. A press release by CMO Kohima stated that DVBO/DSO, Dr. Kevilhulie Meyase, spoke on the launching of first 1000 days campaign by department of Health & Family Welfare,

Nagaland on April 20 by Health Minister.

Meyase stated that launching of first 1000 days campaign was focused on critical intervention such as Antenatal Care (ANC), hospital delivery, vaccination and early childhood care for mother and child from pregnancy till second birthday of a child. He urged the gathering to avail all services and also partake in various group discussions

CON CIHSR holds 4th Alumni meet

DIMAPUR: College of Nursing, CIHSR organized the 4th alumni meet (Blended mode) on April 20 at Lionel Gnanaraj Hall, CIHSR based on the theme “Going the extra mile.” - Matthew 5:41

Addressing the gathering, Nursing Superintendent and advisor of Alumni Association, CON, CIHSR, A. Purnungla Aier updated the alumni on the new services and facilities initiated in CIHSR and encouraged the Alumni to be an ambassador of their Alma Mater. Principal and president of Alumni Association, Dr. Christy Simpson presented the annual report on CON and expressed gratitude to all the alumni for their donations towards the alumni scholarship fund which is in the pipeline. A brief report on the activities of alumni Association, CON, CIHSR was presented by Assistant Professor and general secretary, Alumni Association, Merentola P Longkumer.

1st DEATH ANNIVERSARY

for healthy life style and practice for better health seeking behavior. He reminded on the responsibilities of everyone in bringing about health awareness to uplift health of society in general and for contribution of individual in particular. Altogether 187 availed health services at the RCH camp, where lab tests, condom distribution and free medicines were provided, including distribution

of IEC pamphlets, leaflets. The team was headed by DVBO/DSO, Kohima Dr. Kevilhulie Meyase, DPMU’s, BPMU Jakhama block, CHO I/C with Mima HWC, Dental Surgeon &MO (AYUSH) with Viswema CHC team, MO I/C with KimipfuphePHC team and MO I/C with JakhamaPHC team and CHO Pfuchama HWC conducted the health camp successfully.

IN MEMORIAM

Born: 23.11.1952

Died: 23.04.2014

Words are inadequate to express our deepest feelings on this day, the 23rd day of April 2023 when you left us for your heavenly abode 9 (Nine) years ago. Late Sohanlal Sethi was an iconic dynamic leader. A man, who feared none but God during his lifetime. He was an unbeatable heroic leader with great wisdom, determination, knowledge, power, enthusiasm and a man of strong ‘will’ like his parents always willing to walk that extra mile to achieve what he aspired for and that differentiated him from others and made him a successful person and a true social figure.

He was a follower of all religions who devoted most of his time for various religious activities. He was a senior legal practitioner and gave high education to his children, who are currently active in various fields of business, religious, social and humanitarian works.

He served as S ecretary for Shani Temple Dimapur, S ecretary Jain Temple at Kezekhie, Kohima for more than 30 years, Working President of Shyadwaad Shikshan Parishad, Sonagir, MP, Secretary of Millenium Welfare Society, Old Market, Secretary/Treasurer for Old Market Panchayat, Dimapur and various other social works.

Premlata Jain Sethi, W/o Late Sohanlal Sethi

We Remember you!!

Hemant Sethi, Kajal Sethi, Jayant Sethi, Ritika Sethi, Vikash Sethi, Namita Sethi, Harshvardhan Sethi, Vibha Sethi, Rohit Kataria, Anamika Kataria and all sons, daughters, grand children and family members of K.L. Sethi sons and daughters, Dimapur.

DP-1752/23

LATE T. L. ANGAMI

BORN ON: 07/02/1944 DIED ON: 24/04/2022

Romans 14:8

“ If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”

Your absence has been felt by us for a year now. You left a legacy and lots of memories and lessons for us. Our hearts ache for you and you will forever be in our hearts. Hope you are having a great time in Heaven and watching over us, as we go through our own journey.

Loving Wife and Children

K-847/23

Born on : 26/07/1941 – Died on : 18/04/2023

It is with deep sorrow that we write this acknowledgement for the passing of our beloved mother/ grandmother Mrs. Tiakala Jamir (Süngratsü). She was a kind, loving, and generous person who touched the lives of everyone she met.

We would like to express our heartfelt appreciation to all those who have offered their condolences and support during this difficult time. Your kind words, thoughts, and prayers have been a source of comfort and strength to us. It is our sincere prayer that our Heavenly Father will bless you in return.

MKC-143/23

Sincerely, Mapumongba Aier, Children, In-laws, Grandchildren & Great grandchildren.

SECOND DEATH ANNIVERSARY

In the ever loving memory of Lt. Shri. Nungja Aier. (23rd July 1958 - 24th April 2021)

We remember you with pride and gratitude. Your presence remains with us like a blessing. Your values and vision enlightened us through the years. Your soul of compassion still lives on within us. We miss your love, affection and guidance.

Loving tribute from: Wife, Children, Grandchildren and family members.

The annual thanksgiving of BSI Dimapur Auxiliary at Diphu.

An elderly woman examined at the medical camp.

nagalandpost.com Poll

Q.: Should cut off date for determining indigenous inhabitants in Dimapur be December 1,1963 ?

State needs more dental surgeons, says Dr. Rhütso

dental doctors to educate themselves about the new treatments and modes of technologies and attend health care conferences, meetings and workshops so that they can cope with the current trend.

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Q: After former J&K governor’s revelation about Pulwama, is it a fit case for judicial inquiry?

WEATHER

FORECAST

Correspondent

KOHIMA, APR 23(NPN):

Dr. Tseilhoutuo Rhutso, MLA stressed on the need for creation of more posts for dental surgeons in the state pointing out that state currently has 37 dental surgeons and the remaining were all on contract basis.

He said this while addressing the 19th conference and annual general meeting of Indian Dental Association Nagaland State Branch (IDANSB) at Naga heritage village, Kisama on April 22.

In this connection, Dr. Rhütso said that he along with Dr Neisatuo also MLA from Pfutsero AC- both from medial field, will press the government for creation

Farmers trained on silkworm rearing

of more dental surgeons in the state. In this regard, he also appealed to the association to give representation to the concerned authorities from their side.

Dr. Rhutso also emphasized on the present scenario of healthcare along with advances in digital healthcare technologies, and encouraged the doctors to familiarize themselves with the latest developments in order to control technology and be at par with the international standard.

Pointing out that oral health was an important component of general health and had significant impact on the overall systemic health and quality of life, he encouraged the

The presidential speech was delivered by Dr Seto D. Kera, where he highlighted the activities of the association. He lamented that the long pending demand for creation of post of dental surgeons in all PHC and CHC were not fulfilled and requested the special guest to look into the matter as dentistry was one of the most demanding sector in the field of medical. Exhortation speech was delivered by director dental, H&FW, Dr Theyiephrezo Khimiao and the secretary report was presented by Dr. Wangshimenba Ozukum, and vote of thanks by Dr Neiphrezo Sorünuo.

Earlier, the programme was chaired by Dr. Thungbeni Ngullie, a special message was delivered by senior dental surgeon, DH, Kiphire, Dr. N Moa Jamir and a special number by Dr Imensanen Jamir.

Tourism deptt. focuses on eco-tourism

DIMAPUR: Noting that Nagaland has immense potential in eco-tourism, the Department of Tourism in collaboration with Nagaland Tourism Association organised a two-day training for tour guides and homestay owners at Pfutseromi village coinciding with the Tsükhenyie festival of the Chakhesang community on April 19 and 20.

The training was attended by participants from Pfutsero and neighbouring villages. Delivering keynote address, Tourist Officer Phek district, Peter Trakha stressed on the need of developing human resource especially in rural areas as the state has immense potential in eco-tourism. The resource persons of the training were proprietor of Pier Tours,

Kejaroko Pieru; proprietor of Tribal Odessey, Veshehu Kezo and president of Nagaland Tourism Association, Vimeto Vakha.

They spoke on the topics – “Tourism Potentials in Nagaland, Tour Guiding as a profession and Homestay as a business respectively”.

The training ended with a practical session where the trainees were taught on

how to welcome visitors and tourists, and engaged in commentaries, activities and sightseeing. The session was chaired by proprietor of Compass Tours, Veluzo Tetseo. Meanwhile, chairman, Pfütseromi Village Council, Lhiwepelo Ritse thanked the department of tourism and Nagaland Tourism Association for their initiative in organising the programme.

DIMAPUR: District Sericulture Office, Chumukedima organised a two-day training silkworm rearing from April 20-21 at the college with an objective to educate the famers on the basics of sericulture, silkworm rearing and silk cultivation at St. Joseph University. The programme was funded by DST-Seed Project, Ministry of Science and Technology, New Delhi.

Chief guest of the training programme was professor and rector of SJU, Fr. Dr. Michael Arochiam and ASO incharge,

NU Kma celebrates ‘18th Zona Fest’

DIMAPUR: Nagaland University, Kohima CampusMeriema hosted the two-day “18th Zona Fest” on April 18-19 by observing Literarycum-Cult ural Day under the theme, “Encompassing Diversity and Inclusivity” at RCEMPA, Jotsoma.

The Literary Day was graced by Dr. Tseilhoutuo Rhutso, MLA 9 Kohima A/C as chief guest.

In his speech, Dr. Rhutso encouraged the students to aim for bigger things by making use of his life as an example. Competitions for Literary Day included slam poetry, extempore speech, advertisement, quiz competition, debate and various activities.

The Cultural Day was held on Aril 19 with A. Pongshi Phom, MLA 50 Longleng A/C as the guest of honour and and Dr. Hotokhu Chishi retired director Dental, Health &Family Welfare as the guest speaker. The two-day event was were attended by more than 700 students including professors, former executives of NUSU-KC and guests.

Officials and participants of the training.

Mejamongla talked on the topic “Reeling and twisting unit”.

In the first session, supervisor District Sericul-

ture Office, Chumukedima Petekhrietuo Medom, delivered a lecture on “Sericulture: Introduction to silkworm rearing and Silk

Cultivation”. The second session involved a field visit to Dhansaripar (District Sericulture Farm). On the second day, Extension Officer, District, Sericulture Office, Chumukedima, Ngoiang Ongh delivered a lecture on “Potential Scope of Sericulture in Sustainability” and B.Sc VI semester student gave a special presentation. The second session involved hands-on training and an interaction session. The program concluded with felicitation by SJU vice chancellor, Prof. Dr. D. Gnanadurai.

NIDA congratulates State government for obtaining LoI for medical college

DIMAPUR: Nagaland Inservice Doctors’ Association (NIDA) has congratulated the State government as well as the Department of Health & Family Welfare (H&FW) for successfully obtaining the Letter of Intent (LoI) from the National Medical Commission (NMC) on April 8 to start the first medical college in the State.

Noting that Nagaland was the only State in the country without a medical college at present, NIDA president Dr Bernard Amer and general secretary Dr Nitovi Shikhu said to have a medical college had been a long cherished dream for many. And according to them, that dream became a reality due to LoI, which could also be termed as a permit to start a new medical college. They mentioned

that there were several stringent guidelines and criteria laid down by NMC, without whose fulfilment it was not possible to start a new medical college. If the college functioned smoothly, they said it would become a boon for the State as this would create employment opportunities in both technical and nontechnical categories. On the medical education front, they pointed out that this would usher in an academic atmosphere, whereby the students and faculties would get an opportunity to engage in latest medical education and technologies.

They said the number of medical graduates would also increase to meet the demand of an increasing population, while the quality of medical care in

the State would also improve. Medical graduates would also be available for abroad as well as to other Indian States for employment, thereby improving the State’s economy. The list of benefits was endless, they stated.

The duo conveyed their gratitude to all who had worked tireless to achieve this goal, especially to chief minister Neiphiu Rio and H&FW minister Paiwang Konyak for showing their political will, commissioner & secretary Y Kikheto Sema for his dedication and dynamic leadership, H&FW principal director Dr Vibetunuo and Dr Soumya Chakraborty for their expert guidance. The NIDA leaders also wished the Nagaland Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (NIMSR).

Dy. CM extends Tsükhenyie greetings

DIMAPUR: Dy. chief minister, Y. Patton has extended greetings to the Chakhesang community on the occasion of Tsükhenyie festival. Patton said the spring festival has been celebrated for the

bumper harvests of last season and marks the beginning of the new sowing season. Dy CM on behalf of the state BJP legislators prayed that the festival will be celebrated with joy and merry making.

Dr.Tseilhoutuo Rhütso speaking at the IDANSB conference. (NP)

Hailstorm kills 2 in Assam; 162 houses damaged in Mizoram

SHILLONG, APR 23

(PTI): Implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in many parts of Meghalaya is facing hurdles due to drying up of water sources in the northeastern state, PHE Minister Marcuise N Marak said on Sunday.

Jal Jeevan Mission aims to provide potable water at every doorstep in the country by 2024.

NE politicians avoid same-sex marriage talk; lawyers, intellectuals divided

construct check dams and reservoirs so that we can maintain the water table levels,” he stated.

The minister also said the problem of water shortage has surfaced across the state due to breakdowns and shutdowns of supply lines.

The department, he said, is trying to solve the issues at the earliest.

AGARTALA/GUWA -

HATI, APRIL 23 (IANS):

Amidst the ongoing hearing on same-sex marriage in the Supreme Court, lawyers, intellectuals, social scientists and others in the northeastern region are divided on the issue.

in some tribal communities marriages have been solemnised among close relatives.

GUWAHATI/AIZWAL, APR 23 (AGENCIES):

Two persons were killed after a severe hailstorm lashed Tinsukia district of Assam on Saturday night.

The state government issued an ex-gratia payment of Rs 4 lakh to the families of the deceased.

According to reports, major damage has been caused to the Rupai-Tinsukia grid line, where nine towers have been severely damaged. Additionally, 60 to 70 percent of electricity poles and wires in Tinsukia have been damaged and work to restore power is

Man arrested with meth tablets worth Rs 3 cr

AIZAWL, APR 23 (PTI):

A 35-year-old man was arrested with methamphetamine tablets worth Rs 3 crore in Aizawl, officials said on Sunday.

Acting on a tip-off, Mizoram Police and Assam Rifles seized 14,600 tablets of methamphetamine, weighing 1.46 kg, from Falkland Veng area on Saturday night, they said.

The accused was identified as Lianchithanga, a resident of Kanan Veng in Champhai district, they added.

A case was filed under relevant sections of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, police said.

Further investigation is underway, they said.

In another incident, the Assam Rifles and Customs seized 499 bags of smuggled Burmese areca nuts worth Rs 2.79 crore in Champhai district near the Myanmar border over the weekend, officials said.

In recent times, exotic animals have also been trafficked from Mizoram.

in full swing.

Several trees and electricity poles were also uprooted in many places in Assam, which resulted in roads getting blocked.

In Mizoram, heavy rainfall and hailstones damaged at least 162 houses in three villages in the Mamit district of west Mizoram.

The villages are located near the border of Tripura and Bangladesh. West Phaileng sub-divisional officer (SDO) Vanlalchhuanawma Chawngthu said that heavy rain and hail lashed three villages within Mamit’s West Phai-

leng sub-division.

At least 98 houses in Lallen village, 27 houses in Chhippui and 37 others in Kawnmawi village have been damaged by hail, he said. He said that the heavy rain and hailstones have left around 61 houses- 40 in Lallen, 13 in Chhippui and 8 in Kawnmawi- unfit for human occupation.

Mamit deputy commissioner VL Remliana said that the district administration and local MLA Lalrintluanga Sailo have provided tarpaulins to the affected families.

“I have received reports that there are Jal Jeevan Mission projects that are already completed by the department but because of drying up of the water sources, there is no water at intake points,” the minister told PTI. Protection and potential retention of water catchment areas, projects for improving water conservation, and construction of check dams for maintaining water table levels are some of the measures which can help tackle the problem, the minister said. Temperatures have risen by about six degrees Celsius in most areas in the plains while there has been a deviation of about three to four degrees Celsius in the higher altitudes affecting normal life.

Marak said the State government has taken steps to improve water conservation through projects funded by the Asian Development Bank.

“We are trying to

BJP used Pulwama attack, Balakot air strike to win 2019 LS polls: Manik Sarkar

AGARTALA, APR 23

(PTI): The BJP had “used” the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and the consequent air strike at Balakot in the neighbouring country to win the Lok Sabha polls that year, former Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar claimed on Sunday.

Sarkar made the claim days after former Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Satya Pal Malik, alleged that the Pulwama terror attack was a result of “systemic failure, involving gross security and intelligence lapses”.

A terror attack was carried out in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir by a suicide bomber on February 14, 2019 resulting in the death of 40 CRPF personnel. “Using the atmosphere, they (BJP) won the 2019 Lok Sabha election and it is Satya Pal Malik, who was the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir when the incident took place, is now speaking about it,” Sarkar said at a party programme here.

Soon after the Balakot incident, the CPI(M) had expressed doubt and asserted that there was a “deep-rooted conspiracy”

behind the incident before the general election held in April-May that year to overshadow other burning issues like unemployment.

India’s war planes pounded a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training camp in Pakistan’s Balakot on February 26, 2019 in response to the Pulwama terror attack.

Expressing surprise over Malik’s interview, Sarkar said the Prime Minister, Home Minister and National Security Advisor are now “observing silence”.

Former army chief Gen (retd) Shankar Roychowdhury has also raised concerns over the issue, he said. “After the former Governor gave the interview, I was thinking that he would be summoned by the CBI and it proved to be correct as

he was asked to appear before the federal investigating agency on a case related to an alleged insurance scam,” Sarkar said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has asked Malik to answer certain queries in connection with an alleged insurance scam in Jammu and Kashmir. The CBI move comes barely a week after Malik gave an interview to “The Wire”, in which he made critical remarks about the BJP-led Centre, especially regarding its handling of Jammu and Kashmir where he served as the last governor before the erstwhile state was bifurcated into Union territories.

Claiming that the country has for the first time experienced such a “reactionary government”, the CPI(M) politburo member said the BJP can be defeated if people come together.

“In Tripura, 60 per cent of voters did not support them (BJP) in the recent Assembly elections. Political force, Tipra Motha which openly criticised the BJP, helped the saffron party to win the polls”, he said.

The minister expressed optimism that the water crisis will lessen with the onset of monsoon.

Urging citizens to take up rainwater harvesting individually, the minister said “People constructing a house should invest in a rainwater harvesting unit. This will be very beneficial for the family and I appeal to each one to try to be part of the solution”.

A senior PHE official told PTI, Meghalaya has been able to provide tap water connections to over 2.82 lakh households (44.45 per cent) as of January 2023, compared to 4,550 households (0.72 per cent earlier).

Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma informed the Assembly in the last budget session that the Central government has assured the state of allocating Rs 3,700 crore in 2023-24 for the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in Meghalaya.

Legislators from local political parties in the northeastern states observed that Parliament and the Assemblies are the appropriate forum to decide on the creation of a new social relationship or same-sex marriage related issues.

The BJP, Congress and CPI-M MLAs and MPs refused to make any comments saying that their central leaders would speak on this “court related matter”.

Intellectual and author Sekhar Datta said individuals and the concerned community and society must decide on this sensitive same-sex marriage issue.

“Same-sex marriage issue should not be institutionalised. The matter must be left to the person concerned,” Datta told IANS.

Of the northeast region’s 45.58 million population, 27-28 per cent are tribals, who follow their traditional and customary laws. Tribal leader and author Salil Debbarma said that unlike the non-tribals,

“However, same-sex marriage among the tribal communities was never a matter so far. This might be a matter in most urban areas and metropolises,” the octogenarian tribal leader told IANS.

Legal experts and lawyers also have differing opinions on the same-sex marriage issue. Lawyer and writer Purushuttam Roy Barman said that this should be dealt with in a manner keeping in mind that personal or individual liberty should not hampered.

“People and the community’s mindset are changing. Men and women are now attracted to a modern outlook and most people see societal aspects on a scientific basis. If any couple are in favour of same-sex marriage, others should not raise any objections,” he told IANS.

Roy Barman, who is also the Secretary of the Tripura Human Rights Organisation, said that the Special Marriage Act of 1954 was introduced in a special situation and a few years’ back the rights of the third gender were established by law. He said that when widow remarriage was initiated

there was a big hue and cry in the society and now it is almost accepted by the society along with the marriage of divorcees.

“While marriage is an institution, some conservative people observe that it is decided by the gods. However, everything is gradually changing,” Roy Barman said. Activist and writer Nandita Datta supporting same-sex marriage said that earlier very few people supported it, but now the percentage of people favouring same-sex marriage has increased substantially.

“Same-sex marriage would control the massive population growth in India. Religious leaders are against same-sex marriage because their undue dominance on men and women would be curtailed or hampered. They invoke the fear of gods in this regard,” said Datta. The Supreme Court is now hearing a batch of 15 petitions challenging certain provisions of the Hindu Marriage Act, Foreign Marriage Act and the Special Marriage Act and other marriage laws, as unconstitutional on the ground that they deny same sex couples the right to marry or alternatively to read these provisions broadly so as to include same sex marriage.

People of Sikkim yearn for clean governance: Bhaichung

GANGTOK, APR 23 (PTI): People of the Himalayan idyll of Sikkim yearn for a “corruption and violence free” government in elections to the state assembly slated to be held early next year, said ace footballer-turned-politician Bhaichung Bhutia.

In an interview to PTI, Bhutia, who heads the Hamro Sikkim Party (HSP) said his party is working closely with the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) led by former chief minister Pawan Kumar Chamling on issues such as “dilution” of Article 371F, which give certain special rights on land ownership to Sikkimese. He said there is a strong possibility of an electoral alliance between the two parties which had also joined hands on another key demand – introducing an Inner Line Permit (ILP) which would restrict visitors and settlers in the pristine state wedged between West Bengal, Nepal and China.

“HSP wants all opposition parties in Sikkim to unitedly fight the SKM-BJP alliance and defeat it in next year’s polls.

“We are already working closely with the SDF and raising our voices together

ManipurpaysrichtributestoheroesofAnglo-ManipuriWar

SHUN VIOLENCE, COME TO MAINSTREAM, GOVERNOR UIKEY TELLS INSURGENTS

Correspondent

IMPHAL, APR 23: Manipur, on Sunday, paid rich homage to the heroes of the last war of Manipur’s independence fought between warriors of the then kingdom and the mighty British soldiers at Kheba Hill in present day Thoubal district on this day in 1891.

Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey and chief minister N Biren Singh led the people in paying homage to the Manipuri warriors who sacrificed their lives in safeguarding the independence of the then erstwhile Manipur kingdom.

A ceremonial offering of tarpan (offering flowers in the water body) at the bank of the Khongjom river which runs at the foothill of Kheba Ching (hill) where Khongjom War Memorial complex is located and paying floral tributes to the statue of major general Paona Brajabashi, who led the Manipuri warriors in the battle were the main highlights of the function. Addressing the func -

tion that followed, Governor Anusuiya Uikey reiterated the government’s appeal to the people resorting to arm rebellion to shun violence and come to the mainstream to work for development and progress of the nation.

Uikey said the day was to remeber the heroes of Manipur and paying homage to patriots who laid down their lives fighting against the British in 1891.

“While observing this day, we need to remember that foreign powers become active only when there are internal conflicts,” she said. She termed the Khong-

jom War as one of the most important events in the history of Manipur.

“There are many unknown heroes who have fought against foreign forces like the British in villages, mountains, places like Manipur and awakened the spirit of freedom in the people,” she said, adding that they also need to be remembered.

She said sacrifices of Manipur’s heroes like Major Paona Brajabashi, Major Chongtham Mia, Chinglen Sana, Major Khumbong, Major Loitongba and many others were important and

there was a need to remember them. “Today, we are citizens of a free India and our independence is not a gift of the British, but a result of long struggle and sacrifices made. We should always remember this,” the Governor said.

Highlighting the responsibility of the youth to maintain and protect the dignity, freedom and sovereignty of the country, she said that independence should not be interpreted in the narrow sense of separatism and regionalism.

“Any threat or challenge, whether external or internal, must be faced unitedly and courageously,” she added.

In his address on the occasion, chief minister N Biren Singh remembered those who sacrificed their lives,132 years ago in 1891 for their motherland. He said that despite knowing of their disadvantages of being ill-equipped and outnumbered, the brave forefathers fought the British.

“Today, what is important is whether today’s

generation is able to safeguard, preserve the freedom, independence given to us by our brave forefathers,” Singh said.

The chief minister recounted a brief account of the war while stressing the need for politicians and bureaucrats to be sincere and nationalistic.

He said that the then people of both valley and hills fought against the British as a united Manipur while calling for unity among the different communities living in the state.

“We lived together, we are living together and we will continue to live together,” he said.

Other highlights of the observance included Khongjom Parva recitals, musical play “Maharaja Kullachandra Dhaja Singh and Anglo Manipuri War 1891,” by department of art & culture, national anthem by MR Band unit, among others. The observance was also attended by MP Rajya Sabha, ministers, state chief secretary, DGP, officials among others.

over current issues. So, there is a possibility of an electoral alliance between HSP and SDF,” the former India football captain told PTI in a telephonic interview. He said the SDF has supported HSP during the latter’s ‘Sikkim Ekta Yatra’ (Sikkim Unity Rally) and it was reciprocated by his outfit during the Chamlingled party’s Sikkim Bachao Abhiyan (Save Sikkim Campaign).

“The situation in Sikkim has become horrible in every aspect. There has been a rise in crime and drug abuse, there is massive corruption in the government and organised political violence has increased,” he alleged. Bhutia claimed that people were tired of “poor governance” and said they

consequently were “yearning for clean leaders”

He said with smile, “ ... That is where we come into the scene”.

Baichung who was born into a farming family, was noticed as a football prodigy at age 9 when he won scholarship to attend the elite Tashi Namgyal Academy in Gangtok.

He went on to play for East Bengal club and then become an India XI player making his debut against Thailand at age 19.

As India’s soccer captain he went on to register a series of tournament win to become a legend throughut the country.

Asked about the reasons his party has not tasted electoral success so far, he said, “We were a very young party, only 7-8 months old, when we fought the 2019 polls. We did not have any organisationl structure ready to deliver votes”.

He also pointed out that there were several defections at the last moment due to various reasons. “But in the last four years, we have learnt from our mistakes and are much more organised for the 2024 elections,” Bhutia said. The former

ace footballer claimed that the HSP’s visibility has increased as the party has raised issues concerning the state. However, he refused to divulge any details on how many seats the party wants to contest in the forthcoming elections.

“It will be decided at the right time according to what people want us to do,” he said.

Hamro Sikkim Party was floated in May 2018 on the plank of fighting corruption and attracted many senior leaders from other parties. However, several of them left the party before the 2019 polls, during which the HSP contested 23 seats and forfeited deposits in all the constituencies, bagging only 0.80 per cent of the votes.

On the raging issue of Article 371F, Bhutia said, “This legislation grants us some of the most important rights and it was the basis for Sikkim’s merger with India in 1975. Now, it is being diluted by the SKM government in the state and the BJP at the Centre through the enactment of the Financial Act, 2023. Our fight to keep Article 371F intact in letter and spirit will continue.”

Tea planters suffering from ‘crop loss’, ‘falling’ prices in Tripura

AGARTALA, APR 23 (PTI): Tea planters in Tripura are witnessing a “shortage” in production due to a prolonged dry spell in the northeastern state with “falling” prices of the crop creating pressure on margins, stakeholders said on Sunday.

Tea plantations, the second largest industry in the state after rubber, are facing “crop loss” this season due to a drought-like situation, Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC) chairman Santosh Saha said.

“Our production has been hit due to droughtlike conditions. There is a shortage of leaves, and the volume in the auction market has also come down. It is a difficult situation for us to get profit,” he told PTI.

State-run TTDC has five estates and two manufacturing units with an annual production capacity of eight lakh kg.

Tripura produces 90 lakh kg of tea annually. “There is no support price for tea from the gov-

ernment as provided for paddy. This system prevails in the whole country,” Saha said.

Unakoti district’s Manu Valley tea garden manager Prabir De said the prolonged rainless period has adversely impacted production in the state, and despite the shortage, selling price has “come down to Rs 200 per kg from Rs 300 last year”.

Manu Valley tea estate is the largest garden in Tripura, which produces more than 15 lakh kg per year.

“Now, the production cost per kg is Rs 160-170.

Generally, we sell tea at Rs 300 per kg in April or May and the rate comes down to Rs 150 in October. So, it is the time we make profits and also compensate for the loss in October,” De told PTI.

Big planters can manage the loss up to some extent, but small growers are facing difficulties to deal with the situation, he said.

There are 52 privaterun gardens in the northeastern state and 22 facto-

ries for manufacturing tea, but now, only 13 are in operation due to the shortage of leaves, he said. When contacted, Tea Board factory advisory officer Tuhin Debnath said, “Assessments for crop loss are on. Now, we do not have any data. So I cannot tell the exact amount of crop loss due to drought.”

Sumedha Das, owner of Shova tea estate said, “In 2013, the cash component of a labourer’s wage was Rs 58 per day besides free rations and shelter. A worker’s wage has been increased to Rs 176 per day in addition to other incentives. The price of coal rose to Rs 20 per kg as compared to Rs 13 per kg three years ago. But the selling price of tea is not increasing.”

She pointed out that the government in neighbouring Assam disbursed Rs 63.05 crore as a financial incentive to 370 tea gardens to help them mitigate the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but so far “no incentive was given to tea planters in Tripura”.

Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey paying homage to heroes of last war of Manipur’s independence.

Bhaichung Bhutia

Manik Sarkar

A tree uprooted by hailstorm in Tinsukia.

in Aizawl

Jal Jeevan Mission in Meghalaya affected by drying up of water

SNIPPETS

2 train coaches catch fire

RATLAM,

APR 23

(PTI): Two coaches of Ratlam-Dr Ambedkar Nagar DEMU train caught fire in Madhya Pradesh’s Ratlam district on Sunday morning, an official said. No casualty was reported in the incident which took place at around 7 am at Pritam Nagar railway station, located nearly 30 km from Ratlam, Western Railway’s Ratlan division public relations officer Khemraj Meena said. After leaving from Ratlam station, the driving motor coach (placed in the middle of the train) of the DEMU (diesel-electric multiple unit) train caught fire at Pritam Nagar railway station, he said. Later, an adjoining coach also caught the blaze, he said, adding that fire tenders were rushed to the spot. The fire has been almost brought under control, the official said. All passengers were safe, he said. The divisional railway manager (DRM) has left for the spot, he said. The incident did not affect traffic on the route, the official said.

Three teens drown in MP

HARDA (MP), APR 23

(PTI): Three teenage boys drowned in a river while taking a bath in Harda district of Madhya Pradesh on Sunday, a police official said. The incident occurred in Bichhola village under Handia police station limits this afternoon, he said. “These three boys, aged 16 to 17 years and studying in class 12, drowned in Ajnal river, where they went to take a bath,” Handia police station in-charge C S Sariyam said. After being alerted about the incident, a police team reached the spot and fished out the victims’ bodies, he said. A case was registered in this connection and investigation is underway, he added.

3 killed in bike accident

HOWRAH, APR 23 (PTI): Three young men were killed in a motorcycle accident in West Bengal’s Howrah district in the early hours of Sunday, police said. Bijoy Hati (22), Shantanu Hati (19) and Akuntal Das (17) were returning home around 1.30 am in Dhandali Hatipara when the accident happened in nearby Garchumuk, they said.

Locals said they heard a loud noise, and when they came out of their homes, they saw the three men lying on the road in a pool of blood with their heads crushed. As the accident happened in the dead of the night, no one saw what exactly led to the mishap.

After post-mortem, the bodies were brought back to the village where a pall of gloom descended.

20 bikers arrested for rash riding

MUMBAI, APR 23 (PTI): At least 20 motorcyclists were arrested and their vehicles were seized by the Mumbai police for allegedly riding in a rash and negligent manner on Bandra-Worli Sea Link and other arterial roads in the western suburb on Sunday, an official said. The action was taken in the early hours of the day after motorcyclists were spotted riding rashly on the sea link, Carter Road, Bandstand among other places in Bandra, he said. The accused, including pillion riders, were residents of Kurla, Chembur, Panvel and other places, the official said. The accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Motor Vehicle Act and their vehicles have been seized, he added.

Amritpal Singh arrested in Punjab

where nine other associates picked up over the past several weeks are kept.

Shortly after his arrest, a video surfaced online in which the extremist preacher is seen delivering a brief address, indicating that he is surrendering.

Amritpal arrest: A chronology of events

CHANDIGARH, APR 23 (PTI): Radical preacher Amritpal Singh, who was appointed as the head of ‘Waris Punjab De’ last year, was arrested on Sunday morning. A chronology:

Kurukshetra held.

March 25, 2023:

Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh asks Amritpal to surrender before police.

DIBRUGARH (ASSAM), APR 23 (PTI): Radical preacher Amritpal Singh was on Sunday lodged in Dibrugarh Central Jail in Assam after being flown in a special flight from Punjab following his arrest in the northern state, officials said.

A senior official told PTI that a heavily-guarded convoy reached the prison with Singh, who arrived at the Dibrugarh airport around 2:20 pm from Bathinda.

“He has been kept in a special cell under tight security. A team from Punjab Police is present in the jail along with personnel of Assam Police,” he said.

The Assam Police has not yet made any official statement on the development.

A multi-tier security arrangement has been made at the Central Jail, the official said.

“The jail compound has been surrounded by Assam Police’s elite Black Cat Commandos, CRPF and other security personnel,” he said.

Dibrugarh Central Jail was constructed in 185960 by the British on 15.54 acres of land. It is one of the oldest and well-fortified prisons, officials said.

A few pictures of Amritpal Singh, while being taken into custody, surfaced on social media and in these, he could be seen a wearing traditional white robe.

In a video circulated online, he is purportedly addressing a gathering at a gurudwara, and says he is surrendering.

Earlier, the Punjab police arrested Amritpal Singh in Moga’s Rode village early Sunday, ending an over a month-long manhunt against the radical preacher who styled himself after slain Khalistani militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

The preacher was taken into custody at 6.45 am as he came out -- in the traditional attire that included a sheathed sword -- of the gurdwara in Rode, Bhindranwale’s native village and also the place where he himself took over last year as the chief of Waris Punjab De.

The 29-year-old was detained under the stringent National Security Act and flown to Assam on a special flight to be lodged at the Dibrugarh Central Jail,

Massive crowds join Rahul Gandhi on his road show in Karnataka’s Vijayapura

Another clip showed him sitting before a portrait of Bhindranwale, who died in a controversial Army operation in 1984 to flush out militants holed up inside Amritsar’s Golden Temple.

Inspector General of Police Sukhchain Singh Gill countered the preacher’s claim that it was a “surrender”, and said the fugitive was cornered.

“A joint operation was conducted by Amritsar police and the intelligence wing of Punjab Police. He was located in village Rode based on operational inputs with Punjab Police. He was surrounded from all sides. The village was surrounded by the Punjab Police,” he said. He said police did not enter the gurdwara. “It was very important to maintain the sanctity of the gurdwara and police in uniform could not enter inside.”

A message was conveyed to the preacher that he had no chance of making his escape, Gill said.

September 29, 2022: Radical preacher Amritpal Singh anointed as the chief of the ‘Waris Punjab De’, an outfit founded by actor and activist Deep Sidhu, at a ‘dastar bandi’ (turban tying) ceremony in Moga’s Rode village -- the ancestral village of slain militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

December 12, 2022: Supporters of Amritpal burn chairs at a gurdwara in Jalandhar, claiming chairs and sofas in a Sikh shrine are against ‘maryada’ (code of conduct) of Sikhism.

February 10, 2023: Amritpal ties the knot with UK-based NRI Kirandeep Kaur in his Jallupur Khera village in Amritsar.

February 16, 2023: Amritpal and his supporters, including Lovepreet Singh Toofan, booked for allegedly kidnapping and thrashing a resident of Chamkaur Sahib in Rupnagar district.

February 17, 2023: Lovepreet Singh arrested.

February 23, 2023: Amritpal and his supporters, some of them brandishing swords and guns, break through barricades and barge into Ajnala police

station on the outskirts of Amritsar city and clash with policemen, demanding the release of Lovepreet Singh.

February 24, 2023: Lovepreet Singh released from judicial custody.

March 18, 2023: Punjab Police launches a crackdown against Amritpal and his aides. His cavalcade intercepted in Jalandhar but he manages to give the police a slip by switching vehicles. Mobile internet services suspended in Punjab.

March 20, 2023: Amritpal’s uncle Harjit Singh and another person surrender before police near a gurdwara in Mehatpur, Jalandhar.

March 22, 2023: A picture of Amritpal and his close aide Papalpreet Singh sitting on a motorised cart emerges on social media.

March 23, 2023: A woman who harboured Amritpal and Papalpreet at her house in Haryana’s

March 28, 2023: A massive operation to trace Amritpal conducted in Hoshiarpur after some suspects abandon a vehicle following a police chase.

March 29, 2023: A video of Amritpal surfaces online in which he calls for a ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ congregation on Baisakhi.

March 30, 2023: Another video and an audio clip of Amritpal surface in which he asserts that he would soon appear before the world.

April 10, 2023: Papalpreet arrested from Kathunangal area in Amritsar.

April 15, 2023: Amritpal’s another close aide Joga Singh, who provided shelter to the radical preacher and Papalpreet in Uttar Pradesh’s Pilibhit and brought them back to Punjab on March 28, arrested from Sirhind in Fatehgarh Sahib.

April 20, 2023: Amritpal’s wife Kirandeep Kaur stopped from boarding a flight to London at the Sri Guru Ram Dass International Airport in Amritsar.

April 23, 2023: Amritpal arrested from Rode village in Moga district.

Firm in my demand for action on BJP’s corruption: Pilot

JAIPUR, APR 23 (PTI):

Former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot on Sunday asserted he will continue with his agitation against his own government for action against the corruption in the previous BJP government.

Pilot said he is not backing down from the stand he has taken against the state Congress government and has been “politely requesting” it to take action in corruption cases from the previous dispensation.

He said despite his daylong fast on April 11, no action has been taken in such cases.

VIJAYAPURA (K’TAKA), APR 23 (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday held a massive road show here, ahead of the May 10 Karnataka Assembly polls, waving at a large, enthusiastic crowd that had lined up on both sides of the route. Standing on top of a specially designed vehicle, Gandhi constantly waved at the people gathered in the streets and on nearby

buildings, many of whom were seen chanting ‘Rahul, Rahul’ slogans and shouting loud cheers. He began the road show after garlanding the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. People holding Congress flags moved along as the vehicle carrying Gandhi and other Congress leaders passed through the streets from Shivaji Circle and Kanakadasa Circle, amid the sound of drum beats.

Karnataka Congress campaign committee chief M B Patil and several other party leaders and workers accompanied Gandhi on the road show.

Gandhi, earlier today began his two-day visit to poll-bound Karnataka from Kudala Sangama, where he offered obeisance to 12thcentury poet and social reformer Basaveshwara on his birth anniversary, celebrated as Basava Jayanti today.

“Speaking truth, raising voice against corruption and injustice, is among the values of the Congress party. Following these values, I observed one-day fast on April 11. Today, it’s been two weeks, no action has been taken so far.

“So, again I am politely requesting the government to fulfil the promises we had made to the people,” Pilot told reporters here, adding that now even demanding action against corruption is being termed ‘anti-party’ activity.

Modi to meet with church leaders on 2-day Kerala visit

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM/KOCHI, APR

23 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Kerala on Monday for a two-day visit during which he will be attending several programmes, including the flagging off of the Vande Bharat Express train here, a meeting with senior priests of the Christian community and a youth event.

The BJP in Kerala is aiming to use the PM’s visit as a springboard for its outreach campaign aimed at bringing youth and minorities into its fold.

On Monday, after a road show in the port city of Kochi, the PM would be attending a youth programme -- Yuvam 2023 -there, which the BJP hopes would be a game changer in Kerala politics.

However, the most politically significant event would be the Prime Minister’s meeting with the church leaders in the evening at Kochi.

The meeting comes in the wake of the saffron party’s outreach campaign -- Sneha Yatra -- as part of which leaders of the BJP in Kerala visited Christian and Muslim leaders and the

Narendra Modi

homes of people of these minority communities on the festive occasions of Easter and Eid, respectively.

According to the BJP, the outreach campaign has received a favourable response as several members from the Christian community joined the party recently and more were allegedly flocking to join it even before the PM’s visit.

Once the PM arrives, the numbers will increase, BJP state president K Surendran has said.

BJP’s outreach campaign recently received a shot in the arm when a senior Bishop -- Thalassery

Archbishop Mar Joseph Pamplany -- of the influential Syro-Malabar Catholic Church said that if the Centre promised to increase the rate of rubber procurement

to Rs 300 per kilogram, the party’s dearth of an MP from the southern state would be addressed.

Subsequently, the visits to Christian priests by BJP leaders increased in number.

Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said that it was not the first time that church leaders were meeting the PM. While speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, he said that after Modi became PM in 2015, many church leaders had met him in Kochi when he arrived in the state to go to Thrissur.

Muraleedharan said he believed the church leaders were meeting the PM because of the “love and respect they had for Modi” and they had not said it had anything to do with votes.

“It is the Congress which is saying it is for votes. Congress is only concerned with votes and not welfare of the people, so they only see votes in everything,” he contended.

He also lashed out at the ruling Left government in Kerala for its “silence” and alleged “lack of action” against concerned officials for the leak of an intelli -

gence report regarding the security measures in place for the PM’s visit.

“That was a serious breach of security, but the state government has been silent on the issue for the last 24 hours. It indicates that the Home Department is functioning without anyone at the helm,” Muraleedharan said.

He said that if the state government was serious about preventing such lapses in future, it would have taken action against the official concerned in the past 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Commissioner K Sethu Raman said 2,060 police personnel had been deployed in Kochi city as part of the security arrangements for the Prime Minister’s visit. He also said that around 20,000 participants were expected to take part in the PM’s road show.

Similar stringent security arrangements have been put in place in Thiruvananthapuram also, police said.

On Tuesday, the PM would be flagging off the much-awaited Vande Bharat Express train from Thiruvananthapuram, with the BJP giving the event a lot of publicity.

Pilot was speaking to media after offering his prayers at Jhadkhad Temple (Shiv Temple) in the city. He said he welcomes the action taken by the AntiCorruption Bureau (ACB), which arrested several corrupt IAS, IPS, RAS and other officers.

“The Chief Minister himself had said that ACB is active and has raided several corrupt officers, which we all welcome. But, when he had come into power after being in opposition for five years, we never said that we would arrest a patwari or officer. We had said we will take action in the cor-

Nitish-Mamata Banerjee meeting

likely on April 25

KOLKATA, APR 23

(IANS): A crucial meeting between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumar will likely take place on April 25.

Trinamool Congress insiders said that Nitish Kumar is supposed to come to Kolkata on Tuesday morning and there is a high possibility of his meeting with Mamata Banerjee at the latter’s Kalighat residence in South Kolkata on the same evening.

A member of the West Bengal cabinet said that the meeting will harp on the unity of opposition forces against BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

In the last couple of months, Mamata Banerjee has had an array of meetings with a number of non-BJP and non-Congress leaders on the issue of opposition unity against the BJP in the 2024 polls.

In the meeting, the two leaders agreed to maintain a distance with Congress and rather focus on the unity of the regional forces against BJP in the 2024 polls.

ruption cases that happened in Vasundhara Ji’s tenure,” Pilot said. After the Pilot’s one-day fast, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had said that ACB has arrested several corrupt IAS, IPS officers, which has nowhere happened in the country.

People voted for people because corruption was a big issue before Congress came to power, he said, adding that since there is very little time left in the assembly elections, action should be taken.

“If we all raise corruption done by the BJP or if I raise the corruption issues of the previous Vasundhara

Raje government and demand action on them then I believe that it is in the benefit of the party,” Pilot said. He also raised questions over inaction against the party leaders who defied the party’s high command in September 2022.

“It is true that the incident that took place on September 25 was an open violation of the orders of our Congress President Sonia Gandhi. Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken were openly insulted. Why hasn’t action been taken against them yet? This is the question, the answer lies with the party,” Pilot said.

Annamalai hits back at PTR on audio clip issue

CHENNAI, APR 23 (PTI):

A day after Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan dismissed as “fabricated” an audio clip where he is claimed to have made some comments about the DMK’s first family, the BJP’s state unit said it will seek an “independent forensic audit” of the tape.

Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai, who had uploaded Rajan’s purported audio tape on his Twitter account a few days ago, challenged the minister to produce a tape with “similar content but instead in my voice.”

In a statement, he said a delegation of BJP leaders will be meeting state Governor R N Ravi on Sunday “seeking an independent forensic audit on the audio file.”

PTR, as Rajan is addressed, had on Saturday dismissed as “fabricated,” the audio clip in which he is claimed to have made certain comments about the ruling DMK’s first family.

While sharing the clip, Annamalai had claimed Rajan made some ‘revelation’ about the assets of

DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin’s son Udhaynidhi and son-in-law Sabareesan.

Since the minister “is resting on an argument that this audio is fabricated, we challenge him to produce an audio clip with similar content but instead in my voice,” Annamalai said.

“We shall submit both audio samples to a courtmonitored investigation and let the investigating agency ascertain the genuine nature of both audio clips,” he insisted.

The BJP leader said he will submit his voice sample and expected PTR to do the same.

Rajan should understand it is “too big a case to be brushed under the carpet with weak statements posted as defence,” he added.

Amritpal Singh

Massive crowd at Vijayapura.

Sachin Pilot during a fast.

K Annamalai.

Security personnel stand guard near Dibrugarh airport, on Sunday. (R) Amritpal Singh arrested by Punjab Police from Moga district of Punjab. (PTI)

FLOWN TO DIBRUGARH ON A SPECIAL FLIGHT ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Future in jeopardy

During the past decades, states in the north east region, particularly Manipur, have earned a dubious distinction of having a very huge number of IDUs and also the highest ratio of HIV/ AIDS prevalence in the country. North east India could face a huge social, political, economic and security crisis in the coming decades, as several thousand drug users, some of who are as young as medium primary school students, become a growing nightmare in the region. Impure drugs (crudely refined) from Myanmar are packed in sachets and sold cheap at affordable prices to remain within the reach of school going children. In Nagaland, the districts bordering Myanmar are witnessing an ever growing number of young children who are getting hooked to drugs. Even in other parts of Nagaland, a growing number of children are getting hooked on drugs. This was confirmed at a recent crackdown on drugs and alcohol by a ward union in Dimapur. According to the information, the team during the crackdown, caught scores of students including girls with the banned psychotropic drug –yaba or Ice. Almost 80 per cent of the world’s drug production originate from the “Golden Crescent” and the “Golden Triangle” area, now called “Golden Pentagon” with the induction of Vietnam-Cambodia and Nagaland-Manipur in Northeast India. The smuggling route is anywhere through the porous border between Myanmar and Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram etc. One well known drug trafficking route is from Moreh (Manipur), Champai (Mizoram), Dimapur (Nagaland), and Guwahati (Assam) to other parts of India. This route has become the nucleus of drug trafficking industry in India’s northeast. Among the widely sold drugs is Ya ba (methamphetamine; Thai- literally ‘crazy medicine’), formerly known as yama (Thai: literally ‘horse drug’). Another popular drug widely used in Nagaland is Ice (crystal methamphetamine), a drug that stimulates the brain and nervous system, and is highly addictive. When law enforcers turn law offenders the problem multiplies several times over.

It may be recalled that in February 2013, a public relations officer of the Indian Army was caught with Rs.24 crore worth of narcotic drugs consignment in Manipur. Others nabbed included members of a private airline and a family member of a former home minister of Manipur. Not just some members of the armed forces, the police and politicians too have often been indicted in India’s narcotics industry. The biggest seizure in 2021 was in December when Assam Rifles and Manipur Police seized over 54 kgs of heroin valued at Rs.508 crore in the market. Drug use continues to remain a growing trend, especially among the young since the traffickers have successfully established well organised networks at various levels. One of the factor that has facilitated trafficking is the growing cycle of addiction, easy availability as well as the low price for drugs and also used to lace various food items coming from Myanmar. Despite recent crackdown in nearby Lahorijan and Khatkhati in neighbouring Karbi Anglong district, drug mafias have reportedly shifted to nearby Dimapur and also changed tactics by using mobile outlets. Most shocking is the revelation and as published in this newspaper, that teen aged school children and minors as young as 10 are using drugs. This only exposes how dangerous the situation has become in the state.

DailyDevotion

Do You Worship The Work?

We are God’s fellow workers… —1 Corinthians 3:9

Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of concentration on God is apt to become overly burdened by his work. He is a slave to his own limits, having no freedom of his body, mind, or spirit. Consequently, he becomes burned out and defeated. There is no freedom and no delight in life at all. His nerves, mind, and heart are so overwhelmed that God’s blessing cannot rest on him.

But the opposite case is equally true– once our concentration is on God, all the limits of our life are free and under the control and mastery of God alone. There is no longer any responsibility on you for the work. The only responsibility you have is to stay in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom that comes after sanctification is the freedom of a child, and the things that used to hold your life down are gone. But be careful to remember that you have been freed for only one thing– to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.

We have no right to decide where we should be placed, or to have preconceived ideas as to what God is preparing us to do. God engineers everything; and wherever He places us, our one supreme goal should be to pour out our lives in wholehearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might…” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

By Oswald Chambers

Quotes

“Try to be a rainbow in someone else’s cloud.”

~ Maya Angelou

Dons with unfathomed wealth, Lord Indian politics

Crime is caste, community, liaison, political connections and the biggest business in India. If Atiq was worth Rs 11684 crores, Dawood is estimated $ 6.7 billion and there are others who have wealth more than the budgets of many state governments. The syndicates are widespread from the jungles of Arunachal and Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha, to the western most Gujarat to Kerala, Karnataka or Tamlinadu to the crest of Kashmir. Their nexus with regional parries in south, east, to every individual state is an open secret. Different leaders, groups within parties have it. If Atiq and Asad represent the Muslim gangster, Vikas Dube, eliminated “as he tried to escape” while being transported was a Brahmin don and enjoyed support of fellow Brahmins. Atiq was an emerging dada in 1980s. His career started before 1979, when he committed the first murder. By 1989, a powerful gangster, won the Allahabad West constituency as an independent retained the seat for two consecutive terms. He was elected to the assembly on Samajwadi Party ticket. Each year his wealth multiplied and so

did his gang’s criminal aggression. From 1999 to 2003 he was president of Apna Dal, a faction of which is part of the NDA now. He was elected on Apna Dal ticket on 2002. In 2004, he was in Samajwadi Party. Criminality was the reason for his political success that helped him multiply wealth

In 1980s, Gorakhpur was known for conflict between a Brahmin gang of Hari Shankar Tiwari and Thakur gang of Virendra Pratap Shahi. Tiwari was minister in many governments.

The state today has at least eight major groups as per police lists. Each of these have properties, cash and other assets worth thousands of crore. Atiq’s 1400 crore assets are spotted by ED. Many were bulldozed. Still nobody knows how his properties in Okhla, Jamia and Shaheen Bagh in Delhi would be dealt with. Other UP gangs also own properties in and around national capital. The post Babri demolition also led to the rise of many land mafia and all have good moorings. Much of Atiq’s rise was also linked to the Mulayam Singh Yadav’s bid to lean on him to counter the saffron rise. Vikas Dube or Atiq are not exceptions.

There are others rising. The mafia rise has been a concern for the business houses in the state. Ferozabad was once dreaded even by police officials as it was known for the centre of kidnappers. In 2022, UP arrested 16000 criminals and recovered a fraction of their possessions at Rs 2100 crore. The BJP claims that Yogi Adityanath has struck terror with bulldozers and encounters. That is correct but the Yogi has not been able to galvanise the force to do proper investigations, draft out appropriate FIRs leading to large acquittals at district courts. These are not even discussed and political messaging of administrative success is carefully managed for image burnishing.

tion even to the local or regional gangs are that of Dawood Ibrahim, Arun Gawli, Ashwin Naik, Varadarajan Mudaliar, Karim Lala, Haji Mastan, Abu Salem and Ravi Pujari mostly based around Mumbai. Their monetary worth is estimated to equal many state budgets. They have diverse connections with corporate, international businesses, movies and politics.

Shivaji Sarkar

Every other state has their gangs be it West Bengal, Assam, or tiniest North East states. The gangs in Tripura have links Bihar, other NE states and smuggle cattle, drugs and arms to Bangladesh right through the borders manned by the BSF. Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha these are linked to coal, minerals and the forest produces and function cross border.

Some of the major gangs with wider connec-

Tamilnadu has ten major and richest gangs as has Karnataka and other states. It is futile to say that they are ensconced in political parties and indulging in many crimes. Gujarat has the wealthiest mafia and legend has it that dons like Shankha Daitya were a terror when Dwaraka was ruled by Lord Krishna.

In 2018, the Supreme Court asked the government about the status of criminal cases pending against elected ministers, underlining the importance of breaking from the history of law-breakers becoming law-makers.

Criminalization of politics is traced to 1957 for booth capturing. From there to their rise to become lawmakers has been a phe-

nomenal change. In return, genuine politicians would protect or are coerced to protect the criminals.

From such petty engagement with elections, goondas and gangs have come a long way to contest elections themselves. Hence goons were relatively assured of political favours after they helped a politician win the election. This led to the entry of criminals in politics in order to maximize control over their own survival and protection. Many goons who had not been involved in politics joined it as a competitive response as they feared missing out on opportunities, or a crackdown by a competing gang.

From banning of corporate funding by Indira Gandhi in 1969 to outsmart the core Congress called Syndicate to electoral bonds the influence of money and crime is a phenomenon. The not so transparent electoral bonds find their ways to parties. Though it was supposed to cleanse the politics but it is said money and its takers have taint of many sorts associated to it. These are allegedly paid back through various government deals. The crime is becoming more sophisticated. LegalserviceIndia.

com says that the electoral bonds are legalized form of corruption.

The electoral bonds have not so far the desired results, on the other it has further obscured the process of political funding and its source.

The Legalservice says interferes with the most fundamental piece of information that voters need to know, affecting their free will and flaunting the norms of a free and fair election.

The ambit has widened. The corporate growth, change in stock businesses, digital money has widened the gambit. Now even some of the topmost social media companies are alleged to be p atronizing cyber “slave” goons to earn billions in a day through popular sites, advertising for pseudo jobs or disguised gambling with anonymous protection to save the “slaves” from any exposure or digital or trace.

The ill-equipped police forces are incapable of to match their swift and advanced techniques that swindles millions in seconds. It is estimated that cyber crime is possibly worth trillions of dollars a day across the borders and done in a very organized corporate manner.

Musings and what’s our undoing : Nagas are busy debating non-issues

Some people mix up governance with populism and rather cheap populism. I would like to start this piece by reminding the young readers that at one point of time we had only three districts, namely, Kohima, Mokokchung and Tuensang. If that was too less, we opted for seven and for a long that looked reasonable. But now we have 15 districts or mini districts –appeared to have been created just to satisfy parochial and tribal feelings which according to my view are decisions of an ill-advised political leadership. The future generation will have to review this decision caustically. But taking 15 districts into consideration, let us start debating the hot topic in Nagaland today Urban Local Body elections. I will avoid dwelling on matters which are sub judice. But I can of course refer to the obvious fact that while we have ‘15 mini districts’ where we one can not even think of town committees. So, I wonder, how have we developed a knack for debating and discussing non-issues? The ‘urban local body’ concept is not very clear in Nagaland context and we are in intense mutual rivalry over how to conduct polls into these bodies. To drive my point, let me start with a reference to Municipal Corporation in other states in the country. This can h elp us ponder honestly where we actually stand today. I was Governor of Odisha for quite some time. So, with the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation -- we have a total

area of 186.89 sq km. There are 67 corporators and importantly annual budget as in 2019-20 data was Rs 500 crore. The municipal area population is 8,55,535 and while Rs 395 was revenue receipt, the expenditure was Rs 379 crore. Now come to Chumoukedima where my present residence is. Even complete comparison data could not be ascertained. There are only 11 wards and total area is -135,12,341.sq metre. This converted (to square km)is -- 0.000135 Square Kilometres., resource nil. This is a miniscule compared to the area I have mentioned above under Bhubaneswar municipal body. So where we stand; and are we justified to speak, debate and fight like these over what is being touted as the Urban Local Body elections. Today, we seem to have developed intolerance between men and women and both sides have jumped into battlefields. Here it may be relevant to talk about our past a bit. It is worth mentioning that all states in the country postindependence were constituted/reconstituted on the recommendation of the State Organisation Commission under the chairmanship of Shri Fazl Ali. Whereas in respect to ‘Nagaland’, for the first time after independence a ‘state was created’ (1963) through a political negotiation between Naga People’s Convention and Prime Minister of India, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru. The statehood agreement was in fact agreed upon in 1960 itself and a special provision

under Article 371 (A), the new state of Nagaland was “placed” under the Ministry of External Affairs. Unlike other tribal areas of the country, immediately after the Second World War, the people of Nagaland started to carve out a separate ‘homeland’ of our own.

The Naga National Council (NNC) which was formed at Wokha in 1946 spearheaded the Naga political struggle for an ‘independent Nagaland’. It is worth mentioning that prior to the 1960 statehood agreement to which I was also a signatory; the first political arrangement was worked out between NNC and GoI in 1947 through the Sr Akbar Hydari Agreement or the Nine Point Agreement. There were certain disagreement on one key point in the Agreement.

The controversial point was -- “The Governor of Assam as the agent of the Govt of Indian Union will have a special responsibility for a period of 10 years to ensure due observance of the agreement. At the end of the this period, the NNC will be asked whether they require the above agreement regarding the future of the Naga people”. Here came a crux. The interpretation of NNC was that after the ‘expiry’ of 10 years , the NNC will be free to choose their future which the Govt of India did not agree with.

Thus, the moot point is it must be noted that from the very beginning the ‘political status of Nagaland’ was different. In another yardstick, I must point that ‘arrangements’ made for

Nagaland were according to ground realities. This is in reference to the number of 60 assembly seats. The provision of Article 333 was made use of. This provision says each state shall consist of not more than 500 seats and ‘not less than 60’. Only at later statesman and Mizoram were allotted 40 seats-assembly. I may refer to yet another episode of my tenure as Chief Minister. The Village Panchayat Act was enacted by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. He had invited all Chief Ministers of north eastern states to seek our opinion on the Village Panchayat Act during the AICC session in Calcutta (Kolkata). The then PM Rajiv Gandhi was informed that Nagaland and a few other states decided to follow their traditional village few other states decided to follow their traditional village functioning. Accordingly, in Nagaland we have enacted the Village and Area Council Act. So the point I will be trying to lay emphasis on is that while some of these socio-legal battles have started haunting us, the truth is many finer aspects of politics and governance are not understood today. At times, we may blame New Delhi. That’s an easy route and also used by unscrupulous elements as ‘escape route’ But governance is a serious business and hence there has to be a proper planning and vision. These are now vanishing arts. The government of the day in Kohima is perhaps clueless on how

to run the administration.

In 2016-17 a blunder was committed with regard to the ULB polls. We saw violence and there were casualties also. In 2022, without going into details, a whimsical government and its legal officer gave an undertaking to the Supreme Court for holding the polls. The legal case in the highest court of the land gave us an opportunity in explaining the special political rights Nagaland has. This opportunity was wasted. If the Chief Minister of a state government does not have the maturity to gauge public sentiment; there is something seriously erroneous. The tribal bodies have their reasons to take a stance. The womenfolk also have their understanding and rights. Both sides could be prejudiced and emotional and here the role of the state government should have been like that of a benevolent guardian of a village or a large family. But it may be too much to expect from leaders and a government whose hall mark has been to move from one pillar of failure to another post of disaster.

To some Naga leaders, patriotism and duty of governance are confused with selfish goals of one or two individuals. If these beca me a substitute for a state-building or working towards high positive goals, we have problems at hands.

Hence, for them to appease a few organisations in one week means creating new districts; on another occasion they could ‘encourage’

another pressure group to rush to Delhi for splitting Nagaland. Yet on a third occasion, they tried to appease the tribal bodies and repealed a law in the Assembly forgetting that the matter has been discussed and debated even before the Supreme Court. Thus the net earning is a notice of contempt of court. Does the Chief Minister still deserve to occupy his office? When the single most priority for those in power is to ensure mere survival, it is the common people who will have to suffer. Governance has gone for a toss in Nagaland. While in the past people sacrificed to achieve recognition that Nagaland is a ‘SPECIALPOLITICAL ENTITY’; for the new generation of leaders self-goals are the hallmarks.

Under the given situation and circumstances, the need to refashion the Urban Bodies befitting to Nagaland for which state government should immediately appoint an Expert Committee to study all issues in-depth and prepare a model of Urban Bodies that would be feasible and workable both financially and administratively. It is also be remembered by all stakeholders that the only competent authority to enact laws for the state is the Nagaland Legislative Assembly, hence, we are called upon to uphold the sanctity of this institution. Let the elected government work out what is best for the people of Nagaland.

Dr S.C Jamir Former CM &Governor.

Health benefits of living in cities for children and teens diminishing: Study

The advantages of living in cities for young people’s healthy growth and development are shrinking across much of the world, according to a global analysis of trends in child and adolescent height and body mass index (BMI).

The research, by a global consortium of over 1500 researchers and physicians, analysed height and weight data from 71 million children and adolescents (aged 5 to 19 years) across urban and rural areas of 200 countries from 1990 to 2020. Cities can provide a multitude of opportunities for better education, nutrition, sports and recreation, and healthcare that contributed to school-aged children and adolescents living in cities being taller than their rural counterparts in the 20th century in all but a few wealthy countries. The study, published recently in the journal Nature, found that

in the 21st century, this urban height advantage shrank in most countries as a result of accelerating improvements in height for children and adolescents in rural areas. The researchers also assessed children’s BMI, an indicator of whether they have a healthy weight for their height. They found that on average children living in cities had a slightly higher BMI than children in rural areas in 1990. By 2020, BMI averages rose for most countries, albeit faster for urban children, except in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia, where BMI rose faster in rural areas. Nevertheless, over the 30year period, the gap between urban and rural BMI remained small—less than 1.1 kilogrammes per square metre (kg/m²) globally, the researchers said. “Cities continue to provide considerable health benefits for children and adolescents,” said Anu Mishra,

lead author of the study, from Imperial College London’s School of Public Health. “Fortunately, in most regions, rural areas are catching up to cities thanks to modern sanitation and improvements in nutrition and healthcare,” Mishra said. The results of this large global study challenge the commonly held perceptions about the negative aspects of living in cities around nutrition and health, the researcher added.

While height and BMI has increased around the world since 1990, the researchers found that the degree of change between urban and rural areas varied greatly among different middle and lowincome countries, while small urban-rural differences remained stable across high-income countries. Middle-income and emerging economies, such as Chile, Taiwan, and Brazil, have seen the biggest gains in rural children’s height over the three decades,

with children living in rural areas growing to similar heights as their urban counterparts.

“These countries have made great strides in levelling up. Using the resources of economic growth to fund nutrition and health programmes, both through schools and in the community, was key to closing the gaps between different areas and social groups,” said Professor Majid Ezzati, senior author for the study, from Imperial College London. Contrary to the widespread assumption that urbanisation is the main driver of the obesity epidemic, the study found that many high-income western countries have had very little difference in height and BMI over time - with the gap between urban and rural BMI differing by less than one unit in 2020.

“The issue is not so much whether children live in cities or urban areas, but where the poor live, and whether governments

are tackling growing inequalities with initiatives like supplementary incomes and free school meal programmes,” Ezzati added. The trend in sub-Saharan Africa is also a cause for concern, the researchers said.

“Rural sub-Saharan Africa is now the global epicentre of poor growth and development for children and adolescents,” said Professor Andre Pascal Kengne, co-author for the study, from the South African Medical Research Council. “As the cost of food skyrockets and countries finances get worse due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the rural poor in Africa are at risk of falling further behind,” Kengne said. Faltering growth in schoolaged children and adolescents is strongly linked to poor health through life, lost educational attainment and the immense cost of unrealised human potential, the researchers added. (PTI)

Post-mortem

SNIPPETS

BRO organises bike rally

SRINAGAR, APR 23

(PTI): A bike rally was flagged off by the Border Roads Organisation to promote unity and pay tributes to its slain personnel. The rally was flagged off from Rangreth, near Old Airfield here and will culminate at the south portal of Jawahar Tunnel on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway, a senior official of the BRO said. The aim of the rally is to foster a sense of unity and pay tributes to the sacrifices of BRO personnel, Brigadier Saket Singh, Chief Engineer BRO, told reporters here. “We have collected water and plant varieties from the places where BRO operates and these will be taken to Pune where the 64th raising day of BRO will be celebrated next month,” he said. After reaching the Jawahar tunnel on bikes, these saplings will be transported to Pune, where a memorial is being set up, Singh added.

Prez to visit

Haryana today

NEW DELHI, APR 23 (PTI): President Droupadi Murmu will visit Karnal and Hisar in Haryana on Monday, an official statement said on Sunday. At Karnal, the president will grace the 19th convocation of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research – National Dairy Research Institute. While at Hisar, she will grace the 25th convocation of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, said the statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Raj govt transfers 25 RAS offices

JAIPUR, APR 23 (PTI):

In an administrative reshuffle, the Rajasthan government has transferred or redesignated 25 Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) officers. The department of personnel issued the transfer list on Saturday night. Kesarlal Meena was appointed as Commisioner, Bikaner Municipal Corporation, while Gopalram Birda has been made additional commissioner, college education.

Poonch attack: Terrorists used steel bullets

Decamped with soldiers’ weapons

2 IAF aircraft on standby to evacuate Indians from Sudan

SAMBHAL (UP), APR 23 (PTI): Samajwadi Party MP Shafiq-ur-Rehman

Barq on Sunday hit back at Uttar Pradesh minister Dharampal Singh over his remarks that the opposition got Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf killed, saying the murder did not happen “without the government’s intention”.

Speaking to reporters here, the Sambhal MP said, “The entire country knows how the murder took place and who got it done. They (Atiq and Ashraf) were in police custody. It was their (government’s) responsibility, and it did not happen without their (government’s) intention. They are trying to hide it, and on the contrary putting the blame on the opposition.”

Barq, 92, said that the court could have given Atiq

POONCH/JAMMU,

APR 23 (PTI): The terrorists who ambushed an Army truck in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch used steel core bullets, capable of piercing an armoured shield, and decamped with the soldiers’ weapons, officials said on Sunday, amid intensified efforts to trace and neutralise the perpetrators.

They said a sniper is believed to have targeted the truck from the front before the other terrorists sprayed bullets and lobbed grenades on it. Five soldiers were killed and one injured after the terrorists attacked the lone Army truck, which was carrying eatables for iftar to a nearby village, in the dense forest area of Bhata Dhurian late on Thursday afternoon and the vehicle caught fire. The soldiers were from a Rashtriya Rifles unit deployed fo r counter-terror operations.

Experts from various agencies, including the National Security Guard (NSG) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA), have visited the site of the attack over the past two days and have managed to get a clear picture of the deadly ambush which was laid by the terrorists, the officials said. They said a sniper is believed to have targeted the vehicle from the front before his associates showered bullets and lobbed grenades on the vehicle from opposite sides, apparently giving the troops no time to retaliate.

The terrorists used steel core bullets that can penetrate an armoured shield, they said. Before fleeing, the terrorists stole the soldiers’ arms and ammunition, they added. Though the area where the attack took place is considered terrorism-free for long, the Bhata Dhurian forest area remains a notorious infiltration route for terrorists attempting to sneak into India by crossing the Line of Control (LoC) due to its topography, dense forest cover and natural caves.

In October 2021, nine soldiers were killed in two major gunfights with terror-

Countdown for BRS Govt in Telangana has begun: Shah

HYDERABAD, APR 23

(PTI): Countdown for the K Chandrasekhar Raoled BRS Government in Telangana has begun and the BJP’s fight will not stop until the present regime is dethroned, Union Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday.

Addressing a public meeting titled “Vijay Sankalp Sabha” at Chevella near here, Shah said if BJP comes to power in Telangana, reservations for Muslims will be removed. Elections are due in the southern state later this year.

“The countdown for the ruling BRS in Telangana which has been running a corrupt government in the state for the last eightnine years has begun,” Shah said.

He alleged the entire world is watching the public outrage against BRS (Bharat Rashtra Samiti) and KCR, as Rao is addressed.

BJP is forming government in Telangana and the corrupt will be put behind bars, he claimed.

“Telangana people have come to know about

you ( KCR) and your family corruption. To divert attention they made TRS to BRS,” Shah said about KCR recently renaming his founded party.

He charged policing and administration in Telangana have been completely politicised and welfare measures which are being extended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi are not percolating down to the grassroots.

Referring to the arrest of Telangana BJP president

and Lok Sabha MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar recently in connection with the case of malpractice after a Class 10 board exam question paper surfaced in an instant messaging app, Shah said party workers won’t be cowed down by such acts.

“He feels that BJP party workers will be scared if put behind bars. KCR listen, our workers are not scared of your atrocities. Our fight will not stop until you are dethroned,” Shah charged.

ists within four days in the forest area during a search operation that continued for over three weeks. Thursday’s ambush was also a grim reminder of a terrorist attack on the official vehicle of a judicial magistrate over two decades ago. District and Sessions Judge V K Phool, a civilian and two police personnel were killed in the attack which took place on December 5, 2001, in the Dehra Ki Gali forests near the Bhata Dhurian forests. The officials said over 12 people have been detained for questioning in connection with the Poonch attack but no arrests have been made so far.

Security forces are using drones and sniffer dogs to conduct a recce of the dense forest but success has eluded them so far, they said. It is believed that the terrorists have managed to create safe hideouts in the dense forest to escape the security dragnet or may have crossed over to Pakistanoccupied Kashmir, they added. According to the of-

ficials, initial reports suggest the involvement of around five terrorists, including some foreign mercenaries, in the attack. After the ambush, the terrorists possibly used grenades as well as sticky bombs that caused the vehicle to erupt into flames.

The officials said those who executed the attack are believed to have been in Rajouri and Poonch for more than a year and had adequate knowledge of the terrain, which is quite tough.

The area is a hotbed of Jammu and Kashmir Gaznavi Force (JKGF) as its ‘commander’ Rafiq Ahmed alias Rafiq Nayi is a resident of the area, they added. At present, three to four terrorist groups are active in the region of Rajouri and Poonch, sources said.

Banned terror group

People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), a proxy wing of Jaish-e-Mohammed, has claimed responsibility for the attack. There are reports suggesting that it was the handiwork of banned Lashker-e-Taiba group also.

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): India has put two C-130J military transport aircraft on standby in Jeddah while an Indian Navy ship reached a key port in the region as part of the government’s plans to evacuate stranded Indians from violence-hit Sudan.

Giving out the details, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said contingency plans for the evacuation of Indians have been put in place but any movement on the ground would depend on the security situation.

It said the security situation in Sudan continues to be “volatile” with reports of fierce fighting coming from various locations in the country’s capital Khartoum.

The MEA said India is making all-out efforts to ensure the safety and security of Indians stranded in Sudan. “We are closely monitoring the complex and evolving security situation in Sudan,” it said. “We are also coordinating closely with various partners for the safe

movement of those Indians who are stranded in Sudan and would like to be evacuated,” the MEA said.

Apart from the Sudanese authorities, the MEA and the Indian embassy in Sudan are also in regular touch with the UN, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and the US among others.

“As part of our preparations and in order to move swiftly, the Government of India is pursuing multiple options,” the MEA said.

“Two Indian Air Force C-130J are currently positioned on standby in Jeddah. And, INS Sumedha has reached Port Sudan,” it said. “Contingency plans are in place but any movement on the ground would depend on the security situation, which continues to be volatile with reports of fierce fighting at various locations in Khartoum,” the MEA said. It said the Sudanese airspace currently remained closed for all foreign aircraft and overland movement also has risks and logistical challenges.

Atiq’s wife Shaista still in BSP, says party leader

BALLIA (UP), APR 23 (PTI): Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Uma Shankar Singh on Sunday said Shaista Parveen, the wife of slain gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad, is still in the party and has not been expelled from it.

Speaking to reporters here, Singh -- the lone BSP MLA in the 403-member UP Legislative Assembly -said, “Shaista Parveen, wife of Atiq Ahmad, is still in the party. She has not been expelled from the party. She is not occupying any post in the party. If she is convicted, she will be expelled from the party. She is yet to be convicted. The party is sympathetic towards her.”

To a question that the BSP has been termed as BJP’s “B-Team” by Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, he said, “Akhilesh Yadav does not have any issue except defaming the BSP.” On April 10, BSP chief Mayawati had said her party will not field gangster Ahmad’s wife Parveen or any other member of his family in the mayoral election in Prayagraj. Parveen had joined the BSP in the presence of its senior leaders on January 5, and was reportedly being considered as the party’s mayoral can-

didate for Prayagraj. The urban local body elections will be held in the state on May 4 and 11. “As far as Shaista Parveen is concerned, I would like to make it clear that as per the facts emerging from media reports regarding the Umesh Pal murder case, as soon as the name of Atiq’s wife emerged and after she has gone underground, the situation has changed,” Mayawati had told reporters.

“In this scenario, our party will now not give the mayoral ticket to Atiq’s wife, nor to any member of his family,” she had said. The BSP chief had also said, “As far as the question of keeping Atiq’s wife in the party is concerned, a decision will be taken soon from the facts that emerge after she lands in the police net.”

On March 13, BSP

leader Uma Shankar Singh, who is also the Leader of the party in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, had come out in support of Parveen, saying the police’s cash reward for information on her is an attempt “to divert attention” from its failure in solving the Umesh Pal murder case.

The Rasra MLA had said, “Shaista Parveen has no relation, even remotely, with the murder case. Even the police have not been able to prove it. She is a social person.” “Shaista Parveen is all set to become the mayor of Prayagraj and the BJP is going to lose the seat. This is the (reason) behind the BJP’s fury,” Singh had said, and stressed that BSP chief Mayawati has already announced that action will be taken against Parveen if the allegations against her are proven. “We still stand by that. If the allegation is proven, Shaista Parveen will be expelled from the party. The BSP never compromises on matters of crime,” Singh had said. Umesh Pal and his two police security guards were

shot dead on February 24 outside his home in Prayagraj’s Dhoomanganj area. Based on a complaint lodged by Umesh Pal’s wife Jaya Pal, a case was registered on February 25 against Atiq Ahmad, his brother Ashraf, wife Parveen, two sons, aides Guddu Muslim and Ghulam, and nine others. On March 28, an MP/ MLA court held Atiq Ahmad and two others guilty in the 2006 Umesh Pal kidnapping case and sentenced them to life imprisonment. That was Ahmad’s first conviction even though more than 100 cases had been registered against him.

The 60-year-old former Samajwadi Party MP was brought from Sabarmati Jail in Gujarat by road for hearing in the case in Prayagraj.

On April 15, Atiq Ahmad (60) and his brother Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists in the middle of a media interaction on Saturday night while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college here for a checkup.

VACANCY

would reveal their secrets.

Gangster-politician

Atiq Ahmad (60) and Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists on the night of April 15 while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college in Prayagraj for a check-up.

Ahmad the capital punishment or any other punishment. “We would not have any objections. But, this time, the duo (Atiq and Ashraf) have not been killed without their (government’s) signal.”

UP minister Singh on Saturday alleged that the opposition parties got gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf killed, fearing that the duo

JALGAON, APR 23 (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed the “death warrant” of the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government has been issued and it will collapse in the next 15-20 days. Talking to reporters, Raut, a key leader of former CM Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT), said his party was waiting for court’s order and

They were brought to Prayagraj from Gujarat and Bareilly prisons for interrogation in connection with the killing of Umesh Pal and his two police security guards earlier this year.

“The truth is that the opposition is involved in getting Atiq killed. Some serious secrets were about to be revealed, that’s why the opposition got him murdered,” Singh, the state animal husbandry and dairy development minister, had said.

expecting that justice will be done. The Rajya Sabha member was referring to the Supreme Court’s judgement pending on a batch of pleas including one seeking disqualification of 16 Shiv Sena MLAs (of Shinde’s party) who revolted against the Thackeray leadership. “The government of the existing chief minister and his 40 MLAs will collapse in 15-20 days.

The army truck that was attacked by militants.

Telangana BJP leaders including BJP State President Bandi Sanjay Kumar welcome Amit Shah. (PTI)

Shaista Parveen

Atiq, Ashraf have not been killed without govt’s intention: SP’s Sambhal MP

Shafiq-ur-Rehman Barq

Shinde-led Maha govt will collapse in 15-20 days, claims Sanjay Raut

Working with MeitY, RBI to clamp down on ponzi apps: FM

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the finance ministry is working with MeitY and RBI to clamp down on ponzi apps to prevent them from taking away hard earned money of gullible investors.

Cautioning investors against ponzi apps, Sitharaman said investors should do their due diligence and should not be lured by claims of lucrative returns made by them.

“There are also apps which are coming out and reaching out to people saying we can do this, we can do that. Your money will fetch you this much.

“Many of them are ponzi, the apps on which we are working with the Ministry concerned, the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) and with the Reserve Bank and clamping down on them like never before, so that we don’t get those ponzi apps, taking away hard earned money,” she said.

Speaking at the Thinkers Forum at Tumakuru

International trade in rupee currency soon: Piyush

probably driven by some other considerations.

Bar council resolution opposes same-sex marriage...

(Karnataka), she said, social influencers and financial influencers are all out there but a strong sense of caution is required in each one of us to make sure we do double checking, counter checking, don’t go as a flock into something and therefore protect hard-earned money.

Asked about regulating social influencers and financial influencers, she said, “I’m not having any proposal before me for regulating them at this stage.”

Asserting that investors should be cautious of influencers, she said if there are three or four people giving us very objective good advice, there may be seven others out of 10 who are

In 2019, the government enacted a law called the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019, which looks to prevent unregulated entities from collecting deposits and duping the poor and gullible of their hard earned savings. As per the Act, any deposit taker who solicits deposit in contravention of Section 3, shall be punishable with imprisonment of not less than one year and up to five years.

As per the law the first claim on the recovered money will be of depositors and the proposed legislation also has some exclusion including money collected by real estate firms and from friends and relatives.

It seeks to help tackle the menace of illicit deposit-taking activities in the country, which at present are exploiting regulatory gaps and lack of strict administrative measures to dupe poor and gullible people of their hard-earned money, according to the government.

RAJKOT, APR 23 (PTI): Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday expressed hope that traders will soon be able to settle foreign trade in the rupee currency as several banks from different countries are opening special Vostro accounts with Indian banks.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved 60 requests to open Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) of correspondent banks from 18 countries, including the UK, Singapore, and New Zealand.

The RBI, he said, is in discussion with the central banks of other countries on the matter. “We will soon start seeing operationalisation of this rupee trading in international trade with several countries,” Goyal told reporters here.

He also said that negotiations for free trade agreements (FTAs) with developed regions like the European Union, the UK, and Canada are in “advanced” stages.

Groups including European Free Trade Association Free Trade Agreement (EFTA), Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Eur-

asian Economic Union (EAEU) are also keen to start talks for similar pacts with India.

Goyal (From p-1) biological man and woman for the twin purpose of procreation and recreation. In such background, it would be catastrophic to overhaul something as fundamental as the conception of marriage by any Law Court, howsoever well-intentioned it may be.

“The whole world wants to have a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with India,” the minister said.

On the second phase of the production-linked incentive scheme for the textiles sector, he said that extensive stakeholder discussions have happened on the subject. “I am quite confident that very soon we will be able to finalise the contours of the scheme and take it up for approval at the highest level,” he added.

Goyal said that Indian textile exporters were earlier facing customs duty disadvantages in developed markets vis-a-vis countries like Bangladesh, but as the government is inking trade pacts with regions like the UAE and Australia, domestic exporters would be able to push shipments.

On promoting sustainability in the textiles sector, Goyal said that the textiles ministry has decided to set up an ESG (environmental, social, and governance commitments) task force.

Issues pertaining to social and religious connotations should typically be dealt by Courts through the doctrine of deference, the Bar Council said.

“The legislature being truly reflective of the will of the people is best suited to deal with such sensitive issues. Every responsible and prudent citizen of the country is worried about the future of his/her children after coming to know about the pendency of this matter before the Supreme Court.

More than 99.9 per cent of people of the country are opposed to the idea of same-sex marriage in our country,” BCI said.

The Council said the vast majority believes that any decision of the Apex Court in the petitioners’ favour on this issue will be treated to be against the culture and socioreligious structure of the country.

“The Bar is the mouthpiece of the common men and, therefore, this meeting is expressing their anxiety over this highly sensitive issue. The Joint Meeting is of the clear opinion that if the Supreme Court

shows any indulgence in this matter, it will result in destabilizing the social structure of our country in the coming days. The Apex Court is requested and expected to appreciate and respect the sentiments and mandate of the mass of the country,” BCI said its a statement. The Constitution Bench comprising the Chief Justice, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Justice Ravindra Bhat, Justice Hima Kohli and Justice PS Narasimha is dealing with a batch of petitions pertaining to ‘marriage equality rights for the LGBTQI+ community’.

The Constitution Bench started hearing the petitions on April 18.

Various petitions are being dealt with by Supreme Court seeking legal recognition of same-sex marriage. The Centre has opposed the petitions. One of the petitions earlier raised the absence of a legal framework which allowed members of the LGBTQ+ community to marry any person of their choice. According to the petition, the couple sought to enforce the fundamental rights of LGBTQ+ individuals to marry any person of their choice and said that “The exercise of which ought to be insulated from the disdain of legislative and popular majorities”.

The petitioners, further, asserted their fundamental right to marry each other and prayed for appropriate directions from this Court allowing and enabling them to do so.

Uttar Pradesh tops in excise revenue collection

LUCKNOW, APR 23

(IANS): Excise remains a top revenue grosser in Uttar Pradesh for the second consecutive year.

The revenue was higher by 14 per cent as compared

to the previous fiscal year (2021-22) when the state registered a collection of Rs 36,321 crore.

The Uttar Pradesh excise department has created a record by generating

revenue of Rs 41,250 crore during the 2022-23 financial year. The excise revenue collection is not only the highest in the state so far but it has also surpassed all other states in the country.

RIL’sentryinFMCGnotacauseofworry:WiproConsumerCare Govt to launch retail trade policy soon

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): Demand perspective for consumer products in the market has improved a little bit but challenges still persist and a good monsoon can help see a better second half of the year in smaller towns and rural areas, said Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting CEO Vineet Agrawal. The company is also not unduly perturbed by the entry of Reliance in the FMCG segment as consumer preferences are very strong in the segment with very strong brand loyalty, said Agrawal who is also the Managing Director of Wipro Enterprises. Growth from smaller towns and rural areas continues to be a challenge

for FMCG players, though the situation is improving, he said. From the demand perspective, the market has improved a “little bit but it is still a challenge”, Agrawal told PTI.

“It’s not like the good old pre-Covid era and I think smaller towns and rural areas are still a bit of a challenge but things are improving. Hopefully, if the monsoon is good, we will see a better second half. Fortunately, the cost prices have come down, initially, they jumped last year due to the Ukraine war. We are seeing positive things as far as the market is concerned,” he said. Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting, which owns brands such as sandal-

wood soap brand Santoor and female toiletries brand Enchanteur, has already extended the benefits to customers in some segments. “We already dropped the prices in soap, for example, we were selling at (Rs) 38 for 100 gm, reduced to (Rs) 36. We have done price corrections,” he said.

When asked about the entry of billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance into the FMCG segment with aggressive pricing, Agrawal said price is not only the only weapon. However, he also added:” Reliance is a tough competitor in any category that they are in. They are not only tough but relentless. They think big, disruptively.” Agrawal also

added: “We are yet to see them in the personal care products because in the segment consumer preferences are very strong. People do not switch from one product to another product easily. If a consumer uses a brand name, he does not change easily. Similarly, in food, he does not change easily.”

RIL through its stepdown unit Reliance Retail has entered into the FMCG segment. It articulates ambitions to be a relevant player in the USD 110-billion FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) segment.

Though products of RCPL, the FMCG arm and wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), are

available only in selected markets. It has priced them 30-35 per cent cheaper. However, Agarwal said in consumer goods, price is not only the only weapon, there are other elements which consumers look at. “But yes, we are aware of the fact that Reliance is a strong competition and disruptor and is relentless. One has to be cognizant of that fact and give value to the consumer,” he said. Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting, which is a part of Azim Premjiled Wipro Enterprises, has crossed the milestone of Rs 10,000 crore in overall sales in FY23, helped by a significant growth across its geographies, brands, and categories.

NEW DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): The government is expected to announce a national retail trade policy and an accident insurance scheme soon with a view to supporting GST-registered domestic traders, an official said.

The official said the proposed policy would help provide better infrastructure and more credit to the traders. It may include provisions related to ensuring easy and quick access to affordable credit, facilitating modernization and digitisation of retail trade; modern infrastructural support for subjects like distribution chain; promotion of skill development and improving labour productivity,

and providing an effective consultative and grievance redressal mechanism. India is the world’s fifth-largest global destination in the retail space. The commerce and industry ministry along with the department of financial services is also working on framing an insurance scheme for all the GSTregistered retail traders.

“The government is trying to do policy changes not only in e-commerce but is also bringing a national retail trade policy for physical traders which will be introducing ease of doing business, providing

better infrastructural facilities, providing more credit and all sorts of benefits to traders,” the official added. Under the proposed policy, a single window clearance mechanism for traders may be developed, besides a centralised and computerized inspection management system. Commenting on the development, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said the retail trade policy will certainly help the sector widen their business as it will have definite parameters and fundamentals within which the retail trade would be conducted.

Nirmala Sitharaman

SNIPPETS

Turkish troops kill 21 terrorists in Syria, Iraq: Defence Minister

ANKARA, APR 23

(IANS): A total of 21

“terrorists” were killed by Turkish troops over the past four days in northern Syria and Iraq, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said.

Three of the “terrorists” were killed in Iraq’s Zap region, semi-official Anadolu Agency quoted Akar as saying during an event in the Turkish central province of Kayseri on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Calling the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) a “tool in the hands of imperialists” to hinder Turkey’s development, Akar said that the Turkish government is determined to eliminate the PKK.

The fight against “terrorists” will not end until the security of Turkey’s borders and the nation is ensured, he said.

Bodies of two missing Indian students recovered from US lake

NEW YORK, APR 23 (PTI): Bodies of two Indian students have been recovered after they went missing at a lake in the US state of Indiana, according to media reports.

Siddhant Shah, 19, and Aryan Vaidya, 20, went swimming at Monroe Lake, roughly 64 miles southwest of downtown Indianapolis, with a group of friends on April 15 but didn’t resurface, the USA Today newspaper reported.

Both students attended IU’s Kelley School of Business. They were missing in the water since April 15. The bodies have been recovered after a massive search that was hampered by severe weather conditions, officials said.

The bodies were located and recovered by search crews on April 18.

China renews alert for severe

convection weather

BEIJING, APR 23

(IANS): China’s meteorological authority on Sunday renewed an alert for severe convection weather in parts of the country. From Sunday morning to Monday morning, thunderstorms and hail will strike parts of south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Xinhua news agency quoted the National Meteorological Centre as saying. Heavy rainfall will hit parts of Jiangxi, Fujian, Guizhou, Guangxi and Guangdong, with some places seeing up to 50 mm of hourly precipitation, the centre said. The centre has advised the public to stay alert for flash floods, landslides and mudslides, and has recommended reducing outdoor activities.

‘Unification with N.Korea unnecessary’: 60% of young people

SEOUL, APR 23

(IANS): About 60 per cent of South Koreans in their 20s and 30s said unification with North Korea is not necessary, a survey showed on Sunday, amid a prolonged impasse in inter-Korean relations and denuclearization talks.

The survey, commissioned by a civic media group called Barun Media Citizen Action, found that 61 per cent of people in their 20s and 30s say Korean reunification is “not absolutely necessary”, reports Yonhap News Agency. In comparison, 24 per cent of them say unification with North Korea is “absolutely necessary”.

Sudan: Govts race to rescue diplomats, citizens

KHARTOUM (SUDAN), APR 23 (AP): The US military airlifted embassy officials out of Sudan on Sunday and international governments raced to evacuate their diplomatic staff and citizens trapped in the capital as rival generals battled for control of Africa’s thirdlargest country for a ninth day. Fighting raged in Omdurman, the city across the Nile from Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, residents reported. The violence came despite a declared truce that was to coincide with the three-day Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.

“We did not see such a truce,” said Amin al-Tayed from his home near state television headquarters in Omdurman. He said heavy gunfire and thundering explosions rocked the city.

“The battles did not stop,” he said.

Thick black smoke filled the sky over Khartoum’s airport. The paramilitary group battling the Sudanese armed forces claimed the military unleashed airstrikes on the upscale neighbourhood of Kafouri, north of Khartoum. There was no imme-

Smoke is seen in Khartoum, Sudan, Saturday. (AP) diate comment from the army.

After a week of bloody battles that hindered rescue efforts, US special forces swiftly evacuated some 70 US embassy staffers from Khartoum to an undisclosed location in Ethiopia early Sunday. Although American officials said it was still too dangerous to carry out a government-coordinated mass evacuation of private citizens, other countries scrambled to evacuate their citizens and diplomats.

France, Greece and other European countries said Sunday they were organizing evacuations for embassy employees and nationals, along with some citizens

of allied countries. French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre said France was undertaking the operation with the help of European partners. The Greek foreign minister said the country had dispatched aircraft and special forces to its ally, Egypt, in preparation for an evacuation of 120 Greek and Cypriot nationals from Khartoum. Most of them have sought shelter in recent days at a Greek Orthodox cathedral in the capital, Nikos Dendias said.

The Netherlands sent two air force Hercules C-130 planes and an Airbus A330 to Jordan ahead of a possible rescue mission. “We

Crisis in Pak deep enough to attract military takeover: Former PM Abbasi

ISLAMABAD, APR 23

(PTI): Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqn Abbasi has warned that Pakistan’s economic and political turmoil is so dire that it has the potential to attract a military takeover even as he urged all stakeholders to initiate a dialogue to chart a way forward, media reports said on Sunday.

Abbasi, a senior leader of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) party, served as the 21st prime minister of Pakistan from August 2017 to May 2018.

Speaking on a television show, he said that martial law always remained a possibility if the system failed or when there was a conflict between institutions and the political leadership was unable to chart a way forward.

“Pakistan has had many long periods of martial law in very similar situations,” the 64-year-old leader said.

“In fact, I would say Pakistan has never witnessed a [more] severe economic and political situation before. In much less severe circumstances, the military has taken over,” he was quoted as saying by the

Russia reveals ‘food’ item most hit by sanctions

deeply sympathise with the Dutch in Sudan and will make every effort to evacuate people where and when possible,” said Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren.

Italy has dispatched military jets to the Gulf of Aden nation of Djibouti to prepare for the evacuation of 140 Italian nationals in Sudan, many of whom have already taken refuge in the embassy. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the ministry’s crisis unit was in touch with stranded citizens.

The fighting between the Sudanese armed forces and the powerful paramilitary group, known as the Rapid Support Forces, has targeted and paralysed the country’s main international airport, reducing a number of civilian aircraft to ruins and gutting at least one runway. Other airports across the country have also been knocked out of operation.

Overland travel across areas contested by the warring parties has proven dangerous. Khartoum is some 840 kilometres (520 miles) from Port Sudan on the Red Sea. But some countries have pressed ahead with the

journey. Saudi Arabia on Saturday said the kingdom successfully evacuated 157 people, including 91 Saudi nationals and citizens of other countries.

Saudi state TV released footage of a large convoy of Saudis and other foreign nationals travelling by car and bus from Khartoum to Port Sudan, where a navy ship then ferried the evacuees across the Red Sea to the Saudi port of Jeddah.

The power struggle between the Sudanese military, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, led by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, has dealt a harsh blow to Sudan’s heady hopes for a democratic transition.

More than 400 people, including 264 civilians, have been killed and more than 3,500 have been wounded in the fighting.

Hospitals say they are struggling to cope. Many dead and wounded have been stranded by the fighting, according to the Sudan Doctors’ Syndicate that monitors casualties, suggesting the death toll is probably far higher than what is publicly known.

MOSCOW, APR 23

(IANS): Several food items have become costlier in Russia due to inflation in wake of the Western sanctions, but the hardest hit is ‘chewing gum’, media reports said. Chewing gum tops the list of food items that have seen the steepest increase in retail price in Russia over the past year, RT reported, citing a report in business daily RBK based on data from the State Statistics Service, Rosstat. The average price for a pack of chewing gum was 39 rubles ($0.47) in March, which is just over 22 per cent more than in the same month last year, according to Rosstat figures. Among other food items hit hard by inflation

are margarine, cucumbers, and ice cream. According to industry representatives cited by RBK, chewing gum prices have been driven up by the Western sanctions on Russia. Imports of the main components for the production of gum base have been restricted, as well as the supply of materials for packaging. Russian manufacturers of gum base have reportedly been unable to make up for the shortfall.

Chewing gum is manufactured in Russia by Wrigley - a subsidiary of USbased Mars, which manufactures Orbit, Wrigley’s, and Eclipse - US’ Mondelez, which makes Dirol, and Perfetti Van Melle, which makes Mentos.

EAM discusses energy, disaster resilience, defence with Guyanese PM

the option of imposing martial law.

“I don’t think they are considering that but when they are left with no choice, the old famous speeches of ‘mere aziz hamwatano’ (a phrase synonymous with military takeovers) are heard,” he added.

LISBON, APR 23 (IANS):

Dawn newspaper. Pakistan had been directly ruled for about half of its history by military generals.

The Pakistan Army, which has ruled the coupprone country for more than half of its 75-plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy.

Abbasi warned of anarchy if friction within the society and institutions became too deep, adding that such a situation could also see the powerful Army step in. “It has happened in many countries. When the political and constitutional system fails, extra-constitutional (measures) take place,” the report quoted him as saying.

The PML-N leader, however, hoped that the military was not considering

Amidst the tense relations between former prime minister Imran Khan and the military before his ouster last year, the Pakistan Army has repeatedly said that it would stay out of politics.

Pakistan is currently grappling with high external debt, a weak local currency and skyrocketing inflation.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have plummeted to USD 4 billion, the country’s central bank said last week.

The cataclysmic floods last year inundated a third of the country, displaced more than 33 million and caused economic damages to the tune of USD 12.5 billion to Pakistan’s already teetering economy.

Pakistan and the IMF have failed to reach a stafflevel agreement on the much-needed USD 1.1 billion bailout package aimed at preventing the country from going bankrupt.

On his visit to Portugal, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Saturday that it is necessary to “choose a third way” to build peace for the war in Ukraine. “I don’t want to please anyone. I want to build a way to bring the two (Russia and Ukraine) to the table,” Lula said. Lula arrived in Lisbon on Friday on his first visit to Europe since being reelected president, with an agenda that includes a Portugal-Brazil summit, at the end of which the two countries signed 13 bilateral cooperation agreements covering such areas as education, justice, health, economy, and culture, reports Xinhua news agency. In a joint declaration, Lula and his Portuguese counterpart Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa emphasized their commitment to international law, the UN Charter, and peaceful resolutions of conflicts. The declaration also says Portugal and Brazil support the full functioning of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which was brokered by Turkey and the UN, and signed by Russia and Ukraine in July 2022.

Buckingham Palace averted Kohinoor ‘side story’ for King Charles’s Coronation, says royal expert

LONDON, APR 23 (PTI): Buckingham Palace would have been conscious about the potential for controversy around the colonial era Kohinoor diamond claimed by India and averted it becoming a side story of King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s Coronation ceremony next month, a royal expert has said.

Camilla Tominey is the Associate Editor of ‘The Daily Telegraph’ and has an inside track to the British royal family as the newspaper’s royal expert.

In an interview with PTI, she reflected upon the significance of Camilla choosing to forgo the traditional crown used for the monarch’s partner as the “consort crown” due to it being embedded with the Kohinoor – also known as Koh-i-Noor. Among the crown jewels unveiled by the palace for the Coronation ceremony on May 6, it was confirmed that Queen Mary’s Crown has been chosen by Camilla.

“I think the palace were conscious about the Koh-i-Noor perhaps being

controversial and therefore have decided that they don’t want there to be a side story about the provenance of these diamonds,” said Tominey.

“Basically, [the palace have] decided to do the safe and sensible thing, to not have a separate debate about the jewels in the crown,” noted Tominey.

Earlier this month, the palace said that minor changes and additions to Queen Mary’s Crown are being undertaken, such as the inclusion of the Cullinan III, IV and V diamonds which were part of Queen Elizabeth II’s personal jewellery collection for many years. The design

has been inspired by Queen Alexandra’s Crown of 1902 – which was originally encrusted with the Kohinoor, which now sits in the crown of the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, the mother of Queen Elizabeth II, since 1937.

Last month, Historic Royal Palaces, the charity that manages Britain’s palaces, said that the infamous diamond will instead be part of a new Jewel House exhibition at the Tower of London classed as a “symbol of conquest” for the first time. According to its assessment, the diamond probably originated from the Golconda mines in southern India and weighs

105.6 carats. It was once much larger but was re-cut in 1852 to improve its brilliance and conform to contemporary European tastes.

Kohinoor, which means mountain of light in Persian, came into Queen Victoria’s possession from the treasury of Maharaja Ranjit Singh a few years before she was to be crowned empress of India in the wake of the 1857 Revolt and has played a starring role in British coronations of the past until its conspicuous absence in next month’s ceremony.

Camilla’s choice of Queen Mary’s Crown also marks the first instance in modern times of an existing crown being used for the Coronation of the monarch’s consort, with all past crowns being specially made for a new consort. It is among a series of departures from tradition made by Charles, 74, and Camilla, 75, in an attempt to strike a more sustainable tone that resonates with the times and also incorporate modern elements into the ceremony.

GEORGETOWN, APR 23 (PTI): Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar has called on Guyanese Prime Minister Mark Phillips and vowed that India will partner with the South American country in its developmental journey.

During the meeting on Saturday, the two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation in energy, disaster resilience and preparedness, as well as defence.

Jaishankar, who is on his first visit to Guyana, tweeted that he was happy to meet Prime Minister Phillips and other leaders here.

“Discussed energy, disaster resilience & preparedness and defence cooperation. India will partner Guyana in its developmental journey,” he tweeted.

In another tweet, Jaishankar wrote that “Delivered by India” was a growing global infra reality.

The minister in another tweet said he paid a site visit to the East BankEast Coast Road Linkage Project along with Minister of Public Works Deodat Indar and interacted with workers and senior staff.

“Impressed by their

enthusiasm,” he added.

Earlier, Jaishankar called on President Irfaan Ali and Vice President Bharat Jagdeo here and also co-chaired the 5th India-Guyana Joint Commission Meeting with his counterpart Hugh Todd and held comprehensive discussions on topics like agriculture, defence cooperation, and infrastructure development.

The minister in a string of tweets said his presence in the South American country was intended to take forward the momentum created by the visits of President Ali and Vice President Jagdeo recently. “Strong economics

will complement shared values in taking our partnership to a new level,” he tweeted, underlining the new focus area agreed to by President Ali and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were energy, health and pharma, development partnership and capacity building, agriculture, innovation, technology and defence and infrastructure that were the drivers of the India-Guyana ties.

“Addressed the IndiaGuyana Business Round Table. Appreciate participation of Foreign Minister Hugh Todd, Finance Minister Ashni Singh and Public Works Minister Deodat Indar,” the minister said.

SL can benefit from India’s fast-tracked industrialisation: Prez Wickermesinghe

COLOMBO, APR 23

(IANS): Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickermesinghe has said that in the backdrop of India becoming the world’s most populated country while having industrialisation which is on fast track, Sri Lanka can reap the benefits, and plan to become an air and sea hub in the region.

Addressing the 30 year development plan of the Colombo North Port workshop here, Wickremesinghe highlighted the importance of probing the development in India to find the connectivity that is going to take place between India and Sri Lanka and pointed out the opportunities that India’s southern neighbour would receive.

“By 2050, India will be the most populous country in the world. From 1.4 billion, it will be up to 1.7 billion people. The industrialisation of India is happening fast, especially in some areas. You find Gujarat, Maharashtra and other one in southern India, especially in Tamil Nadu,” Wickremesinghe said on

Friday. “But this is the beginning. From there it should spread to other areas. So, industrialisation manufacturing is now taking place in India. It still has not reached the level that China reached somewhere in 2010. It still has to go there. So, if at all at some stage, it will be that the progress will be not arithmetic but geometrical progression,” Wickremesinghe stated.

“So, we will have the development in India. Then what is the connectivity that’s going to take place between India and Sri Lanka. Our closest point is in the north. Are we going to have a role in the role of ferries? Are we going to have more permanent structures? These are issues

that we have to resolve and that will also determine the viability of our ports, especially of the port of Colombo. So in looking at the port there’s only two issues which came to my mind.

“Firstly, it is the environment, especially the impact on fishing that we have to take seriously. Because before you start building you have to get the support of the people in the area,” the Sri Lanka President said.

Wickremesinghe said that in its journey to make Sri Lanka a hub and a developed country within the next 25 years, the island nation has to look at the development in India and the region including Bangladesh, Iran and the entire Makran coast.

“With the Trincomalee Port, we are discussing with India on the development of the Trincomalee Port on the basis that in the next 25 years there will be vast development in the Bay of Bengal, both on the Indian side, the Bangladeshi side, Malaysia and even Myanmar.

Shahid Khaqn Abbasi

Lula advocates peaceful resolution of Ukraine war

Ranil Wickermesinghe

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar meets Prime Minister of Guyana Mark Phillips, in Guyana. (PTI)

Film stars rejoice as Twitter reinstates legacy blue tick

Film personalities, including Amitabh Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Prakash Raj, on Sunday welcomed Twitter’s move of restoring verification badges on highprofile celebrity accounts, days after the microblogging platform culled the legacy blue check marks.

Indian celebrities such as Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn and Rajinikanth, among others lost verified blue ticks on their Twitter accounts after Elon Musk’s microblogging site started removing check mark icons from accounts that did not pay the monthly subscription fee. Later, the social media platform reinstated the badges.

Bachchan, an active user of Twitter, thanked Musk in a reference to the hit ‘90s song “Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast” from the film “Mohra”.

“Hey Musk bro! Thank you very, very much for reinstating the blue tick in front of my name. I feel like singing. Will you listen? So, listen. ‘Tu cheez Musk Musk, tu cheez badi

hai, Musk,” Bachchan tweeted in Hindi.

Chopra Jonas expressed surprise over getting the verification mark being restored. “Woah! Dunno how but the blue tick is back. I’m Priyanka again!” the actor wrote on the microblogging site.

“Hey #BlueTick welcome back. I missed you

..did u miss me #justasking. Thank you @Twitter,” Raj said in a tweet.

Nayanthara shared a picture of hers dressed in a traditional Kanjivaram saree and captioned it as: “’BLUE TICK’ Verified.”

“The blue tick is randomly back again? What is happening?” wrote Malavika Mohanan. The coveted verification made a surprise comeback on accounts of these celebrities starting late Saturday. It was not immediately clear whether or not these accounts have paid for the verification.

While there is no official word from Twitter on the reinstated blue ticks, the company is reportedly restoring the verified status for accounts with high fol-

lower count.

Earlier this week, Twitter started removing the blue tick that had verified the identity of the user behind an account, from the profiles of thousands of celebrities, politicians and journalists on Thursday. The blue tick was considered something of a status symbol but under Musk, who bought Twitter for USD 44 billion in October, the social media service is now charging individuals a monthly fee of Rs 650 on the web and Rs 900 on mobile devices to maintain their verification status. The microblogging platform also offers a discounted annual plan of Rs 6,800 per year.

(PTI)

HallyuWave Nagaland to host K-Pop India contest regional round

K-Pop fan club Hallyu -

Wave Nagaland has been selected as the regional host for organising K-Pop India Contest 2023, Kohima regional round between May-June.

Korean Cultural Centre India has announced K-Pop India Contest 2023. This year, the K-POP India contest will be held in celebration of 50 years of Diplomatic ties between Korea and India.

The contest will be held with three rounds of competition in India. The first round will be the Online audition round. The second round will be the regional

round. This year regional rounds will be held in 11 cities across India, namely, Kolkata, Guwahati, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Itanagar, Kohima, Lucknow and Mumbai.

The winners from the regional rounds will later move on to compete at the National round which is the K-Pop India Contest 2023 grand finale. The winners of the national round will get a chance to participate and compete at the K-Pop World Festival in South Korea.

Registration for the online round will begin from April 24 to

May 7. The results for the online round will be announced on May 15. Regional round is scheduled to take place between May-June.

The details to qualify for an entry into the contest for the two categories - vocal and dance are written below. To apply for the K-Pop contest, contestants need to: record a vocal/dance cover of their favourite K-Pop song (only K-Pop songs will be allowed; any entries of non-K-Pop songs, or songs by a K-Pop artiste in a different language will lead to disqualification.).

The total duration of the

The truth about exercising and aging

I’m Just Too Old

Exercise is good for just about everyone, including older adults. Even moderate amounts of physical activity can have a big impact. Talk with your doctor first, of course. If you’ve been inactive, take it easy as you get started, say, 5-10 minutes of moderate activity each day.

I Just Need to Take It Easy

It’s not your age that has you feeling the need to rest -- it’s that you’re not moving. Even older adults with serious health problems -- heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and others -- can live better lives by getting up and moving.

I Don’t Think My Heart Can Take It

The more you do to stay active as you age, the lower your chances are for things like heart attack and stroke. Your doctor can tell you what type of exercises are best, and for how long you should do them. You’ll probably shoot for 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a week, like a brisk walk or an easy bike ride. Mowing the lawn or a heavy cleaning session counts, too. And you don’t have to do them in 30-minute chunks.

I Don’t Move Like I Used To

Exercises that promote flexibility are in a group of four cornerstone movements (along with those that improve endurance, strength, and balance) that you should probably work on. That stiffness can be alleviated with, for example, stretching exercises that target hips, legs, shoulders, your neck, your back … anywhere. Yoga can help, too. Take it easy, though, and don’t stretch so far that it hurts.

I’m Afraid of Hurting Myself

To be safe, check with your doctor first, especially if you’ve been inactive or have health problems. Your doctor knows what you need and what you can do. Experts say those just starting out should begin slowly with low-intensity exercises. Drink plenty of water, listen to your body, warm up before your workout, and cool down after it.

I Am What I Am

A recent study suggests that certain exercises -- like riding a stationary bicycle -- actually slow cell decline that can happen as you age. In other words, it’s never

Dept. of Mass Comm PCC (A) conducts workshop on ‘Photography’

too late to reap the benefits of exercise. No matter how old you are, how inactive, or how out of shape you have been for however long, exercise can be provide lots of help for lots of things.

I Don’t Like Exercise

Being physically active doesn’t necessarily mean pushing around big weights at the gym or going for a 10-mile run. Do things that you enjoy and that will keep you at it. You could work in the yard, walk with friends, work in the garden (lifting and bending are great for flexibility and strength), or take a bike ride. Mix things up every so often, too, so you don’t get bored.

I Don’t Have an Exercise Buddy

Having a partner or getting into a group helps. Studies show that supervision and support can help you stay focused and feel good about what you’re doing. Buddies can really help if you’ve been inactive for a while and you’re cranking things back up. Some people do prefer to go solo. If you’re not one, find a group in your community. You can find one online, or your doctor can help you.

I Don’t Have the Time

A full schedule -- because of babysitting the grandkids, other family obligations, housework, etc. -- often is cited as a reason to skip exercise. When you think about all the benefits of regular physical activity, and the minimum time required (150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity), the answer is clear: If you want to stay healthy, you can find the time.

My Heart’s Fine

It’s not just about your heart. Regular exercise also helps your lungs, muscles, and your entire circulatory system. It’s about benefits that can include lower blood pressure, better bone and joint health, and less chance of things like colon cancer and diabetes.

I Don’t Want to Fall Falling can be a problem for older adults. But with regular physical activ-

cover needs to be two minutes. Once selected, the participant will be asked to cover the full song for the next round. Once they have recorded their cover head over to the K-Pop website and fill in the correct details.

Contest will allow both group and solo covers where participants can apply for both vocal and dance categories but submission of two different songs in one single category will lead to disqualification.

Further details about the contest will be released shortly.

(HallyuWave Nagaland Team)

Department of Multimedia and Mass Communication, Patkai Christian College

(A) in collaboration with Nikon India conducted a one-day workshop on “Photography” at its studio on Saturday.

The resource person Soumya Maitra as resource person from NIKON India demonstrated various techniques of photography and filmmaking.

OSD, PCC, Rokosito Khro motivated the students to never have the

Happy

ity, including exercises that promote proper balance -- exercises that you can do almost anytime, anywhere -- you can help prevent the falls that hurt so many older adults. Your doctor can point you in the right direction.

I Worry More About My Brain

Exercise is great for your brain. Experts say not only can exercise help you stave off mental health issues like depression and anxiety, it can also help you stay on task and be better able to move from one to-do item to the next. Healthy body, healthy mind.

Reviewed by Sabrina Felson, MD

give up attitude. Asserting that the youths in Nagaland have the potential to excel and change the socio-economic dynamics of the state, he encouraged the students to believe their worth and be the ambassadors of positive change in the society.

Taking cue from the success story of trials and tribulations of KFC Founder, Colonel Harland Sanders, OSD PCC urged the students to not be discouraged when failures come their way. He said to rather

take that failure as a next step to get better. He also advised the students to be productive and make the best use of the department facilities.

The students were taken for a photography walk to get hands on training on latest gadgets launched by Nikon.

Wildlife photographer Onenjungshi Ao and officials from Nikon India were also present on the day. Earlier, assistant professor, Sopei Rungsung, welcomed the guests and students.

“Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you, I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”

(Isaiah 46:4)

As you celebrate this remarkable milestone in your life, we wish you all the happiness, love, health, and success on this day and the years to come. We thank God for blessing us with your life and giving us a wonderful father, and grandfather. We love you and happy 80th Birthday.

DB-515/23

Love wife, children and grandchildren

Resource person Soumya Maitra with students and others.

Real put pressure on Barcelona; Real Sociedad, Athletic Club win

MADRID, APR 23

(IANS): Real Madrid beat Celta Vigo 2-0 in the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday night to put some pressure on FC Barcelona at the top of La Liga.

Marco Asensio swept home a cross from Vinicius Jr after 42 minutes to put Madrid ahead, and Eder Militao powered home a header two minutes after the break to secure the points for a Madrid side in which coach Carlo Ancelotti again made changes to his starting 11.

Real Madrid are now eight points behind FC Barcelona who have a tough home game against Atletico Madrid on Sunday afternoon, a Xinhua report said. Real Sociedad came back from a goal down to win 2-1 at home to Rayo Vallecano.

Although Isi Palazon put Rayo in front in the 57th minute, Alexander Sorloth leveled with a powerful header and Carlos Fernandez scored the winner, with the help of a deflection from visiting defender Florian Lejeune

nine minutes from time.

Betis’ hopes of a topfour finish suffered a setback when they lost 3-2 away to Osasuna. Ante Budimir scored twice for the home side after six and 11 minutes, and although Juan Miranda made it 2-1 with just 16 minutes on the clock, Jon Moncayola added a third for Osasuna before the break.

Guido Rodriguez pulled a goal back for Betis with 20 minutes left, but Osasuna hung on for a

Kiptum wins London Marathon men’s race; 2nd fastest

LONDON, APR 23

Barcelona Open: Alcaraz overcomes Evans, sets up final with Tsitsipas

BARCELONA, APR 23

hard-fought win. Athletic Club Bilbao made it three wins and a draw from their last four games to close in on a place in Europe after a comfortable 2-1 win away to struggling Almeria.

Nico Williams put Athletic ahead in the ninth minute, with a shot that crept under the keeper after an assist from Oihan Sancet, and Sancet was the provider for Oscar de Marcos to double their lead 10 minutes after the break. Almeria didn’t trouble

Welsh boxer Cordina reclaims world title against Rakhimov

Cordina was looking to make up for lost time and lost momentum.

Back in his home city, Cordina was again backed to the hilt by a capacity crowd.

the visitors until Alex Centelles scored an impressive volley in the second minute of injury time.

Monchu’s 24th-minute goal helped Valladolid make it two wins from two games to move them seven points clear of the bottom three with a 1-0 win at home to Girona.

Espanyol’s survival hopes suffered a big blow on Friday night when they were held 0-0 at home to Cadiz in a direct duel to avoid the drop.

(IANS): Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya finished first in the London Marathon men’s race here on Sunday with a winning time of 2:01:25, the second quickest in history. In the women’s elite race, the 5,000m and 10,000 Olympic champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands won her marathon debut in style by clocking in 2:18:33, reports Xinhua. Kiptum, 23, burst onto the stage at the end of last year as he set the fourth-fastest time on the world all-time list of 2:01:53 in his marathon debut in Valencia, Spain. Four months later, Kiptum showed his huge potential again in London as he pushed himself forward and dominated the race after 30km, improving his personal best to only 16 seconds behind his compatriot Eliud Kipchoge’s world record of 2:01:09. Hassan’s victory surprised many as she seemed bothered by some pain in the early stages, but held her nerve to follow the leading group tightly before joining the top four runners in the last minutes and breaking out to beat Ethiopian ace Alemu Megertu and Kenya’s reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir with a phenomenal dash with 500m to go.

(IANS): The top-seeded Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz eased past Daniel Evans 6-2, 6-2 to reach the final of Barcelona Open, where he is bidding to become the first repeat champion since Rafael Nadal lifted the trophy three years in a row from 2016-18.

Now 22-2 for the year, Alcaraz will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas as he chases his third tour-level title of 2023. The Buenos Aires and Indian Wells champion enters that clash holding a 3-0 ATP Head to Head series lead against Tsitsipas, a tally that includes a three-set quarter-final win in Barcelona last year.

“I feel really comfortable playing here in Barcelona and [I am] playing well,” said Alcaraz, who will try to successfully defend a title for the first time in his career against Tsitsipas.

“Stefanos as well is playing great matches. Last year we had a spicy match, let’s say. I know he’s a really nice guy off the court, so I’m going to try to forget everything that has happened in the matches before, try to focus on my

Carlos Alcaraz

game tomorrow, and try to get the win,” he said.

On Saturday night, Alcaraz was clinical with his chances to down Evans in 81 minutes on Pista Rafa Nadal, where he converted five of his seven break points. Evans deployed typical variety in his shots, but his tactics were expertly countered by Alcaraz, who has now won all eight sets he has played this week at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899.

“It’s so special to play a final here in Barcelona, a tournament that I love playing. I came to watch this tournament when I was really young and I played for this club when I was 11 or 12. I love this club, I love this tournament, and it’s so special to

Mainz shock Bayern, Dortmund go top

BERLIN, APR 23 (IANS):

CARDIFF, APR 23 (AGENCIES): Wales’ Joe Cordina reclaimed the IBF world super-featherweight title with an extremely hard-fought split-decision win over Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov.

Cordina, 31, was stripped of the title in October after breaking his right hand, but was able to return with a win in a front of a passionate home crowd.

Cordina, who floored Rakhimov in round two, was pushed to his limits by the champion who showed incredible heart.

However, Cordina

took the decision 111-116, 115-112 and 114-113 on the cards.

For Cordina, this was a night about reclaiming what he felt was rightfully his.

Having endured a 10-month absence from the ring with an injury that was career threatening, Cordina was desperate to prove he can be the dominant force in the 130lbs division.

After producing fireworks to win the title from Kenichi Ogawa in June 2022, with a knockout punch in round two that went viral on social media,

The swelling Rakhimov endured meant Cordina landed the cleaner shots in the final rounds, though Rakhimov showed his credentials as he kept coming and coming at Cordina, even with his left eye badly swollen.

In terms of sheer will and work-rate, Cordina struggled to match Rakhimov in the latter stages, but still managed to find some telling shots. Over 1300 shots in total were thrown over 12, relentless rounds.

Both fighters raised their arms and took the congratulations of their corners at the final bell, but it was Cordina who took the title and the plaudits after a fantastic fight, winning by the narrowest of margins on the judges’ cards to give Welsh boxing a huge boost.

Mainz came from behind through second-half goals from Ludovic Ajorque, Leandro Barreiro and Aaron Martin within 14 minutes to upset leaders Bayern Munich 3-1, while Borussia Dortmund took the lead in the Bundesliga table following a 4-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday night.

The Bavarians took the reins from the get-go and thought they had broken the deadlock, but Sadio Mane’s goal was ruled offside with 15 minutes gone.

Bayern dominated possession and eventually opened the scoring at the half-hour mark when Joao Cancelo’s whipped cross into the box allowed Mane to head home from close range. The German giants should have extended their lead, but neither Jamal Musiala nor Cancelo was able to finish off presentable opportunities.

Mainz turned up after the restart and pressed Bayern onto the back foot. Bayern ceased its offensive actions whereas Mainz took over and restored parity

Wrestlers return to protest site Jantar Mantar

DEMAND RELEASE OF MS MARY KOM PANEL REPORT ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT AGAINST WFI CHIEF

NEW

DELHI, APR 23

(PTI): Country’s top wrestlers, including Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat, returned to protest site Jantar Mantar on Sunday and demanded that the government makes public the findings of the oversight panel that investigated into sexual harassment allegations against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The wrestlers, surrounded by a huge posse of police personnel, also demanded that an FIR be lodged against the WFI boss, who has denied the allegations that first surfaced in January this year when grapplers had staged a ‘sit-in’ protest and demanded that federation be disbanded.

The six-member oversight panel, headed by legendary boxer MS Mary Kom, had submitted its report in the first week of April but the government has not yet made it public.

“How long is it going to take for the (government) committee to submit its report. It’s already been three months and we are still waiting to hear

from them. Will the report come out after the girls, who have filed complaints, die?,” questioned Vinesh, the world championship medallist. “We are tired of asking the government to release the findings. We have filed a complaint at a police station in Connaught Place and want an FIR to be filed against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. “We have nothing to do with the (WFI) election process. We are more concerned about our careers.

The (Paris) Olympics are upon us and we want to begin preparations in right earnest,” she added. Singh, who has completed 12 years as WFI

president, has confirmed that he will not contest for the top post in the WFI election on May 7. However he had indicated that he may find a role for himself within the national federation.

“You people can see who is running the federation despite such serious charges. We only have the power of truth which I suppose is not sufficient,” she said, adding, “The least the government can do is to take action on the sexual harassment that has been done. We demand justice. We will continue out protest.”

During the threemonth perio d since the

country’s top wrestlers made the allegations, Singh has appeared before the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the government’s oversight panel. However, multiple sources have confirmed that the wrestlers couldn’t prove the sexual harassment charges against the WFI chief.

“We will not budge from Jantar Mantar,” said Rio Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik, adding “this fight will not stop”.

“The girls have appeared before the committee, but the report hasn’t come. The federation is running as before, organising nationals in their region. So what has changed?

“The promises that were made to us when we first protested, not one of them has been fulfilled. Two day back, seven girls, including a minor, lodged a complaint in a CP police station. Despite that they are not taking us seriously, not lodging FIR. Don’t know who is behind this laxity, because such sensitive issues are taken up on an urgent basis,” said Sakshi.

in the 65th minute when Bayern goalkeeper Yann Sommer blocked Lee Jaesung’s shot into the path of Ajorque, who nodded home from close range. Mainz gained momentum and turned the tides after Barreiro tapped home Karim Onisiwo’s cutback pass in the 73rd minute, a Xinhua report said.

Things went from bad to worse for the German record champions as Mainz weren’t done with the scoring and made it three through Martin, who latched onto Andreas Hanche-Olsen’s assist.

I’m proud of my team,” said Mainz coach Bo Svensson. Elsewhere,

Gooch survives midround collapse to win LIV Australia

ADELAIDE, APR 23 (AP): Talor Gooch saw his double-digit overnight lead almost evaporate but rallied late to win the inaugural LIV Australia tournament Sunday at the Grange Golf Club. After two bogey-free 10-under 62 rounds, Gooch shot a 1-over 73 to clinch his maiden LIV Golf tournament victory by three strokes from a fast-moving Anirban Lahiri. As tournament leader, the 31-yearold American began his round on the first hole Sunday in the shotgunstart format and posted a birdie at the par-3 fifth but his bogey-free run finally ended at the par-5 seventh. He dropped a shot on the eighth and the slide worsened with a doublebogey at the 10th, which saw his lead over a fastmoving Lahiri cut to just two strokes with still eight holes to play. That was as close as it got as Gooch rallied with birdies at the 11th and 13th and made par at the par 4 18th to clinch the victory and $4mn of the $20mn purse. Koepka shot a final round of six-under 66 round to and 10-under overall.

Borussia Dortmund capitalized on Bayern’s defeat and moved atop the standings with a one-point advantage after cruising past hapless Eintracht Frankfurt 4-0.

Wolfsburg crushed relegation-threatened Bochum 5-1 thanks to Mattias Svanberg’s brace. Marvin Ducksch’s hat-trick secured Werder Bremen a 4-2 victory over bottom side Hertha

have the chance to lift the trophy here again,” said Alcaraz.

Alcaraz broke twice in the opening set to take command of his second tour-level meeting with Evans before opening a 4-0 lead in the second. Although the World No. 26 Evans battled valiantly to the end and was rewarded for persistently moving to the net with his only break of the match in the fifth game, Alcaraz’s all-court game repeatedly proved too good.

The Spaniard’s ability to attack Evans’ serve was the defining feature of the match. Alcaraz won 57 per cent (28/49) of points on return to back up his win against the Briton in Vienna in 2021.

in Bundesliga

Berlin, while Cologne beat struggling Hoffenheim 3-1. Stuttgart clinched a

1-1 draw with Augsburg to snatch a vital point in the relegation battle on Friday.

OFFICE OF THE KHENSA STUDENTS’ UNION FELICITATION

The Office of the Khensa Students’ Union would like to convey our heartiest congratulations to Miss Asangla Kichu, D/o Mr. Wapangtemsü and Mrs. Imnasenla for achieving the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy majoring in Botany under the thesis title “Studies on Soil Microbial Diversity in Mokokchung District, Nagaland” from Nagaland University, Lumami. The Union further pray and wishes her the best in her future endeavors. Sd/- Sd/Putuchiba Walling Imchanaro Kichu President General Secretary

Real Madrid’s Eder Militao scores a header against Celta Vigo during the La Liga.

Match in action between Mainz and Bayern Munich.

Joe Cordina throws a punch against Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov.

Wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik during a press conference at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi. (PTI)

CSK tops IPL table with win over KKR

batters reached in time. Roy powerfully swept and sliced Jadeja for six and four respectively, while Rinku slammed another six as 19 runs came off the 11th over.

Roy then pulled and swung Maheesh Theekshana for four and six respectively, before Rinku heaved Jadeja over deep mid-wicket for six. Roy reached his fifty in 19 balls with a slice past third man for four. But after hitting Theekshana for back-to-back fours in the 15th over, he was castled by a beautiful carrom ball which had some dip from the off-spinner.

Royal Challengers Bangalore beat RR by seven runs

BENGALURU, APR 23 (IANS): Riding on the fifties from Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell followed along with Harshal Patel’s impressive bowling Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) beat table-topper Rajasthan Royals (RR) by seven runs in the IPL 2023 match here at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Sunday.

After a 127-run stand between Du Plessis (62) and Glenn Maxwell’s (77), Royal Challengers Bangalore suffered a batting collapse as late strikes from Rajasthan Royal (RR) restricted the hosts to 189/9.

KOLKATA, APR 23

(IANS): Maheesh Theekshana and Tushar Deshpande took two wickets each Chennai Super Kings restricted Kolkata Knight Riders to 186/8 in defence of a mammoth 235 and win by 49 runs at Eden Gardens to move to the top of the points table.

After Devon Conway, Ajinkya Rahane and Shivam Dube struck half-centuries and carted Kolkata’s bowlers all over the park in posting the highest IPL total at this venue, where they were greeted by a sea of yel-

low in the stands, Jason Roy and Rinku Singh struck valiant half-centuries for KKR.

But they were not enough to chase down a massive total as Kolkata slumped to their fourth straight defeat in the competition. With Roy not coming out to bat after seemingly injuring his ankle while trying to save a boundary, Sunil Narine was sent to open. But Akash Singh took him out on the fourth ball by uprooting his off-stump. In the next over, N. Jagadeesan sliced off Deshpande and Ravindra Jadeja dived low

to take a stunning catch at third man.

Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer hit two sixes and five fours in their 45-run standoff 35 balls before Moeen Ali struck on his first ball by trapping the latter plumb lbw. Roy came out to bat at five and began with a bang with a hat-trick of sixes through sweeping twice and reverse-sweeping once.

Rana went for a slogsweep off Ravindra Jadeja but was caught at deep midwicket. Chennai attempted to run out Roy and Rinku from both ends, but the

Manchester City beat Sheffield United to keep treble dream alive

winner Real Madrid in the last four of the Champions League. But the defending Premier League champion is in ominous form having extended its unbeaten run to 16 games with a routine win against Sheffield.

Any chance of an historic FA Cup shock was effectively ended in the 43rd minute when Mahrez struck from the penalty spot after Daniel Jebbison fouled Bernardo Silva in the box.

LONDON, APR 23 (AP):

In this kind of mood, it will take something special to halt Manchester City’s pursuit of the treble.

Just days after Pep Guardiola’s team advanced to the Champions League semifinals, a place in the FA Cup final was secured by beating Sheffield United 3-0 at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, with Riyad Mahrez scoring a hat trick.

City can also seize control of the English Premier League title race on Wednesday in a showdown

with leader Arsenal.

Nothing has been won yet, but City’s nearirresistible form is driving it toward the history books as its three-pronged trophy challenge shows no sign of stopping. Manchester United is the only English team to have won the Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup in one season, in 1999. It’s a point of pride for United and its fans, a fact not lost on Guardiola.

City also faces the significant test of trying to navigate a way past 14-time

Archery: India men’s recurve team wins silver, bronze for Dhiraj

Mahrez doubled City’s lead in the 61st when running straight through the heart of Sheffield’s defense and firing past Wes Foderingham. The third came five minutes later when turning home Jack Grealish’s pass.

City didn’t need to be at its devastating best, with leading scorer Erling Haaland failing to add to his 48 goals this season in a subdued performance.

It was down to Mahrez, who didn’t play in either leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against Bayern Munich, to do the damage.

Despite Andre Russell and Umesh Yadav being caught in the deep while David Wiese was trapped lbw, Rinku continued to smash boundaries and get his fifty in 30 balls while managing to keep the losing margin for Kolkata below 50 runs.

Brief scores: Chennai Super Kings

235/4 in 20 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 71 not out, Devon Conway 56, Shivam Dube

50; Kulwant Khejroliya

2-44, Suyash Sharma 1-29) beat Kolkata Knight Riders

186/8 in 20 overs (Jason Roy 61, Rinku Singh 53 not out; Maheesh Theekshana

2-32, Tushar Deshpande

2-43) by 49 runs

In response, RR too had a similar start to that of RCB. Mohammed Siraj started the innings beautifully as he cleaned up Jos Buttler for a duck and conceded just one off the first over. Then, Yashaswi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal together collected eight boundaries and a six in the next five over as RR posted 47/1 in the Power-play.

Post Power-play, Jaiswal and Padikkal accelerated the run rate as the duo reached a close-tocentury partnership thanks to their well-timed shots, and the Royals were 92/1 after 10 overs.

RCB managed to put

Chuqin, Manyu crowned again at WTT Champions Macao

pressure on the Royals with their tight bowling as the visitors didn’t get a single boundary in the next four overs. In the 11th over, Padikkal completed his fifty in 31 deliveries before becoming David Wiley’s victim in the next, and the 98-run partnership came to an end. Padikkal came down and looked to swing it away but doesn’t get a hold of it and Kohli ran in from long-on to complete a nice catch.

An over later, Har -

shal Patel denied Jaiswal a half-century as he sent the batter packing for 47. Jaiswal tried to slam it over long-on, but captain Kohli pouched it safely.

Harshal Patel struck again in the 16th over and got the big fish Samson for 22, making the task difficult for the Royals. RCB’s strike bowler Siraj went for 16 runs off the next over as he bowled three wides and Dhruv Jurel smashed him for a couple of boundaries.

With 33 needed in 12, Jurel smashed a stunning

flat six off Siraj and survived a dramatic run-out and 13 runs came off the over. With 10 needed off 2, two singles came off the last two balls and RCB sealed the win by 7 runs.

Brief scores: Royal Challengers Bangalore 189/9 in 20 overs (Faf du Plessis 62, Glenn Maxwell 77; Trent Boult 2-41, Sandeep Sharma 2-49) beat Rajasthan Royals 182/6 in 20 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 47, Devdutt Padikkal 52; Harshal Patel 3-32) by 7 runs.

India men’s recurve team members.

ANTAYLA, APR 23 (PTI):

The Indian men’s recurve team clinched a silver medal after losing to China by the thinnest of margins in a shoot-off at the Archery World Cup Stage 1 here on Sunday. In pursuit of their first World Cup gold medal since 2010, the men’s recurve team, comprising Tarundeep Rai, Atanu Das and Dhiraj Bommadevara, bounced back from 0-4 deficit to level the scores and force a shoot-off.

But the Indian trio went down 4-5 (54-55, 50-56, 5958, 56-55, 28-28*) with the Chinese team of Li Zhongyuan, Qi Xiangshuo and Wei Shahoxu hitting an X (closer to the centre) in the shoot-off in a dramatic finish. Dhiraj then went on to grab a second medal in his World Cup

debut when the 20-year-old Army man defeated Ilfat Abdullin of Kazakhstan 7-3 (28-28, 29-26, 28-29, 29-27, 29-27) to bag the bronze in individual recurve section.

Dhiraj would regret missing out on a silver as he squandered a 4-0 lead against Dan Olaru of Moldova to go down 6-4 (27-26, 28-27, 2829, 26-28, 28-30) in the semifinal.

India thus ended their campaign with two gold, one silver and one bronze medal from the event.

In hindsight, the team would rue its pathetic second set where it totalled just 50 out of a possible 60, after hitting the red rings thrice (one 7 and two 8s) as China won by six points to take a 4-0 lead.

India had a slow start and China took the first set by a slender one-point margin.

MACAO, APR 23 (IANS):

China’s Wang Chuqin and Wang Manyu were crowned again in the men’s and women’s singles respectively at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions Macao here on Sunday. In the men’s singles final, 22-year-old Wang Chuqin defended his title after closing out a dominant 4-0 win over double Olympic gold medalist Ma Long 12-10, 11-1, 11-8, 11-7. Both players flew out of the starting blocks at top speed, but Ma failed to capitalise on several opportunities, leaving second seed Wang enough room to race 2-0 in front. Frustrated by the opening stages of the

match, Ma struggled to get back on track while Wang remained focused and approached each point with excellent balance to inch closer to victory, reports Xinhua.

In the women’s singles final, second seed Wang Manyu lifted the second WTT Champions trophy after coming from behind to defeat Olympic champion Chen Meng 4-2 (11-13, 11-7, 8-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-8). Chen enjoyed the brighter start to the final, but Wang slowly began to work her way up into the contest, digging deep to move ahead and putting her foot firmly on the accelerator to close out the match in style.

RCB batters Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell run between the wickets during the IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals. (PTI)

Wang Manyu and Wang Chuqin.

Mahrez celebrates with Erling Haaland after his goal.

CSK batter Shivam Dube and Ajinkya Rahane greets each other during the IPL match. (PTI)