February 28, 2018

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXVIII No. 82

WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018 Pages 12 ` 5.00

India has potential to achieve 7-8% growth: FM

Napoli crush Cagliari 5-0 in Serie A

UN chief urges new push to free world from nuke weapons

business, Page 8

sports, Page 12

international, Page 9

75% voter turnout amid stray incidents

(L-R) 100 year old Lhouzhü casting her vote at L-Khel, Kohima. Voters line up in Dimapur to cast their votes. An old 82 year old lady seated to cast her vote in Dimapur. (NP/DIPR)

Staff Reporter/Correspondents three-consecutive terms.

DIMAPUR/KOHIMA/ MON/WOKHA/LONGLENG, FEB 27 (NPN): At least 75 per cent of 11,91,513 voters exercised their franchise till 4.30 p.m. for the Assembly polls on Tuesday in Nagaland, where the BJP in alliance with newly formed Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) is trying to dislodge the Naga People’s Front (NPF) which has been in power for

As per official sources, district-wise voting percentage till 4.30 p.m. was-Dimapur 70%, Peren 70%, Kohima 72%, Phek 78%, Pughoboto 88%, Mokokchung 82%, Zunheboto 76%, Wokha 81%, Mon 73%, Longleng 77%, Tuensang 76% and Kiphire 73%.

It may be pointed out that counting of votes will be held on March 3.

“Though voting ended at 4 p.m., a huge numbers

of voters were still waiting in queues at a large number of polling stations across the state,” Chief Electoral Officer Abhijit Sinha.

Sinha said voting percentage was expected to increase.

CEO said his office received 16 complaints from various political mostly for re-polling. The complaints will be forwarded to ECI after the scrutiny of the EVMs and VVPATS on Wednesday from 11 a.m.

Only after this, he said ECI

will decide and if required re-poll will be fixed either on March 1 or 2, CEO said.

There were reports of malfunctioning of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in many polling stations which were rectified.

Up for grab are 59 assembly seats (one seat went to NDPP when its CM candidate– Neiphiu Rio, was declared elected unopposed).

Interestingly in Mokokchung and Wokha districts, though the most

poll related violence were reported, the polling passed off peacefully with few stray incidents.

However, in one polling station at Mongsenbai ward under Mokokchung Town A/C, an elderly man who was standing in queue to cast his vote, reportedly collapsed after suffering from stroke. He was declared brought dead by the doctors at the district hospital.

Despite efforts being made to implement ‘one-

man-one vote’, there were reports of rampant proxy voting across the state.

Fake voter slips were being used for such proxy voting with the official seal and signature of the issuing authority.

In Longleng district, voting at polling station no. 1-Ladigarh under 49 Tamlu A/C was reportedly halted by Assam Police personnel, denying the electorates to exercise their right to vote.

Three-time chief minister and former Lok Sabha MP, Neiphiu Rio of the NDDP said: “We are confident of emerging as the single largest party and will unseat the NPF from power in Nagaland.”

However, chief minister, T.R. Zeliang voiced confidence that the NPF will retain power. “We are confident we will emerge as the single-largest party on March 3 when votes are counted. We will retain power and lead the next government,” Zeliang said after casting his vote.

In Dimapur, polling was peaceful with huge women voter turn-out.

This is it!

“I’m just reminding you that your vote has been bought so don’t get any ideas.”

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tinues to be rampant while alleged booth capturing was also reported in some parts of the state during the polling on Tuesday.

In Kohima, several persons were allegedly involved in distributing fake voter slips while one person, in possession fake voter slips at AG colony was caught and handed over to police.

The fake voter slips with the signature and official seal of ADC Kohima and Election Returning Officer was seized from agents of a candidate while distributing the slips from a chamber near the Polling Station at Jail Colony. When agents of the rival candidate entered the room, they found a huge number of fake voter slips in a bucket.

Another youth was also nabbed in AG Colony

In this regard, NDPP has lodged a complaint with the Returning Officer.

In another case, first time voters, mostly students, were sent back by polling officials who told them that their votes were cast through ballot.

The parents of the youths filed a complaint with North PS. CEO Abhijit Sinha admitted that he had received a copy of the complaint from the RO Kohima district.

There have also been many reports where a voter cast votes in two constituencies. This revealed that a person has his name in two places which is possible by having the same photograph but different name.

It was also reported that booth capturing had also taken place in some constituencies.

Tuesday for the Meghalaya Assembly Elections to the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly, with 67 per cent of the 18.9 lakh voters exercising their franchise, an election official said.

A total of 18,09,818 electors, including 9,13,702 women and 89,405 firsttime voters, were to decide the fate of 361 candidates, including 31 women and many independents. The votes will be counted on March 3.

Polling in one constituency -- Williamnagar -- was countermanded following the killing of Nationalist Congress Party candidate, Jonathone Sangma in an IED blast within Sawilgre area of East Garo Hills district on February 18.

“An estimated figure of 67 percent voters has

percent or more,” Chief Electoral Officer Frederick Roy Kharkongor said.

The final voting figure will be available later, he said.

In the 2013 elections, the turnout in Meghalaya had been 89 per cent.

“There is a possibility of re-polling at Kyndong Tuber polling station under Raliang assembly constituency as there was failure of VVPAT (Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails).... due to mix up of the VVPAT belonging to Mawkaiaw assembly constituency which replaced faulty VVPAT at Raliang assembly constituency,” Kharkongor said.

He said that the election commission is yet to decide the dates of polling to the Williamnagar assembly seat and the re-poll for the

Staff Reporter/ Correspondent

DIMAPUR/MON, FEB 27 (NPN): Sporadic violence marked the one-day polling on Tuesday in Nagaland when one person was killed and two others injured at Akuluto A/C under Zunheboto district after a clash erupted between supporters of rival candidates. There were also reports of stone pelt- A vehicle damaged by a mob ing in some areas. in Akuluto on Tuesday.

“Clashes erupted in Akuluto constituency between rival groups when some people prevented voters from entering a polling station. The two groups indulged in firing, following which police opened fire.

As of now, we are not able to ascertain the cause of injuries,” DGP Nagaland, Rupin Sharma told IANS. He said police reinforcements were rushed to the area to control the situation.

According to DIPR reports, security forces restored to blank firing Tin roof damaged by the leaving one dead and two blast in Tizit. injured.

In Tizit constituency, one person was reportedly injured when a crude bomb went (Cont’d on p-7) off at a polling station even before polling commenced, a police official said. According to sources, the crude bomb landed on the roof of the EBRC Tizit, designated Polling station no 20 and the splinters injured one person.

It was also reported that a mob destroyed a Voter Kyngdong Tuber polling Verifiable Paper Audit Trail machine in Tizit constituency. station.

But polling resumed after the machine was replaced, an In all, 88 VVPATs and official said.

56 EVMs malfunctioned across the state during polling.

Chief Minister Mukul Sangma expressed confi- DIMAPUR, FEB 27 (NPN): to 4 p.m. According to CEO dence that the Congress will Out of the 11,91,513 regis- media cell, 2195 “trouble retain power, crossing the tered voters, 6,01,707 were makers” were identified magic figure of 31 MLAs. males and 5,89,806 female and bonds were taken under “I have full faith in voters. A total of 195 can- various preventive sections the people. I believe they didates including 5 women under CrPC. have full confidence in the were in the fray.

Rs. 1,51,68,980, 41,216 Congress. We will cross Polling time in 103 litres of liquor, 220 kgs of the magic number,” Sangma polling stations in six dis- ganja, 59261 capsules/tabtold journalists after voting tricts was from 7 a.m. to 3 lets, 66 gms brown sugar, 5 at Chengkompara polling p.m., while in the remaining gms of heroin, 7 rolls & 321 station in Ampati segment. 2,053 stations it was 7 a.m. gms of opium and 366 cough Sangma, the chief ar- to 4 p.m. Webcasting was syrup were seized during the chitect of the Congress win done at 533 locations while election period. 13000 pollon 29 seats in the 2013 all other polling station were ing personnel and over 47000 elections, is contesting from covered with videography. police personnel including Ampati and Songsak. ConOf the 2,156 polling central forces were deployed gress later increased the stations, 1,062 were des- in for the elections. tally to 30 by winning in the ignated ‘critical’, and 530 Meanwhile, CEO AbChokpot bypoll in 2015. ‘vulnerable’. Polling time hijit Sinha has thanked all More than 1.20 crore in 103 polling stations in six polling personnel, voters rupees and 30 thousand districts was from 7 a.m. to 3 and security forces for the litres of alcohol were seized p.m., while in the remaining successful conduct of the by the election officials.

2,053 stations it was 7 a.m. assembly elections.

NDPP demands Bogus voters, proxy voting rampant Voting peaceful in Meghalaya; 67% voter turnout cast their ballot till 3.30 poll at Ladigarh Correspondent by youths of Kohima vil- Correspondent p.m. across the state. We lage who handed over the SHILLONG, FEB 27: Vot- expect the percentage to Feb 27 (NPN): accused to South PS. polling centre Kohima, ing ended peacefully on increase between 75 to 80 Voter impersonation con-

DIMAPUR, FEB 27 (NPN): Terming as unfortunate that polling could not be held at No. 1 Ladigarh polling station under Tamlu Assembly constituency, for which hundreds of voters could not exercise their franchise, NDPP said the matter was a “serious breach” of democratic process that needed to be addressed immediately.

In a letter to chief electoral officer on Tuesday, the party called for taking all necessary measures to ensure that polling was conducted at the polling centre so that rights of the citizens were not denied.

Demanding that election result of Tamlu constituency should not be announced till polling was held at the polling centre, NDPP urged the election department to take the issue seriously as it had the potential to flare up into a major crisis as it involved sentiments of the people and border dispute.

According to CEO Nagaland, Abhijit Sinha Polling Station no. 1 in Ladigarh, was adjourned after the Assam Police obstructed the polling process.

1 killed, 2 injured in Akuluto; blast in Tizit

Highlights of 2018 Assembly polls

NE strengthens ties with Myanmar Our campaign mature and Misappropriation of YA N G O N, F E B 2 7 (AGENCIES): The Mandalay Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MRCCI) and businesses from North East India met to discuss trade between the two regions on February 24. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation between companies in Mandalay and North Eastern India was also signed.

Nanda Singh Bhaisora, consul general of India, said the purpose of holding the meeting is to promote the development of products manufactured in North East and develop cross-border trading between the two countries.

“We discussed our handloom and weaving business, handicraft business and the trading of fruits, spices, chili, a variety of fruits, herbal plants and also handmade crafts made out of bamboo.

We aim to improve and

responsible, says NDPP

promote these products for trade with Myanmar as our two countries have many similarities. For example, our ethnic attires are similar,” said Nanda.

Businesses from North East region such as Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram exhibited their products in Mandalay and initiated discussions with local traders.

“Mandalay plays an important role in the development of Indian businesses. We welcome cooperation with India, which will also benefit

local businesses and enable them to diversify their markets and grow. More broadly, the private sector needs to develop before the economy can grow,” said U Aung San Win, the newly elected vice chair of MRCCI. “North East region of India is developing and that’s why besides Myanmar, it will also trade with Lao, Thailand and Vietnam. But India-Myanmar relations are historical and strong. ,” said Gautan Muko Padia, India Ambassador to Myanmar.

DIMAPUR, FEB 27 (NPN): Responding to the complaint filed against the NDPP-BJP alliance by the NPF for violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) has said that they had carried out a “mature and responsible” campaign that had “perhaps not been witnessed before”.

The complaint had been filed with the Nagaland Chief Election Officer against the advertisements put out by the NDPP-BJP that were published in local media on February 26.

A press release from NDPP, media and communications committee said that their campaign had never deviated from the MCC. Likewise, it said that their campaign in print media, billboards, posters and banners had been carried out in “strict adherence” to the MCC. Pointing out that no elec-

tion related advertisement could be published or circulated without the prior approval of the ECI, the release stated that all advertisements and publicity material from the NDPP-BJP alliance had been released only after clearances from the ECI. The clearance documents were also attached with the advertisements to be published when they are released to the print media, it said.

According to the release, the advertisement cited in the complaint did not make any commitments or announce any packages but contained highlights of the Prime Minister’s speech delivered on February 22, against which neither objections nor complaints were raised within the stipulated time by anybody.

“We refused to get drawn into a media war and ugly exchanges in the print media despite scathing attacks on our party”, it said.

NFBS funds rectified

DIMAPUR, FEB 27 (NPN): Following detection of irregularities through an RTI query in disbursement of National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) grants to beneficiaries in 2014-15 in Mokokchung district by para legal volunteers ST Yapang Lkr and Odi Jamir, as published in local dailies on January 15 this year, the Directorate of Social Welfare department made a thorough investigation, after which necessary rectifications were made.

According to a Nagaland State Legal Services Authority (NSLSA) press release, the first appellate authority of the directorate informed this during a hearing.

An amount of Rs 80,000 drawn in the names of four deceased persons who were shown as beneficiaries – two from Longkhum village and two from Chungtia village – was returned to the directorate.

Similarly, eight beneficiaries who were paid only Rs 10,000 each, instead of Rs 20,000, were paid in full, while four beneficiaries who were not paid at all were also paid, the NSLSA release added.

It may be mentioned that families living below the poverty line are entitled to get financial benefit of Rs 20,000 after the death of the sole breadwinner (male/female) under the NFBS. Any kind of death (natural or accidental) will make the family eligible for this assistance.

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state

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Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, February 28, 2018

Election photos and reports from across Nagaland

CM T.R. Zeliang in queue to cast his vote.

NPF president Dr. Shurhozielie Liezietsu.

Differently abled polling officials at Wokha.

Elderly women in queue to cast their vote.

Voters from all tribes and communities queued up to cast their votes at various polling stations across Nagaland. (NP/DIPR) DIMAPUR: Along with rest of the state, 14 Southern Angami-I Assembly Constituency went to poll on February 27. Altogether the constituency consisted of 20 polling stations with around thirteen thousand voters. Four candidates Vikho-o Yhoshü NDPP, Khrielezo Bio NPF, Medokul Sophie NPP and Nagakul Tase INC are contesting from the 14th Southern Angami - 1 A/C. Earlier in the day candidates Vikho-o Yhoshü and Khrielezo Bio and their wives were the first to cast their votes at 7 Kigwema, MH Upper polling staK

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tion. Medokul Sophie and Nagakul Tase also casted their votes from Jakhama Middle Panchayat Hall polling station.

A DIPR report stated that among the voters were Vilhelie Kere (23) a Person with Disability (PwDs) from Kigwema village also exercised his adult franchise. A villager who was present nearby to cast his vote narrated how Vilhelie despite his disability is a skilled carpenter and takes care of his parents and siblings.

The GHS Jakhama town in 14th Southern Angami-I was manned by all women presiding

officials and security personnel. The purpose of having an all women team was to encourage women participation in the electoral process.

Video surveillance were fixed in all the polling stations and facilities like chairs, drinking water, waiting shed, toilets and wheel chairs for PwDs were also provided for the voters. Young, old and differently abled actively participated in the electoral process.

Po l l i n g s t a t i o n manned by differently abled persons: For the first time in Wokha district one of the polling stations

under 38 Wokha Assembly Constituency was manned by highly qualified and dedicated differently abled polling officials. The polling personnel are working in different departments and banking institutions holding responsible professions.

Polls in Tening held peacefully: The 13th General Election for 6th Tening Assembly Constituency of Nagaland Legislative Assembly took place in all the Polling Stations on Tuesday.

According to official reports due to technical problems polling in some of the booths started late,

but by and large the election process was peaceful in all the polling stations, a DIPR report stated.

New Market polling stations lead in ‘Clean Election’ : Two polling stations under the 8th Western Angami Assembly Constituency - New Market-I and III polling stations led in ‘Clean Election campaign with ‘one man, one vote’ in full swing cited a report from Kohima.

New Market-I polling station recorded 640 votes out of 768 while New Market-III polling station recorded 288 votes out of 356 voters, the report

stated.

It also said, New Market Area Panchayat (NMAP) and New Market Youth Organization (NMYO) maintained strict vigil throughout the polling period on Tuesday disallowing any proxy vote in both the stations.

NMAP chairman, Kuotsu Kehie, expressed satisfaction over the polling conducted under their jurisdiction.

“As per the Election Commission of India (ECI) Representation of Peoples Act 1951, every person who has attained the age of 18 has the right to vote,” he cited, adding

that in a democracy he or she has the right to caste vote in favour of a candidate of their choice.

He also said that whichever candidate wins the election from the seat, the elected legislator should work for the development of the assembly seat and revealed that two most important priorities of the New Market colony is the road development and the construction of New Market Area Panchayat hall, the report stated.

New Market area is the one of the oldest colony in the state capital which needs immediate attention especially in road

development, as most of the vehicles, be it private, government or commercial, traverses along the subsidiary road that passes through the colony.

Dr. Shurhozelie, Dr. Neikiesalie Kire exercise their adult franchise: Former Chief Minister of Nagaland and NPF president, Dr. Shurhozielie Liezietsu, cast his vote for the 13th NLA at L-Khel Upper I polling station on Tuesday. The 10th Northern Angami 1 assembly constituency also had two all women polling stations at 20 Baptist Higher secondary school and 21 GMS Keyake.

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nagalandpost.com Poll Q . : W h i c h o f t h e t wo is likely –1. hung house 2. Majority for alliance(s)?

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

A B C

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

A

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27% Hung House Majority for 66% alliance(s) 7% Can’t say

Next poll

Q: Is the death of filmstar

Sridevi suspicious and needs to be probed?  Yes  No  Can’t say

WEATHER FORECAST FEBRUARY 28

(Temperature in ºC)

Max Min

Agartala Very warm with hazy sunshine 33 18 Aizawl

Plenty of sunshine

Guwahati Hazy sunshine Imphal

Nice with plenty of sunshine

Itanagar Partly sunny and nice

27 13 29 15 27 10 26 13

Shillong

Hazy sunshine

19 8

Kohima

Sunny and pleasant

22 9

Dimapur Sunny and nice Mkg

Mostly sunny and nice

Tuensang Mostly sunny and cooler Wokha

28 13 24 8 17 6

Mostly sunny and not as warm 21 13

Zunheboto Mostly sunny and nice

22 6

BJP suspends party worker accused of mowing down nine kids in Bihar

Patna, Feb 26 (PTI): The BJP today suspended party worker Manoj Baitha, who has been accused of mowing down nine children while driving an SUV in an inebriated state in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar on Saturday.

At least nine children were killed and about 20 injured when the speeding vehicle lost control and ploughed through them outside a gover nment school building on the outskirts of Muzaffarpur on Saturday.

“Manoj Baitha, a district level worker of Sitamarhi, has been suspended from the primary membership of the party for a period of six years,” BJP’s Bihar unit vicepresident Devesh Kumar said.

Muzaffarpur district president Subodh Singh has sent a communication to this effect to the party’s state headquarters here, Kumar told PTI. About reports that a banner fixed on that vehicle described Baitha’s designation in the party as state secretary general of Mahadalit Prakoshth, Kumar said, “No such

Bird flu: chicken culling continues in Paradip Paradip (Odisha), Feb 27 (PTI): Culling of chicken continued in the port town of Paradip following detection of bird flu there on Sunday, a veterinary officer said.

A team of experts from the Centre also visited the areas affected by the H5N1 avian flu.

Over 850 chickens and ducks have so far been culled after the flue was detected on Sunday, Jagatsinghpur Chief District Veterinary Officer Ramesh Chandra Behera said.

A decision has been taken to cull 2000 chickens in Paradip and the culling operation is likely to take two more days to complete, he said. A large number of eggs were also destroyed as part of the efforts to prevent spread of the disease to other areas.

A four-member team from the Union Health Ministry visited the affected port town to take stock of the situation. The team members discussed with district

officials on the action taken, Behera said.

As a precautionary measure, all poultry firms and outlets have been shut in and around Paradip and sale of chicken and eggs was banned.

Steps have also been taken to prevent transportation of poultry products out of the district, said Jagatsinghpur in-charge Collector Sachidananda Sahu said.

Several hotels in the town have also been raided as part of the drive to check sale and stock of poultry.

Ten rapid response teams were formed and sent to the affected area by the administration.

The teams comprising 40 members have been constituted to sanitize the area, Behera said.

While two blood samples of chicken have so far tested positive for H5N1, 364 other samples have been sent to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases for examination, he said.

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National

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2018

Calcutta High Court lawyers’ ceasework enters seventh day

Bihar Assembly adjourned after ruckus over hit-and-run case

Manoj Baitha

post exists in the organisation. The worker appears to have fabricated it.”

The police have registered an FIR against Baitha on the complaint of a local who lost his granddaughter in the incident.

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi has said the police were directed to take “sternest possible action” against Baitha irrespective of his political affiliations.

The opposition RJD has accused the Nitish Kumar government of trying to shield Baitha and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party worker was “dr unk” while behind the steering wheel even though sale and consumption of alcohol is banned in the state.

K S Dwivedi to be new DGP of Bihar Patna, Feb 27 (PTI): K S Dwivedi will be the new director general of police of Bihar, according to a state home department notification. Dwivedi, a 1984 batch IPS officer, who is the Director General (Training) will take over from the current incumbent P K Thakur, who retires from service tomorrow, the notification said.

The opposition RJD has alleged that the appointment was made at the instance of BJP and its ‘’parent body’’, the RSS. ‘’Dwivedi was the superintendent of police of Bhagalpur in 1989 when the city was ravaged by horrific communal riots and his handling of the situation had come in for a lot of criticism,’’ RJD national spokesman Manoj Jha said. ‘’The decision has clearly been taken by Nagpur (an allusion to the RSS headquarters) and imposed on Patna. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has acted at the instance of his political ally (the BJP),’’ he added.

The Bihar Assembly was today adjourned till 2pm following a ruckus over the recent hit-and-run case in Muzaffarpur that claimed the lives of nine children.

Manoj Baitha, a district-level BJP worker from Sitamarhi, has been accused of mowing down the children with his SUV on Saturday. He was suspended from the saffron party last night for a period of six years after an FIR was lodged against him in connection with the case.

As soon as the House assembled this morning, on the second day of the budget session, an adjournment motion over the hit-and-run case was moved by RJD MLAs Samir Kumar Mahaseth, Sweety Hembrom, Ejya Yadav and Shakti Singh Yadav.

Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary, however, rejected the motion and said the matter should be raised “at an appropriate time so that the government too can come up with its reply”.

Protesting the speaker’s stance, Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav said, “When Pradyumn was recently killed inside a school at Gurugram, it led to a public outcry. A CBI inquiry too was instituted. Did the lives of nine deceased children from Muzaffarpur have less value just because they came from backward classes,” Yadav asked.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Shravan Kumar tried to pacify the opposition members with the assurance that “nobody will be spared under the current regime”.

Urban development minister Suresh Sharma, who is also a BJP MLA from Muzaffarpur, said instructions have been issued for the arrest of Manoj Baitha.

He, however, refuted the allegations made by the opposition that the accused was inebriated.

As the RJD MLAs refused to relent and shouted slogans against the Nitish Kumar government, the Speaker adjourned the House till 2pm.

Criminal case for rail roko agitation Bhubaneswar, Feb 27 (PTI): Those who hold rail rokos in Odisha will face criminal cases from now on as per a decision taken at a meeting of State Level Security Committee for Railways, officials said today.

The meeting, held here under the chairmanship of Odisha Director General of Police R P Sharma decided that the Railway Protection Force (RPF) will register criminal cases in case of rail rokos.

The RPF will take appropriate legal actions and high level railway officials will negotiate with the agitators regarding their demands and take action in the matter, the official said after the meeting.

The meeting also emphasised on deployment of train guards in crime prone night trains and supply of CUG (closed user group) mobiles to train guard personnel.

It was also decided in

the meeting to take steps for prompt registration of criminal cases at the appropriate police stations even when the passengers submit their reports to the TTE, RPF, or any other railway stations so that investigations can start without further delay, he said.

The meeting asked the Railway authorities to install CCTV cameras and baggage scanner in important crimeprone railway stations as well as in selected trains.

Improvement of infrastructure facilities of GRP, including construction and repair of the official and residential buildings were also sought, he said.

The meeting discussed law and order situation, crime scenario, theft or sabotage, disaster management, LWE activities, safety and security of railway properties and passengers and other issues relating to security of railways, the official said.

Calcutta High Court lawyers. (File photo) Kolkata, Feb 27 (PTI): A ceasework by lawyers demanding appointment of judges to fill up huge vacanies at the Calcutta High Court entered its seventh day today.

Justice delivery system at the high court has remained crippled since February 20, when the ceasework commenced to press for the demand for the appointment of judges.

The number of judges at the high court presently stands at 30 out of a sanctioned strength of 72. Two of the judges are assigned to the Andaman and Nico-

bar Circuit bench on rotation permanently.

“We were forced to extend the ceasework till March five, which was initially called for five days, owing to the indifference of the Union Law ministry in responding to our demand for immediate appointment of judges,” Calcutta High Court Bar Association president Uttam Majumdar said.

He said that though the Supreme Court collegium has cleared five names for appointment as judges at the high court, the ministry is yet to make

CPI leader Prabodh Panda passes away

FIR lodged against 12 PFI leaders in Jharkhand

Ko l k ata , F e b 2 7 (PTI): Veteran CPI leader and West Bengal state secretary Prabodh Panda passed away following a massive heart attack today, a party leader said.

“He suffered a massive heart attack in the morning when he was working at the party office,” a senior CPI leader said. He was 72 and is survived by his wife, son and daughter-in-law.

Panda was a threetime CPI MP from Midnapore Lok Sabha constituency since 2001 till 2014.

Known for his organisational skills, Panda was elected as the state secretary of CPI in the last party conference.

Pakur (Jharkhand), Feb 27 (PTI): A named F I R h a s b e e n l o d ge d against 12 leaders of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in Jharkhand on the charges of illegal and anti-national activities, police said today.

The FIR was also lodged against 60 unidentified cadres of the PFI with the Muffasil police station of Pakur district on February 25.

The FIR followed a police raid on a PFI office in Chandrapada village on February 22. They seized several flags of the organisation, banners, pamphlets, computers and CDs among

a move to take the process forward.

“All the three lawyers’ associations of the high court, including Bar Library Club and Incorporated Law Society wrote to the Union Law Minister for a meeting to discuss the issue, but we are yet to receive any communication from his office,” Majumdar said.

Judges were present in their court rooms in the morning as usual, but after no lawyer appeared to argue any case which were called for hearing, they retired to their chambers.

other things.

The Jharkhand government banned the organisation on February 21 for its alleged links with terrorist group Islamic State. The state government had said that some members of the group had gone to Syria and worked with the IS. Among others, the named FIR has been lodged against Abdul Badud, general secretary of the organisation, Abdul Hanan, district secretary, Pakur unit, Habibur Rahman, member of state unit and Shamim Akhtar, secretary of the state unit, they said.

Police of 3 states trying to trace missing Kashmiri student

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going to Chandigarh with his friends to attend a wedding ceremony and would be back on February 17.

The authorities had lodged a missing complaint with the police on February 18.

R P Sharma

while, began examining Aijaz’s Facebook ac count to find out if he had connection with any extremist group, a police officer investigating the case said.

Aijaz did not have any WhatsApp account, he said.

The student’s father Aijaz Ahmed Kataria earlier appealed to him through the media to return immediately.

Ahmed told reporters that he had spoken to Aijaz over phone for the last time on February 7.

The second-year student had informed AIIMS authorities that he was

Jorhat Divisional Office, Jeevan Prakash, Rajabari. Jorhat -785001 Tel:-+91 376 2360977 Fax No:- 0376 2360903, e mail:-os.jorhat@licindia.com EMPANELMENT OF AGENCIES/CONTRACTORS FOR HIRING OF DIESEL GENERATOR SET. L.I.C of India intends to empanel reputed agencies/contractors for hiring of DG sets on monthly rental basis of below mentioned category. (i) 10KVA TO 40 KVA.- Category-I (ii) 41KVA TO62.50 KVA- Category-II (ii) Above 62.5 KVA.-Category-III by supply, installation, testing & commissioning of required KVA,smokeless, soundless/noiseless Diesel Generator set in Acoustic enclosure for our Division Office ,Branch Office & Satellite Office under the jurisdiction of Jorhat Divisional Office covering the States of Nagaland,Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

The interested firm/Agency/Contractor, those are having valid registration certificate from CPWD / PWD /MES / Railway/Government/Semi Government organization or any other private organization of repute may apply separately mentioning categories in the prescribed enrolment Form. Forms can be downloaded from the LIC web site www.licindia.in (Tender Page) or by hand from Manager(E&OS) LICI, Jorhat Divisional Office, ASSAM on payment of Rs.100/- by Cash Receipt or Demand Draft /Banker’s Cheque payable at JORHAT favoring ‘LIC of India’ to the Sr. Divisional Manager at the address mentioned above. Forms will be issued up to 17.03.2018 up to 12.00 hrs. Last date for submission of application form is 19.03.2018 up to 15.00 hrs.

Agencies/Contractors those are enlisted with LIC of India should also apply in fresh for empanelment.

The Sr. Divisional Manager reserves the rights to reject / issue of enrolment forms to any agency/ Contractor at his sole discretion without assigning any reason whatsoever.

Corrigendum if any will be published through LIC website, www.licindia.in only.

Place : Jorhat Date : 28.02.2018 Sr. Divisional Manager

DC-464

Bhubaneswar, Feb 27 (PTI): Police of three states are working in tandem to trace a Kashmiri student who has been missing for over a fortnight, an official said today.

Suhail Aijaz, a MBBS student at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences here, is missing since February 9 after he left his hostel.

He is a resident of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

“The police of Odisha, West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir are working in close cooperation to locate Suhail Aijaz,” Odisha DGP R P Sharma said here today.

After speaking to his Jammu and Kashmir counter part, SP Vaid, Sharma said the Odisha police is in constant touch with the officials of the two other states and sharing information.

He said the Aijaz’s mobile was last tracked at Howrah in West Bengal.

Odisha Police, mean-

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Nexus of political leaders, govt officials being probed

GUWAHATI, Feb 27 (Agencies): Possible nexus between political leaders and government officials with the illegal coal traders is under scanner as the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Assam Police has registered a case and started investigation into the allegations of running of coal syndicates in the State.

Police sources told The Assam Tribune that after registering a case, the CID has formed a special investigation team (SIT) to investigate into the case.

The decision to form an SIT was taken as the case has various dimensions and it would be difficult for an investigating officer to deal with it alone. Such coal syndicates have been going on for years and during the investigation, the SIT would have to collect a large number of evidence.

Sources said that as the first step of the investigation, the SIT has chalked out a detailed action plan to proceed with the probe. Teams of the CID would have to visit different places of the State where the coal syndicates are allegedly functioning to collect evidence and ques-

Woman convicted for killing stepdaughter in Mnp Correspondent IMPHAL, Feb 27: A woman has been convicted for killing her step-daughter by a session court here on Tuesday.

Imphal East session court while pronouncing the judgment of the murder case which occurred in November 2015, fixed the hearing to decide the quantum of sentence for the crime on March 8 next.

On November 20, 2015, 32-year-old Thiyam Ibemcha Devi, second wife of Th Regan of Thiyam Konjil in Imphal East district strangulated her stepdaughter.

The trial of the case was conducted in the Court of Session judge Gaipun Shinlui since February last year and the judgment which was kept reserved after final argument hearing on February 21 last was pronounced today.

While pronouncing the judgment, the session judge ordered police to ensure production of the guilty woman in the court on March 8 next, the date on which the hearing for quantum of sentence for the murder case is to be conducted.

tion people.

“It is not one particular case taking place. Such incidents are taking place in various parts of the State and that is why, it may turn out to be one of the most important cases to be dealt with by the CID in recent times. Moreover, the case has been registered under different sections including destruction of forest properties and criminal conspiracy.

That is why, there is need for a thorough probe to unearth the revenue losses suffered by the Government and those involved in such activities,” sources added.

Sources pointed out that there have been media reports that illegal coal trade has been going on for some time in different parts of the State, while, the CID also received representations from some organizations about the whole affair. The Government took “serious note” of the media reports and a preliminary probe was conducted by the CID to verify the truth of the allegations.

Sources revealed that during the preliminary investigations, it was found that various kinds of illegal activities were going on in

coal business in the State, which include illegal extraction of coal from forest and non forest areas. Under the provisions of the law, extraction of coal from forest areas is not allowed but that has been going on in Assam.

The other major irregularities that came out during the preliminary investigation include illegal transportation of coal without valid documents, overloading of coal carrying trucks, evasion of taxes due to the Government through manipulation and forgery of documents etc. The Government is losing substantial amounts of revenue every year because of such illegal activities. During the preliminary probe, it was found that such illegal activities have been going on in various parts of the State including Guwahati city, Margherita, Tinsukia, Jogighopa, Karbi Anglong, etc.

The preliminary probe also found that there were connivance between unscrupulous traders with certain political leaders, Government officials and police officers and such connivance would be brought under the ambit of the investigation to be carried out by the SIT.

VVPAT mix-up a human error: M’laya CEO Tura, Feb 27 (Agencies): The Meghalaya Chief Electoral Officer F.R Kharkongor on Tuesday termed the Kyndong-Tuber EVM issue as ‘human error’ clarifying that the polling had to be stopped due to mix up of VVPATs. Earlier, there were repor ts that polling in Kyndong Tuber under Raliang constiteuncy had to be stopped after villagers complained that which ever button they pressed, a Lotus symbol (BJP) appears in the VVPAT screen.

Brushing aside such reports, the CEO said that there was a failure of the VVPAT in the polling station and after replacement of the faulty VVPAT and on resumption of poll, the polling had to be stopped due to mix up of VVPAT belonging to Mookaiaw assembly constituency which replaced the faulty VVPAT at Raliang.

Furthermore, he stated that it is a case of mix up due to human error and added that re-polling in this polling station will be recommended. He also stated that a report will be sent to the Election Commission of India adding that the final call of re-polling will be taken by the EC.

Mob storms hospital in Mnp Correspondent IMPHAL, Feb 27: Timely intervention by police Tuesday prevented a mob from ransacking a private hospital in Imphal after a minor girl died of alleged medical negligence.

The mob stormed Sky Hospital and Research Centre after doctors of the hospital declared a two-year-old girl, Khundrakpam Abema death this afternoon, around 2 pm.

Family members and relatives alleged the hospital of indulging in faulty practices during the course of treatment of the minor who was admitted for heart surgery.

Kh Rupo, the father of the deceased child suspect that his daughter had died earlier.

He also alleged that doctors did not allow him to meet his daughter after she was admitted in the operation theatre on February 24 last.

He said that his daughter was admitted to the hospital on February 23, around 11 am after prior consultation with the doctor who attended her and she was taken to the operation theatre at about 3 pm on February 24.

As informed by the doctors, the surgery was completed around 10 pm

on the same day. However, family members were not allowed to meet the child till Tuesday, the father alleged.

Before declaring his daughter death, the doctor attending her demanded five more bottles of blood, said Rupo.

However before they could arrange the blood, the doctor informed that she was no more and asked to clear the hospital bill and take back the body.

Rupo also said that the counter provided a bill of Rs 2.5 lakh even though the doctor attending the child promised to perform the surgery only at Rs 45,000. Of the said amount, he had deposited Rs 40,000 as advance, he said.

Soon after the news of death of the child, relatives and other well wishers stormed the hospital and enquired about the death. However, hospital authority remained tightlipped on the matter which angered the converging people.

With more people storming the hospital, police rushed to the hospital. With tension running high, additional police force was rushed to the hospital to take stock of the situation, a senior police officer said.

Hey, birthday gal Soshila...

It’s your birthday. Now you’ve more grown up. Every year you’re becoming more perfect. We wish you many Happy return of the day..

May God Bless you..

From your loving. Mon, dad, grandparents uncle, and didi’s Happy Birthday Prakash.

As You grow a year older, We pray that Almighty God Bless You more and more. May this special day brings you a special things in Your life. Many many happy returns of the day.

With best wishes NIIT DIMAPUR CENTRE Family Happy birthday Iza (Mummy) You are the most special person in our life and we wish you happiness and so many good things in life. May God bless you with the longest of life and the best of health.

From your loving family.

Happy birthday Mamta, Many many happy returns of the day mamta “Wishing you a day filled with happiness and a year filled with joy. Birthday wish From whats app group “we are one” Moni, jacob, John, pretty, Susma

FCI to ensure food grain availability to NE states

Guwahati, Feb 27 (PTI): The Food Corporation of India has increased its storage capacity in the North East to ensure food grain availability under the National Food Security Act in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Mizoram, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said Tuesday.

Paswan, who is in charge of consumer affairs, food and public distribution, was here today to chair a review meeting on FCI’s preparedness to meet NFSA mandate and the status of its implementation in the region.

He told reporters here that FCI has enhanced its storage capacity in NE from 4.80 lakh metric tonne in March 2015 to 5.62 lakh metric tonne as on January 2018 to ensure food grain availability to 81 per cent population covered in Assam, 63 per cent in Arunachal Pradesh, 88 per cent in Manipur and 65 per cent in Mizoram under the Act. Further capacity enhancement has been done to the tune of 25,000 metric tonne under Private Entrepreneur Guarantee (PEG) scheme at Sorbhog in Assam which will be

brought under utilisation soon.

FCI is also constructing around 54,000 MT capacity in the seven NEstates to further augment the capacity availability in the region, he added.

To improve the public distribution of food grains, Paswan said that he has asked for expediting the process for having gowdowns of FCI, state government, besides private companies in every district.

The union minister said that he had also sought the setting up of a State Food Commission

ST status to 6 communities opposed Last Gate here Monday and wrote to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to reject the proposal of ST (plains) status to six advanced and populous communities of Assam – Koch Rajbongshi, Tai-Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Motok and Adivasi (teatribe).

“We would like to refer to the case of Meena community of Rajasthan which was enlisted as ST in 2010. Being an advanced community and enjoying all the benefits and reservation, the Meenas now occupy 35

per cent of the UPSC jobs, despite being only 1.6 per cent of the total ST population of the country,” Aditya Khaklari, general secretary of the All Assam Tribal Sangha said.

“If the six majority communities are granted the ST status after 70 years of country’s independence, it will eliminate the political representation of the existing ST people from gram sabha to Lok Sabha, and also their representation in education and government jobs forever,” he added.

AR organise motivational lecture

KAAC executive member assaults forest ranger

GUWAHATI, Feb 27 (Agencies): Alleging that granting scheduled tribe (ST) status to six communities of the State will have a devastating impact on the existing ST people, the Coordination Committee of the Tribal Organizations of Assam (CCTOA) today said that the move was a ploy to curtail political and other benefits of the present ST communities, which are backward in true sense of term.

The organization staged a mass dharna at Dispur

Motivational lecture at Kha Manipur College, Kakching on Tuesday.

D imapur , F eb 2 7 (NPN): Kakching Battalion under the aegis of IGAR(S) organized a motivational lecture for youth on the topic ‘Join Indian Army and Assam Rifles’ at Kha Manipur College, Kakching.

A total of 100 students attended the event which

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, February 28, 2018

emphasised on creating awareness and provided an insight into various service facilities provided by the Armed Forces.

The young enthusiasts were enlightened with various types of entries and employability conditions of service. It was also aimed at changing the per-

ception of youth towards the security forces.

The principal, staff and students appreciated the gesture shown by Kakching Battalion and they also assured their co-operation and support in future endeavours of Kakching Battalion in the field of social welfare.

Correspondent Diphu, Feb 27: A deputy forest ranger posted at Rangapahar range, West Division Forest, Karbi Anglong was physically assaulted by an executive member of Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC). A police case has been registered against Pradip Diphusa at Diphu police station by the victim who is currently under medical treatment at Guwahati.

According to police and forest department officials, deputy forest ranger, B K Harijan, who was on protection duty along with his subordinates near Dhansiri railway gate on Sunday last, was assaulted by Diphusa when the former stopped an excavator engaged in illegal earth cutting inside reserve forest. “The case is under investigation and law will take its own course. Not a single criminal will be spared,” said Karbi Anglong SP, Dr. Shiva Prasad.

and a robust grievances redressal system and toll free help lines.

Pa swa n s a i d t h a t the delay in food grains transportation due to fund shortage was solved following the Gauhati High Court judgement that the transportation cost would be paid by those lifting the food grains.

Food Corporation of India and National Informatics Centre would work together to integrate the GPS tracking of trucks coming out of FCI godowns to prevent their diversion to non-intended Khasi tribe women show their ink-marked finger after casting their votes during the recipients, he added.

State Assembly elections, in Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya on Tuesday. (PTI)

Meghalaya RJ faces flak for airing ‘objectionable’ content on poll day

Shillong, Feb 27 (PTI): A private radio station here came under fire from the BJP Tuesday for allegedly airing “objectionable” content in violation of the model code of conduct.

Polling for 59 of the 60 Assembly seats in Meghalaya was held today with over 67 per cent votes polled till 4 pm.

In a letter forwarded to the state election depart-

ment, the saffron party alleged that a woman radio jockey (RJ) of the channel urged listeners to refrain from voting for any “antichristian party”.

“The illegal propaganda was broadcast on the radio station with the aim and intent of communalising the election process,” BJP leader Ankur Kumar said in his complaint to Meghalaya’s Chief Elec-

toral Officer (CEO) F R Kharkongor.

The channel, however, aired an apology by the RJ soon after and said “influencing the voters” was not its intention.

“I may have said something which contravened the guidelines of the Election Commission but I did not mean to influence the voters.

I am sorry...” she said.

Seeking stern action

Father kills son in Manipur

Correspondent

IMPHAL, Feb 27: A 65-year-old man killed his own 41-year-old son after a quarrel in Manipur’s Thoubal district. The father later surrendered to the police, police said.

Nongmaithem Dolen (41), a resident of Langathel village under Khongjom police station of Thoubal

district succumbed to his head injuries at RIMS hospital, Imphal early Tuesday morning, hospital sources said. Reports said that the deceased Dolen had a quarrel with his father Kunje Singh (65) Monday night, around 10.30 pm.

Angered over his son’s frequent attack after drinking, the father hit his son on the head several times

with a stick. With severe head injuries, the son was rushed to Thoubal district hospital where he was referred to RIMS hospital after administering first aids.

After a brief struggle for life, Dolen died in emergency ward of the hospital, the report added.

Meanwhile, the father surrendered to the police on Tuesday.

Assam refinery exports wax to US Guwahati, Feb 27 (IANS): Assambased Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) has sent a consignment of 80 metric tonnes (MT) of wax from its plant in Assam to the USA. A spokesman for the refinery said this on Tuesday while adding that the refinery had earlier this month sent wax consignments to Portugal, the second European country after Poland where NRL wax has been exported.

“This was followed by a dispatch of 86 MT of wax to Ecuador on February 13. Ecuador is the 7th South American country where NRL wax has been exported after Mexico, Nicaragua, Brazil, Guatemala, Chile and Argentina,” said the spokesman.

“With the aforesaid three exports in the month of February 2018, a total quantity of 7,780 MT has been exported

by NRL to 25 countries worldwide. More exports to existing and new countries are lined up in the coming months in order with the company’s strategy to make NRL wax a brand to be reckoned with globally,” she said.

Incidentally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had dedicated NRL’s wax plant to the nation on February 5, 2016. The 50,000 MT wax plant commissioned in March 2015 at a cost of Rs 676 crore is the country’s largest wax producing unit with indigenous technology developed by the Indian Institute of Petroleum-Dehradun, Engineers India Ltd and NRL.

against the FM station, BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli said, “The objectionable broadcast is in clear violation of the model code of conduct and is vitiating the atmosphere here.”

The CEO said that the district election officer has been asked to look into the matter and take necessary actions as per the directives of the Election Commission.

New train to connect Arunachal with Delhi Dimapur, Feb 27 (NPN): A new weekly express special train from Naharlagun to Anand Vihar Terminal in Delhi will be inaugurated by minister of state for home affairs, Kiren Rijiju and minister of state of railways Rajen Gohain on March 1 at Naharlagun railway station.

The new train will be called the Arunachal Express and it will be the 14th direct train connecting Northeast with the national capital. The Arunachal Express Special train will have state-of-theart LHB coaches which are modern and safe, informed Pranav Jyoti Sharma, Chief Public Relations Officer.

The train will cover the 2013 km distance between Naharlagun and Anand Vihar Terminal in little over 38 hours and will have 14 stoppages en-route. The train will be completely air-conditioned and will have 1st class, Two-tier and Three-tier coaches along with a pantry car, Sharma informed.

national

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

India-S.Korea bilateral trade touched $20bn in 2017: Modi NEW DELHI, FEB 27 (IANS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said bilateral trade between India and South Korea in 2017 reached $20 billion, the first time in six years.

Modi also said that he wondered how South Korea, a country of the size of Gujarat, could make such economic progress.

“It is heartening to note that the bilateral trade crossed $20 billion for the first time last year in six years,” Prime Minister said while addressing the IndiaKorea Business Summit here. He also said he “admires the spirit of entrepreneurship of the Korean people”.

“I admire the way in which they have created and sustained their global brands, from information technology and electronics to automobile and steel, Korea has given exemplary products to the world.”

Modi also said South Korean companies are appreciated for their innovation and strong manufacturing capability.

Speaking on the investment of Korean companies in India, the Prime Minister said: “South Korea ranks only 16th in FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) equity inflows to India. India offers a lot of potential for the Korean Investors with its huge market and enabling policy environment.”

Inviting companies to

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inaugural session of the 2nd India-Korea Business Summit 2018 in New Delhi

invest in India, he said: “In FDI, we are one of the most open countries now. Most of the sectors of our economy are open for FDI.” Modi further added that more than 90 per cent FDI approvals have been put on automatic route.

There is practically no requirement of government approval for investments in manufacturing sector except for the defence sector, Modi said.

“Very soon, we will become the world’s fifthlargest economy by nominal GDP. We are also the fastest growing major economy of the world today,” he added.

The Prime Minister also said India has all three factors of the economy.

“If you see around the globe, there are very few countries where you have three important factors of economy together. They are -- democracy, demography and demand. In India, we

have all the three together,” he said.

Modi added that the relations between India and South Korea dates back centuries.

“We are also bound by our Buddhist traditions. Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore composed poem ‘Lamp of the East’ in 1929 about Korea’s glorious past and its bright future.

“It is also conicidence that India and Korea both celebrate their independence day on August 15. From Princess to Poetry and from Buddha to Bollywood; India and Korea have so much in common,” the Prime Minister added.

“Our partnership has immense potential to promote regional growth, development, stability and prosperity in Asia. India is turning to the east for bigger economic engagement.

Similarly, South Korea is trying to diversify it overseas markets,” he said.

Opposition slams Kerala Speaker THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, FEB 27 (IANS): Kerala Assembly Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan on Tuesday came under heavy fire from the Congress-led opposition for rejecting their adjournment motion.

Trouble started right from the beginning of Question Hour at 8.30 a.m., with the opposition members shouting slogans in front of the Speaker’s dais, holding banners and placards, and demanding justice for Shoaib, a Congress worker killed in Kannur district on February 12 and the murder of a tribal youth Madhu who was allegedly beaten to death by a group of men.

After 15 minutes of the ruckus, Sreeramakrishnan briefly adjourned the House and called the respective party leaders for discussion. However, when the House reassembled at 9.20 a.m., the slogan shouting continued.

Sreeramakrishnan then announced that the adjournment motion was not being taken up -- and thereafter proceeded with the business listed for the day. Opposition

P. Sreeramakrishnan was again up in arms and charged the Speaker with being afraid of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. They said that instead of acting like a Speaker, he was behaving like a Communist Party of India-Marxist Committee Secretary -- “dancing to the tunes of Vijayan out of fear”.

Sreeramakrishnan then adjourned the House for the day. On Monday, the House was adjourned within a few hours following the opposition’s protest after the Vijayan government backtracked upon an earlier order for a CBI probe in the murder of Shoaib.

Later, speaking to media outside the assembly, In-

dian Union Muslim League legislator N. Shamsudeen, who represents the Mannarkad Assembly constituency in Palakkad district, said what happened in the Assembly and the way the Speaker behaved was unprecedented.

“I wanted to raise two unfortunate murders that took place in my constituency... one was that of the tribal youth Madhu who was beaten to death by a group of men, the other was that of party worker Zafeer, who was murdered. These are two very important things that I wanted to raise, but the Speaker did not allow this,” said Shamsudeen.

Speaker Sreeramakrishnan later told media persons that he proposed to call a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee of the house on Wednesday to resolve the issue.

5

India, Pakistan trade heavy fire on LoC

declines 3 FOBs built by Indian Army inaugurated Maldives India’s invite for

JAMMU, FEB 27 (IANS): Heavy firing exchanges started on Tuesday between Indian and Pakistani troops along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch and Rajouri districts, according to the Defence Ministry.

Using small arms, automatics and mortars, Pakistani troops started firing at around 8.45 a.m., ministry sources said. The Pakistani Army targeted defence and civilian facilities in Bhimber Gali sector of Poonch and in Rajouri’s Balakote, Manjakote, Lambi Bari and Naika Panjgrian areas, they added. Several students were trapped inside a school building in Rajouri as heavy firing and shelling continued outside. They have now been evacuated to safety, an official said. “Our troops retaliated effectively and strongly,” Ministry sources said. All schools in the affected areas have been shut down until further orders, the administration said.

On Monday, a top army officer said the increasing ceasefire violations by Pakistan were aimed at pushing more militants into the Indian side across the Line of Control (LoC). Speaking to the media, Lieutenant General A.K. Bhatt, commander of the army’s Srinagar-headquartered 15 Corps, said: “We have inputs that many infiltrators are waiting at the launching pads. We think infiltration will start sooner this year (2018) because of less snow.”

New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): Maldives has declined India’s invitation to participate in the eight-daylong mega naval exercise -Milan -- beginning March 6, in an apparent snub to New Delhi which has been critical of the Yameen government in view of the emergency in the island nation.

“Maldives was invited to join the Milan exercise but they have declined,” Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba told reporters, and indicated that the country may have taken the decision possibly due to the current situation there. “They have not given any reason,” he said. Admiral Lanba was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event.

Ties between India and Maldives nosedived after Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen declared emergency on February 5 following an order by the country’s Supreme Court to release a group of Opposition leaders, who had been convicted in widely criticised trials.

On February 21, India had reacted strongly over the extension of emergency by a month. India will host navies from at least 16 countries for the mega naval exercise at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The exercise is taking place in the backdrop of China’s growing military posturing in the Indo-Pacific region and officials indicated that the issue is likely to figure during deliberations at the event.

naval exercise

The FOB will benefit around 1.6 lakh rail commuters as it connects two stations of Western Railway and Central Railway.

MUMBAI, FEB 27 (IANS): Three much-awaited railway foot overbridges (FOBs), constructed by the Indian Army in less than three months, were inaugurated for public use on the Mumbai suburban section of the Indian Railways on Tuesday, officials said.

The FOBs are at Elphinstone Road, Currey Road and Ambivali stations here on the congested suburban networks of Western Railway (WR) and Central Railway (CR).

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Defence Suresh Bhamre and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hopped into a local train from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus to Parel station on the CR for the inauguration in the afternoon.

The decision to hand over the FOBs’ construction to the Bombay Engineering Group (BEG), a

division of Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers, came in the wake of the stampede at Elphinstone Road FOB on September 29, 2017, in which 23 commuters were killed and 40 injured.

Following a massive outrage among the eightmillion plus Mumbai commuters who use Mumbai’s lifeline daily, Goyal requested Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to help construct the crucial FOBs on a ‘war-footing’.

Initially, the FOBs were scheduled to be completed by the January 31 deadline set by the state and Centre, officials said.

The construction was delayed due to several reasons, including a change in the alignment and an additional staircase at the Elphinstone Road FOB on WR connecting to Parel on CR, shifting the site of the FOB at Currey Road and

an additional staircase, requisitioning material from various parts of the country and other local issues since the work was completed with thousands of suburban trains zooming up and down daily, they added.

This is the first time that the Indian Army has constructed such bridges for the Indian Railways in a congested urban setup like Mumbai. The construction process involved soil testing, designing the structure, construction launch of the Bailey Bridge and the final commissioning of the precast bridges, called Bailey Bridges, which can be built quickly and are common in the country’s border region or difficult terrain.

The FOB at Elphinstone Road is 73.1 metres long and 3.65 metres wide and built at a cost of Rs 10.44 crore within 117 days.

Congress wins Ludhiana civic polls with majority

CHANDIGARH, FEB 27 (IANS): The ruling Congress on Tuesday won Punjab’s cash-rich Ludhiana Municipal Corporation polls with an absolute majority by winning 62 out of 95 wards. The Shiromani Akali Dal won 11 seats, while the Bharatiya Janata Party got 10 seats. The Lok Insaaf Party won seven seats and its ally Aam Aadmi Party got just one seat. Independent candidates won four wards.

Over 59 per cent of the 10.5 lakh voters exercised their franchise in the election on February 24 amid reports of clashes, alleged booth capturing, rigging and firing during the day-long voting process. Opposition Shiromani Akali Dal and Aam Aadmi Party leaders had accused the ruling Congress of malpractices in the municipal elections. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh hailed the civic body results, saying they were a clear vindication of the government’s policies in the past one year.

Mamata calls for halt to infiltration via border districts

Mamata Banerjee KO L K AT A , F E B 2 7 (IANS): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday termed the state’s districts bordering Bangladesh as “sensitive” and asked the district administrations concerned to monitor the border situation to stop infiltration.

Speaking at the districts’ administrative meeting in Barasat -- the district headquarters of North 24 K

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Parganas district -- she also expressed concern over the issue of cross-border smuggling, including cow smuggling, and said the administration has to be strict to check such incidents.

“North 24 Parganas is a sensitive district. A large part of it shares the border with Bangladesh. Keep an eye on areas like Basirhat and Bongaon, which are near the border, so that no one can illegally enter and trigger a problem,” Banerjee said.

She asked the local police to work in sync with the sub-divisional officers to effectively handle any unpleasant situation.

“Cows are brought in from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan and are smuggled through the bordering districts to Bangladesh. This has to be stopped,” she said.

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OPINiON/EDITORIAL

Nagaland Post Vol. XXVIII NO. 82 Dimapur, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2018

A

Poll post mortem

fter the din and dust of the February 27 election settles down, it will be a time to reflect on how the public realised their role in the entire electioneering process; for it was not merely about casting votes but about the quality of the discourse, the capability of the candidates and the effectiveness of the official authorities in ensuring a level playing field for everyone. Issues that were raised prior to the election included –corruption in the government, ‘Clean Election’ and solution to the political issue.

None of these have been achieved nor will ever be achieved least being seriously attempted but still they matter since the issues pertain to the destiny of the future generation. The election was more of a litmus test of the character of the people and electorate and less on the winnability of the candidates. Each of the issue involves a distinct segment: corruption involves the entire government machinery (from politicians to bureaucracy); Clean Election involves people and church and solution involves the political groups. Corruption remained an issue for the past two decades and it was only in recent times that PILs were filed and highlighted in the media but apart from making spicy reading and expressions of rage; nothing was done and so the story remains. Solution to the longstanding political issue which continues to defy resolution has been due to the mitotic division among Naga political group(s). It also reveals that leaders of political groups have tended to be pulled by a centrifugal force during periods of extreme crisis. On the issue of ‘Clean Election’ it has been another disastrous adventure by the church leaders which comes after an earlier flop mission called ‘Prohibition’. This newspaper had commented on several occasions in this column that the church ought not to have taken up the campaign but instead, promote it through a state-level forum like how the Mizo Presbyterian and Baptist churches have done. The church does not have the desired trained and able manpower to undertake the job of clean election. This campaign means more than just mere sloganeering. This was amply proved in the recently concluded election. The church could not handle when the going got tough with excommunications, rampant use of money and liquor and the use of muscle power. It did neither spoke nor stood up for those who were victimised. Many candidates who were willing to implement the campaign had to jettison their pledge when violence, money, liquor and guns re-entered the entire electioneering process.

The Church which spearheaded the campaign can be faulted for believing that a simple declaration would be implemented by their members (who otherwise, haven’t been very faithful to the creed). Perhaps it is also time for the people/believers or followers to also acknowledge that they get the leaders (political and spiritual and bureaucrats) they deserve. The amount of money spent by most candidates is not only insane but also criminal. Many have borrowed heavily and end up in debts and later forced to sell whatever they have in order to repay debts. It is worse if candidates lose because they would be literally out on the streets.

Even if some win, they wouldn’t be able to recoup the huge sum of money spent. This is a cursed practise which people need to think about and take immediate remedial action before the next election.

DailyDevotion The Impoverished Ministry of Jesus Where then do You get that living water?

—John 4:11 “The well is deep” — and even a great deal deeper than the Samaritan woman knew! (John 4:11). Think of the depths of human nature and human life; think of the depth of the “wells” in you. Have you been limiting, or impoverishing, the ministry of Jesus to the point that He is unable to work in your life? Suppose that you have a deep “well” of hurt and trouble inside your heart, and Jesus comes and says to you, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:1). Would your response be to shrug your shoulders and say, “But, Lord, the well is too deep, and even You can’t draw up quietness and comfort out of it.” Actually, that is correct. Jesus doesn’t bring anything up from the wells of human nature— He brings them down from above. We limit the Holy One of Israel by remembering only what we have allowed Him to do for us in the past, and also by saying, “Of course, I cannot expect God to do this particular thing.” The thing that approaches the very limits of His power is the very thing we as disciples of Jesus ought to believe He will do. We impoverish and weaken His ministry in us the moment we forget He is almighty. The impoverishment is in us, not in Him. We will come to Jesus for Him to be our comforter or our sympathizer, but we refrain from approaching Him as our Almighty God. The reason some of us are such poor examples of Christianity is that we have failed to recognize that Christ is almighty. We have Christian attributes and experiences, but there is no abandonment or surrender to Jesus Christ. When we get into difficult circumstances, we impoverish His ministry by saying, “Of course, He can’t do anything about this.” We struggle to reach the bottom of our own well, trying to get water for ourselves. Beware of sitting back, and saying, “It can’t be done.” You will know it can be done if you will look to Jesus. The well of your incompleteness runs deep, but make the effort to look away from yourself and to look toward Him.

Quotes

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. ~ Lao Tzu

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2018

Post-mortem

Today as I went to the polling station

J

ust standing in the queue for hours, observing the enthusiastic voters, we come to realise that most voters aren’t voting for better roads, development, better healthcare system, infrastructure or development. Majority of the voters are there with the hope to secure a livelihood.

Three types of people caught my attention: 1. Old parents especially mothers standing in the queue with the hope that if their candidate comes to power, the candidate will help their sons or daughters secure some job in the Government.

2. The candidates will come like MLA’s with bodyguards and filling up the entire scene with the VIP aura even before they are MLA’s, socializing with important people in the queue, entering the booth and making their presence felt.

3. Young boys mostly in their 20’s, truly very smart, intelligent and educated following the footsteps of the politicians and their followers with the hope that the candidate will give them some job or small contract work.

Many of them must’ve graduated but because there are no employment opportunities unless one is well connected with bureaucrats or politicians or dare to go out of the State looking for a job, they are stuck in this sad situation. And it is extremely rare

I

t is quite commonplace to hear that India will be an economic superpower in a few decades. However, the current reality is far from it.

One cannot deny the abysmal standard of living of our citizens. Indias real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita (at 2010 prices) for 2016 stands at just $1,861.5 while the other BRICS nations -- China ($6,893.8), Brazil ($10,826.3), South Africa ($7,503.3) and Russia ($11,099.2) -- are higher up on the scale.

Even South Asian economies like Bhutan ($2,801.3), Sri Lanka ($3,759.2) and Maldives ($8,623.9) perform well above India by this measure of standard of living. A straightforward question that arises is: What is it that India seems to misconstrue in the economic game that other players seem to get right and succeed in doing?

Spatial differences in GDP per capita across countries continue to motivate much of growth theory and

for a highly educated youth to engage himself in farming or labour work in construction although this trend is picking up in small ways. And since most of us have absolutely no experience in entrepreneurship, commerce and trade, there is little success rate in Nagas taking up businesses and competing in the open market. Thousands of Nagas graduating at the age of 21-2223 will not get a job. They will mostly stay at home or go to Delhi, spend more money to take up coaching for NPSC/ UPSC. While in the cities, people are so fortunate as companies come to colleges for campus hiring or fresh grads go to companies with resumes and get one job or the other.

By the age of 30, the Naga boy will still be appearing NPSC/UPSC and is still unemployed while the mainland boy will be a manager or senior manager level by the age of 30 earning minimum of Rs.50,000 per month. The Naga boy instead of earning will spending spending Rs.1520,000 of their parents money every month.

For the thousands of youths, we Nagas are losing out on the most critically productive youthful age (1830+) of our lives by remaining unproductive. And during elections, corrupted politicians led by their equally greedy honchos will take advantage

of our youths and the needy families by throwing money, alcohol at them with great promises in exchange for votes.

The concept of the western democratic elections doesn’t work in a society like ours where majority of the people are still living hand to mouth and our traditional system of selecting our council members becomes incompatible with the electioneering system.

At many polling stations, it is heart breaking to see many youths who look like they’ve been drinking continuously for several nights. During elections, these guys are made to feel important and enjoy the merry making where the alcohol will inflate their tiny hearts with stupidity(Mistaken for bravery) and start the quarrels, fights with the opponent candidate’s gangs.

Families will fight with each other, neighbours become strangers and childhood friends become enemies. All for what? To make the already rich and corrupted, even more richer and more corrupted.

After sacrificing their lives for the candidates, do you think the candidate or their families will even remember these boys after a year or two?

Even if I write endlessly on facebook or newspaper, only the decent educated ones will read and understand. The real people out there will continue this vicious cycle until

we are doomed.

In our own ways, let’s give our best to create as many “sustainable” and quality job opportunities in the private sector because every single youth you create livelihood for, will go a long way towards reducing the number of bitter, frustrated unemployed youths in this region of the country thereby reducing the violence, anti-social activities, corruption and will ultimately bring the much needed progress and prosperity in our region.

An idle mind is the workshop of the devil, let us keep our youths busy in positive, productive activities.

We must immediately work towards creating a conducive environment for attracting quality investments in focus areas where our strength lies to immediately work out policies and start creating jobs in these sectors! In the next 10 years, the target of the Government should be to generate minimum of 20-30,000 jobs in the private sector with the most attractive policies to attract the right investors and companies to set up here in Nagaland.

Until the day, we create employment & livelihood for the thousands of angry, frustrated and bitter youths, the dream of clean election, progress and development is far fetched.

Yanpvuo Kikon

E

ven as the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer had focused on Accessible Elections in the runup to voting day 2018 and announced various measures to facilitate the participation of voters with disability in the election process, I am truly disappointed that my polling station completely failed the accessibility criteria.

As announced, my vehicle was indeed allowed to enter the premises of the polling station but from there onwards nothing else was barrier free. I got down from the vehicle and looked for the entrance for wheelchair users. Since I couldn’t find one, I asked the people around and was told there was none. The polling station was located in a run down govt primary school. It was only one floor with no steps but the problem was the huge gaping drain that went all around the building which a wheelchair obviously could not roll over.

I called the Presiding Officer and asked him how I was supposed to enter the station and what had happened to the election office assurance of accessibility in all the polling stations. He apologised but could not give me any definite answer. I had to then suffer the indignity of being carried over the barrier by some men while the many voters standing in queue looked on. It was a humiliating experience.

Once inside, I found the floor uneven and had trouble wheeling my chair. I went around the tables getting my papers checked and my finger marked and finally entered the booth. The booth was situated in a corner towards one wall. The space between the wall and the table where the EVM machine was kept was so small that I could barely squeeze my chair in let alone turn it around to face the table. I twisted myself sideways awkwardly and somehow managed to read the names and press the button to cast my vote.

I am supposed to be the Election Icon for people with disabilities and I have been collaborating with the election office on disability voting rights. If even I had to face all these problems and indignity, I can only imagine what other voters with disability are facing across the state. I do appreciate the efforts made by the Election Office, but this only shows that there’s still so much to be done Diethono Nakhro, Disability Rights Activist and, Election Icon for People with Disabilities

India’s Competitiveness: Where do we stand? development economics even today. However, being part of an increasingly knowledgebased world economy, India’s positioning in the global prosperity scenario must be seen and targeted from the national competitiveness angle. Competitiveness, in effect, isn’t about macro-economic variables like interest rates, exchange rates, deficits or about cheap abundant labour or availability of natural resources or about state policies and management practices -- although all these are relevant to any economy.

Rather, competitiveness can be defined more purposefully as the productivity of a nation’s factors of production (labour, land and capital) employed during production processes. In purely economic terms, productivity denotes the value of output per unit of input used.

Talking about productivity in policymaking is no recent phenomenon and, at some point, you are bound to quote Nobel Prize-winning

economist Paul Krugman who wrote back in the 1990s that “productivity isn’t everything, but in the long run it is almost everything”.

First of all, productivity must not be confused with labour force participation or, for that matter, the output that they produce. A simple example would explain this.

Consider a donut-making factory having four workers on eight-hour shifts producing 400 donuts a day -- or 100 per worker or 12.5 per hour.

An announcement on hiring four more people to boost productivity would suggest that the new workers will produce more donuts per hour than the existing workers.

Remember that productivity is output per hour worked.

So, if the new lot of workers were actually slower (producing only 10 donuts per hour) than the existing ones, then productivity will in fact fall.

The four new workers will come up with 320 donuts a day and the total output of the eight workers would rise

to 720 donuts a day. However, the average per worker per hour is just 11.25 donuts.

The net result is an increase in labour force participation and output -- but productivity, in essence, has fallen.

Furthermore, if the company wants to make the same profit as before the new hirings, it will have to hike the price of the donuts it sells. So it might end up hurting those who buy the donuts (because they are the ones paying more for them) and ultimately affect their standard of living as well. A clear implication for the short term, in this case, is that the new workers will have to be trained and skilled, and while they are being trained their productivity will be lower than the other workers. Thus, for productivity to rise in the medium to long term, these new workers will have to be skilled better than the current workers by using updated and innovative practices so that output rises in an even more greater proportion and

Sridevi: 50 years of living the cinematic dream

“A

No accessibility at Polling Station

r re, maine kuch achieve nahi kiya (I havent achieved anything)... There’s a long way to go. I feel my career has just started. Haan... let me tell you that,” said Sridevi, laughing.

Sridevi’s lilting laughter -much like her screen presence, beauty, grace and unmatchable talent -- lingers on as I remember my last conversation, in November 2017, with the actress, who spent 50 of her 54 years of life living the cinematic dream.

“I feel like a newcomer.

I feel that my career is going to start now. It’s not finished, It’s going to start now,” she asserted, dismissing any desire to treat her fans to an autobiography replete with stories from her glorious life -- starting as a child actor at four to superstardom in India.

Born in Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu on August 13, 1963, Sridevi began her career at the age of four in the devotional film “Thunaivan”. That marked the beginning of a journey in filmdom that saw her work across Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi productions, leading her to become one of the most formidable actresses of the 1980s and 1990s in Bollywood -- in fact, the only female “superstar” the industry has seen.

As filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma put it, “She was like a creation of God which he does whenever he is in a very special mood as a very, very special gift

to mankind.”

Sridevi grew up to be known for not just her ability for slip into myriad roles -- whether the double role in “ChaalBaaz”, as a woman with retrograde amnesia in “Sadma”, a shapeshifting woman in “Nagina”, a goofy crime journalist in “Mr. India”, the warm mother act in “English Vinglish” or the fierce and revengeful mom in “Mom” -- but also for her expressive eyes, sheer comic timing and her fluid dancing skills, all of which made her a director’s delight.

“Hawaa hawai”, “Main teri dushman”, “Morni”, “Na jaane kahan se aayi ha””, “Mere haathon mein” are some of the iconic and classic dance numbers which gave cinema fans a chance to see the dancing talent of Sridevi.

As filmmaker Subhash Ghai, who directed her in “Karma”, said: “Introvert by nature, she was electricity with thunder in front of the camera.

She would shock directors with each shot -- be it dance, drama or romance. She was uncrowned queen of acting in all languages in her time.”

In 2013, the government feted her with the Padma Shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian award. Her work was widely lauded with a slew of other richly-deserved honours.

Sridevi, who over the years became quite a fashion icon -- sometimes giving tough competition to her daughters

-- commanded popularity like few others.

“Her popularity and stardom had to be seen to be believed. We were shooting for the climax in Nandyal for ‘Kshana Kshanam’ and the whole of Nandyal came to a standstill when they came to know that Sridevi was in town.

“Banks, government offices, schools, colleges everything in town closed as everyone wanted to see Sridevi,” Ram Gopal Varma recounted in a tribute after the sudden demise of the actress in Dubai late Saturday of a cardiac arrest.

Sridevi could also be extraordinarily warm and compassionate.

Co-producer K. Ramji of Tina Films International, told IANS: “In 1986, while shooting for ‘Sindoor’, the heroine Neelam Kothari was staying in the same hotel as Sridevi. Neelam was a great fan and wanted to meet her, but was apprehensive about approaching an established star like Sridevi.

“Finally, when she took courage and entered her room, Sridevi got up to receive and welcome her, commented on Neelam’s lustrous hair and they became instant friends.”

In an industr y where women beyond a certain age struggle to find roles, a 50plus Sridevi proved she still had it in her when she carried two films -- her “comeback” vehicle “English Vinglish” and last year’s “Mom” -- on her shoulders.

be reflected in the high and increasing standard of living of all the citizens.

Going back to Krugman’s words, productivity then is not everything -- the well-being of citizens is; which, interestingly and inherently, is dependent on productivity levels in the overall economy.

Firms, apart from being productive domestically, have to undergo the sheer pressure and challenge of being innovative and up to date in order to attain a global competitive edge as well.

This is because international trade and foreign investment have the power to allow companies to specialise in industrial segments that are more productive and become global game-changers. The fact that certain firms in specific industries are able to create and sustain real as well distinct advantages for themselves reflects nothing but the productivity gains that help any economy maintain a higher standard of living

The 2012 film “English Vinglish” marked her return to films 15 years after the 1997 movie “Judaai”. And what a comeback it was - playing the role of a traditional Indian housewife’s struggle with the English language in the US, she was simply outstanding.

In real life, she was indeed a “purely traditional housewife -- a great mother and perfect host for guests at home”, says Ghai.

A mother of two daughters, Janhvi and Khushi, whom she had with husband Boney Kapoor, Sridevi was as doting as a mom could get. She was excited for Janhvi’s upcoming debut “Dhadak”, just months away from its release.

Confident of the upbringing she gave her daughters, Sridevi said: “Janhvi has chosen this path and profession, and I have been in this industry for long. So I am mentally more prepared than her. She has been watching me, and knows what she is getting into.

“Nothing is going to be a cakewalk in any profession.

So you have to work hard, and there will be challenges. I’m sure she is ready for it.”

And to cite the unpredictability of life, who knew Sridevi wouldn’t be there to see her daughter take baby steps into a world where she was the uncrowned queen for so many years.

Radhika Bhirani can be contacted at radhika.b@ians.in

for its citizens. Productivity growth has never really topped the list of issues of policymakers in India, even though productivity growth matters more for emerging market economies than for the advanced world. Trends indicating slow growth in productivity levels across major sectors of our country -- and being nowhere close to high-performing economies -do provide strong motivation to rethink our approach since it is sustained productivity growth that can raise living standards over the long run: If workers produce more per hour, there is more of output and income to share and hence more reasons to celebrate.

(Amit Kapoor is chair, Institute for Competitiveness, India and can be contacted at amit. kapoor@competitiveness. in and tweets @kautiliya.

Bhawna Kakkar, researcher, Institute for Competitiveness has contributed to the article.)

‘Wake up Akuluto! wake up Nagaland’

A

kuluto, once a cradle of civilization; one of the oldest towns in Nagaland; once the mother of many Naga Leaders and intellectuals like Asu Hokishe Sema. What have we become today? Are there no more true leaders in our town??? That was “Bloody Animals’ Tuesday”. Democracy does not take lives; it gives lives. Were there any intellectuals or wise leaders at home to use your sceptre when this ‘barbaric act ‘ crucified your ‘franchise’? Was that ‘Clean Election’ or ‘Sinned Reaction’? Wake up Akuluto! Wake up Sumis! Wake up Nagas!

We definitely can be better than this. Alas!!!

Temptations of ‘colorful notes’ Temptations of “Cursed Throne”.

Heni X Sumi, Dimapur, (henixsumi8826@gmail.com)

Reader’s Post

Open letter to the Chief Election Officer Nagaland

Sir,

Straight to the point. My vote was cast by a proxy voter and I was compelled to give tendered vote. I have already registered a complaint in the ECI-Citizen services portal and Complaint ID is NGS-855581 dated 27-2-2018 at 1:25 PM. Now, will you declare polling in polling station number 10-Supply Colony/West Police Station Dimapur Assembly Constituency 1 null and void? Will action be taken against the officials?

Can you identify the culprit and press charges for impersonation?

Arep Changkija

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

national

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

CBI grills PNB ex-MD, ICICI’s ED in Rs 12,636 crore fraud case

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI, FEB 27 (IANS): The CBI on Tuesday said it has questioned former Punjab National Bank Managing Director Usha Anant Subramanian and ICICI Bank Executive Director N.S. Kanan in connection with its Rs 12,636 crore bank fraud case.

A CBI official said Subramanian was quizzed at the agency’s Mumbai office.

“The agency also questioned the ICICI Executive Director because it was the leader of a consortium of banks that sent money to Mehul Choksi’s Gitanjali Group,” the official said.

He said the Central Bureau of Investigation received a complaint from the PNB alleging a loss of Rs 1,251 crore -- all linked to Gitanjali Group.

Besides, two PNB General Managers Nehal Ahad and Vimlesh Kumar were also questioned, apart from two statutory auditors of the PNB, in the case.

On Monday, the CBI questioned three statutory auditors and two General Managers of PNB. The CBI had filed the first FIR in the scam on February 14 against Nirav Modi, his wife Ami, broth-

CS hasn’t resolved problems in ration delivery: Sisodia NEW DELHI, FEB 27 (IANS): Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said here on Tuesday that Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash has “done nothing” over the past one week to resolve problems associated with the delivery of ration in the city.

Addressing the media after a cabinet meeting, Sisodia said that during the last cabinet meeting the Chief Secretary was asked to inquire into violations in the implementation of the PoS system in the delivery of ration and also present a proposal on door-step delivery of ration in the next cabinet meeting. “The CS done nothing in these two matters in the past one week,” Sisodia said.

Punjab National Bank (File).

er Nishal, uncle Mehul Choksi and his firms Diamond R US, Solar Exports and Stellar Diamond.

Nirav Modi, his family and Choksi left the country in early January. The FIR mentions fraud of around Rs 6,400 crore.

The CBI filed the second FIR on February 15 for Rs 4,886.72 crore fraud against the Gitanjali Group headed by Choksi.

The official said CBI had written to the Chief Vigilance Officers of five banks to share details of money credited to Nostro accounts of PNB on receiving Letters of Understanding and Foreign Letters of Credit, which were then withdrawn by Nirav and Choksi’s group as buyers’ credit.

The agency has till

date arrested 12 persons in the case.

PSBs asked to check all NPAs above Rs 50 cr for ‘possible fraud’

In the wake of the Rs 12,600 crore fraud on staterun Punjab National Bank (PNB) by accused diamantaire Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, the government on Tuesday set a deadline of 15 days for public sector banks (PSBs) to examine all nonperforming assets above Rs 50 crore for possible fraud and to identify operational and technical gaps.

Announcing this through the Finance Ministry’s Twitter handle, Financial Services Secretary Rajeev Kumar also said that Executive Directors and Chief Technological

Officers of the PSBs have to prepare a blueprint for combating increasing risks.

“Fifteen-day deadline for PSBs to take preemptive action and identify gaps/ Weaknesses to gear up for rising Ops and Tech risks; To learn from best practices and pinpoint strategies including tech solutions; Clear accountability of senior functionaries,” Kumar tweeted.

The Ministr y has also directed governmentowned banks’ Managing Directors to examine all non-performing assets (NPAs), or bad loans, above Rs 50 crore “for possible fraud” and if there are any violations of law on money laundering and the Foreign Exchange Management Act, Kumar said.

“PSB MDs directed to detect bank frauds and consequential wilful default in time and refer cases to CBI. To examine all NPA accounts > Rs 50Cr for possible fraud. Involve ED/ DRI for PMLA/FEMA/ EXIM violations if any,” he said in a separate tweet.

L a t e o n M o n d ay night, PNB informed stock exchanges that the amount of fraudulent transactions involving the Nirav Modi scam could go up by over

Rs 1,300 crore. “In continuation to our filing with stock exchanges on February 14, 2018, we have to inform that quantum of reported unauthorised transactions can increase by $204.25 million,” PNB said in a Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) filing.

In this connection, Indian industry has called for better and hi-tech control systems to check financial frauds as also a gradual decrease in government holding in PSBs. “The three key solutions for the banking sector are better management and operational efficiencies, use of technology such as blockchain and big data analytics, and lowering government shareholding in public sector banks,” CII President Shobana Kamineni said in a statement here on Sunday.

Last week, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley criticised regulators, as well as bank managements and auditors, for their failure to detect bank frauds saying “politicians are accountable but regulators are not”.

Accumulated gross NPAs of state-run banks have crossed the staggering level of Rs 8.5 lakh crore,

7

Bihar hit-and-run case: Opposition protests in assembly PATNA, FEB 27 (IANS): Opposition RJD and Congress members on Tuesday staged protests in the Bihar Assembly demanding arrest of BJP leader Manoj Baitha whose vehicle was reportedly involved in an accident that killed nine school children on Saturday in Muzaffarpur district.

Accusing that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his government was shielding Baitha, Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav also demanded a discussion in the state assembly over the delay in his arrest.

Meanwhile, amid the opposition’s hue and cry over the issue, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suspended Baitha from the primary membership of party for six years.

On Monday, the opposition parties, including Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), had also threatened to launch a protest in the state if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader is not arrested soon.

They demanded that a probe be conducted to establish whether Baitha, “who was driving the vehicle at the time of incident”, was drunk or not in

the “dry state of Bihar”.

On Saturday, Yadav said: “The vehicle had a BJP board attached to it and the driver was drunk when the accident took place. BJP leaders are totally drunk in power.”

The police said that Baitha was in the vehicle at the time of the accident, but he along with his driver fled and went into hiding.

They said raids were being conducted to arrest Baitha.

An FIR was lodged on Monday against Baitha on the statement of Mohammad Ansari, whose five grandchildren were killed in the accident.

On Sunday, angry vil-

lagers blocked the National Highway 77, demanding Baitha’s arrest.

Ansari, a resident of Dharampur village, told the police that Baitha was driving the vehicle when it mowed down the children.

Clad in a white kurtapyjama, Baitha fled after the vehicle hit the children, he added.

He claimed that CCTV footage also showed the BJP leader driving the vehicle.

The accident occurred near Dharampur school on NH 77 in Minapur block on Saturday when an SUV hit the children while they were crossing the road.

75% voter turnout Jordan king’s 3-day visit begins Sohrabuddin case claims yet another judge: Rahul amid stray incidents (From p-1) Though there were reports of technical issues with the VVPAT machines in some polling station, timely intervention allowed polling to resume.

Some stray incidents at polling stations under 4-Ghaspani-I A/C were reported. DC & DEO Dimapur, Sushil Kumar said no complaints were received from any polling station.

A d e q ua te se c urity measures were put in place to monitor and prevent any untoward incidents.

In Kohima district, voting in six assembly constituencies passed off peacefully. Former chief minister and NPF president, Dr. Shürhozielie Liezietsu cast-

ed his vote at L- Khel Upper 1 Polling station.

In all the other districts voting passed of peacefully.

Voting in most of the interior places were held till late evening.

In polling station no.

1 in Meluri, Sinha said an unruly mob damaged the EVM machine while polling was going on and no poll was held after that.

Sinha said some areas in Phek were quiet tensed but the DC and security personnel had brought the situation under control.

Meanwhile, Church groups and individuals, as part of the NBCC’s clean election campaign, also took active part to remind the voters to abide by ‘one man, one vote’.

PM Narendra Modi wramly welcomes Jordanian King Abdullah Il Bin Al-Hussein on arrival at New Delhi.

NEW DELHI,FEB 27 (AGENCIES): A special address on Islamic heritage and promoting moderation will be a major highlight of the Jordanian king’s three-day visit here beginning on Tuesday, during which both sides will look to expand ties in a range of

key areas including defence and security.

King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, a 41st generation direct descendant of Prophet Muhammad, is known for his global initiative to fight radicalisation and terrorism. He is also the custodian of the

Al-Aqsa mosque, among the holiest Islamic sites, located in the Old City of Jerusalem.

India considers Jordan an “oasis of stability and harmony” in conflictridden West Asia and New Delhi would like to deepen bilateral ties with the country during the king’s visit, sources said, adding both sides will also look to finalise a framework for defence cooperation.

India is putting in significant diplomatic capital by engaging key Islamic countries on de-radicalisation. Known to be against Islamic extremism, King Abdullah could be of great help to India in counter-terror operations. Although on Kashmir issue, Jordan has held a very neutral position since 1970.

this to $15 billion by 2020.

Defence has emerged as an important pillar of the bilateral relationship and Indian ships regularly make friendly port calls to Vietnam.

India is also an important development aid partner for Vietnam and

has extended several lines of credit for capacity building in the southeast Asian nation.

Vietnam is also among the larger recipients of scholarships offered under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme.

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NEW DELHI, FEB 27 (IANS): Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday again targeted the Narendra Modi government in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh staged shootout case and raised questions over shifting of a Bombay High Court judge hearing petitions challenging the discharge of some senior IPS officers in the matter.

In a tweet, Gandhi said the case “claims yet another judge”, referring to moving out of Justice

Revati Mohite Dere, who had turned down a lower court’s media gag on reporting on the Sohrabuddin case and also pulled up the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The Congress leader also referred to the death of Special CBI Court presiding officer B.H. Loya, who was hearing the case.

BJP President Amit Shah was an accused in the case but was later discharged.

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Eastern agenda: Vietnamese President to visit India NEW DELHI, FEB 27 (IANS): As New Delhi pushes ahead with its engagements with southeast Asia under the Act East Policy, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang will come on a three-day visit to India starting on Friday at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Ram Nath Kovind, it was announced on Tuesday.

Quang will be accompanied by an official delegation, including ministers and Communist Party of Vietnam leaders, as also a business delegation, according to a statement issued by the External Affairs Ministry.

He will meet Kovind and hold official talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will also call on the visiting dignitary.

The Vietnam President will have an interaction with prominent Indian businessmen and also make a trip to Bodh Gaya during the course of the visit.

“President Quang’s visit will further deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and Vietnam,” the statement said.

The visit comes after the visit of Modi to Vietnam in 2016 when the bilateral relationship was

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav with other legislators protesting against the Bihar government in Patna. (PTI)

8

business

India has potential to achieve 7-8% growth: FM

New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): India’s economy has the potential to achieve a growth rate of more than 7-8 per cent in view of policy changes, accompanied by a supportive global environment, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said Tuesday.

Addressing the IndiaKorea Business Summit here, he observed that over the next 10-20 years India will continue to remain one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

“India has demonstrated in the last few years that it has, even in a global environment of adversity, a potential to self correct itself, to continue to take difficult decisions if necessary and maintain a high growth trajectory,” Jaitley said.

He said the country has been able to blend its economic decisions along with political acceptability to the extent that “there is now a huge support, almost bordering on impatience,

Arun Jaitley

where people want India to reform and grow much faster”.

According to Jaitley, most people in India believe that a 7-8 per cent growth rate is an absolute normal for the country but the real potential of India is to beat that.

“Therefore with policy changes accompanied by a supportive global environment, India perhaps has the potential to achieve a little more than that,” said the

Minister.

He said the Indian economy in the last few years has become very open, it is integrated globally, it invites investments in most sectors and has made its procedures for investment extremely simple.

Jaitley said the government’s decision-making has made doing business in India much easier and whatever challenges and difficulties do arise, there is an extensive debate in the country

as to why procedures must be further simplified and a combined national effort to move in that direction.

“It’s a rule based decision making where governmental discretions based on individual cases have been virtually eliminated,” Jaitley said on the country’s regime.

He said the government has been able to unify taxes and bring about a relatively simpler tax structure and for international investors, indirect tax structures have become extremely investor friendly.

In an apparent reference to retrospective taxation, Jaitley said: “Whatever misgivings we had about our direct tax structures in the past including some erroneous decisions which governments have taken, we have completely eliminated those fears and added more predictability and stability as far as taxation is concerned.”

Gold climbs Rs 190 on firm global cues, buying New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): Gold maintained its upward trend for the fourth day Tuesday, climbing Rs 190 to Rs 31,850 per 10 grams, largely in line with a firm trend overseas amid sustained buying by local jewellers.

However, silver slipped

by Rs 150 to Rs 39,550 per kg due to reduced offtake by industrial units and coin makers.

Traders said sentiment in gold remained strong following positive trend overseas on the back of a weaker dollar, while investors awaited US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s first congressional testimony for clues on the future pace of monetary tightening.

Globally, gold edged up by 0.03% to USD 1,333.30 an ounce in Singapore.

Moreover, increased buying by local jewellers at domestic spot market, supported the uptrend in gold.

In the national capital, gold of 99.9% and 99.5% purity surged by Rs 190 each to Rs 31,850 and Rs 31,700 per 10 grams, respectively.

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

AIIB to invest USD 200 million in NIIF: chief New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will invest around USD 200 million in India’s first sovereign wealth fund NIIF, said AIIB president Jin Liqun here Tuesday.

Beijing-based AIIB, which started functioning in 2016, has committed over USD 1 billion in five infrastructure projects in India and proposes to take 12 more projects envisaging assistance of USD 3.5 billion. Talking to PTI, Jin said the bank would focus on funding infrastructure projects in road, energy and transport sector.

“We are working on some other projects also. For instance, the Indian government attaches importance to NIIF, the initial fund might be USD 1 billion, we may be chipping in USD 200 million,” he said.

The projects being currently funded by AIIB in India include Bangalore Metro Rail Project, Transmission System Strenghning Project, Gujarat Rural Road Project and Power Project in

Andhra Pradesh.

Jin is in India for the third Annual General Meeting of the AIIB to be held in Mumbai on June 25-26.

The AIIB chief yesterday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who asked the AIIB to showcase and demonstrate successful projects. “We had very good meeting with the prime minister. We discussed the broad issues of cooperation between AIIB and India.

And I told the prime minister I am very much pleased to see, India as the second largest shareholder of AIIB. India is playing a very important role in the running the bank,” he said.

The AIIB, he said will continue to support India’s infrastructure sector, especially help in reducing the traffic congestion and increase rural connectivity.

As of December 31, 2017, AIIB’s board has approved 24 projects with a total amount of USD 4.23 billion in 14 member countries, including up to USD 1.07 billion in funding of five projects in India.

Sensex breaks 2-day rally; falls 100 pts New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): The BSE Sensex fell about 100 points Tuesday as investors adopted a cautious approach ahead of the release of key macroeconomic data. Equity benchmarks erased early gains after banking, PSU, realty and financial counters came under selling pressure.

The gover nment is scheduled to release the December quarter GDP growth numbers as well as IIP data on Wednesday.

The 30-share Sensex opened higher at 34,558.56 and advanced to hit a high of 34,610.79 in early trade.

However, it slipped into the negative zone to touch a low of 34,314.87, before finally ending 99.36 points, or 0.29 per cent, down at 34,346.39. The index had gained 626.25 points in the past two sessions on the back of unabated buying by domestic institutional investors. The NSE Nifty settled the day 28.30 points, or 0.27 per cent, lower at 10,554.30 after shuttling between 10,631.65 and 10,537.25 during the day.

Finmin gives PSBs 15-day deadline GST collection dips marginally PNB fraud put at close to $2 billion for pre-emptive plan to combat risks to Rs 86,318 crore in January

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SPA THERAPIST IN DIMAPUR

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No. 3413 Yesterday’s solution No. 3412

Across 1 Actors with strongly marked accents in TV programme?

(9) 8 Girl’s coming back for racing driver (5) 9 Butler worried about old affliction (7) 10 Everyone needs youth leader as confederate (4) 11 A metal? A metal in fruit!

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MEETING CALL

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of total taxpayers who are required to file monthly returns,” the Ministry said.

Of the total amount collected as GST, Rs 11,327 crore would be transferred from IGST to CGST account and Rs 13,479 crores to SGST account “by way of settlement of funds on account of cross utilisation of IGST credit for payment of CGST and SGST respectively or due to interstate business-to-consumer transactions”.

“Thus, the total collection of CGST and SGST is Rs 25,560 crore and Rs 33,440 crore respectively, including transfers by way of settlement,” said the Ministry.

Before picking up in December, the revenue collection fell for two consecutive months from over Rs 92,000 crore in September to Rs 83,346 crore in October and Rs 80,808 crore in November.

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New Delhi, Feb 27 (IANS): Revenue collections under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) fell marginally in January by Rs 385 crore to Rs 86,318 crore.

The collections had picked up in December touching Rs 86,703 crore, after falling for two straight months.

“The total revenue received under GST for the month of January 2017 (received up to February 25) has been Rs 86,318 crore,” said the Finance Ministry.

Of this, Rs 14,233 crore has been collected as Central GST, Rs 19,961 crore as State GST, Rs 43,794 crore as Integrated GST and Rs 8,331 crore as compensation cess, it added.

According to the Ministry, around 1.03 crore taxpayers have been registered under GST so far and around 57.78 lakh returns were filed.

“This is 69 per cent

including a former deputy general manager Gokulnath Shetty, who was posted in the foreign-exchange department of its Mumbai branch.

They fraudulently acquired guarantees to obtain loans from the overseas branches of Indian banks, claiming to need the cash to import pearls.

“On January 16, 2018, the partnership firm of Nirav Modi group approached our branch at Brady House, Mumbai, and presented a set of import documents with a request to allow buyers’ credit for making payment to the overseas suppliers,” PNB had said.

This happened after Shetty had retired.

And since there was no sanctioned limit for the firms, the branch officials asked them to furnish at least 100 per cent cash margin for issuing Letter of Undertaking (LoU) for raising buyer’s credit.

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Er. THENUVECHO PURO Chairman Core Committee K-523

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tify weakness in existing arrangements.

They will have to come out with comparative assessment of their banks’ operational risk management practices with best practices and “identify gaps and areas for improvement”, the Secretary said.

The EDs and CTOs, he added, will have to prepare reports based on best practices and minimum acceptable standards and suggest action points including technological solutions.

Boards of banks have been asked to assign clear accountability to senior functionaries for implementation and compliance of the report.

The 15-day deadline to PSBs comes as part of government’s ambitious reform agenda, under the rubric of an Enhanced Access and Service Excellence (EASE) programme.

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Crossword

by USD 204.25 million from the earlier estimate of USD 1.77 billion.

On February 14, PNB had detected the fraud wherein billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi and associates allegedly cheated the bank by acquiring fraudulent letters of undertaking (LoUs) from one of its branches for overseas credit from other Indian lenders.

“15 days deadline for PSBs to take pre-emptive action and identify gaps/ weakness to gear up for rising Ops and Tech risks; To learn from best practices and pinpoint strategies including tech solutions; clear accountability of senior functionaries,” the Secretary said. Each PSB will have to form a group comprising their EDs and CTOs and it will be the responsibility of the panel to “learn” from best practices across the banking sector and iden-

capital/assets to pay for such liability in case of eventuality in accordance of law, PNB said in a separate statement to stock exchange made last night.

In filings earlier this month, PNB said it stumbled upon the scam on January 25, 2018, and a fraud report was filed with the Reserve Bank of India on January 29. On that day, a criminal complaint for registration of FIR was also made with the CBI. Stock exchanges were informed of the fraud on February 5.

This was followed by another fraud report being submitted to the RBI on February 7, the day one more complaint was filed with the CBI. On February 13, an FIR was filed with the CBI against Nirav Modi Group, Gitanjali Group and Chandri Paper & Allied Products Pvt Ltd, as also a complaint filed with Enforcement Directorate. Stock exchanges were informed the next day, PNB had said in the filings.

In the complaint, PNB alleges that Modi and companies linked to him colluded with some of its officers

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New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): Stung by the country’s largest banking fraud at PNB, the finance ministry Tuesday asked all public sector banks (PSBs) to come out with “pre-emptive” action plan to combat rising operational and technical risks, and assign clear accountability to senior functionaries.

Executive Directors and chief technology officers (CTOs) of PSBs have been asked to prepare a blueprint to enhance preparedness for combating increasing risks, Financial Services Secretary Rajiv Kumar said in a tweet.

A multi-agency probe has been launched in the alleged scam at PNB that has now touched about Rs 12,700 crore. Late last evening, Punjab National Bank said that the amount involved in the fraudulent transactions could increase

New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI): Punjab National Bank (PNB) has said that the alleged fraud perpetrated by jewellers Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi may be around USD 2 billion, over USD 204 million more than previously estimated.

In a late night filing to stock exchanges, the stateowned lender said that “the quantum of reported unauthorised transactions can increase by USD 204.25 million.”

The bank had earlier put the defrauded amount at Rs 11,394.02 crore (USD 1.77 billion). Adding another Rs 1,323 crore would take this to Rs 12,717 crore.

PNB said it has not received any instruction from the government to compensate other lenders for losses arising out of the fraud.

The jewellers and companies linked to them had allegedly colluded with PNB officers to obtain fake bank guarantees to get loan from overseas branches of Indian banks including Allahabad Bank, Axis Bank and UCO Bank.

The bank has enough

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international

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

UN chief urges new push to free world from nuke weapons United Nations, Feb 27 (Agencies): Warning that nuclear weapons pose catastrophic risks to human life and the environment, United Nations SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres has called on the international community to make a reinvigorated push to rid the world of such weapons.

“Countries persist in the mistaken idea that nuclear weapons make the world safer,” said the Secretary-General, addressing the UN Conference on Disarmament, in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday.

“At the global level, we must work together towards forging a new momentum on eliminating nuclear weapons,” he urged.

Outlining a new initiative to give greater impetus and direction to the global disarmament agenda, Mr Guterres said the world must respond to the dangers of the over-accumulation and proliferation of weapons, and reinforce the need to integrate disarmament into the UN efforts on preventive diplomacy and peacemaking.

Side-by-side, a focus is needed on the impact of conventional weapons on

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres greets Kang Kyung-wha, South Korea’s foreign minister, at the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland on February 26.

civilians as well as on the link between disarmament and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in particular the resources lost to excessive military spending resources that could have been used to spur development activities.

“My initiative will strive to offer a new perspective on traditional priorities; and a clear vision for the future; and also, practical and implementable actions,” he said, noting that while the challenges are enormous, “history shows that it has been possible to reach agreement on disarmament and arms control even at the

most difficult moments.”

The UN chief also welcomed the completion of reductions by the United States and Russia under the New START Treaty (the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), and urged that the “courageous initiatives” taken by the Republic of Korea during the recent Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Games be translated into lasting improvements, based on the central objective of the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula and sustainable peace in the region.

“We must work together towards our common goal: a world free of nuclear

US asks Pak to act against terror groups ISLAMABAD, Feb 27 (PTI): A top American official has asked Pakistan to act against the Haqqani network and other militant groups and address international community’s concerns about terror financing, the US embassy here said on Tuesday.

Deputy Assistant to the President and the US National Security Council’s Senior Director for South and Central Asia Lisa Curtis made the remarks during her meetings with Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua, interior minister Ahsan Iqbal and chief of the general staff Lt Gen Bilal Akbar, it said. “ C u r t i s u r ge d t h e government of Pakistan to address the continuing presence of the Haqqani network and other terrorist groups within its territory, and reiterated the international community’s longstanding concern about ongoing deficiencies in Pakistan’s implementation of

Choose your friend wisely, B’desh ruling party to India DHAKA, Feb 27 (Agencies): In an election year, the message from the ruling Awami League to New Delhi is clear – “India should be careful in choosing its friends in Bangladesh”.

Media adviser to PM Sheikh Hasina, Iqbal Shobhan Chowdhury, minced no words while addressing a session at the India-Bangladesh media conclave, saying, “For India to trust BNP is comparable to the US or CIA supporting Osama bin Laden, who later emerged as America’s biggest trouble.

Hence India should be careful in choosing its friends in Bangladesh.”

Chowdhur y’s comment came in the context of the bitter political fight between Awami League and main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Dhaka’s claims that IndiaBangladesh ties are at their best after Hasina took over the reins as PM, defeating anti-Indian and anti-liberal forces.

Chowdhury also tried to address India’s apprehensions about China’s increasing footprint in Bangladesh, saying “for Bangladesh, China is no replacement for India as a friend”.

its anti-money laundering/ counter-terrorism finance regime,” the embassy said in statement.

The Haqqani network, blamed for several deadly attacks against Indian interests in Afghanistan including the 2008 bombing of the Indian mission in Kabul that killed 58 people, has also carried out a number of kidnappings and attacks against US interests in Afghanistan.

In her meetings with Pakistani officials, Curtis said that the US seeks to move toward a new relationship with Pakistan, based on a shared commitment to defeat all terrorist groups that threaten regional stability and security as well as on a shared vision of a peaceful future for Afghanistan.

She acknowledged Pakistan’s considerable sacrifices fighting terrorism.

She emphasized that the US South Asia strategy represents an opportunity to work together to bring

about a stable, peaceful Afghanistan which would enable the dignified return of Afghan refugees to their homeland.

She said the strategy would help to defeat of ISIS in South Asia and the elimination of terrorist groups that threaten both Pakistan and the United States.

Curtis visited Pakistan this week after US made extra efforts to put Islamabad on the ‘Grey List’ of Financial Action Task Force in a meeting held in Paris.

Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted about Curtis’ meeting with foreign secretary Tehmina Janjua. He did not provide further details of the meeting.

Relations between Pakistan and US are under stress due to pressure on Islamabad to take decisive action against presence of militant groups on its soil.

Pakistan denies presence of any terror group on its soil.

weapons,” underscored the Secretary-General.

Speaking alongside Mr. Guterres, the President of the General Assembly, Miroslav Lajk, stressed that Conference on Disarmament which was established in 1979 but whose last decision was in 1996 remains as critical as ever as the demand for disarmament has only risen, not fallen.

“The Conference on Disarmament has been deadlocked since the agreement on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, more than two decades ago,” he said.

“We have to address this reality the Conference is the world’s foremost multilateralism forum on disarmament. It should be producing global frameworks and policies. It should be driving discussions and decisions, around the world.

It should have the loudest voice of all,” he stressed.

The Conference on Disarmament, established as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community, is not formally a UN body but reports annually, or more frequently as appropriate, to the UN General Assembly.

Ready to negotiate with US: Afghan Taliban Kabul, Feb 27 (IANS): The Afghan Taliban on Tuesday announced that the insurgent group was ready to negotiate with the US amid ongoing national and international efforts to initiate a political settlement in the war-torn country.

“The Political Office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (name of ousted Taliban regime) calls on American officials to talk directly to the Political Office of Islamic Emirate in Qatar regarding finding a peaceful solution to the Afghan quandary,” the Taliban statement read out.

The statement came days after US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells visited Afghanistan and met Afghan leaders, reports Xinhua news agency.

The Taliban said the statement was in response to Wells’s recent remarks that the US has kept the doors of dialogue open for the Taliban.

“It must now be established by America and its allies that the Afghan issue cannot be solved militarily.

America must henceforth focus on a peaceful strategy for Afghanistan instead of war”.

Merkel slams German food charity for migrant halt

Angela Merkel BERLIN, Feb 27 (Agencies): German Chancellor Angela Merkel has criticized a food bank for refusing to accept any more migrants, calling the decision “not good”.

Essener Tafel, a charity that serves free meals to the poor, had come under fire after it said it would now require new customers to produce German identity papers as a huge migrant influx was displacing locals in need.

In an interview on late Monday with RTL televi-

sion, Merkel said: “One should not make such categorizations. That is not good.”

At the same time, the German leader acknowledged that the incident demonstrates the pressure that the volunteers are coming under.

More than 1.2 million asylum seekers have come to Europe’s biggest economy since 2015 — more than half from war-torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan — in a mass wave that sparked a xenophobic backlash.

Essener Tafel said last week it had taken the step in order to avoid friction between needy locals and foreigners that could harm acceptance of the newcomers.

Vandals at the weekend sprayed the word “Nazis” on the charity’s building and vans, an act police believe was in response to the food bank’s migrant halt.

9

Air strikes and rockets hit Syria enclave despite truce

Douma, Eastern Ghouta witnessed fresh airstrikes on Tuesday morning.

Beirut, Feb 27 (AFP): A fledgling “humanitarian pause” announced by Russia in Syria’s rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta was rattled today by fresh air strikes and rocket fire, several sources said.

“Fighting continues this morning. That is what our reports from Eastern Ghouta tell us,” a spokesman for the UN humanitarian office, Jens Laerke, told reporters in Geneva, adding that it was premature to discuss any relief operations for desperate civilians given the persisting clashes.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

monitoring group reported air raids, including the dropping of two barrel bombs, as well as rocket fire, while state media accused rebel forces of shelling humanitarian corridors to keep civilians hostage.

The Britain-based Observatory said two barrel bombs -- crude, improvised munitions that cause indiscriminate damage -- on the Shaifuniyah area of Eastern Ghouta.

Rockets were also fired on several areas in the enclave but the head of the Observatory, Rami Abdel Rahman, said no deaths were immediately reported as a result of the

fresh violence.

The toll for the deadly blitz against Eastern Ghouta continued to mount nonetheless when five bodies were found in the rubble of destroyed buildings, he said.

A woman also died today when the roof of her home, damaged by earlier bombardment, gave in and collapsed on her, an AFP correspondent in the main town of Douma reported.

The Syrian state news agency SANA also accused the rebels of firing several rockets on the path of the corridor declared by Russia to allow for the evacuation of civilians.

US Supreme Court not to hear Trump’s plea in ‘dreamers’ case Washington, Feb 27 (IANS): The US Supreme Court refused on Monday to take up the Trump administration’s appeal of a lower court ruling that requires it to continue a programme that protects hundreds of thousands of young immigrants from deportation.

“The petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment is denied without prejudice,” Xinhua cited a a court filing as saying.

“It is assumed that the Court of Appeals will proceed expeditiously to decide this case” on the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals programme, or DACA. In an unusual move, the Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the case before a federal appeals court had ruled.

US President Donald Trump announced an end to the programme in Sep-

tember last year but gave Congress six months to find a legislative alternative.

While protections for the “Dreamers” were due to start phasing out in March, Congress has so far failed to pass legislation to address their fates. Last month, San Francisco-based US District Judge William Alsup ruled that the government must continue to process renewals of existing DACA applications. A second judge in New York issued a similar injunction earlier this month.

The injunctions are due to be heard by federal appeals courts but the process could take months or years, prompting the Trump administration’s move to take it directly to the Supreme Court, which rarely accepts appeals asking them to bypass the lower courts.

Following the court’s decision, Trump told a

White House meeting that “We’d like to help DACA” and criticised the lower court.

The White House issued a statement accusing the district judge in the case of having “unwisely interviewed in the legislative process” by acting while Congress in debating the policy.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement that the Supreme Court’s action shows that “rescinding DACA was not only legally questionable, but also unjust and cruel.”

DACA, established by former US President Barack Obama in 2012, was an immigration policy that allowed some individuals who entered the US as minors, mostly illegally, to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and to be eligible for a work permit.

Prosecutors seek 30 years Iran deal complicates US-Saudi energy agreement jail for ousted S Korea prez

South Korean ousted leader Park Geun-Hye (C) arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul. (File photo)

Seoul, Feb 27 (AFP): South Korean prosecutors Tuesday demanded a 30year-jail sentence for former president Park Geun-hye for corruption and abuse of power. Park, 66, was sacked by the country’s top court in March last year over a wideranging corruption scandal and has been held in custody for almost a year now.

“We ask the court to hand down 30 years in prison and (a fine of) 118.5 bil-

lion won ($110 million) for the accused, who must take the ultimate responsibility for the scandal as the 18th president of this country,” prosecutors said in a statement read out in court.

Prosecutors asserted that Park, in collusion with her secret confidante and long-time friend Choi Soonsil, took or was promised bribes totalling 59.2 billion won ($52 million) from three South Korean com-

panies, Samsung, Lotte and SK, in return for policy favours.

Park also been charged with coercing 18 large firms to “donate” a total of 77.4 billion won to two dubious foundations controlled by Choi. The Seoul Central District Court earlier this month found Choi guilty of abuse of power, bribery and interfering in government business, sentencing her to 20 years in prison.

WASHINGTON, Feb 27 (Agencies): The Trump administration is opening talks with Saudi Arabia on a potentially lucrative atomic energy agreement that’s inextricably linked to an Obama-era nuclear deal with Iran. At stake is billions of dollars in contracts for US companies and bigger questions about America’s ability to keep friend and foe alike from reaching nuclear weapons capability.

Energy Secretary Rick Perry will lead an interagency US delegation to talks with the Saudis in London on Friday, two administration officials and three outside advisers said. The meeting comes as the Arab powerhouse explores a civilian nuclear energy program, possibly without restrictions on uranium enrichment and reprocessing that would be required under a US cooperation deal.

The Saudis have indicated they might accept such curbs if a separate nuclear deal with its arch-foe Iran is tightened, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The separate negotiations, over Saudi and Iranian nuclear capabilities, put American officials in the

Rick Perry middle of the great balanceof-power of the modern Middle East. The Saudis are loath to sign away their ability to move closer to bomb-making capability while Iran is bound by a 2015 nuclear accord that will become increasingly lenient next decade.

When President Barack Obama blessed the nuclear compromise with Tehran, his officials insisted they weren’t weakening nonproliferation standards for everyone else. But that difficult task has fallen to President Donald Trump.

And the Saudis, among his closest allies, are now asking a simple question: If Iran can enrich, why can’t we?

“Our objective is we want to have the same rights as other countries,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel alJubeir said this month at a security conference in Munich. At issue on Perry’s trip is what’s known as a “123

agreement.” Without one, US nuclear energy firms like Westinghouse would lose out on business opportunities with the Saudis. American officials and outside advisers said the Saudis have dangled the prospect of such contracts if new restrictions are imposed on Iran’s nuclear activity. Trump shares many of the Saudi concerns over the Iran deal, which he’s called the worst ever and repeatedly threatened to walk away from. In January, he vowed he wouldn’t issue more waivers of US sanctions _ an Iran deal requirement _ unless it’s amended to prevent Tehran

from gradually resuming a variety of currently banned nuclear activities. Such talks, primarily with Europe, are thus taking on added importance ahead of a mid-May deadline for more Trump waivers. Trump has identified four specific problems that must be addressed, including two not covered by the deal: Expiration dates on some nuclear restrictions, inspection rules for Iranian military sites, ballistic missile work and Iranian activity in countries around the Middle East — where it has helped Syria’s government in a civil war and aided Yemeni rebels in another.

Government of India Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Department of Consumer Affairs Website WWW.fcamin.nic.in

Sub : Invitation for Voluntary Consumer Organizations for associating themselves in the Clean Market Scheme of the Department of Consumer affairs The Department of Consumer Affairs invites applications from Voluntary Consumer Organizations (VCOs) to carry out awareness activities on Swachhta under "Clean Market Scheme" by adopting a market place.

2. Interested VCOs may submit their applications in the prescribed proforma duly signed by an authorized signatory on or before 3.5.2018 by 17.00 hours to Shri G.C. Rout, Deputy Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, 461, 4th Floor, Krishi Bhawan, New Delhi-110001.

3. For more details, please visit the website of the Department viz. http: // consumeraffairs.nic.in.

davp 08101/11/0056/1718

(G.C. Rout) Deputy Secretary to the GOI 011-23389936

Infotainment

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Sridevi: ‘Case closed’ in Bollywood star’s death P olice in Dubai have closed the case into the death of Bollywood star Sridevi Kapoor after handing over her body to relatives.

The actress, 54, died on Saturday “due to accidental drowning following loss of consciousness”, police said. She was found in a hotel bathtub.

It had earlier been reported that she died of cardiac arrest while at a family wedding in Dubai.

Her body has been embalmed and is being flown to India for her funeral.

Crowds have gathered outside her home in Mumbai to pay their last respects ahead of a cremation.

K n ow n s i m p ly a s Sridevi, the actress was considered one of the very few Indian female superstars capable of huge boxoffice success without the support of a male hero.

She appeared in nearly 300 films over five decades.

Police had been holding the body pending the results of a post-mortem examination.

Prosecutors say a “comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of her death” is now complete.

The full post-mortem report has not yet been released to the public and will be expected to explain how the original report of cardiac arrest and the list-

ing of “accidental drowning” are linked.

Sridevi’s body is being flown back to Mumbai and is expected to arrive at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport around 10 p.m.

Her body is being flown back in a Reliance Transport Embraer jet 135BJ which had reached Dubai on Sunday at 3:15 p.m. to carry her mortal remains, but had to stay back because the Dubai Prosecutor’s Office was still investigating the case involving her death.

The plane took off from Dubai International airport at 5.30 p.m. local time or 7.00 p.m. India time and is scheduled to land at 10.10 p.m., according to flightaware.com which tracks all flights through their transponders.

Sridevi’s death on Saturday night sparked a lot of speculation, but after the Dubai Prosecutor’s Office said it was closing the case following completion of investigations, the focus shifted back to the funeral which is now scheduled for

Wednesday afternoon.

The prosecutor’s office in Dubai said the forensic report had stated that she had died from “accidental drowning” in her bathtub, after losing consciousness. The case had been closed, the prosecutor’s office said.

Her body was handed over to her bereaved family on Tuesday as no foul play was apparently suspected by the investigators and was then taken for embalming, following which it reached Dubai airport to be placed aboard the special flight.

A tweet from the official feed of the Government of Dubai Media Office read: “The decision to release the body came after all the investigations and procedural matters followed in such incidents were completed, in order to determine all its circumstances and ensure that justice was done within the framework of the law.”

According to a statement on behalf of Sridevi’s husband Boney Kapoor, their daughters Khushi and Janhvi, and the entire Kapoor and Ayyappan (Sridevi’s side) families, the body will be kept for three hours at the Celebration Sports Club, Andheri west, near her residence from 9.30 a.m. onwards to enable people and her fans pay their last respects.

(BBC/IANS)

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2018

Emma Stone being considered to Fans of The Rolling Stones play ‘Wonder Woman 2’ villain unhappy with ticket prices

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ctress Emma Stone is being considered to essay the character of Cheetah in “Wonder Woman 2”.

According to That Hashtag Show website, the sequel to “Wonder Woman” will introduce the clawed supervillain as its central antagonist.

The script of the project is developed by Patty Jenkins, Geoff Johns and Dave Callahan.

Created by William Moulton Marston, Cheetah has four different incarnations since the character’s debut.

While actress Priscilla Rich played the Golden and Silver Age Cheetah, Deborah Domaine was the

Bronze Age Cheetah. Barbara Ann Minerva was the third. Sebastian Ballesteros, a male usurper, briefly played the role in 2001.

The cinematic iteration of the character is said to be based on the current Cheetah Barbara Ann Minerva, reports hollywoodreporter. com.

“Wonder Woman 2”, which is said to be set in the 1980s during the waning days of the Cold War, is expected to begin filming on May 28 in London.

Actress Gal Gadot will reprise her role as Wonder Woman, with Chris Pine, Said Taghmaoui and Ewen Bremner also returning to the project.

(IANS)

ans of The Rolling Stones have reacted with anger after it was revealed that the most expensive tickets will set back fans an extortionate £450.

The eye-watering cost of seeing the rock icons in the flesh this summer was revealed on Ticketmaster’s official website after their first tour in five years was announced yesterday.

For their show at the London Stadium on May 22, fans can expect to pay £399.95 for a premium standing ticket, along with a booking fee of £52 that brings the total cost to £451.95.

The ‘Gold Circle’ option is similarly pricey, with fans expecting to pay up to £282.45.

The seating option, meanwhile, will see fans forking out up to £203.

Responding to the ticket prices, one fan wrote on Twitter: “Ticket prices for The Rolling Stones are pretty crazy, I’ll still pay it but when did it become acceptable for bands to charge £100 for a show? Becoming the norm for big acts these

days, ridiculous.”

Another said: “The Rolling Stones’ UK ticket prices & “fees” are outrageous. Disgusting.”

“I adore The Rolling Stones but £90+ for a ticket is ridiculous. Gig ticket prices are getting outrageous”, one raged.

But for others, the cost was entirely justified.

“The fume here from some people on Stones ticket prices. They put on one of the best shows in music. Ed Sheeran, who’s

a proper biff, is alright to charge nearly £100 though?

Sound”, one said.

The tour announcement comes after Stones fans in the UK were left disappointed last year when a lack of suitable venues meant that their European tour didn’t head to these shores.

“Sorry to our UK fans there are no UK dates on this run, due to lack of available venues because of sporting fixtures,” the band said at the time.

‘Black Panther’ may get theme park Babymetal announce first world tour since guitarist’s death

Perry to play Rock In Rio Lisbon 2018

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aty Perry has been announced as the closing night headliner for Rock In Rio festival in Lisbon, Portugal.

The ‘Chained To The Rhythm’ star’s only European festival performance will see her closing out the Sunday nice on June 30, alongside Jessie J, Ivete Sangalo and Hailee Steinfeld.

Elsewhere, Br uno Mars, Muse, The Killers, The Chemical Brothers, Bastille and more are set to hit up Lisbon’s Bela Vista Park across two consecutive weekends next summer

– 23-24, and 29-30 June.

Earlier this month, Katy Perry revealed that she would rewrite her breakthrough hit ‘I Kissed A Girl’ if she could, admitting that the lyrics contain “a couple of stereotypes”.

Pe r r y r e l e a s e d ‘ I Kissed A Girl’ in 2008 and was criticised at the time by Gossip’s Beth Ditto, who argued that the song was offensive to gay culture.

Addressing the song’s controversial lyrics, Perry recently told Glamour: “We’ve really changed, conversationally, in the

D past 10 years. We’ve come a long way. Bisexuality wasn’t as talked about back then, or any type of fluidity.”

isney CEO Bob Iger has hinted at a “Black Panther” themed park.

Iger said at a conference here that there’s a onehour line to meet the “Black Panther” walkaround character at Disneyland, reports hollywoodreporter.com.

Speaking on a theme park, he said: “We haven’t had a chance to build a ride. Though I’m sure there are people who are working on it.”

Iger said Disney has $11 billion franchises, so

many that “we are competing with ourselves”, and the film “Black Panther” should make the 12th.

“I pretty much guarantee that this coming Halloween and even Christmas, you know you’ll be seeing a lot of Black Panther merchandise,” said Iger.

“Black Panther” is among the first films by the house of Marvel Studios which predominantly has a black cast and also shows a number of strong women of substance who work as the protagonist T’Challa’s

(Chadwick Boseman) allies.

Set shortly after “Captain America: Civil War”, “Black Panther” shows T’Challa returning home to the isolated, technologically-advanced African nation of Wakanda to become king.

Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, “Black Panther” also features Lupita Nyong’o, Michael B Jordon, Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Forest Whittaker and Martin Freeman, among others.

(IANS)

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apanese metal sensations Babymetal have announced a world tour for 2018. The run will be the first since their guitarist Mikio Fujioka passed away in January. According to Fujioka’s wife, the musician fell from an observation deck on December 30 and later passed away on January 5.

Fujioka was known to fans by his nicknames ‘Ko-Gami’ and ‘The Little God’.

Babymetal’s upcoming world tour includes a number of dates across North America, before they head over to Europe for a series

of festival appearances and headline shoes alike.

Babymetal were recently confirmed for Download Festival 2018. Speaking to NME in 2016, Babymetal member Moametal discussed being in the band, saying: “Being involved with BABYMETAL has allowed me to acquire more chances to really become involved with music. As a result, I find myself noticing each individual instrument the band plays and I feel that I have found a new way of enjoying music on a deeper level.”

(NME)

How bands are escaping the music industry snake pit Four-day Holi folk festival begins in Himachal

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usic streaming - playing songs over the internet “on demand” - is widely regarded as having saved the music industry, following an era of music piracy marked by falling CD and vinyl sales.

Yet songwriters and musicians have long complained that they’re not getting their fair share of the spoils, but now a number of tech start-ups are trying to help them receive what they’re owed and give them more control.

Dan Haggis, drummer with Liverpool band The Wombats, is a happy man.

The band’s fourth album, Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life, recently entered the UK chart at number three - a career best.

And this time around, they stand to make more money from their success.

This is because they’ve signed to Kobalt, a technology-driven music services company that gives songwriters and bands complete ownership of their work and a greater share of income than has traditionally been the case in the industry.

“We never used to make any money because we were always paying off our advances,” recalls Haggis, whose band formed in 2003. “We’d get about a 20% share of revenues and the label would keep the rest.

“Now we get to keep about 90% of what we earn K Y M C

...it’s such a difference, it just made sense.”

Other tech start-ups such as Mycelia and Choon are also trying to use new technology, such as blockchain, to give more financial power back to music creators and help them track down what they’re owed.

Mycelia, a “think and do tank” of music professionals set up by Londonbased artist Imogen Heap, argues that having a verified global registry of artists and their works would help make the payment process more transparent.

And Choon, a new streaming service and payments platform, is based on the Ethereum blockchain and promises to get more cash to artists by paying 80% of the revenues generated by their streams to them directly.

It was the byzantine nature of the music indus-

try’s payments system that inspired Kobalt’s Swedish founder, Willard Ahdritz, to set up his music publishing and technology platform, with the aim of collecting and tracking artists’ song royalties much more quickly and accurately.

Clients can see on an app how much revenue their works are generating globally in real time.

“Transparency is probably the key word,” says Haggis. One of the problems to date has been the lack of metadata accompanying song information, argues music writer Stuart Dredge.

If a recording lacks the necessary credits for the writers, performers and producers, they may not get their cut.

“Streaming isn’t the villain,” he says, “but it’s shining a light on some of the music industry’s historic problems around data and attribution and making sure

the right people get paid.”

But music analyst Mark Mulligan is highly sceptical of blockchain’s potential to become a force in the music business.

S t r e a m i n g i s n ow raking in more than $5bn (£3.6bn) globally for the three major music groups Universal, Sony Music and Warner, considerably more than the $3bn from sales of CDs and vinyl records.

Services such as as Spotify, Deezer, Tidal, Apple Music, YouTube and Amazon Music have become the de facto way many of us now source our favourite tunes.

Spotify dominates, accounting for around twothirds of all song streams.

But it pays many music labels less than a cent per stream. How much of that the songwriter or band gets depends on the deal it has with the label, but the ratio of label income to artist

income is roughly 4:1.

But last month, the US Copyright Royalty Board ruled that streaming services - Google, Amazon, Apple, Spotify and Pandora - would have to increase the share of their income they pay songwriters and publishers from 10.5% to 15.1%. Good news for songwriters.

Meanwhile Kobalt continues to grow in popularity. The firm now manages about one million songs and accounts for roughly 40% of the songs on the UK and US top 100 charts.

Its roster of artists includes Max Martin, who co-wrote hits such as Shake It Off for Taylor Swift and Roar for Katy Perry, as well as household names such as Lorde, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, Sir Paul McCartney, Pet Shop Boys and Enrique Iglesias. And it is now moving into music recording as well.

The Wombats’ Dan Haggis hopes that better technology will help secure the band’s future.

“With any luck we will start having some money from each of the streaming services each month to keep the band going so that we don’t have to rely on playing live and selling merchandise,” he says.

“It’s kind of an exciting time really, putting that power back in bands’ hands, giving you control of your career and where you’re going with it.”

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he four-day Holi folk festival, which traces its origin to the erstwhile Katoch ruler Sansar Chand, began in Sujanpur town amidst fanfare on Tuesday.

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur inaugurated the festival at the historic Chaugan. He later paid obeisance at the Murli Manohar temple and led a religious procession taken out in the town in Hamirpur district.

Sujanpur Holi is a festival with a difference. It comprises folk programmes that will end on the day the festival of colours is celebrated across the northern states -- on March 2.

Besides its historic and religious significance, the festival is linked to the wellbeing and prosperity of the locals. It also promotes tourism and trade.

It is believed that on Holi, the Katoch ruler put aside his royalty and mingled with the masses. A tank in the royal palace was filled with coloured water and Sansar Chand would kick off the celebrations by splashing it on his queens and relatives.

The royal family set out of the palace on elephants and passed through the streets of the town.

People standing along the way would throw colours at the members of the family.

(IANS)

26th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

The Lord will keep you from all harm’He will watch over your life; The Lord will watch over your Coming and going Both now and forever - Psalm– 121 (7:8) DP-1681

From- loving children (Vivi & Toto) K Y M C

Bolt to lead World XI in Soccer Aid 2018 Lo n d o n, F e b 2 7 (Agencies): Usain Bolt is set to play for a World XI and go head-to-head with an England XI led by Robbie Williams in this year’s Soccer Aid match at Old Trafford on June 10.

It will be the first time Bolt has played at the home of his beloved Manchester United as the eight-time Olympic gold medallist heads a stellar list of stars raising money for Unicef.

The full team lineups, comprising football and showbiz stars, will be announced in the coming weeks for the charity match, which will take place just four days before the start of the World Cup in Russia Bolt said, ‘It is my dream to make it as a professional footballer, so to be able to step out onto the pitch at Old Trafford in June, and play against some of football’s biggest legends is going to be remarkable.’

Usain Bolt will captain a World XI in the Soccer Aid match at Old Trafford in June.

‘I enjoy the thrill of competition in front of a crowd, so Robbie and his England team better watch out as I won’t be going easy on them! I’ve got a pretty special celebration planned for when I score, by the way. My team is going to be unbeatable – and Soccer Aid for Unicef is counting on your support to make a difference to thousands of children around the world.

Come and join in the fun!’

Jamaican star Bolt, 31, teased his social media followers on Monday by announcing that he had ‘signed for a football team’, leading to speculation he might have joined United.

Bolt previously had a trial with German club Borussia Dortmund in a bid to kick-start his football career.

The Jamaican’s agent revealed in September that a dozen clubs had expressed

Buffon ready to revive Italy career

Gianluigi Buffon

Rome, Feb 27 (Agencies): Gianluigi Buffon is prepared to come out of international retirement if he is called up by Italy for the upcoming friendlies against England and Argentina.

Buffon called time on his international career in November immediately after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup in Russia, following a two-legged play-off defeat to Sweden.

However, interim Italy boss Luigi Di Biagio has urged Buffon to reconsider his decision and the Ju-

ventus goalkeeper says he is open the possibility of adding to his 175 caps for the national side.

“I had thought about going on holiday for a few days with my family, but when the national team needs you, you must be present and not desert them,” Buffon told Italian programme Tiki Taka.

“There’s nothing to add to Di Biagio’s words other than I feel a sense of responsibility and loyalty which I must give to the national team in this transitional moment,” added the

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Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

2006 World Cup winner.”

“I repeat, it’s a way of showing loyalty and a sense of responsibility towards Italy. A new national team is being born and the first games are not comfortable ones because we will face Argentina and England. I think that any experienced player can be useful at the start, even if it’s just to give advice to the young ones.”

Italy will play Argentina in a friendly at the Etihad on March 23 before they travel to face England at Wembley on March 27.

an interest in Bolt and the larger-than-life personality has never played down his ability on the pitch.

Speaking to Laureus last year, Bolt believed he could reach the levels set by former United captain Wayne Rooney.

‘I’m not going to say I’m going to be the best footballer in the world,’ he said. ‘But I will be at a good level I would say, maybe at Wayne Rooney level, you know what I mean?’

Pop star Williams, one of the co-founders of Soccer Aid, said: ‘I am buzzing that Soccer Aid for Unicef is back. Reclaiming the title for England this year is going to taste so much sweeter with Usain leading the Soccer Aid World XI. ‘I can’t wait to lead out the England team on Sunday 10th June at Old Trafford in what really is a game like no other. With your support, we will help children in danger around the world.’

Rashid to become youngest captain in intl cricket NEW DELHI, Feb 27 (IANS): At 19 years of age, highly-rated Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan is set to become the youngest captain in the history of international cricket.

The World’s No. 1 ODI and Twenty20 International bowler, Rashid will lead Afghanistan after regular skipper Asghar Stanikzai was diagnosed with appendicitis.

“The doctors have advised that he will be able to return to cricket in approximately 10 days. Current vice-captain Rashid Khan will lead the team in his absence,” Afghan Cricket Board said in a press statement.

Afghanistan travel to Bulawayo for the groupstage matches of the ICC World Cup Qualifier.

Afghanistan take on Scotland on March 4 to launch their campaign for qualification to the 2019 World Cup. Last week, Rashid became the youngest player to be ranked No. 1 in the ICC’s Player Rankings across formats.

Man City’s Fernandinho out of Arsenal clash

Lo n d o n, F e b 2 7 ( Ag e n c i e s ) : M a n chester City midfielder Fernandinho will miss Thursday’s Premier League clash at Arsenal after failing to recover from a hamstring strain he picked up against the London club in the League Cup final over the weekend.

The 32-year-old was replaced by Bernardo Silva in the second half at Wembley on Sunday as goals from Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany and David Silva earned Pep Guardiola his first trophy as the English side’s manager.

Premier League leaders City said the initial prognosis had suggested the Brazil international’s injury was not serious.

“No timescale has yet been set for his return but the Premier League game against the Gunners on Thursday will come too soon,” City said in a statement on their website.

Prannoy hungry for competitive action NEW DELHI, Feb 27 (IANS): Even though he may not be fully fit by the time the All England Badminton Championships start on March 14, Indian shuttler HS Prannoy feels that he needs to play the tournament in order to get into the groove ahead of this April’s Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. The 25-year-old returned to the national camp in Hyderabad in the first week of February to resume training after being sidelined due to a wart on his foot.

At the moment, for Prannoy, the Birmingham event may arrive too soon.

But he doesn’t want to let it go as he sees it as an opportunity to get into competitive mode. “At the moment I am training well. But training and match practice are different things. I need to play competitive matches and tournaments before the CWG,” Prannoy said.

“The All England is dicey for me. Coming from any sort of injury is not

HS Prannoy

easy but hopefully the situation will be better in two weeks’ time,” he added.

“The tournament and you see the crowd, they lift you,” Prannoy said.

He also revealed that he learned and tried the art of throwing negativity out of his mind during the injury-enforced break. Prannoy has a 2016 South Asian Games team gold in his cabinet, as well as an individual silver from the same competition and bronze in the Asia Team Championships the same year. He also won the US Open last year

as he moved into the top-10 in global singles rankings.

He defeated compatriot Kidambi Srikanth in the final of the National Championships in November. Still he feels he has a lot of things to learn from the world No.2 from Guntur. Srikanth is the highest-ranked Indian in the category. The two shuttlers will carry big expectations from India.

Prannoy reckons that the Indian badminton contingent has proven performers and should be a strong contender in the mixed team event.

Pacers promise bruising SA-Aus Test series D U R BA N, F e b 2 7 (Agencies): The pace attacks of South Africa and Australia are preparing to slug it out for supremacy in what is likely to be a bruising four-Test series over the next five weeks.

The countries will pin their hopes of victory on their quicks with seamer friendly wickets on order for the Tests in Durban, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town and Johannesburg, and the contests set to be dominated by fiery exchanges of fast bowling.

The series between the world’s second and thirdranked teams starts on Thursday with the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban and both countries brimming with confidence after success in their last respective series.

South Africa’s bowlers struck fear into India in their opening two Tests in January before the tourists settled in and won a consolation game in the three-match series.

This was achieved without injury-plagued veteran Dale Steyn but Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander

Morne Morkel

and Kagiso Rabada proved a potent trio, supplemented by the arrival on the Test scene of 21-year-old Lungi Ngidi.

He took nine wickets in the last two Tests against India at an average of 17.22 and reached speeds of 150 km/h.

Australia produced record-breaking bowling performances as they thumped England 4-0 in the five-Test Ashes series from November to January. Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc took 20 or more wickets each, as did spinner Nathan Lyon.

“I think there’s always a couple of series a year the whole cricketing world turns to and it feels like this series is going to be one,” said Cummins after Australia won a three-day warm-up against South Africa A at the weekend.

“I feel like we play a similar brand of cricket, both try and be quite aggressive and brave and take the game on. And both teams have some fast bowlers that want to... intimidate the batsmen.”

Batting reputations will be tested with Australia captain Steve Smith the primary target for the home bowlers and the hosts looking to exploit some indifferent form of late displayed by talisman AB de Villiers for the South Africans.

An injury to his right index finger has kept De Villiers out for the last fortnight, along with captain Faf du Plessis who has a finger injury of his own to add to recent back ailments.

But both are in the South Africa squad for the first two Tests and will be the mainstay of the home batting lineup.

Thai ‘dwarf giant’ one win from Mayweather record UEFA hold off on VAR use BA NG KO K , F e b 2 7 (Agencies): Unsung outside the boxing world, a Thai fighter nicknamed the “dwarf giant” is quietly closing in on Floyd Mayweather’s undefeated 50 fight record and with it an unlikely place among the sport’s greats.

At 5ft 2in (1.57m) and weighing just 105lb (47.6kg), minimum-weight Wanheng Menayothin is shorter, leaner and significantly less wealthy than “Money” Mayweather, the brash American who was teased from retirement last year by a $100 million purse to fight MMA star Conor McGregor.

But this spring Wanheng could tie Mayweather’s 50-0 record and enter boxing lore.

His 50th bout in April or May is set to be against Panama’s Leroy Estrada in Thailand, a low-key affair that will be followed by fans and boxing enthusiasts, but not the global audience drawn to the cross-discipline spectacle between Mayweather and McGregor.

The milestone is generating boxing buzz in a country that is better known for Muay Thai, the kingdom’s boxing-style martial art that also allows kicking, kneeing and elbows to the head.

“Am I proud? Yes I K Y M C

Wanheng Menayothin punching a bag during a training session in a Bangkok gym.

am, for being on par with the superstars,” the softly spoken 32-year-old said while sitting on a tyre and wrapping his fists with gauze ahead of a training session at his Bangkok gym.

His record of 49 wins with 17 knockouts has been earned against relative minnows -- many of them regional fighters -- but he has been dominant in the minimum-weight division and holds the World Boxing Council belt.

With his present stats he has already matched the legendary fighter Rocky

Marciano, but he doesn’t dwell too much on the numbers.

“I never thought about breaking records. I just want to win every fight like all athletes who don’t want to lose. Keep winning until I quit.”

Wa n h e n g i s f r o m Thailand’s poor r ural northeast.

Growing up he viewed fighting as a way out of poverty and moved to Bangkok at age 12 to train.

“When he arrived, he didn’t have the best skills, but he got to that point with determination,” gym

owner Chaiyasit Menayothin said.

Wanheng’s legal name is Chayaphon Moonsri.

But like many fighters in Thailand, in both boxing and Muay Thai, he has several nom de guerres for the ring in a nod to sponsors, gyms and his own style.

His endurance in bouts combined with his size earned him the label “dwarf giant”, while his alias Wanheng Menayothin derives from the gym owner’s name.

To add to the confusion, a promotional tie-in sometimes sees him add

“Five-Star Grilled Chicken” to his title because of a sponsorship deal with a Thai food giant CP. He is not alone. Another Thai boxer competing around the same weight division punches under the alias “Knockout CP Freshmart” while other fighters have taken on the name of a Thai battery company.

Down a quiet Bangkok road fringed with palm fronds, Wanheng’s gym is in a large shed partially exposed to elements, with a ring, weights, rows of equipment, two cats and the occasional intrusive bird.

Wanheng started out in Muay Thai but made the career change as he was running out of opponents, according to the gym owner.

But the move to boxing can also bring a higher-profile and more prize money.

In preparation for the historic 50th bout, trainer Supap Boonrawd, 54, is working Wanheng hard through intense daily sparring and fitness sessions and the thud of punches landing on heavy bags fills the humid gym.

“It will be a moment of pride for him and the whole country too,” Supap said of the possible 50th victory.

in CL amid ‘confusion’

BRATISLAVA, Feb 27 (Agencies): UEFA will not introduce Video Assistant Referees (VAR) for next season’s Champions League because of ongoing “confusion” surrounding its use, Aleksander Ceferin, the president of European football’s governing body, said on Monday.

“Nobody knows exactly how it works yet. There is still a lot of confusion,” Ceferin said at UEFA’s Congress in the Slovakian capital Bratislava as he confirmed it would not be introduced for next season’s Champions League.

VAR has been used this season in various club competitions, including the German Bundesliga and Italy’s Serie A. It looks set to be used at the World Cup in Russia in June and July, with the International Football Association Board (IFAB) set to confirm that decision on March 3.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino recently said he was “confident and positive” about VAR being introduced.

“I am not at all against it, but it needs to be better explained when it is being used. We will see at the World Cup,” added Ceferin.

“It could be a good

project, useful for football, but we must not rush to take such decisions.”

VAR can only be used for four game-changing situations: after a goal, penalty decisions, after a straight red card or in cases of mistaken identity.

However, Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge disagrees with UEFA’s decision.

“If I’m honest, I regret that,” said the Bayern boss.

“I’ve found in the

Bundesliga that the refereeing decisions that are being made are far more reliable and are fairer than what you’ve often experienced in the past. Unfortunately, that’s how things are for now, but I am convinced that eventually the video refs will also enter the Champions League.”

“The referees are thereby supported in a positive way. It makes the game better, more reliable and fairer.”

1st DEATH ANNIVERSARY of our beloved mother

LATE KIKRUNEILHOUÜ (NEIBAÜ) METHA

Born on 28th March 1972 – Died on 28th Feb. 2017

It’s been one year since you left us. A tear seemed like forever. The pain of losing you never goes away.

We miss you deeply each day with silent tears. Your presence is deeply missed every single moment and your memories will always be kept alive in our hearts until we meet again.

DP-1663

Loving husband, children, son-in-law and grandson.

K Y M C

12

sports

Napoli crush Cagliari 5-0 in Serie A

Marek Hamsik celebrated with his team-mates after adding a third to kill off the match.

C ag l i a r i , F e b 2 7 (IANS): SSC Napoli inflicted a 5-0 drubbing on Cagliari to increase their lead at the top of Serie A to four points, though second-placed Juventus have a game in hand. For the visitors, it was a clubrecord 10th straight league victory.

Real Madrid veteran Jose Callejon on Monday put Napoli up 1-0 with a goal in the 29th minute and the away side led 2-0 at the break courtesy of a strike in

the 42nd minute by Dries Mertens, who connected with a cross from Elseid Hysaj, reports Efe. The goal had resonance for Mertens, coming in the same stadium in Cagliari where the Belgium international posted a hattrick in his first match for Napoli in December 2016.

Napoli captain and attacking midfielder Marek Hamsik increased the margin to 3-0 with a goal in the 61st.

Winger Lorenzo In-

signe converted a penalty nine minutes later and left-back Mario Rui scored on a direct free kick in the final minute of regulation to complete the rout.

“It was game over once we got the second goal today,” Napoli head coach Maurizio Sarri was quoted as saying by the club’s website.

“We were in control and never really ran any risks. I’m happy with that because the team were able to enjoy themselves after

Nadal unfazed by rankings race on return

Rafael Nadal

ACAPULCO, Feb 27 (Agencies): Rafael Nadal says he will not be thinking about reclaiming his world number one ranking when he makes his return from injury at the Mexico Open in Acapulco on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old Spanish star will play his first match since limping out of the quarter-finals at the Australian Open when he faces Feliciano Lopez.

Following his exit in Melbourne last month, Nadal has ceded his number one ranking to Roger Federer, who became the oldest player to claim top spot on February 19.

While a victory this week would not be good enough to overhaul Federer, it would leave Nadal primed to replace the Swiss star at Indian Wells or Miami next month.

Nadal however insists

he is not motivated by a desire to reclaim the position from his long-time rival.

“I play this tournament because I like it and, not because I’m trying to be number one in the world,” Nadal said.

“At this point in my career, I’m looking to be happy, and play in the proper weeks, whether No. 1 or No. 5 in the rankings.”

Top seed Nadal will start as the favourite to win in Mexico this week, where he also won in 2005 and 2013.

Nadal meanwhile said he has fully recovered from the right leg injury that scuppered his Australian Open campaign.

“I took a couple of weeks of rest and worked hard on rehabilitation,” he said. “Last week I started practising hard again. I feel ready. Injuries are part of my career. It’s not the first time.

“Of course it’s tough, especially at this point when you feel ready to compete well.

“For me it was a good chance to be fighting for an important title in Australia.

But it happened and I can’t complain.”

that and knock the ball about, as they do so well,” he added.

The outcome leaves Cagliari in the 14th spot, just five points above the relegation zone.

The game between six-time defending champions Juventus and Atalanta in Turin was postponed due to snow. Juventus, who have 65 points, have a 13-point lead over Lazio, making the title race a twoway battle.

“Looking at the standings, I think we’re doing an amazing job but it’s also unknown territory for us. Napoli have never had more than 86 points in a season and have never enjoyed this sort of points average before,” Sarri reckoned, according to Napoli’s website.

“We’ll see how we handle ourselves over the next few months, considering that we’ve never been in this sort of position before. Our lead over Juventus doesn’t count for much. We’re going to have to scrap it out point by point and Juventus are a juggernaut of a team. We have 12 games to play in which every moment and every detail could make the difference -- luck too sometimes,” he said.

Mithali to lead India in ODI series against Aus NEW DELHI, Feb 27 (PTI): Mithali Raj will lead a 15-member Indian women’s team in the threematch ODI series against Australia to be held at Vadodara from March 12-18, the BCCI said on Tuesday.

“The All-India Women’s Selection Committee has named the India Women’s squad for the Paytm ODI series against Australia Women. The threematch series that will be held in Vadodara is part of the ICC Women’s Championship (2017-2020),” BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary said.

The Indian women’s team had a highly successful tour of South Africa as Mithali led the ODI side to a 2-1 win, while Harmanpreet Kaur guided a young squad to an emphatic 3-1 victory in a five-match T20 International series to complete a rare double.

India will start the three-match series with the first one-dayer on March 12, followed by the second and third game on March 15 and Match 18 respectively at Vadodara.

Davis Cup set to become tennis World Cup Lo n d o n, F e b 2 7 (Agencies): The Davis Cup could be transformed into an end-of-season ‘World Cup of Tennis’ under a proposal put forward by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

World tennis’ governing body has announced plans for a one-week, 18nation event to take place in one location every November and, if the plans are approved, the revamped competition could be in place for 2019.

Several “world-class cities” have already expressed interest in hosting the transformed competition, according to the ITF. The plans will be submitted to the their Annual General Meeting in Orlando this August, with a two-thirds majority required for final approval of the proposal.

A 25-year, £2.15m billion partnership with investment group Kosmos - whose founder and president is Barcelona and Spain footballer Gerard Pique - forms a key part of the plan.

“This is a complete game-changer for the ITF and for tennis,” said ITF president David Haggerty.

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, FEBrUARY 28, 2018

injured Neymar may miss Real clash

Neymar was stretchered off in tears during PSG’s 3-0 victory over Marseille.

PARIS, Feb 27 (Agencies): Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar suffered a sprained ankle and a fractured metatarsal when he was stretchered off in Sunday’s win over Marseille, the Ligue 1 leaders announced on Monday.

The Brazilian, who signed for PSG in a worldrecord move from Barcelona last year, is now a serious injury doubt for the Champions League last-16 second leg against Real Madrid at the Parc des Princes on March 6.

PSG trail in the tie after a 3-1 first-leg defeat in Spain, with their hopes of a maiden Champions League title taking a further body blow with the confirmation of

Neymar’s injury, although they didn’t specify how long the 26-year-old would be out of action.

“Additional examinations performed today (ultrasound and CT) confirmed an external sprain of the right ankle, but also an associated fissure of the fifth metatarsal,” PSG said in a short statement.

The chances of Neymar returning to fitness in time to face the reigning European champions now appear extremely slim.

He is all but certain to miss Wednesday’s French Cup quarter-final against Marseille and the weekend’s Ligue 1 visit to Troyes, with the Real clash just three days later.

Metatarsal injuries usually take weeks, if not months to recover from.

Just last year, Neymar’s international team-mate Gabriel Jesus was out of action for two months after breaking a metatarsal with Manchester City, and has struggled with further injuries since.

PSG, who lead the French top flight by a massive 14 points, also said that Brazilian centre-back Marquinhos had picked up a leg muscle problem. Neymar was stretchered off in anguish towards the end of PSG’s 3-0 victory over their great rivals in the capital, having innocuously rolled his right ankle and flopped to the ground in pain.

Dortmund held 1-1 by Augsburg BERLIN, Feb 27 (Agencies): Kevin Danso’s late 1-1 equalizer helped Augsburg to snatch one point against Borussia Dortmund at the closer of the 24th round in Bundesliga on Monday.

Marco Reus’ opener wasn’t enough to secure all three points on home soil as Augsburg levelled the scores late in the second half to end their two-game losing streak.

After two straight defeats, Augsburg started highly motivated and aggressive into the encounter giving hosts no time to gain a foothold into the game.

However, Dortmund kept their calm and implemented their style of play to break the deadlock against the run of the game as Marco Reus finished off a counter attack via Mario Goetze and Andre Schuerrle from close rang with 16 minutes played.

Peter Stoeger’s men controlled possession but lacked in ideas to extend their advantage meanwhile Augsburg barely posed threat to Dortmund’s defence within the first half.

After the restart things changed as Augsburg came out with chances through

Mahmoud Dahoud (Up) of Borussia Dortmund vies with Philipp Max of FC Augsburg during the Bundesliga match.

Jonathan Schmid, who came close twice at the hour mark.

As the match progressed, Augsburg increased the pressure and rewarded their efforts in the closing period as Kevin Danso tapped home his own rebound from close range to restore parity in the 72nd minute.

The “BVB” threw everything up front but Augs-

burg were able to stand firm and to hijack one point from Dortmund.

“We defended very well except for one situation. We have previously pointed out their counter strength. I am very satisfied with the team’s performance and the draw,” Augsburg’s head coach Manuel Baum said.

“I am not satisfied at all. We had an ideal start

and we really wanted to press for a second goal.

Instead, we just played back and forth and tried to protect our lead,” Borussia Dortmund’s head coach Peter Stoeger said.

With the result, runner-up Dortmund dropped points on the hunt for runaway leaders Bayern Munich whereas Augsburg stay on the 8th position of the Bundesliga standings.

Courtois backs Chelsea to Srikanth wins TOISA Sportsperson of the Year seal Champions League spot

M U M BAI , F e b 2 7 (Agencies): Kidambi Srikanth, PV Sindhu, Jasprit Bumrah, Pankaj Advani, Harmanpreet Singh, Savita Punia, Heena Sidhu and Ankur Mittal are among the winners at the 2018 Mahindra Scorpio Times of India Awards (TOISA) powered

by All-Out in Mumbai, which honoured the best performance in Indian sport in 2017.

Srikanth’s record-setting year earned him another accolade in the shape of the top prize of Sportsperson of the Year, and he was also the Jury’s Choice for Badminton Player of the Year (male). Sindhu, currently ranked fourth in the world, was also recognised after winning two Super Series titles, a silver medal at the Badminton World Championships and another at the BWF World Super Series Finals.

A myriad of the country’s best sportspersons were in attendance in Mumbai

Kidambi Srikanth

for the third TOISA, where the suave tennis champion Stefan Edberg was present as the mentor. Winning Cricketer of the Year were Bumrah, who last year soared to No 1 in the ICC rankings for T20Is and third place in ODIs, and star allrounder Harmanpreet Kaur for her starring role for the Indian team that reached the final of the ICC Women’s World Cup. This was Harmanpreet’s second

TOISA win.

The other male-female winner combos were the two pillars of the Indian men’s and women’s hockey teams which were crowned Asian champions last year, Harmanpreet Singh and Savita Punia, and shooters Sidhu and Mittal. Harmanpreet was the men’s team’s leading scorer in 2017 with 18 goals, including starring roles in the Asia Cup title run and India’s

bronze medal finish at the Hockey World League final in Bhubaneshwar. Savita, goalkeeper for the women’s team, was exceptional during the Women’s Asia Cup where she was named Goalkeeper of the Tournament.

In a breakthrough year, Mittal made it to No 1 in the men’s double trap, winning one gold and two silver medals at ISSF events and another gold at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships, while Sidhu’s success included three gold medals and another at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships.

Claiming his third TOISA award in the Jury’s Choice field was Advani, just three months after he won his 18th international title. Varun Bhati was adjudicated Para-athlete of the Year, making it two TOISA wins in a row.

This is the third edition of TOISA, where a jury comprising Abhinav Bindra, Bhaichung Bhu-

tia, Devendra Jhajharia, Reeth Abraham and Gautam Gambhir along with the Chief Editor of Times

Internet Ltd, Rajesh Kalra, put their heads together to L o n d o n , F e b 2 7 select India’s best sportsper- (Agencies): Chelsea sons of 2017. have the quality to secure a top four spot in the PreList of the winners: mier League as the race for Sportsperson of the year: Kidambi Srikanth Champions League qualifiTeam of the year: Indian men’s hockey team cation heats up, goalkeeper Coach of the year: Anil Kumble Thibaut Courtois has said.

Inspiration of the year: Indian women’s cricket team After a 1-1 draw with Emerging player of the year: Anish Bhanwala Barcelona in the first leg of Lifetime achievement: Vijay Amritraj their Champions League Para-athlete of the year: Varun Bhati last-16 tie this month, ChelArcher of the year: Abhishek Verma sea were defeated 2-1 by Athlete of the year: G Lakshmanan Badminton player of the year (M & F): Kidambi Srikanth & PV Manchester United in the league last Sunday and Sindhu lie six points behind the Basketball player of the year: Amjyot Singh Gill second-placed team in fifth Billiard/snooker player of the year: Pankaj Advani position.

Boxer of the year: Gaurav Bidhuri Runaway leaders ManChess player of the year: Harika Dronavalli chester City hold a 13-point Cricketer of the year (male and female): Jasprit Bumrah & Haradvantage, having played manpreet Kaur one game fewer than the Football player of the year: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu rest of the top five, leaving Golfer of the year: Ajeetesh Sandhu Hockey player of the year (M & F): Harmanpreet Singh & Savita United, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool Punia to battle it out to be the best Shooter of the year (M & F): Ankur Mittal & Heena Sidhu of the rest.

Squash player of the year: Saurav Ghosal “It stays the same, it is TT player of the year: Sathiyan Gnansekaran tough,” Courtois told the Tennis player of the year: Rohan Bopanna club’s website. “City are Weightlifter of the year: Saikhom Mirabai Chanu obviously far away but for Wrestler of the year: Bajrang Punia the second, third and fourth

Thibaut Courtois

spot there are five teams so it will be hard until the last match of the season.

“But I think we have enough quality as we saw on Sunday and we showed it against Barcelona. I think we are a very good team but there are some other good teams around us as well.”

Chelsea now face crucial fixtures against City and Crystal Palace as they look to regain their footing in the league, after three defeats in their last five matches.

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