Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com
Vol XXXIII No. 38
DIMAPUR, SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023 Pages 12 ` 5.00
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Assembly polls will be held as mandated by Constitution: ECI
Correspondent
KOHIMA, JAN 14 (NPN): Amidst the chorus for solution not election, visiting officials of Election Commission of India (ECI) reiterated that the commission was determined to conduct polls as mandated by the constitution and also exuded confidence in smooth conduct of the process. ECI team which visited Kohima said this at a press conference Saturday evening when asked about the call by various civil society organisations (CSOs), including seven NNPGs, to abstain from election if no solution to the Naga political issue was arrived at. In the briefing, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar reminded that the term of Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) ends by March 12,2023 and that the constitution clearly mandated ECI to elect the next house for forming the government before that term expired. Kumar also explained that ECI was mandated by the constitution to conduct elections and declare results before the term of an Assembly was over. He said the commission therefore, was duty bound to complete the process before the term ended. On date of election, Kumar said that the ECI team which had toured the states going to election– Nagaland, Meghalaya and Tripura – will hold consultations and would discuss the feedbacks before making the decision.
8 loaders at IGI held for stealing from passengers’ bags NEW DELHI, JAN 14 (IANS): In a joint operation, the Delhi Police along with the vigilance department of the airlines at the IGI airport arrested eight loaders working with ground handling agencies for stealing valuable items such as cash, jewellery, and electronics items from the flyers’ baggage. The arrested individuals have been identified as Deepak Pal, Gautam Kumar, Moshin Khan, Rahul Yadav, Yashwinder, Pappi Kumar, Neeraj Kumar and Kamal Kumar. Police said that they all had formed the gang. (Cont’d on p-8)
This is it!
“Out in political wilderness for 20 years, he believes it’s time to don his battle dress.” K Y M C
(5th from L) CEC Rajiv Kumar along with ECI officials addressing the media at Kohima. (NP)
He also assured that adequate security personnel will be deployed to ensure smooth conduct of the polls. Kumar also said the forces would be optimally deployed, based on requirements. Kumar also reiterated that ECI would not allow poll malpractices like proxy voting, booth capturing, use of money and muscle power, etc and for which, authorities have been clearly and strictly instructed not to allow these. Regarding Ladigarh polling station under Tamlu constituency, Longleng district where voters face situations during election, Kumar said the ECI discussed the matter and directed the chief secretary and director general of police (DGP) of Assam to extend full support. He said they would also ensure smooth movement of all election-related machinery for smooth conduct of the polls. Female voters outnumber male: The commissioner informed the media that the Nagaland has a total of 13,09,651 voters who would be exercising their franchise in the upcoming election. Of these, 6,56,035 were females and 6,53,616
males. Further, there were 7,981 service voters, 6,970 persons with disability (PwD), 36,403 80-plus citizens, 1,675 centenarians (100+) and 30,049 first-time voters (18-19 years). He said 2,315 polling stations would be set up across the State, of which 531 would be in urban areas and the remaining 1,784 in rural areas, while there would be an average of 566 voters per polling station. He disclosed that 10 polling stations would be managed by PwD and 196 by women, including women security personnel. He said assured minimum facilities (AMF) like ramps with proper gradient, volunteers, drinking water, waiting shed, toilet with water facility and adequate arrangement for lighting in the polling stations. For senior citizens and centenarians, Kumar said facilities like postal ballot at home (Form 12 D), accessible polling stations, volunteer assistance, priority in voting, etc, would be provided that would inspire younger generation to participate in the festival of democracy. Similarly, facilities like ramps with
proper gradient, priority in voting, postal ballot facility (Form 12 D), sample braille ballot facility, wheelchair, volunteers at polling stations, pick-up and dropping facility and dedicated parking would be provided to PwD along with PwD app Saksham to facilitate voting. He pointed out that besides voter ID card, one could also vote with approved documents for identification like Aadhar card, PAN card, passport, MGNREGA card, driving licence, pension document, etc. He declared that the commission would reach out to the last man in queue for an inclusive and participatory election, especially in constituencies like 60 Pungro in Kiphire district and 44 Phomching in Mon district. cVigil mobile App for complaints: Meanwhile, the commissioner said cVigil mobile app had been launched for vigilant voters and stronger democracy. He maintained that the app was created for alert citizens for recording and reporting any electoral malpractice and that it captured the GIS location of the citizen.
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Ready to pave way for final settlement: Rio Correspondent
KOHIMA, JAN 14 (NPN): Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio reaffirmed again, the commitment made by all 60 legislators that they were ready to pave the way when a final settlement of the Naga political issue was arrived at. He said this while speaking as special guest at the inauguration of Chiechama dahou (amphitheatre) at Chiechama village. Rio claimed that with Naga political negotiations at final stage, the State government would also like to appeal to negotiating parties to come to a logical conclusion. As the chorus “for solution and not election” grew louder as Assembly election was to be held in Februaryend or first week of March, Rio maintained that even if solution is not arrived at before the polls, holding of timely election was a constitutional requirement that could not be avoided. How-
Rio with village elders at the inaugural programme. (NP)
ever, if in the event election was deferred, Rio cautioned that President’s Rule would become inevitable and that there would be no government to stand for the voice of the people. Rio mentioned that a team of Election Commission of India (ECI) headed by chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar were on a three-day visit to Nagaland to review preparations for the Assembly polls and announce the election schedule after returning to Delhi. He disclosed that once election was completed,
census would be carried out, followed by the delimitation exercise, admitting that the previous delimitation exercise was not carried out in a proper manner. Referring to Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation’s (ENPO) Frontier Nagaland demand since 2010, he said a cabinet committee was formed in 2011, after which the Centre was apprised about the findings and recommendation for granting Autonomous Council and financial package. Even as the State government empathised with
the issue, he mentioned that the cabinet had urged ENPO to reconsider its demand in the greater interest of Nagas as a whole. Highlighting the importance of the amphitheatre, Rio said the dahou was a sacred place used by forefathers for village meetings, settling disputes, maintaining peace and for other social gatherings. He therefore urged the village to protect and maintain sanctity of the newly-constructed amphitheatre and called for promotion and preservation of Naga customs and traditions. He also encouraged the gathering to avail Chief Minister Health Insurance Scheme (CMHIS) and Chief Minister’s Micro Finance Initiative. He thanked the Ministry of Tribal Affairs for sanctioning the amphitheatre project and the village leaders for their cooperation and congratulated them on successful completion of the construction. (Cont’d on p-8)
NSCN (I-M), WC declare ‘unconditional commitment’ for solution
DIMAPUR, JAN 14 (NPN): NSCN (I-M) and the Working Committee (WC) of the NNPGs on Saturday declared its “unconditional commitment to collaborate” on the basis of their respective agreements (Framework Agreement and Agreed Position) with immediate effect, “for the resolution of the Naga historical and political rights with the Government of India.” In a joint declaration titled “Nagas are moving ahead”, signed by NSCN (IM) chairman Q. Tuccu and WC/NNPGs convenor N. Kitovi Zhimomi in the presence of Forum for Naga Rec(Cont’d on p-8) onciliation, the two leaders
(L-R) Tuccu and Zhimomi after signing the joint declaration.
noted that “in times of crises in the Naga movement, Nagas have always survived. Today, the loud chorus of the day from different directions converge us to action for the shared future of the Nagas.”
They maintained that since the “September Joint Accordant” of September 14, 2022, both NNPGs and NSCN (I-M) had agreed to form the “Council of Naga Relationships and Coop-
eration”, “to explore, at the earliest, realistic ways for Nagas to move forward on the basis of Naga historical and political rights.” In affirmation of this position, they said the NNPGs and NSCN (I-M) on January 14, 2023 declared their unconditional commitment to collaborate and work for the resolution of the Naga historical and political rights with Government of India. Tuccu and Zhimomi, therefore, appealed Nagas to stand with them “to prevent any further division of our shared belonging.” “This statement is a political speech of the undeniable Naga soul,” they stated.
State’s first Sewage treatment plant inaugurated Remote Voting Machine: EC calls Staff Reporter
DIMAPUR, JAN 14 (NPN): Public Health Engineer (PHE) minister Jacob Zhimomi inaugurated the first ever sewage treatment plant-- “Pollution abatement of rivers Diphu and Dhansiri”, at Shozukhu village on Saturday. Speaking on the occasion, he said it was a-long awaited project to be commissioned and a challenging one, in which PHE department had put up a lot of efforts to make sure that it was completed. He expressed the hope that the project would be successful and have a positive impact on rest of the State as it was eco and environment
Jacob Zhimomi with officials after inaugurating the project. (NP)
friendly. While congratulating the department for its effort in completing the project, he encouraged everyone to take care of the infrastructure and facilities and make best use of these. Jacob said that the Central government led by Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi had taken a serious note of the pollution in rivers across the country. He said Dhansiri and Diphu rivers in Nagaland were targeted as these had become highly polluted and the flow of sewage had to be stopped.
Jacob also spoke about the various waste management projects carried out under Swachh Bharat Mission like open-defecation free (ODF) and ODF Plus (Grey Water Management, Plastic Waste Management, Faecal Sludge Management, Biodegradable Waste Management and IEC). He stated that Nagaland was declared ODF in 2018. D e l ive r i n g t e c h n i c a l report, PHE chief engineer Thsathrichem Sangtam said the project was approved and sanctioned in 2005 by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) under National River Conservation Plan.
all-party meeting on January 16
NEW DELHI, JAN 14 (ANI): The Election Commission has called the chairpersons, presidents, and general secretaries of all the national parties for a meeting to be held on January 16. The meeting pertains to the demonstration and discussion of the Remote Voting Machine. Notably, to encourage domestic migrants to exercise their franchise, ECI on December 29, informed about a prototype Multi-Constituency Remote Electronic Voting Machine (RVM), which would enable migrant voters to vote from remote polling stations. It said the inability to vote due to internal migration (domestic migrants) is one of the prominent (Cont’d on p-8) reasons behind low voter turnout.
The migrant voter wouldn’t be required to travel to his/her home district to exercise his/her franchise. The Commission has also invited all recognised eight national and 57 regional political parties on January 16, 2023, to demonstrate the functioning of the multi-constituency prototype Remote EVM. Members of the EC’s Technical Expert Committee will also be present during the demonstration. The Commission has also solicited written views of recognised political parties by January 31, 2023, on various related issues including changes required in legislation, changes in administrative procedures, and voting method/RVM/technology, if any other, for the domestic migrants, the release further stated.
Over 3700 landslides in 7 years; experts question impact assessments NEW DELHI, JAN 14 (IANS): Amid the reports of major land subsidence in Joshimath in Uttarakhand causing massive damage, government data has disclosed that a total 3782 instances of major landslides occurred in various parts of the country between 2015 to 2022 which have impacted lives and infrastructure. According to the Geological Survey of India, about 0.42 million sq km or 12.6 per cent of the land area, excluding snow covered area, is prone to landslide hazard in India. Out of this, 0.18 million sq km falls in North East Himalaya, including Darjeeling
and Sikkim; 0.14 million sq km falls in North West Himalaya (Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir); 0.09 million sq km in Western Ghats and Konkan hills (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra) and 0.01 million sq km in the Eastern Ghats of Aruku area in Andhra Pradesh. The landslide-prone Himalayan terrain falls in the maximum earthquakeprone zones and also prone to earthquake-triggered landslides. While the authorities talk about following proper procedures in setting up a project in vulnerable re-
File photo of 2019 landslide near Old KMC dumping site. (NP)
gions and also in carrying out post-disaster assessment, experts have time and again raised the issues of a lacklustre approach in dealing with such significant
issues of environmental and ecological concern. As per the government, from the post disaster investigations of the landslides it was revealed that the major
trigger for landslides was unprecedented high rainfall. The other important geo-factors such as terrain character, slope forming material, geomorphology, land use or land cover in different terrain are the preparatory factors for initiation of landslides. Moreover, anthropogenic causes such as unprotected slope cuts, blocking of drainage etc have also been reported in many of the slides. However, environmentalist Himanshu Thakkar, coordinator at South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, pointed to flaws in the process of carrying out an Environment Impact
Assessment (EIA). “There has been no proper assessment of a project’s impact on the environment and vulnerability of the area. Similarly, there is no proper system of assessment that how the project is going to perform in such cases of vulnerabilities. I have written on these issues to the concerned authorities, but, nothing substantial has happened.” Similarly, we have failed in technical clearance. There should be cumulative impact assessment. “There is no concrete post disaster assessment even in case of major landslides.
Governor greets on Sökrönye festival
DIMAPUR, JAN 14 (NPN): Nagaland governor Pro. Jagdish Mukhi has extended Sökrönye greetings to the Chakhesang community and the people of Nagaland. “Sökrönye is a harvest festival and the essence of this beautiful festival is the sanctification of the Chakhesang community,” he said, adding that the rituals involved were meant to purify the souls, and the children also learn the rich spiritual and cultural practices. On the occasion, Governor wished all a safe and (Cont’d on p-8) a joyous festival. K Y M C