March 15, 2019

Page 1

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXIX No. 97

DIMAPUR, FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019 Pages 12 ` 5.00

Nehru committed original mistake on China: Jaitley

Liverpool through to Champions League quarters

Trump faces Senate revolt in vote on border emergency

national, Page 5

sports, Page 12

international, Page 9

Myanmar army cracks down on NSCN (K) leaders

Correspondent

KOHIMA, MAR 14 (NPN): Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) on Thursday disclosed that the party will be finalizing the nominee for the ensuing Lok Sabha election on March 15. When contacted, NPCC sources informed Nagaland Post that so far the party has received names of three intending candidates till date. The intending candidates include-- former Lok Sabha MP, K. Asangba Sangtam, former chief minister K.L. Chishi who recently quit the BJP party and returned to Congress and former Congress minister, E.T. Ezung. The names have been forwarded to the AICC screening committee. The committee will take the final call on March 15 before forwarding it to the AICC Central Election Committee (CEC) for final approval and announcement, sources said. Final decision will be announced on March 15 evening. KL Chishi re-joins Congress: Former chief minister KL Chishi said

he had rejoined Indian National Congress as his heart and spirit could not remain separated for long from the party, which was the true epitome of secularism and upholds the sanctity of Indian constitution. In a statement, Chishi said his brief association with BJP had made him realise that a party with communal and fundamentalist ideology like BJP was a threat to the aspirations of Nagas clamouring for an honourable political settlement of the protracted IndoNaga political issue. He asserted that Nagas at this juncture needed a national party like Congress that respected “our faith and way of life without telling us what to eat, wear or follow”. Chishi also expressed his sincere gratitude to the leadership of both All India Congress Committee and Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee for accepting him back in the party, which he termed as a “homecoming”. “Together we will put up united fight to defeat communal and fascist forces,” he declared.

Correspondent

M O KO KC H U N G, M A R 1 4 (NPN): O. Tinujungshi Longkumer, brother of late Imtikumzuk Longkumer-- who was the NDPP MLA of 26 Aonglenden A/C and advisor of Sericulture and Excise, has decided to contest the by-election as an independent candidate. Though Tinu had sought the ticket from the NDPP, he said he had no remorse or ill feelings towards the party. As reported in Nagaland Post in February last, Tinu was already prepared to contest the by-poll as his name was proposed by well wishers and supporters. Talking to media persons on the side lines of a civic reception at Settsu village junction, Tinu said he opted to vie for the NDPP ticket to honour his late brother Imtikumzuk, who passed away on September 22, 2018. Tinu said his poll plank will be focussed on the welfare of youth and for human resource development. “I want to move the youth forward” he said adding that he does not want the youth of today to face the many obstacles he had faced himself. He further appealed to the people to believe in and practice fair elections. “I am contesting with a strong determination to serve the people,” he added. Hundreds of supporters from the seven units of 26 Aonglenden A/C attended the civic reception, to welcome Tinu.

21 Opposition parties move SC on VVPATs; hearing today NEW DELHI, MAR 14 (AGENCIES): Supreme Court on Friday will hear a petition moved by 21 Opposition parties, asking it to pass a directive that electronic voting machines be made tamper-proof. The court will hear the petitions on Friday. The parties want mandatory verification of 50% votes by paper trail before announcement of results in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Andhra Pradesh chief minister and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu had declared in an opposition meet in February that the parties will move SC against use of EVMs. Naidu is the lead petitioner in this case. Apart from Naidu’s TDP, the parties that have approached the apex court include the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party led by Sharad Pawar, Arvind Kejriwal led Aam Aadmi Party, CPI (Marxist), CPI, Derek O’Brien for the Trinamool Congress, Farooq Abdullah for the National Conference, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Sharad Yadav’s Loktantrik Janata Dal and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). The decision to approach SC was taken in the meeting at Sharad Pawar’s residence. In a meeting with the Election Commission in February, Opposition parties had raised doubts about the credibility of electronic voting machines, though the EC has repeatedly denied allegations that the machines can be tampered with. Dismissing the apprehensions, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora had said that the country would not revert to using ballot papers for elections. Announcing the Lok Sabha election schedule on Sunday, the EC had said that mandatory checking of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) will be done for one polling station in each Lok Sabha constituency.

MANDALAY, MAR 14 (AGENCIES): Myanmar army (Tatmadaw) has taken more than a dozen leaders of the NSCN (K) faction led by Yung Aung into custody after an operation against their base at Taga in Sagaing Division of Myanmar last month. Top Burmese army officials told Northeast Now that these leaders have been told to dismantle their bases in Sagaing and continue their negotiations with Burmese authorities under the framework of the Nationwide Ceasefire arrangement. The NSCN (K) has maintained the ceasefire arrangement with Myanmar government since 2012, despite reneging on their ceasefire with India. “We will not allow any hostile activity against India from our soil,” said a top Myanmarese army official but he requested anonymity as he was not officially authorized to speak to the media. The Tatmadaw raided the NSCN (K) bases at Taga in early February and dis-

mantled them. The NSCN (K) leaders did not resist because they wanted to maintain the cease-fire. The army official said that the NSCN (K) leaders will have to remain in designated camps and not carry out any hostile activity against India from Burmese soil. The Myanmar army has also attacked ULFA bases and that of Manipuri rebel groups in and around Taga. Some ULFA rebels like ‘maj.’ Jyotirmoy Asom have died in the Burmese army operation. Sources in NSCN (K) confirmed that they have been told to stop aiding antiIndian rebel groups or face severe consequences. The developments in Sagaing spells the death knell of the North Eastern rebel groups since the remote hill region in Myanmar was their last trans-border base area after Bhutan and Bangladesh had cracked down against anti-Indian rebels in their territory in 2003 and 2009. Indian army sources said that many rebels from

Airfares set to rise further after soaring over 100%

Power still a costly service: commr & secy PDA issue tickets for Lok Sabha and by-election

New Delhi/Mumbai, Mar 14 (IANS): Air passengers might continue to face the grim prospect of high airfares and fewer flight choices as several airlines have cancelled operations for a number of reasons, including the grounding of the Boeing 737-MAX aircraft. Industry insiders on Thursday pointed out that with no short-term relief in sight, some sectors will continue to see a rise of more than 100 per cent in last minute bookings. “With no short term relief in sight. Passengers can expect the trend of high airfares to last about a month’s time. Passengers should book their tickets in advance,” ixigo Co-founder and CEO Aloke Bajpai told IANS. “High airfare patterns are expected to continue in the short-term with Holi and summer school holidays round the corner, resulting in increased demand,” Bajpai said. According to Sharat Dhall, COO (B2C) Yatra. com, civil aviation regulator DGCA’s decision to ground the Boeing 737-MAX aircraft has resulted in a fairly significant impact on air fares for immediate travel on certain key routes.

This is it!

‘Well, the good is that sanction is accorded. The bad news is if a new govt comes there’s no guarantee.” K Y M C

Correspondent

KO H I M A , M A R 1 4 (NPN): Pointing out that power was still a costly service in the State, power and IT commissioner & secretary KD Vizo called upon engineers of power department to find out mechanisms for providing cheap power connection so that even a common man was able to afford electricity. Addressing the general conference of Association of Power Engineers Nagaland (APEN) held at Hotel Japfu here on Thursday, Vizo said power connection was a basic service for the citizens and its interruption could endanger health, personal safety and even lives of an entire or part of a population. He explained that by providing an essential service, lives of people, especially in rural areas, could be uplifted. Vizo told the gathering that there was no end to

Manipur and Assam have also surrendered to authorities after fleeing Sagaing following the Myanmar military operations. “The chain of command in these groups has broken down following the Burmese military operation. Many of them are running around like headless chickens,” they said. Myanmar military officials said that they have “excellent understanding” with Indian military officials, cemented during the last several months following regular visits by top commanders on either side. After the Tatmadaw overran the group’s headquarters in Taga village, Nanyun township, Sagaing Region, on January 29, the NSCN (K) has planned extensive meetings with Naga community and religious leaders to establish peace in the Naga Self-Administered Zone of Myanmar’s Sagaing Region. A civilian committee was formed on February 24 to reduce tensions between the military and the armed group.

Lok Sabha polls: 3 in Ind candidate in race for Cong ticket fray for by-election

improvement of services, adding, “We must incorporate the state-of-the art technology for making various improvements with regard to power supply. He also provided various suggestions in this regard. Underscoring billing and collection mechanism for increasing revenue collection and providing power connection for strengthening the State’s economy, the commissioner & secretary called for a mechanism to deliver electricity connections at cheaper price. Further, he called on the power department to be more stringent on power theft and safety. “Keeping in view that large-scale industrialization is about to start in the State, we should make plans in such a way that industrial requirements of power are met,” he said, adding that there was still a huge wastage of power. He stressed

creation of awareness and sensitising general citizens on energy conservation. The commissioner also emphasised on training and capacity building to handle new technologies, while giving more focus on improving power connectivity in rural areas. Calling on the engineers to work collectively and maintain good relations with people, Vizo urged senior engineers who are on the verge of superannuation to continue giving their valuable suggestions and inputs so that quality of power distribution could be improved. Vizo claimed that the power department through the dedication of its engineers had made commendable improvement in areas of transmission, distribution, revenue collection and generation, where a lot of groundwork was being tak(Cont’d on p-7) en up.

Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, MAR 14 (NPN): The ruling People’s Democratic Alliance (PDA) Thursday officially handed over tickets for the Lok Sabha polls and by-election to 26-Aonglenden Assembly Constituency to NDPP nominees at the NDPP headquarters in Dimapur. Sitting member of the Lower House, Tokheho Yepthomi was re-nominated as the PDA consensus candidate for the Lok Sabha seat and Sharingain Longkumer as the official PDA candidate for the by-election. Addressing the ticket distribution programme, chief minister Neiphiu Rio said being in the government, PDA consensus candidate had the advantage of winning the polls. Rio said he was hoping that the winning margin would be huge. Rio further appealed to all eligible voters to partici-

(L-R) Tokheho and Sharingain at the ticket distribution event.

pate in nation-building by exercising their franchise. PDA chairman and NDPP president Chingwang Konyak called upon all alliance partners not to be complacent but to work hard. Tokheho and Sharingain also addressed the gathering. Short speeches were also delivered by BJP legislator and deputy CM, Y. Patton, BJP president and minister, Temjen Imna Along and NPP legislator and adviser Imnatiba, The programme was chaired by NDPP working president, Nuzota Swuro,

welcome address by NDPP treasurer, Dr. John Murry and the vote of thanks was delivered by BJP general secretary, K. James Vizo. Filing of nomination to both the seats will start on March 18 till March 25. Talking to reporters after the ticket distribution programme, Sharingain Longkumer stated that he wanted to emphasize mostly on youth and women empowerment and sustainable development, if elected to power. When asked about the 33% women reservation, Sharingain, an advocate by profession, was of the view

Formalin occurs naturally in fish, claim Andhra fish traders Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, MAR 14 (NPN): Even as the theory suggesting formalin inherently found in fish has been debunked by various microbiologists, fish traders from Andhra Pradesh seem to be adamant that formalin is naturally found in fish. For the second time on record, they have stuck to their claim of formalin occurring naturally in fish. The first time was in October last year when a team from Andhra Pradesh met the principal secretary of health & family welfare department. At a meeting held between Nagaland government officials and Andhra Pradesh Fish Traders (APFT) representatives on March 4, APFT general secretary M Veera Satya claimed that formalin recently detected in fish in Nagaland could well be the “naturally occurring

Formalin injected fish being disposed off in Kohima on February 23, 2019. (File)

and not manually added”. To ascertain if the claim was scientifically correct, Nagaland Post spoke to Dr Rongsenwati of Animal Health Care Centre at Duncan Basti here and was told that under normal circumstances, and unless the water was contaminated, formalin did not naturally occur in fish. He said the use of formalin was unethical and fish traders should desist

from it, adding that unscrupulous traders resorted to such malpractices because preservation in ice containers or chambers could be quite expensive. Rongsenwati stated that fish could be preserved for weeks, if stored in iceboxes and in sub-zero temperature, indicating that, given proper preservation facilities, fish could be consumed even after a week.

The claim by the team from Andhra Pradesh in October 2018 was also refuted by a chemist from State Public Health Laboratory (SPHL) based in Kohima, M James Richa, who had spoken to this reporter. Richa alleged that a team from Andhra Pradesh that met the principal secretary then made a “factually incorrect claim that a minimal trace of formalin is

naturally found in fish.” The chemist, who refuted the claim, said “We have done our homework. We are working day and night. As per our knowledge, formalin cannot be present in fresh fish.” On March 4, representatives from Nagaland once again countered the claim and questioned APFT that if there was no trace of formalin in the consignment inspected at DDSC stadium on October 17, how come its traces were found this time? They maintained that there shouldn’t be any trace of formalin in the fish imported to the State. Dr Sentimoa, a veterinary doctor attached with Dimapur Municipal Council, said technicians from SPHL also maintained that the theory of formalin naturally occurring in fish was just a postulation and that there was no conclusive evidence. In July last year,

the Government of Goa had similarly claimed that formalin was inherently present in fish, which was rejected outright by two microbiologists – Dr Anil Chatterji and Joe D’ Souza. A marine microbiologist who spent four decades with National Institute of Oceanography in Panaji, Chatterji asserted that formalin was not a naturally occurring compound, adding that while compounds like amino acids could be naturally presents, formalin could not be naturally present. A microbiologist and former head of Goa University’s microbiology department, D’ Souza also refuted the claim and termed it “false. He pointed out that whatever was found in fish was a compound called Aldehye which was used as a nutrient and produced energy through various metabolic processes.

that there were some issues relating to its applicability which needed more deliberation and asserted that it needs to be sensitized more on the rural areas. He also lamented that the youth of today were frustrated and wanted change. “If we have to bring change, first we have to identify where we want the change, then we have to involve ourselves and once everyone starts doing that, then change will definitely come,” he added.

LS campaign from Dmu

PDA will kick-start its campaign for the 2019 Parliamentary elections on March 19 at the DDSC Stadium Dimapur, Nagaland at 11 A.M. In this regard, the PDA has requested all the rank and files of the coalition partners to attend the event positively, including well wishers and public.

IT monitoring cell set up in Kohima

DIMAPUR, MAR 14 (NPN): In view of the forthcoming elections, the directorate of Income Tax (Investigation) North East Region, Guwahati has set up 24x7 control room and complaint monitoring cell at Kohima. Informing this in a press note, chief electoral officer Nagaland, Abhijit Sinha said that any information pertaining to black money or movement of large amount of cash or valuables during the election period, which are likely to be used for bribing of electors can be communicated to the control cell through the toll free number 180003453735. IT department has also deployed 116 additional officials and inspectors across the North Eastern states to monitor election expenditure of candidates and flow of black money during the (Cont’d on p-7) Lok Sabha poll process. K Y M C


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