March 31, 2021

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXXI No. 114

DIMAPUR, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021 Pages 12 ` 5.00

Japan thrash Mongolia 14-0 in WC qualifier sports, Page 12

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COVID situation going from ‘bad to worse’: Govt Says, the entire country is at risk and nobody should be complacent NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (AGENCIES): The coronavirus situation is “turning from bad to worse” and is a huge cause of worry especially for some states, the Centre said on Tuesday while stressing that the whole country is at risk and nobody should be complacent.

Addressing a weekly press conference, NITI Aayog member (Health) VK Paul said, “As you have noticed in the last few weeks, the situation is becoming bad to worse. It is a serious cause of concern. In some states in particular, there is a huge cause of worry. No part of the country should be complacent.”

“We are facing an increasingly severe and intense situation, more so surely in some districts. But the whole country is potentially at risk and therefore all efforts to

Petrol, diesel prices slashed DIMAPUR, MAR 30 (NPN): State-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) decreased the prices of petrol and diesel on Tuesday after a four-day halt. Prices of the petrol declined in the range of 22-19 paise while diesel prices were reduced by 21-23 paise across the country.

In Delhi, petrol was sold for Rs 90.56 per litre and price of diesel was Rs 80.87, down 23 paise from Monday’s level.

In Dimapur, price of petrol dropped to Rs.89.59 litre while diesel price declined to Rs.83.11 per litre.

In the state capital Kohima, prices of petrol and diesel after Tuesday’s rate revision stood at Rs.90.50 Rs.83.84 per litre respectively. Retail fuel prices had last declined on March 25. Petrol and diesel prices were last revised upwards on February 27 and post that the prices were largely unchanged ahead of the state polls.

No new COVID case

DIMAPUR, MAR 30 (NPN): No new COVID19 cases were reported from across the State on Tuesday, keep the total caseload at 12233. As on March 30, the State recorded eight active cases.

Meanwhile, a total of 85121 (62046 first does and 23075 second dose) beneficiaries both private and public sector have been inoculated.

This is it!

“Sir, in your over enthusiasm, you said we’ll win all 250 seats but there are only 126 seats.”

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(L) Dr. VK. Paul along with Rajesh Bhushan addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Tuesday. (PIB)

contain and save lives should be taken…,” he said.

Hospitals and ICUs have to be readied. If cases increase rapidly, the healthcare system would be overwhelmed, Paul warned. The average national positivity rate during last week was 5.65%. His comments come on the back of Maharashtra seeing a rapid rise in cases over the past few weeks, registering 40,414 last Sunday.

While measures to combat the spread of a second wave have been taken - Maharashtra has enforced a night curfew across the state while Karnataka has clamped down on public gatherings and festival celebrations have been banned

across the country - there seem to be no signs of the virus slowing down.

Maharashtra remains the most worrying state, with its test positivity rate — the number of positive diagnoses among tests conducted— crossing 23% in the last one week. Among the other high-burden states are Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Punjab.

Even as the daily numbers are surging— 56,211 people tested positive for Covid-19 in the last 24 hours across the country— vaccinations continue to lag in pace. From April 1, vaccinations will open up for all aged above 45 years. Both

pre-registrations and walkins are allowed, but the latter will only be entertained after 3 pm.

Health secretary writes to states: Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan Tuesday wrote to all states, calling for districts to draw up individual action plans to curb the spread of Covid19. Bhushan outlined the steps that need to be taken to stem the current rise, especially since the virus seems to be making a strong comeback in the same states that saw a high number of cases between August and November 2020.

Among the measures outlined are tracing 25-30 contacts per positive case, isolation, and larger containment zones. “Test, track, treat” remains the key, he said. He asked for all districts to draw up individual action plans. “Each district, irrespective of whether it is seeing a surge right now or is with a current low burden, should make a district action plan with clear timelines and responsibilities,” Bhushan wrote in the letter.

Myanmar bloodshed ‘outrageous’: Joe Biden

nagalandpostofficial

He also said that Covidappropriate behaviour — masking and distancing — needs to be reinforced — if needed, by using the Police Act. ‘Low share of vax in pvt hospitals’: The share of private hospitals in the vaccination programme varies by state but remains fairly low in many places. Nationally, just 16.53 per cent of the vaccinations have taken place in the private sector, the government said.

Variants: Out of a total of 11,064 samples that have been analysed for different variants since December, 807 were found to have the UK variant of the SARSCoV2 virus, 47 had the South African variant, and one had the Brazilian variant, the government said.

Director General ICMR, Dr Balram Bhargava said both vaccines currently in use in the country-- Covaxin and Covishield-- have been found to be effective against the UK and the South African variants while studies are on to determine their efficacy on the Brazilian variant.

international, Page 9

NIDA warns of ‘full scale’ protest if superannuation age not raised Correspondent

KOHIMA, MAR 30 (NPN): Resenting the silence of the state government on its demand to increase the superannuation age of doctors from the existing 60 to 65 years in line with other States in the country, Nagaland In-service Doctors’ Association (NIDA) has threatened a “full-scale” protest if the issue was not taken up in the next cabinet meeting scheduled in the second week of April.

Doctors under NIDA have been protesting since January 22 after the an emergency meeting of its executives and district representatives by wearing ‘black arm bands’ over non-fulfilment of the demand.

Interacting with a section of media persons at NHAK here on Tuesday afternoon, NIDA president Dr. E Phyantsuthung regretted that even after two months of the symbolic protest by the doctors, the State government has not taken up the issue.

He said NIDA had submitted its first memorandum over the issue to the government in 2016. However, the matter was kept was in cold storage and in October 2020 NIDA revived the issue when it submitted two memorandums- to the chief secretary and two to the chief minister In its last memorandum on March 19, NIDA urged upon the chief minister to separate the superannuation issue of the doctors from the agenda of cabinet subcommittee and expedite it in the next cabinet meeting for immediate logical conclusion.

Phyantsuthung explained that NIDA did not escalate the agitation in view of the positive assurance received from State’s health minister S Pangnyu Phom.

He said due to the second wave of COVID-19 currently in other parts of the country and ongoing COVID vaccination and resumption of non-COVID essential services, the doctors refrained from intensifying

their protest.

He expressed the hope that the state cabinet would take up the issue at its next meeting, likely to be held during the second week of April. Phyantsuthung, warned that if the matter was still not addressed, NIDA would have no option but to intensify its stir by launching a full-scale protest.

Convenor of Core Committee on Superannuation Dr. Ahu Sekhose informed media persons that out of the 27 States in the country, only Meghalaya and Nagaland did not increase the superannuation age of the government doctors. He, however, added that Meghalaya cabinet has taken up the issue and it was under process.

He claimed that some States had even increased the retirement age to 70 years, while Assam and Sikkim had increased superannuation in two phase, from 60 to 64 years and from 64 to 67.

(Cont’d on p-8)

After backlash, Manipur retracts letter on Myanmar refugees Chuba Chang uncontested Junta deepens violence with air attacks for 51 Noksen A/C by-poll

IMPHAL, MAR 30 (AGENCIES): Manipur government has withdrawn a letter issued last week directing officials to not set up any camps for Myanmar nationals crossing the border into India and to “politely turn away” those seeking refuge, reports The Hindu.

Wi t h p u b l i c a n ge r mounting in neighbouring Mizoram against attempts to thwart entry of refugees from Myanmar, Manipur’s spl. secretary (Home) H. Gyan Prakash in another letter dated March 29 said the contents of the previous letter had been “misconstrued”.

Prez undergoes bypass surgery NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (PTI): President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday underwent a cardiac bypass surgery at the AIIMS here, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

The surgery was successful and his condition is stable, it said. “The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind underwent cardiac bypass surgery today morning (March 30, 2021) at AIIMS, New Delhi. Surgery was successful. He is stable and is being closely monitored..,” the statement said.

“It appears that the contents of the letter have been misconstrued and interpreted differently. The State government has been taking all humanitarian steps had recently taken all steps, including taking them to Imphal, to treat the injured Myanmarese nationals. The government continues to provide all aid,” Prakash said.

“In order to avoid this misunderstanding I am directed to convey the decision of the Government that it has decided to withdraw the letter dated 26.03.2021...,” Prakash added.

In the March 26 letter to DCs of five districts border-

ing Myanmar, Prakash had said that in case of grievous injuries, medical attention may be provided on “humanitarian considerations” and also directed that Aadhar enrolment “should be stopped immediately and Aadhar enrolment kits taken into safe custody.” The letter drew sharp reactions from various sections on social media.

M e a n w h i l e, e v e n though the Home Ministry asserted that the refugees should be identified and deported, the Mizoram government is planning to provide employment to refugees under the MGNREGS.

MAE SAM LAEP (THAILAND), MAR 30 (AP): Violence in eastern Myanmar, including air raids that drove thousands of members of the Karen ethnic minority to seek shelter across the border in Thailand, deepened Tuesday with new air attacks by the military that seized power from an elected government last month.

Thailand’s prime minister denied that his country’s security forces had forced villagers back to Myanmar who had fled from military airstrikes over the weekend, saying they returned home

on their own accord. But the situation in eastern Myanmar appeared to be getting more, not less, dangerous.

Saw Taw Nee, head of the foreign affairs department of the Karen National Union, the main political body representing the Karen minority there, confirmed that new raids Tuesday left six civilians dead and 11 wounded.

Dave Eubank, a member of the Free Burma Rangers, which provides medical assistance to villagers in the region, provided the same information.

Is there any deal with China on WHO Covid report, asks Cong NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (IANS): Congress leader Manish Tewari on Tuesday questioned Centre’s silence on the WHO report that the coronavirus must have spread from bat to animals and then to humans and rejected all claims on it being leaked by a lab.

Manish Tewari while talking to IANS alleged that China allowed proliferation of the virus and kept the world in the dark.

He also questioned the joint WHO-China statement giving clean chit to China on the lab-leak on February 9 and allowing the

Manish Tewari (File)

disengagement of troops in Ladakh.

Tewari alleged that when China first detected the virus in Wuhan institute of virology it locked its own cities but did not stop the

international flights to curb the spread of virus.

Tewari said that it is India’s responsibility as the Chair of World Health Organisation’s Executive Board to take the investigation into the lab leaked angle to its logical conclusion, he said, adding “I do not understand why the government is silent on it.”

In his tweet, he said, “Was this the Deal with China? As India Chairs the board of WHO do not object to whitewash of China’s culpability in spreading COVID-19 & there would be disengagement in Ladakh?

Time Line says it all 9-Feb Joint WHO-China Presser rubbishing Lab Leak.”

He further added that, “10th February 2021- Chinese Ministry of National Defence Senior Colonel Wu Qian announces disengagement on North South bank of Pangong - Tso. 11th February 2021 Rajnath Singh endorses China’s statement in Rajya Sabha. Could this just be a coincidence? Highly Unlikely” India recorded 56,211 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, 17 per cent lower than the day before, taking the total tally to 1,20,95,855 on Tuesday.

Naga lady wins ‘100 Successful Women in Business Conference Awards’ Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, MAR 30 (NPN): Mumbai-based Filmmaker and social worker, Rebecca Changkija Sema, from Nagaland, was awarded the “100 Successful Women in Business Conference and Awards” 2021 by Global Trade Chambers, Florida (USA) at its annual convention held virtually from March 26 to 28.

An advisor y panel member of Central Board of Film Certification Mumbai and proprietor of Mumbaibased Find Studioz Production, Changkija is promoting tourism and artistes from the

North Eastern region, including Nagaland, through cinema.

She is also the founder of “Northeast Unsung Heroes Social Awards”, which honour unsung heroes of the region for their contribution towards society, and chairperson of Ladies of All Nations International (Nagaland), a communityinterest organisation that operates in more than 85 countries, supporting survivors, uplifting less privileged and celebrating those who had overcame circumstances like cancer and armed conflicts and brings women from all walks of life together.

Rebecca Changkija Sema

The event was broadcast live across the US and in many other nations, commemorating International Women’s Month. More than 70 countries took part in the awards ceremony, to recogn-

ise the 100 successful women around the world who made an impact in their communities through social and various humanitarian works.

Asked how she felt winning the award, Changkija said the award will serve to encourage her to work more for the betterment of society and also to put Nagaland on the international map.

She said her team from Mumbai had been organising workshops in Nagaland and providing a platform for local youth to perform in national events. She expressed the hope that Naga Hindi singer NK Naga, who recently received various awards and

recorded five songs for Bollywood movies, could serve as an example to encourage Naga youth to perform at the national level.

Apart from being one of the recipients for the “100 Successful women in Business Conference & Awards 2021– USA”, Rebecca has also won multiple awards like the “International Humanitarian Award 2020United Kingdom”; “Mahatma Gandhi National Award 2020, Delhi”; “First Female Bollywood Producer from Nagaland, Northeast India for promoting Northeast region/local talents in Bollywood” etc.

Correspondent

KO H I M A , M A R 3 0 (NPN): As the last date for filing of nomination for the 51 Noksen Assembly constituency (AC) by-election ended on Tuesday, only one candidate has so far filed nomination papers.

An official from the chief electoral officer’s (CEO) office Nagaland confirmed to Nagaland Post that barring H. Chuba Chang from NDPP, no other candidate had filed the nomination papers.

Chuba is also the PDA’s consensus candidate for the by poll scheduled on April 17.

Additional chief election officer said scrutiny of the nomination papers will be held on Wednesday and after the last date of withdrawal, the official result

will be announced.

When contacted, opposition NPF secretary general Achumbemo Kikon informed that his party had decided not to field any candidate and refused to cite any reason.

Earlier, Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee announced that it would not field any candidate, citing “bitter experience” during the Pungro-Kiphire AC by-poll.

Training cancelled: The deputy commissioner (DC) and district election officer (DEO) Tuensang, Kumar Ramnikant, has notified that the training of polling personnel scheduled for March 31, 2021 and April 1, 2021 in connection with conduct of byelection to the 51 Noksen assembly constituency has been cancelled.

Card payments to follow RBI rule from April 1 New Delhi, Mar 30 (PTI): Come April there will be no automatic recurring payment for various services including recharge and utility bill as RBI has made additional factor of authentication (AFA) mandatory after March 31.

However, banks and payment gateways are seeking additional time to comply with the RBI directive on automatic recurring payment.

On December 4, RBI had directed all banks including RRBs, NBFCs, and payment gateways that the processing of recurring transactions (domestic or cross-border) using cards or prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) or unified payments interface (UPI) under arrangements/ practices not compliant with AFA would not be continued beyond March 31, 2021.

As part of risk mitigation measure, RBI an-

nounced this step to bolster safety and security of card transactions.

Non-readiness of some of the players could impact recurring payment such as of utility bills, recharge of phone, DTH and OTT, among others, post March 31. Recently, RBI enhanced limit for contactless card transactions and e-mandates for recurring transactions through cards (and UPI) from Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 from Jan 1, 2021 with a view to further the adoption of digital payments in a safe and secure manner.

Starting April 1, customer e-mandate transactions will be declined by banks, if further extension is not granted by RBI, the official said, adding this will cause major disruption to recurring transactions and will erode customer trust in digital payments.

Auto payments for bills, subscriptions may be disrupted

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2

state

Mon

Health camp at Kigwema DIMAPUR: Reproductive child health camp and general health camp was conducted at Kigwema village on March 27 at Kigwema village council hall with former director, health & family welfare (H&FW) department, Dr. Neiketou as special guest.

According to DIPR report, while speaking at the programme, Dr. Neiketou said that the health camp was required as medical treatment had nowadays become expensive and not all could avail treatment.

Meanwhile at the camp, villagers availed free checkup and medicines.

An acknowledgment programme for complete immunisation and antenatal check-up (ANC) was also held.

Earlier, the programme was chaired by PHC medical officer Kimipfuphe, Dr. Loziu Peseyie and short speeches were delivered

by ADC Kohima, Shaying Sheu, Dr. Rupert Peseyie CMO, Kohima and village council chairman.

12 doctors, nurses and government officials attended the camp which was organised by District Health Society (DHS) Kohima.

school curriculum, she encouraged the teachers to have similar sessions in the classes.

Speaking on reproductive health for adolescent girls, MO Tang PHC, Dr. Khumrila Sangtam highlighted on the physical changes that an adolescent underwent during the transition from childhood to adulthood.

She also talked about the process of menstruation and ways to maintain personal hygiene during menstruation. She further highlighted the abnormalities during menstruation which might require professional help.

MSK district coordinator, Neijoi Konyak spoke about “good touch & bad touch” where she explained the difference between a touch of care and affection and a touch with bad intentions.

She spoke about molestation and urged upon students not to be scared to voice out and speak up

against such behaviour.

She also stated that remaining silent to such behaviours would only encourage the perpetrator to continue further.

Coordinator Childline Mon, Eunice Thalih shared about Childline 1098 which assisted and rescued children in distress through a 24/7 toll free 1098.

She stated that Childline teams on receiving a distress call arrive at the destination within 60 minutes and reach out to children from 0-18 years of age and in extreme emergency cases up to 25 years of age.

She encouraged students to make use of the service for themselves or for others and urged them not to be afraid to report since full confidentiality was maintained.

The programme was attended by girl students from various schools.

Longleng: MSK and district administration Lon-

gleng conducted “girl child week” under BBBP on the theme “empowering girls for a brighter tomorrow” at Yingli College, Longleng on March 27.

According to DIPR report, resource person of the programme, PBCA Longleng youth secretary, Phakmei Phom emphasised on different values between men and women and stressed on realising one’s potential.

Earlier, introduction to girl child week celebration was given by EAC Hq. Longleng, Rohbi Sangtam while EAC Longleng, Pichano Kikon encouraged the girls to take such platform as an opportunity to learn and know their rights.

Meanwhile in the second session, singing, dancing, speeches, poem recitation etc. were presented while games such as puzzle picture, word guessing, picture portray, tug of war were also conducted. Winner of the group games was awarded to “girl power”.

WSKH meeting: Western Sümi Kukami Hoho (WSKH) has convened a meeting on April 3, 10 a.m. at Western Sümi Hoho (WSH) ki, Chekiye Village, Dimapur. All silver jubilee planning board members, office bearers and executives of WSKH, all area unit presidents and advisors WSKH have been requested to attend the meeting.

NCC new office bearers: Namgalong Colony Council (NCC), Burma Camp ward number 5 installed new office bearers with its frontal organisation for a five-year term on March 29. The new team will be headed by H Daniel Swu as chairman and Jenpu Rongmei as secretary along with four office bearers and eight executives.

The women organisation will be led by Sanaru Kamei as president and Ronika Miachieo as secretary along with three office bearers and nine executives while the youth front would be led by Pantijai Rongmei as president and Namkholong Kamei as secretary along with three office bearers and nine executives.

NSUB conducts general body meeting: Naga Students’ Union Bangalore (NSUB) conducted a general body meeting and election for the term 2021-2022 on March 27 with Zakietuo Noudi as president, Kumtha Pashel as vice president, Yhungwale Semp as general secretary, Ruth Gonmei as finance secretary along with four other members.

DDVFAA new team: Dimapur District Veterinary Field Assistant Association (DDVFAA) has elected its new team for the tenure 2021-2023 with Toshitemjen Jamir as president and Inaholi Sangtam as general secretary along with four other members and seven executive members.

NSCN (I-M) recovers: NSCN (I-M) has recovered one orange/black coloured Yahama FZ two-wheeler bearing Chassis No. ME1RG0724F0090546 and Engine No. G3C8E0150286. Rightful owner has been asked to produce original documents and claim the same within seven days from the date of publication. For further details, one may contact at 7005602851.

GMS Longya exposure trip: As part of its exposure trip the teachers from Government Middle School (GMS) Longya Ward Kiphire carried out an exposure trip on March 30 to Salumi cave.

Seized IMFL consignment in excise custody.

DIMAPUR: Acting on a tip-off, excise narcotic cell (NC) personnel recovered 450 cases of assorted Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) from a truck (AS 01 CC 4206) on March 28 at Purana Bazar, Dimapur.

According to deputy commissioner of excise (NC), S Chanlei Angh, the contraband was concealed in the truck by several cartons of biscuits which was loaded in the outskirts of Guwahati.

In this connection, Angh said two persons identified as Kamrul Islam (26) son of Abdul Majid of Baruating, Assam and Kunal Shah (20) son of Kamlesh Kumar of Mantri Pukhri, East Imphal, Manipur were arrested and booked under relevant sections of NLTP Act 1989.

The seized articles are being kept in the excise Malkhana for future destruction by the competent destruction board, informed Angh.

FUNERAL SERVICE of

Lt. Kupushe V. Yepthomi (Thokihimi Village) Date : 31st March 2021 Time : 10:00 AM Venue : Residence, Adivasi Tea Goan, K/A

1ST DEATH ANNIVERSARY LT. NEILAÜ SOLIEZUO

It’s been a year since you left us but memories of you still remain afresh in our hearts.

You are deeply loved and missed.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

“For Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10:13

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

K-677

DIMAPUR: Mahila Shakti Kendra (MSK) Mon and Longleng in collaboration with district administration conducted programmes for adolescent girls with an aim to empower them and to impart a better understanding on topics that are rarely discussed at homes and schools.

Mon: MSK Mon and district administration Mon organised a Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) awareness programme for adolescent girls on March 26 at town council hall, Mon. According to DIPR report, SDO (C) Mon, Ilika Zhimomi stated that the programme was targeted specifically at girl students of Class VIII since they were at a crucial transitional phase.

She asserted that the aim of the programme was to create awareness among adolescent girls on topics which they may not receive at home or in the school.

Although the topics may not be part of the

Longleng

news in Brief Excise narcotic cell seize IMFL

DP-1716

BBBP programmes in Mon, Longleng

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Loving family members

31-03-2020

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

BORN ON 31ST JULY 1947 – DIED ON 23RD MARCH 2021 Through this column, we the family members of LATE M. YINAVUNGO TSANGLAO would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to each and every individual, various organisations, churches, officers and staff of Electrical Department Wokha etc who stood by us spiritually, physically, financially, materially and with prayers during the prolonged illness and sad demise of our beloved father who left us for his heavenly abode on 23rd March 2021.

Though we are unable to thank each and everyone individually, yet it is our humble prayer that the Almighty God bless you all abundantly.

Loving wife, children, grandchildren, great grand-children and relatives K-679

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Born : 1932 – Died : 24.03.2021 Through this column, we, the family members of Lt. CHUMBEMO KHENCHUNG would like to convey our heartfelt gratitude to all those who sympathized with us at the untimely demise of our beloved Father.

We offer our sincerest thanks to every individuals, churches, community members, relatives and friends for extending your kind gestures through spiritual, emotional, physical and monetary support at this difficult time.

We regret our inability to thank each and every individual personally but we will always be thankful for the good deeds shown. We pray that goodness and mercy follow you wherever.

With prayers, Loving Family Members DP-1692

Born on 25/08/1966 – Died on 28/03/2021

We, the bereaved family would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the individuals, friends and neighbours who stood by us with prayer support both physically and financially during the prolonged illness and at sudden demise of our beloved Lt. WOTHUNGO KIKON who left us on 28th March 2021.

Your act of kindness shown to us shall never be forgotten. It is our sincere prayer to each and every one that our Almighty God bless you abundantly.

DP-1699

Loving wife, children, grandchildren and relatives

2 ND DEATH ANNIVERSARY of

Late N. Kheshepu Assumi

ATMA conducts farmer scientist interaction DIMAPUR: ATMA, Tuensang 7 organised farmer scientist interaction (FSI) on “sustainable upland farming system”, on March 1.

A press release by ATMA Tuensang stated that topics on cropping system for upland to enhance productivity and sustainable, soil fertility management and management strategies for fall army worm were highlighted by subject experts, AFA, agriculture, Mosa Somba, JSCO, dept of soil & water conservation, Beso Chang and farm manager, KVK, Yanger I Kichu.

Altogether, 22 ATMA farmers friend participated in the programme.

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Born : 22nd Oct., 1927 Expired : 31st March, 2019

LATE N. HUSIBO NEWMAI 01.03.1947 – 14.03.2021

We, the bereaved family of Late N. Husibo Newmai, would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who stood by us during the prolonged illness and sudden demise of Late N. Husibo Newmai on 14th March, 2021.

We regret our inability to thank each and every individual personally but it is our humble prayer that our Almighty Father blesses you all richly.

Loving wife, children and family members DP-1703

Our beloved Father The day God took you home, it broke our hearts, but God knew you would be in a safer place called Heaven.

Today we fondly remember you Dad, wishing, if tears could build a stairway and heartaches make a lane, we'd walk our way to heaven and bring you back but we are assured that those we love don't go away, they walk besides us everyday, unseen, unheard but always near ... still loved .... still missed ... and very dear !!!

Till we meet again on eternity's shores, where dead is just a memory and tears are no more, we hold you dearly in our hearts until we could hold you in our arms in heaven. Not a day goes by without you in our thoughts, missing you today and always.

We miss you everyday We miss you deeply Loving wife, children, in-laws, grandchildren & great grand children !!

DP-1702 K Y M C

nagalandpost.com Poll Q.: Will the Quad securityUS, India, Australia & Japan- discourage China?

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

A B C

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

Tsg police launch ‘police ki pathshala’ initiative

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

A

B

Yes. No. Can’t Say.

C

50% 33% 17%

Next poll

Q: Are election gatherings

in five states causing sharp spike in COVID cases?  Yes.  No.  Can’t Say.

WEATHER FORECAST march 31

(Temperature in ºC)

Max Min

Agartala Breezy, humid; a p.m. t-storm 36 25 Aizawl

Hazy sunshine

Guwahati A t-storm around in the p.m.

Imphal

Hazy sunshine and warmer

Itanagar Occasional rain

30 17 32 18 30 15 24 17

Shillong Pleasant with clouds and sun 23 14

A thunderstorm in spots

22 13

Dimapur A thunderstorm in spots

28 18

Hazy sunshine

24 13

Kohima Mkg

Tuensang Some sun with a thunderstorm 16 10 Wokha

Humid with a stray t-storm

23 16

Zunheboto Some sun with a stray t-storm 21 11

SP Tuensang, Amit Nigam speaking during an interaction with students.

DIMAPUR: Tuensang police launched the “police ki pathshala” initiative to promote a better understanding of law and to encourage participation of the student community in law enforcement.

According to PRO SP office Tuensang, the first chapter of police ki pathsha-

la programme in the district started on March 30 with SP Tuensang, Amit Nigam visiting Loyem Memorial College Tuensang.

During his interaction with students, he shared his experiences in policing while the rights as well as duties of a citizen towards society were explained in

detail.

SP Tuensang emphasised on the need for bridging the gap between police and citizens and made the students aware of cyber laws, domestic violence, eve teasing, etc.He called upon them to promptly inform the police when such crimes took place.

Meanwhile SDPO Tuensang and principal of Loyem Memorial College also shared their views on the police and public relationship.

Around 100 students attended the programme.

It may be mentioned that police ki pathshala will be organised regularly to spread the awareness among students about existing laws and to empower them.

The initiative also aims at make students aware of their rights and duties as citizens.

LYH inspects ongoing road construction DIMAPUR: A team of Lotha Youth Hoho (LYH) inspected the ongoing road construction at Sanis “0” Point to Lakhuti Village under Wokha districtfunded through PMGSY-II (2019-2020) on March 20.

A press release by the Hoho stated that the team led by its president, N. Yanpothung Ezung interacted with contractors and department overseeing the works and advised

them to take up the work seriously and as per detail project report (DPR).

Expressing dismay over the slow pace of work, LYH asked contractors to complete the work on time and to ensure quality workmanship.

Further, the Hoho also assured assistance to the contractors and the department.

Sensitisation on ‘tobacco, alcohol & related issues’ DIMAPUR: Sensitisation and counselling programme on “tobacco, alcohol and related issues” was held on March 24 at Police Training School Chümoukedima.

A press release by NTCP Dimapur stated that the programme was jointly organised by Nagaland Police Training School Chümoukedima in collaboration with District Tobacco Control Cell (DTCC) under National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) Dimapur.

At the programme, resource person, district nodal officer, NTCP Dimapur, Dr. Reyosalu Lase Vizo sensitised the participants on the ill effects of tobacco, alcohol and other abusive substances.

Vizo encouraged them to keep away from these addictive substances which could cause diseases such as cancer, TB, heart dis-

Faculty of Police Training School Chümoukedima along with members from NTCP.

eases, lung diseases besides other chronic diseases.

She urged the participants to keep away from the habits in order to be mentally and physically

3

State

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

fit.

Earlier, the programme was chaired by assistant principal PTS, Thungroni Kikon; officials who attended the programme

were Principal PTS, Aboli Metha and vice principal, Meren Chenth. Altogether 212 participants including faculty and personnel attended the programme.

DLCC meetings held in Mon and Noklak

Mon

DIMAPUR: District Level Coordination Committee (DLCC) Mon under National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) held its review meeting on March 23 at DC’s conference hall, Mon. The meeting was chaired by DC Mon, Thavaseelan K. According to DIPR report, four schools were declared as tobacco free institutions: St. John’s Higher Secondary School; Little Flower School; Christ King School and Don Bosco Higher Secondary School Mon. To create awareness on the ill effects of tobacco, the members decided to initially reach out to all the sub divisions of Mon district and later to the village level.

It was also decided that committees would be constituted in all the sub divisions for effective imple-

NSCN (I-M) condoles DIMAPUR: Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim (GPRN) has grieved over the untimely demise of Moatemjen Pongen, khapur of NSCN/ GPRN from Longsa village under Ao Region on March 26.

In a condolence message, NSCN/GPRN MIP said late Pongen served the “Naga nation” with unwavering patriotism until his demise and that for his selfless contributions to the “Naga national cause”, his name shall be recorded in the pages of the Naga history and his sacrifice for the “Naga nation” shall ever be cherished by all.

Further, GPRN conveyed its condolences to the bereaved family members and close friends of late Pongen and prayed that the Almighty would give them the strength and comfort to hold on the loss as the departed soul rests in eternal peace.

Noklak

mentation of NTCP. Further, all schools in the district would be given time till the May 31, 2021 to become tobacco free.

The house also agreed to increase the frequency of enforcement drives so that COPTA 2003 is implemented in letter and spirit.

Noklak: First DLCC meeting of Noklak district was held at DC’s conference hall, Noklak on March 24.

According to DIPR report, while chairing the meeting, DC Noklak Reny Wilfred said that Noklak had a huge potential in horticulture, aquaculture, handicrafts, agriculture & allied, tourism, etc.

In order to promote the scope of all these, he urged for a concerted effort from the administration, stakeholders, departments, NGOs and farmers.

The agenda discussed were financial inclusion sta-

tus of Noklak district, current banking challenges in Noklak and priority sector lending targets & customer service point. The house also reviewed on CD ratio of Banks and ACP Targets & achievements.

The house reviewed PMEGP 2020-21 and the targets on PMEGP for 2021-22 including DUDA a n d D R DA 2 0 2 0 - 2 1 , NSRLM credit linkages MUDRA and micro credit, performance of FLCs in the district, performance of Government SSS-PMSBY/ PMJJBY/APY and discussion on financial inclusion on block wise MIS/ Data. Department specific schemes from DIC agri and allied department were also held including discussions on NABARD and other priority base needs of the district.

In the second session, training on priority sector

lending was conducted. The training covered on agriculture loans, MSME (micro, small and medium enterprise) and other priority sector lending on education loan, housing loan, social infrastructure, etc.

The training also covered PMEGP and other Social Security Schemes such as PMSBY, PMJJBY and APY. Resource persons of the training were district development manager NABARD S.Amarjit Mangang, lead district manager Noklak & Tuensang Mughashe Assumi and branch manager SBI Noklak Neikhoto Tachu.

The programme was attended by district administrations, representative from Khiamniungan Tribal Council, Khiamniungan Menyiu Hoikam, Khiamniungan Baptist Churches association and departmental officers.

CMO Dimapur launches D+WA

Chief medical officer (CMO), Dr. Mereninla Senlem launching Dimapur HIV positive women association (D+WA).

DIMAPUR: Chief medical officer (CMO), Dr. Mereninla Senlem launched the “Dimapur HIV positive Women Association (D+WA)” at Tourist Lodge Dimapur on March 27.

A press release by chairman PNF, Joe Ngam-

khuchung stated that the launching function was attended by 70 positive women members of the association.

Along with the CMO, deputy CMO, Dr. Antoly Swu, Nukshila Aying, president Dimapur Bap-

tist Women Union, Kitoshi Zhimomi, president Rotary Club Dimapur were present and encouraged the participants to work together without fear.

Sisters from Chavra Home, delegates from Akimbo society, Bethesda Youth welfare centre, Guardian Angel and Prodigals Home also graced the occasion.

It may be mentioned that People in Need Foundation (PNF) which initiates and promotes the positive women association arranged hand sanitisers masks for the participants.

Meanwhile, chairman PNF presented a packet of covid personal protection equipment (PPE) containing 26 sets to the CMO. 70 positive women who were present for the function consented to be members of the association.

NSC commemorates ‘National Science Day’ Raids against tobacco conducted in Wokha, Mon DIMAPUR: Enforcement drive on sale of tobacco products within 100 metres of educational institutions was conducted at Wokha and Mon towns.

Wokha: National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) flying squad led by district nodal officer, NTCP Wokha, police, DBs and District Tobacco Control Cell (DTCC) members conducted a raid on sale of COTPA flying squad members with the seized prohibited District administration, police and KSU members along prohibited tobacco products tobacco products in Wokha. (DIPR) with NTCP officials. (DIPR) in an area within a radius of educational institutions was Dr. I Simon Sumi and dis- Kohima along with North 100 meters of educational squad members.

DNO, Wokha also in- carried out under NTCP on trict consultant NTCP Mon, Police station and South institutions under COTPA Nyeamying Konyak.

Police station Kohima conSection 6 (b) on March 30. formed that similar raids March 26 at Mon town.

According to DIPR 25 shops around edu- ducted an enforcement drive According to DIPR would be conducted frereport, during the raid, five quently as per the laid down report, a team consisting cational institutions were under COTPA 2003 Section of representatives from dis- found selling tobacco prod- 6(b) on March 23 wherein defaulters were penalised COTPA sections and law.

Mon: For effective trict administration, excise ucts. The team seized the 50 offenders were penalised and prohibited items were One of the resource persons speaking at the programme. NSC officials and others seized. implementation of COTPA department, police and products and burnt the items and seized tobacco items at the commemoration of National Science Day. (Inset) were destroyed at South PoLater, the seized prod- 2003, an enforcement drive Konyak Students’ Union in a dumping area.

Kohima: District To- lice station in the presence DIMAPUR: Nagaland technology. local innovations and inter- ucts were destroyed in the on sale of tobacco prod- (KSU) was led by district Science Centre (NSC) deHe deliberated on how acted with the participating presence of COTPA flying ucts within 100 metres of nodal officer NTCP Mon, bacco Control Cell (DTCC) of the officers in-charge. partment of Science and science paved the way to in- students. technology commemo- novation which ultimately Education assistant, rated “national science became technology and innovation hub, T Wilson day” on March 27 on the how all these were essential also demonstrated an “extheme, “future of science, for human development, perimental science show”. DIMAPUR: Monthly meeting for He requested the executive for the plantation drive. for water supply technology & innovation: social and economic progStudents from Lorna’s Pughoboto Sub Division Planning engineer PWD, Pughoboto and M e a n w h i l e, S D O P W D With regard to water scarcity, impacts on education, skill ress.

Higher Secondary School, and Development Board (SDPDB) Jordan company to provide ma- Akumyanger briefed on the ex- ADC Pughoboto Thungchanbemo & work”.

At the programme, Bethesda Higher Second- was held under the chairmanship chineries and supervise. The house ecuting works under the sub divi- Tungoe was given the charge to conA press release by the Kudatech skill centre prin- ary School, Namghar High of Y Vikheho Swu at customary also fixed the next SDPDB meeting sion while SDO, PHE highlighted vene a meeting with contractors for centre stated that in his cipal, Kapil Thapa spoke School & AG Higher Sec- court hall on March 24. and tree plantation from Mishilimi on the ongoing road construction any alternative arrangement while speech, science officer, on the importance of local ondary School Dimapur According to DIPR report, to new mini secretary complex and stated that the pipe line was SDEO would give a PowerPoint department of science and innovation and local skill participated at the event. Swu stressed on the need to start on the same day which is April dismantled from Kilomi. presentation on the next meeting. technology, Richard Rikhio development while I Victor Earlier, the programme the work pertaining to Pughoboto 7, 2021.

In this regard, he requested the The house also welcomed the emphasised on the im- Chang (local innovator) was chaired by Onongoto to Zunheboto road before the rainAll the officers have been house to intervene and approach new SDPDB member, functional portance of science and demonstrated few of his Soleho. ing season starts. directed to compulsory participate NHIDCL (contractor Madhucon) manager, Hekato K Jimo.

SDPDB meeting held in Pughoboto

K Y M C

K Y M C

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northeast

Campaigning ends for 2nd phase of Assam polls Guwahati, Mar 30 (PTI): A high-octane electoral campaign for the second phase of Assam assembly polls, spearheaded by an array of national and state leaders, came to an end on Tuesday evening.

The second phase of state elections will decide the fate of 345 candidates in 39 seats going to polls on April one.

The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) issue was at the forefront of the campaign, with the BJP, which had maintained a studied silence on it in the run up to the first phase of voting, raising it in the Barak Valley this time as a carrot to the predominantly Hindu Bengali population, some of whom have their roots in Bangladesh.

While releasing the party manifesto for the Assam polls, BJP president J P Nadda had made a reference to the CAA, mentioning that it would be implemented in time. Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah, in his election rallies at Patharkandi and Silchar, mentioned the controversial legislation, for the first time, assuring that citizenship rights will be given to refugees, while asserting at the same time that the BJP will not allow infiltrators to enter the state. The BJP

BJP supporters during an election campaign rally for the State Assembly polls, in Nagaon district on Tuesday. (PTI) was, particularly, strident in its attack on AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal accusing him of encouraging illegal infiltration, leading to encroachments and “land and love jihad” which the party has promised to tackle.

Besides claims of development initatives taken for Assam by the BJP’s ‘doubleengine’ governments both at the Centre and the state, the party has also attacked the Congress for aligning with the AIUDF and allegedly encouraging infiltration for its “vested interest of creating a votE-bank”.

After the announcement of poll dates in February end, Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his campaign from Karimganj in Barak Valley.

The Barak Valley has

15 seats in the 126-member state assembly. Modi also held a rally at Sipajhar from where former Asam Sahitya Sabha president Paramanda Rajbongshi is contesting as the BJP candidate.

BJP president J P Nadda had sounded the party’s poll bugle from Silchar in Barak Valley, nearly two months before the Election Commission of India had announced the schedule for the state elections in the northeastern state.

Both Modi and Nadda highlighted that the people of Barak Valley had sent party candidates to the assembly much before the saffron party made significant inroads in Assam.

All the 39 constituencies, spread over 13 districts of the Barak Valley, three

hill districts, and parts of central and lower Assam, witnessed last minute canvassing by candidates and their supporters.

Among the prominent BJP leaders who campaigned for candidates in the second phase are central ministers Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Narendra Tomar, Jitendra Singh, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan among others.

The BJP, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) are alliance partners. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who was scheduled to address election rallies at Haflong and Bokajan during the day and interact with women at Silchar was unable to reach due to inclement weather.

However, communicating with voters through video message, he said, the party-led Grand Alliance will implement its poll promise of ‘five guarantees’.

The ‘five guarantees’ include ‘nullifying’ the CAA in the state, providing five lakh government jobs to youths in five years, 200 units of free electricity, raising the daily- wage of tea garden workers from the current Rs 193 to Rs 365 and Rs

2,000 per month to homemakers. The prominent personalities to canvass for candidates of the Grand Alliance, comprising the Congress, AIUDF, the Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF), the CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML-L), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Anchalika Gana Morcha (AGM) included Rajya Sabha MPs Mallikaarjun Kharge, Dr Nasir Hussain and Dr Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Chhatisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.

Former chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh Kamal Nath and Maharashtra’s Ashok Chavan, AICC leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal and CPI’s Kanhaiya Kumar had also campaigned for the Grand Alliance candidates. At the state level, the BJP’s campaign trail was led by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, state unit president Ranjeet Kumar Dass, NEDA convenor Himanta Biswa, who has so far addressed the maximum number of election rallies, and several ministers of the outgoing assembly.

For the Congress, state unit president Ripun Bora, Lok Sabha MPs Pradyut Bordoloi, Gaurav Gogoi and Abdul Khaleque led the campaign along with

AICC in-charge of Assam Jitendra Singh.

While campaigning, the AIUDF highlighted the CAA and promised that it will not be implemented in Assam, besides assuring voters that the BJP’s alleged polarisation tactics will not be allowed to succeed.

With the Holi festival falling during the campaign period and Assam’s most important festival, ‘Rongali Bihu’, barely a fortnight away, the timing helped the contestants to reach out to voters with many smearing supporters with colours, dancing to the tune of Bihu songs and campaign songs of political parties.

Among prominent candidates in the fray are ministers Parimal Suklabaidya (Dholai), Pijush Hazarika (Jagiroad), Bhabesh Kalita (Rangiya), Pijush Hazarika (Jagiroad), Sum Ronghang (Diphu), and Rihon Daimary (Udalguri), besides Deputy Speaker Aminul Haque Laskar (Sonai), and Rajya Sabha MP Biswajit Daimary (Panery).

Fo r m e r C o n g r e s s minister Gautam Roy is contesting on a BJP ticket from Katigora while his son Rahul Roy and daughter-inlaw Daisy Roy are contesting as independents from Udharbond and Algapur respectively.

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Two Congress members pursuing politics for survival of family: Irani Borbhag/Gauripur (Assam), Mar 30 (PTI): Apparently referring to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Union minister Smriti Zubin Irani on Tuesday alleged that they “do not know the Assamese culture” and pursue politics only for “the survival of their family”.

She, however, did not name the siblings. The senior BJP leader also accused the Congress of committing a sin by not fulfilling the promises that it had made during earlier elections in Assam. Without taking the names of Gandhis, the Union textiles minister said, “A few days ago, two members of the Gandhi family visited Assam. They don’t know the Assamese culture and do politics only for the survival of their family.”

Irani had defeated Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi in the 2019 general elections.

Addressing a series of election rallies in Assam, the Union women and child development minister appealed to the people to vote for the BJP for development and bring the saffron party back to power. “The Congress committed a sin of smashing the dreams of people, which it had earlier shown before coming to power,” she said. The Con-

Smriti Zubin

gress was in power in Assam for three consecutive terms from 2001 to 2016. Irani claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a series of schemes that are directly benefiting people who were earlier deprived of welfare programmes.

She alleged that the Congress, when it was in power at the Centre, did not even send funds allotted to Assam for its development.

Terming the AIUDF, an alliance partner of the Congress, as a communal party, Irani said, “Don’t spread communal hatred among people and create a fight among brothers. The Assamese people will vote for the development and welfare of their families.”

The first phase of the Assam assembly election was held on March 27. The state will have polling in two more phases on April 1 and 6.

Mnp police arrest supporters of separatist CAA an attack on Assam’s culture, history: Rahul Gandhi Correspondent IMPHAL, Mar 30: Manipur police launched a crackdown against supporters of arrested self-styled external and defence minister Narengbam Samarjit of de-jure government of Manipur State Council.

Sources said that as many as seven persons who exhorted Samarjit on his arrival at Imphal Airport were arrested by the police during the past 24 hours.

Samar jit, the proclaimed minister of external affairs and defence of the government in exile in the UK was arrested by a team of NIA from Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi

on his way back to Imphal on March 25.

On his arrival at Imphal Airport, on Monday, some among the crowd waiting for his arrival shouted “Long live Manipur”, “Victory to Samajit” while he was taken away by the police.

After registering a case in connection with the incident allegedly tantamount to exhorting the separatist agenda of Samarjit, police arrested as many as seven persons.

Sources said that after yesterday’s incident, a case was registered at Singjamei police station of Imphal West district three persons were arrested for allegedly shouting slogans

They were Narengbam Bishorjit of Tera Loukrakpam Leikai, Naoroibam David of Naoremthong, and Narengbam Nonglen of Tera Loukrakpam Leikai.

In further crackdown, the police have picked up four more persons including general secretary Mayanglambam Tonlenjao of North East India Development Party (NEIDP), a political party founded by Samarjit before he left for the UK to form the government in exile.

The police fur ther picked three women supporters - N Tilotama and N Ranjana from Tera Loukrakpam Leikai and Naoroibam Medhabati, source said.

Says will not allow it to be implemented Guwahati, Mar 30 (PTI): The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is an attack on the language, history and culture of Assam and the Congress will not allow it to be implemented, party leader Rahul Gandhi said in a video message on Tuesday.

Gandhi posted the video message for the people of the Northeastern state as he was unable to attend his scheduled election-related programmes due to heavy rains. The Congress-led Grand Alliance, if voted to power, will fulfil the five

guarantees it has given to the people of the state, he said.

“The first guarantee is we will not allow CAA to be implemented. It is an attack on Assam, your language, history, your tradition and culture,” Gandhi said in his video message.

The objective of the CAA is to grant Indian citizenship to people of minority communities Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, who had come to India till December 31, 2014 due to religious persecution in these countries.

The state witnessed violent protests against the CAA in 2019 and five per-

Rahul Gandhi

sons lost their lives. The protestors saw the law as a threat to their cultural identity and livelihood.

The other four guarantees are five lakh government jobs in five years, increasing the daily minimum wage of tea garden workers

to Rs 365, 200 units of free electricity per month for all, and Rs 2,000 per month for every homemaker, Gandhi said.

He alleged that the hill tribes people are under attack from the BJP as the saffron party seeks to scrap Article 244A of the Constitution. Article 244A deals with formation of an autonomous state comprising certain tribal areas in Assam and creation of local legislature or council of ministers or both.

The Congress leader was scheduled to address a poll rally each at Haflong in Dima Hasao hill district and Bokajan in Karbi Anglong hill district, besides

an interactive session with women at Silchar.

“Due to bad weather, I was unable to reach you today. But my and the Grand Alliances message is clear - we will take Assam to the path of progress and prosperity with the five guarantees,” he said in the video message posted on his official Twitter handle.

Earlier in the day, Gandhi tweeted that the people of Assam have understood that there is no relation between ‘jumlas’ (rhetoric) and development, and asked the Centre to explain what it had done for the upliftment of labourers, including tea garden workers, in the state.

Chakma council CEM Rasik Mohan Chakma resigns Centre asks Assam to issue

Rasik Mohan Chakma

Aizawl, Mar 30 (PTI): Chakma Autonomous District Council (CADC) Chief Executive Member (CEM) Rasik Mohan Chakma of Mizo National Front (MNF) has resigned from his post, an official statement said.

Chakma submitted his resignation to state governor P S Sreedharan Pillai on

Monday, the statement issued by CADC information and public relations department said.

The resignation came two days after the council chairman H Amaresh Chakma was removed in a no-confidence motion during the first sitting of the budget session held on March 26.

With the resignation of Rasik Mohan Chakma the present executive committee of the CADC stands dissolved and a new executive committee will be constituted, the statement said.

Party sources said that Rasik Mohan Chakma has voluntarily given up his post to pave way for the formation of a new executive com-

mittee in the larger interest of the Chakma people.

Chakma had assumed his office on January 21, 2019 to replace Shanti Jiban Chakma of the BJP, who was removed in a no-confidence motion.

Meanwhile, the BJP suffered a setback in CADC as six out of its eight members quit the saffron party and joined MNF on March 27, a statement issued by MNF said on Monday.

MNF leader and Sports minister Robert Romawia Royte formally inducted six members - Buddhalila Chakma, Ajoy Kumar Chakma, Onish Moy Chakma, Anil Kanti Chakma, Hiranand Tongchangya and Sanjeev Chakma into the MNF during a function held at the party office at Chawngte (Kamalanagar) in Mizoram

southernmost Lawngtlai district on Monday, the statement said.

Buddhalila Chakma claimed that the majority of people in Mizoram generally have aversion to BJPs ideology which makes BJPs inroad into the state a distant dream.

“The federal structure of the Indian constitution itself limits the scope of Autonomous District Council in the 6th schedule areas, and as such a district council can’t prosper without the support of the state government,” he said.

The MNF legislature party meeting held later on the day unanimously elected Durjya Dhan Chakma as leader under whose leadership the new CADC executive committee will be formed.

rejection slips to NRC-excluded

NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (AGENCIES): Over 19 lakh of the 3.29 crore applicants were left out of the final register that took five years to compile, reports The Hindu.

The Centre has asked the Assam government that “rejection slips” to those excluded from the final National Register of Citizens (NRC) published in 2019 shall be issued immediately.

More than 19 lakh of the 3.29 crore applicants in Assam were left out of the final register that took five years to compile and costs Rs 1,220 crore.

The office of the Registrar General of India (RGI) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) wrote to Assam Home Secretary S.R.

Congress suffering from ‘mental bankruptcy’: Nadda

Dharmapur/Bilasipara, Mar 30 (PTI): BJP President J P Nadda on Tuesday alleged that the Congress is suffering from “mental bankruptcy” as it has aligned with political parties on religious lines in the current round of elections in the states.

The Congress has joined hands with the political parties on religious lines be it Kerala, West Bengal or Assam, Nadda said while addressing election ralles in Assam.

“At the same time it has entered into alliances with the Left parties in Bengal and Assam but in Kerala, it is fighting against them.

This exposes the party’s

mental bankruptcy”, he said at a poll rally. He alleged that the Congress has divided the society on diffierent criterion, including religion, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured that all people get benefits of various schemes on the basis of their need and not on any other considerations.

The Prime Minister has always insisted on inclusion of all sections by emphasising on “Sabka saath, sabka vikash aur sabka vishwas” unlike the Congress which had divided society on the basis of caste, class and religion for nearly seventy years after Independence.

“Congress todne ka kaam karta hain, aur Modiji jodne

JP Nadda

ka (Congress divides but Modiji unifies)”, he added.

The BJP president further that Congress leaders claim that there have been no development during the last five years in Assam, but “actually they cannot see it, as they have not developed themselves”.

“Rahul Gandhi accuses us of ‘Jumlebaji’ (hypocrisy) but keeps silent about the ‘jumlebaji’ by his grandmother, father and mother who only gave slogans and did nothing to solve the problems of the country.

“We are here to work but they only gave slogans”, he said. He also accused the grand old party for asking for votes from the people as former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had represented them.

“What did he do for the people that they should vote for the party, instead the party should thank them for giving him the oppurtunity to become the Prime Minister,” Nadda said.

Referring to the visit of Congress leaders to the tea gardens in the state, the BJP preisdent accused them of being “political tourists” who visit the gardens for photo sessions but the party did nothing when it was in power for the welfare of the tea garden workers.

“It was the Prime Minister who directed me to take a decision regarding the health facilities of the tea garden workers and I followed it up by ensuring 130 mobile medical units and a separate allocation of Rs 1000 crore has been made in this year’s Union budget for the health, education and roads of the tea fgardens”, he said.

Bhuyan on March 23 that the supplementary list of exclusions and inclusions were published on August 31, 2019 on the directions of the Supreme Court. “However, the process of issuing rejection slips to those excluded from the NRC is yet to start.”

Adequate opportunity The MHA had earlier said that “non-inclusion of a person’s name in the NRC does not by itself amount to him/her being declared as a foreigner” as they would be given adequate opportunity to present their case before the Foreigners Tribunals (FTs). The time limit to appeal before the FTs, the quasi judicial bodies unique to Assam, has been increased from 60 to 120 days.

104-feet tall flag mast inaugurated

by Sikkim Gov Gangtok, Mar 30 (PTI): A 104 feet tall flag mast hoisting the National Flag was inaugurated by Sikkim Governor Ganga Prasad at the Mahatma Gandhi Marg here, officials said.

The governor unveiled the plaque and hoisted the national flag on Monday in the presence of Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, other ministers and senior officials.

The flag mast will be a permanent structure here and the national flag will remain hoisted throughout, they said.

Dear Sir, (Temsulong) We are so blessed and thankful to have you in our midst. May God continue to bless you in every way.. Happy birthday to you!!..

From..5th Batch Carpentry!

IN THE COURT OF PRINCIPAL DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE KIPHIRE, NAGALAND

NO.PD&SJ, KPE/SUCC-12/2021-22/363 Dated the 30th March 2021 OBJECTION NOTICE Whereas TETHSOTHSI, wife of Late RAM BAHADUR Chetri, Sanphure Village, has applied for issue of Succession Certificate under the Indian Succession Act 1925 in order to draw/receive the payment of movable/ immovable properties of her husband Late Ram Bahadur Chetri, Pensioners Rtd.Mason Housing Department Kiphire, Nagaland who expired on 03.07.2020.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPERTY 1. Pension case.

2. Any other dues etc. from the Treasury Office Kiphire, Nagaland.

Public are hereby asked to file objection/claim if any within 30 (thirty) days from the date of issue of this order. If no objection/claim is received within the given time, Succession Certificate will be issued in favour of the applicant.

Principal District & Sessions Judge DP-1705 Kiphire: Nagaland.

AFFIDAVIT

I, Mrs. Piholi, W/o Late Kihojhe Sema, resident of Lumami Village, district Zunheboto, state Nagaland, do hereby declare on oath as under.

Whereas my name Mrs. Piholi (birth name) is recorded in some of my documents but whereas in some of my documents my name is inadvertently recorded as Mrs. Piholi Sema which in fact refers to the same and one person only.

I further declare that for the purpose of evidencing any matter I shall at all-time hereafter in all records, deeds and writings and in all proceedings, dealings and transactions, private as well as officials and upon all occasions whatsoever use and sign my name as Mrs. Piholi.

Mrs. Piholi K.V. Assumi (Deponent) Notary Public Nagaland

MKC-99

6 BJP members join MNF

AFFIDAVIT Regd. No. 1394/21 Date 30/3/21 I, JC-361954A Nb/Sub/CIk Karan Singh, a resident of H.No DG 416/2 Adarsh Colony, Palwal, Dist- Palwal (Haryana). That, my wife name is Kamlesh Hans and same has been recorded in PAN/Aadhar Card etc. But, by mistake in my service records, her name has recorded as Kamlesh Kumari. Now, I would like to correct her name in my Service Document as "Kamlesh Hans" instead of Kamlesh Kumari".

I,JC-361954A Nb/Sub/Clk Karan Singh, a resident of H.No DG 416/2 Adarsh Colony, Palwal, Dist- Palwal (Haryana). That, my son name is Manish and same has been recorded in Aadhar Card. But, by mistake in my service records, his name recorded as "Manish Kumar Hans". Now, I would like to correct his name in my Service Document as "Manish" instead of "Manish Kumar Hans".

K-682

‘Not an inch lost’: Army chief on India-China disengagement NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (AGENCIES): Army Chief General MM Naravane, speaking on the India-China disengagement at Ladakh, emphasized today that India had not lost “an inch of land” and the situation was where it was before the dispute started last year.

“We have not lost out on any territory, we are where we were before this whole thing started...Not an inch of land has been lost,” General Naravane told news agency ANI. India and China last month began to pull back troops and battle tanks from the Pangong lake area high in the Himalayas.

Similar disengagement is expected in other areas like Depsang, Hot Springs and Gogra. The standoff began in April last when Chinese troops intruded into India’s side of the Line of Actual Control or the de facto border in the Ladakh area.

The confrontation spiralled when 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a physical clash on June 15

Councillor injured in J&K terror attack succumbs SRINAGAR, MAR 30 (IANS): Another councillor who was injured in an attack carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Sopore town, died in a hospital on Tuesday, taking the total toll from the carnage to three. The victim was identified as Shams-ud-din Pir, according to the police.

With this the number of persons killed in Monday’s attack has gone up to three Councillor Riyaz Ahmad and a security guard were killed when two LeT militants attacked the them while they were at a meeting in Sopore. Police has identified the assailants as a local and a Pakistani. Meanwhile, Vijay Kumar, IGP (Kashmir zone) has ordered suspension of three security guards who were present at the time of the attack, for lack of proper response.

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national

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

MM Naravane

at Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, when Chinese soldiers prevented Indian soldiers from marching up to their traditional patrolling points. Last month, China officially acknowledged casualties for the first time and named four officers and soldiers that it said were killed.

India has said it expects China to work with it through existing bilateral consultation mechanisms to ensure early completion of the disengagement process in the remaining areas in eastern Ladakh.

Last week, the Army Chief said the threat to India

had only “abated” following the disengagement at Pangong Lake but had not gone away altogether. At an interactive session at the India Economic Conclave, he also asserted that it would be incorrect to say the Chinese troops were still sitting on territories in eastern Ladakh that were in India’s control before the confrontation.

Asked whether he agreed with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments after the border standoff that the Chinese had not taken control of Indian territory, he said: “Yes, absolutely.”

General Naravane said patrolling had not resumed in the region as tensions persisted and there were always chances of face-offs and inadvertent escalation of the situation when it starts.

“There are areas which are under nobody’s control.

So where we were controlling we were in those areas and where they were controlling, they were in those areas,” he said, according to Press Trust of India.

Following outrage, Left leader LDF govt ‘betrayed’ people of Kerala apologies over remarks on Rahul just as Judas did to Jesus: PM Modi

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, MAR 30 (IANS): Following a huge outrage, especially from the Congress, former Lok Sabha MP Joyce George on Tuesday apologised for his remarks against Rahul Gandhi.

George had said that ‘women in Kerala should be wary of Rahul Gandhi’.

He made this controversial remark while campaigning for state Power Minister M.M. Mani at Erettayar in Idukki district on Monday.

George was the Idukki Lok Sabha member of the Left in 2014, but lost to Congress’ Dean Kuriakose in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

In his speech, George said ‘Gandhi is a bachelor and he goes only to interact with girls at the college campus’. “Gandhi is a problem maker and, hence women should be wary of him,” said George, while Mani was sitting on the dais.

From early Tuesday morning there was a huge public outrage, especially from the Congress leaders,

Consider imposing fines on passengers not wearing masks ‘properly’: DGCA NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (PTI): Aviation regulator DGCA on Tuesday told airports to increase surveillance to ensure COVID-19 norms are followed and consider imposing spot fines, with the help of police authorities, on passengers who are found not wearing masks properly and not maintaining social distancing.

On March 13, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had asked airports and airlines to ensure that passengers wear mask and maintain social distance at all times during air travel, and take action against those violating the norms.

In a circular issued on Tuesday, the regulator said, “During the surveillance of some airports, it has come to notice that compliance (of COVID-19 protocols) is

Representational Image.

not satisfactory.”

“All airport operators, therefore, are requested to ensure that the instructions on COVID-19 protocol from the standpoint of wearing face mask properly, covering nose and mouth, as well as maintaining social distance norms within the airport premises are followed scrupulously,” it said.

Accordingly, all airport operators can increase surveillance in this regard, the DGCA said.

“The possibility of taking punitive action, such as levy of spot fines in accordance with the law, shall also be explored with local police authorities so as to serve a deterrent for violation of COVID-19 protocol,” it stated.

who demanded that George should be arrested and both the CPI-M and the CPI condemn the act of George.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, however without naming any or condemning the incident, just said, “it should not happen”.

Following these outbursts, George in a political rally in his home district, Idukki and in the presence of CPI-M politburo member Brinda Karat said that he wished to withdraw his statement and would like to render an unconditional apology for his statement that was made.

Earlier, reacting sharply to these remarks, Kuriakose said they treated these statements with disdain and would approach the appropriate authorities.

Idukki district Congress committee president IbrahimkuttyKallar said this showed the way George has been groomed and what he actually is. “We will be approaching the Election Commission and also organise a protest in Idukki, later in the day,” said Kallar.

4 Maoists held in J’khand, Rs 4.48 lakh seized RANCHI, MAR 30 (IANS): Four Maoist guerrillas were arrested on Tuesday along with Rs 4.48 lakh levy collected by them in Jharkhand’s Latehar district.

According to the police, there was information regarding the presence of Maoist guerrillas belonging to the Chotu Kharwar group near the Udaipur Chowk.

Based on the tip-off, the police conducted raids and arrested three Maoists who have been identified as Upendra Yadav alias Bhupesh Yadav, Niranjan Yadav and Yogendra Yadav.

The police recovered Rs 3.48 lakh in cash, a motorcycle, six mobile phones, seven ATM cards and seven bank passbooks from their possession.

PA L A K K A D ( K E R ) , MAR 30 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday targeted Kerala’s ruling LDF over the gold smuggling scam, saying the CPI (M)-led government “betrayed”the people of the state just as Judas did to Jesus for a few pieces of silver.

He also slammed the LDF government on the manner in which it dealt with the agitation against the decision to implementa Supreme Court verdict allowing entry of women in all age groups into Sabarimala temple, saying the Left dispensation should be ashamed of showering lathis on innocent devotees.

“About LDF it can be said: Judas. Judas betrayed Lord Christ for a few pieces of silver. LDF has betrayed Kerala fora few pieces of gold,” the PM said while attacking the Left government on the gold smuggling case allegedly involving the former principal secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi

Narendra Modi

Vijayan. Modi sought to link the betrayal of Jesus by JudasIscariot in exchange for money to the Kerala gold smuggling case in the poll rally held during the Holy Week being observed by the Christian community.

During Holy Week, Christians recall the eventsleading up to Jesus death by crucifixion, his betrayal

by Judas during the week in exchange for money, and, according totheir faith, Jesus’ Resurrection.

Judas was one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus.

Addressing his first election rally in Palakkad where’ Metroman’ E Sreedharan is contesting as

the BJP candidate, Modi also flayed the Congressled UDF over corruption, saying during its rule, the then government did not even spare therays of sun, a reference to the solar panel scam when senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy was Chief Minister in 2013.

The veteran BJP leader claimed that the politics ofthe southern state was seeing a major shift driven by aspirations of the youth who have questioned the’ match-fixing’ politics of the LDF and the opposition UDF. “Over the last few years, the politics of Kerala is seeing a major shift. This shift is being driven by theaspirations of the youth, especially the first time voter in the state.”

“For many years, the worst kept secret of Kerala politics was the friendly agreement of UDF and LDF. Now, the first time voters of Kerala are askingwhat is this matchfixing?”

Modi said.

CBI grills coal smuggling ‘kingpin’ Majhi for 8 hrs, to continue April 1 Kolkata , M ar 3 0 (IANS): The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday questioned alleged coal smuggling case kingpin Anup Majhi aka Lala for over eight hours and has asked him to appear again on April 1, sources said.

A CBI source related to the probe told IANS that Lala was questioned for over eight hours in connection with the case.

“He was questioned about his business and financial dealings with several people,” the source said, adding that Lala’s questioning will continue on April 1.

The action comes in the wake of a case registered in November last year involving alleged illegal coal pilferage. The CBI last week questioned former Asanol C o m m i s s i o n e r, L a x m i

Anup Majhi

Narayan Meena for over three and half hours in connection with the case.

It had registered a case against the alleged kingpin of the pilferage racket, Eastern Coalfield Ltd General Managers Amit Kumar Dhar and Jayesh Chandra Rai, ECL chief of security Tan Das, area security inspector Kunustoria Dhananjay Rai, and SSI and security incharge Kajora area Debashish Mukherjee last year.

The CBI also recorded the statement of Rujira Banerjee, wife of Trinamool Congress MP and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee and his sister-in-law Menka Gambhir in the last week of February.

The agency has recently carried out searches at several locations in the state, including at the premises of Ait Agarwal, a close aide of Majhi, raising the heat in poll-bound West Bengal, where the ruling Trinamool and the BJP are engaged in a bitter battle.

Polling to the 294member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases, with the first round held on March 27, and the others slated on April 1, 6, 10, 17, 22, 26 and 29.

Results will be declared on May 2.

Priyanka hits out at ‘frauds Jaishankar calls on Tajikistan Prez; discusses bilateral ties and scams’ left govt in Kerala KO L L A M / K A RU NA GAPALLY (KER), MAR 30 (PTI): On the campaign trail in Kerala, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi on Tuesday mounted a scathing attack on the CPI(M)-led LDF goverment, saying it was a dispensation of “frauds and scams”, which was following a “corporate” manifesto.

Gandhi said the Left Democratic Front government had sworn allegiance to the communist manifesto but was actually following “corporate manifesto” like the Modi government at the Centre. The LDF government failed to recognise the “real gold” of Kerala -- the people of the state, she said, addressing a public meeting in Kollam alluding to the gold smuggling case.

It seems the LDF government was more interested in foreign gold and in gold smuggling and on giving fishing contract to multinational companies, she alleged.

“Their agenda is to sell the assets of state to corporates,” the congress leader said at a series of public meetings at Karunagapally, Kollam and Kottarakara.

Slamming the “politics of violence” of the left front, she said several youth congress workers had lost their lives over the years.

But the “democratic” government “protected” the killers, she said, referring to the slaying of two youth congress workers at Periya, allegedly by CPI(M)

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra

workers.

While the LDF government showed lot of “concern” for the wrongs against women in other states, Gandhi claimed its response in the case relating to the suspicious deaths of two minor sisters in Walayar after being sexually assaulted in2017, was similar to that of the Uttar Pradesh government in the death of a young girl at Hathras.

“They tried to hide evidence, they tried to show it as a suicide, they diluted the investigation. Instead of punishing policemen, they rewarded them. In a state where we expect women to be supported, is this the kind of government that we want?” she asked.

On the ‘Love Jihad’ issue, she claimed if the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister comes to Kerala for campaigning, he would bring up issues like ‘Love Jihad.’

But the LDF’s alliance partners are speaking in the same language, she said, citing the response of Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K

Mani on the matter, without naming him.

“This government has been a government of frauds and scams. Everytime a new scam emerges, the chief minister says he has no idea about it. Now I want to ask him, if he has no idea what is happening under his nose, then who is running the government ?” Gandhi, who is on a hectic tour of the southern districts, said.

She also attacked the government on the ‘EMCC scam’ inwhich the state government had signed an MOU with a US basedmultinational company for construction of deep sea fishingtrawlers.

WhatsApp chats from the chief minister’s office on thedealhad come to the public domain and the fishing communityknows that the chief minister is not telling the truth, sheclaimed.

Instead of supporting the fishermen community, thegovernment sold the deep-sea fishing for Rs 5,000 crore tocorporates, the congress leader alleged.

DUSHANBE, MAR 30 (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday called on Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon here and discussed expanding bilateral economic and development cooperation.

Jaishankar, who is in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe to attend the 9th Heart of Asia Ministerial Conference, also conveyed the greetings of President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to President Rahmon.

“Thank President @ EmomaliRahmon of Tajikistan for receiving me.

Conveyed the greetings of President Kovind & PM Modi. Discussed expanding our bilateral eco-

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar with Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon in Dushanbe. (PTI)

nomic and development cooperation. Appreciated his assessment of the Afghan situation,” Jaishankar

Pawar admitted to hospital MUMBAI, MAR 30 (IANS): Sparking fresh health concerns, Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar, who has been unwell since Sunday, was rushed to the Breach Candy Hospital here after he developed fresh abdominal pains, a top party leader said on Tuesday. NCP spokesperson and Maharashtra Minority Affairs Minister Nawab Malik said that Pawar, who was due to be taken to the hospital on Wednesday, was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday “since he is experiencing some pain again”.

As per the previous plans revealed by Malik on Monday, Pawar, 80, was scheduled to undergo an endoscopy and surgery for gall-

tweeted. Tajikistan shares a 1,400-km-long porus border with Afghanistan and has immense geo-stra-

tegic significance for India which has been providing military assistance to it as part of counter-terrorism

cooperation. India has also developed the Ayni airbase near the Tajik capital Dushanbe. On the sidelines of the Heart of Asia conference here, Jaishankar also met his Kazakh counterpart Mukhtar Tileuberdi and reviewed bilateral and international cooperation.

“A good meeting with DPM & FM Mukhtar Tileuberdi of Kazakhstan.

Useful review of our bilateral and international cooperation,” he tweeted.

The Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process (HoA-IP) ministerial conference is part of the Istanbul Process - a regional initiative on security and cooperation for a stable and peaceful Afghanistan - that was launched on November 2, 2011 in Turkey.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION KOHIMA : NAGALAND

Nagaland Government Ex-Gratia Scheme for Students Studying Outside Nagaland (NGESSO)

Sharad Pawar

bladder stones on Wednesday. Earlier, the octogenarian but agile leader was on blood thinner medication, which has been stopped now due to this issue, said Malik.

Several prominent personalities, including PM Modi, CM Uddhav Thackeray and others, have wished him a speedy recovery.

The Government of Nagaland had launched the Nagaland Government Ex-Gratia Scheme for Students Studying Outside Nagaland (NGESSO) to provide an Ex-Gratia of Rs. 5 lakh only in the event of any unfortunate deaths of Indigenous Naga Students of Nagaland who are studying outside the State in different parts of the country. The students can download other necessary details and registration form from www.highereducation.nagaland.gov.in for the 2021-22 session.

Registration form for Fresh and Renewal will be available from 1st April 2021 till 31st August 2021 and last date of submission will be 10th September 2021.

Sd/(Dr. APENI LOTHA) Director Higher Education Kohima : Nagaland Issued by DIPR DC-309

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OPINiON/EDITORIAL

Nagaland Post Vol. XXxI NO. 114 Dimapur, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Economy in reverse

T

hough global crude prices are sliding, yet this has not been reflected in the sale prices of petrol and diesel in India. The reason is that the base price of petrol and diesel have been reduced in line with global price of crude oil but the taxes have increased. According to a report quoting official sources in the ministry of petroleum, the domestic price of petrol and diesel are linked to international crude price. However, nothing is more untrue and misleading since the retail prices of petrol and diesel have risen sharply since 2018.

On March 25,2021 the government had marginally decreased taxes rather symbolically when excise fell by 21 paisa per litre for petrol and 20 paisa per litre on diesel. The average current selling price of petrol and diesel across India hover around Rs.84 per litre of diesel and Rs.93 for a litre of petrol.

In 2014, petrol was sold for Rs 71.51 a litre and Diesel for Rs 57.28 a litre. In 2021, a litre of petrol is Rs.89.59 while a litre of diesel is Rs.83.10.

Comparatively, a litre of petrol since 2014 has increased by Rs.18.08 and a litre of diesel since 2014 has increased by Rs.25.82. It is important to note that high petrol and diesel prices was one of the biggest issues the BJP had raised when it came into power in 2014 when it promised to bring it down. Presently, the global price of OPEC basket is around $50 . The average world crude oil price through the last week hovered around $50.05 per barrel. The crude oil price did appreciate by around five percent last week in anticipation that the newly discovered Covid vaccines may improve the global economic situation and raise the oil demand. Contrast the current global crude oil prices with those prevailing in the middle of 2008 during the UPA-II rule when the highest recorded price reached $147.02 per barrel. Today it’s around $ 50 a barrel, but users have not benefited. In 2014, the excise duty per litre on diesel was Rs 3.56 and Rs 9.40 on petrol. By March 2021 excise duty per litre on petrol is Rs.32.9 per litre and diesel is Rs.31.8. Notwithstanding the consistent fall of crude oil prices, both petrol and diesel have only become dearer for consumers in India, with the government trying to cash in on lower prices by hiking the excise duty of the fuels. Crude oil prices crashed in 2020 during the severest phase of the Covid-19 pandemic the retail prices of petrol and diesel did not come down in India. Domestic petrol and diesel prices don’t dip sharply when global crude oil prices nosedive. They didn’t drop when the global crude price temporarily crashed to $19 a barrel last year. The average closing price of crude oil was only $39.68 per barrel through 2020. Why were Indian consumers still made to pay an average of Rs.84 for a litre of petrol and Rs.93 for a litre of diesel? This is because they provide the easiest revenue source for the Central government. Revenue from liquor and petroleum was the principal income source for the government. To ensure its income flow remained intact, the government raised taxes on petrol and diesel in a way that the prices remained static while the government earned more money.

DailyDevotion Holiness or Hardness Toward God?

He…wondered that there was no intercessor…

—Isaiah 59:16 The reason many of us stop praying and become hard toward God is that we only have an emotional interest in prayer. It sounds good to say that we pray, and we read books on prayer which tell us that prayer is beneficial— that our minds are quieted and our souls are uplifted when we pray. But Isaiah implied in this verse that God is amazed at such thoughts about prayer.

Worship and intercession must go together; one is impossible without the other. Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying (see Philippians 2:5). Instead of worshiping God, we recite speeches to God about how prayer is supposed to work. Are we worshiping God or disputing Him when we say, “But God, I just don’t see how you are going to do this”? This is a sure sign that we are not worshiping. When we lose sight of God, we become hard and dogmatic. We throw our petitions at His throne and dictate to Him what we want Him to do. We don’t worship God, nor do we seek to conform our minds to the mind of Christ. And if we are hard toward God, we will become hard toward other people.

Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic?

Do you find yourself thinking that there is no one interceding properly? Then be that person yourself.

Be a person who worships God and lives in a holy relationship with Him. Get involved in the real work of intercession, remembering that it truly is work— work that demands all your energy, but work which has no hidden pitfalls. Preaching the gospel has its share of pitfalls, but intercessory prayer has none whatsoever.

Quotes

We have all the light we need, we just need to put it in practice. ~ Albert Pike

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Post-mortem

Is the economic impact of the lockdown over?

T he centre’s estimates are flawed and give the impression that the economy has not only weathered Covid-19 but overcome pre-existing difficulties.

But in reality, demand is short, dampening economic revival.

Officially, the “growth in GDP during 2020-21 is estimated at -8.0 percent as compared to 4.0 percent in 2019-20”. Further, “GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices in Q3 of 2020-21 is estimated” as 0.4 percent. This is stated in the press note on The Second Advance Estimates of National Income, 202021, released on February 26, 2021. The Q3 data is for October to December 2020.

The implication is that the economy has recovered from the recession in the first half of 2020-21 and is once again growing, even if marginally so. If this is true, then in the final quarter of 2020-21, the economy should recover further. But the issue is whether the economy will recover to its growth rate of 2019 anytime soon. The economy had already slowed down to 3.1 percent in the last quarter of 2019-20, just before the pandemic hit. This was a decline from 8 percent achieved eight quarters back.

In brief, the economy was already facing headwinds before the pandemic hit it in March 2020.

If the economy had started to grow in Q3 of 2020-21, does it mean that it has not only weathered the pandemic and lockdown induced problems but also largely overcome the pre-existing difficulties which had led to the sharp slowdown over two years? This question raises three possibilities.

First, the pickup has automatically happened after a sharp decline in the economy.

I

Second, it is the result of the policies put into place by the government. Finally, official growth data is incorrect given data and methodological deficiencies.

OFFICIAL DATA FLAWED The government and the RBI use high frequency data to estimate the quarterly growth in the economy and predict the advance annual growth. A perusal of the list of variables used to estimate the growth rates show that most of them are from the organised sector and a few from the unorganised one.

Thus, the data are incomplete. Agriculture is the only component of the unorganised sector whose data is used for quarterly estimation. But here also problems arose during the lockdown period. As this author has been pointing out, limited data for agriculture was available and it was assumed that targets were achieved. This was definitely not the case for perishables like fruits and vegetables which rotted in the fields or for poultry and milk, and these items constitute half the production in agriculture.

Thus, during the lockdown, the agriculture sector also declined by at least 10 percent rather than the officially claimed growth at 3.4 percent. No wonder farmers lost incomes and are protesting for the last 100 days.

For the rest of the sectors, the press note says that “the approach for compiling the advance estimates is based on Benchmark-Indicator Method” and “extrapolation of indicators”. Thus, the estimates are approximations. Further, it says, most “information (is) available for the first 9 months”. This methodology is problematic when the economy has

experienced a shock and especially a sharp one like the lockdown neither the earlier benchmark indicators nor extrapolations will be valid. So the official estimates become guesses and are likely to be incorrect.

The press note admits that the lockdown had an “impact on data collection mechanisms”. Further, the note says this “will have implications on subsequent revision of these estimates”.

Finally it says: “Estimates are, therefore, likely to undergo sharp revisions” and “users should take this into consideration when interpreting the figures”.

This raises the further point that if lockdown prevented data collection in Q1 and Q2 of 2020-21, much of it cannot be collected later on. Thus, the data for these quarters will remain permanently flawed.

Consequently, calculating the growth rate for these quarters and for 2020-21 as a whole, will have errors.

The implication is that the official growth data cannot be relied on. Is there an alternative to it?

C URR E N T GROWTH Lockdown is a voluntary cessation of activity.

People do not go to work, so factories and offices stop working except for some essential production. Very few are able to work from home in India. So most economic activity ceased in April and May 2020 and the GDP fell drastically. As the economy unlocked, activity revived and the GDP picked up.

The issue is whether economic activity picked up to the pre-pandemic level in Q3 of 2020-21 as the official data indicates. As already argued, the official data is based largely on some in-

dicators collected from the organised sector. Even the complete organised sector data is not available. For instance, data for companies is based on reports to the stock markets but only a few hundred company reports are available at any point of time and not all companies’ reports.

Some sectors of the economy have done well since demand for their products and services increased during the pandemic. For instance, pharmaceuticals, FMCG, telecommunications and IT sector were in great demand. Due to curtailment of public transportation and other reasons, demand for personal transportation has shot up and the automobile industry has grown.

But for the entire manufacturing and services sectors, demand decreased due to decline in employment and consequent fall in demand. People are also worried about another wave of infection, so consumer sentiment remained low even in January 2021. Due to the overall decline in demand, capacity utilisation is at 65 percent according to the RBI governor. That is way below its level in January 2020. As a consequence, investment remains below last year’s level.

A decline in consumption reflects in both reduced output and investment compared to the previous year.

In turn, this reflects in low credit off take. The RBI data for January 2021 shows this.

The decline is particularly marked in the case of large industry which is responsible for more than 80 percent of the credit taken. The implication is that large industry has not yet recovered to the 2020 January level in January 2021 which is the first

month of Q4. So one cannot conclude economic recovery in Q3 based on organised sector data.

U N OR G A N I S E D SECTOR The unorganised sector was very hard hit and has not recovered to its January 2020 level, as the limited data available indicates. Demand for work under MGNREGS remains high and reports suggest that many demanding work under it are not able to get it since funds are exhausted. Also, instead of 100 days of work per year for one person per family, only about 45 days of work has been available. This, in spite of the budgetary allocation having been increased from Rs 60,000 crore to Rs 1.1 lakh crore.

A recent study points out that 20 percent of those who lost work during the lockdown have not been able to regain it. Data also indicates that many have simply dropped out of the workforce, especially women.

AIMO has been reporting that many small businesses are closing. Further, 20 percent are unable to repay EMIs and are likely to default. The RBI has been anticipating a rapid rise in NPAs in the coming months. Further, the rise of e-commerce has been at the expense of brick and mortar stores. CAIT has been saying that many small traders will have to shut shop.

This example also points to the growth of the organised sector at the expense of the unorganised one as demand has shifted from the latter to the former. This leads to an over-estimation of the growth rate of the economy.

Many contract services have not been able to revive to their pre-pandemic levels

due to fear in the minds of customers. For instance, services of taxis, beauticians, hair dressers and gyms remain below last year’s levels.

Similarly, transportation, travel, tourism, hotels and restaurants have not gone back to their pre-pandemic level of operations. This is true both for the organised and unorganised sectors. In brief, not only has the unorganised sector not recovered to January 2020 levels, even many parts of the organised sector have not. So the Q3 data cannot be relied on.

CONCLUSION The government, instead of boosting demand, has heavily tilted in favour of supply side policies. Such policies, even if they are the correct ones, will impact the economy over the medium and long term.

So when demand is short and capacity utilisation low, investment will not revive and economic growth will remain down and the long term goal would not be achieved. Supply side policies also lead to greater inequality and that further impacts demand, as has been seen since the time of demonetisation.

Unfortunately, Union Budget 2021-22 does little to check the growing inequality and the stock markets are fuelling greater inequality.

Both these trends will further dampen the pros­pects of economic revival in India.

Dr. Arun Kumar (The writer was Professor of Economics, JNU, presently Malcolm Adiseshiah Chair Professor, Institute of Social Sciences. He is the author of Indian Economy’s Greatest Crisis: The Impact of the Coronavirus and the Road Ahead (Penguin Random House).

First published: indialegallive.com

Don’t chase after money

f you want to be a successful entrepreneur and be wealthy with reputation, don’t chase after money, let money chase you, be a righteous businessman and woman solving the problem of the society at any level big or small then money will come to you bursting in. We have the God given power to do this. We may start the business in a small way in the beginning and grow the same into perfection with a different approach. However, our only problem is that we have the tendency to be jack of all trades master of none, chasing after money, in vain. When you have made some money in project A, you have the tendency to lose it all in project B or C which are all different in nature.

As such, chasing-after-money business is often found to be a gamble, scary and haphazard; it discourages others to take up self entrepreneurship after seeing such business without much values. This culture is deeply rooted in our Naga society since time immemorial which also sadly becomes the reason why we remain poor even after all these years. Since someone rears pigs, you all also rear pigs, in the same way you rear cows, dogs, chickens, ducks, cats, etc, then simultaneously in the same manner you cultivate rice, corn, millet, pumpkin, taro, turmeric, banana, cucumber, sweet potato, potato, ginger, cabbage, garlic, tomato, chilly haphazardly, so on and so forth. You need relentless commitment and specialisation in whatever you do in your selected, chosen profession, otherwise the rolling stone habit would gather no moss for your benefit.

It is in your hands, how to let money chase you and to let it come to you bursting in. For that purpose you shall have to apply the full volume of your character, sincerity and integrity with relentless commitment, hard work and gratitude.

A grateful heart welcomes favour.

For example Mr. Nongtok Jamir, the younger brother of Dr S C Jamir has an NRL Petrol Pump at 2.5 Milestone in Dimapur. In his petrol pump there is absolutely no adulteration or no manipulation of measuring metre. Therefore you get not only the right quality of motor fuel but also get the full quantity of oil for what you have paid for.

It is a great Christian testimony

amongst the sea of corruption, manipulation and adulteration that we live in. A great service to the society in solving many complaints and problems in your vehicles, so, everyone goes to his Petrol Pump to fill their tanks in full whenever they get the opportunity. His Petrol Pump has the highest sale of diesel and petrol any day of the year in Nagaland.

Jacob Nakhro, a young graduate in Arts, from Jotsoma Village gives a tip of about 50 CFT of boulder stones per truck load whenever you buy bolder stones from him while others gives short supply in higher rates. Their business policy is to have “maximum service with minimum profit in absolute integrity”. As such, everyone is going after this type of services for its righteousness and gratefulness. His sale of bolder stones, chips and sized stones are growing higher and bigger day by day. He is already on the path of success, prosperity and reputation.

More and more of Jacob Nakhro are coming up in Jotsoma Village creating an industrial culture therein. Very frequently soybeans are brought to Dimapur by Kiphirians all the way from Kiphire sold to the Marwaris then again the same soybeans are bought by some other Kipherians who come from Kiphire and taken back to Kiphire. What is this? These are instances of money chasing after unselfish honest businessmen and it comes to them bursting in, in the long run. The above businessmen also maintain very strict frugality for their small earning made out of their toil and sweat but the small profit that they make are regularly and consistently added to their existing capital, as such, their business ultimately grow bigger and stronger consistently. That’s how they become Job Givers and not Job Seekers, Masters and Owners of business establishments letting their money work hard enough for them, so they would not have to work for money every day and remain poor. To be a wealthy person and righteous, the first thing you need to learn is “frugality and frugality first” with generosity and kindness without which one cannot give the desire service to the society. Income is different from wealth. For instance, you get a huge amount of money every year but you spend them all at

the end of each year, then you are not getting any wealthier. Wealth is what you accumulate and not what you spend.

The utmost popular divine direction is “by the sweat of your brow, you shall eat your food until you return to the ground” Gen. 3:19. This commandment of God is given to each of us without any exception because He wants all of us to be the head and not the tail, a Job giver and not a Job seeker, master, owner of business establishments and not to be a slave to unscrupulous employers. To rebuild our Naga world from the appalling and disgraceful subsidy economy what we need is to re-birth our work culture to redeem ourselves from the Delhi dependency syndrome.

The Delhi dependency syndrome and corruption definitely is as bad as a cancer in the highway.

As per 2015 Municipal/ Town Council record, 23,777 Trade Licenses were issued in Nagaland, out of which 6,724 only were given in the name of the of Nagas, the rest were given to the Non-Nagas, and we know that there are many Benami transactions in favor of Non-Nagas from those 6,724 too, as we are interested to get only a small commission without doing anything. Almost all our Naga quarters complain that there are no job avenues in Nagaland while Non-Nagas are filling up all job avenues in Nagaland. How is it that they see so much job avenues while we don’t? Let’s change our perspectives towards jobs; guard our minds constantly, with a fine tuned balance. Nurture the 'unique spark' of our individuality; a core area to expose our unlimited talent and potential to pinnacle heights and intertwining delicately with extraordinary traits of entrepreneurial relationships. Thus, pushing ourselves in God’s hand to become successful entrepreneurs, motivators and lead our Naga society to be owners and job givers and not job seekers. Cultivate "Work and Worship" culture that we become masters, professionals and owners in God’s plan and purpose; being created in His image.

God tells us: Be who I created you to be, ‘Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, be strong and very courageous. Then you will be prosperous and successful. For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.’ Joshua 1:7-9. Be

committed to this divine direction and claim the promise; our God has never failed anyone in the past and He will not fail anyone today or tomorrow.

Don’t chase after money in vain, instead, be a righteous businessman and woman and be blessed. Learning to solve our own spiritual, social, political and economic problems by ourselves is the purpose of life and purpose of our creation; however, it appears to be one of the greatest challenges in our Naga society today. ‘Realization of what we have’, ‘discipline to utilize the same’ with commitment and integrity is the key to our present terrible crises of “Govt. job dependency culture and being parasites to Delhi”. God did not create us to be parasites and leeches; declare that we are children of the Most High God; King of kings and we can do all things through Christ our Savior Lord. “The harder you work, the luckier you get” declared by Henry Ford. Set goals with proper planning, obtain proper information in business and market in the first place, rise early every morning to see the accomplishment of such goals.

Let money chase you hard enough for your values in your enterprises and know that we are meant to be masters, entrepreneurs, owners and job givers as we were created in God’s own image and likeness, not for just the appearance but with some of His characteristics, powers, greatness, glory, majesty, love, integrity, purity and unselfishness. Excel in 'wise and courageous decision

making' and 'risk taking abilities' for the successful achievement of our goals with proper evaluation and assessment of ourselves. David was absolutely confident in God and also in his sling-shot: we have to sincerely play our part. Faith without work is dead. James 2:7.

We must know ‘who we are’ and ‘who we are not’, so as to activate the God given latent powers in ourselves. This will redeem our Naga society from all evils, corruptions, fratricides, extortions, immoralities and violence.

Don’t work for money, let your money work hard enough for you as a righteous entrepreneur and be wealthy. Be courageous, we are inheritors of a rich historical legacy built on our Christian faith, such as, hard work, honesty, integrity, hospitality, courage, simplicity from our forefathers. So can we properly plan and set practical goals to solve our economic, spiritual, social, and local problems as our forefathers did? Overcome our weaknesses and thrive as a people and a nation against all kinds of exploitation from outsiders? Our life is too precious to be left half baked with only a casual daily routine. A total transformation of a young mind into a strong confident leader treading the path of a successful entrepreneur or a professional to become a 'Job Giver' and not a 'Job Seeker' is needed to fulfill the desire of God through our integrity, sweat and toil.

(To be concluded) Kuolachalie Seyie, (The writer is CEO at Seyie Auto)

Reader’s Post

Continue strict screening at borders

Sir,

The latest numbers show that the COVID situation in Nagaland is much better than many other states. Though the state has eased many restrictions, this does mean that we can afford to relax. The state govt should continue strict screening of inbound travellers into Nagaland. If COVID cases enter into the state due to inadequate screening, this would trigger a chain and we might witness rise in COVID cases again. There are around 7 to 8 states where the number of new cases has risen sharply and we should be more careful about travellers from these states. Our sacrifice should not go in vain and we should do all that we can to be one of the states with the least number of active COVID cases.

Loyibeni, Dimapur

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.

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Modi’s visit to Bangladesh violated poll code: TMC to EC NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (PTI): The TMC has written to the Election Commission alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Bangladesh violated the model code of conduct in place for the West Bengal Assembly polls and some of his programmes there “intended to influence the voting pattern” in certain constituencies of the state.

The letter dated March 28 was released by the Trinamool Congress on Tuesday.

Modi visited Bangladesh from March 26 to 27 to attend the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the country’s independence and the birth centenary of ‘Bangabandhu’ Sheikh Mujibur Rahman following an invitation from his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina.

The subject line of the letter written by TMC national spokesperson and Rajya Sabha member Derek O’Brien read: “Gross violation of democratic ethics and the Model Code of Conduct by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi during

Derek O’Brien

his visit to Bangladesh.”

“We have no objection whatsoever to his visit to Bangladesh for this official purpose. After all, India played a critical role in the liberation of Bangladesh.

West Bengal, in particular, made an immense contribution to the heroic struggle of our fellow Bengalis in (what was then) East Pakistan for freedom from the brutal regime in West Pakistan.

“However, the All lndia Trinamool Congress strongly objects to Shri Modi’s programmes in Bangladesh on March 27. These had nothing to do with either the 50th anniversary of the independence of Bangladesh or the birth cen-

tenary of ‘Bangabandhu’.

Rather, they were solely and exclusively intended to influence the voting pattern in certain constituencies in the ongoing elections to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal,” O’Brien said in the letter.

“No lndian Prime Minister has so brazenly indulged in an unethical and undemocratic act and violated the Model Code of Conduct by indirectly campaigning for his party from foreign soil,” he said.

The TMC leader further alleged that the political motive behind Modi’s visit is proven by the fact that he took along with him BJP MP from West Bengal Santanu Thakur, who holds no official position in the government of lndia.

“No MP or representative from the Trinamool Congress or other parties was invited to accompany the PM. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has thus grossly misused his official position to interfere from foreign soil in the election process in West Bengal,” O’Brien said.

7

national Nitish responsible for corruption, says Tejashwi PATNA, MAR 30 (IANS): Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Yadav said that massive corruption and loot is taking place in several departments of Bihar government and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is directly responsible for it.

Referring to a CAG report, Tejashwi said that different departments of Bihar government have not submitted utility certificates, to analyse the expenses in various sectors, from last 8-10 years. “There are 56 per cent posts in education and 70 per cent posts in non education sectors are vacant. Only 50 per cent fund is being spent by the departments while the remaining is going into the pockets of corrupt officials and public representatives of the ruling parties,” he added.

“The CM claims that all works of the Bihar government are executed in a transparent manner. If it is true then why different departments have not submitted the utility certificates to the government from last 8-10 years. What is the reason for the delay?” Tejashwi said.

Police forces from BJP-ruled states ‘terrorising’ Nandigram voters: Mamata NANDIGRAM, MAR 30 (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday alleged police forces from BJP-ruled states have been brought in to “terrorise” voters in Nandigram assembly constituency and also accused BJP ministers and security forces of distributing cash to lure voters.

Baner jee is pitted against her one time loyalist-turned- rival Suvendu Adhikari of BJP in the highprofile Nandigram constituency that will go to vote on April 1.

Criss-crossing the assembly segment on wheelchair in the last leg of campaigning, the TMC supremo alleged at Sonachura that huge amount of cash was being brought from all over the country and “distributed from hotels by the (BJP) ministers” to lure people cast their votes in favour of the saffron party nominee.

Banerjee further alleged that cash was also being distributed from vehicles of the security forces to bribe voters and accused BJP of crossing all norms to come to power in the state.

“This is the money of PM Cares Fund, this is

Mamata Banerjee at a rally on the last day of the campaign for the 2nd phase of Assembly elections, in Nandigram. (PTI)

unaccounted cash amassed during demonetisation, this is the cash having swelled their coffers after sale of PSUs. “This is the public money they had looted and now giving in Rs 500/1000 to each voter. We had informed the Election Commission about this but it still continues unabated,” she said. At the second meeting at Basulichak, she

said, “several ministers from BJP-ruled states and Central ministers are behind distribution of cash.”

The feisty Bengal leader also asked at Basulichak “why more than 100 cars are in the convoy of Union Home Minister Amit Shah while not more than 5 vehicles are allowed in a convoy during elections?

“Someone is being

given more privileges than others,” she alleged.

At the meeting at Basulichak, the CM while taking an apparent dig at Suvendu Adhikari said “CPI(M) harmad (pirate) from whose house shots were fired at protestors in Nandigram in 2007, has now become the right hand man of the betrayer of people.”

At the Sonachura meeting, Banerjee alleged “police forces from Madhya Pradesh and some other BJP-ruled states have been brought to Nandigram to terrorise voters in villages and tilt the verdict in favour of the saffron party”. Predicting a massive win from the seat and her party returning to power in the state, she warned “they (police forces from outside) will be here only for few days. Make no mistake. We will be back and give the betrayers a befitting reply.”

She said the Election Commission is being apprised of the alleged act by police forces from outside of terrorising villagers.

“We have no issue if the outsider police function impartially. But, we have credible information they are not,” she alleged.

Nanded gurdwara violence: 14 arrested for attack on policemen Waze present at meeting where Hiran’s murder was planned: NIA

MUMBAI, MAR 30 (PTI): Police have arrested 14 people in connection with an attack on policemen by a mob of sword-wielding Sikhs in Nanded after they were denied permission to hold a public procession due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an official said on Tuesday.

The Wazirabad police in Maharashtra’s Nanded district have registered three FIRs against 64 people (who have been named in the FIRs) and other unidentified persons in connection with Monday’s incident at the Sri Hazur Sahibgurdwara, he said.

A viral video showed the sword-wielding mob barging out of the gurdwara, breaking the barricades put up by police and attacking the policemen.

Mob barging out of the gurdwara attacking the cops.

Four constables were injured and six vehicles were also damaged in the violence. The condition of one of the injured policemen was serious, the official said.

The police were also trying to ascertain if anyone from the gurdwara committee had any role in the incident, he said.

“We have arrested 14 people till now on charges of attempt to murder, rioting, and under provisions of the Arms Act and other sections. Around 64 people have been named in the FIR, while search is on for others,” Deputy Inspector General of Police, Nanded Range, Nisar Tamboli told PTI. The official on Mon-

day said permission for the Hola Mohalla public procession was not granted due to thecoronavirus pandemic.

“The gurdwara committee was informed and they had assured us that they would abide by our directives and hold the event inside the gurdwara premises,” he had said.

However, when the Nishan Sahib was brought at the gate around 4 pm on Monday, several participants started arguing and over 300 youth stormed out of the gate, broke the barricades and began attacking the policeman, he had said.

Nishan Sahib is a triangular saffron-colour flagfurling outside a gurdwara on a steel pole covered with a saffron cloth. The flag also

has an insignia called Khanda in the middle, which includes two swords and a chakra.

Hola Mohalla (Hola) is a Sikh festival that comes aday after Holi.

Unlike Holi, when people sprinkle coloured powder on each other, Hola Mohalla is an occasion for Sikhs to demonstrate their martial skills.

Nanded is an important Sikh pilgrimage centre as itis home to the sacred shrine - the Takht Sachkhand Sri Hazur Abchal Nagar Sahib.

It was here that the 10th and last Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh (16661708), anointed the holy book Guru Granth Sahib as the eternal Guru of Sikhism and spent the last 14months of his life.

Amid surge, restrictions, night President Kovind undergoes curfew in Chhattisgarh districts cardiac bypass surgery

RAIPUR, MAR 30 (PTI): Amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in Chhattisgarh, restrictions have been imposed on shopsremaining open after 9 pm in several districts, includingRaipur, while some areas will see night curfew from Tuesday,officials said.

The order issued by the administration in variousdistricts said the operation of all kind of temporary andpermanent shops will be allowed from 6 am to 9 pm, whilerestaurants, dhabas and hotels can remain open between 8 amand 10 pm for indoor dining, a public relations departmentofficial said.

“However, restaurants, dhabas and hotels can providetake-away parcels and home delivery services till 11:30 pm. Insome districts, shops have been allowed to function from 6 amto 8 pm. Petrol pumps and

medicine stores have been exemptedfrom the restrictions,” he added. In Raipur, all businessmen, employees and customerswill have to wear masks and ensure strict compliance of socialdistancing protocol in the their premises, he said, addingthat shops and commercial establishment will have to ensurearrangement of sanitisers in their premises.

In case any area is declared as a containment zone,then all shops and commercial establishment will remain shutthere till further orders, and violation of guidelines wouldresult in closure of the concerned shop for 15 days and alsoattract legal action, the order by the Raipur administrationadded. Similar orders have been issued in Durg, Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi (GPM), Sukma, Raigarh, Korba, Mungeli etc,though

the orders issued in these districts did not mentionthe imposition of night curfew.

Similar timings have been fixed for operating shops,restaurants and hotels in Rajnandgaon, Surguja, Surajpur,Jashpur and Bastar districts, where night curfew would also beenforced, the official informed. Till Monday, the state had recorded 3,41,516 COVID-19cases, with the active caseload being 20,181 as 3,17,239people had recovered and 4,096 have died.

The state has reported over 23,000 COVID-19 cases inthe last two weeks, with most of them from Raipur, Durg,Rajnandgaon and Bilaspur districts. The local administration has already imposed CrPCsection 144, which bars assembly of four or more people, inseveral districts like Raipur, Durg, Bastar, Rajnandgaon andBilaspur.

NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (PTI): President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday underwent a cardiac bypass surgery at the AIIMS here, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said. The surgery was successful and his condition is stable, it said. “The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind underwent cardiac bypass surgery today morning (March 30, 2021) at AIIMS, New Delhi. Surgery was successful. He is stable and is being closely monitored by a team of senior doctors,” the statement said. The president was on Saturday shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Kovind, 75, had undergone a health check-up at the Army Hospital (R&R) here following chest discomfort on Friday morning.

MUMBAI, MAR 30 (PTI): Suspended Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze and former policeman Vinayak Shinde were present at the meeting where the murder of Thane-based businessman Mansukh Hiran was planned, the NIA told the court on Tuesday and added Waze had used a mobile phone to contact” conspirator”.

The agency also said that it was close to unravelling the conspiracy and the motive behind the crime.

The special court judge P R Sitre has extended till April 7 the NIA custody of Shinde and another accused Naresh Gor, a cricket bookie, in the murder case.

Hiran, a Thane resident, had been in possession of an SUV which was later found with explosives near the residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani in south Mumbai on February 25.

The body of Hiran was found in the Mumbra creek in Thane on March 5.

The Maharashtra AntiTerrorism Squad had arrested suspended constable Shinde and Gor in this connection earlier this month.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) took the duo into its custody last week. They were presented before the special NIA court on the expiry of their re-

The family members of victims and neighbours rushed to the place and tried to douse the flame but failed.

In another incident, three children lost their lives in a massive fire which broke out in the house of Lal Muni Mandal, one of the residents of Athania village. Mandal and his wife also sustained serious burns while they tried to save their kids.

The deceased have been identified as Priya Kumari (4), Aashish Kumar (3) and Naina Kumari (1).

Sources said the fire broke out following a short circuit.

“We have admitted Mandal and his wife in Pirpaiti referral hospital and they are out of danger,” said the investigation officer of Pirpaiti police station.

mand on Tuesday. The NIA told the court that its probe revealed that Waze and Shinde were present at the meeting where the murder of Hiran was planned. The agency said it needs to question the accused duo regarding the recovery of seven SIM cards, some mobile phones and a CPU during the probe.

These SIM cards and mobile phones were recovered fromShinde, the court was told. Special public prosecutor for NIA Sunil Gonsalves told the court that the probe team found a piece of paper during the probe listing 14 mobile phone numbers, of which

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K-663 K-641

Bihar: 9 kids killed in separate incidents

Patna, Mar 30 (IANS): Nine children have been killed in Bihar in two separate incidents of fire on Tuesday.

Six children, aged between 3 to 8 years, charred to death in Kabaya village in Araria district in the afternoon while three were killed after a massive fire broke out in Athania village in Bhagalpur district.

The children who lost their lives in Araria have been identified as Asraf (5), Gulnaz (5), Dilawar (6), Barkas (4) Ali Hasan (5) and Kushnisar (8).

“The fire broke out after children were secretly cooking maize inside the straw house. The intensity of the fire was such that not a single child managed to escape,” investigating officer of Palasi police station said.

Sachin Waze

five numbers were given to Waze. One of the mobile phones was also given to Waze, which he used for contacting “conspirator” to kill Hiran, the agency told the court. The NIA further said the agency is closer to unravel the conspiracy and the motive behind killing Hiran. Shinde’s lawyer Gautam Jain submitted that no role in the crime has been attributed to the accused other than the delivery of the SIM cards.

He said Shinde’s further remand is not required as he has been in the custody of the probe agencies (first the ATS and then the NIA) for almost nine days.

Gor’s lawyer Aftab Diamondwale told the court that his client’s role was restricted to providing the SIM cards and that he is not connected to the (murder) case.

Diamondwale told the court that Gor has been falsely implicated in the case.

The Hiran murder case was initiallyprobed by the Maharashtra ATS, but it was later taken over bythe NIA.

VACANCY: Finance Officer, ECS Location: Tuensang, Nagaland

Salary: 40000/- on probation period.

Profile Requirement: • M. Com/B.Com in Finance OR Accounting/MBA Finance/ Chartered Accountant, with at least 5 years of experience, preferably with knowledge on compliances w.r.t FCRA, TDS, EPF, P-Tax, GST and ITR.

DC-3306

How to apply Interested and Qualified Candidates are invited to apply with a brief covering letter and CV in PDF format to the ECS HR ecsmis20@gmail.com.

Applications close : 11th April 2021.

Date of Interview : 15th April 2021.

Please note: Only candidates who are shortlisted will receive an acknowledgment and communication for the details of the interview, from the ECS HR department.

Contact: 8787850020 DP-1675

8

Inflation ‘uncomfortably high’: Moody’s Analytics

No. 3520 Yesterday’s solution No. 3519

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8974449797 / 9436830820

FOR SALE

Toyota Fortuner 2014, 4x4 Manual Nagaland Registered Price 16 L Contact - 9863060734 NO BROKERS

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1. B.Sc (Bio) with B.Ed (Male) 2. Warden - B.Com/B.Sc (Male) Walk in Interview on 01/04/2021 between 9:00 am and 12:00 am WhatsApp & Contact8787676348 Email Resumemtzionsch@gmail.com/WhatsApp

HOUSEHOLD HELPER/COOK Salary (Male) Rs. 4500/or Salary (Female) Rs. 4000/at 5th Mile, Dimapur.

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WANTED

WANTED

Salary : Rs. 3,000 Plus fooding and lodging free Contact : 9085285202 7630003660 DP-1704

FOR SALE

1. NISSAN TERRANO Model : 2013 2. DUSTER Model : 2012 Both in excellent condition Contact : 6009260015 COM

Plot with Two Kucha House Rs. 6500 Monthly Income from Rental. at Padampukhuri Near Monday Bazaar Main Road.

Area - 5280 sq. ft. (60x88) Price : 19,30,000 (Fixed) No Brokers C/No. : 7005332436

LAND FOR URGENT SALE 1. Thilixu Village18000 sq. ft.

2. Kushiabill Sec. 042 Bighas 3. Mon Bosti Any size available Contact : 7005424879

at

KIYEZU VILLAGE 5 PURAS Paddy Field Price 18,00,000/-

LAND FOR SALE LAND FOR SALE

With Building Location : Lerie Colony, Kohima Genuine Buyers Only No Brokers Please Contact : 9362723396 URGENT SALE

LAND FOR SALE

LAND WITH RCC BUILDING AT LOW PRICE 1. Thahekhu Tinali-1 2. Half Nagarjan 3 storey-1 3. Imkonglenden-1 Contact No. : 7005424879

@ Purana Bazar measuring 11000 sq.ft

Available in two cut off plots In a prime location with the price 360 per sq.ft negotiable.

Contact: 8729817125/9774247039 LAND FOR SALE

1. NAGARJAN Rs. 450/- PER SQ. FT. 2. PADAMPUKHURI Rs. 390/- PER SQ. FT. 3. URA COLONY Rs. 380/- PER SQ. FT. 4. NEAR NEW SHOWUBA Rs. 60/- PER SQ. FT. 5. NAGA UNITED Rs. 200/- PER SQ. FT. Contact No : 9862086218/8974493450

LAND FOR SALE

Contact 7628952524 Christian School Tesen Dist - Peren : Nagaland Raffle Draw Result Date : 27/03/21, Time : 04 PM

1. Keheilungle Cerai (First Prize (2208) 2. 007 (Second Prize (2010) 3. Pelingle, Jlk Town Third Prize (2659) 4. 1st ConsolationNzeubeule (2257) 2nd ConsolationInchale Cerai (2614) 3rd ConsolationDitalak, Jlk Town (2328)

NO BROKERS PLEASE Cont. No. : 9862954673

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LAND FOR URGENT SALE

1 Bigha, 4 Lane touched, No earth filling required Rs. 270/ sq. ft.

Contact : 9863322767

LAND FOR SALE 1. Highway Touch 3rd Mile 2. Kushibill 4 Lane Touch 3. Diphupar Near Green Park 4. Pagala Phar (Paddy Field)

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LAND FOR SALE

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No. 4496 Yesterday’s solution No. 4495

Across 9. Loathsome (9) 10. Newsreader (9) 12. Body of men (4) 13. Very busy (6) 14. Intellectual, informally (7) 15. Lacking resolution (9) 17. G iv i n g a w i d e view (9) 18. Tooth specialist (7) 19. Yearly (6) 20. Flightless bird (4) 23. Obstructive (9) 25. African (9) 26. Manage (4) 27. Secret (6) 29. Stalemate (7) 32. Maze (9) 34. Mention (9) 35. Stringed instrument (7) 36. Referee (6) 37. Operatic song (4) 38. Economic (9) 39. Crossed (9) Down 1. Beleaguered (8) 2. Contest (12) 3. Deferential (8) 4. Rank (6) 5. Cooking vessel (8) 6. Below (10) 7. GP’s office (7) 8. Prophecy (10) 11. Dairy product (5) 16. Eatable (6) 19. Hole-boring tool (3) 21. Peculiarity (12) 22. Metal (6) 23. Coarse (10) 24. Made mistakes (10) 25. Newt (3) 28. Spends (8) 29. Casual (8) 30. Gemstones (8) 31. Pressing need (7) 33. Deception (5) 34. Public estimation (6)

Kushiabill, East Dimapur (Montessori & Hostel Attached)

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No. 9877 Yesterday’s solution No. 9876

MOUNT ZION SCHOOL

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at USD 64.53 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 1,128.08 points or 2.30 per cent higher at 50,136.58, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced by 337.80 points or 2.33 per cent to 14,845.10.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 50.13 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

“Rupee got a rough ride just a day before the financial year end, as it marked its biggest singleday fall since February 26.

Dollar buying from importers and central bank along with short squeeze pushed USD/INR above 100 days moving averages,” said Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst, HDFC Securities.

at Padampukhuri, Dimapur Area : 86,400 sq. ft.

Rs. 350 per sq. ft.

AND at Same boundary Padampukhuri, Area : 03 Bighas (Approximate) Rs. 270 per sq. ft. (any size) Negotiable No Filling Required Contact No. : 9862128679 8014690505 No Broker

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KAKURO

advanced 0.20% to 93.12.

“Indian rupee depreciated amid strong dollar and rise in crude oil prices. Dollar gained strength amid surge in US treasury yields. Yields jumped on expectation that rollout of COVID-19 vaccines and government stimulus efforts will accelerate economic growth and inflation,” said Saif Mukadam, Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas. Additionally, the rupee slipped on concern over rising COVID-19 cases in India. However, a sharp fall was prevented on rise in risk appetite in the domestic market. Rupee may trade in the range of 72.70 to 73.60 in next couple of sessions, Mukadam noted.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, were trading 0.69 per cent down

Jun will serve as the CEO of company in an announcethe electric vehicle business, ment to shareholders and stated the company. potential investors.

“The board of directors of the company has JOB JOB JOB resolved to commence the electric vehicle business. We need people with Good writing for content writing projects.

The company will set up a skills Work from home. wholly-owned subsidiary Salary : 15000-35000 to operate the smart electric Min Qualification : Graduate vehicle business. The initial Email your resume at: phase of investment will be wjcontentservice@gmail.com RMB 10 billion, with the WANTED total investment amount over the course of the next Looking for a Lady Domestic Helper 10 years estimated to be Location : Dimapur USD$10 billion,” said the

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Su doku

Mumbai, Mar 30 (PTI): The rupee slumped by 87 paise to close at 73.38 (provisional) against the US currency on Tuesday as rising crude oil prices and a strong American currency weighed on investor sentiment.

At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 72.85 against the greenback and traded in the range of 72.77-73.47 during the day. The rupee finally ended at 73.38 against the American currency, registering a fall of 87 paise over its previous closing.

On Friday, the rupee had settled at 72.51 against the American currency. The forex market was closed on Monday on account of Holi. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies,

New Delhi, Mar 30 (Agencies): Smartphone giant Xiaomi on Tuesday announced that it is entering the electric vehicle business.

The company will operate a wholly-owned subsidiary to operate the electric vehicle business. The company estimates the eventual investment in the company in the next 10 years to reach $10 billion, Business Today reported. The Chinese giant expects the initial phase of investment to be RMB 10 billion. Xiaomi CEO Lei

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Crossword

ing increase of the retirement age from 60 to 65 years only for clinical purpose and from 60 to 62 for administration.

Sekhose reminded the government that it was not the doctors who are seeking enhancement of superannuation age, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself who announced it. He said some States accordingly implemented it. He also said the finance department’s reason that acceding to the demand would have implications in other technical departments was not justified.

He claimed that though the doctor-patient ratio should be 1:1000 as per WHO standards, the ratio in Nagaland was 1:3000.

NHAK managing director and core committee convener Dr Thorse said the ongoing symbolic protest by the doctors was perhaps the longest since as it was already over two months. He also said that the issue was demoralising the doctors and that both the core committee and NIDA were under pressure due to the agitation.

He cautioned the government not to consider the doctors’ concern and silence as weakness.

Rupee slumps 87 paise to close Xiaomi to enter electric vehicle business at 73.38 against US dollar

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In the Asia-Pacific region, Singapore has the highest population of salaried UHNWIs with 31 per cent of the ultra-wealthy being salaried employees, followed by the Philippines (18 per cent), Chinese Mainland (16 per cent), India (14 per cent) and Hong Kong (13 per cent). Globally too, Singapore maintains its lead, followed by South Africa (28 percent), Russia (25 per cent), Canada (22 per cent) and Switzerland (22 per cent).

Commenting on the findings, Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India, said, “The rise in the number of salaried employees, who now occupy space in the UHNWI list in India, can be largely attributed to the growth of the country”.

the central bank wants to have complete control over the digital currency, unlike cryptocurrencies that are hard to regulate or monitor.

The report comes at a time when the government is planning to come out with a new cryptocurrency bill, aimed at either banning or regulating decentralised virtual currencies.

While the government had earlier indicated that it wants to completely ban cryptocurrencies/virtual currencies in India, a recent amendment signals that it could introduce measures for better regulation.

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New Delhi, Mar 30 (IANS): International property consultant Knight Frank has observed in its recent Attitudes Survey 2021 that 14 per cent of India’s ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWIs, $30 million plus) are from the salaried employee segment.

This makes India the fourth highest contributor in the Asia Pacific for salaried employees in the ultra-wealthy club.

According to the survey, a vast majority of about 56 per cent Indians derive most of their wealth through their own businesses. Indians who derive their wealth through salaries or receive dividends from their investment portfolios share the second spot, contributing 14 per cent to India’s UHNWIs club.

will be different from other cryptocurrencies but will be technologically at par with them. He said that the central bank does not want to be left behind in the technological revolution and added that the benefits of blockchain technology need to be utilised.

It may be noted that RBI’s private blockchain platform will be like the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) on which government and private companies can build their own apps. However, only initial discussions regarding this plan have been held and a final decision is awaited. This is because

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14% ultra-wealthy Indians are salaried employees

said volatile food prices and rising oil prices led retail inflation to exceed the upper band of 6 percent several times in 2020, inhibiting the RBI’s ability to keep accommodative monetary settings in place during the height of the pandemic.

Under the monetary policy framework, RBI has a target for maintaining retail inflation at 4 percent (+/- 2 percent).

“RBI is expected to retain its current inflation targeting band beyond its current expiry date of March 31,” Moody’s Analytics added.

NEW DELHI, MAR 30 (AGENCIES): The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) upcoming digital currency is likely to use a private blockchain platform, which will reduce the transaction settlement processes, reported livemint.com. The report also added that the digital currency will be like cash, allowing the central bank to regulate it better, India Today report stated.

“RBI-issued digital currency will be exactly like cash and it does not need intermediate settlements and multiple hops,” a source was quoted as saying in the report.

Earlier in February, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said that the central bank had reservations regarding decentralised cryptocurrencies and is currently working to introduce its own digital currency.

The central bank governor had said that the indigenous digital currency

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Asia, and expected to only gradually pick up over 2021 because of rising oil prices and economies starting to reopen.

Brent crude has climbed 26 percent this year at around USD 64 per barrel. It was around USD 30 per barrel in March 2020, when the COVID-19 crisis was near its peak.

“India and the Philippines are exceptions. In these economies, inflation is above comfort levels, adding to the list of challenges for policymakers,” it said.

Stating that India’s inflation is “worrisome”, it

New Delhi, Mar 30 (IANS): The Centre on Tuesday said it has released GST compensation amounting to Rs 30,000 crore to states. The funds were released as part ‘compensation admissible’ for FY21 on March 27. “The total amount of compensation released so far for the year 2020-21 is Rs 70,000 crore,” the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

“As per the decision of GST Council, back to back loan of Rs 1,10,208 crore has also been released in lieu of shortfall in release of GST Compensation for FY 2020-21.” According to the statement, the Centre has released Rs 28,000 crore by way of ad hoc settlement of IGST on March 30.

“Taking into account the release of GST Compensation, back to back loan and ad hoc IGST settlement, balance of only Rs 63,000 crore approx. GST compensation is pending to States or UTs for FY 2020-21.”

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New Delhi, Mar 30 (PTI): India’s inflation is at “uncomfortably high” level, which is an exception among Asian economies, Moody’s Analytics said on Tuesday.

Higher fuel prices will keep upward pressure on retail inflation and keep the RBI from offering further rate cuts, said Moody’s Analytics, a financial intelligence company.

Retail inflation rose to 5 percent in February, from 4.1 percent in January. The Reserve Bank mainly takes into account retail inflation while deciding on the monetary policy.

Core inflation (which excludes food, fuel and light) was up 5.6 percent in February, from 5.3 percent in January, Moody’s Analytics said, adding India’s inflation is “uncomfortably high”.

In its macro roundup, Moody’s Analytics said inflation is subdued in most of

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021 business/state Rs 30,000 crore RBI’s upcoming digital currency NIDA warns of ‘full GST compensation scale’ protest if...

(From p-1) to be like cash, says report to states He said NIDA was demand-

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international

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Myanmar bloodshed Thailand denies forcing fleeing villagers back to Myanmar ‘outrageous’: Joe Biden

Washington, Mar 30 (AFP): US President Joe Biden on Sunday decried the bloodshed unleashed against anti-coup protesters in Myanmar as “absolutely outrageous,” after security forces killed more than 100 people including at least seven children.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military ousted and detained civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, triggering mass protests demanding a return to democracy.

On Saturday, at least 107 people were killed across Myanmar as security forces opened fire on protesters.

“It’s terrible,” Biden told reporters in brief remarks he gave in his home state of Delaware.

“It’s absolutely outrageous and based on the reporting I’ve gotten, an aw-

Joe Biden

ful lot of people have been killed totally unnecessarily.”

Saturday’s killings came after the junta staged a major show of might for its annual Armed Forces Day. The European Union described the deadly violence as “unacceptable”.

“Far from celebrating, the Myanmar military has made yesterday a day of horror and of shame,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.

The condemnation came after the defence chiefs of 12 countries including the United States, Britain, Japan and Australia denounced the Myanmar military.

“A professional military follows international standards for conduct and is responsible for protecting -- not harming -- the people it serves,” the rare joint statement said.

“We urge the Myanmar Armed Forces to cease violence and work to restore respect and credibility with the people of Myanmar that it has lost through its actions.” According to a local monitoring group, the death toll from crackdowns since the coup has climbed to at least 423.

Funerals were held Sunday for some of the victims, after the bloodiest day since the putsch.

Mae Sam Laep (Thailand), Mar 30 (AP): Thailand’s prime minister denied Tuesday that his country’s security forces forced villagers back to Myanmar who had fled from military airstrikes, saying they returned home on their own accord.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, nevertheless, said his country is ready to shelter anyone who is escaping fighting, as it has done many times for decades. His comments came a day after humanitarian groups said Thailand has been sending back some of the thousands of people who have fled a series of air attacks by Myanmar’s military.

“There is no influx of refugees yet. We asked those who crossed to Thailand if they have any problem in their area. When they say no problem, we just asked them to return to their land first. We asked, we did not use any force,” Prayuth told

An injured Karenni villager from Myanmar is taken to Mae Hong Son province, Thailand for treatment.

reporters.

“We won’t push them back,” he said. ‘If they are having fighting, how can we do so? But if they don’t have any fighting at the moment, can they go back first?”

The governor of Thailand’s Mae Hong Son province, where as many as 3,000 refugees had sought shelter, said later that those still on Thai soil were expected to return to their own country in a day or two.

The weekend attacks, which sent ethnic Karen people to seek safety in Thailand, were another escalation in the violent crackdown by Myanmar’s junta on protests against its February 1 takeover.

At least 510 protesters have been killed since the coup, according to Myanmar’s Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which says the actual toll is likely much higher. It says

2,574 people have been detained. Protests continued Tuesday despite the deaths of more than 100 people on Saturday alone.

Engineers, teachers and students from the technology university in the southern city of Dawei marched without incident.

The number of protesters killed in the city rose to eight with the announcement of the death of a teenager who was shot by soldiers on Saturday as he rode a motorbike with two friends. According to local media, a hospital certificate attributed his death to “serious injuries as he fell from a motorbike.” Medical workers in Mandalay, the country’s second biggest city, honored three of their colleagues who have been killed by security forces. The two doctors and a nurse were remembered in a simple ceremony in front of a banner with their photographs and the words “Rest In Power.”

At a cemetery in the biggest city, Yangon, three families gave their last farewells to relatives killed Monday in a night of chaos in the South Dagon neighbourhood. Residents said police and soldiers moved through the streets firing randomly with live ammunition. The coup that ousted the government of Aung San Suu Kyi reversed the country’s progress toward democracy since her National League for Democracy party won elections in 2015 after five decades of military rule.

At Thailand’s Mae Sam Laep village along the Salween River, which forms the border with Myanmar, paramilitary Thai Rangers on Tuesday twice waved off a boat that had come from the other side carrying seven people, including one lying flat and another with a bandage on his head. But ambulances soon arrived on the Thai side and it landed anyway.

Imran writes to PM Modi; seeks ‘enabling environment’ World leaders call for int’l pandemic treaty Islamabad, Mar 30 (PTI): Prime Minister Imran Khan has written a letter to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, saying creation of an “enabling environment” is imperative for a constructive and result-oriented dialogue to resolve all outstanding issues between Pakistan and India, in particular the Jammu and Kashmir issue.

Khan’s letter was in reply to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Imran Khan.

Modi’s letter to him last week to extend greetings said that India desires cor- devoid of terror and hostilon the occasion of Pakistan dial relations with Pakistan ity, is “imperative” for it.

In his reply to Prime Day. In his letter, Modi had but an atmosphere of trust,

The ship’s owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., said Tuesday that it would be part of the investigation.

said Capt. John Konrad, the founder and CEO of the shipping news website gcaptain.com.

Experts boarded the Ever Given as it idled Tuesday in Egypt’s Great Bitter Lake, just north of the site where it previously blocked the canal. A senior canal pilot, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to journalists, told The Associated Press that experts were looking for signs of damage and trying to determine why the vessel ran aground.

There could be significant damage to the ship, Konrad warned. Stuck for days across the canal, the ship’s middle rose and fell with the tide, bending up and down under the tremendous weight of some 20,000 containers across its 400meter (quarter-mile) length.

On Monday, when workers

partially floated the ship, all that pressure came forward to its bow.

“Structural integrity is No. 1. You know, there was a lot of strain on that ship as it was sagging in the waterway,” Konrad said. “They have to check everything for cracks and particularly that rudder and the propeller in the back that’s connected to the engine room.”

“And then they have to go through all the mechanical equipment, make sure they test the engines, all the safety valves, all the equipment, and then determine that it’s safe to sail either by itself or with a tug escort to the next port,” he added.

T h e s h i p ’s ow n e r, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., said Tuesday that it would be part of the investigation along with other parties, though it did not identify them by name. It also re-

FELICITATION

(KISHEHO ZHIMOMI) Chairman, GGKD

OFFICE OF THE

FELICITATION

The Shena Old Union Dimapur Area (SOUDA) would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to Dr. SHETO SÜMI, D/o Shri S.K. HEKISHE ACHUMI and Smt. HETOLI ACHUMI of Shena Old Village for successfully completing her MBBS from North Bengal Medical College, Siliguri, Darjeeling.

The union wishes and prays for her good health and success in all her endeavours.

(Vito Swu) Secretary, SOUDA

BHARATIYA JANATA PARTY Pughoboto Mandal

Under the dynamic leadership of Dr Sukhato A. Sema, intending candidate for 2023 Assembly Elections, BJP party with the support of the elders and leaders of Pughoboto town has won all 10 seats of the Pughoboto Town Council for the tenure 2021- 2025.

Further, the 9 newly elected members have unanimously elected Shri Hokiqhe Sheqi, formerly NPF, as Vice-Chairman of the Pughoboto Town Council.

The BJP Pughoboto Mandal extends its heartiest congratulations to all the newly elected members.

1. Hokiqhe Sheqi 6. Atoho Sheqi 2. Khevito Tsuipu 7. Lhojeto Zhimo 3. Yikishe Sheqi 8. Tovika Swu 4. Khunito Sheqi 9. Kughakhu Sheqi 5. Tokato Swu 10. Akhato Wotsa ABEN SAGHU General Secretary

GRATITUDE

The Office of the Kigwema Village Council (KVC), Kigwema Village and the villagers is elated to express our profound gratitude to the Chief Medical Officer, Kohima along with the District Health Society, Directorate of Health & Family Welfare, NHM for conducting Health Camp cum RCH Camp for the residents of Kigwema Village on 27th March, 2021. We, especially convey our heartfelt gratitude to Shri. Medo Yhokha, Hon'ble Advisor, Technical Education & Election, Government of Nagaland and ADC Shri. Shaying Shiu, NCS for taking the initiative of reaching free health care services and benefits to the people of the village. May the Almighty God bless each one for the yeomen services rendered.

Thank you.

(Bale Kere) (Kukhriezo Thorie) Chairman Secretary Kigwema Village Council Kigwema Village Council

We are pleased to announce that Nagaland Centre For Human Development & Information Technology (NCHD&IT) has arranged a 2 (two) days capacity building training for farmers towards constructing shared facility centre for drying & curing Bhatti for larger cardamom grower of Kiphire District, Nagaland on 13th April to 14th April 2021 at NCHD&IT Office Duncan Bosti, Dimapur. Training is sponsor by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) Dimapur, Nagaland.

DP-1696 OFFICE OF THE

SUKHALU GHAMI WELFARE SOCIETY DIMAPUR : NAGALAND Regd. No. H/RS-2960 Dated 10-09-2002

GRATITUDE

PUKHAZHE KIHO President

Mozambique, told dpa news agency. The attack began on March 24 when about 100 insurgents stormed the strategically important town of Palma in the volatile Cabo Delgado province.

“We have picked up so far several hundred people, and are still doing so. Many people are still in hiding.

We’ve come under a lot of fire,” Dyck added. The UN Humanitarian Affairs Office (OCHA) said it is “deeply concerned” about the safety of civilians in Palma and the surrounding areas.

ANNOUNCEMENT

SHENA OLD UNION DIMAPUR AREA

(S. Hosheto Achumi) Chairman, SOUDA

Maputo, March 30 (IANS): Ongoing clashes in Mozambique between members of the Islamic State (IS) terror group and security forces continued for the seventh day on Tuesday after the insurgents took a strategic coastal town under siege, an official said.

“The fighting is still going on... It’s an ongoing battle, very well planned and executed,” Max Dyck, director of private security services firm Dyck Advisory Group (DAG), which is operating in northern

OFFICE OF THE KIGWEMA VILLAGE COUNCIL

The Ghukiye Ghami Kuqhakulu Dimapur extends our heartiest congratulations to Shri.

V. AHETO YEPTHO for being elected as the Village Council Chairman, Padampukhuri, Dimapur.

May the good Lord give you good health and wisdom as you embark on this responsible endeavor.

(OBETO ZHIMOMI) Gen. Secretary, GGKD

continue for 7th day

K-683

fused to discuss possible causes of the grounding, including the ship’s speed and the high winds that buffeted it during a sandstorm, saying it could not comment on an ongoing investigation.

Initial reports also suggested a “blackout” struck the vessel, something denied by the ship’s technical manager.

The company added that any damage to the ship was believed to be mostly on its keel. It said it was not immediately known whether the vessel will be repaired on site in Egypt or elsewhere, or whether it will eventually head to its initial destination of Rotterdam.

That is a decision to be made by its operator, rather than the shipowner, the company said.

The grounding of the ship had halted billions of dollars a day in maritime commerce. Analysts expect it could take at least another 10 days to clear the backlog — though Egypt’s president said Tuesday it would take just three. The losses to shippers, as well as any physical damage to the vessel itself, likely will see lawsuits.

Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd. is covered with some $3 billion in liability insurance through 13 Protection & Indemnity Clubs.

Those clubs are not-for-profit mutual insurers used by the vast majority of global shipping firms.

4. According to an official from the governor’s office, local media were reporting that no arrest have been made so far in the case.

The official, who was not authorized to talk to the media, spoke on condition of anonymity.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but eastern Afghanistan has witnessed an increase of attacks by the Islamic State group. IS militants have declared war on Shiites and frequently target the country’s minority Hazaras.

FELICITATION With immense pride and honour, the Sukhalu Ghami Welfare Society, Dimapur express our heartiest congratulations to Dr. K. Shikato Sema, S/o Shri. Khatovi Sema G.B of Sukhalu Village for promotion from Medical Officer to Sr. Medical Officer and posted to Zunheboto recently.

The Welfare expresses gratitude to concerned Department and Government for timely giving him promotion to a higher status with more responsibilities for which we pray and wish you more success in your future endeavors and also uprise you to render your untiring service to the needy people when call for any time and in any place.

May God bless you and guide you with more healing power when you touch and prescribe.

(Y. KHETOSHE YEPTHOMI) Chairman SGWS, Dimapur

(V. KIHESHE SEMA) Treasurer SGWS, Dimapur

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Kabul, Mar 30 (AP): Attackers on Tuesday gunned down three women working to administer the anti-polio vaccine in eastern Afghanistan, officials said, a day after authorities launched a new campaign against the crippling children’s disease.

T h e wo m e n we r e killed in two separate attacks in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province.

Fared Khan, spokesman for Nangarhar police, said two were shot and killed Afghan men carry the coffin of one of the three in police District 7 and the female polio vaccination health workers at Jalalabad, third was killed in District Afghanistan, Mar. 30, 2021. (Reuters)

probe into Suez Canal blockage begins Suez (Egypt), Mar 30 (AP): Experts boarded the massive container ship Tuesday that had blocked Egypt’s vital Suez Canal and disrupted global trade for nearly a week, seeking answers to a single question that could have billions of dollars in legal repercussions: What went wrong?

As convoys of ships again began travelling through the artery linking the Mediterranean and Red Seas, a canal service provider said more than 300 vessels carrying everything from crude oil to cattle were still waiting for their turn in a process that will take days.

Egyptian government officials, insurers, shippers and others similarly waited for more details about what caused the skyscrapersized Ever Given to become wedged across the canal on March 23.

When blame gets assigned, it will likely lead to years of litigation to recoup the costs of repairing the ship, fixing the canal and reimbursing those who saw their cargo shipments disrupted. Since the vessel is owned by a Japanese firm, operated by a Taiwanese shipper, flagged in Panama and now stuck in Egypt, matters quickly become an international morass.

“This ship is a multinational conglomeration,”

Charles Michel

Ghebreyesus, dpa news agency reported.

“There will be other pandemics and other major health emergencies. No single government or multilateral agency can address

this threat alone,” the piece, published on Tuesday, said.

The article made the case for a new agreement anchored in the WHO’s constitution that would improve global preparedness for pandemics and ability to respond.

A treaty would provide a framework for international cooperation to immediately exchange information at the start of possible pandemics, and channel global resources for research into possible treatments and vaccines, Michel said at a virtual press conference with Tedros on Tuesday.

Three women working in polio drive killed in Afghanistan Mozambique clashes

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layci. The decision came after the country’s medical regulator announced that it had received a total of 31 reports of rare blood clots in recent recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Nine of the people died and all but two of the cases involved women aged 20 to 63, the Paul Ehrlich Institute said.

Reports of an unusual form of blood clot in the head, known as sinus vein thrombosis, prompted several European countries to temporarily halt the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine earlier this month.

BRUSSELS, MARCH 30 (IANS): Twenty-five world leaders have supported a proposal from European Council President Charles Michel to draw up a new international treaty on pandemic preparedness in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.

Leaders including UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha signed an opinion piece along with Michel and World Health Organization (WHO) DirectorGeneral Tedros Adhanom

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Berlin, Mar 30 (AP): Authorities in Berlin and Munich are again suspending the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine for residents under age 60 due to new reports of unusual blood clots in people who recently received the shots, officials said Tuesday.

The action was taken as a precaution ahead of a meeting later Tuesday of representatives from Germany’s 16 states and further recommendations expected from national medical regulators, said Berlin’s top health official, Dilek Ka-

in particular the Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he wrote in the letter dated March 29. Khan said that creation of an “enabling environment is imperative for a constructive and result-oriented dialogue.”

He also expressed best wishes for the people of India in their struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The militaries of India and Pakistan announced on February 25 that they have agreed to strictly observe all agreements on ceasefire along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir and other sectors.

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German cities suspend AstraZeneca use for under-60s

Minister Modi’s letter, Khan thanked him and said the people of Pakistan also desire peaceful cooperative relations with all neighbours, including India.

While Prime Minister Modi talked about a terror free environment for peace, Khan said that peace was possible only if outstanding issues like Kashmir were resolved.

“We are convinced that durable peace and stability in South Asia is contingent upon resolving all outstanding issues between India and Pakistan

Infotainment

10

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

Posner to climb Mount Everest to Diabetes drug may be Blake Shelton announces first album in 4 years Mike raise funds for justice reform charity new weapon against HIV B

sions.

She said this month: “I wish he would write with me, but he doesn’t really write anymore. And we’ve actually written three songs together—we wrote a Christmas song together, and then we wrote two other songs.

“But he just doesn’t like writing that much, makes me so mad.”

But the 51-year-old singer values Blake’s opinion and he’s been helping her select the best from her latest crop of unreleased songs as she thinks his experiences as a coach on ‘The Voice’ has given him a “really good ear for hits”.

She added: “Yesterday, Blake and I sat down and listened to like every song, which is a lot of

songs, and just sort of put our favourite stars by which ones. We definitely bounce off each other.

“Being on that show, you’re around so much music, and you really know how to choose music, so I really rely on him a lot for his taste. He knows all genres from being on that show. He has a really good ear for hits, or just songs that are the ones that we all like. “Definitely lean on him a lot.”

The track-listing for ‘Body Language’ is: 1. ‘Minimum Wage’ 2. ‘Body Language’ featuring The Swon Brothers 3. ‘Happy Anywhere’ featuring Gwen Stefani 4. ‘Now I Don’t’ 5. ‘Monday Mornin’ Missin’ You’ 6. ‘Corn’ 7. ‘Makin’ It Up As You Go’ 8. ‘Whatcha Doin’ Tomorrow’ 9. ‘The Girl Can’t Help It’ 10. ‘The Flow’ 11. ‘Neon Time’ 12. ‘Bible Verses’ (Contactmusic.com)

Pharrell Williams demands justice for his cousin

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rammy award-winning singer Pharrell Williams has demanded justice for his cousin, who was one of the two people shot dead in the Virginia Beach shootings on March 26.

“The loss of these lives is a tragedy beyond measure. My cousin Donovon was killed during the shootings. He was a bright light and someone who always showed up for others. It is critical my family and the other victims’ families get the transparency, honesty a n d justice they deserve,” he wrote on Instagram on Tuesday (India time).

“Virginia Beach is the epitome of hope and tenacity and, as a community, we will get through this and come out even stronger,” he added.

Pharrell didn’t share any other details about his cousin’s tragedy.

According to a report in eonline.com the Virginia Beach Police Department, who released information about the shootings on Twitter on Saturday, said that Donovan was one of two victims who passed away.

He was 25 years old.

(IANS)

S

M

ike Posner is set to attempt to climb Mount Everest to raise funds for a justice reform charity in honour of his late father.

The ‘I Took A Pill’ hitmaker has posted a link to his GoFundMe page to raise funds for the nonprofit Detroit Justice Centre ahead of his trip to the Himalayas for the challenge.

He tweeted: “SO EXCITED to announce that this May I’ll be attempting to summit the tallest mountain on Earth, Mt. Everest, with @DrJonKedski in order to raise funds for @ justcitydetroit ...PLEASE DONATE what you can ...or just share the GoFundMe link (sic)” The 33-year-old star

chose the charity as a fitting tribute to his late parent, Jon, who worked as a criminal defence attorney in Detroit for four decades.

Mike said in a statement: “Before my dad died, he was a criminal defence attorney in Detroit for 40 years. I’ve decided to dedicate my climb to the nonprofit Detroit Justice Centre because they’re doing criminal justice reform work in my city that would make my dad beam with joy.”

In 2019, Mike completed a walk across America, which was also inspired by his dad, who sadly died of brain cancer in 2017, and his collaborator Avicii, who died a year later, aged 28.

The ‘Cooler Than Me’ hitmaker had to temporarily halt his trek after he was bitten by a rattlesnake, before completing the mammoth journey. Mike had to be airlifted to hospital after suffering the nasty bite in Colorado, however, fortunately, medics managed to get the anti-venom to him “in time”.

(Contactmusic)

BTS condemn violent crimes against Asians

outh Korean boy band BTS issued a statement on Tuesday condemning the recent surge in anti-Asian violence, and shared their experiences of the racism they have faced.

“We send our deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. We feel grief and anger,” the band said in the statement.

The statement highlighted moments when they “faced discrimination as Asians”, including “enduring expletives without reason and were mocked for the way we look” and being “asked why Asians spoke in English”.

They said that the band’s “own experiences are inconsequential” compared to recent events but that the racism was “enough to make us feel powe r l e s s and chip away our self-esteem”.

“What is happening right now cannot be dissociated from our identity as Asians. It required considerable time for us to discuss this carefully and we contemplated deeply on how we should voice our message,” they added.

The band concluded saying: “We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence. You, I and we all have the right to be respected.”

A

team of researchers has discovered an important vulnerability of the AIDS-causing retrovirus HIV, and has shown in preclinical experiments that a widely used diabetes drug, metformin, seems able to exploit this vulnerability.

The findings, published in the journal Nature Immunology, suggests that HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), when it infects immune cells called CD4 T cells, helps fuel its own replication by boosting a key process in the cells’ production of chemical energy.

They also found that the diabetes drug metformin inhibits the same process and thereby suppresses HIV replication in these cells, in both cell-culture and mouse experiments. “These findings suggest that metformin and other drugs that reduce T cell metabolism might be useful as adjunct therapies for treating HIV,” said researcher Haitao Guo University of North Carolina.

About 38 million people around the world are living with HIV infection, according to the World Health Organization’s most recent estimates.

Doctors currently treat these infections with combinations of antiretroviral drugs to suppress HIV replication.

However, many patients despite this treatment show signs of residual viral replication and immune impairment.

Even patients who respond well to antiretroviral drugs must take them indefinitely, since HIV inscribes itself into the DNA of some infected cells, and the drugs cannot clear this viral genetic “reservoir.” Moreover, the toxicity of anti-HIV drugs means that many patients can take them only intermittently. Thus, despite progress, there is still much room for improvement in HIV treatment.

For the study, the team analyzed CD4-cell gene expression data from a study of HIV-infected people and found that the gene-expression patterns most closely related to poor outcomes among these patients involved an energyproduction process called oxidative phosphorylation.

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lake Shelton will release his first album in four years, ‘Body Language’, on May 21.

The country star has unveiled his follow-up to 2017’s ‘Texoma Shore’, which features his collaboration with his fiancee and pop megastar, Gwen Stefani, ‘Happy Anywhere’.

Blake said in a statement: “We’ve been working on this album on and off for two years now, and I’m very proud of what we have put together.

“We certainly had some unique challenges with the pandemic, but we also had a lot of fun. We explored new sounds while making sure to get in some classic country.”

Meanwhile, Gwen recently admitted she is “mad” that Blake won’t write any more songs with her.

The ‘Slow Clap’ hitmaker has previously penned three tracks with the ‘God’s Country’ hitmaker but the 44-yearold singer doesn’t enjoy the process so she can’t persuade him to join her for any more writing ses-

Armie Hammer dropped from ‘The Billion Dollar Spy’

H

ollywood actor Armie Hammer is no longer a part of the Cold War thriller “The Billion Dollar Spy”. The 34-year-old actor has been dropped from the Amma Asante-directorial in the wake of rape accusation by a woman. The LA Police Department recently confirmed booking Hammer as

a suspect in a sexual assault case opened by them on February 3, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Earlier this month the woman, identified as Elfie, said in a statement at a press conference: “On April 24th, 2017, Armie Hammer violently raped me for over four hours in Los Angeles, during which he repeatedly

slammed my head against a wall, bruising my face. He also committed other acts of violence against me to which I did not consent.

For example, he beat my feet with a crop so they would hurt with every step I took for the next week. During those four hours, I tried to get away but he wouldn’t let me. I thought that he was

going to kill me. He then left with no concern for my wellbeing,” Hammer’s career has been on the downslide lately, after several women including model Paige Lorenze came out and shared graphic messages sent to them by the actor, and many alleged that Hammer was abusive during what started as consensual BDSM relationships.

Punjabi singer Diljaan Singh killed in road accident

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amous Punjabi singer Diljaan Singh, 31, died in a car accident near Amritsar on Tuesday, the police said.

He is survived by his wife and children, who are settled in Canada.

Diljaan was on his way from Kartarpur town, near Jalandhar, to Amritsar in his Mahindra KUV 100 car when the accident took place at 2.30 a.m. The singer was taken to a nearby private hospital by where he was declared dead. The police said Diljaan’s car hit a stationary truck on the Amritsar-Delhi national highway near Jandiala Guru, some 20 km from Amritsar.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh condoled the death of the singer, saying it is “extremely sad to lose young lives like these on road”.

(IANS)

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UAE rout India 6-0 in friendly Abu Dhabi, Mar 30 (PTI): India suffered an embarrassing 0-6 rout at the hands of formidable United Arab Emirates — their heaviest defeat against the Gulf side — in the second international football friendly in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

Such was their performance that Igor Stimac”s side did not even get a single shot on target in one of the most forgettable encounters in recent times.

Striker Ali Mabkhout scored hat-trick with goals in the 12th, 32nd and 60th minutes while Khalil Ibrahim (64th) and Fabio Lima (71st and 84th) added the other three. India gave a good account of themselves in their first friendly match against fancied Oman on March 25 with an impressive 1-1 draw but against the UAE, they were clueless how to hold the ball, stitch the passes and create chances.

The gulf in the class

It turned out to be the heaviest defeat against the UAE, obliterating the 0-5 loss in an international friendly in 2010 in Abu Dhabi. (Twitter)

and technical superiority was all too apparent, though India were without their talismanic skipper Sunil Chhetri, recovering from COVID-19 infection.

Key defender Sandesh Jhingan was also rested as Stimac experimented with new players in his big 27member squad.The draw

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Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

against Oman had given a lot of hope to the Indians who are at 104th in FIFA chart against 74th ranked UAE. But it turned out to be one of the most mediocre shows by any Indian side against UAE. It turned out to be the heaviest defeat against the UAE, obliterating the

0-5 loss in an international friendly in 2010 in Abu Dhabi. Stimac said just before the match that his players should be able to make quick decision against a much superior and technically far better opponents.

His players did nothing, rather they were not allowed to do anything as UAE

Westbrook records historic triple-double

Washington Wizards to a 132-124 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday.

He made 35 points, 14 rebounds and 21 assists - the first NBA tripledouble to top 35 points and 20 assists.

A triple-double is achieved when a player makes double-digit totals in three statistical categories.

Only Magic Johnson and Oscar Robertson had previously achieved the feat with 30 points, 10 rebounds and 20 assists.

“I take pride as a leader in making my team-mates better,” said Westbrook’s triple-double was the 162nd of his career.

Westbrook, who now has L o nd o n , M a r 3 0 Westbrook made an historic a record 16 triple-doubles (Agencies): Russell triple-double to power the for the Wizards in only

38 games.

The Brooklyn Nets’ James Harden also made a triple-double on Monday as his side beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 112-107.

He scored 38 points, passed for 13 assists and pulled down 11 rebounds while Kyrie Irving added 27 points on his return after a three-game absence.

Western Conference leaders the Utah Jazz moved to 35-11 for the season by thrashing the Cleveland Cavaliers 11475.

The Los Angeles Clippers extended their winning run to six games by the beating Milwaukee Bucks 129-105.

toyed with the Indians and create chances almost at will. The Indians were not allowed to hold the ball and all the Stimac”s men did were to chase for most part of match. UAE had 67 per cent possession as against India”s 33 in the first half during which Ali Mabkhout chipped one over Indian goalkeeper and captain Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and then scored from the spot after Adil Khan handled the ball inside the box.

The second half was no better for India, unlike against Oman when they fought back to equalise, as UAE laid bare the utterly porous Indian defence to pump in four more goals.

After Ali Mabkhout completed his hat-trick at the hour mark, Khalil Ibrahim made a fine finish with a first-time shot in the 64th minute to make it 4-0 before Fabio Lima completed the rout with two more goals in the 71st and 84th minute.

Shafali continues reign at top of T20I

Aguero to leave Man City at end of season London, Mar 30 (Agencies): Record goalscorer Sergio Aguero will leave Manchester City at the end of the season, the club has announced. The 32-year-old striker’s contract expires at the end of the season and he has been told it will not be renewed.

The Argentine, who signed from Atletico Madrid in 2011, has scored 257 goals in 384 appearances for the club.

“With the guidance of the owners and the contributions of many players, we earned a place among the greatest of the world,” Aguero said. He will be honoured by a statue at Etihad Stadium, alongside title-winning captain Vincent Kompany and influential playmaker David Silva, who left the club in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

The trio played leading roles in City’s renaissance, with Aguero famously scoring the injury-time winner against QPR in 2012 which clinched the club’s first English title in 44 years.

Since then, the striker has helped City win three more Premier League titles, one FA Cup and five League Cups.

“Sergio’s contribution to Manchester City over the last 10 years cannot be overstated,” City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said.

“His legend will be indelibly etched into the memories of everyone who loves the club and maybe even in those who simply love football.”

New Delhi, Mar 30 (IANS): India opener Shafali Verma continues to be the top ranked batter in the ICC T20I Player rankings after the blistering 30-ball 60 in the final match of the home series against South Africa helped her garner 26 rating points.

Shafali, who had regained the top position among batters last week, is now on 776 rating points and enjoys a 35-point lead over Australia’s Beth Mooney. Verma’s opening partner Smriti Mandhana, with whom she was associated in a decisive 96-run stand, has gained one spot and is sixth after her un- Members of Dimapur District Football Referee Association at the annual picnic on beaten 48 off 28 deliveries. Tuesday.

DECLARATION (NSCN- R)

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hile reaffirming our loyalty and full support to the dynamic Leadership of His Excellency, the President, Inno Y. Wangtin Naga, His Excellency the Vice-President Inno Akato Chophi and Hon’ble Ato Kilonser Inno P. Tikhak, and most importantly the undisputed Naga Leader , Inno N. Kitovi Zhimomi (Convener WC-NNPGs) the Dimapur based NSCN/GPRN (R)’s members of all ranks and files issues this 'Declaration' for once and for all.

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That, as per the directive of His Excellency the President , Inno Wangtin Naga, an 'Extraordinary Emergency Joint Council Meeting' was called on 28/08/2019, and with the unanimous decision of the house, resolved to expel Khekato Kinnimi on being found guilty of the cold blooded murder of late Major Toishe of NSCN-IM, since the NSCN-R as declared earlier, will never condone, support or tolerate any such pernicious acts at any point of time.

Hence any mischievous misadventures being perpetrated by Khekato claiming as Chaplee Kilonser is purely self styled, baseless and amusing which appears very shoddy and cheap tactic of frustrated and disgruntled elements intending to confuse the people.

Besides, the NSCN-R, has no member by the name ‘KHEKHATO KENNY’ as appeared in media, other than the expelled former Kilonser, ‘KHEKATO KINNIMI’, hence the name Khekhato Kenny is alien and incognito to the NSCN R. 2.

That, as maintained by all NPGs government, any press release including discharge, condolence obituary etc, are all under the prerogative of the official media the MIP (Ministry of Information & Publicity) and as such, any press statements issued by any individuals other than the officials media handle, the MIP are not acknowledged and remains unofficial.

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That, as per the press statements of KYGK (Kulolau Yemishe Ghami Kuqhakulku) YSU (Yemishe Students Union) and Lizuto Union (The Native Village of Late Toishe's Widow), it is obvious that the cold blooded murder of late Toishe is still not yet resolved between the murderer and the victim family 4.

That, since Khekato is still booked in connection with the murder case GR 674/19, his status still remains as an ’Absconding Murder Accused’, however, the NSCN-R is still baffled and confused as to why the police are doing nothing even when Khekato is roaming around freely with 4-5 weapons.

Secondly, in this connection, the NSCN-R seek clarification from the esteemed Office of the CFSB/CFMG and wants to know as to why Khekato is allowed to carry 4-5 weapons, despite having no Ceasefire Identity card, since his CF Card was immediately cancelled for his murder involvement, whereas, on the other hand, some NSCN's card holders are being searched, harrased, raided and arrested, even after producing

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their CF Id cards. The NSCN-R seeks clarification from the CFSB/ CFMG's Office as to what is the logic behind all this, and for which, without clarification, the NSCN-R shall be compelled to view that there could be some abominable and unholy nexus between you and the Killer.

That, by all means, the NSCN-R will still continue to abide and maintain the CFGR (Ceasefire Ground Rules), however if perchance the ‘Police and the CFSB/CFMG’ cannot act or too scared to face Khekato (or for any other reasons best known to them) to initiate action upon the murderer, the NSCN-R suggest the competent authority (Police and CFSB/CFMG) to openly declare and give us a free hand, so that we may act in their stead and settle the issue with the disgraced former Kilonser and killer Khekato, for once and for all.

That, the NSCN-R also questions the audacity of the Security Forces as to why one of the most respected Indian Armed Forces like the Assam Rifles connive and conspire with a fugitive like the Killer Khekato so as to raid/arrest the NSCN R card holders, that too, on a Father’s Day and yet on another Sunday, which had even aroused and hurt our Religious Sentiments.

All proof and material evidence in support and supplement of these abbhorant and loathsome activities, including phone recording, conversation and confessional statements of some of his very close former aides (now turned hostile) are very much available with us and can be provided to anyone, anytime, anywhere who wants proof, and can even make it Viral in Social Medias and Platforms, if need be.

That, as per our investigations, some proof and material evidence are also available with us that Khekato is being sheltered and covered by some high ranking police officials and legislators and we will be constrained to reveal all those proofs in the public domain too. In this connection, the NSCN-R reminds everyone that, being a high ranking Police Official, who had 'Sworn Allegiance to Serve and Protect' or a Public Leader (elected on People's mandate) does not qualify you to harbour, protect and obstruct 'Free and Fair Trial' as a result denying Justice to Victims and Victim's family That, without any reservations, the NSCN-R acknowledges the wisdom and maturity of the NSCN IM and we hold no grudges or enmity against them, however, it is a known fact that in any Organisations, there could be some few materialistic members who easily falls short of grace by dancing to the tunes of cash, and who easily succumbs under 'Money Play' and as claimed by the disgraced murderer, that the NSCN IM has acquitted him and had served a 'Clean Chit' that Khekato was never involved which is left to the wisdom of the NSCN IM to ponder upon, with this suggestion, that the so called 'Clean Chit' was simply scribbled in a plain paper, and not on

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Official Letterhead and without any Official Stamps or Seals, which led the NSCN R to believe that those few Cheapsters Judas (representing IM) has yet again, sold their honour and succumbed to few coins and silver.

It is however, if the claim appears to be true then the NSCN-R also appreciates the magnanimity of the NSCN IM in forgiving Khekato even after gruesomely gunning down one of their bonafide young promising official late Toishe in front of his wife and kids while having family dinner.

But if at all, the wild claim of Khekato holds no truth then the NSCN IM, as one of the most influential and matured organization should also come forward and clarify their stance in public domain for the satisfactions of all.

That, the NSCN-R as also one of the Mature organization has continued to maintain that our goal and aim is for the Naga cause and solution and has no financial motive, hence decided to maintain only one National Treasure and had centralized all financial matters.

This was neccessitated, because even in the past, some opportunist and money hunters like Khekato, who would even resort to Killings (as had happened in Toishe's case) always resorts to lobbying and campaigning for the post of Financial Chair that mostly leads to misunderstandings within, and for which the chair of the Chaplee Kilonser is still kept in abeyance, and if necessary could be taken up and approved only in the cabinet Kilonsers sittings, on the advise of the Collective Leadership.

That all concerned are hereby notified that according to the NSCN-R party constitutions, any head of Ministry or Department will be appointed after the budget session as clearly mentioned in article 21(A) and article 23(A) of the party Yehzabo. Hence, let alone being appointed as Chaplee Kilonser, Khekato is still a terminated individual and a fugitive with no locus standi who has no business /authority whatsoever in any of NSCN’s affairs.

Therefore anyone dealing with the fugitive, drifters and absconding murder accused shall be doing so in their own individual’s risk which will not reflect the image of the NSCN-R. Khekato and his gang of misguided thugs are also severely warned that, the NSCN-R shall now resort to confront, arrest, or even worse, if any of his rogue elements are found disturbing peaceful atmosphere in the Market Area to appease their financial lust.

Lastly, the NSCN-R has no desire to waste time with some ousted Vagabonds or Outlaws, and may not issue anymore clarification or press statements, but will now act accordingly, in how to containing and neutralizing any troublemakers, drifters, rogues, brigands or hooligans.

ISSUED BY: DIMAPUR BASED NSCN(R)’s Members THROUGH MIP (Ministry of Information & Publicity) NSCN/GPRN (Reformation) K Y M C

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Japan thrash Mongolia 14-0 in WC qualifier

Yuya Osako competes his hat trick with Japan’s 13th goal against Mongolia on Tuesday in Chiba. (Reuters)

SEOUL, Mar 30 (AP): Japan thrashed Mongolia 14-0 on Tuesday to record their biggest-ever win in World Cup qualifying.

Japan, who are looking to qualify for their seventh World Cup in a row, had not played a qualifier since No-

vember 2019 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

But the Blue Samurai showed no signs of rustiness as Southampton forward Takumi Minamino gave them the lead in the 13th minute, before four more goals before half-time put

them in complete control.

Nine more after the break gave Japan a perfect record of five wins from five — with 26 goals scored and none conceded — although they have yet to formally clinch their place in the next round.

The game was played behind closed doors in Japan despite Mongolia being the home team, due to virus restrictions. Minamino started the rout when he rifled a shot past the Mongolian goalkeeper, before Yuya Osako and Daichi Kamada

Lewandowski to miss Eng match

Wa r s aw, M a r 3 0 (IANS): The Polish Football Association (PZPN) said that captain Robert Lewandowski will miss Wednesday’s clash against England in the 2022 World Cup qualifications.

The striker led his team to a comfortable home victory over Andorra 3-0, in which he scored twice on Sunday evening. As it turned out, Lewandowski caught an injury just before he came off with 63 minutes on the clock. On Monday the Polish federation made an official statement, Xinhua news reports. “Clinical and imaging studies have Nagaland junior girls celebrate as they entered the semifinals in Regu Event in the shown damage to the colongoing 24th Junior National Sepaktakraw Championship for boys and girls at Madgaon, lateral ligament of the right Goa on Tuesday. Boys (sub-junior) has also entered semifinals in Regu event. knee,” PZPN announced.

Harmanpreet tests positive for Covid-19

Harmanpreet Kaur (PTI) New Delhi, Mar 30 (IANS): India women’s T20I captain Harmanpreet Kaur said on Tuesday that she has tested positive for Covid-19 and has quarantined herself.

Harmanpreet also asked all those who have come in contact with her in the past seven days to get themselves tested.

“Unfortunately I have tested positive for Covid-19. I am feeling OK and I have quarantined myself by following all the adviced guidelines advised by the authorities and my doctors,” she said in a statement she put up on her social media handles.

“A humble request to all those people who have come in contact with me in last 7 days to please get themselves tested to be on the safer side. By God’s grace and your well wishes, I will be back on the field soon. I urge you all to please wear mask and stay safe,” Harmanpreet further said. Harmanpreet, 32, had last played for India in the fifth ODI against South Africa in Lucknow on March 17. She then missed the subsequent T20I series due to a hip-flexor injury, with opener Smriti Mandhana captaining the team instead.

Harmanpreet is the latest among several cricketers who have tested positive, including a host of former players who played in the Road Safety World Series. Sachin Tendulkar, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan and Subramanian Badrinath all recently announced that they have tested positive.

put Japan three up after less than 30 minutes.

Another from Hidemasa Morita and an own g o a l f r o m M o n g o l i a ’s Khash-Erdene Tuya put Japan on easy street at halftime, and Osako made it six 10 minutes after the restart.

Substitute Sho Inagaki then scored on his debut, before two from Junya Ito and one from Kyogo Furuhashi sent Japan into double figures.

Furuhashi notched an 11th to set a new record for Japan in World Cup qualifying, before Takuma Asano, Osako and Inagaki added three more before the whistle.

Meanwhile, according to AFP report, Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu hailed his team’s ruthless streak after thrashing Mongolia.

“You could see from the score that the two teams were at a different level, but it wasn’t about our opponents — it was about how to keep our concentration going into the match,” said Moriyasu, whose team has won all five of its qualifiers so far, scoring 26 goals and conceding none.

Nagaland Post, Dimapur WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

ITF New Delhi Kohima Super League from Apr 21 I M A P U R , M AR 3 0 The slot fee for the old tennis: Poonacha, D(NPN): Kohima Town Club teams is Rs. 10,000 and new Qamar score wins has invited interested foot- team Rs. 15,000.

New Delhi, Mar 30 (IANS): Niki K. Poonacha, Fardeen Qamar, and Lorenzo Bocchi scored wins in the first-round singles matches of the Round of 32 of the ITF men’s $15,000 tennis tournament here on Tuesday. The match between Poonacha, the 2019 national champion, and wildcard entrant Nishant Dabas lasted for two hours after which the former prevailed in three sets, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.

Wildcard entrant Fardeen Qamar, 20, defeated 19-year-old Dev Javia 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in a well-contested match. Javia earned his main draw appearance by the virtue of being ITF Top 100 ranked junior in the world. Lorenzo Bocchi of Italy beat Dhruv Sunish in straight sets, 7-6, 6-0, in third and final singles Round One. Four Indians -- Ishaque Eqbal, Siddharth Vishwakarma, Muthu Aadithiya Senthilkumar, and Suraj R Prabodh -- advanced to the main draw from the qualifying round that concluded at the RK Khanna Tennis Stadium on Tuesday.

ball clubs to take part in the 4th edition of the Kohima Super League 2021 which is scheduled to commence from April 21 at IG Stadium, Kohima.

Convenor, organising committee, Kethozelie Liezietsu in a press release stated that the league aims to bring total football revolution in Nagaland by starting local level football league, and also to foster the growth of football in Nagaland.

In this regard, interested clubs can avail the limited slots by registering themselves on or before April 5 at Sports Paradise, Riiluo Market, Kezieke.

The champions will walked home with a cash prize of Rs. 1, 50,000 and runners up with Rs. 100,000. Individual prizes such as player of the tournament, best fan club and best discipline club will also be awarded. So far, eight teams have confirmed their participation namely New Market FC, T Comrade FC, Puliebadze FC, Aphuyemi FC, FIFA FC, TA Jakhama, KVYO including the defending champions Vanguard FC – Tseminyu.

Interested clubs can contact organising committee at 7005537505 and 9436800769.

PYO super six cricket tourney

DIMAPUR, MAR 30 (NPN): The 1st PYO Super Six Cricket Tourney was held from March 27 to 30 at Rüzhükhrie GHSS ground, Kohima.

The tournament was organized by Peraciezie Youth Organization. Altogether, 32 teams participated in the tourney. In the

final, Daklane Youth Social Organization (DYSO) emerged as the winner by defeating Juggernauts by five wickets. Yhunshalo Kemp of DYSO was named as the man of the tourney; Monju of Juggernauts as the best batsman and Nimai Das of N.V Press as best bowler.

Barty beats Azarenka to reach Miami Open quarters Miami, Mar 30 (AP): Ash Barty is tough to beat under any circumstances, especially when she’s on the ropes. She proved that again Monday. The world’s topranked player has reached the Miami Open quarterfinals, getting there by holding off 14th-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 6-1, 1-6, 6-2.

It was Barty’s 17th win in her last 20 threeset matches, two of those victories for the Australian coming so far in this tournament. “That’s a cool stat,” Barty said. This, too, was cool: The match lived up to its showdown potential, with the reigning Miami Open champion and current world No. 1 in Barty facing someone who has won the Miami title three times and

a previous world No. 1 in Azarenka. Barty rolled in the first set, Azarenka in the second. But the third — as they tend to be — was all Barty, who was never in trouble in the deciding set. “It’s just about staying in the fight,” Bar ty said. “It’s about not relenting, not giving up regardless of whether you lose a set or you get a break, whatever it might be.

I think it’s just about trying to hang around and I’ve worked my backside off off the court to make

sure that I feel like I’m good physical condition to play tennis.” No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine neede d

nearly 2½ hours to beat ninth-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 2-6, 7-5, 7-5 and earn her ticket to the quarterfinals. “It was not easy conditions,” said Svitolina, who has already matched her best Miami finish by making the quarters.

2nd T20I: NZ beat B’desh amid DLS confusion

Napier, Mar 30 (IANS): New Zealand beat Bangladesh by 28 runs amid confusion surrounding the Duckworth-LewisStern target for the visitors in a rain-interrupted 2nd T20I at McLean Park on Tuesday.

Glenn Phillips, who was declared man of the match, was on 58 off 31 balls while Daryl Mitchell on 34 off 16 when the umpires led the players back due to rains.

The New Zealand innings eventually had to be stopped at 17.5 overs when they were already on 173/5 and Bangladesh were initially under the impression that their corrected target was 148 off 16 overs. Eventually, play

New Zealand players celebrate against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.

had to be stopped for five minutes as the target was corrected to 170, which was again an incorrect target and it was revised

to 171.

Upping the ante on the New Zealand bowlers after the play resumed, Soumya Sarkar hit five

fours and three sixes on his way to 51 off 27 balls.

However, Phillips and Ish Sodhi pulled things back for New Zealand and

Bangladesh succumbed to the pressure. Sarkar soon holed out to long-on off Tim Southee and as the asking rate increased, other Bangladesh batsmen also got out trying big shots.

Phillips was the star of the show during the New Zealand innings, smashing five fours and two sixes in a 62-run partnership with Mitchell that came off just 27 balls.

Brief scores: New Zealand 173/5 in 17.5 overs (Glenn Phillips 58 not out, Daryl Mitchell 34 not out; Mahedi Hasan 2/45) beat Bangladesh 142/7 in 16 overs (Soumya Sarkar 51; Tim Southee 2/21, Hamish Bennett 2/31) by 28 runs (DLS method)

Sleeping on streets to being UFC champion: Meet Ngannou Indian boxers in Istanbul test + for COVID

Francis Ngannou

New Delhi, Mar 30 (Agencies): Francis Ngannou’s incredible story is not only a rags-to-riches tale but also how he went through hell to reach the brass ring at the top. Rising

from grinding poverty in Cameroon, staring death in the face during his travels in Africa to being homeless on the streets of Paris, he suffered it all before rebuilding his life and becoming the newly-crowned UFC heavyweight champion, The Indian Express reported. ‘The Predator’ scripted history when he became the first African to win the heavyweight championship, knocking out Stipe Miocic with his fierce punches at UFC 260.

Life was hard and unfair for Ngannou right from the beginning as he had to start working in a sand quarry from the age of 10 to support his single mother. “I hated this place growing up…I hated the sand mine, everything, I hated my life…Sometimes you’d argue with a rat in the trash…It really hurts me to remember everything where I came from…,” Ngannou said in a recent interview for the podcast ‘Joe Rogan Experience’.

It was then, at the age of 17, that he decided to focus on what was

within his power and change for the better. He decided to become a fighter and moved to Morocco in pursuit of his dream. However, there were several hiccups before he could finally reach his goal. During his journey from Cameroon to Morocco, Ngannou crossed borders illegally, lived in a bush and scrounged the trash to find food.

His progress was halted several times in the Sahara Desert where he had to drink water from animalinfested wells. When he finally did reach the promised land of Europe, there was yet another roadblock — he was jailed for illegally crossing the Morocco-Spain border by sea. After his release two months later, Ngannou fled to France. “I was homeless then, but at that moment, it wasn’t difficult for me anymore. You might think being homeless in Paris in the fall when it’s cold was not great, but the enthusiasm that I had at that time…

Beyond everything, I was happy to

be in the land of opportunity,” he said. This part of his life is what he remembers as the happiest because he was ever so close to his dream. “Even though I was sleeping in parking lots and I didn’t have food or money, I was just free. Compared to where I was in Morocco, a parking lot was like a fivestar hotel,” he recalled.

To make ends meet, Ngannou worked at a homeless shelter ‘Lo Chorba’ where his job was to chop vegetables. It was here that his life finally took a turn for the better when the director of the La Chorba foundation introduced him to Didier Carmont, who ran a boxing training centre in Paris. Carmont introduced him to the MMA Factory in Paris and it was here that Ngannou, who idolises Mike Tyson, started learning boxing for the first time in his life.

“Until I went to France, in 2013, that was the first time then I walked to the gym,” Ngannou said, casting his mind back to his early years.

New Delhi, Mar 30 (PTI): Eight members of an Indian boxing squad, including three pugilists, tested positive for COVID-19 during a competition trip to Turkey and have been quarantined in Istanbul.

Commonwealth Games silver-medallist Gaurav Solanki (57kg), Prayag Chouhan (75kg) and Brijesh Yadav (81kg) tested positive for the virus a week back, leading to them being quarantined following the event which ended on March 19.

Coaches Dharmendra Yadav and Santosh Birmole, physiotherapists Shikha Kedia and Dr Umesh along with video analyst Nitin Kumar are the others in isolation, a team source told PTI. Gaurav Solanki (PTI file) They were in Istanbul to compete in the Bosphorus Tournament. Solanki had claimed the lone medal — a bronze — among men.

Among women, Nikhat Zareen (51kg) had also fetched a bronze helping India finish with two medals overall.

The others who travelled for the tournament were Lalith Prasad (52kg), Shiva Thapa (63kg), Duryodhan Singh Negi (69kg), Naman Tanwar (91kg) and Krishnan Sharma (+91kg).

The women’s group featured Zareen, Sonia Lather (57kg), Parveen (60kg), Jyoti Grewal (69kg) and Pooja Saini (75kg).

The ones who have tested positive will have to wait for at least one more week before they undergo a fresh COVID-19 test to ascertain their recovery and clear the passage for a flight home.

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