Mob Torches Houses in Mizoram Village

Aizawl, Apr 30 : A mob from Mizoram border Vaphai village in Champhai district today burned down all the 40 houses in Saikhumphai hamlet.Around five people were injured in a clash with the police who were deployed in the hamlet to enforce a High Court order.Though a number of police personnel including three platoons of armed policemen were deployed, the police could not stop the mob from torching...

Nagaland, Mizoram & Tripura are Highest Tobacco Consuming States

Shillong, Apr 30 : Following the direction of the union government, Tripura and Meghalaya will ban the sale, manufacture and distribution of gutka (tobacco-laced areca nut pieces) and pan masala (a chewing mixture), officials said on Tuesday.Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Sikkim have already banned such products.The Supreme Court earlier this month directed 23 states and...

10 Manipur Cops Arrested For Drug Trafficking

Imphal, Apr 30 : Ten Manipur Police personnel, including two officers, have been caught red handed while transporting drugs to the Manipur-Myanmar border town of Moreh.They were arrested on Sunday evening with the psychotropic drug, pseudoephedrine, worth approximately Rs 3.6 crore. The accused were produced before the court of the Thoubal district magistrate on Monday morning and remanded in police...

More airports developed in Northeast

By Krupa Vora The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) is developing more airports in Northeast India. India to enhance connectivity to Northeast The ministry has informed the Rajya Sabha that in order to connect the remote hills areas of the region, the Airport Authorities of India (AAI) is developing non-operational airports at Daparizo in Arunachal Pradesh, Tura in Meghalaya and Kamalpur in...

28 New ITIs To Come Up in Northeast

New Delhi, Apr 30 : Seven northeastern states, including Assam, have proposed setting up 28 new Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the region, parliament was informed Monday.The northeast now has 71 ITIs, affiliated to the National Council of Vocational Training, Minister of State for Labour and Employment K. Suresh said in a statement in the Lok Sabha.He added that no unemployment benefit...

Mizoram’s ‘illegal village’ Must Exist, Says Court

Aizawl, Apr 29 : The Gauhati High Court has ruled against the Mizoram government’s order to demolish Saikhumphai Bawk, an alleged illegal settlement near the Indo-Myanmar border, and told the latter to give appropriate compensation to the residents who were forcefully evicted and whose houses were dismantled. The verdict issued by station judge of Aizawl bench of Gauhati HC Ujan Bhuyan on Friday...

A Missing Girl, A Known Militant Story in Manipur

By Esha Roy 14-year-old Alice (right) with a cousin. File photo Alice Kamei had been missing for two days when Sundari got the call. What the voice on the other end said about her 14-year-old daughter has turned the world of this family living in Chingphu Kabui village in Manipur's Bishnupur district upside down. "It was a call from the RPF (Revolutionary People's Front). They said that Alice...

An Indian Road Trip: From Calcutta to Sikkim

By Minty Clinch In the second of our series on road trips, Minty Clinch braves tumultuous traffic to explore the hill stations of West Bengal and Sikkim ©Richard Dunwoody A train makes its way through the traffic in Darjeeling The streets of Darjeeling reverberated to the sound of honking as the traffic surged, spluttered and stopped. The pedestrians flowed more freely than the vehicles,...

Over 500 Pigs Die of Swine Fever in Mizoram

Aizawl, Apr 29 : Over 500 pigs have died in Mizoram due to swine fever in the last two months.According to report from Animal Husbandary and Veterinary department officials, the number of pigs died due to the endemic "Classical Swine Fever" has crossed 500 mark since the month of March.Officials said, the endemic swine fever caused the death of as many as 465 pigs in Aizawl district alone, while...

How Many Rhinos Must Die…

PATRICIA MUKHIM ‘For those who have never seen the rhino in its natural habitat, the first sight of this pachyderm is ecstatically uplifting’ The one-horned rhino that has put Assam on the world map is gasping for life in the Kaziranga National Park (KNP). A recent lead article in a news magazine from the Northeast titled, “Poaching is my business, business is good,” is a horrible indictment...

Airports Authority of India Developing Northeast's Defunct Airports

Guwahati, Apr 29 : The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is developing three non-operational airports at Daparizo in Arunachal Pradesh, Tura in Meghalaya and Kamalpur in Tripura for operating ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft to connect the remote hill areas of the NE region. An official said the AAI is also developing civil enclaves at Along, Passighat and Ziro in Arunachal Pradesh and Rupsi in Dhubri...

Young Mizo Association Closes Down Bridge on Border of Mizoram & Tripura

Aizawl, Apr 26 : The Langkaih Group of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) in Mamit district has decided to close down the bridge over the Langkaih river on the Mizoram-Tripura border from 5 pm on Monday.The decision was taken at a meeting held on Wednesday after the Bru community in Tripura organized a bandh in protest against the mysterious death of Sibaram Reang and accused the Mizoram government...

Mumbai International Film Fest Comes to Aizawl

Aizawl, Apr 26 : Mumbai International Film Festival gets underway here in Aizawl from today as the Parliamentary Secretary to Chief Minister Lal Thanzara inaugurated the event at I&PR Auditorium today.Film Division, government of India and Directorate of Information & Public Relations, government of Mizoram are organizing the three-day non-competitive Documentary, Short and Animation Film...

458 Non-Tribals Without ILP Detained in Mizoram

Aizawl, Apr 25 : At least 458 non-tribals without valid Inner Line Permit (ILP) have been detained in various police stations in Mizoram after the influential Young Mizo Association (YMA) launched a recent drive against them.Police said those identified as staying in the state without valid ILP or fake ILP were brought before the local courts and, if convicted, they will be deported, a senior police...

Mizoram Track Gets Green Signal

Guwahati, April 25 : The Union ministry of environment and forests has cleared the forest-diversion proposal for the construction of a broad gauge railway line in Mizoram.The forest advisory committee gave the green signal in its meeting held in New Delhi recently with a condition that no trees would be felled in stretches of alignment where the track passes through tunnels and no muck would be...

Mizo Arrested in With Rs 6 cr Drugs: 'Kingpin' of Gang Arrested

Aizawl, Apr 24 : A commerce graduate from Mizoram has been arrested in connection with the seizure of Rs six crore worth banned pseudoephedrine tablets here allegedly from the son of a former Congress MLA.Henry Lalremsanga, whom police described as the kingpin of the gang, was arrested yesterday."He was coming from Mizoram and is involved in illegal trade along with Arvind Ahuja, son of the former...

Meghalaya To Take Action Against Cement Plants On Forest Land

Forest and Environment Minister Prestone Tynsong said the union forest and environment ministry would take a final call on the penalties, including compensatory afforestation. Shillong, Apr 24 : The Meghalaya government Thursday promised to take action against cement companies violating forest conservations laws. "The government is under process to initiate action against cement plants based...

Assam: Preliminary Medical Report Finds No Rape Sign On Injured Minor

Assam minor was not raped: Medical test  Silchar, Apr 24 : A day after angry protestors hit streets over alleged rape of 9-year-old girl in Assam, the preliminary medical report on Tuesday failed to confirm any sexual assault on the minor. According to the police, the medical report confirmed that there was no injury in the girl’s private parts and there was no sexual attack on the...

Pork Consumption Decline in Manipur, Mizoram

Aizawl, Apr 23 : Consumption of pork in Mizoram and Manipur has become less in Mizoram and Manipur following the outbreak of swine flu. In Manipur, veterinarians are still investigating the reasons for the death of pigs in large number at Heingang Chonthabi and Luwang shangbam areas of Imphal East district following the reports made in local newspapers. However, in the case of Mizoram, doctors have...

India: No Country For Women

While violence against women continues unabated in India, our crime investigation and justice systems offer no comfort.   The Capital has erupted once again over the gruesome kidnapping and rape of a five-year-old girl child. This time, the protests are more political with the presence of volunteers from organisations such as the Aam Aadmi Party, the ABVP, etc. But matters have...

Tension on Mizoram Border Over Death

Agartala, Apr 23 : Tension is mounting along the Tripura-Mizoram boundary following the recovery of the body of Sebaram Reang, 31, at Gangajaypara village in Kanchanpur sub-division of North Tripura district yesterday.Some firewood collectors saw the body around 1pm yesterday and the news spread like wildfire, till hundreds of angry villagers converged, ready to attack villages in Mizoram. Though...

Manipur Oil Tanker Drivers Stop Service

Imphal, Apr 23 : Oil tanker drivers in the state stopped services from Monday to denounce the abduction of their colleague in Nagaland by unknown gunmen, triggering panic buying by Imphal residents at fuel outlets.This came amid a growing people's protest against the gunning down of another driver, S Babu, and torching of two loaded trucks at Charoi Pandong area along the Imphal-Jiribam highway...

20 Fake ‘Open Schools’ in Aizawl

AIZAWL, Apr 22 : There are 20 fake 'Open Schools' in Aizawl, according to Mizo Students Union (MSU) that has expressed grave concern. Fraudulent business by way of deceiving students under National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) is reportedly prevalent in Mizoram. Expressing grave concern over that development, Mizo Students' Union maintained that while there are only 7 Accredited Institution...

Mizoram Bans Pig Import From Myanmar

Aizawl, Apr 22 : All the district magistrates of Mizoram, sharing international border with Myanmar, have issued prohibitory orders banning import of pigs from the neighboring country where a dangerous swine fever spreading as an epidemic.Dr L B Sailo, Director of the state Animal Husbandry and Veterinary department said that while the endemic classical swine fever in the state was subsiding, especially...

All Mizos Should Learn Hindi: Mizoram Minister

Aizawl, Apr 22 : Mizoram Education Minister Lalsawta has said that Mizos “should learn Hindi.” He said this while attending the Mizoram Hindi Prachar Sabha (MHPS) ‘Biennial General Conference-cum-Election’ at the Agriculture Conference Hall here yesterday.“Hindi is the most widely spoken language throughout India, and that due to our incompetency in speaking Hindi, the Mizos often times could not...

Manipur Rifles Man Killed, 17 Hurt in Blasts

Imphal, Apr 22 : A Manipur Rifles personnel was killed and 17 others, including a superintending engineer and nine security personnel, were injured in separate explosions in Chandel and Imphal West districts of Manipur on Sunday, officials said. They said suspected insurgents ambushed an official team, including the superintending engineer and Manipur Rifles personnel of 8th Battalion escorting...

PMO Hit Back With 'Empty Promises' in Mizoram

Aizawl, Apr 19 : With Mizoram state assembly elections around the corner, hollow promises made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chair Sonia Gandi and her would-be prime minister son Rahul Gandhi before the last polls have reverberated in the Prime Minister Office.The Mizo National 'Youth' Front, the largest opposition in the Congress-ruled state, submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister...

Foreign Models' Ffirst Foray Into Manipur Fashion Scene

By K Sarojkumar SharmaImphal, Apr 19 : Ten professional models from Russia, Brazil, Moldova and Ukraine are all set to walk the ramp in Imphal for the first time on April 27, giving a new dimension to fashion industry of strife-torn Manipur.Under the banner 'Elegance of the Indigenous- A Showcase of Manipur Ethnic Attires', the models will walk the ramp in different Manipuri ethnic designs by eminent...

More Quakes Could Hit India: Experts

By Charu Sudan Kasturi New Delhi, Apr 18 :  Tuesday’s 7.8 magnitude temblor near the Iran-Pakistan border could realign the region’s tectonic plates, potentially setting off follow-up earthquakes closer to India in the coming days and weeks, scientists have cautioned. From Ahmedabad in Gujarat to Nongpoh in Meghalaya, India was on Tuesday shaken by a ring of earthquakes that scientists...