31 January 2011

Women Voters Lead in Mizoram

mizo women votersAizawl, Jan 31 : Women voters in Mizoram have surpassed men in the updated electoral roll released by the state’s chief electoral officer early this month.

The state now holds the record of being one of the seven states and Union territories, where women voters outnumber men.

Two other northeastern states — Manipur and Meghalaya — are among these seven states where women voters outnumber men. In these two states, there are 8,62,272 and 65,6371 women voters while the men voters are 8,18,355 and 6,33,390 respectively.

Mizoram’s chief electoral officer K. Riachho said this year’s updated rolls had registered 640,754 voters, of which 325,081 were women and 3,15,673 men, a lead of 9,408.

He said the revised voters’ rolls in Mizoram in July last year had registered 6,33,455 voters, of which the women voters stood at 3,20,207 and men voters at 3,13,248, giving the women a lead of 6,959.

The women voters of this tiny state have steadily been maintaining their edge over men in all the state-level polls.

However, the women have always lagged behind in contesting the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state.

In the last Assembly election held in December 2008, no woman candidate could win in the state though five of them were in the fray.

Mizo CM Meets Bharat Parikrama Team

Bharat Parikrama teamAizawl, Jan 31 : The Bharat Parikrama team consisting 80 youths from 15 States has left here after a three-day visit to the State since January 25.

The tour was organised by Ministry of Home Affairs under the aegis of Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports & Youth Affairs and Nehru Yuva Kendra, Mizoram Zone.

The team called on State Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla here on Thursday. Expressing happiness at the team’s visit, he said that despite being from different social, cultural, religious and economic backgrounds, all of us should take pride in being Indians first and foremost and advised the visiting youths to work for the country’s progress and development, fostering the bonds of brotherhood and universal love among different communities.

The Chief Minister said that at times, peoples’ geographical knowledge is so poor that they fail to place Mizoram as a part of India but expressed hope that the youths would add to their knowledge about the rich heritage of our country through travel programmes like the current one.

The Bharat Parikrama team had also an interaction session with prominent citizens and important government officials at the I & PR Auditorium. The team also visited Falkawn, a typical Mizo village, the Aizawl Theological College, Mizoram University, the 10th Assam Rifles among others.

NID to Revive Northeast Textile Industry

By Lakshmi Ajay

nid-ahmedabad1Ahmedabad,  Jan 31
: Year 1961: The Indian government realised the need for development and growth of small industries in the country and joined hands with Ford Foundation, to sponsor a three month visit of renowned American designers—Charles and Ray Eames.

The visit resulted in setting up of the National Institute of Design (NID) on the lines of industrial design education being imparted in Bauhaus and Ulm in Germany.

Cut to 2011: The Ahmedabad-based institute—which functions as an autonomous body under the department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India—delivers under graduate and post graduate programmes in 17 diverse disciplines in design.

NID was ranked 32nd by Business Week in its list of top 60 European and Asian design programmes in the world. The institute has, over its 50 years of existence, established two more campuses at—Gandhinagar (Post Graduate campus) and Bangalore (R&D campus).

Director of the institute Pradyumna Vyas says there’s more. “We will be starting a full-fledged two year photography PG diploma course from this year. Also, we are looking at expanding the universal design programme and establishing several research chairs based on this. We plan to develop modules for design for craft so that one can create visual, learning materials in schools and colleges,” says Vyas.

Taking advantage of its autonomous status, the institute is thinking of further expanding within the country with four new campuses. “We will be setting up campuses in Hyderabad and Jorhat. Whereas, plans of setting up campuses in Madhya Pradesh and Haryana are on the anvil. We will train faculty and create the curriculum development for all the four centres.

While the institute has had enquiries from Middle East countries to set up a campus, at present, it is more focused on having international exchange programmes and pedagogic relationships. “Going overseas is not an option right now. We are looking at consulting opportunities so that we can add to our corpus of funds for the institute,” adds Vyas.

NID has international exchange programmes with around 35 overseas institutions. It has signed 40 memorandum of understanding for knowledge sharing with design institutes across the world out of which 24 MOU’s are with European institutions alone.

The talent pool housed in NID is actively involved in live projects and research chairs that promote the cause of traditional design by marrying it to sustainable entrepreneurial ideas. “Our students are working on several projects with Ford Foundation and our incubatee cell Nidus is also supporting interesting innovations started by students and developing their entrepreneurial ideas,” adds Vyas.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry invested Rs 10 crore in the incubatee cell for venture funds which is called ‘designerpreneurship’.

NID has now taken up the task of reviving and restoring languishing textiles of traditional craftsmen and artisans through several multi-crore live projects in the North east.

Assam Police To Tap Phones

An eye on criminals, terrorists

PANKAJ SARMA

New gadgets

Guwahati, Jan 31 : Close on the heels of the phone-tapping controversy that shook the nation, the police machinery in the state is gearing up to intercept phones and text messages with the aid of state-of-the-art technology.

Only in this case, the police will be using a “lawful interception and monitoring system” to monitor only phones used by persons indulging in illegal or subversive activities. The aim is to protect people and prevent untoward incidents, a highly placed police source said.

The source added the sophisticated system, which would be a first for the state police, would be used for monitoring and interception of telecommunications only with required authorisation from Union or state governments in accordance with the provisions of the law.

“The Assam police headquarters has floated tenders inviting bids from qualified parties and the bids will be opened on February 2. The system will be procured with funds provided by the Centre under the police modernisation scheme,” the source said.

He said the system would be able to monitor and intercept telecommunications in GSM (global system for mobile communication), CDMA (code division multiple access) and PSTN (public switched telephone network) networks.

“We are going for a system which can simultaneously monitor 30 conversations at a time and can store data up to 30,000 hours. Moreover, the system should also show text messages in multiple languages and should have advanced features like speaker identification, 3G feature for monitoring video calls and faxes, among others,” he added. The interception activity of the system must be such that it does not interfere with the operation of the telecommunication networks or make the target aware that he is being monitored. It would also be used to locate the target on the basis of cell tower information.

Phone tapping can be a key tool in intelligence gathering, which is an important part of police functioning, particularly in the wake of threats of terrorism and other hi-tech crimes, he said, adding, “As criminals and terrorists are adept at employing technology, the police will also have to do so to counter them.”

The source said the system would be used for intercepting conversations only in the interests of national sovereignty and integrity, state security, public order or preventing incitement for an offence and adequate safeguards would be in place to ensure that it is not misused and no individual’s right to privacy is violated.

He said the Union or state governments are empowered to order interception of telecommunications under Section 5 of the Indian Telegraph Act, but only in “public emergency, or in the interest of public safety” and Rule 419 and 419A sets out the procedure of interception and monitoring. “According to law, the state home secretary is empowered to order interception,” he added.

The supplier of the system will also have to provide training to persons designated by Assam police on various technical and operational aspects of the system.

Agatha Sangma: Youthful Hope For The Development of Northeast India

By Anjana Dey

Agatha-Sangma1
Ms. Agatha Sangma: The young face of Indian politics hails from West Garo Hills in Meghalaya.

Recently at the North East Students Fest (NESFEST) hosted by the University of Delhi, I had an opportunity to both listen and interact with the Hon’ble Minister of State for Rural Development Ms. Agatha Sangma. The youngest Minister in Dr. Manmohan Singh’s Cabinet, Ms. Sangma is pretty much the face of NE youth now trying to make mark in India’s development story. Born and brought up in Delhi but with full respect for her roots in the North East region, Ms. Sangma considers both the NE and Delhi as her home. What is also a fact of interest to me, is that Ms. Sangma holds a Masters in Environment Management and surely has a good understanding of the environmental challenges faced by the NE region.

It was in 2009 when Ms. Sangma took the oath as a Minister. Wearing a traditional stole and sarong in beige and white, the then 28 year old Ms. Sangma folded her hands into a gentle namaste for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi sitting in the front row, before taking her place beside President Prathibha Patil (Click here to watch the video). Speaking about the oath taking ceremony at the NESFEST, she proudly shared how when everybody expected her to take the oath in English, she surprised everyone by doing so in Hindi as she believes she is equally a part of India as anybody else.

During the NESFEST, Ms. Sangma addressed the audience and other guests with a smile and began her speech by speaking about the issue of Indian citizens having multiple identities yet the nation standing as one largely due to the ‘unity in diversity’ that is inherent to the working of this nation. However she admitted that regionalism has been an inseparable part of India and one outfall that it has had is the unfortunate violence incidents against NE students in Delhi. In response to the increasing number of such incidences in the capital, Ms. Sangma informed how she and few other MLAs and NE students organised a meeting with the Prime Minister.

Ms. Sangma also realizes the lack of information and awareness among the people from different parts of India about the the Northeastern region. She considers the integration of culture as a very important parameter for national integrity and to facilitate this, she shared about her meeting with the Education Ministry Mr. Kapil Sibal. She has already initiated the process of ensuring that the syllabus of Indian history includes the contribution of the NE people as well. She feels that through such an integration process, the people of NE will feel more connected to the mainland while at the same time, rest of India will be able to learn about the role played by the people of the NE region during independence and later on for the betterment of the country.

During the Fest, I approached Ms. Sangma and introduced her to the working and objectives of NE Greens, my experience of working with Delhi Greens and how I now felt a strong need to return to my hometown of Duliajan and initiate a lot of green work in order to promote sustainable development in the region. Her first reaction to this was a comment on the region itself. Ms. Sangma believes that the existing lifestyle of the people of the Northeast region is very sustainable. However, the modern wave is changing a lot of that and there is a strong need to protect the cultural diversity and sustainable practices in the region. This coming from a politician appointed as a Rural Development Minister is indeed noteworthy, and very encouraging. Ms. Agatha Sangma is said to be the face of NE India in Indian politics and meeting her indeed convinced me of the same.

Editor’s Note: Anjana Dey hails from Duliajan, Assam and will be writing on NE Greens as a staff reporter. She has been an active member of the Delhi Greens organisation and takes keen interest in contemporary environmental issues and challenges. Anjana completed her Masters in Environmental Studies from the University of Delhi in 2010 and is now working for a clean, green Planet with a more promising future. ( anjana(at)negreens.com )

via negreens.com

Ensure Manipur-Bound Tankers Are Not Harassed: IOC to Assam

By Rahul Karmakar

Indian-Oil-CorporationGuwahati, Jan 31
: The Indian Oil Corporation has asked the Assam government to ensure that Manipur-bound oil tankers are not harassed during transit through Assam.

The IOC plea followed transporters' decision to stop plying on National Highway 39 due to security reason. The last incident saw militants in Assam's

Karbi Anglong district firing upon oil tankers and injuring at least six transporters less than a fortnight ago.

NH39 - it starts at Numaligarh in Assam and ends at Moreh on the Manipur-Myanmar border after passing through Nagaland - is prone to blockades and extortion.

Top IOC officers held a meeting with Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh to discuss highway security and fuel scarcity in Manipur on Sunday. Manipur has been facing acute fuel problem since the two-month highway blockade by United Naga Council mid last year.

The IOC officials included on the oil major's director of marketing GC Daga, general manager (Northeast) A Pandian, deputy GM (LPG-Northeast) AC Sharma, deputy GM (operation) P. Anbalajam and chief retail sale manager Deepak Anand Bharale.

After meeting Singh, the IOC officials appealed to Manipur oil transporters to reconsider their stand of staying off NH 39. This highway, they pointed out, was much more convenient and shorter than NH 53 that links Manipur capital Imphal via southern Assam.

The IOC officials also promised an infrastructure upgrade in order to check Manipur's recurrent fuel crisis.

Let There Be Light in Villages, Too

no electricityShillong, Jan 31 : With an aim to provide light to the hundreds of households in the state that are still languishing in the dark, the Meghalaya government has embarked on an ambitious sustainable power project, aptly coined Light a Billion Lives (LaBL), to provide light generated by solar energy to houses at Mawsynram and adjoining villages in East Khasi Hills district.

Meghalaya is the second state in the northeast after Assam to implement such an unique project aimed at providing escape from perpetual darkness.

The project is especially directed to help students who find it difficult to carry on with studies after sunset. Notably, students in rural Meghalaya often shoulder various responsibilities such as household chores, tending to their farms and cattle and hence night time is the only period available to them for studies.

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) is spearheading the project in order to cater to the power requirements of this once power-surplus state. "This project is aimed at providing solar light to villages in rural areas as an alternative source of energy. The LaBL project has been handed over to three multi-purpose cooperative societies which will run and manage it expeditiously to ensure that people are benefited from it," said an official associated with implementation of the project on Saturday.

Meghalaya's registrar of cooperative societies FR Kharkongor said, "The project involves setting up of a solar charging station (SCS) at the cooperative society level, with five cost effective and easily installable solar photo-voltaic cell panels and 50 solar lanterns. One panel can support ten lanterns and each lantern can effectively provide eight hours of recorded light though they have been known to last a little longer."

"This is not only an effective way of helping rural areas with energy needs but also providing a way to cooperative societies to augment their revenue generation capacity," added Kharkongor.

"In Mawsynram, the Mawlyngbna multi-purpose cooperative society levies a charge of Rs 5 a day as rent for one lantern. The revenue model is left to the societies to work out as they have total charge of the units," he further said.

Chairman of Mawlyngbna multi-purpose cooperative society, Lurshai Tohtih said, "The demand for solar lanterns for both domestic and commercial purposes in the area is very high and it would only increase in the rainy season in view of people facing acute electricity shortage." The government has also decided to extend the project to other parts of the state so that eventually rural areas in the state that are not electrified yet would be provided with power.

The registrar of cooperative societies in collaboration with TERI and the Bethany Society, a Shillong-based NGO would soon begin implementing the project in the southern slopes of the War Jaintia area of Jaintia Hills district. Here again, the project would be managed by two other cooperative societies.

The entire package is worth Rs 1.45 lakh. While Rs 95,000 has been borne by TERI, Rs 25,000 was contributed by the Meghalaya Cooperative Society and Rs 25,000 each by the three other cooperative societies.

30 January 2011

India Hottest Destination For Gay, Lesbian Tourists

Gay_RightsNew Delhi, Jan 30 : As the government legalised homosexuality in India two years ago, tour operators in the country are trying to sell India as the ultimate tourists destination for gays and lesbians.

A section of the tourism industry hopes to benefit from visits by homosexual tourists, a market which is yet to be exploited in India, said travel experts at the 18th South Asia Travel and Tour Expo (SATTE) Friday.

Gay and Lesbian Tourism was largely discussed at a session in SATTE, organised under the banner of ITB Berlin.

Director of Indjapink, the first and only gay travel boutique for gay vacations, Sanjay Malhotra claimed that after Delhi High Court rule in favour of homosexuals, the tourism industry in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Tourists (LGBT) has increased manifold.

On July 2, 2009, the Delhi High Court had ruled in favour of scrapping Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that criminalises sexual acts between consenting adults of the same gender.

"Gay men usually come in groups from Western Europe, United States and Canada and their favourite destination is Kerala, Rajasthan and Varanasi," Malhotra said.

He also said two years ago gay men and lesbians have been bypassing India for other countries like Nepal, Thailand and Indonesia but now things are changing and stated that in three years India will become the hottest destination for gays and lesbians.

Indjapink organises vacation and tour programmes for gays and this year they are looking to cater lesbians.

"Gays or lesbians are the biggest spender of lifestyle products. They have maximum disposable incomes as they come from DINK (Double Income, No Kids) group. So they are recession proof and they are vacation savvy," Thomas Boemkes, managing director, Tom On Tour, a portal for gay travellers and friends.

According to Rika Jean Francois, sales director - South Asia and Pacific, ITB - Berlin one of the panel member in the discussion informed that India is still perceived as a conservative society, but it has all the capacity to become a hottest destinations for gay and lesbian markets.

"After the High Court tourism industry in India is exploring the gay and lesbian market and many see this as a start, but there are more challenges which should be addressed," Malhotra said.

He also further stated that one of the biggest challenges Indian market is the heightening insensitivity of the hospitality industry in many luxury hotels.

"Although New Delhi has a string of luxury hotels only one or two is gay friendly. For example, in a hotel despite informing that a group of tourists is gay, the front desk staff at certain hotels allotted rooms with separate single beds," he added.

He also said when a gay couple demanded candle light or flower petals in the bedrooms, hotels often refuse.

"As India has different tourist spots which are rich in culture and architecture, museum, monuments and markets it would easily attract the LGBT communities, but Indian tourism industry should know how to capitalise on this by avaialing special packages and segments for the LGBT commuity," Malhotra added.

To address these issues Malhotra said, "Indiajpink is planning to organise workshops with string of hotels in various cities. The workshop would involve drivers, housekeepers, doormen and bartenders to ensure hassle-free holidays for the LGBT clients."

A total of 38 countries are participating in the SATTE exhibition that started Friday in Pragati Maidan, which has stalls from 25 states of India.

Source: IANS