Unsafe Sex Main Cause of HIV Spread in Mizoram

Aizawl, Feb 2 : Unprotected sex is found to be the main reason behind the alarming rise of HIV/AIDS cases in Mizoram.

More than 67.86 per cent of new cases of HIV detected last year contracted the disease through unprotected sex.

Of the 35,636 blood samples tested during 2010, 1223 persons were tested positive for HIV, of which 830 persons contracted the virus through unprotected sex, Mizoram State Aids Control Society (MSACS) reports said.

While 348 HIV positives detected during last year contracted with the disease through intravenous drug use (28.45 per cent), 25 of them were infected through their mothers. The cause of infection for 20 others (1.64 percent) could not be confirmed.

Of the 1223 new HIV cases detected during last year, 545 were 25-34 years of age while 337 were aged between 35 to 49. While 273 were aged between 15 to 24, there were 28 persons below 28 and 40 persons above 50 years of age, according to the reports.

From October 1990 to December 2010, 1,33,186 blood samples have been tested for HIV/AIDS and fount that 5312 have been affected by HIV.

There are 538 persons with full blown AIDS while 177 persons, including 73 females have died of AIDS.

MSACS deputy director Dr Zothankhuma Chhakchhuak informed that the trend is on the increasing and it's a matter of great concern to check the spread of HIV/AIDS in the state.

Mizoram Rings Fire Alarm

Aizawl, Feb 2 : With dry season closing in, the Mizoram government has sounded fire alarm across the state.

The state level fire prevention committee has appealed to the Mizos to be cautious about forest fire with the arrival of dry season which is a period for traditional Jhum burning.

The committee has also instructed all the jhum farmers to burn their cultivation before March 15.

The primitive slash and burn method of cultivation, or jhumming, in Mizoram has led to a massive destruction of forests and innumerable forest fires causing loss of human lives every year.

According to figures provided by the environment forest department relating to 10 out of the 14 territorial divisions, at least 17,046.33 hectares of forest was swallowed by forest fires allegedly caused by jhumming.

Jhumming is still prevalent in Mizoram and other hilly states of the northeast as around 80 per cent of the Mizo farmers, which comprised about 30 per cent of the total 10 lakh population, depend on the practice in the absence of irrigation.

Farmers, however, say jhum burning is not the main cause of the forest fire.

Rather, it is mainly the handiwork of some miscreants who torch the dry leaves for fun or some cattle grazers who wanted early growth of green grasses.

Though some agriculturists think that jhumming is necessary as the ashes of burnt trees and leaves restore the soil balance, environmentalists argue that the extent of devastation it causes to the forests is not worth it.

Some agriculturists say that the soil of Mizoram, like in the other mountainous areas of the region are sour and the ashes of the burned forests helped to repair the soil imbalance to make them fertile for cultivation.

''This can, however, be substituted with slaked lime or other salty chemicals,'' agriculture experts say, adding that the sate government has to take a keen interest in order to put an end to the slash and burn system of cultivation.

The Congress government has just launched an ambitious New Land Use Policy with an objective to put an end to the destructive jhumming and provide an alternative sustainable development model for the farmers.

PL Thanga, vice-chairman of NLUP apex board, said, ''The ambitious NLUP project would provide alternative sustainable land-based livelihood to the farmers, thereby keeping about 60 percent of the land under green forest cover.'' While the forest cover in Mizoram is still the highest in the country, state environment and forest department officials said the national data in regards to the state were only superficial.

According to a recent survey report by the state remote sensing application centre here, there is only 3,158.57 sq km of dense forest which is totally virgin and not yet used for cultivation in Mizoram accounting for a merely 14.98 per cent of the total geographical area of the state.

The survey report says that the state has a medium dense forest area of 2,628.08 square km which is 12.46 per cent of the total land area and 3,738.57 sq kms of less dense forest area consisting of 17.73 per cent of the state's geographical area.

Along with Mizoram, the entire north eastern region is facing wanton degradation of forests and a recent study shows that 6.3 million hectares of forests in the region was affected of which four states- Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh contributed around 72 per cent.

Assam Gets Its First Pocket Travel Guide

Guwahati, Feb 2 : Assam can now boast of its own official pocket travel guide book. Chief minister Tarun Gogoi, along with state forest and tourism minister Rockybul Hussain, unveiled the pocket travel guide at a function in Guwahati. Assam Travel Guide', edited by Swati Mitra, has been published by Eicher Good Earth Private Limited ( New Delhi) and is supported by the state tourism department. Eicher Good Earth has also published travel guides on Sikkim, Madhya Pradesh, Goa and Himachal Pradesh earlier.

Gogoi and Hussain applauded the effort of the Assam tourism department in bringing this book to the public. "The state has seen more than 15,000 foreign tourists recently and this travel guide book is going to boost the number further," said the tourism minister.

The guide, which has tried to touch upon almost all the tourist hotspots of Assam, has a unique design and features attractive images reflective of the diversity of the land. "The state has much to offer to the world.

From wildlife to food, we have tried to assemble the varied aspects of Assam in a nutshell. We have included all the travel destinations, district-wise.

The guide is comprehensive and takes in some brilliant photographs of the scenic beauty of Assam. This book is sure to attract the attention of one and all. It is a much-touted project for the state tourism department and is expected to increase tourist flow," said Monalisa Goswami, director, Assam Tourism. The travel guide also includes information on the cuisines and cultural variety of the state, along with various other important details.

Assam Tourism is going to distribute the travel guide to all the major public places in the country for sale. "We will distribute the guide book to all the state tourist information centres across India and are thinking of sending it abroad as well.

Recently, Jet Airways has tied up with us, and we will also ask them to showcase the book on board," she added. The tourist guide will also be available on stands at railway platforms and bus terminuses across the nation for sale.

Roman Sarma, an advocate at Gauhati High Court who contributed inputs for the Assamese cuisines section in the travel guide, stressed on the need to distribute the book well. "This book should reach more people to enhance tourism in the state.

Everyone from corporate houses to educational institutes should be on the distribution list so that we can tap all sections of society. Though this book should have been published long ago, it's good that it's finally been done and is surely going to help the tourism industry of Assam," said Sarma.

RTI Activist Threatened in Meghalaya

Shillong, Feb 2 : An RTI activist in Meghalaya has received threats from a traditional village council, prompting the district administration to ensure his security.

Bobby Basaiawmoit today said he has been intimidated by members of the Mairangbah Dorbar (local village council) who have also threatened to impose a fine and ostracize him from the village.

The threats came after he sought information under RTI about a dealer of a Fair Price Shop in Mairangbah village of West Khasi Hills district.

The RTI findings revealed irregularities by the village council in appointment of the fair price shop dealer.

The village council also summoned him and questioned as to why he filed the RTI, Basaiawmoit said at a press conference here.

Basaiawmoit, also a functionary of the NGO Federation of Khasi Jaintia and Garo People (FKJGP), was charged by the council with creating trouble in the village.

The FKJGP has lodged a complaint with the Deputy Commissioner of West Khasi Hills, S Kharlyngdoh.

Acting on the complaint, the Deputy Commissioner has asked the sub divisional magistrate of Mairang to apprehend any person to ensure the RTI petitioner’s safety.

Assam Government's 'Ghost Employees'

By Prabin Kalita

Guwahati, Feb 1 : The state government believes that it was under attack from 'ghost' employees and pensioners who would rob its coffers of about Rs 300 cr every year.

Employees in the state say that these ghosts came into existence by 1988 and their numbers peaked around 2000.

Gogoi believes they have been driven out and no longer exist ever since 2005 when the government decided to replace the age old practice of cash payment salary and pension with directly transferring the money from RBI to individual savings accounts of the employees and pensioners.

On Tuesday while presenting an interim budget for the first quarter of the next fiscal, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi highlighted his government's achievements which included driving out ghost employees and pensioners.

"In 2005, I stopped cash payment of salary, pension and other government disbursements with the objective of saving government expenditure on Banking Cash Transaction Tax (BCTT).

It was made mandatory to make all such payments through bank accounts. To my pleasant surprise, I found that not only about Rs 15 cr was saved on BCTT per annum but also our salary and pension payment bills came down by about Rs 300 cr per annum.

This was so because with introduction of salary and pension payments through bank accounts, many ghost employees and pensioners disappeared," Gogoi said here.

There are about 4.55 lakh employees with the state government at present and the government believes that none among them is a 'ghost'.

Super Sherpa To Climb Everest Again

Kathmandu, Feb 1 : Not ready to rest on his laurels, Apa Sherpa, the mountaineering legend from Nepal, will seek to best his own record on Mt Everest, the world's highest peak, by conquering it again this summer, for an incredible 21st time.

The 51-year -- dubbed "Super Sherpa" for his amazing climbing prowess – is returning to Nepal in April from his adopted home in Utah, the US, to take part in the Eco Everest Expedition 2011, an initiative started by the Kathmandu-based Asian Trekking agency.

"Last year, Apa carried the banner of Nepal Tourism Board to the summit of Mt Everest to announce to the world that Nepal was gearing up to celebrate 2011 as its tourism year," said Ang Tshering Sherpa, chief of Asian Trekking. "This year, he felt he had to return to the peak to complete the work."

In 2010, Apa summited Mt Everest as part of Eco Everest Expedition 2010 that began in 2008 to clean the world's best loved peak of the garbage left on its slope by mountaineers. It also brought down the bodies of four dead climbers and helped to bury the bodies. Conceived by Dawa Steven Sherpa, a 27-year-old climber and Everest summiter inspired by Sir Edmund Hillary, the first Everest conqueror, the Eco Everest Expeditions have continued for four years, bringing down 12,000kg of garbage. This year, besides Apa, it has another celebrity, Japanese environment activist Ken Noguchi, who has also been leading cleanup campaigns in high altitude. His earlier campaigns have removed debris from Mt Everest, Mt Manaslu and Mt Fuji.

Apa, who scaled Mt Everest first in 1990 as a high-altitude porter, established the Apa Sherpa Foundation last year to help run a school in Thame, the remote village in northern Nepal where he was born, to help educate Sherpa children. Sherpas, though famed for their mountaineering feats, do not have a written language and have to struggle with grinding poverty and lack of opportunities. Each year, it leads to massive migration of Sherpa youngsters from home to bigger cities in search of a better way of life. Apa himself relocated to the US to give quality education to his three children. Now his foundation is seeking to reverse the exodus from the mountains and boost the home land of his people. Besides the school, it is also seeking to run a project to preserve Sherpa culture and language.

After the expedition that kicks off in April, Apa will be returning in autumn to further support Nepal's Tourism Year 2011 campaign that seeks to draw 1 million tourists. With Dawa Steven, the Everest hero will lead "the Great Himalaya Trail" – a five-month trekking odyssey from east Nepal to the west to promote tourism in rural Nepal.

Now Track Your Car From Your Browser

Dubai, Feb 1 : For parents worried about their son's overspeeding ways or the wayward behaviour of a driver, a low-cost Internet-based GPS vehicle tracking system is expected to be just the solution.

Developed by a Qatari IT service provider, the T-Qat vehicle tracking system is being touted as the only monitoring system which has a web server developed in Qatar and has an Internet-based Global Positioning System (GPS) tracker customised for local users.

The service provider aims to extend the service to more Gulf countries as well as Africa while subscribers outside Qatar will need to pay along with the yearly fee the monthly GSM roaming charges.

The system is expected to prove particularly useful in improving vehicle breakdown services as well as to monitor vehicles which transport school students as well as day and night shift employees of companies.

The service provider, Advanced Technologies and Solutions, which has developed the tracking system, is participating at the Qatar Motor Show in Doha to create awareness for the device.

Installing the system in a vehicle can help a company or an individual have complete control over the second party usage of their vehicles while sitting before a computer with an Internet connection.

They can track the vehicle's location, movement and speed travelled by the vehicle user and can also set off a speed alarm. The current clients of the firm include car rental, limousine as well as trading and construction companies.

The system also gives the owner of a car the authority to cut off the engine of a vehicle with a click on their laptop or a mobile via the web following necessary safety precautions.

The Report Management System provides automated fleet management reports on over-speeding, historical data, parking and running reports along with geographical area and mileage reports.

The system operates with the GPS vehicle tracking device connected to the ignition system and other desired parts of a vehicle, after a subscriber has registered online with the service provider paying an annual fee.

Source: Indian Express

Oz College on Verge of Closure, Fate of 4000 Indian Students Uncertain

Melbourne: A Melbourne-based private institute is on the verge of financial collapse, threatening future of over 4000 students, including from India.

Private college giant 'Carrick' has now sought financial help from Victorian government to guarantee its future. The institute is relying on a USD 10 million deal with Victorian public TAFE Holmesglen, The Australian reported. The deal, likely to be finalised by today, could result in Holmesglen securing up to 80 per cent of Carrick, it said.

Carrick runs several vocational courses including hospitality, tourism, events, community welfare work, business marketing and hairdressing besides other bachelor degrees and English programmes.

Its collapse would threaten more than 500 employees and 4000 students, including its inter-state operations in Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney.

Financial results for the holding company Carrick Institute of Education, lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission earlier this month, revealed a USD 13.8 m loss in 2009-10 as it was hit by the collapse in the permanent-residency-driven market for international students.

It follows on from a USD 43 m loss the previous year, driven largely by a near USD 38 m impairment on the value of its intangible assets.

The unnamed party is believed to be Holmesglen, which The Australian revealed last Thursday had taken out a fixed and floating charge over Carrick's assets of up to USD 10 m.

Carrick had previously been in talks on forming an alliance with the US-based Washington Post's education arm Kaplan, which appear to have fallen through.

Victoria's Ted Baillieu government said it was in dialogue with Holmesglen on the deal.

"The government has sought assurances from the board of Holmesglen that appropriate steps have been taken to protect student welfare and the taxpayers' interests," a spokeswoman for Higher Education and Skills Minister Peter Hall said.

Source: Indian Express