When Khasis Scale Mountain Peak to Reach Heaven's Navel

By Manosh Das

Shillong, Feb 7 : Did you know that heaven has a navel' and that it lies on Mother Earth? The two are even linked with a metaphorical umbilical cord' a golden ladder symbolized by a tree atop a peak where the navel' lies.

Well, the navel' of heaven is located on earth at 25.1' and 26.5' north latitude and between 90.47' and 92.52' east longitude atop the U Lum Sohpetbneng Peak. The peak, popularly known as Umbilical Heavenly Peak' is situated by the scenic Umiam Lake (Barapani) close to the Meghalaya capital.

Every year on the first Sunday of February, thousands of Khasi-Jaintia people who adhere to the indigenous tribal faith make a pilgrimage to this navel' of heaven atop the 1,344-metre high peak, about 16 km from Shillong, to offer their obeisance to god.

According to mythology, the Khasi race descended from Ki Hynniewtrep-Khyndai Skum or the seven huts on earth and nine huts in heaven, which are connected to the creator by a golden ladder on U Lum Sohpetbneng. This golden ladder (Jingkieng Ksiar) was severed when sin crept into earth. Nine families remained in the celestial abode and seven settled on earth and multiplied.

The sub-tribes of the Khasi race Khynriam, Pnar, Bhoi, War, Maram, Lyngngam and the now-extinct Diko of Meghalaya, are collectively known as Ki Hynniewtrep, which literally means Seven Huts' referring to the seven families, the first settlers on earth, according to a popular legend.

"According to ancient Khasi faith, you can approach god only with a golden heart full of virtue and humility. God is like a mother with whom her children are linked through the umbilical cord, which is symbolized by the golden ladder atop U Lum Sohpetbneng," explains Kynpham King Nongkynrih, poet and author of several books on the Khasis. The annual obeisance at U Lum Sohpetbneng was paid today by thousands of faithful Khasi with traditional rituals and rites, dances and songs.

"Khasis believe that in the days when righteousness prevailed there was a tree that served as a ladder to the original sixteen families for their communication between heaven and earth.

This tree formed the golden bridge ensuring physical contact between man and god till the time when transgression became the order of the day and this bridge gave way destroying the communication link between heaven and earth," explains a Khasi elder.

Task Force to Promote Meghalaya-Bangla Trade

Shillong, Feb 7 : A task force will be formed to explore ways to enhance trade ties between Meghalaya and Bangladesh.

A high-powered Bangladesh delegation, led by their commerce minister Muhammad Faruk Khan, met top officials of Meghalaya, including chief minister Mukul Sangma here and discussed various issues related to trade between the two sides.

Describing the discussions as "fruitful", Khan said both sides discussed in detail as to how bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Meghalaya can be developed.

Underling power, agro-processing and the mineral sector as the key priorities, Khan said, "If businessman of both the sides can take the opportunities, then we should be having very good trade in the next two-three years which will benefit the entire region."

On being asked about the obstacles that Bangladesh companies are facing in the mineral sector in Meghalaya, Khan said, "If there is any law related matter in Bangladesh, I am ready to resolve it in three months. If needed, we will take the matter to the Parliament and change the law. And I expect the same from India."

He also stressed the need for more Land Customs Stations in the border to facilitate the trade.

Bangladesh also proposed the setting up of a joint coal power plant along border, which would benefit both Meghalaya and the neighbouring country.

Chief minister Mukul Sangma is understood to have assured to set up a laboratory in Shillong for issuing health certificates to items exported and imported from Bangladesh.

Now, there is only one laboratory in Guwahati which caters to this need, resulting in delay of dispatch of the goods.

Sangma also underlined the need to use the Chittagaon ports and the riverine routes through Bangladesh.

"The LCS should be connected with international standard road and rail connectivity. This is in the offing, and will boost trade activities," Sangma said.

The proposed task force will be headed by the chief secretary and monitored by the CM and its recommendations followed up, Sangma.

"The task force will identify items of export of import and the possibility of investment," he said.

If The Northeast Was The Punjab...

All this would be front page news every day. This is why, says AVALOK LANGER, you must know about what’s happening

NAGALAND

NATIONAL SOCIALIST COUNCIL OF NAGALAND (KHAPLANG)

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WHAT THEY WANT To establish Nagalim by bringing all Naga areas of Manipur, Arunachal, Nagaland, Assam and Myanmar under one sovereign umbrella.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING Though a signatory to the ceasefire agreement, NSCN(K) has not entered into negotiations with the Centre. Committed to the reconciliation process, it feels that Nagas must unite first and then approach India for a solution. While NSCN(IM) enjoys financial dominance, NSCN(K) has won the underground popularity contest. Not only have two Naga factions agreed to unite with NSCN(K), many groups are eager to become its allies.

ALLIES PAKISTAN, CHINA, ISI, KIA, NDFB, ULFA, UNLF

NAGALAND

NATIONAL SOCIALIST COUNCIL OF NAGALAND (ISAK–MUIVAH)

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WHAT THEY WANT To establish Nagalim by bringing all Naga areas of Manipur, Arunachal, Nagaland, Assam and Myanmar under one sovereign umbrella.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING Known as the “mother of all insurgencies”, NSCN(IM) has reached an advanced stage of talks with the Centre after 13 years. Chairman Isak Chishi Swu accepted an Indian passport on his return from Bangkok last month, boosting the peace process. Though NSCN(IM)’s proximity to the Centre has caused bad blood, general secretary Muivah and Swu are hopeful that the upcoming Forum for Naga Reconciliation meeting could possibly unite the groups before they meet the Centre.

ALLIES PAKISTAN, CHINA, ISI, KIA, HNLC, GNLA, ANVC, NLFT, NAXALS

MANIPUR

UNITED NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT

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WHAT THEY WANT Re-establish a sovereign Manipur.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING The arrest of UNLF chairman Rajkumar Meghen on 1 December has not only thrown Manipur’s biggest Meitei underground group into a leadership crisis, but has affected the arms and drugs trail (opium and weapons from the Myanmar’s Wa tribe come into Manipur and are pushed into Bangladesh and Dimapur). Historically close to the NSCN(K), UNLF and other Meitei groups have opposed NSCN(IM)’s demand for Nagalim causing clashes between the Meiteis and the NSCN(IM).

ALLIES NSCN(K), ULFA, KNA, PAKISTAN, CHINA, BANGLADESH ARMY

MEGHALAYA

ACHIK NATIONAL VOLUNTEERS COUNCIL AND GARO NATIONAL LIBERATION ARMY

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WHAT THEY WANT The creation of a separate state for the Garos, Garo Land.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING Signing a ceasefire in 2004, ANVC made way for GNLA. Headed by rogue DSP Champion Sangma and a former ANVC member Sohan D Shira, GNLA is not only recruiting ANVC’s surrendered cadres, but has also welcomed NSCN(IM) and NDFB in the dense jungles of the Garo Hills. Sources said Champion still commands the loyalty of certain sections of the police force, which provide him with information.

ALLIES NSCN(IM), NDFB, BANGLADESH ARMY

ASSAM

UNITED LIBERATION FRONT OF ASOM

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WHAT THEY WANT To establish a sovereign Asom through armed struggle.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING Joint military operations and a crackdown by the Bangladesh government led to the arrest of the group’s top leadership last year, causing a split. While the anti-talks faction has remained active under the leadership of Paresh Barua and is training its cadres in Myanmar (camps shifted from Bangladesh), ULFA’s top brass released on bail over the past few months is open to unconditional talks with the government.

ALLIES NSCN(K), KIA, UNLF, PAKISTAN, AFGHAN MUJAHIDEEN

ASSAM

NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF BODOLAND

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WHAT THEY WANT To carve out a separate Bodoland from Assam.

WHAT THEY ARE DOING While three of NDFB’s four battalions have entered into a ceasefire and talks with the government, their ‘3rd Battalion’ formerly under the command of Rangan Diamary (arrested in 2010), has remained active. The government feels the arrest has left the group rudderless and the November 2010 massacre of 22 civilians was a desperate attempt to reassert dominance. However, sources say there is growing popular support for the NDFB. But apart from reactivating their alliance with the Garos, they are training cadres at a joint ULFA-NDFB-NSCN(K) camp in Myanmar.

ALLIES ULFA, NSCN(K), ANVC, GNLA, KIA

via tehelka.com

Guwahati Treated to Vintage Car Rally

Guwahati, Feb 6 : Wheeled vintage beauties including a Ford Model T featured in Sir Richard Attenborough's ''Gandhi'' and a Ford Galaxy in which Indira Gandhi was taken around during one of her trips to the city,rolled out on the streets of Guwahati, bringing back the era of yore.

More than 30 cars participated in the rally, organised by Assam Tourism Development Forum (ATDF) and Antique Wheels of North East, after it was flagged off by Assam Director General of Police Sankar Barua at the Nehru Stadium here.

The people of Guwahati were treated to a vintage view of Chevrelot 1020, a Morris 8, a Hillman Minx, a Buick,Plymouth Savoy, Wosley, Austin, Dodges, Studebaker, Volkswagen and several jeeps used during World War II along with two vintage motorcycles.

Besides Guwahati and Shillong, the participants of the rally came from places like Dibrugarh, Jowai, Tezpur and Dhubri.

The rallyists passed through the main thorough fares of the city covering a distance of nearly ten kilometre.

‘Serious Joker’ Becomes a Movement’s Face

A missing Google executive becomes a movement’s face

Cairo: A missing Google executive, who disappeared after a mass protest on January 25, has become the rallying point for the youth opposition movement behind the demonstrations that have now triggered a national movement against President Hosni Mubarak.

Wael Ghonim, Google's head for marketing in the Middle East and North Africa, has been symbolically named the spokesperson of the "6th of April movement" that organised the largescale protests, CBS News reported, quoting an unnamed leader of the youth movement.

Ghonim, believed to be in detention by Egyptian authorities, has also become a rallying point for protesters in the cyberworld with a mass movement on social networking sites dedicated to track him down.

With the government not confirming that he has been detained, the youth movement that has thousands of supporters in Tahrir square has named him its spokesperson. Leaders of the movement told CBS that if they government wants to address them, it would have to speak to Ghonim.

His friends and colleagues have launched a citywide search for him, besides an online campaign to obtain information of his whereabouts not known since January 25. His last post on Twitter, which he was very active on, was dated January 27.

"Pray for #Egypt. Very worried as it seems that government is planning a war crime tomorrow against people. We are all ready to die #Jan25," the post read. In a post a day earlier, he wrote "Going to sleep now and dreaming of freedom :)".

Ghonim, who describes himself as a "serious joker" and someone who loves "challenging the status quo," put up a series of messages on the micro blogging site, encouraging people to march up to the Tahrir square for the Jan 25 protests.

While Google has been trying to make inquiries about his well being, there has not yet been any response from the government on the senior executive, the most high-profile missing person who took part in the protests.

A dedicated Facebook page has also been created to find Ghonim. "For Wael's safety, I cannot provide any name, e-mail address or telephone number to use to tell where he is because it could be the enemy trying to learn. Please use the Google UK telephone number 44 20 7031 3008 if you know where he is," reads a message on the page, which has had thousands of visitors, some putting up photographs and videos that they believe could help.

Source: The Indian Express

Airport Metro’s Promise: To IGI in 18 Minutes

New Delhi: When the high-speed Airport Metro Express Line is thrown open to the public by mid-February, commuters will be able to reach IGI Airport from New Delhi station in 18 minutes flat, with only one stop at Shivaji Stadium. The trains will run at a speed of 105 kmph.

Even when the other two stations -- Dhaula Kuan and Aerocity -- are completed and ready for operations, the ride might still take only as much time as the speed of trains will then be increased to 120 kmph.

Running partly through tunnels and an elevated section along the Dhaula Kuan station, the line -- with its high-speed trains and spacious stations -- will be a completely new experience for commuters. Unlike the existing Metro stations, tracks on this corridor are blocked from the platforms with glass doors that will open only when the train arrives at the platform.

Even the seating arrangement is different from regular Metro trains, with a narrower aisle flanked by two seats on either side. Information display boards show the time and stations covered on the line, along with a passenger address system that announces the names of stations on the route.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, who inspected the line along with senior officials of the Delhi Metro and Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely on Saturday, expressed hope that the line would be thrown open to the public soon.

Due to the inordinate delays in completing the work and getting the mandatory clearances, two of the six stations on the line -- Dhaula Kuan and Aerocity -- will not open to the public when operations begin this month. A formal function marking the inauguration of the line will be held later in March, when all the stations are ready.

"The line is ready for operations. It is very good, modern, and the only corridor in the country that connects the city with the airport. The formal opening of the line will take a month's time, but the trials (operations) will start within a week," Dikshit said during the inspection. Speaking on the delays, she said, "If perfection is needed, delays will be there. If the corridor is opened in haste, there will always be risk involved."

Having received all the mandatory clearances, the only thing holding up the line now is the deployment of CISF personnel, who will man the corridor.

Mangu Singh, Director (Works), DMRC, told Newsline of The Sunday Express, "The line will be ready for operations once CISF personnel are deployed. The Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) inspection for increasing the speed of trains from 105 kmph to 120 kmph will be held anytime now. However, that will not hold up the line any longer."

Though the line will open with a 16-hour schedule from 6 am to 10 pm, it is expected to be extended in due time. "To begin with, the line will have a 16-hour service from 6 am to 10 pm and some airlines are likely to set up their check-in counters before the operations start. The issue is being sorted out. A decision will be taken on this after the Civil Aviation Ministry holds discussions with the airlines," said E Sreedharan, Managing Director, DMRC.

Airport line highlights

Fare from New Delhi to IGI: Rs 80

Fare from Dwarka Sector 21 to IGI: Rs 30

Operational Hours: 6am to 10pm

Stations: New Delhi, Shivaji Stadium, IGI Airport and Dwarka Sector 21

Travel time: About 18 minutes from New Delhi to IGI Airport

Length of the corridor: 22.7 km

Source: The Sunday Express

Farm Girl Hana Nitsche Poses Nude For PETA, Could be Next Heidi Klum

Look out, Heidi Klum!

Your former protégé, Hana Nitsche, is making a splash in a new ad for PETA—and Holy Cow, she’s naked!

FOX411 got the first look at Nische's poster for the animal rights group.

“I get so nervous and shy, you would not even believe it’s the same girl from the pictures,” Nitsche tells FOX411 in an exclusive interview.

The 25-year old won second runner-up on the second season of Germany’s Next Top Model, hosted by Heidi Klum. “She was a bit intimidating,” admits Nitsche. “It’s such a strange feeling to stand in front of a model who always been your idol, and now she is a judge and criticizing you.”

(It’s hard to imagine that Klum, who herself has stripped down for the camera, would find anything to critique in the resulting photo.)

Nitsche, who speaks three languages fluently, grew up in the Czech Republic surrounded by animals. “We had chickens, pigs and sheep running around–it was almost like a little farm.”

She’s been single for four years and has a definite type, “I like more exotic looking guys. Taller then me, great smile, mostly brown eyes, darker skin, more the Latin or Middle East-type. A bit saucy, a bit of a pirate.”

But do American guys stand a chance?

“Some of them are really beautiful men,” Nitsche tells FOX411. “Tall and athletic–unless they hang around Burger King too much. I like that American men stay in touch with their inner child–they seem playful.”

The 5’ 8” stunner doesn’t necessarily need to date a looker, “I kind of like ‘the real man’ body figure,” says Nitsche. “That means he has to be fit, but he can still have a bit of a belly. The only thing is he has to have are masculine arms and chest so I can feel secure when he embraces me.”

But the teetotaler has one suggestion for Yanks, “One thing I noticed and don’t like that much is that some of the younger guys seem to be a bit into drinking and partying too much.”

Sorry, Mike, Vinny and Pauly—doesn’t sound like Hana will be visiting the Jersey Shore any time soon.

'My Teacher' To Be Banned!

Strange it may sound manufactures have funny ideas to name their brands !

One of them ,suffering from acute idea crisis hit upon the Opposite of the product it was launching.

A gutkha was named 'My Teacher" in Maharashtra leading to massive protest.Now the Maharashtra government is considering a ban on its sale.

After receiving complaints by teachers for naming a tobacco product as 'My Teacher', the Maharashtra government is contemplating a ban on its sale.  
An NGO, Salaam Bombay foundation working against tobacco products, met Minister of State for Home Satej Patil recently objecting to the use of word 'teacher' for the gutkha product, manufactured in Gujarat.
   
"I have received over 3,000 signatures from teachers asking to ban the product and take action against the concerned company for using the word. The department has written a letter to the Gujarat government on the issue and expects reply from them soon," Patil said.
   
The gutkha is manufactured at Silvasa and Gandhinagar areas in neighbouring Gujarat. Maharashtra only has distributors of the product.
   
In the letter, Patil said, "Of teacher's is a profession who makes responsible citizens of India. The gutkha name sends wrong message to the society and it also violates the rule 62 of the Prevention of Food and Adulteration Rules 1955, as it contains prohibited anti-caking agent."
   
Objecting to the name of the gutkha, Principal of Marwadi Commercial High School and Junior College in South Mumbai, Shridhar Gharat said it absolutely sends a wrong message.
   
"The name would create wrong impression among students and the words 'My Teacher' may attract them to buy it. The Government should take strict action and ban the product," Gharat said.