Massive infusion of funds for developing 6418 km of highways in Northeast India

Guwahati, Aug 5 : Northeast India will witness massive investment in highways under the special accelerated road development programme (SARDP-North East) and Prime ministers package for Arunachal Pradesh.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways will pump in Rs Rs 33, 688 Crore for construction of 6418km of roads during the 12th plan period. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Oscar Fernandes who was in Guwahati on Friday reviewed the progress of National Highway works.

Fernandes said that a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh was held on July 18 last to review the status of development projects in the region and discussed steps to accelerate the same.

The ministry has decided to carry out a feasibility study for the newly declared National Highway NH-127 B connecting Srirampur (on NH-31 C) to Phulbari via Dhubri including construction of a bridge over river Brahmaputra. Besides improving the connectivity for Assam, this would also provide an alternative shorter connectivity between Nongstoin in Meghalaya with West Bengal and will provide greater access to Assam and Meghalaya.

The ministry has technically vetted the proposal of the Ministry of DONER for construction of a new bridge across river Barak to connect Silchar town as an alternative to the existing Sadarghat Bridge and widen the NH-37 between Numaligarh” Jorhat ” Demow ” Dibrugarh to 4-lane standards on BOT ( Annuity) basis.

Secretary to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Vijay Chibber also announced that from now onwards all works by Public Works Department and Border Border Roads Organisation (BRO)will be implemented under EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) mode instead of the conventional item rate contract system for effective implementation of projects.

Mizoram Govt Disowns Company Claiming To Be Govt Undertaking

Aizawl, Aug 2 : The Mizoram Direct Marketing Limited, a recently launched business firm which was branded as an undertaking of the state government, has come under scrutiny after the latter revealed that the company was institutionalized without its knowledge.

In an official disclaimer issued on Wednesday evening, chief secretary L Tochhong said P C Lallawmsanga, principal secretary of the industries department, reportedly launched the firm in his personal capacity.

Tochhong said the Mizoram Direct Marketing Ltd has been registered under the Companies Act, 1956, on March 11, 2013.

Government officers cannot float a business firm to conduct commercial activities by branding it as one owned by the government of Mizoram unless it gets the nod of the cabinet, the disclaimer said. It added that the memorandum of association and articles of association have neither been vetted by the law department nor concurred by the finance department of the state government before approaching the Registrar of Companies.

It said the directors (who are all government officials) have not obtained prior permission as required under the CCS (Conduct) Rules to float a commercial concern.

P C Lallawmsanga has not been authorized to sign the memorandum of understanding between the government of Mizoram and RMP Infotec Private Ltd, Chennai, on December 10, 20l2 and the licensee agreement between the firm and Mizo Lifestyle Marketing Private Ltd on March 13, 2013, the disclaimer added.

Tochhong told reporters that the government is contemplating to take action against the officials involved in the establishment of the company, especially P C Lallawmsanga, a 1984 batch IPS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre.

While launching the venture at a function on July 18 this year, Lallawmsanga was quoted as claiming that the firm had the blessings of chief minister Lal Thanhawla. He had said the government has decided to get into multi-level marketing and direct marketing of consumer goods to eradicate unemployment as the state's topography did not allow setting up of industries.

An official, on condition of anonymity, said the chief secretary instructed Lallawmsanga not to attend the launch function but the latter did so saying he had the permission of the chief minister. Other directors of the venture were Teresy Vanlalhruaii and Lalbiakthanga Chhakchhuak.

Unchecked Price Rise Hits Mizoram Hard

Aizawl, Aug 2 : The rise in prices of essential commodities in Mizoram has hit the common people here extremely hard. For people without steady jobs, it has become very difficult to afford even three square meals a day.

While rice distributed through the PDS was never sufficient to meet the needs of the people, in Aizawl one has to shell out Rs 38 to buy a kg rice or Rs 27 to buy a kg flour.

All vegetables are much dearer here because of transportation costs, said Mawii, a grocery store owner in Aizawl's Borabazaar.

A kg of brinjal costs Rs 80, cabbage Rs 60, potato Rs 30, tomato Rs 80 and onion costs Rs 30.

Manual and daily labourers in Mizoram receive a wage of Rs 300 a day (Rs 250 for women) and a day's inwage is not even sufficient to buy a kg of meat. In Aizawl, one kg beef costs Rs 250, pork Rs 240, mutton Rs 280 and chicken Rs 240. A kg of fish costs Rs 180 while one egg is Rs 5.

Biakzama, a state government employee, said it has become difficult to cope with the rising prices even after the state government adopted the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations. "It would be more difficult for the daily labourers to make ends meet," he said.

Though vegetables can be purchased at lower rates in the rural areas, vegetables and other products imported from outside are dearer in the villages, making the lives of villagers miserable.

The villagers, who have a limited income, pay a high price for essential commodities like edible oil, potato, dal, rice, onion and tea.

While the state government seems confused regarding which department has the authority to check prices of essential commodities, the people are suffering as butchers, vegetable wholesalers, retailers and grocery owners are raising the prices with impunity, said Lalthlamuana Ralte, assistant professor of the economics department at the Pachhunga University.

Mizoram MLM Venture Draws Flak

By Linda Chhakchhuak

A screenshot of the advertisement for the marketing firm

Aizawl, Aug 1 : Most state governments in the country are trying hard to bust fraud deposit collecting companies and multi-level marketing enterprises. But one seems to have found the grass greener on the other side.

The Mizoram government has launched its own multi-level marketing company — Mizoram Direct Marketing Limited (MDML) — in collaboration with Chennai-based RMP Infotech Private Limited, a company that is allegedly involved in several such ventures.

Mizoram principal secretary of industries C. Lallawmsanga launched the venture recently, claiming that it had the blessings of chief minister Lalthanhawla. He said the government had decided to get into multi-level marketing and direct marketing of consumer goods to eradicate unemployment as the local “geographical conditions did not allow setting up of industries”, negating, in the process, the raison d’etre of his own department.

Two senior bureaucrats — Teresea Vanlalhruaii and Lalbiakthanga Chhakchhuak — are directors of the company, along with Lallawmsanga, who also awarded the operating licence to Mizo Life Marketing Solutions Limited at the launch.

Many in the administration are, however, questioning the motive behind the move, which is being seen as an impropriety on the part of a government that has been struggling to curb operations of these very types of enterprises for more than a decade now.

Chief secretary L. Tochhong is now reportedly trying to prevail upon Lalthanhawla to close down the enterprise, which was also lent credence by the fact that National Informatics Centre (NIC) had hosted the official website. It was, however, taken offline recently at the chief secretary’s insistence.

Moreover, the Facebook page of the venture and other sites still proudly advertise the wares with pictures of the state’s chief minister and governor Vakkom B. Purushothaman.

Government sources said the venture’s USP was that it would not come under the Prize Chits & Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978, as it was a government undertaking.

But no government undertaking, even a legitimate one, can be set up without legislation by taking the Assembly into confidence, sources said, adding that this was no way to solve the current financial crisis or unemployment in the state.

Even the state’s people, who have seen several such enterprises come and go in the past decade, are finding it hard to digest the probability of the government becoming their “upline” or “downline”, as seniors or subordinates are called in multi-level marketing terminology. “They should be ashamed,” said a lecturer here, who said he had watched all the uploaded videos and read web reports on the venture.

Demand for Bodoland grows stonger in Assam

Demands for formation of separate state of Kamtapur, Karbi-Anglong have started rending the airs of Assam
With the Union government putting in motion formalities for the formation of the new state of Telangana, the demand for separate statehood for Bodos in Assam has grown stronger. Also, demands for formation of separate state of Kamtapur, Karbi-Anglong have started rending the airs of Assam.

For the North-Eastern state of Assam, which sits on a tinderbox full of sub-nationalistic aspirations, and a state that has been a witness to many secessionist movements in the past, Telengana precedent might put the state on boil.

From rallies to bandhs, rail-blockade to economic blockade, Assam is set to witness all in coming days as Bodo organisations and Koch-Rajbongshi organisations have announced them as part of their plan of action to press for their statehood demands.

To start with, All Bodo Students' Union (ABSU) has announced a 12-hour rail-blockade on August 2, followed by a 60-hour Assam bandh from August 5 and finally a 1,000-hour economic blockade later this month.

As per their preliminary action plan, the All Koch Rajbongshi Students' Union (AKRSU) has called for a 36-hour Assam bandh from August 1.

The Bodoland People's Front (BPF), the ruling party of the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), has taken a resolution too to revive the separate Bodoland-state demand in the wake of the Centre's promise to create separate state of Telangana.

Hagrama Mohilary, chief of BTC as well as BPF, has asked both the Assam government and the Centre to pave the way for creation of Bodoland soon. "If Centre can bifurcate Andhra Pradesh and create Telangana, why can't it bifurcate Assam and create Bodoland. Bodoland demand is not new, it is one of the oldest demands. BTC had already passed the resolution in February 2010 for the creation of Bodoland. The Centre should also table the Bodoland state bill in Parliament soon," said Mohilary.

Cabinet Committee on Investment clears 2 Arunachal Pradesh hydro power projects

The Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) is believed to have approved setting up two hydro power projects in Arunachal Pradesh.

New Delhi, Aug 1 : The Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) is believed to have approved setting up two hydro power projects in Arunachal Pradesh.

"Defence and Home Ministries have also given their consent for the construction of two hydel power plants in Arunachal Pradesh," a source close to the development told PTI, adding that the CCI has given approval to the project.

CCI is also believed to have cleared three Railway projects.

Hydro power contributes 18.6 per cent at 39,416 MW to the overall installed generation capacity of 2,11,766 MW.

As per reports, Arunachal Pradesh has the highest potential for hydropower generation in the country at over 50,000 MW.

NHPC is constructing hydro power projects of over 4,000 MW which includes 2000 MW Subansiri project at the Assam-Arunchal Pradesh border.

The company is facing stiff opposition from locals over the construction of the project. Centre has set up a committee to look into the matter and come up with a solution.

The government has also denied clearance to some other hydro power projects in the North-eastern region for reasons including the disaster in Uttarakhand.

NHPC had signed an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) in 2007 with the state for investing Rs 27,000 crore for setting up mega hydro projects by the end of the 12th plan period (2012-17).

Mizoram & HPC(D) To Further Talks

Aizawl, Jul 31 : Mizoram government has decided to elevate ongoing talks with Hmar People's Convention (Democrats) from joint secretary level to secretary level, an official statement today said.

This was decided at a meeting of the council of ministers chaired by the Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla last evening.

HPC-D outfit had earlier expressed its desire to elevate the official-level talks to the political level.

Meanwhile, state Home Minister R Lalzirliana said ongoing parleys with HPC(D) would be resumed during August.

On the issue of extension of the bilateral Suspension of Operations signed on January 31 and scheduled to expire by tomorrow, Lalzirliana expressed that there would not be any hostilities during the few days gap.

The HPC(D) delegation, during the July 18 talks in Aizawl, insisted that the government should show its sincerity by speeding up the solution to the Hmar problem rather that merely extending the Suspension of Operations.

HPC(D) is demanding a Hmar state consisting of the Hmar tribal people inhabited areas of Mizoram, Manipur and Assam.

A Separate Time Zone for Northeast India

By Sanjib Kr Baruah

New Delhi, Jul 31 : Once at loggerheads, the Assam Congress and the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) have both come together for demand of a separate time zone for the northeast region.

There is an annual loss of at least Rs. 94,900 crore in the region because of redundant power consumption, according to calculations by noted filmmaker and former ISRO scientist, Jahnu Barua.

While the demand is a key point in ULFA’s ongoing talks with the government, a team of MLAs from Assam on July 25 has submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking a separate time zone for the seven states.

“We will now approach the political leadership of all the other NE states to press for a separate time zone,” said Debabrata Saikia, MLA and son of former Assam CM Hiteshwar Saikia.

While it is being articulated in political circles now, a separate time zone has been a long-standing demand of eminent personalities hailing from the region.

The east-west spread of India extends across 28 longitudes accounting for about two hours as a result of which the sun rises two hours earlier in the extreme eastern part of the country than the western tip.

The Union home ministry had proposed a separate time zone for the region in 2009-10. Former home secretary GK Pillay had told HT: “We have to change our mindset. The demand for a separate time zone for the northeast is a valid one and I hope it is granted. There is a lot to be gained from it”.