Mizoram Officials Discuss Security Ahead Of Polls

Aizawl, Sep 23 : Mizoram Chief Secretary L Tochhong and senior officials on Monday held a meeting with officials of the neighbouring Assam and discussed security and related issues on the interstate border areas as Mizoram goes to poll by the end of November.

Tochhong sought cooperation from officials of the neighbouring states during the coming assembly polls as they can play vital roles in conduct of peaceful and free and fair elections.

The meeting was convened following instructions from the Election Commission even as officials from Manipur and Tripura failed to attend the meeting due to unavoidable circumstances, an official statement said.

Deputy Commissioners and SPs of districts adjoining the three neighbouring states would be instructed to hold frequent coordination meetings with their counterparts of the districts across the border.

Tochhong was accompanied by the state Chief Electoral Officer Ashwini Kumar, senior home department and police and election department officials while Assam government was represented by Joint Secretary Mahananda Hazarika and DIG of Police Bind Kumar.

New Organisation 'Zoramthar Duhtute' Formed in Mizoram

Aizawl, Sep 23 : A new organisation called 'Zoramthar Duhtute' or an organisation for the Mizoram was formed today which vowed to bring a change in the political system and government in Mizoram.

S L Sailova, a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and an anti-corruption activist today announced the formation of the 'Zoramthar Duhtute' in a press conference here. Sailova, chairman of the new organisation, said that they would not only make efforts to reform the political system and bring about change, the 'Zoramthar Duhtute' would field candidates in the coming state assembly polls scheduled to be held by the end of November. "We would contest at least five seats in the 40-member state legislature," he said.

The former IAS officer said that all the previous governments in the state were party-based regimes and never fulfilled the aspirations of the people by bringing change and economic prosperity.

"We would make efforts to ensure that a true government of the people, not a government formed by the political party is elected in the coming polls," he said. Leaders of the organisation included a number of young technocrats and social activists.

Mizoram: Numbers That Count

Almost 85% of people in Mizoram are Christians. The church here outlines the dos and dont's for political parties during elections.

For a sneak-peek into the voters' pattern in the state, thumb through and explore.

Improved Land Policy May See Congress Sail Through in Mizoram

By Rahul Karmakar

Guwahati, Sep 23 : Election officials mark the fingers of voters before they cast their ballot during an assembly election at a polling booth in Aizawl.

A pro-poor land use policy helped the Congress sweep the 2008 assembly election and return to power in Mizoram after 10 years. Mandate 2013 is expected to be a test of this policy in the party’s bid to retain power.

In the mid-1990s, the Congress came up with the land use policy to ensure land and a stable trade under agriculture, industry or animal husbandry sectors for the rural and urban poor.

A faulty implementation of the policy led to the Mizo National Front (MNF) victory in 1998.

Disillusionment with that policy refused to wear off; in the 2003 polls the MNF won again.

In 2008, the Congress, led by Lal Thanhawla, bagged 32 of the 40 seats. The victory had more to do with alleged misrule and corruption by the Lal Thanhawla-led MNF government than with its offer of a revamped performance-driven New Land Use Policy (NLUP). 

Lal Thanhawla rode the flagship NLUP to begin his third stint as chief minister but the policy, worth more than `3,000 crore and entailing fiscal incentives, ran into complications.

The NLUP was said to have been ironed out midway through Lal Thanhawla’s term to benefit almost half the 257,581 households in Mizoram, according to Census 2011.

The Congress government called the NLUP a success but experts attributed the party’s below-par performance in the maiden municipal polls in 2010 to the policy’s inherent flaws.

The Congress pipped the MNF by a solitary seat in the Aizawl civic body polls, but it was primarily due to its alliance with the Zoram Nationalist Party, a regional outfit.

“The Congress improved its NLUP show after the civic polls. And this could tip the scales in its favour,” said former bureaucrat L Ruatliana.

“That the opposition has virtually no issue is evident from the targeting of Lal Thanhawla for wearing tilak at some Hindu function or visiting a temple.”

Almost 85% of people in Mizoram are Christians.

The church here outlines the dos and don’ts for political parties during elections.

The NLUP has also overshadowed other issues such as the influx of Chin people from Myanmar, drug abuse, autonomy for the Hmar tribals, resettlement of non-Christian Bru or Reang tribals, who are forced to be refugees in adjoining Tripura and a much-awaited deal with the church for lifting prohibition to enable grape farmers offload their produce to wineries.

Meghalaya: Activists Call For 5 Night Road Blockade

By Samudra Gupta Kashyap

Guwahati, Sep 23 : The agitation for introduction of an Inner Line Permit (ILP) in Meghalaya, which will check the inflow of "outsiders", continued on Sunday as 10 pressure groups called for a five-night road blockade in the hill state starting Monday.

Pro-ILP groups have said they will "enforce" the blockade from 8 pm to 5 am for five days, while their members will picket government offices on September 26 and 27. The groups include student bodies like Khasi Students' Union and Garo Students' Union, and NGOs like Federation of Khasi, Jaintia and Garo People and Civil Society Women's Organization.

"We have decided to go ahead with our next phase of action in protest of the state's adamant attitude against the the high-level committee recommendation of implementing an Inner Line Permit system in Meghalaya," Eldie N Lyngdoh, joint spokesperson of the 10 groups said in Shillong on Sunday.

Last year, the high-level committee had recommended the introduction of the ILP but with changes. The committee had proposed an ILP that would ensure the participation of traditional institutions, NGOs and civil society, apart from making sure genuine residents of the state were not harassed.

Chief minister Mukul Sangma had turned down the recommendation in favour of a more 'comprehensive mechanism' that would, instead of the "archaic" ILP system, put in place a stringent tenancy law.

Meghalaya: A Disconcerting Disconnect

By Sayanti Chakraborty

The Hindu Pro-ILP activists believe implementation of ILP will protect and safeguard the interest of the indigenous population in Meghalaya. Photo: Ritu Raj Konwar

While the whole country is busy condemning racist tweets on Miss America, debating Tendulkar’s retirement and reacting to Mallika Sherawat’s birthday wish to Narendra Modi, a small state in the north-east of India is struck with continuous agitation.

Reason – ILP .

Meghalaya that is remembered mostly only in geography lessons is facing agitation for the past few weeks from 10 pressure groups including some frontal organisations of regional political parties and the Khasi Students’ Union.

These groups have been taking out rallies, picketing government offices, calling for bandhs and imposing night curfews on national highways across the state to push forward their demand for introducing Inner Line Permits (ILP).

ILP is an official travel document issued by the Government of India to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a restricted/protected area for a limited period of time. The document is an effort by the Government to regulate movement to certain areas located near the international borders of India (according to Wikipedia).

Currently, the ILP is applicable in Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland.

Situated in the north-eastern corridor of the country, Meghalaya is bound on its north by Assam and on its south, Bangladesh. To check the inflow of illegal migrants into the State, parties are in continuous demand for implementation of ILP. The huge, labour-intensive coal mining industry is one of the reasons for the inward flow of labourers from various parts of the country. Also, since the state shares borders with Bangladesh, the flow of illegal immigrants goes unnoticed. This influx has led to the unemployment of local labourers. Also, the people believe this influx is causing a demographic shift and threatening the tribal minorities of the state.

Introduction of ILP is to regulate the entry and temporary stay of outsiders in general and migrant labourers in particular.

The High Level Committee on Influx had submitted its report last year recommending the State Government for the implementation of ILP. But the Mukul Sangma government has refused to do so and is looking for other options to control the influx issue. Strengthening of Directorate of Infiltration, appointment of labour officers and a strong Tenancy Act are a few such options. Sangma is of the view that it will create negative perception about the state and hinder development.

Talks between the government and the pro-ILP activists have failed. Adamant NGOs have refused any assurance that these “other options” will help in tackling the matter.

Result – A week long holiday for government employees (picketing), loss of earnings for the daily wage earners and creating obstacle in travelling of people via the state.

Meet the C-17, the 'workhorse' of the US Air Force

The ample airlifter has supported missions both martial and humanitarian. Now Boeing has delivered its last one to the Air Force as it gets ready to power down its C-17 assembly lines.

By Jonathan Skillings

The final Boeing C-17 Globemaster III for the US Air Force takes off from a Boeing facility in Long Beach, Calif., on September 12, 2013.(Credit: Boeing)

Fighter jets have the sizzle. Bombers bring the oomph. But cargo aircraft like the C-17 Globemaster can always take pride in doing a good day's work.

The C-17 likely has many years of service ahead of it, but the US Air Force won't be getting any new ones any more. Manufacturer Boeing earlier this month delivered its final C-17 to the Air Force, bring the total over the last 20 years to 223. It has also delivered 34 additional Globemasters to other customers in the UK, India, and elsewhere.

The big cargo carrier has seen duty both in war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, and in humanitarian efforts including Hurricane Katrina relief in 2005 and post-Fukushima cleanup in 2011.
"C-17s are the workhorse for the U.S. Air Force in wartime and in peace," said Chris Chadwick, Boeing Military Aircraft president, in a statement marking the final delivery.

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And these are big aircraft: 174 feet long and 55 feet high, with a wingspan of just under 170 feet and a maximum gross takeoff weight of 585,000 pounds. (The max payload capacity is a brawny 170,900 pounds). Even so, the C-17 Globemaster III can operate from "small, austere airfields" with runways as short as 3,500 feet, according to the Air Force.

The maiden flight of the C-17 was September 15, 1991, almost exactly 22 years to the day ahead of the first flight of the 223rd C-17 on September 12 of this year. The Air Force first took delivery of a production model in June 1993.

While Boeing has completed its contractual obligations to the Air Force, it still has a smattering of C-17 aircraft to build, an additional 22 for other customers around the world. But then that's it -- save, of course, for years of support and modernization yet to come. Boeing said this week that it will finally cease C-17 production in 2015.

A loadmaster (center) greets troops boarding a C-17 Globemaster III in Kandahar, Afghanistan, in July 2013.

(Credit: Photo by Staff Sgt. Krystie Martinez)

The Price Of Beer At Oktoberfest Completely Defies Economic Logic

By Roberto A. Ferdman

The calm before the storm. Reuters/Michaela Rehle

Beer is what economists call an elastic good; the more it costs, the less of it people buy. But at Oktoberfest, Germany’s debaucherous annual beer festival in Munich, the rule doesn’t exactly hold. In fact, it gets flipped on its head.

When this year’s beer festival kicks off on Saturday, more than 7 million beer drinkers will gather to drink some 15 million liter glasses. If they are sober enough, they will notice that their lagers, ales and stouts cost more than they did last year. As is the case almost every year, the price of beer at the Oktoberfest has risen faster than inflation, according to UniCredit Research’s Oktoberfest 2013 report. The average beer at this year’s festival will cost €9.66 ($13)—3.6% more than it did last year.

Considering that inflation in Germany is currently hovering somewhere closer to 1.5%, festival goers should be outraged. And yet, like they have virtually every year before this, they will buy and drink more beer per head than they did the year before. Beer consumption per capita at the annual beer festival (the red line in the chart below) has been rising steadily since the mid 1990s.

​UniCredit Research

And it isn’t as though beer prices on the whole in Germany are outpacing inflation. Bottled beer prices have been rising at a much slower pace than Oktoberfest beer prices.

​UniCredit Research

Normally, beer buyers shy away from this kind of price-hike craziness. “On average, a 1% increase in the price of beer triggers a roughly .3% decline in the demand,” according the report. But Oktoberfest, it appears, is anything but average. Dating all the way back to 1980, a 1% increase in beer prices at the event has, rather incredibly, corresponded with a 0.3% increase in demand. Oktoberfest beer, the report explains, falls into the category of what economists call a Giffen paradox, whereby the demand for and price of a good increase simultaneously.

The festival as a whole follows a similarly peculiar pattern of behavior. Oktoberfest-goers have continued to spend more per capita, despite hikes in the price of, well, everything. UniCredit’s Wiesn Visitor Price Index (WVPI), which tracks the cost of visiting the event by accounting for public transportation, beer and food prices, has increased by 4% every year since the bank began to track it in 1985.

​UniCredit Research

As with so many other festivals, Oktoberfest has become something very different to what it once was. When originally conceived back in 1810, it was held to celebrate the marriage of Bavaria’s Crown Prince. Over 200 years later, it has become something of a beer-drinker’s mecca, and economic wonder. Without a detailed understanding of the costs involved in hosting the event—and, really, whether they have been rising quickly as the festival’s beer prices have—it’s probably safest to say that until beer-drinkers stop celebrating the price hikes, Oktoberfest is going to keep pouring them on. (The organizers of Oktoberfest didn’t respond to a request for comment.)