Land of Jewels (Sana Leibak)

The news that HIV/AIDS infection in the three hill districts of Manipur bordering Myanmar -- Churachandpur, Chandel and Ukhrul -- is on the increase mainly due to commercial sex workers from that country spreading the dreaded disease should be taken note seriously by the authorities. Myanmar is a country where the incidence of HIV/AIDS is 1.3 per cent of the total population (240,000 out of 47,373,958) while it is 0.3 percent is case of India. Myanmar ranks lowest among countries worldwide in international assistance per capita and among lowest in the world to get antiretroviral treatment access by the patients. Currently, fewer than 20% of HIV-positive people in need of drugs receive them -- either from international groups or in small amounts from the government -- according to a report of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) released in November 2008. More alarming is the fact that an estimated 42 per cent of Myanmarese women in the age group pf 15-49 carry HIV by the end of 2007. So, ne...

Dhaka, June 21 : Indian high commissioner Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty has said his country had consulted Bangladesh over the construction of the controversial Tipaimukh dam on the Barak river. He says there is no international law that could stop India from implementing the Tipaimukh dam, perceived to wreak huge environmental disaster on Bangladesh. The envoy has taken a swipe at the BNP-led alliance for opposing against the Bangladesh-India Ganges water-sharing treaty and anti-India comments, which he said were aimed at gaining "political mileage" Chakravarty has trashed the allegation that India is depriving Bangladesh of due share of the Ganges waters as an "empty political slogan". "Recently, there has been a lot of agitation on the question of the Tipaimukh dam. I would like to reiterate that it is a hydro-electric multi-purpose project to produce electricity," Chakravarty said at a seminar on South Asian connectivity at the Sonargaon Hotel on Sunday. ...

GUWAHATI: Archaeologists and historians have stumbled upon artefacts dating back to the Neolithic Age in Assam's Morigaon and Kamrup districts while investigating the Ahom era canon balls that were recently excavated from Kajolimukh. Experts of the Strategic Research and Analysis Organisation (SRAO), a non-government historic research organisation, are investigating the remains in and around Kajolimukh and Mayong in Morigaon. It was during the excavation work that they found rock engravings, potteries and other relics at Hatishila, about 10 km west of Kajolimukh. The archeaologists feel that the artefacts could belong to the pre-historic period, while some could even belong to the Neolithic Age. "The findings point to the fact that Kajolimukh and Mayong could have been a cradle of human civilization," said Nilim Dutta of SRAO. "Many pre-medieval rock images of Hindu deities and statuettes were found from both the banks of the Kalang River. There should be extensive a...

SILCHAR, June 20 : A powerful social organization from Mizoram has extended support to a convention proposed to be held in Silchar, Assam on Sunday demanding immediate implementation of the much-delayed Lumding-Silchar broad gauge project. Young Mizo Association (YMA) members will also take part in the agitations to be chalked out by the Silchar-based Citizens' Forum during the meet. YMA expressed concern over the "inordinate delay" in implementing the broad gauge project, as the 221-km rail link is considered the lifeline for southern Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and parts of Manipur. Sources said this is for the first time a Mizo organization joined hands with its Barak Valley counterpart for the cause of the rail project. Source : Times of India

Imphal, June 20 : "Looking at my three children, I am trying to forget the harrowing experiences of the past". These are the words of Chitra who lost both her first as well as the second husband in the prevailing gun violence. There are hundreds of women like Chitra in Manipur who are trying to piece together their shattered lives after their life partners have been killed without any trial by the State actors, non-State actors or simply armed hooligans. When her first husband fell to the bullets of CRPF personnel, Chitra thought it was her destiny. But thinking that living under the protective care of a husband may shield herself from the scornful look of the society and put an end to the persistent nagging of her child who did not know his father, she tied the knot again. Unfortunately, her second husband too fell to the merciless bullet of unidentified armed person and she never knew why her second husband was killed. When death of a husband is something that any women wou...

Imphal, June 20 : With the quantity of rainfall recorded in Manipur midway to June not enough for agricultural activities, the State Government has prepared an Action Plan to combat the prevailing drought-like situation. The Government is also likely to announce the State drought-affected very soon. A meeting of the State Cabinet held today with Chief Minister in the chair seriously deliberated on the issue and formulated an Action Plan in this regard. During the meeting, Disaster Management has also been entrusted to take up necessary measures in connection with declaring Manipur a drought hit State. According to a senior Cabinet Minister, around Rs 5.11 crores would be spent on implementing the Action Plan which include preparing nursery over 1000 hectares at the estimated cost of Rs 27,000 per hectare. A sum of Rs 2.70 crores which would be set aside for purpose of preparing the nursery and the task would be given to farmers and the nursery thus prepared would be distributed among t...

Imphal, June 20 : Manipur police may take action against a transport agency here for failing to report the alleged seizure of a truckload of medicines by the Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA) in Senapati district last month. The KRA allegedly seized medicines and life-saving drugs worth Rs 70 lakh from an Imphal-bound truck on May 20 and then released the vehicle belonging to Reliable Cargo. The Manipur Chemists and Druggists Association disclosed this yesterday. “It has been nearly one month since the reported incident took place and no transporter or medicine store owner informed us about the incident till today. If reported on time, we could have acted immediately and recovered the items. We will pull up the concerned transport operator,” DGP Yumnam Joykumar Singh told The Telegraph. Senapati district SP Nishit K Ujwal said the police would take action to recover the looted items. Source : The Telegraph

Imphal, June 20 : Even though the spreading of HIV/AIDS in the valley area has been able to control, the same is continuing in the three hill districts bordering with Myanamar, Churachnadpur, Chandel and Ukhrul, said project director of Manipur AIDS Control Society, Dr Kh Promodkumar today. The project director observed this while speaking as guest of honour at the concluding function of the two-month entrepreneurship development programme for people living with HIV/AIDS organized by the Institute of Co-operative Management (ICM) under the sponsorship of the MACS and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Co-operative commissioner, P Vaiphei attended the function as chief guest in the function which was presided by ICM chairman Kh Borkishore. Promodkumar said, the spreading of the dreaded disease in the three districts of Manipur, Churachandpur, Chandel and Ukhrul located along the 358 km long porous international border with Myanmar is on the raise citing the main spreading agen...

Imphal, June 20 : The Democratic Students' Alliance of Manipur (DESAM) has demanded 'white paper' from the government on the killing of Professor Islamuddin and urged to immediately release the five students who were detained under National Security Act (NSA) in connection with the killing. In a statement the Publicity and Propaganda Secretary of DESAM, KC Ibomcha made clear the position statement of the students' body on the detention of some students under NSA while also pointing out the achievements of the students' body since its inception in 2002. DESAM has conducted survey in educational institutions and detected the ailments of the education system, the statement stated. Remedial measures to address the defects have also been suggested with due consultation with experts, teachers and concerned individuals, and the fruits have already been enjoyed by the state, it added. The students' body has also achieved in checking and eradicating the rampant practice ...

IMPHAL, Jun 20 : An audio and a video cassette were released in connection with the “Save Loktak - our life,’ a mass campaign started by singer Ranbir Thouna in order to save Loktak lake, the only fresh water lake in the north eastern region, which is also a lifeline for the Manipuri people, at a function held this evening at the Jawaharlal Nehru Manipur Dance Academy in Imphal. The release function was attended by state tourism minister, TN Haokip as chief guest and education minister L Jayentakumar as the president. The state IFCD minister N Biren, T Mangibabu the chief whip of the Congress, Dr. Kh Ratankumar, chairman of the MANITRON, MLA M Prithiviraj and RK Jnanranjan, general secretary of the AMMIK were the guests of honour on the occasion. TN Haokip said he felt that only the state government’s initiative was not enough to save the Loktak, but it required the cooperation and support of the people too. He appealed to the public of the state to work jointly to save the Loktak whic...

IMPHAL, Jun 20 : The present trend of hiring children as domestic servants by the high society people should be immediately stopped and a new law need be set up in order to control child labour in the state, said Member of Parliament from Manipur, Dr. T Meinya at the inaugural function of the 5-day long seminar on ‘Child labour and wages trend of unorganised workers section Manipur.’ Dr. T Meinya who graced the function as chief guest further noted that child labour is a very critical issue in a state like Manipur and it would be very wrong if we consider the issue minor. In order to control it, the state government along with the people of the state, need to work together to stop child labour immediately, he said. Child labour is against the law but people keep flouting the law. However, instead of giving punishment to the culprits we should try to make them understand the fact that children are the future of the nation and they should receive the rights of education and childhood lif...

Dimapur, June 20 : The threat of shortage of essential items and consequently price hike in Nagaland, is looming with transporters in Assam finally calling for an indefinite ‘Chakka Jam’ from 5 AM this morning. The consequences of rampant extortion are finally taking effect with the truckers and transporters refusing to enter the state. The strike is in protest against the rampant extortion and collection of “unauthorized tax” by various Naga and non-Naga underground organizations in Nagaland and also assault on drivers. The truckers under the aegis of the All Assam Truck Owners, Driver, Handymen Association have decided not to cross “all Nagaland entry points” like Bokajan, Mariani and Amguri. This means all districts in the state will now face shortage of essential commodities, if the state government does not intervene with strong political will. More than twenty heavily-laden trucks with essential and perishable commodities are halted at Bokajan in view of the ‘Chakka Jam’; more ...

Imphal, June 20 : Shija Hospitals and Research Institute (SHRI) has accomplished yet another medical milestone with the restoration of a man's eyesight through the use of amniotic membrane transplant. According to Dr Sachindra Laishram of SHRI's Eye Care Foundation, one PL Benjamin (47) of Senapati Bazar was on June 5 evening brought to the private medical centre with burns on the right forearm and both eyes which the individual suffered from lime bubble bursts while he was preparing to white-wash his house. After examination of the patient's condition by a team comprising himself and one Dr Noornika Khuraijam the latter on further studies strongly suggested application of the amniotic membrane transplant method in the restoration operation of Benjamin's damaged cornea, recounted Dr Sachindra who explained amniotic membrane as thin innermost membranous sac enclosing the developing embryo of higher vertebrates such as reptiles, birds and mammals. It is informed that Dr N...