Land of Jewels (Sana Leibak)

Rights activist flees from hospital Imphal, Dec 29: Sapamcha Kangleipal, a rights activist who was arrested under National Security Act for criticising the government for its move to arm villagers of Heirok, escaped from the security ward of Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital today. Official sources said Kangleipal escaped through a window between midnight and 5am this morning. Police investigators found iron bars of the only window in the room cut. They also recovered a piece of hacksaw from the room this morning. Later tonight, three policemen, including a sub-inspector, were suspended. The security ward is an extension of the jail. “We cannot say how he escaped. An inquiry will be held to find out everything, including security lapses, if any,” inspector-general of police (law and order), M. Karnajit Singh, said. The deputy commissioner of Imphal East, Y. Thamkishore Singh, visited the security ward as did the superintendents of police, Imphal West and East, L. Kailun and Th. Rdheshyam Singh...

Hospital abuzz with Sharmila’s health: Imphal, Jan. 4: Hospital authorities are worried over the “deteriorating” health of Manipur’s human rights crusader Irom Sharmila who has refused nasal feeding for the past 12 days. Sharmila, who has been on a fast unto death since November 2000, is surviving only on nasal feeding for more than seven years now in the security ward of Imphal’s Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital. Doctors and nurses attending on the crusader today confirmed that Sharmila is being fed only once at 9pm instead of the regular five times a day. “She did not give any reason for her refusal to accept the feeding,” one of the nurses attending on her said. She has not made any complaints either. “She takes a walk regularly and does yoga,” the nurse said. The nurses speculated that Sharmila could be disturbed by the death of eight bus passengers in a bomb blast at Pourabi in Imphal East district on December 16. But medical experts warned that if this continued, her health would deteri...