Land of Jewels (Sana Leibak)

New Delhi : Hopes, dreams, fears, worry and anxiety are common to all the applicants who queue up outside the colleges in the Delhi University. If in doubt, head to help desk But while for others, the concerns end after securing a seat, for some it is just the beginning. The latter are the students from the NorthEast. “Will the city, students and teachers accept us. Will be one of them?” – is a question that bothers them all along. A few such students shared their experiences with us and told us that the problem existed more outside the gates of the university, than inside. “It’s the city that’s hostile to us, not the university,” they echo. A stranger in the city ? The one question that troubles anyone who sets foot in the city for the first time is – Are DU students and teachers, NorthEast friendly? “Most of the applicants hear about certain racist attacks from their friends, cousins, neighbours, etc, much before they arrive. We try to show them the real picture by sharing our experi...

Manipur theatre artists enthrall Delhi New Delhi, Dec 30: Various theatre lovers in Delhi had a special treat from north-east India, recently as they attended a Manipuri play here. The play "When we dead awaken" was staged by Ratan Thiyam, the noted Manipuri playwright and theatre director during the Delhi Ibsen Festival organized by Royal Norwegian Embassy in collaboration with Dramatic Art and Design academy. In 1899, Henrik Ibsen wrote a story "When we dead awaken", which is about the celebrated sculptor Arnold Rubek and his wife Maia. The play, based on this story, was reflected an intense desire for life. The festival offered a platform to theatre artists for showcasing their talent. R.K Bhogen, one theatre artist, said: "We encourage those who are interested in joining theatre. Everyone is welcome. Be it a Tangkhul, Kuki or Meitei, if they are interested, we will train them." Ratan Thiyam, the theatre Director on this occasion, said: "We are ver...

Moirang and Shishak's INA flag: It is hard to find a Bengali who has not heard of or read about the legendary Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Many of them also know of the existence of a well-kept memorial to the Indian National Army at Moirang in the picturesque Loktak Lake area, 32 km from Imphal town, but have not visited it. It is built on the site where, on 4 April 1944, Netaji hoisted the INA flag on Indian soil for the first time (Meitei insurgents assert Manipur was never part of India and still is not). A contributor to Imphal Free Press, Waikhom Shana, reported last week that an INA flag, made of khadi and with an emblem of a springing tiger and which was hoisted for the first time on Indian territory, “is still in good shape and is in the custody of YA Shishak of Sangshak” in Manipur’s Ukhrul district. Now in his 70s, Shishak told Waikhom that he had worked for the Maratha Infantry as well as for the Japanese as a peon and that he had also been taken to Japan twice. INA men ...

KCP (MC) claims responsibilty: Imphal, Apr 25: The proscribed KCP (MC) has claimed responsibility for the bomb blast at Babupara on Thursday as well as for the bomb fitted to a rickshaw near the southern gate of Imphal pologround. A statement issued by the military affairs secretary of the outfit Lanheiba Meitei claimed that the bomb was exploded by the demo section of the party's fifth Lanjaba Unit. Stating that the actual target of the bomb at Babupara was security forces, Lanheiba appealed to the people to bear with collateral damages, if there is any in such bomb attacks, till the land is freed from alien rulers. Regarding the bomb planted just outside the pologround, the outfit clarified that the mission was aborted taking into consideration of the heavy casualties likely to be suffered by Manipur police personnel. Lanheiba conveyed that all the KCP cadres involved in the bomb attack have reported to their unit commander safely. The outfit also pledged to avenge its three cadr...

Another revolt after 55-year old man shot dead: Imphal, Apr 24: Refusing to hear the repeated pleas from his son, a 55-year-old man was shot dead in his son's presence late Wednesday night at Lilong Chajing Loukon under Singjamei police station. The broken hearted 25-year-old son has refused to even drink water and is now lying in bed being administered drips since last night. The aged parents and other members of the family of the deceased are also shattered at the loss and were hospitalized today in Imphal. Outraged over the killing of the local man, people of Lilong Chajing and Lilong Shantipur have decided to boycott all underground organizations and ban their entry into the area. They also commenced a total indefinite blockade on the Imphal-Moreh section of the NH-39 from 11.30 am today. Hundreds of them turned out on the street along the highway and blocked the traffic for the day. Haorangbam Robi Meitei, son of Achao of Lilong Kongjeng Leikai was shot to death by two armed s...

Cabinet Secy to visit state to review security: New Delhi, Apr 22: Lawlessness and tardy development in Manipur will come under the Centre’s scanner when Cabinet Secretary KM Chandrasekhar visits the state for a comprehensive review of the troubled state later this week. He will be accompanied by Union Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta and top officials from ministries handling development in the region. Coming close on the heels of a high-level meeting in New Delhi, the visit, slated for April 25, would involve a comprehensive review of the current security and development scenario in the state, official sources said here on Tuesday. As reported by The Indian Express, the Cabinet Secretary held a security review meeting on April 1 where senior state government officials including the chief secretary had briefed him about the situation. Naga and Meitei militant groups have unleashed a reign of terror in the border state, virtually running a parallel government where extortion thrives and k...

UNLF denies charge: Imphal, Jan. 4: The United National Liberation Front (UNLF) on Friday denied allegations by Delhi police that the outfit was involved in the killing of Khuplam Hangsing, a senior leader of the Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA). Hangsing was murdered by unidentified persons on November 12 at a flat in West Delhi. According to Delhi police, the murder was carried out at the behest of W. Luwangamba, an active member of the UNLF. A monetary dispute led to the murder of Hangsing, they claimed. The “senior publicity officer” of the UNLF, Ksh. Yoiheiba, denied the outfit’s role in the murder. In a statement, the UNLF said the claim by Delhi police was false and that the “baseless story” was churned out by intelligence agencies to create ill feelings between the two outfits. The statement said Luwangamba, who was a “corporal” of the UNLF, had deserted the outfit more than three years back and since then been an active member of a gang involved in several incidents of extortion ...

Cops crack case: New Delhi, Jan 3: A monetary dispute with banned United National Liberation Front (UNLF) led to the murder of a prominent Kuki leader in the capital two months ago and 10 people were allegedly involved in hammering him to death. Out of the 10, police has managed to arrest two men from Punjab on December 21, police said on Thursday. Implicated in the case is one Luwangamba of the UNLF. The UNLF had already expelled Luwangamba from the outfit earlier, said a spokesman. Khuplam Hangsing (35), chairman of banned Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA), died under mysterious circumstances on November 12 at his brother's rented accommodation in Sriniwaspuri of west Delhi and intra-group rivalry was suspected to be the reason behind the murder. The investigation of the murder was handed over to Special Cell of the city police and after probing KRA's inter and intra-group rivalries, they zeroed in on two persons who were allegedly involved in the operation. While Malkeet Singh, ...

Civilians made scapegoats after UG clashes: Imphal, Dec 24: Fifteen passengers of an inter-state bus heading for Guwahati, including students and teachers of a private school, were abducted by armed militants near Sapermeina on NH-39 and detained for a few hours on Sunday afternoon. The abduction took place apparently as a consequence of a shootout between cadres of some underground groups last night near Nongpok Keithelmanbi, and the abducted persons were released reportedly after an understanding was reached among the groups involved. The abducted passengers included eight students and a teacher of the Hundred Flowers School, Pangei, who were leaving on an excursion trip to Sikkim. All the abducted passengers belong to the Meitei community. According to other passengers travelling on the same vehicle, a tourist bus operated by GG Travels, the vehicle were stopped by armed gunmen at a lonely spot on NH-39 just beyond Sapermeina, and the Meitei male passengers singled out and detained ...