March 08
Copyright © 2008, The Arunachal Times Publications Pvt. Ltd., Siang House, Sector
-
All rights reserved.
State seeks autonomous councils
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The state government will write to the Centre to expedite the process of creation of Autonomous District Council of Tirap & Changlang and Autonomous District Council of Tawang & West Kameng.
This was informed by the Chief Minister in a written response to former Chief Minister Nabam Tuki on Tuesday, who had sought to know the present status of the autonomy demand.
"A letter is being sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India", read the response.
The state government had sent a letter to the centre in 2004 for creation of the councils. In response, the centre had constituted a committee to study the feasibility. However, the committee is yet to submit its report though they had visited Tirap, Changlang and Tawang in February 2014.
The Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly had passed a resolution on 16th February, 2004 that "Arunachal Pradesh should be included in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India to enable creation of Autonomous District Council in requiring special administrative and faster economic development."
Tapir Gao detained in Guwahati Airport with cash
Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: In a highly embarrassing moment for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its Arunachal Pradesh state unit President Tapir Gao was caught with cash at Guwahati airport by the income tax officials on Tuesday.
As per highly placed sources, Gao who was campaigning in Manipur was returning to Itanagar when the incident happened.
The officials of Imphal airport, while scanning his baggage reportedly found the presence of large amount of cash. They alerted their Guwahati counterpart and on his arrival at Guwahati airport, Gao was reportedly detained and subsequently questioned about the cash.
Gao denied that he was caught by the Income Tax. It was the Police Security Officer who told me that such large amount of cash was not allowed to be carried, he said while speaking to this daily.
When contacted Gao denied that he was detained. He admitted that he was carrying
Rs 4 lakhs in cash and when security officer told him that such amount of cash is
not allowed in-
But sources say otherwise. Allegedly, he was caught carrying Rs 10 lakhs and when he landed in Guwahati, he was intercepted.
Gao did not specify for what purpose he was carrying such a large amount of money. Till the filing of this report, he was reportedly still inside Guwahati airport.
Gao was in Manipur campaigning extensively for the BJP as the state is witnessing intense battle between Congress and BJP. The state will vote in the second phase of assembly election on Wednesday. The result will be declared on March 11.
Mere Vichaar Andolan Committee to take out peaceful protest rally
Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The Mere Vichaar Andolan Committee (MVAC), with support from former
Chief Minister Kalikho Pul's wife, Dangwimsai Pul, announced to take out a peaceful
protest rally from Akashdeep Complex to Tennis Court at Indira Gandhi Park, here
on March 10 next, regarding non-
The MVAC, which comprises of Arunachal Youth Organization (AYO), Arunachal Justice
Forum (AJF), Save Arunachal Youth Association (SAYA), Anti Corruption and Crime Control
Committee of Arunachal Pradesh (ACCCCAP), Arunachal Anti Corruption Union (AACU)
and Arunachal Tribal Contractor Welfare Association (ATCWA), has been demanding immediate
investigation by the CBI on the alleged 60-
Addressing a press conference held at the Press Club here this afternoon, MVAC Convenor, Kaling Tasing said that the MVAC, which was formed on February 12 last, to seek a thorough probe into Pul's death, will continue with its protests till its demands are fulfilled.
While seeking a proper conclusion into the entire episode, Dangwimsai, who was also present along with her son Ojingso, sought support from all sections of the society to get justice for her late husband.
'There is no political agenda behind our campaign', she reiterated, adding that people of the state need to know the truth. Also clarifying on MoS Rijiju's claim that she did not come to him regarding the issue of her husband's death, Dangwimsai stated that as a Union Minister, Rijiju has the moral obligation to take up her issue and ensure that late Pul and his family get justice at the earliest.
Mere Vichaar with home ministry
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The state government has sent Kalikho Pul's notes "Mere Vichaar" to the centre. In a written statement, Chief Minister Pema Khandu informed that "State Cabinet has forwarded the notes to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India for investigation by any agency as deemed fit".
He further said that the FIR received from the wives of the late Chief Minister was clubbed with the case since the Police Station Itanagar (UD case No. 14/2016) was already registered on the date of incident, 9 August 2016 on the complaint of his PSO Surender Kumar Rai, and investigation was already taken up.
The Chief Minister's statement is in contrast to the allegation by the first of the three wives of Pul who had alleged that the complaint was not entertained by the police.
The Chief Minister was responding to former chief minister and Congress MLA Nabam Tuki's question.
Tumke Bagra elected as Deputy Speaker, two bills passed
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Tumke Bagra was elected as Deputy Speaker of Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly on Tuesday. The representative of Aalo West Assembly Constituency was in the same post for a brief tenure during the Kalikho Pul Government.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu has congratulated Bagra on his appointment to the prestigious post of Deputy Speaker of the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
The Chief Minister expressed hope that with his long and illustrious career as a technocrat and bureaucrat, Bagra would deliver justice to the prestigious post and with his wisdom and knowledge guide the state Legislative Assembly towards excellence.
Earlier, Arunachal Pradesh Private Education Institutions (Regulatory Commission) Bill, 2017 and Arunachal Pradesh Anatomy Bill, 2017 were passed with voice vote in the State Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.
The AP Private Education Institutions (Regulatory Commission) Bill, 2017, which was tabled by Education Minister Honchun Ngadam on Monday, was passed after a thorough discussion by the law makers on the relevance and importance of the Bill in view of the growing private educational institutes of higher education in the state.
While moving the Bill for consideration, Education Minister Ngadam said that the Bill was necessary in order to check mushrooming of private educational institutes as well as regulate/monitor the functioning of those institutes to ensure quality education.
"Though there were no reports of malpractices, such as issuing fake certificates by any private educational institutes functioning in the state so far, such malpractices cannot be ruled out in near future," the Education Minister said while responding to concerns raised over the issue by some legislators that there were reports of certificates being sold by few private educational institutes elsewhere in the country and region.
Participating in the discussion, Koloriang MLA Pani Taram suggested for strict monitoring on the functioning of all private educational institutes, and whether those institutes were following the laid down norms and guidelines. He suggested imposition of fine up to Rs 1 crore against any defaulting institutes.
The numbers of private educational institutes of higher education presently functioning in the state are, university (8), professional college (3), BEd College (8), Degree College (7) and Polytechnic institute (1), Taram informed the house.
Arunachal Pradesh Anatomy Bill, 2017 moved by Health and Family Welfare Minister Jomde Kena was also passed after a brief discussion.
Participating in the discussion before passage of the Bill, Animal Husbandry, Veterinary and Dairy Development Minister Dr Mohesh Chai gave an insight on the Bill, particularly on the term 'Anatomy' in medical science, which deals/studies about body structure of human and other living organism.
If passed, the Bill will enable authorities to use unclaimed bodies in study purposes, particularly in medical college, Dr Chai said.
Nafra MLA Japu Deru also spoke in favour of the bill.
Quotes of the day
"Why there are so many Homeopathic doctors in Tirap district?" Why should they be posted only in Tirap?" : Tirong Aboh during the discussion on shortage of medical staff
"There are 19 doctors against 23 health centres in Tirap. Of them, eight are Homeopathic," Aboh again.
"Men run after posts; but, here, posts chase Tumke Bagra," Roing MLA Mutchu Mithi after Bagra was elected Deputy Speaker."
Our speaker and our deputy speaker are Xerox copies of each other: Chief Minister Pema Khandu speaking Bagra and Speaker T N Thongdok who were engineers.
Tomo Riba Institute of Health & Medical Sciences to be functional next year
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Health and Family Welfare Minister Jomde Kena said that the state’s
first medical college, Tomo Riba Institute of Health & Medical Sciences will be
made functional from the next academic session (2017-
Kena disclosed it during the second day of the state legislative assembly on Tuesday.
He informed that a team of Medical Council of India (MCI) will be visiting the state
capital during May-
"Various procedures have to be followed under the MCI to start a medical college, including recruitment of various faculties," Kena said. He informed that he had requested the MCI authority for a relaxation in faculty recruitment criteria.
Initially, the medical college will be started at the Assembly building after it is vacated by the Assembly Secretariat till infrastructure comes up, Kena said.
101 Admin posts to be created: During Zero-
Responding to a question raised by MLA Tirong Aboh on posting of administrative, police and medical officers in Tirap district, the Chief Minister highlighted the genesis of the problem coming up over creation of many districts, thereby creating the shortfall of administrative officers in each district.
Aboh also put forth the problems faced by the people due to shortage of officers in the district, being backward and insurgency prone and pleaded for posting of officers in the existing vacancies.
Home Minister Kumar Waii in his reply also informed the house that the state is in the need of more than 30,000 police forces. At present, the total strength of state police is 13,000, he informed.
Disclosing that the government is considering strengthening the police force in the state by filling up 2680 vacant posts, Waii assured to create the posts within the next two months. He, however, sought cooperation of the local populace in manning law and order problem of their respective areas.
Responding to Aboh with regards to medical officers, Health & Family Welfare Minister Jomde Kena said that the process of rationalization of posting of doctors and para medical staffs was under process.
Disclosing that the government is considering upgrading CHC Khonsa to General Hospital status, the Health Minister sought support from all the members for success of zero tolerance policy in health sector.
Creation of tourist circuits: Chief Minister Pema Khandu said a total number of 19,358 domestic and foreign tourists visited the state in the last three years.
Responding to a question from Gabriel D Wangsu regarding creation of tourist circuits for Tirap and Longding districts during Question Hour, the Chief Minister said that during 2014 a total of 6,307 tourists visited the state, while 6,453 visited in 2015 and in 2016, 6,598 tourists visited the state.
A tourist circuit encompassing Margherita-
"The Centre has introduced a new development scheme, which will be considered for
Longding," he said, adding a proposal for Guwahati-
BJP MLA Wangling Lowangdong, who is also from Tirap district, said though Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts have immense tourism potential, the state government was not taking up the issue with the Centre.
Senior BJP member Japu Deru and Thangwang Wangham also participated in the discussion. (With inputs from DIPRO/ PTI)
Governor institutes several awards for students of govt colleges
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The Governor of Arunachal Pradesh PB Acharya has instituted awards in the names of eminent personalities for outstanding students of 14 government colleges of the state.
Accordingly, three best students in academics, sports and performing arts in each college will be given the awards every year.
The Governor said these awards will encourage the students towards academic excellence, sports and performing arts, and at the same time, it will also remind them of the eminent personalities, who have rendered their valuable services to the state and country.
The awards will be in the memory of Rajendra Prasad, Lal Bahardur Shastri, Vishnu Sahaya, Eknath Ranade, Colonel Luthra, R K Patir, KAA Raja, Daying Ering, Tomo Riba, Talom Rukbo, Lummer Dai, Indira Miri, Jikom Riba, C K Gohain Namchoom, Sobeng Tayeng, Indrajit Namchoom, Wangpha Lowang, Omem Deori, Nokmey Nimati, former Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu, Kuru Hassang, Tadar Tang, Nyari Welly, Kop Temi, Tagi Raja, Matmur Jamoh, Marto Kamdak, Jomin Tayeng, Bini Yanga, Saint Narottam, Muktinath Borthakur and Maj Bob Kathing.
An amount of Rs 1 lakh each will be kept in fixed deposit as corpus fund against each college and interest accrued each year will be used for that award, which will be in kind.
A certificate for each award winner will be given from the Raj Bhavan. The selection of the award winning students and other details will be worked out by the respective colleges and the Raj Bhavan.
On the same lines, an amount of one lakh will be kept in fixed deposit as corpus fund for the awards for children of Raj Bhavan staff to encourage academic, sports and performance excellence.
The Governor has also instituted awards for outstanding students of Puroik Community and an amount of Rs 2 lakhs has been kept in fixed deposit as corpus fund for the purpose.
Women like them: Masem Ane’s story
[ Neyi Jamoh,
Nandini Velho ]
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Masem Tachang's story is inspiring in so many ways -
Despite this change, one thing was set in her life. Her parents had fixed her marriage
when she was barely six months old. She recalls at age 13, she was told to stop playing
games like a child and that it was time to start her own family. She was unsettled
because she barely knew her husband-
It takes a village to raise a family and this was true in Masem's case. By age 22
she had mothered four children and she was working twice as hard because she now
had more people to feed. Her mother-
In addition, she also tried her hands at different things to make ends meet. This
involved selling traditional jewellery, buying clothes from Dimapur and selling them
from house-
She balanced these multiple jobs to give her children the opportunities she never had. Given the prevalent societal practices of those times, education was then considered as a mere distraction. She had more important aspects such as working in the field, feeding the chickens on time and doing other household chores. Moreover, the move into her new home that she married into meant that she could not study anymore. She then sent all her children to Don Bosco School which was the best convent schools in Seijosa circle. Today, her children are in the army, working in the education department and studying engineering. Notably, both her girls have gained the same education as her sons and are now working women.
Her husband Pahi Tachang is the Secretary of Ghora Aabhe Society, which has been instrumental in conserving forests around Pakke Tiger Reserve. This meant that he would be away for days together whenever he went for awareness campaigns to nearby villages. It was not easy as she was entirely responsible for the children, the fields, her cattle and the house. She recalls the many times she would guard her fields all night against raiding elephants. When he was back, their house was a place where people came together to discuss conservation issues. Sometimes she would prepare meals for 30 to 40 people with a day's notice. Her husband was also a hornbill nest protector with the Nature Conservation Foundation. She was a constant companion to him in the forest where they would search for seeds of certain tree species, bird droppings and look for hornbill nests.
The summer of 2015 was a day when her life took another turn. She and her youngest
son went to the forest near her village to collect rari-
Masem Ane has been on both ends of the ongoing conservation initiatives and feels for both people and wildlife. She and other families have made an incredible sacrifice with moving out of Pakke Tiger Reserve. She has spent sleepless nights chasing elephants alone. She also firmly believes that treading lightly with nature is the only way forward. She also runs a "home stay" with her husband to encourage others in the village to move towards sustainable economic options. And yet again her home and life have transformed in another way. Masem Ane's story is that of a farmer, hornbill protector, tourist guide, mother and that of a woman working behind the scenes and working by her husband's side. Above all she is a woman that leads by example and inspires us. (Neyi Jamoh and Nandini Velho are researchers working around Pakke Tiger Reserve.)
‘Be active partners in the developmental process of the state’
International Women's Day
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Governor of Arunachal Pradesh P B Acharya and his wife Kavita Acharya have expressed their hope that the occasion of International Women's Day will encourage women to become more active partners in the developmental process of the state.
In his message to the people on the occasion, the Governor, while stating that this
year the theme of the celebration is 'Be Bold for Change', called upon all womenfolk
to challenge bias and inequality, campaign against violence, forge women's advancement,
champion women's education and celebrate women's achievement. He said that restoring
the rightful and dignified status of mothers, sisters and daughters will provide
a solid foundation to nurture the inner strength, creativity and self-
"They will become agents of peace and positive social change for themselves, their families, other women and their society. I am sanguine that this occasion will create more awareness amongst the fairer gender of their rights and duties", he added.
The Governor said that he is proud that Arunachalee women are second to none in every field of life.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu in his message underscored the importance of the contributions made by women in a progressive society and asserted that their role in every field is no less than men. In fact, he said, they have proved their mettle far better than men in many fields.
"As we celebrate this day in recognition of achievements made by our womenfolk in social, economic, cultural and political fields, let's call for accelerating gender parity and women empowerment," he said.
"As per the campaign, our government is also committed to help women and girls achieve
their ambitions; challenge conscious and unconscious bias; encourage gender-
"Let this day be a reminder for all of us to recognize the role of women and make them equal partners in policy formations and decision makings. Not only March 8, let every day be a day towards achieving gender parity in all aspects for a better and healthier world," Khandu added.
CSIR-
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: CSIR-
About 40 farmers/villagers/beneficiaries from different parts of Arunachal Pradesh and North Lakhimpur, Assam attended the day long programme.
Sc In charge, NEIST Dr Jagat C Borah assured to provide all technical support and
help with whatever was necessary. He also requested all to come forward to take the
advantage of technologies developed by CSIR-
Sr. Scientist Dr Chandan Tamuly introduced CSIR-
Resource person, Dr. Budhen C. Baruah delivered a talk on "Cultivation of Medicinal and Aromatic plant and distillation technology".
Chairman, M/S Tempo Medicinal and Aromatic Oil Industries, Batt Village, Tadar Tempo shared his 20 years experience in cultivation of aromatic plant in Arunachal Pradesh and its marketing scopes.
Tempo said that there are lots of scopes and advantages in cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants in Arunachal Pradesh. Due to the lack of awareness and proper knowledge success rate is not very high.
Hands-
MoU signed to pave way for new RK Mission School in EK
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for establishment of new Rama Krishna Mission Residential School at Lumdung under East Kameng was signed on Tuesday between state governments, headed by Education Minister Honchun Ngandam, Parliamentary Secretary RD & Panchayat Mama Natung, Secretary Education Bidol Tayeng and representative of RK Mission Belur Math, Swami Bodhasarananda.
Education Minister Ngandam, while signing the MoU, said that the establishment of a new RK Mission School at Lumdung will not only impart quality education to the upcoming generation but it will also unearth talented students for the state.
He, along with Secretary Education Tayeng urged Swami Bodhasarananda to try to devise better methods for poor students, so that more students from poor families could get selected.
"Bringing new school, which will provide quality education is a kind of bringing new life for the upcoming generation of entire East Kameng and state as a whole," said Ngandam.
Secretary Education also informed that the state government will be providing corpus fund to the lessee (authority of RK Mission) and will constitute a school management team that will monitor the school on regularly basis.
Assistant General Secretary, Ramakrishna Math, Swami Bodhasarananda, stated that lottery system can be adopted for poor students, which has already been initiated in Manipur. He assured that in the proposed school they will try to devise better methods of imparting knowledge and improving the morale of the students.
Earlier Parliament Secretary Natung, while thanking former CM Nabam Tuki and present CM Pema Khandu for their constant support in entire process of new RK Mission Residential School, opined that opening of this school will change dynamic of education sector in East Kameng district.
Women empowerment, Ambedkar and International Women’s Day
[ Dr Sukamal Deb ]
Every single person on earth has the potential and the right to live a decent life
-
In 1918, Ambedkar demanded separate electorate and reserved seats for the Depressed Classes in proportion to their population. After six decades of the working of the Indian Constitution, the Indian women demanded political reservation, and the lower status of other disadvantaged sections proves that his theory is correct. Ambedkar started his movement in 1920. He started fierce propaganda against the Hindu social order. Perhaps, his perception on feminist issues was influenced by his exposure to the West. It was a time when the first wave of feminism had been coming to an end with the achievement of franchise rights for women in Britain in 1918 and America in 1920. Ambedkar emphasizing women’s rights to education, equal treatment with men, right to property and involvement in the political process resembled the global feminist demands. His intensive reading habit awarded him with the knowledge on the feminist movement in different cultures and countries around the world. So, on returning to India, he devoted his life fully to work for the depressed classes, including women. He was firmly committed to the ideals of equality, liberty and fraternity. Even Western countries like Switzerland did not give voting rights to women when India gave the rights in 1950.
He asserted that unity is meaningless without the accompaniment of women, education
is fruitless without educated women and agitation is incomplete without the strength
of women. He proclaimed in a meeting of about 3000 women of depressed classes on
July 18, 1927, that “I measure the progress of community by the degree of progress
which women had achieved”. His address on that occasion was a founding stone towards
justice for women. He motivated those women with words and said, “Never regard yourself
as untouchables, live a clean life, dress yourselves as touchable ladies. Never mind,
if your dress if full of patches, but see that it is clean. None can restrict your
freedom in the choice of your garments. Attend more to the cultivation of the mind
and spirit of self-
If Ambedkar were alive today, he would have lamented for things have not changed
much. As per ILO, women perform 2/3rd of the world’s work but receive less than one
1/10th of its income. Women are somehow considered secondarily while considering
the bread earner of the house. Currently, the global average for female entrepreneurship
is 7.72% of the population (Das & Mahapatra, 2013). I read an article in the Indian
Express of Zeershan Shaikh (June 8, 2015) that one in six Indian women marry under
18, pushing every sixth women into child marriage as per the last Census. This is
a sizeable female population, 102.61 million out of 587.58 million. The data of National
Crime Records Bureau for 2001-
To me, Dr Ambedkar had been a champion of women’s cause. As Member of Legislative
Council during his debate in Bombay Legislative Assembly on November 10, 1938, he
strongly advocated family planning measures and said that besides many other problems,
giving birth to many children negatively affects mother’s health. He introduced the
Maternity Benefit Bill in 1942, during his tenure as Labour Minister in Governor
General’s Executive Council. While drafting the Constitution of India, Ambedkar took
due care of the provisions related to the welfare of women. On the question of civil
rights, Ambedkar made provisions in Articles 14-
So, on Women’s Day it would be appropriate to call back his contribution as it has been a lesser known fact. In January 1928, a women’s association was founded in Bombay with Ramabai, Ambedkar’s wife, as its president. He believed in the strength of women and their role in the process of social reform. In the Kalram Temple entry Satyagraha at Nasik in 1930, 500 women participated and many of them were arrested along with men and ill treated in jails. The historic Mahad Satyagraha witnessed participation of 300 women, along with males. He said “I strongly believe in the movements run by women. If they are taken into confidence, they may change the present picture of this miserable society”. On July 20, 1942, the All India Dalit Mahila Conference was organized and 25, 000 women attended the conference –the inspiration was of Ambedkar. It was the time when Jotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule contributed towards women empowerment. On January1, 1848, India’s first school for girls was started in Pune by Jotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule. On January 28, 1853, the first ever infanticide prohibition home of India was started by Savitribai Phule. Savitribai Phule started Mahila Seva Mandal in 1852, which worked for raising women’s consciousness about their human rights, dignity of life and other social issues. She organised a successful barbers’ strike in Mumbai and Pune against the prevailing practice of shaving of widows’ heads.
Going by history of ancient India, women enjoyed a very high position, but gradually
their position degenerated. They lost their individual identity and even their basic
human rights. We shamelessly forgot our mothers represent the symbol of women who
empowered us in her womb. So the struggle of empowerment, which is multi-
Babasaheb worked for the betterment of women even involved in bad practices and professions
like prostitutions. Influenced by his thoughts and teachings, David (a mediator working
in a brothel) left his profession and evoked all the prostitutes to give up their
profession and lead the life of honour. Being India’s first Law Minister and Chairman
of the Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly, he rightly chose his duty
to free women from the age old thralldom by reforming the Hindu social laws created
by Manu. He, therefore, took initiative to draft and introduce the Hindu Code Bill
in the Constituent Assembly. Ambedkar tried an adequate inclusion of women’s right
in the political vocabulary and Constitution of India. His commitment is evident
in the Constitution, like Article14 -
The Hindu Code Bill was the most formidable legislative measure of modern India. It put men and women on an equal level in all legal matters. Ambedkar said, “I should like to draw attention of the house to one important fact. The great political philosopher Burke who wrote his great book against the French Revolution said that those who want to conserve must be ready to repair. And all I am asking this House is, if you want to maintain the Hindu system, Hindu culture and Hindu society, do not hesitate to repair where repair is necessary. This Bill asks for nothing more than to repair those parts of the Hindu system which have become dilapidated”.
Although on the pan-
With heavy heart, I quote his letter of resignation dated September 27, 1951 to the Prime Minister. He wrote, “For a long time I have been thinking of resigning my seat from the Cabinet. The only thing that had held me back from giving effect to my intention was the hope that it would be possible to give effect to the Hindu Code Bill before the life of present Parliament came to an end. I even agreed to break up the bill and restricted it to marriage and divorce in the fond hope that at least this much of our labour may bear fruit. But even that part of Bill had been killed. I see no purpose in my continuing to be a Member of your Cabinet”. The Hindu Code Bill was later split in to four Bills, and the same were put on the Statue Book by Parliament. The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955; The Hindu Succession Act, 1956; The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956 and The Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956 are the four enactments which incorporate the ideas and principles of Hindu Code Bill formulated by him.
I am prompted to check the oversize list of Indian ministers who sacrificed a cabinet seat for women’s cause was perhaps only one and he is Dr B R Ambedkar –the student of two best universities of the world (Columbia University, USA and London School of Economic, UK), the first Indian to have PhD in Economics from abroad. In the words of Amartya Sen “Dr Ambedkar is my Father in Economics. He is the true celebrated champion of the underprivileged and deserves more than what he has achieved today. However, he was a highly controversial figure in his home country, though it was not the reality”. (The writer is Dr Sukamal Deb, PhD & Specialization in Social Sector Leadership, and can be reached at sukamal05@gmail.com)
No Confidence Motion against Aka defeated
YUPIA, Mar 7: The Motion of No Confidence moved by III-
Earlier, a meeting with all elected members of the Zilla Parishad was convened on March 6 at the Conference Hall of the ZPC Office, Yupia, where it was unanimously decided by the house that the motion of no confidence against sitting Chairperson Aka may be moved by secret ballot.
After the voting, Presiding Officer Toko Babu declared that out of 12 votes, 7 votes
were casted in favour of the motion and 5 votes were casted against the motion. Under
the conditions laid down in Section 63 [2] of the Arunachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj,
Act and Rules Manual 2002, the motion of no confidence requires two-
Orgs demand recruitment of anthropology teachers
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union (AAPSU), Arunachal Anthropological Forum (AAF) and Rajiv Gandhi University Research Scholars' Forum (RGURSF) have urged the Director of Higher and Technical Education to take necessary steps for early recruitment of Assistant Professors in the Anthropology Department of Dera Natung Government College (DNGC), Itanagar.
In a joint reminder submitted to the DH&TE, the AAPSU resented that no advertisement
was made so far for recruitment of lecturers, assistant professors and in other
required posts in the Anthropology department of the college even after the education
secretary had announced introduction of Anthropology subject in the undergraduate
level at DNGC vide notification No. ED/HE/PLG-
The organizations threatened to launch a democratic movement, if the competent authority fails to address the demand within 15 days.
So far, 42 APST students have qualified NET/SLET examination in Anthropology, conducted by UGC and seven students also have already been awarded PhD in Anthropology from Rajiv Gandhi University validating the resourcefulness in the subject, the organizations said and reasoned that Anthropology is one of the most appropriate disciplines to be taught in the state.
It is worth mentioning here that all the three organizations have been demanding introduction of anthropology discipline in the educational institutes since 2007.
Govt aware of unemployment
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The government has said that it is aware of the increasing unemployment in the state which has risen to 57,396 by 2015.
However, the government's response on steps being taken to help the unemployed was a reflection of lack of ideas and efforts to help contain unemployment.
"The Labour and Employment Department prepares schemes to impart trainings to the registered jobs seekers, candidates in computer, motor mechanics. Labour laws from time to time increase their employability. The primary function of the Employment Exchange attached to the department is to provide registration, career counseling, sponsoring of name against notified vacancies and collection of Employment Market Information (EMI) as per the Employment Exchange (CNV) Act, 1959. The registered candidates are sponsored against suitable jobs," read the government response to a question raised by Gabriel D Wangsu at the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.
Parents of late Katem Dai seek thorough investigation into son's death
[ Maksam Tayeng ]
PASIGHAT, Mar 7: The parents of late Katem Dai, a civil engineering student of the Scholar's Institute of Technology and Management (SITM), Guwahati, who died on February 20 last following a tiff with his classmate at the institute's hostel, have appealed to the concerned authorities of both Assam and Arunachal to initiate a thorough investigation into the case to ensure justice for their late son.
'Our son was a kind-
When Garchuk PS Officer-
'After receipt of the postmortem report, the accused will be charge sheeted and is locked up in Guwahati Central Jail vide Garchuk PS Case No. 77/2017 U/S 302 IPC. Proper investigation has already begun and witnesses are being cross examined while we have also objected bail to the accused', he further informed.
Blacklist fair price shop: AMYA
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The All Mengio Youth Association (AMYA), in a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner of Yupia urged his office to verify and blacklist proprietor of Nabam Yajar Fair Price Shop for alleged irregularity in distribution of commodities to beneficiaries.
The AMYA also alleged that at least five kilos of rice is deducted from each APL, BPL and AAY household beneficiary. It also said that if action is not initiated against the fair price shop within 10 days, it would resort to democratic movement against the proprietor.
Mini Secretariat by year end
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The Mini Secretariat building is expected to be handed over to the District Administration, Capital Complex by December 2017 by the Executing Department.
This was informed by Itanagar-
Meanwhile, the DC has assured to construct a new concrete pavement from the DC's
Untied Fund to connect Rakap Colony. He said this after he went to visit Rakap Colony
near A-
Tago assures to work to uplift sports sector
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Newly appointed Chairman of the Sports Authority of Arunachal (SAA), Bamang Tago has assured to work to uplift sports sectors in the state.
On a visit to the SAA office at Chimpu, Tago interacted with officials of Sports and Youth Affairs Department. "I am extremely proud to lead this organisation, and hope to work in close coordination with the sports fraternity," said Tago.
Former Chairman of SAA, Gora Makik, who was also present on the occasion said, "I am very happy and hope that SAA will benefit immensely from his wisdom. I am confident that the new chairman will take our organisation to even greater heights."
Among others, Director of Youth Affairs, Director Sports, Member Secretary, Secretary Arunachal Olympic Association and secretaries and president of various state sports associations were also present.
Pensioners displeased with non-
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The state pensioners on Tuesday expressed displeasure with the
state government over non-
Two days workshop on 'Accreditation by NBA' held at RGGP
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: Two days workshop on "Accreditation by National Board of Accreditation
(NBA)" was conducted at Rajiv Gandhi Government Polytechnic (RGGP) here from March
6 to 7 under AICTE-
Experts, Professor Urmila Kar, Department of Education and Management, NITTTR, Kolkata
and Dr D R Poddar, Retired Professor, Jadavpur University, successfully conducted
the workshop. The faculties and staff of various departments of RGGP actively participated
in the workshop and gained in-
The institute has planned to apply for NBA accreditation for five diploma programme
under AICTE-
Speaking during the inaugural function, RGGP Principal, Dr A K Tripathy highlighted the importance of quality certificate by the NBA in technical education and encouraged the faculties and staff to work collectively with dedication to achieve the same.
Technical sessions on important aspects of NBA such as 'Features of Outcome Based Accreditation', 'Preparation of Vision, Mission and PEOs', 'Guideline for Preparation of SAR', etc were held during the workshop.
Association demands departmental enquiry
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The All Arunachal Pradesh ITI Trained Unemployed Youth Association (AAPITITUYA) has appealed to the SSA Rajya Mission Project Director to institute a departmental enquiry into the recently conducted interview for the posts of Part Time Instructor (Work education) in Upper Subansiri district and to cancel the interview results.
Expressing doubt over fair conduct of the interview, the Association alleged that while other districts had notified both the selected and rejected lists of the candidates with the grounds of rejection, the Education Department in Upper Subansiri district shockingly failed to notify the list of rejected candidates. The Association further alleged that its demand for notification of rejected list with reasonable ground went unheard. "An enquiry commission should be instituted to unearth any 'criminal misconduct’ if any and misuse of official position in the job interview", the Association said.
Traders demand hike in fish and meat prices
ITANAGAR, Mar 7: The traders of Hapoli market in Lower Subansiri district have stopped selling meat and fish items since Sunday last in protest against the administration's failure to revise the market prices of these items.
Demanding immediate hike in prices of fish and meat in Hapoli market, the Hapoli Market Traders Association in a statement said that the traders have decided not to sell these items till the revision of fish and meat price rates by the district administration is done. People of the district headquarters are facing acute shortage of fish and meat items due to inaction of district administration, it alleged.
Despite submission of several representations, the administration has failed to pay heed to its demand for hike in market prices, the Association claimed, while adding that "the traders are suffering heavy loss since the past several months due to low rate of chicken, pork, mutton, fish and beef."
Referring to the recent Lower Subansiri district bandh, which was observed by the All Lower Subansiri Youth Association demanding renovation of Potin to Bopi road under TAH, the traders' association said that the dilapidating road condition has additionally badly affected the transportation of goods.
Meanwhile, the All Ziro Hapoli Youth Association (AZHYA) submitted a memorandum to
the Deputy Commissioner, highlighting the problems erupting due to price hike in
Hapoli market and urged the DC's office to come out with a suitable solution and
enforce the old market rates in accordance with reference number APMC/Z-
It also claimed that the sale of meat and eggs have stopped in the market without public knowledge to allegedly increase the market price, and requested the DC to make them available within three days or otherwise cancel the trading license of shops indulging in the act. "The hike in price will come as a burden to the poor public of the area", it said, and warned of a democratic agitation if action was not initiated soon.
Guwahati-
GUWAHATI, Mar 7: In a remarkable development in the field of In Vitro Fertilisation
(IVF or test tube baby), and giving hope to many couples suffering from childlessness,
Guwahati-
The Institute of Human Reproduction utilized the Next-
"We are happy and proud to inform about the successful milestone we achieved through the process. This is a remarkable achievement for the team of IHR. With the development of NGS, identification of implantable embryos continues to improve. This technology is useful for couples with repeated IVF failures, couples of advanced age, couples with repeated abortions or with inherited chromosomal rearrangements such as Robertsonian or reciprocal translocation," said Dr Deepak Goenka, gynaecologist and infertility specialist and Director, Institute of Human Reproduction.
NGS is an emerging technology which provides an unprecedented data for genetic analysis. With the help of this technique, a highly accurate detection of chromosomally abnormal embryos can be achieved.
The IHR is one of the pioneer hospitals in the world that uses this technology which provides an outstanding accuracy.
The newer technique -
Correction
The name of the district was wrongly mentioned as 'West Kameng' in place of 'West Siang' in a front page news item under the headline "Rain water damages township roads" published in this daily on March 7. The inadvertent error is deeply regretted.
-
It’s advantage China for now
As India struggles to upgrade infrastructure in the border areas, China on Monday opened a new airport terminal at Nyingchi Mainling Airport, which is located close to Arunachal Pradesh. It is the second largest airport in Tibet region and will be able to handle 750,000 passengers and 3,000 tonnes of cargo annually by 2020. Chinese have also vastly improved the road infrastructure in the area that borders Arunachal Pradesh. The situation is just opposite on the other side of the border.
Till now Arunachal does not have a single airport and road infrastructures are in pathetic condition. The much hyped Trans Arunachal Highway (TAH) project is yet to pick pace. Majority of projects under TAH are pending for various reasons. State as well as central governments has bitterly failed to push this ambitious project. The proposed Green Field Airport at Hollongi is caught up in the bureaucratic hurdle and nobody knows what will be the fate of this project. Government of India does not seem serious about developing Arunachal. Though they constantly harp about Arunachal being integral part of India, their action do not show the same enthusiasm. It's time government of India take urgent steps to improve infrastructure before it's too late. India cannot afford to allow Chinese to have advantage because of superior infrastructure.
___________________
-
A citizenship in crisis
Dear Editor,
The obvious explanation for the unpopularity of Muslims in contemporary American
society centers on the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. But where does the
explanation lie for the recent shooting of the 32 year old Indian engineer Srinivas
Kuchibhotla in Kansas City last month? Should we be giving knee jerk reaction and
concede that now since the Indian-
Social identity theory stresses that we are less likely to trust or tolerate people
who seem different from ourselves, and our religious beliefs and practices, cultural
orientations and ethnicities have long made us different in key ways from the Judeo-
Negative attitudes about cultural out groups may exist in a society but such prejudice can also be done away with, if not completely eradicated. Prejudice against racial and religious groups tend to fade as citizens in the societal mainstream come into contact with members of these groups and become more familiar with them. Extensive contact with outgroup members reduces uncertainty about and stereotyping of the out group, increases cultural sensitivity toward it and ultimately lessens prejudice and negative effect.
Over the last century, several groups that were once viewed with considerable derision
have moved more or less into the American mainstream. From the mid-
Thus racial attitudes might not change their course so easily but there is always
light at the end of the tunnel. Americans rate Muslims only slightly less favourably
now than they rated Latinos in the 1970s and 1980s and Asian-
Yours,
Vipasha Bhardwaj
Research Scholar
North Eastern Hill University Shillong
Changing realities
Dear Editor,
Disgruntled elders seem to be constantly complaining about the hectic life styles
of parents who find it challenging to balance work-
Working parents compensate the time which they should ideally devote to their children by providing them with the latest of gadgets. Pocket money concept is now reaching a slot ranging from Rs. 3000 to 10,000 per month. Birthday parties and clubs and overnight outings is fast becoming a trend with the youngsters. Freedom has now got a completely different meaning all together. Parents who cannot afford to buy the latest mobile phones demanded by their kids are being scorned and ridiculed. This pressurizes them to work more harder and spend more time at work resulting in increasing the gap between their children. The bond between a child and his parents is lost in this rat race. Youngsters are now spending more time conversing with virtual friends on the net sharing their personal lives more openly than any average person would shrink from even imagining it. Friends requests are being accepted randomly with the urge to have more friends in their list than any of their other friends without even checking if the request is authentic and worth accepting. This is fast becoming an addiction and we see them hooked on to their mobile chats at all possible odd hours even while they are walking! Now that would certainly prove to be fatal if you chat walking down a crowded road full of mad traffic. Mothers make futile attempts in persuading their children to get off the laptops and get back to their homework. This again is a one sided conversation as their children have forgotten to have a real conversation and only believe in typing it out on the chat messenger. Sharing their problems with a perpetual stranger is more comfortable to them then talking it out with their parents. So where is all this leading to? Is India accepting the wrong trend under the name of growth and progress.
The increased and demanding standard of living forces both mother and father to take up jobs. To ensure that their children are provided with the best of everything be it education or life style. But in the end they need to do a quick check – are their children really growing up as they want them to? Are they being provided with what they need or being dumped with excess of everything which they cannot handle? Are the children seeking emotional support and making a Role model of people that they see around them. They need to be guided and harnessed to tap in their bountiful of energy. Their intellect and acumen requires a focus and an objective to build the new age India of tomorrow.
Yours,
Nutur Techi, Nirjuli
Artificial lines of religion
Dear Editor,
It should be learned that deep classification and division of human beings as Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jainism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism and others based on artificial lines of religion is a superficial identity, and human shall need to move farther from superficiality towards absoluteness to attain collective harmony of living on Earth and reach God.
The ultimate identity of human being is a member of humankind as well a sacred entity of God's Creation.
Because such artificial classification and divisions of humanity is against the order of Creation and rule of God, continuous divisions, fighting, killings and sufferings happens in the World.
It is emergent that leaders of various religions around the World get together, do certain brainstorming and evolve a unified faith to save humankind from persistently destructive activities, bring unification along the line of ultimate truth and achieve blissful living on Earth.
Yours,
Tagam Mibang
___________________
All email and surface mails must be accompanied with contact numbers and full postal address. Do keep writing but please make sure that letters are short and to the point.
-