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Mizoram News (Latest News)
Friday, July 22, 2005
A farmer's wish to be a feast for wild animals
Aizawl, May 06, 2005: It is pay-back time, remorse and a love for wildlife - a combination of all three seem to have made a farmer from a Mizoram village come up with the bizarre wish in a court that his deadbody be thrown in forest for wild animals to feast.
Winner of the state's highest environmental award, Phawangpui Award, 48-year-old 'New World' Laldingliana from Kawlkulh village in eastern Mizoram told that he filed the affidavit before a Magistrate to create environmental awareness amongst his fellow human beings.
He said his body might not be suffice to feed the hungry animals in the degraded forests but wanted the world to know that human beings cannot survive without forests and wildlife.
Laldingliana's decision and the affidavit created a furore here where his critics questioned his wish contending that if a tiger eats his flesh it would turn on other human beings.
His fellow environmentalists, however, defended Laldingliana's decision saying there is no scientific proof that preying on his flesh would turn a tiger into a man-eater and he did not mention 'tiger' in his affidavit.
"In my younger days, I used to eat the meat of wild animals and now I feel that I should give my flesh in return," the deep-voiced thin environmentalist said.
Kharif sowing prospects bright: Pawar
"Area coverage of crops will be more"
Sowing of paddy comfortable
Oilseeds, pulses, cotton lagging
Adequate stocks available in seed banks
NEW DELHI: Union Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said on Wednesday that barring in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar and Jharkhand, where rainfall was deficient by more than 50 per cent, the "prospects" of kharif sowing in terms of area coverage and production appeared "bright."
The deficiency impacted the coverage of oilseeds and pulses, which were being imported now. Parts of the flood-affected Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh were being re-sown.
Deficient rain
Monsoon rains have been deficient and between 20 and 49 per cent in Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura (-49 per cent), Jharkhand (-47 per cent), Assam and Meghalaya (-31 per cent), Bihar (-29 per cent), coastal Andhra Pradesh (-26 per cent), and Marathwada (-20 per cent).
After a review of the sowing operations in the 11 States where the monsoon was delayed, Mr. Pawar said the position was "comfortable." The sowing of paddy was comfortable although that of oilseeds, pulses and cotton was lagging in comparison to last year. However, there was "near-certainty" that the area under kharif would equal and even exceed last year's coverage.
The area under coarse cereals, sugarcane and jute was higher than last year. The area under cotton was 51.58 lakh hectares (59.81 lakh hectares) and coarse cereals 122.25 lakh hectares (116.51 lakh hectares). The area under sugarcane was 40.85 lakh hectares (37.49 lakh hectares) and jute 7.88 lakh hectares (7.69 lakh hectares).
As against the requirement of 51.60 lakh quintals of seeds, the availability was 67.40 lakh quintals. Adequate quantity was available to meet the re-plantation requirements of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. An additional quantity of paddy and urad seeds had been made available to Madhya Pradesh. To meet the contingency needs, 1.6 lakh quintals was available in seed banks, and no shortage of fertilizers was anticipated.
The credit flow to the agriculture sector from April to May was Rs. 19,182.15 crores as against Rs. 16,305 crores during the corresponding period last year. Ruling out further imports of raw sugar, Mr. Pawar conceded that sugar prices were higher than last year but maintained that they were below Rs. 20 a kg.
The wholesale price index-based inflation rate decreased by 0.05 per cent and reached 4.09 per cent for the week ended July 2. The inflation rate was 7.08 per cent during the corresponding period last year, he said.
The production of rabi wheat for 2004-05 was likely to be 72 million tonnes and rice 87.1 million tonnes. On July 1, there was an estimated stock of 14.5 million tonnes of wheat and 10 million tonnes of rice, including unmilled paddy. Last year, wheat stock on July 1 was 19.1 million tonnes and rice 10.7 million tonnes.
Sex education for Mizo youth
Agartala, July 13: Mizoram education minister Lalthangliana, said the state government was concerned over the spread of HIV/AIDS among the youth and emphasised the need to impart awareness at the high school level.
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The minister was speaking at a discussion on methods of imparting sex education to teenagers, held at the SCERT auditorium on the occasion of World Population Day.
“It is a disconcerting fact that while everybody considers us to be a very healthy and clean society because of our Christian religion, we have been invaded by the dreaded HIV/AIDS. There is an urgent need in teaching the basic facts about this in all schools at the district levels within this year,” the minister said.
The minister said that while it was mostly the high and higher secondary students who fell victim to the disease, there was also a need to impart awareness at middle school levels.
Principal secretary, education, Vanhela Pachuau, who also spoke at the meeting, said learning about the virus through textbooks was not enough. He said awareness about HIV/AIDS should not be seen by students only as a means to fetch marks in examinations, but as something that could affect them personally.
“Instead of teaching these students about HIV/AIDS through their textbooks, they must be encouraged to learn about the disease through the news media,” he said. With the proliferation of commercial sex workers in the state, it was necessary to promote the use of condoms among students.
The joint director of the State Council of Education and Research Training, Sangchhuanmawii, said AIDS awareness campaigns had been conducted in several districts of Aizawl, Lunglei, Champhai and Serchhip and surveys had revealed that AIDS victims were mainly between the ages of 15 and 29.
She stressed the need to impart sex education to students and said an ongoing programme of the education sector would try to cover 90 per cent of the state schools within this year.
No pay hike for govt staff now
Monica Gupta & Sidhartha in New Delhi | June 07, 2005 09:08 IST
A committee headed by Cabinet Secretary BK Chaturvedi has turned down the request for constituting the Sixth Pay Commission to review the salaries and perks of all central government employees.
Senior officials told Business Standard the government was of the opinion that the Centre might not be able to bear the additional burden and the states were just recovering from the impact of the Fifth Pay Commission, whose recommendations were implemented in 1997.
The request was turned down by the committee a fortnight ago at a meeting with representatives of the Joint Consultative Mechanism, which is a group of 60-odd workmen employed with various ministries.
Apart from the cabinet secretary, the committee has the expenditure secretary and the personnel secretary as permanent members, while the largest number of JCM representatives are railway workmen.
The JCM intends to approach Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram to press its demands. The JCM meets the committee four times a year.
The Left parties, key allies of the United Progressive Alliance government, have in the past supported the demand for the constitution of the Sixth Pay Commission. There have also been demands to reduce the retirement age from 60 years to 58, as was the case before the implementation of the Fifth pay Commission.
In fact, one of the four recommendations of the last pay commission that has not been implemented so far, relates to the constitution of the Sixth Pay Commission.
Some states were also not keen on revision of salaries as they had to bear the additional burden, the officials said.
In fact, in their presentation to the Twelfth Finance Commission, states like West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya and Mizoram had sought a mechanism under which the Centre could not announce a pay revision without consulting states.
While seeking the Centre's help in offsetting the impact of the Fifth Pay Commission, a national wage policy had also been proposed by these states.
The Centre's wage bill for the year is estimated at Rs 38,650 crore (Rs 386.5 billion), as against Rs 36,700 crore (Rs 367 billion) in 2004-05. The civilian workforce is estimated to increase marginally to 3.46 million at the end of March 2006, compared to 3.42 million at end of March this year.
According to estimates, as a result of the Fifth Pay Commission recommendations, the share of government expenditure on general services in the total expenditure rose from 6.8 per cent in 1996-97 to 9.4 per cent in 1999-2000 and then fell to 7.3 per cent in 2003-04.
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High magnitude earthquake hits northeastern India
Guwahati, June 2, IRNA
India-Earthquake
A high magnitude earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale shook Indian northeastern region Thursday, causing panic among residents in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh states.
An official with the local seismological centre in Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, said the epicenter of Thursday's earthquake was plotted along border between Arunachal Pradesh and China's Tibet region.
The tremor occurred at 2.37 AM.
Police and residents in the region said people panicked and rushed out of their homes.
The tremor shook our houses and forced us out of our beds," Tipla Monpa, a police official in Tawang, bordering China, told IRNA by telephone.
There have been no reports of any damage or casualties so far, officials said.
The seven northeastern states - Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur - considered by seismologists as the sixth major earthquake prone belt in the world, experienced India's worst jolts, measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale in 1897, killing 1,600 people.
Assam had experienced a massive tremor measuring 8.5 on the Richter scale on August 15, 1950 that claimed some 1,500 lives.
Duel with the disease
It’s a malaise that the young are most prone to. Subhajoy Roy speaks to a team with an award-winning scientist, dedicated to research on kala-azar
She chose the road less taken, preferring research over more lucrative professions like engineering or medicine. Her dedication won Sreedhara Gupta national acclaim recently, in the form of the Young Scientist Award by the Indian Science Congress Association for her contribution to kala-azar research.
Sreedhara is part of a team at the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB), Jadavpur, that has been researching kala-azar. The disease is a deadly one, and is particularly prevalent in certain areas of India, including West Bengal. “WHO (World Health Organisation) has declared that in 2007 this disease is going to become an epidemic,” says the PhD student of IICB.
After passing out with top honours in Madhyamik from Sakhawat Memorial Girls School, she moved to South Point for Class XI and XII. Then, it was on to Jadavpur University for graduation and post-graduation in chemistry. When she applied for research work, kala-azar needed more hands. So she took the offer. “Lots of people are affected by the disease, but there is not enough awareness,” says Sreedhara.
Dr Salil C. Datta, head of the department of biological chemistry at IICB, explains: “Tropical countries are mainly found to be affected by kala-azar. North America, Africa and Asia are the most affected, but not a single kala-azar patient has been identified in Australia to date. The skin of the kala-azar patient blackens gradually. It affects the spleen and liver the most, and the five to 16 age group is most prone. Lack of proper treatment may turn out to be fatal.”
A female sandfly is the carrier of the parasite that spreads the disease. WHO has laid special emphasis on tackling kala-azar, which has been found to be among the five most widespread diseases in the world. In India, the eastern region remains the most affected area. States like Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Uttar Pradesh and Bengal have the most number of kala-azar patients. In December 2004, the village of Phoolmalancha in South 24-Parganas was severely affected, leaving 25 dead. Around that time, kala-azar also struck in Kandi, Murshidabad.
Adding to the danger is the fact that some recent cases have been showing a different strain of this disease. “It is being seen that HIV/AIDS patients are prone to kala-azar and vice versa. So there may be a link,” says Datta.
Dr U.N. Bramhachari first came up with a preventive drug for kala-azar, which worked well on soldiers during World War II. But it is no longer effective. There are a few drugs available, but they’re expensive, toxic and have side effects which can sometimes be fatal. Research as well as clinical trials are ongoing.
It is her research that earned Sreedhara the award. Applications poured in for the award from around the country. Six were finally selected, who then presented their papers to a jury and faced questions on their work. Sreedhara won the award in the area of new biology, and received it in Gandhinagar in January this year.
“We don’t make medicines. We provide details about the ingredients to be used and certain other clues based on which medicines are made,” adds Datta. “The parasitic cells and the host cells are almost the same. Parasites survive on the host cell’s nutrients. We have found a characteristic present only in the parasites. So we can apply drugs which are less toxic and kill that particular parasite, with less side effects,” summed up Datta.
The team is also trying to develop drugs from medicinal plants.
ADB sanctions Rs 900 cr for NE
Agartala, May 23: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) in its northeastern region urban development project would provide Rs 900 crore to five cities - Agartala, Aizawl, Gangtok, Kohima and Shillong, official sources said here today.
Jeffry Stubb, urban development specialist and representative of LEA International, a consultancy firm appointed by Asian Development Bank for preparation of the project, said Rs 900 crore would be provided for development of the five cities where 14 lakh people live.
The goal is sustainable urbanization through infrastructure provision, poverty alleviation and institutional development in the cities, he told reporters here today adding 90 percent of the project cost would be given as grant and the rest ten percent would be sanctioned as loan in easy interest.
He said the fund would be sanctioned by mid 2006, construction work will begin in mid 2007 and will be complete by mid 2011.
Stubb said as the capital of a fast growing state, Agartala will get Rs 360 crore for infrastructure development of roads, drainage, water supply, sanitation, solid waste and slum upgrading.
Candle-lit meet on AIDS
Shillong, May 15: A large number of people, including AIDS patients from all over the Northeast, lit candles today at Shillong’s All Saints Hall. It was an attempt to give more teeth to the anti-AIDS movement and creating greater awareness about the epidemic.
Altogether, 180 people, representing different groups from Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Assam and Meghalaya, were present at the candle lighting session.
AIDS victims from all over the region joined hands to organise the Candle Light Remembrance for Positive Activism. Unicef, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) and World Vision are supporting the programme.
The programme is a prelude to a regional convention on People Living With HIV and a rock concert featuring bands like Rebel Souls of Meghalaya, Guru Rewben Mashangva and others from Manipur. The rock concert will be held at the Malki grounds here.
E. Warjri, a representative of Voluntary Health Association of Meghalaya (VHAM), said the state was sitting on a time bomb. There has been no AIDS intervention programme in the city. NGOs have also done very little to ameliorate the situation.
Addressing reporters during a news conference, she said there are many intravenous drug users in some parts of Jowai, especially the coal belts. They have never taken a blood test and, therefore, remain unidentified.
“Most people would deny that they are AIDS patients because they fear ostracisation. HIV is a hidden epidemic that is growing at an alarming rate in the state,” said Warjri.
But she is confident that the Candle light Remembrance Programme and the convention, the first of its kind in Shillong, will bring a change in the mindsets and will create more tolerance towards AIDS patients.
Rare bamboo flowering in Gujarat yields tonnes of seeds
Ahmedabad, May 14: After experiencing what they call a "historic" moment, Gujarat Forest Department officials have collected 22 tonnes of bamboo seeds from two regions of Surat district during the gregarious bamboo flowering season, a fantastic phenomenon that is also associated with several superstitions among tribal folk.
The collection of seeds during the bamboo flowering, which occurs once in around 45 years, was done from Mangaldev and Fatheddev ranges of Surat district in South Gujarat, within 2,550 hectares of dense vegetation, a senior forest department official involved in the much-awaited project, told news agencies.
"Gregarious bamboo flowering that is scientifically known as 'tendrocly sprictus' and known as `Manvel' in local parlance, is a historic moment for any forest official due to its rare occurrence in any bamboo growing region," the official said.
The team involved in this huge project has so far collected 22 tonnes of bamboo seeds and the sale of full length bamboos that have flowered is expected to touch Rs 10 lakh, he added.
The phenomenon also occurs in north-eastern states of the country like Mizoram where it is associated with tribal superstitions like famine and plague outbreak.
Israel Independence Day celebrated in Mizoram
Aizawl, May 14 (UNI) The Independence Day celebration of Israel acquired a new meaning here yesterday in the backdrop of the recognition of ''Beni Menashe'' as one of the lost tribes of that country.
But the enthusiasm surrounding the celebration was tempered somewhat by the confusion over the exact date of the Independence day in the Gregorian calendar.
''Most of our people wrongly informed that the I-Day celebrations will take place on May 14, but the day falls on 'Ziv 5' in the Hebrew calender, which coincides with May 12, instead of May 14'', Elishevha Zodingliani, a leading member of the ''Beni Menashe'' organisation said.
''As we have been recognised as one of the lost tribes of Israel, it is our duty to celebrate Israel's Independence Day'', he added.
Despite the small number of the members present during the celebration, organised by the All Mizoram Israel Organisation, took place where Zodingliani took the chair and led the rendering of ''Hatikvah'', the Israel national anthem.
The Mizo-Israel identity has gained momentum with the recognition of the Beni Menashe as one of the lost tribes of Israel by Israel's chief Rabbi of the Sephardic sect on March 30 this year.
A section of Mizos has been striving to get their Jewish ancestery recognised for the last three decades. The news brought joy to thousands of Mizos living in Mizoram and Kukis in Manipur, who have been claiming themselves to be the descendents of 'Manashe'. They converted to Judaism and have been practising Jews for more then two decades.
Till date, more than 900 people, following Judaism have already migrated to Israel as tourists and then stayed on in concentrated settlements in Israel's sensitive areas like West Bank and Gaza, leaving behind their thatched villages in the tropical hills of northeast, especially Mizoram.
A state of the art weather forecast system for Aizawl
Mizoram capital Aizawl is soon going to have the state of the art technology to forecast weather.
Meteorological department officials have met Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga to discuss about setting up of Digital Current Weather Instrument System (DCWIS) at the Lengpui airport and another Met office in the city.
The Ministry of Science and Technology has planned to set up met office in all the northeastern states and Mizoram is going to be the privileged one to have it first.
During the meeting with Chief Minister the met officials informed him that five acres of land would be needed for setting up of the proposed project in the city. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister told them he would find a suitable place for the project in the city, in view of the scarcity of plane land in the hilly terrain.
Although a small met office already existed at the Lengpui airport, but the same was providing information for the airport alone. This would now be upgraded with modern technology. Another one proposed in the city would be very useful for the state as it would give hand in information about humidity, temperature besides the weather forecast. (ANI)
First Menashe Rabbi heads for Mizoram
Aizawl (Mizoram), May 9 (ANI) : Every time they kiss the 'Mizuza', a pious symbol on the enterance of Jewish home, a new ray of hope grips them, as the Rabbi from Israel is on his way to northeast India, which would pave the way for Mizo-Jews to return to their holy land of Israel ending a 2,700-year exodus.
Hundreds of Mizo tribes, who claim to be the descendents of one of the Biblical 10 "lost tribes" of Israel, are waiting for the arrival of Rabbi Yahuda Gin, the first Rabbi from the Beni Menashe clan in northeast India. The Rabbi, who started from Israeli capital Tel Aviv today en route to India, would be arriving in the capital city of Aizawl on Tuesday.
In a historic decision in the beginning of April, Israel's Chief Sephardi Rabbi Shlomo Amar decided to recognise the "Beni Menashe" clan in the northeast as the descendants of one of the original tribes of Israel.
"We are waiting for the arrival of Rabbi Yuhada Gin, who would possibly be in Aizawl on Tuesday", says Liyon Fanai, Secretary, Information and Publicity, Beni Menashe community in Mizoram.
The Rabbi would be accorded a warm welcome at the airport followed by a religious ceremony at the Hebrew Centre located in the heart of Aizawl city. After a week another Rabbi Khanok Avitzedek from Isreal would follow him, adds Liyon.
A section of Mizos have been striving to get their Jewish ansestery recognised for last three decades. The news has brought joy to thousands of Mizos living in Mizoram and Kukis in Manipur, who have been caliming to be the descendents of 'Manashe', one of the Biblical lost tribes. They converted to Judaism and have been practising Jews for more then two decades. These Judaisized Mizo-Kukis-Chins , all affiliated tribes living in the Mizoram-Burma region had recently organised themselves under a banner called 'Beni Menashe', which literally translates into 'Sons of Menashe'.
The news form Israel giving them recognition has given a new ray of hope to them. The Mizos, following Judaism are waiting for the 'Beit din' (rabbinical court) from the Chief Rabbinate to come to the region and conduct 'Giyur' (retual rebirth/ conversion) for those willing to be converted. After the conversion to Orthodox Jewery the members of the tribe will be taken to Israel without any hindrance as they would fall under the 'Law of Return of Isreal', which allows Jews to return to their homeland or the holyland as citizens.
Jewish community leaders in Mizoram explain the visit of Rabbi Yahuda Gin as a blessing for them form the Chief Rabbiate. The visiting Rabbi would teach the Jewish orthodox customs, Hebrew language and religious rituals to the Mizo tribes following Judaism, so that they can undergo ritual rebirth and be converted to orthodox Jews before .
The visit of Rabbi Yahuda is also being veiwed as a ground work for the arrival of 'Beit din' (rabbinical court), so that more and more Mizo-Jews join when the conversion takes place. So far 925 Mizos are enrolled as a member of Beni Menashe in Mizoram, those who have undergone circumcision.
Till date almost 800 people following Judaism have already migrated to Israel as tourists and then stayed on there in concrete settlements in Isreal's sensitive areas like West Bank and Gaza, leaving behind their thatched villages in the tropical hills of northeast.
"We know that when the Rabbi arrives many people, living below the poverty line, would like to join Judaism but we can always block. If he or she makes up mind to join then we can't block them but we want to filter the imposters from joining because of economic reasons", Liyon clarifies.
However, some Mizo scholars and researchers say the reported links of Mizos with Isreal are exaggerated. P C Biaksiama, a Church elder associated with Persbyterian Church, having stronghold in Mizoram, allege that Rabbi is just looking only at the one side of the coin, and listening to prejudice information by those, who believe that they are lost tribes of Israel.
It may be menbtioned here that the Mizo community following Judaism recently celebrated Jewish festival of Pesac (Passover) with great fervour with bread coming from Israel. (ANI)
India plans to fence Mizoram border
Saturday May 07 2005 09:10:21 AM BDT
New Delhi authorities have began work on sealing borders in rugged Mizoram frontier with Bangladesh, a leading Indian newspaper reported on Friday, reports BSS.
"The Centre has begun work on sealing the porous Indo- Bangladesh border in Mizoram, undeterred by the problems faced in fencing certain areas in other states," The Telegraph said.
According to the report a seven-km stretch has already been fenced at Hnahva in Mamit district by the National Buildings Construction Company Limited (NBCCL).
The report came as efforts by diplomats and two border troops were underway to ease the past several weeks of tension on porous frontlines between the two neighbours.
According to the report the Indian Home Ministry planned to fence the 318-km stretch of the Mizoram-Bangladesh frontier by 2007-08.
"From the portion that has been fenced in Mizoram, it
appears that this sector will be slightly different from our experience in other states. It may take more time and incur more expenditure due to the hilly terrain," Arup Roy Choudhury, chairman-cum- managing director of NBCCL, said.
An NBCCL official said Rs 11 crore was spent in fencing the seven km and a stretch of two km parallel to the fence.
The model of fencing is "double concertina coil" as followed in other states. The coils are placed both vertically and horizontally between the barbed wires, which stretch to a height of 8.4 feet.
Bangladesh shares 1,880 km borders with the Northeastern hilly Indian region.
According to the report, New Delhi also plans to regulate the free movement of people on the Indo-Myanmar border from 40 km to 16 km after signing of a memorandum of understanding with Yangon.
NCA-CAP tie-up raises many eyebrows
Sanjay Rajan
CHENNAI: The news of the National Cricket Academy (NCA) sending two coaches to Pondicherry for a three-day selection (May 2 to 4) followed by a 23-day training camp, organised by the Cricket Association of Pondicherry (CAP), has raised eyebrows in the cricket circles of Tamil Nadu, as CAP is a rival body of the Pondicherry Cricket Association (PCA), which is a district affiliate of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA).
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) joint secretary, Gautam Dasgupta, cleared the air partly on Monday when he stated that the two coaches — former India cricketers Vijay Bharadwaj and Sujit Somasundar — were being sent as part of the BCCI's New Areas Development Programme (NADP).
At a meeting in June 2003, the Union Territory of Pondicherry was chosen in the NADP along with other areas like Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Sikkim.
Dasgupta did not see this as a move that validates CAP as a body. "Our intention is to promote cricket, and since CAP had come forward to conduct a camp and requested us for coaches, we extended them the expertise. For that matter, we would have rendered similar assistance if the TNCA wanted to organise such a programme in Pondicherry. The bonafide of CAP will be discussed in a different forum," said Dasgupta.
The fact remains that CAP has the recognition of the Government of Pondicherry, and the Pondicherry Chief Minister, Rangaswamy had notified the BCCI that all correspondence with regard to the NADP or other cricketing matters be transacted with CAP, of which P. Damodaren is the Secretary.
TNCA's objection
The NCA had originally instructed former Tamil Nadu cricketer and NCA Level-2 graded coach D. Vasu to run the camp along with Bharadwaj, but the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association had taken objection to it. "We do not understand how the Board can appoint coaches for a body which is not recognised by either the State association or the Board itself. The PCA has been affiliated to the TNCA from the beginning. The TNCA is the governing body for cricket in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. This is an internal matter," said the TNCA assistant secretary K.S. Viswanathan.
"The PCA is organising a camp with TNCA's coaches shortly. Only players registered with PCA will qualify for further selections," he added.
Meanwhile, Damodaren said: "In all other sport, Pondicherry is directly affiliated to the Federations, and the Pondicherry State Sports Council has instructed us (CAP) to work directly with the BCCI. Though Pondicherry is a Union Territory, yet by virtue of itself having an elected Legislative Assembly, it nevertheless enjoys the status of a separate State like Delhi and Goa."
In Mizoram, bamboo mean dreams, nightmares
By Simon Denyer
AIZAWL, India (Reuters) - Once every 48 years, throughout the misty forests of Mizoram in northeastern India, wild bamboo flowers in unison. When it does, famine traditionally follows.
In 1959, in this hilly outpost of India's remote northeast, bamboo flowered and rats feasted on small green bamboo fruits and bred in their millions. When the fruit was exhausted, they swept like a plague through paddy fields, leading to widespread food shortages.
In 2007, the government hopes to be better prepared.
"In 1959, we forewarned the state government of Assam that there would be starvation, but they did not heed us. They said it was a tribal superstition," Mizoram's Chief Minister Zoramthanga told Reuters. "The next main flowering... is going to be a big challenge."
Mizoram was a part of neighbouring Assam state until it became a separate state in 1986.
Zoramthanga knows he cannot afford to fail. The last bamboo flowering gave birth to the Mizo National Famine Front, an organisation set up to meet food shortages, which ended up fighting the Indian government for independence.
The minister was one of the leaders of that rebel movement, renamed the Mizo National Front, which, after 20 years of war and close to 3,000 deaths, won for Mizoram recognition as a separate state but not independence from India.
"BAMBOO MINISTER"
Today, he is already being nicknamed "the bamboo minister" -- for this short, sprightly man is dreaming not just of fighting famine but of building a new prosperity for Mizoram out of bamboo.
"After the bamboo flowers, it dies and is finished," Zoramthanga said in an interview in Aizawl. "Unless we harvest it, we are going to waste billions and billions of rupees. We have to make roads into the jungle and harvest it as soon as possible."
The state government has bought two machines from Taiwan to process the bamboo into sheets, which he hopes will start production next month. Like a bamboo salesman, he takes out his samples and thumps them.
"It is very, very strong. It can be used for flooring, for walls and ceilings, for furniture. It is better than timber."
Bamboo chippings for paper mills, bamboo charcoal for fuel, bamboo "vinegar" to nourish the soil, the minister's list is endless. So too, he says, is global demand.
Fresh plantations of more economically profitable bamboo strains can be sown on the plentiful land of Mizoram's hills. In a decade, he says, remote bamboo-rich Mizoram could become India's richest state -- but only if private investors follow his lead.
It is too early to say if Zoramthanga's plans will ever bear fruit. Even he admits it will only be possible to harvest five percent of the bamboo before it flowers.
Already, across Mizoram, the small wheat-like flowers and green fruits -- each a little bigger than a golf ball -- have started appearing on bamboo plants.
But officials said vastly improved roads and state food aid will also prevent a repeat of the 19th century famines caused by mass flowering of bamboo forests.
The state government is also encouraging farmers to switch from paddy into cash crops like turmeric and ginger.
But the man in charge of preventing famine in 1959 says the government is neglecting the main task in hand.
Chawngthu Rokhuma shows old snapshots of thick piles of rats tails from the time he was in charge of the anti-famine effort. Instead of dreaming of new strains of bamboo, the government should concentrate on training villagers to poison rats, he says.
Two million tails were collected five decades ago -- farmers were paid 40 paisa for each one. "The government is not interested in rats," the old man laments.
Cell service
Aizawl, April 28: There may be good news for those fed up with the poor services offered to mobile telephone subscribers. Local businessmen are taking steps to ring in the competition with Airtel and Reliance mobile services.
C. Lalbiakliana from Zarkawt is working out a deal with the Airtel officials in Guwahati for a launch of its mobile services here.
Lal Thanhawla re-elected Mizo PCC chief
Aizawl, Apr 28: Former Mizoram Chief Minister and PCC chief Lal Thanhawla was today re-elected as party president defeating his lone rival, former Finance Minister John Lalsangzuala by 700 votes.
Lal Thanhawla secured 1,142 votes while Lalsangzuala could manage to get only 442 votes on the first day of the two-day MPCC general assembly here.
The former Chief Minister had held the post since 1973.
Lalsangzuala contested against him as there were some senior leaders who wanted that the former should be replaced in order to revamp the party.
Sainghaka, MLA and R Lalzirliana, MLA were also elected with thumping majority as vice-president and treasurer respectively.
Bureau Report
Will India have 180 cr people in 2045?
Concerned over the possibility of the country's population touching 180 crore by 2045, the government is taking various steps to rein in total fertility rates, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.
Replying to supplementaries, Health and Family Welfare Minister Ambumani Ramadoss said the steps taken to stabilise population include the adoption of a National Population Policy, constitution of the National Commission on Population, registration of the National Population Stabilisation Fund and constitution of an Empowered Action Group for focused attention on eight demographically weaker states.
The minister said the National Population Policy, 2000 aims at attainment of a total fertility rate of 2.1 by 2010.
Nine states -- Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa, Nagaland, Delhi, Pondicherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh and Mizoram -- have already achieved the desired Total Fertility Rate of 2.1 or less.
Eleven other states and Union Territories have achieved total fertility rate of less than 3.0, Ramadoss said.
Delimitation of constituencies to be completed by March 2006
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Delimitation of Parliament and Assembly constituencies in the entire country is likely to be completed by March 2006.
''If all goes well, we hope to complete the exercise by March 2006 and submit the proposals to the President fo issuing notification, Justice Kuldeep Singh, who heads the Delimitation Commission, told reporters here today.
He said the exercise of reorganising constituencies in smaller States like Pondicherry, Goa, Tripura and Mizoram had been completed and work was in progress with regard to Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
The Commission held a sitting here today to hear complaints and suggestions from political parties on draft proposals on delimitation of constituencies in the four southern districts of Kerala.
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