Mr Shylla was sacked as KHADC Chief Executive Member on Thursday. Nongpoh MDC Cleophas Banteilang Syiem will take over as the new Council chief.

The decision to replace Mr Shylla with Mr Syiem was taken at an emergency Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) meeting at the residence of Chief Minister DD Lapang .

Sixteen Congress MDCs attended the meeting and they unanimously settled for Mr Syiem as the CPP leader.

Ronnie V Lyngdoh and Mansturdy Nongrum were also elected as CPP secretary and party whip respectively.

Later, MPCC president OL Nongtdu told reporters that CPP decided to relieve Mr Shylla of the post of CEM due to his failure to submit to the Council the expenditures made in construction of the Wahkaji-Mawthabah Road.

Mr Nongtdu alleged that Mr Shylla had handed over tax collection under various Council departments, including Professional Tax and Trading, to private companies.

"These departments are the main organs of the Council and handing them over to private companies is not acceptable," he said.

The MPCC chief also said, "Mr Shylla had taken the decisions to hand over tax collection to private parties without taking his Executive Committee into confidence."

He, however, said Mr Shylla still remained a Congressman.

The 16 MDCs, who were present at the CPC meeting include Cleophas Banteilang Syiem, William Mynsong, Mansturdy Nongrum, Ronnie V Lyngdoh, Lamphrang Blah, Prestone Tynsong, Field Marshall Mawphniang, Leston Wanswett (nominated), Dr Phlur W Khongjee, Srally Rashir, Martamlin Pyrbot, Nesting Nong-dkhar, JT Stormding Thongni, Boldness L Nongum, Khan K Dkhar, Irine Lyngdoh. Other members Founder Sounder Cajee and H Donkupar Roy Lyngdoh skipped the meeting. Mr Cajee was ill, while Mr Lyngdoh was in Delhi. Mr Shylla was conspicuous by his absence at the meeting.

SHILLONG: Police on Thursday arrested one more person from Riangdo, West Khasi Hills for cheating a Jowai-based businessman out of Rs 43 lakh.

Police did not disclose the identity of the arrested but said a brand new Maruti Alto, Rs 1 lakh and two passbooks were seized from his possession.

During interrogation, the arrested revealed that he had convinced businessman Pynsuk Dkhar to lend him and his accomplices Rs 43 lakh with a promise that they would give Mr Dkhar Rs 1 crore in return.

Police said a bundle of cash was handed over to Mr Dkhar at Shillong on January 4 but the businessman was shocked to find that it contained gray paper sheets only.

A DHD 'sergeant', identified as Montu Haflongbar alias Andy Dimasa (20), surrendered before East Khasi Hills SP AR Mawthoh on Thursday. The militant did not deposit any arms.

SHILLONG: Ruling MDA ally UDP on Thursday branded as corrupt the Congress-led coalition government in the State, asserting that the party would help the people with a corruption-free government after winning at least 30 seats in the Assembly elections.

Addressing a news conference here, UDP president and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Donkupar Roy claimed that after being part of the MDA Government for five years, his party understood that the Congress-led Government was to blame for corruption in the State.

"On the basis of this fact (that Congress-led government has been corrupt) we cay that UDP would be in a better position to provide the people with a corruption free government," Dr Roy said.

He said UDP was the only party to have announced four women candidates for the elections, adding the party would field candidates in 52 of the 60 Assembly constituencies in the State.

UDP is also happy with the recent High Court verdict clearing party leader and former Chief Minister EK Mawlong of the Kolkata Meghalya House scandal.

"UDP is delighted at the court order that cleared former party chief EK Mawlong of the Meghalya House deal scam. 

The court verdict proves that it (the scam) was a conspiracy by certain vested interests to defame and divide the party," Dr Roy added.

Meanwhile, UDP leader and party candidate for Malki-Nongthymmai constituency Bindo M Lanong said if he won the election, he would try his level best to properly implement MLA schemes for welfare of the people.

"The fact is that the present legislator of the constituency has misused the MLA schemes," Mr Lanong alleged.

JOWAI: The Maruti Gypsy (ML 05 A 1371) of an Interdependent candidate was torched by supporters of a Congress nominee at Wahiajer under Nangbah-Wahiajer constituency on Thursday.

In an FIR filed with Ummulong police beat house, Interdependent candidate from Nangbah-Wahiajer Roland Shylla alleged that three supporters of Congress candidate

Sngiawbhalang Dhar set the former's Maruti Gypsy (ML 05 A 1371) on fire at Wahiajer.

Mr Shylla also named in the FIR the three persons -- Markus Pale, ME Shylla and Phour Dhar -- involved in the incident.

Though police registered a case in this connection, no one was arrested till filing of the report.

Talking to The Shillong Times, Mr Shylla alleged that the local dorbar of Wahiajer, which was supporting the Congress candidate, had declared "social boycott" of the Independent candidate.

"The local dorbar has also declared social boycott of the eight families who are supporting MDP candidate Edmund S Lyngdoh," Mr Shylla said. 

He claimed that the social boycott announced by the local dorbar was meant to stop possible divisions of votes.

Mr Shylla further said in October last four persons, named Finely Laloo, Andrew Sare, First Talang and Ebormi Dkhar, had "threatened to take his life" after he refused to withdrew his decision to fight the ensuing Assembly elections.

Our Reporter adds: West Khasi Hills district police seized a KHADC official vehicle Mahindra Bolero (ML05 E 3936) which was used by Rambrai MDC JTS Thongni for election campaign. Mr Thongni is the Congress candidate for Nongstoin constituency. The vehicle was actually allotted to Nongstoin MDC Nesting Nongdhar.

North East India Christian Council (NEICC), the apex body of all Christian churches in the region, has strongly denounced the way a facsimile picture of Jesus, along with the buildings of Laitumkhrah Presbyterian Church, All Saints Cathedral and Laitumkhrah Catholic Church, has been shown in the background of a calendar brought out by a firm this year. The picture of Christ is also accompanied by an extract from the Lord's Prayer.

"The Council has taken a serious note of this aberration, distortion and sending of a wrong message to the public as if Port Wine is identified with the Christian faith and that the implication of the Bible verse as quoted in the calendar vindicates consumption of wine," NEICC secretary Pastor NS Phawa said.

The Church leader said Laitumkhrah Presbyterian Church and All Saints Cathedral had questioned the "unauthorised incorporation" of the two church buildings in the calendar.

The NEICC secretary asked the advertiser to immediately stop distribution of the calendar in the market and demanded an unqualified apology for the hurt caused to religious sentiment of Christians. He also urged all concerned to desist from such "illegal and sensitive provocation simply to exploit market products."

Informing this on Thursday, DSP (City) In-charge Traffic Dr Sacheng R Marak said, "We have decided to extend the last date of collecting stickers as documents of most of the local taxis were still lying at the DTO, Shillong."

From January 14 till December 31, altogether 948 stickers have been issued.

The mobile courts will penalize those, who fail to collect the stickers within February 15, Dr Marak said adding that the district magistrates would be given a free hand to decide on the amount of fine to be imposed for the violation.

The government move to introduce the stickers is aimed at reducing the crime rate especially those committed by using the local taxis.

Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, CSC chairman KK Dkhar claimed "a few individuals" were trying to create confusion over the Committee's decision to select Mr Wankhar as the consensus candidate.

Stating that some other localities in the constituency have appreciated the decision, Mr Wankhar urged the people not to be misled by any false propaganda.

The two-day conference is also supported by Hotel Association of the State and Meghalaya Tourism Development Forum (MTDF), MAA chairman Bryan D Kharpran Daly said on Thursday.

Cavers from Europe, tour operators from across the country as well as from Bangladesh, Nepal and Thailand and the management of cement companies in the State will attend the conference.

"The moot point of the conference would be safety and protection of the caves of Meghalaya for heritage importance, intrinsic scientific value and economic benefit of the people through cave tourism," Mr Daly said.

Mr Daly, a veteran in caving, recently wrote an article "exotic caves in Meghalaya" which is likely to be published in the textbook of the MBoSE.

Tourism Director Tining Lyngdoh said the Government was committed to lay special thrust on promoting cave tourism in the State, which is "blessed with a huge number of caves" especially in Jaintia Hills

So Mr EK Mawlong has been exonerated by the Shillong Bench of the Gauhati High Court on the Kolkata Meghalaya House case. Does that prove that all of us who resisted the deal at the time were wrong? No, I firmly believe we were right. The case was won by default because the present Government and the one before it were constrained by politics to virtually abstain from seriously pursuing the matter. After merely dashing off one letter to the Union Ministry for Personnel Affairs asking the CBI to investigate the case, Government had to back off since the UDP was a coalition partner of the Khonglam ministry and also the present one. How could any government embarrass its coalition partner without consequences? So, although the Kolkata Meghalaya House deal is inherently flawed the case was won because the opposite party, in this case the Government of Meghalaya, virtually gave a walk over. They could not contest the case because it was politically inappropriate to do so.

Those who have studied each and every document pertaining to the case know that the Kolkata Meghalaya House deal was bad in intent. How can anyone accuse Mr TH Rangad of having misplaced political ambitions because he raised a storm? Did he not step down as cabinet minister on this issue and then documented point by point why the deal was not good for Meghalaya. He is perhaps one of the few with the courage of conviction to take a stand against corruption.

Commenting on the issue, the editor of a Guwahati based English daily circulating in Meghalaya, whose sympathies apparently lay with the deposed chief minister, actually blames the media as being used by the political system at the time. Merely because the High Court dismissed the case for want of evidence, which was not provided by the State, it does not mean that the allegations are 'frivolous' as the learned editor suggests. He should be told that in Meghalaya there have been serious cases of corruption in the PHE and Health Departments as far back as the 1980s. Commissions of enquiry which indicted certain political personalities never saw the light of day. Does this mean the allegations were frivolous? Is it not the system which is defective. So, before giving Mawlong a clean chit the editor would do well to ground himself in the realities obtaining here.

Certain questions come to mind at this point. If Mr EK Mawlong was clear and unambiguous about the merit of the memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed between the State Government and the Asian Housing and Construction Ltd (AHCL) why did he not stand by it? Lest we forget, the MOA was to hand over the prime property at Russell Street to AHCL for a 99 year period with successive and automatic renewal every ten years. In a letter written by Mr TH Rangad to the then Union Minister of DoNER, Mr Arun Shourie, Rangad said, " In the case at hand, the projected built-up area of 1,29,106 sq. ft, valued at Rs 10,000 per sq ft, (the market value at the time) would have fetched Rs 129 crores but it was given away for a paltry deposit Rs 10 lacs and a Rs 3 crores construction cost for the Meghalaya House. AHCL would pay an annual rent of Rs 2.50 lakhs per annum for a ten year period to be renewed by a mere Rs 15,000 per annum every ten years for 99 years".

In his deposition before the shortlived Rajkhowa Commission Mr Rangad said, " I fail to understand how a joint venture can be entered into, with one party, that is the Government of Meghalaya, not knowing the value of its assets which is being offered as its equity or its share in the project. The High Powered Committee set up to oversee the deal at the time thus failed in its very first duty to ensure that the interests of the State were protected by intentionally ignoring the prime value of land".

Rangad further observes,"When the Committee was only tasked to examine in depth the proposal, it was their duty to do so and obtain the views of Finance, Planning, Law, Revenue Departments etc and thereafter put up a concise Cabinet Memorandum for consideration and approval of the scheme/project by the Cabinet especially as it involved alienation of land. This was not done. The Official Committee did not at any stage put up a Draft MOU/Agreement for consideration and approval of the Cabinet. It is also strange and alarming that after the Official Committee was formed, this particular matter, i.e, the construction of a Meghalaya House in Kolkata, even though it was a major project for a small state like Meghalaya, never even once came to the Cabinet as a Formal Item of discussion but always as an Informal Item, thus playing down its importance and never was approval for the same sought. This in my opinion was done intentionally".

Indeed in the entire agreement Mr Rangad pointed out that there was no mention of the contribution of the Government of Meghalaya and the AHCL respectively, in actual monetary terms. He says this was done intentionally so that the Agreement is loose, vague and misguiding giving all scope and chances for manipulation and litigation at a later date.

Clause 4 of the Agreement which says that 'this agreement is final and complete record of the agreement between the parties and none of the letter, correspondences, memos, bid documents or other papers exchanged between the parties and/or floated by the GoM will have any effect and all amendments and supplements to this agreement if any, shall be made expressly by the parties in writing as and by way of supplementary agreement and not otherwise'. Experienced lawyers dealing with corporate cases say that this clause is ultra vires and not legal, yet it was allowed. It is a legal procedure that the NIT or Bid Documents and all correspondences do and should form a part of any Agreement as it is a fact that any tender is cast on the basis of the NIT and the Agreements are also made on the basis of the NIT or Bid Documents which should form part of the Final Agreement. Clause 4 actually seeks to nullify all previous letters, correspondence, bid documents etc and this was allowed by the GA Department knowing fully well the legal implications. To the trained eye this was done intentionally to favour AHCL.

The Meghalaya House proposal was never approved by Cabinet at any stage. The Cabinet Note placed before the Cabinet on 5.4.2001 was meant only for "Circulation and appraisal" and not for approval. In the third line of Para 14 it reads thus …."it has been decided to execute an agreement for construction of a joint venture project…..". Mr Rangad writes, "I am not able to understand who had "decided" and by what authority was the decision made when the Cabinet never approved of the same in conformity with the Rules of Executive Business as clearly stated in Schedule II Rule 17. It is not known under what rules or by what authority the decision was taken which clearly points to a conspiracy of those representing the Government, to arrive at this Agreement which is detrimental to the interests of the State after flouting all norms of accepted and existing Rule of Executive Business of the State of Meghalaya".

Russell Street is today a priceless property. With globalization having entered West Bengal with a fury, Kolkata is set to become the most up-market area. Thanks to public outcry, today we are assured that this prime property remains ours and is not alienated to a private company. We also know that whatever earnings accrue from the commercial sections will flow directly into the coffers of the State. It depends how the State negotiates with multinationals who will queue to bargain for a piece of space to market their branded products.

At this point it is easy to get lost in the hype and hoopla surrounding the Court judgment on the instant case. Critics will be quick to criticize those who took up cudgels against the deal. But I, for one, am not apologetic and will not run for cover. Those of us raised the stink at the time did so with no ulterior motive and with absolutely no partisan spirit. We had no intentions or indeed any interest to prop up politician A and bring down politician B. We were not 'used' as some are wont to suggest.

In fact, now that politicians have turned businessmen or agents of the business class, and are can no longer be trusted to be custodians of State assets, it is becoming the responsibility of civil society and the media to keep a close watch on the various deals signed and to critique each one, especially those hurriedly concluded agreements which usually reek of a sell-out. As a citizen its is my duty to protect the assets of the State, including its land and forests from being bartered away to corporate sharks. Obviously we have failed to do that in the case of the MOA with Lafarge vis-à-vis the Shella limestone mines. It is important that we keep track of the impending power deals too. Since the agreements have already been signed the State is on a sticky wicket if it chooses to back out.

Court cases won by an individual merely because the opposite party could not cover its flanks are not the best indicators of justice having been delivered. Naturally the Court has rightly passed strong strictures on the defaulter, i.e. the Government of Meghalaya.

Sir,

Apropos the letter entitled 'Postal Dept Blues' (ST, Jan 21), I have a wholesome experience at Laitumkurah Post Office.

Recently I arrived at speed post counter at 2.30p.m. I was told that there would be no speed post booking after 2 pm. I told the counter that I am a senior citizen and the matter was urgent. The person concerned asked me to wait for a few minutes and accepted a speed post article. It reached Delhi in time.

Recently, I withdrew a very large amount of money from Postal Monthly Income scheme. I was asked to come after five days as cheque was to be brought from Shillong GP0. I was handed over the cheque on the fixed date. There are two cardinal rules displayed at the counter.

NO.1. The customer is always right

NO.2. Even if the customer is wrong, read rule NO.1

Yours etc.
B Datta Ray.
Shillong-3

Sir,

The Power Minister of Meghalaya Mukul Sangma has planned to set up thermal power station at Nongalbira in Garo Hills. However, he has failed to see the vast potential for hydro power project in the Garo Hills, as there are more rivers in the Garo Hills than other parts of Meghalaya. Several Garo MLAs had become Power Minister in the past but none tried set up a hydro power station in the Garo Hills so far. It is really a disgrace for them. Hope the next power minister of Meghalaya would think upon this fact.

Yours etc.
Earningstone R Sangma,
Shillong-1

"Congress party has played a significant role in the all round development of the North-East, particularly Arunachal Pradesh. Four decades ago, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had accorded Union Territory status to Arunachal Pradesh and two decades back Rajiv Gandhi had made it a state," he said.

Dr Singh, who arrived here on a two-day visit, was addressing party workers after inaugurating the new Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan, headquarters of the Pradesh Congress Committee, here.

The Prime Minister, who was accompanied by Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu, said Arunachal Pradesh had a special place in Rajiv Gandhi's heart and he was happy that the new building was named after him.

He said both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi gave special emphasis on the rapid development of the entire northeastern region, especially Arunachal Pradesh by launching various schemes.

Singh pointed out that he was a Member of Parliament from the region and said his government has been taking a number of steps for the fast progress of the northeast in all spheres.

The Prime Minister urged the people to work hard and fulfil the dreams of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi and the vision of UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Meanwhile, The BJP on Thursday criticised Prime Minister for not including a visit to Tawang in his itinerary during his tour of Arunachal Pradesh, saying it did not give the right signal. (PTI)

Guwahati/NEW DELHI: The cold wave conditions in north-eastern region of the country is likely to continue for the next couple of days.

The unprecedented cold condition, unusual at this time of the year, was the result of sporadic rains in various parts of the region caused due to Western disturbance, sources in the regional meteorology office said here on Thursday.

The disturbance is likely to move eastward towards Arunachal Pradesh and under its influence, cold weather conditions coupled with spells of rains are expected till Friday, they said.

Heavy rain is also predicted in Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Manipur during the next 48 hours while Assam will experience occasional showers.

The sky will remain cloudy as a result of which the mercury will further dip and the city could have a minimum temperature of 10 degrees Celsius which is "very low" compared to this time of the year, sources said.

Normal life was thrown out of gear for the second day in Guwahati today with intermittent showers and wind.

A report from Gangtok said that cold conditions continued to persist in Sikkim with the minimum temperature falling to 1.1 degrees Celsius, the lowest this winter.

The report said there would be no immediate respite from the prevailing cold condition in the next couple of days due to continuing snowfall in the hilly regions of Sikkim and rainfall in various parts.

Meanwhile, the unrelenting cold wave claimed two more lives in Uttar Pradesh and pushed up the toll in the state to 67 while icy winds and numbing temperatures held grip over the entire sub-Himalayan belt today.

The mercury dipped further to minus 15.7 degrees Celsius in Pahalgam even as tourists made the best of the prolonged winter with Gulmarg ski resort of Jammu and Kashmir covered in a thick blanket of snow.Frosty weather held sway over the Kashmir valley with Kupwara at minus 10.8, Qazigund minus 5.6 and Kokernag minus 5.4 Celsius while Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and the north-east recorded near-zero temperatures and overcast conditions.

The overnight minimum in Gangtok was 1.1 C while Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh posted a record low of minus 1 degree Celsius. Two persons died of cold in Jaunpur district of the state which has recorded 67 deaths this season. (PTI)

Itanagar: Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Thursday announced infrastructure development schemes worth over Rs 1300 crore for Arunachal Pradesh. Dr Singh in his speech termed the Northeastern hill state the ‘land of rising sun’ in the country sending a veiled message to neighbouring China that considers a large part of the northeastern state as disputed territory.

"I sincerely hope that like the sun, Arunachal Pradesh will rise from the east as a new star and become one of the best states of our country," he said addressing in Hindi a jam packed Indira Gandhi Park in Arunachal Pradesh’s capital, Itanagar.

Dr Singh on his maiden visit to the State assured that Government of India was deeply committed to put in place rail, road and air connectivity infrastructure to bring the bordering state closer to the mainland India and put it on the fast track of development.

Announcing before the crowd wearing colourful tribal dresses and head gears, Dr Singh announced that besides improving air, road and rail connectivity, the Government of India was keen to tap the huge hydro-electricity generation potential of Arunachal Pradesh in coordination with the state government.

He said, "Tapping hydro-electricity potential can change the face of Arunachal Pradesh given that the state could earn revenue in the range of Rs 300 to over Rs 600 crore."

The Prime Minister today inaugurated 110 MW Daimukh Hydro-electricity Project near Itanagar besides laying the foundation of 3000 MW Dibang Hydro-electricity project to be implemented by National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC).

The Government of India will provide Rs 550 crore to Arunachal Pradesh to install solar power plants and mini-hydel projects to light up all the border villages in the hill state that has long borders with China (1080 km), Myanmar (440 km) and Bhutan (160 km), within two years. He announced a flood mitigation project of Rs 500 crore for the hill state.

Dr Singh today laid the foundation of 32 km Harmoti (Assam) – Itanagar Railway line that will put the state in the map of Indian Railways and facilitate people from the state to travel to destinations in rest of the country through Guwahati and Rangiya in Assam. The project will cost around Rs 245 crore. Survey is being done for two more Railway line projects connecting Arunachal Pradesh.

Announcing that a daily chopper service between Guwahati to Tawang, the tourist hot spot in Arunachal Pradesh, will be started soon, the PM announced that government of India was preparing a blue print for setting several green field airports in the hill state.

He announced that four-lane Trunk Arunachal Pradesh Highway (1840 km) connecting all important centres of the state including Tawang, Bomdila, Mahadevpur, Khunsa will be constructed to trigger rapid development of the state. The state capital Itanagar will be connected to the four-land highway while all the district headquarters of the state would be connected by two-lane highways.

The Prime Minister was accompanied by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, DONER minister Mani Shankar Aiyar, Minister of State in the PMO, Prithviraj Chavan. The newly-appointed Arunachal Pradesh Governor and former Indian Army chief, J J Singh and state chief minister Dorjee Khandu also shared the dais with the PM during the public rally.

The PM also unveiled a bust of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and inaugurated Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan, headquarter of Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee besides visiting Ram Krishna Mission Hospital in Itanagar. Lauding the yeoman service provided by the hospital, her announced Rs 10 grant for it and called upon the DONER Ministry to provide more fund to it.

Itanagar: An hour before the arrival of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here, a securityman guarding his route "accidentally" fired at a labourer causing a flutter on Thursday.

Police said a casual labourer Yangbin Yaya was injured when a bullet went off accidentally from the revolver of a jawan of the India Reserve Battalion and hit his lower jaw.

The jawan was standing guard on National Highway 52A through which the Prime Minister's motorcade was to pass shortly after his arrival here on a two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh. The labourer was engaged in work at the Indira Gandhi Park where Singh was to address a public meeting in the afternoon.

The firing incident occurred near a petrol pump which is hardly 100 yards away from the venue of the public meeting.

Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu said the bullet hit the ground before wounding the labourer. His injury was not serious, Khandu said. A case was registered against the jawan. (PTI)

Following are the announcements made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for development of Arunachal Pradesh:

n Planning Commission to give Rs 265 crore this year for completion of all the projects yet to be completed in Arunachal Pradesh.

n Construction of a new secretariat building.

n Two major hydel power projects to be built at Pare and Dibang.

n A Rs 77-crore water supply scheme to be implemented in state capital Itanagar.

n Construction of an Itanagar-Harmuti railway link.

n Rs 550 crore to be spent on electrification of all villages in the state, including those along the border, in the next two years.

n Construction of a greenfield airport at Itanagar and development of several other airstrips in the state, including some by the Defence Ministry.

n Establishment of a Guwahati-Tawang daily helicopter service.

n Construction of a Tawang to Mahadevpur 1840 km-long highway connecting the entire state, with its construction to be taken up as a priority project.

n Rs 400 crore to be given for flood control and reconstruction.

n Rs 10 crore to be given to Ramakrishna Mission Hospital, which is one of the biggest in the Northeast, from the Prime Minister's Relief Fund. The Prime Minister has also asked the Planning Commission and the donor ministry to provide additional Rs 30-40 crore for the hospital. (PTI)

An official report received here on Thursday stated that the party workers were infuriated on allocation of Congress ticket to a candidate, who recently joined the party, and set the district office ablaze on Wednesday.

The Congress ticket was allocated to Legislator P Chuba Chang, who won the Tuensang Sadar-I constituency as an Independent candidate in the last Nagaland Assembly elections in 2003, party sources said.

Recently, he joined the Congress and the party allocated him the ticket to contest in the March 5 Assembly elections from the Tuensang Sadar-I constituency.

This infuriated a section of the Congress workers and they set the DCC building afire.

However, other members soon doused the flames and saved the building from further damage, the sources added. (UNI)

Agartala: Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and his three cabinet colleagues on Thursday filed their nominations for the February 23 Assembly election.

Sources in the State Election department said that the Chief Minister filed his nomination from Dhanpur constituency in West Tripura district, Finance Minister Badal Chowdhury from Hrishyamukh constituency in South Tripura district, Agriculture Minister Tapan Chakraborty from Chandipur in North Tripura district and Animal Resource Development Minister Pranab Debbarma from Simna constituency in West Tripura district.

The Election department also announced that no helicopter would be provided for polling parties in certain traditionally backward and remote localities in Tripura during the Assembly elections.

Chief Election Officer G S G Ayyangar said considering the inclement weather and strong gusty wind, the department would not risk sending polling parties by helicopter to the 21 remote localities this time.

''Since the weather is most unpredictable in a hilly state like Tripura, we would not send the polling officials by air routes because if the helicopters cannot take off on time, it would be very difficult for us to conduct elections in those areas on the day. We have decided to send the officials along with adequate security contingent at least a day before the schedule departure,'' Dr Ayyanger stated. (Agencies)

He said the transport and police departments were asked to manage at least 5000 different category vehicles for election purpose besides, the arrangement of some stand by vehicles.

Dr Ayyanger, however, pointed out that the law and order situation in Tripura had improved a lot in the past one year and most of the areas were connected by surface transport. As the state would get sufficient security personnel for the election, the department would opt for surface transport for the polling parties. (Agencies)

The committee also stated that the government should take a decision on the issue during the budget session of the Assembly, which begins on Friday. The JAC for 5th and 6th IRB Battalion waiting list candidates has also called for another 24-hour statewide general strike from 0500 hrs Friday demanding immediate announcement of results.

Meanwhile, the JAC formed in connection with the mysterious death of Toijam Ningol Oinam Ongbi Shanti Devi of Charangpat Mamang Leikai, Thoubal on January 8 has called a 24-hour bandh along Indo-Burma Road in Thoubal from 5 a.m. on Friday. (UNI)

Official sources said here on Thursday that seven migratory birds were reported dead at Sekmai in Imphal West.

However, so far no deaths had been reported at Loktak lake where large numbers of migratory birds come during the winter.

Meanwhile, the State Veterinary team on Thursday sent the blood samples to the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory, Bhopal, officials said. A ban had also been imposed on the entry of any poultry products from outside the state and officials were conducting regular checks at the Manipur-Myanmar border areas.

Meanwhile, Orissa and Bihar have also stepped up measures to prevent the possible spread of avian influenza from West Bengal, along with north-eastern states like Manipur and Nagaland. (UNI)

Gangtok: The ban on the entry or sales of any poultry product in Sikkim following the outbreak of bird flu in the neighbouring West Bengal has severely affected the local poultry business.

Even as bird flu outbreak is on the rampage, poultry farmers in West Bengal are spending sleepless nights as the prices of chicken and eggs have plummeted leaving them in the lurch. This has also not spared small poultry businesses in Sikkim.

With the import of chicken and eggs from West Bengal coming to a grinding halt after the outbreak of bird flu, the poultry sector in Sikkim is in tatters.

In Gangtok, the demand for free-roaming country chicken and poultry products from local poultry farms has gone up and the people are willing to pay the price. Country chicken is selling for as much as Rs. 200 per kg.

And it is the fish mongers who are making the most of the crisis.

The prices of fish have risen in the the Sikkim capital but this has not reduced the demand in any ways. The fish sellers admit the fact that there has been an increase in the prices.

"Earlier we offered discounts up to Rs. 10 and now we are not selling on a bargain," says Saheed Rehman, a fish seller. According to him, it's the all time favourites like rohu, followed by katla and magur that is on the top selling list.

The sale of fish in the local market has increased by Rs. 10 kg per a day. (NNN)

Guwahati: Global ecological forces have joined hands with local people to save the Deepor Beel, the wetland just on the outskirts of the Guwahati city, which is extremely important to maintain the ecological balance of the entire Northeastern region.

The Global Response, an ecological conservation group based in North Dakota, United States, has forged a partnership with local citizens of the region in Assam, to protect the biologically rich Deepor Beel wetland.

The Deepor Beel comprises an area of 10,000 acres adjacent to the capital city. The wetland is recognised by the Ramsar Convention for the Protection of Wetlands as an ecosystem of global importance.

The Birdlife International also cites Deepor Beel as an Important Bird Area (IBA) since the wetland provides breeding and feeding grounds for millions of birds. As many as 219 bird species, including more than 70 migratory birds, depend on Deepor Beel.

The wetland provides critical habitat for 17 globally threatened bird species. It is a major ''staging ground'' where migratory birds rest and feed along their migration routes. Loss of wetland ''staging grounds'' like the Deepor Beel could threaten the survival of an entire species of migratory birds.

Besides, the NE states receive heavy rainfall and without the vast Deepor Beel wetland ecosystem to absorb the excess rainfall, the capital city could be washed away by floods during the monsoons every year. The wetland also cleans and filters the water polluted with toxic industrial wastes, making it safe for human use.

However, the extremely important wetland is already endangerd as it is not being able to withstand the high amount of pollution and toxic wastes dumped into it.

Meanwhile, the local environmental organisations and fishing families, living around Deepor Beel, have been urging the government authorities to stop the dumping of garbage into the wetland.

There is also an urgent need to stop the steady encroachment of settlements and industries into the wetland area and prevent the contamination from agricultural and industrial wastes, as well as creating a proper management system to regulate human activities in the wetland.

However, the local residents alleged that so far, neither the state government nor the Centre had taken concrete steps to protect Deepor Beel.

''Our forefathers protected this wetland and we are committed to do the same as we depend on the wetland for our livelihood,'' Bhupen Das, who represents the Deepor Beel Fishermen's Cooperative Society, said.

''Having a single management authority for the Ramsar site will go a long way in solving most of the problems Deepor is facing,'' Bibhab Talukdar, secretary general of the Aaranyak, a society for biodiversity conservation in the NE, opined.

Meanwhile, several indigenous fishermen and environmentalists had joined forces to protect Deepor Beel. However, they felt that international organisations could contribute immensely and take timely action to conserve the wetland. Subsequently, the Global Response was approached, which launched an international campaign to save the wetland's ecosystem.

''Protecting wetlands is a global as well as a local concern,'' Paula Palmer, executive director of the Global Response, said.

''We need to act as a world community to protect the planet's most productive ecosystems and Deepor Beel is one of them,'' she added.

Students at the North Dakota State University, one of whose professors Achintya Bezbaruah comes from the Deepor Beel region, are also promoting the Save Deepor Beel campaign. (UNI)