MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a treaty making Crimea part of Russia, in a historic redrawing of Russia's borders after he declared that the Black Sea region has always been "in the hearts" of his countrymen.
In a fast-moving sequence of events following Crimea's controversial secession referendum on Sunday, the Kremlin said Crimea was now considered part of Russia and no longer Ukrainian territory, shrugging off strong international objections.
"In the hearts and minds of people, Crimea has always been and remains an inseparable part of Russia," Putin said in an emotional address broadcast on television.
The move, which came sooner than expected, risks plunging the west and Russia into a crisis not seen since the Cold War and sent shock waves through the new authorities in Ukraine who took over after the ousting of pro-Kremlin president Viktor Yanukovych last month.
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Moto X coming to India on March 19 at Rs 23,999
NEW DELHI: Motorola's flagship phone, Moto X, is launching on March 19 at a starting price of Rs 23,999.
The announcement related to the price and availability of the device has been made by e-commerce website Flipkart, Motorola's exclusive launch partner for the device in India. The company has also informed that it will only sell the 16GB storage variant of the Moto X and the wood back variants would be available at Rs 25,999. At the time of the launch, only the Black and White versions of the phone will be in stock and that the other versions will be delivered in the second week of April.
Unlike the Moto G, which went on sale at midnight, Moto X will have a daytime launch, Flipkart added.
Moto X is the only flagship smartphone by a major company that aims to lure customers with the promise of optimized user experience instead of beefed up hardware. The device has a 4.7-inch HD screen, dual-core processor, 10MP camera and 2GB RAM.
Responding to queries from its Twitter followers, Flipkart had said that Moto X will be available with wood panel finish in teak and walnut. With a plastic back cover, the phone will be available in five colours. Moto Maker - the online tool that allows users to customize Moto X - will not be available at launch.
The smartphone comes with a unique always-on voice assistant that listens to the commands even if the user is not operating the handset. It also comes with a Quick Capture feature, which allows users to jerk their wrist twice to open the camera app. The camera of Moto X also features ClearPixel technology that allows 75% more light to enter, thus producing better low light pictures.
Much like Nokia's Glance Screen, Moto X comes with Active Display; this feature shows the time, unread messages and emails, missed calls and other notifications even when the screen is turned off. The device is preloaded with the Migrate app, which allows users to transfer data like contacts, photos, videos and even call log and SMSs from any Android 4.2-powered phone.
Motorola also sells Moto G, its budget Android smartphone, exclusively through Flipkart, at a starting price of Rs 12,499. It is not clear if Motorola will expand availability of its phones to offline channels.
The announcement related to the price and availability of the device has been made by e-commerce website Flipkart, Motorola's exclusive launch partner for the device in India. The company has also informed that it will only sell the 16GB storage variant of the Moto X and the wood back variants would be available at Rs 25,999. At the time of the launch, only the Black and White versions of the phone will be in stock and that the other versions will be delivered in the second week of April.
Unlike the Moto G, which went on sale at midnight, Moto X will have a daytime launch, Flipkart added.
Moto X is the only flagship smartphone by a major company that aims to lure customers with the promise of optimized user experience instead of beefed up hardware. The device has a 4.7-inch HD screen, dual-core processor, 10MP camera and 2GB RAM.
Responding to queries from its Twitter followers, Flipkart had said that Moto X will be available with wood panel finish in teak and walnut. With a plastic back cover, the phone will be available in five colours. Moto Maker - the online tool that allows users to customize Moto X - will not be available at launch.
The smartphone comes with a unique always-on voice assistant that listens to the commands even if the user is not operating the handset. It also comes with a Quick Capture feature, which allows users to jerk their wrist twice to open the camera app. The camera of Moto X also features ClearPixel technology that allows 75% more light to enter, thus producing better low light pictures.
Much like Nokia's Glance Screen, Moto X comes with Active Display; this feature shows the time, unread messages and emails, missed calls and other notifications even when the screen is turned off. The device is preloaded with the Migrate app, which allows users to transfer data like contacts, photos, videos and even call log and SMSs from any Android 4.2-powered phone.
Motorola also sells Moto G, its budget Android smartphone, exclusively through Flipkart, at a starting price of Rs 12,499. It is not clear if Motorola will expand availability of its phones to offline channels.
NCP to back Neiphiu Rio for lone Nagaland seat
Kohima: The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Nagaland unit, has decided to unanimously support chief minister Neiphiu Rio, the Naga People's Front (NPF) candidate for the lone Lok Sabha seat of Nagaland, after getting the nod from its central leadership. Nagaland will vote on April 9.
The newly-appointed state NCP president Imtilemba Sangtam and NCP party legislature wing leader T M Lotha said the national NCP president, Sharad Pawar, directed the party's state unit to support Neiphiu Rio, also the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN)'s consensus candidate for the forthcoming LS polls.
The decision was endorsed during the close d-door meeting of NCP Nagaland state co-ordination committee at Dimapur on Saturday. It was attended by NCP legislators and party office bearers, said Lotha.
Sangtam said the party would be strengthened in the state and members would revamp the party at the grass-roots level after the LS polls. NCP has four legislators in the Nagaland assembly of 60 members.
Both the NCP leaders asserted that the decision to support Rio in the parliamentary election was taken mainly on the issue of the protracted Naga political problem. They said tge party believed that Rio, who has been taking initiatives to sort out the Naga problem, is the fittest leader to persuade central leaders to bring about an acceptable solution to the decades-old Naga political issue.
The state NCP leaders expressed gratitude to the central party leaders for appointing Imtilemba as the new state president, for promoting former state NCP president Neiba Ndang to the post of national secretary and for appointing NCP legislator Mmhonlumo Kikon as the central observer of NCP for the northeast states.
~TOI
The newly-appointed state NCP president Imtilemba Sangtam and NCP party legislature wing leader T M Lotha said the national NCP president, Sharad Pawar, directed the party's state unit to support Neiphiu Rio, also the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN)'s consensus candidate for the forthcoming LS polls.
The decision was endorsed during the close d-door meeting of NCP Nagaland state co-ordination committee at Dimapur on Saturday. It was attended by NCP legislators and party office bearers, said Lotha.
Sangtam said the party would be strengthened in the state and members would revamp the party at the grass-roots level after the LS polls. NCP has four legislators in the Nagaland assembly of 60 members.
Both the NCP leaders asserted that the decision to support Rio in the parliamentary election was taken mainly on the issue of the protracted Naga political problem. They said tge party believed that Rio, who has been taking initiatives to sort out the Naga problem, is the fittest leader to persuade central leaders to bring about an acceptable solution to the decades-old Naga political issue.
The state NCP leaders expressed gratitude to the central party leaders for appointing Imtilemba as the new state president, for promoting former state NCP president Neiba Ndang to the post of national secretary and for appointing NCP legislator Mmhonlumo Kikon as the central observer of NCP for the northeast states.
~TOI
SUMA calls for boycotting Naga People's Front
ITANAGAR: The Students' Union Movement of Arunachal (Suma) called for a boycott of Naga People's Front (NPF) in Arunachal, saying the party, 'formed in 1964 for the renaissance of Naga brotherhood,' sought only to promote their interests.
In a representation to the state chief electoral commissioner, the Suma alleged that the NPF has close ties with NSCN (I-M) and expressed apprehension that its presence in Arunachal would lead to tribal unrest besides allowing the party to exert political influence through 'militant power.'
It said the people of Arunachal should be united in opposing the NPF's entry in the greater interest of the state and its future.
Monday, 17 March 2014
Father refuses to accept two-headed baby daughter in Haryana
This is a story of one heart and two souls. While one cries the other is fast asleep. This baby girl with two heads was born to a poor family in Sonepat district of Haryana on Thursday and since then she has caught the whole world's attention.
The condition of the child is called 'dicephalus parapagus'. It is a very rare case and the child is striving for its survival, and the doctors in Sonepat have referred the baby to AIIMS; she is now under observation in the premier hospital.
However, it may not be possible to separate the twins because they share the same body. "The baby girl has two heads, two necks and two spines, but only one body, one lung for each head, two separate oesophaguses and trachea, a single stomach and heart. Most of the vital organs are shared," said Dr Amit Gupta, medical director of Sonepat's Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital, where the conjoined twins were born.
"The chances of baby's survival will become clearer once feeding of the child starts, and also on the functioning of the lungs and the heart. The right lung is functioning well in comparison to the left one, and the whole right side of the child is functioning well," Gupta told Mail Today. When By Mansi Tewari in Sonepat the feeding begins, there should be harmony between the two nervous systems of the two sides in relation with the gastrointestinal system. If the child survives it may still be limping, Gupta said.
The mother is recovering at Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital.
It was two weeks ago when gynaecologist Dr Shikha Malik was shocked while checking the ultrasound reports of the patient (mother of the child). "It was on February 24 that the patient came to meet me and was into her 8th month of pregnancy. The mother had not gone through any tests earlier as she couldn't afford an ultrasound test. And it was then we broke the news to the family that there are conjoined twins to be born, and that their babies hadn't completely separated," Malik said.
Even when the doctors got ready for the Caesarean section, they were worried about the safety of the mother. "In 50 per cent of such cases the child is stillborn. Only 35 per cent survive till the first day. However, this child has shown her determination and has survived over 24 hours now," Gupta said.
The baby weighed about 3.5 kg on birth and has kept all the doctors on alert. Her parents are disturbed and at the moment finding it difficult to face the situation. The mother, Urmila Sharma, 28, is recovering at Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital. She had earlier delivered two children without any complication. The father, who works as a labourer in a bicycle factory in Sonepat and earns a meagre salary, is reportedly not ready to accept the baby.
The condition of the child is called 'dicephalus parapagus'. It is a very rare case and the child is striving for its survival, and the doctors in Sonepat have referred the baby to AIIMS; she is now under observation in the premier hospital.
However, it may not be possible to separate the twins because they share the same body. "The baby girl has two heads, two necks and two spines, but only one body, one lung for each head, two separate oesophaguses and trachea, a single stomach and heart. Most of the vital organs are shared," said Dr Amit Gupta, medical director of Sonepat's Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital, where the conjoined twins were born.
"The chances of baby's survival will become clearer once feeding of the child starts, and also on the functioning of the lungs and the heart. The right lung is functioning well in comparison to the left one, and the whole right side of the child is functioning well," Gupta told Mail Today. When By Mansi Tewari in Sonepat the feeding begins, there should be harmony between the two nervous systems of the two sides in relation with the gastrointestinal system. If the child survives it may still be limping, Gupta said.
The mother is recovering at Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital.
It was two weeks ago when gynaecologist Dr Shikha Malik was shocked while checking the ultrasound reports of the patient (mother of the child). "It was on February 24 that the patient came to meet me and was into her 8th month of pregnancy. The mother had not gone through any tests earlier as she couldn't afford an ultrasound test. And it was then we broke the news to the family that there are conjoined twins to be born, and that their babies hadn't completely separated," Malik said.
Even when the doctors got ready for the Caesarean section, they were worried about the safety of the mother. "In 50 per cent of such cases the child is stillborn. Only 35 per cent survive till the first day. However, this child has shown her determination and has survived over 24 hours now," Gupta said.
The baby weighed about 3.5 kg on birth and has kept all the doctors on alert. Her parents are disturbed and at the moment finding it difficult to face the situation. The mother, Urmila Sharma, 28, is recovering at Cygnus JK Hindu Hospital. She had earlier delivered two children without any complication. The father, who works as a labourer in a bicycle factory in Sonepat and earns a meagre salary, is reportedly not ready to accept the baby.
Sunday, 16 March 2014
Imphal hosts state’s first pride walk for LGBT
Imphal: Manipur’s capital city hosted its first-ever Pride Walk for the LGBT community in the state on Saturday. While the turnout for the gay parade was modest — around 50 participants — organisers said this was just a beginning. A similar parade took place in Guwahati in February, making it the the first gay parade in the Northeast.
Shanta Khurai, a member of the All Manipur Nupi Manbi (Transgender) Association, one of the organisers of the walk, said the parade had been organised for two reasons. “Firstly, we have decided to mark each month with an activity to support our rights after the Supreme Court verdict (on IPC 377) came out. Secondly, it is to show those who are homosexual and marginalised that they are not alone. There are many more like them and that they can reach out to us if they wish,” she said. The 38-year-old herself is a member of the transgender community and has been at the helm of organising the LGBT rights movement in the state.
“During our walk three boys working in an auto parts workshop that we passed came up to me. They asked me what the walk was about, who we are, what we are celebrating. I explained to them what homosexuality is, who transgenders and homosexuals are and what we were fighting for. This is the purpose — three people will understand what this is about and then explain to three others. That’s how we plan to gather support,’’ she said.
Manipur is one of the few states which also hosts a transgender beauty pageant annually. Last year’s event had participants from Nagaland, Meghalaya and Arunachal.
~MExN
Crimea exit poll: Around 93% back Russia union
Around 93% of voters in Crimea have backed joining Russia and seceding from Ukraine, according to exit polls quoted by Russian news agencies.
Polls closed at 18:00 GMT and officials hailed a "record" turnout. Preliminary results are expected within hours.
Many opponents boycotted the vote, which has been rejected by the US and the EU as illegitimate.
Pro-Russian forces took control of Crimea in February after Ukraine's pro-Moscow president was overthrown.
On the ballot paper, voters were asked whether they would like Crimea to rejoin Russia.
A second question asked whether Ukraine should return to its status under the 1992 constitution, which would give the region much greater autonomy.
There was no option for those who wanted the constitutional situation to remain unchanged.
Ethnic Russians make up 58.5% of the region's population, and many of them were expected to vote for joining Russia.
There are 1.5 million eligible voters.
Sergei Aksyonov, who was installed as Crimea's regional government leader after Russia's military takeover, said the people had voted freely.
"There are no problems at polling stations. I don't feel or see that any pressure is being applied," he told Interfax news agency.
One voter, Olga Koziko, told the BBC that she was voting for secession because she did not want to be governed by "those Nazis who came to power in Kiev".
"Russia will defend us and protect us," the schoolteacher said.
Away from the Crimea region, unrest continued in the south-east Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
Pro-Russian protesters stormed the prosecutor's building shouting "Donetsk is a Russian city", and then broke into the local security services headquarters for the second time in two days.
They later dispersed but promised to return on Monday.
Nigeria attacks: 100 killed in attacks on villages in Kaduna
At least 100 villagers have been killed in Nigeria's central Kaduna state in attacks linked to disputes between ethnic groups, officials say.
Heavily armed men entered three villages in the Kaura district in the south of the state.
It is not clear who was behind the attacks, but residents blame members of the mainly Muslim Fulani tribe.
Central Nigeria has often witnessed violence stemming from disputes over land and religion.
Thousands of people have been killed in recent years in violence blamed on semi-nomadic Fulani herdsmen attacking Christian farmers.
A member of Kaduna's state assembly, Yakubu Bitiyong, visited the scene of the most recent attacks, which took place on Friday night.
Most of those killed in the villages of Ugwar Sankwai, Ungwan Gata and Chenshyi, had been so badly burned they could not be identified, he told the BBC. Houses were destroyed by fire and food supplies looted.
In central Nigeria, the settled farming community has been the target of attacks
Mr Bitiyong said two of the attackers were also killed and their bodies taken away by police, who have sent in reinforcements.
The unrest is not connected with the continuing Islamist insurgency carried out by the Boko Haram group, which wants to impose Sharia law in the north.
The attacks in Kaduna came only a day after reports emerged of 69 people being killed over several days in northern Katsina state when dozens of armed men arrived in villages on motorbikes.
Violence in that area has also been blamed on Fulani attacking local farmers from the Muslim Hausa ethnic group, rather than the Christian community.
Microsoft takes on the 'free' OS
Microsoft is taking baby steps toward offering its operating system for free or on the cheap -- a necessary tactic in a world dominated by Google's Android and other up-and-coming free operating systems, an analyst tells CNET.
As reported by the Times of India this week, Microsoft had been in negotiations with Indian phone companies to "produce affordable Windows Phone devices" since last year.
The agreement was "clinched" when Microsoft agreed to offer the Windows Phone OS sans the usual licensing fee, according to the Times. Microsoft said to CNET in a statement that it "cannot discuss confidential licensing terms."
"It's a calculated risk to see how it works," said Bob O'Donnell, principal analyst at Technalysis Research. The Windows Phone OS has less than a 10 percent share of India's smartphone market, which is dominated by Android, according to IDC.
Microsoft fell behind Android and Apple when it missed the move to mobile, not offering the Windows Phone OS until 2010, long after Google and Apple jumped in the market. Former CEO Steve Ballmer said as much earlier this month. "We would have a stronger position in the phone market today if I could redo the last 10 years," he said, speaking in the UK.
The company has reason to be somewhat optimistic, however. IDC forecasts that its share of the smartphone market will only increase in the coming years.
To make this happen, emerging markets present a special challenge, where operating systems like Firefox and even Linux's Ubuntu -- both free -- could gain traction.
"There's a lot of potential in these markets for alternatives," O'Donnell said.
So, how will Microsoft compensate down the road if it relies less on Windows licensing revenues for consumer products, which still account for a large chunk of sales. "Increasingly we're going to see business models change anyway, with revenue generated by services added on top of the OS. So, this is a chance to get their foot in the door."
O'Donnell gave examples such as Office 365, Skydrive, Skype, and music services.
"If it does work well, I wouldn't be surprised to see them do it in other large markets," he added.
And Microsoft is rethinking licensing fees with larger devices too, like tablets. It has already lowered licensing fees for sub-$250 PCs, O'Donnell said.
That helps tablet makers like Dell sell its 32GB Venue 8 tablet for $229 or Lenovo offer its Miix 2 8-inch tablet for $249.
But baby steps is the operative phrase for Microsoft's rethink. "It's not going to happen overnight," O'Donnell said.
As reported by the Times of India this week, Microsoft had been in negotiations with Indian phone companies to "produce affordable Windows Phone devices" since last year.
The agreement was "clinched" when Microsoft agreed to offer the Windows Phone OS sans the usual licensing fee, according to the Times. Microsoft said to CNET in a statement that it "cannot discuss confidential licensing terms."
"It's a calculated risk to see how it works," said Bob O'Donnell, principal analyst at Technalysis Research. The Windows Phone OS has less than a 10 percent share of India's smartphone market, which is dominated by Android, according to IDC.
Microsoft fell behind Android and Apple when it missed the move to mobile, not offering the Windows Phone OS until 2010, long after Google and Apple jumped in the market. Former CEO Steve Ballmer said as much earlier this month. "We would have a stronger position in the phone market today if I could redo the last 10 years," he said, speaking in the UK.
The company has reason to be somewhat optimistic, however. IDC forecasts that its share of the smartphone market will only increase in the coming years.
To make this happen, emerging markets present a special challenge, where operating systems like Firefox and even Linux's Ubuntu -- both free -- could gain traction.
"There's a lot of potential in these markets for alternatives," O'Donnell said.
So, how will Microsoft compensate down the road if it relies less on Windows licensing revenues for consumer products, which still account for a large chunk of sales. "Increasingly we're going to see business models change anyway, with revenue generated by services added on top of the OS. So, this is a chance to get their foot in the door."
O'Donnell gave examples such as Office 365, Skydrive, Skype, and music services.
"If it does work well, I wouldn't be surprised to see them do it in other large markets," he added.
And Microsoft is rethinking licensing fees with larger devices too, like tablets. It has already lowered licensing fees for sub-$250 PCs, O'Donnell said.
That helps tablet makers like Dell sell its 32GB Venue 8 tablet for $229 or Lenovo offer its Miix 2 8-inch tablet for $249.
But baby steps is the operative phrase for Microsoft's rethink. "It's not going to happen overnight," O'Donnell said.
Ready to take on Modi: Kejriwal
Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal has declared that he is ready to take on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi in the Lok Sabha elections, but he will do so only if “the people want” it.
He was addressing a rally here on Sunday, the second day of his tour of the Lok Sabha constituencies in and around Bangalore. It was attended by a large number of supporters, all wearing the AAP’s caps. Mr. Kejriwal said he would gauge the people’s support at a rally the AAP plans to hold in Varanasi on March 23. “I will do whatever the people say.”
“It is not a small contest. I have little aukaad [stature], no money and no people,” he said. “But I would consider myself fortunate to make sacrifices for the nation, as Bhagat Singh did.”
Speaking in Hindi in his trademark style that alternates between sardonic humour and references to himself as the common man, he spared the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate no criticism and spoke of the media’s “propaganda of falsehood” in their portrayal of Mr. Modi’s development model.
“For a year, the media have tried to show that Gujarat has progressed under Modiji. So I decided to see the progress for myself. But what I witnessed in my 10-day visit shocked me. Farmers complain that their land is being grabbed for being handed over to industries for just Re. 1 a metre. Modiji represents the old school crony capitalism,” he said.
“Nothing happens without bribes... But we have to give it to Gujarat for being transparent about corruption — at least bribes have a fixed rate,” he said.
‘Political graveyard’
PTI reports from Patna:
Taunting the decision of the BJP to field its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi from Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, RJD president Lalu Prasad on Sunday said it would prove to be a “political graveyard” for Mr. Modi. “What do you think of Varanasi. It’s a completely secular place. Narendra Modi is going to be defeated there. It will prove to be his political graveyard,” Mr. Prasad said.
Hindu
He was addressing a rally here on Sunday, the second day of his tour of the Lok Sabha constituencies in and around Bangalore. It was attended by a large number of supporters, all wearing the AAP’s caps. Mr. Kejriwal said he would gauge the people’s support at a rally the AAP plans to hold in Varanasi on March 23. “I will do whatever the people say.”
“It is not a small contest. I have little aukaad [stature], no money and no people,” he said. “But I would consider myself fortunate to make sacrifices for the nation, as Bhagat Singh did.”
Speaking in Hindi in his trademark style that alternates between sardonic humour and references to himself as the common man, he spared the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate no criticism and spoke of the media’s “propaganda of falsehood” in their portrayal of Mr. Modi’s development model.
“For a year, the media have tried to show that Gujarat has progressed under Modiji. So I decided to see the progress for myself. But what I witnessed in my 10-day visit shocked me. Farmers complain that their land is being grabbed for being handed over to industries for just Re. 1 a metre. Modiji represents the old school crony capitalism,” he said.
“Nothing happens without bribes... But we have to give it to Gujarat for being transparent about corruption — at least bribes have a fixed rate,” he said.
‘Political graveyard’
PTI reports from Patna:
Taunting the decision of the BJP to field its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi from Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, RJD president Lalu Prasad on Sunday said it would prove to be a “political graveyard” for Mr. Modi. “What do you think of Varanasi. It’s a completely secular place. Narendra Modi is going to be defeated there. It will prove to be his political graveyard,” Mr. Prasad said.
Hindu
Security beefed up in Manipur for Rahul visit
Security in Manipur has been beefed up as it gears up for the visit of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on March 19.
Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, who inspected the rally venue in Thoubal district, found that construction work at the venue, a sports stadium, was not up to the mark. He directed contractors and officials to do it afresh.
About 50,000 persons are expected to attend the rally.
With two underground organisations — the United Revolutionary Front and the Maoist Communist Party — urging people to not participate in the Gandhi family scion’s rally, review meetings at the government and party level are being held to ensure that untoward incidents do not take place during the visit, and combing operations have been intensified, Mr. Singh said.
Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, who inspected the rally venue in Thoubal district, found that construction work at the venue, a sports stadium, was not up to the mark. He directed contractors and officials to do it afresh.
About 50,000 persons are expected to attend the rally.
With two underground organisations — the United Revolutionary Front and the Maoist Communist Party — urging people to not participate in the Gandhi family scion’s rally, review meetings at the government and party level are being held to ensure that untoward incidents do not take place during the visit, and combing operations have been intensified, Mr. Singh said.
Saturday, 15 March 2014
Malaysian Official: The Missing Plane Was Hijacked
A Malaysian official said investigators concluded the missing Malaysia Airlines flight was hijacked and steered off its original course, the AP reported late Friday evening.
From AP:
The official, who is involved in the investigation, says no motive has been established, and it is not yet clear where the plane was taken. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.
The official said that hijacking was no longer a theory. "It is conclusive."
The official said that hijacking was no longer a theory. "It is conclusive."
While many have speculated as to what happened to the Beijing-bound Flight 370, this new report is the first to assert a hijacking as the cause. Within the last 24 hours, investigators had increasingly moved their focus toward the possibility of sabotage, either from a hijacker or rogue crew.
Evidence that led investigators to conclude hijacking, the official told AP, were communications systems being deliberately turned off, flight path data, and indications the plane was attempting to avoid radar.
While the unnamed official speaking to the AP ruled the hijacking scenario as "conclusive," the head of the investigation rebutted the report to The Telegraph shortly after the story broke.
"It is not conclusive. I'm heading the investigation and nobody is saying that," Azharuddin Abdul Rahman told The Telegraph's Dean Nelson. "It's not true. We are looking at the possibility, we're looking at all possibilities. We're doing every profile of the passengers and crew but there is no firm evidence or leads so far."
Still, revelations that emerged earlier today point towards the likelihood of foul play, such as a senior U.S. official telling The New York Times the aircraft made a number of erratic direction and altitude changes before it likely crashed in the Indian Ocean. And the deliberate shutdown of systems to track the airliner indicates the plane's disappearance was more a "deliberate act" than an accident or pilot error.
On Thursday, sources speaking with ABC said they believed the data reporting system was shut down at 1:07 a.m., while the transponder — sending out location and altitude data — was shut down at 1:21 a.m. The 14-minute delay indicates the systems were purposely shut down rather than the result of a malfunction or failure in some sort of catastrophic accident.
As a number of commercial pilots told NPR's "All Things Considered" on Friday, with the exception of the transponder, which can be shut off at the flick of a switch, other onboard tracking systems are not as easy to disable.
"They said you'd have to go through big checklists, you'd have to possibly pull circuit breakers if you wanted to deactivate [all the communications equipment]," NPR's Geoff Brumfiel said, citing interviews with pilots. "So, to do this, you'd have to have some degree of premeditation and a lot of knowledge of the aircraft."
Despite attempts to disable in-flight tracking systems, a combination of satellite tracking and military radar continued to track the plane after it's last civilian radar contact about 45 minutes after takeoff.
Malaysia flight path search area CNN/screenshot After falling off of civilian radar, radar signals from the Malaysian military appear to show the Boeing 777 climbing above the plane's maximum ceiling to 45,000 feet before it made a sharp turn toward the west. The data then shows another turn to the southwest and descent to 23,000 feet before it finally settled on a higher altitude and bearing toward the Indian Ocean. "[Radar data] leads them to believe that it either ran out of fuel or crashed right before it ran out of fuel," a senior U.S. official told the Times. "The idea it could cross into Indian airspace and not get picked up made no sense."
Investigators, who widened their search area on Thursday to the Indian Ocean based on faint electronic "pings" of technical data from the flight, have now expanded into the Andaman Sea northwest of the Malay Peninsula, based on another "ping" picked up five or six times by a satellite before it was completely lost, Reuters reports.
From AP:
The official, who is involved in the investigation, says no motive has been established, and it is not yet clear where the plane was taken. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.
The official said that hijacking was no longer a theory. "It is conclusive."
The official said that hijacking was no longer a theory. "It is conclusive."
While many have speculated as to what happened to the Beijing-bound Flight 370, this new report is the first to assert a hijacking as the cause. Within the last 24 hours, investigators had increasingly moved their focus toward the possibility of sabotage, either from a hijacker or rogue crew.
Evidence that led investigators to conclude hijacking, the official told AP, were communications systems being deliberately turned off, flight path data, and indications the plane was attempting to avoid radar.
While the unnamed official speaking to the AP ruled the hijacking scenario as "conclusive," the head of the investigation rebutted the report to The Telegraph shortly after the story broke.
"It is not conclusive. I'm heading the investigation and nobody is saying that," Azharuddin Abdul Rahman told The Telegraph's Dean Nelson. "It's not true. We are looking at the possibility, we're looking at all possibilities. We're doing every profile of the passengers and crew but there is no firm evidence or leads so far."
Still, revelations that emerged earlier today point towards the likelihood of foul play, such as a senior U.S. official telling The New York Times the aircraft made a number of erratic direction and altitude changes before it likely crashed in the Indian Ocean. And the deliberate shutdown of systems to track the airliner indicates the plane's disappearance was more a "deliberate act" than an accident or pilot error.
On Thursday, sources speaking with ABC said they believed the data reporting system was shut down at 1:07 a.m., while the transponder — sending out location and altitude data — was shut down at 1:21 a.m. The 14-minute delay indicates the systems were purposely shut down rather than the result of a malfunction or failure in some sort of catastrophic accident.
As a number of commercial pilots told NPR's "All Things Considered" on Friday, with the exception of the transponder, which can be shut off at the flick of a switch, other onboard tracking systems are not as easy to disable.
"They said you'd have to go through big checklists, you'd have to possibly pull circuit breakers if you wanted to deactivate [all the communications equipment]," NPR's Geoff Brumfiel said, citing interviews with pilots. "So, to do this, you'd have to have some degree of premeditation and a lot of knowledge of the aircraft."
Despite attempts to disable in-flight tracking systems, a combination of satellite tracking and military radar continued to track the plane after it's last civilian radar contact about 45 minutes after takeoff.
Malaysia flight path search area CNN/screenshot After falling off of civilian radar, radar signals from the Malaysian military appear to show the Boeing 777 climbing above the plane's maximum ceiling to 45,000 feet before it made a sharp turn toward the west. The data then shows another turn to the southwest and descent to 23,000 feet before it finally settled on a higher altitude and bearing toward the Indian Ocean. "[Radar data] leads them to believe that it either ran out of fuel or crashed right before it ran out of fuel," a senior U.S. official told the Times. "The idea it could cross into Indian airspace and not get picked up made no sense."
Investigators, who widened their search area on Thursday to the Indian Ocean based on faint electronic "pings" of technical data from the flight, have now expanded into the Andaman Sea northwest of the Malay Peninsula, based on another "ping" picked up five or six times by a satellite before it was completely lost, Reuters reports.
TIME TO USHER IN VALUES EDUCATION
David L. Shimray
M.A. Ch. Edn. (USA)
M.A. Philosophy (USA)
In view of the present chaos in the metro cities in India under the caption of “Racism,” I would like to share my observation in regard to the attitudes we are experiencing from the mainland Indians. As I have been roaming around in the metro cities of India for the last 8 years, I find that Indians are not as bad as we think. It is quite natural that if we behave in an unruly and indecent way, and don’t give up our village style of living, then we face an equal and opposite reaction. When we move around in a decent way with polished language, we get a lot of respects from them. When I go to decent places, for instance, 5 stars or 7 stars Hotels, they see me as a foreigner; it does not matter from which country they thought I came from. Even after introducing them that I am from the Northeast India and telling them what I am there for, they don’t change their attitudes. As per my experience, most of the time we encounter racial attitudes from only uneducated group of people like the grocery shop keepers, pan walas, chai walas, and may be sometimes by the road side hoodlums etc. So, education and a well polished manner with a good understanding of ethical codes of the people we live alongside are very important. And this can be learned only from a formal education with a special emphasis on the ethics. We remember the phrase, “Be a Roman when you are in Rome.” If we don’t know how a Roman behaves, how would I act as a Roman or at least in a way acceptable to the Romans?
With this view in mind I decided to introduce briefly what is required in the preparation of our youngsters for their lives through this essay entitled, “Time to usher in values education.” Values education is also synonymous to “Quality education” in principle. First of all, I will begin with the assertion that education is a must in the lives of all human beings as it plays a fundamental role in human, economic, and moral developments. Education is the process of imparting knowledge to the learners. The learners gather and accumulate knowledge through education and this knowledge becomes the master of all their activities in their futures. Only a good knowledge can guide a man to act good individually, socially, and corporately. Humans are social beings and so it requires everyone’s contribution for the welfare of its society. A man with a bad knowledge can contribute only chaos and disorder to the society, and a man without knowledge can contribute only unnecessary crowd. The foundation of a child to grow up into a man with good knowledge is laid in the child’s education.
It should be noted that there are three principles in education, namely, Philosophy (applied philosophy), Curriculum and Methodology. Philosophy of education is the part that determines the goal of the education. Curriculum is the part that defines the areas or fields of studies that will induce the learner to achieve the desired goal of the education. Some of the prominent Philosophies of education are, Pragmatism (in America), Perennialism (India and many other countries), Christian (in schools all over the world managed by Christian bodies), and Secular Humanist education (being propounded). Education however is always opened to new approaches. Therefore, in the contemporary world there are many other competing philosophies of education, which can be assigned mainly in two categories, namely Secular education and Religious educations. Secular education is the education that has nothing to do with gods or sometimes against gods and their attributes whereas, religious education is the education whose focus is god, its teachings and fulfillment of its wills. The methodology is the way to teach the subject matter effectively. The three most prominent methods are, Didactic method, Socratic Method, and Pragmatic method. Any one of these methods can be chosen depending on one’s epistemological orientation and suitability for the subjects being taught.
Education is a holistic approach of changing the learners, so it intends to bring about a change in the learners’ physical, intellectual, and moral (ethical) states. The physical aspect of education concerns with the physical well being of the learners, environmental awareness from the perspective of hygiene, co-curricular activities such as games and sports, exercises, etc. In philosophy there is a branch called Axiology. Ethics and Aesthetics come under this branch. Aesthetics is the study or a discourse to understand the nature of arts and beauty. It is from this perspective that in the modern educational curricula, arts such as singing, dancing, carpentry, needle works, and cooking etc. are included. In addition to these, the art of beautification such as fashion designing, facial make ups, hair styling, etc. should also be added as general studies. Talking from the perspective of northeast India, each state has its own traditional dances and songs to show the whole world its unique beauties. Similarly, it has so many good looking youngsters who, with a little make up here and there could make a significant difference in their looks, which is a good way to present oneself to others about the well being of one’s inner self. It also boosts the self esteem of the individual. Learning other nations’ arts should also be encouraged. A sound physical condition is always inducive to a sound mind. Many students and parents have not paid any attention to these arts and the consequence is what we are today, a socially low status community. We must at any cost encourage our youngsters to learn these arts. When a person learns perfectly one of these arts, one can make a living out of this whereby making the society economically more viable and independent.
The intellectual aspect of education consists of mainly training the brain (intellect) through rigorous mental exercises and motor skills to cope up with any situations in the lives of the learners. In short, the objective of education is teaching “to learn how to learn new things,” rather than learning only what is being taught. This can be achieved by exposing the learners to different kinds of problems in science, mathematics, social sciences, rhetoric, logics, etc. and giving them sufficient efforts to analyze them for concrete solutions. John Locke said, “The mind of a newborn is tabula rasa (blank slate).” But “humans are rational beings” by nature. Therefore, it also requires that the minds of the learner should be fed with enough facts and figures or empirical data, to fill the minds so that the minds can draw a more rational conclusions, views, and concepts about the things and their relationship to the world they live in. The subject matters, which are selected from the curriculum and compiled in the form of text books is called the Syllabus (syllabi, plural). The text books are compiled not only to contain the desired empirical data but also designed in such a way as to let the learners analyze them and draw rational views and concepts about them. This way a well designed text books help the learners to stretch or flex their minds. Consequently, the minds become more and more proficient to handle new problems and challenges that come along the ways of their lives.
Human beings, though rational, are morally insolent. Everyone from both religious and nonreligious persuasions knows it. Hence the need for correction, if not eradication, of this moral insolence is felt everywhere. Religious moral principles and intellectual trainings used to go hand in hand till the medieval periods mostly under the influence of the Romans’ Humanitas. It was during the Renaissance period when religious matters and secular matters began to part their ways as they thought the classical literature was more effective in making a man perfect. It continued all the way through the Modern period. Now, realizing the incompleteness of life without the creators’ will, reintroduction of ethics is seen as indispensable in education. And educational institutions and the field of studies are perceived as the best tool to do so. Therefore, education with special emphasis on moral development is being campaigned. Many people still don’t know properly the concept of “values education.” It is often confused with good infrastructure, strict administration, and the institutions’ good results in the public examinations. As a matter of fact, values education is the education that emphasizes the ethical issues in its curriculum. Ethical knowledge means the knowledge of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ or the knowledge of ‘right’ and ‘wrong.’ The word ‘ethics’ comes from the Greek word ethos, which means “CHARACTER.” In today’s world, ethics and morality are interchangeably used more narrowly to mean the moral principles of a particular tradition, group or individual. In order to understand the issue of morality, it is important to briefly introduce the meaning of ethics.
Some of the definitions of ethics propounded by different groups of ethicists are;
(i) the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation
(ii) a theory or system of moral
(iii) the principles of conduct governing an individual or a group
(iv) a consciousness of moral importance
The term ethics is broadly divided into two categories; i. Normative and ii. Descriptive
(i) Normative ethics is the study of ethical action. It is the branch of philosophical ethics that investigates the set of questions that arise when considering how one ought to act, morally speaking. It also examines standards for the rightness and wrongness of actions. Normative ethics is also called the Prescriptive ethics as it holds a certain principle of right or wrong and prescribes to act in that way.
(ii) Descriptive, is an empirical investigation of people's moral beliefs. To put it another way, descriptive ethics would be concerned with determining what proportion of people believe that killing is always wrong.
These two categories are further subdivided into many more sub-categories using philosophical jargons depending mostly on the focus of the studies and assertions.
Paul and Elder define ethics as "a set of concepts and principles that guide us in determining what behavior helps or harms sentient creatures.” But the question here again is, who authorizes the “Principles and concepts?” and why should we follow them? The generation today’s youngsters live is termed by the Americans as the “SEZ WHO?” generation The reason is, when a senior (parents, elders, teachers etc) asks a junior to do something or not to do something, the junior’s response is “Says who?” The junior will not be satisfied if they are told “Because I said so.” Many rules, principles, concepts, etc. may be prescribed to a person, but as long as the person prescribing and the person to whom they are prescribed don’t have a common authority, it is doubtful that many people will respect the given set of rules, principles and the concepts. In the Bible, the authority is God. He is our Creator, Provider, Sustainer, you name it! And so the Christians’ allegiance to their God and living according to its ethical set is justified. The kind of ethics without a reference to any God or gods is known as the SECULAR ETHICS, and Ethics derived from the ultimate authority, i.e. God or gods, are called RELIGIOUS ETHICS. (From the author’s A Brief Discourse on Secular Ethics In the light of Biblical Ethics).
In an attempt to inculcate normative ethics, Indian educationists include “Moral Science” as a subject in their syllabi. But since there are many religions in India, a full fledged ethical standard cannot be established, and as result it ended up with just introduction of some great men and some gods, which different religious groups worship. However, we cannot blame them as we know that with so many different sets of ethics, justice cannot be done for all because, although many issues of the different sets overlap each other, at least one issue is different and it makes all the sets different. For example, the ten commandments of the Bible do not have any problem with other religious persuasions and similarly the unquestionable dictum “To help the poor without any reservation” of the Muslims, or the Hindus’ teaching of “Unselfish actions (karma)” do not have any problem with the Christians. Secular ethicists too have no problem with all these issues as long as they are not told that our God wants us to do these. Only when it comes to the question of the author, the whole thing crumbles and followers take stance that are poles apart. Moral consciences and acting according to them does not happen by only knowing what they mean, but it is giving allegiance to the author and living in obedience.
Values, which are the sets of ethical codes and conducts, are meaningful only if the authority that prescribes them is acknowledged along with them. For this reason the different ethical codes and conducts prescribed by the different religious groups are the best and a complete one. However, all the different religions are exclusive in themselves; therefore their sets of ethical codes and conducts are exclusive in themselves too. In this situation, we have no choice but to choose one set for our education. The most viable criteria for choosing this should be based on the maximum freedom for humanity granted in the ethical set. We know some religions have disgusting and dehumanizing elements in it. Such a set should be ruled out. Secular humanistic way of introducing its ethics sounds good but, as argued above, it cannot hold water as it goes overboard with too much freedom and its tendency to focus too much on the utilitarian perspective.
Putting humans in the highest position with the maximum freedom of humanity is found in the biblical description of man in Psalms. It says, “What is mankind that you are mindful of them, human being that you care for them. You have made them a little lower than Angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet. All flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea, all that swims in the paths of the seas. (Ps 8;4-8). It means that we are to govern ourselves; we are to govern the animal kingdom, we are to govern the plant kingdom, we are to govern the marine kingdom, and we are to govern the celestial kingdom. The creator gives this authority to human by making him an intellect and rational being just like Him (Gen. 1:26). This is evidenced from what He said through the mouth of Isaiah in 1:18 “Come let us reason together.” He knows, He and man can beat out the differences and the misunderstandings between Him and His most valued creature and it also shows that He respects man’s autonomy, although he has His own way to deal with men who deviate from Him.
Luke 2:52 says, “Then Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.” What this verse tells us is that, Jesus grew up in perfect physical condition, admirable intellect, and in good moral standing. What more can we expect in the growth of our children if they grow up in this manner? When David said in proverbs 9:8-12, “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of all knowledge,” it means that acknowledging the authority of the Creator God is the beginning of the understanding of everything about His creations, His will, and the relationship between all these. The Bible has strictly warned us that we must “Teach our children in the way they should grow and even when they are old they will not turn away from it” (Proverbs 22:6). The “way” being referred to here is the way Jesus grew up as a human being. There is no other knowledge that can be taught in the classrooms besides the knowledge about the universe and things within it and their relationships with one another, and to the Creator.
The goal of introduction of secular values in education finally boils down to achieving mainly a peaceful co-existence of the societies by being considerate to one another. Nothing more than that! As a matter of fact, Christian education with God’s prescription of ethical codes and conducts has a much more important purpose than this. Apart from making each learner a perfect person, it also decides the fate of the person’s life here and after. Even for achieving simply the purpose of educational goals desired by all kinds of educationists, Christian values with “Love of God” and “Love of one’s neighbor” (Matt. 22:38-40, Deut. 6:4-9) far surpasses all other ethical sets intended to be prescribed for inclusion in the educational goals. Where there is love, there is nothing that cannot be “Reasoned together” and be forgiven of each other for any wrong things done. In our everyday lives whether in the work places, on the streets, at homes, in public places, we are always governed by different ethical codes of conducts, which we have to oblige. While obliging them we only have to remember that we do it to the glory of the Kingdom! (And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (Colossian 3:17, I Cor. 10:31).
Due to limitation of time and space I have to conclude this essay here rather abruptly. However, in conclusion I will assert that the goal of values education for us Christians should be changing and making each learner Christlike, full of intelligence, physically and morally sound. To achieve this, cognitive moral education imparted in the classrooms based on the text books, and biblical texts extracted randomly from the Bible alone is not sufficient. Institutions should take up a lot more responsibilities. The institutions must be wise enough to select teachers and should not compromise with any biblical principles. Although conducting one or two chapel classes in a week is necessary, it is not enough to usher in the desired goal of Christian values education. Learners have to live out the biblical values in their lives and this can happen only if the learners are related to the Provider personally. One of the Christian institutions’ roles is to help the learners relate to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, institutions must have full time ministry in the campus led by a qualified minister and provide expert pastoral and clinical counselors to handle cases of moral insolence in the campus. Voluntary intercessory prayer teams, if necessary paid and employed, must be arranged to pray for the students and the teachers throughout the days from the beginning of classes till the end. It may sound weird but we should not undermine the power of prayers.
Friday, 14 March 2014
BJP lures people with ‘New Hope, New Manipur’
Goa deputy chief minister Francis P D’Souza on Friday impressed upon the people in the state with an appealing slogan “New Hope, New Manipur” and exuded confidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would give a good fight against the arch-rival Congress party in the ensuing parliamentary polls.
In a BJP political conference in Ukhrul town hall on Friday, Goa deputy chief minister Francis P D’Souza, who arrived from Imphal after a meeting at Noney yesterday, expressed utter dismay over the prevailing conditions in the state. “…so disappointed and sad to see that no development is visible…what has happened to Manipur?” he asked.
“I didn’t see a change in Manipur…ruled by the Congress for many years. Time for change has come,” said Francis, a Christian legislator elected on BJP ticket.
Goa deputy CM attended as chief guest of the political conference held in a packed town hall and vociferously campaigned for BJP outer Manipur seat candidate Prof. Gangumei Kamei, who was also the guest of honour this morning.
He stated that for good governance there is a need “…to bring good and honest people in politics,” while referring to Prof. Gangumei as the right choice. “Goa is the best welfare state in India…it’s because of the good BJP politician.”
Former ministers Dr. Khashim Ruivah and Danny Shaiza were also present and addressed the gathering vouching for a need to elect a person committed to tribal rights and interest. Other party dignitaries included state BJP unit secretary Ashwani Kumar Singh and spokesperson Soso Shaiza among others.
In his fervent appeal to the electorates in Ukhrul, former minister Prof. Gangumei highlighted what the BJP can usher in for the people in Manipur. He said the party can bring good governance, development in terms of sports, education and eco-tourism, and safeguarding the international boundary of the state.
He also re-highlighted dreams and plans of Narendra Modi, BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, for hill people of the state while recalling the 3H formula of the saffron leader.
State BJP unit secretary Singh ridiculed the incumbent MP Thangso Baite for creating record of speaking only for 15-minute in the entire 5-year term in the august house of Parliament. To stir clear of the persisting propaganda that the saffron party is communal, Goa deputy CM said there are six Christian legislators elected from BJP and four of Congress in the small Southern state.
He also lambasted the Congress party arguing that the latter has ruined the country, while quoting a maxim “we are a rich nation, poor people.”
In a BJP political conference in Ukhrul town hall on Friday, Goa deputy chief minister Francis P D’Souza, who arrived from Imphal after a meeting at Noney yesterday, expressed utter dismay over the prevailing conditions in the state. “…so disappointed and sad to see that no development is visible…what has happened to Manipur?” he asked.
“I didn’t see a change in Manipur…ruled by the Congress for many years. Time for change has come,” said Francis, a Christian legislator elected on BJP ticket.
Goa deputy CM attended as chief guest of the political conference held in a packed town hall and vociferously campaigned for BJP outer Manipur seat candidate Prof. Gangumei Kamei, who was also the guest of honour this morning.
He stated that for good governance there is a need “…to bring good and honest people in politics,” while referring to Prof. Gangumei as the right choice. “Goa is the best welfare state in India…it’s because of the good BJP politician.”
Former ministers Dr. Khashim Ruivah and Danny Shaiza were also present and addressed the gathering vouching for a need to elect a person committed to tribal rights and interest. Other party dignitaries included state BJP unit secretary Ashwani Kumar Singh and spokesperson Soso Shaiza among others.
In his fervent appeal to the electorates in Ukhrul, former minister Prof. Gangumei highlighted what the BJP can usher in for the people in Manipur. He said the party can bring good governance, development in terms of sports, education and eco-tourism, and safeguarding the international boundary of the state.
He also re-highlighted dreams and plans of Narendra Modi, BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, for hill people of the state while recalling the 3H formula of the saffron leader.
State BJP unit secretary Singh ridiculed the incumbent MP Thangso Baite for creating record of speaking only for 15-minute in the entire 5-year term in the august house of Parliament. To stir clear of the persisting propaganda that the saffron party is communal, Goa deputy CM said there are six Christian legislators elected from BJP and four of Congress in the small Southern state.
He also lambasted the Congress party arguing that the latter has ruined the country, while quoting a maxim “we are a rich nation, poor people.”
Over 50 detained in search operation Imphal
IMPHAL Mar 14: A massive cordon and search operation was conducted by the Imphal West District Police and commandos in two different places and detained more than 50 persons who failed to produced their proper verification identity proof and handed over to the Imphal and Porompat police stations for proper verification.
The cordon and search operation was conducted under the supervision of K Meghachandra Additional SP (operation) Imphal West and the search team was led by Inspector P Sanjoy, Officer in-charge Imphal West Commando. Personnel of the 4th India Reserved Battalion assisted in the twin operation conducted at Uripok Haobam Dewan Leikai and Sinam Leikai under Imphal Police Station
The two areas were cordoned off by Imphal West commandos and IRB personnel from early morning at around 4 am. They called out all the males between the age of 15 to 50 years. All the male citizens were verified one after another at the community hall located at Uripok Bachaspati Leikai.
After the verification, 42 persons who failed to produce their proper verification identity proof were detained by the police team and handed them over to the Imphal Police Station for proper verification. Many among the persons detained for proper verification are non locals staying in rent rooms
On the other hand a team of Imphal East district commando and Porompat Police led by Inspector P Achouba, Officer in-charge Imphal east Commando conducted a search operation under the supervision of Angam Kamei Romanus, Imphal East SP from Pureiromba Khongnangkhong up to Tribal Market along Chasad Avenue under Porompat Police Station
After the verification of every male individual between 15 and 50 years after calling them out along the Chasad Avenue road, 16 persons who could not produce their proper verification identity proofs were detained and handed over to Porompat police station for further verification.
~Sangai Express
The cordon and search operation was conducted under the supervision of K Meghachandra Additional SP (operation) Imphal West and the search team was led by Inspector P Sanjoy, Officer in-charge Imphal West Commando. Personnel of the 4th India Reserved Battalion assisted in the twin operation conducted at Uripok Haobam Dewan Leikai and Sinam Leikai under Imphal Police Station
The two areas were cordoned off by Imphal West commandos and IRB personnel from early morning at around 4 am. They called out all the males between the age of 15 to 50 years. All the male citizens were verified one after another at the community hall located at Uripok Bachaspati Leikai.
After the verification, 42 persons who failed to produce their proper verification identity proof were detained by the police team and handed them over to the Imphal Police Station for proper verification. Many among the persons detained for proper verification are non locals staying in rent rooms
On the other hand a team of Imphal East district commando and Porompat Police led by Inspector P Achouba, Officer in-charge Imphal east Commando conducted a search operation under the supervision of Angam Kamei Romanus, Imphal East SP from Pureiromba Khongnangkhong up to Tribal Market along Chasad Avenue under Porompat Police Station
After the verification of every male individual between 15 and 50 years after calling them out along the Chasad Avenue road, 16 persons who could not produce their proper verification identity proofs were detained and handed over to Porompat police station for further verification.
~Sangai Express
Neiphiu Rio meets Modi
Ahead of the 2014 Lok Sbha elections, Nagaland chief minister and NPF-led DAN’s consensus Lok Sabha candidate Neiphiu Rio met BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi Thursday.
After the meeting Narendra Modi remarked “had an excellent meeting with Nagaland CM Shri Neiphiu Rio in Delhi.”
North East Regional Parties Forum (NERPF) Abu Mehta also forwarded a picture of Modi and Rio who is also the NERPF convenor.
~Nagaland Post
After the meeting Narendra Modi remarked “had an excellent meeting with Nagaland CM Shri Neiphiu Rio in Delhi.”
North East Regional Parties Forum (NERPF) Abu Mehta also forwarded a picture of Modi and Rio who is also the NERPF convenor.
~Nagaland Post
Wednesday, 12 March 2014
G7 warns Russia on 'annexing' Crimea
Leaders of the G7 group of nations have called on Russia to stop all efforts to "annex" Ukraine's Crimea region.
They said if Russia took such a step they would "take further action, individually and collectively".
The G7 leaders also said they would not recognise the results of a referendum in Crimea this weekend on whether to split from Ukraine and join Russia.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's national security chief has warned of a major Russian military build-up on Ukraine's borders.
Andriy Parubiy said Moscow had not withdrawn its troops after carrying out military exercises near Ukraine's eastern and southern borders.
"The Russian army is only two to three hours' march from Kiev," he said, adding that Ukraine's "units are positioned to repel attack from any direction."
Patient's face rebuilt with 3D printed parts
A survivor of a serious motorbike accident has had pioneering surgery to reconstruct his face using a series of 3D printed parts.
Stephen Power from Cardiff is thought to be one of the first trauma patients in the world to have 3D printing used at every stage of the procedure.
Doctors at Morriston Hospital, Swansea, had to break his cheekbones again before rebuilding his face.
Mr Power's surgeon, Adrian Sugar, and prosthetic design engineer Sean Peel, spoke to the BBC's Hywel Griffith about how Stephen's face was rebuilt.
Stephen Power from Cardiff is thought to be one of the first trauma patients in the world to have 3D printing used at every stage of the procedure.
Doctors at Morriston Hospital, Swansea, had to break his cheekbones again before rebuilding his face.
Mr Power's surgeon, Adrian Sugar, and prosthetic design engineer Sean Peel, spoke to the BBC's Hywel Griffith about how Stephen's face was rebuilt.
Two AR men killed in militant attack
IMPHAL/Thoubal, Mar 11: At least two personnel of Assam Rifles have been killed while two others survived with injuries in a bomb attack carried out by suspected PLA cadres at Kambang Khullen in interior Chandel district this afternoon.
However it is yet to be officially confirmed which group was responsible for the attack.
Sources informed that the attack took place near the gate of Kambang Khullen which is located about 40 Kms North of Tengnoupal police station at around 1.30 pm.
The militants triggered an IED targeting the pilot vehicle (Gypsy) of a convoy of 24th Assam Rifles led by its CO.
The CO and his troops were returning to their Tengnoupal battalion headquarters from Sita post when they were targeted with IED blasts followed by a volley of gunfire as they crossed the outer gate of Kambang Khullen and reached the road junction leading to Leibi village. The blast killed two AR personnel including a Warrant Officer on the spot.
The Warrant Officer has been identified as Murli and the other deceased victim was Rifleman MT Santosh.
Two other Riflemen Ngamei Abhi and Pramod Kalai who sustained injuries were evacuated to Tengnoupal in a helicopter where they were given first aid at the unit hospital before they were flown to the Red Shield Division’s military hospital at Leimakhong.
One of the injured personnel is said to be critical.
The two bodies have been taken to Tengnoupal police station.
The convoy was attacked by triggering two bombs in quick succession. The AR troops retaliated by opening fire in different directions.
But another source maintained that only one blast was heard. Meanwhile, reinforcement troops of Assam Rifles have rushed to the spot.
Unconfirmed reports say that the militants took away four AK rifles, one LMG and one Insas rifle.
On learning about the deadly attack, many villagers ran away fearing reprisal from Assam Rifles. But a large number of male villagers who could not run away were herded together at the village ground away from the womenfolk. However, there is no report of any harassment or torture of villagers by security forces till the time of filing this report.
However it is yet to be officially confirmed which group was responsible for the attack.
Sources informed that the attack took place near the gate of Kambang Khullen which is located about 40 Kms North of Tengnoupal police station at around 1.30 pm.
The militants triggered an IED targeting the pilot vehicle (Gypsy) of a convoy of 24th Assam Rifles led by its CO.
The CO and his troops were returning to their Tengnoupal battalion headquarters from Sita post when they were targeted with IED blasts followed by a volley of gunfire as they crossed the outer gate of Kambang Khullen and reached the road junction leading to Leibi village. The blast killed two AR personnel including a Warrant Officer on the spot.
The Warrant Officer has been identified as Murli and the other deceased victim was Rifleman MT Santosh.
Two other Riflemen Ngamei Abhi and Pramod Kalai who sustained injuries were evacuated to Tengnoupal in a helicopter where they were given first aid at the unit hospital before they were flown to the Red Shield Division’s military hospital at Leimakhong.
One of the injured personnel is said to be critical.
The two bodies have been taken to Tengnoupal police station.
The convoy was attacked by triggering two bombs in quick succession. The AR troops retaliated by opening fire in different directions.
But another source maintained that only one blast was heard. Meanwhile, reinforcement troops of Assam Rifles have rushed to the spot.
Unconfirmed reports say that the militants took away four AK rifles, one LMG and one Insas rifle.
On learning about the deadly attack, many villagers ran away fearing reprisal from Assam Rifles. But a large number of male villagers who could not run away were herded together at the village ground away from the womenfolk. However, there is no report of any harassment or torture of villagers by security forces till the time of filing this report.
No tax to GPRN/NSCN/KTU: Kuki CSOs
KANGGUI, Mar 11: The Kuki civil society organisations including Kuki Inpi Sadar Hills and its frontal organisations, Sadar Hills Women Union, KSO-Sadar Hills and area wise Kuki Chiefs' Associations within Sadar Hills collectively and unanimously resolved today in a general body meeting held at Kanggui not to endorse and give any type of taxes or donation to any militant organisations other than KNO/UPF.
The Kuki CSOs within Sadar Hills also resolved to ban collection of any taxes or any types of donation in any Kuki inhabited areas within Sadar Hills Manipur by any other organisations except those organisation under the umbrella of KNO and UPF.
The civil bodies while making clear that there is no such organisation in the name of Kuki Tribal Union under the umbrella of KNO and UPF, said that they are not aware and do not acknowledge the existence of KTU under GPRN/NSCN therefore the Kukis will not be able to pay any types of taxes or donation in the name of KTU-GPRN/NSCN.
The agenda of KTU in collecting taxes from Kuki villages implicates the communal attitude of GPRN/NSCN, pointed out the Kuki CSOs in the meeting held today at Kanggui and asserted that "No Kuki village will pay any type of taxes to GPRN/NSCN and its constituent units or frontal organisations." This is the standpoint of the CSOs of Kukis in Manipur.
The meeting of the Kuki CSOs today also reaffirmed that the Kukis in Manipur will abide and follow the "Joint Declaration" framed by KNO and UPF.
The Joint Declaration stated that KNO/UPF welcome any individual or organisation who joins the KNO/UPF but will always be against and never accepted those individuals or organisation based or affiliated in any other organisation rather than KNO/UPF.
The Joint Declaration further said that such organisations or individual will not be entitled to collect any types of taxes or donation in any Kuki inhabited areas.
The Kuki CSOs further pointed out that the Government of the Peoples Republic of Nagalim Official Authorization Ref No 08 dated 20/02/14; President (Yaruiwo) GPRN Orders, Oking 3/5/2012 signed by Isak Chishi Swu; GPRN Chief Principal Secretary dated Oking, 10 June 2010 (Official Correspondence) signed by Samson Jajo and GPRN Ministry of Chaplee Affairs dated Oking, the 16th June 2010 (Authorization Order) signed by Q Awomi, Secretary, Chaplee Affairs and orders issued by K Joseph, the Dy Secy Chaplee Affairs reflects a design to sow seeds of discords among the Kuki and Naga by using Kuki Tribal Union(KTU) for collection of taxes to Kuki villages.
The collective leadership of the Kukis living in the area rejected outright the orders of GPRN and urged to withdraw and cancel its orders with immediate effects for long lasting peace and harmony among the two community.
While the Kuki CSOs remind the GPRN that the Kukis were peace loving people, the Kuki bodies urged the GPRN to mind and check their tongue in the name of KTU in future course so as to avoid communal tension or else held responsible for the same.
Source: Sangai
The Kuki CSOs within Sadar Hills also resolved to ban collection of any taxes or any types of donation in any Kuki inhabited areas within Sadar Hills Manipur by any other organisations except those organisation under the umbrella of KNO and UPF.
The civil bodies while making clear that there is no such organisation in the name of Kuki Tribal Union under the umbrella of KNO and UPF, said that they are not aware and do not acknowledge the existence of KTU under GPRN/NSCN therefore the Kukis will not be able to pay any types of taxes or donation in the name of KTU-GPRN/NSCN.
The agenda of KTU in collecting taxes from Kuki villages implicates the communal attitude of GPRN/NSCN, pointed out the Kuki CSOs in the meeting held today at Kanggui and asserted that "No Kuki village will pay any type of taxes to GPRN/NSCN and its constituent units or frontal organisations." This is the standpoint of the CSOs of Kukis in Manipur.
The meeting of the Kuki CSOs today also reaffirmed that the Kukis in Manipur will abide and follow the "Joint Declaration" framed by KNO and UPF.
The Joint Declaration stated that KNO/UPF welcome any individual or organisation who joins the KNO/UPF but will always be against and never accepted those individuals or organisation based or affiliated in any other organisation rather than KNO/UPF.
The Joint Declaration further said that such organisations or individual will not be entitled to collect any types of taxes or donation in any Kuki inhabited areas.
The Kuki CSOs further pointed out that the Government of the Peoples Republic of Nagalim Official Authorization Ref No 08 dated 20/02/14; President (Yaruiwo) GPRN Orders, Oking 3/5/2012 signed by Isak Chishi Swu; GPRN Chief Principal Secretary dated Oking, 10 June 2010 (Official Correspondence) signed by Samson Jajo and GPRN Ministry of Chaplee Affairs dated Oking, the 16th June 2010 (Authorization Order) signed by Q Awomi, Secretary, Chaplee Affairs and orders issued by K Joseph, the Dy Secy Chaplee Affairs reflects a design to sow seeds of discords among the Kuki and Naga by using Kuki Tribal Union(KTU) for collection of taxes to Kuki villages.
The collective leadership of the Kukis living in the area rejected outright the orders of GPRN and urged to withdraw and cancel its orders with immediate effects for long lasting peace and harmony among the two community.
While the Kuki CSOs remind the GPRN that the Kukis were peace loving people, the Kuki bodies urged the GPRN to mind and check their tongue in the name of KTU in future course so as to avoid communal tension or else held responsible for the same.
Source: Sangai
Myanmarese goods not profitable anymore for north east traders
Traders who had started going to Namphalong and Tamu markets in Myanmar after several weeks of sealing off of the international border, are not happy with the changed situation. Many of them may not be going further to bring foreign goods for sale at various towns in the north eastern States.
The traders and the community leaders at Moreh, the border town, had sealed off the international border following the grisly murder of two traders - S. Singh and D. Singh from Uttar Pradesh and Mumbai respectively - on February 11 by unknown persons. Though they were believed to have been kidnapped from Tamu town, about 30 km from the international border on Fberuary 11, their decomposed and mutilated bodies were found near a tribal village some weeks later.
When the Myanmarese Government did nothing to track down the killers, the traders and community leaders at Moreh had sealed off the international border and did not permit anyone to cross the international gate. Following a meeting among the officials of Manipur and Myanmar, the restriction was lifted from Sunday. The Indian traders had started rushing to Namphalong and Tamu to fetch foreign goods.
However, talking to The Hindu, some of the traders said that there is a changed situation and a fear psychosis among Indians who venture into Myanmar. They feel that any one of them could be murdered any time and the criminals would never be accounted for. The killers of the two Indian traders have not been arrested so far and the fear is that they will never be booked. In other words, these criminals and some potential criminals may be tempted to commit more crimes as they know that they will never be brought to justice.
The traders said that since they feel quite unsafe, many of them are thinking of not sticking out their necks. In any case, the legalised border trade had undergone a radical change. The traditional trade between the two countries was legalised after much official red tapism on May 12, 1995. The country’s exchequer had not gained much in the sense that the underworld business is still flourishing and the taxes imposed on the common items are negligible.
Much later, the Myanmarese government had constructed a shopping complex at Namphalong across the international gate. It means that the days of the business monopoly by the south Indians, collectively known at Moreh as Tamils, came to an end. In the beginning, they bought all foreign goods in bulk and sold them to the Indian traders at huge profit later. Since the Indian traders are going straight to Namphalong, these Tamils were left holding the empty sacks. Representatives of the Tamil Sangam in Moreh told The Hindu that most of the traders had left Moreh to start business elsewhere. The growing sense of insecurity among the traders who have been going inside Myanmar to fetch goods is the last nail in the coffin.
Indications are that Champhai in Mizoram is fast emerging as the alternative trade centre of the two countries. Besides, the traders also say that there are over “15 check posts” between Imphal and Moreh which has a distance of 110 km. They have to grease many palms in these check posts with the result that they do not get much profit from the sale of the foreign goods brought to Manipur and other NE States.
There are no banking and foreign exchange facilities at Moreh. As criminals of many hues rule the roost there, the traders do not feel safe to carry huge amounts of money needed for trade matters.
Source: Hindu
The traders and the community leaders at Moreh, the border town, had sealed off the international border following the grisly murder of two traders - S. Singh and D. Singh from Uttar Pradesh and Mumbai respectively - on February 11 by unknown persons. Though they were believed to have been kidnapped from Tamu town, about 30 km from the international border on Fberuary 11, their decomposed and mutilated bodies were found near a tribal village some weeks later.
When the Myanmarese Government did nothing to track down the killers, the traders and community leaders at Moreh had sealed off the international border and did not permit anyone to cross the international gate. Following a meeting among the officials of Manipur and Myanmar, the restriction was lifted from Sunday. The Indian traders had started rushing to Namphalong and Tamu to fetch foreign goods.
However, talking to The Hindu, some of the traders said that there is a changed situation and a fear psychosis among Indians who venture into Myanmar. They feel that any one of them could be murdered any time and the criminals would never be accounted for. The killers of the two Indian traders have not been arrested so far and the fear is that they will never be booked. In other words, these criminals and some potential criminals may be tempted to commit more crimes as they know that they will never be brought to justice.
The traders said that since they feel quite unsafe, many of them are thinking of not sticking out their necks. In any case, the legalised border trade had undergone a radical change. The traditional trade between the two countries was legalised after much official red tapism on May 12, 1995. The country’s exchequer had not gained much in the sense that the underworld business is still flourishing and the taxes imposed on the common items are negligible.
Much later, the Myanmarese government had constructed a shopping complex at Namphalong across the international gate. It means that the days of the business monopoly by the south Indians, collectively known at Moreh as Tamils, came to an end. In the beginning, they bought all foreign goods in bulk and sold them to the Indian traders at huge profit later. Since the Indian traders are going straight to Namphalong, these Tamils were left holding the empty sacks. Representatives of the Tamil Sangam in Moreh told The Hindu that most of the traders had left Moreh to start business elsewhere. The growing sense of insecurity among the traders who have been going inside Myanmar to fetch goods is the last nail in the coffin.
Indications are that Champhai in Mizoram is fast emerging as the alternative trade centre of the two countries. Besides, the traders also say that there are over “15 check posts” between Imphal and Moreh which has a distance of 110 km. They have to grease many palms in these check posts with the result that they do not get much profit from the sale of the foreign goods brought to Manipur and other NE States.
There are no banking and foreign exchange facilities at Moreh. As criminals of many hues rule the roost there, the traders do not feel safe to carry huge amounts of money needed for trade matters.
Source: Hindu
Tuesday, 11 March 2014
The Quiet River Quartet is out with their debut single ‘London Bridge’
The Quiet River Quartet, a four member Rock band from Imphal has released their Debut Single “Long Bridge’ and is available for streaming on Soundcloud.
For those of you who are new to the band, the Quiet River Quartet is an Imphal based Rock band. Formed by a group of four peculiar individuals with a passionate love for music. It’s what’s led them to pursue their musical interests on a full-time basis.
Band members:
Dinez the “metronome”
The soul of the band (and the only one in the band with actual rockstar locks). Started out as a guitarist, but found his true calling only later, on the drums. Dons a few hats: graphic designer, singer (even though he absolutely dreads the thought of singing), ace prankster (not that you’ll never guess that if you’re not in the know, given those good-boy vibes he gives out in abundance.)Bhupen
With his intimidating figure, Bhupen aka Shaolin Baba would easily land a role as an anti-hero in a Telegu film. Get to know him a little, however, and you’ll realise he’s the gentlest of giants. Also known as Baldy, the guy is forever stressed that the beanie cap he wears will fall down while he’s headbanging on the stage.
Music runs deep in his veins; he comes from a family of musicians (one of whom is even considered a legend). Was in a band with his brother before this. Oh, and he can do a spot of singing too, if need be.Nitin
The singer and songwriter of TQRQ, Nitin is a true dreamer and romantic at heart. The sort of person who doesn’t believe in taking any half-measures. Also an out and out perfectionist. Chat with him for a bit, and you’ll find out just how passionate he is about making music.
A fan of Arctic Monkeys and The Black Keys, Nitin hopes to open for the two bands someday.Avinash aka Avidona
The bassist of the band, and a complete football fanatic (which is how he got his nickname). One heck of a talent…incredible how he comes up with those groovy bass licks. Seriously into Arctic Monkeys, Oasis and The Black Keys. And one day, he wants to open a Sports Café, where there’s one and only one sport on the menu…
Dinez the “metronome”
The soul of the band (and the only one in the band with actual rockstar locks). Started out as a guitarist, but found his true calling only later, on the drums. Dons a few hats: graphic designer, singer (even though he absolutely dreads the thought of singing), ace prankster (not that you’ll never guess that if you’re not in the know, given those good-boy vibes he gives out in abundance.)Bhupen
With his intimidating figure, Bhupen aka Shaolin Baba would easily land a role as an anti-hero in a Telegu film. Get to know him a little, however, and you’ll realise he’s the gentlest of giants. Also known as Baldy, the guy is forever stressed that the beanie cap he wears will fall down while he’s headbanging on the stage.
Music runs deep in his veins; he comes from a family of musicians (one of whom is even considered a legend). Was in a band with his brother before this. Oh, and he can do a spot of singing too, if need be.Nitin
The singer and songwriter of TQRQ, Nitin is a true dreamer and romantic at heart. The sort of person who doesn’t believe in taking any half-measures. Also an out and out perfectionist. Chat with him for a bit, and you’ll find out just how passionate he is about making music.
A fan of Arctic Monkeys and The Black Keys, Nitin hopes to open for the two bands someday.Avinash aka Avidona
The bassist of the band, and a complete football fanatic (which is how he got his nickname). One heck of a talent…incredible how he comes up with those groovy bass licks. Seriously into Arctic Monkeys, Oasis and The Black Keys. And one day, he wants to open a Sports Café, where there’s one and only one sport on the menu…
Artists they Like
The Black Keys, Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Ocean Color Scene, The Dirty Strikes, The Mavyns
Links:
Source: http://www.jampad.in/artist/the-quiet-river-quartet-is-out-with-their-debut-single-london-bridge/
Apple updates iOS 7 for iPhone and iPad
Apple, on Monday, released its first major update for iOS 7, its latest operating system for iPhones and iPads. The upgrade improves reliability of the fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5S and makes adjustments to Siri, among many other changes.
A few months after Apple released the iPhone 5S, some users complained that the phone’s signature feature, TouchID, occasionally failed to read a persons fingerprint when unlocking the phone. Apple said that iOS 7.1 would improve the accuracy of TouchID.
Many users had also reported that with iOS 7, apps frequently crashed, causing the phone to restart sporadically. The latest software update will address this issue as well, according to the company.
Apple also made a major change in the way that Siri, voice assistant, works. Previously, a user would hold down the iPhones home button for a few seconds, let go, talk, and then wait for it to react. Now, a user can simply hold down the home button and start dictating the command, and Siri will react. Apple also added new languages for Siri, including Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, British English and Australian English.
The company modified its camera software for the iPhone 5S.
The camera will detect when a feature called High-Dynamic Range (HDR) will improve the look of a photo and automatically enable that feature so that the user does not have to bother switching it on before snapping the picture. (HDR mode is typically useful in situations with high contrast between a subject and the background for instance, when shooting a photo of a person who is standing in front of bright light.)
Furthermore, the software update adds CarPlay, the new capability for iPhones to stream their content to some car systems, which Apple announced this month.
Apple released iOS 7 in September.
The operating system was a stark departure from past versions it featured a flat design that removed some textures and gradients and added more vibrant colours, as well as changes to some tools.
It was the first operating system designed under Jony Ive, Apple’s industrial design chief, who took over direction of Apples mobile software after the company fired Scott Forstall, the previous executive in charge of iOS.
The most surprising thing about iOS 7.1 is not the new features, but how long it took Apple to fix the nagging problem of devices randomly restarting.
© New York Times News Service
A few months after Apple released the iPhone 5S, some users complained that the phone’s signature feature, TouchID, occasionally failed to read a persons fingerprint when unlocking the phone. Apple said that iOS 7.1 would improve the accuracy of TouchID.
Many users had also reported that with iOS 7, apps frequently crashed, causing the phone to restart sporadically. The latest software update will address this issue as well, according to the company.
Apple also made a major change in the way that Siri, voice assistant, works. Previously, a user would hold down the iPhones home button for a few seconds, let go, talk, and then wait for it to react. Now, a user can simply hold down the home button and start dictating the command, and Siri will react. Apple also added new languages for Siri, including Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, British English and Australian English.
The company modified its camera software for the iPhone 5S.
The camera will detect when a feature called High-Dynamic Range (HDR) will improve the look of a photo and automatically enable that feature so that the user does not have to bother switching it on before snapping the picture. (HDR mode is typically useful in situations with high contrast between a subject and the background for instance, when shooting a photo of a person who is standing in front of bright light.)
Furthermore, the software update adds CarPlay, the new capability for iPhones to stream their content to some car systems, which Apple announced this month.
Apple released iOS 7 in September.
The operating system was a stark departure from past versions it featured a flat design that removed some textures and gradients and added more vibrant colours, as well as changes to some tools.
It was the first operating system designed under Jony Ive, Apple’s industrial design chief, who took over direction of Apples mobile software after the company fired Scott Forstall, the previous executive in charge of iOS.
The most surprising thing about iOS 7.1 is not the new features, but how long it took Apple to fix the nagging problem of devices randomly restarting.
© New York Times News Service
Maoists kill 16 in Chhattisgarh
Fifteen security personnel were killed in a Maoist ambush on Tuesday in the Sukma district of south Chhattisgarh. One civilian, Vikram Nishad, also died in the crossfire while three were injured.Chhattisgarh’s Additional Director General of Police Mukesh Gupta said 11 of the personnel who died belonged to the CRPF while four were from the Chhattisgarh police.
The incident took place when a joint team of the CRPF and the State police — about 50 personnel divided into two platoons — were moving from Tongpal village to Jeeram Ghati in Sukma district, the same area where a Maoist ambush had killed 27 people last May.
The team was engaged in an area domination exercise to sanitise the area for troop movement and also to provide security to road construction workers. About 100 Maoists surrounded them and opened fire.
Sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Delhi said an alert had been sounded last month in view of the Lok Sabha elections.
Against procedure
An MHA official said prima facie there appeared to have been a complete violation of the standard operating procedure as the security personnel had been taking the same route for the past couple of days.
After the ambush, the Maoists planted explosives in a soldier’s body, Inspector General (IG) of Bastar A.D. Gautam said. But they apparently did not plant any bombs at the ambush site, as they normally do, as no explosive was recovered till evening.
What has surprised many is Maoist mobilisation on one of the busiest highways of south Chhattisgarh. “The pace with which the Maoists assembled, ambushed and disappeared in an area where there is police and paramilitary camps is unbelievable,” an eyewitness said.
Inspector General of CRPF in Chhattisgarh H.S. Sidhu said they had not released the names of the security personnel who died as they would like to inform the families first. All the CRPF men belonged to 80 Battalion.
Rebels have been active in the area for a long time. This is the second major attack on security forces in the past fortnight. On February 28, five security personnel were killed in a Maoist attack in Dantewada.
(With additional reporting by Devesh K. Pandey)
the Hindu
Sunday, 9 March 2014
‘Delay in talks due to lack of wisdom, guts’
[caption id="attachment_11374" align="alignleft" width="450"]
Isaak and Muivah[/caption]Government of India was not expected to keep silent but to take initiatives, as the ball was in the court of the Centre: NSCN (IM) collective leadership on their from Delhi
Morung Express News
Dimapur | March 9
Dimapur | March 9
The NSCN (IM) collective leadership has alleged that the delay in resumption of peace talks between the Government of India and the NSCN (IM) was due to the lack of “wisdom and guts” on the part of the GoI.
Talking to media persons at Dimapur Airport Sunday noon, after their arrival from Delhi, the NSCN (IM) collective leadership, including Chairman Isak Chishi Swu and General Secretary Th Muivah, also accused the Centre of deliberately postponing the peace talks.
“Whatever might be the circumstances, you know they (Centre) ought to take steps but they don’t take. Very sorry we don’t see wisdom and guts on the part of the Indian Government because you know both the Indian and Naga people are anxiously waiting for the outcome of the talks and that is not wrong on our part,” Muivah said.
The two NSCN (IM) leaders, who had been campaigning in Delhi since November 13, 2013, returned on Sunday. “The ball is in their (Centre) court and naturally we expect that they will be prepared to continue the talks. Of course they are willing to do it but we came to understand that they are too much engaged. On top of the coming election, there has been an unfortunate incident also, the interlocutor resigned himself and so without the presence of the Interlocutor, initiative cannot be taken from our side or either side and so the process has been held up”, Muivah said.
It may be mentioned the Centre’s interlocutor to the Naga peace talks, RS Pandey resigned in December 2013 and later joined the BJP.
Stating that the delay in resumption of talks did not mean that the peace process has stopped, the NSCN (IM) General Secretary however said that GoI was not expected to keep silent but to take initiatives, as the ball was in the court of the Centre.
“Of course the assurance is that the talks must there, solution must be worked out. That is what they told us. Yet we are not satisfied with that kind of promises. In the past three years they kept themselves silent. When the Interlocutor was there, the talks could have been taken up”, Muivah said.
“They cannot go back upon their own commitment. Remember the Prime Minister, almost all the Prime Ministers, they said that Naga history is unique and we have to seek solution basing on the uniqueness of Naga history. How can they go back? They cannot go back”, he added.
Asserting that the NSCN (IM) was not disappointed by the temporary setback, the collective leadership nonetheless insisted that things have to work out. “But things have to work out when the time is ripe, when it is not done than whose failure is it? Naturally those people who did not take initiative,” Muivah said.
Bangladesh assures firm action on North East insurgent groups
India hands fresh list of 66 insurgent camps to Bangladesh
Shillong, March 9 (IANS): Bangladesh’s border guards have promised firm action against insurgents from India’s northeastern states taking shelter in that country, an Indian official said Sunday.
Shillong, March 9 (IANS): Bangladesh’s border guards have promised firm action against insurgents from India’s northeastern states taking shelter in that country, an Indian official said Sunday.
“We have handed over a list of 66 Indian insurgent camps to the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB). They have assured us of taking firm action against the Indian insurgents operating from Bangladesh,” Inspector General of Border Security Force Sudhir Kumar Srivastava, in-charge Guwahati Frontier, told media.
Moreover, he said the BGB has submitted names of 16 Bangladeshi smugglers who it alleged were operating from India for smuggling narcotics to Bangladesh. A four-day inspector general-level Border Coordination Conference between the BSF and the BGB concluded here at the BSF frontier headquarters Sunday. Srivastava, who led the Indian side, said the new list was submitted to the BGB delegation led by its commander north-east region Brig. Gen. Habibul Karim. The list is according to the specific intelligence inputs about the location of the insurgent camps.
“Most of these insurgent camps are located at several areas in Bangladesh’s Mymensing, Moulvibazar, Netrakona, Khagrachari, Rangamati, and the Kasalong Reserve Forest,” the BSF official said.
The camps included those of the ULFA, NSCN (IM), NDFB, PLA, ANVC-B, HNLC and other rebel groups active in India’s northeastern states with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy and the right to self-determination.
However, Srivastava said the number of insurgent camps in Bangladesh has declined due to the action initiated by the Bangladesh forces and also because of the insurgents shifting their base to Myanmar.
Four northeastern states -- Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam -- share a 1,880-km border with Bangladesh. The dense forests, mountainous terrain, unfenced borders and other issues make the area porous and vulnerable.
Apart from the insurgent camps, the BSF expressed concern at the frequent crimes committed by Bangladeshi nationals inside Indian territory which include poaching, illegal migration and smuggling of fake Indian currency notes.
“We have asked them (BGB) to adopt stringent steps by initiating simultaneous border patrolling to prevent the smuggling of fake Indian currency notes and narcotics on both sides of the border,” Srivastava said.
In 2013 alone, the BSF seized fake Indian currency worth Rs.5.48 lakh and seized nearly five lakh bottles of cough syrup Phensdyl worth Rs.3 crore and a large quantity of ganja (marijuana) along the India-Bangladesh border. India-made Phensdyl is banned in Bangladesh as many people, especially the youth, use it as a recreational narcotic.
BGB’s Brig. Gen. Karim raised issues like killing, kidnapping and injuring of unarmed Bangladeshi nationals by the BSF and the Indian natio
~MExN
Mizoram thrash Railways 3-0 to win Santosh Trophy
[caption id="attachment_11368" align="alignleft" width="583"]
The winning team[/caption]
SILIGURI: Mizoram blanked Railways 3-0 in a one-sided final of the 68th National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy on Sunday.
Zico Zoremsanga scored on either side of half-time and a second half injury time strike from F Lalrinpuia helped the north eastern state to romp home in style.
Railways - who had not won the Santosh Trophy since 1966 - came closest in the 43th minute when Rajesh S's close-range header came off the horizontal.
Courtesy their triumph, Mizoram bagged a purse of Rs 5 lakh while runners-up Railways got richer by Rs 3 lakh.
The match started at a good pace with both the outfits looking for an early goal.
Railways earned three quick corners to keep the rival defence on their toes while at the other end their goalkeeper Ehtesham Ahmed -- oozing confidence after his penalty heroics in the semifinal -- flung to keep Lalnunmawia and Lalbiakhlua's shots at bay.
With Railways missing their first choice centre-backs Vimal Kumar and Rajiv Boro due to suspension, Mizoram looked to take advantage but first-timer Akhil Rajbanshi and makeshift stopper-back Dipankar Das stood firm.
David Larinmuana found Lalnumawia free on the left with a good-looking ball from midfield but the latter was well marked by Dipankar and right-back Y Raju Singh.
Lalbiakhlua then tried to be cheeky minutes into the half hour mark, trying to dink Ahmed from just outside the box on the right flank. But the hero of the previous night had his near-post covered with the attempt also landing onto the roof of the net.
It was end to end stuff with the action mostly concentrated in the final third. The match's best chance fell to Railways when striker Rajesh S hit the bar from close. Kisku tried his luck from the rebound but his effort was blocked.
Moments later, Mizoram took the lead. F Lalrinpuia crossed for Zico inside the box. The striker who has found the back of the net three times already in the tournament trapped the ball and swiveled past his marker to slot home into the far corner with the goalkeeper at full stretch.
It was Mizoram who called the shots after the break. Three minutes into the half, Lalrinpuia unleashed a powerful left-footer which was fisted out by Ahmed but only as far as Lalnunmawia who side-netted his close range effort off the rebound.
But the red shirts who have been the flavor of the 68th Nationals did not have to wait for long to double their advantage and take a giant stride towards their maiden title.
Zico was in the thick of things again as Mizoram broke on the counter. Lalbiakhlua teed up the goalscorer who did exceptionally well to round the goalkeeper and shoot into an empty net.
The second goal deflated Railways' spirit and the three-time champions looked to have thrown in the towel with their high-flying counterparts dominating possession.
F Lalrinpuia pinched their opponents' emotion at the death with a third goal from close in injury time to complete the memorable victory.
The winning team[/caption]SILIGURI: Mizoram blanked Railways 3-0 in a one-sided final of the 68th National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy on Sunday.
Zico Zoremsanga scored on either side of half-time and a second half injury time strike from F Lalrinpuia helped the north eastern state to romp home in style.
Railways - who had not won the Santosh Trophy since 1966 - came closest in the 43th minute when Rajesh S's close-range header came off the horizontal.
Courtesy their triumph, Mizoram bagged a purse of Rs 5 lakh while runners-up Railways got richer by Rs 3 lakh.
The match started at a good pace with both the outfits looking for an early goal.
Railways earned three quick corners to keep the rival defence on their toes while at the other end their goalkeeper Ehtesham Ahmed -- oozing confidence after his penalty heroics in the semifinal -- flung to keep Lalnunmawia and Lalbiakhlua's shots at bay.
With Railways missing their first choice centre-backs Vimal Kumar and Rajiv Boro due to suspension, Mizoram looked to take advantage but first-timer Akhil Rajbanshi and makeshift stopper-back Dipankar Das stood firm.
David Larinmuana found Lalnumawia free on the left with a good-looking ball from midfield but the latter was well marked by Dipankar and right-back Y Raju Singh.
Lalbiakhlua then tried to be cheeky minutes into the half hour mark, trying to dink Ahmed from just outside the box on the right flank. But the hero of the previous night had his near-post covered with the attempt also landing onto the roof of the net.
It was end to end stuff with the action mostly concentrated in the final third. The match's best chance fell to Railways when striker Rajesh S hit the bar from close. Kisku tried his luck from the rebound but his effort was blocked.
Moments later, Mizoram took the lead. F Lalrinpuia crossed for Zico inside the box. The striker who has found the back of the net three times already in the tournament trapped the ball and swiveled past his marker to slot home into the far corner with the goalkeeper at full stretch.
It was Mizoram who called the shots after the break. Three minutes into the half, Lalrinpuia unleashed a powerful left-footer which was fisted out by Ahmed but only as far as Lalnunmawia who side-netted his close range effort off the rebound.
But the red shirts who have been the flavor of the 68th Nationals did not have to wait for long to double their advantage and take a giant stride towards their maiden title.
Zico was in the thick of things again as Mizoram broke on the counter. Lalbiakhlua teed up the goalscorer who did exceptionally well to round the goalkeeper and shoot into an empty net.
The second goal deflated Railways' spirit and the three-time champions looked to have thrown in the towel with their high-flying counterparts dominating possession.
F Lalrinpuia pinched their opponents' emotion at the death with a third goal from close in injury time to complete the memorable victory.
ACAUT condemns NPGs using ‘Nagaland for Christ’ for extortion
Stating that “never has Christ been so much abused as in Nagaland today” with the use of the slogan ‘Nagaland for Christ’ by Naga Political Groups (NPGs), Action Committee Against Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) Nagaland, rued that the “good intention” by “certain sections of our society” had been “completely eroded now”.ACAUT media cell maintained, that instead of the slogan being used as a guide for Nagas to the next spiritual level and inspire them to live a “good Christian citizens”, the slogan instead, is synonymous with all the wrong kind of activities such as - unabated taxation, factional killings and mayhem.
ACAUT asserted that the hijack of the slogan and its misuse by the NPGs was a “gross distortion of our faith” and that the “silence of the church” on this issue was the prime reason why young Nagas have become “skeptical” of the Naga movement and the institution of the church.
ACAUT said it was amazing that NPGs collect tax with the “sacrosanct words stamped on the taxation slips and writing pads” while civil society was reduced to mute bystanders. Stating that the “sheer magnitude of this hypocrisy is not lost on many” ACAUT added it was a “staggering example of where we have faltered as a society”.
In the light of the above ACAUT Nagaland reiterated its rejection of the use of the slogan ‘Nagaland for Christ’ by the NPGs for legitimising their anti-people activities. ACAUT also condemned the “concerted attempt to legitimise” what were essentially illegal activities “by invoking divine sanction which is simply blasphemous”.
It also said NPGs issuing “tax demands under the cover of Nagaland for Christ is deemed anti-Naga”. Further ACAUT vehemently condemned the other practise of the NPGs in employing Illegal Bangladeshi Immigrants(IBIs) for carrying out “their extortion activities” with ‘Nagaland for Christ’ printed in the “taxation slips”.
ACAUT said any other entity other than church using the slogan in non-spiritual matters profaned Christian faith and that using it for taxation activity was “nothing but anti-Christian and anti-people”. ACAUT urged upon the NBCC to “condemn such anti-Christian activity as blasphemy”.
~Nagaland Post
ONGC intensifies exploration in Tripura
The Tripura unit of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) has intensified exploration to create a recoverable reserve of gas for at least 15 years, a top official of the company said.
The unit supplies natural gas to 726 MW gas-fired thermal power project at Palatana in Gomati district.
“Now, we have intensified our exploration drive in Tripura to create a huge recoverable reserve of gas to continue the supply to the existing Palatana project and getting ready to charge gas to 100 MW gas-based thermal power project at Monarchak and urea fertiliser company at Khubal. The two plants would come up soon,” State Asset Manager of ONGC, V.P. Mahawar said.
The Monarchak plant in Sipahijala district would require gas from December this year and the urea fertiliser companies being set up at Khubal in North Tripura district would be operational by 2018.
The Monarchak project was set up by North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO) and the urea project is a joint venture of ONGC, Chambal Fertiliser and the Tripura government.
The proposed 1.3 million metric tonne per annum (MMTPA) fertiliser manufacturing company would require 2.4 million metric standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD) hydro carbon per day to run the plant.
Mr. Mahawar said ONGC is going ahead with its target to enhance the gas production from 5.75 MMSCMD to 6.35 MMSCMD per day by the next financial year and create a reserve of 30 billion cubic meters.
`Source: the Hindu
The unit supplies natural gas to 726 MW gas-fired thermal power project at Palatana in Gomati district.
“Now, we have intensified our exploration drive in Tripura to create a huge recoverable reserve of gas to continue the supply to the existing Palatana project and getting ready to charge gas to 100 MW gas-based thermal power project at Monarchak and urea fertiliser company at Khubal. The two plants would come up soon,” State Asset Manager of ONGC, V.P. Mahawar said.
The Monarchak plant in Sipahijala district would require gas from December this year and the urea fertiliser companies being set up at Khubal in North Tripura district would be operational by 2018.
The Monarchak project was set up by North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO) and the urea project is a joint venture of ONGC, Chambal Fertiliser and the Tripura government.
The proposed 1.3 million metric tonne per annum (MMTPA) fertiliser manufacturing company would require 2.4 million metric standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD) hydro carbon per day to run the plant.
Mr. Mahawar said ONGC is going ahead with its target to enhance the gas production from 5.75 MMSCMD to 6.35 MMSCMD per day by the next financial year and create a reserve of 30 billion cubic meters.
`Source: the Hindu
Friday, 7 March 2014
Samsung to pay $930 million to Apple in damages for patent infringement
One of the biggest patent lawsuits is finally over with Apple emerging victorious. Samsung has to pay $930 million in damages, but is free to sell infringing products in the US.It was 2012 when the biggest patent war sparked off and at that time Samsung was ordered to pay Apple a whopping sum of $1.05 billion for damages caused due to infringing patents. There was a huge spat and Samsung pleaded that the numbers should be revised and a new trial took place which ended in a fine of $929.8 million.
Today, the case (that was still going on) has finally been closed with Judge Lucy Koh awarding Apple an approximate value of $930 million. However, Apple’s request of banning permanent sales of Samsung’s infringing products has been denied and the court has said that Samsung is free to sell the products in the US.
The focus will now shift to the second patent trial slammed by Apple on the South Korean electronics giant which targets the Samsung Galaxy S III smartphone. While the smartphone is out-dated, it is still selling in number of markets around the globe. According to experts, the future trials could end in much more sophisticated damages for Samsung and bring in even higher amounts for Apple than the first trial.
Source: GSM Arena
Ukraine crisis: Russia MPs welcome Crimea referendum
After meeting visiting Crimean MPs, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said the peninsula would be welcome as an equal part of Russia.
The interim government in Kiev has denounced the vote as "illegitimate".
Meanwhile, Russia's state-owned energy company, Gazprom, has warned Ukraine that its gas supply might be cut off.
CEO Alexei Miller said it was owed $1.89bn (£1.13bn) and warned: "Either Ukraine makes good on its debt and pays for current supplies, or there is risk of returning to the situation of early 2009."
Gazprom halted supplies to Ukraine for almost two weeks in 2009, a move that caused shortages in Europe.
Ukrainian officials have said the state has come close to bankruptcy since protesters ousted President Viktor Yanukovych at the end of February and pro-Russian forces took control of Crimea last week.
Officials say $35bn (£21bn) is needed to get through this year and 2015.
NIAPA makes International debut
Nagaland recently set footprints in the international fashion arena at the Couture Fashion Week, New York, in a first of its kind, with the Northeast India Academy of Performing Arts (NIAPA), marking their successful international debut on February 15, to a host of luminaries, dignitaries and exclusive clientele of fashion lovers from all over the world.NIAPA’s show at the couture fashion week focused on Nagaland and the Northeastern region of India through a cultural dance based on the Naga folklore, on a larger canvas of India as a unique destination - a region rich in tradition, flush with emerald hills and shifting clouds. India prides itself as a nation of diversity, a phenomenon much spoken of yet very few experience. A diversity of religion, language, culture, food, history and features that have created a special environment where different cultures and folklores merge to create a unique blend of mysticism.
Following the success of their show in the couture fashion week, New York,19th season, NIAPA got an exclusive invitation for the upcoming three seasons till 2017, in which they will participate as the only Indian organization accepted to do an awards and cultural show of this kind at Couture Fashion Week, New York.
This New York journey began from September last with the launch of the first ever NIAPA Designer’s Award 2013 at Dimapur wherein the winner, Ikali Sukhalu, earned the “Golden Ticket” to the Big Apple, showcasing her collection “Trible Trickle” alongside, Daniel Syiem of Meghlaya and Amritraj Bora of Assam, two of India’s top designers from Northeast India. All the designers took inspiration from their own tribal heritage and added their interpretation of tribal fashion to their line. All the garments showcased at the NYCW used Eri and Muga silk in their designs, the silks indigenous to the Northeast Indian region. The Government of Nagaland’s unique youth-centric focus on expanding opportunities for talented entrepreneurs helped showcase the creative efforts of the Northeast India Academy of Performing Arts (NIAPA)’s participation at The Couture Fashion Week in New York.
In this regard the Northeast India Academy of Performing Arts (NIAPA) has extended their sincerest gratitude to the Government of Nagaland, for their relentless support towards helping them achieve milestones.
Sunday, 2 March 2014
89% HIV transmitted through sexual route in Nagaland: report
Morung Express News
Dimapur | March 2
Dimapur | March 2
In Nagaland, HIV is predominantly transmitted through the sexual route. Statistics taken in 2012-13 showed that 89% of HIV infection in Nagaland is through sexual transmission. The statistics, which appeared in the Computerized Management Information System (CMIS) bulletin (April 2006 to March 2013) published by Nagaland State Aids Control Society (NSACS), also stated that parent to child transmission stood at 5% and transmission through infected needles and syringes at 4%. Earlier, the major route of HIV transmission was sharing infected needles and syringes.
The bulletin underlined that there is an urgent need to inform healthcare providers and the public about the presence of HIV/AIDS in Nagaland State. In 2011, Nagaland was among six highest adult (15 to 49 years) HIV prevalence states in India with 0.73 %, according to Technical Report, India Estimates 2012.
However, the NSACS report showed an increasing decline in the number of HIV+ cases in the State. The bulletin recorded that in the year 2006-07, at Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres (ICTCs) across Nagaland, 22,121 people took HIV test and 1,027 were detected positive. Meanwhile, in 2012-13, 71,674 took the test and 1,533 of them were found to be HIV positive. According to the bulletin, rate of HIV+ declined from 4.64% to 2.35% within three years (2006 to 2008), but increased to 3.23% in 2008-2009, after which it declined at 2.30% in 2011-12. Meanwhile, number of AIDS related deaths in Nagaland during 2012-13 was 82 out of 423 cases reported (graph).
Among pregnant women, 151 were tested HIV positive in 2012-13 out of 19,175. Kiphire district had the highest HIV sero-positivity among pregnant women attending Ante Natal Care (ANC) clinics in 2012-13 and Wokha had the lowest with 1.59%. The figure in the bulletin showed a steady decrease in the HIV positivity rate among pregnant women from 2007 to 2013.
The data taken of general clients attending ICTCs in 2012-13 showed that Dimapur has the highest rate of HIV seropositivity with 6.33% among the 11 districts. Longleng district has the least with 0.11%.
In 2012-13, people between 25 to 49 years constituted 74% of HIV+ cases in Nagaland, followed by 15 to 24 years – 16 %; Below 14 – 6 %; and Above 50 – 4%.
The report concluded that HIV positivity among general population as well as High Risk Groups (HRGs) has declined steadily over the past three years. The positivity rate is higher among general population than HRGs, especially in Dimapur, Kohima, Tuensang, Kiphire and Peren districts, and numbers of discordant couples are more in the priority districts of Dimapur, Kohima, and Tuensang.
It further stated that a comprehensive study is urgently required to analyze and prioritize on men having sex with men and clients visiting female sex workers and design the requisite interventions. Scaling up of linkages between ICTC counsellors, Targeted Intervention, and Anti Retroviral Therapy centres need to be prioritized as HIV+ clients referred from the former centres to the ART are low, it recommended.
Featherheads Inc.
Featherheads Inc, one of the most creative design inc from NE region have been winning the hearts of many people for their unique taste of fashion, music and lifestyle!
“Featherheads” is a motley collective of artists and musicians. Their draw their inspiration and musical influences from the rich culture of NE tribal heritage. Based in Delhi, North East India is the place they call “home”, as did generations of our ancestors, who forged the sacred traditions and rituals still practiced today.
Featherheads vision is to resurrect and honor the unique tribal customs and traditions , using music and art as a bridge to the masses. Their motives flow purely and from the heart, awakening the spirit through authentic rhythms and enchanting sounds. Original melodies and modern riffs merge with primal beats.
Traditional folk tunes and stories are chanted through the lungs of a seasoned rocker. They fuse the old with the new ,forming an original musical and lyrical language that transcends cultural and generational boundaries.Built upon a foundation of respect and purity, and secured with loving intentions and cultural integrity, Featherheads invites anyone and everyone to their temple of sound.
Featherheads Content Writers..
Takum Gozen Longkumer
Sarah Bong
Contacts: https://www.facebook.com/featherheads.inc
Email: featherheads.inc@gmail.com
“Featherheads” is a motley collective of artists and musicians. Their draw their inspiration and musical influences from the rich culture of NE tribal heritage. Based in Delhi, North East India is the place they call “home”, as did generations of our ancestors, who forged the sacred traditions and rituals still practiced today.
Featherheads vision is to resurrect and honor the unique tribal customs and traditions , using music and art as a bridge to the masses. Their motives flow purely and from the heart, awakening the spirit through authentic rhythms and enchanting sounds. Original melodies and modern riffs merge with primal beats.
Traditional folk tunes and stories are chanted through the lungs of a seasoned rocker. They fuse the old with the new ,forming an original musical and lyrical language that transcends cultural and generational boundaries.Built upon a foundation of respect and purity, and secured with loving intentions and cultural integrity, Featherheads invites anyone and everyone to their temple of sound.
Featherheads Content Writers..
Takum Gozen Longkumer
Sarah Bong
Contacts: https://www.facebook.com/featherheads.inc
Email: featherheads.inc@gmail.com
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