Day: August 29, 2017

IMPHAL | Aug 29

Blue Moon restaurant was closed down today by a local club, Star Volunteer Corps (SVC), Heirangoithong Awang Maibam Leikai for allegedly smuggling of heroin number four.

According to general secretary of the club, Maibam Stellon, club members have been on vigil at the locality following information of drug smuggling in the locality. While the club volunteers were waiting for catching smugglers, some juveniles were seen entering the restaurant in a suspicious manner.

When the club volunteers entered the restaurant they found smuggling of heroin in the restaurant premises at around 8 am this morning. When the volunteers interrogated they were found to be juveniles and the seller and the owner of the restaurant were also found to be juveniles.

He said the seller hails from Kakwa Khonang Feidekpi. About 40 grams of heroin powder was found by the club volunteers from the possession of the seller. Seller of the drug told the club volunteers that the drug was procured from Lilong area and sold it to the said restaurant.

Kakwa police came to the spot but as the culprits were juveniles SVC handed over the juveniles to their respective guardians.

Stellon further warned that any types of intoxicant cannot be sold in the area and if one is found ignoring the warning, the club will take stern actions against them. Bluemoon restaurant has been closed permanently from today, he added.

By A Staff Reporter

IMPHAL |Aug 29

Reacting to a news report in the IFP that a 78 year old patient was refused free laboratory test facility made available as a policy of the government, the doctor in charge of the laboratory at the Churachandpur District Hospital and the laboratory technician, clarified that the patient was not denied the facility but only asked to return with OPD ticket which is mandatory for availing the facility.

The clarification said the patient came to the Bio Chemistry laboratory and sought to avail of its facility only on the strength of the recommendation of a lady doctor doing private practice, but had not gone through the procedure of first registering and getting an OPD ticket of the hospital.

The lab technician, also a lady, had advised the patient to return the next day after going through the due process of acquiring the hospital’s OPD ticket, and also to come in the morning during the hours reserved for blood sample collection.

The patient party however turned up at the laboratory in the afternoon, and also without the hospital OPD ticket again, and hence the lab assistant was constrained not to allow the use of the laboratory facility.

She was however willing to do the test even though it was late, but only if the patient party first acquired the OPD ticket, they said.

Instead of doing the needful, the patient party went to the press and made unfair allegations against the management of the laboratory, they lamented.

They said they had clear instruction from the top that no patient without proper OPD ticket should be entertained, as this would lead to doctors doing private practices misusing the government facilities for their private ends.

On the charge that the doctor in charge of the Biochemistry laboratory not being always present at the laboratory, they clarified that because of shortage of staff, the doctor in question had been handed additional responsibilities of heading two other OPDs, that of NCD (Non Communicable Diseases) and that of ART (Antiretroviral Therapy), besides being made the nodal officer of NPCDCS (National Programme of Prevention of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke).

This being the case, the concerned doctor could only be present at the Bio Chemistry laboratory for a certain time only during the day, but the lab assistant is always present during duty hour, they further clarified.

IMPHAL | Aug 29

There is need to showcase the State’s rich art and culture to the rest of the country. We need to show what wealth we have in our culture and dance to the outside world, said governor Najma Heptulla.

The governor was addressing the Sakalp Parva “Sankalp se Siddhi” function organised by the song and drama division, Imphal Centre, under the ministry of information and broadcasting, government of India. The function, based on the New India Movement, was held at the Raj Bhawan, here today.

She observed that observed that dance and music is still very much active in Manipur and other parts of the Northeast. “I love Manipur. There is so much of dance and music here. That’s life”, she said.

She further encouraged and suggested the artistes of the Jawaharlal Nehru Manipur Dance Academy and the Manipur University of Culture to perform more frequently outside the State.

The governor said that Sankalp Parva is such an important function as it is being heralded as 360 degree programme to make India modern by 2022.

She said Sankalp Parva is an initiative under the ‘Sankalp Se Siddhi’ movement which is the dream of the Prime Minister for reforming the nation under the “New India Movement by making – poverty, filth, corruption, terrorism, communalism and casteism Quit India.”

Today’s youth should understand what price our forefathers’ had paid in achieving freedom of India, the governor said.

Lauding an artiste who performed the song “Ae mere watan ke logon” during today’s function, the governor said she became nostalgic during the rendition of the song. She expressed that she was reminded of the time when renowned singer Lata Mageskar performed the same song at National Club, New Delhi in the presence of the first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru, during which she herself was present as a child.

Arts and culture minister L. Jayentakumar who also spoke on the occasion said the reasons for establishment of a culture university and Manipur State Film and Television Institute in the State is the unique cultural identity of Manipur despite its limited size and resources.

He also said that Manipur needs helping hands from the Union Ministry of finance in order to exploit the talents of our youths.

During the function, the governor along with the other dignitaries and the participants pledged for building a New India- clean, free from poverty, corruption, terrorism, communalism and casteism.

As part of the function, artistes of the Song and Drama Division, Imphal Centre performed several cultural items including a group song Vande Mantaram, Lai-haraoba, Cheirol Jagoi, Lavani Dance and Dhol Chollom.