Tag: National

Dimapur, Jan 13 NNN: It is reported that New Delhi is attempting to bar NSCN-IM leaders Thuingaleng Muivah and Isak Chisi Swu from visiting to a district in Nagaland.
On Friday, the outfit’s ‘ministry of information and publicity’ said the NSCN-IM is extremely surprised by the steps taken by the Ministry Home Affairs (MHA) to stop the itinerary of Muivah and Swu to Zunheboto.
“Our organization deeply appreciates the sincere effort of the Sumi Hoho and the Church fraternity in Zunheboto to strengthen the reconciliation process amongst the Nagas and also to reinforce the ongoing political dialogue between the government of India and the Nagas by sensitizing the Naga people on the peace process. We are also extremely heartened by the overwhelming response of the Sumi people and all conscientious Nagas for welcoming the homecoming of the Yaruiwo Isak Chishi Swu to his own people (to be accompanied by Muivah),” said the NSCN-IM tonight.
The move of the Ministry of Home Affairs is detrimental to the sincere effort of the Nagas to consolidate the political dialogue between the two entities and reconciliation of Nagas, it stated while adding, “The Nagas seriously question the intention of the MHA and such negative steps will seriously and certainly jeopardize all genuine efforts to arrive at an honourable political solution between the government of India and the Nagas.”
The Naga outfit said it must be understood that the support and involvement of the people is inalienable towards arriving at a honourable and peaceful political solution. “However, the deliberate policy of the MHA’s to exclude the Naga people from the ongoing peace process will have serious repercussion in the days to come,” the NSCN-IM said.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/delhi-opposing-swus-and-muivahs-visit-to-nagaland/

As per the MPLADS guidelines, the Panchayati Raj Institutions will preferably be the Implementing Agencies in the Rural Areas. The District Authority may also choose either Government Department/Agency or reputed Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) who are capable of implementing the works satisfactorily as Implementing Agencies. For purpose of execution of works through Government Departments, District Authority can engage Public Health Engineering, Rural Housing, Housing Boards, Electricity Boards, and Urban Development Authorities etc, as Implementing Agencies.
The guidelines are required to be followed uniformly for all MPs. The MPLADS guidelines provide that State procedures are to be followed.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/mplads-work/

A Buddhist Stupa site was discovered in Munjuluru Village, Bantumilli Manda, Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh by the State Department of Archaeology, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh in 2010 consisting of a hemispherical mound about 10 meters height with rectangular projections at the base on four cordinal directions found in the Village Munjuluru in an extent of 43 cms. The brick size measures 27x23x7 cms. in the surrounding areas of the mound noticed black and red ware, buff along with conch shells. Broken Ayaka Pillar of lime stone and pitha datable to 5th – 6th century A.D. were also noticed.
The State Department of Archaeology & Museums, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh has issued the Notification No.G.O.Ms.No.64, YAT &C (PMU) Deptt., dated 16th June, 2011 for protecting the said ancient monument.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/discovery-of-buddhist-stupa/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 13: The Central Bureau of Investigation has felicitated the team of Rajasthan Police and Maharashtra Police who worked in close co-ordination with the CBI to unravel complex crime investigation in the Smt.Bhanwari Devi alleged abduction and murder case in Jodhpur (Rajasthan).
An Eight-member team of Rajasthan Police was honoured by Director, CBI. Commendation Certificates were given to the officers & personnel of this team. The team was also given a cheque of Rs.Four lakh as reward amount for providing information leading to apprehend absconding accused Bishna Ram.
Director CBI also honoured a Two-member team of Maharashtra Police (Pune) by giving them Commendation Certificates. They were also given a cheque of Rs.One lakh for capture of absconding accused Bishna Ram from Lonawala.
Speaking on the occasion, Director, CBI Shri Amar Pratap Singh, said that coordination between the State Police & the CBI in Special Crime cases is essential to a successful investigation. The State Police supplements knowledge of local issues to CBI’s expertise in investigation. He said that the investigation in the Smt.Bhanwari Devi Case was extremely difficult but a breakthrough was possible due to this coordinated effort.
As a gesture, moved by reports about the plight of the victim’s family, the Rajasthan Police, Maharashtra Police & CBI have decided to collectively contribute a sum of Rs.1.5 lakh to the welfare of the children of Smt.Bhanwari Devi.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/cbi-felicitates-police-for-co-operation-in-on-going-investigation-in-bhanwari-devi-case/

Shillong, Jan 12: NNN Following the confirmation of bird flu outbreak in a Williamnagar farm in East Khasi Hills in Meghalaya, the district administration, West Garo Hills has decided to ban the entry of all poultry and poultry products into the district with immediate effect.
The dicision was taken at a meeting of the West Garo Hills District Level Task Force on Avian Flu under the chairmanship of the deputy commissioner Sanjay Goyal, today. The meeting was called in urgency after the samples taken from dead poultry from Williamnagar tested positive of the H1N1 virus on Wednesday, to chalk out the detailed plan and precautionary measures to prevent the outbreak in the district.
As per the decision taken at a meeting , the teams from the Veterinary department along with police personnel would be placed in all the entry and exist points, particularly in areas adjacent to East Garo Hills district as well as the entry point from adjoining districts of Assam.
However, it has not decided to ban consumption and sale of locally available poultry products as there has been no cases of the diseases reported from any part of the state.
The district Veterinary department has been asked to ensure that the field staff monitor their respective areas and give a daily report to the district administration if there has been any case of bird flu or birds dying anywhere.
As necessary precautions to prevent the spread of the flu to human, the Health department in the district has been asked to issue notice to all the PHCs, CHCs and private practitioners to monitor patients with symptoms of the diseases and also to keep a stock of anti virus medicines ready.
The forest department personnel have been directed to keep a watch to see if there has been any natural deaths of birds within the district and at the same time the PHE department has been asked to monitor the water reservoirs tanks to prevent contamination by carcasses of dead birds.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/bird-flu-outbreak-at-meghalaya/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 12: The Vice President of India, M. Hamid Ansari has said that destinies of India and Bangladesh are interlinked. Addressing the 9th Convocation of Tripura University at Agartala today, he said the people of both the countries share in great measure a common history, culture, language and tradition and they have co-operated and faced challenges together. Shri Ansari said our relationship is rooted in shared values and commitment to secularism, multi-party democracy, social justice and fundamental human freedoms.
The Vice President said Tripura shares a special relationship with Bangladesh. He said that having borders with it on three sides, the state and its people had played important roles in the path leading to the birth of Bangladesh. Shri Ansari expressed the confidence that implementing the Joint Communiqués issued after the landmark visits of the two Prime Ministers would cement this special relationship through enhancing connectivity between Tripura and Bangladesh and promoting close people to people and business linkages.
The landmark visits of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to India in January 2010 and of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Dhaka last September elevated the bilateral relationship to new heights.
Bangladesh abuts our North Eastern region and provides critical linkages to its economy, ecology and environment. Indeed, the North Eastern Region Vision 2020 document approved by the North Eastern Council and released by the Prime Minister in July 2008 reflects the commitment of the Union and various State Governments to the comprehensive, inclusive and accelerated development of the region so as to restore its national economic eminence.
We stand committed to fashioning economic and trade arrangements, not only for ensuring closer integration of the region with the national economy but also with the economies of neighbouring countries in the region.
The Vision document has noted that the region should play “the arrow-head role….in the vanguard of the country’s Look-East Policy”. It specifically calls for “making the Look East Policy meaningful for the region” by improving connectivity with markets of neighbouring countries. It notes that “opening up the land route through Bangladesh could enormously benefit both countries” and calls for diplomatic efforts focused on “improving relations with the neighbours”.
The commitment was demonstrated when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was accompanied by Chief Ministers of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram during his visit to Bangladesh in September 2011. This underscores the great interest and enthusiasm of the States of Northeast India in furthering their engagement with Bangladesh.
Tripura shares a special relationship with Bangladesh. Having borders with it on three sides, the state and its people had played important roles in the path leading to the birth of Bangladesh. We remain confident that implementing the Joint Communiqués issued after the landmark visits of the two Prime Ministers would cement this special relationship through enhancing connectivity between Tripura and Bangladesh and promoting close people to people and business linkages.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/destinies-of-india-and-bangladesh-are-interlinked-vice-president/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 12: At the time of General Elections to the Lok Sabha in 1998 a new initiative for State funding of recognized political parties through free use of the State owned Television and Radio was introduced under directions of the Commission vide its Order, dated 16th January, 1998. The said scheme was subsequently extended in all the General Elections to the State Assemblies held after 1998 and General Elections to the Lok Sabha in 1999, 2004 and 2009.
With the amendments to the Representation of People Act, 1951 vide “Election and Other Related Laws (Amendment) Act, 2003” and the rules notified thereunder, equitable time sharing for campaigning by recognized political parties on electronic media now has statutory basis. In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of the Explanation below section 39A of the Representation of People Act, 1951, the Central Government has notified all such broadcasting media which are owned or controlled or financed wholly or substantially by funds provided to them by the Central Government as the electronic media for the purposes of that section. Therefore, the Commission has decided to extend the said scheme of equitable time sharing on electronic media through Prasar Bharati Corporation to the ensuing General Election to the State Legislative Assemblies of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa 2012 .
The facilities of use of broadcast time and telecast time will be available only to National Parties and Recognised State Parties in the State of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa
THE SALIENT FEATURES OF THE SCHEME ARE AS FOLLOWS:
1. The facilities will be available from the Regional Kendra of the All India Radio and Doordarshan and in the headquarters of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa and relayed by other stations within the respective States.
2. A base time of 45 minutes will be given to each National Party and Recognized State Party (recognized in the respective State) uniformly on the Regional Kendra of Doordarshan network and All India Radio network in the State of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa.
3. The National and the State Parties will be treated at par for the Assembly elections.
4. The additional time to be allotted to the parties has been decided on the basis of the poll performance of the parties in the last Assembly election, as required under rule 85C (3) of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 from the State of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa.
5. In a single session of broadcast, no party will be allocated more than 15 minutes.
6. The period of broadcast and telecast will be between the last date of filing the nominations and will end two days before the date of poll in the State of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa. However, there will be no telecast or broadcast during the 48 hours preceding the close of polls as per specific provisions of the Representation of People Act, 1951.
7. The Prasar Bharati Corporation in consultation with the Commission will decide the actual date and time for broadcast and telecast. This will be subject to the broad technical constraints governing the actual time of transmission available with the Doordarshan and All India Radio.
8. The guidelines prescribed by the Commission for telecast and broadcast will be strictly followed. The parties will be required to submit transcripts and recording in advance. The parties can get this recorded at their own cost in studios, which meet the technical standards prescribed by the Prasar Bharati Corporation or at the Doordarshan/All India Radio Kendras. They can, in the alternative, have these recorded in the studios of Doordarshan and All India Radio by advance requests. In such cases, the recordings may be done at the State Capital and at timings indicated by Doordarshan/All India Radio in advance.
9. In addition to the broadcast by parties, the Prasar Bharati Corporation will organise a maximum of two panel discussions and/or debates on the Kendra/Station of Doordarshan/All India Radio. Each eligible party can nominate one representative to such a programme.
10. The Election Commission of India will approve the names of coordinators for such panel discussions and debates in consultation with the Prasar Bharati Corporation.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/allotment-of-broadcasttelecast-time-to-political-parties/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 11: The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case U/s 120 B r/w 409, 477A IPC and & Sec.13(2) r/w 13(1)(c) & (d) of PC Act,
1988 against Assistant Commissioner(Customs), Supdt. of Customs, Preventive Officer(Customs), all of Air Cargo Complex, Cochin International Airport, Nedumbassery, Ernakulam and unknown others.
The allegation in brief is that Kuwait based private firm had sent 3 items of electronic goods i.e. one Plasma T.V., a Sound System and Mounting brackets worth Rs.90,727/- in favour of a Lady, resident of Melattoor P.O., Trichur, whose husband was an employee of the above firm. The items were sent to her as gift items on the occasion of her house warming and the said consignment was arrived at Nedumbassery Airport. On receipt of the consignments, the lady preferred a Bill of Entry through Cochin based CHA. On receipt of the Bill of Entry before the Customs authorities at CIAL Nedumbassery, the Assistant Commissioner noted that the imported goods were electronic goods and the value of the same exceeded the exempted limit. He also noted that the import appears to be in violation of Foreign Trade Policy and that the goods were valued at Rs.90,727/- Hence, the same were liable to be confiscated under Customs Act. As the Customs officials after examination of the consignment, imposed heavy customs duty, the lady was not interested for taking delivery of the consignment with such huge penalty and therefore abandoned the consignment.
In pursuance of the conspiracy among themselves with dishonest intention to misappropriate the consignment, a challan was preferred on behalf of the lady towards cancellation of Bill Entry, purportedly showing the abandonment of the consignment. As per procedure, the above officials did not either tranship the goods back or sent to the Customs House, Cochin after confiscation for public auction. After falsifying the records, the accused allowed clearance of the consignment in a fictitious name by preferring Baggage Declaration. The value of consignment was assessed at Rs.30,000/- and accordingly the duty was calculated as Rs.4,635/-. On payment of the duty with SBT, Nedumbassery, the consignment was cleared out of the Customs area by the other accused persons i.e. Supdt. of Customs & Preventive Officer and the consignment was misappropriated in a fictitious name.
Searches were conducted at the residential premises of the accused person. The misappropriated items were seized from the residence of the Assistant Commissioner of Customs at Bangalore.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/cbi-registers-case-against-three-customs-officers/

Shillong, Jan 10 NNN : Union Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, Virbhadra Singh today said, “The North Eastern Region of the country has bestowed with rich natural and human resources including challenges.
Inaugurating the 7th North East Business Summit organized by DoNER and Indian Chamber of Commerce in New Delhi today, Singh expressed the
need to channelize these vast resources for the overall growth & development of the area.Worldwide, the MSMEs have been accepted as the engine of economic growth and for promoting equitable development. The Minister said, “In India too, the MSMEs play a pivotal role in the overall industrial economy of the country. It is estimated that in terms of value, the sector accounts for about 45 per cent of the manufacturing output and over 40 per cent of the total exports of the country, Press Information Bureau sources in Shillong said.
He further said, “The Ministry has initiated ten innovative schemes under the National Manufacturing Competitiveness Programme to assist MSMEs in improving their processes, design, technology and market access.
The ten components of this programme includes schemes like “Lean Manufacturing”, “Design Clinics”, “Quality Control”, “ICT Application”, “Energy Efficiency” and “Building Awareness on Intellectual Property Rights”. The Ministry is also implementing the Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme for assisting MSEs in upgrading their technology. The scheme provides for 15% capital subsidy on institutional loans up to Rs.1 crore availed by the MSEs, the sources said.
Virbhadra Singh said, that in order to ensure better flow of credit to MSEs by minimizing the risk perception of banks and financial institutions in lending without collateral security, the Government is implementing the Credit Guarantee Scheme. The scheme provides guarantee cover of up to 85% on collateral-free credit facility extended by lending institutions to new and existing MSEs for loans up to Rs.100 lakh.
More than 6.47 lakhs proposals have been approved under the Scheme so far. The Government is also implementing another credit linked scheme, namely, Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) for assisting the young entrepreneurs to set up new micro enterprises in the manufacturing as well as the services sector.
The Scheme provides for attractive subsidy for promoting self-employment and has the potential of providing employment to a very large number of people, especially in the rural areas.The Minister also added that funds are no constraint for development of North East and all activities taken up by the Ministry will be actively pursued. He assured that problems, particularly in setting up of MSEs will be removed and solved, the sources added.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/ne-has-rich-potential-virbhadara/

Mumbai, Jan 10 (ANI): Seventeen Indian sailors freed from Somalian pirates after they were paid a multimillion dollar ransom, recalled tales of horror and torture after their arrival in Mumbai on Tuesday.
Somali pirates freed an Italian oil tanker Savina Caylyn, which they had hijacked in Yemen last February, with five Italians and 17 Indians on board.
The released sailors, overcame with emotions after meeting their family members and recounted their nightmare of the past ten months.
“I feel really great coming back to India, coming back to my family and its been really a horrible experience for all of us, for all the crew also and as well as the parents and the relatives, everybody,” said Rahul Puranik, one of the released sailors.
Gulaam Rabbani, another seaman said the medium-sized tanker was seized by an armed gang, firing bullets and rocket propelled grenades, some 500 miles off the coast of India and 800 miles off Somalia, as the vessel transited from Sudan to Malaysia. It was loaded at the time.
“Before we could take any action, a speedboat came towards our ship in just 15 minutes and started firing. Their aim of firing was to avoid anybody from seeing that they are boarding the ship. They fired with AK-47 and rocket launchers,” said Rabbani.
The freed hostages told the mediapersons that getting food and water was a struggle during captivity.
“We ate whatever they gave us. They used to give us rice and we were given one and a half litres of water once in a day and we had to do everything in that,” said Jayanti Lal, a released sailor.
Somali pirates released the Italian-owned oil tanker and its 22 crew after they received a multi-million dollar ransom. The tanker, owned by Naples shipping company, was on its way from Sudan to Malaysia and was carrying a load of crude oil.
“I would say Indian government has done their job as what they were supposed to do but as far as operational detail of the whole situation is concerned, it is better we don’t speak about it at the moment because not to forget we still have more than 70 Indians in captivity in Somalia and about 300 sailors overall,” said Captain Vinod Alvi, another released sailor.
Piracy is rife off the Horn of Africa, disrupting shipping lanes between Europe and Asia, putting seamen, vessels and cargoes at risk, and costing shippers huge sums to protect themselves.
Seaborne gangs are making tens of millions of dollars in ransoms, and despite successful efforts to quell attacks in the Gulf of Aden, international navies have struggled to contain piracy in the Indian Ocean owing to the vast distances involved.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/indian-sailors-freed-from-somali-pirates-reach-mumbai/

Guwahati, Jan 9 NNN : Assam forest and environment minister Rockybul Hussain on Monday announced that the Royal Bengal tiger population in Assam has increased to 143 in 2011. The last tiger census in wildlife protected areas was completed in December last.
“We used camera trapping method in tiger census in the state. The method is internationally recognized. In Kaziranga National Park KNP), we have 118 Royal Bengal tigers. It has the highest density of royal Bengal tiger in the country”, said Hussain.
In the KNP, there were two incidents of Royal Bengal tigers coming out to the fringe and killed villagers separate incidents in November last year.
“According to the experts, tigers come out from its habitat for two reasons.
When its population increases, the new generation pushed out the older ones and the other reason has been due to the shortage of food. There is no shortage of food for tiger in Kaziranga. This indicates increase of Royal Bengal tigers in Kaziranga”, said Hussain.
The state forest minister said that population of Royal Bengal tiger in Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park has also been increased in the last six years. Apart from Kaziranga and Orang National Park, the Nameri National Park and Manas National Park in the state also has witnessed the increase in the population Royal Bengal tigers.
The Project Tiger was launched in three wildlife protected areas of Kaziranga, Manas and Nameri in the state. The state forest minister added that elephant population in the state was also increased from ‘5246’ in 2002 to ‘5620’ in 2011. According to last river dolphin census in the state, there are 258 river dolphins in the state.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/tiger-population-increases-in-assam/

Gun battle
Dimapur, Jan 8 NNN : There was a fierce gun battle reported between the NSCN-IM cadres and that of NSCN-K in Arunachal Pradesh today.
However, it is still not certain if there was any casualty. The clash between the two rival NSCN factions began at around 5 am and lasted till late afternoon in the Khonsa area of Tirap district of Arunaschal Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the NSCN-IM claimed that two cadres of the rival group were killed in the clash today. The outfit claimed that the NSCN-K cadres along with Manipur based militants came to attack the NSCN-IM cadres which triggered the gun battle.
“On January 6 the Khaplang group attacked the house of our regional worker at Khonsa area without any reason whatsoever. We remained silent but cautious. But taking undue advantage the K group went further in a very provocative manner when they exposed their actual motive,” the NSCN-IM in a statement claimed. It then added that on January 7 around 170 NSCN-K members along with Manipur based militants armed to the teeth came to the Kabo village and on Sunday morning at around 5 am they marched towards the direction of our camp at Chasha village to launch surprise attack against us. “But our alert Naga Army personnel doing sentry duty saw them approaching and within no time took position and caught them by surprise before they put their plan into action. In the attack two of them died on the spot and four seriously injured.In the confusion they run away in panic and position themselves in one school located between Longko and Chasha village and fire back against us using lethod bombs. However non of our boys were injured. It is however a matter of regret that the school children were totally displaced and disturbed.Besides two house were also burnt down by the bombs,” the statement further claimed.
The NSCN-IM then stated that placed under such condition the village authorities asked both the parties to vacate the village. “Our boys however stood their ground telling the village authorities that it is the K group who entered the area to attack and without any provocation, so they should vacate and not us,” it added. Put under pressure and with no option left lest further killing may follow they request for safe passage and left the village leaving behind trail of destruction to the village, the outfit further said in the statemenrt.
“Respecting the sentiments of the village and welfare of the village students we allow safe passage.The fring last till 4 pm today before giving them safe passage,” it added.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/between-nscn-factions-at-ap/

MNS: The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested a Senior Assistant of Vigilance Bureau, Punjab posing as CBI officer for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs.20,000/- from the complainant.
A complaint was received alleging demand of bribe by a person allegedly posing as CBI officer. The suspect officer initially demanded a bribe of Rs.2 lakhs and later on reduced it to Rs.50,000/-. The accused agreed to accept Rs.20,000/- and rest of Rs.30,000/- later on. CBI
registered a case and laid a trap at Sector- 23, Bus Stop, Chandigarh. The person who demanded the bribe and came to accept was caught
red handed by the CBI. He was identified as Senior Assistant, Vigilance Bureau, Punjab. Search has been conducted at his residence.
The accused was produced before the Designated Court at Chandigarh and was remanded to two days Police Custody.
In another case, the CBI has arrested a Principal of Kendriya Vidyalaya-I, Air Force Station, Sirsa (Haryana)for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs.10,000/- from the complainant.
The complainant alleged in the complaint that the Principal, Kendriya Vidyalaya-I, Air Force Station, Sirsa had demanded a bribe of Rs.10,000/- for clearing his outstanding bills. A case was registered and trap was laid in the school premises of KV-I, Air Force Station, Sirsa. The accused Principal was caught red handed while demanding and accepting bribe of Rs.10,000/- from the complainant.
The arrested accused was produced before the Designated Court at Panchkula and remanded to Judicial Custody.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/cbi-arrests-senior-assistant-of-vigilance-bureau/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 4 : The Central Bureau of Investigation has designated one Unit in Special Crime Zone of CBI in Delhi as Anti-Human Trafficking Unit. This unit will be responsible for collecting, collating & analyzing data on kidnapping and abduction of persons from all over India. The unit will also develop actionable intelligence to conduct operations against gangs involved in trafficking, especially of children & women for the purpose of exploitation, such as beggary and prostitution. This unit would also liaise with NGOs involved in this field.
A helpline number 011-24368638 has been established by CBI, on which any person having inputs about such gangs can give information.
It has also been decided that person giving information leading to arrest and criminal action against such gangs would be rewarded upto Rs.Two Lakh.
The Government of India has already designated all Police Officers of the rank of Inspector and above in CBI as “Trafficking Police Officers” to exercise powers of investigation under the “Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956” and other laws dealing with sexual exploitation of persons.
The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered five new cases on 2nd January, 2012 in connection with the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) in Uttar Pradesh. Searches are being conducted today in 60 locations across Uttar Pradesh, & in Delhi.
High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench in Writ Petitions passed an order on 15.11.2011, directing the CBI to conduct preliminary enquiry in the matter of execution and implementation of the NRHM Scheme and utilization of funds at various level during such implementation in the entire state of Uttar Pradesh since its inception in the year 2005-06 till date. The CBI was asked to complete this enquiry in four months by Hon’ble Allahabad High Court.
The NRHM Funds to the tune of about Rs.10,000 crores were allocated to the State of Uttar Pradesh for the period 2005-06 till date by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of India. The funds have been spent through CMOs of 72 Districts in UP and other
Nodal Offices all over the State of UP like family welfare, medical health, training etc. under the various schemes by the Govt. of India
involving a large number of beneficiaries. A number of these works have been executed through several State PSUs and a large number
of contractors/firms.

The process of Enquiry & Investigation in this matter is continuing

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/cbi-establishes-anti-human-trafficking-unit/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 3: The Commission yesterday held a briefing for 1200 Observers who are being appointed for the General Elections to the Legislative Assemblies of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. The Commission will appoint 531 General Observers, 178 Expenditure Observers and 89 Police Observers to observe the election process in these five states.
Observers were addressed by the Chief Election Commissioner Dr. S.Y. Quarishi and Election Commissioners Sh. V.S.Sampath and Sh. H.S.Bramha. They were given detailed briefing senior officials of the Commission.
The CEC drew the attention of the Observers to their crucial role in the conduct of elections, specially their vigilance and executive functions. Dr Quraishi complimented the Observers for having contributed to free and fair elections everytime, and for being instrumental in rooting out evils like booth capturing and muscle power. Highlighting the total independence of the Election Commission, the CEC said, this has been possible due to the founders of the constitution and the unwavering support from judiciary, politicians, civil servants, the media and above all the people of India. Dr Quraishi underlined that election management in India has become an example for the world and several countries now wish to learn skills from ECI.
Election Commissioners, Shri Sampath and Shri Brahma pointed out the specific areas that the Observers should be careful about while doing their duties in the elections. Officials of the Commission provided details of rules, regulations, ground situation, and the range of responsibilities that the Observers have to perform. The Commission called upon the Observers to set new benchmarks in election management in the forthcoming election through stringent observation and display of alertness and ingenuity.
The Election Observers will reach their allotted constituencies on the last date of filing of nominations and stay continuously in the constituencies assigned to them till the end of poll day.
They would ensure quick redressal of complaints that are received from political parties/candidates etc. Their contact address and telephone number will be advertised in local newspaper by the District Election Officer and they will set aside 2 hours daily- 4.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m. at Returning Officer’s office to meet with any person who wants to meet the Observer in person and submit his/her grievance.
The Observer will supervise the process of election at all stages, viz campaign, poll, counting of votes and declaration of results. They would also be supervising randomization, preparation of Electronic Voting Machines, training of polling personnel and conduct of voter awareness programmes. All Observers have been advised to look into the force deployment plan in their constituency. They will also be examining the identification of critical polling stations and monitor the process of vulnerability mapping to identify the segments vulnerable to threat and intimidation. The Observers have been advised to make sure that the affidavits that are filed by the Candidates at the time of nomination detailing their movable/immovable assets, qualifications, convictions, cases pending in courts, are displayed prominently and made available for public scrutiny without any loss of time.
The Observers have been advised to make sure that the affidavits that are filed by the Candidates at the time of nomination detailing their movable/immovable assets, qualifications, convictions, cases pending in courts, are displayed prominently and made available for public scrutiny without any loss of time.
Observers have specifically been advised to tour their respective allotted Assembly Constituency extensively and build confidence among weaker and disadvantaged sections. They will constantly review execution of non-bailable warrants, recovery of illicit arms and collection of licensed arms from undesirable elements. The Observers will monitor strictly the enforcement of Model Code of Conduct. The Observers have been advised to make sure that extensive videography is done of all critical events that may take place during the election process and polling at critical polling stations. The Commission has issued direction to all District Election Officers to prepare a comprehensive communication plan in consultation with Observers to ensure proper and effective communication on the day of poll. The Observers would be assisted by the static Micro-Observers who would be deployed at critical polling stations to observe and ensure the purity of the polling process. Central Government/Public Sector employees would be utilized to the extent possible as Micro-Observers. These Micro-Observers will report to the Observers. The training and orientation of Micro-Observers shall be the responsibility of Observers.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/election-commission-asks-observers-to-work-sincerely/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Jan 2: The Special Judge, CBI cases, Jaipur convicted accused Ajay Gupta, the then Senior Materials Manager, Controller of Stores, North Western Railway, Jaipur and two private persons i.e. Prabhudayal Gupta, & Sanjay Gupta U/s 120-B IPC r/w Section 7& 13(2) r/w 13(1)(d) of PC Act, 1988. All the three accused persons have been sentenced to undergo two years Rigorous Imprisonment each and a fine of Rs.1,000/- under each section. Special Judge has also ordered accused persons to return the bribe money of Rs.10,000/- to the complainant alongwith 12% interest PA.
CBI registered the case on 10.02.2010, against Ajay Gupta, Senior Materials Manager, Controller of Stores, NWR, Jaipur, on the basis of a complaint. Accused Ajay Gupta had demanded a sum of Rs.30,000/- from the complainant, in lieu of processing of his two tenders and thereafter received a sum of Rs.10,000/- in the joint account of his father & brother and also directed complainant to deposit remaining Rs.20,000/- in the same account of his father & brother. Detail of said account was forwarded by Ajay Gupta to the complainant, through a SMS from his mobile phone.
After investigation, chargesheet in the instant case was filed in the month of April, 2011. Accused Ajay Gupta remained in Judicial custody for a period of 6 months during the trial of the case. The Court heard the case on day to day basis and concluded the trial with in a period of eight months only.
The Trial Court found the accused persons guilty for the offences and convicted them.
The Special Judge, CBI cases, Jabalpur has convicted Shri Rajesh Kumar Shrivastava, the then Branch Manager, Central Bank of India, Bichchiya Niwas Branch Shahpura, District Dindori (MP) and sentenced him to undergo three years Rigorous Imprisonment with a fine of Rs. 5.85 Lakh (approx) U/s 13 (2) r/w 13 (1) (e) of PC Act. 1988. The Special Judge has also ordered to confiscate the Property, Cash Bank Balance, MIS/RD/FD, and amount recovered during house search / Bank Locker of the accused. The amount of fine shall be realized from above said movable & immovable property.
This case was an off-shoot of another regular Case registered U/s 7 of PC Act, 1988 against the accused Shri Rajesh Kumar Shrivastava. Branch Manager, Central Bank of India, Bichchiya Niwas Branch ( Shahpura) District Dindori (MP) in which he was caught red handed on 06.09.2008, while demanding and accepting a bribe. During the search conducted at the residential premises of accused at Jabalpur, documents as well as cash, indicating alleged possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources were seized. After verification, the instant case was registered.
It was found during investigation that Shri Rajesh Kumar Shrivastava and his family members were found to be in possession of assets which were disproportionate to the extent of Rs. 4.13 Lakh (approx) to his income from all known sources.
After conducting thorough investigation, CBI had filed charge sheet before the court of Special Judge, CBI Cases, Jabalpur on 25.05.2010 U/s 13 (2) r/w 13 (1) (e) of PC Act, 1988. The Court found the accused guilty and convicted him.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/senior-materials-manager-and-two-others-sentenced-in-a-bribery-case/

MNS: The President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil has greeted the nation on the eve of the New Year 2012. In a message, the President has said:-
“On the joyous occasion of the New Year, I extend my greetings and best wishes to all my fellow citizens for a happy and prosperous New Year.
Governor, Gurbachan Jagat said, “May the coming year bring happiness to the nation and let us resolve to work with all dedication and a sense of pride in whatever activities we undertake”.
I warmly greet the people of Manipur on the occasion of New Year’s Day, 2012, and convey my best wishes to each and everyone – A Happy New Year – a year full of peace, happiness, harmony and prosperity.
New Year’s Day is a special occasion for making new resolutions for the coming year. While stepping into the new year, we should march forwajxl keeping always our .goalfixe^f irmly oRwher^we want otrr State to be in the future, by correcting the mistakes of the past. We should also reaffirm our resolve to support the forces of solidarity and harmony, setting aside the differences of caste, creed, language and religion. We should also resolve to fight and defeat the evil designs of divisive and destructive forces.
I hope and pray that the New Year will bring about peace, bonhomie and harmony in the lives of all the people of Manipur and also wish them, a very happy and hopeful New Year.
Chief Minister, O. Ibobi Singh said, I have great pleasure in greeting the people of Manipur on the joyous occasion of New Year, 2012.
The dawn of the New Year ushers in new hopes and expectations. It also gives us a chance to renew our resolve to strive for individual as well as collective well-being. Let us take a pledge on the eve of the New Year to strive towards building a more peaceful and prosperous Manipur. May this New Year bring peace, prosperity and Happiness to all.
Gaikhangam, Dr Meinya and others greeted the people on the occasion.
Major General UK Gurung, YSM, IGAR (South) and all Ranks of Assam Rifles extend very warm greetings and sincere goodwill to the people of “Manipur” and wish everyone a very Happy New Year. IGAR(South) also conveys his earnest message of peace, harmony, unity and understanding on this joyous occasion. He earnestly wishes that with this New Year all the goodwill brings us together, irrespective of caste, creed and faith.
To commemorate the New Year we all must take a resolve to weed out the inimical elements of the society and forge towards the path of unity, peace and prosperity. May the lord almighty bless us all with joy and Happiness and guide us in our endeavors towards building a strong and prosperous nation.
Maj Gen Binoy Poonen, VSM, GOC 57 Mountain Division and All Ranks of Red Shield Division convey a joyness New Year-2012 to all people of Manipur state. The Division wishes that the Year 2012 ushers an era of bonhomie, harmony and all round progression for all.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/president-of-indias-greetings-on-the-occasion-of-new-year/

Mail News Service
New Delhi, Dec 31: The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has greeted the nation on the eve of the New Year. Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s message to the Nation on the occasion:
I wish you all a peaceful, productive and secure New Year.
New Year’s Day is a day of resolutions. Each of us makes our own resolutions – to live a healthier life, to live a more honest life, to live a better life and to live a happier life. I sincerely hope in the New Year we can all work together with a new resolve: to make our homes and neighbourhood, our village or town, and our nation a better place to live in.
If each of us works towards that end, we can be sure that we are also making the world a better and a safer place.
The year that has just ended was a very difficult year for the world. Economic crises, socio economic tensions, political upheavals in many developing countries and political deadlock in some of the developed countries, all cast their shadow on 2011. A ‘revolution of rising expectations’, fostered by the extraordinary reach of the electronic media and the connectivity provided by new social networking platforms, has kept Governments around the world on their toes.
We in India have had our share of problems.
The Indian economy slowed down and inflation edged up. Concern about corruption moved to the centre stage.
We must not be too downcast at these events. All countries and economies go through cycles. We must remember that downturns are followed by upturns. Indeed, they are often a test of our ability to respond to new challenges.
The task before us is clear. We must address the new concerns that have arisen while remaining steadfast in our commitment to put the nation on a development path which ensures rapid, inclusive and sustainable growth. I want to assure you all on this New Year’s day that I personally will work to provide an honest and more efficient government, a more productive, competitive and robust economy and a more equitable and just social and political order.
I believe we have made more progress than is commonly realised. I am personally delighted that Government was able to introduce the Food Security Bill and the Lok Pal and Lok Ayukta Bill in Parliament. The Lok Pal and Lok Ayukta Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha. It is unfortunate that the Bill could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha. However, our Government is committed to the enactment of an effective Lok Pal Act. Taken together with the Right to Information Act, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Right to Education Act, these are legislative legacies that generations of Indians will come to value, appreciate and benefit from.
On this New Year’s Day I do not wish to dwell on the year gone by. Instead, I would like to focus instead on the challenges of the future, so that we can all work together to over come them.
Our biggest challenge today remains that of banishing poverty, ignorance and disease. Simultaneously, we must work to build an India that holds the promise of prosperity to the many millions of our people who are just beginning to emerge out of poverty. We must remain focused on this fundamental task in the Twelfth Plan period which begins in 2012-13.
As I look ahead I see Five Key Challenges facing the nation. To meet these challenges we need the concerted efforts of the central government, the state governments, political parties and indeed all concerned citizens.
First, there is the urgent challenge of eradicating poverty, hunger and illiteracy and providing gainful employment to all. I call this the challenge of Livelihood Security.
There are many steps we need to take to address this challenge and of these, the most important is to empower every citizen with the light of education. I say this with the deepest conviction because I know what education did for me.
I was born into a family of modest means, in a village without a doctor or a teacher, no hospital, no school, no electricity. I had to walk miles every day to go to school, but I persevered and was fortunate to be able to secure a high school education, and then go on to higher education. It is this access to education that transformed my life and gave me new opportunities which others with my background could not dream of.
I believe that educating our children, providing them with employable skills, while also ensuring their good health, must be our first and primary task. There is no better investment we can make in the future .

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/prime-minister-highlights-five-key-issues-in-new-year-message/

Mail News Service
Imphal, Dec 30: The Union Home Minister, P. Chidambaram said that “Capacity building” and “Containment of violence” were the watch word of the Ministry this year. While presenting the Report Card of the Ministry December, 2011 here today he also said that following the Memorandum of Settlement with UPDS, he is hopeful of more agreements with insurgents groups of the North East will be signed in the coming year.
He said that on December 4, 2011, tripartite talks with NDFB (Progressive) and DHD were held to finalize the Memorandum of Settlement with each of the groups. On December 5, 2011, a tripartite meeting with DHD (J) was held to finalize the Memorandum of Settlement. On December 17, 2011, a tripartite meeting with DHD (Nunisa) was held to finalize the Memorandum of Settlement.
He announced a major decision of the Cabinet taken at its meeting on December 22, 2011. Cabinet gave its in-principle approval for the establishment of a Central Armed Police Forces Institute of Medical Sciences (CAPFIMS), a 500-bed General Hospital, a 300-bed Super Specialty Hospital, a Nursing College and a School of Paramedics. This project, when completed, will fulfill a long-felt need of the Central Armed Police Forces for a world class tertiary medical centre as well as for an assured stream of doctors, nurses and paramedics for induction into the Forces.
Rs.214.16 crore has been released so far to various States against a total allocation of Rs.1,111 crore. Further releases will be made on receipt of Utilisation Certificates for amounts disbursed earlier.
India-China Border: Construction of 23 roads of a total length 700 kms is in progress. During the month, 25 kms of formation works and 13 kms of surfacing works were completed. So far, a total of 462 kms of formation works and 158 kms of surfacing works have been completed.
Border Area Development Programme (BADP): Annual Action Plans have been received from all the 17 States. The total amount released to the 17 States in the current financial year at the end of December 2011 stands at Rs.758.21 crore (84.24% of the total allocation of Rs.900 crore), including Rs.60.91 crore released in December 2011.
Scanning of Population Enumeration schedules has been completed for 14 crore out of the total of 27 crore schedules. The data processing of more than 5 crore schedules has been completed.
Of the 21 Counter Insurgency and Anti-Terrorism (CIAT) Schools sanctioned in the States of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Nagaland, Orissa, Tripura and West Bengal at a cost of Rs.52.40 crore, 4 became operational in 2011 taking the total number of schools that are operational to 17.
2011 witnessed a historic low in the level of violence in the affected States, especially Jammu & Kashmir, the North Eastern States and the LWE affected States.
31 civilians and 33 security personnel lost their lives in Jammu & Kashmir (as against 47 and 69, respectively, in 2010). The containment of violence was helped by the fact that Panchayat elections were held in Jammu & Kashmir after a gap of 23 years.
In the North Eastern States, 69 civilians and 32 security personnel were killed (as against 94 and 20, respectively, in 2010). This trend was also due to the fact that most organisations in the North East are in ‘talks’ mode, including ULFA and NDFB. A tripartite agreement has been entered into with Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and a Memorandum of Settlement has been signed with UPDS.
The level of violence in LWE affected States also declined, although it is still unacceptably high. 447 civilians and 142 security personnel were killed (as against 718 and 285, respectively, in 2010). For example, in November naxals killed 42 persons (38 civilians and 4 security personnel) and in December naxals killed 45 persons (31 civilians and 14 security personnel). The Integrated Action Plan with an outlay of Rs.1,500 crore in 2010-11 and Rs.1,800 crore in 2011-12 was a major innovation. Decentralised decision making, empowering district level officers and quick, time bound implementation of the works have brought development to the villages in the most backward and violence-affected districts of India.
Terrorist Violence is still at an unacceptably high level and every effort will be made to contain violence. Militant groups will be prevailed upon, through a judicious mix of police action and developmental action, to realize the futility of violence and that the only way to resolve differences in a democratic society is through talks.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/home-minister-hopeful-of-agreements-with-insurgents-groups/