Day: February 3, 2013

The post Awardees announced appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, Feb 3: The Sahitya Thoupang Lup has notified in a statement that the “Sui Generis Mother Language Award” for this year will be presented to All Manipur Students’ Union (AMSU) and the individual award will be presented to Leihaothabam Saratchandra Sharma.

The awards will be presented during the Mother’s day function to be held on February 21 at JN Manipur Dance Academy hall. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 thousand and a citation.

The post Awardees announced appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/awardees-announced/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=awardees-announced

The post RPF denial appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, Feb 3: The proscribed RPF/PLA has clarified in a press statement that Huirem Nandesor (58) son of (L) H Nilamani of Konkham Awang Leikai and Mayengbam Manglem (58) son of (L) M Angou of Awang Jiri Maning Leikai who were arrested by 18th Sikh under the 9 Sector IGAR on February 2 from Thongkham Awang Leikai, Nambol Police are not related to the outfit in any manner.

The post RPF denial appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/rpf-denial/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rpf-denial

The post AMADA strikes on removal of SIU appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, Feb 3: AMADA in a press meet today at its office showed ire on removal of SIU from the state and also on the unreasonable transfer of OC K Ranjit.

President CADA Arambam Rabindra Singh and president AMADA Padmani Leima as the spokesperson of today’s press meet said that in the recent large disclosure of drugs consignment from the IMphal airport woth 1.4 core case which was led by OC K Ranjit was not fully justified. They said there is fishy that the concern officer was unreasonable transferred and followed the removal of the unit. Both anti drugs organisation take it as if the govt is having nexus with the drug dealer by covering their crime. They said that the dealer must be booked under the law of the land.

The post AMADA strikes on removal of SIU appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/amada-strikes-on-removal-of-siu/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=amada-strikes-on-removal-of-siu

The post Free coaching concludes appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, Feb 3: The free coaching camp 2012-13 for students appearing in the Matric examination organized by Kangleipak Students’ Association at Sugnu and Langdum concluded today with a simple function, said a release KSA.

Further, KSA lauded Sanaleibak daily’s reporter Amukhomba Ngarangbam for sponsoring “the late Ngarangbam Chandra memorial cash award” in the name of his late father for the students who joined the free coaching camp organized by KSA and who secure high marks in the coming Matric exams.    

The post Free coaching concludes appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/free-coaching-concludes/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=free-coaching-concludes

The post Nokia still India`s most trusted brand: Report appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, Feb 3: From the source ‘Bushiness Today’ Nokia, Samsung and Sony have retained their respective positions as the most trusted brands in the country, according to the Brand Trust Report, India Study (BTR 2013). However, the most impressive stride was made by BMW, which climbed 20 slots to the fourth position. Tata, at No. 5, has dropped two places from last year, while Godrej, at No. 6 has gained five positions.

The post Nokia still India`s most trusted brand: Report appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/nokia-still-indias-most-trusted-brand-report/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=nokia-still-indias-most-trusted-brand-report

The post National Canoe Sprint Championship concludes appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, January 3: The 23rd National Canoe Sprint Championship 2012-2013 held at Komlakhong Water Sports Complex Mayang Imphal organized by All Manipur Canoeing and Kayaking Association under the aegis of the Indian Kayaking and Canoeing Association concluded today.

Speaking at the concluding function, Dr Kh Ratamkumar Singh, Minister, Works and transport said the state has been able to conduct the championship satisfactorily with the due support of the Chief Minster and said that the CM would have attended the closing function if he was not in Delhi. He also added that the water sports complex will surely give the benefit to the surrounding people of the area and further pointed out that the public should give cooperation to bring the youths into water sports. 

The post National Canoe Sprint Championship concludes appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/national-canoe-sprint-championship-concludes/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=national-canoe-sprint-championship-concludes

The post Masters Athletic Championship medalists felicitated appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

IMPHAL, February 3: The Manipur Masters Athletic Association organized a felicitation function of the participants and medalist from the state in the 17th Asia Masters Athletic Championship 2012 held at China from November 2-7, 2012 at the VIP Lounge Rose Garden, Khuman Lampak Sports Complex, Main Stadium today.

The felicitated athletes are (women) Hijam Nirmala Devi (Gold in 800 m race); N Subadani Devi (silver medalist in Hammer throw; 4th in High Jump and Javeline Throw); Kasomwung Athar (Bronze medalist in Shot Put); L pramodini Devi (Bronze in Long Junp); RK Modhubala Devi (bronze in Javeline throw); E (o) Memcha Devi (participated 5km walk) and Ayung Tampakleima (Silver in Shot Put and bronze in Hammer Throw). The atheletes (men) are Md Najimmuddin Shah (Silver in 10000 m race and 4th in 5000m race); S Manihar Singh (6th in 10000m race) and Kh Lalbabu Singh (4th in 400m race and 5th in 800m race).

The felicitation was attended by Senior Advocate, Gauhati High Court, Kh Binoy; MMAA president B Angousana Sharma, Deputy Director Commerce and Industries M Meghachandra, ARSC Registrar and co-operative, Kh Shamungou; MMAA chief advisor H Ibohal, MMAA member Kh Ibomcha, MMAA advisor Th Khelendra as chief guest, president and guests of honour respectively.

The post Masters Athletic Championship medalists felicitated appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/masters-athletic-championship-medalists-felicitated/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=masters-athletic-championship-medalists-felicitated

The post Idea of India Attacked appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

By B.G. Verghese
The Idea of India was again under attack last week by those loudly avowing sentiments of “hurt”, “faith” or “hate” in various combinations to disrupt the even tenor of life, unity and free expression. Many spoke of a “cultural emergency”. Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroopam and the Jaipur Literary Festival sparked the latest round of protests.

India is far and away the most plural and diverse society in the world and has flourished through the millennia through accommodation and tolerance, providing space for all manner of faiths, languages, races, cultural tendencies and ideas to co-exist and prosper, despite passing confrontations and controversies. There has been no pressure to conform but space for each to blossom in its own way in a blaze of contrasting colours and fragrances, each with a beauty of its own but together  creating something more than just the sum of the parts. That has been the civilisational idea of India. People in distress or aspiring for more have found a home in India; but none has been rejected or expelled.  No melting pot here to create one out of many but a way of life that has exalted plurality. 

It is this Idea of India that was challenged by a hollow two-nation theory that has simply not worked but, instead,  fatally flawed Pakistan. But similar divisive and narrowly exclusivist tendencies lurk in India too. These we must beware of and combat without compromise. Fraternity and equal citizenship for all across gender, class, caste and faiths are concepts that embrace but go beyond the confines of secularism. These are supreme constitutional values  alongside Liberty, Equality and Justice. 

Unesco warns us that “Wars begin in the minds of men”. And minds are shaped by what we learn in schools as well as by the ethical values traditionally handed down by the great religions and cultures we profess.  Sadly, “secularism” has come to mean not merely excluding denominational learning from the classroom but its rich ethical content. This has further led to religious exclusivity at the cost of inter-faith understanding and harmony. This last has proved disastrous. We urge equal respect for all faiths without knowing even the bare elements of our different faiths because of the emphasis on  ‘to each his own’. This has encouraged religious exclusivity rather than a more ecumenical temper. The folly has been compounded by treating culture, a wider concept, as synonymous with religion.

Preaching exclusivity and consequently  evoking a sense of separatism, arrogance and even hatred for the other through text books is evident  across faiths, regions and political tendencies. Tthe malaise persists and is in some ways becoming worse. A Committee for Resisting the Saffronisation of Text Books in Karnataka has recently represented its concerns to the HRD Ministry and NCERT which are inquiring into the matter. The charge is that the new 5th and 8th grade text books produced last year by Karnataka’s Department of State Educational Research and Training (DSERT) “treat dalits, women, adivasis and minorities as inferior beings” in violation of the National Curriculum Framework  of 2005 that was framed by the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) in consultation with all states and experts In the field.

It would appear that Punjab textbooks under the Akalis glorify Sikh history by denigrating Muslim rulers, while Maharashtra textbooks under the Congress similarly extol Shivaji by denigrating the Mughals. A NCERT inquiry into the Hindutva bias in Shisu Mandir schools run by the Sangh Parivar several years ago was pigeon-holed.  All parties are promoting sub-cultures and undermining national unity by playing vote-bank politics. The SCERT textbooks not merely depart from NCF 2005 norms but are largely read in poorer, state aided and private schools and therefore tend to go unnoticed by the elites though the mischief they cause is greater. The rewriting of history and social studies texts is pernicious . Many of these books are unsupervised and not  vetted by experts. Recommendations favouring the establishment of a National School Textbook Board which can scrutinise these books and act as an appellate authority to hear complaints have gone unheeded.        

It is these shabby, biased books, badly taught in sub-standard schools that are building divisiveness, misunderstanding and hate. The narrow, disruptive “sentiments” generated by such learning is undermining unity and Fraternity . The Tamil Nadu and Jaipur incidents are not spontaneous. They are products of warped education. Yet it is the symptoms of disorder that are being addressed when something erupts and not the root cause.  

In Jaipur, some Muslims objected to Jet Thayil’s presence because he had read from Rushdie’s Satanic Verses last year. The BJP objected to any invitation to Pakistani authors when Indo-Pakistan relations had soured.  Ashish Nandy misspoke in subtle, philosophical terms dubbing dalits and tribals as the most corrupt categories in India. He was actually seeking to defend these sections but was slapped with a warrant of arrest, now stayed by the Supreme Court which however chastised him for irresponsible use of language. Mamta Bannerjee debarred Rushdie and Deepa Mehta, who has just made a film of Rushdie’s “Midnight’s Children”, from visiting Kolkata for a cultural event to avoid possible Muslim protests.

In Chennai, the AIDMK banned the release of Kamal Haasan’s “Vishwaroopam”, a spy thriller that has a Muslim hero triumphing over jihadis, because of alleged unacceptable references to the Holy Prophet. Some 24 fringe groups protested and the State challenged the authority of the National Film Centre Board to certify the film. All of Tamil Nadus 31 DCs and SPs simultaneously pleaded an uncontrollable law and order situation should the film be released! None had seen the film which was released elsewhere in the country without any harm. The State challenged a High Court clearance for the film and the State’s advocate-general was incoherent in his convoluted and irrelevant before the relentless questioning of the media.

Ultimately, Jayalalitha brokered peace by suggesting both sides meet and agree on a compromise. A senior official presided over such a meeting where Kamal Haasan agreed to make seven small cuts to remove the allegedly offending portions. With this, the State will now lift its ban on the film. Relief over this ending notwithstanding, fringe elements pleading hurt sentiment succeeded in imposing cultural censorship and the State government caved in to set a dangerous precedent.  The National Film Censor Board, a Central authority has been defied and rubbished by the State government.   

Even as these events unfolded, Muslim protesters have silenced a Muslim girls’ jazz bad in Srinagar and the Hurriyat has started its annual campaign against the dates of the annual Amarnath Yatra. Bajrang Dal activists beat up a Dalit Professor in Dhule for “hurting Hindu sentiments”  by speaking derogatively of Ram. An annual count  points to rising violence against Christians.  Hindutva  vigilantes have again been active in moral policing in Mangalore’s entertainment  parlours. Home Minister  Shinde is now threatened with a BJP boycott for referring to “Hindu terror” , a term coined by the Parivar earlier for Islamic extremism.

My sentiments are deeply hurt by all this nonsense. “Hate begins in the minds of men”.

The post Idea of India Attacked appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/idea-of-india-attacked/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=idea-of-india-attacked

The post Media`s weak spots appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Given the growth of the media in the country in terms of its reach and the manner in which it shapes opinion, it gets to a point where it becomes imperative to take stock of the nature of media coverage in the context of various issues. One layer of the media scrutiny and area of discussion is on whether women journalists bring a different perspective while reporting on issues that are related to various forms of violence against women. While it is true that a journalist’s main duty is to report first and then follow up with additional reports, analysis and opinion pieces regardless of the beat and the issue that is being covered, it goes without saying that the social and cultural norms often come in the way of male journalists being able to get women to talk with them and share their experiences. This is more pronounced when the subject of a story happens to be women who have been subject to sexual violence and even holds true for women who may want to address areas of sexual reproductive health.

Having said this, there are various aspects to media representation of reportage on violence against women since media mindsets are also patriarchal in nature. Along with this of course, media houses operate in ways that are dictated by market forces and sensationalism. The later is true particularly of electronic media where the race is for a greater effort to render ‘breaking news’ that may well end up being more provocative in terms of content and language. The other end of the spectrum in media coverage are the language papers that often falls out of the loop of being scanned by media watch groups and hence escape censure or being engaged upon for their style of coverage. One more increasing truism is the nature of what is an issue of ‘national importance’ given that what happens in Delhi often ends up being discussed, dissected and acted upon. While the nature of laws for protection of women was always an area of importance, it took the brutal case of the Delhi gang rape incident to bring things to a head. No other incidences of other brutal rapes have got the attention or engagement inside and outside of media circles earlier. This attitude may be what is keeping the matter of security excesses that led to violence on women in heavily militarized states including the North eastern states, Kashmir, Chhattisgarh and others being taken up with the seriousness it deserves. The spurt of ‘sensitive’ media coverage of sexual violence against women in any case did not have much commentary on the ways and means by which women in trouble torn areas of the country were being violated sexually and left without any recourse to justice. When the Justice Verma recommendations were placed before the Government, the area on the impunity that armed forces resort to were left out out totally and in essence can only mean that women in the areas where the security forces are given impunity by law, can continue to be violated.

As much as it is imperative that media reports with fairness and in keeping with what is ‘current’, it is critical that there are continuous efforts to study media reportage to be able to take stock of what is going right and what isn’t. While many point out an ‘increasing media sensitive reporting’ by taking the case of the growing spotlight on crimes against women, there are other pointing out rightly so, that current media interpretation is primarily on the brutality that women face and that there is no attempt to look at ways and means of creating media spaces for what leads to such incidences and what can be done about them. In a constantly changing world, it is just as important that the media also grows out of its traditional role of being a mere reporting and informing medium but grows into a space for spreading sensitivity and engaging in looking at solutions. It is only apt that the media output, which is today consumed at every point of our lives also factor in the growing needs of the society it operates in.

The post Media`s weak spots appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/medias-weak-spots/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=medias-weak-spots

The post Media`s weak spots appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Given the growth of the media in the country in terms of its reach and the manner in which it shapes opinion, it gets to a point where it becomes imperative to take stock of the nature of media coverage in the context of various issues. One layer of the media scrutiny and area of discussion is on whether women journalists bring a different perspective while reporting on issues that are related to various forms of violence against women. While it is true that a journalist’s main duty is to report first and then follow up with additional reports, analysis and opinion pieces regardless of the beat and the issue that is being covered, it goes without saying that the social and cultural norms often come in the way of male journalists being able to get women to talk with them and share their experiences. This is more pronounced when the subject of a story happens to be women who have been subject to sexual violence and even holds true for women who may want to address areas of sexual reproductive health.

Having said this, there are various aspects to media representation of reportage on violence against women since media mindsets are also patriarchal in nature. Along with this of course, media houses operate in ways that are dictated by market forces and sensationalism. The later is true particularly of electronic media where the race is for a greater effort to render ‘breaking news’ that may well end up being more provocative in terms of content and language. The other end of the spectrum in media coverage are the language papers that often falls out of the loop of being scanned by media watch groups and hence escape censure or being engaged upon for their style of coverage. One more increasing truism is the nature of what is an issue of ‘national importance’ given that what happens in Delhi often ends up being discussed, dissected and acted upon. While the nature of laws for protection of women was always an area of importance, it took the brutal case of the Delhi gang rape incident to bring things to a head. No other incidences of other brutal rapes have got the attention or engagement inside and outside of media circles earlier. This attitude may be what is keeping the matter of security excesses that led to violence on women in heavily militarized states including the North eastern states, Kashmir, Chhattisgarh and others being taken up with the seriousness it deserves. The spurt of ‘sensitive’ media coverage of sexual violence against women in any case did not have much commentary on the ways and means by which women in trouble torn areas of the country were being violated sexually and left without any recourse to justice. When the Justice Verma recommendations were placed before the Government, the area on the impunity that armed forces resort to were left out out totally and in essence can only mean that women in the areas where the security forces are given impunity by law, can continue to be violated.

As much as it is imperative that media reports with fairness and in keeping with what is ‘current’, it is critical that there are continuous efforts to study media reportage to be able to take stock of what is going right and what isn’t. While many point out an ‘increasing media sensitive reporting’ by taking the case of the growing spotlight on crimes against women, there are other pointing out rightly so, that current media interpretation is primarily on the brutality that women face and that there is no attempt to look at ways and means of creating media spaces for what leads to such incidences and what can be done about them. In a constantly changing world, it is just as important that the media also grows out of its traditional role of being a mere reporting and informing medium but grows into a space for spreading sensitivity and engaging in looking at solutions. It is only apt that the media output, which is today consumed at every point of our lives also factor in the growing needs of the society it operates in.

The post Media`s weak spots appeared first on  KanglaOnline.com.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2013/02/manipurmedias-weak-spots/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=manipurmedias-weak-spots