Indian Security Forces Want Indo-Burmese Border Fenced Immediately

By Sujit Chakraborty

Imphal, Apr 17 : Security forces, deployed along the 1,463 km long Indo-Myanmar international border, want a time-bound execution of the ongoing border fencing. A senior officer pointed out that at present the fencing work, in progress between pillar 79 and pillar 81, is really slow.

"This is a very slow pace of work. There is an urgent need to seal this stretch of the border, particularly the stretch with Manipur. Anti-Indian insurgents move freely and transport weapons through this route. Drug peddlers are equally at ease in trafficking drugs through this strategic route," he added.

Moreh town and its nearby areas were left out of the border fencing exercise, apparently to avoid the shifting of a very old Tamil temple, a portion of which has fallen on the other side of the demarcated boundary line. Initially, the priests were ready to shift the temple into Indian territory but vested interests have forced them to change their stand. Now they refuse to relocate the temple.

While the legal trade through the Moreh transit point earns about Rs 10-12 crore per annum, the volume of illegal trade is much higher. If the fencing is executed without any gaps, this illegal trade will receive a major setback, the sources highlighted.

However, the Assam Rifles and state police personnel, who are engaged in a relentless battle against the militants, are keen to seal the route. The two major insurgent groups of Manipur, the People's Liberation Army and the United Liberation Front of Manipur besides other groups like the United Liberation Front of Asom and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah) and NSCN (Khaplang) groups have their base camps in Myanmarese territory bordering India.

These militants use the Friendship Road along the border and transport weapons through the National Highway 39 which goes from Moreh to Dimapur. Myanmarese army officials are cooperative and share information and participate in joint patrolling and operations, but the lower rungs are believed to cause the problem. Their low pay and spread out deployment along this border stretch, combined with the fact that the militants allegedly pay cash ensures that the insurgents have a free hand in the region.

Drug trafficking is another menace that has become a source of concern for quite sometime now. The United Nations Drug Control Programme and the International Narcotic Control Board in their reports in 2001, identified Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram as the transit points for illegal drug trafficking from across the border. The report stated that these three states were fast emerging as the epicenter of the narco business.

The flow of drugs from across the border has already caused an AIDS epidemic in the region turning it into a high risk zone. The Konyak inhabited Eastern Nagaland border line with Myanmar, particularly Longwa, Noklak and the upper Konyak region of Tobu are known as 'silk routes' to drug peddlers.

Sources expressed concern over the lack of an effective mechanism to check this border stretch although it is a very sensitive zone because of the huge investments by China in Myanmar and the presence of most of the anti-Indian insurgent outfits just across the border.

The security issue and the effective joint patrolling along this border stretch was discussed in detail during the recent visit of Union Home Secretary G K Pillai to Myanmar. But the ground realities are yet to witness any substantial change on this matter, added the source.

An Assessment of Insurgencies in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland in 2009

By Dr Namrata Goswami

The Northeast of India has been plagued by insurgencies since independence in 1947. Most violent amongst the armed movements had been the Naga National Council in the 1950s and today the NSCN (IM).

States like Assam and Manipur also witnessed armed organized violence since the 1960s and the 1970s.

At present, while violence levels have come down in Assam and Nagaland, Manipur continues to suffer from high levels of violence orchestrated by multiple insurgent groups inhabiting the state. This Issue Brief offers an assessment of insurgencies in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland in 2009.

The author argues that Assam could well see the end of the 30-year old ULFA insurgency due to the arrest of its leaders in December 2009.

Nagaland's path to peace also appeared more hopeful in 2009 with a signed 'reconciliation' between rival armed groups mostly propelled by strong civil society movements for peace.

Manipur, however, continued to be plagued by insurgencies in 2009, although it can be argued that peace in Assam and Nagaland could have a 'domino-effect' for peace in this conflict ridden state.

Full Report can be downloaded here courtesy idsa

New Delhi Wants Yangon to Act Tough Against Northeast Militants

Imphal, Apr 17 : Myanmar Ambassador to India U Kyi Thian said the Myanmar juntas has been launching offensive against the insurgents of northeast India, operating from their soil against India.

He said at least 15 northeast insurgent camps are operating from Myanmar soil. These insurgents are fighting either for an autonomy or independent homeland in Manipur, Nagaland and Assam.

India and Myanmar are sharing 1643 km long porous border making it extremely difficult for the Juntas to launch operation against the insurgents.
Indian government fully supports the Myanmar junta government in providing all logistic supports, it further stated.

New Delhi, since long time back, has been requesting the Myanmar government to launch a strong military offensive against the northeast insurgents, namely, ULFA of Assam, UNLF, PLA, PREPAK and KYKL of Manipur that have bases in Sagaing Division and Chin State of Myanmar.

These insurgents have been fighting against India from Myanmar soil for quite some time and New Delhi has been complaining that the Myanmar juntas have not done enough to contain these anti-India activities operating from their soil.

Arunachal Pradesh Government also alleged that these insurgents used their territory as a safe corridor to organize their camps in Chinese territory.
It said the state government did not allow shelter Myanmar based rebel group-Kachin Independent Army (KIA).

But of late, cadres of KIA were reported to be in Arunachal's Tirap and Changlang districts to forge links with various militant groups active in the northeast India, mainly to help create safe corridor to China via Myanmar.

Jessica Simpson For Marie Claire

Jessica Simpson is busting out her ginormous cleavage in Marie Claire Magazine May 2010 edition.

BSF, Police Bust Fake Currency Racket in Barak Valley

Silchar, Apr 16 : In a special joint-operation, BSF and Assam Police recovered fake currency notes worth Rs 2,35,510 and fake currency printing equipment in Cachar and Karimganj districts of Assam over the past couple of days.

An official of BSF Mizoram and Cachar Frontier today said on a specific tip-off from BSF Intelligence wing, the police first raided village Nagatilla locality near Silchar town and arrested three people.

They also recovered Rs 2,20,000 from the possession of the arrested, identified as Manikuddin (30), a residence of Kanakpur village in Karimganj district, Nabendu Das (28) and Taz Uddin (30), both are residents of village Alamkhani in Karimganj.

Based on the information provided by the Assam Police, subsequent raids and search operations were also conducted by BSF and Karimganj police on the intervening night of Thursday at the house of Amaduddin (22) in Ilyaspur locality near Patharkandi in Karimganj.

They apprehended Amaduddin with fake currency notes amounting to Rs 1,500 in denomination of Rs 500, printing equipment, including a monitor, a CPU, a UPS, and a scanner-cum-printer with cartridge and ink.

Raid and search operations were continued further on the same intervening night by BSF and police party at the house of Mohd Abu Bakar (25), a kingpin of fake currency racket in village Badezama, and his computer shop at village Baregram Bazar in Karimganj district, but Bakar managed to flee. However, during search of his house and shop, fake currency notes amounting to Rs 14,010, some illegal stamp papers and fake currency note printing equipment were seized.

An FIR was lodged with Karimganj police station, the official said, adding all the arrested people and the seized items had been handed over to Karimganj police for further investigation.

How a Hotel in Copenhagen is Taking Green to the Next Level

The pedal-powered hotel

A green hotel in Copenhagen is claiming a world first by using guests on exercise bikes to generate electricity

By Tom Robbins

Bright idea ... an iPhone attached to the handlebars shows how much power is being fed into the hotel's system

Forget solar panels and wind turbines, a hotel that bills itself as one of the "greenest" in the world has found a new source of renewable energy – its guests.

From next Monday, those staying at the 366-room Crown Plaza Copenhagen Towers will be encouraged to head down to the gym to spend time on its new fleet of electricity-generating exercise bikes. The bikes have iPhones mounted on the handlebars which monitor how much power is being produced and fed into the mains supply of the hotel. Any guest producing 10 watt hours or more will be rewarded with a free meal.

The scheme is a pilot project that will run for a year, and if successful, could be rolled out to all 21 Crowne Plaza hotels in the UK.

"The electric bikes offer our guests the chance to get fit and help power the hotel at the same time," said Allan Agerholm, the hotel's general manager. "It will be interesting to see how many guests take part and how much electricity we generate."

Getting the free meal is surprisingly easy. The hotel's calculations suggest one guest cycling at 30kmph for an hour will produce around 100 watt hours of electricity, meaning that reaching the threshold for the meal should take only six minutes.

Critics might argue that even those who cycle for a full hour will be making a rather token contribution to the energy use of a huge city hotel – 100 watt hours of energy is only enough to light a single 100 watt bulb for one hour. However the hotel counters that it wanted the target to be "achievable" so as many people as possible take part.

The hotel, which opened in November last year, is attempting to become carbon neutral. It has EU Green Building and Green Key certification and uses a groundwater-based cooling and heating system, low energy lighting and hand dryers, and is covered in solar panels on its south-facing aspects. So will its latest scheme catch on at other hotels around the world?

"Realistically, this isn't a practical way of generating a useful amount of energy, but I certainly wouldn't criticise it," said Alex Randall, a spokesman for the Centre for Alternative Technology. "As a lesson, and a means of public engagement, it's excellent – if you sit someone on a bike, pedalling hard, and show them they are only generating enough to power one lightbulb or TV, is makes them appreciate how difficult energy is to produce, and therefore why we should be careful not to waste it."

[ via Guardian ]

One Crazy Ride

It's always been a dream of mine to go on a road trip with a few of my good friends, although after seeing "One Crazy Ride," my "exciting" trip across the States definitely can't compete with traveling through Northeast India via motorcycles on roads that aren't meant for anything with wheels.

Director Gaurav Jani and a few of his friends from the 60 KPH motorcycle club in Mumbai traveled a potentially dangerous route throughout the Himalayan state of Arunachal Pradesh in a whirlwind two-part journey in 2005 and 2007.

The object was to find a route that would eliminate the need to cross back into Assam while traveling through Northeast India.

Throughout their journey, the group experienced multiple obstacles, including motorcycle breakdowns, dilapidated bridges, and the occasional leech or snake. Most of the roads were littered with broken tree branches, or were almost impassible due to flooding and mudslides.

But these weary travelers remained in amazingly high spirits, stopping in local villages to celebrate a wedding and joking around with village kids. After about a month on the road, Gaurav was left to complete the ride, as everyone else headed back home for work and family commitments.

It was at this point where Gaurav's dedication to his mission really became obvious, as he set up his Panasonic camera on hillsides to document the rough terrain and capture the beauty of the landscape.

The passion for this project is really what made "One Crazy Ride" so entertaining. The concept of the project, traveling on motorcycles on roads that even the locals don't believe really exist, is interesting and yes, crazy, enough to draw you into the film. However, once the group starts their journey, the beautiful Himalayan mountains and the lively antics of the crew provide an engaging experience for the audience.

Only a group of people who really were dedicated to this project would withstand the multiple catastrophes and potentially hazardous conditions to complete a film.

Screenwriter Nikki and Gaurav Jani were available for a post-screening Q & A, and their recollections of their trip provided excellent commentary as the audience asked about memorable scenes in the film. Jani's next project starts filming in July, and while he didn't reveal exactly what his plans are, anyone who enjoyed "One Crazy Ride" will surely be anticipating any film he releases in the future.

[ via dane101 ]

Handicrafts Output Methods Need to be Upgraded – Designer

Kohima, Apr 17 : Couple of days back, DC (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, Kohima, conducted a workshop on ‘Prospect of designing in the development of handicrafts’ in Nagaland.

During the workshop, Kos Zhasa, fashion and textile designer said that, traditional Naga handicrafts of Nagaland have been popular since ages. But, with the changing era, these handicrafts also need modification. Therefore, in order to make these handicrafts more competitive in the potential market of handicrafts and design, their production methods need to be upgraded.

Since, Naga art is popular in both Indian and foreign markets, Zhasa informed that, proper guidance to develop this art would help provide world-class production. She said, “Currently, the state fails to fulfill their market demand due to limited production and lack of good designs. The designs produced so far are restricted only for local consumption as they are very traditional in nature.

Naga lacks designers who can formulate new design concepts to launch handicrafts that can create an impression in markets other than their local or state markets. Moreover, owing to the ancient techniques of production, which are slow and tedious, clubbed with financial restrains, the production rate of these handicraft items is limited. This soars up the production cost and ultimately affects its sale.”

Handicraft products could get a fillip with qualified designers who understand the market. Also, marketing agencies would then buy these products if they are available at an appropriate price, stated Zhasa. She further informed that, a number of design workshop schemes were available under the DC (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles.

Handicrafts in the region that, are carved of wood work, bamboo or textiles would witness a good market demand if designed by qualified designers. The industry requires designers, who can formulate concepts that can help sell traditional art work in a new package. This will help boost the sale of Naga handicrafts, emphasized Zhasa.

Product modification, with the help of modern designing methods, meeting the requirements of the current market trends, is the only way for Naga handicrafts to find a potential market.

[ via fibre2fashion ]