Arunachal Delegation Seeks Krishna’s Help

By Ravish Tiwari

New Delhi, Oct 13 : Elected representatives from Arunachal Pradesh have intensified their protest against Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh’s stand against hydro-electric projects in the state.

A three-member delegation comprising a Member of Parliament and two MLAs on Tuesday met External Affairs Minister SM Krishna to counter Jairam’s position and sought his support to push for development works in the state in the “national interest.”

“We strongly protested Jairam Ramesh’s stand against hydroelectric projects in Arunachal. It is very unfortunate that while on the one hand our external neighbour is objecting to projects in the state, on the other hand, a minister in the government is championing the cause of a small section from the neighbouring state to halt projects in our state, Congress MP Takam Sanjoy, who led the delegation, told The Indian Express after meeting Krishna.

Last week, The Indian Express had reported how Jairam Ramesh, in a letter to the Prime Minister, questioned development works in the strategically-located state and demanded a comprehensive review of all hydel projects there. He also sought a “moratorium on any further clearances for hydel projects in Arunachal Pradesh” since “these are bound to be the subject of agitation” in Assam.

“We sought the external affairs minister’s support. We highlighted this peculiar situation faced by our state and sought his support for speedy development,” Sanjoy said.

Sanjoy was accompanied by two other state MLAs, Padi Richo and Nido Pavitra.

“The Union Minister for Environment and Forest has never heard from the people and Government of Arunachal Pradesh and he has never come to the state for this purpose. Rather he heard a few NGOs in Guwahati and rushed with an one-sided opinion and report to the Prime Minister,” Sanjoy said.

The delegation also sought Krishna’s support to speed up construction of a greenfield airport at Tawang district in Arunachal.

“We requested Krishnaji to not impose the 70-km distance norm from the border for the construction of a greenfield airport in Tawang. We highlighted the case of the Agartala airport, which is adjacent to the Bangladesh border,” Sanjoy said.

Sanjoy said even Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu had recently met Defence Minister A K Antony to push for the Tawang Airport.

The delegation also sought a clampdown on IPhone4, which has created confusion regarding the political status of Arunachal Pradesh in its features.

Gisele Bundchen: All Out For Environment

She's well known for her endless and very shapely legs, and a body that makes her the highest paid model in the world and the sixteenth richest woman in the world of entertainment. But making money is and looking like a million bucks is not all that supermodel Gisele Bundchen is about.

The lady is widely recognized for her long-standing and passionate commitment to the environment and was even named Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Environment Program in September 2009.

Bundchen told reporters that Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva should propose better laws to stop Amazon deforestation.

"The environment has always been my passion," Bundchen said. "I grew up in a small town and I had the opportunity to live surrounded by nature. I couldn't have asked for a better childhood. We must act now, so future generations have the same opportunity.

Mother Earth is our fundamental life-support system, and by becoming aware and responsible now, we can assist in preserving the planet," said the Brazilian beauty.

The model has also adhered to the fashion of building green. In her home, besides using solar energy, Bundchen uses lighting systems that reduce energy consumption, rainwater recovery systems, waste reduction and recycling programs, just to name a few.

Alomst 80% of all construction waste while building her home was reused or recycled. Also, Gisele chose to use recycled stone and wood materials, insulation, appliances with the green seal and a variety of other sustainable products.

Bundchen even has her own line of natural and environmental friendly beauty products. The line is promises to deliver all-natural ingredients, "thoughtful" packaging and recycled paper.

This isn't the supermodel's only green project. Both Bundchen and her husband Tom Brady showed their support for WWF's Earth Hour by filming two videos that encourage people around the world to join them in turning off their lights for Earth Hour.

Bundchen also is a big supporter of Brazilian eco-projects such as De Olho nos Mananciais and Nascentes do Brasil and also donates regularly to protect Amazon Rainforest water sources (courtesy of profits from her Ipanema sandal line).

Through her blog she has taken up the task of spreading awareness about the negative impact of climate change and shares diverse environmental information and simple tips for a green lifestyle

At a recent event in New York, held at the American Museum of Natural History for 25 groups that work in the poorest countries in the world, Gisele spoke about her passion for the planet and also how honored she felt to be surrounded by so special people who do their best for the planet:

"The battle to protect the environmental basis of human well-being is being waged all over the world. If there was one single message that we would want them to take away from this event it is that there can be no human development in an environment that does not support life," she said.

Source: India Syndicate
Images: Reuters

What Does Nokia N8 Have?

A First Look

By Javed Anwer

Finally, it has arrived. Nokia on Tuesday launched N8 in India with great hopes.

The company has lost significant amount of market share and mindshare to Android and iPhone in the last two years. Of course, falling fortunes of Nokia is a separate story. For now, it’s all about N8. The phone was announced in April and since then it has been a much-awaited device, at least among Nokia fans. At last, it’s shipping and in a few days we will come to know how well it compares with the best that Android offers.

A full review is a few days away — we just got the review piece and are putting it through its paces — but a quick first look is not going to harm anyone. N8, from the looks of it, is a finely crafted phone. Unlike several high-end smartphones wrapped in glossy plastic, N8 has an industrial design with a body made of aluminum and plastic. It feels solid in hand and, unlike Nokia N900, is slim and weighs around 135g.

As far as specs are concerned, N8 is powered by a 680Mhz ARM and 256MB RAM. This is somewhat disappointing as competitors nowadays put a 1GHz ARM processor and more than 500MB RAM in their devices. Rest is usual affair. Internal space of 16GB (additional 32GB can be added through microSD) is in line with expectations and a camera, which boasts 12 mega-pixel tag, is best in the industry, at least on the paper. The device sports a 3.5 inches AMOLED screen with a tad low resolution of 640 x 360, HDMI port, a front-facing camera, Xenon flash, 1200mAH battery.

First impression

Given the fact that Nokia can’t stop talking about N8’s 12 mega pixel camera, the first thing we did after taking it out of the box was to shoot a few pictures and videos, which are captured in 720p. Usually we find that tall claims, when it comes to gadgets, often fall flat. For a change, with N8 it’s different. The phone may not kill your point-and-shoot digital cameras, but when it comes to pictures and videos the quality is good. The pictures are sharp and detailed, Xenon flash is powerful and videos good.

Screen too, for a change, is good. Unlike the resistive touchscreens on previous Nokia phones, N8 screen is capacitive. That means it responds faster and colours are vibrant. Though there are a few minor glitches with N8 screen, we need to explore it in detail before we can be sure of them.

All this doesn’t mean that N8 is without flaws. Symbian^3 — better than Symbian 60 found on N97 — still doesn’t look like it can challenge Android or even Samsung’s Bada. Performance is a mixed bag. The device generally feels quite fast but then there are several tasks where it simply takes extra bit of seconds to respond. Web browsing too, from our limited experience so far, is a big problem on N8 and integration with social networking continues to be poor.

N8 is one of the make or break devices for the Nokia and the company believes that in this phone it has a compelling product to take on the Android & its bevy of smartphones. For the next few days we hope to put the claim to test and see how much value N8 holds for you, the users. For full review, watch this space.

Cock Fights Draws Sensation in Churachandpur, Manipur

Imphal, Oct 13 : In what can be termed as an antithesis to ethical treatment of animals, a game of cock fight has bedazzled a small village of Thingkangphai located some 3-4 kms from the district headquarter of Churachandpur in Manipur.

The nail biting excitement that gripped this suburb town has become both a pastime and an easy means of making money for the denizens in and around it.

The betting for a single fight between the cock owners would range between 5,000 and 20,000 rupees.

Spectators too are engaged in rounds of bets between themselves.

The irony in the spectacular event is in the day of the week.

Being a Sunday would not deter the enthusiasts who are almost always from the Christian faith.

A typical fight scene will have a cartoon box prop encircling an arena of 4 feet diameter and standing up 1 and half feet from the ground or a large bamboo plaited basket.

The bowl-like enclosure that is created thus becomes a scene of bloodbath between the fighting cocks.

On an average the fighting lasts for as long as two hours interspersed with breaks in between.
The cock that attempts to escape is considered defeated.

If the fight lasts for more than two hours, the contest is adjudged even without winner.

Before a fight the two cocks are weighted and sized to ascertain combat compatibility between them.

Ideally, they should be of the same size and weight.

In case the betting amounts between the two cock owners are not commensurate, the fight would be cancelled and the challenger would look for an appropriate competitor.

The cocks used in this fights are of different variety locally called Taichiek.

They have longer feet and neck without feather on them.

This variety of cocks is not locally available. They are bought from Mizoram.
Some are bough and brought from the valley district of Manipur.

On owner of such graceful cocks said that its price starts from Rs.2,000 and might even go up to a whooping Rs.7,000.For the less unfortunate who cannot afford to buy for themselves may participate by hiring it on lease.

One proud owner of the fighting cock admitted to earning Rs.35,000 in a five fight match lasting for two months.

He is planning to buy for himself yet another fighting cock from Mizoram in the imminent future.
He is reported to be gloating over the fact that his cock has not lost even a single fight.

He claimed to have paid some 6200 rupees for his champion cock from Mizoram.

This pastime and an easy way of earning quick buck attacks right at the heart of ethical treatment of animals.

It should be recalled that Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act 1960 bans gambling with animals.

via Newmai News Network

The Commonwealth Saritorialists

By Mayank Austen Soofi

New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Delhi Walla saw these young women in Connaught Place, Delhi’s premier shopping district. In army boots, fatigues and caps, they still looked slender and delicate.

Cargo pockets on their khaki trousers and shoulder lapels on their shirts were commando-like.

A ball-point pen was tucked into their shoulder pocket. Their fully packed ammunition belt and rolled sleeves gave them a battlefield zest. No girl was dressed like them.

Of course, the military look is globally a big fashion trend and Delhi is fast catching up, but these women are not ruled by Anna Wintour’s dictates.

The fresh graduates of the first all-women battalion of northeast India’s Nagaland Police, they were in Delhi to provide special security to the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Between 18 and 25, these women are trained to handle weapons such as.303 rifles, AK-47s, 9-mm pistols and light machine guns.

With semi-automated rifle in their arms, they had an alert eye for anything suspicious.

Delhiwallas looked at these armed women with awe.

In Scindia House, Outer Circle, when I requested one of them to pose for the camera, she refused. I didn’t feel snubbed. Her voice was soft, her smile was sweet and the refusal was gentle.

She was polite, but I knew that if there were to be a terror attack, I’d be safe.

(Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi)

via Hindustan Times

Northeast India Dam Projects Meeting With PM Deferred

New Delhi, Oct 13 : The meeting on the hydro power projects of Northeast India convened by the Prime Minister has been postponed. The meeting convened on October 13 is now scheduled to be held on October 18.

The meeting has assumed importance because of a note by Union Environment and Forest Minister, Jairam Ramesh, who has called for a moratorium on sanction of hydro power projects in Arunachal Pradesh and review of all sanctioned projects. The meeting is to be attended by all concerned Ministries including the Environment and Forest, Power, Water Resources among others.

Sources said the meeting that was postponed twice, is now scheduled to be held within a fortnight.

Meanwhile, the spate of memorandums have landed in the Prime Minister’s office. Today, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) has shot off a memorandum to the Prime Minister calling for suspension of all work on Subansiri Lower Hydro Power projects and the Prime Minister should with hold permission for all hydro power electric projects in Arunachal Pradesh.

Yesterday, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), urged the Prime Minister to evolve a mechanism to address all issues related to construction of hydro projects in Arunachal Pradesh.

In a memorandum, AGP has said that the recent devastation in the downstream of the ‘three Gorges Dam’ in China that killed over 100 people should be an eye opener for any such mega dam projects in the up stream areas of the neighbouring State and also in Bhutan.

The Centre has given green signal to 135 river dams in Arunachal Pradesh. But the implications of these dams have not been carefully considered before giving sanctions. “We also express our concern over the adverse downstream affects of the Ranganadi and Kopili projects of NEEPCO,” the Party said.

Referring to the expert committee report, AGP urged the Prime Minister to adopt a scientific approach.

In a memorandum address to PM, the NCP said the need of the hour is to constitute a mechanism involving all stake holders including project, affected people, policy experts, members of scientific community, environmentalist, sociologists, dam experts to address all issues relating to dam.

The memorandum said real concern is not anti-dam or pro-dam, but the reckless manner in which the MOAs were signed without maintaining transparency and taking public into confidence. 135 MOAs were hurriedly and secretly signed without the free, prior and informed consent of the people especially the traditional village authorities and the three-tier Panchayati Raj Institution, the memorandum claimed.

It further said before inking 135 MOAs in a short span of three to four years, the State Government should have carried out a cumulative environmental impact assessment studies as well as comprehensive biodiversity studies. The present tactics of obtaining NOC by the private companies from various state Governments Departments are not only seen as postmortem exercise and an eye wash.

Bristol Palin's 'Dancing With The Stars' Week Four

Last week, Bristol Palin told People magazine that she'd "be dressing sexy" on this week's "Dancing with the Stars," explaining, "I have to get into character. Dressing sexy will help me get into character more."

However, Bristol previously told People, "I think I will be the most dressed [contestant and have] the most modest outfits for sure because that's who I am." And each week, we've watched her outfits and polled to see if you think what she's wearing had been modest.

Modest...and sexy? The two can certainly overlap! So we were eager to see what Bristol would wear. The answer came in the form of a sparkly black leotard, covered with a men's shirt and cinched with a black belt. Her hair was half-up, half-down and she went heavy on the eyeshadow.

Manipur Loktak Lake To Get New Lodge

By Khelen Thokchom

Loktak lake

Imphal, Oct 13 : Sendra, a small hillock overlooking Loktak lake in Manipur’s Bishnupur district, will soon boast of a swanky tourist lodge of international standards.

This is part of the Okram Ibobi Singh government’s plan to boost tourism in the state and the Union tourism ministry has agreed to construct the lodge at a cost of Rs 2 crore.

“Though many visitors, mostly foreigners, visit Sendra, the existing home is not suitable for foreign tourists. So the government has taken up the plan to construct a tourist lodge of international standard so that foreign visitors can spend the night there and enjoy the scenic beauty of the lake,” an official source said.

He said the chief minister had instructed officials of the tourism department to take up the project on a priority basis. However, the government is yet to select a firm for handing over the construction of the lodge.

Sendra is as popular a tourist spot as is the Indian National Army memorial complex at Moirang, which is located just half-a kilometre away. Visitors, particularly from Japan and England, regularly visit the memorial complex to pay homage to their forefathers who lost their lives in Manipur during World War II. Moirang is the first place in India where Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s INA soldiers hoisted their flag during the war.

Sendra, located 48km from Imphal city on Tiddim road, is one of the main destinations for foreign and domestic dignitaries as it gives a bird’s-eye view of the largest fresh water lake in the Northeast. Work on cleaning the lake of phumdi (floating bio-mass) is also in full swing as part of the tourism project.

Tourist flow to Sendra had slowed down over the past few years after security forces opened a post on the hillock to keep vigil on the lake. The army post has now been shifted to the foothills of the hillock. The source said this would help tourism as visitors could do away with security concerns.

The government also plans to develop eco-tourism parks and water sport once the lake is cleared of phumdi by March 2012 as scheduled.