Headway in Aizawl Mono Rail Project

End of traffic troubles

Aizawl, Feb 10 : The proposal of the Congress-ruled Mizoram government to build a 5km mono rail network across the hill capital town of Aizawl to ease traffic has made considerable headway.

The state government has now asked the RITES, Rail India Technical & Economic Services Limited, an engineering and consultancy subsidiary of the Indian Railways, with its headquarters in Lucknow, to prepare a technical as well as economic feasibility report of this mono rail system in Aizawl town.

Minister for urban development and sports Zodintluanga told The Telegraph that the entire project would be funded by the Centre. He, however, could not give an estimate for the scheme. The cost structure could only be known once the feasibility report is prepared, he added.

The minister said once the report is completed by the RITES by early next year, it would be placed before the Centre for the phase-wise grant of funds.

Zodintluanga said the proposed mono rail network inside Aizawl would run in a phased manner from Zemabawk in the town’s northern end to Kulikawn locality in the south, a distance of about 5km.

The overcrowded Aizawl town is now chock-a-block with cars and so the traffic moves at a snail’s space there, causing much discomfort to the people. According to an official report, Aizawl town alone at present boasts about 30,000 cars.

Zodintluanga said the masterplan for the beautification, which includes laying of more new roads in the capital town of Aizawl, has been drawn. He said the thrust of first masterplan of Aizawl town will be to lay more roads on its western side between Sairong in the northwest and Melbawk in the south to divert traffic meant for Lunglei town in the south and Champai town in the west.

The minister said more roads in Aizawl would help ease traffic in the town.

Aquaculture Development in Mizoram To Get A Boost

Bhubaneswar, Feb 10 : The Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA), Bhubaneswar a constituent of Indian Council of Agricultural Research would promote freshwater aquaculture in Mizoram through provision of enabling technologies, training programmes, demonstrations, and other critical inputs. 

As a part of this initiative the Institute has organized a training programme on ‘Aquaculture for Entrepreneurship Development in Mizoram’   in collaboration with Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Mamit during 1-3 February 2012 at KVK, Lengpui.

The training programme was inaugurated by Hon’ble Secretary DARE & Director General ICAR Dr. S. Ayyappan. Programme coordinators of all 7 KVKs of the state were represented in addition to Subject Matter Specialists, and other staff members.

The DG suggested that instead of going for several species and technologies in this north east state, focus should be on few species of regional importance and most enabling technologies.

He asked CIFA to make arrangements for providing FRP Portable hatchery, portable aquaculture kits, ornamental fish units and fishing nets to the fish farmers through KVKs of the state.


Dr B Meenakumari, DDG (Fy.), ICAR emphasized on the need for synergy in fish culture and post-harvest technologies for holistic development of the sector. Dr. P. Jayasankar, Director, CIFA  assured all possible help to develop freshwater aquaculture in Mizoram as means of income and employment generation, as well as for food and nutritional security of the people.

IIM Shillong To Send Bureaucrats To China

Guwahati, Feb 10 : Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Shillong is rolling out an advanced management programme for bureaucrats in the northeastern states in collaboration with Ocean University of China, from February 17 this year.

To begin with, nearly 20 bureaucrats from Meghalaya will be trained in China on the Chinese way of doing business. IIM plans to cover other states in a phased manner.

IIM-Shillong has signed a memorandum of understanding with Ocean University of China, and the five-day course will be conducted in the university's campus in Qingdao. The fee per participant is nearly Rs 2 lakh.

"We are also in talks with governments of other northeastern states for this course, and by next year, officials of these states will be taken for the course," IIM Shillong director Ashoke Dutta told ET.

The course will involve understanding Chinese business and its growth. "It will include a field visit. The economic transformation of China, state functioning and culture, besides operation of foreign direct investment and urban development will be the focus," says Dutta.

The whole idea of this programme is to establish people-to-people contact and learn from Chinese experience, he adds. "China to wants greater engagement with India and Northeast India is a good platform to do so."

The Northeast's bilateral trade with its neighbour is dismal. During 2010-11, total export from the region was worth around Rs 861.14 crore. "China has emerged as an important trading partner of India and the European Union, and knowing China has become very important for us," he adds. As part of its Look East policy which came into existence a decade ago, India is making attempts to foster greater economic ties with Asian countries.

"Meghalaya is looking to become the launching pad of the Look East policy. This region has close proximity with the emerging economics of South East Asia," adds Dutta.

Assam Demands Dedicated Railway Zone For Northeast

Guwahati, Feb 10 : Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi has demanded that Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) be declared as a dedicated railway zone exclusively for the North Eastern states in this year’s railway budget.

Gogoi, while stressing on the need for “good connectivity from Assam, so critical for the people of the state and also other North Eastern states,” placed the demand during his meeting with Union railway minister Dinesh Trivedi in New Delhi.

Presently, parts of eastern Bihar and North Bengal are also included in NFR, which is headquartered at Maligaon in Guwahati.

Gogoi had placed the same demand before former railway minister Mamta Banerjee last year, but the same was not met in the last year’s railway budget.

Gogoi also demanded laying of new railway line connecting Salona to Kumtai and Jorhat to Sivasagar. “I told Trivedi that if a new line is laid between these two sections, the distance between Guwahati and Upper Assam will be considerably reduced,” said Gogoi. Gogoi added that he also urged Trivedi for a new railway line linking Tirap to Lekhapani to help transportation of coal to upcoming Bongaigaon Thermal Power Station.

He also requested the railway minister to initiate steps to set up the wagon manufacturing facility at Amingaon, near Guwahati, which was announced in railway budget of 2010, besides upgradation and modernization of coach workshops at Bongaigaon and Dibrugarh.

Gogoi also demanded introduction of a new daily express train, preferable the Durnoto Express, between Guwahati and Chennai, via Kolkata, and between Guwahati and Mumbai to “cut short the enormous time the existing trains take to travel to southern and western parts of the country”. Gogoi also demanded introduction of a new super fast express train connecting Jorhat-Sivasagar-Moran-Dibrugarh.

Gogoi requested Trivedi for doubling of railway track from New Bongaigaon to Guwahati via Rangiya and Guwahati to Tinsukia via Lumding as well as electrification from Katihar to Guwahati.

Other proposals taken up by the chief minister include modernization and improvement of railway stations at Guwahati, Tinsukia, Jorhat and Bongaigoan, railway level crossing at important unmanned locations across the state and setting up of an integrated freight complex at Changsari, near Guwahati.

Gogoi also wrote a letter to the Prime Minister, requesting him to consider the proposals submitted by the state and for their inclusion in the railway budget.

300 Trucks Bound For Manipur Stranded on Assam Border

By Iboyaima Laithangbam

Imphal, Feb 8 : Over 300 loaded trucks bound for Imphal are stranded at Jiribam, bordering Assam, along the 225-km-long National Highway 37 for five days due to the absence of armed Manipur paramilitary personnel to escort them. The Jiribam police said the trucks were being provided protection in the interim.

A number of militant groups extort illegal taxes while highwaymen loot passengers occasionally. Some drivers, who had plied in small numbers without armed paramilitary personnel, were waylaid, beaten up on the charge that the owners had not paid various taxes, and their vehicles torched.

As the trucks transport goods regularly, a blockade-like situation prevails in Manipur. Last year, there were blockades for 123 days as the Kuki and the Naga tribals made demands over the formation of a new district. However, the blockade was suspended on December 1 to facilitate a visit by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi on December 3 to inaugurate a slew of new constructions.

Goods rot

Talking to The Hindu, some traders said perishable items in the stranded trucks were rotting. Besides, the transporters were charging more for the inordinate delay. As a result, the traders had to jack up the prices.

Prices of all consumer items and construction materials remain exorbitant. Till recently, fuel was strictly rationed with most of the oil pumps remaining closed. However, at the direction of the Election Commission, the pumps were opened. Sources say that soon after the March 6 counting for the Assembly polls, fuel will become scarce since the trucks and oil tankers cannot be provided armed escorts along the highways on a daily basis.

The other lifeline is National Highway 39 that snakes through Nagaland. Many trucks and oil tankers avoid it fearing extortions and manhandling of the drivers, though the road condition is better.

Raising a highway protection force to prevent blockades by some tribal groups was one of the main election issues of the political parties contesting the January 28 Assembly polls.

62 Per Cent Mizo Women Use Tobacco

Aizawl, Feb 7 : As per latest data available, 62% of Mizo women consume tobacco products of any kind in Mizoram. The data has been prepared by Mizoram State Cancer Society.

Dr. Jeremy L Pautu, Director of the Mizoram State Cancer Institute informed NNN that due to numbers of tobacco users among women, ovarian cancer is very much popular.

Tobacco also causes other types of cancer among the women folks, added Dr. Jeremy.

While the trend is 62% in Mizoram, West Bengal and Manipur stand at 28% and 25% regarding the women who use tobacco products.

In the meantime Dr. K Lalbiakzuala, Prog. Asst, MSCS had said that Mizoram had entered ‘cancer age’ which claims more lives than any other diseases. “People of the state must have true knowledge and have to be taken special attention for prevention of the diseases,” he warns.

Dr. Jeremy said that before the end of 2025, efforts has been made to decline cases of cancer by 25% across the country. “Six districts from Mizoram are included amongst the topmost 10 prevalent cancer cases in men which are Aizawl, Serchhip, Lunglei, Kolasib, Champhai, Mamit while for that of women include Aizawl, Serchhip, Kolasib, Lunglei,” said Dr Jeremy. Among men, stomach cancer is the most popular while in women lungs cancer and ovarian cancer are common in Mizoram state.

Meanwhile, tribals, who constitute 27 percent of the northeast’s total population of 45.50 million (2011 census) are traditionally heavy users of different types of tobacco products. According to the latest report of the union health and family welfare ministry, Mizoram (67.2 percent), Nagaland (56.8 percent) Tripura (55.9 percent) have the highest number of tobacco users in India.

Hmar Students Vows To Prevent Tipaimukh Dam

By Anwarul Karim


Kolkata, Feb 7 : A student organization of the Hmar, a dominant tribe of Tipaimukh, declared to prevent the construction of the much-talked-about Tipaimukh hydro-electric project sacrificing their lives.

Acting president of Hmar Students Association (HSA) of Tipaimukh unit Ringa Khobung made the announcement while talking to banglanews correspondent in Tipaimukh area.

The main organization of the tribe is HSA.

Locals said HSA owns the authority of making any comment over Tipai Dam in the area. So, if anybody wants to know about Tipai Dam he/she has to talk with HSA.

Despite being a tribal man, Ringa speaks fluent English. He studied at Christian Missionary School and College of Shilong. Now Ringa is working for the development of the people in his area.

Ringa proposed to banglanews correspondent to visit the area after talking about dam. He also took the correspondent to the site of Tipai Dam in Borak River.

“What kind of dam to be constructed here! Who will make it?” commented Ringa during the visit.

Being a little bit excited, he said, “We will prevent the construction of Tipaimukh Dam at any cost.”

He said the tribal people of the area would loss everything if the dam is constructed.

In response to a question, Ringa said, “There is no question of rehabilitation. We have been living here for generations. So, where will we go leaving the area?” he put the counter question.

Ringa reiterated that their urge to the Manipur State Government and Indian central government to step back from the initiative of building Tipai Dam.

Replying to a query, he said, “Manipur Rajyo Sarkar is the government for Manipur tribe. So, who will give importance our (Hmar’s) speech?”

He also commented that none can come here to construct dam.

Speaking about Bangladesh’s stance on Tipai Dam, Ringa told banglanews, “Some people from Bangladesh came here on helicopter in 2009. But they could not land in the area.”

He added: “Bangladesh has not to do anything. We will protest the initiative of constructing the dam.”

Baby Boom Concerns Meghalaya Doctors

By Manosh Das

Shillong, Feb 7 : Doctors have expressed concern over the high growth of population in Meghalaya. With the hill state registering one of the highest fertility rates and decadal growths across the country, the topic was raised by state health services doctors while presenting the findings of their research undertaken as part of their training in IIM Shillong recently.

As per Census data, the state's population grew from about a million in 1971 census to nearly three million in 2011, a three-fold increase in four decades. As per the latest census, the population of the state now stands at 29,64,007 - of which 5,55,822 are below six years of age - with a decadal growth rate of 27.82 per cent.

"How do we control the booming population of children at the age group of one to seven years," was one of the questions raised by the doctors. "Can we have disaster plan for Meghalaya? Why can't we upgrade the Civil Hospital in Shillong to the level of medical colleges? How do we regulate overcrowding in the city's Ganesh Das Hospital? Why do we emulate the best practices form NEIGRIHMS at Civil Hospital and Ganesh Das? How do we face the patient load in PHC and CHC across the state? How do we motivate pregnant women to go for hospital delivery rather than home delivery of children," were some of the other questions raised by the physicians.

According to an IIM-Shillong press release, the deteriorating work environment at PHC, CHC and Civil Hospitals in Garo Hills have made many doctors apprehensive. "They have urged the government to improve the working conditions and health infrastructure of the East and West Garo Hill districts," the release said. It added that the NRHM and state government have taken the advice of IIM-Shillong for designing and delivering hospital care system to be more "patient-friendly and socially responsible".

IIM-Shillong trained the second batch of 14 doctors under 15 credit IIM certificate programme - Sustainable Healthcare Management System. During the course, doctors learned how to lead from the front during crisis, motivate their staff under stress, read financial statements and preparing zero-based budgets and financial plans for their units/hospitals by utilizing NRHM schemes, WHO norms, MCI guidelines, government regulations.

"They also realised that the potential of their own health infrastructure for grooming a disease free healthy population in Meghalaya during 2020," a spokesperson for the youngest B-school and the only one in the Northeast said. Training for next batch of doctors at IIM-Shillong will commence in June next for a period of 30 days.