Tipaimukh Dam: Delhi-Dhaka For Expert Meet on August 27

Silchar, Aug 7 : In order to resolve the raging controversy over the construction of Tipaimukh dam, both Delhi and Dhaka have agreed for an expert-meet on August 27 in the national capital.

The six decade old multipurpose project could not take off due to opposition from the environmentalists and naturalists as well as delayed clearance from the Ministry of Forest and Environment, besides other technical reasons.

The dam to be built at Tipaimukh on the tri junction of Assam, Manipur and Mizoram will not only generate 1500 MW of power but also contain the high floods that hit Barak Valley annually.

The delay has shot up the estimated original cost of the project from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 7,600 crore. It is to be recollected that of the 65 point agreement signed between the two capitals, Delhi and Dhaka, during the visit of Dr Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, to Bangladesh in September, 2011, one of them related to the construction of Tipaimukh dam, also known as Tipaimukh Hydro Electric Power Project. The Prime Minister then assured that India would not take any steps on the dam that would adversely affect Bangladesh.

But, besides facing opposition in Barak Valley and Manipur, it has also been protested by the socio-political bodies of Bangladesh. The opposition to the dam was led by Tipaimukh Dam Resistance Committee and the Sylhet Division Unnayan Sangram Committee joined by Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jamat-e-Islami. From time to time, the protesters marched down to Jakiganj, opposite Karimganj, and warned of the impact on the economic and environmental losses Bangladesh would suffer once the dam came up.

Notwithstanding the opposition at home and across the border, memorandum of understanding was signed among the three states of Manipur, Assam and Mizoram. The Planning Commission approved allocation of Rs 20 crore for infrastructure build up. Even the Centre approved rehabilitation package for 350 tribal families to be affected due to submergence. Following the signing of agreement during the visit of Prime Minister of India, a 15-member Parliamentary delegation from Bangladesh came to inspect and study the dam site. Though they could not land at the site due to bad weather, they gathered the impression that the dam would in no way adversely affect the downstream areas of Bangladesh, particularly Sylhet district. The anti dam activists fear that the dam would affect two rivers, Surma and Kushiara of Bangladesh, 100 km away from Tipaimukh.

The visit of Parliamentary delegation was followed by the visit of a team of journalists from Bangladesh, a few months ago. Ironically, they also could not land at the site. In order to allay the apprehensions and misconceptions about the impact of the dam, the team of experts from both the countries are expected to examine the objections critically with particular focus on the location of the dam in a seismic zone, impact on the catchment areas and upper reaches as well as the downstream habitations, flora and fauna, biodiversity, ecology as well as economy. It has been learned from the Central Water Commission Source, the experts on hydrology, river engineering and system assisted by the water resource and flood control departments of both the countries will try to remove the apprehension which is based mostly on misinformation, it is said. The expert-meet will be an exercise to shift the myth from the reality about the dam based on the data and all the facts.

National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) will construct the dam in a joint venture with Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam. Experts in the Brahmaputra Board which was earlier entrusted with the construction allayed all the apprehensions as baseless and pointed out that the 16.80 lakh cusecs capacity reservoir of the dam would not only contain floods in both the countries but also release enough water during lean season through Barak and its tributaries, Surma and Kushiara. It is hoped that the experts would create the passage for the early start and completion of the project within the time frame of seven years to benefit not only the Northeast but also Bangladesh.

Mizoram boy to Train With Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich beckons

By DIPANJAN SINHA

Calcutta, Aug 7 : Lalremruata is kicked. After all, the Mizoram boy will be flying to Munich next month to train with Bayern Munich FC coaches at the top club’s home ground, Allianz Arena.

The Class IX student of Government Republic High School, Aizawl, is one of the five teenagers selected to attend the five-day training programme — Bajaj Allianz Junior Football Camp Season III. Lalremruata and the four others bagged top spots from among 38,000 contenders from all over India.

India has been sending five boys to the Allianz Arena for the last two years to attend a match as well as to meet football stars from FC Bayern Munich like Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery and Thomas Muller, among others.

The young stars will get the opportunity to train with Mohun Bagan’s Youth Development Programme.

The selection process this year in Calcutta and other cities, which saw participation of students from 400 schools, began from June 14 and ended on July 27.

Lalremruata, who has been playing football since childhood, shares a love of the game with his father V. Hranglura, an official of the public health engineering department in Aizawl. So, as soon as he got a ticket to his dream in Calcutta, he called up his father.

He narrates the journey so far with much excitement.

“Boys were invited from different schools in Mizoram and a trial was held at the Ramhlun sports complex. Two of us were selected to go to Calcutta, where there were several rounds of selection. It was like a dream come true when I finally realised that I was among the top boys."

The camp in Munich is scheduled for September. The most promising players selected in Calcutta were Lalremruata from Aizawl, Akash Mandal from Calcutta and Gobinda Kar from Bardhaman.

The other two players who will accompany them to Munich are Akshay Sharma from Chandigarh and Jibin Devassy from Kerala who were selected in the national trials held in Pune.

The winners were selected by a panel of Mohun Bagan Youth coaches led by Kalyan Chaubey, former international goalkeeper and current head of youth development.

Chaubey said, “There is immense talent for football in this region. The exposure that the Junior Football Camp will give them is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that they should make the most of, especially those looking to pursue football at a professional level. Their interaction with the biggest names in international football will go a long way in shaping their future in football.”

On his future plans, Lalremruata, whose favourite pastime is watching Dutch footballer Arjen Robben play when actually not playing himself, says, “I don’t know what will happen in the future. For now, I am just looking forward to having a good time at the camp. I will continue to play for Aizawl FC.”

Manipur Basks in Mary Kom's Medal Glory

By K Sarojkumar Sharma

Imphal, Aug 7 : Manipur erupted with pride and joy as M C Mary Kom on Monday created history and assured India its fourth Olympic medal with a resounding 15-6 win in her quarterfinal boxing bout against Maroua Rahali of Tunisia in the women's 51kg category. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna-awardee stormed into the Olympics quarterfinals after beating Poland's Karolina Michalczuk 19-14 on Sunday at the ExCel arena. While Mary's husband, Onlear Kom, watched the game from Delhi, her mother, M Akham Kom, watched her fight from the ringside in London.

Chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh said an award of Rs 1 crore for a gold medal winner in the Olympics from Manipur, already announced by the state, stands unchanged. "For silver and bronze, the incentive amount will be announced soon," added Okram, while expressing his happiness over Mary's victory. "Let's all pray for her golden victory," the CM said.

Residents of her native village - Kangathei - watched the bout on television with baited breath. Her brother said: "We are planning to celebrate as per our traditions and customs. We are also going to have a grand feast for all people." Mary's sister added: "We are really proud of her. We will all welcome her in our cultural and traditional glory when she returns with a medal. We have never stopped praying and thousands have joined us as well. And now we will pray for her so that she wins a gold medal."

Mangminthang Gangte, a resident of Kangathei, said: "Our joy, pride and contentment has soared because of what Mary has achieved. We will celebrate her victory in the most fitting manner. We hope she comes back with a gold."

Meanwhile, dozens of people, some beating drums, celebrated on the streets of Imphal and danced and sang, some shouted, "Long live Mary, long live Manipur." Santosh Singh, one of the cheering youths, said: "Magnificent Mary (as the 29-year-old mother of two is known) has brought fame to Manipur, the northeast and the country. We are happy with her victory and a bronze is sure for her at this stage. She will definitely punch for bigger glory in her next two big fights."

Mary's first boxing coach, L Ibomcha Singh, who first brought her into the boxing ring, said: "She got through because of her consistency. She had a tough fight on Sunday and another difficult one the very next day. I hope she beats Nicola Adams (her opponent in the semi-final) on Wednesday and gets through to the final. I have trained her since 2000 and I know she has the quality to do well, She has worked really hard in training sessions." He added: "She did what I believed he could. During Sunday's bout, Mary was a little tense. Today she did it in an excellent manner." Singh said he is confident that Mary will defeat her opponents in the next two fights.

Before departing for London, Mary said she was confident of winning a medal for the country at the Olympics. "I will try my best to win gold," the five-time world women boxing champion, had said. "She has done it. We are proud of her magnificent win. Now Mary has brought fame for the country and Manipur in particular," said M Romen Singh, joint secretary of Manipur Olympics Association (MOA). "Now we are praying for Mary's two bigger fights that would make her receive either a silver or gold. We have a strong confidence for gold and she will definitely do for it," Romen said. He added that Mary is a determined and tough boxer.

Mary, serving as additional superintendent of police in Manipur, was into athletics since her childhood days at her native Kangathei village in Churachandpur district before switching over to boxing. She is the only Indian woman pugilist to have qualified for the Summer Olympics in London. "She is a true lover of the tough game of boxing. Besides working for herself, she also grooms young players of the state in her academy christened Mary Kom Boxing Academy," Romen said.

Established in 2006, the academy has produced a number of outstanding boxers. She spends nearly Rs 50,000 per month to running the academy "We will organize accord a grand reception for her," he said, while expressing confidence that another Manipuri boxer, Laishram Devendro Singh, who has stormed into the quarter-finals, will follow Mary's feat.

Tobacco Abuse High Among Northeast School Workers

By Manosh Das

Shillong, Aug 7 : School workers, including teachers and other staff, are important role models for students. Tobacco abuse often starts during adolescence and school teachers and other non-teaching staff can potentially influence tobacco abuse in students.

To plan effective intervention, it is essential to have information on the extent and the type of tobacco use among school workers, their attitudes towards tobacco control, and the existence of school health policies about tobacco.

The Indian Cancer Society carried out the Global School Personnel Survey (GSPS) which revealed tobacco abuse among school workers in the northeastern states is very high. Mizoram had the highest rate of daily and occasional smoking (76.1%) as well as smokeless (81.5%) tobacco use, while the minimum, in Nagaland (smoking 42.2%, smokeless 43.7%), was also high by all global standards and as compared to other parts of India.

"Among women, the current daily tobacco use variation was much more than men in both smoking as well as smokeless form," the report reads.

The highest current daily plus current occasional smoking among men was reported in Manipur (79.5%) and among women in Mizoram (76.2%). Even the lowest current daily plus occasional smoking prevalence among men (Arunachal Pradesh 45.2%) and among women (Tripura 9.2%) was high as compared to the other states.

"The prevalence of daily smoking ranged from 25.9% (Mizoram) to 12.8% (Arunachal Pradesh) and of smokeless tobacco use from 57.8% (Mizoram) to 10.7% (Assam). Daily smoking among men and women was similar in five states but not in Arunachal Pradesh (men 15%, women 4%), Nagaland (men 18.7%, 5%), and Tripura (men 18.6%, women 0.4%). In four states, cigarettes were the most common form of smoking (41-55%) whereas in the other four states it was bidi (34-53%)," the report said.

Cigarette smoking was reported more among women than men in four states - Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and Nagaland. Over 50% of current smokeless tobacco users reported using betel quid in six states, except Mizoram (20%) and Sikkim (16%).

Interestingly, bidi or cigarette smoking in most of the northeastern states was more common among women than men, pointing to the fact that smoking among women is certainly not a taboo in the region unlike most other parts of India.

A large proportion of smokers reported smoking tobacco with ganja, the report said.

The study also revealed that betel quid was the preferred form of smokeless tobacco and is generally used more by men than women. Other smokeless tobacco forms like gutka, gul, snuff and tuibur were reportedly used more by women than men.

Thus, the GSPS findings reveal high prevalence of tobacco use, even among women, in smoking as well as smokeless forms. Over half the school workers reported that there was no policy on prohibiting tobacco abuse, either for students or for staff. They expressed the need for a policy to this effect for students as well as for school personnel.

The school workers also felt that tobacco companies deliberately encourage youth to use tobacco and were strictly against allowing such companies to sponsor sports events.

Interestingly, though over 40% of school workers reported using tobacco in one form or the other, they expressed support for increase in the price of tobacco products (32-64%).

Overall, the school workers of northeastern India were concerned about the adverse affect of tobacco on the youth and they supported formulation and implementation of tobacco-control policies.

Fleeing Violence, Assam's Displaced Face Disease, Death in Camps

By Biswajyoti Das

Guwahati, Aug 7 : Hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in squalid, overcrowded camps in India's northeast desperately need food, water and medicines after fleeing some of the worst communal violence in a decade, officials and aid workers said on Monday.

At least 12 people, including four children, have died and thousands are sick with diseases such as diahorrea and malaria caused by poor conditions in government-run camps in Assam state, where up to 400,000 people have taken refuge.

"We are in a state of high alert," said Assam's Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. "People in the camps are suffering from diahorrea, dysentery, malaria and high fever. We are concerned about the condition of the babies and pregnant women."

Violence between Bodo tribespeople and Muslim settlers from neighbouring Bangladesh erupted on July 20 when unidentified men killed four Bodo youths. In retaliation, armed Bodos - which dominate Assam's Kokrajhar district - attacked Muslims, suspecting them of being behind the deaths.

The fighting has tested the ability of India's security forces to restore order in Assam, famed for its tea plantations and home to the constituency of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who visited the state in late July to appeal for calm.

So far 61 people have died - some hacked to death with machetes, while dozens of villages have been razed to the ground, forcing both Bodos and Muslims to flee to schools and community centres which have been converted into relief camps.

Sarma said around 8,000 children under two-years-old are sick, while hundreds of others have tested positive for malaria. There are also around 4,000 pregnant women in the camps who need medical support, he added.

FEARFUL TO RETURN HOME
Aid workers described the camps as "suffocating" with livestock living alongside people, few toilets and little access to clean water. Many people sleep in the open and women have little privacy, forced to wait for dawn or dusk to find a place outside to defecate.

Authorities have been overwhelmed by the numbers of displaced -- camps designed to accommodate 400 people are brimming with five times that amount, said aid workers.

"The government is lost and they are somewhat overwhelmed by the number of people who are displaced. They came in hordes and while relief is being distributed, it is totally inadequate," said Mrinal Gohain, northeast manager for the charity ActionAid.

Authorities are encouraging some of the displaced to return home, saying that the situation is under control with police and army patrols, as well as a curfew in some areas.

But aid workers distributing relief in the camps say survivors are too scared to return, especially after reports that five more people were killed over the weekend.

"There is a serious safety issue. Despite what the government says, people are traumatised and fearful and unwilling to return," said Geeta Majumdar from the charity Catholic Relief Services.

"Given the conditions inside the camps and the lack of security and safety outside, we are extremely concerned. Health is a priority and we are worried about epidemics occurring with such unsanitary conditions in such cramped spaces."

How Can Mary Kom Beat Tunisian Rahali?

London, Aug 6 : After marking her Olympics debut with a hard-fought victory over Karolina Michalczuk of Poland, MC Mary Kom is just one step closer to assure another medal for India if she beats Maroua Rahali of Tunisia in Monday's quarter-final bout.

The five-time world champion was quick with her footwork in her opening match on Sunday, and if she displays the same reflexes against Rahali, the Tunisian national champion, then it will be impossible to stop her.

Rahali, who is five years younger to Mary Kom, can surprise the Indian boxer with her athleticism. But after getting a bye in the opening round, the Tunisian might be a little under-prepared for the crucial tie and that can go in Mary Kom's favour.



It's difficult to stop the Indian pugilist once she starts displaying her fast hands over her opponents, and that could be her strong point once again against Rahali.

In her fight against Michalczuk, Mary Kom - who is also a multiple-time Asian champion - took the second and third rounds after the opening round was leveled 3-3, and held her own to make it 19-14 overall.

Mary Kom rated Michalczuk as "very strong" but said she used her experience to prevail over her. "The Polish girl is very strong, but she is a little bit weak technically. If she was good technically no-one could beat her. I beat her because of my experience. I can move back and slip a little bit," she after the bout.

The 29-year-old, who was made the face of International Boxing Association's campaign to get women's boxing included in Olympics, now needs just one more win to be assured of a medal at the mega events, and going by her records so far, she should not have many problems getting past the Tunisian.

UnoTelly Allows Streaming Of BBC Olympics Coverage Worldwide For Free

Unhappy TV-viewing Olympics fans can now instead watch the BBC iPlayer Olympic broadcast for free using UnoTelly‘s simple DNS-based service. UnoTelly have set up a decidated DNS, which anyone worldwide can use to gain high-speed access to the BBC iPlayer in order to watch the Olympics.

There are a great number of people worldwide who are unhappy with their local TV coverage of the London Olympics. We can blame this on exclusive TV rights deals and programming based on the supposed popularity of sports or personalities. What it means though, is that there are lots of people who would just like to see live coverage of as many sports as possible, such as what the BBC is offering via iPlayer.


People are keen to actually see the sports they are interested in, watch footage of all countries who compete and not just their own, and to see these competitions before breaking news spoils the surprise of who won. It sounds simple, but this just isn’t being served up by many of the TV networks with exclusive rights to the Olympics and that is ruining the Olympics for a lot of viewers.


To use the UnoTelly DNS, there’s no need to register. Simply visit their site to get the DNS settings, update your computer to use their DNS and you are ready to go. It’s pain-free and able to be used on any device you own.


Source: UnoTelly

ZNP Question Safety of Pawan Hans Helicopters

Pawan Hans Helicopter crash in Arunachal

Aizawl, Aug 6 : With a few crashes in Pawan Hans' recent aviation history, the question of public safety looms large on India's lone helicopter company which is all set to resume services in the hilly state of Mizoram from August 14.

Asking the Mizoram government to "look before it leaps", the opposition Zoram Nationalist Party stressed that public safety should be given top priority in view of "serious violations of safety norms" committed by Pawan Hans which had led to a crash in Arunachal Pradesh last year.

"The inquiry committee appointed by the Centre to probe Pawan Hans helicopter crashes in Tawang last year, found serious violation of air safety norms. The Mizoram government should take cautious steps in introducing helicopter services," a ZNP statement said.

Tawang district bordering China witnessed two chopper crashes last year - one on April 19 which claimed 19 lives and the other on April 30 that killed chief minister Dorjee Khandu, along with four others.

The ZNP pointed out other crashes that the state-owned helicopter firm had met with during the past few years.

Another Pawan Hans helicopter met with tragedy on September 22, 2004 in Meghalaya in which 10 people, including Meghalaya's chief minister's father-in-law, died.

A number of people who were interviewed today said they would not feel safe to fly in Pawan Hans helicopter, especially during bad weather.

In a bid to allay public fears, Wing Commander (rtd) Lalzawma, principal consultant to the state's civil aviation wing, said, "Why so concerned about Pawan Hans crashes as other helicopters and planes too have met with air crashes? Accident can happen with anyone. Nothing can be predicted in aviation."

Another official said the government was well aware with air crashes that Pawan Hans helicopters had met with during the last few years.

"However," he added, "the helicopter that will operate in Mizoram is a all-weather twin-engine special chopper, which is of an improved and more powerful chopper using state-of-the-art safety technology. It is considered to be much safer that the helicopters which have crashed."

Dismissing allegations of "undue favoritism" shown to the state-owned helicopter company over other private firms, the principal consultant said, "There is no question of undue favoritism as there was no bidder to the state government's tender other than Pawan Hans. If there had been any other bidder, we would surely have made fair selection."

Despite media reports that a private company King Rotors and Air Charter Pvt Ltd had submitted complaints to the Mizoram government against the unfair manner with which the Pawan Hans had been selected, the official said he was not aware of any complaint. "Pawan Hans is the only company that meets our criteria," he said.