Month: August 2012

Aizawl, Aug 2 NNN: Mizoram will have helicopter service very soon.
In connection with this, Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla along with the concerned officials today discussed on and prepared the programme of inauguration of helicopter service in Mizoram.
The maiden service of the helicopter will be set off from Thuampui helipad in Aizawl to Lunglei in southern Mizoram on August 14 whereas passenger service will start from August 16.
The helicopter service will function under the supervision of Pawan Hans Helicopter Ltd.; and the helicopter which will be in service is ‘Dauphin Helicopter’, capable of carrying 6 passengers.
One ticket will cost Rs.50 per minute. As of now, 9 routes is arranged for the service, with Aizawl Thuampui Helipad being the “Main Operational Hub’, from where it will render service to Saiha (50 minutes), Lawngtlai (50), Champhai (25), Khawzawl (20), Lunglei (30), Kamlanagar (45), Hnahthial (30), Serchhip (17) and Kolasib (15).
It has been proposed to service 6 days in a week, is scheduled to start it service from mid August. Ticket will be available at DC office, which will be checked again at the helipad. Since safety is the main concern, security duty and fire service will be given at each helipad. The concerned Deputy Commissioners are also directed to construct ‘temporary waiting sheds’ for use at any needful time.
The helicopters can be even hired or chartered personally, for which the rate will be Rs.70,000 per hour, waiting charge free upto 45 minutes; but if it crosses the limit the waiting charge will be Rs. 10,000 per 30 minutes.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/helicopter-service-in-mizoram/

Dimapur, August 2 NNN: The Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) has admitted that as in any peoples’ history, Naga history has its own share of pitfalls. However, more ominous are the subsurface tensions among the Nagas, said the FNR.
Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) is responsible for reducing the factional clashes among the Naga underground organisations in the last few days. Founded in the year 2008, the FNR has been convening several meetings involving various Naga underground groups.
On Tuesday, the FNR said, “One is pitted against the other. Our history is filled with accounts of sectional interests clashing with those of another group, of pressure groups with special favor, and of emotional propagandists who temporarily sweep reason and sense by the wayside”.
It said the current Naga situation, as a result of its totalitarian posture, has caused antagonism among its people. The fallacy of the totalitarian saturation of people through a single cultural, political and religious agenda results in the exclusion of not only the other but the self, it added.
“Experts have discouraged groups from developing whole and realistic goals for the common good. Such an approach has boomeranged, resulting in isolated hearts and divided minds. This sensibility will continue to breed a bleak future for the Nagas. Nagas have doubts about our sense of purpose, instigated by parochial interests. We have poured increasing amounts of our mental energy to justify all our wrongs, believing that Nagas, young and old, will remain pacified and unperturbed. We are restrained from pursuing our legitimate rights, and we abjectly rationalize our own personal interests,” the FNR stated today.
“Since May 2008, the Naga political groups have taken the courageous leap towards a common humanity by transcending the fences that have divided us. The fact of the matter is we have attained a measure of relative calm and regard for our common humanity and a common political identity based on the unique “political and historical rights of the Nagas.”
34 years after the 1964 Ceasefire with the NNC, the GOI acknowledged that the case of “The Indo-Naga political problem cannot be solved militarily . . . It is not a law and order problem as it is a political issue.” Still, despite the declarations of the GOI in 1997, it took another five years for an acknowledgement, through the collective leadership of Mr. Isak Chishi Swu and Mr. Th. Muivah of the NSCN/GPRN, that the political and historical rights of the Naga people “is unique.” Similar to how Nagas recognized the 1964 achievement of the NNC, the events and actions that led to the July 2002 assertion of “The Uniqueness of Naga History” deserve its due recognition as a historical event for the Nagas.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/fnr-on-naga-history/

Manipur Information Centre New Delhi, Aug 1 :Works and Transport Minister Dr. Kh. Ratankumar yesterday urged the Centre for providing adequate funding by way of Central Assistance to develop infrastructure for road safety measures in Manipur, keeping in view the resource constraints in Manipur as well as Manipur being a special category state. The Minister elaborated that installation of state of the art equipments such as breadth analysers, interceptors and speed radar guns, ambulance, cranes, development of web base data management system, emergency relief service system, strengthening of traffic police and enforcement staff were highly required in Manipur.
Dr. Ratankumar was speaking at the meeting of State Transport Ministers which was held under the chairmanship of Dr. C.P. Joshi, .
He stated that the number of on-road vehicles of all categories of Manipur as on 31st March this year was 2,01,261. During the year 2011, a total of 692 road accidents occurred in Manipur, of which 83 accidents took place on National Highways and 28 on State Highways. A total of 63 persons were grievously injured. He reported that the Department of Transport, Manipur organised mass sensitisation programmes on transport system in coordination with Manipur Bar Council, Traffic Police, Transport associations and Driver associations. To regulate a systematic traffic flow in respect of urban transport, a multi disciplinary body called Traffic Regulation and Parking Committee with members drawn from various government departments was formed. State Transport Authority was actively working on a viable State Transport Policy for Manipur.
Ratankumar also drew the attention of the apex National Road Safety Council for giving special attention towards the safety aspects of both passengers and vehicles against robbery and looting on National Highways and other State Highways, inter district roads and other district roads by way of providing more way-side amenities.
He also pointed out the conditions of the National Highways in Manipur which were lack of many safety features. The portion of National Highways in the hilly region was not having proper geometrics like proper super elevation and extra widening at the curves. In some portions, the gradient of the Highway was exceeded the permissible limit. Almost the entire length of the Highways in the hilly regions of Manipur was without Protective Crash Barrier. The end point of the medians was having high potential of being hit by running vehicles and it should be provided with modern means of crash absorber. Almost the entire length of the Highways was without proper safty sign and reflective delineator. Reflective delineators were required along the central line of the double lane road.Lack of proper maintenance by mending potholes in time was also one of the causes of road accidents on the National Highways.
He also mentioned that the State level Road Safety Council was developing a co-ordinated road safety measures. Frequent mass awareness programmes, targeted sensitisation programme, mobile sensitisation programme,, inclusion of road safety measures in school curriculum, strengthening of enforment agencies, formation of emergency response service mechanism, trauma care centre were some of the co-ordinated Road Safety measures in Manipur.
Dr. Kh. Ratankumar called on the Union Minister of Road Transports and Highways Dr. C.P.Joshi and requested him to provide all kinds of assistance from the Centre towards the development of Manipur.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/ratankumar-demands-safe-road/