Saturday, October 9, 2010

Naga council ready for talks

 

New Delhi has managed to broker a semblance of truce between the agitating United Naga Council (UNC) and the Manipur government. Talks between the two are likely to be held on October 16. The UNC had last month imposed a 20-day economic blockade on Manipur. It came less than two months after another Naga organization – All Naga Students' Association of Manipur – had temporarily suspended its 69-day blockade on two arterial highways leading to state capital Imphal.
The UNC has been opposing the autonomous district councils (ADCs) in hills of Manipur inhabited by Nagas and other tribes. It has refused to accept the elections to these ADCs until the state government amends the Manipur (Hill area) District Council Act of 2008, which it claims restrains the functioning of the councils.
 
A spokesperson of the UNC confirmed New Delhi's role in facilitating talks between the Naga body and the Manipur government.
 
"Our leaders have returned after camping 25 days in Delhi. Let's see what comes out of the meeting likely late next week," he said.

Gauhati High Court grants bail to Gegong Apang

 

After denying bail for five times, the Gauhati High Court today granted bail to former Arunachal chief minister Gegong Aapang in the multi-crore PDS scam. The court took up the bail petition for hearing on Thursday.
 
Much to the relief of former Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Gegong Apang, a Division Bench of Gauhati High Court comprising Justice IA Ansari and Justice AC Upadhyay on Friday granted eight weeks’ bail to Apang, who is now in judicial custody in connection with the Rs 1000 crore PDS scam. The bench had taken up the bail petition of Apang on Thursday. Apang was arrested by the Special Investigation Cell of Arunachal Pradesh Police in connection with a Rs 1000 crore Public Distribution System scam. Apang;s lawyers understood to have argued that the case was based on documentary evidences which are in the custody of the police as such there is no need for keeping Apang in custody any longer.
 
The SIC SP M. Chauhan personally appeared and made submission before the court. However, no order of release was passed by the Court. The Special Investigation Cell arrested Gegong Apang from Itanagar on August 24 last. The scam that had taken place when Gegong Apang was the chief minister, involved embezzlement of money to the tune of about Rs 1000 crore in form of payment on Hill Transport Subsidy and Road Transport Charges on the basis of fake bills submitted through the Food Corporation of India. Apang was booked under several sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act. Apang termed his arrest as a political conspiracy. The SIC in October 2008 had submitted a list of 40 persons to the Gauhati High Court as accused. In the charge sheet, Assam MLA Kartik Sena Sinha had also figured.. The SIC was formed at the instruction of Gauhati High Court after it had taken up a Public Interest Litigation filed by Bamang Anthony, president of Arunachal Citizens’ Right who sought High Court intervention after he had scented certain anomalies in the state’s PDS. The Gauhati High Court which ordered constitution of the SIC to probe into the scandal, has been monitoring the investigation on regular basis.

151 HIV positive cases detected in Meghalaya in four month

 

In a shocking report it was revealed that 151 HIV positive cases have been detected in Meghalaya in just mere four month. However, Meghalaya AIDS control society have clarified that situation is still not alarming in Meghalaya.
 
There is a steady increase in the number of people in Meghalaya living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus and this was witness from the fact that more and more people were tested and more positive cases are detected. A report of the Meghalaya AIDS Control Society stated that within a period from April to August this year 151 cases of HIV positive have been detected as compare to 41 cases detected last year. Last year 931 people were tested at various Integrated Counseling and Testing centres between April to August and 41 positive cases were found. This year however, more people have come up for testing. Out of 2616 person tested this year 151 were detected positive. Ruling out that the HIV positive rate in the state is alarming, Dr. Amalendu das, Project Director of MACS said although the number has increased due to the testing of many people, however the percentage remains the same.
 
Meghalaya falls in the group “C” category along with rest of the states of Northeast, after Manipur and Nagaland which occupies Group "A" and "B" cetagory. However, measures are adopted to check the wide spread of the disease.
 
Till date there are 344 people living with this deadly virus, based on the record available at ART Centres, 170 were males, while 162 females and 12 Children are living with is virus. Pre-Natal test on 5636 pregnant mothers confirmed that 30 were tested positive.