Mizoram Govt may move SC over HC order on ILP

Mizoram Govt may move SC over HC order on ILP

AIZAWL, June 23 – Mizoram Government would move the Supreme Court, if the need arose, to challenge the interim order passed by the Gauhati High Court restricting the State Government from arrest and deportation of non-tribals staying in the State without valid Inner Line Permit (ILP), Chief Minister Zoramthanga said here today. “We will tell the High Court that the ILP system is extremely pertinent for safeguarding the Mizo people,” Zoramthanga said, adding, the system was provided in the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulations, 1873 to safeguard the interests of the tribals. The Gauhati High Court issued the interim order on June 13 after hearing a public interest litigation filed by the North Eastern Plain People Traders’ and Youth Federation of Assam’s Cachar district. Meanwhile, the Young Mizo Association (YMA), the most powerful organisation of the Mizos, urged the High Court to withdraw the interim order and decided to observe a ‘protest day’ against the order. The decision to observe the protest day was taken at a meeting, chaired by Home Minister Tawnluia, today in which representatives of major political parties, NGOs, student bodies, Mizoram Chamber of Commerce and Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee, a congolemate of 13 major church denominations were present. The date of the protest day would be fixed later. The meeting also decided to ask for a one-day special session of the State Assembly to deliberate on the interim order of the High Court. A delegation of major political parties and NGOs would consult with Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland where the ILP system is in force, the YMA said. “The Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulations, 1873, which provided that all non-tribals to enter tribal areas have to have ILP was enacted by the British India Government to safeguard the interests of the tribals and also protect them from being assimilated”, the YMA said. – PTI

PM to release Vision 2020 on July 2

PM to release Vision 2020 on July 2

KOLKATA, June 19 – Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will unveil ‘Vision 2020’, a document aimed at the socio-economic development of the North-Eastern region, in New Delhi on July 2, Union Minister for Development of North-Eastern region Mani Shankar Aiyar has said. The ‘Vision 2020’ was prepared after three years of uninterrupted consultations with 50,000 common people of the North East and a host experts and institutions to take care of the shortcomings in the region Terming the vision document as an ‘Aam Aadmi (common man) document’, DoNER Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said it would require Rs 13 trillion for the implementation of Vision 2020 in the region. The document had been endorsed by the North Eastern Council and Chief Ministers of the region, he told members of the four industry chambers at an interactive session on N-E development, last evening. Aiyar said if India wanted to match the GDP growth of China, then it will have to consider the contribution of the North-East where growth potential was immense. –PTI

North East airline to take off next year

North East airline to take off next year

SHILLONG, June 15 – Come 2009, the eight States in the North East will come closer with greater air connectivity. The North Eastern Council has set in motion a process to run a commercial airline between the landlocked States of the region. A global tender for the proposed airline, floated in May, will close on June 30. NEC adviser (T&C) MS Sodhi said the NEC would give subsidy to make the commercial air service economically viable.At least a dozen more airports would be constructed in the region during the 11th Five Year Plan in addition to the existing 11 airports, the official said. Also detailed project reports to revive the non-functional airports like Rupsi, Kamalpur, Pasighat and Tezu were being prepared by the Airports Authority of India.“Though the tender process needs time and has to be approved by several Ministries at the Centre, NEC intends to launch the airline service by January 1 next year,” Sodhi said. The basic objective of the airline would be to provide air connectivity to all the State capitals in the North East as well as other airports in the region including Bagdogra in north Bengal. Further, it has plans to provide a schedule with a minimum frequency which allows for travel from one destination to another as well as to utilize the existing airline schedules to provide connectivity on trunk routes. The aircraft to be inducted in the new airline would be Jet or turboprop ones with short take-off and landing capability. The carriers must have a minimum start-up capital of Rs 30 crore and operate at least four aircrafts with a take-off mass of over 40 tonnes. This has been a long-standing demand of all the State Governments in the region, with Nagaland already buying helicopters for commercial service linking remote districts. The proposed airline will be expected to fly 400 flights every month connecting the region internally by the end of 2009. A tender floated last year did not gain the kind of response the government had hoped for. Officials said the new tender was expected to bring in better offers. The government is also considering a proposal to relax norms to allow airlines flying in the North East to connect international destinations from Guwahati airport. According to Airports Authority of India officials, the absence of night landing or instrument-guided landing facilities in most of the North East airports has made it difficult for commercial flights to land after 4 pm. Eight airports are likely to get night landing facilities. “A detailed project report is being prepared to set up a new airport in Sikkim at an estimated cost of Rs 340 crore. Sikkim Government will pay about Rs 100 crore and provide land at Pakyong,” they said. At present Sikkim depends on Bagdogra airport near Siliguri. The AAI has also selected sites at Banderdewa near Itanagar and Chiethu near Kohima for new airports in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland respectively. Construction of these airports is likely to be taken up during the 11th Five Year Plan. “Airlines might be permitted to provide connections out of Guwahati to countries in Southeast Asia. Besides improving connectivity, this could also contribute to the viability of airline operations in the North East,” the NEC officials said. Besides, the Centre also plans to study how to link some of the tourist destinations in the North East like Tawang, Kaziranga and Majuli island by air. – PTI