Development / Manipur

SILCHAR, February 17: Another hurdle in the way of the 1500-MW Tipaimukh hydel power project has been removed with tribal leaders spearheading a movement against it agreeing to the project. The Rs 3,200-crore project is the largest ever multipurpose scheme in the Northeast. Tribal leaders of a vigilante group named the Tipaimukh Hydro Electric Power Project Affected Villages Welfare Association, who had earlier opposed the project, have now veered round to put their seal of approval on it. Association president Chaltonlien Amo and association secretary S.L. Gangte, in a letter to Prime...

IMPHAL, February 16: The newly, sworn-in Chief Minister, Radhabinod Koijam, in his first message to the people of Manipur, has declared that his government's first priorities would be to tackle the deteriorating law and order situation and the ongoing financial crisis, and to wipe out corruption. The new Chief Minister, in the first place, reiterated his government's commitment to bringing back peace in the state, acknowledging that the decades long problem of insurgency that the state had faced had retarded development, and frequent acts of violence had seriously disturbed public life. In...

YANGON, February 15: In keeping with the changing perception in their relationship, India and Myanmar have identified at least five points in the Northeastern states of Mizoram and Nagaland for opening of border trade with the neigh-bouring country. The issue of opening of more border trading points in the economically backward NE states and North Western Myanmar received the green signal at a meeting between visiting External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) Senior General Than Shwe here this morning. Indian officials revealed that...

KALEWA (Myanmar), February 13 (PTI): Giving a new impetus to Indo-Myanmar relations, external affairs minister Jaswant Singh today opened a 165-km road built with Indian assistance linking the two countries to pave the way for enhanced tourism, trade and economic ties. Using a special computer-aided design, Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has constructed the Tamu-Kalamyn-Kalewa road, costing Rs 100 crore, in a record time of three months. Singh, who is on a three-day official visit, the first high-level from India to Myanmar since the trip by Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister in 1987, arrived...

KALEMEYO (Myanmar), February 13: The border trade between the Northeastern States and the neighbouring Myanmar is likely to see a fresh revival with the formal inauguration of the 160 km Tamu-Kalewa-Kalemeyo Road jointly by the External Affairs Minister, Jaswant Singh and the Minister for Construction, Maj Gen Saw Tun here this afternoon. Red carpets were rolled out for the high-level Indian delegation led by the External Affairs Minister that also included ministers of four Northeastern States, including Assam, besides top officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Surface Transport and...

IMPHAL, February 10: Jaswant Singh will inaugurate the Tamu-Kalimyo road, a venture undertaken by the Indian Government with an understanding with the military junta of Myanmar, on February 13 at the Bridge Gate on the Indo-Myanmar border. The construction task of the 108 km-long road was undertaken by the Border Road Task Force (BRTF) since 1997 and is in its final stage. Tight security arrangement has been made in the border town in view of the inauguration function, which will be participated by high-ranking officials of both the countries. There is also an understanding between the...

IMPHAL, February 6: The routine ban on government bill encashment and the numerous bandhs the state gets to see is gaining more notoriety. If things are not set right, even the prestigious World Bank sponsored project currently being undertaken in the state may end on a sour note even as it is on its final lap. According to a reliable source, the project consultant, TYPSA Company from Spain, have served an ultimatum to the Government that it would pull out by February 12 if funds due to it were not released by then. According to the understanding under which the project is being taken up, the...

IMPHAL, February 6: In sharp contrast to the claims of state forest officials that the state has a stock of 31000 cubic metre timbers at different timber depots yet to be disposed, the Public Account's Committee (PAC) of the Manipur state legislative Assembly which conducted an aerial survey of some major timber depots yesterday and today found that the present stock of timber would be less than one third of the quantity claimed by the forest officials, according to reliable sources. The PAC team today conducted aerial survey of the timber depot at Kamjong in Ukhrul district. Earlier yesterday...

GUWAHATI, August 7: The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), in a bid to encourage export of pineapples from the Northeast is experimenting with the cultivation of organic pineapple in the region for which there is a good market, especially in Europe. Almost 19 per cent of the total land under horticultural crops in the region is devoted to pineapple cultivation and Assam, along with Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur, are among the major pineapple producing states in the country. However, it is only now that an attempt is being made to grow the fruit...

NEW DELHI, August 6: After the Central Government's permission to allow foreigners to visit Nagaland, the Union Home and Tourism Ministries have received demands for lifting restrictions on the foreign tourists in other Northeastern states as well. These states, including Manipur, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, have made a beeline for the two Ministries, and requested that foreigners should be allowed a free access in order to boost tourism. The government had last month lifted the ban on foreign tourists in certain districts of Nagaland. A decision on the demands of the other Northeast states...