New Delhi, July 13: The Manmohan Singh government today told the Supreme Court that it would like to persist with the contentious Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, marking a major policy shift on the subject after the change of guard in Delhi. The erstwhile BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government wanted the legislation to be scrapped, a stand welcomed by the Asom Gana Parishad and the All-Assam Students? Union (AASU), which spearheaded the anti-foreigner agitation in the state.

After the Centre?s submission, the three-judge bench of Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti, Justice...

Silchar, July 13: An army study group that scanned the insurgency scenario has warned of heightened militant activity in the region, particularly Nagaland and Manipur, after the monsoon and immediately after Christmas. The group?s 15-page confidential report, titled ?Insurgency in New India?, states that assorted groups of militants are planning to go into an overdrive during the post-monsoon period.

The accent of the operations will be on augmenting their resources and manpower through extortion and recruitment of school and college dropouts, the report says.

After Christmas, the militant...

NEW DELHI, July 14 ? Moved by the onslaught against him for neglecting the North Eastern Region (NER), Railway Minister, Laloo Prasad today clarified that sanctions worth Rs 350 crore have been proposed for NF Railways towards ongoing projects. Replying to debate on the Railway Budget, Sri Yadav denied that the contention of the Members that the region had been given a raw deal, assuring that he proposed to visit the region to take stock of the problems. ?After the Budget Session I propose to visit the States and hold discussions with the MPs and the State Governments,? he said.

Earlier...

AIZAWL, July 13 ? As a first legislative step to make Mizoram an ?organic state?, the state Assembly on Monday unanimously passed the Mizoram Organic Farming Bill, 2004. The Bill, introduced in the Assembly by Agriculture Minister H Rammawi, was drafted in line with the National Organic Farming Policy and when enforced would make Mizoram the second ?Organic state? in the country next only to Sikkim.

Intervening in the discussion on the Bill, Chief Minister Zoramthanga said that the use of biofertilisers by replacing chemical fertilisers would go a long way in production of ?poison free...

UDALGURI, July 13 ? The Lakhimpur-Alipurduar entire gauge mail and the Rangapara-Rangiya passenger trains on the tracks of Rangapara-Rangiya junctions have been turned into the ?safe carriages? of valuable logs. The carrying of unauthorised valuable logs in the railway compartments is not a new thing now. It is known to the everyday regular passengers of those trains that these mail and passenger trains carry these logs to the desired ?unauthorised stations? elsewhere between Rangapara and Rangiya junctions causing untold inconvenience to the passengers Particularly in the mail train and...