AGARTALA, August 9: The Union home ministry has asked the Tripura government to make all-out efforts to locate the four Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) activists who were kidnapped by the National Liberation Front of Twipra (NLFT) rebels from Dhalai district on August 6. Official sources said here that the Union home secretary Kamal Pande had telephoned the state chief secretary V Tulsidas and inquired about the latest developments. The Union minister of state for communication, Kabindra Purakayastha, also had a telephonic talk with the chief minister, Manik Sarkar, who apprised Purakayastha...

KOHIMA, August 9: Shurhozelie, the common candidate of the Nagaland People's Council (NPC) and the Nationalist Democratic Movement (NDM), has resigned from the primary membership of NPC to contest the coming Lok Sabha polls as an independent candidate for the lone Nagaland seat under a free symbol. The two parties snapped all ties with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Thursday last blaming the state BJP unit for trying to impose their will on both the regional parties. Earlier, the Election Commission had derecognised NPC for not participating in the last general elections...

IMPHAL, August 8: Most political leaders in Manipur have engaged their time to find a common candidate for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections. Both the Opposition and ruling parties of the state are yet to decide the consensus candidate. According to Manipur People's Party (MPP) president, Okram Joy Singh, parleys were on to reach an agreement among the six Opposition parties to jointly fight the National Democratic Alliance candidate. He also said that a final decision would be taken on August 9 next. However, MPP has decided to put the party's candidate in the fray in the Inner Manipur...

GUWAHATI, August 9: Both structural and non-structural methods should go hand in hand in taming the Brahmaputra. For the purpose of taming the river, a method should be designed in a manner, which gives equal emphasis on bamboo plantation near the roads and embankments and cane/nal and katah plantations near the river courses, according to Manik Kar, Professor of the Centre for Disaster Management, Tezpur University. He also called for an all-out social move in a concerted manner to mitigate disasters like floods. Kar who developed a flood history of the state through arduous research work...

AIZAWL, August 9: There has been gross misutilisation of funds in the Mizoram election department while conducting the 1998 parliamentary polls, a CAG report has said. It said an excess expenditure of Rs 21.02 lakh was incurred by the department due to mistakes in electoral rolls while copying from computerised master rolls and in the printing of extra copies. Undue financial benefit of Rs 2.24 lakh was also given to a local computer firm which drew the full sanctioned amount of Rs 3.20 lakh but was unable to complete the voters' list till August 1998. The report said none of the electronic...