Kohima, July 6: Former Nagaland chief minister S.C. Jamir gave ?one last tip? on how to go about ending the Naga impasse before leaving the state for his new assignment as Governor of Goa. Continuing his refrain about the futility of demanding sovereignty, the Congress leader told The Telegraph that pragmatism, not idealism, was the most essential ingredient in his recipe for success.

?Today, people are afraid of speaking out the truth because they fear the gun. But they know that the solution they desire has to be acceptable to the government of India, too,? he said.

On integration of...

Imphal, July 6: A new armed outfit has surfaced in Manipur, announcing that it has taken a senior government official hostage. The new outfit ? named Human Rights and Protection Guild ? has accused Kaphunchung L. Kamei, the deputy director of the Manipur commerce and industry department, of corruption. It has been holding him captive for the past five days.

The official went missing from his Imphal residence on Thursday. The group?s spokesman said the official was not taken hostage for ransom but for his alleged involvement in malpractices.

The abduction came to light only after the group...

July 6: The chief ministers of the four northeastern states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh completed the process of downsizing their governments in the nick of time, eschewing major surprises and retaining their trusted aides.

Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi and his Mizoram counterpart Zoramthanga completed the task of trimming their ministries a day before the expiry of the deadline.

Tripura was the first state of the region to reduce the size of the government in accordance with a constitutional amendment last year.

In Manipur, Okram Ibobi Singh retained nine of his...

Guwahati, July 6: The Congress high command today offered the post of Assam PCC president to former industry minister Bhubaneswar Kalita as the revolt within the party gained momentum. Supporters of senior leaders hit the streets to protest their exclusion from the ministry.

Supporters of Sarat Barkotoky disrupted normal life in his Sonari constituency, protesting the exclusion of the veteran leader from the downsized ministry, while Ardhendu Kumar Dey?s loyalists called a 12-hour bandh in Hojai tomorrow.

Terming Dey?s exclusion from the ministry a ?raw deal? for the Bengali Hindu community...

IMPHAL, July 6 ? The downsizing exercise in the two-year-old Ibobi ministry in Manipur has hit the high-ranking officials in the state secretariat hard as several Ministers are pressurising these officers to expedite pending assignments. Sources here said that the Ministers facing uncertainty of their place in the new Council of Ministers have been pressurising the Commissioner and Secretary level officers to execute pending tasks and this has created chaos and anxiety at the hub of State administration.

Unable to bear the enormous pressure exerted by respective Ministers and a work load...