NEW DELHI, March 7: The Manipur Chief Minister, Radhabinod Koijam, has favoured setting up of a judicial commission to investigate the politico-government employees nexus with the various insurgent groups in the Northeast. The Centre too is considering the proposal "We just can't deny their links with the militants. Though the Centre is yet to decide on the proposal which was mooted some time back, I am confident that it will yield positive result to minimise insurgency in the state," Koijam said. On the allegation against Gangmunei Kamei, the minister for forest and environment in his Cabinet...

UDALGURI, March 7: Fifty dreaded rhino poachers surrendered in front of the forest officials of Darrang district and police staff of Silbari police station and members of Aranya Surakhya Samiti, Orang at Orang recently. According to a report of Aranya Surakhya Samiti, Orang, 50 poachers of rare one-horned rhinos of Orang National Wildlife Sanctuary surrendered in a public meeting recently at Orang which was attended by Chittaranjan Bhobora, district forest officer, Darrang, Labanya Ramchiary, range officer of Orang National Wildlife Sanctuary and Pradip Borah, officer-in-charge of Silbari...

TEZPUR, March 7: The Adivasi people living in Assam prior to independence will be accorded with the status of Scheduled Castes (SC) with a view to extend the facilities and benefits enjoyed by the other similarly placed communities belong to SC, said Bijoya Chakraborty, Union Minister of State for Water Resources. Addressing a mammoth gathering of the 19th State-level general confewrence of Adivasi Council at Rangapara in Sonitpur district, Chakraborty said the constitutional provision shall be made at an early date to include the Adivasis and added that the proposal to include the Adivasis as...

GUWAHATI, March 7: Three reputed tour operators of the city were in for a rude shock recently when at least nine groups of tourists, mainly from European nations and Japan cancelled their programmes of visiting the State at the last moment causing major financial losses to the operators. Courtesy - a deliberate campaign by two travel-related websites (www.fco.gov.uk/travel and www.bmzl.com) asking interested tourists from these nations to cancel their programmes combined with a negative campaign by several travel heavyweights in Delhi as well as sheer indifference of the Union Ministries of...

SHILLONG, March 7: The Meghalaya Chief Minister, EK Mawlong, has informed that stress is being given to the construction of rural roads in the State so that the economic lot of the rural people could be improved and developed, an MIPR release said. Speaking as the chief guest at a public meeting held at Majai about 90 kms from here, on February 13, Mawlong also informed that it is his endeavour to visit every nook and corner of the State so that he could learn and hear first hand about the grievances and problems faces by the people of the State and also to monitor the progress and the...