I write this at noon on Monday, part of the exigencies of a columnist – and the mystery of the missing Pawan Hans helicopter carrying Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu may be resolved by the time it appears in print: we can hope for the best while preparing for the worst. A few days…
There have been four strong blows for the aam janata in the past weeks. One was how Anna Hazare and his team forced the Centre to accept their demands for an omnibus Lokpal Bill to control and review the conduct of those in public life, despite all the messy frame-ups, fake CD/fake recordings and the…
We were on a beach. Somewhere close to Puducherry. The sight was surreal: half-smashed houses with wide open fronts, people still living in them. The devastation was caused not by a sea storm or a cyclone, but by the eroded beach. The sea had crept up to the village; there was no protection between the…
The following is a note by Venkatesh Nayak of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative which works extensively on RTI. It contains a detailed analysis of the Jan Lokpal Bill that is being debated around the country. This analysis is being circulated to encourage informed debate on the subject. This note has been shared with the…
A baby boy was delivered on 26th April, 2011 at Sarikholia sapori, Dibrugarh district in upper Assam, under the supervision of Dr Bhaben Borah and Dr Kumud Agarwala, Medical Officers of the Dibrugarh Boat Clinic while the boat clinic was anchored at Mesaki sapori for a scheduled camp. The new mother, Ramita Yadav was…
Sanjoy Hazarika's acclaimed first book on the North East, Strangers of the Mist, tales of war and peace from India's North-east, published by Penguin Books India is now out again in a revised Edition, with a stark and powerful new cover and a new introduction, availalble through penguinbooksindia.com, Rs.399/-. At the time of its launch, The Telegraph called it…
Emphasising that since its merger with the Indian union Sikkim has no representation at the centre, Chief Minister Pawan Chamling suggested that the word “Sindh” in the national anthem be replaced with “Sikkim” to further strengthen emotional integration of the people of the state with the country. Delivering a lecture ‘Regional parties and their efficacy…
Manik Boruah, Assistant Programme Manager, C-NES attended a press meet jointly organized by North East Social Trust(NEST) and Centre for Micro- Finance and Livelihoods (MFLs) at Guwahati Press Club on the implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)- 2005 for the year 2010-11. Arif Hussain, Executive Director, NEST, Mr. Partha Patowary, Executive Director, MFLs, Ms. Keteki…
A Switzerland based company, RIB (rigid inflatable boats) Expeditions and Adventures, has extended a helping hand towards emergency medical care in the char saporis of Assam. The company has donated an inflatable speed boat that will operate in Tinsukia district and will support the Tinsukia Boat Clinic run by C-NES in partnership with NRHM. The…