News Analysis India

Tag: Mizoram

  • ‘Mizos don’t understand Hindi, appoint a new chief secretary’: Mizoram CM Zoramthanga to Amit Shah

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga has urged the Centre to appoint someone with working knowledge in the Mizo language as the state’s chief secretary since the Mizos at large and his Cabinet Ministers do not know Hindi.

    The incumbent chief secretary is Renu Sharma who assumed charge on November 1. She succeeded Lalnunmawia Chuaungo.

    In an October 29 letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Zoramthanga said even as he was seeking additional chief secretary JC Ramthanga to be the next chief secretary, the Ministry of Home Affairs appointed Renu Sharma in the post.

    “The Mizo people by and large generally do not understand Hindi. None of my Cabinet Ministers understands Hindi. Some of them even have a problem with English. With such a background, a chief secretary without the knowledge of a working standard Mizo language will never be an effective and efficient chief secretary,” Zoramthanga wrote.

    He said this was the reason why the Centre had never appointed a person, who does not know Mizo, as the state’s chief secretary. “Whether it is the UPA government or the NDA government at the Centre, this has been a practice since the creation of Mizoram state,” Zoramthanga wrote.

    But the fact remains that Chuaungo had succeeded Arvind Ray, a non-Mizo IAS officer of the 1984 batch. It could not be ascertained if Ray has any flair in the Mizo language.

    It is a well-known fact that in other states of India, a chief secretary, who does not know even the basic working language of the respective state, is never posted at all, Zoramthanga wrote.

    In seeking a Mizo in the post, he sought favours for his loyalty to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

    “I have been an NDA partner from the beginning up to this time. While many of the states are changing themselves from one alliance group to another, I am the only one in the whole of Northeast who has been a faithful partner of NDA. I, therefore, believe that I deserve a special favour and consideration for this faithful friendship with NDA,” the Mizoram CM wrote.

    He said if his request was not accepted, opposition Congress would make a mockery of him for faithfully serving in the NDA. “I, therefore, earnestly request you to modify the order and kindly accept my proposal,” he further wrote.

  • Northeast unites in opposing oil palm plantations

    By Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: After Assam, Meghalaya and Manipur, the Centre’s push for oil palm plantations in the Northeast has met with opposition in Mizoram.

    Three Mizoram NGOs, which work in the field of conservation of the environment, cautioned the state government, stating the exotic plantations would cause not only ecological disaster but also social disorder in the tribal society.

    In a memorandum submitted to Chief Minister Zoramthanga, the Joint Action Committee on Oil Palm: Mizoram, comprising organisations such as Association for Environment Preservation, Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Network and Conservation Mizoram, sought his action to ensure that oil palm plantations are not expanded in the state.

    They warned that such plantations would cause the destruction of biodiversity and ecological devastations.

    “Mizoram is rich in biodiversity, both flora and fauna. It has unique ecosystems with a different variety of plants and animals. The rainforests as well as the grasslands, regenerating forests and fallow lands are homes for species unique to each habitat and hence, are equally important,” the memorandum reads.

    The three NGOs highlighted the devastating ecological impact, soil deterioration, distortion of groundwater table, impacts on indigenous community rights and knowledge, and loss of biodiversity in many oil palm-producing countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia.

    They said the introduction of the harmful oil palm plantations was not a viable option for a fragile ecosystem like Mizoram.

    “The expansion of oil palm cultivation in this small and fragile ecosystem with unique flora and fauna will cause not only ecological disaster but also social disorder in our tribal community in the long run, if not immediately, and therefore, is unacceptable,” they said.

    The Northeast has huge potentials in oil palm plantations and the Centre is serious about this sector. However, a section of people, including environmentalists, activists and politicians, stand opposed to the idea.

    Earlier, Meghalaya MP, Agatha Sangma, who is the sister of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, had petitioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi to oppose the oil palm plantations in the state.

    She had cautioned that the plantations would threaten the biodiversity hotspots, destroy forests belonging to tribesmen and create serious ethnic strife. The Congress in Assam and some citizens of Manipur had also expressed opposition on similar grounds.

    Oil palm is processed to produce palm oil, which is edible oil. The Centre has set its sights on this sector to cut import costs.

  • Mizoram slashes petrol, diesel prices by Rs 7 per litre

    By PTI

    AIZAWL: A day after the Centre announced a reduction in Central Excise Duty on fuel, the Mizoram government on Thursday slashed petrol and diesel prices by Rs 7 per litre each, Chief Minister Zoramthanga said.

    He said the “progressive decision” made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conveyed to the state government by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

    “Glad to announce that #Mizoram Govt. will reduce VAT on Petrol & Diesel each by Rs.7/- with immediate effect from today,” the chief minister tweeted.

    On Thursday, petrol price in state capital Aizawl fell to Rs 101.30 per litre, while diesel is now sold at Rs 86.37 per litre.

    The Centre on Wednesday cut the excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 respectively to bring down retail rates from record highs.

  • Blast on Assam-Mizoram border, policeman arrested for alleged involvement

    By PTI

    GUWAHATI: Fresh tension brewed between Assam and Mizoram along the inter-state border in Hailakandi district after a blast near a police outpost and arrest of a Mizoram policeman for his alleged involvement in it, a senior official said on Saturday.

    The “low-intensity blast” took place near the Baicherra forward outpincluding seven Assam ost of Assam Police at around 1:30 am on Friday, Hailakandi Superintendent of Police Gaurav Upadhyay said.

    The incident occurred around three months after a clash between police forces of the two North-eastern neibhours on a disputed border area in Cachar district left seven people including six Assam policemen dead.

    “Our outpost was on a hillock and the blast took place just below it. After the explosion, we immediately cordoned off the area with the help of neutral central forces and started an investigation,” the Hailakandi SP said. On Friday morning, an Indian Reserve Battalion (IRBn) personnel of Mizoram Police was found loitering in the area and he could not explain his presence there, Upadhyay said.

    “We picked him up and during interrogation, we found his involvement in the blast. We arrested him yesterday and produced him in a court, which sent him to judicial custody,” he added.

    The blast took place just two days after Assam Police objected to the construction of a bridge at Kachurthal area on the Assam side that was abandoned after a confrontation erupted over it in August.

    “After our objection and at the Centre’s intervention, Mizoram had stopped construction of the bridge. But on October 26, they again started working on it. When we objected, they left the place without taking their equipment,” Upadhyay said.

    On August 20, a few workers from Mizoram were trying to build a bridge at Kachurthal under Ramnathpur police station. Around 40-50 security personnel from Mizoram reached the site when Assam Police had objected to the construction.

    Two days later, in order to assert the position of Assam and to ask Mizoram forces to retreat from the Assam side of the bridge, a party of around 200 Assam Police personnel and commandos under Upadhyay’s leadership had reached Kachurthal and the issue was settled.

    “Today, the Mizoram administration came to the bridge site and dismantled the construction that they had started. They also took away all their equipment and machinery,” the SP said.

    A clash between police forces of Assam and Mizoram on the disputed border area in Cachar district on July 26 left seven people – six Assam Police personnel and a civilian – dead and over 50 others injured.

    The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on August 22 issued notices to the Centre, Assam and Mizoram over the deadly border clash between the two Northeastern states in July, stating that “grave violation of human rights” took place.

    Assam’s Barak Valley districts of Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi share a 164.6 km long border with Mizoram’s three districts of Aizawl, Kolasib and Mamit.

    The long-standing dispute has its origin in a notification of 1875 issued during the British era that differentiated Lushai Hills from the plains of Cachar, and another of 1933 that demarcates a boundary between Lushai Hills and Manipur.

    Mizoram insists the inter-state boundary should be demarcated on the basis of the 1875 notification, a corollary to the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation (BEFR) Act, 1873.

    Mizoram leaders have, however, been arguing against the demarcation notified of 1933, claiming that the Mizo society was not consulted, while Assam wants that notification to be enforced.

  • Don’t allow displaced Brus to cast votes in Tuirial bypoll: Mizoram’s Zoram People’s Movement tells EC

    By Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: Mizoram’s principal opposition party, Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM), has petitioned the Election Commission urging it to not allow the displaced Brus to cast their votes in the October 30 by-elections to Tuirial assembly seat.The death of sitting MLA, Andrew H Thangliana of the ZPM necessitated the by-poll.In a letter to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer P Jawahar, the ZPM said as the Centre had granted permission for the resettlement of the displaced Brus in neighbouring Tripura, they should not be allowed to exercise their franchise in Mizoram.Of the 17,927 electorates in the Tuirial assembly seat, 663 are Brus and they belong to two polling stations.In 2018, the Tripura government had made arrangements for the displaced Brus, who were lodged in six relief camps, to travel to Mizoram to cast their votes in the Assembly elections.The ZPM had in 2018 written to the EC demanding the deletion of names of some 12,000 Bru voters from the state’s electoral roll.A quadripartite agreement was signed in January last year among Bru leaders and Central, Tripura, and Mizoram governments for the resettlement of some 40,000 Brus (also called ‘Reangs’) who had fled Mizoram in 1997 in the face of ethnic violence.Over the past two decades, more than 11,000 of them returned to Mizoram. Those who are still in Tripura are being resettled by the state government in deference to the quadripartite pact. 

  • Central team to visit Mizoram soon amid rising COVID-19 cases: Official

    At least 21,074 cases were reported in August, while September witnessed 34,263 new infections, according to the state health department.

  • COVID-19 batters Mizoram, active cases shoot to 16,481

    By PTI

    AIZWAL: Mizoram reported 1,741 new coronavirus infections on Thursday, taking the number of active cases to 16,841, officials said.

    Among the new patients were 304 children, they said.

    One more person died of COVID-19 in the state in the last 24 hours, pushing the toll to 307.

    Mizoram, one of the worst affected states during the second wave of the pandemic, has so far reported 93,660 COVID-19 cases.

    The state’s total population is around 11 lakh (2011 census).

    The single-day positivity rate was 18.44 per cent as the fresh cases were detected after testing 9,440 samples, officials said.

    Aizawl reported the highest number of new cases at 915, followed by Champhai district (388) and Lunglei district (117), they said.

    So far, 76,512 people have recovered from the infection in the state.

    Aizawl also has the highest number of active cases at 11,649, followed by Siaha (1,078) and Lunglei (925).

    A total lockdown was imposed in Saitual town amid a rising number of cases.

    The lockdown, imposed on Wednesday evening, will be in place till 7 pm on October 6, as per a notification issued by the district magistrate.

    Saitual district has the least number of active cases at 32.Mizoram’s recovery rate is 81.69 per cent and the death rate is 0.32 per cent.

    According to immunisation officer Dr Lalzawmi, 4.36 lakh people have been fully vaccinated in the state till Wednesday.

    Health Minister R Lalthangliana said that RT-PCR laboratories would be set up in all the districts of the state .

    Mizoram has only one RT-PCR laboratory at Zoram Medical College (ZMC), the lone dedicated COVID hospital in the state, near Aizawl.

  • Mizoram CM writes to PM Modi again, seeks aid for Myanmar refugees

    By Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: As Mizoram witnesses a fresh influx of distressed Myanmar nationals, Chief Minister Zoramthanga has written another letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to provide humanitarian aid to the refugees.

    Even as Mizoram was struggling to take care of some 10,000 refugees, hundreds of others fled to the landlocked state from Myanmar’s Chin State over the past few days following renewed clashes between pro-democratic supporters and the country’s military.

    H Rammawi, vice-chairman of State Planning Board who is handling the refugee issue, said the CM, in his letter to the PM, highlighted the plight of the refugees. Stating that Zoramthanga has written similar letters to Modi over the past few months, Rammawi said the state was seeking the Centre’s help for asylum and humanitarian assistance for the refugees.

    Earlier, Rammawi and the state’s two MPs met the officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs several times but the bureaucrats had said it was up to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to take any decision on the refugee crisis. Subsequently, the Mizoram lawmakers had taken up the issue with the MEA officials but a request to revisit the foreign policy towards Myanmar was ignored.

    In a letter to Modi written in March, Zoramthanga had stated “India cannot turn a blind eye” to the humanitarian crisis.

    The refugees are lodged in community halls, public halls, school buildings etc. The Mizoram government recently started enrolling their children into schools.

    People from Myanmar’s Chin community and the Mizos in India belong to Zo ethnic group and they share the same ancestry.

    Talking about the influx, Mizoram Home Minister Lalchamliana had recently told this newspaper: “Before the arrival of the British, it was one country. The Britishers divided the Mizo-inhabited areas into Burma and India. But till today, we have inter-marriage and blood relations.”

  • Mizoram reports 1,402 new COVID-19 cases, positivity rate stands at 12.1 per cent

    By PTI

    AIZAWL: Mizoram on Thursday reported 1,402 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to 75,470, a Health Department official said. The new cases were detected after testing 11,599 samples in the last 24 hours, registering a positivity rate of 12.10 per cent, he said.

    Four more people died in the state, pushing the toll to 250, he said. Aizawl registered the highest number of new cases at 779, followed by Siaha (265) and Serchhip (78), he said.

    At least 242 children were among the newly-infected people, the official said. There are 13,973 active cases in the state at present, while 61,247 people have recovered, including 950 people on Wednesday. The recovery rate is 81.50 per cent. Total 3.36 lakh of the state’s over 11 lakh population have received both doses of the COVID vaccines.

  • Two Myanmarese arrested with assault rifle, cartridges in Mizoram

    By PTI

    AIZWAL: Two Myanmarese have been arrested with an assault rifle and cartridges in Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district, Assam Rifles said in a statement on Thursday.

    Acting on a tip-off, Assam Rifles and Mizoram Police personnel conducted a joint operation on Sekul river between Zochachhuah and Vareng villages on Wednesday and made the seizure and arrests, it said.

    Based on information about smuggling of arms and ammunition via Laitlang along the India-Myanmar border, the security forces intercepted a boat and searched it, finding the automatic rifle of Myanmar origin and 26 cartridges in it, the statement said.