NORTH-EASTERN STATES

TheShiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee(SGPC) has taken strict note after a place of worship linked toGuru Nanak Dev in Mechukha,Arunachal Pradesh, was allegedly converted into aBuddhist shrine.

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Notably, on April 8, Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu posted on his Facebook page “Guru Padmasambhava, a symbol of peace, spiritual perfection, knowledge & wisdom. Blessed to have visited Neh-Pema Shelpu Drupkhang near Mechukha, a Buddhist pilgrimage site where Guru Padmasambhava meditated. Offered prayers and sought blessings for all.”

Stating that converting a religious place into another community’s religious place was a violation of Section 25(Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion) of the Indian Constitution, Dhami sought immediate intervention of the President of India, Prime Minister, Home Minister and the National Minority Commission.

Meghalaya Living Root Bridges

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A living root bridge is suspension bridge across small streams. They are built using living plant roots. These root bridges are common in Meghalaya. They are hand made. They are built using rubber of fig trees. They are built by the local Jaintia and Khasi people. Recently, the India has sought UNESCO World Heritage Tag for these bridges.

The bridges are locally calledjingjieng jri.These bridges are 50 metres to 1150 metres above the sea level. Their maximum length is around 50 metres. Their width is around 1.5 metres. They are strong to stand for 500 years! The bridges are healthy as long as the trees from which the bridges are made are healthy.

Root Bridges in other regions

Root bridges are also built by the Nagaland people. Also, the root bridges are built by Baduy people of Java.

NE lags behind in building houses under central scheme

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The northeastern states are lagging far behind in constructing houses for eligible beneficiaries and the homeless in urban areas even as thePradhan MantriAwas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) has set a target for the completion of the houses by 2024.

According to the data furnished by the Union minister of state for housing and urban affairs, Kaushal Kishore, in theLok Sabha, less than 40% (39.54%) of the sanctioned houses have been completed in the eight northeastern states.
It stated that an estimated 3,99,233 houses have been sanctioned across eight northeastern states under the scheme, of which around 3,67,781 houses have been grounded (work started or about to start). However, only about 1,57,885 houses have been completed.

On the other hand, in the rest of the 20 states outside of the northeast, out of the 1.15 crore (1,15,36,537) houses sanctioned, around 97.27 lakh (97,27,703) have been grounded and work on an estimated 59.01 lakh (59,01,116) has been completed. The completion Percentage stands at 51.15% outside NE.

Under the scheme, the Centre allocates 75% funds and the remaining 25% has to be borne by the .

After Partition, NE region became land-locked: Assam ministerAssams Industry and Commerce and Act East Policy Affairs Minister, Chandra Mohan Patowary, said on Tuesday that after Independence and the simultaneous Partition of the country, the trade routes and transportation linkages through the neighbouring countries were suddenly snapped, rendering the northeastern region land-locked. Addressing a conclave on ‘India’s Act East Connect: Prospects and Challenges’, the minister said that before Independence, the northeastern region used to have multi-modal transportation networks through roadways, railways and waterways (riverine) through the territories, which are now Bangladesh and Myanmar, to several ports like Chittagong (Bangladesh), Sittwe and Yangoon or then Rangoon (Myanmar).

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He said that tea and petroleum used to reach the Chittagong and Kolkata (then Calcutta) through the Brahmaputra-Padma-Meghna riverine waterway routes, as well as through RAILWAY lines passing through the erstwhile East Pakistan, now Bangladesh.

PM inaugurates Arunachal’s first greenfield airport

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Amidst chanting of incantations by tribal priests, the spanking new Donyi Polo airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra ModiSaturday. The airport located at Hollongi, near the capital city of Arunachal Pradesh will connect the northeastern state’s capital by air. It will link the border state with other Indian cities with commercial flights as well as other parts of Arunachal Pradesh through helicopter Services.

Radio tagged Amur falcon ‘chiulon’ arrives in Manipur’s Tamenglong for second time

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A radio-tagged adult Amur falcon (Falcon amurensis) named Chiulon which had reached her breeding area in northern China in May this year during her routine annual Migration course, has finally arrived in Manipur’s Tamenglong district, a Wildlife Institute of India (WII) scientist said.

The five Amur falcons were named Chiulon,Puching and Phalong (all names of villages in Manipur’s Tamenglong district) and Irang and Barak (both names of rivers).

Mizoram chief ministerZoramthanga, who is in quarantine after coming in contact with a Covid-positive patient, said the “northeast will be one” as he appealed for calm and peace.

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He hoped that the Centre will find an amicable solution to the Assam-Mizoram border dispute, which spiralled out of control on Monday after Police forces of the two states clashed resulting in the death of six Assam cops.

The chief minister, whoseMizo National Frontis a partner ofNDA, tweeted, “I sincerely request all to stay calm and promote peace in this time of great difficulty. Mizoram hope for an amicable solution with the help of intervention from the Central Government.”

Skilling In Northeast India Empowering The Youth For A Vibrant FutureIndia may be the most populous country in the world, but more than 60% of its population is aged less than 35 – a young, growing nation. With such a large portion of the population in the employment bracket, the size and age of the workforce is expected to play a significant role in propelling economic growth. Consequently, skilling this young generation for gainful and sustainable employment is among the top priorities of the government, evident through a plethora of initiatives and schemes to achieve this.In a country so diverse in almost every context, a one-size-fits-all approach to skilling may not be as effective- regional differences due to various factors such as natural resources, geography, native trades, the literacy rate, skill training infrastructure, self-employment, and regular wage/salaried employment potential must be considered to ensure effective and targeted development. As per a report, the countrys Northeast region- comprising the 8 states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, and Sikkim – accounts for more than 5% of the population aged 1535(mind you, dont be fooled by the small percentage because this translates to crores of individuals in absolute numbers). Subsequently, the skilling pool is large and related initiatives must address key issues in the region,which include a declining percentage of women in the labour force, supply – demand imbalances at the sectoral and geographic level, and a high level of employment in the unorganised, non-farm sector.Skill development has gradually improved across the country, including the Northeast: while some states are following the larger nation-wide objectives for skilling, a few are modifying these with more state-focused considerations. On one hand, the Assam State Rural Livelihoods Mission Society aims to empower the states rural poor by promoting self-help groups (SHGs), providing skill development and placement for youth in wage-based occupations across private/business organizations, and imparting training centred on self-employment.This program is being executed under the larger country-wide DeenDayalAntyodaya Yojana, which aims to mobilize disadvantaged communities by enhancing sustainable livelihood opportunities through skilling. The state also recently set up a skill development department to lead progress in this area.Through the Start-up India Initiative, which aims to promote entrepreneurship and innovation by creating and enabling a robust start-upecosystem, 408 start-ups have already been recognized in the region. The Northeast Development Finance Institution (NEDFI) has also extended financial assistance to nearly 7,000 projects. Additionally, organizations such as the Northeast Handicrafts &Handloom Corporation and Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India have launched e-commerce portals that enable entrepreneurs to reach out to a wider market, helping them sustain their crafts and livelihood. The Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship in Guwahati has also been providing training, research, and consultancy activities to small and micro enterprisesmore than 2.5 lakh people have been trained through more than 6,700 programs conducted by the institute. To develop skill development infrastructure, short-term training and polytechnic centres, and industrial training institutes (ITIs) have been set up; more than 22 ITIs have been upgraded; and other infrastructure shortages are being addressed by constructing more hostels and special project centres. Further, with the central government relaunching its Skill India program through PMKVY 4.0, it aims to train nearly 145,050 youth in the region with future-ready skills with industry-backed job opportunities. Under PMKVY 4.0, the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship targets to skill around 60,000 youth in Tripura and 35,000 in Nagaland across several approved courses. With digitalisation gaining traction at an unprecedented rate, a 10-acre state-of-the-art facility is also expected to be established in Shillong under the National Institute of Electronics and IT to provide training on cutting-edge digital skills for the local youths.

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Except Meghalaya, cases declining in NE states

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A day after the Centre deputed multi-disciplinary teams to five states, which includes three NE states of Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Manipur that are reporting increased number of Covid-19 cases, DoNER minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said there was progressive decline in the number of cases in the NE states, except Meghalaya.

The DoNER ministry, in a statement, said, The minister expressed satisfaction that all the NE states are catching up with national Average in terms of decline in positivity rate. Meghalaya is the only exception which witnessed a surge due to corona outbreak in a jail in district Ri-Bhoi.

Singh cautioned that decline in the active cases must be followed with greater thrust on vaccination and strict observance of corona protocol. He said he was in constant touch with all the eight chief ministers of NE states and whatever help is sought from the states is being promptly provided by the Centre.

Munda launches tribal artisan welfare scheme in Imphal

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Union tribal affairs ministerArjun Munda launched the Marketing and Development for Promotion of Tribal Products from North-Eastern Region (PTP-NER) scheme to strengthen the livelihood means for tribal artisans through efficiency in procurement, logistics and marketing of tribal products from northeastern states. Chief minister N Biren Singh was present at the launch of the scheme.

The Centre, under the supervision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been taking up initiatives for Empowerment, creation of EMPLOYMENT opportunities and the upgrade the livelihood of tribal people across the country.
He informed that the PTP-NER scheme is fully funded by the Centre and abudgetof around Rs 143 crore has been allocated for its implementation.