NORTH-EASTERN STATES

Union MinisterRajeev Chandrasekhar said the entire northeast will have 4G connectivity and every part ofNagalandwill get access to Internet.

Chandrasekhar, the Union minister of state for electronics and information technology, announced this during a press conference held inDimapuron Tuesday, the last day of his three-day visit to Nagaland.

The union minister said Nagaland and the entire northeast will have minimum of 4G connectivity as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modis vision of connecting all Indians, with an approach that No one is left behind.

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has requested the Centre for increasing the area under oil palm cultivation in the state to 12,000-15,000 hectares in the first year of the Centre’s new mission to boost its production. The had on August 18 approved the National Mission on Edible Oils – Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), with a focus on the northeast region and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, to promote the domestic cultivation of oil palm in the next five years. Allaying the fear of the impact of oil palm cultivation on forests, the chief minister said it is unlikely to have any effect since the areas identified for the purpose cover only wasteland.

On slow coverage of oil palm cultivation in the state, he attributed it to a lack of commitment from the promoters in setting up processing factories, which had led to a loss of confidence among the farmers. Khandu said a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with one of the promoters was cancelled and meetings have been called with the existing ones to fast track the mission. Speaking on the Organic Mission, Khandu said that the state had launched the mission in 2016 with the target of completing it by 2023, covering an area of 1-lakh hectares.

The National Achievement Survey (NAS) 2021 report, published on Wednesday, has painted a gloomy picture of digital Education in schools in the northeast, where over 40% students spent their days at Home during the pandemic without any digital device to aid their education.
The digital divide has been the sharpest in each Assam,ManipurandMeghalayawhere 48% of the students had no digital device at home. NAS 2021 was conducted for Classes III, V, VIII and X.

In Arunachal Pradesh, 43% of the students lacked a digital device at home. The corresponding figures for Mizoram andNagalandwere 39 and 37% respectively. InTripura, 46% of the students had no digital device.

In Assam, while 58% students of all the surveyed classes experienced worry, anxiety and fear during the pandemic, 61% experienced similar moods in Arunachal. A total of 59% students in Manipur and Meghalaya went through the same experience. The corresponding figures for other NE states where students experienced worry, anxiety and fear were Mizoram (54%), Nagaland (62%) and Tripura (59%).

Among the NE states, about 6,000 schools participated in the exercise from Assam, where 1.7 lakh students and about 27,000 teachers from the state were covered.

According to a recent publication by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI), , India’s smallest state with less than 1% of the country’s landmass, is Home to 27% of all flowering Plants. Sikkim is a part of the Kanchenjunga Biosphere Reserve.

About Kanchenjunga Biosphere:

The Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve in Sikkim is one of the highest Ecosystems in the world, with an altitude of 1,220 meters.
The biosphere contains various altitudinal ecosystems ranging from subtropic to Arctic, as well as natural forests in various biomes that support an enormously rich diversity of forest types and habitats.
The Park contains the world’s third highest peak, Mt. Khangchendzonga.
The Biosphere reserve includes a number of lakes and Glaciers, including the 26-kilometer-long Zemu Glacier.
In 2016, Khangchendzonga National Park (KNP) was designated a World Heritage Site in the mixed’ category (Mixed heritage sites contain Elements of both natural and cultural significance).
The Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve in Sikkim surrounds the Khangchendzonga , the third highest peak in the world, and has been included in the UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve Network, making it India’s 11th biosphere reserve to be included in the network.
Its geographical location bordering Nepal, Tibet (China), and close to Bhutan provides unique opportunities for joint collaboration and Biodiversity conservation with neighbouring countries.
Increasing unregulated tourism, a lack of awareness about the landscape, and a staff shortage are some of the major challenges in preserving the reserve’s sanctity.

Climate changehas impactedrainfalldistribution during monsoon months innortheasteven as the total amount of rain remains mostly unchanged. On the eve ofWorld Environment Day, experts said this lack of uniform distribution of rainfall throughout the monsoon months has resulted in prolonged consecutive dry days and shorter wet days.

Research on rainfall patterns atAssam Agricultural University(Aau) revealed a decreasing tendency of annual rainfall by 66.4 mm/decade during 1986-2015 over theBrahmaputra valleyof Assam. This decrease of annual rainfall in the valley was mainly contributed by the decrease in monsoon rainfall by 53.4 mm/decade, with statistically significant decrease of September rainfall in the upper (39 mm/decade) and central (35 mm/decade) parts of the valley and July rainfall in the lower (77 mm/decade) part of the Brahmaputra valley.

The annual Average rainfall over northeast is 2162 mm, which varies from 4275 mm (Meghalaya) to 2250 mm (Nagaland). The annual rainfall in Assam is about 2352 mm. Monsoon season contributes the highest amount of annual rainfall (65%) while pre-monsoon, post-monsoon and winter seasons contribute about 25%, 7% and 3% to the annual rainfall of the region respectively.

The Tripura government is thinking of constituting a welfare board for transgender persons residing in the state, said social welfare minister Tinku Roy.

He has held a meeting with a group of lesbians, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning persons or the community (LGBTQ) on their rights and social security recently to address some crucial issues.
A 24-point charter of demands was raised in the meeting asking to formulate a strategy and policy to protect the rights of LGBTQ people. The community members demanded the government undertake steps for eradicating the social stigma associated with LGBTQ and constitute a board for them, the minister said. “We have tried to make them aware of the composition of such boards like other states. Normally, such boards are headed by transgender poeple and the policies are implemented by trans persons. We are not yet aware of the government’s decision but the minister made it clear that the government is keen to resolve our problems,” said LGBTQ activist Sneha Gupta Roy.

Arunachal Pradesh Home Minister Bamang Felix on Monday advised the North Eastern Regional Youth Commission (NERYC) to have a result-oriented approach in their campaign against drug abuse.

The Minister made the suggestion during the launch of an anti-drug campaign which is being organized by the NERYC, the official youth organization of the Catholic Bishops Conference of North East India, in collaboration with the Itanagar Diocese.

The visiting team informed the Minister about the establishment of a drug rehabilitation center at Dobum village, Banderdewa under the Itanagar Diocese, and proposed another rehabilitation center at Ziro in Lower Subansiri district.

Shirui Kashong Peak is one of the tourist attractions in the Ukhrul area of Manipur. It is 2835m above sea level. This mountain has two main attractions: Barry Lily and the river that traverses Ukhrul. Shirui Kashong Peak is located in the Ukhrul district of Manipur.

Rare Lilium mackliniae (Shirui lily) and the river in Ukhrul district are the main attractions of Shirui Kashong Peak. Shirui is divided into two villages-Shirui ato and Shirui aze. There are 100 households in Antu Bairui with a total of 472 people; Azebai Rui has 184 households with a total of 793 people.

The local people of Shirui speak Shirui dialect belonging to the Tibetan-Burman language family. The week-long festival held in Shirui is Shirui Lily Festival. It was declared a national holiday in 2017.

North East Festival celebrated as a part of Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav

Ministry of DoNER, in collaboration with and UNDP, is in the progress to finalize the Second Edition of District level NER SDG Index, based on a north-east specific District Indicator Framework and comprising of 84 indicators

Announced in Budget 2022-23 as a 100% Central Sector Scheme, Prime Ministers Development Initiative for North East (PM-DevINE) has been initiated

The BE allocation for the year 2022-23 for North Eastern Region under 10% Gross Budgetary Support is Rs 76,040 crore

A Task Force constituted to steer the Growth of Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture Sector in North Eastern Region

A Regional action plan is being drawn up for development of tourism in consultation with North Eastern States and active stakeholders

North Eastern Council (NEC) Golden Jubilee celebrated in Shillong

Ten distinguished personalities, including four Women, from seven of the eight northeastern states were conferred Padma Shri Awards in different fields. The four women are Shakuntala Choudhary of Assam for social work while Lourembam Bino Devi and Muktamani Devi, both from Manipur, were recognised for their contributions in art and trade and , respectively, and Badaplin War of Meghalaya in the field of Literature and Education.

Choudhury, the 102-year-old Gandhian social worker from Kamrup, is popularly known as ‘Shankuntala Baideo’. Veteran applique textile artist Lourembam Bino Devi, 77, famous for preserving the Leeba textile art of Manipur for over five decades while Muktamani Devi, 49, is an inspirational woman entrepreneur exporting and popularising handcrafted woollen shoes. War, 60, a scholar and author, has been always promoting Meghalaya’s Khasi language globally.