Y Merina Chishi            Online classes are the new norm and the challenges being faced by students is something that will have a long term impact on their education. Having been out of school for months, many students are obviously struggling to keep up with schoolwork. Without a structured daily routine, it often becomes difficult for students to stay focused on their studies all the time. Children cannot grasp much from recor

Dr Asangba Tzüdir   The Central Government has declared the entire state of Nagaland as “disturbed area” for six month till 2020 December end. The opinion of the Central Government that ‘the whole of Nagaland is in such a disturbed and dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of civilian power is necessary’ is once again stamped. However, for so many decades, within its underlying connotations, realities and more so contradictio

Over the past few days, the citizens of Nagaland have been treated to an unfolding spectacle, seldom seen in the state. A rare ‘collision course’ between the Governor and the State Government headed by the Chief Minister – a repartee between the ‘nominal’ and ‘real’ executive of the state. Politics and contextualisation took care of the rest, to make it one of the most topical issues in recent times, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. To rec

Imlisanen Jamir   The dog meat ban in Nagaland enforced by the State Government on July 4 has unraveled a myriad of questions on government policy making and moral subjectivity on the meat trade.  Following the killing of a pet for straying from its home in Mokokchung, which went viral on the internet, and a picture of dogs stuffed in sacks for sale purportedly in Nagaland, the State Government was put under pressure.  Similar uproars had occurred in the pa

Witoubou Newmai   The letter of RN Ravi, the Governor of Nagaland State who is also the Government of India’s Interlocutor for the Naga peace talks, to Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio has kicked up immense ruckuses. Even as the letter continues to attract strong reactions, supports, debates and difficulties, somewhere in a faint corner there is something to say—inappropriate jargons and times of one’s ‘missed’ choosing can invite skewed discourses for

Y Merina Chishi    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 30, 2020 announced the extension of free ration scheme till November. This scheme will reportedly cost the government 90,000 crore. This mammoth scheme, the PM said, was possible mainly due to the hard-working farmers and 'honest taxpayers' of the country.              Tax is what makes a country and sustains its economy. Tax is essential for the growth of a nat

Dr Asangba Tzüdir   As the world continues to battle with the COVID-19 pandemic, side by side, it is confronting another pandemic which equally dangerous and possibly more infectious than the former. Though not on the scale of the number of physical deaths caused, it has its own damaging effects. The Director-General of World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was right when he stated in March last that, “We’re not just fighting an epidemic; w

Imlisanen Jamir   Despite the fall in global crude oil prices, we are looking at unprecedented rise in the price of fuel ever since the COVID-19 pandemic. The economic effects on the producer and consumer side across the world has shown how despite all the swanky PR campaigns, agreements and projects, the world is severely underprepared to even begin moving away from a crude oil driven life.   For the first time in the country, diesel prices have overtaken petrol pri

Y Merina Chishi There is no dearth of talent in Nagaland. Every now and then we hear stories of people coming up with innovative ideas to help the society. For instance, three Naga boys Kesosilie Kennao, Mhaleu Metha and Tali Chang, who with no technical backgrounds or degrees whatsoever, have created zero-touch hand sanitizer dispensers that can help people during the COVID-19 pandemic. These boys have not invented anything new, but the fact that it is being developed and designe

Witoubou Newmai   “On this day, 45 years ago one family’s greed for power led to the imposition of the Emergency. Overnight the nation was turned into a prison. The press, courts, free speech...all were trampled over. Atrocities were committed on the poor and downtrodden,” Union Home minister Amit Shah said on Thursday, June 25. The Emergency was declared “just a few minutes before the clock struck midnight” 45 years ago on June 25, 1975. T

The Government of Nagaland seems to have taken into account the economic challenges associated with the COVID-19 lockdown by announcing the creation of two strategic committees on economic affairs in early June - one headed by the Chief Minister and the other core group led by the Additional Chief Secretary and Development Commissioner. The State Cabinet, meanwhile, also started the process acquiring details of quarantined returnees to in order to develop institutional mechanisms

Dr Asangba Tzudir  While the rate of recovery of COVID-19 in Nagaland is marvelously high, a spike of 119 cases in the last two days in Nagaland is a matter of serious concern. What is more concerning is the issue of secondary transmission whereby the fresh cases reported from Peren who were returnees from Chennai had initially tested negative while at quarantine in Dimapur. While the spread happens at the place of origin or during transit, or in the quarantine cent

Imlisanen Jamir   One positive from the daily COVID-19 news in Nagaland State has been its steadily increasing recovery rate.  As of now, the State’s recovery has increased to 66 percent, which is above the national recovery rate of 55 percent. Since the middle of last week, in Nagaland, the number of recoveries has outnumbered the number of active cases.  Data for COVID-19 is still a long way from giving a complete picture, but it is encouraging to s

Veroli Zhimo   Thank you. That hasn’t been said nearly enough over these challenging last few months. In this extraordinary time, we have had to absorb many new and disconcerting concepts — from social distancing to online schooling to YouTube church services. There are constant reminders that we are ‘unprepared’ to combat COVID-19 - a ‘failed state’ unable to manage the greatest existential threat in our lifetimes. The State tha

Witoubou Newmai The trouble in the BJP led coalition government in Manipur appears to come in handy for the Congress party. That is what it appears at the moment. And that is also very much of what the Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) seems to read the situation. Time will tell us whether the new development has given fillips to the opposition (Congress party) for real. However, as fragile as the stature of many politicians who consider themselves as leaders, it is t

Y Merina Chishi    The death of popular Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput has again raised the issue of mental health problems in India, leading even the Supreme Court on June 16 (Tuesday) to issue a notice to the Centre and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on a PIL seeking direction to all insurance companies to extend medical insurance for treatment of mental illness as well. In general, mental illness refers to a wide range of mental heal

Dr Asangba Tzüdir     In view of the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic online learning has been adopted in many schools and colleges across. Among the many apps and modes, Google Classroom is one such app designed to facilitate online learning where a student can be a part of a Google Classroom wherein teachers and students can communicate and provide them with constructive feedback and also streamline the sharing of classroom documents and assignments. It is c

Imlisanen Jamir A crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic gives the leading lights of society, including the political class, a chance to redeem themselves. The pandemic presented our politicians a great opportunity to reinvent themselves as responsible, empathetic leaders dedicated to the service of the people. However, ever since the outbreak of the pandemic and it reaching Nagaland State, like in the rest of the country, a political slugfest has continued at every level of politic

The standing of the lone central university in the state – Nagaland University (NU) continues to falter in the ranking of Institutions of Higher Education in India. The latest ranking of National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) - ‘India Rankings 2020’ was released by the Union Minister of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ on June 11.  As per the report, the NU’s position descended further this year. I

Witoubou Newmai     The May 25, 2020 incident of Minneapolis has nudged the collective conscience of humanity so much so that it is taking different groups of people in different regions to different directions. One such has been the issue of racism. But what has crossed the bar has been the manner in which one human being has consciously and defiantly allowed his conscience to go on this long of nine minutes in taking away the life of another fellow human being. We fi