Mixed Connection: A woman speaks on phone inside the premises of a hospital where a special ward has been set up for the coronavirus disease in Mumbai on 2020. (REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas)   Morung Express News Dimapur| March 10 If you have been making phone calls in the past few days, you will be familiar with the ‘coughing’ caller tune while the call gets connected. Following a directive from the Department of Telecom (DoT) on March 6 to incorpora

A fishery pond in Kohima district. (Morung Photo)   Our Correspondent Kohima | March 10 A new project to upgrade government demonstration fish farms has been proposed under National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) negotiated loan for a total project cost of Rs 959.40 lakh starting from 2019-2020. The proposed project will be implemented in three phases. This was stated in the Annual Administrative Report 2019-2020 of Fisheries and Aquatic Resou

Passengers line up to be scanned for COVID-19 on arrival at the Dimapur terminal on March 8. (Morung Photo by Soreishim Mahong)   Morung Express News Dimapur | March 8 Anxiety over the COVID-19 outbreak and its spread has gripped the world. However, preventive steps taken by governments to curb its spread have given a semblance of assurance to the public.  Nagaland state was also among the earliest in the country to put preventive measures in place, among whi

(Left) Students learning to weave bamboo baskets at New Creation School, Sekrezu. (Right) Vesalu Swuro. (Morung Photo)   Vishü Rita Krocha Kohima | March 8 Perched on the far-flung village of Sekrezu under Phek district is a 7-year old school that is filled with curious little minds of rural students who come from an overwhelming number of 28 different neighbouring villages.  Behind the ‘New Creation School’ as it is named, is a woman called Vesalu Swuro

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7  Party manifestos are a contract with the electorate, and the Progressive Democratic Alliance (PDA) Government rose to power in Nagaland two years ago riding on a wave of promises. How far has the government kept that bond?  Exactly a year ago today, The Morung Express published a special edition analyzing the performance of the PDA’s performance in several sectors over a period of one year.  A year on, follow ups o

An aerial view of the IG Stadium in Kohima. (Photo Courtesy: GIS Nagaland)   Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7 In the absence of a comprehensive Sports Policy in Nagaland, the stakeholders including the state government and sportspersons seem to be running between the wickets without a target in sight. The PDA government in its first Cabinet meeting made a solemn promise in the field of sports – to announce a new Sports Policy within 100 days. The  

Some portions of the recently repaired road section from the new flyover to Supermarket were damaged by private parties using machinery to excavate their land adjacent to the newly constructed road near the DC's residence.   Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7 Road repair and maintenance was a major promise of the PDA government. Two years on, the nodal department— Public Works Department (PWD) has claimed that most of the works as envisaged by the government have

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7  Two years into the PDA government’s tenure, The Morung Express sought opinions from individuals as to whether there has been any positive change in terms of service delivery and reining in the usual suspects—corruption and nepotism.    Meritocracy a mockery Social activist, Barth Humtsoe maintained that the PDA government is far from realizing the promised ‘Change is coming’ catchphrase. “Backdoor appointment is

Morung Express News Kohima | March 7 The passing of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 and the notification of the 4% job reservation for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) have been crucial starting points for ensuring disability rights.  But to flaunt it as a massive achievement is facile, according to observers, as a lot more remains to be done on the ground.  Purnima Kayina, President, Cherry Blossoms Society states that basic entitlements still re

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7  The Nagaland Industrial Policy, which was supposed to be formulated within the first year of the PDA, remains elusive. The last mention of the proposed policy was in December 2018 where again, the Chief Minister said his government was in the process of drawing up a new industrial policy to help promote Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE) with special focus on start-ups, including the agricultural sector. The lagging economy and the

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7 A new Civil Aviation Policy for the State of Nagaland, according to officials, is awaiting the government’s approval. The policy was supposed to materialise within six months after the PDA government was formed.  A committee to look into the policy was formed 13 months after the government came to power under the chairmanship of Ramakhrishnan, IAS, Principal Secretary, H&FW and Justice and Law. Kenilo Apon, Secretary, Transport

A badge created by Dimapur based NGO, Sisterhood Network to mark the International Women’s Day (IWD) 2020. (Morung Photo)   Naga men on board for advancing gender equality and inclusion    Kanili Kiho Dimapur | March 7 ‘Gender equality is a human fight, not a female fight,’ read a blue colored badge created by Dimapur based NGO, Sisterhood Network to mark the International Women’s Day (IWD) 2020.   This year’s theme by the United Nation

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 7  The promise of an insurance scheme for students studying outside Nagaland “within 100 days,” has been converted to an ex-gratia scheme. In October, 2019 the Nagaland Government Ex-Gratia Scheme for Students Studying Outside Nagaland (NGESSO) was announced. As opposed to an insurance policy, this scheme will only cover the death of any ST/Indigenous Inhabitant student from Nagaland. It carries an endowment of Rs 5 lakh to the nomi

Toshirenla Ao and her mother Alila at their home in Dimapur. (Morung Photo)   Kanili Kiho At 16, Toshirenla was not just a beauty queen. She was an artiste, in the truest of sense. An avid social worker from an early age, 4-year old Toshirenla would raise funds for social causes such as raising funds for church buildings, etc, through singing and dancing. A natural athlete, Toshirenla was a champion gymnast with 14 gold medals to her credit during her time

Easterine Kire   A review – Part Two Growing up in Impur where his father Imchaba was a teacher, seven-year-old Lanu Toy witnessed first-hand a tiger hunt by men of Mopungchuket village. They were armed with spears and shields. The women were not to be left out of the chase as they did their part in intimidating the tigers by shouting loudly. Young girls climbed trees and cheered the men on. Five tigers were killed on that day alone.  That was the era he grew up

A group of young girls hold placards in support of clean election in Kohima. (Morung File Photo)    Atono Tsükrü Kense Kohima | March 6 “Naga society doesn’t discriminate its women on any ground. Our women have equal privileges as men and enjoy equal opportunities in various spheres unlike other women from other parts of the country.” These are some familiar (mis) perception that Naga people have been romanticizing with, ever since the political imbrogl

Vishü Rita Krocha Kohima | March 3   In the quiet of her home in Forest Colony, which was once covered with green, lush trees, Jentina Yaomei Shangkhu read a story about a young girl called Severn Suzuki who was concerned about the problems going on in her society. What transpired from reading the book was this thought- “If a young girl like her can make a huge difference in another part of the world, why can’t I?” This was two years ago when she resolved to

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 2 Nagaland has the distinction of being the state with highest unemployment rate in the country for persons aged 15 years and above, while concurrently lacking behind in job generation.  This observation can be drawn from a reply to an unstarred question in Lok Sabha by the Minister of State (IC) for Labour and Employment, Santosh Kumar Gangwar on March 2.  Citing the results of the annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS)

Morung Express News Dimapur | March 1 The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has detected numerous infrastructural deficiencies in Secondary Schools in Nagaland, contravening the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) framework.  The CAG report for the year ending March 31, 2018 stated that a joint inspection of 106 schools revealed deficiencies in infrastructural requirements, as per RMSA framework.   Laboratories not utilised According

Economic participation of women in the rural sector is significantly more compared to their participation in the urban sector. (Morung Photo)     52.3% participation in rural sector compared to 25.9% in urban sector     Our Correspondent Kohima | March 1   Women’s participation in economic activity is more in the rural sector in Nagaland, according to Annual Administrative Report 2019-2020 of Economics & Statistics, Nagaland