Civil societies want Bru voters names deleted
Aizawl: Major civil societies in Mizoram asked the Chief Election Commissioner V.S. Sampath to delete the names of Bru voters who were in six Tripura relief camps if the voters do not return to Mizoram during this month. A leader of the Central committee of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) said that the joint memorandum was submitted to Sampath yesterday through the state chief electoral officer (CEO) Ashawni Kumar. The civil societies which submitted the memorandum were the YMA, the Mizoram Upa Pawl (MUP) or elders association, Mizo Hmeichhe Insuihkhawm Pawl (MHIP) or women’s federation and Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) or student’s association. In the joint memorandum, the civil societies said that the Brus left Mizoram and migrated to Tripura on their own will and refused to return on some pretext. If they do not return during this month, their names should be deleted from the Mizoram voters lists, they said. (PTI)
Over 35k students to appear for NBSE exams in Nagaland
Kohima: A total of 35,248 students would appear for the upcoming Matric and Class 12 examinations under the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE) scheduled from February 7, an official release said here on Wednesday. According to a NBSE statistical handout the number includes 13570 students of the Higher Secondary School Leaving Certificate for Class 12 and 21,678 students of High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) for Class X. In the HSSLC, there are 9870 candidates in Arts stream, while Commerce and Science has 1150 and 2550 students respectively, it said. The HSSLC has 6992 male and 6578 female candidates, the release mentioned while out of the 21,678 candidates in the HSLC, 10837 are male and 10841 are female. (PTI)
Cigarettes to cost more in Mizoram
Aizawl: Cigarettes would cost more in Mizoram after a few months as the tax department would propose a hike in value added tax from 13.5 per cent to 20-25 per cent on it. Principal Secretary for Taxation R L Rinawma said on Wednesday that a recent meeting of Mizoram Smoke Free Group, chaired by Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla proposed to hike the VAT on cigarette and authorised the state taxation department to make a formal proposal. Rinawma said the department was likely to increase the VAT levied on cigarettes to 20 to 25 per cent as it was around 30 to 50 per cent in other states. Jane R Ralte of the Mizoram State Tobacco Control Society said the initial proposal placed before the Mizoram Smoke Free Group was for 65 per cent as was being done in Rajasthan. (PTI)
UNLF says Paresh Barua death sentence ‘unjust’
Guwahati: United National Liberation Front of Manipur on Wednesday said that the recent capital punishment awarded by a Bangladesh court in absentia to ULFA(I) ‘commander-in-chief’ Paresh Barua was ‘unjust’. “The recent verdict is a hasty action of Sheikh Hasina led Bangladesh government as a part of its India appeasement policy,” UNLF’s self-styled Senior Publicity Officer Ksh Yoiheiba said in a statement e-mailed to PTI here. The email said that the UNLF condemned the ‘unjust’ verdict and pledged its support to the appeal made by ULFA(I) to the Bangladesh government to reconsider and withdraw it. (PTI)