International status
With the maiden landing of a chartered Golden Myanmar aircraft at Tulihal Airport on 21 November, Imphal is now on the international civil aviation map, says a report in The  Sangai Express. The flight brought 166 delegates led by Mandalay and Sagaing chief ministers U Ye Myint and U Thar Aye, respectively. As the  plane landed, two fire tenders of the Airport Authority of India gave a water salute following which the foreign delegates were accorded a red-carpet reception. The two dignitaries said they were happy to be part of the historic flight. Accompanying them were Indian ambassador to Myanmar Gautam Mukhopadhyay, Indian Consulate General of Mandalay Madan Mohan Shetty and four Meitei diasporas from Mandalay. On its return flight the plane carried 128 passengers from Imphal to Mandalay. About 37 other Myanmarese came via the border town of Moreh for  the Manipur Sangai Tourism Festival. The Myanmarese delegation visited Shija Hospitals, RIMS, JNIMS, Babina Diagnostics Centre, the High Court complex, the state assembly. The next day they visited Loktak Lake.

Wild destruction
The deputy team leader of the Empowerment of People through Economic Development and joint director of the Soil and Water Conservation, Vengota Nakro, has said that as many as 68,628 animal and birds were killed in 17 sample villages of Phek district by 293 hunters during 2008. He told the eighth general conference of the Chakhesang Youth Front at Phek village under the theme “Bio-diversity Conservation for Economic Growth”, that among the animals killed were wild cats (2,012), large animals (1712), small animals (17,144), large birds (5,596) and small birds (42,164). According to him, hunting was the main reason for depletion of wildlife species in tropical forests. But over the past few decades the problem has increased exponentially.
   A study conducted by the Neped in 2003 revealed that despite the efforts of village councils and prominent civil societies such as the Chakhesang Public Organisation, hunting continued unabated.
   Young boys use catapults and airguns to kill birds. While on a tour  across villages of Nagaland by Neped project staff, many villagers reported unprecedented rodent (rats) menace. Villagers there also pointed out that animals and birds that fed on rodents were killed by hunters, resulting in the increase in the population of rodents.
In an attempt to quantify the number of wildlife killed during 2008, a survey was conducted.
   On an average, only six  per cent of the total households are involved in hunting and are responsible for the depletion of bio-diversity. Scientists, working among tribal communities in other parts of the world say hunting goes on because they feel that wildlife meat is essential as a nutrient supplement.
   But this may not be true in Nagaland, particularly among the Chakhesangs, because “if it is true then 94 per cent of the population would have been suffering from malnutrition,” Nakro said. He fears that if hunting is not stopped “our forests may become barren soon.” ~ The Shillong Times
 

Fire the destroyer
Tirap district&’s deputy information and public relations officer Denhang Bosia writes in The Arunachal Times that the greatest threat to Arunachal Pradesh is not external aggression but fire and there had been one too many particularly during the dry winter months. “Fire has destroyed my village Kaimai in Tirap district several times. Fortunately there has been no loss of life. Our houses are made of bamboo and took leaves which, when they catch fire, spread rapidly. Fire has destroyed many traditional costumes in my village considered to be the centre of invaluable traditional attires and priceless ethnic items.Villagers must blame themselves for fire mishaps. Most fire accidents are man-made. In most cases, it&’s either the children or the old who start the fire. In the past the Noctes of Tirap district had a system called ‘Thingbaam’ wherein young boys would be stationed in Paangs (dormitories) during the day when all the villagers would be busy in the field. The objective was to check fire and if detected they would try to douse it. It is about time the people of Arunachal realise that it&’s fire accidents that pose the greatest threat to the people than any other thing. They  should take precautionary measures.”