Naga centenarian
Takatula, wife of the late Senayangba Jamir of Ungma village in Mokokchung village, turned 100 on 19 January 2014, according to a report in the Dimapur-based Nagaland Post. She gave birth to 11 children, of whom seven are surviving. The eldest son is SC Jamir (former Nagaland chief minister and now governor of Odisha) and has 31 grandchildren and 49 great-grandchildren. Even at this age, Takatula has a sharp memory, good eyesight and hearing. A family member said she could still read the Bible without using spectacles. 
SC Jamir attributed his successful career to his mother, saying that while his father devoted his service to the British government as head Dobashi (interpreter)  and teacher, his mother took care of the children and home. Despite having to do all the household work, she made sure that her children attended school. Takatula said she wanted her family members to put Christ at the centre of their lives.

Solar light for a cause
Altogether 25 households of Mayodia model village, known  as Tiwari Gaon, in the vicinity of  the Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh were provided with solar equipment recently.The  villagers support conservation of the hoolock gibbon and Asiatic black bear. The equipment includes a lighting system with a solar panel, a rechargeable multipurpose battery unit, a table lamp and an emergency light. The distribution took place during a conservation awareness programme organised by the Wildlife Trust of India in collaboration with the Arunachal Pradesh forest department and Europaeische Tierschutzstftung.
   Sunil Kyarong, a WTI official, said “The community living around any protected area is the first layer of the protection shield. In order to consolidate the shield, we need to understand their psychology and needs. The solar sets will further bridge the conservation support and confidence for the ongoing Asiatic black bear rehabilitation project and hoolock gibbon translocation project inMehao Wildlife Sanctuary.” The function was attended by state forest officers Keijum Rina and Obian Jonkey and WTI official Soumya Dasgupta along with other wildlife activists and beneficiaries.

NAVA THAKURIA

Come what may…
If it has become routine for North-east rebel outfits to call for a boycott of Republic Day and Independence Day celebrations, the defiance by journalists in Assam against this being equally vehement. As in the past years, a group of Guwahati-based journalists hoisted the National flag at Guwahati Press Club on 26 January and later took out a procession singing patriotic songs.
   Many children with flags joined them, sending a strong message to so-called revolutionaries that their diktats had few takers. Dayanath Singh, a senior journalist, said it was every Indian&’s duty to respect  the National Flag, which commemorated the endless sacrifices made by martyrs of our freedom movement. Rupam Barua, another senior journalist, spoke on the significance of Republic Day.

NT