ITANAGAR, April 10 – The ruling BJP today appeared to be heading for a confrontation with All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU) by deciding to field candidates in the Lok Sabha election defying the call for poll boycott over the Chakma-Hajong refugee issue of the apex students organisation, reports PTI.

BJP State unit President Taba Hare despatched a letter to the AAPSU saying that his party did not agree that boycotting the poll would bring about any solution to the refugee issue. The AAPSU had called a press conference with all political parties today to jointly announce...

AGARTALA, April 10– Tripura has recorded an alarming rise in the number of AIDS patients in recent years despite the fact that crores of rupees are being spent on the prevention of the deadly disease. According to the Project Director of the AIDS Control Society, Dr TK Das, there are 70 HIV positive and six full-blown AIDS patients. There were in total eight AIDS patients but two had died recently.

While delivering a lecture at a seminar organised by the Society of Pathologists, Microbiologists and Bio-chemists on the occasion of its biennial convention, Dr Das said, till date HIV virus was...

IMPHAL, April 10 – With the rejection of the nomination papers of two candidates, altogether six candidates will be fighting it out for the Inner Manipur Parliamentary constituency in the ensuing 14th Lok Sabha elections. The nomination papers of Lairenlakpam Raghumani and Waikhonm Manimohon, both independent candidates, were rejected during scrutiny on Thursday. The two had failed to provide some of the mandatory information in their nomination papers, officials sources said.

The six candidates who are now to contest the Inner seat are former deputy chief minister Dr Leishangthem Chandramani...

SHILLONG, April 10 –The April 16, 2001 occupation of the small village of Pyrdiwah in Meghalaya, located along the Indo-Bangladesh border still haunts the villagers. The Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) had surrounded the BSF post in Pyrdiwah, which is under “adverse possession” of Bangladesh and forcibly evicted the villagers on the morning of that fateful day.

The External Affairs Ministry was informed of the developments only on April 17. The matter was taken up strongly both in New Delhi and Dhaka the next day. The Bangladesh government acted swiftly to order the BDR to vacate Pyrdiwah within 24...

VARANGTE (Mizoram), April 9 – As terrorism spreads its tentacles and fears of weapons of mass destruction falling into militant hands emerge, the Government has given the go-ahead for conversion of the country’s sole Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School (CIJW) here into a full-fledged Armed Forces College to frame tactics to deal with such threats, reports PTI.

With the conversion expected later this year, the warfare school is going in for massive expansion setting up specialised training ranges for counter terrorism encounters, jungle warfare, urban and semi-urban guerilla warfare...