News Briefs Vol. 3 Issue No. 60

Feb. 16-28, 2010

Queen’s baton to pass through Nagaland

Currently in Africa, the Queen’s Baton Relay will reach Dimapur on July 23 and Kohima on July 24.
The Baton would reach Dimapur from Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, where a cultural function would be held to mark the Baton relay in the state. The Baton would be flown to Kohima by chopper on July 24 and travel to Touphema by road on July 25. After a night’s halt at Touphema, the Baton would be flown to Senapati on July 26.
Additional secretary, youth resources and sport, Bendang Longchari when contacted said that the torch bearers would comprise of internationally renowned local sports persons and some selected by the department. The move to bring the Queen’s Baton, a symbol of the royal scepter of Queen Elizabeth, was decided in a Commonwealth Games meeting held in New Delhi recently, Longchari added. He expressed the hope that school and college students would participate in the rally as the event would be telecast in all commonwealth countries.
The Queens Baton Relay began in Buckingham Palace in London when Queen Elizabeth handed over the baton to President Pratibha Patil last October in presence of Chairman of the organizing committee Suresh Kalmadi. Since then the baton has traveled thousands of miles and is currently in Africa.The baton would travel to all 71 countries in the Commonwealth before arriving in India on June 25. The baton would travel to all the state capitals and union territories for 100 days before arriving at the JN Stadium in New Delhi for the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games on Oct 3.

Queen’s Baton to touch Tawang

The Queen’s Baton, the symbol of the royal sceptre of Queen Elizabeth, will be flown to Tawang in July after the organising committee of the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi consented to the proposal of the Arunachal government. The Queen’s Baton Relay began from the Buckingham Palace, London, after the Queen of England handed over the baton to President Pratibha Patil in the presence of the chairman of the organising committee of the Commonwealth Games 2010, Suresh Kalmadi, in October last year. Parliamentary secretary for sports and youth affairs, Wangki Lowang, said the nod from the organising committee came recently. “The organising committee of the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi has agreed to the request of chief minister Dorjee Khandu, who wanted the Queen’s Baton Relay to touch Tawang, considering its historical, religious and cultural significance,” Lowang said. Tawang, bordering China, which had been under Kameng Frontier during the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA) days, is the home district of Khandu. The baton will be flown to Tawang on July 22 from Shillong in an army helicopter. A two-hour relay will be held on the same day before the baton is flown to Naharlagun, Lowang further added. A sub-committee has been constituted today by the state government under the chairmanship of the deputy commissioner of Itanagar and Naharlagun, Padmini Singla, to make arrangements for the scheduled programme. The baton will be kept at Raj Bhavan for a night before being flown to its next stop at Dimapur in Nagaland the following day. The baton has covered several thousands of miles and is currently in Africa. It will travel to all 70 countries of the Commonwealth before arriving in India on June 25 at the Wagah border from Pakistan. The baton will then travel to all the state capitals and Union Territories for 100 days before arriving at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium for the opening ceremony of the Games in New Delhi on October 3. The baton is scheduled to complete 240 days’ journey throughout 70 countries. During its 100-day tour in India, the baton will visit all the state capitals and seven Union Territories apart from other cities along the way, covering over 20,000km.

Outsource potentials, Kalam to Assam

Inaugurating the community science festival, Jana Vigyan Mela at Baihata Chariali, the former President A P J Abdul Kalam says Assam has every potential for comprehensive growth. He said Assam has all the infra-structure like over 26,000 villages and rich natural resources, minerals, forests, water and fertile land to tap its possibilities, says the Sinlung. The Science and Technology Council at Baihata organized the fair. It is the initial development in entire Northeast to generate scientific awareness amongst the people by Assam government. “Through the use of new technology, scientific development will be demonstrated to students in a simplistic manner. It will also pave the way for direct interaction of people with scientists and experts like Kalam,” a government official said.
It was after the understanding of government as the northeast is not with the developmental sciences and the fair is targeting the youngsters, students and even the whole walks of life. The Alliance between M S Swaminathan Research Foundation and One World South Asia and Microsoft to make a move for stepping a network of information kiosks in 600,000 villages in India by Providing Urban Facilities in Rural Areas mission, Kalam informed.
Addressing the youngsters Kalam told that the mission should be focused on increasing agricultural efficiency and worth also with agro-products and nurturing and promoting horticulture.

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