INDIA: Airforce Plane Goes Missing With 13 On Board

An Indian Air Force transport plane that took off from Assam's Jorhat with 13 people onboard on Monday has gone missing over over hilly terrain in the Northeast.

The Antonov An-32 took off at 12:27 pm for a remote military landing strip in Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh.

The aircraft last had contact with ground crew at 1 pm, sources have told NDTV. The normal flight time between Jorhat and Mechuka is about 50 minutes.

The Air Force has launched a search operation and spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel P Khongsai said every effort was being made to locate the missing plane.

The Indian Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police and the state disaster relief force joined the search along with planes and helicopters.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted about the incident.

Located in a picturesque and sparsely populated valley, Mechuka has one of the many rudimentary landing strips run by the Air Force near the Line of Actual Control with China.

The terrain under the flight's route is mountainous and heavily forested. The landing and take-off approaches to Mechuka are extremely difficult. Coupled with erratic weather, the region is among the most inhospitable for air transport.

The aircraft may have got entangled in low clouds. Flying in these areas is fraught with a measure of uncertainty, Air Commodore Prashant Dikshit (Retired) said.

The An-32 is a Soviet-designed twin engine turboprop transport aircraft used extensively by the Indian Air Force for over four decades. Since it joined the IAF fleet, the rugged planes used to ferry people and air-drop supplies have undergone several rounds of upgrades.

In 2016, an Indian Air Force An-32 disappeared while flying over the Bay of Bengal after taking off from Chennai for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The search and rescue operation became India's largest such operation for a missing plane on the sea in history but the aircraft was never found. All 29 people onboard were presumed dead.


Tourism Observer

INDIA: Permits For Tourist Buses Registered In Arunachal Pradesh But Not Operating In The State To be Cancelled

The Arunachal Pradesh government has decided to cancel the registration and national permits of all tourist buses registered in Arunachal Pradesh but not operating in the state.

The decision is likely to affect private travel agencies operating vehicles in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana that acquire national permits from Arunachal and Nagaland.

According to official sources, the state transport commissioner has informed all the district tourism officers (DTOs) to cancel the registration of tourist buses and sleeper coaches in the state that operate their vehicles in other states, including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, in violation of the Central Motor Vehicle (CMV) Act, 1986 and Central Motor Vehicle Act, 1989.

In a second letter, the commissioner also ordered the cancellation of national permits to such vehicles.

The registrations of the vehicles have been done without physical inspection as mandated under the CMV Act, 1988 besides violation of the norm that requires verification of the address as required under the CMV Act, 1988 and CMV Act 1989, and prescribed dimensions of the motor vehicles under the CMTV Rules, 1989, the letters said.

The DTOs have been instructed to direct the vehicle owners to report their vehicles to the nearest police stations.

Tourism has taken a major hit in the scenic town of Darjeeling in West Bengal, with the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) spearheading a shut down on Monday over a demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland.

Hundreds of tourists are still stranded in the town and nearby areas, unable to move out to other locations because of a lack of transport. Some people, however, managed to reach Kolkata on Sunday and expressed their relief at being able to get out of a tense Darjeeling.

Reacting to the crisis, a tourist said,We are facing a lot of problems right now. People know, since the offices are closed, anything can happen on the streets. For flight departures scheduled at 3 p m, people are leaving at 6 a m in the morning.?

He said tourism is the main revenue stream of Darjeeling, and therefore, political parties like the GJM must not hold protests when the season is at its peak.

I would have to think before coming to Darjeeling again,? he added.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday blamed West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for the ongoing unrest over demands for the creation of a separate 'Gorkhaland' state, adding that her 'meaningless politics' has fueled the situation.

Nothing happened for seven years. Now with Mamata Banerjee forcing the Bengali language on the people, the situation has turned bad. She should end her interference and apologise to the people of West Bengal, BJP leader Rahul Sinha he said.

Supporting his stance, West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh alleged that the government was not interested in solving issues being dealt with in the region, adding that the violence witnessed is a result of forced interference by Mamata Banerjee.

The two most significant contributors to Darjeeling's economy are tourism and the tea industry. Darjeeling became an important tourist destination as early as 1860.

It is reported to be the only location in eastern India that witnesses a large influx of foreign tourists. It is also a popular filming destination for Bollywood and Bengali cinema.

Tourist inflows into Darjeeling have of late been affected by the political instability in the region. Presently, between 50,000 foreign and 500,000 domestic tourists visit Darjeeling annually if the situation is normal.

It is known as the 'Queen of the Hills' and in 2015 was the third most googled travel destination in India.

INDIA: About Nagaland, India

Nagaland is a state in the far north-eastern part of India. It borders the state of Assam to the west, Arunachal Pradesh and part of Assam to the north, Burma to the east and Manipur to the south. The state capital is Kohima, and the largest city is Dimapur. The state of Nagaland has an area of 16,579 km2 with a population of 1,980,602 (nineteen lakhs eighty thousand six hundred two) as per the 2011 census making it one of the smallest states of India. The state is mostly mountainous except those areas bordering Assam valley. Mount Saramati is the highest peak in Nagaland with a height of 3,840 metres and its range forms a natural barrier between Nagaland and Burma. It lies between the parallels of 98 degree and 96 degree East Longitude and 26.6 degree and 27.4 degree latitude North of the Equator.

Nagaland, the 16th state of the Indian Union, was established on December 1, 1963. It is divided into eleven districts: Kohima, Phek, Mokokchung, Wokha, Zunheboto, Tuensang, Mon, Dimapur, Kiphire, Longleng and Peren. It is a largely mountainous state. Agriculture is the most important economic activity in Nagaland. Principal crops include rice, corn, millets, pulses, tobacco, oilseeds, sugarcane, potatoes and fibres. Other significant economic activity includes forestry, tourism, insurance, real estate, and miscellaneous cottage industries.

Economy:
Agriculture is the most important economic activity in Nagaland, with more than 90% of the population employed in agriculture. Crops include rice, corn, millets, pulses, tobacco, oilseeds, sugarcane, potatoes, and threads. However, Nagaland still depends on the import of food supplies from other states. The widespread practice of jhum, tilling, has led to soil erosion and loss of fertility, particularly in the eastern districts. Only the Angami and Chakesang tribes in the Kohima and Phek districts use terracing techniques. And most of the Aos, Lothas, and Zeliangs in Mokokchung, Wokha, and Peren districts respectively till in the many valleys of the district. Forestry is also an important source of income. Cottage industries such as weaving, woodwork, and pottery are also an important source of revenue. Tourism is important, but largely limited due to insurgency since the last five decades. Nagaland's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $1.4 billion in current prices.

Culture:

Hornbill Festival of Nagaland:
Hornbill Festival was launched by the Government of Nagaland in December 2000 to encourage inter-tribal interaction and to promote cultural heritage of the state. Organized by the State Tourism and Art & Culture Departments, Hornbill Festival showcases a mélange of cultural displays under one roof. This festival takes place between the 1st and the 7th of December every year. The week long Hornbill Festival is held at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama which is about 12 km from Kohima. All the tribes of Nagaland take part in this festival. The aim of the festival is to revive and protect the rich culture of Nagaland and display its extravaganza and traditions.

Flora and Fauna:
Nagaland is rich in flora and fauna. About one-sixth of Nagaland is under the cover of tropical and sub-tropical evergreen forests—including palms, bamboo, and rattan as well as timber and mahogany forests. While some forest areas have been cleared for jhum cultivation, many scrub forests, high grass, reeds; secondary dogs, pangolins, porcupines, elephants, leopards, bears, many species of monkeys, sambar, harts, oxen, and buffaloes thrive across the state's forests.

The Great Indian Hornbill is one of the most famous birds found in the state. Blyth’s Tragopan, a vulnerable species of pheasant, is also found in the state and is the State Bird of Nagaland. It is sighted in mount Japfü and Dzükou valley of Kohima district, Satoi Range in Zunheboto district and Pfütsero in Phek district. Of the mere 2500 tragopans sighted in the World, Dzükou valley is the natural habitat of more than 1,000.

Mithun (a semi domesticated Gaur) found only in the North Eastern states of India, is the State animal of Nagaland and has been adopted as the official seal of the Government of Nagaland. It is the ritually most valued species in the state. With a view to conserve and protect this magnificent animal in the North East, the National Research Centre on Mithun (NRCM) was established by the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) in the year 1988 in the state of Nagaland.