Our Correspondent
KOHIMA, JANUARY 21
[dropcap]G[/dropcap]overnor PB Acharya today pointed out that the present government at the Centre has the will and the fortitude to solve the Naga political problem, however, the Nagas must clearly spell out what kind of respectable solution they want. Addressing the inaugural session of a seminar on ‘Nagaland: A Way Forward’ organized by the Inspectorate General of Assam Rifles (North) at the Kenguruse Hall, HQ IGAR (N), Kohima this morning, the Governor said despite the Centre’s cease-fire agreements with the NSCN groups and the Naga people’s desire for peaceful solution, no one is spelling out what that solution is. He expressed concern that the insurgency situation has become an obstructing factor to developmental activities, industrial growth and education system in the state. Observing that peace talks and development can move simultaneously, the Governor appealed to all sections of the society to come together to bring a situation for successful dialogue so as to bring about peace and progress to Nagaland and its people.
On the developmental front, Acharya emphasized the need for empowerment of “3 Es”- Education, Electricity and Employment, opining that the state needed value added education, sufficient electricity and self-employment to move forward. He asserted that Nagaland, with a population of over 20 lakhs, has over 100 Schools and three Universities, yet thousands of young Nagas are going outside the state to seek education, even in primary levels. Expressing his appreciation for the local press for highlighting various loop-holes in the state’s education system such as the presence of a huge number of proxy teachers in the schools, the Governor called upon the people to seriously ponder on such revelations and seriously ponder on how to bring about quality education to the state.
On electricity, the Governor said Nagaland has a vast scope to produce hydro power as well as the usage of solar energy to produce power. Without power no industry can survive, he opined. He pointed that although Nagaland has huge natural wealth, yet they are yet to be tapped for the benefit of the local youth. Also, there is no subject available on the existing resources to educate the people, he said. Stating there are tremendous scopes to open agriculture and horticulture based industries in the state, he regretted that the present unemployment problem in the state is “a calamity of our own creation”. He stressed on the need for the enlightened and intellectual section of the people to adopt a ‘My education and employment is not just for myself but for my society’ mindset.
The Governor also remarked that the Center is giving utmost priority for the development of the North East Region to make it a commercial gateway of the country. He said the Centre, realising that India cannot develop alone without development in North East, is coming up with policies for the development of the region and some of them are already being implemented.
The seminar was held in three separate sessions which had prominent expert speakers including environment activist and former Editor, Eastern Mirror, Bano Haralu; Vice Chancellor Nagaland University, Prof. BK Konwar; Secretary Law, KN Chishi; former Chief Secretary, Alemtemshi Jamir; and Chairman, Ceasefire Monitoring Cell, Lt. Gen. NK Singh, among others.
The seminar entailed an open house discussion on various pertinent issues such as ‘Conflict Management- a precursor to peace and stability’, ‘Prevailing environmental and societal perspective’, ‘ Women’s perspective towards progress and integration of Pan Tribal Affiliation in Nagaland and interface with State Government’, ‘Naga Youth: Pillars of Change’, ‘Legal provisions for effective governance in prevailing security situation and measures to facilitate development’ etc.
The seminar was conducted under the aegis of HQ IGAR (N) with a view to provide an intellectual forum to promote and foster a closer interaction with all the stakeholders towards evolving a partnership aimed at seeking a way forward for the state.
