Trilogy of the Northeast

By Dipti Bhalla & Kunal Verma
Set of Three Volumes
Published by KaleidoIndia
Released in OTA by Gen VK Singh on 27 Apr 2012
Northeast Trilogy raises a curtain on the wonders of Northeast India – a land, which was to many and perhaps still is a land of mystery and mystique. Published in three volumes, it is an in-depth collection of hundreds of photographs taken in the field by Dipti Bhalla and Kunal Verma over a period of three years. Through their images they have captured a world hitherto unknown to many - the richness and the grandeur of the Northeast. The entire collection goes beyond the realm of one’s imagination.
This lavish set of three is a celebration and a tribute to the people of the Northeast - from stunning portraits to landscapes and the rich flora and fauna. Dipti and Kunal have demystified an entire area that was hitherto unknown not only to the rest of the country but also to the communities that live in the region in isolated pockets demarcated by difficult terrain. The seclusion was geographical. But the story today is different. The Northeastern states are among the best performing ones in the country. There has been immense improvement in literacy, health, and infrastructure.
The first volume of the trilogy takes the reader through Sikkim, North Bengal, Assam, and Meghalaya. The second is devoted entirely to Arunachal. Aptly titled Brahma’s Creation, it explores fourteen of the state’s sixteen districts, from the plains to the deepest core of the Himalaya. The remaining two districts are covered in Volume III of the trilogy – Children of the Dawn – together with Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, and Mizoram.
The Trilogy is a delight – and a nugget!
Northeast Trilogy

Indian Military's dedication to duty

And when they seek their dues, the government says they are like anyone else.
Are they? Look at this picture below. Human bridge to rescue civilians in Sikkim.

Army jawans providing relief during the recent Sikkim earthquake.

National Disaster Management Team drains the Army in Sikkim

Friday , September 23 , 2011
Disaster team drain on army
SUJAN DUTTA
New Delhi, Sept. 22: The army in Sikkim is fed up with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) because its personnel are not only unfit for rescue and relief work but also a drain on the military’s resources.

Army officers are wary of speaking out in public on the difficulties of helping the NDRF — which they have been asked to by the home ministry — but it takes little for them to vent their ire in private.

“They (the NDRF) do not have any administrative support and they are eating into ours. They should remain in Delhi and Gurgaon to rescue cats from high-rises,” an angry officer said.

Officers on the ground have been constantly complaining to their superiors and higher headquarters on the demands being made by the NDRF.

“This is a time for all able people to get down on the ground with pickaxes and shovels but these NDRF personnel are not fit enough to walk 1,500 feet downhill and then 800 feet uphill,” one officer said.

Deployment in the Himalayan state demands acclimatisation and high-energy levels that are not ordinarily required in the plains. The 10 NDRF teams, of about 400 personnel, were flown in by the Indian Air Force’s newly acquired Super Hercules C-130J aircraft from Delhi and Calcutta.

For nearly two days they were stranded in Bagdogra and Siliguri waiting for army engineers to clear the road to Gangtok after Sunday evening’s quake.

The army was also asked to dedicate three helicopters to the NDRF, an order that it has grudgingly accepted.

“This is the time for all available resources to be put to the best use. But we have had to give them these helicopters and they are still in ‘recce mode’ while we are desperately looking for more for casualty evacuation and to fly in resources,” another officer said.

Sikkim is in the army’s Sukna-headquartered 33 Corps area of responsibility. The Corps has three divisions — 27 (headquartered in Kalimpong), 17 (Gangtok) and 20 (Binaguri). All three are mountain divisions with their soldiers acclimatised or acclimatising for deployment in high-altitude positions.

Many of the army posts along the 250-odd kilometre frontage with China in North and East Sikkim are still not physically accessible.

But there are nearly 6,000 troops whose main task now is to clear roads because the deployment for “border management” (a defensive posture) does not require all resources to be posted at the front.

The army has been deployed across Sikkim for 40 years and along with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police were the first responders to the quake.

An officer complained that not only has the NDRF been given dedicated helicopters, its officers also demand to be guided by the army.

The NDRF is a young force, formed after the 2004 tsunami. Ironically, former army chief, General (retired) Nirmal Chandra Vij heads the National Disaster Management Authority.
Disaster team drain on army

Lt Gen Vijay Madan (Retd) appointed interlocutor for Gorkhaland issue

20:16 IST
Lt Gen (Retd) Vijay Madan has been appointed the interlocutor for the purpose of handling talks in respect of the demand for Gorkhaland with all stake holders. The detailed terms and conditions of the appointment will be issued in due course.
Lt. General (Retd) Vijay Madan appointed interlocutor for talks on Gorkhaland issue
Jaswant Singh raises Gorkhaland issue
Political Interlocutor
An interlocutor is someone who informally explains the views of a government and also can relay messages back to a government. Unlike a spokesperson, an interlocutor often has no formal position within a government or any formal authority to speak on its behalf, and even when they do, everything an interlocutor says is his own personal opinion and not the official view of anyone. Because an interlocutor does not express an official view, communications between interlocutors are often useful at conveying information and ideas. Often interlocutors will talk with each other before formal negotiations.

Interlocutor
1. a person who takes part in a conversation
2. Also called middleman the man in the centre of a troupe of minstrels who engages the others in talk or acts as announcer
3. (Law) Scots law a decree by a judge

Siliguri Corridor in Sikkim: Finger Point

"Area falls North of Gyangyong in Sikkim and overlooks a valley known as the Sora Funnel, and is considered a strong defensive position to ward off any move by China to enter the Sikkim plateau"
The Siliguri corridor in Sikkim is the weakest point in the Indian defence which has been reinforced with 40000 Jawans and T72 tanks. Chinese road through Finger area can cutoff entire North East region. Sep 16 2009, 09:09 AM

The 30-km wide Siliguri corridor, which links India with rest of North Eastern states, is the weakest point in the Indian defence and if China somehow gained control of the corridor the entire North East region would be cut away from India. Some 40,000 troops were responsible for the defence of Sikkim and the strategically important Siliguri corridor. Chinese moves to test Indian control of the strategic Finger Area in North Sikkim last year have prompted the Army to deploy heavy tanks and armoured personnel carriers in the region and strengthen defensive positions. In fact, the highest gallantry award to a Border Roads Organisation (BRO) personnel was conferred to a dozer operator, Zalim Singh, who cleared a strategic road near Theing village he was decorated with a Bar to Shaurya Chakra for a column of advancing tanks.While the Army brought armoured vehicles to the North Sikkim plateau in the late 1980s, the small detachment has now been replaced by the heavier and more powerful T-72 Main Battle Tanks and modern BMP troop carriers.

Sources said the mobilisation took place after repeated Chinese transgressions last year in the Finger Area, a one kilometre stretch of land in the northern tip of Sikkim that overlooks a valley called the Sora Funnel and is considered a strong defensive position. The T-72 tanks were inducted after a monumental effort by the BRO to widen roads, construct tracks and strengthen bridges leading to North Sikkim. The heavy tank column was taken up the high plateau partly by road-based carriers. Sources said that while China too has tanks on its side of the border, they are deployed well inside its territory. “China does not need to deploy tanks on the border because the terrain and roads on its side makes it easy to bring them at short notice. India, on the other hand, has no option but to keep them on the border as it would take days to get the tanks up from the plains,” an expert pointed out. Besides the tanks, the Army has strengthened other defences in the region, particularly around the Finger Area. Permanent posts have been set up on heights and bunkers have been strengthened. The Army has also increased surveillance capabilities in the region. At least two Long Range Observation Systems which can detect, record and transmit live images of an area under observation, have been set up in the Finger Area.

The strengthening of defences has taken place partly due to the re-induction of the 27 Mountain Division to North Sikkim. The Kalimpong-based Division, responsible for the defence of North Sikkim and the Finger Area, had been moved to Jammu and Kashmir in 2001 during the Op Parakram troop buildup along the Pakistan border. The Finger Area entered controversy last year after the Chinese increased patrolling and even planned to build a road through it. While the area was always under Indian control, the Army used to send in regular patrols and held only a few traditional defensive positions. India decided to strengthen defences after increased Chinese transgressions and the discovery last year that the alignment of a new East-West road being built by Beijing would pass through the Finger Area. Construction was put to a stop after New Delhi lodged a diplomatic complaint.
Siliguri Corridor in Sikkim

Chinese Goods invade Indian market and LAC heats up

Chinese Ceramics Glamour
Just before the turn of this century, about the only thing Chinese found in Indian markets was little vials of balm. Now, seven years down the line, 'Made in China' goods make for an all-season flood, and nowhere more than in eastern India. The items range from toothpicks, toys, thermoses and blankets to high-end furniture, floor tiles and electrical goods manufactured in the Middle Kingdom. There has been a change of perception of Chinese goods even among the discerning and brand-conscious. And the import list, conservatively estimated at about 5,000 broadly categorised items, is only growing. The West Bengal Chamber of Commerce estimates that each household in the eastern region uses at least five Chinese-made items daily. That not only makes the 'Made in China' brand the most popular among foreign goods sold here, but puts China way ahead of any other country that exports to India in terms of volume and range of items.

One reason for their growing popularity is, of course, their attractive pricing, due to economies of scale as well as 'surreptitious subsidies' by the Chinese government. It also helps that Chinese manufacturers are far more innovative than their Indian counterparts and, since they cater intensively to Western markets, are fully conversant with latest design trends, which they incorporate in their goods. Plus, there's been a dramatic change in perception, even among the discerning and brand-conscious. Even till half a decade ago, the popular perception of Chinese goods was that they were cheap, but of very poor quality. The early Indian traders who started importing from China used to get only low-quality, cheap goods. But these days, CII's Eastern India regional director Sunil Misra told Outlook, Indian importers of Chinese goods have realised there's a huge market for quality products.

One of them is Ajay Bhartiya, who imports tiles, wooden and steel doors and windows, and home and office furniture from China. "Chinese manufacturers constantly upgrade their products. For instance, Chinese tile manufacturers change their designs every two months—something Indian manufacturers don't do," he points out. Bhartiya, who has a trade office in Guangzhon, imports at least ten container loads of tiles, building materials and furniture through Calcutta and Haldia ports every month. These are displayed in swanky showrooms in Calcutta, and are much in demand. Sarvesh Kumar, Tata Steel's chief of retail initiative, says Chinese steel furniture is elegant and of very high quality.

Chinese steel furniture accounts for at least a quarter of Calcutta store Steel Junction's monthly turnover of about Rs 50 lakh. Beautiful Living, on Camac Street, finds it difficult to keep pace with the huge demand for the Chinese furniture it imports. Understandably so, since the stools, settees and sofas there look straight out of a Western designer furniture catalogue. The Chinese sanitary ware and bathroom fittings it stocks are also extremely popular with construction companies in the eastern region.
Eastern India's retail market is in thrall of cheap, stylish Chinese goods

We are at Critical Juncture of History. Is Indian Corruption and Trade restrictions hurting China?
Like in the pre-1962 war period, India is again now at a critical juncture, it has become common place internationally to speak of India and China in the same breadth. The aim of “Mao’s India war,” as Harvard scholar Roderick MacFarquhar has called it, was large political: To cut India to size by demolishing what it represented— a democratic alternative to the Chinese autocracy. The swiftness and force with which Mao Zedong defeated India helped discredit the Indian model, boost China’s international image and consolidate Mao’s internal power. The return of the China-India pairing decades later is something Beijing viscerally detests.

China never thought India as an important trade partner or rival until now. China’s attitude towards India has always been contemptuous. When talking about Indian to Chinese people (Shanghaiese in particular), they will probably tell you that 70 years ago, Indians were working as doormen in Shanghai. A recently declassified letter (March 2, 1973), from Henry Kissinger to Richard Nixon, showcases the utter contempt Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai had for the Indian leadership. Kissinger says, inter alia,

“In South Asia, the Chinese believe India remains Moscow’s principal agent; their distrust of New Delhi remains as potent as ever... Chou (Zhou) displayed a particular contempt for the Indians and a personal dislike for Indian leaders. He related several cynical and disdainful anecdotes about Prime Ministers Nehru and Gandhi.... In response, I said that we would go slow in any improvement of relations with New Delhi and would keep the PRC informed.”

Things are certainly changing now when China realized that the competition from India is real and serious. India is claiming to switch their focus from back office service to manufactory; India has English language advantage over China; Chinese Yuan is forced to appreciate against US dollar.
Is China itching a Border War?
China is far ahead: Anthony at the border 2 years ago

Red tape halts roads along China

New Delhi, November 12
An ambitious project to build 73 more roads for strategic purposes all along the border with China has got entwined in red tape. This despite the fact that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had announced a major ramp up of infrastructure.

All these roads were planned in the past two years as part of India’s strategic needs projected by the security agencies. These were to connect remote lying areas in India along the Chinese border and aid faster movement of men and material in case of any emergency. The move had come after the Chinese surprised India by building a vast road and rail network in Tibet and in areas very close to the border between the two countries.

For the 73 roads, the mandatory clearance from the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) is awaited. The ministry of defence was startled after it came to know that the construction of roads had been held up as the mandatory clearances were still awaited.

The MoD has now “reminded” the MoEF to speed up the matter in view of the national interest involved in these projects. The target was to progressively complete all the roads by 2012 but the progress was slow, sources said.

The matter had come up for discussion in the last conference of the commanders of the armed forces in Delhi a few days ago.

On its part the MoEF may be concerned about the geological stability of the mountains or the threat to fragile eco-systems and a depleting forest cover. The Himalayas on the Indian side are also prone to landslides. However, the sources said in most cases kutcha traditional routes exist and it was just a matter of widening them, building bridges over culverts and paving the road to make it motorable.

These pending road projects are in all states that border China like Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. In other case new alignments are also being carved out.

In India, except the roads, the work on other projects like upgrading airfields in the northeast or opening old disused airstrips in Ladakh are going on as per plan.

Out of the 70 roads being built by the government, 20 are in the Arunachal Pradesh area. The road density in Sikkim is only 28.45 km per 100 sq km against the national average of 84 km. Arunachal Pradesh is even worse off, with a road density of just 18.65 km per 100 sq km.

On the other hand, almost no rail link exists even as India is now conducting a survey to link areas like Leh with trains. On the Chinese side, the project for new rail lines will bring Chinese trains up to border with Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, two Indian states that figure prominently on the radar of the Sino-Indian disputes.

The Indian security agencies opine that road and rail projects in China are completed quickly and often ahead of time while in India these face one hurdle after the other.

Sources said the speed of Chinese construction was startling. Citing a few cases, they said infrastructure was right next to the Line of Actual Control.
Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
Red tape halts roads along China

ESM may be roped in adventure tourism

NEW DELHI : The Tourism Ministry is considering a proposal to use the services of ex-servicemen as part of an exercise for manpower development in adventure tourism.

There is a need for manpower development in adventure tourism and the services of ex-servicemen may be used for the purpose, said a senior Tourism Ministry official. With an aim to boost adventure tourism, the Ministry has worked out an action plan to be carried out in close coordination with state governments. Currently there are about 25 projects related to adventure tourism being implemented with central financial assistance in different states.

The projects include development of river rafting facilities, ski destinations, water sports complex, eco and adventure centre and trekking routes in several states. Tourism Ministry at a recent review meeting decided to provide an updated list of these ongoing projects to adventure tour operators association to enable them to plan activities and marketing initiatives accordingly. "We are trying to sort out various issues related to adventure tourism concerning other ministries like Environment and Forest Ministry and Defence Ministry," said a senior Tourism Ministry official.

A meeting with other Ministries where clearances are required for adventure tourism activities will be convened by the Tourism Ministry shortly, said the official. There is also a proposal to construct an Adventure Tourism Centre in Sikkim whose model can be replicated in other states as well.
Ex-servicemen may be roped in adventure tourism

Army Expedition to Jongsang Glacier

Kripan Division organised an expedition to the Muguthang sector in North Sikkim from June 24 to July 9.

The area is a typical glacial zone with steep cliffs, ice pinnacles and walls, hanging glaciers and frozen lakes which may burst any time. The expedition by the Trishakti Corps was in consonance with the army’s practice of developing love for nature, mountains, flora and fauna among the men in uniform.

The trek was also aimed at developing key leadership traits such as mental and physical robustness, camaraderie, decision making and problem solving ability among the junior leaders of the army. The expedition team, led by Captain Shanu Krishna, comprised three officers, one junior commissioned officer and 24 personnel of Kripan Division.

While most of the team members were the personnel of the Punjab Regiment, others were from Corps of Signals and Army Medical Corps for technical support. The expedition traversed through Jongsang Glacier to complete its mission by scaling Point 5630 near Jongsang Peak.
Army Expedition to Jongsang Glacier