The Northeast Notebook

The state capital was an important battleground where many Japanese soldiers and others belonging to the Allied Forces lost their lives. The government has also announced a plan to develop all World War II sites in the state as tourist spots.

High on AIDS, low on awareness

WHILE AIDS has been on the rise in the northeast, awareness among the people on condoms has been very low. A recent survey published by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) said while the national condom awareness level stood at 80.1 per cent, in the northeast it was just 66.1 per cent. However, Manipur, which is the worst-affected in the area, has an awareness average of 84.1 per cent—better than even the national average.

Flight to extinction

ONCE found all over Assam, adjutant storks, are gradually dying out. Locally known as bortokola, their population has come down to less than 500 and they are confined only to a few pockets in the state including Guwahati.

Adjutant stokes have been declared ‘‘first priority species for conservation’’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). Large scale destruction of their habitat, has endangered the birds.

Walkie-talkies for railways

RAILWAY drivers and guards of all passenger, express and goods trains under the Northeast Frontier Railway have been given walkie-talkie sets so that they can be in touch with the nearest railway station in case of an accident.

The NF Railway authorities have already bought 26,000 sets while the station staff has been given VHF wireless sets. This is part of a Rs 60 crore effort by the NF Railway to spruce up its safety measures. Many of the accidents in the region are sabotage attempts by militant groups.

Flowering in death grove

WITH the Rain Forest Research Institute at Jorhat warning that a large chunk of the region’s bamboo groves will be wiped out once flowering begins in 2005, the Ministry for Development of Northeastern Region has asked the states to prepare for the harvest and use the bamboo as early as possible. Flowering not only causes decay in bamboo but also the rodent population goes up rapidly once the rodents eat ripe bamboo seeds.