The Hindu : National : A new deal for Nagaland

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Oct 14, 2006
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National

A new deal for Nagaland

P. Sunderarajan

Sibal announces a slew of initiatives

DIMAPUR (NAGALAND): Union Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal on Friday announced a slew of initiatives to bring modern developments in science and technology for the social and economic development of Nagaland.

The package covered a wide gamut of issues from better training facilities for the youth of the State to programmes to help it tap better its rich potential in terms of bamboo production and to help the State in being better prepared to meet natural calamities.

The highlights of the package include a programme to upgrade the science laboratories in four select colleges and retraining of science teachers, establishment of a bio-informatics infrastructure facility and organisation of a month-long vacation training programme for school children at Nagaland University in Kohima; a course in basic science for 20 school children of the State in Class X and XI at the Darjeeling sub-centre of the renowned Kolkata-based J.C.Bose Institute and provision of assistance to the Nagaland Science and Technology Council for formulation of a project on documentation of traditional medicinal practices based on indigenous herbs and plants.

Bamboo gasifiers

The package also provides for induction of six bamboo gasifiers with capacity ranging from 25 kw to 75 kw during 2007 for providing electricity to villages and institutions like health sub-centres,, residential schools and small enterprises, establishment of another integrated bamboo processing and treatment facility at Tuli, in addition to the one coming up at Dimapur; and support for two entrepreneurial units for manufacture of bamboo composite material or for revival of closed plywood units based on conversion to bamboo.

Mr. Sibal, who was here to lay the foundation stone for a Rs.4.8-crore Nagaland Bamboo Resource Centre being set up by the State Government with financial and technical support from his Ministry, said the National Mission for Bamboo Application under his Ministry was also prepared to support establishment by entrepreneurs of an additional unit for industrial scale bamboo shoot processing, with capacities for processing passion fruit, pineapples and other fruits as well, and to support the setting up of a bamboo plant hardening facility.

Regulatory regime

In addition, NMBA would support a review of the access and regulatory regime for bamboo, including its felling and transportation and the regime for fiscal and other incentives to encourage value added products.

The package has the following components that are meant for the region as a whole: provision of telescopes to schools at the rate of 40 in Assam and 20 each in the other States, provision of 20 telemetry stations for better monitoring of seismic activities, and support for establishment of a fabrication unit for turbines for mini and micro-hydel projects with technical assistance from IISc, Bangalore.

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