REGIONAL

GANGTOK : President Draupadi Murmu on Thursday conferred the prestigious President’s Police Colour on the Sikkim Police at an event at Paljor Stadium. Sikkim has now become the 15th state of the country and the third in the northeast to receive the award. The President’s Police Colour, also known as ‘Nishaan’, is the highest ceremonial honour bestowed upon a state or central police force in India in recognition of exceptional service, bravery, and professionalism. The officers of the state police honoured with the President’s Police Colour are authorised to wear a special emblem on the uniform. Speaking on the occasion, Murmu said, “I am delighted to have conferred the ‘President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service’ upon the Sikkim Police. This honour is a matter of pride for all members of the Sikkim Police.” She praised the Sikkim Police, founded in 1897, for dedication to maintaining law and order in the strategically important state. Observing that the police have had a colonial bearing, having been set up to control the people instead of serving them, the President said the mindset must change, and police should become citizens’ allies and guides. “By adopting the role of an ally, trust between the public and the police will increase,” she said. Murmu called upon the police to embrace technology to deal with cybercrimes. “Now, new challenges like cybercrime, online fraud, hacking, and deepfakes are emerging. To tackle these new challenges, the police must become proficient in the latest technology, cybersecurity, and digital investigation,” she added. (Source: PTI)

GUWAHATI : A new species of gecko – Cyrtodactylus Bapme – has been discovered in Goalpara district of Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Thursday. “Nature continues to reveal new wonders from Assam. The first confirmed record of the bent-toed gecko (Cyrtodactylus bapme) in Assam from Urpad Beel highlights the extraordinary biodiversity our ecosystems support,” he said in a post on X. The government’s continued conservation efforts are helping preserve these fragile habitats where diverse species continue to thrive, Sarma said. (Source: PTI)

GUWAHATI : The Assam Assembly on Wednesday passed the UCC Bill that seeks to put in place a common legal framework to govern marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships irrespective of religion, even as the opposition demanded that it be sent to a select committee. With the passage of the proposed legislation, Assam became the third state, after Uttarakhand and Gujarat, to pass a Uniform Civil Code Bill. Goa also has one common civil law, which continued from its erstwhile Portuguese colonial period. After a day-long discussion on the ‘The Uniform Civil Code, Assam, 2026 Bill’, Speaker Ranjeet Kumar Dass asked Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to move it for passage. Dass rejected the opposition’s demand that the Bill be sent to a select committee for wider consultation, prompting them to move to the Well of the House and keep on shouting till the Bill was passed. The Speaker put the Bill for voice voting, amid continuous slogans of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and ‘Jai Shree Ram’ by the ruling bench. “I declare that the Bill is passed,” he said after the ruling members voted in favour of it. As soon as the Bill was passed, it was welcomed by a thunderous applause. Aiming for a common set of laws on a range of personal matters like marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships irrespective of religion, the Assam government had on Monday tabled a Bill on the Uniform Civil Code, seeking to ban polygamy and make registration of live-in relationships compulsory. The Bill, however, said that it will not be applicable to any person belonging to the Scheduled Tribes and residing in Assam. It proposed several punitive measures, including seven years imprisonment for bigamy or polygamy, and three months in jail for not registering a live-in relationship. (Source: PTI)        

IMPHAL : Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh on Wednesday called the formation of a high-level committee to assess demographic change a historic move, and said his government would extend full cooperation to the panel. Singh lauded the Centre for its decision to constitute the panel to study demographic change in the country due to “illegal immigration and other unnatural causes”. “The government of Manipur will extend full cooperation to the high-level committee,” the CM said in a statement. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s declaration of a high-powered demography mission on August 15, 2025, followed by the Union Cabinet’s approval on September 11, represents a historic and long-awaited intervention for the people of Manipur and other border states,” he said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said the committee would be chaired by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar and would also include the census commissioner, along with retired IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, ex-IPS officer Balaji Srivastava and Dr Shamika Ravi as members. Singh also appreciated Shah’s statement that infiltration and other reasons are causing “unnatural” demographic change, which poses a significant challenge to the present and future of any nation. Singh said that the people of Manipur are deeply grateful to Modi and Shah for their unwavering commitment to securing India’s borders and checking demographic imbalance. (Source: PTI)    

IMPHAL : The Manipur Congress on Wednesday alleged the BJP-led governments at the Centre and the state have been “silent spectators” when several people were abducted by armed groups, and many are still being held hostage. Interacting with reporters on the sidelines of an event to mark the 62nd death anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru, state Congress president Okram Ibobi Singh alleged that “there is no rule of law in this tiny state”. “What immediate steps have been taken by the state and the central governments when the civilians were abducted? We strongly condemn it and demand that those held hostage be rescued immediately,” he said. The three-term former chief minister also asked, “Why are both the state and Centre being silent spectators? Is there any hidden agenda?” More than 38 people were abducted and held hostage by armed groups in Manipur’s Kangpokpi and Senapati districts on May 13, hours after three church leaders were killed in an ambush. Of them, 31 people have been released, including 12 Naga women and 16 Kukis. Six Naga men, however, continued to be held hostage, and their whereabouts are not yet known. Kuki Inpi Manipur, the apex body of the Kuki tribes in the state, claimed that 14 people from the community continued to be held hostage by Naga groups. Manipur police chief Rajiv Singh on Monday said talks were being held and operations were underway to find the missing persons. Four suspects were also apprehended by security forces from Kangpokpi district on Monday in connection with the abduction of the six Naga civilians. Singh also alleged that the BJP only focuses on elections throughout the year. “They are not concerned about the future of the country.” Speaking about Nehru, the country’s first prime minister, he said, “He tried to maintain good relations with all countries.” (Source: PTI)        

IMPHAL : Four persons were apprehended in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district for their suspected involvement in the abduction of six Naga civilians, who are allegedly still being held hostage, police said on Tuesday. A joint team of the Manipur Police, CRPF and Assam Rifles arrested the four men from the stretch between P Molding and Leilon Vaiphei inter-village road on Monday, they said. The arrested persons were identified as Thangkhomang Khongsai (51), Seikholet Khongsai (40), Lunminthang Dimngel (27) and Kamgoulal Khongsai (30). Police said the four are suspected to be active members of armed village volunteer groups operating in the district and may have been involved in anti-social activities such as extortion, criminal intimidation, and illegal possession of arms and ammunition. “The role of the apprehended individuals in the abduction of six persons is suspected and will be ascertained during the course of investigation,” a police statement said, adding that further investigation is underway. Several people were allegedly abducted and taken hostage by armed groups in Kangpokpi and Senapati districts on May 13, hours after three church leaders were killed in an ambush. Police said 31 people, 14 Nagas, 16 Kukis and one Meitei, have since been released. However, six Nagas are still missing. The Kuki Inpi Manipur, the apex body of the Kuki tribes in the state, claimed that 14 members of the community are also being held hostage by Naga groups. (Source: PTI)    

IMPHAL : An Indian researcher based in Japan has named a newly discovered large structure of galaxies after Manipur’s Loktak Lake, seeking to “immortalise” the northeastern state’s identity in the cosmos. Dr Ronaldo Laishram, who led an international research team as a postdoctoral researcher at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ), said the structure was studied using the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii and the James Webb Space Telescope. “The study, which began around October 2024 as part of a broader ongoing research programme, was published this month in the ‘Astrophysical Journal Letters’,” he told PTI over phone. Laishram said the idea of naming the structure after Loktak Lake came to him immediately after the discovery. “When I first discovered it, the first thing that came to my mind was to do something for my home Manipur. Loktak is the mirror and lifeline of Manipur. It is not just a lake – it is deeply woven into the identity, the stories, and the lives of our people. I wanted to place Manipur, and Loktak, in the story of the universe itself,” he said. The 29-year-old researcher from Khangabok in Thoubal district said he considered several names linked to Manipur’s cultural and historical identity before finalising Loktak. “I thought of several names associated with Manipur’s history and identity. Taoroinai, a mythical serpent deeply associated with Manipur’s cultural and religious legacy, also came to my mind. But, when I saw the four separate concentrations of galaxies all linked together into one larger system, Loktak felt like the most natural name,” he said. “There was also a moment years ago when I took an aerial photograph and saw Loktak from above. That image stayed with me, the way everything was connected. When I looked at this cosmic structure, that memory came back,” Laishram said. Describing the significance of the lake, Laishram said it is the largest freshwater lake in the northeast, and serves as a lifeline providing livelihoods to thousands of fishermen. “It also hosts the only floating national park in the country where Sangai, the brow-antlered deer, lives. By naming this discovery Loktak, I want to immortalise its name forever in the cosmos,” he said. He said the naming has generated curiosity among researchers abroad about the lake and Manipur. “That curiosity is exactly what I hoped for. Loktak deserves to be known,” the researcher said. Laishram said the findings of the discovery suggest that even 12.6 billion years ago, when the universe was about 1.2 billion years old, a galaxy’s surrounding environment influenced its growth. Galaxies in crowded regions were already evolving differently from those in quieter regions, offering fresh evidence that a galaxy’s environment affects its development, he said. Laishram is the son of Laishram Mahajon Singh and Laishram Sanahanbi Devi, and is the youngest among five siblings from Khangabok village in Thoubal district. A computer science and engineering graduate from JSS Science and Technology University (SJCE), Mysuru, he later completed his Master’s and PhD in astronomy and astrophysics at Tohoku University, Japan. Recalling his childhood fascination with astronomy, Laishram said he became curious about the night sky after spotting a bright object, while playing in a field in his village at the age of six. “Since then, I would regularly look at the night sky to watch the stars. That curiosity never left me, it only grew stronger with every question I could not answer,” he said. Laishram and his associates also launched the Manipur Astronomical Society in 2025 to bring together astronomy enthusiasts and researchers on a common platform. (Source: PTI)