Latest news with #Lalduhoma
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Initiatives to broker peace between warring Chin armed groups continue
1 2 3 4 Aizawl: The Advocacy Group for Peace in Chinland, a Aizawl-based team constituted under the aegis of Mizoram CM Lalduhoma, is yet making a breakthrough to bring peace between the warring Chin armed groups as both sides failed to reach a compromise to end the armed internecine conflict in western Chin state, a member of the advocacy team said on Monday, reports HC Vanlalruata. The member, speaking to TOI on the condition of anonymity, said the group has reached out to both the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF) and the Chinland Defence Force (CDF) - Hualngoram as well as the Chin National Front (CNF) and its armed wing the Chin National Army (CNA) a number of times. "The main impediment is that the groups, when they are cornered, want peace but refuse to accept our peace overtures whenever they gain upper hand," he said. The National Unity Government (NUG), a parallel Myanmar govt in exile, also has urged the Chin armed groups to stop fighting among themselves. Other bodies, including National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), an advisory body of the NUG, and several religious denominations of the Chins as well as civil societies in Mizoram have also been calling for peace and unity among the Chin armed groups.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Modi to inaugurate Bairabi-Sairang railway on request of Mizoram CM
1 2 3 4 Aizawl: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the request of Mizoram chief minister Lalduhoma on Monday, said he will personally undertake inauguration of the newly constructed 51.38km-long Bairabi-Sairang railway at the Sairang station at a convenient time, an official statement said. Lalduhoma met Modi at the latter's official residence in Delhi and asked him to inaugurate the Bairabi-Sairang road and the Sairang Rail station in the outskirts of Aizawl. Sources in the Northeastern Frontier Railway (NFR) said the PM is likely to inaugurate the newly constructed railway line by the end of July as safety inspection by the commissioner of railway safety (CRS) and trial run along the entire railway had already been completed. During the meeting, the two leaders discussed wide ranging issues, including fallout of the recent conflict in the Chin state effecting Mizoram. They also discussed the proposed Thenzawl Peace City Project, 'Hand-holding scheme' — the flagship programme of the present Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) govt and upgrading the World Bank-funded Aizawl to Thenzawl road into a national highway. Lalduhoma also raised the issue of the Rs 9,265 crore northeast grid national gas pipeline project being undertaken by the Indradhanush Gas Grid Limited (IGGL). The completion of this project will revolutionise cooking gas usage with the people of Aizawl city availing piped gas connection. The PM in turn said he wanted the deputy commissioner of Mamit district bordering Tripura to speed up the construction of the pipeline as it will be going through the district.
Hans India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Mizoram CM invites PM Modi to inaugurate Bairabi-Sairang railway project
New Delhi/Aizawl: Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence in New Delhi and also invited him to formally inaugurate the newly completed Bairabi–Sairang railway line and the new Sairang Railway Station. An official of the Mizoram Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said that the Prime Minister expressed his willingness to do so in person, subject to the availability of time in his schedule. He said that during the meeting, several key issues concerning the development of Mizoram were discussed. The Chief Minister raised important matters, including the Thenzawl Peace City Project, a request to declare the Aizawl-Thenzawl road as a National Highway, and the implementation progress of the Handholding Policy. The two leaders also discussed the situation in the Chin Hills of Myanmar and its implications for Mizoram, the CMO official said. According to the official, Lalduhoma highlighted the need to expand piped gas connectivity to households in Aizawl, noting the ongoing Rs 9,265 crore Gas Pipeline Project being implemented by Indradhanush Gas Grid Limited (IGGL). He urged the Prime Minister to implement a timely execution to reduce dependence on gas cylinders. In response, the Prime Minister assured his full support and conveyed his expectation that the Deputy Commissioner of Mamit District should take proactive steps to facilitate the pipeline work, the CMO official said. After the inauguration of the 51.38 km long Bairabi-Sairang new railway project, Mizoram's Aizawl would be the fourth capital city in the northeast region to be connected by a railway network. An official of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said that the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS), Northeast Frontier Circle, Sumeet Singhal, after visiting the newly laid railway tracks between June 6 and June 10, authorised the NFR to operate both goods and passenger trains on the line. The Bairabi-Sairang new railway project has been divided into four sections -- Bairabi-Hortoki (16.72 km, commissioned in July 2024), Hortoki-Kawnpui (9.71 km), Kawnpui-Mualkhang (12.11 km), and Mualkhang-Sairang (12.84 km). The NFR official said that this milestone completes the entire 51.38 km new railway line project from Bairabi, near Assam's Hailakandi district, to Sairang, near Aizawl city, bringing direct rail connectivity to the Mizoram state capital for the first time. This transformative achievement is expected to significantly enhance passenger and freight movement, stimulate socio-economic growth, and fulfil a long-standing aspiration of the people of Mizoram to see trains arriving in the heart of their capital, the official said. Despite the tough terrain, commendable work has been carried out by the NFR. The official said that the Bairabi-Sairang new line railway project is an engineering marvel of the Indian Railways. The project, which lies in mountainous terrain, consists of 48 tunnels, 55 major bridges, and 87 minor bridges. The total length of tunnels in this project is 12,853 meters. The height of bridge number 196 is 104 metres, which is 42 metres taller than the Qutub Minar. The project also includes five Road Over Bridges and six Road Under Bridges. After the inauguration of the Bairabi-Sairang new railway line, Mizoram's capital, Aizawl, would soon become the fourth NE state capital to be linked to the country's railway network after Assam, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
PM Modi to inaugurate Bairabi-Sairang railway line in Mizoram
AIZAWL: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will soon inaugurate the new Bairabi-Sairang Railway Line and Sairang Railway Station in Mizoram, according to an official release from the state government. Mizoram chief minister Lalduhoma meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the PM's residence in Delhi on Monday. This was discussed by chief minister Lalduhoma during his meeting with Modi at the Prime Minister's residence in Delhi on Monday. The construction of the 51.38 km Bairabi–Sairang railway line spanned two decades, culminating in its successful commissioning by the Commissioner of Railway Safety in June this year. Officials from the Northeast Frontier Railway said that the line features 48 tunnels extending over 12.85 km, along with 55 major bridges, 87 minor bridges, five road overbridges, and nine road underbridges. Notably, one of the bridges, numbered 196, reaches a height of 104 meters. During his meeting with the Prime Minister, chief minister Lalduhoma also discussed the Thenzawl Peace City Project, the Aizawl to Thenzawl National Highway, the Hand Holding Policy, and the recent conflict in Myanmar's Chin Hills and its implications for Mizoram. The ongoing IGGL's ₹9,265 crore Gas Pipeline Project, which aims to provide Aizawl residents with piped gas connections without the need for gas cylinders, was also discussed. The Prime Minister recommended that the district collector of Mamit District expedite official procedures to accelerate the pipeline's construction, said the government release.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Mizoram decides to collect biometrics, biographic data of Myanmar refugees
Guwahati: The Mizoram government has decided to collect biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar refugees taking shelter in the northeastern state after a military coup in the neighboring country in February 2021. Earlier, Manipur had carried out this exercise. A Mizoram Home Department official, who did not want to be named, told ET, 'Towards the end of July, the work of collecting biometric and demographic data of around 35,000 Myanmar refugees would start. The biometric exercise would be conducted using the Foreigner Identification Portal and would be carried out in all 11 districts of the state." He added, 'Around Rs 38 lakh was earmarked for the exercise, and the expenditure would be borne by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Training of the government staff to conduct the exercise has almost been completed in all the districts." The MHA had earlier asked both the Manipur and Mizoram governments to capture biographic and biometric details of "illegal migrants" in the two states and complete the process at the earliest. Both northeastern states had earlier agreed to undertake the collection of biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar nationals. The former Mizo National Front government in Mizoram was reluctant to collect the biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar refugees. The incumbent Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) government, led by Chief Minister Lalduhoma, had earlier agreed to conduct the exercise. After a military coup in Myanmar in February 2021, refugees, including women and children from the neighboring country, started coming to Mizoram and Manipur seeking shelter in the two Indian states, and now their numbers in Mizoram have increased to around 35,000. According to Home Department officials, the maximum number of Myanmar refugees are currently taking shelter in Champhai district. Myanmar's Chin state shares mountainous borders with six Mizoram districts—Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Hnahthial, Saitual, and Serchhip. Recently, a fresh batch of refugees has started coming since July 2. Gun battles have erupted between the Chin National Defence Force and the Chinland Defence Force-Hualngoram over control of Chin state in Myanmar. A senior official, who does not want to be named, said that around 3,000 to 4,000 refugees had come since the fighting started on July 2. 'They are being provided with food, water, and shelter.' Refugees are coming to Zokhawthar and Saikhumphai Village, bordering Myanmar in Champhai district.
