12 Sherpa guides killed in avalanche

In one of the worst tragedies on Mount Everest in Nepal, at least 12 Sherpa guides and mountaineering support persons were killed after an avalanche swept down a climbing route on Friday the 18th April, 2014.

Four other Sherpas who were injured have been taken to hospital. The rescue operation was affected due to bad weather in the Lukla region. It would resume on Saturday.

There were conflicting reports of the exact number of those swept away by the avalanche. An official at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said 25 Sherpas were trapped. Eight of them have been rescued. The bodies were buried under mounds of snow.

South Korean ferry sank

South Korean rescuers and dive teams worked frantically under floodlights as fears rose for nearly 300 people missing after a ferry sank on Wednesday the 16th April, 2014 with 462 on board, mostly high school students bound for a holiday island.

National disaster agency officials said 174 people had been rescued, leaving 284 “unaccounted for.” There were four confirmed deaths, including a female crew member and a student.

There are concerns the death toll could rise sharply. The 6,825-tonne Sewol listed violently, capsized and finally sank — all within two hours of sending a distress signal at 9 a.m. (0000 GMT).

Search continuing

As night fell the coastguard said the rescue operation was continuing using floodlights and underwater flares. Several rescued passengers said they had initially been told to remain in their cabins and seats, but then the ferry listed hard to one side, triggering panic.

The arrested captain of the South Korean ferry that capsized three days ago with 476 people on board defended his decision to delay its evacuation, as divers on Saturday the 19th April, 2014 finally accessed the submerged vessel and spotted bodies inside.

Investigators arrested Lee Joon-Seok and two of his crew early in the morning. All three have been criticised for abandoning hundreds of passengers trapped in the ferry, as they made their own escape.

Mr. Lee was charged with negligence and failing to secure the safety of passengers in violation of maritime law.

Twenty-nine people have been confirmed dead in the disaster, but 273 are still missing — most of them children on a high school holiday trip.

As the arrests were being made, dive teams who had spent two days vainly battling powerful currents and near zero visibility, finally penetrated the passenger decks of the 6,825-tonne Sewol.

Captain Lee was arraigned along with the two officers in charge of the bridge at the time.

Questioned as to why passengers had been ordered not to move for more than 40 minutes after the ship first foundered, Captain Lee said it was a safety measure.

Experts have suggested many more people might have escaped if they had moved to reach evacuation points earlier.

Only 174 were rescued when the ferry sank and no new survivors have been found since Wednesday.

Initial questioning of the captain has focused on what actually caused the ferry to sink. Captain Lee confirmed he was not at the helm when the ship ran into trouble.

The ship was being steered by a 55-year-old helmsman identified by his surname Jo, under the supervision of the female third officer.

Cadbury India Ltd is now Mondelez India Foods Ltd

Cadbury India Ltd, a subsidiary of Mondelez International Inc, has changed its name to Mondelez India Foods Ltd.

The company is focused on creating delicious moments of joy that is encapsulated in its name — “ monde” for world and “delez” for delicious. The change in name of Cadbury is in line with the gradual changeover of the name of all subsidiaries of Mondelez International globally.

The change in name of the company will have no impact on the names or packaging of its popular products like Cadbury Dairy Milk, 5 Star, Gems, Bournville, Perk, Celebrations, Choclairs, Halls, Bournvita, Tang and Oreo, which will continue to be sold under the same brand names as before.

ASSAM

Assam is a state of India in the north-eastern region. Its capital is Dispur, located within the municipal area of Guwahati city. Located south of the eastern Himalayas. Assam comprises the Brahmaputra and the Barak river valleys along with the Karbi Anglong and the North Cachar Hills with an area of 78,438 km². Assam is surrounded by six of the other Seven Sister States: Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya. Geographically Assam and these states are connected to the rest of India via a narrow strip of land in West Bengal called the Siliguri Corridor or "Chicken's Neck".

Assam shares international borders with Bhutan and Bangladesh. Assam became a part of the British India after the British occupied the region following the First Anglo-Burmese War of 1824–1826.

Assam is rich in culture, ethnic groups, languages/dialacts spoken and literature. It is known for Assam tea, large and old petroleum resources (the first oil reserves of India were discovered in Assam in the late 19th century), Assam silk and for its rich biodiversity. Assam has successfully conserved the one-horned Indian rhinoceros from near extinction, along with the Pygmy hog, tiger and numerous species of birds, and it provides one of the last wild habitats for the Asian elephant. It is becoming an increasingly popular destination for wildlife tourism, and Kaziranga and Manas are both World Heritage Sites. Assam was also known for its Sal tree forests and forest products, much depleted now. A land of high rainfall, Assam is endowed with lush greenery and the mighty river Brahmaputra, whose tributaries and oxbow lakes provide the region with a unique hydro-geomorphic and aesthetic environment.

In 1947, Assam including the present Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya became a state of the Union of India (princely states, Manipur and Tripura became Group - C provinces) and a district of Assam, Sylhet, chose to join Pakistan.

Geography :-

Assam, dissected hills of the South Indian Plateau system and the Himalayas all around its north, north-east and east.

As the Bramhaputra flows in Assam the climate here is cold and there is rainfall most of the month. Geomorphic studies conclude that the Brahmaputra, the life-line of Assam is an antecedent river, older than the Himalayas. The river with steep gorges and rapids in Arunachal Pradesh entering Assam, becomes a braided river (at times 10 mi/16 km wide) and with tributaries, creates a flood plain. The hills of Karbi Anglong, North Cachar and those in and close to Guwahati (also Khasi-Garo Hills) now eroded and dissected are originally parts of the South Indian Plateau system. In the south, the Barak originating in the Barail Range (Assam-Nagaland border) flows through the Cachar district with a 25–30 miles (40–50 km) wide valley and enters Bangladesh with the name Surma.

Assam has petroleum, natural gas, coal, limestone and other minor minerals such asmagnetic quartzite, kaolin, sillimanites, clay and feldspar. A small quantity of iron ore is available in western districts. Discovered in 1889, all the major petroleum-gas reserves are in Upper parts.

With the "Tropical Monsoon Rainforest Climate", Assam is temperate (summer max. at 95–100 °F or 35–38 °C and winter min. at 43–46 °F or 6–8 °C) and experiences heavy rainfall and high humidity. The climate is characterized by heavy monsoon down pours reducing summer temperatures and affecting foggy nights and mornings in winters, frequent during the afternoons. Spring (Mar–Apr) and Autumn (Sept–Oct) are usually pleasant with moderate rainfall and temperature.

Flora and fauna :-

Assam is one of the richest biodiversity zones in the world and consists of tropical rainforests, deciduous forests, riverine grasslands, bamboo orchards and numerous wetland ecosystems; Many are now protected as national parks and reserved forests. The Kaziranga, home of the rare Indian Rhinoceros, and Manas are two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Assam. The state is the last refuge for numerous other endangered and threatened species including the White-winged Wood Duck or Deohanh, Bengal Florican, Black-breasted Parrotbill, Red-headed vulture, White-rumped vulture, Greater Adjutant, Jerdon's Babbler, Rufous-necked hornbill, Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, Pygmy hog, Gaur, Wild water buffalo, Indian hog deer, Hoolock gibbon, Golden Langur, Capped langur, Barasingha, Ganges river dolphin, Barca snakehead, Ganges shark, Burmese python, Brahminy river turtle, Black pond turtle, Asian forest tortoise, and Assam roofed turtle. Threatened species that are extinct in Assam include the Gharial, a critically endangered fish-eating crocodilian, and the Pink-headed duck (which may be extinct worldwide). For the State Bird, the White-winged Wood Duck, Assam is a globally important area. Assam is also known for orchids. The state has the largest population of the Wild Water Buffalo in the world. The state also has the highest diversity of birds in India with around 820 species. With subspecies the number is as high as 946. The mammal diversity in Assam is also high with around 190 species.

Tea history :-

After discovery of Camellia sinensis (1834) in Assam followed by its tests in 1836–37 in London, the British allowed companies to rent land since 1839. Thereafter tea plantations mushroomed in Eastern Assam, where the soil and the climate were most suitable. Problems with the imported laborers from China and hostilities of native Assamese resulted into migration of forced laborers from central-eastern parts of India. After initial trial and error with planting the Chinese and the Assamese-Chinese hybrid varieties, the planters later accepted the local Camellia assamica as the most suitable one for Assam. By 1850s, the industry started seeing some profits. Industry saw initial growth, when in 1861, investors were allowed to own land in Assam and it saw substantial progress with invention of new technologies and machinery for preparing processed tea during the 1870s. The cost of Assam tea was lowered down many folds and became more competitive than its Chinese variant.

Despite the commercial success, tea laborers continued to be exploited, working and living under poor conditions. Fearful of greater government interference, the tea growers formed the Indian Tea Association in 1888 to lobby to retain the status quo. The organization was very successful in this, and even after India’s independence, conditions of the laborers have improved very little.

Industry :-

Industrial scenario has undergone a vast change in Assam. Apart from tea, petroleum and petrochemicals, other industries in various sectors like paper, fertilizer, cement, coke, lime, sugar, engineering, plastic, steel, printing,  cosmetics,  poultry & dairy products along with handloom and handicraft have thrived in the state. Moreover, with its rich flora and fauna, breathtaking natural beauty, age-old temples and monuments, Assam offers a unique potential for tourism industries for both domestic and foreign market. Assam's proximity to SAARC countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan gives it the investment potential considering the advantage of border trade with theses countries. Border Trade Centre at Sutarkandi in Karimganj district and Mankachar in Dhubri district have been developed to facilitate border trade with Bangladesh. It has been proposed in the 11th five-year plan to set up two more Border Trade Center, one at Ledo connecting China and other at Darrang connecting Bhutan. There are several Land Custom Stations (LCS) in the state bordering Bangladesh and Bhutan to facilitate border trade. The Govt. of India has identified some thrust areas for industrial development of Assam, which are :-

Petroleum and natural gas based industries

Industries based on locally available minerals

Processing of plantation crops

Food processing industries

Agri-Horticulture products

Agri-Horticulture products

Herbal products

Biotech products

Pharmaceuticals

Chemical and Plastic based industries

Export oriented industries

Electronic and IT base industries including services sector

Textiles and sericulture

Engineering industries

Cane and bamboo based industries

Other handicrafts industry

Although, the region in the Eastern pehiphery of India is geographically land locked and is linked to the mainland by a narrow corridor, known as the Siliguri Corridor or the Chicken's Neck; improved transport infrastructure in all the three modes, viz., rail, road and air and also developing urban infrastructure in the cities and towns of Assam are giving a boost to the entire industrial scenario of the state. The Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahati, although is yet to be fully functional with international flights, was the 12th busiest airport of India in 2012. The cities of Guwahati in the West and Dibrugarh in the East with good rail, road and air connectivity are the two important nerve centres of Assam, to be selected by Asian Development Bank for providing $200 million for improvement of urban infrastructure. There is also a popular demand for introduction of international flights from Dibrugarh airport to South-East Asian destinations. Dibrugarh and Tinsukia are the major industrial districts of Assam. Most of the big industries are situated in and around Dibrugarh district. Dibrugarh is presently one of the 10 richest revenue districts of India. The Brahmaputra suitable for navigation does not possess sufficient infrastructure for international trade and success of such a navigable trade route will be dependent on proper channel maintenance and diplomatic and trade relationships with Bangladesh.

Tourism :-

Assam is the central state in the North-East Region of India and serves as the gateway to the rest of the Seven Sister States. For the purposes of tourism there are wildlife preserves like the Kaziranga National Park, Manas National Park, Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, Dibru-Saikhowa National Park (Dibrugarh- Tinsukia), among others. Jokai Botanical Garden (Dibrugarh) the only Natural Botanical Garden in entire North- East India. Cultural and historical destinations also provide opportunities for tourists. Apart from wildlife preserves there are many historical places in the state like Rang Ghar, Talatal Ghar of Sivasagar, Kareng Ghar of Garhgaon, Agnigarh of Tezpur, Madan Kamdev archeological site of Kamrup etc. While visiting Madan Kamdev Tourist can also visit in Famous ancient temple Gopeswar Mandir situated in Village Deuduar. Cultural places are mainly great temple of Kamakhya, pilgrimage place Hajo, the great Vaishnava Sattras of Majuli and Barpeta and many more.

Scheduled Tribes :-

There are 23 notified Scheduled Tribes (ST) in Assam with the Bodos (40.9 per cent) making half of the total ST population (around 13 per cent) of the state. The other STs (both plains and hills) include Miri, Karbi, Rabha, Kachari, Lalung, Barman in Cachar, Borokachar, Deori, Hajai, Mech, Dimasa, Hajong, Singhphho, Khampti and Garo, Biate, Khasi, Jaintia, Synteng, Pnar, War, Bhoi, Lyngngam, and Kuki,Chakma, Hmar.

Festivals :-

There are diversified important traditional festivals in Assam. Bihu is the most important and common and celebrated all over Assam. It is the Assamese new year celebrated in April of the Gregorian calendar. Durga Puja is another festival celebrated with great enthusiasm. Muslims celebrate two Eids (Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha) with much eagerness all over Assam.

Bihu is a series of three prominent festivals. Primarily a non-religious festival celebrated to mark the seasons and the significant points of a cultivator's life over a yearly cycle. Three Bihus, rongali orbohag, celebrated with the coming of spring and the beginning of the sowing season; kongali or kati, the barren bihu when the fields are lush but the barns are empty; and the bhogali or magh, the thanks giving when the crops have been harvested and the barns are full. Bihu songs and Bihu dance are associated to rongali bihu. The day before the each bihu is known as 'uruka'. The first day of 'rongali bihu' is called 'Goru bihu' (the bihu of the cows), when the cows are taken to the nearby rivers or ponds to be bathed with special care. In recent times the form and nature of celebration has changed with the growth of urban centres.

Bwisagu is one of the popular seasonal festival of the Bodos. Bwisagu start of the new year or age. Baisagu is a Boro word which originated from the word "Baisa" which means year or age, ang "Agu" that means starting or start.

Bushu Dima or simply Bushu is a major harvest festival of the Dimasa people. This festival is celebrated during the end of January. Officially 27 January has been declared as the day of Bushu Dima festival. The Dimasa people celebrate their festival by playing musical instruments- khram (a type of drum), muri (a kind of huge long flute). The people dances to the different tunes called "murithai" and each dance has got its name, the prominent being the "Baidima".

There are three types of Bushu celebrated among the Dimasas Jidap, Surem and Hangsou.

Moreover, there are other important traditional festivals being celebrated every year on different occasions at different places. Many of these are celebrated by different ethno-cultural groups (sub and sister cultures). Some of these are:-

Me-Dam-Me-Phi

Ali-Aye-Ligang

Rongker

Kherai

Garja

Awnkham Gwrlwi Janai

Chojun/Swarak

Sokk-erroi

Hacha-kekan

Hapsa Hatarnai

Porag

Bathow

Wangala

Other few yearly celebrations are Doul Utsav of Barpeta, Brahmaputra Beach Festival, Guwahati, Kaziranga Elephant Festival, Kaziranga and Dehing Patkai Festival, Lekhapani, Karbi Youth Festival of Diphu and International Jatinga Festival, Jatinga can not be forgotten. Few yearly Mela's like Jonbeel Mela, began in 15th Century by the Ahom Kings, Ambubachi Mela, Guwahati etc.

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is an Indian law that aims to guarantee the 'right to work' and ensure livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. The statute is hailed by the government as "the largest and most ambitious social security and public works programme in the world".

Targeting poverty through employment generation using rural works has had a long history in India that began in the 1960s. After the first three decades of experimentation, the government launched major schemes like Jawahar Rozgar Yojana, Employment Assurance Scheme, Food for Work Programme, Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana and Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana that were forerunners to Mahatma Gandhi NREGA. The theme of government approach had been to merge old schemes to introduce new ones while retaining the basic objective of providing additional wage employment involving unskilled manual work and also to create durable assets. The major responsibility of implementation was also gradually transferred to the Panchayati Raj Institutions. 

The Act was enacted by a central legislation on 25^th August, 2005 and was implemented in rural districts in 3 phases. Each state is required to design an employment guarantee scheme based on a set of national guidelines. 

Key design features in the context of social security and unemployment support:-

Guaranteed Employment  - Any adult member of a rural household applying for work under the Act is entitled to employment. Every rural household is entitled to not more than 100 days of employment.

Guaranteed Wages - Wages are to be paid on a weekly basis and not beyond a fortnight. Wages are to be paid on the basis of:

Centre - notified, state- specific MGNREGA wage list.

Time rates and Piece rates as per state - specific Schedule of Rates (SoRs). In any case, the wage cannot be at a rate less than Rs. 100 per day.

Unemployment Allowance – If work is not provided within 15 days of applying, the state is expected to pay an unemployment allowance which is one - fourth of the wage rate.

Provision of Work – Work is to be provided within a 5km radius of the applicant’s village, else compensation of 10 per cent extra wage is to be provided to meet expenses of travel.

Gender Equity – Men and women are entitled to equal payment of wages. One - third of the beneficiaries are supposed to be women.

Financial Inclusion – Since 2008, all wage payments have had to be transferred to bank or post office accounts of beneficiaries.

Social Security Measures  – In 2008, a provision was created which made it possible to cover beneficiaries under either the Janashree Bima Yojana (JBY) or the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY).

Transparency and Accountability  – All MGNREGA - related accounts and records documents have to be available for public scrutiny. Contractors and use of machinery is prohibited.

Rights - based, demand - driven approach – Estimation and planning of work is conducted on the basis of the demand for work. Hence, beneficiaries of the scheme are enabled to decide the point in time at which they want to work.

The cost of the scheme is shared between the Centre and the State in the ratio of 90:10.

The Central Government will bear the following costs:-

a) The entire cost of wages for unskilled manual workers.

b)75 percent of the cost of material and wages for skilled and semi-skilled workers.

c) Administrative expenses, which will include, inter alia, the salary and allowances of Programme Officers and their support staff and work site facilities.

d) Administrative expenses of the Central Employment guarantee Council.

The State Government will bear the following costs:-

a) 25 percent of the cost of material and wages for skilled and semi-skilled workers.

b) Unemployment allowance payable in case the State Government cannot provide wage employment within 15 days of application.

c) Administrative expenses of the State Employment Guarantee Council.

Tripura has ranked first in implementing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in 2012-13 by providing 86.27 days of work on an average to a rural household, State Rural Development Minister Jitendra Chowdhury claimed on Apr 9, 2013. Tripura has retained its top position for the third consecutive year in the country in implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) at the statutory minimum wages of Rs.124/- per day."When the national average is 39, the state could provide 86.27 days of work to the job card holders.

Tripura is followed by Mizoram (69.25 mandays per household) and Tamil Nadu (51.26 days of work per job card holders). Women in the state got more jobs than their male counterparts under the scheme. 

'MGNREGA 2.0' with 30 new works launched:-

The 100-days employment guarantee scheme was on May 08, 2012, Tuesday expanded to include 30 new works related to agriculture, watershed, livestock, fisheries, flood management and irrigation and aligned with a national sanitation campaign.

"It is the first time since the launch of the scheme (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) that 30 new works have been added in its schedule.

Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said his ministry had sought to add as many agriculture-related works to MGNREGA as possible. The new norms provided that Rs.4,500 could be contributed as labour component from MGNREGA towards construction of toilets under Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC). He said quality toilets would be constructed in rural areas for Rs.9,900.

The focus of the expanded MGNREGA would be in blocks with sizeable population of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and those which had been getting Rs.12-crore fund in a year under the scheme, said Mihir Shah, a member of the Planning Commission.

The government wanted to make MGNREGA a productivity-enhancing instrument which led to an increase in agricultural output.

Ramesh said panchayats would decide the priority of works in gram sabha meetings with a stipulation that overall labour to material ratio would be 60:40.

Panchayats should open a separate account for MGNREGA as they received sizeable funds under the scheme every year.

Kerala, Bihar, Sikkim, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan had made suggestions in the task undertaken by the ministry to extend the list of works.

Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC)

Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) Act 1979 was passed by the Indian parliament after a series of democratic movements launched by the Indigenous people of Tripura, under the provision of the 6th scheduled of the Indian constitution. The principle objective behind setting up the Autonomous District Council is to empower the Indigenous people to govern themselves and also to bring all round developments of the backward people so as to protect and preserve their culture, customs and traditions. But it actually came into being from 18 January 1982 and later it was upgraded under the provision of the 6th schedule to the Indian constitution with effect from the 1 April 1985 by the 49th amendment to the Constitution of India.

The total area of the TTAADC is 7,132.56 km², which covers about 68% of the total area (10,491.69 km²) of the state.

The TTAADC is governed by a council which has 30 members. Out of 30 members, 28 members are elected through adult suffrage while 2 members are nominated by the Governor of Tripura. Out of 28 elected seats, 25 are reserved for Scheduled Tribes.

TTAADC has a regular administrative structure. Executive committee composed of 9 + 1 = 10 members and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the head of the administration.

Under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council is vested with two types of Powers. These are

1. Legislative Powers:-  The Legislative Department of the District Council is headed by the Chairman who summons the meeting of the Council time to time in connection with approval of budget, discussion on bills, rules and regulations submitted by the treasury bench and passing of the same thereof.

The Council consists of 30 members out of which 28 members are elected by adult franchise and 2 members are nominated by the Governor of Tripura.

The Chairman has his own Secretariat headed by the Secretary to the District Council.

2. Executive Powers:- The Executive Powers are vested with the Executive Committee, which is headed by the Chief Executive Member who is elected from among the Treasury Bench members.

Village Development Committees: 527.

Revenue villages: 526.

Primary Schools: 1340.

Senior Basic Schools: 421.

English Medium Schools: 5.

School Inspectorates: 17.

Social Education Centre: 474.

Executive Engineers (PWD), division offices: 4.

Zonal Development Offices: 4.

Sub-Zonal Development Offices: 32.

No. of Tehsils: 151.

No. of Blocks: 17.

No. of primary markets: 195.

No. of regulated markets: 10.

No. of industrial training centre: 40.

North Eastern Council (NEC)

The North Eastern Council is the nodal agency for the economic and social development of the North Eastern Region which consists of the eight States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura and functions under Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (Government of India) and situated at Major District Road 32, Mawkasiang, Meghalaya 793012.

The North Eastern Council was constituted in 1971 by an Act of Parliament. The constitution of the Council has marked the beginning of a new chapter of concerted and planned endeavour for the rapid development of the Region.

With the passing and implementation of the North Eastern Areas (Re-organisation) Act, 1971, the region emerged as “Seven Sisters” comprising Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. While strategy to reconcile national unity with the maintenance of socio-economic identities induced by the historical realities led to the re-organisation of the north eastern areas administratively, the constraints specific to the region, as a whole such as physical, demographic, economic and socio-political made it imperative to constitute a regional “Planning Body” to integrate them and to accelerate development of the area maintaining at the same time the balanced inter unit growth. This led to the inauguration of the North Eastern Council (NEC) in November,1972.

         NEC has been instrumental in setting in motion a new economic endeavour aimed at removing the basic handicaps that stood in the way of normal development of the region and has ushered in an era of new hope  in this backward area full of great potentialities.

The objective of the North Eastern Council (NEC), as envisaged by the North Eastern Council Act of 1971 is to ensure that the existence of the political units in the North East of India does not affect its economic development that their rapid economic integration is facilitated and that the problems of the region are dealt with as an integrated whole. The dealings of the council, as envisaged in the Act are chiefly with the Planning Commission, the Ministry of Finance and to a lesser extent with the Ministry of Defence and the approach of the council to the Government of India was through the North Eastern Cell of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Council is an advisory body and may discuss any matter in which the north-eastern states have a common interest and advise the Central Government as to the action to be taken on any such matter. This was done so as to take care of economic and social planning of these states (since they were lagging from other states) and to take care of inter-state disputes.

The development concerns of these States are pursued through their respective Five Year and Annual Plans as well as those of the Union Ministries and Central Agencies. In addition, projects of inter-State nature in the Region are funded through by the North-Eastern Council (NEC), which has a separate additional budget for the purpose.

The North East has essentially depended on Central funding for development works. All the States in the NER are Special Category States whose Development Plans are centrally financed on the basis of 90% Grant and 10% Loan. Further, the Special Category States are allowed to use up to 20% of the Central Assistance for Non-plan expenditure.

The Act was amended in 2002 to (i) redefine the functions of the NEC as a regional planning body for the north eastern region, (ii) include Sikkim as a member state of the NEC and, (iii) provide for three members and the Chairman of the Council to be nominated by the President.

NEC include discussion on matters of common interest to the member states and/or the union government, on issues falling under the fields of: (i) economic and social planning, (ii) inter-state transport and communications, and (iii) power or flood control projects.

In addition to Governors, Chief Ministers of the states, and Administrators of the union territories, the Act also provided membership to one of the Counsellors to the Administrators to the Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh.  In place of the Counsellors, the Bill introduces two non official members to be nominated by the President. Further, it provides for the inclusion of one member of the Planning Commission of India, in charge of the north eastern region.

The office of a nominated member shall be three years, and may be extended for a further period of two years. The allowances of such members may be determined by the central government.

The Council under the Department of Development of North-Eastern Region, which was formed within the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2001, has been upgraded to full-fledged Ministry in 2004.