Missing World War II Plane B-24J found near Damroh in Taniland

On 25 January 1944, Plane B-24J which was nicknamed "Hot As Hell" took off from Kunming, China with eight crew members for a routine flight to Chabua, India. The plane never reached its destination. The crews were declared dead on 20 November 1944. On 7 December 2006, a private American investigator Mr. Clayton discovered the crash site near Damroh, East Siang district, Taniland (Arunachal Pradesh) with the assistance of Adi (Abor) villagers.

Clayton Kuhles has taken on the project of searching for as many of these Missing in Action (MIA) aircrafts as he can find. Aiding in his service is Oken Tayeng who runs Abor Country Travels and Expeditions. Oken says that "the region is littered with these planes. The locals have seen these planes crash but we do not have the expertise for identification of the planes. Clayton has taken up the initiative of identifying these planes."

Reference

Clayton Kuhles maintained website: http://www.miarecoveries.org/
Prasad, S (2007), Hot as Hell, Found in Paradise, 15 December 2007, http://frontierindia.net/hot-as-hell-found-in-paradise

Adam Gilchrist: Revolution in wicket-keeping

Steve Waugh, the former Australian skipper observes that the retirement of Adam Gilchrist from Test Cricket "was as much of a surprise for me as it was for his many admirers across the world. However the timing was perfect for a keeper-batsman who contineously raised standards not only for others around the world but also for him." As a fan of the Australian team, especially Adam in the world of Cricket (Argentina in Football), I can feel the vacuum that lies after his retirement.

Revolution in wicket-keeping

"I remember the one-dayer when I first made Adam open. We were not having much joy in the C&U Series of 1998 and I was looking for a spark of inspiration in the finals against South Africa.On a hunch, I sent him to open. Success was almost immediate because he scored a century in the second final itself.That was the moment when the asking rate went up for wicketkeepers around the world. No longer was it enough for them to just pass muster when it came to batting-they now had to be counted as batsmen" recalls Steve Waugh.

Kumar Sangakkara, Mark Boucher, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Brendon McCullum are all the result of the revolution that Adam Gilchrist brought about to wicket-keeping. According to Steve Waugh, "While most have impressed in patchness, none has replicated Adam's consistency in scoring and more impotantly in relentless attack." Adam was part of the Australian cricket team through both the 16-Test winning streaks.

The departure of Warne, Glen McGrath and now Adam Gilchrist will make it harder for Australia to win consistency. But they still have great control of the game with Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, Bret Lee and Andrew Symonds. However, the aura that this team possessed seems to have diminished slightly and oppositions will begin to fancy their chances. The Australian team is still far from beatable but the wins will be harder to come by. Historically, as each team has a cycle, the Australian generation next has to prove inorder to maintain status quo.

As a left-handed batsman in Cricket, I'm a fan of this Aussie who is also a lefty. I will surely miss his strokes. But with God's grace, I hope I'll see him in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Waiting for the blast!!!

References

Steve Waugh(2008), "Great timing, Gilly", Hindustan times, New Delhi,29 January 2008,p.21.

"The timing was perfect for Gilchrist", The Hindu, Delhi, 29 January 2008,p.18.

The life of the former Indonesian President Suharto: A mixed record

The former Indonesian President Suharto, controversial for most of his time during his long years in power from march 1966 to mid-1998 and thereafter, pased away at a hospital in Jakarta on 27 January 2008. The 86 year old Suharto, widely known by this singular name in line with a Javanese practice, died of multiple organ failure after battling for life for over three weeks.
Suharto ruled over Indonesia from March 1966 when he as an army commander threatened to use force and acquired executive authority from then President Sukarno, the near-iconic architect of Indonesia's "guided democracy." After ruling Indonesia for around three-decades, he resigned as a President in mid-1998 in the face of a popular uprising for reforms.
A mixed record
Suharto's path to power and long reign were characterised by authoritarian politics and human rights abuses. His one time success at creating political stability and an economic miracle was in the end smeared by allegations of massive corruption as also nepotism and also social inequities.
P.S.Suryanarayana observes that "Suharto's mixed record covered not only the economic boom that later burst as a bubble but also his 'New Order' that was built on a brutal suppression of the Communist Party of Indonesia; the invasion and annexation of East Timor which broke free not long after his fall from power; his pivotal role in the formation of the Associaton of South East Asian Nations(ASEAN) 40 years ago; and his political swings from a pro-West position to a non-aligned stance."
As Hobbes says that" Man by nature is brutish, nasty, selfish and egoistic", all human being tends to commit mistakes. But as Aristole says that "Man is a Political animal",he is also characterized by living within a society with laws and customs. Therefore, our life certainly will have a mixed record which Suharto,the former President of Indonesia had undergone. It can be better understood by the way the current President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono expressed his deep sorrow and asked people to pray for Suharto labelling him "a great leader" though he was popularly known as a "Dictator".

The Mongolian Continent-http://themongoliancontinent.blogspot.com/
Reference
Suryanarayana, P.S (2008), "Indonesia declares week-long mourning:Daughter apologises for Suharto's 'mistakes'," The Hindu, 28 January 2008, Delhi, p.14.

The Indian Anti-tank Nag missile

The advanced third generation, hit-to-kill anti-tank Nag missile is expected to be inducted into the Indian army by the end of the year after the completion of the user trial. S.S.Mishra, project director (Nag), told The Hindu that "We are ready to induct in large numbers by November-December as the user trials are planned to be completed by June."

Suprior range

He said "the land version of the indeginiously developed tactical weapon system was superior in terms of range (four km) to the Javelin of the US and the Spike of Israel.With the Indian army seeking an air-borne version,DRDO scientist have begun work on developing such a variant by extending the range to seven km. The air-borne version named Helina, to be mounted on an ALH helicopter would be ready in two and a half years as the system had to be reworked."

Top attack capability

"Equipped with imagining infrared seeker (IIR), it has lock-on-before launch (LOBL) capability with the seeker tracking the target even before firing.The missile which could be operated during day and night has top attack capability. Since all modern tanks are fitted with explosive reactive armour (ERA) to negate the effect of a missile's war head, the lethal capability of Nag had been increased by enabling it to carry one of the most powerful tandem war heads to defeat futuristic battle tanks. When a missile is fired, a pre-cursor charge would initially tackle ERA, followed by the main charge within 250 microseconds. That way the effect of the ERA is nullified," he said.

Further according to him, "each Namica, a dedicated missile carrier, would have 12 Nag missiles, eight of them in ready to fire mode. The missile has 10 year, maintenance free shelf life."

So, let's wait and watch...

Reference

"Anti-tank Nag missile to be ready by year-end," The Hindu, 28 January 2008, p.7.

PSLV puts Israeli satellite into orbit

On 21 January 2008, India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C10, successfully put the Israeli staellite Tecsar into orbit. It was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

Tecsar, weighing 300 kg, is a remote-sensing satellite that can take pictures of the earth 365 days of the year, 24 hours of the day, through rain, clouds, day and night. It has a one-metre resolution. It was earlier known as Polaris.

Contrary to custom, reporters and photographers were barred from entering the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota to cover the event. Israel reportedly wanted the launch kept under wraps. The launch was executed under a commercial contract between the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), to which Tecsar belongs, and the Antrix Corporation, marketing agency of the Department of Space/ISRO(Indian Space Research Organisation).

A report posted on the website of the Israeli daily Haaretz said that "Israel launched early on Monday a sophisticated new spy satellite, designited Tecsar, which could boost intelligence gathering capabilities regarding Iran." In a separate analysis the daily said "The launch of an Israeli satellite atop an Indian missile from a launch site in India bears a number of aditional advantages. First, it enables a new point of view in space, allowing it photographic angles and reception of Iranian communications, which were unable in prior satellite launches." The Jerusalem Post said the new satellite was capable of imagining with a resolution of upto 10 centimetres.

On the other hand, G Madhavan said that "21 January 2008 signified a landmark event in the history of Antrix Corporation Limited because on that day India's PSLV put in orbit an Israeli satellite called Tecsar in a fullfleged commercial launch transaction." Antrix Corporation is the marketing agency of the ISRO/Department of Space. Antrix has receieved a handsome amount from the IAI for launching the satellite.

Reference

Subramanian,T.S (2008), "PSLV puts Israeli satellite into orbit", The Hindu, 22 January 2008,Delhi, p.1.

Aneja, Atul (2008), "Satellite will spy on Iran:Israeli media", The Hindu,22 January 2008,Delhi, p.12.

Subramanian, T.S (2008), "A landmark event, says Madhavan Nair", The Hindu, 22 January 2008, Delhi, p.13.

Prospects of International Border Trade in Arunachal Pradesh

From time immemorial we had never been so much dependent on others. But today, we are left at the mercy of the Indian Government.Why is it so? Didn't we traded with the people from the plains or beyond the so called International border(present day India with Bhuthan, China/Tibet and Myanmar). Absolutely, we did. The closing down of this border trade has made us totally dependent on the Indian Government, which is a policy outcome of the "Indian think-tanks".

Sometimes, its quite embrassing when ever an Indian questions, 'What is your contribution to the Indian State?' They don't realise that we are the protector of the longest International boundary of the Indian State having 160 Km with Bhutan, 1080 Km with China/Tibet and a stretch of 540 Kms with Myanmar. Above all, our economy have been totally uprooted by the Indian Government by closing down the International trade, so that we be dependent on them. This is nothing, but something comes behind it.

We are contributing to the Indian Economy in the other way round. In what way? On behalf of us, the Indian coastal states are contributing as they are the one who are benefitting a lot out of the closure of our Border Trade which we had been practising since ancient times. The "Look East Policy" of the Indian Government is one such important example through which the coastal states have benefitted a lot, which in real sense should had been ours. Therefore, the Inernational Border Trade should be opened so that we no longer remain under the clutches of Indian Hegemony.

As such, the proposal brought out by the Government of Arunachal Pradesh in regard to the International Border Trade is a wel come gesture.Following are the proposed border trade points/centres as put up by the Arunachal Pradesh Government(North East Sun, November 16-30, 2007, Vol XIII, No. 08, p.10.)-

-Pangsu Pass (Nampong) in Changlang District(Indo-Myanmar border)
-Kibithoo in Anjaw District (Indo-China border)
-Kepangla Pass(Gelling) in Upper Siang District(Indo-China border)
-Lolla Pass(Mechuka) in West Siang District (Indo-China)
-Dumla Pass( Monigong) in West Siang District(Indo-China).
-Taksing in Upper Subansiri District(Indo-China).
-Bumla and Kenzamane (Zeminthang) in Tawang District(Indo-China border).
-Bleeting (Namstering)/Dongshengmang in Tawang District(Indo-Bhutan).

But a big question that lies to be answered is "Who is going to control all the trade?" It's "we" or someone else. When present day trade in our state is controlled by the outsiders, "What do we expect?"

Reference

North East Sun, "Khandu on Look East Policy", November 16-30, 2007, Vol XIII, No.08, p.10.

NIE Report on the Iranian Nuclear Programme

The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,while on his visit to the Ilam province in western Iran on wednesday said that "Today, the Iranian nation is victorious but you[the U.S] are empty handed." He was quoting the new U.S intelligence report which stated that Iran halted its atomic nuclear programme in 2003. This assessment contained in the latest National Intelligence Estimate(NIE) is produced collectively by washington's numerious intelligence agencies.

The NIE is the consensus view of the 16 U S intelligence agencies. Most of the 16 agencies are components of Cabinet Departments with other roles, with the exception of CIA. The rest include three major intelligence agencies in the Department of Defence-the Security Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office and the Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. There is also the Defence Intelligence Agency, the State Departments Bureau of Intelligence and Research, the FBI, the intelligence organisation of the four military services-Air Force, Army, Navy and Marines-the Department of the Homeland Security, the Coast Guard, the Energy Department, the Department of the Treasury and the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Despite this findings, "hawks" in the Bush administration led by Dick Cheney sought to build a case for punitive action against Iran, including the use of force. Anything can happen because the NIE though supposed to be independent but it is the White House who retains control of whether the estimate will be publish. The U.S President Gorge W Bush even said on Tuesday that Iran remained a danger because it was mastering technology with a military use. He again refused to rule out military action if diplomatic efforts failed to resolve the dispute.

But from the latest report, it is a lesson for all those countries including India, France and Germany for it's uncritically accepted allegations peddled by American officials of Iran and sanction at the IAEA and the United Nations. For the IAEA and its Director-General Mohammed el-Baredi, they stand vindicated once again for their professional apporach as it was in the case of Iraq and its non-existent of WMD. Over the past two years, the IAEA has consistently maintained that there was no evidence of Iran running a clandistine nuclear programme.
Where do we need to place ourselves in such situation?

The Adivasi uprising in Assam: Lesson's for the Arunachalees

The All Adivasi National Liberation Army (AANLA) had threatened to target "innocent civilians" and "the Tarun Gogoi led government's men" to avenge the brutalities on protesters during a procession taken out by the All Adivasi Students Association of Assam at the Beltola locality on 24 November 2007 to press for their demand for ST(Schedule Tribe) status of Assam. It came out with the triggering of an explosion on the tracks between the Khatikhati and Bokajan railway stations in Karbi Anglong district on 3 December 2007 which caused minor damage to the Dibrugarh bound 5959 up Kamrup express. Again on 7 December, it triggered a blast on the tracks between the Tangla and Harisinga railway stations in Udalguri district. This time on Wednesday,the 12 December 2007, five pasengers of the 2423A Dibrugarh-Guwahati-Delhi Rajdhani Express were killed and four injuried seriously in a bomb blast near the Chungajan railway station in Upper Assam's Golaghat district which the AANLA has claimed responsibility.
These instances gives us some beautiful examples to be learned, regarding the betterment of our state(Arunachal Pradesh is the Indian name). This, as well as the various examples of the identity crisis in Assam,we will also be facing if we continue to use the sanskritized name Arunachal Pradesh "where we cannot define who is an Arunachalee(means who is an indigenoious inhibitant)." Here, we should also question ourselves regarding the Politics that had been and it is there, inrespect to the naming and renaming of our beautiful state. We, the indigenious people should therefore, rethink regarding the name of our state. So that, what's happening in Assam or the present crisis in Malaysia should not happen to us where foreigners start to claim "forgeting from where they have come from."

References

"Manufacturing Identities?" , Frontline, 7 October 2005.

"In the name of Tribal Identities", Frontline, 2 December 2005.

"Separatist Strains",Frontline, 1 June 2007.

Prabhakara, M.S (2007) "Behind the Adivasi unrest in Assam", The Hindu, 3 December 2007, p.13.