He fell to militants’ bullets on b’day

On Sunday afternoon, Lance Naik J Lalrinngheta of 35 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) called each of his seven younger siblings back home in Tuidam, a small village in Mizoram's western Mamit district, and put them all on a conference call.

"Say whatever you want. I just want to listen, he told them," recalls his mother Lalmuanpuii. She said they spoke for a long time, laughing about their childhood days. "He also listened to the gibberish of his younger sister's newborn. They were all very happy," she said.

The next day was his 34th birthday. Just three and a half hours before his birth time on June 24, Hizbul Mujahideen militants attacked a convoy in Srinagar, J&K. He along with Havildar Lalrohlua of Champai district and seven other soldiers were killed in the incident. Two other soldiers from Mizoram were also injured.

The coffins of Lalrinngheta and Lalrohlua (36) arrived at Lengpui Airport in Aizawl in an Air India flight via Kolkata on Thursday afternoon. Thousands from the eastern and western parts of the state had flocked at the airport. The banner on their vehicles read, "Lance Naik J Lalrinngheta. Havildar Lalrohlua. Ram leh hnam tan in nunna in hlan a. Kan ngaisang che u. Kan chhuang che u (You sacrificed your lives for the country. We look up to you. We are proud of you)."

As the CRPF men carried the coffins from the runway on their shoulders, women wailed, "Why did you have to come back like this in a coffin?" Silence descended as soon as airport chaplain Major C Thanhranga began the funeral ceremony at the airport compound. It was attended by Chief Minister Lal Than-hawla Sailo, ministers and scores of ex-servicemen.

P S Mangu, second-in-command of Charlie Company, 35 RR, had accompanied the bodies. He said the two soldiers were in the second truck of a convoy when they were attacked. Both were hit in the head and on the right side of their faces.

"In all, 120 rounds from the militants' guns were recovered from the site. Lalrohlua was the first driver, and he was shot in his right ear. J Lalrinngheta was shot in his right chin. Both bullets came out from the other side," he said.

C Lalruata, a neighbour of Lalrohlua's family, said representatives of more than 200 of families that migrated from Kelkang to Aizawl had come for the ceremony. The Havildar's father, C Malsawma, said in a short speech, "Our son has laid down his life for the country, and we are all very proud of him. We hope his sacrifice is a blessing for Mizoram and for India." The soldiers' bodies were escorted by relatives and army men to their villages. The funerals have been scheduled for Friday noon.

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Body of two soldiers killed in Srinagar attack to be brought to Mizoram

The body of two soldiers killed along with six other Indian army personnel by terrorists in Srinagar on Monday will be brought to Mizoram tomorrow, official sources said.

The bodies of Hav. Lalrohlua (36) of Kelkang village in Mizoram-Myanmar border Champhai district and Lance Naik J Lalrinngheta (34) of Tuidam in Mizoram-Tripura border Mamit district were likely to reach the Lengpui Airport near Aizawl on Thursday.

The bodies of the two soldiers would be accorded full military honour at the Airport after which they would be taken to their respective native villages, the sources said.

Two other Mizo soldiers - Naik David Lalduhawma and Naik Lalrimawia, both residents of Aizawl, were also injured in the same attack and their conditions were described as not critical. The Mizo soldiers belonged to the Assam Regiment and were deployed in Jammu and Kashmir as Rahstriya Rifles.

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Narcotics seized in Aizawl

Aizawl: Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla on Wednesday torched different kinds of drugs and narcotics seized by the state excise and narcotics and police departments, worth more than Rs 22.79 crore at the New Secretariat complex here.

The destruction of more than three kg of heroin, more than two quintal of ganja and other drugs were undertaken as part of the observance of the International Day Against Illicit Drug Trafficking.

The day was observed in Aizawl and other district headquarters in the functions organised by the state excise and narcotics department.

Meanwhile, the excise and narcotic department officials seized 22 kilograms of ganja reportedly smuggled from neighbouring Manipur yesterday at the Environment and Forests check-gate at Zemabawk near Aizawl.

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Drugs seized, five held

GUWAHATI, June 19 – In the third major haul of drugs in the span of last one week, the Government Railway Police (GRP) last night recovered sedatives worth over Rs 9 crore and arrested five persons in this connection from the Guwahati railway station.

The arrested hail from Mizoram and had arrived from New Delhi by the Brahmaputra Express. They were about to leave for Mizoram when the arrests were made.

The GRP in the last one week had arrested 11 persons and recovered sedatives worth several crores of rupees.

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Mizoram mulls Dampa fence

Silchar, June 13 : The 62km unfenced portion of the India-Bangladesh border in the Dampa tiger reserve in Mizoram may be fenced in the near future as the Mizoram government is according high priority to the long-delayed project.

The 500sqkm reserve, 127km from the state capital Aizawl, is the lone tiger habitat in Mizoram.

There are six tigers in the reserve, according to the last census conducted a couple of years ago.

Its other inhabitants include leopards, Indian bisons, elephants, hoolock gibbons, common langurs, slow loris and wild boars along with some rare birds like Hume’s bartailed pheasant, white-cheeked hill partridge, great pied hornbill and the Kaleej pheasant.

Mizoram chief minister and the Mizoram Board for Wildlife chairman Lalthanhawla stressed the need for an in-depth survey of the international border in the reserve during a meeting of the board in Aizawl yesterday. He said the board should clear the project as soon as possible and send it to the National Board for Wildlife in New Delhi for its final clearance.

A senior Mizoram forest department official today said the construction of the border fence in the reserve, which had been on hold since the past six years, could get off the ground only after the National Board for Wildlife cleared it.

Fencing of the border in the tiger reserve has become urgent to check infiltration by Chakma, Reang and Islamist militants from Bangladesh.

The official said the Centre had already agreed to maintain seven 100 metre-wide animal corridors in the fence to allow animals from both sides of the border roam freely in the forests on either side.

He said the Union home ministry had also granted permission to the BSF to build a few border outposts with the Mizoram government’s concurrence.

The Mizoram State Board for Wildlife has 30 members, of which 26 attended yesterday’s meeting. Mizoram minister for forests and environment H. Rohluna is its vice-chairman.

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Insurgent camps in Bangladesh near Mizoram's Dampa Tiger Reserve

At least 27 camps of different insurgent groups are located in Bangladesh near the Dampa Tiger Reserve in Mizoram, BSF officials said in Aizawl on Wednesday.

This was stated in a meeting of the state board for wildlife chaired by chief minister Lal Thanhawla here.

The presence of the camps of rebel groups in Bangladesh near the border areas has necessitated the construction of border fences and also establishment of border police outposts, BSF officials state.

The border fencing within Dampa Tiger Reserve was estimated at 62km and there would be seven corridors measuring 100 metres each on the fencing where animals could have free passages between the two countries.

The BSF authorities emphasised the need for creation of corridors for the wild animals without endangering the national security.

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Drug overdose cases rising in Mizoram

AIZAWL, June 11 : So far in 2013, 16 youths have died due to drug overdose in Mizoram.
According to Aizawl Civil Hospital, Casualty department record, as many as 16 youths including 8 females and 8 males have died in Mizoram from January till date.

But during the months of April and May no one died due to over dose, the source said.
The record maintained that those victims were teenagers studying in higher secondary schools and colleges.

These youths mostly used drugs like Pepe/Pacitane etc .

It is worth mentioning here that Kumar Kishore, Project Co-ordinator, UNDOC Regional Office for South Asia had said last month that though heroin was still available in Mizoram, there was an increase in injecting prescription drugs such as, Dextropropoxyphene (proxyvon/parvon-spas etc), which come in from the mainland of Assam along the Silchar route.

The Project Co-ordinator, UNDOC Regional Office for South Asia had also said that Mizoram shares an international border with Bangladesh and Myanmar and informal trade takes place between people of these countries and because of its geographical location, some of the challenges faced by the state include, trafficking of drugs, sex, trade, trafficking of women and smuggling of goods.

“Following the introduction of heroin the 1970s drug abuse among the local youth took a new turn in Mizoram. Within ten years time, heroin smoking a nontraditional form of opiate use replaced the age old tradition of cannabis. Injecting heroin (locally known as ‘No 4) soon took over until the late 90’s. Drug abuse is now a major problem among the youth, with the initial drug of abuse being heroin,” Kumar Kishore had pointed out.

He had then said although traditionally betel nut, tobacco, cannabis and country liquor were the common intoxicants, a shift from traditional usage to non-traditional forms of  use of drugs such as heroin smoking and injecting and injecting dextropropoxyphene (available in capsule form, the powder of which is dissolved in water and injected after filtering it through a cotton wad), took place during the 1970s to early 1980s. “Subsequently, it was observed that a considerable proportion of the local youth in Mizoram started using drugs by injecting first rather than gradually switching form other substance abuse such as smoking cannabis of talking codeine containing cough syrup,” he had added.

 Further, Kishore had cited the report of the Mizoram State AIDS Control Society Revalidation, March 2013 which said there are about 10,750 regular ‘injecting drugs users’ in Mizoram.
“Some of commonly used drugs are heroin, proxyvon/ Parvonspas, cough syrups, ganja, nitrozepam, volatiles (dendrites, petrol etc) of late amphetamines etc,” he had reiterated.
 The Project Co-ordinator, UNDOC Regional Office for South Asia had then said Mizoram is increasingly becoming a trafficking, transitioning and consumption point as the extensive road connections facilitate transportation of heroine and ephedrine.
“Mizoram has witnessed a new development in drug trafficking in the new millennium. During 2001-2002, the Excise & narcotics Dept, Government of Mizoram, seized more than 100 tablets of amphetamines type stimulus (ATS),” Kumar Kishore had stated.

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Delhi asks NIA to probe weapons haul in Mizoram

Guwahati, June 11: The March 8 arrest of three Bangladeshi nationals in Mizoram with a cache of sophisticated weapons has alarmed the Centre enough to order an National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the arms-bust.

Rabi Chakma, Sabuj Chakma and Mani Tripura, all Bangladeshi nationals, were arrested after Mizoram police and Assam Rifles recovered 33 AK-47 rifles along with a Singapore-made light machine gun, a US Combat Browning Automatic Rifle, 809 rounds of ammunition and 33 magazines in two separate operations in Lengte village near the Lengpui airport, about 30km from Aizawl on March 8.

An official source said that the NIA registered a case at its Guwahati branch on Friday following an official notification issued by the Union home ministry directing it to conduct a detailed probe into the seizure.

The source said another reason why the seizure had worried the home ministry was that Mizoram — showcased as an island of peace in troubled Northeast — was being increasingly used by rebels from other states as a corridor to smuggle arms and also to cross over to neighbouring countries seeking refuge or training.

Increased vigil along the India-Myanmar border in Manipur is another reason why Mizoram is now the preferred route.

Mizoram shares a 722km border with Myanmar and Bangladesh.

According to the source, the arms consignment was believed to be for one of the factions of the Shanti Bahini, the military wing of Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti, which claims to be fighting for the rights of the indigenous people of Chittagong Hill Tracts in southeastern Bangladesh.

They had smuggled the arms from Myanmar and were planning to take these to Bangladesh.

“The Centre has handed over the investigation to the NIA because two foreign countries are involved and moreover, the probe agency will also investigate whether any militant group of the Northeast is helping the Samiti to foment trouble in Bangladesh,” the source said.

“Since Paresh Barua of Ulfa (Independent) is also based in Myanmar and is reportedly involved in gun-running, the possibility of Ulfa providing arms to the Samiti cannot be ruled out,” he added.

He said Mizoram had also become a meeting point of banned outfits, especially strike arms deals, which was also a cause for concern.

An earlier NIA probe into the Maoist nexus with Northeast militant groups had revealed that a meeting was held between the leaders of the Manipur-based People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and Maoists at Champhai in Mizoram on July 15, 2010.

The source said initially, the accused trio, who belong to the Chakma community, tried to conceal their true identities by claiming to be from North Tripura.

“However, sustained interrogation by police and verification with Tripura police later confirmed that they are Bangladeshi citizens and members of a faction of Shanti Bahini,” he said.

Drugs seized from Mizo man

SHILLONG: The anti-smuggling unit of the customs division, Shillong, seized 37.375kg of pseudoephedrine from a passenger, who was travelling in a vehicle (MZ-05-7092) bound for Aizawl from Guwahati near Umling in Ri-Bhoi district. "On demand, the passenger, Lalchhanchhuaha, a resident of Falkland, Zemabawk in Aizawl could not produce any document in support of the legal purchase, possession, transportation of the drug, which is in violation of section 9 (A) of the NDPS Act, 1985. He was thereby arrested," said L Ralte, assistant commissioner of headquarters preventive in the office of the commissioner of customs (preventive), northeastern region. "Accordingly, the goods valued at about Rs 93,45,750 was seized and further investigation into the case is going on," he added.

Over 1L covered by pension scheme in Manipur: Social welfare minister AK Mirabai on Tuesday informed the Manipur assembly that out of the 1,09,075 people of the state, who been covered under the various old age pension schemes, 81,499 had opened bank accounts for electronic transfer of their pension money. Responding to a call attention motion raised by legislator I Ibohalbi of the opposition Trinamool Congress, Mirabai said the government could not transfer money to all the beneficiaries as about 20 per cent of the total pension beneficiaries did not open bank accounts. But pension for 60,074 beneficiaries, had been transferred, she added.

Cement factory staff abducted: An electrician, Arup Karmakar, working with Valley Strong Cement Company Limited of Badarpurghat in Assam's Karimganj district was abducted by a group of armed miscreants when he was returning home from work on Monday. Police have launched an operation for the rescue of the abducted man after his father filed an FIR with Badarpur Police Station. A miscreant was arrested from Fakirabazar in Karimganj for his suspected involvement in the kidnapping.

Reply by June 15, Tada court to Daimary: The Tada court here has asked NDFB chief Ranjan Daimary, who is the prime accused in the October 30 serial blast case, to reply within June 15 on the conditions put forward by the Assam government for an interim bail. Earlier, on Monday, the state government, in an affidavit before the court, consented to an interim bail grant to Daimary for a period of six months on several conditions. Daimary, who has already been granted an interim bail in the serial blast case, is waiting for release in four Tada cases and a case of the Special Operations Unit (SOU) of Assam Police.

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Passengers file FIR against Jet Airways

AIZAWL, June 11 : Irritated passengers filed an FIR against Jet Airways in Mizoram. Furious over flight cancellation and non-provision of alternative flight, a group of irritated flight passengers have submitted an FIR against a private flight service plying in the Lengpui (Aizawl airport), Guwahati and Kolkata section. The FIR has been submitted to Sairang police station, after two days of which an alternative flight was provided. On June 5, Jet Airways had cancelled its flight for Aizawl- Kolkata on ground of inclement weather. But then, about the same time, Air India flight from Kolkata arrived at Lengpui airport and also departed again, and the weather was also favourable.

Passengers said that they went to Jet Airways counter and informed of their problems, on which they were replied that the ticket was overbooked for June 6-8. They also said that the Jet Airways officer in-charge declined their request to approach higher authority besides saying that they could do nothing.

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Alert over blue-ear pig disease

Silchar, June 7 : The Mizoram government has issued an alert to pig-rearers against a new disease named porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome or blue-ear pig disease that has so far affected over 500 pigs in the state.

However, there are no reports of any fatality among the pigs till now. The director of animal husbandry and veterinary department, Lalbiakmawia, today told this correspondent over phone that the virus has reached Mizoram from neighbouring Myanmar, where people like their counterparts in Mizoram, are pork-eaters.

As a result, the import of pigs from Myanmar has been put on hold and Lalbiakmawia made it clear there would not be any relaxation on the import ban imposed in April this year.

The director said the disease was detected in a few pigs which were suffering from fever after detailed tests conducted on them in two institutes — a research complex of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) at Barapani near Shillong in Meghalaya and College of Veterinary Sciences in Selesih near here.

He said the symptoms of the disease are generally triggered by an antigen named as arterivirus, which is generally propagated through respiration and through the seminal fluid in pigs.

Tracing the history of the disease, Lalbiakmawia, who is a veterinary doctor, said the virus was first detected in the US in 1987 and since then it has been periodically surfacing in some South Asian countries, including Myanmar. Lalbiakmawia said efforts are now on India and some other Southeast Asian countries to isolate and treat the virus in a bid to discover the particular antigen for tackling the disease.

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Swine disease virus detected

AIZAWL, June 5 – For the first time in Mizoram and perhaps in the country, virus of a pandemic disease which causes reproductive failure in breeding stock and respiratory tract illness in young pigs has been detected in the samples of sick swines sent to laboratories for testing.

The samples of the sick swines were tested at the laboratories in the Veterinary College in Selesih, Mizoram and at ICAR Research Complex, Borapani in Meghalaya which detected the presence of ‘artevirus’, the virus that carries the disease porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRSS), Director of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Dr L B Sailo said. – PTI

The PRRS has never been detected earlier in the state and the country but was prevalent in some Asian countries including neighbouring Myanmar with which the state shares 404-km-long border, he said.

Sailo added that tackling the full blown pandemic PRRS would be extremely tough as the vaccine was yet to be manufactured in India.

The samples were sent to the laboratories following the death of hundreds of swines in Mizoram during the past few months, state AH and Veterinary department officials said.

Following the detection of the PRRS virus, the current ban on import of pigs from Myanmar would be in place for a longer time in the state, Sailo said.

District Magistrates of Mizoram’s districts adjoining Myanmar had issued prohibitory orders banning import of pigs in May last.

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‘Women victims of Mizo conflicts need assistance

Guwahati: Former members of Mizo National Army (now disbanded), the military wing of rebel Mizo National Front (MNF), on Monday raised demand for assistance from the Government of India for proper rehabilitation and looking after of a large number of elderly Mizo women who, they said, had become mentally deranged after they were raped and tortured by Indian Army at their young ages during Mizoram conflict of 1966-86.

It has been 27 years since Mizo Peace Accord that was signed on June 30, 1986 between the erstwhile separatist insurgent group Mizo National Front (MNF) and Government of India paving way for restoration of peace after 20 years of armed conflict since 1966 that left people of tiny Mizoram in jitters.

Members of Ex-Mizo National Army (erstwhile militant wing of the MNF) Association demanded financial assistance from the Government of India taking proper care of these innocent victims of the conflict as their families no longer could bear the expenditure required to look after them.

They alleged that a large number of Mizo women were raped and tortured by Indian Army in the armed conflict with MNF during 1966-86, especially after MNF declared Mizoram an ‘Independent State’.

They stated that media was not allowed inside during that period and Indian Army was given all the power. The Army allegedly killed many innocent Mizo men and raped and tortured young Mizo women.

The former rebels said some of those raped women are now elderly women and mentally deranged and thereby have become burden for their families.

The former rebels also demanded that some cases filed against Mizo rebels were still pending though it was assured during the signing of Mizo Accord that those cases would be dropped. For instance, they cited particular three criminal cases filed by Manipur government against three former Mizo National Army rebels –Lalzarliana, Lalbiakhluna and Vanlalhruaia – were still pending and the mental agony caused by the pending case has made Lalzarliana a mentally deranged person now.

The criminal cases in question were registered by Manipur government as per FIR No.303 (6) 1984 U/S 396/397/121-A/326 IPC RW 25 Arms Act & 13 UAP Act. After signing of Mizo Accord when MNF formed two subsequent government in Mizoram, respective MNF chief ministers of Mizoram had requested the chief minister of Manipur, Governor of Manipur and President of India for number if times to drop these cases, but in vain.

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Mizoram finishes second in Job Generation

Agartala: Once again, the Left-ruled Tripura bagged the top position in creating maximum jobs under the national flagship programme- MGNREGA for the 2012-13 .

An average of 87 mandays were generated in Tripura during 2012-13 finanacial year (FY) while Mizoram finished top with 69 mandays and Tamil Nadu secured third spot with 51 mandays, according to statistics of the Rural Development Ministry. The national average of mandays under the national flagship programme stands at 39 days.

However, Rural Development Minister Jitendra Chowdhury was not happy with the role of the Centre.

Talking to media here on Wednesday Chaudhury sought timely release of funds for the implementation of MGNREG) for Tripura saying that the project is suffering from fund crisis in several areas of the state in the current financial year.

The Minister said that the Central government is not regular in releasing necessary funds under the central welfare scheme which has resulted in frequent troubles of implementation.

“We are managing continuity of work as of now with money from our state plan fund”, Chaudhury said. Chaudhury recently visited Gomati, South Tripura district, West Tripura district and Khowai districts.

Saying that the state government is committed to provide a total of 100 mandays assured under the NREGA scheme, Chaudhury expressed discontent at the role of the central government in releasing funds under NREGS and said, “Tripura has been the national topper in implementing MGNREGA for last several years. We generated 87 mandays – the highest in the country. It is sad that the central government hasn’t released timely funds to Tripura for better performance in the scheme”.

“The state government was expecting Rs. 400 crores in the first installment of NREGS fund release in the current labour budget’s tenure. They have given us barely Rs. 58 crores”, he added.

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Don't use policemen for personal reasons, officers told

Aizawl, May 3 : The Mizoram government Sunday warned police officials that strict action will be taken if they use constables and Home Guards for private purposes.

"Stringent action will be taken if any senior police officer is found using manpower for private purposes," Home Minister R. Lalzirliana said here.

He was addressing a function of the State Disaster Response Force.

The minister said: "There are complaints and reports that senior police officials are using constables and Home Guards for private and family purposes."

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Grand bungalows of Ministers in Mizoram attract Corruption Watchdog

Aizawl, Jun 3 : Due to the FIR filed recently by the Mizoram corruption watchdog, People's Right to Information and Development Implementing Society of Mizoram (PRISM) to Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) against Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and his ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries and MLAs on ground of discrepancy in accumulation and construction of their own residential buildings and to investigate over it, the accused ministers and MLAs said they now want to resort to filing defamation case against the PRISM, according to the media cell of Mizoram Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) .

"After having done verification over the accusations made by PRISM against the MLAs, we found that the accusations are false and unfounded," the MPCC stated, adding, "We are very much afraid that these out-of-the-way accusations hurled at the MLAs may downgrade even their already secured good names.

The possible reason, we supposed, for PRISM doing like this is because they want to contest in the assembly elections.

We therefore, supposed that they (PRISM) feel the good MLAs as a hindrance in their plan for the same and so tried to defame them", the MPCC said.

It can be noted here that this is not the only case where PRISM had exposed the corrupt practices in Mizoram.

On August 18 last year, the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACb) had arrested PWD Engineer-in-Chief, Lianchungnunga, former Engineer-in-Chief Liansanga and PWD Accountant B Thanpuia on the charges of misappropriation of funds for the Serkhan-Bagha Road surfacing, thanks to the PRISM exposure.

Political parties including Mizoram state unit of BJP, Mizoram National Front (MNF), Mizo Peoples Convention (MPC), Mizoram Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), PC and Zoram National Party (ZNP) along with NGOs such as AMFU, AMIS, CITUM, FOMTU, GDN, HR&LN, HZP, MBCS, MCDC, MMS, MRTU, MUP, MSU, MZP, PRISM, SOSA and TZP rallied behind PRISM in the case.

The Anti Corruption Bureau had arrested the three officials- Lianchungnunga s/o Hranga (L) Chaltlang Dawrkawn, Liansanga s/o Suakkunga (L), Khatla and B Thanpuia s/o B Lalnghaka (L), Upper Republic following the FIR lodged against them for their alleged involvement in corruption in connection with the work of Serkhan-Bagha Road construction.

ACB had arrested the three PWD officials through the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Lianchungnunga was arrested while he was at his office, Liansanga at his residence, and B Lalthanpuia while on his building construction work.

After receiving an FIR in 2009 against the three PWD officials, the Anti Corruption Bureau had carried out investigations after which they came to arrest the three accused PWD officials last month.

It can be noted here that the BRTF had earlier worked for the 75 km.

Serkhan-Bagha construction and after blacktopping was done, it was handed over to Mizoram PWD in 2004 .

Then, the PWD received Rs.6, 00, 50,000 during 2006-09 from the 12th Finance Commission, Rs.1,00,86,000 from Mizoram Plan Fund during 2004-07, Rs.30,00,000 from NEC in March 14, 2006 and again Rs.45,00,000 on September 21, 2006 .

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Ban on smoking in pvt vehicles in Mizoram

Aizawl, Jun 3 : A ban on smoking in private vehicles was imposed in Mizoram today, World No Tobacco Day. The order was issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Aizawl district, an official statement said. Functions were held in Aizawl and all district headquarters of the eight districts where provisions of the Control of Tobacco Products Act were explained to participants.

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