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Guwahati: Mizoram has emerged as the frontrunner in the latest North Eastern Region SDG Index 2023-24, with its district Hnahthial securing the highest score, 81.43 points, among 121 districts assessed. Assam, however, failed to place any of its districts in the top ten, with its highest-ranked district, Dibrugarh, landing in the 17th position. Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge! NITI Aayog, in collaboration with the Ministry of DoNER and UNDP, released the report to measure district-level progress on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Northeast. The index includes 121 of the region's 131 districts, using 84 indicators drawn from both central and state data sources. The top ten districts in the region include Hnahthial, Champai, and Kolasib (all in Mizoram); Gomati, West Tripura, and South Tripura (Tripura); Mokokchung, Kohima, and Dimapur (Nagaland); and Gangtok (Sikkim). Assam's overall performance remains weak. Dibrugarh scored 74.29 points, followed by Sivasagar at 74 points (ranked 20th) and Jorhat at 73.79 points (21st). Several districts, including South Salmara-Mankachar (ranked 118), West Karbi Anglong (108), and Udalguri (102), feature near the bottom of the list. Notably, no district from Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, or Arunachal Pradesh achieved a score in the Achiever (50-64) or Aspirant (0-49) categories, while all districts in Mizoram, Tripura, and Sikkim qualified as Front Runners (65-99 points). Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge! The report attributes Assam's and several other states' underperformance to the region's challenging geography -- including mountainous terrain, dense forests, and remote border locations -- which hampers infrastructure development and industrial growth. These limitations particularly affect SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), as well as employment opportunities in modern sectors. These structural issues, the report noted, have a ripple effect on other goals, especially SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), and SDG 4 (Quality Education). States like Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Nagaland still show considerable room for improvement in these areas. Education remains a major concern across the region. The National Achievement Survey (NAS) 2021 found that 66% of the districts in the Northeast reported below-average proficiency among grade 8 students, compared to the national average of 77%. Additionally, 100 districts recorded secondary school dropout rates above the national average of 14.1%, according to UDISE 2023-24 data. School infrastructure continues to demand urgent attention. On the environmental front, the India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2023 recorded forest cover loss in 72 districts since the last survey in 2021. Despite improvements in clean cooking fuel usage, three-fourths of the districts still lag behind the national average in household access. The 2023-24 SDG Index uses a combination of 84 indicators, with data sourced from 41 central ministries/departments and 43 state agencies, to monitor the region's advancement toward the 17 SDG targets.
Guwahati, July 2: Notwithstanding an early monsoon onset, Assam recorded a rainfall deficit of 34 per cent in the first monsoon month of June, and July doesn't look better either. Against the normal June rainfall of 415.2 mm, the State as a whole received just 272 mm of rain during the month. Western Assam districts reported a huge shortfall in monsoon rains during the month, with Bajali topping the list (minus 77 per cent), followed by Darrang (minus 76 per cent), South Salmara (minus 72 per cent), Barpeta (minus 68 per cent) and Nalbari (minus 66 per cent). Eastern Assam districts had bet ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], July 13 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday said that his government is working towards the further development of the tourism industry in the state, and that it will be possible to carry out socio-economic development by keeping the tourism sector in focus. According to an official press release, Saha further informed that the government is committed to the overall development of the state and solving the problems of the people and the government has given importance to infrastructure development, housing, healthcare, education, and increasing the i ...Read More >
Agartala, Nov 11 (SocialNews.XYZ) In a major push to boost power generation amid a natural gas shortage, the Tripura government will introduce Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) technology at the Rukhia Power Plant in Sepahijala district, increasing its generation capacity by 120 megawatt (MW). Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath said on Monday that the foundation stone and Bhumi Pujan for the project will be held on November 26. Nath, who also holds the Agriculture portfolio, said that despite the ongoing gas crisis, the Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) has initiated measures ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], July 18 (ANI): Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel at Agartala Railway Station recovered and seized 9.5 kg of dry ganja from the platform just before the departure of the Kanchenjunga Express during a routine security check conducted on Thursday. The ganja was seized from platform No. 1 towards the Jirania end. The contraband was discovered inside seven packets stored inside two bags, left unclaimed on the platform. Following all legal formalities, the ganja was officially seized as unclaimed property. The Agartala GRP Police Station has launched an investi ...Read More >
SHILLONG, July 18: Union Minister of State for Cooperation, Krishan Pal Gurjar, has urged Meghalaya to continue leveraging the Government of India's "Look Northeast" policy for sustained development. He commended East Khasi Hills for its remarkable performance in implementing centrally sponsored schemes (CSS). Gurjar acknowledged challenges in land acquisition due to hilly terrain, forest cover, and community ownership for critical infrastructure projects like airports and railways in Meghalaya. He called for environmental sensitivity and local participation in development. Under Prime Mini ...Read More >
Mumbai, July 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) Actor Harshvardhan Rane, who was last seen in 'The Miranda Brothers', is heaping praise on the recently released film 'Saiyaara', and its team. On Saturday, the actor took to the Stories section of his Instagram, and penned a special note for the film and its makers after it witnessed a stellar opening day. He wrote, "Another melodious example of a love story shattering all myths and formulas of the industry. Honest heart wrenching love story wins again in 2025! #Saiyaara". 'Saiyaara', which stars Aneet Padda, and marks the debut of Ahaan Panday, is helmed b ...Read More >
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 4 (ANI): Actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam founder Kamal Haasan made strong remarks on the necessity of education while addressing a gathering at the Agaram Foundation event in Chennai. Education is the only weapon that can break the chains of dictatorship and Sanatan, the Rajya Sabha MP said on Sunday. Kamal Haasan added, Dont take anything else in your hands, only education. We cannot win without it, because the majority can make you lose. Majority Fools (Moodargal) will make u lose; knowledge alone will seem defeated. That why we must hold on to it (Educat ...Read More >
New Delhi [India], July 7 (ANI): Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare & Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday inaugurated the 11th edition of the India Maize Summit, organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in association with (IIMR) Indian Institute of Maize Research. Speaking at event, Chouhan emphasized that 'Farmers' sewa is our mool mantra,' reaffirming the government's commitment to farmer-centric policies. He outlined a multi-pronged strategy to boost maize production, and increase farmer incomes, while ensuring environme ...Read More >
Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], July 9 (ANI): Following the violent protest at Kerala University, a case has been registered against 27 activists of the ruling CPM's Students Federation of India (SFI), including its state secretary P S Sanjeev, who has been named the prime accused, police said. The case also names 1,000 identifiable protesters who have been accused of damaging public property, forcibly entering the university campus, and assaulting police and university staff, police said on Tuesday. Also Read | Nobel Peace Prize 2025: From Mahatma Gandhi to Jawaharlal Nehru, Check Full ...Read More >
Bareilly (UP), Jul 17 (PTI) A teacher from Bahedi district, who went viral recently after reciting a poem mentioning Kanwar Yatra, approached the police on Thursday stating a threat to his life from anti-social elements. A case has been registered at Bahedi police station based on a complaint from Dr Rajneesh Kumar Gangwar, a teacher at MGM Inter College in the district. According to Circle Officer Arun Kumar Singh, Gangwar's complaint says that ever since his recitation of the poem 'Tum Kanwad Lene Mat Jana, Gyaan Ka Deepak Jalaana' (You don't go get Kavad, light the lamp of knowledge inste ...Read More >
Guwahati, June 27: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday announced that his government will soon issue a blanket order to the Central Government to facilitate the exploration of Assam's mining potential. The announcement was made during the second edition of the North East Mining Ministers' Conclave, held in Guwahati. "This morning, we discussed granting a blanket exploration order for geological investigations. I want to commit that within a very short time, we will allow the Government of India to explore mining potential across," the Chief Minister said. He further informed that t ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], September 14 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Tripura on September 22 to inaugurate the redevelopment and beautification of the Mata Tripura Sundari Temple. CM Saha made this announcement while addressing the closing ceremony of the Neermahal Jal Utsav at Melaghar. Also Read | Bihar Voter List Revision Hearing: Supreme Court to Hear Pleas Challenging SIR in Poll-Bound State on September 15. He stated that the present state government is working to develop all tourist spots across the sta ...Read More >
Guwahati: VL Kantha Rao, Secretary, Ministry of Mines, underscored that the Geological Survey of India has identified over 36,000 square kilometres in the Northeast India as having mineral potential, translating to nearly 3,000 prospective mines. He highlighted that Assam has now firmly entered the national auction map, signalling a new era for mineral development. The 2nd North East Geology and Mining Ministers' Conclave was inaugurated in Guwahati, Assam on Friday. He called for expanding exploration and research, including leveraging Artificial Intelligence in mineral discovery. Notably, ...Read More >
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 th ...Read More >
ITANAGAR, 3 Jul: Governor KT Parnaik on Thursday described the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly (APLA) as a proud emblem of transparency, heritage, and representative governance. In his speech after inaugurating the 45-day-long golden jubilee celebration of the APLA here, the governor extended congratulations to all past and present members of the legislative assembly, as well as to the people of Arunachal Pradesh. "The assembly is the sacred temple of democracy and it stands as a beacon of hope, a forum for unity, and a symbol of inclusive progress," he said. Reflecting on the journey ...Read More >
New Delhi [India], July 9 (ANI): In a landmark move towards competency-based education and data-driven reform, the Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, conducted by the NCERT National Assessment Centre-PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development), has delivered valuable insights into student learning outcomes across India, as per a release. Spanning 21.15 lakh students, 74,229 schools, and 781 districts across all 36 States and UTs, the survey marks the largest system-level assessment conducted in India for Grades 3, 6, and 9. The assessment provides a bas ...Read More >
New Delhi [India], August 1 (ANI): India on Friday launched the first set of four development projects under the 'India-UN Global Capacity Building Initiative,' aimed at supporting countries of the Global South in meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as per MEA. The projects were officially launched by the Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Tanmaya Lal, at a ceremony attended by Heads of Missions of participating countries, UN Resident Coordinator in India Shombi Sharp, senior officials from UN agencies, and senior MEA officials. External Affairs Minister S Jaisha ...Read More >
Guwahati, July 8: Coal production in the Northeast by Coal India Limited (CIL) is going down, with the state-owned coal producer suspending mining operations in many mines due to various constraints like difficult geomining conditions, economic unviability, non-availability of suitable mining methods and non-availability of forest and environment clearances, according to a Coal Ministry report. CIL's production dropped from 7.84 lakh tonnes in 2018-19 to 2 lakh tonnes in 2024-25, the report stated. "Exploring and developing coal resources in the North Eastern Region (NER) of India present se ...Read More >
Amritsar (Punjab) [India], August 2 (ANI): Counter-Intelligence (CI), Amritsar, has busted a cross-border illegal arms smuggling module with alleged links to Pakistan and arrested five operatives, recovering six sophisticated pistols from their possession, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Friday. According to a statement issued by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Punjab, those arrested have been identified as Jagroop Singh of Dhun (Tarn Taran), Navdeep Singh of Patti Lahian Di (Tarn Taran), Arshdeep Singh of Shaliwal (Amritsar), Gurlal Singh of R ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], July 18 (ANI): Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel at Agartala Railway Station recovered and seized 9.5 kg of dry ganja from the platform just before the departure of the Kanchenjunga Express during a routine security check conducted on Thursday. The ganja was seized from platform No. 1 towards the Jirania end. The contraband was discovered inside seven packets stored inside two bags, left unclaimed on the platform. Following all legal formalities, the ganja was officially seized as unclaimed property. The Agartala GRP Police Station has launched an investi ...Read More >
Guwahati: BSF's Additional Director General (ADG), Eastern Command, Kolkata, Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, visited bordering areas and Border Outposts (BOPs) along the India-Bangladesh border with Tripura. A BSF spokesman said that during his four-day visit (June 24-27), Aggarwal, a senior IPS officer, interacted with field commanders and jawans to assess the situation along the India-Bangladesh border. He said that the BSF ADG, along with Inspector General (IG), BSF Tripura frontier Ashwani Kumar Sharma, visited the BOPs falling under the districts of West Tripura, Sepahijala, South Tripura, Gomat ...Read More >
New Delhi: The political fallout between US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk escalated sharply on Sunday, with Trump slamming Musk's newly announced "America Party" as a recipe for "total disruption and chaos." In a blistering post on his Truth Social account, Trump said Musk had "gone off the rails," accusing the Tesla and SpaceX chief of pursuing a "third political party" that would never succeed in America's entrenched two-party system. The comments come a day after Musk formally unveiled the America Party in response to Trump's sweeping tax cuts law, signalling the most s ...Read More >
"The BJP is the only party which could usher in development in the tribal areas of the state. If you vote for us, we will ensure speedy development", he said. Accusing the TMP of siphoning off funds meant for development, the CM said the state has sanctioned 28 projects amounting to Rs 200 crore for the tribal council over the past three years, apart from the budgetary outlay. "Out of Rs 200 crore, Rs 112 crore has already been released to the TMP-controlled tribal council, but no utilisation c ...Read More >
NEW DELHI, July 7: The second report of the NITI Aayog has revealed that all Northeast states, except for Manipur, have seen improved sustainable development in 2023-24, up from 62% in 2021-22. The report says Meghalaya has shown strong performance in front-runner districts, with 83.33% of its districts performing above the national average. East Khasi Hills and East Jaintia Hills performed best, while Sikkim and Tripura maintained 100% front-runner districts. Mizoram also joined the league. The report highlights the role of the index as a tool for identifying gaps, offering actionable insig ...Read More >
Aizawl: Hnahthial district in south Mizoram has emerged as the highest-scoring district in the entire northeast region in the North Eastern Region District Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index 2023-24, released by NITI Aayog on Monday.With a composite score of 81.43, Hnahthial outperformed 120 other districts across the eight north-eastern states. Mizoram also saw all its districts placed in the 'Front Runner' category, indicating substantial progress towards achieving the SDGs. The second edition of the NER District SDG Index was jointly developed by NITI Aayog and the Ministry of Develo ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], July 13 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday said that his government is working towards the further development of the tourism industry in the state, and that it will be possible to carry out socio-economic development by keeping the tourism sector in focus. According to an official press release, Saha further informed that the government is committed to the overall development of the state and solving the problems of the people and the government has given importance to infrastructure development, housing, healthcare, education, and increasing the i ...Read More >
ITANAGAR, 6 Jun: More than 200 people without valid inner line permits (ILP) were externed from the Itanagar Capital Region on Friday, a senior police officer said. The violators were detected during an enforcement drive conducted by the Naharlagun police across Papu Hills, Naharlagun, Nirjuli, and Banderdewa, as part of the ongoing initiative to uphold the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation. Naharlagun Superintendent of Police (SP) Mihin Gambo said that all 219 individuals were found without valid ILPs during the operation. "Each case was verified and processed under non-FIR provisions, an ...Read More >
Mumbai: US-based Jane Street said the Indian capital market regulator's order accusing the trading firm of manipulative trading in equity derivatives reflects a 'misunderstanding of standard hedging practices and the interrelationships between derivative and underlying markets'. The firm, in an internal communication that ET has accessed, said the Securities and Exchange Board of India's claim that the firm's activity is "prima facie manipulative", disregards the role of liquidity providers and arbitrageurs in markets, while contesting claims that it was uncooperative with Sebi regarding its ...Read More >
PRNewswire Chandigarh [India], July 15: Chandigarh University, India leading private university, in collaboration with job platform Apna and investment firm Venture Catalysts (VCats) have launched Campus Tank, India first university-led Startup launch-pad for young innovators below the age of 30 to pitch their ideas and get funding of $1 Million to launch their startups along with expert venture guidance, strategic ecosystem alliances and immersive startup incubation. APNA which is India largest early talent platform, trusted by over 6 Crore users and AICTE while Venture Catalyst is India lea ...Read More >
These drugs were smuggled into India from Myanmar via Manipur, and Assam is a transit ShowQuick Read Summary is AI-generated, newsroom-reviewed * Assam police seized 50,000 Yaba tablets in South Salmara Mankachar district on Monday * Ashique Babu (26) was arrested carrying Yaba tablets on a bus from Guwahati to Mankachar * Drugs were smuggled from Myanmar via Manipur, using Assam as a transit route Did our AI summary help? Let us know. In a major anti-narcotic operation, Assam police seiz ...Read More >