HIMALAYAN GUARDIAN        Aug 1, 2012

 74% turnout for peaceful GTA polls  

Darjeeling, July 31: At least 74% turnout was recorded in the first Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) polls in the hills on Sunday. Voting in the 17 of the total of 45 seats was peaceful and at least 74% of the electorate participated in it, said Darjeeling District Magistrate Saumitra Mohan.

Superintendent of Police Kunal Agarwal said there had been no untoward incident from any part of the hills.     

There are a total 45 seats in the GTA, 28 of which have been won uncontested by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. The CPI-M and Trinamool Congress had withdrawn from the contest. An independent also contested in the polls in Nimdong constituency in Kalimpong.

Despite TMC’s withdrawal from the polls, some of its nominees took part in the polls. While some TMC candidates say that the party failed to inform them of its decision to withdraw from the polls others say since they could not withdraw from the race since they had already decided to contest.

Several opposition parties in the hills boycotted the polls as they feel that the GTA was a sellout to the statehood demand.

Voters of Belgachi and Panighata did not participate in the polls as they do not want to join the GTA, PTI reported.

 People in Sukna boycotted the polls as they felt there had been no development in the past few years.

CBI books ex-IGNOU Vice-Chancellor

Permission to Sikkim Manipal University illegal:CBI

New Delhi, July 31: Rajasekharan Pillai, former Vice-Chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University, has been booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation for allegedly misusing his position to grant approval to two universities to run distance learning courses in 2009 despite certain deficiencies highlighted by an expert committee.

Pillai, who was also holding the post of Distance Education Council chairman, granted permission to Punjab Technical University and Sikkim Manipal University for running two distance education courses for which he was allegedly not authorised.

The CBI suspects that Pillai had received some sort of illegal gratification in lieu of granting permission to the two universities.

Following registration of the case, the CBI on Friday conducted searches at the residence of the former Vice-Chancellor at Thiruvanthapuram. The role of the two universities’ managements is also being probed.

Pillai has denied charges leveled by the CBI.

"All guidelines and procedures were followed while granting permission to Sikkim Manipal University and Punjab Technical University to offer IGNOU's distance education courses," he said in a statement.

CBI, which booked Pillai, said that during his tenure as IGNOU VC between 2006-11, Pillai had allegedly misused his official position to allow Sikkim Manipal University and Punjab Technical University to run distance learning courses in violation of laid down procedure.

China presses Panchen Lama to address unrest in Tibet

Beijing, July 31:  As suicides continued unabated in Tibet, China for the first time pressed Panchen Lama, the Tibetan Buddhist monk being groomed to counter the Dalai Lama's influence, to campaign against the self immolations, especially among young monks.

22-year-old 11th Panchen Lama, who was appointed in 1995 by China replacing his Dalai Lama appointed "predecessor" Choekyi Gyaltsen at the age of six in a controversial circumstances, began taking active role in the recent months with high-profile publicity from the state-owned media, PTI reported.

Mostly based in Beijing, the young Lama, who is also the Vice President of Buddhist Association and nominated member of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference, for the first time stepped out of main land China in April this year and attended a Buddhist conference in Hong Kong.

Since last week he is touring Lhasa, the provincial capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, making high-profile visits to Buddhist temples and monasteries and urging monks to safeguard China's interests and work for social stability.  

Described by China's official Xinhua news agency as "a spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism", the young Lama on Thursday visited the Tibet Buddhist Theological Institute in Lhasa and called on monks to "love their country and abide by laws".

Opened in October 2011, the institute hosts 150 students, including monks from various Tibetan Buddhist sects.

After performing the rituals, Panchen Lama, regarded as the second most highest monk after the Dalai Lama, asked students to abide by national laws and serve the country and its people.

"I hope you can make good use of the sound learning conditions that the institute provides to learn the essence of Buddhism and safeguard our country and serve its people, so as to be true Buddhists," he said.

In his meeting with local leader on July 24, the Lama said it is both the "basics" and responsibility for a religious person to help people do good deeds, and promote harmony and social development by religious preaching.

His comments were made in the back drop of 44 self immolations by monks and other Tibetans in different parts of Tibet but mostly in Abba county in Sichuan province.

The suicides were stated to be aimed at protesting high security as well as to demand the return of the Dalai Lama from exile.

China against Indian influence in Nepal in the name of federalism: Baidya

Baidya

Kathmandu, July 31: “Foreign influence in Nepal in the name of federalism is not at all acceptable to China”.

This is the Chinese message communicated through the courtesy of Chairman Mohan Baidya Kiran of Nepal Communist Party-Maoist. Baidya returned home after a ten-day trip to China.

 “As a friendly neighbour China has expressed that growing foreign influence in Nepal in the name of federalism is not acceptable,” Baidya told media persons at a press meet here on Thursday.

“It is true that China is not in favour of ethnicity based federalism. However, they do not want to dictate their terms. They are worried if Nepal being influenced by foreign forces will undergo disintegration while adopting the federal model”.

 “I found the Chinese quite concerned over the present state of peace and constitutional processes”, he said and added, “I found the Chinese leaders concerned whether we will be able to restore peace and draft our constitution.”

“The Chinese leaders told me that we should not have divided the party”, Baidya told reporters.

 “I told them that since the leaders of Unified Maoists Party were on the verge of surrendering all the achievements of decade long revolt, I told them that to preserve those historical milestones the party split was a needed move”.

He also claimed that China takes his party as a strong nationalist political force.

“I was assured that China will never interfere in the internal matters of Nepal whereas it will continue extend supporting for the prosperity of Nepal”.

JK ‘stateless’ face uncertain future

 Jammu, July 31: It's a trauma that has lingered for 65 years. Some 2,000-3,000 Hindu families had migrated to Jammu and Kashmir from West Pakistan when the sub-continent was partitioned in 1947. Many of the elders have died, but their descendants, who have swelled to 2,00,000, are yet to get citizenship rights because the State's constitution does not permit this.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had assured them some four years ago that he would have their case examined. In spite of this and despite petitions in the Supreme Court and the State High Court, there has been no movement forward, IANS reported.

Sixty-year-old Mela Ram Bhagat put it poignantly: "Manmohan Singh is also a refugee but he has become the prime minister. We are still where we are.”

The villian of the piece, as it were, is article 370 of the Indian Constitution by virtue of which Jammu and Kashmir has a special status. Those originally from the State have citizenship rights and are called ‘State Subjects.’ These State subjects can own property, get government jobs, free higher education and the like.

This is not so for the refugees as their ancestors were not original residents of the State. Thus, even though they have access to government healthcare they don't have the rights of the other citizens. Curiously enough, they can vote in the Lok Sabha elections but not in the State Assembly elections.

They are not even entitled to ration cards, as a result of which they have to buy their provisions from the open market. This is quite a tall order as most of the refugees are daily wagers and barely manage to eke out a living. The others run small shops, tea stalls and the like.

The original families had realised way back in 1947 what they were in for and wanted to shift to neighbouring Punjab but were disuaded from doing so by then Chief Minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who assured them of justice.

"We do feel bad about this, but what can we do now? At the time of partition even some of us wanted to shift to Punjab from Digiana (on Jammu's outskirts) but Sheikh sahib (Abdullah) promised that we will get all rights. Now we are children of no where and no one," Bhagat lamented.

"Although we are human beings, yet we are living the life of an animal. This is our fourth generation here. But still we are aliens here," added Bhagat, who lives with his family in a mud house in the Niki Tawi area on the western outskirts of Jammu. The small house is on a rented piece of land as the refugees cannot buy property in Jammu and Kashmir.

"The worst part is that we are not even entitled to government scholarships. They (the school authorities) ask for a state subject certificate if we want to pursue higher education. And we cannot pay for private education. We are three sisters and a brother and our father is a labourer. What do we do?" Sunita Rani, 17, who just finished her Class 10, asked while speaking to IANS, tears in her eyes.

She wants to study further but the situation does not permit her to do so as one

In all this, the politicians are fishing in troubled waters, says Labha Ram Gandhi, a leader of the refugees.

"The Kashmir-centric political setup does not want to take this decision in favour of us (refugees) living in Jammu as it would amount to losing the Kashmiri vote bank. This has become a political issue," Gandhi said.

Revenue Minister Raman Bhalla of the Congress speaks for the political spectrum: "There is a technical problem in making them state subjects as Article 370 does not permit this. But we are thinking of providing them basic facilities.”

Editorial

ETHNIC TENSION

Locals Fear Illegal Migrants

Ethnic tension in ‘Bodoland’, which has now erupted in a violent manner, is not an isolated event in Assam, a State that has faced many communal violence and political upheavals in the past so many decades. In 1971, after the Pakistani crackdown in East Bengal, more than one million refugees sought shelter in Assam. Most of them went back after the creation of Bangladesh, but nearly 100,000 remained. After 1971, there occurred a fresh, continuous and large-scale influx of land-hungry Bangladeshi peasants into Assam. But land in Assam had by now become scarce, and Assamese peasants and tribals feared loss of their holdings. However, this demographic transformation generated the feeling of linguistic, cultural and political insecurity, which overwhelmed the Assamese and imparted a strong emotional content to their movement against illegal migrants in the eighties.
Migration of outsiders into Assam has a long history. The British administration had encouraged migration of thousands of Biharis to work on the tea-plantations and of hundreds of thousands of Bengali peasants to settle on the vast uncultivated tracts of Assam. Till recently, Assamese landlords had welcomed the hardworking Bengali tenants in the sparsely populated Assam. Between 1939 and 1947 Muslim communalists encouraged Bengali Muslim migration to create a better bargaining position in case of partition of India. Partition led to a large-scale refugee influx from Pakistani Bengal into Assam besides West Bengal and Tripura. 
Though illegal migration had surfaced as a political matter several times since 1950, it burst as a major issue in 1979 when it became clear that a large number of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh had become voters in the State. Afraid of their acquiring a dominant role in Assam's politics through the coming election at the end of 1979, the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and the Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (Assam People's Struggle Council), a coalition of regional political, literary and cultural associations, started a massive, anti-illegal migration movement. The current Bodo-Muslim violence in Kokrajhar and its adjoining areas showcase the undercurrents of ethnic tension in Assam and many parts of the volatile northeast region of India.
Assam violence: A history of conflict rooted in land

By Kishalay Bhattacharjee and Sandeep Phukan

Guwahati: At 3 pm on Thursday (July 26), 100 soldiers carry out a flag march - an exercise to demonstrate the Army is on hand and working to revive law and order - in Jurigaon, a small village in Kokrajhar district of Assam. There is no civilian in sight. There are the remains of homes set on fire.  Some cattle deserted by its owners strays aimlessly.

Jurigaon is one of the villages defeated by the ethnic conflict that has ripped through the lower Assam in the last week. 42 people have been killed. Two lakh people are homeless - some among them have found room in refugee camps in places like Bijni and Bongaigaon; others wait in line.

The violence was triggered when four young men from the indigenous Bodo community were killed in a part of the Kokrajhar district inhabited mainly by Muslims. Those killings - and the ones that followed - are the unforgiving manifestation of the multiplying pressures on the land in this part of the state. The Bodos - the indigenous advidasis - have sustained their community through agriculture for decades. But in recent years, wave after wave of Muslim immigrants - some from across the border in Bangladesh - has convinced them that they are being robbed of their land.

The conflict began when the British ruled India and brought Adivasis from the Chhota Nagpur plateau to Assam, putting them to work in tea gardens, and assigning them small pieces of land in exchange. In mid-30s, settlers from East Bengal (what is now Bangladesh) started arriving here. They were hard-working and they were cultivators, who knew how to make the land work for them. The local tribals - the Bodos - now found themselves up against the adivasis brought in by the British, and Bengali-speaking Muslims from East Pakistan or Bangladesh. By the mid-70s, the lines were so clearly drawn between the communities that neighbours were undisguised enemies.  The tension between the communities rode out through student politics, spawning militant outfits with conflicting agendas.

One of those groups - the Bodo Liberation Tigers or BLT - decided to fold into the Congress government in 2003. The Bodoland District Territorial Council was set up to govern four areas. Non-Bodos in this part of Assam argue that political power at the hands of Bodos has altered the dynamics on the ground and that's a source of constant fear among non-Bodos.

Since the 90s, clashes have erupted with such frequency and force that Bodoland has become home to one of the highest internally-displaced people.  The changing demographics forge violent assertions of identity.

The All Minority Students Union, which has been protesting against the attacks on non-Bodos, says it has been writing to Congress Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi for two months, warning of the increasing tension. The government refutes charges of indifference.

Through the crisis, the Congress has to balance political equations. It needs the vote of both Bengali Muslims in the area, as well as its Bodo coalition partner. (NDTV)

China needs to be sensitive of India's concerns: Analyst

Gasa Dzong at the Bhutan-Tibet border in Northern Bhutan
As Bhutan, India's closest ally is all set to establish diplomatic ties with China, a Chinese strategic analyst said Beijing should be sensitive to New Delhi's anxieties while improving its relations with South Asian states.

"With the increasing impact of China in South Asia, Bhutan has begun to enhance its ties with China, as the two countries agreed to establish diplomatic relations, stirring a new round of geopolitical concerns for India - the traditional power of the sub-continent," Chinese state-run Global Times said.

The understanding was reached between the recent meeting between Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and his Bhutanese counterpart Jigmi Y Thinley on the sidelines of UN Conference on Sustainable Development at Brazil.

Bhutan is the last of the South Asian states to open up to China, after Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, besides Pakistan which has developed "all weather relations" with Beijing decades ago.

Yang Xiaoping, an expert on Indian studies at the state run Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said India's concerns about growing influence of China in South Asia are understandable, but unnecessary.

"Historically, India has wielded a strong political influence unmatched by any other county in this region, so it is worried that China's involvement will shake its status," she told Global Times. China's expansion is focused only on financial cooperation. China loaned money for the construction of Sri Lanka's (USD 1.5 billion) port, but the facility is managed solely by Sri Lankans, she said.

South Asia will not be focus of China's diplomatic agenda in the coming decades, because most of the conflicts between China and the US occur in Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia, she said.

Yang also said that China should understand India's concerns, saying that the two sides have complementary strengths, and they can help ensure regional stability.

Chinese official strategic analysts are taking more favourable view of China-India ties in the recent months as India too has begun making forays into China's backyard with its 'Look East Policy' firming up its ties with Vietnam, Japan and South Korea besides consolidating its linkages with ASEAN countries.

A number of write-ups by analysts here in recent times have asked Beijing to take note of India's independent stance in foreign policy despite being wooed hard by United States.

Some have argued that China's push into South Asia also made India to focus on improving its relations with neighbouring countries.(The Economic Times)

Sikkim, Northeast join Team Anna on graft campaign

Anna to visit Sikkim: Sikkim team

YT Lepcha during a hunger strike in Gangtok (file pix: Sikkim Now)
New Delhi, July 31: Supporters from the northeastern states can be spotted more often at Team Anna's fasts now. At Jantar Mantar, several from Sikkim are keeping fast with team members and youths from the northeast studying in the city have also begun to drop in.

"We are five of us," says Y T Lepcha, who runs the Swatantra Sramik Sangathan in Sikkim. His companions come from south and east Sikkim. He wears a straw cap with peacock feathers, traditionally worn by the Lepcha community, and carries a sheet of paper with its various features explained in Hindi.

"I thought people might ask about the cap," he says. "I want to request the group to visit the State. Our leaders only make speeches. None of that is translated into action." He has brought with himself a 2011 CAG report with the sections dealing with issues like roads and garbage disposal highlighted, a national daily reported.

Padam Sharma, who accompanied Lepcha and spoke during the rally, said team leader Anna Hazare has accepted their invitation to visit the State.

"Our support here is directly related to our backing for Irom Sharmila," says Imphal-based student Bob Wiju. He is in the city to write an entrance exam and has spent his free time at the protest. "Manipur is one of the most corrupt states, all funds are misused. The issues are the same as here."

Wiju admits that northeast locals don't relate to the movement here but he says, "If such protests are held in Manipur, they will find a lot of support." He also adds that the language barrier — most of the speeches at the fasts have been delivered in Hindi — may also have been a reason for the large number of students from the northeast in Delhi not joining in.

Brothers, Tridib and Bijoy Bordoloi, attended the protest on Wednesday for the first time. Though they are not fasting, they explained that they support Anna in his cause. "Anna is speaking about issues that affect us all. Right now he seems our best bet," says Tridib, elder of the two, who works in finance.

But Jamia student Bijoy said, "The issues Anna speaks about might affect all, but they are discussed in a general manner. The problems of the northeast require more careful handling."

Don’t fool people, Upreti tells govt on student scholarship

Congress leader KN Upreti

Gangtok, July 31: Senior Congress leader KN Upreti has urged the HRD Department to immediately clear all dues to students who have been assured scholarships by the State Government.

The former HRD minister came down heavily on the government for its alleged failure to make payments to students who were awarded scholarships on the basis of ‘merit’ or their poor economic condition.

Upreti’s remarks come at a time when Chief Minister Pawan Chamling has made promises to reward students who performed well in their school leaving exams.

The government is merely fooling the people, said the Congress leader in a press statement.

“If the government and for that matter the department of education has no resource to make payment then why are they fooling the student communities by their commitment to pay scholarship and all high talks on the welfare of the student communities,” Upreti said.

 “As we all know, a great number of parents from poor section of the society send their children outside for further studies sincerely believing that the government would award scholarship to their wards, are now feeling cheated by the government as the department of education which is responsible for payment has failed to pay even once when the course for which the candidate was sent has almost been completed,” Upreti said in his press release.

“We express our extreme displeasure on the matter and demand that all dues be cleared by the concerned department immediately so that the students suffer no more,” he added.

HC refuses stay on GTA poll results

Ghising

Kolkata, July 31:  The Calcutta High Court Friday refused to pass any interim stay on the declaration of results of Gorkhaland Territorial Authority (GTA) election and oath-taking of the elected members.

Justice Dipankar Gupta refused to pass an interim order on a plea by All India Gorkha League (AIGL) and directed that the parties in the case would abide by the final outcome of the case. The AIGL had moved the petition earlier this month seeking a stay on the GTA election and its counsel Bikash Bhattacharya prayed for an interim stay order, PTI reported.

Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) President Subash Ghisingh's counsel Arunabha Ghosh submitted that as the matter involved the future of lakhs of Darjeeling residents, it be taken up at the earliest. Justice Gupta directed that the matter would come up for hearing on August 10.

The oath-taking of elected members of the first GTA, which replaces the earlier Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, is scheduled on August 4. Ghisingh had on June 14 filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court challenging the GTA Act 2011 claiming that it was ultra vires to the Constitution. The petition claimed that the GTA Act could not come into force in Darjeeling Hills without amending the Constitution.

The Constitution provides that if the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council Act, 1988 (DGHC) was repealed, the entire area would come under the purview of the Indian Panchayat and Municipalities Act, the petition stated. If the DGHC was scrapped, the new act could not come into force without amending the Constitution, Ghising's petition claimed. The court directed Gorkha Janmukti Morcha President Bimal Gurung, who has been made a respondent in the case, to file his affidavit in opposition to the petition within August 4

Cong banked on illegal migrants for vote-bank politics in Assam:BJP

Guwahati, July 31: Blaming the Congress government for illegal immigrants for Assam violence, BJP has charged the Congress with "inaction" in checking their entry into the country for vote-bank politics and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

The BJP pressed that Indo-Bangladesh border be sealed immediately and sought more deployment of army and para-military forces to check the spread of violence that had so far claimed 45 lives in the State.

"The government did not take appropriate action in time to prevent the Assam violence.... Illegal migrants are behind the problem. But the Tarun Gogoi-led Congress government is not doing anything on the issue.... It is only doing vote bank politics," BJP general secretary Vijay Goel said.

Goel, who is incharge of party affairs in Assam and headed a fact-finding team that visited the violence-hit areas of Assam, charged the State Government with not being "sensitive" to the problem.

"They are not sensitive to the problem. If they do vote- bank politics, they will get such results," Goel said, demanding that "Tarun Gogoi should immediately resign as Chief Minister, as he has failed to take appropriate steps to stop the violence."

Goel said the situation in violence-hit areas of Assam was still tense and people will not go back to their homes unless the Army deployment is done in the interiors of affected areas in the state.

"The deployment of Army and para-military forces is still very low.... It is only doing flag marches on main roads and not visiting the interiors. If that does not happen, confidence will not be built and people will not return to their homes," Goel said.

Arunachal govt to provide CCTVs to media houses

Tongam Rina

Itanagar, July 31: The Arunachal Pradesh government has decided to install CCTV cameras in all media establishments of the State to instill confidence in the working journalists. Political secretary to CM Bamang Tago on Thursday visited all media houses in the capital complex with experts and technicians to survey and finalize installation of CCTV cameras, sources said.

The media fraternity, represented by the Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists (APUWJ) and Arunachal Press Club (APC), met Chief Minister Nabam Tuki on July 20 and expressed concern on the safety and security of working journalists. They also sought fast-tracking of all pending cases related to assault, manhandling and threats to mediapersons and media houses in the past, The Times of India reported.

Assuring cooperation and immediate steps, Tuki had issued specific directions to concerned authorities to fulfill the demands placed by APUWJ and APC in order to instill confidence amongst the working journalists as they were shaken after the attack on Tongam Rina, associate editor of Arunachal Times on July 15.

The chief minister had emphasized on installation of high resolution CCTVs in all mediahouses as it is a necessity for investigation and identification of criminals. He had also mooted the idea of CCTV installation in all important public places and market complexes.

"Some media houses have already installed CCTVs, which are, however, of poor resolution. We will replace these with high resolution CCTVs and install CCTVs in all media houses, which do not have one. Poor resolution hampers speedy investigation. The installation process will be completed within a few days," said Tago.

As in Sikkim, a vote to Sangma hits Tripura politics

Sangma

Agartala, July 31: A vote against Pranab Mukherjee in the just-concluded presidential election has triggered a controversy in Tripura. Both the ruling CPI-M and opposition Congress are blaming each other for cross-voting despite committing to support Pranab.

The election result reveals that out of 57 votes cast in Tripura, Pranab got 56 and one went to P A Sangma. However, both the parties opposed to Sangma.

The ruling CPI-M has pointed fingers at lone INPT legislator Bijoy Kr Hrankhwal for voting in favour of Sangma, indicating that the issue of tribal sentiment and political differences with Mukherjee was the reason of cross-voting. Both Congress and INPT have denied the claim and stated that CPI-M had hatched a conspiracy to scrap the political alliance in anti-Left forces.

Leader of the opposition, Ratan Lal Nath, said, "Voting was done in secret ballots. How can the CPI-M allege that Sangma got Hrankhwal's vote. Rather, I believe, it is a planned conspiracy of CPI-M and may be Chief Minister Manik Sarkar himself cast his ballot for Sangma for politics."

Hrankhwal said, "This is an attempt of the ruling party to malign me for its narrow political interests in the coming assembly elections." He added that political activities of Congress and INPT have put Manik Sarkar in trouble in all 20 tribal reserve seats and it was nothing but an attempt to breach INPT's relation with Congress.

Sikkim, too, faced a similar situation recently when one vote of the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front, which has all 32 seats and backs the UPA at the Centre, went to Sangma. Dissident ruling party legislator PS Golay abstained from voting. Golay’s aide and former MLA Bhojraj Rai alleged that the ruling party conspired to cause misunderstanding between the rebel leader and the UPA.

 INTERVIEW Mary Kom

Hurt at missing out on a medal at the World Championships for the first time, MC Mary Kom (29) tells Harish Kotian she's looking for revenge at the upcoming London Olympics

For Manipur’s Mary Kom, her first bout at the 2012 London Olympics is going to be doubly special. Firstly, it will be the realization of a long-cherished dream to compete on a big stage like the Olympics. Second, the bout is on the fifth birthday of her twin sons Raengpe and Naidong.

Mary Kom speaks to rediff. com in an exclusive interview. Excerpts.

ON HER TWIN SONS:

I will be fighting my first bout at the Olympics on August 5th, which is also the fifth birthday of my two sons. It is both a good and bad thing for me. The good thing is that I feel it will be a lucky day for me, but the bad thing is that I will miss both my children. I want to win that bout; it will be the best present for my two sons. It is very difficult for me as a mother, because I miss them a lot. They keep calling me a lot everyday.

PREPARATIONS:

The preparations are going on well. I was able to analyse my opponents during the World Championships. Even though I did not win the gold, I was able to take a lot of positives from the event which will help me in preparations for the Olympics.

(Having won a gold in the 45kg at the 2002 World Championships, three gold in the 46kg at the 2005, 2006 and 2008 editions and a gold in the 48kg in the 2010 event, Manipur's 'Mother Mary' was disappointed.)

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS & OLYMPICS:

I was very hurt that I didn't win the gold medal at the World Championships. I was very upset that I didn't win a medal, because in every championship before this I won a gold medal on five previous occasions. I think I was unlucky to not get a medal, but, at the same time, I am happy that I qualified for the London Olympics.

I am very, very angry and I hope to remove this anger on all my opponents at the Olympics.

GOD & ALI

I don't believe in mental training. I just do the normal physical training and my normal boxing training. The only mental training for me is praying to God.

I am a big fan of Muhammad Ali; I took up boxing when I was small because of him. I love his style, his footwork in the ring and everything else that he did.

ON HER FANS

I think getting so much support from Olympic Gold Quest and love from all the Indians fans is a big motivation for me to do well at the Olympics.