Northeast students body demands separate time zone

Students bodies of the Northeast today demanded a separate time zone for the region, saying sun rises quite early there than rest of the country and by the time people go for work, half the day is lost.

North East Students' Organisation (NESO) advisor Samujjal Kumar Bhattacharyya said sun rises in the region at least one hour ahead of Delhi and more than half-an-hour than Mumbai and there was genuine ground to create a separate time zone.

"By the time people in the region go for work following the Indian Standard Time, half the day is already gone. A considerable productive time is wasted in the Northeast. Therefore, we demand a separate time zone for the region," he told a press conference here.

Bhattacharyya said the NESO delegation had placed their demand before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when they met him yesterday.

The demand for two time zones in India had first come from the North-Eastern states in the mid-90's with the reasoning that the sun rises in the region between 4:30 AM and 5:00 AM - at least one hour ahead of the rest of the country.
Noted film maker Jahnu Barua too has been quite vocal in raising the demand for past several years, saying many nations worldwide follow different time zones within their territory.

India currently follows a time, which is 5-1/2 hours ahead of the international standard, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

Russia has 11 time zones, while the US and Canada have six. However, China, which is much broader than India, sticks to only one time zone, the largest country to do so. The decision generally rests with the country, taking into account its convenience and international conventions.