Kohima, Aug. 15 -- Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio on Saturday said the decades-old Naga peace process has been elevated to the ministerial level, with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) constituting a committee headed by a Union minister of state (MoS) to lead the talks, even as student parade contingents stayed away from Independence Day celebrations in the state over the mandatory singing of Vande Mataram at official events.

Addressing the people of the state on the occasion of the 80th Independence Day at the Secretariat Plaza in Kohima, the chief minister said while Nagaland takes pride in the collective accomplishments as a people over the decades, the state is mindful of the long-standing Naga political issue, which has remain...