Morcha plan on April 17
VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, Darjeeling, Feb. 1: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has decided to announce an agitation at a public meeting in Sukna on April 17, if the government fails to meet the party’s deadline of March 27 for the formation of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration.
The decision was taken by the central committee of the Morcha at a meeting in the party office at Patlabas, 14km from Darjeeling.
“A public meeting will be held at Sukna on April 17 where further announcements will be made,” said Roshan Giri, general secretary of the Morcha.
The decision is an indication of the party's seriousness to get the GTA implemented as early as possible. The threat has come at a time it looks unlikely that the high-powered territorial committee will submit is report to the government before March 27.
Sources said all the central committee members felt that the party should keep up the pressure for an early implementation of the GTA. The Morcha has also decided to hold a meeting with the party’s sub-divisional committees and frontal organisations to apprise them of the situation.
“The subdivisional committee meetings will be held tomorrow, while the frontal organisation leaders have been called for talks on Sunday,” said a central committee member.
SNS, DARJEELING, 1 FEB: Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM) chief Bimal Gurung today announced that the party would organise a rally at Sukna on 17 April to press their demand for a separate state if the state government fails to form the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration within 27 March.
The announcement was made at the GJMM central committee meeting held at Darjeeling. Kalimpong MLA Harka Bhahdur Chettri said: “The party president stated to hold people's meet on 17 April at Sukna, where the president will announce future plans for Gorkhaland movement. Mr Chettri is upset with the delay of formation of the GTA in the Hills.” Earlier, on the last day of the Agro-Horti Techno Fair at Goke, Mr Chettri made his stance to revive the Gorkhaland agitation clear.
The GJMM has demanded 199 moujas each from the Dooars and Terai to be included within the GTA. A committee, headed by former Justice Shyamal Sen, has been formed to provide a report on this. This has led the GJMM to allege that the government is responsible for delaying the process.
After the meeting, GJMM assistant secretary Jyoti Kumar Rai said the party will observe “Black day” on 8 February to remember the people who lost their lives during the Sipchu firing. Mr Rai added that on that day the GJMM will hold rallies in the Hills and all supporters would be wearing black badges. On 13 February a puja ceremony will be held in Sipchu. “The party chief asserted that when the government forms the second State Reorganisation Commission, then the Gorkhaland demand should not be overlooked,” said Mr Rai.
GTA land: ABAVP called for hearing
SNS, Darjeeling, 1 Feb: The land verification committee being chaired by Justice (retd) Shyamal Sen has finally called the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad state president, Mr Birsa Tirkey for hearing on the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA)’s land expansion issue on 9 February.
However, the outfit, which claims to be championing the Adivasi cause, has remained in a sulk mode over the committee’s decision to involve the splinter group leader, Mr John Barla in the process of hearing. “It is now unjust to call Barla even a rebel ABAVP leader as he has been expelled from the outfit on charge of harming the interests of the constituency it represents,” said the state outfit president, Mr Birsha Tirkey.
Notably, Mr Barla has been asked to appear before the chairman of the high-powered committee on 13 February-an opportunity which he is likely to use to the hilt to include several hundred moujas across the Terai-Dooars within the GTA’s geographical jurisdiction.
Darjeeling ropeway reopens today
SNS, DARJEELING, 1 February: The Darjeeling ropeway, which has been shut down since 2003, is scheduled to start operating from tomorrow.
The ropeway, a famous tourist attraction here, was shut down on 19 October 2003 after a trio of gondolas slipped off the conveyor and fell into the tea bushes of the Patabung garden in Tukvar, killing four tourists.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee had promised to restart the passenger ropeway. Now, it seems the ropeway, which is located at Singmari, near North Point School in Darjeeling, will start carrying tourists up to the Tukvar Valley again. Today the divisional manager of the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation (WBFD), Mr Samir Gazmer, said: “I’d been summoned for the informal meeting today with the Conveyor of Ropeway Services officials to discuss the functioning of the ropeway that will be kept on service from tomorrow onwards.”
Staff members from the WBFD and the public works department inspected the ropeway last year, and a certificate of fitness was issued to the Conveyor of Ropeway Services, which conducted several trials.
The Darjeeling goods-hauling ropeway, located at Chowk Bazaar, has been shut down since 1998. The director of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway said a proposal has been submitted to convert the goods-hauling ropeway into a passenger-carrying ropeway. He said it will happen soon, when the government gives the go-ahead.
In the meantime, though, the goods-hauling ropeway continues to languish in disuse. Mr Tilak Rai, an employee of the goods-hauling ropeway, said the government is not taking the conversion proposal seriously.
Drivers openly defy road rules in Hills
SNS, KURSEONG, 1 February 2012: Roads in the Darjeeling Hills are dangerous for travellers because drivers transporting goods and passengers often do not follow proper safety procedures and ensure that their brakes, transmissions and fog lights are in good working order.
"I am a regular commuter and several times I have seen such acts of negligence like drunk driving, fast driving, loud music and drivers talking on their mobile phones and smoking cigarettes while the vehicles are moving, which can lead to accidents," said Mr Bhusan Chettri. "There are also instances when inexperienced young drivers are hired to drive vehicles."
Passenger Subash Lama said he narrowly escaped disaster recently when the vehicle he was in lost its hand and foot brakes.
"I later learnt that the vehicle was coming from Darjeeling with the help of the hand brake only," Mr Lama said. "If this is not negligence than what do we call it?"
Such negligience makes it risky for families and individuals to travel from one place to another, Mr Lama said. Drivers must take care of their vehicles because many people depend on them. The administration should also enforce the rules, he said.
Jan Mukti Chalak Mahasangh general secretary Subash Pradhan said he had also heard that some drivers are overloading their vehicles and drinking before they drive. "If they are caught by the administration, we will not support such negligent drivers," he said.
Mr Pradhan appealed to all drivers and syndicates to follow the rules laid out in the Motor Vehicles Act. He added: "Even during our non-cooperation movement, we said no one should take advantage of the movement and should not do any illegal work related to transportation."
Kurseong sub-divisional police officer Nima Narbu Bhutia said police are doing what they can to keep the roads safe. "It is very difficult to check the mechanisms of the vehicles, as we are not experts on the matter and it has been looked after by motor vehicles department," Mr Bhutia said. "However, regarding the fog lights and other negligence, we have always been doing our duties and looking into the problem."
Low-key fest for Tibetans
TT, Darjeeling, Feb. 1: Tibetans across the globe have decided not to celebrate Losar or the New Year — their biggest festival — on a grand scale this time to protest the killings of their community members by the Chinese authorities.
Tashi Thondup, the president of the Tibetan Regional Youth Congress (Darjeeling), said: “Our community members have decided not to celebrate Losar this year. We will perform the religious rituals but our community members from across the world have decided to abstain from merry making, painting houses or engaging in other forms of entertainment.”
The Tibetan New Year will be celebrated on February 22 and 2139 is the year of the water dragon.
Thondup said Tibetans living in different parts of the world will organise a candle light march on February 8 to express their solidarity with those who suffered because of Chinese oppression.
A rally will also be organised in Darjeeling’s Chowrastha on the same day.
“The year 2138, which was the year of rabbit, has seen a lot of uprising in Tibet and despite repeated attempts by the Chinese authorities to come down heavily on the protests, our community is determined to speak out,” Thondup said over the phone from Bodh Gaya in Bihar.
Tibetans living in exile believe that 16 monks and nuns have set themselves on fire in China, their payul or fatherland, since March last year demanding basic rights for the community.
Prime Minister of the exiled Tibetan government based in Dharmasala, Lobsang Sangay, has issued a statement requesting that a team be sent to Tibet to investigate.
“I request that the international community and the United Nations send a fact-finding delegation to Tibet,” the statement said.
In a message to the Chinese authorities the Prime Minister or karlon tripa said: “The leaders in Beijing must know that killing its own ‘family members’ is in clear violation of international and Chinese laws... I want to tell my dear brothers and sisters inside Tibet that we hear your cries loud and clear... We feel your pain and will not allow the sacrifices you have made go in vain. You are all in our heart and prayers each and every day.”
According to Tibetan government records, Chinese police allegedly fired on hundreds of Tibetans at a rally on January 23 and 24.
Six Tibetans were killed and around 60 people were injured, some critically, read a statement by Sangay.
Lights for night matches by May
TT, Siliguri, Feb. 1: Kanchenjungha Stadium here can soon host night matches with work on the installation of floodlights starting this morning.
The floodlights will be installed in two phases and the project is expected to be completed in May. The state sports department has sanctioned Rs 6 crore for the work which is being done by a Calcutta-based company.
“Sports enthusiasts in Siliguri had been demanding for long that floodlights be set up at Kanchenjungha Stadium. The total cost of the project is pegged at Rs 6 crore and the work will be done in two parts — that is civil construction and electrification,” said Rajat Saini, the additional district magistrate (general) of Darjeeling.
An official of Mackintosh Burn Limited that was awarded the project said all four corners of the ground would have a 25metre-high tower.
“One tower will have 100 bulbs of 1,500 watt each,” he added.
Saini said the civil construction had begun after the soil tests and all the towers would be ready by March 15.
“Once the towers are ready, it will take another two months for electrification. We hope the illumination of the stadium will be completed by the end of May,” said Saini, who is also the secretary of the Siliguri Stadium Committee.
The Kanchenjungha ground, established in 1987, can accommodate around 35,000 spectators and is considered one of the largest football arenas in Bengal after Salt Lake stadium in Calcutta.
The proposal to illuminate the ground had been sent by Asok Bhattacharya three years back when he was the urban development and municipal affairs minister.
Members of the local sports body, Siliguri Mahakuma Krira Parishad, welcomed the launch of the project.
“The illumination of the stadium had been a long pending demand by the sports lovers in Siliguri. The stadium had hosted several national and international level football tournaments and we got appreciation from the players and officials for the good infrastructure. Once the floodlights are installed, the stadium will have an added advantage and we will be able to organise more sports events,” said Nantu Pal, the secretary of the Siliguri Mahakuma Krira Parishad.
Workers face crisis over MGNREGS non-payment
SNS, SILIGURI, 1 February 2012: A section of workers, associated with the closed Panighatta Tea Estate, are facing problem to claim remuneration under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
The reason that have been given behind such a crisis is that they are not registered labourers and they do not have job cards from the government. The workers alleged that they have tried to obtain job card through Panighatta gram panchayat office but in vain, because it always remains closed. One of them said that there is no one who would guide them on how to obtain the job card. Panighatta falls under Mirik block and is controlled by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC).
There is no elected panchayat member because the government could not conduct panchayat election in the Hills over the past few years.
After the closer of the tea estate, several jobless workers and their family members have demanded work under the MGNREGS and many of them have engaged in the job.
However, some labourers who do not have job card are in no position to claim remuneration.
SNS, DARJEELING, 1 FEB: Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM) chief Bimal Gurung today announced that the party would organise a rally at Sukna on 17 April to press their demand for a separate state if the state government fails to form the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration within 27 March.
The announcement was made at the GJMM central committee meeting held at Darjeeling. Kalimpong MLA Harka Bhahdur Chettri said: “The party president stated to hold people's meet on 17 April at Sukna, where the president will announce future plans for Gorkhaland movement. Mr Chettri is upset with the delay of formation of the GTA in the Hills.” Earlier, on the last day of the Agro-Horti Techno Fair at Goke, Mr Chettri made his stance to revive the Gorkhaland agitation clear.
The GJMM has demanded 199 moujas each from the Dooars and Terai to be included within the GTA. A committee, headed by former Justice Shyamal Sen, has been formed to provide a report on this. This has led the GJMM to allege that the government is responsible for delaying the process.
After the meeting, GJMM assistant secretary Jyoti Kumar Rai said the party will observe “Black day” on 8 February to remember the people who lost their lives during the Sipchu firing. Mr Rai added that on that day the GJMM will hold rallies in the Hills and all supporters would be wearing black badges. On 13 February a puja ceremony will be held in Sipchu. “The party chief asserted that when the government forms the second State Reorganisation Commission, then the Gorkhaland demand should not be overlooked,” said Mr Rai.
GTA land: ABAVP called for hearing
SNS, Darjeeling, 1 Feb: The land verification committee being chaired by Justice (retd) Shyamal Sen has finally called the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad state president, Mr Birsa Tirkey for hearing on the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA)’s land expansion issue on 9 February.
However, the outfit, which claims to be championing the Adivasi cause, has remained in a sulk mode over the committee’s decision to involve the splinter group leader, Mr John Barla in the process of hearing. “It is now unjust to call Barla even a rebel ABAVP leader as he has been expelled from the outfit on charge of harming the interests of the constituency it represents,” said the state outfit president, Mr Birsha Tirkey.
Notably, Mr Barla has been asked to appear before the chairman of the high-powered committee on 13 February-an opportunity which he is likely to use to the hilt to include several hundred moujas across the Terai-Dooars within the GTA’s geographical jurisdiction.
Darjeeling ropeway reopens today
SNS, DARJEELING, 1 February: The Darjeeling ropeway, which has been shut down since 2003, is scheduled to start operating from tomorrow.
The ropeway, a famous tourist attraction here, was shut down on 19 October 2003 after a trio of gondolas slipped off the conveyor and fell into the tea bushes of the Patabung garden in Tukvar, killing four tourists.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee had promised to restart the passenger ropeway. Now, it seems the ropeway, which is located at Singmari, near North Point School in Darjeeling, will start carrying tourists up to the Tukvar Valley again. Today the divisional manager of the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation (WBFD), Mr Samir Gazmer, said: “I’d been summoned for the informal meeting today with the Conveyor of Ropeway Services officials to discuss the functioning of the ropeway that will be kept on service from tomorrow onwards.”
Staff members from the WBFD and the public works department inspected the ropeway last year, and a certificate of fitness was issued to the Conveyor of Ropeway Services, which conducted several trials.
The Darjeeling goods-hauling ropeway, located at Chowk Bazaar, has been shut down since 1998. The director of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway said a proposal has been submitted to convert the goods-hauling ropeway into a passenger-carrying ropeway. He said it will happen soon, when the government gives the go-ahead.
In the meantime, though, the goods-hauling ropeway continues to languish in disuse. Mr Tilak Rai, an employee of the goods-hauling ropeway, said the government is not taking the conversion proposal seriously.
Drivers openly defy road rules in Hills
SNS, KURSEONG, 1 February 2012: Roads in the Darjeeling Hills are dangerous for travellers because drivers transporting goods and passengers often do not follow proper safety procedures and ensure that their brakes, transmissions and fog lights are in good working order."I am a regular commuter and several times I have seen such acts of negligence like drunk driving, fast driving, loud music and drivers talking on their mobile phones and smoking cigarettes while the vehicles are moving, which can lead to accidents," said Mr Bhusan Chettri. "There are also instances when inexperienced young drivers are hired to drive vehicles."
Passenger Subash Lama said he narrowly escaped disaster recently when the vehicle he was in lost its hand and foot brakes.
"I later learnt that the vehicle was coming from Darjeeling with the help of the hand brake only," Mr Lama said. "If this is not negligence than what do we call it?"
Such negligience makes it risky for families and individuals to travel from one place to another, Mr Lama said. Drivers must take care of their vehicles because many people depend on them. The administration should also enforce the rules, he said.
Jan Mukti Chalak Mahasangh general secretary Subash Pradhan said he had also heard that some drivers are overloading their vehicles and drinking before they drive. "If they are caught by the administration, we will not support such negligent drivers," he said.
Mr Pradhan appealed to all drivers and syndicates to follow the rules laid out in the Motor Vehicles Act. He added: "Even during our non-cooperation movement, we said no one should take advantage of the movement and should not do any illegal work related to transportation."
Kurseong sub-divisional police officer Nima Narbu Bhutia said police are doing what they can to keep the roads safe. "It is very difficult to check the mechanisms of the vehicles, as we are not experts on the matter and it has been looked after by motor vehicles department," Mr Bhutia said. "However, regarding the fog lights and other negligence, we have always been doing our duties and looking into the problem."
Low-key fest for Tibetans
TT, Darjeeling, Feb. 1: Tibetans across the globe have decided not to celebrate Losar or the New Year — their biggest festival — on a grand scale this time to protest the killings of their community members by the Chinese authorities.Tashi Thondup, the president of the Tibetan Regional Youth Congress (Darjeeling), said: “Our community members have decided not to celebrate Losar this year. We will perform the religious rituals but our community members from across the world have decided to abstain from merry making, painting houses or engaging in other forms of entertainment.”
The Tibetan New Year will be celebrated on February 22 and 2139 is the year of the water dragon.
Thondup said Tibetans living in different parts of the world will organise a candle light march on February 8 to express their solidarity with those who suffered because of Chinese oppression.
A rally will also be organised in Darjeeling’s Chowrastha on the same day.
“The year 2138, which was the year of rabbit, has seen a lot of uprising in Tibet and despite repeated attempts by the Chinese authorities to come down heavily on the protests, our community is determined to speak out,” Thondup said over the phone from Bodh Gaya in Bihar.
Tibetans living in exile believe that 16 monks and nuns have set themselves on fire in China, their payul or fatherland, since March last year demanding basic rights for the community.
Prime Minister of the exiled Tibetan government based in Dharmasala, Lobsang Sangay, has issued a statement requesting that a team be sent to Tibet to investigate.
“I request that the international community and the United Nations send a fact-finding delegation to Tibet,” the statement said.
In a message to the Chinese authorities the Prime Minister or karlon tripa said: “The leaders in Beijing must know that killing its own ‘family members’ is in clear violation of international and Chinese laws... I want to tell my dear brothers and sisters inside Tibet that we hear your cries loud and clear... We feel your pain and will not allow the sacrifices you have made go in vain. You are all in our heart and prayers each and every day.”
According to Tibetan government records, Chinese police allegedly fired on hundreds of Tibetans at a rally on January 23 and 24.
Six Tibetans were killed and around 60 people were injured, some critically, read a statement by Sangay.
Lights for night matches by May
 |
| An excavator digs up a corner of the Kanchenjungha Stadium in Siliguri on Wednesday to erect a tower. Picture by Kundan Yolmo |
The floodlights will be installed in two phases and the project is expected to be completed in May. The state sports department has sanctioned Rs 6 crore for the work which is being done by a Calcutta-based company.
“Sports enthusiasts in Siliguri had been demanding for long that floodlights be set up at Kanchenjungha Stadium. The total cost of the project is pegged at Rs 6 crore and the work will be done in two parts — that is civil construction and electrification,” said Rajat Saini, the additional district magistrate (general) of Darjeeling.
An official of Mackintosh Burn Limited that was awarded the project said all four corners of the ground would have a 25metre-high tower.
“One tower will have 100 bulbs of 1,500 watt each,” he added.
Saini said the civil construction had begun after the soil tests and all the towers would be ready by March 15.
“Once the towers are ready, it will take another two months for electrification. We hope the illumination of the stadium will be completed by the end of May,” said Saini, who is also the secretary of the Siliguri Stadium Committee.
The Kanchenjungha ground, established in 1987, can accommodate around 35,000 spectators and is considered one of the largest football arenas in Bengal after Salt Lake stadium in Calcutta.
The proposal to illuminate the ground had been sent by Asok Bhattacharya three years back when he was the urban development and municipal affairs minister.
Members of the local sports body, Siliguri Mahakuma Krira Parishad, welcomed the launch of the project.
“The illumination of the stadium had been a long pending demand by the sports lovers in Siliguri. The stadium had hosted several national and international level football tournaments and we got appreciation from the players and officials for the good infrastructure. Once the floodlights are installed, the stadium will have an added advantage and we will be able to organise more sports events,” said Nantu Pal, the secretary of the Siliguri Mahakuma Krira Parishad.
Workers face crisis over MGNREGS non-payment
SNS, SILIGURI, 1 February 2012: A section of workers, associated with the closed Panighatta Tea Estate, are facing problem to claim remuneration under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
The reason that have been given behind such a crisis is that they are not registered labourers and they do not have job cards from the government. The workers alleged that they have tried to obtain job card through Panighatta gram panchayat office but in vain, because it always remains closed. One of them said that there is no one who would guide them on how to obtain the job card. Panighatta falls under Mirik block and is controlled by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC).
There is no elected panchayat member because the government could not conduct panchayat election in the Hills over the past few years.
After the closer of the tea estate, several jobless workers and their family members have demanded work under the MGNREGS and many of them have engaged in the job.
However, some labourers who do not have job card are in no position to claim remuneration.
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