Phone bar at Morcha meet, minus top two

VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, 02 Jan 2019, Darjeeling: The organisers of Chinta Sabha, a brainstorming session of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha this week, have put in place stringent guidelines on the use of mobile phones at a time the gadgets are throwing public etiquette out of the window.

"No mobile phones will be allowed inside the venue. We are planning an intense brainstorming and there should be no distraction once the session starts," a member of the organising committee said.

The two-day meeting is being organised at Sukna from January 3 to chart the party's future course of action and leaders will not be allowed even to carry their phones in switched-off mode inside the venue.

For those suffering from nomophobia -- a term coined in 2010 describing the fear of being without a mobile phone or being unable to use it -- the Chintan Sabha is expected to be quite a test.

Only two leaders, Binay Tamang and Anit Thapa, president and general secretary of the party, will be allowed to carry their mobile phones.

The exception, however, is being made because these two leaders shoulder "important administrative responsibilities". "The decision to allow the two leaders to carry their phones is because they shoulder important administrative responsibilities and any emergency might crop up," a source said.

The rest of the 250-odd Morcha delegates, which include central committee members, executive members of the sub-divisional committee and the presidents and secretaries of samasty (constituen- cy) committees will have to deposit their phones at the counter on both days.

"They will have to deposit their phones at the counter," the source added.

The Chintan Sabha, the organisers say, will be "very serious." "When party meetings are held, we find attendants fiddling with their phones. We want to have very serious sessions," one of the organisers said.

Also in this age of social media, closed door discussions leaking out in public is increasingly common, observers believe.

Nevertheless, nomophobics beware. These sessions are not expected to be a short affair.

"On the first day we start at around noon and it would continue till 8pm. The next day, everyone has to report at 8 am and we expect the session go to on till 4 pm," said the source.

Leaders, who by nature of their job are loath to leave mouthspeaker, will also have to learn to hear others.

"Leaders will not be allowed to go on stage and just keep on giving lectures. Everyone, including the party president and secretary, will sit in a common space. Every issue will be deliberated and discussed at length," said the organiser.

The president and secretary will be called on stage on the final day to express their opinion. "Everyone has to listen to all and participate in the discussions," said the organiser. Past Morcha meetings were all about senior leaders sitting on the dais and delivering speeches, with little or no discussions..VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, 02 Jan 2019, Darjeeling: The organisers of Chinta Sabha, a brainstorming session of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha this week, have put in place stringent guidelines on the use of mobile phones at a time the gadgets are throwing public etiquette out of the window.

"No mobile phones will be allowed inside the venue. We are planning an intense brainstorming and there should be no distraction once the session starts," a member of the organising committee said.

The two-day meeting is being organised at Sukna from January 3 to chart the party's future course of action and leaders will not be allowed even to carry their phones in switched-off mode inside the venue.

For those suffering from nomophobia -- a term coined in 2010 describing the fear of being without a mobile phone or being unable to use it -- the Chintan Sabha is expected to be quite a test.

Only two leaders, Binay Tamang and Anit Thapa, president and general secretary of the party, will be allowed to carry their mobile phones.

The exception, however, is being made because these two leaders shoulder "important administrative responsibilities". "The decision to allow the two leaders to carry their phones is because they shoulder important administrative responsibilities and any emergency might crop up," a source said.

The rest of the 250-odd Morcha delegates, which include central committee members, executive members of the sub-divisional committee and the presidents and secretaries of samasty (constituency) committees will have to deposit their phones at the counter on both days.

"They will have to deposit their phones at the counter," the source added.

The Chintan Sabha, the organisers say, will be "very serious." "When party meetings are held, we find attendants fiddling with their phones. We want to have very serious sessions," one of the organisers said.

Also in this age of social media, closed door discussions leaking out in public is increasingly common, observers believe.

Nevertheless, nomophobics beware. These sessions are not expected to be a short affair.

"On the first day we start at around noon and it would continue till 8pm. The next day, everyone has to report at 8 am and we expect the session go to on till 4 pm," said the source.

Leaders, who by nature of their job are loath to leave mouthspeaker, will also have to learn to hear others.

"Leaders will not be allowed to go on stage and just keep on giving lectures. Everyone, including the party president and secretary, will sit in a common space. Every issue will be deliberated and discussed at length," said the organiser.

The president and secretary will be called on stage on the final day to express their opinion. "Everyone has to listen to all and participate in the discussions," said the organiser. Past Morcha meetings were all about senior leaders sitting on the dais and delivering speeches, with little or no discussions.