First for hill hamlet with no roads & power: vote-seeker ...Peak of bond with voters Jana Andolan Party nominee for Darjeeling Assembly byelection started his campaign from the remote hamlet of Gorkhey

Amar Lama (left) campaigns in Gorkhey village A Telegraph picture

VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, 03 May 2019, Darjeeling: Gorkhey is up to nine hours from Darjeeling town, the farthest corner in the hills with no electricity or roads, but Amar Lama has gone the distance.

The Jana Andolan Party (JAP) nominee for the May 19 Darjeeling Assembly byelection, started his campaign from the remote hamlet of 200 people in a "rare" election event for the residents.

"For the first time, a candidate contesting an election arrived in our village to seek votes. It felt nice…it was really good," Nima Sherpa, a resident and daily wage earner, said about Lama's campaign in the area on Monday.

There are three routes to reach Gorkhey from Darjeeling town. One has to trek for four hours through the Srikhola route and one-andhalf-hours from Ramman (this is accessible only during dry weather).

The third involves a trek of one hour through a bearinfested forest from Okhara in neighbouring Sikkim. The treks follow car rides from Darjeeling of four to five hours.

"This is the farthest village in my constituency and I decided to connect with them first," Lama said.

For Gorkhey, that completely changed the picture. "Earlier, the candidates would send their photos or leaflets. That is how they would campaign here," Sherpa said.

The JAP team stayed overnight at Okhara in Sikkim and then trekked an hour to Gorkhey next day. "We campaigned through the day and later in the evening, came down to Ramman," said Lama.

If the campaign is arduous, voting is no mean feat for residents who have to plod through the hills for at least an hour to their booth in Ramman.

For the villagers, who largely depend on Jorethang town in Sikkim for their daily needs, road connectivity and electricity top their list of demands.

"We have set up a solar system at a cost of Rs 12,000 to recharge phones and for light. Electricity poles have been erected in the village but we are yet to get the connection. Roads, as you know, are a problem," said Sherpa.

Lama's poll symbol is a whistle and his trip has raised hopes in Gorkhey of more such visits, even if they are whistle-stop events. "My symbol is the whistle and I have promised voters that if I win, I will clean up hill politics just like the whistleblowing garbage vans clear trash from Darjeeling townAccording to Lama, the hamlet is unhappy with the lack of basics but has not lost hope. "The people sounded frustrated with politics. But there is also hope.... youths have formed a club to bring about positivity in their villageGorkhey and adjoining Samanden are, however, popular names on the trekking circuit. There are five homestays for trekkers in the two villages.