Demographics changing in Darjeeling: Raju Bista in Parliament

He urged the central government to take action in order to protect this vulnerable area from further encroachment.

Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista (Twitter photo)

MANAS R BANNERJEE | SNS  | Siliguri | July 30, 2024 : Raju Bista, MP from Darjeeling, during his speech in Parliament today, discussed the population shift taking place in the north Bengal region and how Rohingya and illegal Bangladeshi immigrants are easily settling there.

He urged the central government to take action in order to protect this vulnerable area from further encroachment.

Additionally, Mr Bista emphasized the desires of his constituency for a permanent political solution under the Indian Constitution and for the 11 Gorkha sub-tribes that have allegedly been excluded from Scheduled Tribe status to be included as soon as possible.

He also called for a special financial package to aid in the rehabilitation of flood and landslide victims in Teesta and for the establishment of a central university in Darjeeling, an AIIMS in north Bengal, and financial support for the tea Industry.

Furthermore, he requested an international stadium in Siliguri and a national-level food processing center with a focus on pineapple in the Phansidewa-Kharibari region.

The MP also criticized the West Bengal government’s handling of job cards under MGNREGA, highlighting a significant decrease from 3.88 crore to 2.56 crore after Aadhaar linking, exposing what he referred to as “daylight robbery” by the TMC-led government.