‘Interim’ ok as stepping stone: Morcha Strict strike heat on govt... Foil-bandh call in Dooars .. Basibiyalo's 95th episode held

KalimNews : 95th edition of popular monthly literary programme Basibiyalo (pass-time) held on Saturday at Sub-division library, Kalimpong. The host of the occasion was Capt (Retd) Bhumiraj Rai. 

The programme was attended among others by Samsher Ali, B.K. Shilal, Sahadeo Giri (Samsing), Nima Syangden (Mirik), Nirmala Pradhan, Bijay Narayan Pradhan (Sikkim), Tshering Bhutia, Rabindra Shilal, Mani Kumar Rasaily, Harka Pariyar and conducted by T.N. Subedi. 

After the literary session, a meeting was held to discuss the forthcoming 100th episode of the Basibiyalo which is being planned to organise in a grand manner. It was decided that a committee would be formed to find out the ways and means to hold the same programme which is likely to be held in the peak tourism season of the year i.e. May, 2011.

It was also decided to hold next Basibiyalo at Triveni river on 16th January, 2011 Sunday to be hosted by Kribu Sanyami to mark the occasion of Makar Sankranti.
‘Interim’ ok as stepping stone: Morcha Strict strike heat on govt

Morcha president Bimal Gurung addresses the public meeting at Sevoke Bazaar on Sunday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo

Rajeev Ravidas, TT, Sevoke Bazaar, Jan. 9: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today suggested that it was not averse to accepting an interim administration for the hills provided the Centre cleared its stand on Gorkhaland.

The party also reiterated that it would strictly enforce its three-phase 27-day strike from January 12, a pressure tactic to get the government to act on the new set-up and to convince the hill people that the Morcha was pursuing Gorkhaland as well.

Morcha president Bimal Gurung said the party had agreed on the interim administration as it felt it would lay the foundation for Gorkhaland.

Addressing a public meeting at Sevoke Bazaar, about 20km from Siliguri, senior Morcha leaders said the strike had been called to exert pressure on the Centre to take a stand on the creation of a separate state by bifurcating Bengal. “The Centre must make its position known on Gorkhaland. This is the reason why we have called the strikes,” said Morcha assistant secretary Binay Tamang.

Morcha spokesperson Harka Bahadur Chhetri said those who did not participate in strikes deserved to be beaten up. “This bandh will decide whether or not this movement will achieve its goal,” Chhetri told the gathering of about 1,000 people.

Gurung, who was the last to speak, said the Centre and the state government were playing a game with the interim set-up. “They are playing a game with it,” he said, without categorically rejecting the proposed interim-authority. In fact, none of the speakers, including Morcha secretary Roshan Giri, indicated that the interim administration was a closed chapter for the party.

Political observers in the hills said this suggested the Morcha was not averse to the set-up. “The Srikrishna Committee report on Telangana has definitely forced the Morcha into a rethink on rushing with the deal on the interim administration. What the party is essentially saying now is that it will accept the set-up provided the Centre makes it clear what it has in mind once the tenure of the temporary mechanism is over,” said an observer.

Slamming Siliguri MLA and urban development minister Asok Bhattacharya, Gurung said: “Even if we have to keep our movement for Gorkhaland in abeyance for 10-20 days, we will do it to ensure Asok Bhattacharya’s defeat. If he wants to indulge in the politics of votes, we will show him this time. He is a poison for us.”

Village Tourism meet held at Khamdong BAC

Shital Pradhan, Sikhim.blogspot.com, Singtam: The first meeting of the 17 Khamdong-Singtam Tourism Development Service Cooperative Society Limited was held at Khamdong BAC today in presence of Panchayats, Contractors, teachers, local people, members of SDF youths and others. The organization was formed to promote Village Tourism at Khamdong-Singtam constituency.

Present on the occasion were distinguished guests that included Santosh Thatal, District Convenor Schedule Caste Board, Tenzing Sherpa, Vice Convenor, East District, Anita Gurung, Convenor Cheli Morcha, MJ Rai, Panchayat President, NK Rai, Panchayat Secretary, NK Pradhan, Zilla Panchayat (Khamdong), RP Dhakal, KC Dahal, Pempa Wangyal Lepcha, Panchayat, Gauri Shanker, Pempa Tamang, Jullian Gurung, Feeroj Lohagun and others.

The talk of the day involved exchange of ideas regarding the promotion of Village Tourism. Tenzing Sherpa, Vice Convenor, East District told that Village tourism is new for the people of Khamdong-Singtam constituency and if we can manage to bring tourists to our region, we can surely have better future financial and developmental prospects.

Feeroj Lohagun in his speech shared his experience from Sadam Village Tourism where he went on to say proper management is the most for the village tourism to succeed. Lohagun added village tourism could help solve employment among the village youths and also give an opportunity to the youths to accomplish a goal in life.  

Krishna Neopaney, Youth President was unanimously nominated as the Chief Promoter of the 17 Khamdong-Singtam Tourism Development Service Cooperative Society Limited. Other who spoke on the occasion was Santosh Thatal, RP Dhakal, Krishna Neopaney and Jullian Gurung. The program was conducted by TN Sapkota, Panchayat Secretary. Speakers also mentioned to the gathered crowd to spread the vision of Chief Minister and Area MLA and make an identity for Sikkim in world map.

Foil-bandh call in Dooars

TT, Jaigaon, Jan. 9: The Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad has said it will oppose tooth and nail the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha sponsored bandh, a day after the Terai-Dooars leadership of the hill party appealed to the people to make the three-phase strike from January 12 a success.

The convener of the Morcha’s central Dooars committee, Madhukar Thapa, said yesterday that the party bosses had instructed the rank and file to ensure that the strike was enforced in the Terai and the Dooars as well.

“We are demanding that the Terai and Dooars be included in our proposed Gorkhaland and the bandh will be observed here as well. However, essential and emergency services would be kept out of the purview of the bandh,” Thapa had said.

Today the president of the Parishad’s Terai-Dooars regional committee, John Barla, said his organisation was demanding autonomy for the region under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

“We have been opposing the inclusion of the Terai and the Dooars (in Gorkhaland) from the very beginning. We are living in peace in the region and we will not allow the Morcha strike to alter that. We will ensure that the strike becomes a failure,” Barla said.

Jalpaiguri police chief Anand Kumar said his force would be prepared to tackle any eventuality during the bandh.

“If there is a breach of peace, the police will react accordingly,” he said.

KalimNews: Meanwhile GJM central Dooars committee has declared that the bandh starting from 12th January will be observed fully in Dooars. 

CPRM 2nd Congress inaugurated

KalimNews: 3 days Congress of CPRM started at Uttar Bangal Marwari Bhavan at Siliguri. Tamang Dawa Lama former MP inaugurated the congress by unfurling the party flag and kindling of lamp by  RB Rai General Secretary of the party. A 5 member presidium presided over the different sessions of the congress. 

11 picnickers killed in van crash

One of the injured being taken to Jalpaiguri district hospital. (Biplab Basak)

TT, Alipurduar, Jan. 9: Eleven persons died and 10 injured when a pick-up van carrying picnickers collided with a truck and fell into a ditch at Moraghat this evening.

A 20-member team was returning home after visiting the Rock Garden in Metilli when the van smashed through the fence of Haldibari Tea Estate after the driver lost control of the vehicle. After ploughing into few tea bushes in the garden, the van again reached NH31 and collided with a truck coming from the opposite direction. In the impact of the accident, the van was thrown into a ditch.

“I was returning home on a bicycle when I saw the accident. I rushed to the spot and found bodies scattered across the road and near the ditch. There was lot of blood on the spot. Some were screaming in pain. Initially, I didn’t know what I should do. But later, I told people of nearby Binnaguri about the incident. Police reached the site of accident and took away the bodies and the injured people,” said Elias Kongari, a worker of Moraghat Tea Estate.

The picnickers were residents of Sonapur in Alipurduar subdivision and Pundibari in Cooch Behar district. The injured persons were admitted to Binnaguri Army Hospital.

The accident occurred around 6pm at Moraghat, 80km from here.

Till late at night, five of the dead were identified. They are Ranjit Thakur, 22, Chiranjit Roy, 32, Titu Roy, 24, Paresh Das, 28, and the driver of the van, Manik Das, 20. Banarhat police have seized both the van and the truck.
Youth held for campus murder
TT, Siliguri, Jan. 9: A 22-year-old youth wanted in connection with the death of an SFI supporter in a campus clash in Howrah district was arrested in Siliguri last night.
Howrah police tracked Sutanu Palley’s cellphone and traced him to Burdwan Road here. He was among the 13 persons named in an FIR filed after Swapan Koley, a second-year BCom student, was beaten to death in a clash between the supporters of the SFI and the Trinamul Chhatra Parishad at Prabhu Jagabandhu College in Andul on December 16.
“A Howrah police team was tracking Palley’s mobile phone and found that he was hiding somewhere on Burdwan Road. They sought our help and he was arrested in a joint raid at 12am,” said a Siliguri police officer.
Palley was charged under sections 325 (punishment for voluntarily causing grievous hurt), 307 (attempt to murder) and 302 (punishment for murder) of the Indian Penal Code.
SFI supporters shouted slogans when Palley was produced in the additional chief judicial magistrate’s court here today for a transit remand. They alleged that Koley had been beaten to death by members of the TMCP and the criminals sheltered by the organisation.
“The arrested youth was not a student of the college and it has been yet again proved that the TMCP had carried out the attack on SFI supporters with the help of outsiders,” said Sourav Das, the Darjeeling district secretary of the SFI.
The Howrah police refused comment on Palley’s arrest.
Governor wants NBU to bring back juniors
TT, Siliguri, Jan. 9: Governor M.K. Narayanan has asked the executive council of North Bengal University to bring back four first-semester post-graduate philosophy students who left the course midway after being ragged by seniors.
Narayanan, who is the chancellor of the NBU, summoned members of the council to Calcutta yesterday and reportedly told them that he was “ashamed” of being the head of a varsity that had delayed action against 14 seniors for ragging.
“The governor said it was unfortunate that four students had to discontinue their studies because of ragging by seniors at a hostel on the campus. Since the future of these students is at stake, the governor instructed us to bring them back and allow them to continue with the course,” said Sushanta Das, the controller of examinations and a council member.
“We will definitely contact these students and ask them to join their department immediately,” he added.
The four juniors had left the campus after being ragged by third semester PG philosophy students.
The torture came to light when one of the victims submitted a letter to vice-chancellor Arunabha Basumajumdar before leaving the campus on December 3.
The student complained that he had been mentally and physically tortured by seniors ever since the academic session had begun in August last year.
A probe conducted by an anti-ragging committee found the 14 seniors guilty of ragging 17 juniors at the hostel. The panel recommended the rustication of six seniors from third and fourth semesters, expulsion of five and suspension of three for one semester from the hostel.
However, the council voted down the recommendations at a meeting on December 16, prompting the VC to report the matter to Narayanan.
Following the development, the governor asked all council members to meet him at Raj Bhavan on Saturday. But all the council members unanimously approved the recommendations on Thursday.
Narayanan told the council members that he had been disappointed by the delay in the action against the guilty students.
“The governor disapproved of the delay in implementing the recommendations of the anti-ragging panel. He said he was ashamed of being the chancellor of a university whose members supported ragging. He said he had called this meeting not to discuss the matter but rather to express his shock at the endless hours of discussions the council members took to finally arrive at a consensus on a grave issue which demanded immediate action,” said a council member.