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| 17th Kamapa Trinley Thaye Dorje blessing his devotees in Kalimpong |
The Gyalwa Karmapa, who is the first consciously reborn master(Tulku) in Tibetan Buddhism, is the head of the 900 year old Karma Kagyu Lineage. He is one of the most important lineage holders of the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism.Shri Diwakar Buddhist Institute is one of the oldest monasteries in the country and was the seat and home of Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje for several years. Bhajurathna Kothi is a residence of the 17th Karmapa where the 16th Karmapa once performed a Black Crown Ceremony during one of his visits there.
Thousands of devotees came to Kalimpong from difrerent parts of the world – in particular from the different regions of the Himalayas – to take part in the celbebration, and the locals enthusiastically welcomed His Holiness back to a Kalimpong with a great deal of warmth and devotion.
The sound of Gyalings (a Tibetan musical instruemtn), drums and cymbals made the ambience divine. The constant chanting and the prayers recited to spread compassion and goodness to all beings filled the atmpsphere with a strong positive verve.Speaking on the occasion, Gyalwa Karmapa also emphasised the auspiciousness of the event and talked about the benefits of the dharma – the Buddha’s teaching – in creating peace and harmony in the world. He expressed his wish that the Buddha dharma might prevail in our world, for the benefit of all beings, as well as his hopes and aspirations for world peace.
The constant chanting and the prayers recited to spread compassion and goodness to all beings filled the atmosphere with a strong positive verve. Speaking on the occasion, HH Gyalwa Karmapa also emphasised the auspiciousness of the event and talked about the benefits of the dharma – the Buddha’s teaching – in creating peace and harmony in the world. He expressed his wish that the Buddha dharma might prevail in our world, for the benefit of all beings, as well as his hopes and aspirations for world peace.
Pujas of praise to Lord Buddha and the Sixteen Arhats were accompanied by different musical instruments. The entire atmosphere was highly energetic and spiritually captivating.
Further highlights included two sessions of teaching and an empowerment by HH Gyalwa Karmapa, as and Shri Diwakar Buddhist Institute in Kalimpong, open to the general public and also attended by His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa along with the Rinpoches, Khenpos, lamas, monks and nuns.On the final day of the three-day festival thousands of followers of the Karma Kagyu order of Tibeten Buddhism participated in a procession for World Peace across Kalimpong town. As a special highlight and culminating point, a four-storey-high thangka of Buddha Shakyamuni was displayed on Kalimpong’s sports grounds. The hand-stitched image of Lord Buddha is 45 feet high and 30 feet wide. Offerings had been arranged in front of this representation of enlightenment, and all the devotees were given the opportunity to pay their respects to it and receive its powerful spiritual blessings.
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मनोज वोगटी, कालेबुङ, 17 मई। वैशाख दिवस (बुद्ध पूर्णिमा) तीन प्रमुख घटनाहरूको स्मृतिमा पालन गरिन्छ, जसमा शाक्यमुनि बुद्धको जन्म, ज्ञान प्राप्ति अनि निर्वाण रहेको छ। बुद्ध धमावलम्बीहरूको निम्ति यो दिन धेरै शुभ दिन हो। यसवर्ष शाक्यमुनि बुद्धको जयन्ती वा बुद्ध पूर्णिमा 17 मईमा पालन गरियो जुन दिन भारतमा नै राष्ट्रीय विदा घोषित गरिएको छ। यस तिथीलाई संसारभरिका सबै बौद्ध स्कूलहरूमा पवित्र दिवसको रूपमा मनाइन्छ।
कालेबुङमा पनि 17 औं (दाबीदार)ग्याल्वा कर्मापा थिन्ले थाई दोर्जीले 15 देखि 17 मईसम्म आफ्ना भक्त अनि अनुयायीहरूसित बुद्ध पूर्णिमा पालन गरे। यस अवसरमा कालेबुङको श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानमा तीन दिवसीय कार्यक्रमको आयोजना गरिएको थियो, जहॉं संसारभरिबाट तीन दिनै रिम्पोछे, भक्त अनि बौद्ध धर्मका कर्मापा काग्यू पन्थीहरूको उपस्थिति थियो। ग्यालवा कर्मापा तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्ममा पहिलो चैतन्य अफ्नो इच्छाद्वारा पुन: जन्म लिने मास्टर (टुल्कु) हुन्, जो 900 वर्ष पुराना कर्मा काग्यू वंश परम्पराका प्रमुख मानिन्छन्। यसकारण तिनी तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्मका सर्वाधिक महत्वपूर्ण वंशपरम्पराको शिक्षा धारक हुन्।
श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थान देशमा नै सबैभन्दा पुरानो गुम्पा संस्थानहरूमध्ये एउटा मानिन्छन् तथा यो धेरैवर्षसम्म कर्मापा थिनले थाई दोर्जीको निवासस्थान रहेको पनि मानिन्छन्। बजुराथना कोठी 17 औं कर्मापाको निवास हो जहॉंबाट 16 औं कर्मापाले पनि कुनैबेला आफ्नो यात्राको अवधी ब्ल्याक क्राउन समारोहमा भाग लिएका थिए। विभिन्न ठाउँहरूबाट धेरै भक्तहरूले कालेबुङमा उपस्थिति दिएका थिए भने स्थानीय भक्तहरूले पनि कर्मापा दोर्जीलाई कालेबुङमा भक्तिभावले स्वागत जनाए। प्राय दिनभरि नै ग्यालिङ(तिब्बती सङ्गीत वाद्य यन्त्र)ड्रम अनि सिम्बल्सको ध्वनिले कावेबुङको वातावरण नै आध्यात्ममय बनाएको थियो।
कर्मापाले यस अवसरलाई पवित्रताको संज्ञा दिँदै विश्व शान्ति अनि प्रेम स्थापनाको निम्ति बुद्ध शिक्षा धर्मको लाभको बारेका बताए। बौद्ध धर्म सम्पूर्ण विश्वमा फैलिन विश्वास पनि प्रकट गरे। तिनले भने, बौद्ध दर्म विश्वभरि फैलिनु सम्पूर्ण जीवहरूको निम्ति कल्याणकारी हुने छ। जो विश्व शान्तिको कारण हुने छ।
आज ग्याल्वा कर्मापाका शिक्षा अनि शक्तिमाथि दुइसत्रमा नेपालको पोखारास्थित विक्रमशिला बौद्ध संस्थान अनि कालेबुङको श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानका विद्यार्थीहरूबीच नै खुला बहस वा तर्कसभा पनि भयो भने विहान मेला ग्राउण्डबाट शोभा यात्रा निकालिएको थियो, जसले नगर परिक्रममा गर्यो। मुख्यगरी तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्मको कर्मा काग्युका धेरै मतावालम्बीहरू शोभा यात्रामा सामेल बनेका थिए। मेला ग्राउण्डमा नै बुद्ध शाक्यमुनिको चार तल्ला अग्लो थाङ्का प्रदर्शन गरिएको थियो। थाङ्कामा भगवान बुद्धको 45 फुट अग्लो अनि 30 फुट चौड़ा बुद्धको चित्र थियो, जसको पूजा अर्चना गरियो। शोभा यात्रापछि श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानस्थित कार्यक्रम मञ्चमा नै कर्मापाले भक्तहरूलाई वाङ वितरण पनि गरे भने तिनले प्रवचन पनि राखे।
Bundh in Primary schools
KalimNews: GPTO a GJM affiliated primary teachers' organisation has declared closure of all primary schools of DGHC from Wednesday to Friday (18 to 20 May) demanding appointment of teachers in primary schools and transfer of the present Secretary of Education department of DGHC. It has also proposed to closure of all educational institutes and education department offices from 23 to 25 May and total closure of all government and DGHC offices along with educational institutes.
Meanwhile, GJM is all set for celebrating its victory on 19 May in all the areas of GJM areas. It will be started from Dooars on 19 May.
Zoo workers demand regularisation
Prabin Khaling, KalimNews, Gangtok, May 17: Dedicated services, ranging from 18 to 20 years, from the 17 odd zoo keepers have played an undeniable role in making the Himalayan Zoological Park (HZP) here at Bulbuley a safe haven for wildlife, both brought from outside or rescued from different parts of Sikkim.
Spread over an area of 205 hectares of mountainous thickly vegetated land, the HZP is also a must-visit destination for tourists and a space where urban kids can have close, uninhibited understanding of exotic wildlife species. There are presently fourteen wildlife species including 11 red pandas, three gorals, clouded leopard, snow leopard, Himalayan black bear, Tibetan wolves and birds like golden pheasant safely cocooned in separate enclosures.
These zoo keepers, all hired on MR basis, function as a materfamilias of all these 44 animals and birds under close supervision of senior forest officials. Some of the animals are almost hand-reared by them.
While continuing with their responsibilities diligently towards these animals, some highly endangered and rare, the zoo staff are also pinning their hopes on the benevolence of the State government that they will be regularized in near future. This demand has been made repeatedly with the State government.
“We have been dedicatedly taking care of the inmates in the zoo and those who are rescued from other parts of the State and brought here for treatment. The nature of our jobs is very different from those MRs working in other departments. It is not only risky as we come in close contact with wild animals but there is no such thing as 10 am to 5 pm duty. We report for duty at early hours and continue till odd hours into the night”, said one zoo worker.
Some of the tasks need more hours and patience like when the inmates give birth in the zoo, falls sick or there is an injured animal brought for treatment on emergency note.We hope that our single demand for regularization would be considered by the State government in a timely manner, said the zoo casual workers.
Rival-less Morcha repeats back-to-fold plea-Ghisingh departure decision sudden, say party leader
कालेबुङमा पनि 17 औं (दाबीदार)ग्याल्वा कर्मापा थिन्ले थाई दोर्जीले 15 देखि 17 मईसम्म आफ्ना भक्त अनि अनुयायीहरूसित बुद्ध पूर्णिमा पालन गरे। यस अवसरमा कालेबुङको श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानमा तीन दिवसीय कार्यक्रमको आयोजना गरिएको थियो, जहॉं संसारभरिबाट तीन दिनै रिम्पोछे, भक्त अनि बौद्ध धर्मका कर्मापा काग्यू पन्थीहरूको उपस्थिति थियो। ग्यालवा कर्मापा तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्ममा पहिलो चैतन्य अफ्नो इच्छाद्वारा पुन: जन्म लिने मास्टर (टुल्कु) हुन्, जो 900 वर्ष पुराना कर्मा काग्यू वंश परम्पराका प्रमुख मानिन्छन्। यसकारण तिनी तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्मका सर्वाधिक महत्वपूर्ण वंशपरम्पराको शिक्षा धारक हुन्।
श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थान देशमा नै सबैभन्दा पुरानो गुम्पा संस्थानहरूमध्ये एउटा मानिन्छन् तथा यो धेरैवर्षसम्म कर्मापा थिनले थाई दोर्जीको निवासस्थान रहेको पनि मानिन्छन्। बजुराथना कोठी 17 औं कर्मापाको निवास हो जहॉंबाट 16 औं कर्मापाले पनि कुनैबेला आफ्नो यात्राको अवधी ब्ल्याक क्राउन समारोहमा भाग लिएका थिए। विभिन्न ठाउँहरूबाट धेरै भक्तहरूले कालेबुङमा उपस्थिति दिएका थिए भने स्थानीय भक्तहरूले पनि कर्मापा दोर्जीलाई कालेबुङमा भक्तिभावले स्वागत जनाए। प्राय दिनभरि नै ग्यालिङ(तिब्बती सङ्गीत वाद्य यन्त्र)ड्रम अनि सिम्बल्सको ध्वनिले कावेबुङको वातावरण नै आध्यात्ममय बनाएको थियो।
कर्मापाले यस अवसरलाई पवित्रताको संज्ञा दिँदै विश्व शान्ति अनि प्रेम स्थापनाको निम्ति बुद्ध शिक्षा धर्मको लाभको बारेका बताए। बौद्ध धर्म सम्पूर्ण विश्वमा फैलिन विश्वास पनि प्रकट गरे। तिनले भने, बौद्ध दर्म विश्वभरि फैलिनु सम्पूर्ण जीवहरूको निम्ति कल्याणकारी हुने छ। जो विश्व शान्तिको कारण हुने छ। आज ग्याल्वा कर्मापाका शिक्षा अनि शक्तिमाथि दुइसत्रमा नेपालको पोखारास्थित विक्रमशिला बौद्ध संस्थान अनि कालेबुङको श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानका विद्यार्थीहरूबीच नै खुला बहस वा तर्कसभा पनि भयो भने विहान मेला ग्राउण्डबाट शोभा यात्रा निकालिएको थियो, जसले नगर परिक्रममा गर्यो। मुख्यगरी तिब्बती बौद्ध धर्मको कर्मा काग्युका धेरै मतावालम्बीहरू शोभा यात्रामा सामेल बनेका थिए। मेला ग्राउण्डमा नै बुद्ध शाक्यमुनिको चार तल्ला अग्लो थाङ्का प्रदर्शन गरिएको थियो। थाङ्कामा भगवान बुद्धको 45 फुट अग्लो अनि 30 फुट चौड़ा बुद्धको चित्र थियो, जसको पूजा अर्चना गरियो। शोभा यात्रापछि श्री दिवाकर बौद्ध संस्थानस्थित कार्यक्रम मञ्चमा नै कर्मापाले भक्तहरूलाई वाङ वितरण पनि गरे भने तिनले प्रवचन पनि राखे।
Bundh in Primary schools
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| Postering of GPTO at Louis Jubille Complex in which the Education department of DGHC is located |
Meanwhile, GJM is all set for celebrating its victory on 19 May in all the areas of GJM areas. It will be started from Dooars on 19 May.
Zoo workers demand regularisation
Prabin Khaling, KalimNews, Gangtok, May 17: Dedicated services, ranging from 18 to 20 years, from the 17 odd zoo keepers have played an undeniable role in making the Himalayan Zoological Park (HZP) here at Bulbuley a safe haven for wildlife, both brought from outside or rescued from different parts of Sikkim.
Spread over an area of 205 hectares of mountainous thickly vegetated land, the HZP is also a must-visit destination for tourists and a space where urban kids can have close, uninhibited understanding of exotic wildlife species. There are presently fourteen wildlife species including 11 red pandas, three gorals, clouded leopard, snow leopard, Himalayan black bear, Tibetan wolves and birds like golden pheasant safely cocooned in separate enclosures.
These zoo keepers, all hired on MR basis, function as a materfamilias of all these 44 animals and birds under close supervision of senior forest officials. Some of the animals are almost hand-reared by them.
While continuing with their responsibilities diligently towards these animals, some highly endangered and rare, the zoo staff are also pinning their hopes on the benevolence of the State government that they will be regularized in near future. This demand has been made repeatedly with the State government.
“We have been dedicatedly taking care of the inmates in the zoo and those who are rescued from other parts of the State and brought here for treatment. The nature of our jobs is very different from those MRs working in other departments. It is not only risky as we come in close contact with wild animals but there is no such thing as 10 am to 5 pm duty. We report for duty at early hours and continue till odd hours into the night”, said one zoo worker.
Some of the tasks need more hours and patience like when the inmates give birth in the zoo, falls sick or there is an injured animal brought for treatment on emergency note.We hope that our single demand for regularization would be considered by the State government in a timely manner, said the zoo casual workers.
Rival-less Morcha repeats back-to-fold plea-Ghisingh departure decision sudden, say party leader
Vivek Chhetri, TT, Darjeeling, May 17: Subash Ghisingh’s decision to sneak out of the hills under the cover of darkness was a spur-of-the-moment act done without consulting even his party leaders who will now find it more difficult to keep the GNLF flock together.
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| Subash Ghisingh enters his rented house in Jalpaiguri on Tuesday; (below) his locked house in Darjeeling. Pictures by Biplab Basak and Suman Tamang |
With the hills now left without a formidable opposition, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has repeated its appeal to “misguided people” to return to the party fold. The appeal is an indication that the Morcha believes that Ghisingh’s departure is likely to demoralise GNLF supporters and is making an attempt to reach out to them.
The GNLF chief today said he had been forced to leave the hills, as he was constantly under threat.
“I was in Darjeeling for the 38 days under constant threat and I was mentally tortured, which finally forced me to take a decision not to stay there further,” Ghisingh told journalists in Siliguri today before leaving for his rented accommodation in Jalpaiguri.
He said he would return to the hills “within a very short period”, though his sudden exit from Darjeeling last night — a few hours after his followers were accused of assaulting Gorkha Janmukti Morcha supporters in Sonada — does not suggest so. Of the four Morcha supporters who suffered injuries, the condition of one, who was hacked on the neck with a sharp weapon, continues to be critical.
The GNLF chief expressed his suspicions about the Morcha victory and the huge margin by which the party won. “The real voters in the hills are not satisfied with the poll result,” he said.
Ghisingh’s departure has left the region devoid of any strong opposition to the predominant Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. Even though the three GNLF candidates from the hills had forfeited their deposits as they failed to get 1/6th of the total votes cast, Ghisingh’s party had occupied the second position in the Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong seats.
The ABGL, which was considered a major opposition voice, especially after the murder of its leader Madan Tamang, fared very poorly — being pushed to the last spot, even behind the Congress and the CPI, in Kalimpong and to the fourth spot in Kurseong. In Darjeeling, it came third.
“Even though the GNLF could not match the Morcha, it was seen as a major rival that Gurung’s party was wary of. With Ghisingh gone, it has been a major moral blow to the GNLF supporters. They had only just started forming party units after Ghisingh came up to the hills on April 8,” said an observer. Ghisingh had been hounded out of the hills almost three years ago after a shot fired allegedly from a GNLF leader’s house killed a Morcha supporter.
Most of the GNLF leaders today admitted that they were unaware of Ghisingh’s decision to leave the hills. “I came to know only this morning and I am now going down to meet him,” said Palden Bhutia, the president of the GNLF Kurseong Branch Committee, this morning.
Bhim Subba, the GNLF candidate from Darjeeling, also admitted that he was unaware of his party chief leaving the hills. Asked if it would have a demoralising effect on his cadres, Subba said: “It will definitely have a negative impact but people must understand that Ghisingh is a leader who truly loves the hills. His wanted to ensure that there was no bloodshed.”
Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri, while appealing to all “misguided people” to return to the party fold said Ghisingh had come to the hills to create unrest and bloodshed. “People in the hills do not like violence. Also, the results of the Assembly elections have shown that the hill people have already rejected him. Under this circumstance, he had no option but to flee.”
“Our party president Bimal Gurung has made an appeal to all misguided people who had joined other parties to return to the Morcha. They can join us through our local units. We need to be united in our fight for Gorkhaland,” said Giri.
Ghisingh’s sudden exit demoralises party activists
SNS, KURSEONG, 17 MAY: The GNLF party looks demoralised after the sudden departure of the party chief, Mr Subash Ghisingh, from the Hills last night.
GNLF supporters were a frustrated lot when they came to know of Mr Ghisingh's sudden departure from the Hills. Feeling insecure, many GNLF supporters and leaders from different places of the Hills, mainly from Sonada region have reportedly decided to resign from the party. The GNLF senior leader Kurseong branch, president, Mr Palden Dorjee Bhutia refused to comment on the matter.
A frustrated GNLF supporter said: "In the past, we were threatened and tortured by the GJMM and were also gheraoed by them, but we never deserted the party out of fear as we had full faith in Mr Ghisingh. But last night Mr Gisingh's stand of leaving the Hills is making us insecure. So, we have decided to quit the GNLF and politics."
A local said that politically Mr Ghisingh has never done such a thing in the past. But his act has left his cadres confused, bewildered and insecure. However, at the same time, a section of GNLF supporters said: "We still trust Mr Ghisingh and his silent politics. It may be a political strategy that forced him to leave the Hills. Mr Ghisingh and the GNLF have always followed the policy of non-violence and peace. We still believe that he will return soon."
On the other hand, a section of GNLF leadership think that the step taken by Mr Ghisingh is a political strategy to pave the way for the implementation of the Sixth Schedule. Sources also said that Mr Ghisingh was supposed to meet Mrs Sonia Gandhi, for which all the preparation had already been done but the GJMM was supposedly trying to foil it and it was manily due to this reason that Mr Gisingh was forced to take such a decision in the last minute. Mr Ghisingh will soon meet Mrs Sonia Gandhi regarding the demand of the Sixth Schedule.
‘Continuous threats' force Ghising to leave Darjeeling hills
Marcus Dam, TH, KOLKATA: Less than six weeks after his return, Gorkha National Liberation Front president Subhas Ghising left Darjeeling on Monday evening in the face of what he called “continuous threats” from the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM). Mr. Ghising arrived in the hill town on April 8, having virtually been forced to leave the hills after attacks on his supporters by GJM activists for more than two-and-a-half years ago. On Tuesday, he said in Siliguri that he had decided to leave Darjeeling again because of “constant threats”.
The GJM denied that Mr. Ghising was under any pressure from the party to leave the hills. But it claimed that his presence in the region was inciting passions among rival supporters.
“Some remarks he made at a rally at Mirik [on April 9] were not taken well by the people, who saw in them an attempt to incite his followers to violence,” Harka Bahadur Chettri, a senior member of the GJM's central committee, told The Hindu on the phone from Darjeeling district.
GJM supporter attacked
A GJM supporter was severely injured after being allegedly attacked by GNLF activists at Sonada late on Sunday.
GJM president Bimal Gurung had said at a rally at Mirik on April 10 that Mr. Ghising's “visa” would expire shortly after the Assembly polls (held on April 18).
Mr. Ghising's departure was as subdued as his arrival. It came after the severe drubbing of his party in all three seats it contested. Its candidates lost by huge margins to the GJM's putting paid to Mr. Ghising's hopes for a political comeback in a region where his supremacy was unassailable for more than two decades till the GJM was formed in October 2007.
“He had high hopes of achieving political success, but might have realised the futility of staying on in the hills after the voters, through their verdict, rejected him,” said Dr. Chettri, who won from Kalimpong.
“Mr. Ghising left Darjeeling around 9.30 p.m. on Monday, and, as a person who enjoys the ‘Z' category security, [he] was provided with the required police escort,” Superintendent of Police D.P. Singh said on the phone from Darjeeling district on Tuesday.
The GNLF chief today said he had been forced to leave the hills, as he was constantly under threat.
“I was in Darjeeling for the 38 days under constant threat and I was mentally tortured, which finally forced me to take a decision not to stay there further,” Ghisingh told journalists in Siliguri today before leaving for his rented accommodation in Jalpaiguri.
He said he would return to the hills “within a very short period”, though his sudden exit from Darjeeling last night — a few hours after his followers were accused of assaulting Gorkha Janmukti Morcha supporters in Sonada — does not suggest so. Of the four Morcha supporters who suffered injuries, the condition of one, who was hacked on the neck with a sharp weapon, continues to be critical.
The GNLF chief expressed his suspicions about the Morcha victory and the huge margin by which the party won. “The real voters in the hills are not satisfied with the poll result,” he said.
Ghisingh’s departure has left the region devoid of any strong opposition to the predominant Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. Even though the three GNLF candidates from the hills had forfeited their deposits as they failed to get 1/6th of the total votes cast, Ghisingh’s party had occupied the second position in the Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong seats.
The ABGL, which was considered a major opposition voice, especially after the murder of its leader Madan Tamang, fared very poorly — being pushed to the last spot, even behind the Congress and the CPI, in Kalimpong and to the fourth spot in Kurseong. In Darjeeling, it came third.
“Even though the GNLF could not match the Morcha, it was seen as a major rival that Gurung’s party was wary of. With Ghisingh gone, it has been a major moral blow to the GNLF supporters. They had only just started forming party units after Ghisingh came up to the hills on April 8,” said an observer. Ghisingh had been hounded out of the hills almost three years ago after a shot fired allegedly from a GNLF leader’s house killed a Morcha supporter.
Most of the GNLF leaders today admitted that they were unaware of Ghisingh’s decision to leave the hills. “I came to know only this morning and I am now going down to meet him,” said Palden Bhutia, the president of the GNLF Kurseong Branch Committee, this morning.
Bhim Subba, the GNLF candidate from Darjeeling, also admitted that he was unaware of his party chief leaving the hills. Asked if it would have a demoralising effect on his cadres, Subba said: “It will definitely have a negative impact but people must understand that Ghisingh is a leader who truly loves the hills. His wanted to ensure that there was no bloodshed.”
Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri, while appealing to all “misguided people” to return to the party fold said Ghisingh had come to the hills to create unrest and bloodshed. “People in the hills do not like violence. Also, the results of the Assembly elections have shown that the hill people have already rejected him. Under this circumstance, he had no option but to flee.”
“Our party president Bimal Gurung has made an appeal to all misguided people who had joined other parties to return to the Morcha. They can join us through our local units. We need to be united in our fight for Gorkhaland,” said Giri.
Ghisingh’s sudden exit demoralises party activists
SNS, KURSEONG, 17 MAY: The GNLF party looks demoralised after the sudden departure of the party chief, Mr Subash Ghisingh, from the Hills last night.
GNLF supporters were a frustrated lot when they came to know of Mr Ghisingh's sudden departure from the Hills. Feeling insecure, many GNLF supporters and leaders from different places of the Hills, mainly from Sonada region have reportedly decided to resign from the party. The GNLF senior leader Kurseong branch, president, Mr Palden Dorjee Bhutia refused to comment on the matter.
A frustrated GNLF supporter said: "In the past, we were threatened and tortured by the GJMM and were also gheraoed by them, but we never deserted the party out of fear as we had full faith in Mr Ghisingh. But last night Mr Gisingh's stand of leaving the Hills is making us insecure. So, we have decided to quit the GNLF and politics."
A local said that politically Mr Ghisingh has never done such a thing in the past. But his act has left his cadres confused, bewildered and insecure. However, at the same time, a section of GNLF supporters said: "We still trust Mr Ghisingh and his silent politics. It may be a political strategy that forced him to leave the Hills. Mr Ghisingh and the GNLF have always followed the policy of non-violence and peace. We still believe that he will return soon."
On the other hand, a section of GNLF leadership think that the step taken by Mr Ghisingh is a political strategy to pave the way for the implementation of the Sixth Schedule. Sources also said that Mr Ghisingh was supposed to meet Mrs Sonia Gandhi, for which all the preparation had already been done but the GJMM was supposedly trying to foil it and it was manily due to this reason that Mr Gisingh was forced to take such a decision in the last minute. Mr Ghisingh will soon meet Mrs Sonia Gandhi regarding the demand of the Sixth Schedule.
‘Continuous threats' force Ghising to leave Darjeeling hills
Marcus Dam, TH, KOLKATA: Less than six weeks after his return, Gorkha National Liberation Front president Subhas Ghising left Darjeeling on Monday evening in the face of what he called “continuous threats” from the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM). Mr. Ghising arrived in the hill town on April 8, having virtually been forced to leave the hills after attacks on his supporters by GJM activists for more than two-and-a-half years ago. On Tuesday, he said in Siliguri that he had decided to leave Darjeeling again because of “constant threats”.
The GJM denied that Mr. Ghising was under any pressure from the party to leave the hills. But it claimed that his presence in the region was inciting passions among rival supporters.
“Some remarks he made at a rally at Mirik [on April 9] were not taken well by the people, who saw in them an attempt to incite his followers to violence,” Harka Bahadur Chettri, a senior member of the GJM's central committee, told The Hindu on the phone from Darjeeling district.
GJM supporter attacked
A GJM supporter was severely injured after being allegedly attacked by GNLF activists at Sonada late on Sunday.
GJM president Bimal Gurung had said at a rally at Mirik on April 10 that Mr. Ghising's “visa” would expire shortly after the Assembly polls (held on April 18).
Mr. Ghising's departure was as subdued as his arrival. It came after the severe drubbing of his party in all three seats it contested. Its candidates lost by huge margins to the GJM's putting paid to Mr. Ghising's hopes for a political comeback in a region where his supremacy was unassailable for more than two decades till the GJM was formed in October 2007.
“He had high hopes of achieving political success, but might have realised the futility of staying on in the hills after the voters, through their verdict, rejected him,” said Dr. Chettri, who won from Kalimpong.
“Mr. Ghising left Darjeeling around 9.30 p.m. on Monday, and, as a person who enjoys the ‘Z' category security, [he] was provided with the required police escort,” Superintendent of Police D.P. Singh said on the phone from Darjeeling district on Tuesday.
Tips for brand Darjeeling -- Tea from 10 gardens in taste test
Abhijit Sinha, TT, Siliguri, May 17: Sixteen tea experts from across the world will sip and taste samples of the first flush of Darjeeling tea from 10 hill gardens and give their feedback through the web page of an international forum.
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| (Top) A Darjeeling tea garden; and the home page of ITCC. Picture by Kundan Yolmo |
The tea tasting exercise called the Cupping Event is scheduled to begin at the end of this month or in the beginning of June.The programme is being organised by the International Tea Cuppers Club (ITCC), a community of tea experts, producers, dealers and tea lovers formed by a US-based tea merchant, Dan Robertson.
“The objective of forming ITCC is to provide an opportunity to tea makers, professionals, sellers and other stakeholders to exchange information on quality tea produced around the world,” Robertson, a resident of Naperville, said through Facebook.
He added that the main objective of the event is to give the experts an opportunity to taste good quality tea and get a feedback from them.
“Cupping Events are organised to provide the members a tasting experience of some of the finest teas and at the same time pass on necessary feedback to manufacturers so that they can improve production methods and quality of these teas. The cuppers or members who will taste these teas come from different levels and can convey a range of perspectives not usually available to the suppliers,” Robertson wrote in an e-mail.
According to him, the experts will follow a set of guidelines while preparing and evaluating the samples to get unbiased evaluations. Robertson said the guideline has been prepared by the cupper club.
As part of the initiative, the ITCC is holding the Darjeeling First Flush Cupping Event for which the club has sought entries from the members.
The ITCC has around 30 members, all of whom are associated with the international tea industry. Interested members can send in their entries by May 21.
“Only 16 members are allowed to participate in the tasting event on a first-come first-serve basis,” Vivek Lochan, a member of the ITCC from India, said.
He added that those enrolling themselves would be given samples from 10 Darjeeling gardens along with tasting kits. The gardens which will have their tea tasted are: Puttabong, Jungpana, Gopaldhara, Giddapahar, Okayti, Sourenee, Castleton, Margaret’s Hope, Singbulli and Thurbo.
The tasting kit will have three pieces of professional cupping set, cupping log forms, tea tasting terminology chart, a thermometer, a gram-scale, water pH test strips, a detailed sample information and cupping procedure guidelines.
Each cupping set includes a bowl and a cup with a lid made of bone China.Once the experts receive the kits and the samples it would take around three weeks to complete the event, ITCC sources said.
“We have sent samples through a local exporter for the ITCC event. The person who has floated this forum is a major player in the import of tea to the US. By sending tea samples to people across the world for tasting we can expect a good publicity and promotion of our tea as well as analyse their feedback,” said S.K. Saria, owner of Gopaldhara Tea Estate.
The organisers said similar events would be held for Assam tea and brew produced in China, Japan and South Korea. “People can have a taste of these teas just after production and those engaged in importing tea can place their orders directly to the manufacturers or exporters,” Robertson wrote in an e-mail.
He added that the club has received a good response from the suppliers in the hills.
“On completion of an event the comments are summarised and posted (on the web page). These are available to all the members who can gain additional information about the tea put in the event concerned at any time,” said a member of the ITCC.
Garden shut after dagger attack
TT, Alipurduar, May 17: Work has been suspended on the Central Dooars Tea Estate in Kalchini following an alleged assault on the assistant manager by a labourer yesterday.
In a notice put up in the garden last night, the management recounted two incidents, including the assault on Rakesh Kumar, to justify the suspension of work.
Kumar was hit with a dagger in his chamber allegedly by Prabhu Ghale yesterday morning. Ghale carried out the attack minutes after he had been reprimanded by Kumar for smoking in the garden factory. “Mr Kumar while trying to save his life sustained multiple deep cut injuries on right hand, left fingers and stomach... Ghale was shouting that he would kill Kumar but nobody came forward,” reads the notice.
The garden, located 50km from here, has 1,887 workers.
The notice also said the workers had stopped the interview of pharmacists on November 14 last year and insisted that those recommended by them should be recruited.
“Feeling insecure it is not possible for management to carry out the normal operations of the garden because there is no guarantee that similar incident would not take place,” says the notice.
Arpan Chamling, the secretary of the Kalchini area of Darjeeling Terai Dooars Plantation Labour Union, said: “What Ghale did was absolutely wrong. But before hanging the notice, the management should have consulted us. The management is taking care of workers and there are no dues pending. We will request the assistant labour commissioner to reopen the garden soon.
Robbed by train ‘friends’
TT, Jaigaon, May 17: A 20-year-old man has alleged that he was pushed from a moving train near Carron station last night by four men who robbed him of his cellphone and Rs 3,000.
Bubai Saha, a resident of Old Malda, said he worked as a mason in Guwahati and had boarded the Guwahati-bound Mahananda Express yesterday to go there. He said four persons had befriended him on the train. Around 9pm the four youths asked Bubai to accompany them to the door because they were about to get off. When Bubai reached the door, he was pushed out of the moving train and the youths, who got off after that, dragged him into a nearby tea garden and took away his cellphone and wallet that had Rs 3,000. Bubai managed to walk to Carron station and lodged a complaint with the stationmaster. He was admitted to Loksan primary health centre in Nagrakata.
Robbers held
TT, Alipurduar: Two persons, who were involved in looting a jewellery shop in Falakata on May 10, were arrested on Tuesday. The police said Jalil Ahmed who had masterminded the burglary was picked up from his house in Banarhat on Monday. After interrogating him, two more persons were picked up on Tuesday.
Bombs seized
TT, Alipurduar: Madarihat police recovered three crude bombs from near Holong Bridge on NH31C on Tuesday. The police said local people spotted the explosives and informed them. Nobody has been arrested.
Deer rescued
TT : Residents of Gosaihat near Dhupguri rescued a barking deer from the village on Tuesday. The villagers saw the three-year-old animal roaming around in the area and informed the staff of Khuttimari beat. The foresters later took away the deer.
Suicides
TT, Balurghat/Islampur: Two unnatural deaths have been reported in Balurghat and Islampur in the past 24 hours. Rintu Ghosh, 36, of Raghumatpur in Balurghat, hanged herself near her house on Tuesday. Rashida Khatun, 49, a resident of Ramganj in Islampur, committed suicide by consuming poison on Monday.
Sherbet at Somnath home
SNS, KOLKATA, 17 MAY: Even as the Governor, Mr MK Narayanan, today formally appointed the Trinamul Congress chairperson, Miss Mamata Banerjee, as the chief minister of West Bengal, it was decided that she would be sworn in at exactly 1:01 p.m. on Friday, 20 May, an auspicious time (mahendrajog) according to the Bengali almanac.
The time was also chosen keeping in mind the timing of the Friday prayers of the Muslim community.
However, the party is yet to submit the list of ministers who will be taking oath with Miss Banerjee on the same day to the Governor. The state administration was today given the nod to print the invitation cards for the swearing-in ceremony after Trinamul Congress communicated the time at which the new chief minister will be taking oath, to the Governor's office.
No Central minister other than finance minister Mr Pranab Mukherje is expected to be present for the swearing-in ceremony. Both the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and Congress chief Mrs Sonia Gandhi are unlikely to make it to the function.
But the state administration is in a fix over the surging demand for invitation cards for the ceremony, as a huge number of dignitaries and party supporters of both Congress and Trinamul Congress are expected to attend the function. As an official in charge of making the arrangements pointed out: “Everybody wants a seat in the front. We simply do not know how that will be possible.” Around 3,000 guests are expected to witness the function.
Theatre personalities Rudraprasad Sengupta and Kaushik Sen and litterateurs, including Mahasweta Devi, Sunil Gangapadhyay would be present as well as Ganesh Pain and Jogen Chowdhury. Former chief secretaries Mr Tarun Dutta and Mr N Krishnamurti and sports personalities Sourav Ganguly and Baichung Bhutia also feature in the list of invitees though no industrialists have been included.
The Governor himself inspected the grounds where the function will be held along with the PWD secretary, Mr AR Bardhan and the Commissioner of Police, Mr Ranjit Pachnanda.
There are no qualms within the Left Front on participating in the swearing-in ceremony of Miss Banerjee as the new chief minister on coming Friday, Mr Biman Bose said today. “But we cannot take any decision arbitrarily as we are yet to receive any formal invitation to the ceremony. We are not gate-crashers,” said the Left Front chairman.
Meanwhile, even before the new chief minister has stepped in, work has begun in Writers’ Buildings for laying the groundwork for steps to be taken to rebuild the economy of the state, as well as for preparing induction material for the new ministers.
Each department has been sent a format for outlining the details of work done by them, the number of staff, important schemes of the state and Centre, list of pending cases of criminal, vigilance or disciplinary nature against staff and officers and important court cases. Any issues which require urgent attention should be included.
The finance secretary, Mr CM Bachhawat, has started an exercise to ascertain the extent of unpaid total committed liabilities of the various departments under both Plan and Non-Plan expenditure. Although not all departments were able to furnish the data today it is expected to run into quite a few thousand crore. PWD alone has committed liability of Rs 394 crore; others like home department has more than Rs 12 crore unpaid liability while the correctional home department has assessed its liability at Rs 6 crore. Miss Banerjee is likely to ask for a financial package from the Centre to tide over the crisis.
Mamta to keep cabinet small
Subrata Nagchoudhury, IE: With just a few days left before she takes charge as the new West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banejree, who was elected leader of the Trinamool Congress Legislature Party today, is giving the final touches to picking her three-tier core team of trusted lieutenants — in the state government, central government and party organisation.
At the party meeting today, Partha Chatterjee was elected the deputy leader of the Trinamool Congres Legislature Party, Sovandev Chattopadhyay, an old trade union leader, was made chief whip and Jyotipriyo Mullick was picked as Teasurer in the new Assembly.
It’s largely been a solo behind-the-scene exercise for Didi. “I am going to keep the cabinet small. The state government’s financial position will not allow me to have a big team in the government,” she said today, adding that “too many cooks spoil the broth”. Mamata is expected to retain the four important portfolios of Home, Industry, Education and Health.
While she was expected to keep the Home and Industry departments, Health is one area in which she feels there is scope for improvement. Highly-placed sources said the reason for retaining the education department was to ensure control over the recruitment process — a large number of teachers are set to be hired shortly. She is likely to have a strong team heading the CMO.
Article
PEACEFUL VICTORY
FIFTH COLUMN, TT:SUMANTA SEN
After the assembly election results became known, media attention has been focused almost entirely on West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and the most that Assam got was a passing mention. This is not surprising because the only time the Northeast gets proper attention is when it erupts in violence. Yet it is in Assam that the Congress has won a resounding victory — something which it could not manage in Kerala, where the defeated Left breathes down its neck, or in West Bengal, where the Left Front’s debacle was caused entirely by the Trinamul Congress.
In Assam, of course, this is not the first time that the Congress is in power. It had been very much on the saddle in Dispur for the last 10 years. So, it may be asked, what was big about this victory. The answer is, not only did the Congress secure absolute majority on its own but it also did that in spite of widespread allegations of corruption against the party and speculations that a change was in the offing. Yet a change did not come about, and the fact that it did not perhaps deserves greater attention.
The election results have proved that people in both the Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak Valley were not prepared to risk a change and the resultant possible uncertainty. Neither of the two principal opposition parties — the Asom Gana Parishad and the Bharatiya Janata Party — was seen as a viable alternative. The voters have had a taste of AGP-rule and, obviously, were not impressed. As for the BJP, its Hindutva image continues to keep people away from it. The party had whole-heartedly supported the anti-foreigner agitation that it thought would bring it Hindu support. But that did not happen, and the support went almost wholly to the AGP, which grew out of the agitation. This is for the simple reason that the Assamese people could not relate to a north-Indian party and felt more at home with sons of the soil.
Redeeming feature
With time, that support has also eroded. The anti-foreigner mood is not as strong now as it was three decades ago, not only in Assam but also in adjoining Meghalaya. This is because the exodus from Bangladesh today is nothing to write home about, thanks both to improved economic conditions in that country and to greater communal harmony there as a result of the protective measures taken by the home ministry. In New Delhi, the BJP may still thunder at “Muslims upsetting the demographic pattern in border states” but on the ground, there are few takers for this, as the Assam poll results have proved once again. That even the AGP was wary of the BJP becomes evident when it did not fully hitch on to the Hindutva bandwagon, keeping only the prospects of a post-poll alliance open. In such a situation, the people voted the only way they could. The BJP leadership has rued the failure to have a tie-up with the AGP, but it should have known that the latter was also eyeing the religious minority vote. The people saw this as crass opportunism. And it is quite possible that they would have seen an alliance of the two parties in a similar light. In Bihar, the Janata Dal (United) and the BJP are successfully together because of the impeccable secular credentials of the former. In Assam, a possible AGP-BJP alliance would have lacked that redeeming feature.
The results show that uppermost in the people’s mind were peace and stability. And there Tarun Gogoi has scored. Eyebrows had been raised at the way in which a large section of the United Liberation Front of Asom had been given the kid-glove treatment. Resentment persists on this account. Gogoi could not have been unmindful of this mood, but he had clearly hoped that the prospect of peace will prevail ultimately. Now what needs to be watched is whether he will take similar initiatives to bring overground the Paresh Baruah faction of Ulfa or be content with giving it a long rope.
IT
Why you need to wipe hard drive
“The objective of forming ITCC is to provide an opportunity to tea makers, professionals, sellers and other stakeholders to exchange information on quality tea produced around the world,” Robertson, a resident of Naperville, said through Facebook.
He added that the main objective of the event is to give the experts an opportunity to taste good quality tea and get a feedback from them.
“Cupping Events are organised to provide the members a tasting experience of some of the finest teas and at the same time pass on necessary feedback to manufacturers so that they can improve production methods and quality of these teas. The cuppers or members who will taste these teas come from different levels and can convey a range of perspectives not usually available to the suppliers,” Robertson wrote in an e-mail.
According to him, the experts will follow a set of guidelines while preparing and evaluating the samples to get unbiased evaluations. Robertson said the guideline has been prepared by the cupper club.
As part of the initiative, the ITCC is holding the Darjeeling First Flush Cupping Event for which the club has sought entries from the members.
The ITCC has around 30 members, all of whom are associated with the international tea industry. Interested members can send in their entries by May 21.
“Only 16 members are allowed to participate in the tasting event on a first-come first-serve basis,” Vivek Lochan, a member of the ITCC from India, said.
He added that those enrolling themselves would be given samples from 10 Darjeeling gardens along with tasting kits. The gardens which will have their tea tasted are: Puttabong, Jungpana, Gopaldhara, Giddapahar, Okayti, Sourenee, Castleton, Margaret’s Hope, Singbulli and Thurbo.
The tasting kit will have three pieces of professional cupping set, cupping log forms, tea tasting terminology chart, a thermometer, a gram-scale, water pH test strips, a detailed sample information and cupping procedure guidelines.
Each cupping set includes a bowl and a cup with a lid made of bone China.Once the experts receive the kits and the samples it would take around three weeks to complete the event, ITCC sources said.
“We have sent samples through a local exporter for the ITCC event. The person who has floated this forum is a major player in the import of tea to the US. By sending tea samples to people across the world for tasting we can expect a good publicity and promotion of our tea as well as analyse their feedback,” said S.K. Saria, owner of Gopaldhara Tea Estate.
The organisers said similar events would be held for Assam tea and brew produced in China, Japan and South Korea. “People can have a taste of these teas just after production and those engaged in importing tea can place their orders directly to the manufacturers or exporters,” Robertson wrote in an e-mail.
He added that the club has received a good response from the suppliers in the hills.
“On completion of an event the comments are summarised and posted (on the web page). These are available to all the members who can gain additional information about the tea put in the event concerned at any time,” said a member of the ITCC.
Garden shut after dagger attack
The entrance to the Central Dooars Tea Estate. Picture by Anirban Choudhury |
In a notice put up in the garden last night, the management recounted two incidents, including the assault on Rakesh Kumar, to justify the suspension of work.
Kumar was hit with a dagger in his chamber allegedly by Prabhu Ghale yesterday morning. Ghale carried out the attack minutes after he had been reprimanded by Kumar for smoking in the garden factory. “Mr Kumar while trying to save his life sustained multiple deep cut injuries on right hand, left fingers and stomach... Ghale was shouting that he would kill Kumar but nobody came forward,” reads the notice.
The garden, located 50km from here, has 1,887 workers.
The notice also said the workers had stopped the interview of pharmacists on November 14 last year and insisted that those recommended by them should be recruited.
“Feeling insecure it is not possible for management to carry out the normal operations of the garden because there is no guarantee that similar incident would not take place,” says the notice.
Arpan Chamling, the secretary of the Kalchini area of Darjeeling Terai Dooars Plantation Labour Union, said: “What Ghale did was absolutely wrong. But before hanging the notice, the management should have consulted us. The management is taking care of workers and there are no dues pending. We will request the assistant labour commissioner to reopen the garden soon.
Robbed by train ‘friends’
TT, Jaigaon, May 17: A 20-year-old man has alleged that he was pushed from a moving train near Carron station last night by four men who robbed him of his cellphone and Rs 3,000.
Bubai Saha, a resident of Old Malda, said he worked as a mason in Guwahati and had boarded the Guwahati-bound Mahananda Express yesterday to go there. He said four persons had befriended him on the train. Around 9pm the four youths asked Bubai to accompany them to the door because they were about to get off. When Bubai reached the door, he was pushed out of the moving train and the youths, who got off after that, dragged him into a nearby tea garden and took away his cellphone and wallet that had Rs 3,000. Bubai managed to walk to Carron station and lodged a complaint with the stationmaster. He was admitted to Loksan primary health centre in Nagrakata.
Robbers held
TT, Alipurduar: Two persons, who were involved in looting a jewellery shop in Falakata on May 10, were arrested on Tuesday. The police said Jalil Ahmed who had masterminded the burglary was picked up from his house in Banarhat on Monday. After interrogating him, two more persons were picked up on Tuesday.
Bombs seized
TT, Alipurduar: Madarihat police recovered three crude bombs from near Holong Bridge on NH31C on Tuesday. The police said local people spotted the explosives and informed them. Nobody has been arrested.
Deer rescued
TT : Residents of Gosaihat near Dhupguri rescued a barking deer from the village on Tuesday. The villagers saw the three-year-old animal roaming around in the area and informed the staff of Khuttimari beat. The foresters later took away the deer.
Suicides
TT, Balurghat/Islampur: Two unnatural deaths have been reported in Balurghat and Islampur in the past 24 hours. Rintu Ghosh, 36, of Raghumatpur in Balurghat, hanged herself near her house on Tuesday. Rashida Khatun, 49, a resident of Ramganj in Islampur, committed suicide by consuming poison on Monday.
Sherbet at Somnath home
TT, Calcutta, May 17: Mamata Banerjee tonight called on Somnath Chatterjee at his south Calcutta home after he had sent her a letter congratulating her for the Assembly poll results.
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| Mamata Banerjee at Somnath Chatterjee’s Calcutta home on Tuesday. Picture by Sayantan Ghosh |
After reaching Chatterjee’s home around 9 from an event in Howrah, Mamata spent about half an hour talking to Chatterjee, his wife Renu, daughter Anushila, son Pratap and daughter-in-law Sukuntala and other family members.
Mamata presented a bouquet and sweets to Chatterjee. A smiling Chatterjee then introduced his family members to the chief minister-designate. Sipping a glass of mango sherbet, Mamata was seen talking to Chatterjee’s daughter and daughter-in-law. She also posed for photographs with Chatterjee’s family members.
“I was overwhelmed by Mamata’s presence at my home. Being the chief minister-designate, she took time off from her busy schedule to drop in my residence tonight,” Chatterjee said.
The former Lok Sabha Speaker said Mamata’s visit followed his letter from Santiniketan to congratulate her for the landslide victory in the Assembly polls.
“Being a chief minister-designate, she was not required to come to my home. But she came to my home. This was great,” he added.
Chatterjee said he had similarly congratulated Mamata when she had won the Jadavpur Lok Sabha seat defeating him.
“Today, I wished her success as the chief minister of Bengal. She has been shouldered with a great responsibility and I wished her best wishes,” he said. “I requested her to bring back peace in Bengal and she told me that she had already given instructions to the administration to ensure peace,” Chatterjee added.
“There must be something that has struck the people. She is a mass leader. You can see that so many people gathered at my house to see her.”
Chatterjee’s interaction with Mamata apparently raised no eyebrows in the CPM.
“There was nothing wrong if Mamata dropped in at Somnathbabu’s residence. In fact, I also telephoned Mamata to congratulate her for the landslide victory,” Gautam Deb, CPM state secretariat member, said.
H-hour for Didi : 1.01 pm, Friday- Governor appoints Mamata CM SNS, KOLKATA, 17 MAY: Even as the Governor, Mr MK Narayanan, today formally appointed the Trinamul Congress chairperson, Miss Mamata Banerjee, as the chief minister of West Bengal, it was decided that she would be sworn in at exactly 1:01 p.m. on Friday, 20 May, an auspicious time (mahendrajog) according to the Bengali almanac.
The time was also chosen keeping in mind the timing of the Friday prayers of the Muslim community.
However, the party is yet to submit the list of ministers who will be taking oath with Miss Banerjee on the same day to the Governor. The state administration was today given the nod to print the invitation cards for the swearing-in ceremony after Trinamul Congress communicated the time at which the new chief minister will be taking oath, to the Governor's office.
No Central minister other than finance minister Mr Pranab Mukherje is expected to be present for the swearing-in ceremony. Both the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and Congress chief Mrs Sonia Gandhi are unlikely to make it to the function.
But the state administration is in a fix over the surging demand for invitation cards for the ceremony, as a huge number of dignitaries and party supporters of both Congress and Trinamul Congress are expected to attend the function. As an official in charge of making the arrangements pointed out: “Everybody wants a seat in the front. We simply do not know how that will be possible.” Around 3,000 guests are expected to witness the function.
Theatre personalities Rudraprasad Sengupta and Kaushik Sen and litterateurs, including Mahasweta Devi, Sunil Gangapadhyay would be present as well as Ganesh Pain and Jogen Chowdhury. Former chief secretaries Mr Tarun Dutta and Mr N Krishnamurti and sports personalities Sourav Ganguly and Baichung Bhutia also feature in the list of invitees though no industrialists have been included.
The Governor himself inspected the grounds where the function will be held along with the PWD secretary, Mr AR Bardhan and the Commissioner of Police, Mr Ranjit Pachnanda.
There are no qualms within the Left Front on participating in the swearing-in ceremony of Miss Banerjee as the new chief minister on coming Friday, Mr Biman Bose said today. “But we cannot take any decision arbitrarily as we are yet to receive any formal invitation to the ceremony. We are not gate-crashers,” said the Left Front chairman.
Meanwhile, even before the new chief minister has stepped in, work has begun in Writers’ Buildings for laying the groundwork for steps to be taken to rebuild the economy of the state, as well as for preparing induction material for the new ministers.
Each department has been sent a format for outlining the details of work done by them, the number of staff, important schemes of the state and Centre, list of pending cases of criminal, vigilance or disciplinary nature against staff and officers and important court cases. Any issues which require urgent attention should be included.
The finance secretary, Mr CM Bachhawat, has started an exercise to ascertain the extent of unpaid total committed liabilities of the various departments under both Plan and Non-Plan expenditure. Although not all departments were able to furnish the data today it is expected to run into quite a few thousand crore. PWD alone has committed liability of Rs 394 crore; others like home department has more than Rs 12 crore unpaid liability while the correctional home department has assessed its liability at Rs 6 crore. Miss Banerjee is likely to ask for a financial package from the Centre to tide over the crisis.
Mamta to keep cabinet small
Subrata Nagchoudhury, IE: With just a few days left before she takes charge as the new West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banejree, who was elected leader of the Trinamool Congress Legislature Party today, is giving the final touches to picking her three-tier core team of trusted lieutenants — in the state government, central government and party organisation.
At the party meeting today, Partha Chatterjee was elected the deputy leader of the Trinamool Congres Legislature Party, Sovandev Chattopadhyay, an old trade union leader, was made chief whip and Jyotipriyo Mullick was picked as Teasurer in the new Assembly.
It’s largely been a solo behind-the-scene exercise for Didi. “I am going to keep the cabinet small. The state government’s financial position will not allow me to have a big team in the government,” she said today, adding that “too many cooks spoil the broth”. Mamata is expected to retain the four important portfolios of Home, Industry, Education and Health.
While she was expected to keep the Home and Industry departments, Health is one area in which she feels there is scope for improvement. Highly-placed sources said the reason for retaining the education department was to ensure control over the recruitment process — a large number of teachers are set to be hired shortly. She is likely to have a strong team heading the CMO.
Article
PEACEFUL VICTORY
FIFTH COLUMN, TT:SUMANTA SEN
After the assembly election results became known, media attention has been focused almost entirely on West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and the most that Assam got was a passing mention. This is not surprising because the only time the Northeast gets proper attention is when it erupts in violence. Yet it is in Assam that the Congress has won a resounding victory — something which it could not manage in Kerala, where the defeated Left breathes down its neck, or in West Bengal, where the Left Front’s debacle was caused entirely by the Trinamul Congress.
In Assam, of course, this is not the first time that the Congress is in power. It had been very much on the saddle in Dispur for the last 10 years. So, it may be asked, what was big about this victory. The answer is, not only did the Congress secure absolute majority on its own but it also did that in spite of widespread allegations of corruption against the party and speculations that a change was in the offing. Yet a change did not come about, and the fact that it did not perhaps deserves greater attention.
The election results have proved that people in both the Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak Valley were not prepared to risk a change and the resultant possible uncertainty. Neither of the two principal opposition parties — the Asom Gana Parishad and the Bharatiya Janata Party — was seen as a viable alternative. The voters have had a taste of AGP-rule and, obviously, were not impressed. As for the BJP, its Hindutva image continues to keep people away from it. The party had whole-heartedly supported the anti-foreigner agitation that it thought would bring it Hindu support. But that did not happen, and the support went almost wholly to the AGP, which grew out of the agitation. This is for the simple reason that the Assamese people could not relate to a north-Indian party and felt more at home with sons of the soil.
Redeeming feature
With time, that support has also eroded. The anti-foreigner mood is not as strong now as it was three decades ago, not only in Assam but also in adjoining Meghalaya. This is because the exodus from Bangladesh today is nothing to write home about, thanks both to improved economic conditions in that country and to greater communal harmony there as a result of the protective measures taken by the home ministry. In New Delhi, the BJP may still thunder at “Muslims upsetting the demographic pattern in border states” but on the ground, there are few takers for this, as the Assam poll results have proved once again. That even the AGP was wary of the BJP becomes evident when it did not fully hitch on to the Hindutva bandwagon, keeping only the prospects of a post-poll alliance open. In such a situation, the people voted the only way they could. The BJP leadership has rued the failure to have a tie-up with the AGP, but it should have known that the latter was also eyeing the religious minority vote. The people saw this as crass opportunism. And it is quite possible that they would have seen an alliance of the two parties in a similar light. In Bihar, the Janata Dal (United) and the BJP are successfully together because of the impeccable secular credentials of the former. In Assam, a possible AGP-BJP alliance would have lacked that redeeming feature.
The results show that uppermost in the people’s mind were peace and stability. And there Tarun Gogoi has scored. Eyebrows had been raised at the way in which a large section of the United Liberation Front of Asom had been given the kid-glove treatment. Resentment persists on this account. Gogoi could not have been unmindful of this mood, but he had clearly hoped that the prospect of peace will prevail ultimately. Now what needs to be watched is whether he will take similar initiatives to bring overground the Paresh Baruah faction of Ulfa or be content with giving it a long rope.
IT
Why you need to wipe hard drive
Cloud computing
TOI, BERLIN: Anyone who plans to resell a used computer memory device like a hard drive, memory card or a USB stick should be sure to use a special programme to wipe the storage device first.
Not doing so risks having your personal data reconstructed by prying eyes, warns German computer magazine Computer Bild.
In a test organized by the magazine, experts purchased used storage devices and managed to reconstruct private data like bills, emails, contact data, addresses, tax declarations and photos.
That's because, on Windows, when items are thrown into the wastebasket, they don't really disappear from the device. Even formatting the hard drive does not get rid of the directory: the data can always be recovered with special programmes.
Thus, people need to buy special programmes to completely erase their mobile storage devices before they sell them on. In the magazine's test of eight cleanup programmes, the free HDShredder 3.8 was the champion.
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