GJMM chief has lost moral right to speak against govt: Cong, Trinamul
SNS, SILIGURI, 20 DEC: Reacting to the GJMM president, Mr Bimal Gurung’s outburst that the people of the Darjeeling Hills were getting disillusioned with the Mamata Banerjee government, senior Trinamul and Congress leaders said that Mr Gurung had lost moral right to speak against the state government after having signed the Gorkha-Adivasi Territorial Administration (GATA) agreement.
Notably, Mr Gurung said in Darjeeling yesterday that the state government had become a butt of ridicule in the Hills in view of its failure to take up development projects. “We signed the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration agreement with the Centre and the state government, hoping that it would usher in a new era of development in the Hills. But nothing has happened so far to keep up the collective enthusiasm of the tripartite agreement,” he said at a Pres conference in Darjeeling.
Taking a strong note of the outburst, senior Congress leader Mr Debaprasad Roy said that Mr Gurung had forfeited right to speak against the state government after having signed the GATA agreement with a faction of the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikash Parishad behind the back of the state government. “The chief minister is not happy with the development. She did everything to restore peace in the Hills and to keep the people happy. But, the GJMM’s GATA posturing amounted to a betrayal of confidence that Miss Mamata Banerjee reposed in them,” he said.
The north Bengal development minister, Mr Gautam Deb, however, declined to comment on Mr Gurung’s anti-state government tirade. “I do not want to comment anything on it now,” is all he said. But, another senior Darjeeling district Trinamul Congress leader said that the chief minister had taken a serious note of the GATA development. “She has not grown cool towards the GJMM. But, definitely the warmth she previously had for the Hill party has begun cooling off,” he said.
ABAVP versus ABAVPKalimNews, Kalchini, December 21: Birsa Tirki the state president of Akhil Bharatiya Vikas Parishad had to face the ire of followers of John Barla the ousted ABAVP leader and his dissident group.Tirki visited Kalchini to attend a meeting of ABAVP but he was forced to close down the meeting when a group of supporters of Barla visited there and made slogans demanding to reinstall Barla in ABAVP.There were heated argument among the supporters of Barla and ABAVP and Tirki was forced to end the meeting in Kalchini Dharmasala.
Later after the departure of the Barla's supporters, Tirki hold the meeting in another place, informed Tirki. He repeated that there is no question of reinstalling Barla. Sandip Ekka a ABAVP leader said that people follow Barla and unless and untill Barla is reinstalled no meetings of ABAVP will be allowed to organise. While Tehfil Soren another Kalchini leader of ABAVP stated that Barla has misleaded the people and without consulting us made the agreement with Bimal Gurng on GATA. We donot agree to make any compromise with GJM about Dooars Soren further added.
With the divided ABAVP it seems that the problem to be faced has become graver to GJM and the high power committee than to ABAVP itself. Chill sets in Hill thaw as Morcha slams Mamata
ENS, Kolkata, December 21: Amid the simmering tension in the Hills with the demand for a separate statehood gaining strength once again, the much-hyped Darjeeling festival began on Tuesday and GJM president Bimal Gurung was conspicuous by his absence.
Gurung’s cold shouldering to the government function comes in the backdrop of his vocal criticism of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. During a public meeting on Monday, Gurung had slammed the government for not doing anything for the development of the Hills.
“We signed the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) agreement on July 28 with a hope that it would usher in a new era of development in the Hills. But nothing has happened so far to keep up the collective enthusiasm of the tripartite agreement,” Gurung told people and added: “Performance is more important than promises. Several months have passed since the GTA agreement was signed, but no concrete development project has been taken up as yet.”A senior GJM leader said all the promises of the state government were falling flat. “The funds for development worth Rs 200 crore are yet to be released by the state government. The state government is deliberately delaying the process of joint verification committee determining the territory of the GTA . Until the area of GTA is not finalized, we will not be able to hold elections and we won’t be able to start developmental work in the hills.
Hills smile to conquer ‘camera’ & hearts- Mahima and Zeenat steal the show at Darjeeling festival
VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, Darjeeling, Dec. 20: Darjeeling today smiled before the world with its tea, tradition and tunes.
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| Mahima Chaudhary and Zeenat Aman take part in the parade at the festival on Tuesday. Picture by Suman Tamang |
The hills are set to charm the visitors in the next 15 days with the launch of the Darjeeling Tea and Tourism Festival here today.
“Smile Darjeeling, Smile! I want to take it back with me,” said Bollywood actress Mahima Chaudhary, before flashing her camera at the Chowrasta crowd, which posed at the actress’ request.
Speaking in lucid Nepali, she said: “This is my birthplace and I am very happy that the organisers wanted me to come here. Everything is as it used to be earlier, it is not commercialised and the people still have the smiles. When I went to Mumbai for my first audition, people there said they liked my smile, which I got from you.”
Mahima completed her schooling from Dow Hill in Kurseong and later graduated from Loreto College (now named Southfield) in Darjeeling.
North Bengal development minister Gautam Deb inaugurated the festival that was kicked off with a parade from Darjeeling Motor Stand to Chowrasta. Various hill community groups took part in the rally in their traditional attire with Mahima and Zeenat Aman in tow.
The sounds of the traditional instruments like dhampu and madal reverberated across the town bringing back an air of festivity after months of agitation.
Perhaps touched by the warmth of the place, Zeenat has decided to extend her stay in Darjeeling by a day.
“I had come here in the 1970s to shoot for a film and things have not changed much. The personality of the people and the place remain the same. I am very happy to be among you and I am sure a lot of tourists would be coming to Darjeeling,” said Zeenat, after having sung two lines of the hit song Dum Maro Dum from the Hindi film Hare Krishna Hare Ram.
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| A traditional dance during the inauguration of the Darjeeling festival on Tuesday. Picture by Suman Tamang |
Not to be outdone by Zeenat’s singing abilities, Mahima, too, hummed a score from her 1997 hit film Pardes, in which she had acted with Shah Rukh Khan. As she sang I love my India, the crowd was only too willing to lend their voices.
Mahima also belted out in Nepali Musu Musu Hasi Dau Na.
The song became a hit by Shaan in Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi. Amid the Bollywood glamour, Darjeeling also felicitated footballer Shyam Thapa.
The state government is organising the Darjeeling Tea and Tourism Festival after a gap of 18 years.
Tourism fest begins in Darjeeling
Deep Gazmer, TNN | Dec 21, 2011, Darjeeling: The hill station on Tuesday left all political turbulence behind and took part in the inauguration of the tea & tourism festival, which began amid huge fanfare in presence of several celebrities and Bollywood stars.
Zeenat Aman, the original diva of Bollywood, stole the show on the opening day of the 17-day festival organized by the district administration and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM). The occasion had its share of hiccups with late start, some announcement errors and a critical electricity failure. However, the "Dum Maro Dum" girl made sure no glitches spoil the mood of the festival.
Zeenat boogied to one of her song that was played by a local band and also sang a line from Dum Maro Dum much to the elation of the crowd at Chowrastha. "It is wonderful to be among such nice and loving people. Darjeeling has remained as it was years ago," she said. And much to delight of people, Zeenat promised, "I will urge Bollywood directors to come to Darjeeling to make their films."
If Zeenat was the main attraction, local girl Mahima Chowdhury was not far behind. "Darjeeling is my most prized possession. I am overjoyed to be back in the place where I grew up and studied," she said.
The festival is a brainchild of the district administration and has been organized with the support of the GJM and various NGOs. "The festival is a humble effort to refurbish Brand Darjeeling. We hope this endeavor will provide the impetus to promote tourism," said Soumitra Mohan, Darjeeling DM and president of the festival organizing committee.
North Bengal development minister Gautam Deb, who was the chief guest on the opening day, said the process of converting Darjeeling into Switzerland started with the festival. "I firmly believe that this kind of festival will boost the economy of Darjeeling in future as tea and tourism are the region's strength," he said.The festival will offer various outdoors activities like paragliding, river rafting and kayaking among the several activities. Besides, tourist will be able to participate in tea testing and dig into ethnic delicacies. Special discount for guests in all hotels is also on offer. The festival will continue till January 5.
Darjeeling MLA Trilok Dewan who was one of the dignitaries emphasized on the fact that the festival would restore the past glory of the Hills as a tourist destination that had taken a beating over the years due to various reasons. "Darjeeling tea has reached the farthest corners of the globe but not tourism. With this festival we want Darjeeling tourism to go global," he pointed out.
Earlier in the day various communities of the Hills in their traditional attire, school children, mountaineers, social organizations led by the Darjeeling police band participated in a parade that started off from Chowk Bazaar and culminated in Chowrastha. Both Zeenat and Mahima were the start attraction of the parade though the two after walking few meters were whisked away in their cars to the inaugural venue. The festival will be held simultaneously in Kalimpong, Kurseong and Mirik
Contractor held, glare on bridge quality - Sikkim government orders probe into crash, efforts on to pull out three more bodies
TT, Gangtok, Dec. 20: The contractor who had constructed the Rangchang bridge that collapsed with a trailer yesterday has been arrested.
The arrest of Mohan Bajaj, a resident of Gangtok, has shifted focus to the quality of work from the initial theory that overweight might have caused the bridge collapse.
The police picked up Bajaj last night. He was remanded in five days’ police custody by a court here today.
Eight persons, two of them pedestrians, died when the two-year-old bridge along the Singtam-Dickhu-Mangan road in East Sikkim crashed 70ft below into a stream. The Sikkim government has ordered a probe into the incident.
“Singtam police have registered a case against the contractor under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and Section 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC,” deputy inspector-general (range) N. Sridhar Rao told journalists.
“Investigation is on to find out what exactly caused the collapse. We are also looking into the charge that overweight caused the collapse. Presently, we are working to pull the remaining bodies out of the debris.”
While three bodies were extricated from the pile of mangled metal and concrete yesterday, two were taken out today. Efforts are still on to retrieve the other three bodies.
The arrest of the contractor has cast a cloud on the initial theory that the bridge had collapsed because of overload.
“It is not possible to arrive at a conclusion on the bridge collapse without consulting experts. From a lay man’s perspective, it looks that the design (of the bridge) has failed. The machine (trailer) is being presently blamed but it had crossed so many bridges to reach here. There is some suspicion regarding the quality of works,” said Ugen T. Gyatso Bhutia, the chief whip of the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front. Rangchang falls under his Tumin-Lingee Assembly constituency.
The Border Roads Organisation, which maintains the strategic Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan link, had hinted yesterday that the bridge had crashed because of overweight. The 85 metre-long and 8.5 metre-wide bridge was made to withstand weight up to 70 tonnes. But there were claims that the 58-wheel truck and the cargo — equipment for a hydel project — together weighed 100 tonnes.
Bhutia said chief minister Pawan Chamling had constituted a commission to inquire into the bridge collapse. “Only then will the truth come out,” he added.
The BRO that had taken a lot of flak from the Sikkim government last year for its “shoddy” road widening works in different parts of the state, is also conducting its own probe.
“It is difficult to say whether the bridge collapsed because of the overloaded trailer. We have to rummage through the debris to find out the nature of the load. Then, we will be able to say something concrete. We will conduct a departmental inquiry and the guilty will be dealt with strongly,” said P.K.H. Singh, commandant of 764 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) which takes care of the Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan route.
The BRTF is a wing of the BRO to construct roads and bridges in border areas. Sometimes, the BRO contracts out the work to individuals as in the case of the construction of the Rangchang bridge.
Singh said the BRO was only a construction wing of the army and could not check if the vehicles passing through its bridges crossed the maximum limit of permissible weight. “We put notices at every bridge about the maximum load it can bear and all drivers know this,” he said.
The officer said all the six-seven bridges along the stretch passed a scrutiny of the BRO after the earthquake of September 18. “We had checked all the bridges after the earthquake and found that they were safe,” he said.
The BRTF commandant said the old steel bridge located close to the collapsed structure was being repaired so that light vehicles could move from tomorrow. The steel bridge, almost two decade old, had not been dismantled when the new bridge was installed.
Bear caught in garden
TT, Alipurduar, Dec. 20: A Himalayan black bear was rescued from a tea garden on the Bhutan border yesterday afternoon and released in the Kalimpong forest a few hours later.
The animal, an endangered species under the Wildlife Protection Act, is found in high-altitude areas. Foresters said it had come down to the foothills probably in search of food.
The bear was first spotted by children playing on a dried-up riverbed adjacent to Bandapani Tea Estate. The animal was later captured by forest guards and freed in the Kalimpong forest at 11.30pm on Monday.
Molest jail
TT, Siliguri: Sachin Singha, a resident of Choupukuria, was on Tuesday sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment for molesting a minor girl in his neighbourhood. The additional sessions judge, Shankar Brahma, also slapped a fine of Rs 1,000 on the convict.
Protest plan
TT, Siliguri: The CPI-ML (Liberation) will organise a demonstration at Rani Rashmoni Sarani in Calcutta on December 30 to protest the Mamata Banerjee government’s alleged failure to deliver on its promises. Kartik Pal, a politburo member of the party, said here on Tuesday that the organisation would also hold rallies across districts from December 23 onwards to protest rise in the prices of essential commodities.
SFI rally
TT, Siliguri: The SFI took out a rally on Hill Cart Road here on Tuesday to protest the alleged lawlessness at ducational institutions in the state since the formation of the new government in May.
Tourism fest begins in Darjeeling
Deep Gazmer, TNN | Dec 21, 2011, Darjeeling: The hill station on Tuesday left all political turbulence behind and took part in the inauguration of the tea & tourism festival, which began amid huge fanfare in presence of several celebrities and Bollywood stars.
Zeenat Aman, the original diva of Bollywood, stole the show on the opening day of the 17-day festival organized by the district administration and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM). The occasion had its share of hiccups with late start, some announcement errors and a critical electricity failure. However, the "Dum Maro Dum" girl made sure no glitches spoil the mood of the festival.
Zeenat boogied to one of her song that was played by a local band and also sang a line from Dum Maro Dum much to the elation of the crowd at Chowrastha. "It is wonderful to be among such nice and loving people. Darjeeling has remained as it was years ago," she said. And much to delight of people, Zeenat promised, "I will urge Bollywood directors to come to Darjeeling to make their films."
If Zeenat was the main attraction, local girl Mahima Chowdhury was not far behind. "Darjeeling is my most prized possession. I am overjoyed to be back in the place where I grew up and studied," she said.
The festival is a brainchild of the district administration and has been organized with the support of the GJM and various NGOs. "The festival is a humble effort to refurbish Brand Darjeeling. We hope this endeavor will provide the impetus to promote tourism," said Soumitra Mohan, Darjeeling DM and president of the festival organizing committee.
North Bengal development minister Gautam Deb, who was the chief guest on the opening day, said the process of converting Darjeeling into Switzerland started with the festival. "I firmly believe that this kind of festival will boost the economy of Darjeeling in future as tea and tourism are the region's strength," he said.The festival will offer various outdoors activities like paragliding, river rafting and kayaking among the several activities. Besides, tourist will be able to participate in tea testing and dig into ethnic delicacies. Special discount for guests in all hotels is also on offer. The festival will continue till January 5.
Darjeeling MLA Trilok Dewan who was one of the dignitaries emphasized on the fact that the festival would restore the past glory of the Hills as a tourist destination that had taken a beating over the years due to various reasons. "Darjeeling tea has reached the farthest corners of the globe but not tourism. With this festival we want Darjeeling tourism to go global," he pointed out.
Earlier in the day various communities of the Hills in their traditional attire, school children, mountaineers, social organizations led by the Darjeeling police band participated in a parade that started off from Chowk Bazaar and culminated in Chowrastha. Both Zeenat and Mahima were the start attraction of the parade though the two after walking few meters were whisked away in their cars to the inaugural venue. The festival will be held simultaneously in Kalimpong, Kurseong and Mirik
Contractor held, glare on bridge quality - Sikkim government orders probe into crash, efforts on to pull out three more bodies
TT, Gangtok, Dec. 20: The contractor who had constructed the Rangchang bridge that collapsed with a trailer yesterday has been arrested.
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| The bridge that crashed into a stream at Rangchang in East Sikkim on Monday. Picture by Prabin Khaling |
The police picked up Bajaj last night. He was remanded in five days’ police custody by a court here today.
Eight persons, two of them pedestrians, died when the two-year-old bridge along the Singtam-Dickhu-Mangan road in East Sikkim crashed 70ft below into a stream. The Sikkim government has ordered a probe into the incident.
“Singtam police have registered a case against the contractor under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and Section 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC,” deputy inspector-general (range) N. Sridhar Rao told journalists.
“Investigation is on to find out what exactly caused the collapse. We are also looking into the charge that overweight caused the collapse. Presently, we are working to pull the remaining bodies out of the debris.”
While three bodies were extricated from the pile of mangled metal and concrete yesterday, two were taken out today. Efforts are still on to retrieve the other three bodies.
The arrest of the contractor has cast a cloud on the initial theory that the bridge had collapsed because of overload.
“It is not possible to arrive at a conclusion on the bridge collapse without consulting experts. From a lay man’s perspective, it looks that the design (of the bridge) has failed. The machine (trailer) is being presently blamed but it had crossed so many bridges to reach here. There is some suspicion regarding the quality of works,” said Ugen T. Gyatso Bhutia, the chief whip of the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front. Rangchang falls under his Tumin-Lingee Assembly constituency.
The Border Roads Organisation, which maintains the strategic Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan link, had hinted yesterday that the bridge had crashed because of overweight. The 85 metre-long and 8.5 metre-wide bridge was made to withstand weight up to 70 tonnes. But there were claims that the 58-wheel truck and the cargo — equipment for a hydel project — together weighed 100 tonnes.
Bhutia said chief minister Pawan Chamling had constituted a commission to inquire into the bridge collapse. “Only then will the truth come out,” he added.
The BRO that had taken a lot of flak from the Sikkim government last year for its “shoddy” road widening works in different parts of the state, is also conducting its own probe.
“It is difficult to say whether the bridge collapsed because of the overloaded trailer. We have to rummage through the debris to find out the nature of the load. Then, we will be able to say something concrete. We will conduct a departmental inquiry and the guilty will be dealt with strongly,” said P.K.H. Singh, commandant of 764 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) which takes care of the Singtam-Dikchu-Mangan route.
 |
| BRO workers repair the old steel bridge at Rangchang on Tuesday for light traffic. Picture by Prabin Khaling |
Singh said the BRO was only a construction wing of the army and could not check if the vehicles passing through its bridges crossed the maximum limit of permissible weight. “We put notices at every bridge about the maximum load it can bear and all drivers know this,” he said.
The officer said all the six-seven bridges along the stretch passed a scrutiny of the BRO after the earthquake of September 18. “We had checked all the bridges after the earthquake and found that they were safe,” he said.
The BRTF commandant said the old steel bridge located close to the collapsed structure was being repaired so that light vehicles could move from tomorrow. The steel bridge, almost two decade old, had not been dismantled when the new bridge was installed.
Bear caught in garden
TT, Alipurduar, Dec. 20: A Himalayan black bear was rescued from a tea garden on the Bhutan border yesterday afternoon and released in the Kalimpong forest a few hours later.
The animal, an endangered species under the Wildlife Protection Act, is found in high-altitude areas. Foresters said it had come down to the foothills probably in search of food.
The bear was first spotted by children playing on a dried-up riverbed adjacent to Bandapani Tea Estate. The animal was later captured by forest guards and freed in the Kalimpong forest at 11.30pm on Monday.
Molest jail
TT, Siliguri: Sachin Singha, a resident of Choupukuria, was on Tuesday sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment for molesting a minor girl in his neighbourhood. The additional sessions judge, Shankar Brahma, also slapped a fine of Rs 1,000 on the convict.
Protest plan
TT, Siliguri: The CPI-ML (Liberation) will organise a demonstration at Rani Rashmoni Sarani in Calcutta on December 30 to protest the Mamata Banerjee government’s alleged failure to deliver on its promises. Kartik Pal, a politburo member of the party, said here on Tuesday that the organisation would also hold rallies across districts from December 23 onwards to protest rise in the prices of essential commodities.
SFI rally
TT, Siliguri: The SFI took out a rally on Hill Cart Road here on Tuesday to protest the alleged lawlessness at ducational institutions in the state since the formation of the new government in May.
चरण सर्दै आ-आफ्नै आन्दोलन
मनोज बोगटी, कालिमन्युज, कालेबुङ, 20 दिसम्बर। अब छुट्टै राज्य गोर्खाल्याण्डको निम्ति मोठ तिनोटा आन्दोलन हुने भएको छ। गोर्खाल्याण्ड टास्क फोर्स, युवा मोर्चा अनि गोजमुमोको। कसले बेशी आन्दोलन गर्ने? भन्ने खेल खेलेको जस्तो अब जसले पायो त्यसले गर्ने आन्दोलनमा जनताको आफ्नो विचार भने कसैले सोधेका छैनन्। गोर्खाल्याण्ड टास्क फोर्सले पनि छुट्टै राज्यको निम्ति नै आन्दोलन गरिरहेको छ भने अब युवा मोर्चापछि फेरि विमल गुरूङले पनि आन्दोलन गर्ने भएका छन्। एउटै दलबाट दुइवटा आन्दोलन हुने कुराले राजनैतिक सचेतहरूको निम्ति माथापच्ची शुरू भइसकेको छ। बिमल गुरूङले जीटीए ढिलो गठन गरेकोमा ममता व्यानर्जीसित मनदुःख त गरे नै चुनौती पनि दिएका छन्। डा. हर्कबहादुर छेत्रीले जीटीए ढिलो हुँदा केही असर मोर्चालाई नपर्ने बताइरहेको बेलामा अध्यक्ष विमल गुरूङको मनदुःख विरोधाभाषपूर्ण देखिएको छ।
अध्यक्षले जीटीए ढिलो भएकोमा अब छुट्टै राज्यको दोस्रो चरणको आन्दोलन गर्ने भइरहेका छन् भने विधानसभामा सरकारी बेञ्चमा बस्ने विधायक डा. हर्कबहादुर छेत्रीले भने एकैवर्ष ढिलो हुँदा पनि फरक नपर्ने बताइरहेका छन्। प्रवक्तालाई फरक नपर्ने तर अध्यक्षलाई फरक पर्ने कुराले मोर्चाभित्र वैचारिक र मुद्दागत एकरुपता नरहेको कुरालाई पुष्टि गरेको छ। अब भने जीटीएको कारण नै छुट्टै राज्यको आन्दोलन हुने भएको छ। यस अघि छैटौं अनुसूचीको कारण छुट्टै राज्यको आन्दोलन भएको थियो। छैटौं अनुसूची जनताको माग नरहेको भन्दै छुट्टै राज्यको आन्दोलन गर्ने मोर्चाले पनि जनताले नचाहेकै जीटीएमा आन्दोलन टुङ्गाएपछि गोजमुमो र जीटीए विरुद्ध अर्को राजनैतिक दल गठन गर्ने हल्ला चलिरहेको छ। यता विपक्षी शक्तिलाई सङ्गठित गर्दै राष्ट्रिय सङ्गठन भारतीय गोर्खा परिसङ्घले राष्ट्रियरुपमा तीन चरणमा आन्दोलन गरिरहेको छ। अहिले राष्ट्रिय अनि क्षेत्रीय दुइरुपमा मोर्चा र मोर्चा बाहिरका सङ्गठनहरूको आन्दोलन भइरहेको छ।
गोर्खाल्याण्ड टास्क फोर्सको आन्दोलन राष्ट्रिय अनि गोजमुमो र गोजयुमोको आन्दोलन क्षेत्रीय। दुइवटै आन्दोलनलाई तुलनात्मकरुपले हेर्दा राष्ट्रियरुपको आन्दोलन नै आजको समयको माग रहेको सबैले अनुभव गरिरहेका छन्। पहाडमा जनसभा र र्याली गर्दैमा त्यो आन्दोलन हुनेछैन। हुने छ भने त्यो केवल दलीय कार्यक्रम मात्र। मुद्दाको निम्ति राष्ट्रिय सहमतिको परिस्थिति निर्माण गरिन अनिवार्य रहेको छ। जुन काम नगरेर छुट्टै राज्यलाई टाडाको सपना बताउँदै मोर्चाले कमाइखाने भॉंडोकोरुपमा जीटीएमा हस्ताक्षर गरिसकेको छ। इन्द्रेको बाबु चन्द्रे आए पनि अहिले नै छुट्टै राज्य बनाउन सक्दैन भन्ने मोर्चाका प्रवक्ता डा.हर्कबहादुर छेत्रीले बारम्बार नै मोर्चाले आन्दोलनको क्रम स्थगित भएको पुष्टि गरिरहेका छन्। डा. छेत्रीले स्पष्ट भनेका छन्, छुट्टै राज्य गोर्खाल्याण्ड अहिले नै हुन सक्दैन। समय लाग्छ। यसकारण नै त्यो लामो समयसम्म आन्दोलन भएमा पहाडको आर्थिक, सामाजिक तथा अन्य क्षेत्रमा व्यापक नोक्सानी हुनेछ। यसैकारण नै पहाडको विकास पनि गर्दै गर्ने अनि आन्दोलन पनि विस्तारै जारी राख्ने उद्देश्यमा मोर्चाले जीटीएमा हस्ताक्षर गरेको हो। जुन जीटीएमा हस्ताक्षर गरिएको छ वास्तवमा त्यो नै राज्य भन्दा कम्ति छैन।
तिनले केवल पहाडको तीन महकुमाका जनसंख्यालाई नै केन्द्रमा राख्दै जीटीएलाई 50 प्रतिशत छुट्टै राज्य अनि 20 प्रतिशत मात्र बङ्गाल अधिनस्त रहेको पनि स्पष्ट पार्दै आइरहेका छन्। तिनको यस्तो वयानले मोर्चा पार्टी बचाउको राजनीतिमा ओर्लिएको अनि छुट्टै राज्यको निम्ति क्षमता गुमाइसकेको स्पष्ट पार्दै आइरहेको छ। तेलङ्गनामा जति सांसद, विधायक, क्षेत्र, राजनैतिक शक्ति र जनशक्ति छ, त्यसको तुलनामा गोर्खाहरू एकांश पनि नरहेको डा.हर्कबहादुर छेत्रीको भनाइ रहने गरेको छ। यता गोर्खाल्याण्ड टास्क फोर्स अनुसार आन्दोलनलाई तीन महकुमाभित्र सिमित गराइँदा नै आन्दोलनकारी सङ्गठन शक्तिहीन हुने गर्छ। मोर्चाको पनि त्यस्तै अवस्था भइसकेको छ। गोटाफो(गोर्खाल्याण्ड टास्क फोर्स)ले राष्ट्रियस्तरमा गोर्खाहरूलाई एकिकृत गर्ने अनि अन्य समुदाय र आन्दोलनकारीहरूसित पनि सहकार्य नगरी सफलता हात नलाग्ने कुरा बताइरहेको छ। सांसदहरूबाट सहमति जुटाउने कार्य अनि अन्य सम्प्रदाय र देशका नीति निर्धारकहरूलाई गोर्खाहरूले दाबी गरेको छुट्टै राज्यको अनिवार्यता र तथ्यपरकताबारे अवगत गराइए छुट्टै राज्य गोर्खाल्याण्ड गठन गर्ने परिस्थिति बन्न सक्छ भन्ने विश्वास गोटाफोले राखेको बताइएको छ।
आन्दोलनलाई राष्ट्रियरुप दिइएमात्र जनाकांक्षा पुर्तिको परिस्थिति बन्ने कुरा गर्दै गोटाफोले राष्ट्रिय कार्यक्रम गरिरहेको छ। तर यता पहाडको तीनवटा महकुमामा भने गोजयुमोले आन्दोलनको हुङ्कार गरिरहेको छ तर आन्दोलन भने केवल जनसभा र र्याली बताइरहेको छ।जनसभा र र्यालीले छुट्टै राज्यहुने हो भने मोर्चाले गरेको जनसभा र र्यालीहरू अझ पनि जनताले विर्सन सकेका छैनन्। जुन शक्ति गोजयुमोले पहाडमा देखाइरहेको छ, त्यही र त्यत्रै शक्ति दिल्लीमा देखाए केन्द्र सरकार हल्लिने स्पष्ट छ तर यसो गरिरहेको छैन। अर्को तिर विमल गुरूङले आफै पनि आन्दोलन गर्ने बताइरहेका छन्। अब कसको आन्दोलनले जनमुद्दालाई सम्बोधन गर्ने र सफल पार्ने हो त्यो त दलीय कार्यक्रममा नै निर्भर रहने कुरा हो। तर केन्द्र र राज्यको दृष्टिकोणमा छुट्टै राज्य आन्दोलनकारी गोर्खाहरूमा विभाजन रहेको स्पष्ट छ। विभाजनको समस्यालाई समाधान नगरी चरण मात्र फेर्ने आन्दोलन के सॉंच्चैका आन्दोलन हुन् त? सोंच्ने पालो जनताको रहेको छ।
लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिल गठन नभइञ्जेल आन्दोलन जारी रहने ‘लेप्चाहरू सबल्टर्न राजनीतिको शिकार’
मनोज वोगटी, कालिमन्युज, कालेबुङ, 20 दिसम्बर। 2 सेप्टेम्बर पश्चिम बङ्गालका मुख्यमन्त्री ममता व्यानर्जीले विधानसभामा लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिलको विधेयक प्रस्तुत गरेकोले लेप्चाहरू खुशी छन्। आन्दोलनको फल विधानसभामा रहेको खुशीमा आज सधैँभन्दा दोब्बर तेब्बरको संख्यामा लेप्चाहरू ग्याबो आच्युकको 280 औं जन्म जयन्ती मनाउन कालेबुङको मेला ग्राउण्डमा भेला भएका थिए। मुख्यमन्त्रीको आश्वासनमाथि विश्वास गरिरहेका लेप्चा प्रतिनिधिहरूले मुख्यमन्त्रीकी आमाको निधनमा शोक पनि व्यक्त गरे। उनीहरूको कार्यक्रमको निम्ति इङ्गल्याण्डबाट आएका थिए माइकल वे। तिनलाई मुख्य अतिथिको आशन दिइएको थियो। माइकल वेले लेप्चाहरुको भाषा, साहित्य र संस्कृतिमाथि विषय कार्य गरेकोमा आभार टक्राउँदै तिनलाई मुख्य अतिथिको मञ्च प्रदान गर्दै माइकलको हर्ष चुलीमा थियो। पद्म भूषण सोनाम छिरिङ लेप्चाले अध्यक्षता गरिदिएको जन्म जयन्ती कार्यक्रममा बोल्दै ल्याङसङ तामसाङले सबैलाई गठन हुन लागेको लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिलको सम्झना गराए। तिनले भने, लेप्चाहरूको भाषिक, जातिक अनि सांस्कृतिक उत्थानको निम्ति लेप्चाहरूलाई छुट्टै प्रशासनिक क्षमता प्रदान गर्नुपर्थ्यो, जो अहिले लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिलकोरुपमा प्राप्त भएको छ। तिनले यसको निम्ति सरकारसित कुराकानी चलिरहेको बताउँदै पनि भने, तर यसको गठनमा ढिलाइ भएमा अधिकारको निम्ति लेप्चाहरू ज्यान दिन पनि तयार छन्, यो कुरा सरकारले बुझेको हुनुपर्ने छ। सरकारले ढिलो गरेमा लेप्चाहरूले आन्दोलन गर्ने छन्। 2012 सम्ममा पहाडमा लेप्चा भाषाको पठन पाठन अनि पाठ्य पुस्तक प्रकाशन हुनुपर्ने छ। तिनले तर कार्यक्रममा नेपाली भने पटक्क बोलेनन्। तिनी मात्र होइन मिरिकका डेनिस लेप्चा अनि दोर्जी टी रोङ बाहेक कुनै पनि वक्ताले नेपाली बोलेनन्।
मुख्य वक्ताहरूले नेपाली भाषामा नबोलेको अनि केवल लेप्चा भाषामा बोलेकोले पत्रकारहरू मात्र होइन लेप्चाहरू पनि अन्योलमा परे। पत्रकारहरूले कुरा केही नबुझेको कुरा राखेपछि दोर्जी टी रोङले भने नेपाली भाषामा बोले। तिनले लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिललाई लेप्चाहरूको आन्दोलनको पहिलो खुड्किलो बताए। तिनले भने, ग्याबो आच्योकले देखेको सपना लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिल भएर पुरा हुँदैछ। 240 वर्षअघि आच्योकले यो सपना देखेका थिए। लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिल स्वीकृत गरेर पहाड लेप्चाहरूको भूमि रहेको स्वीकार सरकारले गरिसकेको छ। कोलकातामा भएको एक महिने आन्दोलनले जुन काउन्सिल गठन गर्ने परिस्थिति बनाएको छ, यस्तो बेलामा पनि आफ्नैहरूबाट विरोध भएको तीतो सत्य ओकल्दै तिनले भने, 25 दिसम्बरको दिन, आवश्यकता परेछ भने फादर र पास्टर लेप्चाहरू पनि सडकमा उत्रनुपर्छ। तिनले काउन्सिल विरोध गर्नेहरू सबैको निम्ति रहेको बताउँदै उनीहरूको आन्दोलनको फलस्वरुप नै अहिले लेप्चाहरूले प्यारा मिलिटेरी फोर्समा नोकरी गर्न पाउने भएको पनि जनाए। तिनले भने, अब लेप्चा डेभलोपमेन्ट काउन्सिल गठन हुनेछ। यसको सम्पूर्ण भार पुम सेजुमले क्योङ सेजुमलाई दिएको छ। जबसम्म यसमा हस्ताक्षर हुँदैन तबसम्म लेप्चाहरूको आन्दोलन जारी रहनेछ। लेप्चाहरूको आन्दोलन गलत दिशातिर नजाओस्, त्यसैकारण यसको गठन शीघ्र हुनुपर्छ। मिरिकका डेनिस लेप्चाले लेप्चाहरू आदिवासी रहेको भएपनि उनीहरूमाथि सवल्टर्न राजनीति भएको बताए। तिनले भने, भाषिकरुपले, सांस्कृतिकरुपले लेप्चाहरूमाथि अतिक्रमण भएको छ। उनीहरूको निम्ति को बोल्ने? उत्तराधुनिक युगका युवावर्गले लेप्चाहरूमाथि भएको सवल्टर्न राजनीतिको विरोध गरेर उनीहरूको अधिकारको निम्ति हाइटेकरुपले लड्न सक्नुपर्छ। लेप्चाहरूलाई हरेकपक्षमा किनारीकृत गरेकोले आज लेप्चाहरू आफै नै आफ्नो अधिकारको निम्ति लडिरहेको बताउँदै तिनले भने, सरकारले पहाडमा अरुलाई पनि ट्राइबलको दर्जा दिइरहेको छ, यसमा हामीलाई कुनै गुनासो छैन तर ट्राइबल बनाएर उनीहरूको निम्ति आरक्षण छैन। लेप्चाहरू आदिवासी भएको भए पनि उनीहरूलाई विधानसभा, लोकसभामा कुनै आरक्षण दिइएको छैन। अब चुप बस्ने समय सकियो। लेप्चाहरू भविष्यको निम्ति जमेर लड्नुपर्छ। यसैबीच एउटा लेप्चा साहित्यिक पत्रिका अनि दुइवटा कमिक्सक पुस्तकको विमोचन मुख्य अतिथि माइकल वेको बाहुलीबाट गरियो।
कसले खॉंदैछ वीपीएलको भाग?
कालिमन्युज, कालेबुङ, 20 दिसम्बर। हप्तामा एकपल्ट पाउने राशनमा प्रत्येक एक व्यक्तिबाट 7 सय पचास ग्राम राशन कसैको गोदाममा गइरहेको माकपा नेता तारा सुन्दासले अभियोग लगाएका छन्। तिनीअनुसार बङ्गालकी मुख्यमन्त्री ममता व्यनर्जीले जङ्गलमहल अनि पहाडको निम्ति डबल राशन दिने अघिबाटै घोषणा गरेकी थिइन्। जङ्गलमहलमा एपीएल अनि बीपीए प्रत्येक एक व्यक्तिलाई दुइ रूपिँया किलोको दरले राशन दिन थालिएपनि पहाडमा पाउँदैगरेको राशनसमेत अहिले मानिसहरूले नपाएको सुन्दासले आरोप लगाएका छन्। अहिले पहाडमा एकजना बीपीएलले एककिलो दुइसय ग्राम मात्र राशन पाइरहेको सुन्दासले बताउँदै 2 किलोमा 7.50 ग्राम हराइरहेको आरोप लगाएका छन्। ममता व्यनर्जीले दिएको राशन डबल दिने आश्वासन त परको कुरा तर अहिले तीन हप्ता बितिसक्दा समेत मानिसहरूले चामल अनि गहुँ नपाएको सुन्दासले बताएका छन्। प्रत्येक एक व्यक्तिबाट 7.50 ग्राम राशन हराउनु अनि तीन हप्तासम्म राशन नपाउँदासमेत मानिसहरू मूकदर्शक बनेर बस्नु नहुने सुन्दासले बताए।
सन्दासले बताएअनुसार खाद्य विभागका जिल्ला नियन्त्रसँग कुरा गर्दा दार्जीलिङ पहाडमा राशन समयमा नआउनुको कारण एफसीआई( फूड कर्पोरेशन अफ इण्डियाले राशन आएको छैन भनिरहेको छ, जबकी एफसीआईलाई राशनको निम्ति पैसा दिइसकेको सन्दासको भनाइ छ।
एफसीआईमा यदि राशन नभएको भए सिक्किममा हाहाकार मच्चिसक्नुपर्ने बताउँदै पहाडलाई राशनबाट पनि वञ्चित गराइरहेको सुन्दासले आरोप लगाए। यसैले दार्जीलिङ पहाडको निम्ति छुट्टै एफसीआई गोदाम बनाइनुपर्ने पनि सुन्दासको माग रहेको छ। ममता व्यनर्जीले दार्जीलिङ पहाडलाई स्वीट्जरल्याण्ड बनाउने घरिघरि भनिरहेको बताउँदै सुन्दासले भने, यही हो स्वीट्जरल्याण्ड, जहॉं मानिसहरूले राशनसम्म पनि समयमा पाउँदैन। स्वीट्जरल्याण्डको जनताले किन दुःख पाउनुपर्ने? स्वीट्जरल्याण्डको जनताले आँटा पाएन, खानु नपाएर स्वीट्जरल्याण्ड? स्वीट्जरल्याण्ड यहि हो? सुन्दासले प्रश्न गरे। जङ्गमहललाई डबल राशन दिँदा पहाडलाई किन दिइएन? पहाडबासीप्रति तृणमूल सरकारले गरेको कोल्टे नीतिको पनि सुन्दासले घोर भर्त्सना गरे। पश्चिम बङ्गालमा परिवर्तनको हावासँगै आएको तृणमूल सरकारले मानिसहरूलाई जिउँदै मार्ने काम गरिरहेको पनि सुन्दासले आरोप लगाए।
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