HEART-BREAKING: Father of Son Arrested by Police Commits Suicide in #Kurseong

The father of a youth arrested by the police has allegedly committed suicide, prompting family members and neighbours to allege that continuous police harassment had forced him to end his life.

The body of Sujit Rai, 45, was found hanging from a tree in Kurbi tea garden near Kurseong this morning. A team from Kurseong police station that had arrived to seize the body for post-mortem was gheraoed by around 150 people for about three hours.

Sujit's son and two other youths had been arrested by the Kurseong police on Monday in connection with the murder of a 15-year-old school girl. Her body was found in a crevice in a stream on Saturday, a month after she had gone missing.

Sujit's younger brother, said: "In a case related to the murder of a girl, police were harassing my brother and used to call him often for interrogation. He used to fear the police and this prompted him to commit suicide."

Sujit was a chowkidar in Kurbi tea garden and his body was found around 7am. When the police arrived around 10am to take away the body for post-mortem, they were gheraoed by the local people. It was around 1pm when the police left with the body after pacifying the crowd.

"We believe police harassment forced Sujit to commit suicide. We have demanded that police or civil administration provide compensation to the family. While we demand that the accused involved in the murder of the 15-year-old student be arrested, we also want the police to stop harassing local people," said Yogendra Rai, a GTA Sabha member and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader.

L. Divya, the subdivisional police officer, Kurseong, denied the harassment charge. "There was no harassment. All of it was (calling people for interrogation) part of investigation."

K. Amarnath, additional superintendent of police, Darjeeling, said 20 people had been called for interrogation so far in connection with the girl's murder. The ASP said post-mortem report revealed that the girl had been strangled to death.

Asked about the compensation, Amarnath said: "A memorandum has been submitted for compensation with a request that it be taken up with the higher authorities."

Sources said a forensic test would also be conducted as the body had been recovered after almost a month.

Yesterday, the three youths, who had been arrested for their suspected involvement in the murder, were produced in the additional chief judicial magistrate's court in Kurseong and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.

CHEAT FUND UPDATE: Enforcement Directorate Attaches Assets worth Rs 1,250 crore of the Rose Valley Chit Fund Company

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday attached assets worth Rs 1,250 crore of the Rose Valley Chit Fund Company whose promoters are accused of cheating investors. According to sources, the property attached includes hotels and cars.

While two hotels are in Kolkata -One hotel at AJC Bose road and another hotel in VIP Road- the others are spread over Jharkhand, Assam, Jaipur, Port Blair, Goa, among others. Twelve Rolls Royce cars worth several crores were also attached. Officials had issued a provisional attachment order for seizing property. Prior to this, the ED had issued four orders for attaching property worth Rs 500 crore.

In March, the ED had filed a chargesheet in this case wherein thousands of people were allegedly cheated in West Bengal and Odisha.

The agency had registered a criminal FIR against the firm, its Chairman Gautam Kundu and others in 2014 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Kundu was last year arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) from here and he is currently in judicial custody.

The agency had filed a prosecution complaint (equivalent of chargesheet) pertaining to cases in Odisha under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) before the Khurda sessions court cum special PMLA court here against the Chairman of the Rose Valley group of companies Gautam Kundu and others.

In March of 2015, the CBI had searched Trinamool Congress MP Tapas Paul’s home in a posh south Kolkata neighbourhood as part of its nationwide raids on the Rose Valley Group, a deposit fund conglomerate bigger than the scam-mired Saradha group.

The Bengali actor-politician was a board member of Rose Valley Marketing India Ltd and Idea Projects Ltd — two companies of the group — for over two financial years since 2009.

[Via: Indian Express, file pic showing Gautam Kundu's arrest]

बहुप्रतिभाशाली - बहुआयामिक व्यक्तित्वका धनी हाम्रा अति आदरणीय गुरूवर स्व° सुरेन्द्र पोद्दारमा सश्रद्धा समर्पित छ -- अजम्बरी फूल

       - उषा किरण

यायावर जीवनका फोटोकपी च्यापेर
मुक्तिको घर खोज्दै हिँड़िरहने मान्छेको
अनादत कविता होइन्,
एक अमर्त्य व्यक्तिको कविता बोल्छु म
यस मुहूर्तमा....

औंसीको रातमा डुबिरहने गाँउ- बसेरो
बाह्रै मास बित्पात झेल्ने कमान र
फ्यूज्ड उडेको शहरको परिचय
बाट्दिन म यहाँ
यस मुहूर्तमा.....

ठूलो माछाले, सानो माछालाई निल्ने
पाप र धर्मको इतिवृत्ति
वा
तुहिएका मुर्दा अनुहारहरूलाई
अझ तर्साउने बुख्याँचाहरूको कविता
कहदिनँ म
यस मुहूर्तमा ......

कतै महिला शौचालयमा
कतै मैला ड्वाङ, झोडामा
सड़कको कुनै पेटीमा
अधमरो छाडिएका शिशुको
विभत्स चित्र कोर्दिन म यहाँ
यस मुहूर्तमा.....

बलाकृत शिशु
शोषित नानीहरू
मण्डीमा बेच्न राखिएका बालाहरूको
चित्कार र आँसुको मूल्य तोक्दिन म यहाँ
यस मुहूर्तमा.....

बरू
आज यहाँ
पानी जस्तै सङ्ग्लो
दुध जस्तै पोशिलो
आकाश जस्तै फाँटिलो र
धरती जस्तै उदात्त
आफू बाँचेको सिङ्गै युगलाई
निरोगी बनाउन खोज्ने
एउटा शिल्पीकारको कथा भन्छु म
यस मुहूर्तमा....

एउटा सौम्य फूलको
सत्य कहानी कहन्छु म
आज, जो यस भीड़मा छैनन्
यस शहरमा छैनन्
तर छन्......
यही हावामा
यही माटोमा
मञ्जरी जो फुलिरहेछन्
अजम्बरी भएर
सर्वत्र वासना छर्दै
हाम्रो मनाकाशभरी...
हाम्रो नयनभरी...
ती अनाकृतलाई अनुभूत गरिरहेछौ
तिमीले पनि.....
मैले पनि.....
यस मुहूर्तमा /

कालो कोट
सेतो कमीज
रातो टाई र
तीन कोणीय पट्याइएको सेतो रूमाल
कोटको माथिल्लो गोजीमा थपक्क
ललाटमा सेतो विभूतिको तिलक
ओठमा निश्छल मुस्कान
अनि साना-ठूला सबैका अघि
अभिवादनका निम्ति उठेका
सहिष्णुताका हातहरू....
साई राम! साई राम! साई राम!

फूल मात्र किन र!
मान्छे पनि यसरी
फूल भएर फुल्दा रहेछन् त!
साँच्चै न हो-
फूलको आँखामा फूलै संसार!
यसो त जिउनलाई यहाँ सबै जिउँछन्
गुनासोहरूको टालो टाल्दै
दुःख र विरहको गीत गाउँदै
करले कि रहरले
कोही जिउँदै मर्छन्
कोही बाँच्नलाई सङ्घर्ष गर्दै मर्छन्
तर,
जीवनको अर्थ खोतल्नेले
आयतन छुँदै छुँदैनन्
सुख र दु:खका सीमाहरूको,
उ हर घडी बाँच्दछ
अनि सबैको निम्ति बाँच्दछ,
प्रेम र सेवाको निम्ति बाँच्ने
सँधैं मुसुक्क हाँस्ने
सत्यका पथगामी तिमी.....

तिमी एकलो व्यक्ति भएर कहिल्यै बाँचेनौ
तिमी समाज भएर बाँच्यौ
तिमी जाति भएर बाँच्यौ
तिमी देश भएर बाँच्यौ
मीठो फल दिने वृक्ष भएर बाँच्यौ
सदैव अँध्यारोमा प्रकाश छर्ने
अरणी भएर बाँच्यौ!

तिमी गुरू, पिता, अभिभावक भएर बाँच्यौ
पथप्रदर्शक, आचार्य, मौलवी, लामा भएर बाँच्यौ
तिमी मित्र, सहचर,सारथी भएर बाँच्यौ
हरियाली प्रकृति भएर बाँच्यौ
मगमगाउने कस्तुरी भएर बाँच्यौ
सत्यका गवेषक
ईश्वरका अनुयायी
उत्कृष्ट मानवको परिचय भएर बाँच्यौ!

नित्य बाँचिरहनेछौ हरेक मुहूर्तमा
अञ्जली भरी- भरी श्रद्धाञ्जलीहरूमा
बाँचिरहनेछौ तिमी
हर्दय- ह्रदयमा
अजम्बरी फूल भएर!!

A LIFE WELL LIVED : #Darjeeling's Last Connection to Netaji Subash Chandra Bose No More

Writes: Vivek Chhetri

Moti Maya Lepcha, 88, officially a gardener without retirement, who nurtured Subash Chandra Bose's link with the hills throughout her life, breathed her last today.

Family sources said Moti Maya had died of old age-related illness at the Kurseong subdivisional hospital around 11.30am yesterday. "She was admitted to the hospital yesterday and she had been unwell since 2014. The funeral will take place today," said a family source.

Moti Maya, used to call Netaji, "kaka babu" which loosely means uncle and is used to describe one's father's younger brother.

A few years ago, she had told The Telegraph
"I used to call him kaka babu. My father Kalu Singh Lama used to work as a chowkidar for him. When my father was away for work and left us behind, Netaji used to take care of my family. He played with his nieces Mira, Gita, Roma and Chitra. I also gave them company."

This was when Moti Maya was just nine and Netaji was put under house arrest at the home of his brother Sarat Chandra Bose at Giddeparhar, 3km from Kurseong, in 1937.

Sarat Chandra had bought the house from one Rowley Lascelles Ward in 1922.

Sarat Chandra, too, was interned at the house from 1935 to 1936. It was also widely believed that Netaji had written his speech that was delivered at the Haripura Congress meeting at the Giddeparhar home.

The nine-year old was not just part of the extended Bose family but also one of the last surviving witnesses to those historic moments. During the centenary birth celebration of Netaji in 1996, Moti Maya was felicitated across the hills. In Siliguri town, she was driven in a chariot.

Moti Maya took care of the house throughout her life and on April 23, 2000 when the state government converted the house into Netaji Museum and Centre for Studies in Himalayan Languages, Society and Culture, she was appointed as a "gardener" by the state government.

The state government had acquired the property in 1996 and placed it under the management of the Netaji Institute for Asian Study (NIAS), Calcutta.

She has drawn a monthly salary of Rs 17,000 and stayed at the institute's quarter with her daughter, Pramila Lepcha.

Moti Maya is survived by four daughters. Her husband died long time ago.

Suranjan Das, director, NIAS, said over phone from Calcutta: "She was closely associated with the Bose family and the Independence movement. The institute will bear all cremation expenses. "

When Bose's house was converted into a museum, Moti Maya had said: "This pictorial gallery will constantly remind me of Netaji. He was a great man and this museum will introduce the man to the younger generation."

Chitra Ghosh, the youngest daughter of Sarat Chandra, said: "Kalu Singh's family was like our own family. I used to play with his three daughters, including Moti Maya, during my childhood days. We never shared a master-servant relationship. Kalu Singh was like our guardian and protector and his daughters our playmates."

[Via: Telegraph, Moti Maya boju in 2014]

Tourists May Skip Winter Season Due to Cash Crush - Fears #Darjeeling Tourist Industry

The mighty Kanchenjungha was visible throughout the day in Siliguri but north Bengal's travel industry has started to fret that tourist traffic may taper in January, given the demonetisation induced cash problems.

According to tourism industry stakeholders, about half the tourists who visit the region around the year travel in an unorganised manner from other parts of Bengal. In other words, they do not arrange trips through tour operators.

A group of tourists may land in Darjeeling and look for a hotel and then book car rides by paying cash to the drivers.

"They make travel and accommodation arrangements on their own. In many cases, tourists, after reaching transit points like Bagdogra airport and New Jalpaiguri railway station, finalise the transport. In a similar manner, they select and finalise hotels after reaching at the destination," Samrat Sanyal, the executive president of the Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators' Association, said.

A section of these tourists, he said, might stay away as they need to make cash payments in most of the cases.

"Hotels which are three-star or higher in the grade usually have card swapping machines. But most of the hotels which are small, whether in the Dooars or the hills, do not have this facility," Sanyal said.

Nor do homestays.

In a similar manner, there is no facility to pay car rentals - whether for sightseeing or travelling to destinations from transit points - without cash.

"Even in the prepaid taxi booths, a person needs to pay cash to hire a vehicle," a tour operator based in Siliguri said.

A source in the Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators' Association said Darjeeling, Dooars and Sikkim cumulatively have around 5,000 hotel rooms and in the Christmas-New Year season till January-end, 85 per cent of the rooms are occupied. The source added that going by the demand this season, occupancy could taper at 65 per cent.

Raj Basu, a veteran in the tourism sector of north Bengal and the Northeast, said: "It is not that the hills and the Dooars would be empty during the Christmas holidays and New Year. But the flow of tourists as whole, we suspect, would be less."

Other than the cash crunch, there is no other reason to keep tourists away.

"The weather is pleasant and the mighty Kanchenjungha and other peaks are clearly in view. All the roads are in motorable condition and there is no political tension in the Darjeeling hills which can impede tourist movement. We were expecting a good turnout till the middle of January but this cash crunch appears to be the sole reason that would hold back some tourists," Sanyal said.

That the tourists might face problems was clear as some people planning the trips are coming to grips with the cash problems in their home towns.

Saugata Basu, who works in a private company and has planned for a trip to Bhutan on his own on next week, said the whole idea had landed him in a lot of trouble.

"First of all, most banks in Siliguri are not giving Rs 24,000 (the weekly ceiling of withdrawal). Last week, I could manage to get only Rs 15,000 through cheques. Also, for the past 10 days or so, I have been standing in ATM queues everyday and withdrawing Rs 2,000, a portion of which is spent on meeting daily expenses," Basu said.

In total, he could gather around Rs 25,000 so far.

His trip is scheduled for next weekend and would cost around Rs 55,000. This means, he would have to go to the bank at least twice to withdraw cash and stand in ATM queues. Added to that, he needs to make some other arrangements.

"In short, I can say that right now, I am not sure whether I will be able to make the trip," he said.

[Via: Telegraph, pic: Passang Yolmo]

WORKERS LEFT TO FEND FOR THEMSELVES: Using #Demonetization as an Excuse, Tirrihannah TE Shuts Down

The management has pulled out of a tea garden in the Terai, citing insecurity after wages were delayed "due to the demonetisation effects".

Senior officers of Tirrihannah tea estate, located around 35km from Siliguri, left the garden around midnight on Thursday after sending a general notice to the Indian Tea Association and the Darjeeling administration. The garden has 1,200 permanent and 1,300 casual workers.

The notice expressed fears that the managers would be assaulted since wages of workers had been delayed. "It is to be noted that their wages were delayed due to the demonetisation effects announced by the Government of India and for which the banks could not arrange funds in time," the notice said.

Since the banks were not identified, the claim could not be verified. No official of the tea company, headquartered in Kiran Shankar Roy Road in Calcutta, could be contacted.

Gautam Ghosh, the general secretary of the Citu-affiliated Chai Kaman Mazdoor Union, said the management was using the cash crisis as an excuse but suggested that the company had paid wages till November 8, the day demonetisation was announced. "Tirrihannah has not made a single payment since the announcement on November 8 on the note ban. There was no agitation and workers did not prevent the despatch of made tea. The management used the cash crisis as an excuse to shut down the garden."

Ghosh expressed the fear that "many other gardens will also do the same". The Terai and the Dooars have around 276 gardens and the Darjeeling hills around 87. They account for over 4.25 lakh workers.

An economics professor with the North Bengal University said that the fear of a slowdown in North Bengal was real as the tea industry has been the backbone of the economy in the region.

"In the tea sector, workers are paid in cash mostly and a paucity of it is bound to have an impact. In general there is a rise in unemployment and tea is no exception. This means, there will be less demand in the region and the overall economy would suffer," explained the professor who did not wish to be named.

Over the last month or so, the management of the gardens and the district administration explored various means - ranging from seeking special permission from the RBI to ensure cash delivery at the gardens to opening fresh bank accounts of the workers -- to ensure that the impact of the cash crunch was minimum on the tea gardens.

But the last evening's development at the Tirrihannah tea garden, which is very close to the Bagdogra airport, proved that the efforts did little to ease the problem.

As far as Tirrihannah was concerned, Sumit Ghosh, the secretary of the Terai branch of the ITA, said that he had heard that the management had left the garden.

"On Thursday evening we received a general notice signed by Tirrihannah manager, Amlan Kusum Roy, that said that the workers were had become very agitated due to the non-payment of wages. The workers demonstrated before the garden office on December 7 and shouted abuse at the management. They also stopped the despatch of made tea from the garden factory," Roy said.

He said that he had tried to contact the management but failed.

Gautan Ghosh, the general secretary of the Citu-affiliated, Chai Kaman Mazdoor Union put the blame on the management for the situation in the garden. "The Tirrihannah has not made a single payment since the announcement on November 8 on the note ban. There was no agitation and workers did not prevent the despatch of made tea. The management used the cash crisis as an excuse to shut down the garden. We are afraid that if this crisis continues many other gardens will also do the same," Ghosh said.

Inttuc district president, Arup Ratan Ghosh, also blamed the garden management.

[Source: Telegraph]

Allahabad High Court calls triple talaq unconstitutional, says no personal law board is above Constitution

The Allahabad High Court today said the practice of 'triple talaq' within Muslims is unconstitutional and violates the rights of Muslim women. "No Personal Law Board is above the Constitution," the High Court said.

A number of Muslim women and organisations have moved various courts across India challenging the validity of 'triple talaq'.

The Supreme Court is also hearing a number of such petitions. The Centre has asked the apex court to re-look these practices, calling them violative of fundamental rights like gender equality and the ethos of secularism, a key part of the basic structure of the Constitution.

In its affidavit filed in the Supreme Court last month, the NDA government too, for the first time, opposed triple talaq and said, "The issue of validity of triple talaq, nikah halala and polygamy needs to be considered in the light of principles of gender justice and the overriding principle of non-discrimination, dignity and equality."

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), meanwhile, has rubbished the stand taken by the Centre and has strongly opposed the move against triple talaq and imposition of uniform civil code, saying divine Sharia laws regarding marriage, divorce and adaptation cannot be modified or altered by any person or authority.

[File pic]

OUR DAUGHTERS, OUR PRIDE: Two #Darjeeling School Girls to be Awarded National Bravery Medal on 26th of January - They request for Anonymity due to Safety concerns

Writes: Vivek Chhetri

The families of two schoolgirls, who helped police bust a human trafficking ring and have been selected for the national bravery award, have said the duo was willing to take the prize from the Prime Minister but their identities must be kept confidential.

The two who study in the hills had posed as girls willing to leave the hill town to take up jobs in metro cities. Their act as decoys had helped the police catch three trafficking agents and the ring's kingpin in Gurgaon.

The letter sent by the Indian Council for Child Welfare says the girls would be presented the award on January 2017 by the Prime Minister in New Delhi. "You will also participate in the Republic day parade," says the letter.

"There is always this fear that the traffickers might have a grudge against the girls," said the father of one of the teenagers, explaining why the two families want the girls' names and photographs not to be published or circulated.

The families will go to Delhi for the award. "We just want the media to help protect their identity," said the father of one of the girls.

A former official of the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), who was previously associated with the Geeta Chopra Award for bravery, said such requests are rare. He recalled a similar instance when a girl from Haryana's Rohtak, who had helped expose a sex abuse racket in a shelter home, showed reluctance to come and take the cash prize and participate in the Republic Day parade because she feared for her security.

The former NCPCR official said the Indian Council for Child Welfare, which organises the prize, allowed the girl to cover her face when she took the prize from the Prime Minister. Her name was not read out. When the girl participated in the parade, she was given a biggish hat that would cover her face partially.

In Darjeeling on April 18 this year, an NGO called Mankind in Action for Rural Growth (Marg) received a request from a Nepal NGO, Maiti Nepal, to trace a 16-year-old girl reported missing from Sindupalchowk in the neighbouring Himalayan country.

"We were told that the missing girl could be in Sukhiapokhari or in the Samsing area of Kalimpong. We searched but could not find the girl. We then started searching for her on Facebook and found her profile," said Nirnay John Chhetri, the founder of Marg.

A friend's request sent by Chhetri was not accepted by the girl but the Marg team realised that requests sent by other girls to the Nepalese girl were being accepted.

"We became suspicious as photographs on her page revealed there was something more," Chhetri said.

It turned out later that the girl herself was linked to the human trafficking ring.

Over the years, Marg had formed clubs in hill schools that call themselves Students Against Trafficking. The two girls who helped the police were members of these clubs in their schools.

The two Darjeeling girls who helped the NGO and the police volunteered to be part of the plan to trap the traffickers.

Amit P. Javalgi, the Darjeeling police chief, and Deodoot Gajmer, the inspector in charge of Khoribari, provided help to the girls.

"I was a bit nervous and tense. However, my family supported me. Darjeeling police also provided us support," one of the girls said.

Her mother, who monitored the entire process of trapping the traffickers, said the girls were given training to speak Nepali as it is spoken in Nepal as they would have to pose as girls from that country.

"Traffickers always seem to be 10 steps ahead of us. We had to teach the girls to speak Nepali as spoken in Nepal. We had to procure Nepal SIM cards and take the girls to an area from where calls could be made using the Nepal SIM cards," the mother said.

'The girls were offered jobs with salaries ranging from Rs 25,000 to 35,000 to metros. It was planned that the two would pretend they had crossed over from Nepal to India through Kakarivitta and the trafficking agents would come to the border area, near Siliguri, to take them to the metros," the girl's mother said.

A trap was then laid to catch the agent who came to pick up the girls in June, Chhetri of Marg said.

"We made the agent speak to the 16-year-old Nepalese girl and the next day another agent was sent from Delhi to take the girls and she too was arrested," Chhetri said.

"Finally, Gurgoan police arrested the kingpin (of the racket), Gagan Verma. He is in custody now," Chhetri said.

The Nepalese girl, however, had fled Gurgoan. She was apprehended by Nepalese authorities following information provided by Indian officials.

The two schoolgirls did not seem bothered with publicity. "The most satisfying thing is that we helped save so many lives," one of them said.

[Via: Telegraph, File pic: Awareness programme by Students Against Trafficking in Darjeeling]

Airports Authority of India Willing to Invest Rs 1500 Crore to Modernize #Bagdogra, But Land Availability is an Impediment

Writes: Avijit Sinha

The proposed expansion of Bagdogra airport that would have allowed for a new terminal building and apron in Siliguri has hit a land hurdle and may have to be scaled down, the Airports Authority of India said yesterday.

Guru Prasad Mohapatra, the chairman of AAI who was here on a two-day visit and held meetings with state government officials and the Indian Air Force, said 100 acres was required for the expansion.

"There is, however, severe limitation of land here," Mohapatra said. "On the one hand, the number of passengers is increasing by 35 per cent in Bagdogra a year and has crossed 1.1 million. We need to take up elaborate plans to expand the terminal building to accommodate passengers. Also, infrastructure like aprons, hangars, an extended cargo area and parking lot are required," he said.

"As it appears that we would not be able to get the required land, we will have to scale down our expansion plan," the official added.

The AAI chairman, along with the secretary of the Union civil aviation department, met chief minister Mamata Banerjee recently, and requested for additional land.

"She has told us to speak with state officials. Accordingly, a meeting was held here in Bagdogra yesterday where the principal secretary of the state transport department and some other officials, along with officials from the IAF, were present. Though elaborate discussions were held, there was no final decision as how much land the state can provide us. We look forward at the next meeting, likely to be held in two to three weeks," the AAI chairman said.

The AAI sources said they had also approached the IAF - the airport is a civilian enclave as the runway and the air traffic control are under the IAF and the Bagdogra Air Force Station is close to the airport.

"Altogether, it seems that the state and the IAF together can, at best, provide around 50 acres to us," an AAI source said.

Sources in the administration, who were privy to the meeting, said if the AAI needed more than 50 acres, then the state government would have to acquire land, a policy Mamata Banerjee is against.

The AAI does not acquire or purchase land required for airports. It approaches state governments that hand over the land.

AAI officials said the plan was to build a terminal building that would be four to five times the size of the current building.

"We have to chalk out our plans while keeping in mind the expansion of the sector in the future. If we build a building that is only double in size of the existing one, the new building would become congested within two to three years," Mohapatra said.

In total, he said, the AAI had plans to invest around Rs 1,500 crore for the expansion, of which around Rs 500 crore would be invested in the first phase.

Once handed over the land, the AAI would take two to three years to complete the construction.

As of now, the two-storied terminal building can accommodate around 400 passengers.

However, as most flights here operate from 11am to 4pm, the building gets congested with at least 1,200-odd passengers in these hours.

On average, around 13 flights operate from Bagdogra airport every day.

The AAI chairman also elaborated on the regional connectivity scheme (RCS) floated by the Centre to encourage airline companies to introduce flights in airports which are either underserved (airports with less flights) or unserved (airports with no flights).

On being asked about the state's attempts to open non-functional airports such as Cooch Behar, Balurghat and Malda, the AAI chairman said bids had been issued for airline companies by the Union ministry of civil aviation last week.

"The companies will place bids and these are likely to be opened by January end. Only then, it would be clear whether there are companies which intend to run flights in these airports of Bengal," he said.

[Via: Telegraph, file pic]

Baroda Royal Family Scion to Help Promote Heritage Tourism in #Coochbehar

A member of the Gaekwad royal family of Baroda is on a visit to Cooch Behar to help preserve and promote the heritage of the Bengal district.

The former princely state of Cooch Behar, which merged with India in 1950, has links with the royal families in Gujarat through marriage.

Jeetendrasingh G. Gaekwad is a grand-nephew of Indira Raje, who married Cooch Behar Maharaja Jitendra Narayan in 1912. Gayatri Devi was one of the children of Indira Raje and Jitendra Narayan.

Gaekwad has been invited to the district by the NGO Cooch Behar Archive, which will organise its three-day annual programme from December 9.

Gaekwad wants to renew ties between the erstwhile princely states and also help in preserving and promoting the heritage of Cooch Behar and boost tourism.

Rzisshikalpo Paul of Cooch Behar Archive said Gaekwad was the chief guest at the annual programme. "We will hold an exhibition, seminars and quizzes during the three-day programme. Jeetendrasingh Gaekwad is a renowned heritage revivalist and he will be our chief guest. He is keenly interested in renewing ties with Cooch Behar and want to help preserve our heritage through mutual exchange of ideas. Our annual programme aims to achieve this," Paul said.

Gaekwad, who met reporters at the Brahmo Mandir Complex, said there was immense scope for improving heritage tourism in Cooch Behar.

"I strongly believe that there is a great potential of improving heritage tourism here. I am certain that there are many families who live in heritage buildings and have photographs and articles from the earlier times. You can have museums in such houses, which can also consider offering home-stay facilities. The number of such home-stays have increased in Gujarat and Rajasthan," Gaekwad said.

He added: "You have to tap the Internet and social media to highlight the heritage of Cooch Behar. Back in 1951, Maharaja Jagaddipendra Narayan had organised a tour for foreigners here. That tour was reported in foreign newspapers like The Miami Herald and created interest about this place in faraway America. I will help develop heritage tourism here. The links between Baroda and Cooch Behar is over a century old and we need to revive the ties. When I first visited Cooch Behar in 1968 with my family, I stayed with Jagaddipendra Narayan at the palace," Gaekwad, 50.

[Via: Telegraph, file pic: Coochbehar Palace]

Buried beside mentor Jaya's last journey from a milestone hall, marked by subtle power playG.C. Shekhar

 Every December 24, Jayalalithaa would visit the MGR Memorial on Marina Beach where her political mentor lies interred. This year she reached the spot 18 days early, in a casket, to be buried by his side.

Her body was lowered into an 8x4ft pit just behind MGR's marble rectangular tomb. Another tomb will be built at the spot.

Many Tamil Hindu communities bury their dead but Brahmins, like Jayalalithaa, are cremated. But that would have required a blood relative of hers to light the pyre.

One of those who could have done it is the son of Jayalalithaa's niece Deepa Rajkumar, but the late chief minister's friend Sasikala was presumably against it.

Deepa was not allowed to visit Jayalalithaa at the hospital or to see her body at the leader's Poes Garden home last night.

It was hardly likely, therefore, that Sasikala would have let Jayalalithaa's family take the lead at her funeral, having kept them away from her friend all these years.

However, in a last-minute concession, Sasikala got Deepa's brother Deepak to perform some basic Hindu ceremonies along with her at the burial site.

"This was to pre-empt any charges of sidelining Jayalalithaa's family completely and to neutralise Deepa's protests," an insider said.

While Sasikala had kept Deepa away from Jayalalithaa, she had silently drafted Deepak in when Jayalalithaa was put on ventilator. The idea was to avoid any legal complication if a blood relation's consent was sought at any time during the treatment.

Deepak had been living with one of Sasikala's family members and was easier to control than his sister.

Officially, the party said that Jayalalithaa, being the leader of a Dravidian party, needed to be buried like her mentor MGR.

Indeed, most leaders and icons of the DMK and the AIADMK, including Periyar and Annadurai, were buried although neither party imposes any such official rule, and their cadres usually follow their own communities' funeral practices.

One historical reason for the tradition could be the Dravidian parties' allergy to Hindu orthodoxy. Another possible factor is their tilt towards political optics, as reflected in their weakness for statues and memorials.

"Cremation reduces the body to ashes but during burial, the physical form remains intact and that last image of the leader remains ingrained in one's memory," a former DMK parliamentarian explained.

The choice of the MGR Memorial compound for Jayalalithaa's burial served two purposes. One, having one memorial for the party's two biggest leaders made sense.

Two, the Coastal Regulation Zone rules ban any construction on the beach (when MGR was buried near his political mentor and DMK founder Annadurai - their memorials are adjacent - there were no such coastal regulations).

It was therefore decided to utilise the space behind MGR's tomb to make one for Jayalalithaa as it was already a built-up area, spread over 8 acres with gardens and fountains.

"We took the law secretary's permission to use the space. We only had to remove a few granite slabs to dig the pit," a minister said.

Jayalalithaa's last journey began from Rajaji Hall, a British-era building 2km away where her body had lain in state atop its expansive flight of stairs.

It was here that Jayalalithaa had begun her battle to take control of the AIADMK after MGR's death in December 1987.

For two days, December 24 and 25, she had stood steadfast behind her hero's head, visible to the lakhs of mourners filing past the body and the many more watching on Doordarshan. It was her way of letting the world know who MGR's real political heir was.

The gambit turned into a test of courage and stamina for her. Members of her rival group, led by former minister R.M. Veerappan, used every tactic from prods to pushes to pinches to unsettle her and get her to leave.

But she stayed put, going home on the night of December 24 only to return the next morning to resume her post.

On December 25, when MGR's body was placed on a gun carriage for the final journey, Jayalalithaa climbed on top of it, hoping to travel with it through the city's thoroughfares packed with lakhs of party supporters.

But at a signal from Veerappan, party lawmaker K.P. Ramalingam and a small-time actor, Vijayan, rushed towards the gun carriage and shouted at Jayalalithaa to get off.

While Ramalingam was urging the officials to remove her, Vijayan climbed up the gun carriage and pulled Jayalalithaa down.

She landed on her side, got up, walked to her car and drove home, the choicest of abuses from Ramalingam ringing in her ears.

Jayalalithaa later lodged a police complaint against Ramalingam and Vijayan, saying they had assaulted and abused a Rajya Sabha member.

No action was taken then. But when Jayalalithaa came to power in 1991, the two men were arrested on a different complaint lodged by a party supporter.

Via: Telegraph , in pic Jayalalithaa's body being carried during the funeral procession in Chennai. (Reuters)

Bengal chief secy visits Kalimpong to oversee preparations for new district

The Darjeeling district administration has said a new district of Kalimpong would be formed shortly by including the areas of the sub-division as they exist at present with provisions for extension and expansion in future, whenever required.

On Monday, state chief secretary Basudeb Banerjee held a meeting with senior district officials at the Delo guest house in Kalimpong sub-division. He refused to say anything, but Darjeeling district magistrate Anurag Srivastava spoke to the media later, saying, “The state chief secretary and the PWD secretary were present at the administrative meeting along with officials of the land and land reforms and health departments. Banerjee came here to assess ongoing preparations for the formation of Kalimpong as a district such as constructions needed for new offices. We are talking about preparations in terms of manpower deployment that will be needed in each department along with infrastructure creation and where they ought to come up.”

He further said, “There are two types of preparations going on. One is for the short term where offices will start functioning immeditately to facilitate the new district's work, while the long term preparation entails the permament locations of the office buildings. The chief secretary also visited the spots where the offices can come up and discussions on land availability also took place."

When asked about the demand by various hill political parties to include certain areas of Kurseong sub-division and Jalpaiguri district in the /new Kalimpong district, Srivastav said all suggestions and proposals would be taken into consideration. “A number of meetings have been held with political parties regarding this and their demands are logical as some areas should be included in Kalimpong and vice-versa. However, while creating a new district there is a technical difficulty in that we have to take the permission of the Election Commission in order to change Assembly constituencies,” he said, adding first the priority was in creating the new district and technical aspects could be taken up later.

“The process is complicated but the state chief secretary has assured to take the matter to its logical conclusion. At the same time, we have also been told that the new Kalimpong district would be created with the existing areas of the assembly constituency. Additions and subtractions of areas can be done once the district is formed,” said Srivastava.

As for the timeframe when the new district will be formally announced, he said, “We want to do it as soon as possible and not wait till April. We will be ready within a month and then it will be up to the state government to take a call on formally announcing the formation of Kalimpong district.” Srivastava also said the number of sub-divisions and blocks would remain the same with provisions for extension.

[Via: EOIC, pic: Vikki Thapa for TheDC]

"We will win all seats, even if election is held tomorrow" - says Bimal

The rise in Trinamul's support base across Darjeeling has prompted Gorkha Janmukti Morcha president Bimal Gurung to toss a challenge at the ruling party of the state.

Gurung, in Salbari yesterday off NH55 and on the outskirts of Siliguri, said his party was all set to contest to win in all the seats in the civic and rural elections.

He remarked that other than the Morcha, there is no other political force to reckon with, as far as the hills are concerned.

"Even if the civic and rural polls are held in the hills tomorrow, we will win in all the seats," the Morcha president said.

"There is no presence of any other political party in the hills. Sab khatam ho gaya (every other organisation is over)," he said.

Such assertion from the Morcha president, that too during his visit to the plains, comes at a time when Trinamul is augmenting its political base across the hills.

While on the one hand, the ruling party has managed to get some of the top Morcha leaders and even popular leaders of other hill parties on board, on the other hand it has used the state to set up development boards for various hill communities.

"Such a two-pronged strategy of Trinamul has left the Morcha in an awkward position. In places such as Kurseong and Kalimpong, Trinamul has made inroads by poaching in the Morcha, a repetition of what the Morcha had done to the GNLF in 2007 and onwards when Gurung, who himself is from GNLF, floated the party," an observer said.

Added to it, the formation of the boards where representatives of these communities have been put in portfolios and funds have been allocated for socio-economic development and for conservation and promotion of heritage and culture of the communities, has provided an additional thrust to Trinamul to penetrate into the hills.

"While the state has formed so many development boards, the Morcha, a BJP ally, has not yet managed to get ST status for some of the communities. It is a longstanding demand of these communities and right now, Morcha leaders are under immense pressure to prove that the party they had supported has acted on their demands," an observer added.

In 2011, when the polls were held in the four municipalities, the Morcha had bagged all the civic bodies.

There has been, however, a change in the political situation since then. In the civic area of Kalimpong, the Jana Andolan Party was ahead at the last Assembly polls. In the Kurseong and Darjeeling Assembly seats, the votes of Morcha dipped and Trinamul emerged the second strongest force.

[Via: Telegraph]

#Delhi Tamang Buddhist Gedungla Successfully Completes 2nd Nyugney

The Tamang Buddhist Gedungla, New Delhi branch have successfully completed 4 day Nyugney and Wang.

The religious practice which started from the 1st of December and lasted till the 4th, were held at Ladhaki Boudha Vihar, in Delhi, and participants had come not just from Delhi and NCR region, but also from as far away as Assam, Kurseong and Jaogaon.

Like last year, this year too the Nyugney was held under the tutelage of Lama Lakpa Bomjan and he also blessed the devotees by blessing them on Wang.

DTBG have thanked all the volunteers, organizations and individuals who made the Nyugney and Wang possible.

TheDC

Members of 'Chit Fund Pidit Janta' Threaten to Self-immolate if Justice Not Given

Issuing a stark warning, members of the organization 'Chit Fund Pidit Janta' have threatened to self-immolate, if the administration continues to neglect their pleas.

Speaking to the press, President Narendra Pradhan of CFPJ said, "we will wait till Thursday for the District Magistrate to call us for a meeting to resolve the issue, but if they do not do so, we will go for an indefinite hunger strike, and if they prevent us from doing so, we will self-immolate in front of the DM office."

According to some estimates, people in the hills, terai and Dooars region have lost close to Rs 20,000 crores to various chit fund companies, and till date none of these people have received any compensation.

Mr. Pradhan said, "if the Bengal government could return money invested in Sharada by people in south Bengal to them, why can they not do the same for hill people? why are the discriminating against us.?"

[Pic: Vikki Thapa for TheDC]

Sikkim Vehicle Operators Threaten to Stop Bengal Taxis From Plying in the State if Permit Issue is Not Resolved

.

Tourist vehicle operators across Sikkim have threatened they would not allow any taxis bearing Bengal registration numbers to enter the hill state unless the permit issue is resolved within a few days even as the government in Bengal is trying to seal a reciprocal transport agreement.

Bengal and Sikkim had struck a reciprocal transport agreement on April 9, 2007, wherein vehicles from Bengal could enter only three Sikkim towns - Gangtok in East, Pelling in West and Namchi in the South. Vehicles from Sikkim though could move all over Bengal.

According to the agreement, sources in the Bengal's transport department said, all vehicles that have been included in the agreement could enter Bengal with a permit issued to them.

After entering Bengal, these permits had to be countersigned at different entry points. The vehicles included under the agreement are buses, goods vehicles as well as contract carriages.

This agreement was cancelled on August 30 as tourist vehicle operators in Bengal have been long complaining to chief minister Mamata Banerjee about how several thousands of operators were taking a beating because of the truncated movement of vehicles to Sikkim.

"We had repeatedly drawn the attention of the chief minister about how tourists planning to visit Sikkim from New Jalpaiguri were facing problems. If someone had to reach Gangtok, he would have to get off a vehicle bearing Bengal's registration number, hire a vehicle of Sikkim and then reach the hotel," said Samrat Sanyal of the Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators' Association.

"It's time that both the states agreed to seamless connectivity."

In September 2015, Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had written to her counterpart in Sikkim, Pawan Chamling, requesting that all tourist vehicles entering the Himalayan state be given access to all points in the hill state. Over the next few months with no response reaching Nabanna, Bengal decided to terminate the agreement in August after nearly a decade.

"Since then we have sent several letters asking for a mutual agreement. But there was no response," a transport department official in Bengal said.

In October, the department sent a senior officer to Siliguri and Sikkim for a thorough understanding of the situation. A report to the government submitted later that month identified key problems, including how jeeps, taxis and other vehicles were entering Bengal without bothering for any counter-signature of the permits.

Sikkim was running few buses and more small vehicles, including jeeps and taxis, resulting in congestion on its hilly roads. Most of these vehicles belonged to the category, which were not included in the mutual agreement.

Operators in Sikkim yesterday rose in protest after the regional transport authorities started slapping fines on each vehicle that didn't have its permit countersigned.

"They are imposing on us a fine of Rs 4,000 for one vehicle for not having a countersigned permit. This is too much. The passengers are getting harassed and those vehicles that don't have permits are being asked to return," said Dawa Tamang, a driver in Gantok.

Around 3,000 taxis including trucks from Sikkim enter Bengal everyday. In contrast, only 1,500 tourist vehicles reach Sikkim everyday.

The members of different driver and vehicle associations also highlighted how vehicles of Sikkim have to get two different permits for Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts. On the contrary, vehicles from Bengal plying to Sikkim need to have only one permit for travel.

Operators today met transport secretary SBS Bhaduria to voice their grievances.

A meeting has been scheduled on December 7 between the transport secretaries of the two states to address the issue. "Hopefully we will arrive at a solution," said a transport official in Calcutta.

[Via: Telegraph, file pic]

TRAGIC: Cell Phone Explosion Kills 3, 2 Injured - All from the same family

Three members of a family died and two suffered serious injuries after a cellphone exploded late last night when the battery was being charged, leaving the single-room tenement in flames.

Kuljit Singh, 50, his wife Surinder Kaur and one of the couple's three daughters, Reena, 16, succumbed to their injuries at a government hospital in Chandigarh where they had been brought with nearly 100 per cent burns.

Two other daughters - Harpreet Kaur, 19, and Paramjeet Kaur, 18 - are in a critical condition.

Police sources said the family's neighbours in Dayalpura, a village near Mohali, about 20km from Chandigarh, saw the room in flames after being jolted awake by screams around midnight. "The phone was being charged when it exploded. A can of kerosene kept in the room caught fire.... The flames soon spread in the room," said a police officer.

The sources said the family's neighbours tried to arrange for ambulances but could not. The victims were then taken to the hospital around 3am in private vehicles.

"All the three who succumbed at the hospital had almost 100 per cent burn injuries and their chances of survival were bleak," a police officer said.

TheDC

- HOPES ON DELHI - Bimal says "Nature of #Gorkhaland Agitation Will Depend on Delhi Response"

Writes: Vivek Chhetri

Bimal Gurung yesterday announced there would be no agitation in the Darjeeling hills in a turnaround two months after he told schools in the region to hold exams earlier than scheduled.

At the Darjeeling Motor Stand meeting, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha chief said: "I had thought of holding some component of the agitation in the hills, but looking at children preparing for examinations like ICSE, ISC and Madhyamik, I have decided to cancel the agitation in the Darjeeling hills."

School exams are generally held in mid-November and many schools have completed their annual exams. But Gurung's categorical announcement and his silence on making good his threat to quit as the head of the GTA could bring relief in the hills for now.

The Morcha, while not specifically announcing an agitation plan in the hills, had said an indefinite hunger strike might take place if the Union home ministry does not hold a meeting to look into the demand of forming a committee to examine the demand of Gorkhaland by December 5.

Gurung's statement yesterday gave an indication that the Morcha did not want to antagonise the Centre just after it had shown some movement regarding the grant of ST status to 11 communities.

Gurung yesterday said he was hopeful of a Union home ministry meeting soon. "The Union home minister, Rajnath Singh, had gone to Cuba for the funeral (of Fidel Castro). He returned only yesterday and we are confident that the meeting will be held soon," he said.

The Morcha chief seemed to be banking on the formation of a committee to examine the demand of statehood and also for a favourable report on the demand of granting the Scheduled Tribe status.

"We are expecting the committee (headed by Vishu Maini, deputy director in the ministry of tribal affairs) to submit its report in the next 15-20 days. We are confident the bill will be placed in Parliament during the monsoon session," Gurung said.

Even though Gurung was optimistic on both the tribal and statehood committees, he was a bit cautious in his proclamation.

"As announced earlier, the agitation in Delhi will take place from December 12 to 16. If there are no positive outcome by then, we will not hesitate to announce an agitation in Delhi from December 17," he said.

Sources in the Morcha said the party is planning a two-day dharna at Jantar Mantar on December 12 and 13, followed by two days of relay hunger strike and a rally on December 16.

Impressed by a good turnout at the Darjeeling meeting today, Gurung attacked Mamata Banerjee and the Jana Andolan Party president Harka Bahadur Chhetri.

"The impressive turnout today is a reply to Mamata Banerjee's oppressive and divisive politics. She has been creating divisions, not just in the hill communities, but now even among the minorities such as Muslims and Christians. People, however, understand everything these days," Gurung said.

He accused Mamata of coming to power in 2011 with "the chit fund money of Saradha" and also protested her allegation against the army. "Her statement against the army is uncalled for. The Centre must speak on this."

"She is probably worried now that the chit fund money will be exposed," Gurung said in reference to Mamata's protest against demonetisation. The Morcha has held rallies in the hills welcoming the demonetisation move.

[Via: Telegraph, Pics: TheDC]

OUR DAUGHTERS, OUR PRIDE: Hill Girls Break Stereotypes, Chart New Career Paths in Music

Writes: Mrinalini Sharma

She could have chosen a comfortable life practising law but Abhaya Subba Weise opted to take a path riddled with uncertainties and set a mark as the first woman from Darjeeling to start her own rock band.

Abhaya who has performed with bands such as Parikrama, Red, The Skywalkers and Panchtatva in mid-nineties broke all stereotypes by starting her own band Abhaya and the Steam Injuns in 2003.

"I was interested in rock music because I had grown up listening to Mr. Big, Pink Floyd, Guns N' Roses and Metallica. Rock shows attract huge crowds and their performance on stage sets my adrenaline pumping," she said.

With an increase in the number of clubs and pubs, demand for live music has increased making the profession financially viable, she added. Music and deejaying are now among the hot career options for many girls from the hills.

Owners of professional music schools have identified the pulse of the young generation. They say aspiring musicians from the hills are skilled.

"Hill youths are good musicians but without formal training of practice and theory, they go no further. Today there is a lot of scope for boys and girls who want to learn Western music. We want to guide them in the right direction so they can pursue it not as a hobby but make a good career in music industry," said Clement Britto who started the School of Rock affiliated to Rock School UK at Kalimpong in 2012.

Monalisa Rai, who hails from Kurseong and is a lead singer of a Delhi-based band RigMona since two years, says there hasn't been an idle weekend.

"Social media has helped tremendously to promote our band. We keep getting offers for gigs through our social media accounts and there hasn't been a single weekend when we have not performed. Moreover, the audiences love female musicians because it allows the band to perform a variety of songs," she said.

RigMona is group of four, including three men, and has come out with two music videos - ordinary lover and we all believe in love.

Sonika Lama from Darjeeling is another woman who opted for an unconventional career and started as a radio jockey in late 90's and now is popularly known as Deejay She.

"Deejaying was a relatively new career option when I started. Except for a three week crash course from an international deejay I had not received any formal training. I learned while on the job. However, the scene has changed today and one can now get trained at an institute," said Sonika, who performs across the country.

"Earlier, only big cities boasted of thriving nightlife but recently a good number of clubs and pubs have come up in the region too. The uncertainties associated with the profession are no longer there. More girls from hills wants to become deejays now," Sonika said.

Ekta Subba popularly known as DJ Rachel is also from Kurseong and at present is a resident deejay at Taj Palace Delhi and freelances too.

"I was in the middle of my deejaying course when my father expired. I could have taken up his job in a bank but I chose to complete my deejaying course as nothing interests me more than music. My advice to young girls is that people may doubt your skills but always follow your heart and do what you love," said Ekta.

Prem Kiran Dan Gurung, owner of Elim Melody Academy in Siliguri, says the changing taste of audiences in music has encouraged youngsters to make a career in the music industry.

The institute affiliated to Rock School UK, Royal School of Music UK, and Trinity College in London, offer courses in western classical music and modern music.

[Via: Telegraph]

A MATTER OF WILL - While Assam Paid tea Garden Workers Their Wages, Bengal Failed

Writes: Pratim Ranjan Bose

West Bengal and Assam are of similar size. Assam has 792 tea estates in comparison with the 295 gardens in Bengal’s adjacent three districts in the North. The remoteness and logistical challenges in Assam are greater than in Bengal.

Yet, post-demonetisation, Assam paid November wages (weekly, fortnightly and monthly) to twice the size of workers while Bengal suffered. For the majority of the workforce, wage payment was delayed by nearly a fortnight. And, workers in some 25 odd gardens didn’t get that too.

What’s more, Assam is moving steadfastly to shift from cash to bank transfer by December 15. Banks are conducting camps in Assam’s gardens to open accounts of the unbanked. At least one garden has already started paying wages through banks. In Bengal, this is still a far cry.

Assam into action
Is there a conspiracy behind this, as the West Bengal Chief Minister often complains? Is it the RBI and its quick changes in rules and regulations that came in Bengal’s way?

The answer lies in the way the two State governments approached the issue. The Bengal government called district magistrate-level meetings with the tea industry on the evening of November 12, four days after demonetisation. By this time, Assam had started paying wages to tea workers using RBI special provisions.

“The demonetisation was declared on Tuesday (November 8). Since wages are paid on Fridays and Saturdays we barely had time,” Sandip Ghosh, Secretary of Assam Branch Indian Tea Association (ABITA) told BusinessLine.

As the industry approached the State government on the next morning (November 9), Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal called an emergency meeting. Within 48 hours, the State government activated all district collectors. The industry was asked to transfer funds to the collectors who would, in turn, issue cheques for withdrawal.

The rest was a cakewalk. According to Ghosh, most workers were paid on time, for some payment was delayed by a day or two. “We paid on schedule. There was no hassle excepting that garden managers braved long queues at banks,” Ghosh added.

He is confident that the majority of gardens will migrate to bank transfer of salary by the December 15 deadline. Some 25 per cent of the gardens suffer from internet connectivity issues. Some have to invest in computerisation. The payment schedule of workers should also be adjusted to help banks dispense cash smoothly.

Overall, the tea industry is bullish that migration to the new system will not be delayed beyond January.

“The Chief Minister has asked all including banks, telecom companies and tea producers to implement the order in mission mode. He personally takes stock of the progress every day at 10 AM,” Ghosh said.

Compare this with Bengal. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to Twitter and protested against demonetisation within 30 minutes of the Prime Minister’s announcement.

The State administration started to follow Assam’s example only four days later. By November 21, when the RBI amended the special provisions to allow tea gardens to raise money directly from banks (not through the State) under a pre-decided formula, nearly one-third of the gardens were unpaid.

Fresh preparations for wage payment started last week. In the absence of strict State monitoring, the implementation was delayed further.

[Source: The Hindu Business Line]

Last rites of Sushma performed today - She was brutally murdered in Delhi, no arrests

Sushma Rai from Dooars who used to work in Delhi was murdered brutally there. Her headless body was found by the police. Today her last rites were performed. No arrests have been made yet. Post mortem reports to come tomorrow.

We thank Nirmal Tamang, Rebicca Rai , Arun Das, Yudhistir Saha, Tashi Lama, Nisha Lama & Rajen Chettri and others who are assisting police team to find the culprits. The victims family demands justice, hope the culprits are arrested soon.

Read more on this here:

Shocking - Police find a headless body of a girl from Dooars atDelhis Munarka area

http://blog.ilovesiliguri.com/2016/12/shocking-police-find-headless-body-of.html

सिक्किम बिलय गोर्खा प्रदेशको निम्ति वाधा हो छैटो अनूसुचि राज्य गठन अघि अभिशाप् हो – आरपी शर्मा

राजेश शर्मा, कालिमन्युज, नयाँ दिल्ली 2 दिसम्बर । भारत भरि छरिएर बसेका गोर्खाहरुको गोर्खाल्याण्ड्को सपना एकातिर छ भने जन - जातिको मांगतिरको दौडाइ अर्कोतिर छ।
दुवै माग मांग्ने माग्दैछन एउटै दल अनि एकै समूहले । दार्जीलिंग पहाडमा भइअरहेको यस गतिविधिबारे प्रश्न गर्दा असम राज्यका तेजपूरको सांसद आर पी शर्माले असमका 11 जातका गोर्खाहरुलाई पनि जन जातिमा अन्तर्भुक्त गर्ने मागलाई भारतको प्रधान मंत्री नरेन्द्र मोदि समक्ष एउटा ज्ञापन मार्फत चड़ाएको जनाएका छन। तिनले भने कि यो माग जायज माग हो ।
भारतमा बस्ने गोर्खाहरुको निम्ति अहिले घरि 11 जातहरुलाई भारत सरकारले जनजातिको दर्जा दिन आवस्यक छ । जनजातिको यो मागले गोर्खाहरुको निम्ति आउने भविष्यमा एउटा बाटो तैयार गर्न ठूलो भूमिका खेल्ने तिनले अझ बताए । देशका अन्य राज्यका 11 गोर्खा जातलाई जनजातिको दर्जा दिनु तर असम राज्यका गोर्खाहरुलाई नदिनु यो एउटा गोप्यनिय षड्यंत्र रहेको सांसद शर्माले मंतव्य गरे ।
सांसद शर्माले भने कि जनजातिको दर्जाले दार्जीलिंगका 11गोर्खा जातिलाई धेरै लाभ हुनेछ । यसैले दार्जीलिंगका गोर्खाहरु एक जुट भएर 11 जनजातिको मागको निम्ति अघि आउनू पर्छ । साथै भारतको राज्य गठन आयोगले राज्य गठन गर्ने प्रावधानमा जनजातिको आरक्षण गर्ने कानून लागु गरेको हुन्छ यसैले दार्जीलिगका मानिसहरुले राज्यको माग गर्दा ल्याण्ड शब्दलाई प्रयोग नगरि गोर्खा प्रदेश भनेर आफ्नो माग राख्नूपर्छ ।
अलग राज्यको माग गर्दा तराई- डुवर्स अनि पहाड मिलाएर असम बोडोल्याण्डको सिमा सुनकोस सम्म माग गर्नुपर्छ कारण यसोगर्नाले एकातिर यसको सिमाना सिक्किम राज्य हुनेछ भने अर्कोतिर असम राज्य हुनेछ अनि यही तिन राज्यको मित्रताले भारतमा बस्ने गोर्खाहरुको एकता हुनेछ् जसले धेरै प्रकारको लाभ हुनेछ । सांसद शर्माले भने कि पहाड़का कतिपय गोर्खाहरुले सिक्किम बिलय गराउने जुन मागको आवाज उठाई रहेका छन त्यो गलत हो किन कि यसले सिक्किमे जनतालाई ठूलो घात पुग्नेछ ।
गोर्खाहरुले आफ्नो हक पाउनु हो भने गोर्खाल्याण्ड शब्दको साटो गोर्खा प्रदेश वा गोर्खा अंचलको नामले अलिपूरद्वार, जलपाईगड़ी अनि दार्जीलिंग रेलको कनेक्टिभिटि रहेको मानचित्र बनाएर बृहत गोर्खा प्रदेशको मागतिर जोड़ लगाउनू पर्ने तिनले सुझाव दिए। तिनले अझै भने कि गोर्खाहरुको निम्ति अहिले घरि छैटो अनूसुचि अभिशाप् हो। पहिला अलग राज्य भएर मात्र छैटौ अनूसुचि भए पछि यसले गोर्खाहरुलाई लाभ हुने छ ।