Truck plunges into gorge, 16 Indian Army soldiers killed

Incident took place at Zema, which is en route to Thangu, while the vehicle was negotiating a sharp turn

The mangled remains of the army truck at Zema in Sikkim on Friday.

Writes : Avijit Sinha, Rajeev Ravidas

Sixteen Indian Army soldiers were killed and four others injured after the truck they were travelling in skidded off the road and fell into a gorge in north Sikkim, near the India-China border, on Friday.

In a statement, the army said three of the deceased were junior commissioned officers, while 13 were soldiers. The four survivors, who were travelling on the truck that was part of a three-vehicle convoy, were airlifted and admitted to an army hospital in Bengdubi near Siliguri.  

The Himalayan state of Sikkim has been witnessing the increasing deployment of armed forces in recent months because of rising tension between India and China. However, it could not be immediately confirmed whether the deceased had recently moved to Sikkim as a part of the build-up along the border.

Sources aware of the crash said a convoy of three vehicles was carrying army men from Chatten — an acclimatisation base in Mangan district of Sikkim — to Thangu, which is barely 1.5km from the international border, in the morning.

Around 8.15am, almost 45 minutes after the 2.5-tonne truck had left Chatten with 20 persons, it veered off the road and fell down a 1,000ft-deep slope. The incident took place at Zema, which is en route to Thangu, while the vehicle was negotiating a sharp turn.  

The bodies of all the 16 deceased persons were seized by the army’s recovery unit with the help of Sikkim police.

“Given the difficult nature of the terrain and harsh wintry condition, the bodies were recovered with much difficulty. The bodies have been taken to the medical intervention unit of the army at Chatten where an inquest was carried out by the police,” said a source.

Later, sources said the bodies would be shifted to a Gangtok hospital on Saturday for post-mortem, following which they would be handed over to the army. 

Chatten, which is close to Lachen — a popular tourist destination located around 130km from Sikkim capital Gangtok, has an installation of the army. Thangu, a tiny hilly hamlet close to the Tibetan plateau located at a height of around 4,000 metres, is a strategic point as it is the last Indian village on the border.

One of the deceased persons was Gopinath Makur from Bankura in Bengal. The President, the Prime Minister and many others mourned the soldiers’ deaths. “Pained by the loss of lives of our brave army personnel due to a road mishap in Sikkim. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon,” tweeted the PMO.

Sikkim chief minister P.S. Tamang and his Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee also expressed their condolences. 

In Sikkim, defence personnel had lost their lives in similar accidents in the past as well. In June, two jawans died in a road accident in Zuluk. 

In July last year, four soldiers were killed in east Sikkim on Jawaharlal Nehru Road which connects Gangtok with the Tsomgo Lake and Nathu-la when a vehicle carrying 15 soldiers of the Kumaon regiment went off the road and plunged into a 600ft deep gorge.

On the same route, three army personnel and the child of a colonel died in another accident at 17th Mile in December 2020.

Retired army officers based in this region said in such hilly terrains, experienced drivers are engaged by the defence forces. Also, vehicles are checked regularly. 

“All necessary precautions are taken but even then, such accidents are reported. Such non-combat casualties are not desirable. We believe there will be a thorough probe into the incident to find out whether the vehicle had developed any sudden technical glitch and necessary advisories would be issued to drivers and others concerned to avert such accidents,” said an ex-serviceman based in Siliguri.

[News source : The Telegraph]

Cooch Behar: Tea garden suspends work, 550 jobless

Management has not cleared 21 days of workers’ wages and one month and 21 days of wages of the sub-staff, says Alamgir Hossain

Representational image.File picture

The management of a tea garden in Cooch Behar district announced work suspension from Thursday, leaving around 550 workers jobless.

As workers of Sreebas tea estate in Changrabandha under Mekhliganj subdivision reached the garden on Thursday morning, they saw the suspension notice

“The management has not cleared 21 days of workers’ wages and one month and 21 days of wages of the sub-staff. This (suspension of work) is undesirable. If they (the garden management) had an issue, they should have sat for talks,” said Alamgir Hossain, a leader of Trinamul workers’ front INTTUC.

A worker said the garden should reopen at once or else the tea bushes would dry up. Workers also resorted to protests at the garden and contacted the administration for an intervention.

District assistant labour commissioner Sumanta Roy called a tripartite meeting but no one from the garden’s management came.

[News Via : The Telegraph]

#Darjeeling MP Raju Bista Demands Re-inclusion of 11 Gorkha sub-tribes as ST without any further delay.

Office of Raju Bista

Press Release

Today, I spoke on the  have requested the Union Government to expedite the process of granting Schedule Tribe status to the 11 left-out Gorkha sub-tribes Bhujel, Gurung, Mangar, Newar, Jogi, Khas, Rai, Sunwar, Thami, Yakha (Dewan) and Dhimal without causing any further delay. 

Speaking in support of the Constitution Scheduled Tribes Order Second Amendment Bill of 2022, I highlighted how under the leadership of Hon'ble Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi ji, the Tribal Community across India is finally getting the support and justice that had been long denied to them. It is a matter of great pride that our nation today has the first Tribal Female president H.E Draupadi Murmu ji. I highlighted how under PM Modi ji, our government has increased the Scheduled Tribe Component of Tribal Sub-plan (TSP) by 350% from Rs 24504.45 crores in 2013-14 to Rs 87,584 crores in 2022-23. I also applauded the celebration of our Tribal communities in the form of 'Janjati Gaurav Diwas' initiated by PM Modi ji on the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda ji.

I informed the Parliament how the Indian Gorkha community, which was compositely recognized as the “Hill Tribes” till Independence. However, after Independence the “Hill Tribes” status of the Gorkha community was taken away without any consultation with the community members. This has caused them to be harassed and kept deprived of their rights. They are treated as 'citizens of Nepal' instead of Indian citizens and have to face humiliation in our own country. 

I highlighted how the WB Government had gladly accepted the land and resources of our Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars when our region was merged with West Bengal in 1954, but had refused to accept the people who live there, and how the Gorkhas were continued to be discriminated against in the state. I highlighted how the TMC Govt was conspiring to continue denying the Gorkhas their rights, and seeking to cause a demographic change in the border region, by settling in Rohingyas and other illegal immigrants in the critical "Chicken Neck" region of our country.

I therefore requested the Government of India to help end this 'identity crisis' and reduce national security threat faced by our country, by re-including the 11 left-out Gorkhas sub-tribes as Scheduled Tribes at the earlies.  

I informed the Parliament, that the Gorkha community has patiently waited for justice for a long time, and doing so will not only help in correcting a historical wrong, but it will also permit the Gorkha people to preserve our unique cultural and traditional heritage. Most importantly, this will help provide the Gorkhas with Constitutional protection.

While there has been a considerable delay in the completion of granting ST status for Gorkhas, but I am confident that the Government of India will expedite the process and give the Gorkha community the long awaited justice.

*Raju Bista*

*Member of Parliament, Darjeeling and* 

*National Spokesperson, BJP*

Jalpaiguri Trinamul leads provident fund protest in Jalpaiguri

Hundreds of tea workers are being deprived of their PF because of the lackadaisical attitude of EPFO authorities: Ritabrata Banerjee

[Tea workers and Trinamul supporters at the demonstration in front of the regional PF office in Jalpaiguri on Tuesday.

Biplab Basak]

Hundreds of Trinamul supporters, including tea workers, went to the regional provident fund office in Jalpaiguri on Tuesday, demanding necessary steps from the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) — a central government organisation — to expedite payment of PF to tea workers.

Led by state ministers Moloy Ghatak and Bulu Chik Baraik and state INTTUC president Ritabrata Banerjee, party supporters held a demonstration in front of the office.

“Hundreds of tea workers are being deprived of their provident fund because of the lackadaisical attitude of EPFO authorities. John Barla, a Union minister of state (the BJP MP of Alipurduar), is from a tea estate but has not done anything for workers on this issue. If the issue is not resolved within this month, tea workers and our party will raise blockades in front of the house of John Barla and other BJP MPs and MLAs of this region,” said INTTUC president Banerjee.

In September this year, Trinamul’s all-India general secretary Abhishek Banerjee announced in Malbazar that the party will organise a movement against the EPFO on a number of issues related to workers.

These include the problem faced by some tea workers in linking their Aadhaar with PF accounts, delay on the part of some tea gardens in depositing provident fund although it is deducted from workers’ wages and employees’ salaries, and hurdles faced by some workers in receiving their provident fund after retirement.

During the demonstration, a delegation representing Trinamul Cha Bagan Sramik Union submitted a memorandum to EPFO authorities, stating the issues should be resolved.

Mahua Gope, the Jalpaiguri district Trinamul president, said John Barla and other legislators of the BJP will have to answer tea workers and their families about what they have done for them.

“These people have only made empty promises. We have never seen John Barla taking any effective steps to help tea workers with their provident fund. The state government, on the other hand, has taken various initiatives for people in tea estates,” she said.

The demonstration in front of the EPFO office, preceded by rallies conducted by Trinamul across the Dooars on various issues of tea workers, indicates that Mamata Banerjee’s party wants to exert pressure on the saffron camp and simultaneously revive its support base in the north Bengal brew belt, said political observers.

They pointed out that panchayat elections are ahead and the support of the tea belt decides the results of rural bodies in at least three north Bengal districts.

“In some recent elections, a section of tea workers sided with the BJP. Trinamul wants the votes to swing in its favour and hence has taken up the task of playing the development card and raising issues like provident fund dues which the workers can easily relate to,” said an observer.

source : The Telegraph

Kareena Kapoor to make her OTT debut from Darjeeling

Kareena kapoor file pic

Writes : Vivek Chhetri

Kareena Kapoor is set to make her over-the-top (OTT) debut from Darjeeling and many believe Bollywood’s latest foray into the hill station is the result of prevailing stability and peace in the region.

“Kareena Kapoor will be starring in a film directed by Sujoy Ghosh and she is expected to reach Darjeeling next week. Some of the places where shootings will take place are Mt Hermon School, Ghoom railway station, a monastery near Ghoom and also near Lava in Kalimpong,” said a source who is in the know of things.

The untitled movie is an adaptation of a novel, The Devotion of Suspect X, written by one of Japan’s most popular writers, Keigo Higashino.

According to director Ghosh’s tweet, the other lead characters in the movie are Jaideep Ahlawat of the Gangs of Wasseypur fame and Vijay Varma who is known for his role in the film Gully Boy.

Following the shooting in the Darjeeling hills, the next round of filming will be held in Mumbai in June, said a source.

Darjeeling was a regular feature in Bollywood many years ago. While Rajesh Khanna-Sharmila Tagore starrer Aradhana put the place in the spotlight, more than 200 films have been shot in the hills.

Sanjay Biswas, a writer in Darjeeling, said: “The list of even Bollywood films shot in Darjeeling is long. Over 200 films in Hindi, Bengali, Nepali and even Tamil and Telugu films have been shot here.”

Some well-known films to be shot in Darjeeling include Vinod Khanna-Shabana Azmi starrer Lahoo Ke Do Rang and Raj Kapoor’s Barsaat. Dev Anand visited the town many times to shoot for Mahal, Joshila and Jab Pyar Kisise Hota Hai.

Amitabh Bachchan was here with Rekha for Do Anjaane and with Rakhi for Barsaat Ki Ek Raat. “Anurodh, which had Rajesh Khanna, was also shot in Darjeeling. Sunil Dutt, too, had visited Darjeeling for Humraaz,” said Biswas.

Shah Rukh Khan shot Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman and Main Hoon Na. “Main Hoon Na was shot in Darjeeling in 2003 and the next major Bollywood shooting was for Anurag Basu’s Barfi! in 2011,” said a movie buff from Darjeeling.

Between 2007 and 2011, the hills were in turmoil over Gorkhaland. There was another round of agitation in 2013 and Bollywood stayed away from the region then. However, when things settled, director Basu came to Darjeeling in 2016 to shoot for Jagga Jasoos which had Ranbir Kapoor in the lead.

Sujoy Ghosh, too, was in Kalimpong to shoot for Kahaani 2 which had Vidya Balan in the lead in 2016.

The hills went into agitation mode again in 2017. “As soon as there was stability in 2018, Rajinikanth came to Kurseong to shoot for his Tamil film Petta,” said the movie buff.

Paras Chhetri, who works as a line director in Darjeeling for Bollywood films, admitted that lack of stability and peace in the region hit the industry hard.

“In the past two-and-a-half months, the pandemic hit us hard. Earlier, the strike and agitation did play spoilsport. We can now expect two to three major web series to be shot in Darjeeling soon,” said Chhetri stressing that those could be seen as spoils of some stability and peace in the hills.

Most web series are aired through OTT, which essentially is a media service offered directly to viewers via the internet bypassing cable broadcast and satellite television platforms.

[Source : Telegraph]

Diesel price hits a ton, buses bear brunt

There are around 5,500 private buses on local and long-distance routes across north Bengal, but hardly 2,500 buses run on roads

In Pic : Private buses parked at the Tenzing Norgay Central Bus Terminus in Siliguri. File picture

Writes : Avijit Sinha

Almost half of the private bus owners in north Bengal have stopped running their vehicles in the region and to Assam and Bihar because of galloping diesel prices. 

The price of diesel — increasing rapidly in the last few days — touched Rs 100 per litre at a number of locations of Bengal on Tuesday, including Darjeeling and Cooch Behar of north Bengal. 

According to Pranab Mani, the secretary of the North Bengal Passenger Transport Owners’ Coordination Committee, many bus owners grounded their vehicles as their earnings can’t match their fuel cost. 

There are around 5,500 private buses on local and long-distance routes across north Bengal, but hardly 2,500 buses run on roads, he said.

“In 2018, the bus fare was hiked for the last time by the state government when the price of a litre of diesel was Rs 68. Now, it is Rs 100 in many places. It is obvious that many owners are in acute financial crisis,” Mani said. 

In the last week alone, 500 buses went off roads in north Bengal as diesel prices have increased virtually every day. 

Bus owners said that in 2014, when diesel was Rs 64 per litre, the fare of private buses was fixed at 60 paise per kilometre for local buses and 65 paise per kilometre for long-distance buses. In 2018, when diesel price increased to Rs 68 per litre, the state government revised the fares by 10 paise per kilometre to be 70 paise and 75 paise for local and long-distance buses, respectively. 

“Now diesel is around Rs 100 per litre and we are charging the same old fares. It is not possible for us to sustain the loss,” said a bus owner based in Cooch Behar.

Over the past one week, there has been a dip in the number of private buses that connect Siliguri to different locations. Around 48 private buses used to run between Cooch Behar and Siliguri but now only 30 do. 

Similarly, 15 private buses would run along the Siliguri-Alipurduar route but now only six to seven do.

“We fail to understand why the state government is not increasing the bus fares when price of every other item is on the rise. The state itself has to bear the loss as it is paying subsidies to the North Bengal State Transport Corporation and other state-run transport companies every month. An immediate revision of fares can help the sector to revive or else the situation will worsen,” another bus owner said.

In north Bengal, around 20,000 people are associated with the private passenger transport sector.

A senior official of the state transport department said they were aware of the situation. “We understand their problem but the decision to revise fares has to be made at the top level of the government. All we can do is to make recommendations,” he said.

Source : The Telegraph

Residents of Dalgaon tea estate recalls Bogtui-like carnage

In one of the most horrific massacres in north Bengal, 19 persons were killed and burnt at the home of a Citu leader on November 6, 2003

[In Pic :The Dalgaon tea estate near Birpara of Alipurduar district, the site of the 2003 carnage where 19 persons were murdered.File Picture]

Writes : Avijit Sinha

The carnage at Bogtui village in Birbhum district, where eight persons were murdered on Monday, made residents of the Dooars tea belt recall a similar incident of 2003 at Dalgaon tea estate near Birpara of Alipurduar district.

Seen as one of the most horrific massacres in north Bengal, 19 persons were killed and burnt at the home of a Left-backed trade union leader on November 6, 2003.

A group of workers of the garden attacked the house of Citu leader Tarakeswar Lohar who was holding a meeting. The workers,  furious with Lohar and his henchmen for their highhandedness, resorted to the attack when they learnt the trade union leader wanted to induct three “outsiders” in clerical posts of the garden, instead of local educated youths.

They barged into the house with sharp weapons and indiscriminately attacked those sitting inside. Lohar and a few others managed to escape but 19 people, including two women, died. The house was torched and what remained were charred remains of the bodies.

“The thought of it still sends a chill down our spine,” recalled Parameswar Mahali, a former worker of the garden. “We rushed to see the house in flames. There were bloodstains everywhere and charred bodies on the ground.”

Lohar did manage to escape from the spot and later died a natural death .

In due course, it was found that the attack was retaliatory, similar to the Bogtui incident. But here, unlike in Bogtui, where the massacre seems to be a sequel of Trinamul leader Bhadu Sheikh’s murder on Monday, Dalgaon residents were fed up with Lohar and his aides.

However, Debaprasad Roy, a veteran Congressman from Jalpaiguri, pointed out that while the government in Bengal had changed from the Left to Trinamul, the culture of violence had not.

“There is information that the incident in Bogtui happened because of a dispute between the two groups of Trinamul workers who were into illegal sand mining and some other activities and wanted to gain control over the area,” said Roy.

[source : Thr Telegraph]

Hill solution, not GTA poll, says Bimal GurungOn Tuesday, Mamata had again spoken of her wish to hold the elections

Writes : Vivek Chhetri

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha chief Bimal Gurung on Thursday wrote to chief minister Mamata Banerjee requesting her not to hold the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) elections but work out a “permanent political solution” for the hills.

“Today we wrote a letter to chief minister Mamata Banerjee requesting her to work out a permanent political solution instead of holding GTA elections…. Holding elections would go against the democratic spirit as the people of the hills have rejected the GTA,” Gurung, who is an ally of Trinamul, said in Kalimpong.

On Tuesday, Mamata had again spoken of her wish to hold the GTA polls. “...Now Darjeeling is peaceful, I am so happy. Darjeeling started the election process, I am so happy. Next, we will go for GTA election also but before that I will sit will all... and try and adjust with so many parties. We want to see that Darjeeling smiles,” she had said.

A senior leader of Morcha, Lopsang Yolmo, who was the chairman of the GTA Sabha, said his understanding of permanent political solution was the state of Gorkhaland.

Although the BJP government promised a “permanent political solution” in its 2019 Lok Sabha election manifesto and Mamata while campaigning for the Assembly election in 2021 had said in a rally that the BJP-led Centre would never work it out and only the state government would, the exact contours of the "PPS" has neither be defined by the BJP nor Trinamul.

Gurung’s Morcha is now pressing on this point. Yolmo said the Morcha would organise a seminar in Kalimpong on April 2, to discuss the PPS .

Earlier, Roshan Giri, general secretary of the Morcha had talked about a provision under Article 244 (A) of the Constitution. This Article was inserted in the Constitution in 1969 for the formation “of an autonomous state comprising certain tribal areas in Assam” with provision for creating local legislature or council of ministers or both.Gurung’s party had rejected the GTA when they started the Gorkhaland agitation in 2017. In the hills, the BJP and GNLF are also opposed to it. The GNLF even filed a case against the hill body in Calcutta High Court. However, new hill parties — Hamro Party and the BGPM — are in favour of the GTA elections.

source : @Telegraph

Woman, son dead in blaze inside flat in Cooch Behar

According to sources, they own a flat in the third floor of a building in New Kadamtala area under ward 11 of the town

[Representational image.Shutterstock]

A middle-aged woman and her son died in a blaze that broke out at a multi-storey building in Cooch Behar town on Tuesday.

The deceased have been identified as Supriya Sarkar, 51, and her son Sujoy, 32.

Sources said they own a flat in the third floor of a building in New Kadamtala area under ward 11 of the town. A few days back, they had come to the flat from Patna, where they usually stay.

On Tuesday morning, some residents spotted smoke coming out of the flat and informed the police and the fire services. Two fire tenders from Cooch Behar fire station reached the spot and doused the blaze.

A team from Kotwali police station also went to the site.

After the fire was extinguished, firemen and police entered the flat to find the bodies of the mother and the son.

“The son works in Patna and both he and his mother stayed there most of the time. Around three-four days back, they had come to the flat which otherwise used to be under lock and key,” said a local resident.

The cause of the fire is not yet known.

Residents also pointed out that the firemen had to break a lock to enter the flat. “They were inside the flat and yet it was locked outside. The police should find out why,” one said.

On February 12, another fire had broken out in another multi-storey building in Bhawaniganj Bazar, the largest market of the town. However, no casualty or injury was reported in that incident.

[source : The Telegraph]

Focus on work ethic, Mamata Banerjee sets road map for Siliguri

There have also been reports of several ruling party leaders leading a flashy lifestyle, something that the Bengal chief minister has never approved of

[Chief minister Mamata Banerjee with newly elected Trinamul Congress councillors of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation on Tuesday]Picture by Passang Yolmo

Writes : Devadeep Purohit, Bireswar Banerjee

Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday told the newly elected Trinamul councillors of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) to lead a spartan life and work for the common people, the message coming at a time the chief minister is repeatedly stressing the virtues of a simple life for leaders of the ruling party.

“You have a roof above your head… You get decent square meals. You can have a two-wheeler or at best a car to move around. Ideally, you should be using two-wheelers when you go out to meet people,” said Mamata in her brief interaction with the 37 councillors of Trinamul who came to Uttar Kanya to meet her.

The lesson that Mamata gave to the councillors assumes significance as the last few years have seen several Trinamul leaders making big SUVs and sedans with tinted glasses a part of their lifestyle. There have also been reports of several ruling party leaders leading a flashy lifestyle, something that Mamata has never approved of.

The chief minister told Gautam Deb, the would-be mayor of Siliguri, that after assuming office, he should constitute a monitoring cell.

“You should form a monitoring and implementation cell to check progress and execution of development works (in the SMC). I will also monitor (it),” she said.

She also asked the councillors to put in all possible efforts so that Siliguri — the largest city in north Bengal and the gateway to the Northeast — can be developed as urban centres like Calcutta and Rajarhat. “You will have to ensure participation of people from all walks of life in the development process,” she said before adding that development didn’t only mean “large expenditure”.

The chief minister’s missive to the councillors, a source said, meant she did not want any malpractice in the running of the civic body.

In 2012, a year after Mamata first came to power, a scam had come to surface at the Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority (SJDA) — a development agency that functions under the state municipal affairs and urban development department — that had embarrassed the newly sworn in Trinamul government.

It was alleged that government funds to the tune of Rs 80 crore was misappropriated on the pretext of projects like electrical crematorium and sewerage treatment plants, which either were unfinished or not carried out. The scam led to a CID probe, which resulted in the arrest of an IAS officer who was the chief executive officer of the SJDA then.

“That scam had been a setback for Trinamul. At the 2015 civic elections, the Left and Congress made it an agenda. Trinamul lost and the Left came to power. This seems to be another reason why the chief minister rang an alert today (Tuesday),” said a political observer.

Deb, while talking to newspersons after the interaction with Mamata, said she has set a road map for the civic board and they will follow it.

“We will take up the tasks like improvement of traffic movement system in the city, better drinking water supply, along with other infrastructure works as per the road map,” he said.

source : The Telegraph

Tea tourism plan brews in garden

In pic : Saket Agarwal, director of Majherbari tea estate, and (right) Giriraj Agarwal, an executive officer of the company, with their teas.

Writes : Anirban Choudhury

The management of Majherdabri tea estate on the outskirts of Alipurduar town has drawn up a major tea tourism project in the garden for which the company will invest funds to the tune of Rs 10 crore.

Recently, the Bengal tourism department approved the project, the work of which will soon commence in the garden.

In Alipurduar district, this is the first major project to be taken up in a tea garden.

“We hope to finish construction work of the first phase in two years. There will be an array of amenities for tourists. It will also be an attraction for people of this region,” said Saket Agarwal, a director of Majherdabri.

The garden is favourably located for tea tourism, as it is adjacent to the Buxa Tiger Reserve and close to NH 31C that connects district to the Northeast. Also, Nonai, a hilly stream, flows through the garden. It is also near two railway stations – Alipurduar Junction and New Alipurduar, with the the Bhutan hills in the background.

Agarwal, while elaborating on the proposed project, said they will use around 10 acres of land to set up the infrastructure.

“The work will be carried out in three phases. In the first phase, we will build 10 cottages, a swimming pool, a tea and coffee bar, a multi-cuisine restaurant and a banquet hall,” he said.

These would be followed by a destination wedding hall, another 10 cottages, a spa and a gymnasium in the second phase.

In the final phase, the tea company will develop a golf course, along with tennis and badminton courts.

“There is also a plan to build a hanging bridge. Also, the cottages would be built in such a manner so that people can have different views of rivers, forests, the tea plantation and the hills,” Agarwal added.

In recent years, a number of proposals for tea tourism have reached the state government, especially after the government  increased the ceiling of land that can be used for tourism  purposes in a tea garden. Now, 15 per cent of the vacant land (maximum 150 acres) can be used for this purpose. Earlier, the ceiling was 5 per cent.

Special teas

Along with the tea tourism project, Majherdabri has also come up with CTC and green teas with special flavours.

The varieties — around 30 of them — have been named as “wellness teas” and are available at their outlet in Alipurduar and also online.

These include moonlit tea, hibiscus tea, masala tea and elaichi tea.

“We have plans to open various outlets for these teas in Cooch Behar and Siliguri soon,” said Agarwal.

Source : The Telegraph

Hill parties focus on Health, water, Hassle-free facilities

Delivery of services is emerging as a key issue among hill political parties ahead of the February 27 civic polls.

The Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatrantrik Morcha, Hamro Party and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha have not released their manifesto, but their leaders have started giving shape to their thrust areas for the 32-ward Darjeeling civic area.

Ajoy Edwards, the president of Hamro Party and largely considered the party’s face for the municipality's chairperson, said they would give every citizen with a free annual health check-up.

“Many residents are not aware of their health conditions as they do not go for an annual health check-up. Regular diagnostic tests help prevent certain diseases and go on to create a healthy and wealthy society,” said Edwards.

The Hamro Party team is conducting such tests — with focus on blood pressure, sugar, lipid profile and liver function — on a trial basis for some months now, Edwards said.He alleged the finances the Darjeeling municipality wasn’t stable as it only generates revenues to the tune of Rs 6 crore against an annual expenditure of Rs 17 crore.

 “We need out-of-the-box ideas to make Darjeeling municipality financially self-sufficient and we are drawing up such plans,” he said.

Hamro Party’s rival, the Anit Thapa-led Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatrantrik Morcha, is also stressing on service delivery.“We will set up a mini-municipality in every ward,” said Amar Lama, the party’s face for municipal chairman. He explained that right now, people have to go to the civic body to get birth, death and income certificates, but with a mini-municipality all these documents would be given to citizens in their respective wards.

Bimal Gurung’s Morcha promised to reduce the one-time household water connection charge from Rs 17,500 to Rs 1,000 and probe into the ongoing water distribution scheme, if voted to power.

Writes ; Vivek chhetri , source : Telegraph

Mamata Banerjee announces TMC's national working committee

Two Trinamul Congress leaders known for supporting Abhishek’s positions — MPs Sougata Roy and Derek O’Brien — did not find a berth in the committee

Mamata Banerjee on Saturday announced a 20-member national working committee of the Trinamul Congress, placing herself at its top and thereby disbanding the existing panel and sending a clear message that hers was the last word in the party.

Although there was never any doubt who was at the helm of affairs in Trinamul, which Mamata founded in 1998, multiple sources said the reassertion was necessary as Abhishek Banerjee, seen as her heir apparent, had been trying to push some key policy changes and taking decisions that did not go down well with her.

“Our chairperson announced a 20-member national working committee, which will be headed by her, to look after the affairs of the party. We are informing the Election Commission of the decision…. She will be announcing the names of the office-bearers shortly and we will inform the EC accordingly,” said education minister Partha Chatterjee, secretary-general of the party, after a 50-minute meeting of senior leaders at Mamata’s 30B Harish Chatterjee Street residence.

Besides Mamata and Abhishek, the 18 others in the committee include the chief minister’s loyalists like Amit Mitra, Chatterjee, Subrata Bakshi, Sudip Bandopadhyay, Anubrata Mondal, Aroop Biswas, Firhad Hakim and Yashwant Sinha

Two Trinamul leaders known for supporting Abhishek’s positions — MPs Sougata Roy and Derek O’Brien — did not find a berth in the committee.

No one in Trinamul officially explained the significance of the new committee, but it is almost certain that Mamata, who was unanimously elected party chairperson on February 2, has virtually disbanded for now all the posts in the party, including that of the all-India general secretary that went to Abhishek on June 5, 2021.

A source close to Mamata described the move as a masterstroke at a time Abhishek had conveyed his intention to quit the post of all-India general secretary because of his failure to bring in policy changes like “one person, one post” (Opop) and a retirement age for politicians.

“If all existing posts are disbanded, how can someone resign from a key organisational post?” asked the Trinamul insider, who was aware of the issues that had created a rift between the doting aunt and a nephew whose political career she had cradled and whom she had made the Number 2 in the party.

After the decision on the working committee was announced by Chatterjee – first he had announced 16 names and later Hakim rolled out the full list -- Trinamul circles rippled with only one question: whether Abhishek had lost the position of pre-eminence he held in the party.

While unexpected twists and turn are possible in a party like Trinamul, where all decisions are taken by Mamata, multiple sources said the aunt had now sent a strong message to the nephew for actions she did not approve of.

“One cannot predict the future, but right now she is in no mood to compromise, which means Abhishek has to concede ground.… Didi has given him an option by keeping him in the working committee but his role in it will depend on how he reacts over the next few days,” a source said.

It is believed in the Trinamul top echelons that Abhishek had been very firm, at least till Friday, on his stand on Opop and retirement age and had conveyed his position to Mamata through intermediaries, which infuriated her.

Before the session at Mamata’s residence began on Saturday, the chief minister had a brief interaction with Abhishek, who was the first to reach 30B Harish Chatterjee Street for the meeting, which was also attended by Subrata Bakshi, Hakim, Biswas, Chandrima Bhattacharyya and MP Sudip.

No one could confirm what transpired between the two, but a source present at the meeting that followed the one-to-one said that Abhishek agreed to sign on a letter that others at the meeting had handed over to her stressing hers was the last word in the party.

A source present at the meeting said Mamata spoke for most of the time and her theme was unity in the party and proper coordination between the new leaders and the old guard.

Some of the issues that have driven a wedge between aunt and nephew -- like Opop and the future of Trinamul’s association with poll consultant Prashant Kishor, an Abhishek favourite — did come up briefly during the discussions but the decisions were left to Mamata.

“Didi has taken full charge of the party and made it clear that she would take all the policy decisions…. This has always been the case in our party except for the last few months when Abhishek too began asserting himself. It remains to be seen how he reacts to Didi’s assertion of her supremacy,” a Trinamul insider said.

“If all existing posts are disbanded, how can someone resign from a key organisational post?” asked the Trinamul insider, who was aware of the issues that had created a rift between the doting aunt and a nephew whose political career she had cradled and whom she had made the Number 2 in the party.

After the decision on the working committee was announced by Chatterjee – first he had announced 16 names and later Hakim rolled out the full list -- Trinamul circles rippled with only one question: whether Abhishek had lost the position of pre-eminence he held in the party.

While unexpected twists and turn are possible in a party like Trinamul, where all decisions are taken by Mamata, multiple sources said the aunt had now sent a strong message to the nephew for actions she did not approve of.

“One cannot predict the future, but right now she is in no mood to compromise, which means Abhishek has to concede ground.… Didi has given him an option by keeping him in the working committee but his role in it will depend on how he reacts over the next few days,” a source said.

It is believed in the Trinamul top echelons that Abhishek had been very firm, at least till Friday, on his stand on Opop and retirement age and had conveyed his position to Mamata through intermediaries, which infuriated her.

Before the session at Mamata’s residence began on Saturday, the chief minister had a brief interaction with Abhishek, who was the first to reach 30B Harish Chatterjee Street for the meeting, which was also attended by Subrata Bakshi, Hakim, Biswas, Chandrima Bhattacharyya and MP Sudip.

No one could confirm what transpired between the two, but a source present at the meeting that followed the one-to-one said that Abhishek agreed to sign on a letter that others at the meeting had handed over to her stressing hers was the last word in the party.

A source present at the meeting said Mamata spoke for most of the time and her theme was unity in the party and proper coordination between the new leaders and the old guard.

Some of the issues that have driven a wedge between aunt and nephew -- like Opop and the future of Trinamul’s association with poll consultant Prashant Kishor, an Abhishek favourite — did come up briefly during the discussions but the decisions were left to Mamata.

“Didi has taken full charge of the party and made it clear that she would take all the policy decisions…. This has always been the case in our party except for the last few months when Abhishek too began asserting himself. It remains to be seen how he reacts to Didi’s assertion of her supremacy,” a Trinamul insider said.

source : Telegraph

BJP MLA demands Padma award for Subash Ghisingh

BJP MLA of Darjeeling Neeraj Zimba has

demanded that Padma awards be conferred on former president of Gorkha National Liberation Front Subash Ghisingh

posthumously. 

This year, the prestigious Padma Shri award was conferred on Kaajee Singh, a "madal" (traditional Nepali instrument) exponent based in Kalimpong district.

Zimba on Friday said he had written to Darjeeling MP Raju Singh Bista

reminding him about the conversation the two had three years ago. 

"I spoke to him (Bista) earlier, to take initiative to recognise the contribution of Ghisingh.

He has left a mark in the history of Indian Gorkhas," he said. Zimba said he had

requested the BJP MP to lobby for nomination and recommendation of

Ghisingh for the Padma award in the coming year. 

"Ghisingh is a towering personality of the Gorkha community and is well known for his social, political, and literary contributions and for spreading awareness among the Indian Gorkhas. 

He had also written and published more than 20 books," Zimba said. Ghisingh was born in 1935 and died in 2015. 

He was the president of the GNLF and was the first politician from the hill to coin the word 'Gorkhaland'. 

Ghising ruled Darjeeling hills for more than 20 years as chairman and later administrator of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council which now has been

replaced by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration. 

Under Ghisingh, the GNLF in the 1980s spearheaded the statehood agitation. 

Later, in 2001 he also raised the demand of including the hills under the sixth schedule of the Constitution. 

Neeraj Zimba, originally from GNLF, won the Darjeeling assembly seat with a BJP ticket. 

Source : VOS of Mirik.