#SIKKIM: Chief Minister calls on Vice-President of India ; CM places three demands of state

Today, the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Shri Pawan Chamling called on His Excellency the Vice-President of India, Shri VenkaihNaidu today at his official residence in New Delhi.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister congratulated and offered his felicitation to him on assuming the office of Vice-President.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister apprised him about the development taking place in Sikkim and sought his guidance and intervention to address the following pending demands of the people of Sikkim:

1. The issue of grant of Assembly seats to the new Scheduled Tribes Sikkimese communities of Limbu and Tamang is pending for last many years. The same right of the two communities may be granted well before the Assembly election in Sikkim;

2. The pending issue of permitting His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa to visit Sikkim and allow HH to take his seat at Rumtek Monastery

3. The 11 left-out Sikkimese communities have been requesting for recognition as Scheduled Tribes as in the erstwhile regime of the Chogyalthey were entitled to equal facilities with other communities of Sikkim.

The Hon’ble Chief Minister was accompanied by Shri Somnath Poudyal and Shri Ugen T. Gyatso, State Ministers of Agriculture and Tourism.

IPR

JUST IN : Once Again Biker Dead in Road Accident near Siliguri

A bike came under the wheels of a speeding truck loaded with boulders near Bengdubi 111 sub area officers mess. There were 2 people in the bike out of which rider got trapped under the wheels of the truck and died immediately. Whereas the other person has been admitted to army hospital.

Sources say both are from the army. Rescue team struggling since an hour to take the body from below the wheels of the truck which is still trapped there. Highway remains blocked.

ILS

Mary Kom strikes gold at Asian Women’s #Boxing Championships

Up against North Korea’s Kim Hyang Mi, the five-time world champion and Olympic bronze medallist Indian prevailed in a unanimous 5-0 verdict.

M.C. Mary Kom (48kg) notched up her fifth gold medal at the Asian Women’s Boxing Championships, winning a fiercely contested summit clash in Vietnam on Wednesday.

Up against North Korea’s Kim Hyang Mi, the five-time world champion and Olympic bronze medallist Indian prevailed in a unanimous 5-0 verdict to add another accolade to her already crowded cabinet.

This is Mary Kom’s first international gold medal since the 2014 Asian Games and her first medal in over a year.

Most aggressive opponent

In Hyang Mi, the 35-year-old Mary Kom found her most aggressive opponent so far in the tournament but she was up for the task.

Unlike her previous bouts, in which the opening three minutes were invariably spent measuring up the rival, both boxers were lunging at each other within seconds of the bell going off.

Matched quite evenly in speed and precision, Mary Kom scored for her ringcraft, which included some fine footwork to outpace Hyang Mi at crucial junctures.

There was hardly any power-hitting on display but the contest was made engaging by the boxers’ fast-paced exchange of punches.

The North Korean was relentless with her left hooks but the Indian did not allow herself to be rattled and scored on counter-attack with her combination blows.

[Source: http://bit.ly/2m3Ei2q]

Badamtam Jr Basic School facing problems due to CRPF occupancy

The Badamtam Jr Basic School, which opened 3 weeks ago after a the long strike of 104 days, has not been able to function properly or conduct classes due to the CRPF occupancy. The school classrooms are being used by the CRPFs to sleep, while the compound is used by them to dry their clothes. The drains remain clogged and give out foul smell. The school had a small kitchen garden, which has now been destroyed and turned into a watch place with cement bunkers.

The students aren't allowed inside their own school and the teachers have been teaching them outside the school premises. Also, since the kitchen of the school is being used by the CRPF to prepare their meal, the provision of mid day meal to the students has stopped. The students of the school basically come from BPL families, already deprived of many luxuries and opportunities in life, and such an act by the CRPF deprives them of their basic right of education too.

The school has already filed a complaint with the S.I. and D.I. of schools but no action has been taken yet.

All good things come to an end, says Nehra

Many believe that Ashish Nehra, with the talent he had, could have played a lot more for India than the 17 Tests, 120 ODIs and 28 T20Is that his CV says. Blame the injuries.  

Nehra too knows that he should have played more. But on Wednesday, moments after he bid adieu to the game, Nehra was in no mood to discuss about what he did not get in his career. His motto is simple: “It is not about how you start, it is about how you finish,” he said.

Nehra made it clear that he did not call it a day on the advice of selectors. “I never had any talk with the national selectors about my retirement. If they have said so, you should go and talk to them about why they said so.

“I could have played for a few more months or for a year, but I thought it was time to hang up my boots. I revealed my retirement plan to Virat (Kohli) in Ranchi. Other players in the team also came to know about it. They all said I could have played little more… At least in the IPL… But I thought enough was enough.

“I know I could have played as a coach-cum-player in one of those IPL teams. Some players even advised me to think about it. But I am not a kind of person who would wake up in the morning to train only for playing IPL. That was not possible for me,” said Nehra.

Nehra admitted that it was indeed an emotional day for him to play his last match . “It is the same ground where I started playing and bowled my first over in Ranji Trophy, against Haryana. I still remember those days… In fact, today I started my spell from the end from where it all began,” he said.

“All good things come to an end one day. My theory is simple – why not leave when you are at the top? At least people will say you would have played some more time. I knew leaving the game would not be easy when you have played it for 20 years. But I have no regrets. Who knows there could be better days ahead…” he said.

“There is no end to aspirations. I would have liked to have more wickets in my kitty. Even Sachin Tendulkar could have asked for 5000 more runs… Human nature is like that. But I have gone through so many injuries… Had so many ups and downs in my career. I have seen so much… So I stay happy,” he said.

Asked why he did not play a Test match after 2004, Nehra said it has always been the selectors’ call. “I could have only performed well and waited to get a chance.

“But I know my teammates wanted me there. Even in 2009 and 2010, the players in the team and coach Gary Kirsten wanted me to play. That’s the biggest satisfaction for me. It is a huge thing when you know your teammates want you there,” Nehra said.

About his captains in his long career, Nehra said: “I played under so many good captains.. Dada (Sourav Ganguly) was there… Later there was MS (Dhoni) and now Virat Kohli, who will definitely go a long way.

“Dada was very good in motivating the youngsters in the team. MS knew how to get the best out of the boys. I was happy to play under all of them. I feel very happy when I am fit,” Nehra said.

Kohli, while speaking about Nehra, said: “To have played 19 years is very hard task for a fast bowler. I know how professional he’s been and how hard he’s worked. He deserved this kind of a farewell, with the crowd cheering him. He can now spend time with his family. We’ll stay in touch, but we’ll miss him and I wish him all the best.”

GNLF flag in Morcha turf after a decade

Writes: Vivek Chhetri

Darjeeling: GNLF chief Mann Ghisingh led a cavalcade of more than 50 vehicles to the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha stronghold of Tukvar and hoisted the party flag there after more than a decade.

Such had been the stranglehold of Morcha chief Bimal Gurung over the Singamari-Tukvar area that GNLF leaders, be it Subash Ghisingh or Mann, had not stepped into the region since 2007.

Gurung, who won as an Independent candidate in 1999, had immediately switched over to the GNLF. Even as a GNLF leader, he ensured that there was not much political activity other than that by his party. After he formed the Morcha in 2007, there was little activity of the GNLF too.

On his birthday on Wednesday, Mann visited the house of Manzil Rai and handed a letter appointing him as the party convener of the Singamari-Tukvar constituency. After that, he hoisted the party flag in front of Rai's house. He was accompanied by hundreds of supporters.

Mann agreed he had come to the area after a long time - the leader had studied in Mount Hermon School, from where Rai's house is at a stone-throw distance.

"I am coming here after a long time. We did not come here earlier as we thought that our presence could lead to violence.... It feels like democracy is returning to the hills," said Mann. "Every individual has the right to affiliate to a party of their choice, and we know we have a lot of supporters in this area."

Stressing on the need for politics of tolerance, Mann said: "Politics of vendetta and violence will have to stop forever in the hills, no houses will burn, nobody should be tortured for following a particular party's principle. No more goondaism politics in Darjeeling."

Calls to Morcha leaders from the Gurung camp did not go through.

Mann's entry to Tukvar is being seen as a "symbolic victory" for a party that has trying to revive itself over the past few months. "We have now appointed conveners in most part of the hills," said Mann.

(Telegraph)

DARJEELING ADMINISTRATION SEALS GJM CENTRAL OFFICE IN SINGHMARI, ARRESTS 3 FOR COP’S DEATH

-The plot of land in the Singamari area had been illegally registered in the name of Avinash Gurung, son of the GJM president, said Darjeeling district magistrate Joyshi Dasgupta.

Virtually cornering Bimal Gurung, the Bengal government on Wednesday sealed the main office of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) in Darjeeling, saying the land on which the building stood belong to the government.

The plot of land in the Singamari area had been illegally registered in the name of Avinash Gurung, son of the GJM president, said Darjeeling district magistrate Joyshi Dasgupta.

Bimal Gurung, who has so far stuck to his demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland, is believed to be hiding in Sikkim as he has been charged under several sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Avik Chatterjee, sub-divisional officer of Darjeeling reached the building, located about 4 km from Darjeeling town, with a police force. The officers pasted a notice at the entrance. It said: “This property and land belongs to the Government of West Bengal. Entry is forbidden.” The three entrances were sealed.

The four-storey building was constructed by Bimal Gurung in 2003. The ground floor houses four shops while the remaining three floors have the offices of GJM and the its frontal organisations such as the Nari Morcha, Yuva Morha, Ex-servicemen Morcha and the trade union wing. The shops will remain open, said Chatterjee.

The police also arrested three persons in connection with the death of police sub-inspector Amitava Malik on October 13. Shyam Kami, Mahindra Kami and Dewaj Lepcha, residents of the Dooars, were arrested near Poolbazar.

The youths are believed to be members of Gorkhaland Personnel, an outfit of volunteers raised by GJM. Malik died in a forest located about 20 km from Darjeeling town. Mahindra Kami’s name was mentioned in the FIR filed earlier, said a senior police officer.

Wednesday’s development came as a major setback for the Bimal Gurung faction of the GJM since many GJM offices, included the sub-divisional office in Darjeeling, have already been occupied by the Binoy Tamang faction of the party. Tamang, who was expelled by Gurung, is now the government appointed chairman of the board of administrators in the semi autonomous Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA).

The GJM head office at Patleybans was raided by the police on June 15 prompting Gurung to call an indefinite bandh in the hills. Police also claimed to have seized a large quantity of explosives from there. The office was sealed.

Some local GJM leaders alleged that there are many illegal buildings where other political parties have set up offices but GJM has become the prime target.

[Via: Hindustantimes]