DARJEELING HILLS: Politician flees Darjeeling to escape Gorkha Janamukti Morcha activists

FROM THAINDIAN

Siliguri, Nov 22 (IANS) Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League (ABGL) president Madan Tamang fled his Darjeeling home and headed for Kolkata early Saturday to escape the ire of Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) activists, who are cut up with him for his allegations against their party chief Bimal Guring, an official said. Tamang left his home at around 4 a.m. and then flew from Bagdogra to Kolkata, said Mohan Chhetri, deputy superintendent of police (headquarters), Darjeeling.

Airport officials also confirmed the development.

Tempers in the hills had risen after Tamang last month accused Gurung of compromising the Gorkhaland movement following secret parleys with state home secretary Ashok Mohan Chakraborty.

Denying the allegations, Gurung had set a Nov 7 deadline for Tamang to prove his allegations.

Once the deadline expired, the GJM leadership asked him to leave politics. The GJM also began demonstrations outside Tamang’s residence and brought out rallies warning him of “serious consequences” if he did not leave the hills.

The GJM alleged that Tamang had misappropriated public money, and even moved court against him.

As the GJM stepped up the heat, Tamang was provided police security.

During the heydays of the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), Tamang had opposed its supremo Subash Ghising. However, he had managed to stay on in Darjeeling, disregarding threats from the GNLF cadres.

Tamang is the latest addition in a long line of anti-GJM political leaders who have been forced to leave the Darjeeling hills under pressure from the GJM.

Ghising himself has shifted base from Darjeeling.

The GJM has been spearheading a movement in the hills demanding a separate state.

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INTERNATIONAL: A Generation Gap in Tibet’s Royal Family

FROM TIME

By JYOTI THOTTAM / DHARAMSALA

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama talks to the media before presenting

“I was seven years old in 1959, and I was studying in Darjeeling,” recalls Khedroop Thondop. “One day my teachers told me that I was to go and receive someone at the train station. That’s when I realized that I was related to His Holiness and that I was Tibetan.”

As the Dalai Lama’s nephew, the eldest son of the Tibetan spiritual leader’s eldest brother, Thondop, now 56, has already led an extraordinary life. He was born in Calcutta, where his father, a political leader in the Tibetan government, had been posted. He went to the elite St. Stephen’s College in New Delhi, got an MBA in the United States, ran a family business for several years in New York City, and then returned to India in 1977 to serve as his uncle’s special assistant. Two years later, he went to Beijing for Tibet’s first negotiations with China, taking notes on the meetings between his father and Chinese supreme authority at the time, Deng Xiaoping. For the last 21 years, he has run a center for Tibetan refugees in Darjeeling and has served three terms in the Tibetan parliament-in-exile.

But perhaps the most extraordinary turn has been his recent conversion to the cause of full independence for Tibet – standing apart from both his father and the Dalai Lama. Thirty years of negotiation have been fruitless, he says, and China has not made any effort to acknowledge the demands of the Tibetan people for autonomy. “There is a generation’s difference between my father and myself,” he says. His father is an old-school diplomat, while Thondop isn’t shy about openly criticizing the current Chinese leadership. He calls them “a bunch of cheats and liars” for denying that Deng was willing to put everything on the table except independence in those first negotiations. “I just can’t forgive them,” Thondop says. “We Tibetans will never be able to live under China.” (See pictures of Tibet Under Chinese Rule.)

At this week’s summit of Tibetan exiles, Thondop, a member of Tibet’s “royal family”, as one young admirer described him, has become a symbol of a generational shift among Tibetans toward support of a free Tibet. “He was there in the beginning,” says Tenzin Tsundu, a pro-independence activist. “To hear his voice say that, it’s a very emotional thing.”

DARJEELING HILLS: “Failure of the Second Tripartite Meeting may lead to Law and order situation in Darjeeling Hills” Union Home Ministry Report

BREAKING NEWS!

THE HIMALAYAN BEACON [BEACON ONLINE] EXCLUSIVE

BY BARUN ROY WITH INPUTS BY ANIL ROY FROM KOLKATA

DARJEELING/KOLKATA: A Union Home Ministry Report comprehending law and order breakdown in Darjeeling Hills in the account of the failure of Second Tripartite Meeting has led to major concern among the common people and political observers in both Darjeeling Hills and the Writers Building. The Report has further stated that situations “akin to the 1986 violence” could develop. Shockwaves were felt at  South Block when a a sentence read Terrorists incursions destablising the entire region including the North East. The Report has come at, some observers believe, “too critical a time”, since only days remain before the second Tripartite Meeting between the Union Government, State Government and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha takes place. The meetings is scheduled for 26th and 27th of November though there has been no confirmation on the part of the Central Government that it is even willing to talk on the issue of Gorkhaland. The South Block has in fact, echoing the State Home Minister’s offer decided to talk on ‘more autonomy’. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in no mood to accept autonomy instead of full statehood, it is believed that nothing will essentially come out of the second Tripartite Meeting. The failure of the second Tripartite Meeting may thus force Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to intensify its movement. The State Government at the same time making case for the deployment of Paramilitary Forces in the hills in the lieu of the ‘worsening law and order situation in Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai’. 

 

PARTY PROFILE: Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists

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Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists – CPRM
Flag	Red background with Communist Hammer and Sickle and a circular green band
Headquarters	Darjeeling
Ideology	Marxism
Political Objective	Development of the Hills / Gorkhaland
Political Reach	Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai
President	-
General Secretary	Ratna Bahadur Rai
Spokesperson	Sawan Rai
Alliance	People’s Democratic Front – PDF
Elections won	1 DGHC seat
Youth Front	Democratic Revolutionary Youth Federation – DRYF
Women’s Wing	Democratic Revolutionary Women’s Federation – DRWF
Cadre Base	Rural

 

The Flag of Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists

 

Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists (CPRM), is a political party based in the district of Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal, India. CPRM was formed in 1996 by Communist Party of India (Marxist) dissidents. These dissidents, who had previously, being against the formation of the separate state of Gorkhaland, resisted the violent Gorkhaland movement led by Subash Ghisingh, President of Gorkha National Liberation Front. More than 1200 party cadres from both parties Communist Party of India (Marxists) and Gorkha National Liberation Front along with common people ultimately died in the ensuing civil strife. The CPIM cadres who died were mostly from Tea Gardens in Darjeeling Hills. It was later believed that the CPIM State Committee and the West Bengal Government had successfully pitted hill peoples against each other and ultimately broken down the Gorkhaland Movement. The Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) Accord was signed in 1988 between Gorkha National Liberation Front, West Bengal Government and the Central Government bringing an end to the Gorkhaland Movement.

The first years of DGHC

A majority of people both within and outside Gorkha National Liberation Front felt that Subash Ghisingh had betrayed the people by accepting the Autonomous Council instead of a full-fledged state. Chhatray Subba, the second in command in the GNLF hierarchy and the President of the armed militant wing of GNLF, Gorkha Voluntary Corps (GVC) swore to avenge the betrayal and fought against Subash Ghisingh. Pretty soon news of armed struggles between GNLF and GVC came to fore. Ultimately, GVC was disseminated by Subash Ghisingh now the Chairman of Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council. Chhatray Subba went into hiding. Meanwhile, resentment was witnessed within the Communist Party of India (Marxists) where veteran leaders from Darjeeling Hills and mostly of Gorkha origin felt that the party was more inclined towards Bengali dominance and that Darjeeling Hills could only find solutions to her problem with the formation of the separate state of Gorkhaland. Prominent leaders who had represented the Darjeeling Constituency at the Legislative Assembly and the Union Parliament now fought with the mother party and broke away.

Prominent leaders who broke away from CPIM were Tamang Dawa Lama and Ratna Bahadur Rai. Both the leaders later formed Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists. During an interview with Beacon in June 1998, Ratna Bahadur Rai said, “We named the party Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists because first of all we are Communists for life. We were disappointed with the party leaders not the Party Ideology of Marxism. We further believe CPIM has lost its revolutionary zeal and hence, there was a need to inculcate and enforce revolutionary character in the Party. Hence the name Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists.”

POLITICAL ALLIANCE

In 1998, CPRM in alliance with All India Gorkha League – AIGL (Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League – अखिल भारतीय गोर्खा लिग ) founded People’s Democratic Front (PDF), a conglomeration of Anti-GNLF and Anti-CPIM parties. The members of PDF were CPRM, AIGL, Congress I, Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP). Madan Tamang, the President of AIGL was elected as the President of PDF while Sawan Rai was elected as the General Secretary.

PERSONALITY: Indra Bahadur Rai

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Indra Bahadur Rai

INDRA BAHADUR RAI (ईन्द्र बहादुर राइ), born on February 3, 1927 at Balasan Tea Estate in Darjeeling, is one of the most eminent writers of long as well as short fictions. He is also highly regarded as one of the pioneers of objective approach in literary studies in Nepali. His major works are incorporated into the syllable prescribed for undergraduate and post-graduate studies in Nepali by different Boards of Education and Universities in India and Nepal. He has always championed the cause of development of Nepali language and literature as one of the major components constituting Indian Literature as a single cultural whole. Being the founder secretary of All India Nepali Bhasa Manyata Samiti अखिल भारतीय नेपाली भाषा मन्यता समिती (1961) he led the movement and paved the way for the recognition of State Language in West Bengal. The movement for the constitutional recognition to Nepali language gathered its highest momentum under his stewardship as president of the All India Nepali Bhasa Samiti during the years 1978 and 1979. As he became too much involved in the movement he decided to take voluntary retirement from his job as a Lecturer of English at St. Joseph’s College, Darjeeling in 1979 itself. Later he joined active politics with a view to fight for the constitutional and democratic rights of the hill people in Darjeeling. But, despite all these involvements he always took literature as his first love. He has published to his credit four books of narrative prose fictions, an equal number of books on literary criticism and many books of non-fiction prose. He has also edited some books and literary periodicals. His most important works are as follows:

Vipana Katipaya – विपना कतिपय	1960	A collection of stories
Aja Ramita Chha – आज रमिता छ	1964	Novel
Kathastha – कथास्थ	1974	A collection of stories1
Tipeka Tippaniharu – टिपेका टिप्पणीहरु	1966	A collection of critical essays
Nepali Upanyaska Adharharu – नेपाली उपन्यस्का आधारहरु	1974	Literary criticism
Sandharbhama Ishwar Ballabhka Kavita सन्धर्भमा इश्वर बल्लभ्का कविता	1976	Literary criticism
Darjeelingma Nepali Natakko Ardhashatabdi दार्जीलिङमा नेपाली नाटकको अर्धशतब्दी	1985
Kathaputaliko Man कथापुतलिको मन	1989	(A collection of short fictions, with a post-script on his concept of Leela Lekhan)
Pahad ka Kholaharoo पहाड का खोलाहरू	1992	(A collection of his non-fiction prose)
Arthaharuko Pachhilitira अर्थहरुको पछीलितिर	1994	(Literary Criticism)
Prishta-Prishtha प्रिश्ता प्रिश्ता	1995	A collection of critical writings
Samayankan Dainikiya समयन्कन डैनिकिया	1997	Dairy Writing
Lekhanru Ra Jhya लेखन्हरु र झ्याल	2000	A collection of articles and one short story
Bhanubhaktaka Kriti Adhyayanharu भानुभक्तका कृति अध्ययनहरु (Edited)	1971	-

LL

Indra Bahadur Rai is undoubtedly the greatest of all Indian Nepali writers writing today. He was the first recipient of the Sahitya Akademi (साहित्य अकदेमी) Award in Nepali. He won this award in the year 1976 for his Nepali Nepali Upanyaska Adharharu – नेपाली उपन्यस्का आधारहरु. His literary career spans over more than thirty five years. His initial writings were published in different periodicals. But his first work to be published in book form was Vipana Katipaya – विपना कतिपय, a collection of thirty short stories. In these stories he appears to be a realist treading the path of the French naturalists. The publications of his very first book proved to be an epoch-making event which carved him a safe niche in the history of the short story as a literary genre in modern Nepali literature.

His style was so arresting, themes so original in appeal and representation so defamiliarized that he immediately found a host of other contemporary as well as younger writers preparing themselves to follow him. Soon his influence became so overwhelming that it engulfed the entire younger generation into its fold. But it did not take much for his followers observation and thought to be followed and imitated. His linguist is competence and its aesthetic performance exhibit a very high degree of compatibility. Some of these texts, though collected in a book of short stories, clearly have a structural foregrounding that positions them somewhere between the two realms of the traditional literary genres of the short story and literary essay. In these works there are two different texts embedded, or rather merged to form a third one. His lone novel, Aaja Ramita Chaa – आज रमिता छ successfully depicts the middle class society of Darjeeling.

On its surface plane the novel, like most of his short stories, signifies the socio-economic and political life of the hill people. But the recurrent motifs of lethargy, and purposelessness characterizing the middle class life style suggest a deeper and universal meaning laying bare the absurdity of human existence itself. As a writer, he has always tried to project literature as the most important of all human arts. This is also manifest in his novel. In this venture he propagated his theory of TESTRO AYAM टेस्त्रो आयम (The Third Dimension) in the early 1960s. In May 1963, he, in collaboration with two of his poet friends Ishvar Ballabh – इश्वर बल्लभ and [Bairagi Kaila] brought out a literary periodical called TESRO AYAM through which the movement of the third dimensional writing was pronounced. This was the first literary movement in Nepali to be every launched consciously. It was, in fact, Rai’s brain child.

INTERNATIONAL: Verdict in Hannah Foster case on Monday

FROM NDTV

Hannah Foster

 

The rape and murder of 17-year-old schoolgirl, Hannah Foster in Britain had made headlines in India four years ago. Hannah who was doing her A levels, was kidnapped, raped and then murdered on March 14, 2003 in Southampton.

The prime accused, an NRI, Maninderpal Singh Kohli, who worked as a delivery man near Hannah’s house, was arrested after her parents launched a relentless campaign in India, for information on him. He had escaped Britain to hide himself near Darjeeling.

Kohli was extradited to the UK last year, and his defence among other things has said he was abducted by a gang of men, who then forced him to have sex with Hannah.

The case is now winding up after a trial in a court in Winchester. The jury is expected to give its verdict this Monday. But it has surely done nothing for the image of the Indian immigrant community in UK.

“It is very embarrassing for us,” said Harcharan Rai, resident of Southampton.

The laws in the UK forbid Hannah’s parents from giving any statements to the press as it could prejudice the jury and cause a retrial. But they hope the verdict on Monday will give them some sense of closure in their daughter’s tragic death.

 

DARJEELING HILLS: “We will not rest until we divide West Bengal” Bimal Gurung

THE HIMALAYAN BEACON [BEACON ONLINE] EXCLUSIVE

BY BARUN ROY

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha President Bimal Gurung sharing the podium with the other leaders of the Party including Roshan Giri, D. K. Pradhan, David Rai etc., on the occasion of the first foundation day of Janmukti United Labours Welfare Organisation at Gymkhana Hall, Darjeeling

DARJEELING: “We only have 16 months left. And we will disclose the numerous agitational programme after the end of the second Tripartite Meeting. We will not rest until we divide West Bengal into pieces. The Government (State) must understand. We will extract vengence for all the atrocities committed against the Gorkha people. The people who were demanding for Gorkhaland yesterday were the agents of the West Bengal Government but we are the agents of the people. Pramila Sharma became a martyr for Gorkhaland. She gave her life for the people. Small problems sometime develops into a major problem. Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai is surrounded by the borders of four countries. China, Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh surrounds us. This area is also the chicken neck of North East India. I hope that the Government does not over look this. Gorkhaland will be the bridge that will ultimately bring together the entire North East to the rest of the nation. Let the Government not take Gorkhas as watchmen guarding their houses, these Gorkhas are the one guarding the frontiers of the nation. The Government must also understand that penetrating through the foreign borders the terrorists might even reach Delhi and Mumbai,” said Gorkha Janmukti Morcha President Bimal Gurung. Gurung was addressing the people on the occasion of the first foundation day celebration of Janmukti United Labours Welfare Organisation (JULWO). 

Referring to the past programmes of the party, Bimal Gurung said, “The one month long cultural movement initiated by the party was successful in reinstating a sense of cultural pride among all Gorkhas. The cultural movement has also send shockwaves to both the State and the Central Governments. Further, these very traditional dresses – daura suruwal and choubandi cholo will bring down the Maoist Government in Nepal. The 1950 Indo – Nepal Friendship Treaty has been most unfortunate for us and has led to our supression and misfortune. Now we will no longer were Nepal’s Daura Suruwal and Choubandi Cholo, we will wear our Gorkhaland’s distinct traditional attire. Today I have won our own Gorkhaland’s traditional yet distinctive Daura Suruwal. I will again warn the Government that they do not brand us as stick weilding watchmen, remember even Mahatma Gandhi used to move around holding a stick. This is the final struggle for Gorkhaland. Now all the Gorkhas of the world will show our indentity. We will request and plead for Gorkhaland until 2010 after that we will snatch it if we are forced to. We will inform the people about the things going to happen in the Hills, in Bengal and the nation after the end of the second Tripartite Meeting. I hope and pray that the Governments both at the State and the Central level do not play tricks with us otherwise these very tricks will play tricks on them. They should not underestimate Gorkhas. And Bengal must stop trying to malign the honest of the Gorkha people. While all the other races are being treated with dignity why aren’t the Gorkhas being offered the same treatment.”

DARJEELING HILLS: Health centre defunct for last one year

FROM THE STATESMAN

SILIGURI, Nov. 21: When the state health ministry has been emphasing on updating the block health centres to lessen the growing pressure on medical college and hospitals, the public health centre at Panighata in the vicinity of a number of tea plantations is grappling with the customary twin problems of staff shortage and lack of infrastructure.

The centre being run by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council was inaugurated by the GNLF councillor Mr IN Pradhan in 2002 and was expected to cater to the medical needs of thousands of tea plantation labourers. Yet, within a span of a few years the centre has fallen a prey to the usual official apathy and is just keeping on with its bare existence short of medical facilities expected from it.

There is only one doctor and no pharmacist. The on duty physician has per force to be out of station for various reasons. Three members of the nursing staff run the service when the on duty physician is away.

“We have no other alternative but to send the ailing persons requiring emergency services to the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital which is around 30 kms distant from the centre,” said Mrs Sushma Lama, one of the nursing attunement. “The OPD remains open every day from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. except on Sundays, though there are no emergency provisions. Besides, the centre does not even have an ambulance,” she said.
The secretary of a Panighata based tribal organisation, Mr Oscar Tirkey, said that around 30,000 people hailing from several tea plantations in the vicinity like Panighata, Trihanna, Ord and others apart from areas like Dudhia are dependent upon the health centre. “It becomes difficult sometimes to transport the ailing patients to the NBMCH due to lack of an ambulance. The nearest health centre is in Naxalbari block which is not very near either,” he said.

NATIONAL: Street kids from Darjeeling on a high at rock-climbing finals

FROM EXPRESS INDIA

New Delhi, November 21 It has been a journey of grit and determination for all 150 participants of the National Rock Climbing finals being held in Delhi. But for a contingent of nine boys and girls from Darjeeling, part of the 30-member East Zone squad, the odds have been greater than for others – poverty, sexual abuse and hardship.

A fortnight before the Delhi competition, the Edith Wilkins Street Children Foundation in Darjeeling, where the children stay and which initiated them into rock-climbing at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, was scurrying around for funds for the kids’ train fares.

On Friday, as most of the children made it to the finals one by one, the exuberance was heightened by a sense of pride. “When I am hanging from a 50 feet-high wall, there’s just one thought in my mind, I’ve got to reach to the top. I cannot give up halfway,” says 14-year-old Kavindra Tamang, who started rock-climbing two years ago. Another orphan, Nisha Gurung, 13, has qualified for the Delhi round in her second attempt. “I didn’t do very well last year. This time, I successfully reached the top of the wall,” she says, dreams of a gold medal sparkling in her eyes. Rajiv Chhetri, 13, who wants to be a professional climber, was abandoned by his parents. “Both of them live in Darjeeling, but they don’t want me,” he says. Right now, however, his climbing speed is all that occupies his mind. “I have to be faster in the finals,” he says.

Sekhar Biswakarma, an instructor from the Himalaya Mountaineering Institute accompanying the team says the chances of gold medals coming their way are “higher than other years”.

NORTH EAST INDIA: The Mother of all rock concerts-Fire House and White Lion together under one roof

THE HIMALAYAN BEACON [BEACON ONLINE] EXCLUSIVE

 

This show is billed as the “mother of all concert in the country”, this is the first time when two internationally acclaimed bands ‘White Lion’ and ‘FireHouse’ will perform together at the rock capital on the same plate form and same place J.N. Stadium, Shillong.

Mike Tramp the lead vocalist of the band White Lion told that they chose Shillong for their maiden rock concert in India because they have heard from friends like Eric Martin of Mr. Big that Shillong is the rock capital of India.

The pricing has been kept at a flat rate of Rs 400 which makes it affordable for all the genuine rock lovers and fans alike.

This is the second coming for the band Firehouse to Shillong as they had played in the same venue 4 years ago at the same date (13th December) in front of a record 35,000 fans.

White lion and Firehouse are no stranger to the North-eastern people with their Evergreen hit songs such as ‘When the children cry’, ‘You are all I need’, ‘Cry for freedom’, ‘When I looked into your eyes’ and ‘love of a lifetime’ getting regular airtime in Radio and local concerts and festivals. As a matter of fact a lot of their songs have been re-sung in the local dialects says ‘Angelina Diengdoh an avid White Lion fan. She further adds that to see her heroes in person will be a dream come true and a chance of a lifetime. “I can’t believe that White Lion will be here” says Ranjeev Barua who insists that he will be coming to Shillong for sure I grew up listening to when the children cry and their other hits and now I can see them live, it’s a dream come true”

 

Firehouse

Already there is a group in the social networking community Face book under White Lion and Firehouse to rock Shillong and the numbers of members are increasing day by day.

According to C.J. Snare of Firehouse “there is no place to rock in India but in Shillong, besides very few people know that after our show in Shillong I proposed to my wife Brenda so this place is very close to my heart”.

NEPAL: Child killed by bomb at festival in Nepal

FROM GULF TIMES

KATHMANDU: A child was killed and three people were seriously wounded when a powerful explosion ripped through a stage at a cultural festival in southern Nepal, police said yesterday.

The bombing in the town of Gaur in the Rautahat district, about 100km south of Kathmandu and close to the Indian border, killed an 8-year-old boy, police said. Police said the explosion targeted a dance stage at a festival attended by thousands of people.

The blast occurred when no shows were being presented, and there was no large crowd at the stage, the district police office said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, the police said, but a number of rebel groups operate in the area, and attacks on gatherings have become routine. The blast also came amid government efforts to bring rebels groups in southern Nepal together for talks to end the violence. The Nepalese government said it has initiated informal talks with more than a dozen rebels groups.

NEPAL: Divisions cloud meeting of Nepali Maoists

FROM THE DAILY STAR

Nepal’s ruling Maoists began a national meeting Friday to hammer out their political future, with leftist hardliners arguing for greater state control in all sectors.

The Maoists are now Nepal’s largest party, after winning polls earlier this year, but ideological rifts have emerged between factions headed by Prime Minister Prachanda — whose nom-de-guerre means “the fierce one” — and senior ideologue Mohan Baidya.

The Maoists battled Nepal’s security forces to a standstill over a decade of bloody civil war launched in 1996 to topple the monarchy and establish a communist state.

Since the peace deal that saw them place their fighters and weapons under United Nations monitoring, they have pushed through the end of the unpopular monarchy and embraced multi-party democracy.

But the transition from feared guerrillas to Nepal’s strongest political force has been tainted by persistent opposition accusations of violence and intimidation.

On Thursday, protesters shut down Kathmandu after the discovery of the decomposing remains of two young men who were allegedly abducted and killed by the Maoists’ youth wing a month ago.

NEPAL: Nepal PM Prachanda offers to quit

FROM TIMES OF INDIA

KATHMANDU: Facing strengthening public anger over the murder of two youths, allegedly by his own party cadres, and facing a persistent challenge to his leadership from his own comrades, Nepal’s Maoist prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda offered to quit on Friday, only three months after having assumed office.

‘If my stepping down as PM resolves problems, I am ready to step down,” Prachanda said at his official residence in Baluwatar during a crisis talk, a member of the talks team said.

Ishwar Bidari, a member of civil society group Nagarik Sangharsh Samiti that had called a Kathmandu valley bandh on Thursday to seek justice for the killing of city boys Nirmal Pant and Pushkar Dangol, allegedly by the Young Communist League (YCL), the Maoists’ strong arm, said he and eight other Samiti members met Prachanda on Friday morning when he offered to step down.

According to Bidari, the Maoist supremo also confessed that he was being alienated from civil society due to the activities of some cadres and would tender a public apology for the killings. Prachanda also pledged to form a judicial commission to bring the perpetrators to justice.

It was a humbling start for the former guerrilla leader who two years ago led a successful war on Nepal’s omnipotent royal dynasty. More fireworks are expected in the course of the week as the Maoists’ national convention finally kicked off in Bhaktapur in the afternoon after several postponements.

Over 1000 representatives from Nepal’s 75 districts have converged in Bhaktapur for the first national meet after more than 20 years to discuss the future policies of the party as well as its leadership. The meet begins after a contentious three-day gathering of the 35-member central committee in which Prachanda was challenged, for the second time this year, by the leader of the hardliners in the party, Mohan Vaidya.

Vaidya, whose nom de guerre was Kiran, was imprisoned in India’s Siliguri jail for almost two years after his arrest from the Indian township in March 2003. Vaidya, a staunch follower of Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, is opposing Prachanda’s proposal that the Maoists drop Mao and call itself the Communist Party of Nepal.

He is also opposing the moderate Prachanda’s bid to have a democratic multi-party republic in Nepal, instead advocating the single-party republic that controls all sectors, as in China. At the central committee meeting of the party, that ended Friday noon, both Prachanda and Vaidya submitted separate proposals and the other members failed to bridge the gulf.

NEPAL: Five killed, 17 injured in Nepal bus accident

FROM IANS

Kathmandu, Nov 21 : Five people were killed and 17 others injured when a bus fell into a river in western Nepal Friday, police said.

The bus, carrying around 25 passengers, was going to Chitwan in south Nepal from tourist city Pokhara in western Nepal when the accident occurred on the Mugling highway in Tanahun district Friday afternoon.

Two passengers died on the spot while three more succumbed to their injuries on the way to Bharatpur hospital.

Police and locals were searching the intersection of the Marsyangdi and Trishuli rivers for other missing passengers.

 

NEPAL: Indian embassy downplays attack on diplomat’s car in Nepal

FROM INDIA ENEWS

A day after the car of an Indian diplomat was stoned by a mob in Kathmandu, the Indian embassy here tried to downplay the incident Friday, saying that it was not a specific ‘attack on an Indian diplomat or Indian interests or property in Nepal’.

The embassy said it would not lodge any protest with the foreign ministry in Nepal and that the incident should be viewed in the context of the general strike called on Thursday that had crippled the capital.

On Thursday, a civil society group backed by cadres of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (UML) – a member of the Maoist-led coalition government, and the main opposition party – the Nepali Congress of former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala, had called a general strike in Kathmandu valley to protest the alleged killing of two young men by the Maoists.

Several vehicles were attacked by mobs who patrolled the streets to enforce the closure.

S.K. Joshi, the head of chancery at the Indian embassy, faced an irate mob while going to work in the morning. Though he was not injured in the stone throwing, the car was damaged.

NEPAL: Colgate Palmolive’s Nepal officials freed after high drama

FROM INDIA ENEWS

By Sudeshna Sarkar

Kathmandu: Two senior officials of oral care giant Colgate Palmolive India Ltd’s Nepal subsidiary, who were captured by a wing of a ruling political party Thursday, have been freed and are on their way to India, Nepal police said Friday.

Ramesh Singh Rathore, general manager of Colgate’s formerly wholly-owned Nepal subsidiary Colgate Palmolive (Nepal) Pvt Ltd and Manoj Jha, its financial manager, were escorted to the India-Nepal border by police after being held by the Youth Force, the newly founded strong arm of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (UML), Inspector Devi Prasad Poudel of Simra police station in southern Nepal’s Bara district told IANS.

Poudel said the two officials were captured by Youth Force cadres and handed over to police in Simra town Thursday. ‘We took them in for their own safety,’ Poudel said.

At around 10 p.m., a police team arrived in Simra from Birgunj town on the India-Nepal border and escorted the two besieged officials to the India border, the official said.

The drama started after Colgate Palmolive India announced the sale of its Nepal subsidiary to Nepali company Everest Hygiene Products Pvt Ltd Nepal.

Though the Indian multinational said all employees of the Nepal subsidiary would continue their employment on the existing terms and conditions, the sale announcement triggered protests among the subsidiary’s nearly five dozen employees.

There was fear about the fate of the workers and some allegations that the officials were trying to leave without paying wages.

The Youth Force, which is now vying with the Maoists for power, jumped onto the issue and grabbed the two officials as they were trying to board a Kathmandu-bound flight from Simra airport. Later, they handed the two men over to Simra police.

The incident occurred on the same day that the Youth Force led a general strike in Kathmandu valley during which vehicles and shops were attacked.

Established in June 1988, Colgate’s Nepal subsidiary passed through a sticky phase during the 10-year Maoist insurgency due to frequent disruption and blockades.

NEPAL: Nepal wants China mediate Kalapani dispute with India

FROM SAMAY LIVE

Kathmandu, Nov 21: Nepal has sought China’s help in resolving its border disputes with India, including the issue of Kalapani, a strategic border stretch on the tri-junction of the three countries, a media report here said.

The Kalapani Border dispute could be resolved through a trilateral understanding among Nepal, India and China, the Kantipur daily quoted Deputy Prime Minister Bamdev Gautam as having told a visiting Chinese military delegation led by Major General Ei Hujeng yesterday.

The paper claimed that Kalapani, a 75 sq km area in Nepal’s Darchula district bordering the hill districts of Uttarakhand, is in Indian control since the 1962 Sino-Indian war.

“The discussion took place on border management,” Home Secretary Gobinda Kusum was quoted as saying. “We wanted to settle all issues through dialogue,” he added.

However, Home Ministry spokesman Navin Ghimire told newsmen that the meeting was just a courtesy call and denied having any information about the issue being raised in the talks.

The joint technical team between Nepal and India has been actively engaged in resolving disputes at various border points. However, Nepal has asked India to involve China in resolving the Kalapani border dispute as the area is in tri-junction of the three countries, the paper said.

The paper claimed that Nepal had drawn the attention of Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee towards the issue of Kalapani and Susta borders during Nepalese Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav’s recent visit to India to participate in the BIMSTEC Summit.

NEPAL: Nepal ranks 11th of int’l students origin countries in U.S.

FROM CHINA VIEW

KATHMANDU, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) — Nepal currently ranks 11th among the countries of origin for international students in the United States, making up 1.4 percent of foreign students, The Kathmandu Post reported on Friday.

India tops the list with 94,563 students followed by China with81,127 and South Korea with 61,124 students studying in the US.

According to Institute of International Education (IIE) data released here earlier this week, there are 8,936 Nepali students studying in the US in the 2007-08 academic year, a 15 percent up from the previous year. Last year Nepal ranked 13th in this list with 7,754 overseas students.

Although many students would like to go to the US for quality education, money remains the primary concern. Annual costs vary widely between 12,000 U.S. dollars and 50,000 dollars.

SIKKIM: Sikkim is first state set to receive Nirmal Rajya Award, says PM

FROM SIKKIM REPORTER

New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday outlined a Gandhian approach to improvingsanitation in south Asian countries. 

Addressing the Third South Asian Conference on Sanitation after India took over chairmanship from Pakistan, Dr. Singh underlined the Mahatma’s call for total sanitation so as to ensure a life of dignity and good health to all citizens of the region.

The Prime Minister told the gathering – of 1,100 delegates from eight South Asia countries, besides representatives from 15 other countries – about his initiative to create an army of barefoot engineers and then integrate them into a national plan to sustain projects including sanitation in rural areas.

The programme aimed at training rural youth to repair agricultural pumpsets, hand-pumps, rural household connections, agricultural implements and sanitation facilities.

The Prime Minister’s concern was to address the issue of sustainability. “I’m told that 20 per cent of toilets built in the country were not functional because of a variety of factors, from poor construction to lack of maintenance. We need to build local capacity in construction and maintenance of sanitation facilities.”

Dr. Singh underscored the lacunae which were noticed despite the government spending on increasing sanitation facilities increasing sixfold during the past four years and this investment dramatically improving the coverage of sanitation facilities in rural areas from 22 to 58 per cent.

He said Sikkim had achieved 100 per cent sanitation coverage and was set to become the first State to receive the Nirmal Rajya Award. Dr. Singh called for priority to sanitation in development policy approaches, locating it as an integrated framework of public health policy and developing technology for diverse eco-systems. Also, there was need to explore models of solid and liquid waste management through innovation and even income generating schemes.

SIKKIM: Month long international alpine expedition concludes – We are coming back next autumn with more groups: British mountaineer

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

GANGTOK, November 20: British mountaineers Roger Payne and Owen Samuels have returned back today with fond memories of their 29 days of alpine peak climbing expedition in Sikkim.

The duo has successfully scaled the 5635 m Brumkhangse peak and two other peaks in North Sikkim on October 22-24 along with three other European adventurers.

While the rest completed their Sikkim tour, Mr Payne and Mr Samuels decided to have more adventure with the Rathong peak in West Sikkim on November 11.

After returning to Gangtok from North Sikkim, the two mountaineers proceeded to West Sikkim to make the first ascent of the southeast ridge of Rathong (6679m).

“We could not make it to the summit of Rathong peak but managed to reach some 500 m short of the peak”, said Mr. Payne to Sikkim Express yesterday here.

High velocity winds flowing in the peak compelled the two mountaineers to adopt the prudence thought of climbing down to safety. “It was too windy and we descended”, Mr. Payne said.

According to Mr. Payne, the duo had reached the base camp of 5000 m on November 11 and despite the strong winds climbed up to 5800 m of the Rathong peak on the second day. On November 13, they reached the height of 6,300 m before deciding to drop down the next day.

We abseiled 18 times down on the ropes to reach the base of the peak, Mr. Payne said. He had previously in 2006 attempt to reach the summit of the Rathong peak with his wife Julie-Ann but heavy snowfall prevented a successful climb.

SIKKIM: Mahakala ritual dance at Ralang

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

GANGTOK, November 20: The yearly Mahakala ritual dance at Palchen Cholong monastery at Ralang to begin from November 25 is well timed with representatives of the 19th Supreme Patriarch of the kingdom of Thailand slated to arrive in Rabong on November 24 to present the most precious Buddha relic, ‘Ringsel’ for the Buddha statue.

As usual, the sacred Mahakala Damchen Garnag Chaam will be staged on November 25 and 26 and is expected to draw in a team of 33 Thai delegates, perhaps the initial steps towards Theravada-Mahayana connection.

Source from the State Ecclesiastical department said that the 12th Goshir Gyalstab Rinpoche, one of the four Reagents of the Karmapa will also be bestowing the holy crown ceremony to the devotees on November 27.
Mahakala ritual dance has always been the annual feature of monastery established by Gyaltsab Rinpoche in the year 1995.

SIKKIM: North East Theatre Festival kicks off – Governor appreciates NSD initiative in promoting art & culture

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

GANGTOK, November 20: Governor BP Singh today appreciated the initiative of National School of Drama (NSD), Delhi in promoting art and culture in the country.

Addressing the inaugural programme of the ten-day long Poorvottar Natya Samraroh, he said NSD has imparted art and culture to promote creativity under one platform. NSD has carried out the vision of the first Prime Minister Pandit Nehru diligently and passionately, he added.

Mr. Singh was present as the chief guest. He was accompanied by Mrs Singh. Also present were the advisor to the Chief Minister Sanchaman Limbo, Major General VSM Sanjiv Chachra of 17th Mountain division and Mahesh Alchuwar, an acclaimed theatre performer from Mumbai.

Major General Sanjiv Chachar said the army of 17th Mountain division was fortunate to be associated with the most reputed institution like NSD in the ten-day long festival.

Professor Sudhir Kulkarni of NSD said that the institution has contributed lot in promoting the art and culture all over India. The North Eastern states in the recent years have developed tremendously in drama, he said.

The first day of North East theatre festival featured the staging of a musical play ‘ Gouralila’, written and directed by Toijam Sheila, a graduate from NSD.

INTERNATIONAL: CM attends Governors’ Global Climate Summit

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

Governors’ Global Climate Summit hosted by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger at California

November 20: Chief Minister Pawan Chamling attended the two day Governors’ Global Climate Summit hosted by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger at California which concluded yesterday.

The Chief Minister represented India along with Dr. Nagin Nanda, Director, Department of Environment & Scientific Technology, Himachal Pradesh in the global summit that saw the participation of a host of USA Governors and representatives from the developed nations.

In the internet picture show along this report, the Chief Minister was accorded first row seat during the inaugural session of the two day summit.

The inaugural address was made by the host Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who emphasized the importance of working with world leaders to solve the challenge of global warming and the importance of using renewable resources like wind and solar.

As per the agenda of the summit, Mr Chamling attended the session along with Governor Schwarzenegger on ‘The Global Warming Challenge and Responses to Date’ on November 19. Representatives from UN, USA Governors and China also attended this session.

SIKKIM: Sikkim goes to MUCP national qualifiers at Goa on a winning note

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

GANGTOK, November 20: Sikkim Football Academy (SFA) heads to Manchester United Premier Cup (MUCP) national qualifying round at Goa on a winning note by thumping the undefeated Kalayani Municipality Academy 3-0 in the finals of the East and Northeast Zonal round played today here at Paljor Stadium.

A brace from Richard Lepcha and one goal by Mayel Lepcha enabled a sweet revenge for SFA against Kalyani Municipality Academy (KMA) in the finals today. The Kalayani boys had convincingly defeated SFA in both the earlier two matches in the league before the finals and were match favorites today.

However SFA boys had other things in mind and redeemed themselves with a telling display of attacking football. The first goal had a share of good luck and mistake by KMA goalkeeper who let in a high ball from Mayel Lepcha into the net in the 10th minute.

One minute later, 13 year old striker Richard Lepcha consolidated the lead with a fine volley from the D-box.
SFA victory was ensured in the 23rd minute by another goal from Richard Lepcha who slammed the ball into the far net from an acute angle.

Fittingly, Richard Lepcha was adjudged the man of the match. State Health minister and patron of Sikkim Football Association, Hissey Lachungpa handed out the awards and mementos during the prized distribution after the game.

As per MUCP guidelines each match was of 40 minutes duration.

With this victory, SFA qualified for the India Finals to be held at Goa from December 1 where they will meet qualifiers from other zonal rounds.

Kalyani Municipality Academy also clinched a berth in the national qualifiers by the virtue of being runners up in the zonal round.

Winners and runners up from each zone get a chance to the final national qualifying round at Goa.

“We are going to Goa on a winning note and we will try to maintain the same tempo in the national finals of MUCP. We will play on a winning spirit”, said SFA coach Suren Chettri. He expressed his hopes that his boys will go all the way to win the national finals and qualify for the actual MUCP event to be played in England. We will play in the same manner in the finals which enabled us to this zonal round, he said.