Congress demand all-party meet to discuss agitation by GJM

FROM INDOPIA

Kolkata , Jan 19: The West Bengal Congress today demanded that Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacherjee should immediately call an all-party meeting to discuss the agitation in Darjeeling by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha that has led to tension in neighbouring Jalpaiguri district.

WBPCC working presidents, Pradip Bhattacherjee and Subrata Mukherjee, said the state government should also immediately form a committee which would take steps to restore peace at the Dooars region in Jalpaiguri district, which has witnessed clashes between pro and anti- Gorkhaland supporters.

The committee should comprise all political parties and be headed by commissioner of North Bengal, Bhattacharjee and Mukherjee told reporters.
Alleging that the Left Front government had no policy to control a situation which was going out of control, they said,”there is also fear of the situation turning communal.

 

BREAKING NEWS: Buddhadeb invites GJM chief for talks

FROM SAMAY LIVE

Kolkata: Dubbing talks as necessary for restoration of peace and in the aftermath of clashes between pro and anti-GJM supporters in the past few days, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today invited Gorkha Janmukti Morcha for parleys.

Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen said Bhattacharjee wrote to GJM chief Bimal Gurung requesting him to come down here to discuss the current situation in Darjeeling and adjoining Jalpaiguri district.

Talks are necessary for restoration of peace, Bhattacharjee said.

Meanwhile, a clash with the anti-Gorkhaland Akhil Bharati Adivasi Parishad was averted when a 10,000-strong procession of GJM supporters was stopped at the Minglass tea garden at Garubathan in Jalpaiguri district, Sen said.

He told reporters that the GJM took out the procession in violation of prohibitory orders.

After the police stopped them, GJM supporters went on a sit-in demonstration, but withdrew it after being persuaded by the police.

Prohibitory orders were also clamped on Nagrakata area in the district where GJM plans to hold a massive rally tomorrow.

DARJEELING HILLS: GJM determined to hold rally at Malbazar

FROM INDOPIA

Siliguri (WB), Jan 19 The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, trying hard to bring the Dooars region in Jalpaiguri district under its sphere of influence, today said it was determined to make its rally at Malbazar in the region a success even if the administration created obstacles.

GJM president Bimal Gurung told reporters at Malbazar, which recently witnessed tension after the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Parishad objected to their presence there, said the administration had not given permission for today&aposs rally, but it was keen to hold it.

He threatened if the authorities tried to thwart the rally,”its implications for the future will be grim”as it was their democratic right to hold rallies.

GJM supporters would also hold sit-in demonstrations at Malbazar in case they were prevented from organising the rally which they intended to keep peaceful, he said.

He alleged that the CPI(M) had hatched a conspiracy to disturb law and order in the area to give a bad name to the GJM.

ESSAY: The Poster and the report

FROM http://inundates.blogspot.com/

BY IVAN MCGREGGOR

The poster which was posted and reads “Our Gorkhaland will be created by shooting BENGAL on the chest and wounding it through gunpowder”. This is not funny! These posters crop up once in a while to mislead the populace. Though, the people dont get fooled anymore, it seems the media bites it hook, line and sinker. Unfortunately, it also painted it slightly racist by substituting Bengalis for Bengal. Here is a report from Times of India:

KOLKATA: Posters calling for an armed struggle for Gorkhaland were found in many parts of the Hills on Sunday, sending police into a tizzy. The

posters confirm intelligence reports that a section of Gorkhas have tied up with terrorist outfits in Northeast, Kamtapur Liberation Organization and Nepal Maoists to start a bloody campaign for a separate state.

The posters – in Kurseong , Kalimpong and Mirik – carry the name, Gorkha Liberation Army – suspected to be an offshoot of the erstwhile United Gorkha Revolutionary Front (UGRF), formed by retired CISF jawan Ajay Dahal in 2004 to challenge GNLF chief Subash Ghisingh. Written in Nepali, they warn that Gorkhaland can’t be achieved through “Gandhigiri or Khukuri and Khadwa (a locally-made firearm) but needs AK-47s”. A poster in Kurseong warns Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) – leading a fight for Gorkhaland – that “Gandhigiri won’t achieve results”. GLA has threatened to “shoot Bengalis in the heart” to get Gorkhaland.

Police have all the reasons to be worried about GLA. Intelligence agencies confirmed some time ago that Jewel Garlossa – head of Black Widow, a terror group active in north Cachar – had moved to North Bengal and assured help to the Gorkhas, including providing training and shelter. Garlossa had to flee North Cachar after facing the heat from his rivals and security forces. It is believed that he was helped by a newly-formed outfit Gorkha Liberation Army of Assam.

BREAKING NEWS: Four CRPF companies to arrive in Darjeeling to maintain peace

FROM THE HINDU

Siliguri (PTI): Four compaines of the Central Reserve Police Force will shortly arrive in Darjeeling to bolster security in the hills, though they will remain on standby for the present till the police receives instruction on their deployment.

The Darjeeling superintendent of police, Rahul Srivastava, said that the four CRPF companies would be deployed in view of the stepped up agitation by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in the hills and plains.

The police has, meanwhile, started an investigation into the appearance of posters in Kalimpong, one of the four sub-divisions in the Darjeeling hills, openly advocating violence to achieve Gorkhaland which has created ripples across the hills.

INTERNATIONAL: British ‘memsahib’ of Raj era turns 103

FROM TIMES OF INDIA

LONDON: The wife of an army officer who served in India during British rule has celebrated her 103rd birthday and credits her long life to travel

experiences in many countries, including India.

Isabelle Sands is based in Stockton, north England and has a clear memory of spending 10 years in India before Independence. She wows her carers everyday with her vivid memory and zest for life.

Isabelle married Henry Sands, who was a major in the British army, when he was serving in Darjeeling. During their tenure in British India, the couple travelled and lived in several places, including the North West Frontier Province.

Remembering her India days, she said amidst her birthday celebrations: “It was a wonderful time. I never regretted one minute of it. You just never knew where you were going to end up next”.

“India was a very disturbed country back then, but if you accepted the living as it was, you really came to enjoy it,” she added.

Isabelle said she never thought of wanting to live to be 103. She said: “You don’t think that far ahead. I never thought I wanted to live to be 100 because people are usually dead and buried by then. I often think, 103? What am I doing here?

KALIMPONG: Posters in Hills vow armed struggle for Gorkhaland

FROM TIMES OF INDIA

KOLKATA: Posters calling for an armed struggle for Gorkhaland were found in many parts of the Hills on Sunday, sending police into a tizzy. The

posters confirm intelligence reports that a section of Gorkhas have tied up with terrorist outfits in Northeast, Kamtapur Liberation Organization and Nepal Maoists to start a bloody campaign for a separate state.

The posters – in Kurseong , Kalimpong and Mirik – carry the name, Gorkha Liberation Army – suspected to be an offshoot of the erstwhile United Gorkha Revolutionary Front (UGRF), formed by retired CISF jawan Ajay Dahal in 2004 to challenge GNLF chief Subash Ghisingh. Written in Nepali, they warn that Gorkhaland can’t be achieved through “Gandhigiri or Khukuri and Khadwa (a locally-made firearm) but needs AK-47s”. A poster in Kurseong  warns Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) - leading a fight for Gorkhaland – that “Gandhigiri won’t achieve results”. GLA has threatened to “shoot Bengalis in the heart” to get Gorkhaland.

Police have all the reasons to be worried about GLA. Intelligence agencies confirmed some time ago that Jewel Garlossa – head of Black Widow, a terror group active in north Cachar – had moved to North Bengal and assured help to the Gorkhas, including providing training and shelter. Garlossa had to flee North Cachar after facing the heat from his rivals and security forces. It is believed that he was helped by a newly-formed outfit Gorkha Liberation Army of Assam.

CONTROVERSY: ‘White Tiger’ sparks debate over ’stereotyping’ of Nepalese

FROM SAMAY LIVE

Kathmandu, Jan 18: Indian author Aravind Adiga’s novel ‘The White Tiger’, which had won the prestigious Booker Prize for 2008, has triggered a debate in Nepal over what is being alleged as negative “stereotyping” of the Nepalese.

Many “English-educated urban Indians” have a “distorted” view of the Nepalis, an article in leading daily Kathmandu Post claimed today.

After reading the book, “the readers might come to identify Nepali men with wily security guards and Nepali women with those who sell sex for livelihood,” said the article, “Stereotyping Nepalis”, written by Deepak Adhikari.

A number of the characters mentioned in the ‘The White Tiger’ are Nepalese but surprisingly, all of them have been left without names, the author said.

“A blinding flash of light: a blue door opened, and four light-skinned Nepali woman, in gorgeous red petticoats looked out,” the book was quoted as saying. Its “stereotyping” of Nepali women as “prostitutes” does not end here, he wrote.

PHOTO FEATURE: LPG woes in Sikkim

People waiting at Daragaon for their turn to collect LPG refill. Photo by Subash Gurung from Sikkim Reporter. Click on the image to enlarge

SILIGURI: More CRPF men coming, says Asok

FROM THE STATESMAN

Siliguri, Jan. 18: Four companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) are being brought in the region to tackle the situation in the Dooars, where violent clashes broke out between Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supporters and locals on 16 January, 2009.

The state urban development minister Mr Asok Bhattacharya (photograph right), who announced this at a Press meet here today, said a company had already arrived in Siliguri, while the remaining companies would reach the town tomorrow. He said that the companies would currently stay in Siliguri and sent to the disturbed areas only if the situation worsened.

KURSEONG: Lovelorn youth immolates self

FROM THE STATESMAN

Kurseong, Jan. 18: Sonam Sherpa died at the Kurseong sub-divisional hospital at around 5 a.m. today. Notably, on 16 January, Sonam Sherpa (18), a resident of Upper-Sirubari-Kurseong had attempted self immolation at his residence around 12:30 p.m.

He was admitted to the Kurseong sub-divisional hospital in a critical condition. He had suffered 90 per cent burns and the it took three long hours for the doctors to give him proper treatment. He was referred to the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital on 16 January, but was brought back to the Kurseong  sub-divisional hospital when his condition deteriorated. The doctors said that he had less chances of survival. He breathed his last at around 5 a.m. today. He is survived by his mother.

KURSEONG: Nepalese

FROM THE STATESMAN

Kurseong, Jan. 18: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) organised protest rallies today in different parts of Darjeeling protesting against the atrocities allegedly inflicted on the Nepali-speaking people, especially in the Dooars. The speakers criticised the state government and the CPI-M leadership for deliberately provoking the hill people to acts of desperation.

Addressing the rally, held at Bara Phagu ground near Dooars yesterday, GJM chief, Mr Bimal Gurung said that GJM would recruit five to ten thousand fresh volunteers for the Gorkhaland Police to take on the growing tyranny on their community. “Every volunteer would be paid Rs 2,000 per month,” he added. During the meeting, Mr Gurung also said that from next March, the GJM would collect revenues from forest department, tea and Cinchona plantations.

DOOARS TERAI: Giri threatens rally in Malbazar

FROM THE STATESMAN

JALPAIGURI, Jan. 18: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) general secretary, Mr Roshan Giri threatened to organise a “huge” rally at Malbazar in Jalpaiguri district tomorrow in protest against what he called “barbarous atrocities inflicted on the Nepali speaking people for the last two days in the Dooars selectively by the district law enforcers in overt conjunction with the ruling CPI-M leadership.”

Mr Giri said over the phone from Darjeeling today that his outfit was committed to stage the rally tomorrow to be followed by another one at Nagrakata the next day. “We are ready to face bullets, but would not budge an inch from our proposed programme. Around 50,000 people from all parts of the Hills would come to Dooars for the next two days to protest against the bout of humiliation heaped on us by the administration,” he said.

Meanwhile, the inspector general of police, North Bengal, Mr Kundal Lal Tamta, said that the district police would allow no political congregation in areas on which the prohibitory order under Section 144 of CrPC had been clamped.

“There is no question of allowing the GJM to stage a rally in the Dooars tomorrow in view of the volatile law and order situation in the strife-torn region,” he said.

BENGAL: Goutam Ghosh sad as Dooars burns

FROM THE STATESMAN

BALURGHAT, Jan. 18: Eminent filmmaker, Goutam Ghosh today expressed serious concern over the ethnic unrest across the Dooars region in Jalpaiguri district. He was addressing a gathering in Balurghat town today on the reopening ceremony of the Satyajit Ray Theatre. The theatre reopened today after having been closed for some years.

The filmmaker said that it was sad that political unrest was fast spreading across the Dooars threatening the traditional ethnic amity in the region. “I am very sad with this ethnic intolerance in the Dooars region. All of us should exercise utmost restraint and allow goodwill to be restored at the earliest,” he said.

 

DOOARS TERAI: Gurung’s meeting cancelled

FROM THE STATESMAN

JALPAIGURI, Jan. 18: The public meeting of the  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) chief, Mr Bimal Gurung, scheduled to be held in the Dooars tomorrow, was cancelled with tension still brewing in many parts of Jalpaiguri district. Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC are in force for the consecutive third day today and personnel augmented by the RAF are seen patrolling the sensitive areas of the district to confront any challenge to law and order. Meanwhile, the tribals staged roadblocks in many places in the district, protesting against the alleged GJM effort to intrude on the tribal-dominated Dooars region.

According to the GJM sources, Mr Gurung’s proposed public meting scheduled to be held at Shyli Tea Plantation was cancelled. The prohibitory order is in force in the area and police accompanied by the para-military forces are surrounding it to prevent entry of political activists. The tribals under the banner of the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Kalyan Parishad, have, however, continued with their road blockade today to protest against the alleged GJM  effort to intrude on the region, known to be the tribal bastion. Roads were blocked today at Odlabari, Bagracourt, Kranti More, Lataguri, Chalsa and many other places.

NORTH BENGAL UNIVERSITY: Stipend for MSc research

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Siliguri, Jan. 18: Students pursuing their MSc in botany and zoology in North Bengal University will from now on get Rs 5,000 for dissertations which they prepare as part of their syllabus.

B.N. Chakraborty, the dean of science of the university, said this was a new initiative on the part of the UGC to encourage research among students.

“The UGC is taking a lot of interest to attract more students to research work. From this year, each of them will get Rs 5,000 while doing their post-graduation,” said Chakraborty.

According to an existing UGC norm, students have to qualify the National Eligibility Test or State Level Eligibility Test to become liable for research scholarships.

“But we recently received a letter saying post-graduation level scholarships will be applicable from this year and 24 students from botany and 20 from zoology will get them this time. Post-graduate students have a special paper for which they prepare dissertations on certain topics. The UGC fund will be of great help to them as they will be able to utilise it to access more research material,” Chakraborty added.

The dean added that another UGC provision, Research Fellowship in Sciences for Meritorious Students, had also been introduced. “Students who score above a certain prescribed percentage of marks in post-graduation will receive Rs 10,000 per month for research without having to qualify the NET or SLET. They will, however, have to appear for an interview. Around 10 students in botany, eight in zoology and eight in chemistry departments are already availing them,” he said.

SIKKIM: Sikkim dead birds sent to Bhopal lab

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

GANGTOK, Jan. 18: Around 30 chickens died in the Rabongla subdivision in South Sikkim last week, triggering fears of bird flu.

The samples of dead birds have been sent to the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal and the test report is yet to arrive. If the report confirms the disease, it will be the first ever instance of avian influenza in Sikkim.

“The deaths of chickens were first reported at 14th Mile on Kewzing Road in Rabongla on January 14 after which the department started investigations. Similar reports of chicken deaths have also arrived from Golitar and Hospital Road areas near Rabongla.” said T.B. Sunwar, the deputy director of the state animal husbandry and veterinary services department, over the phone from Delhi.

Officials said 70 per cent symptoms of the dead birds in Sikkim were found to be similar to that of bird flu.

Sunwar, posted at Rabongla, had flown to Bhopal with the samples soon after the chickens died. The test report would be sent to the Union agriculture ministry, which would send it to the chief secretary in a few days.

DARJEELING HILLS: Little chance of brew with ‘G’ mark

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Darjeeling, Jan. 18: The  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM)’s demand that every packet of Darjeeling Tea should have “Gorkhaland” printed on it is likely to have little effect as 60 per cent of the brew is exported.

“The export product is sent as loose tea in chests. What the packaging people do after it reaches them is beyond our control,” said a producer.

Two of the major companies that package Darjeeling Tea for domestic markets are Hindustan Lever and Tata Tea, a source said. “It is unlikely that they will have the word Gorkhaland printed on the packets as their domestic business will not be affected by what is sold in the Darjeeling area,” he said.

Most hill gardens do not have packaging units. “Those that do have, outsource the work to people in Calcutta. The packets that are sold in Darjeeling amount to hardly anything,” said a tea trader.

Those who are likely to be directly affected are a handful of local traders who buy loose tea from the gardens and pack them in aluminium foils with the name of the estate and the shop. “The amount of tea that is sold from these outlets is insignificant for the gardens but is a lot to that particular local trader,” said another trader.

Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri said: “At the end of it, we want all packets to bear the word Gorkhaland.”

SILIGURI: CPM rally to protest ‘atrocities’

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Siliguri, Jan. 18: The CPM will take out a rally from Bhaktinagar check-post to Salugara on January 20 to protest against “the atrocities committed by the Morcha,” Bengal urban development minister Asok Bhattacharya said today.

The minister visited Salugara and Fapri, which witnessed clashes between pro and anti-Gorkhaland people yesterday, along with Darjeeling district  leaders of the DYFI.

After hearing the residents of two places, the minister said the supporters of the hill outfit were trying to break the unity of the local people by playing the communal card. “The Morcha president is trying to follow GNLF chief Subhash Ghisingh who used to whip up sectarian passions. But Ghisingh is nowhere to be seen now. The same fate will befall Gurung.”

DOOARS TERAI: Adivasis withdraw bandh in Dooars

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

A police barricade in Meenglass Tea Estate in the Dooars, where the administration was expecting Morcha supporters from Gorubathan on their way to Jaigaon on Sunday. Picture by Biplab Basak

Jan. 18: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) is determined to make its Dooars Chalo Abhiyan a success, its chief Bimal Gurung announced in Gorubathan today, hinting that a large number of supporters were expected in Malbazar tomorrow flouting Section 144 that was in place in the subdivision.

On the other hand, the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikash Parishad said it would fight tooth and nail to stop the Morcha  from entering the Dooars.

“We are ready with sufficient force to prevent their entry,” said Rajesh Lakra, the secretary of the Terai-Dooars Committee of the Parishad, which withdrew its bandh this evening.

Manoj Verma, the superintendent of police of Jalpaiguri, said a huge force would be posted in Malbazar. “We are bringing forces from other districts and we will not allow the two groups to clash under any circumstance,” he added.

In neighbouring Darjeeling district, a company of CRPF is expected to arrive late in the evening. Rahul Srivastava, the superintendent of police, said in Siliguri. “We have come to know that we will get four companies of the CRPF shortly. But they will remain on standby because we have not received any instruction on their deployment,” he said.

The Morcha president, who addressed a public meeting in Gorubathan, 30km from Kalimpong, said: “We will hold a meeting in Malbazar tomorrow as part of the Dooars Abhiyan. Many of our supporters will be there.” The general secretary of the party, Roshan Giri, said in Darjeeling that a similar meeting would be held in Nagrakata on Tuesday to protest against the CPM-Adivasi pact against the Morcha.