INDIAN IDOL 4: Kapil Thapa makes it to Top 5

Is there something going between the two?

SIKKIM: If Cong comes to power it will arrest Chamling: Bhandari

FROM ZEE NEWS

Nar Bahadur Bhandari, President Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee

Gangtok, Jan 24: Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee (SPCC) president Nar Bahadur Bhandari on Saturday joined forces with the BJP in alleging that Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling has obtained dual citizenship, including one from Nepal, and claimed that the Congress party, if elected to power, will prosecute him under the provisions of the law.

“The Congress party, if it comes to power after the Assembly polls due later this year, will arrest and prosecute Chamling for commission of a serious crime like carrying dual nationality,” Bhandari, a former Chief Minister told reporters here.

Echoing the BJP’s contention against the incumbent Chief Minister as “factually true” on the basis of the relevant documents made public by the senior saffron party leader Harendra Pratap, Bhandari hoped that the Union Home Ministry and the Election Commission will investigate the matter to its logical conclusion.

Bhandari expressed his consternation at the silence of Chamling after such a serious charge of dual nationality has been made against him and said the latter has lent credence to the allegation by keeping mum on the issue till date.

The senior Congress leader, however, made it clear that his party will not make the dual nationality charge against Chamling an electoral issue during the forthcoming Assembly polls due April/May this year.

There are many skeletons in the cupboards of the Chamling government which the Congress will raise during electioneering seeking the mandate for a change of guard in Sikkim, he said.

Referring to the upcoming Assembly polls in Sikkim, the former Chief Minister demanded that the polls be held under the President’s rule as a “free, fair and transparent election was not not likely to take place under the Chamling regime.”

“No Assembly polls held in the Himalayan state since 1994 took place in a fair manner as the civil and police brass brazenly sided with the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front in ensuring successive mandate for the ruling party in 1999 and 2004 polls,” he alleged.

ESSAY: Face of Nepalese Prime Ministers from 1990-2008

Dirgha Raj Prasai

BY DIRGHA RAJ PRASAI

The nation is in disarray because the regime was always in the grips of traitors and corrupts. In the name of democracy, from 1990, the national state treasury was pilfered by politicians in power. After establishment of an all-party system in 1990- the week when Krishna Prasad Bhattarai became the Prime Minister of the interim rule-10 Nepal Police personnel were killed in broad daylight. All miscreants, murderers, corrupts and criminals jailed during the Panchayat period were released by taking commission. Rs. 150 million was distributed to just about anyone under the pretext of political victims. During the visit by Prime Minister, a statement was signed on 10 June in 1990 that lacked remarks over alleged Indian blockade on Nepal. The view of common money and Common River was introduced- a move that broke the backbone of nation’s industrial sector. In name of being a saint, Krishnaprasadji committed several crimes. After December, in 1976, BP Koirala became the supporter of Nepal’s nationality and royal institution. Similarly, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai has become sensitive towards nationality, royal institution and democracy after 2005 and likewise loved by everyone.

In 1991, Girija Prasad Koirala became the Prime Minister. After becoming the premier, Koirala Congressionized nation’s administrative management and introduced several plans and pilfered state coffer. Koirala until 1994 sold 12 organizations and industries by taking millions as commission. He drained the nation’s economy through Boeing scam, Damija scama, Lauda scam. In name of suppressing communist- the suppression impelled Maoist revolution. It is a habit of Koirala to support King when he retains the post and jump in opposition against King after being removed from the post. Koirala who became Prime Minister every now and then through many conspiracies became PM once again after 2005 by treading on constitution and riding on Maoist shoulder. We had believed he would not repeat the past mistakes while working. After reaching the state power Koirala declared secularism and republic to perish Nepal’s identity. Traitors never become positive.

SIKKIM UNIVERSITY: SU includes Eastern Himalayas as a compulsory subject in Undergraduate Syllabus

THE CONTENTS OF THIS POST HAS BEEN DELETED!

GREAT BRITAIN: Ex-Gurkhas go into battle… to fix Britain’s railways

FROM MAIL ONLINE

BY RAY MASSEY

NEWS SHARED BY AARDEE

Cold steel: Gurkha troops brandish the fearsome 16in kukri knives Mandatory Credit: Photo by Herbie Knott / Rex Features ( 126927d )

In every theatre of war they have terrorised their foes and won the admiration of their comrades.

Their motto is ‘It is better to die than to be a coward’ and it is a belief that has seen the Gurkhas win 26 Victoria Crosses – a record unequalled by any other British unit.

Not surprisingly their prowess has, for a century and more, led Army commanders in a tight spot to call on the men from Nepal for help.

Now their skills have attracted the attention of others who, while not exactly in life or death situations, have some tough problems.

Gurkha units have a proud record of service, and among them are recipients of the Victoria Cross - Britain's highest military honour

As a result, a rail maintenance company said yesterday that it was looking to recruit up to 400 combat-trained Gurkhas to keep Britain’s railways in good repair.

Ganymede Solutions intends to retrain the former combat engineers to become railway engineers and said it was ‘actively recruiting’ Gurkhas around Aldershot and their other British bases.

The company has tendered to supply Network Rail and its main contractors with temporary engineers to be deployed on track work.

The first team of former Gurkhas is being retrained at Clapham, South-West London.

Gary Hewett, managing director of Slough-based Ganymede, is a former wing commander who served alongside the Gurkhas in the Falklands.

A company spokesman said: ‘The company is only too aware of the skill base they offer.’

Mr Hewett, 47, said contract work often attracted ‘transitory’ labour – people who might stay a while then move on – and the quality of their work could also be variable.

 

SPORTS: Wish Sunil Chettri all the best!

FROM GOAL.COM

SHARED BY AARDEE

One of India’s brightest footballing prospects, Sunil Chhetri is heading to Coventry City for a trial in a few day’s time. Goal.com invites ALL the Indians visiting this site to send him their best wishes for his journey, which will be presented to him when he leaves!

Click on the image to offer your best wishes to Sunil Chettri

Sunil Chhetri could become only the third Indian to ply his trade in Europe, playing where is the acid test for any footballer today, and could become only the second Indian to play in England. He will play for East Bengal on 24th January, after which he shall leave for England via Delhi for the trial.

This could be a shot in the arm for Sunil and Indian football in general, so please send your messages across to Sunil through the comments section below, and we shall present the compilation to him! So start typing, and let’s all get together in wishing Sunil Chhetri the best of luck for his journey in English football!

NEPAL: After Pashupatinath, Bhagavad Gita is targeted in Nepal

FROM NEW KERALA

Kathmandu, Jan 23 : Close on the heels of a power tussle over Nepal’s Pashupatinath shrine revered by Hindus worldwide, the Hindu holy book Bhagavad Gita has come under attack in the former Hindu kingdom.

An ethnic organisation in eastern  Nepal has fined two Nepalis for bringing in copies of the Gita, which contains the essence of Hindu philosophy. Over 100 copies of the book were confiscated.

Ram Krishna Bhattarai and Barad Raj Koirala, members of a Hindu organisation in Birtamod on the India-Nepal  border, were stopped on the road while returning from India’s Benaras city, where they had gone to buy copies of the Gita and other books.

The men were held captive for over four hours Tuesday by a group of people who said they belonged to the Limbu community that is demanding a separate state for itself in Nepal  .

The Limbus are an ethnic community of Mongoloid origin who can also be found in Bhutan, and India’s Sikkim state as well as in Darjeeling and Kalimpong towns in India’s West Bengal state.

The Limbus follow the Kiranti religion, which predates Hinduism and is based on ancestor worship.

BENGAL: Talks call to Adivasis

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Siliguri, Jan. 23: The Bengal government has called the Adivasi Vikas Parishad, which has been spearheading the anti-Gorkhaland agitation in the Dooars, for talks in Calcutta next week.

“The chief minister will meet us on January 29,” Birsa Tirkey, the state president of the Parishad, said in Calcutta.

Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee spoke to  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leaders, who want a Gorkhaland state carved out of Darjeeling, Siliguri, the Dooars and the Terai, on January 21 “to avert ethnic clashes”.

After the meeting, where Morcha leaders accused the Parishad of inciting violence, the Darjeeling district Left Front had said the government should also hear the other side. There were clashes last week when members of the Parishad foiled Morcha attempts to hold rallies in the Dooars.

 

NEPAL: ‘Chandni Chowk…’ producer expresses regret over Buddha furore

FROM NEW KERALA

By Sudeshna Sarkar

Kathmandu, Jan 23: A day after Nepal’s Maoist government banned Bollywood’s much-hyped kungfu comedy Chandni Chowk to China for wrongly calling India the birth place of the Himalayan nation’s religious icon, the Buddha, the producer of the controversial film has expressed his regret, saying it was not the intention to hurt anyone.

Mumbai-based Hindi film producer Ramesh Sippy, who along with the Warner Brothers produced the film directed by Bollywood’s Nikhil Advani, faxed a brief message of regret to Kathmandu, hoping it would be circulated among the media.

Speaking on behalf of the entire “Chandni Chowk to China” team, Sippy said India enjoys old and warm ties with Nepal and the film did not set out deliberately to hurt anyone’s sentiments.

However, it remains to be seen if the statement would appease Nepal .

For one, Sippy has not indicated if he is going to remove the offending dialogue from the original version of the film that was released worldwide last Friday.

Though Nepal’s censor board ordered the distributors to delete the erroneous statement, the screenings in other parts of the world continue to include the misleading information.

Nepal’s council of ministers headed by Maoist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda has asked Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav to take up the issue with India’s external affairs ministry.

The Indian government would be asked to approach the makers of the film and ask them to erase the offending and misleading claim about the Buddha being born in India from the original version.

Scripted by Bollywood writer Shridhar Raghavan, “Chandni Chowk to China” triggered angry protests in Nepal  soon after its release Friday when it became known that the narration, introducing the hero played by Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, claimed he was born in India, the Buddha’s birth place.

The Buddha was born more than 2,500 years ago in the kingdom of Kapilavastu ruled by the Shakya kings, which lies in southern Nepal  near the Indian border. The garden in Lumbini town, where the birth is recorded as having taken place in 623 BC, draws tens of thousands of tourists and pilgrims to Nepal  every year.

NEPAL: Demonstrations against ‘Chandni Chowk to China’ in Kathmandu

FROM NEWS KERALA

Kathmandu, Jan 23 : Angered by narration in the movie Chandni Chowk to China concerning Gautam Buddha’s birth, youths staged a demonstration at Lainchaur near the Indian Embassy here today.

”The group led by noted documentary-director Manoj Pandit staged a sit-in for three hours starting 1000 hrs. They had demonstrated in the area yesterday as well. The new Indian movie ‘Chandni Chowk to China’ introduces India as ‘the land where Buddha was born’,” Kantipur reported.

”This is a phase-wise protest. We want an apology from the producers of the movie. This lie is being screened everywhere else in the world. This has to stop,” the paper quoted Mr Pandit as saying.

He is scheduled to meet Indian Ambassador Rakesh Sood on Sunday to discuss the same and about the encroachment of Nepali land by the Indian side.

The protestors also demanded the resignation of Minister for Local Development Ram Chandra Jha.

Mr Pandit said he will meet the leadership of the CPN-UML and urge it to terminate Mr Jha from the party.

BOOK REVIEW: Sex Trafficking – Inside the Business of Modern Slavery

FROM FINANCIAL TIMES

Jonathan Birchall is the FT’s retail correspondent

Review by Jonathan Birchall
Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery
By Siddharth Kara
Columbia University Press £14.95, 320 pages
FT Bookshop price: £11.95

As the chief executive of a small investment company in California, Siddharth Kara could have relied on his MBA and background in investment banking and stuck to the business of making money.

Instead he chose to spend time and money investigating the soul-crushing world of sex trafficking, trying to understand how by his estimates 500,000-600,000 women and children a year are forced against their will into prostitution.

He sat in the brothels of Mumbai’s Falkland Road and investigated massage parlours and apartments in Bangkok and Turin. He chatted to teenagers working half-naked in the freezing winter cold on Rome’s Via Salaria. He travelled to Nepal, to northern Thailand and India’s Bihar state, and to Moldova and Albania, the poverty blighted zones of the world that provide the victims of trafficking.

He talked to scores of women who had endured unimaginable suffering and abuse, such as a 16-year-old Moldovan girl who had applied for a job as a house cleaner. Instead she was raped and then trafficked via Serbia and Greece to Italy, where she was told she had to pay back the €4,000 she owed by working as a prostitute. Twenty-six months later, she eventually escaped and found sanctuary at a women’s shelter, afflicted with syphilis, a damaged uterus and two broken fingers. She was offered residency in Italy but only if she testified against the feared agent who had trafficked her.

In India’s Bihar state, he met Salim, a villager who explained in matter-of-fact terms how he bought children from impoverished families. Salim sends the boys to weave carpets in towns around Varanasi and Badoi while the girls went to the sex trade in New Delhi and Badoi, getting around $110 for a boy and $175 for a girl. MB, a flamboyant brothel owner in Mumbai, tells how he buys women from Nepal and Bangladesh, complains about police bribes, and laments that young girls have become very expensive.

All this could have made for a sensational exposé, the tale of a do-gooder businessman seeking his own vicarious existential meaning in virtuous indignation at the suffering of others. There are, after all, plenty of aid groups who have witnessed and reported in greater detail on these subjects.

But what distinguishes his book is his decision to surround the narrative with his own campaign proposals for action based on his economic analysis of sex trafficking. These proposals are displayed in a series of tables that compare the economics of trafficking across a range of sex trade locations – for example a bungalow brothel in Mumbai, a massage parlour in Kathmandu or an apartment in western Europe.

SIKKIM: Red Panda toys in demand

FROM SIKKIM REPORTER

BY DB RAI

Panda Toys are in great demand in Sikkim and other parts of the nation. Photo by Sikkim Reporter

Gangtok: Those who had no chance to see Red Panda, the State animal, now can have Red Panda toys being made by Director of Handloom and Handicraft Department over last six months with good demands from within the State and outside.”It is so successful that we have no stock of the toys but we are trying utmost to meet the demand of the toys,” said Mr. Prabir Roy, master trainer and toy designer of DHH.He said within six months sale of toys amounted to Rs.2.75 lakh.

There are 10 varieties of Panda toys and the price of toys ranges from Rs.50 to Rs.2000. Total 30 students are engaged in production of the toys. They are paid 40% of the sale value, Mr. Roy informed.

The materials for making toys like fur are imported from Indonesia via a Kolkata based toy designing institute, Institute of Toys Making Technology. The materials are very costly and so, due to high cost of production, the selling price are also high, Mr. Roy said.

SIKKIM: NCDC award 2008 to Mangan MPCS

FROM SIKKIM REPORTER

Gangtok: For excelling in their performance, primary cooperative societies are awarded ‘Cooperative Excellence Award’ by National Cooperative Development Corporation once in two years since 2002 as recognition of their achievements.

Under this, the selected societies are presented cash award of Rs. 50,000/- along with a certificate of recognition. The selection is made in two stages. In the first stage, a State level Selection Committee constituted for the purpose with Regional Director, NCDC as convenor will recommend 3 (three) best societies in each state/Union Territory for final selection to be made by NCDC, H.O, New Delhi.

Mangan MPCS Ltd, was selected for this year’s award. President of the society, Mrs. Chumki Saring, who is also Chairperson, Sikkim Commission for protection of Child Rights went to receive the award on behalf of the society. The function was held on 15th January 2009 at NCUI Auditorium, Hauz Khas, New Delhi wherein the Union Minister for Agriculture and Cooperation, Mr. Sarad Pawar presented the awards to the selected societies.

SIKKIM: JYSS demands security cover to State BJP members

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

Gangtok, January 22: Jana Yuva Shakti Sikkim (JYSS) today expressed its support to State BJP unit for raising the ‘dual citizenship’ allegations against Chief Minister Pawan Chamling.

The party also demanded the administration to provide security to the State BJP member Padam Sharma and his family members.

The support and security demand was raised today during an emergency meeting of the party under the chairmanship of the party president Lalit Sharma.

A press release informs that JYSS has taken a serious note of the ‘dual citizenship’ allegations being raised in various news papers and a telecast by a national news channel today morning.

SIKKIM: Lower court rejects Gautam’s bail petiton

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

Gangtok, January 22: A lower court at Gangtok today rejected the bail plea of BP Gautam who had arrested by State Vigilance police on charges of demanding and accepting bribes from a Forest Guard candidate.

The accused, a joint secretary (administration) of the State forest department had been arrested on January 18 at his Lower Sichey residence.

After hearing his bail petition, Session Court Judge Meenakshi Rai rejected the plea and forwarded him to another 4 days of police custody. The prosecution lawyer NP Sharma had prayed the Court that proper investigations has not been completed yet and more information and documents have to be examined from the selection committee of the forest department.

It may be recalled the forest official had been arrested on last Sunday by State Vigilance police and a case of demanding and accepting bribes under relevant sections of Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 has been registered.

SIKKIM: CM interacts with people of Pachey, promises to fulfil their requests

FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS

CM interacting with people of Pachey, promises to fulfil their requests

PAKYONG, January 22: A large number of people today turned up at Pachey guest house to air their grievances with the Chief Minister, Pawan Chamling.

Chief Minister Pawan Chamling today reached Pachey, near Pakyong in East Sikkim for his marathon ‘one to one’ interaction with the people at the grassroots level.

He interacted with every individual and promised them to fulfil their requests. Till the filing of this report, it was informed that CM’s interaction with the people was expected to continue until midnight.

Prior to the interaction, Mr Chamling inaugurated Sangam Club Community Hall at Pachey Phirphirey.

During the occasion, Sangam Club of Pachey Phirphirey and Jiwan Jyoti Club of Samsing felicitated the Chief Minister for his progressive works in the field of Education, Sanitation, and Health for the welfare of the State. A citation and a coat were presented to the CM from the hands of the president Sangam Club Santosh Gurung and also a citation from the hands of president Jiwan Jyoti Club Rup Narayan Chettri.

Addressing the public, Mr Chamling suggested members of both the Clubs to work for the betterment of the society as well as for the State. “My government is providing every facility to the people of Sikkim and it should reach every individual whether an old man or women in the villages,” he said adding that government facilities should bring happiness and satisfaction in one’s life.

INTERNET: ‘Gorkhaland’ – Netting support

FROM THE STATESMAN

Siliguri, Jan. 23: The communication revolution is now making its presence felt in north Bengal. Along with the agitations in the Darjeeling Hills and Dooars in support of Gorkhaland, a movement for the demand is silently taking place on the Internet.

Gorkhaland supporters based in different parts of India have created several community groups on social networking sites like Orkut, Ibibo, Myspace and Facebook to enlist support for Gorkhaland from non-resident Gorkhas all over the world and generate international opinion in favour of the demand.

The groups, with names like ‘Gorkhaland’, ‘Jai Gorkhaland’, ‘Free Gorkhaland’, ‘Gorkhaland ~ Our Birthright’, ‘Gorkhaland Awareness Campaign’, ‘Gorkhaland ~ QA New Beginning’, ‘We Support Gorkhaland’, ‘Gorkhaland On The Way’ and ‘Gorkhaland ~ Final Countdown’ have members in different parts of the world.

As is clear from the dates of their scraps and postings, the groups were created soon after the  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) launched its agitation in August 2008.

Though the identities of the owners of these communities are unknown, the fact that some diehard supporters of Gorkhaland maintain them, for the most part, is evident from their group descriptions.

Like the contentious “GL” number plates, these communities have already created a lot of resentment among a large number of Internet users belonging to various ethnic and linguistic groups in the region. Said Mr Santosh Sarkar of Jalpaiguri: “The scraps, postings and introductory descriptions in these groups are replete with false claims and provocative propaganda, which are a veritable threat to communal harmony among Indians.”

SIKKIM: Sikkim bandh call annoys govt

FROM THE STATESMAN

Gangtok, Jan. 23: The Pawan Chamling administration in Sikkim has reacted strongly against the proposed bandh in the mountain state on 26 January sponsored by the National People’s Party of Sikkim, demanding Mr Chamling’s resignation from the chief minister’s chair on the dual citizenship issue.

The BJP north-east in-charge Mr Harendra Prasad created ripples recently by alleging that Mr Chamling enjoyed citizenship of two nations ~ Nepal and India. The chief minister and his party have rebuffed the allegation but the NPPS was quick to seize the initiative and called for a bandh in Sikkim on 26 January on the issue.

In addition to the dual citizenship issue, the NPPS leadership has also asked for the protection of Article 371F with grant of Associate State status to Sikkim as assured by the Centre before the merger of Sikkim into the Indian Union. Article 371F enshrines special provisions with respect to the state of Sikkim.

Reacting to the bandh call, Mr BB Gooroong, adviser to the Sikkim CM, today said: “If the NPPS has grievances regarding the dilution of Article 371F, its leadership should come forward and tell the government about it. They should be more specific and mention how it is violated. To call a bandh on Republic Day on the two issues is to go against the Constitution of India. It goes against the country. It is personal.”

JALPAIGURI: Cong dithers on GJMM rallies

FROM THE STATESMAN

JALPAIGURI, Jan. 23: While the rest of the political parties in Jalpaiguri district have taken a clear stand on whether they want the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) to hold political rallies in the district or not, the Congress is dithering.

While the Communist Party of India is not against allowing the GJM to hold public rallies in the district, the Forward Bloc and the RSP are against it. The Congress, however, chose to pass the buck to the state government.

Stressing today that the GJM should restrict its movement in the Hills and not try to organise conventions in the Dooars, Jalpaiguri district Congress president Mr Biswaranjan Sarkar added in the same breath that his party had no right to stop the GJM but would definitely oppose if the state government gave permission for such meetings.

According to Mr Sarkar, his party had held a meeting at Birpara on the subject. “The recent clash between the GJM and Adivasi Bikash Parishad supporters has caused considerable damage to peace in the area and we will not allow such an incident to take place again,” he said.

Holding the state government responsible for maintaining law and order in the area, the Congress leader said: “We will claim handsome compensations for the victims. The party will also form groups which would work for peace in the Dooars,” he added.

SIKKIM: Sikkim culling completed

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Culling of Birds

Gangtok, Jan. 23: Health workers today completed the culling of chickens at Rabongla in South Sikkim where bird-flu had been detected.

The three-day operation saw 3,961 chickens being killed, 2,299 eggs destroyed and Rs 3.1 lakh being distributed as compensation to farmers living in a 3km radius of Rabongla.

“Tomorrow, we will begin mopping-up operations and carry out sanitation and surveillance in the affected areas,” said South Sikkim collector D. Anandan.

The additional director of the state animal husbandry department, S.K. Bhutia, who had been supervising the culling, said ten rapid response teams would comb the affected areas for the chicken waste and mop up them.

“They will also disinfect the affected places and carry out a thorough surveillance on a 10km radius of the culling area to check if symptoms of flu are still present among the poultry there. They will also collect blood samples if any bird shows symptoms of the disease,” Bhutia said.

He said the health teams would speak to villagers and ask them about their own observations on symptoms they had noticed.

KURSEONG: Netaji anniversary celebration low key in hills

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Kurseong, Jan. 23: The Netaji museum at Giddhapahar went without celebrations on the birth anniversary of Subhash Chandra Bose today because of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) -sponsored office strike in the hills.

The house owned by Netaji’s brother, Sarat Chandra Bose, was converted into a museum under the Netaji Institute for Asian Studies in 2001 by the state government.

“Every year, there used to be a big programme to commemorate his birth anniversary. But, there was no such thing today. The subdivisional officer of Kurseong and some other employees came in the morning, hoisted the national flag and offered khadas (silken scarves) to the statue,” said 81-year-old Moti Maya Lepcha, a gardener in the museum.

Lepcha was nine-year-old when Netaji was kept under house arrest by the Britishers in Giddapahar, 2km from here. She recalled her association with Netaji.

“I used to call him kaka babu. My Father Kalu Singh Lama used to work for him. When my father was away for work and left us behind, Netaji used to take care of my family. He played with his nieces Mira, Gita, Roma and Chitra. I also give them company,” Lepcha said.

This year, officials said Netaji’s birth anniversary programme could not be held because of the ongoing strike in the hills.

“We could not attend our offices for long. Since we had to invite guests from Calcutta and other places for today’s event, it was not possible for us to prepare any programme without going to the office,” said Ganesh Pradhan, the in-charge of the museum. “At least a month is required to hold a programme like this.”

The strike has also affected the opening of the Centre for the Studies in Himalayan Languages, Society and Culture, which will be a part of the Institute.

“No work has begun till now,” Pradhan said.

SILIGURI: Hill blow to milk supply

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Siliguri, Jan. 23: Supply of milk in the plains and regular production of a state-run dairy plant here have been hit by the ongoing Gorkhaland movement in the hills.

“We used to get 20,000 litres of milk daily for the Himalayan Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Ltd. But for the past six months, we have been facing a shortage of about 6,000 to 8,000 litres every day because of the movement,” Anisur Rahaman, the Bengal animal resource development minister, said after inaugurating two chilling units of a Himul plant at Bagdogra today. “We are trying to meet this shortage by collecting milk from the Jalpaiguri district and Siliguri subdivision.”

The shortage in milk supply has also affected the production of paneer, curd and ghee in a Himul plant at Matigara. “It has led to irregularity in supply of these products to local markets. We have thought of talking to the suppliers to sort out this problem and regularise the supply,” the minister said.

The chilling units opened today at Bagdogra have been set up at a cost of Rs 16 lakh. Each unit has the capacity to cool 500 litres, officials said.

The Matigara plant was set up in 1976. Currently, around 300 workers are working there. The minister today threw lights on reviving the plant by adopting a number of measures.

SILIGURI: Yechury links development with peace

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

Sitaram Yechury

Siliguri, Jan. 23: CPM politburo member Sitaram Yechury today appealed to the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) and other parties in the region to maintain peace and work together for development of north Bengal.

Yechury, who was here to address a gathering organised by the party’s Siliguri zonal committee, said: “We are against the division of states and always advocating greater autonomy within them. The state government has also said the same in this case. Parties and organisations demanding separate statehood should strive together for the betterment of the region.”

The CPM leader said there could be grievances among ethnic groups and tribals because of lack of development, unemployment, education and others. “But instead of creating tension in the region, it is better to resolve the problems through talks.”

According to him, north Bengal, owing to its strategic location, has greater chances of an economic boost – thanks to the improvement in trade and infrastructure with Southeast Asian nations and the Centre’s “Look East” policy.

“We have opposed formation of states like Uttarakhand and Jharkhand and oppose the demand of Gorkhaland as well. People in north Bengal have been living together for over 200 years and any disturbance at this time will severely affect the economic growth. I appeal to the groups and parties to work together, participate in the talks and maintain peace,” Yechury said.

Any turmoil in the region, considering its importance of location, will only “strengthen the hands of those who want to create disturbance in the country.”

DARJEELING: Morcha relief for damaged houses – Party brass asks people to submit claims

FROM THE TELEGRAPH

The Morcha team, led by Roshan Giri (centre), on its arrival from Calcutta at the Bagdogra airport on Friday. The delegation held talks with the chief minister in Writers’ Buildings on Wednesday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo

Darjeeling, Jan. 23: The  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) has decided to compensate its supporters whose houses were damaged during the recent spate of violence in the Dooars.

“We have already provided Rs 10,000 each to the six families from the Lakhipara tea garden (in Jalpaiguri) to construct their houses which had been burnt down by the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad members recently,” said Binay Tamang, the media and publicity secretary of the Morcha .

Apart from the financial aid, the Morcha  is also distributing food items like rice, flour and mustard oil to its affected supporters.

“The six families came to meet our president Bimal Gurung at Gorubathan on Wednesday. He gave them around three quintals of rice, a tin of mustard oil and flour. We will also provide them with clothes in the days to come,” Tamang said over phone from Gorubathan in  Kalimpong subdivision.

In a meeting held in Calcutta on Wednesday, a seven-member delegation led by party general secretary Roshan Giri, had demanded compensation from the state government for their supporters who had lost their properties in the recent violence.

Tamang also said the Morcha  had directed 112 people living in a camp at Jhaldhaka to submit to the party within two days the details of the damage they had suffered in the Dooars. He added that an initial compensation of Rs 10,000 would be distributed among them.

“They were also asked to give their names and addresses so that the party can work out the compensation package. The same list will be given to the government for the compensation,” Tamang said.

The Morcha said the state government gave them a positive response on providing aid.

“It might take some time for the government aid to reach the victims, but the party has decided to go ahead with its own compensation package. We have asked the victims in the Dooars to get in touch with the Morcha   leaders for the compensation,” said the spokesperson.

The party is expected to verify the extent of the damage before it doles out the compensation package. The Morcha  alleges that properties owned by more than 50 of its supporters were damaged during the recent strife in the Dooars.