GORKHA OUTFIT WITHDRAWS INDEFINITE DARJEELING SHUTDOWN Siliguri (West Bengal), July 27 (IANS) The pro-Gorkhaland Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) Monday withdrew its indefinite shutdown in the three hill sub-divisions of West Bengal's Darjeeling district ahead of the Aug 11 tripartite talks in New Delhi. The shutdown called by GJM, which wants a separate Gorkhaland state to be carved out of parts of northern West Bengal, had stalled normal life in the sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong since July 13. Apart from Gorkhaland, the GJM also demanded removal of Inspector General of Police (North Bengal) K.L. Tamta alleging that he was instigating their opponents. GJM chief Bimal Gurung announced the withdrawal of the agitation at a public meeting in Chowrasta in Darjeeling town. GJM press and publicity secretary Harka Bahadur Chhetri said the outfit would wait for the outcome of the Aug 11 talks, the third round, with the state and central governments on the Gorkhaland demand. 'We will review our stand Aug 17,' Chhetri said. Earlier, the state government appealed to GJM to withdraw the agitation in order to create a conducive atmosphere for the talks. The GJM organised indefinite shutdowns twice last year and once in the run up to the Lok Sabha polls this year, severely hitting tea and tourism industry - the bread and butter of the region. Two rounds of tripartite talks held last year in New Delhi had failed to break the deadlock. GJM bandh called off ENS, Kolkata July 28:The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha, spearheading a campaign for a separate state, on Monday suspended its indefinite bandh in the Darjeeling hills till August 17 to create a “cordial atmosphere” ahead of the tripartite talks on August 11 in Delhi. The calling off of the strike was expected after the GJM recently lifted blockades of NH-31A, the lifeline for Sikkim, and relaxed the bandh for a few hours every day. GJM general secretary Roshan Giri said the decision to suspend the bandh, announced by its president Bimal Gurung, was taken in response to the request by the Centre, state government and other quarters. “This is a goodwill gesture. We want to show that we want the talks to happen. We will see the outcome of the talks and act accordingly,” Giri said. He said their demand for the transfer of senior police officials, including IG (north Bengal) K L Tamta, for the lathicharge and police highhandedness on GJM supporters at Panighatta on July 10 still stands. Morcha lifts strike VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, Darjeeling, July 27: Bimal Gurung withdrew the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s indefinite strike from tomorrow and dared policemen to resign from service for the cause of statehood. The Morcha chief made the announcement for ending the strike at Chowrasta while observing Martyrs’ Day in memory of 1,200 people who died during a 28-month statehood agitation under the GNLF in the eighties. In 1986, on this day, 14 people were gunned down by paramilitary forces in Kalimpong. Gurung cited the talks with the Centre as the reason for the withdrawal. “In an attempt to create a congenial atmosphere for the August 11 tripartite meeting, we decided to withdraw the strike from tomorrow. We will review the outcome of the talks at a meeting on August 17 when we decide on the future of the agitation,” he said. He, however, asked people to continue boycotting payment of all government taxes. The party had earlier linked the withdrawal of the strike, which started on July 13, to the transfer of senior police officers from the hills. Today, Gurung said: “We must not be one-track in our approach.” Then quickly he clarified: “I am not withdrawing the strike fearing that my people will go hungry. I have enough rations stocked for three months and it will be my duty to distribute them to every house.” The Morcha leader then challenged the hill police to show their commitment to the statehood cause. “In the plains, even a constable is determined to stop the partition of Bengal but policemen (from the Gorkha community) here are arresting our own people. If you are committed to the cause (of Gorkhaland), I dare you to resign,” said Gurung. SUSPENSION OF STRIKE SNS, KURSEONG / SILIGURI 27 JULY: The Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha today announced suspension of its ongoing indefinite bandh from tomorrow till 17 August. The GJMM chief Mr Bimal Gurung made the announcement on the occasion of Martyrs’ Day in Darjeeling today. The GJMM spokesperson Mr Harka Bahadur Chettri said that the decision to suspend the bandh had been taken to facilitate the tripartite talks on the Hill situation in New Delhi on 11 August. Mr Chettri also informed that on 11 August, GJMM supporters would form a human chain from Lebong in Darjeeling to Siliguri and from Damber Chowk in Kalimpong to Siliguri. The same would also be formed in all the other places of the Hills. Mr Chettri added that the chain would be formed to express unity among the Hill people towards the Gorkhaland demand. The GJMM general secretary, Mr Roshan Giri, said that all educational institutions, transportation, shops and establishments and government offices would remain open during the bandh suspension period. Meanwhile, Martyrs Day was celebrated throughout the hills today in memory of those who made the supreme sacrifice during the 28-month long bloody agitation for Gorkhaland under the GNLF leader Mr Subash Ghisingh's stewardship from 1986. In Kurseong, GJMM supporters in traditional attire along with school students, teachers, school authorities and the clergy of different religion paid homage at the Sahid Bedi at this morning. Meanwhile, the Panighatta-based controversial GNLF leader Mr Rajen Mukhia today alleged that the GJMM was trying to wipe out his party's saga of sacrifice from the collective mind of the community. “While observing the Martyrs’ Day today, the GJMM was more interested to hog the limelight for itself rather than pay homage to those who made the sacrifice,” Mr Mukhia said. Mr Mukhia also said that the GJMM leader Mr Bimal Gurung should act on his Gorkhaland pledge and make the statehood promise a reality within his stipulated time frame. “Otherwise he should gracefully abdicate leadership in keeping with the hoary Gorkha tradition. He should not mislead the people by taking recourse to non-committal equivocations,” Mr Mukhia opined. Hills in awe of funds & promises , Ghisingh’s days of solitude Gorkhaland Personnel pay homage to the ‘martyrs’ at Chowrastha on Monday. Picture by Suman Tamang BIRESWAR BANERJE, TT, Siliguri, July 27: Accompanied by a handful of followers and son Mohan, Subhas Ghisingh is spending his days in seclusion. Today was just another day for the GNLF chief. There was no crowd of followers in front of his house in Collegepara, 45km from here, although it was his party that had started the saheed diwas or the martyrs’ day in the memory of 1,200 people who died during the 28-month long Gorkhaland agitation. Driven out of the hills, 73-year-old Ghisingh did not attend any rally or meeting today. “We understand the significance of the day, but cannot observe it here in Jalpaiguri. People in the hills had laid down their lives during the Gorkhaland movement 20 years ago. It deserves to be observed in the hills and not in plains,” a GNLF worker said. “Although we were forced to leave the hills we would still prefer to remain silent and so would our chief. We consider the observation of the martyrs’ day away from the hills an insult to those who died for the cause.” Hundreds of GNLF workers in the Terai, however, paid homage to the “martyrs”. “We had contacted our chief two days ago and sought his permission to pay tributes to our martyrs. Since he agreed and appreciated our decision, we organised programmes in Panighata and some other places in the foothills,” said Rajen Mukhia, the president of the GNLF’s Terai unit, over the phone from Panighata, 35km from Siliguri. “We had started our agitation in the eighties, demanding separate statehood for the fist time. Many of us had to face police atrocities. Things have, however, changed now. Anybody can raise the demand and nobody is there to take action against them,” said Mukhia. “But Gorkhaland will continue to remain our ultimate goal.” “We have decided to keep silent and watch the activities of Morcha leaders, who have promised to achieve Gorkhaland by 2010,” he added. Gurung to cops: Give up job, I will pay TT, Darjeeling, July 27: Bimal Gurung’s magnanimity with finances continues to amaze the hills. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha president today announced that he would give a policeman all the benefits that he was entitled to during and after his service period, if he dared to resign from his job for Gorkhaland. “I will sell my ribs and pay you. I always keep my word,” Gurung thundered at Chowrastha while addressing a gathering on “martyrs’ day.” Many considered his speech as a true politician’s — an off-the-cuff promise that nobody knows when it will be delivered. However, going by some past episodes not all were ready to disbelieve him. At least 4,500 youths of the Gorkhaland Personnel (GLP) are being paid a monthly stipend of Rs 1,000 for the past few months. Gurung had made the promise in 2007. The Morcha now plans to raise the strength of the GLP from 4,500 to 11,000. Apart from the monthly stipend, Gurung is paying for their training, ration and uniform. Till yesterday, the GLP were wearing a bottle green and yellow tracksuit but today they were given new uniforms in red and black. “It is amazing how he manages to feed and pay so many Gorkhaland Personnel,” said a resident of Darjeeling. This is not all. Gurung claims that he can feed the hill people for three months if there is a need for a prolonged general strike, a statement he reiterated even today. The fact that the Morcha distributed 800 quintals of rice and 10 quintals of dal to hundreds across Darjeeling subdivision is a pointer to his seriousness. “We will distribute rice and dal to people in Kalimpong and Kurseong also on a later date,” Gurung said yesterday. Apart from rice and lentils, the Morcha has also stocked mustard oil. “There was problem distributing oil but we will do it soon,” Gurung had said at Darjeeling Gymkhana Club yesterday. Earlier, the Morcha chief had maintained that he would be distributing 2,500 quintals of ration during the strike period. Asked about his resources, Gurung said: “I have no resources of my own, but it will keep on coming, let me assure you.” ‘Misfire’ death Kurseong, July 27: A 27-year-old man got killed when the service revolver of a policeman allegedly went off. The victim, Barun Sharma, had gone to the house of Pratiba Pradhan for a glass of water. The constable of the Kurseong police station was present at Pradhan’s house at that time. Eyewitnesses said he was not wearing his uniform but it is not known if he was on duty. It is also not clear how the gun went off and bullet hit Sharma. Half an hour after Sharma was shot, around 10pm a crowd of around 200 people started gathering outside Kurseong police station and demanding the constable’s arrest. The mob was yet to disperse at 1.30am on Tuesday. Sharma was taken to Kurseong subdivisional hospital where he succumbed to injury. Confirming Sharma’s death, subdivisional police officer Rakesh Singh said: “We don’t know if the gun went off accidentally or not. An investigation is on.” Govt boost to tribal growth Siliguri, July 27: The government has decided to set up coaching centres in the Terai and Dooars to provide academic as well as sports training to tribal youths of the regions, the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad said today. The Parishad has been opposing the Gorkha Janmukti’s Morcha’s statehood cry. The hill party wants the Dooars and the Terai to be part of Gorkhaland that it wants. “A senior officer of the state government said two centres would be built at Malbazar and Alipurduar where tribal youths pursuing medical and engineering entrance tests or professional exams like WBCS would be coached for free,” Parishad president Birsa Tirkey said. He attended the meeting convened by R.D. Meena, the principal secretary of the state backward classes’ welfare department, along with 15 members of his outfit. Other senior officers were also present at the Jalpaiguri Circuit House where the discussions were held this afternoon. “He (Meena) also promised us that two sports centres, one each in the Dooars and Terai, would be opened to encourage our boys in sports, particularly in archery and football.” The Parishad leaders had taken up with Meena the government delay in paying book grant and maintenance charges to tribal students and the disbursement of old age pension. “He assured us of prompt payment and sought a list of beneficiaries eligible for the pension through the district magistrates,” Tirkey said. The government has agreed to set up three Hindi-medium high schools in the Terai and the Dooars. Meena also promised to expedite the process of conferring land right on tribals. “The Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority will build a community hall in Siliguri. It will help in showcasing our culture,” Tirkey said. “Our members in the Dooars also proposed to the principal secretary an alternative route to the Dooars from Siliguri.” Meena, who did not divulge much about the meeting, said: “We held the meeting to know the progress of several schemes of our department. A number of other issues were also raised and they were discussed with the Parishad leaders." Chamling’s budget for 15th time Gangtok, July 27: Sikkim chief minister Pawan Chamling today created a record of sorts in the country by presenting the annual state budget for the 15th time in a row. With the 32-member House packed with Sikkim Democratic Front MLAs thumping on desks, Chamling,who also holds the finance, revenue and expenditure portfolio, said in his budget speech: “Seldom do providence and power of the people bestow such a unique privilege on a person to preside over the future of a state with continuity to this extent.” Chamling tabled a Rs 1.83 crore deficit budget for 2009-2010 on the first day of the budget session of the Assembly. “We have to institute stringent policies, as we have been doing in the past, to curtail non-plan expenditure and to implement austerity measures in government expenditure. The urgency in this regard is imperative with the global economic recession which has adversely impacted the economies across the world,” said the chief minister. He also said the state’s 2009-10 budget of Rs 1,045 crore represented an increase of 22.7 per cent compared to the preceding year. At the same time, Chamling informed the Assembly about the increase in the internal revenue sources of Sikkim. The revenue sources have recorded an increase by 17.3 per cent in 2008-09 as compared to Rs 409.89 crore in the initial year of the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-08), he said. “We will need to focus attention on bringing about a greater improvement in revenue collection by widening our tax base and examining options of imposing user charges while ensuring maintenance of high standards of services in the delivery system for the community.” “The budget will carry forward our development agenda to consolidate and spur the growth of the state’s economy and ultimately eradicate poverty, illiteracy and disease by 2015,” he added. Among the projects that he announced was a Rs 1-crore Bhaichung Stadium at Namchi.