Tamang’s Sikkim pill for hill imbroglio Gorkha Janmukti Vidyarthi Morcha supporters squat on NH55 at Panchnoi, on the outskirts of Siliguri, during the seven-hour blockade on Thursday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo TT, Siliguri, Dec. 31: ABGL chief Madan Tamang today proposed a solution to the agitation for separate statehood in the hills: “inclusion of Darjeeling into Sikkim”. The suggestion comes at a time when GNLF leader Subash Ghisingh has advocated Sixth Schedule status for the DGHC area, while the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is mounting pressure on both the state and central governments for separate statehood and waiting for a political-level dialogue may be held before the budget session of Parliament. “I had expressed my apprehension earlier. Again I want to make it clear that the Morcha leadership is into a tacit understanding with the Centre and the state. The recent advocacies by Ghisingh in favour of Sixth Schedule only confirm that Buddhababu (Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee) and Pranabbabu (Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee) are trying to impose it on us, may be with an economic package,” Tamang said at a news conference here. “The Morcha leaders are well aware of these facts and are involved in this understanding.” The ABGL leader said the hill people would continue to strive for separation from Bengal. “We want to mention that even inclusion of Darjeeling in Sikkim is a better option and can be one of the solutions to the problem. The area is contiguous, the culture and language are the same and the deprived and backward people in the hills can improve if this proposal is contemplated.” According to him, the Morcha is working on an alleged carrot-and-stick policy devised by the state and Centre. “On one hand, the governments are granting Rs 70 crore to the DGHC and asking the Morcha leaders to work on development in the hills, which indirectly is an opportunity to help them make money, while, on the other hand, they (governments) are tactically projecting Ghisingh to show the Morcha leaders that if they do not listen to the government, they will resurrect Ghisingh and put him again at the helm of affairs in the hills,” Tamang alleged. He claimed to have obtained the proceedings of the third round of talks held in Delhi, released by the Press Information Bureau. “It says that during the talks it was decided that the Sixth Schedule bill would be dropped,” Tamang said. “Use of dubious phrases like ‘would be’ indicates the intentions of the governments and now, we can see that Ghisingh, along with the Centre and state, is speaking on the revival of the Sixth Schedule.” Madan threatens agitation against Sixth Schedule introduction SNS, SILIGURI, 31 DEC: Claiming that the Centre, the state government and the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha are busy hatching a conspiracy to introduce the Sixth Schedule in the Darjeeling Hills, the All India Gorkha League president, Mr Madan Tamang today threatened violent agitation if the governments take such a step to solve the dragging imbroglio in the Darjeeling Hills. “The AIGL would not allow clamping the Sixth Schedule in the Darjeeling Hills. The Sixth Schedule is feudal in nature and it would divide the Nepali-speaking populace in the hills on the tribal-non-tribal lines.  “We want Gorkhaland. If the concerned parties would attempt to impose the pernicious Schedule on the hills I would resist it with my life if necessary,” he said in a press conference in Siliguri. The AIGL chief also blamed the GJMM for being a part of the conspiracy. “The GJMM leadership keeps deceiving the people in the hills by way of rhetorical flourish. It is not serious about its opposition to the Sixth Schedule,” he alleged.  Referring to the recent speech of the Union finance minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, after a meeting with Congress leaders from the region, that autonomy would be given to the Darjeeling Hills, Mr Tamang said: “The Centre is planning for a more powerful Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council along with some economic package. The GJMM's silence on Mr Mukherjee's statement is intriguing”. Speaking on the recent comment of the GNLF chief, Mr Subhas Ghishing, on the fast changing political trajectory in the Darjeeling Hills, Mr Tamang said: “The state government is using Mr Ghishing as its pliable tool to pressurize the GJMM into submission to the Sixth Schedule package.” Hills-Dooars bandh called on 2 Jan SILIGURI, 31 DEC: Stepping up the ante for a separate Gorkhaland state, the GJMM affiliated Gorkha Vidyarthi Morcha has convened a 24-hour shutdown in the Darjeeling district and the Dooars on 2 January.  The shutdown call is an extension of the Vidyarthi Morcha's national highways and railway blockades programme that is going on since 28 December. “Tomorrow the blockades would run from 9 am to 4 pm and on 2 January there would be a 24-hour general strike across the demanded Gorkhaland territory that includes the Darjeeling district and the Dooars region,” informed the Vidyarthi Morcha general secretary Mr Keshav Raj Pokhrel. Endorsing the bandh call, the GJMM general secretary Mr Roshan Giri said that the Vidyarthi Morcha being its frontal organisation, the party was fully behind their agitation programmes. Anti-Morcha forums on protest path Blockade busters stopped midway Members of the Bangla O Bangla Bhasha Banchao Committee burn an effigy of Morcha chief Bimal Gurung near Darjeeling More on NH55 in Siliguri on Thursday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo TT, Siliguri, Dec. 31: Anti-Gorkhaland forums hit the streets of Siliguri and the Dooars today even as the Gorkha Janmukti Vidyarthi Morcha announced that it would go ahead with tomorrow’s road blockade and relay hunger strikes at specific locations from Saturday. In the afternoon, the student wing of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha declared a 24-hour general strike on January 2 only to withdraw it a few hours later. Vidyarthi Morcha general secretary Keshav Raj Pokhrel claimed that the strike plan was shelved after Union home minister P. Chidambaram’s assurance to Morcha president Bimal Gurung of political-level talks before the budget session of Parliament. “We are postponing the general strike as Bimal Gurung, our party president, told me that he has received a message from the Union home ministry wherein it has been mentioned that the political talks scheduled within 45 days from December 21 would be held before the ensuing budget session,” said Pokhrel. “The date and venue are yet to be fixed. On the basis of the assurance, the party president instructed us and we decided to postpone the general strike. However, the relay hunger strike at specific locations, that we had planned from January 3, will commence from January 2.” No senior leader was available to corroborate Pokhrel’s claim. The student leader, however, did not say anything about the eight-hour blockades on NH55, NH31A and NH31 from January 2 that had been declared yesterday. In Siliguri, around 15 members of the Bangla O Bangla Bhasha Banchao Committee were stopped by police near Darjeeling More when they marched towards Panchnoi on NH55 where the Vidyarthi Morcha had set up a blockade. The Bhasha Banchao Committee had already informed the Darjeeling administration of its intention to remove forcefully the picketers if the government did not intervene. On being stopped, the Bhasha Banchao Committee members squatted on the highway — that connects Siliguri to Darjeeling — and continued sloganeering, this time blaming the government and the district administration for remaining silent spectators. The members of the plains outfit sat barely 1km away from the Vidyarthi Morcha protesters. “We had wanted an end to this blockade and had given 48 hours to the administration. Their silence surprised us and thus, we have come down to the streets to deter Morcha supporters from infringing on the rights of people residing here. But we were stopped,” said Chinmoy Chakraborty, the secretary of the Bhasha Banchao Committee. The plains group blocked the road till 1pm and burnt the effigy of the Morcha president around 500 metres from Darjeeling More. After sometime, the protesters walked away on police persuasion. In Malbazar, members of the Dooars Terai Nagarik Mancha demonstrated throughout the day. “Residents of Terai and the Dooars are facing several inconveniences because of these blockades everyday. It is hard to believe that Darjeeling district has an administration,” said Larry Bose, the working president of the Mancha. “If the administration fails to take any measures to rein in the Morcha, we will resort to road blockades in different parts of north Bengal for indefinite periods.” In the afternoon, a rumour did the rounds that Morcha supporters ransacked an ambulance at Sevoke while it was on its way to Siliguri from Malbazar to bring a patient. This complicated the situation and soon drivers plying light vehicles in the Dooars set up blockades at Odlabari, Malbazar, Chulsa and Damdim, protesting the alleged ransack. Although later it was learnt that the ambulance was stopped at Sevoke but not ransacked and that it eventually made its way to Siliguri through Jalpaiguri, the counter blockades in the Dooars continued till 6pm. The protesters, identifying themselves as the Dooars Drivers’ Association, announced 72-hour road blockades in the Dooars from tomorrow. Trains diverted due to Morcha blockade SNS,SILIGURI/JALPAIGURI, 31 DEC: The Gorkha Vidyarthi Morcha convened ongoing blockades on national highways and train tracks passing through the Darjeeling district is singeing normal life in the region even as the administration continues to maintain a ‘wait and watch’ policy.  Vidyarthi Morcha has been resorting to blockades on the NH 55 to Darjeeling, NH 31A to Sikkim and NH 31 to Assam and on the railway tracks at Sevoke station everyday since 28 December to press for the demand for a separate Gorkhaland state. Today the blockades ran between 10 am to 4 pm. Resultant to the blockade at the Sevoke railway station, the North East Frontier Railway was today compelled to divert a pair of express trains that ply through the Dooars route.  The 3247 DN and 3248 UP Capital Express that ply between Kamakhya in Assam and Danapur in Bihar was run via New Coochbehar - Dhupguri - New Jalpaiguri instead of its original route of Alipurudar Juncion - Hasimara - Sevok - New Jalpaiguri.  On the other hand, an ambulance coming to Siliguri from Malbazar was intercepted by the Vidyarthi Morcha activists near the Coronation Bridge at Sevoke at about 1:30 pm today and the driver was manhandled and the ambulance was damaged partially.  The incident sparked off spontaneous protests at Malbazar and Oodlabari, where the locals put up three separate blockades on the NH 31 from 2 pm demanding an end to the Morcha atrocities. The blockades were withdrawn at around 5:30 pm after the police authorities assured appropriate action. “If the administration fails to live up to the assurance then it must stay prepared for a massive public backlash across the Dooars,” cautioned Mr Larry Bose of the Dooars-Terai Nagarik Mancha. The Mancha today also organised a sit-in-demonstration at Malbazar opposing the Gorkhaland demand. Vidyarthi Morcha president Mr Kismat Chhetri however, has refused the charges of damaging any ambulance at Sevoke. “The ambulance might have got stranded in the blockade, that's all. Blockades would be put up tomorrow as well,” the student leader said. Hills wear white to usher in the new SNS, KURSEONG, 31 DEC: At a time when the political mercury keeps rising with a solution eluding the restless Hills the higher ridges like Rimbik, Sandakphu and Tiger Hills experienced the season's first snowfall in the wee hours today. This apart, the Hills have drizzling in the morning, forcing the residents into real winter spell.  Tiger Hill, acclaimed the world over for the celestial sunrise view along the hierarchical Himalayan ranges, experienced the snowfall around 1 a.m. Continuing for a couple of hours it robed the area immaculate white. According to the meteorologists, the snowfall is measured at 2 to 3 inches. The road connecting Rimbik to Darjeeling was blocked for some hours due to the snowfall. However, the Darjeeling town is yet to savour the snowfall ecstasy,though there are possibilities in the coming few days f the weather officials are to be believed.  Though the hills are almost bereft of tourists because of the lingering political turmoil over the statehood issue those left along with the residents rushed to the Tiger Hills to relish the nature's charm. Several people complained that they could not reach the Tiger Hills because of the continuing road blockade agitation by the GJMM frontal organizations.  Mercury plummeted to minus 3 degree Celsius during the snowfall and presently it stands at 0 degree Celsius.  Notably, the Darjeeling hills had experienced snowfalls on 27 January 2008 and 14 February 2007.  The locals view the snowfall after couple of years as a good omen for the hills. “The snowfall a day before the onset of the next year might usher in good days for us,” they said. Darjeeling treks up for snow - Mercury dips below zero as flakes fall on tiger hill Tourists play with snow at Tiger Hill on Thursday. Picture by Suman Tamang VIVEK CHHETRI TT, Darjeeling, Dec. 31: Nature crafted a perfect winter landscape today, blanketing Tiger Hill on the upper ridges of Darjeeling with snow early this morning. The temperature dipped to minus 3 degrees Celsius at Tiger Hill when it started snowing from 1am for three hours. By 9.30am, the temperature had risen to zero degree Celsius. In Darjeeling town located more than 1,000ft downhill, the minimum temperature recorded in the past 24 hours was minus 1 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature was 13 degrees Celsius. “It’s heavenly. I wish the hills were always so perfect and calm,” said Vaishali Pradhan, a hill resident who refused to speak much but came across as a person who seemed disturbed with “all that ails the beautiful Darjeeling”. There were not many tourists at Tiger Hill to enjoy the snow — thanks to the agitation in the hills — but hordes of local people reached there as early as six in the morning. Many even trekked a 4km steep gradient from Jorebunglow in the biting cold to reach the hill located at 8,000 feet. Darjeeling town is at 6,800 ft. “It started snowing from 1am and carried on for at least three hours. The snow seems to be around three inches thick,” said Pradip Lama, the in-charge of the Tiger Hill Complex, the place from where tourists enjoy the sunrise, about 14km from the heart of Darjeeling. A white blanket covers a part of Tiger Hill. Picture by Suman Tamang There was no “sunrise” (the morning was foggy) for Calcutta-based Biswajit Goswami but he thought his “day had been made”. A few like Pallav Sharma, a Gurgoan based garment designer, even decided to take a detour on way to Siliguri to enjoy the snow. “I was on my way to Siliguri today but when I heard about the snowfall I decided to take a detour to Tiger Hill. This is the first time I am playing with snow,” he added. A jubilant Sharma, however, said “the roads are scary. Something must be done about it”. He is among the few tourists who arrived in Darjeeling on December 28 despite threats of strikes and possibility of unrest, not to speak of the blockades, and stayed back. Snow fight seemed a must for all the visitors to Tiger Hill. Many hill residents who have gone down to the plains to spend the winter could not come up to see the snow because of the blockade set up by the Gorkha Janmukti Vidyarthi Morcha. Apart from Tiger Hill, there were also reports of snowfall in Tumling, Sandakphu and Phalut situated at 12,000 feet. Last year it had snowed in Darjeeling town on January 26 but few could enjoy as a steady drizzle that followed had immediately washed off the snow. Regular road siege takes toll on tourism TT, Siliguri, Dec. 31: Snowfall holds little attraction for tourists to the Darjeeling hills and Sikkim this year, thanks to the regular blockades set up by the Gorkha Janmukti Vidyarthi Morcha on NH55 and NH31A. “Given the present political situation, we cannot fix itinerary for tourists who are contacting us to enjoy the winter and snowfall in the hills,” said Lukendra Rasaily, the general secretary of the Travel Agents’ Association of Sikkim, which has 245 members. “Despite the regular snowfall in high-altitude areas like Nathu-la, Kupup and Chhangu Lake in Sikkim, the inflow of tourists is comparatively less. People are coming but after rescheduling and adjusting their journey time.” According to Rasaily, many tourists are leaving for the plains early in the morning to avoid the road blockade while others are waiting for the blockade to be lifted and travelling in the late afternoon and evening. “We are telling the tourists, who are enquiring with us, that there may be changes in travel time. The increase in the duration of blockades has made the situation further complicated for us,” he said. Other stakeholders associated with the tourism sector have also highlighted similar problems. “Though the mercury is dipping and the climate is congenial for snowfall, the blockades on national highways and demonstrations have left us concerned,” said Samrat Sanyal, the general secretary of the Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators’ Association. “We are getting enquiries from tourists but the agitation programmes are affecting the itineraries of tourists, grossly affecting the business. It is a state of utter confusion for us. As there is no consistent strike, we are not cancelling the trips of the tourists, but we can neither be sure of their itinerary as every day new announcements of political activities are being made.” As Darjeeling witnessed snowfall early this morning, the temperature in Siliguri dropped to 8.5 degrees Celsius. In other north Bengal districts, the minimum temperature was within the range of 10-12 degrees. According to Met office, the minimum temperature in Gangtok and Darjeeling dipped to minus 1 in the past 24 hours with 6mm of rainfall reported. In Siliguri, it rained 1.5mm in the morning. ROAD AHEAD TT, The real test before the Indian State in the new year will be its handling of the Telangana issue. The agitation has already gone out of control, thanks to the ineptitude of the Central government. What is worse is that the campaign for Telangana has spurred on agitations in other parts of India demanding smaller states. The argument against huge states of the size of the original Uttar Pradesh draws its strength from administrative convenience. This ground does not hold, say, in the case of Gorkhaland, which is to be carved out of the tiny state of West Bengal. Violent protests, bandhs and fasts-unto-death have become some of the methods of pressurizing the Central government to concede to demands for separate states. Such pressures will mount through the year and the challenge before Manmohan Singh’s government will be to negotiate with these demands without seriously compromising the existing political configuration of the Indian nation. The tension over Telangana may have been diffused for the moment, but the problem and its ramifications will continue to fester. The test will be to avoid bloodshed and not to concede too much. The prime minister, Mr Singh, has made it evident that lasting peace with Pakistan is very high on his list of priorities. Just as he had pushed forward the opening up of the Indian economy and the nuclear deal with the United States of America, he is eager to establish ties of normalcy with Pakistan, provided the latter successfully eradicates terrorism. The proviso is critical since conditions within Pakistan suggest that no one actually is in control of that country. A dialogue to establish and maintain peaceful relationship, by definition, needs two sides. The absence of a responsible leadership in Pakistan will be the principle hurdle before Mr Singh. India, the chances are, will have to continue to live under the shadow of terrorist violence coming out of Pakistan. The threat from without will inevitably exacerbate internal fears. The political class is suffering from a continuous loss of credibility. While it is true that democracy has deepened in India, it cannot be said with the same degree of certainty that the structures and institutions of democracy have been strengthened. Parliaments and legislatures are often disrupted by the unruly behaviour of members. Political parties take to the streets before discussing and debating issues. Dynastic principles and individuals prevail over institutions. These are some of the bigger issues that India will have to confront if democracy has to mature. The problems will not be solved in 2010. But unless they are taken up seriously in the course of the new year, the country will have made no substantive progress on issues that matter. Mild tremor hits Siliguri on New Year’s Eve SILIGURI, 31 DEC: A mild earthquake measuring 5.5 in the Richter scale struck Siliguri and the adjoining areas at 03:27:30 pm this afternoon. This was the second tremor felt in the region in the current week.  According to Dr Subir Sarkar of the North Bengal University (NBU) weather observation centre, the epicenter of the quake was in northeast Bhutan, located at about 300 km from Siliguri town. “It was a mild tremor that lasted for about 16 seconds and there has been no consequential damage,” Dr Sarkar said. Adding further he said that this kind of mild tremor was not unusual in the region and there was no immediate reason to get worry.