July 28: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is now hoping to divide the Adivasis with the help of the newly formed Progressive People’s Party and push ahead with its movement for a new state.

The attempt comes after the Morcha failure to stitch up an alliance with the Terai-Dooars regional committee of the Adivasi Vikas Parishad. Earlier, party president Bimal Gurung had re-christened Gorkhaland — the new state it is clamouring for — as Gorkha Adivasi Pradesh to woo the tribals. But that failed.

Now, the Morcha hopes to take advantage of the fact that the PPP consists of suspended and breakaway leaders of the Parishad who are in favour of a joint movement with the hill party, and gain a foothold in the tribal dominated areas of the Dooars and the Terai.

“This new development will allow the Morcha to make a backdoor entry to a region where it has failed to make major inroads despite repeated attempts,” a Morcha leader said.

The PPP was formed on Sunday after the Parishad’s organising secretary in the Dooars, Raju Bara, and senior party leader Kiran Kumar Kalindi were suspended for “indiscipline”: they had expressed their willingness to talk to the Morcha on the creation of Gorkha Adivasi Parishad.

Samuel Gurung, the organising secretary of the Morcha in the Dooars and Terai, said today: “The formation of the PPP is definitely an indication that the Adivasis have also started an exercise to carve an entity outside of Bengal. We are closely observing the development in the plains and we are willing to work with any party which espouses the cause of separation from Bengal.”

However on a different note, he said: “Leaders breaking away from the Parishad to form the PPP is an internal matter of the outfit. The Morcha would not want to interfere or comment on the development at the moment.”

The Morcha had earlier been hoping to launch a joint movement with the Dooars-Terai regional committee of the Parishad which is the principal outfit representing the tribals in the region. The president of the committee, John Barla, had even written to the Morcha in May saying that he had no objection to discussing a joint movement for statehood.

However, after this, Barla did not take matters forward and now appears to be following the state leadership’s line that the Parishad would have no truck with the hill outfit.

In the past, all attempts by the Morcha to find a toehold in the Dooars had faced resistance largely because of the Parishad’s strong opposition. In fact, there had been frequent clashes between the Gorkhas and Adivasis living in the Dooars. However, sources in the Morcha said the party would now try to cosy up to the PPP and garner Adivasi support for their cause of a separate state.

“If this move proves to be a success, then the Morcha can even use it as a bargaining tool at the tripartite talks or at a later stage, whenever the issue of territorial jurisdiction of the interim authority for the hills comes up,” a Morcha source said.

In fact, the Dooars-Terai Nagarik Manch, a conglomerate of 17 apolitical organisations in the region, has accused the PPP of being a front for the Morcha.

“The Morcha is using the PPP leaders to divide the Adivasis,” alleged Larry Bose, the Manch’s president. “We see no difference between the PPP and the Morcha.”
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Siliguri, July 28: The hills are rife with speculation that the convener of the Terai branch committee of the GNLF, Rajen Mukhia, will join the ABGL that has invited him to a joint movement against the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

Mukhia said he was seriously considering the request and a decision would be taken in a couple of days.

Dawa Sherpa, the ABGL working president, today said: “We have written to a number of leaders across the hills, requesting them to join the ABGL to strengthen the movement against the atrocities of the Morcha and to strive for restoration of democracy and peace in the hills. The list includes Rajen Mukhia and we are waiting to hear from him. We would appreciate if he joins the ABGL but it is up to him to take the final decision.”

Mukhia was the only leader to stay in the GNLF when the Morcha was gaining support base in the hills and even party chairman Subash Ghisingh went into political hibernation.

Acknowledging the invitation, Mukhia said: “I am considering the invitation. It will take a couple of days before I take a decision.”

GNLF supporters in Panighata, where Mukhia is based, said he had already made up his mind to join the ABGL.

“Mukhia was present at a rally here (Panighata) organised in memory of those who had lost their lives during the Gorkhaland agitation in the 1980s. He said in his speech that yesterday was the last martyrs’ day observed by the GNLF in Panighata, which was enough to indicate that he was leaving the party. If he joins the ABGL, all his supporters like me will follow suit,” said a GNLF leader over the phone from Panighata.

If Mukhia joins the ABGL, it would be the last nail on the GNLF’s coffin. Only Mukhia and Kalimpong leader Dawa Pakhrin remained active after the emergence of the Morcha. As Pakhrin had resigned from the party, Mukhia’s departure will trigger the exodus of rest of supporters from the GNLF.
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Darjeeling, July 28: Cruising in a caravan to soak in the ambience of a typical hilly village is still a distant dream for travellers visiting Darjeeling despite the Union ministry of tourism unveiling plans to introduce caravan rides across India in a big way.

Plans by tour operators to start the caravan rides have hit a roadblock because of the state government’s 2005 order stopping the Darjeeling district administration from issuing permits to commercial vehicles in the municipality areas of Darjeeling and Siliguri.

Tashi Sherpa, additional district magistrate, Darjeeling, said: “We cannot issue permits for commercial vehicles carrying passengers in Darjeeling and Siliguri municipality areas.”

Permits are denied to stop congestion in the two towns.

The decision has annoyed Darjeeling-based tour operators who are constantly trying to shrug off stiff competition from Sikkim.

“On the one hand, the government says the industry should not merely rely on it to promote tourism and to create better infrastructure. On the other hand, they do not even facilitate the implementation of the new concept by the industry,” said Suresh Periwal, chairman, Indian Association of Tour Operators, north Bengal and Sikkim chapter.

Periwal who runs Clubside Tours and Travel, one of the few firms allowed to conduct adventure tourism in the state, had drawn up a plan to start caravan services in Darjeeling and the Northeast. “We wanted to procure three air-conditioned super deluxe buses to start caravan tourism in Darjeeling and the Northeast,” said Periwal.

Although Periwal’s plan is not as exhaustive as the rides in other states, where vehicles are equipped with modern facilities like home theatre and chemical toilets, the Darjeeling based tour operator had wanted to make a beginning. “We were planning to carry separate tents for kitchen, dinning, sleeping and toilet purposes and to camp as we cruise to various locations,” said Periwal.

The caravan ride is a big draw among niche European clients.

An official of the Regional Transport Authority said their hands were tied because of the notification. “We can only give permits to commercial vehicles if they don’t enter Darjeeling and Siliguri municipality areas. Commercial vehicles to be used for carrying loads can obtain permits. As far as passenger carriers are concerned, we can only transfer a permit which has already been issued for an old vehicle to a new one,” said the official.

Vehicles operating without valid documents can be fined up to Rs 2,000 and more importantly, would not be able to avail of insurance coverage in case of accidents. “Sometime back, a bus met with an accident in Kurseong and since the vehicle’s papers were not in order, the passengers could not avail of insurance,” said the official.

States like Madhya Pradesh are actively encouraging the new concept by setting up Caravan Parks. Some of the routes for the caravan rides in the country include Delhi-Jaipur-Agra, Delhi-Jaipur-Ajmer-Pushkar and Delhi-Sariska-Ranthambor.
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Gangtok, July 28: Want to buy a car? Get a garage first.

This is what the Sikkim transport department has told residents of the state where, as almost everywhere in India, cars parked along roads choke traffic.

The department issued a notification this month making it mandatory for buyers to produce an availability-of-parking-space certificate before they can get their vehicles registered.

Consumer rights and automobile industry sources described the rule as a first in the country and said it might not stand the test of a legal challenge.

“This notification, which has come into effect from July 7 this year, is only for new vehicles. Everyone is aware of the traffic problems in Sikkim, especially Gangtok,” a motor vehicles department official said.

In urban areas, the superintendent of police in charge of traffic has been mandated to issue the certificates after physical verification of the parking space. For the rest of Sikkim, the responsibility has been given to panchayats.

This will be followed by an inspection by officers not below the rank of motor vehicles inspector, who will submit details to the transport department along with a rough map of the site.

“There is no other way we can control traffic problems in urban areas of Sikkim,” the motor vehicles official said of the rule.

Almost 50 new vehicles are hitting the narrow roads every week as an increase in purchasing power pushes up demand in the state, as elsewhere in the country. The result is huge traffic jams during rush hour.

Calcutta has a building rule that makes it mandatory for multistorey complexes to have parking spaces but the Sikkim rule is unique in that it addresses individual car buyers directly.

“There is no such restriction in India till date. But globally, there are a few countries where governments follow the same. If a government takes such a decision, people will need to comply,” said Jnaneswar Sen, vice-president (marketing), Honda Siel Cars India Ltd.

But Prabir Basu, member of the Bengal Consumer Protection Council, differed: “This new order can be challenged in a court of law and it is almost certain that it will be quashed. No one can impose restrictions on purchase of valid goods if the transaction is legal. Only, it has to be ascertained that the transaction is not prejudicial to the interest of the state. This means that if I am buying a vehicle to transport arms and ammunition to wage war against the state, the government can intervene. Otherwise, the buyer is king.”

The Sikkim motor vehicles department official said the right to purchase vehicles “does not mean the vehicle owners should be creating problems for the public by parking their vehicles in public places. The owners must have a proper parking place, especially for the night.”

Mandeep Singh Tuli, the superintendent of police (East), said traffic police would formulate guidelines to implement the notification in Gangtok and the urban areas around it. “The notification aims to encourage people to have parking spaces in their houses. Parking along roads is not advisable.”

In the hills, car owners often park along the road and walk to their houses, which may be located higher up or lower down, because the gradient does not permit them to drive the whole way. Only people who live along NH31A or other state roads have the luxury of parking spaces in front of their houses.

So, the new notification has been met with dismay. “It is unfair and unjust. If I don’t have a parking place since I live away from approachable roads, does that mean I can’t purchase a vehicle for the use of my family?” asked a government employee who has had to put on hold plans to buy a small car.

In Calcutta, the municipal corporation allows cars to be parked on roads from midnight to 6am for a fee. The charges range from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000, depending on the locality. Gangtok also has some paid parking lots along the highway.

A Gangtok resident complained that the government was trying to ape developed countries. London, Stockholm and several other western cities charge a congestion fee from motorists entering the city centre while others such as Athens have introduced number plate restrictions based on the days of the week.

But S.N. Burman, the Maruti Suzuki commercial business head in the country, said: “Any such restriction would definitely have an initial impact on consumer sales. But going forward, nothing could stop consumers from buying cars. In a few months, people will be used to it and buy cars complying with the rules.”

Car dealers are worried about losing business in Sikkim and plan to meet the government to find out how the rule is to be implemented. At least two dealers have received notices from the transport department directing them not to sell cars without first asking for the availability-of-parking-space certificate.

The state’s dealers are worried that customers could go around the notification by buying cars in Bengal. “What will now happen is that people will go to Siliguri, buy a car there, get it registered under the West Bengal government and bring it here,” a dealer said. “In the long run, the state government will lose out on revenue.”
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Kalimpong, July 27: The ABGL has accused the Centre and the state of using the murder of Madan Tamang to their advantage to bring the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to its knees, forcing it to accept an interim authority instead of the DGHC.

ABGL central committee members Pratap Khati and Trivuban Rai said if the Morcha settled for the interim council, it would conclusively prove the party’s role in Tamang’s murder. The ABGL chief was hacked to death in Darjeeling on May 21 and since then the Morcha has been on the back foot in the hills.

The ABGL leaders hinted that the government knew who was behind the murder and was using it to browbeat the Morcha into accepting the interim set-up.

“Madan Tamang was one voice which consistently opposed the interim set-up that the three sides were working towards, and that is why he was killed. Now all the three sides (state, Centre and the Morcha) are conspiring to force an interim set-up in the hills,” alleged Khati at a media conference here today.

However, the ABGL, its leaders said, would not allow the interim set-up to happen. “When the people could successfully foil attempts to bring the hills under the Sixth Schedule even after a memorandum of settlement was signed, stopping this (the interim set-up) will not be difficult. We will settle for nothing less than Gorkhaland,” said Rai.

The ABGL leaders also ridiculed Morcha spokesperson Harka Bahadur Chhetri for terming the proposed set-up a “de facto” state. “How can there be a de facto state. Can there be a de facto wife? The Morcha has been trying to hoodwink the people by agreeing to the set-up while paying lip service to Gorkhaland,” said Khati.

Quoting from a release issued by the Union home ministry after Saturday’s tripartite talks, Khati said even the set-up being discussed is not the one proposed by the Morcha, but suggested by the Centre. “The Morcha is on the verge of settling for something which is even lesser than the DGHC,” he alleged.

“It required a woman in the shape of Dil Kumari Bhandari (former member of Parliament from Sikkim) to secure the recognition of Nepali as an official language of the country, it will be another woman (Bharati Tamang, ABGL president and widow of Madan) who will deliver Gorkhaland,” an ABGL leader said.
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Siliguri, July 27: Ban on felling of trees and halt in auction because of frequent agitation in the hills by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha have led to an annual shortage of timber worth Rs 40 crore in the past couple of years, the Timber Merchants’ Association of Siliguri today said.

“We used to buy timber through auctions conducted in Kurseong and Kalimpong divisions of the state forest department. However, over the past two-three years, because of political agitation that halted auction and the ‘ban’ on felling of trees, we could no longer buy timber from the hills and had to depend on the ones sold from the depots in the plains,” said Onkarnath Banerjee, the association general secretary. “We cannot say how much loss the forest department has been incurring for this but we have suffered a heavy loss as we used to buy timber worth Rs 40 crore or so every year from the hills. Discontinuation of the auction has led to shortage of timber in the market and has scaled down our business.”

The traders said the absence of timber of certain species, which grow in higher altitudes, was also affecting business. “Certain species of timber like pine, dhupi, which grow only in high altitudes and are used for designing furniture, is no longer available. A section of buyers are eager to purchase this type of timber but we cannot supply it,” said Sanjib Sinha, a timber merchant from the Dooars. “This shortage has also affected around 500 people directly involved with the trade.”

Citing an example, the timber merchants said they had suffered a loss of about Rs 10 lakh as they could not collect a consignment after participating in an auction held by the forest department in the hills because of the Morcha’s movement. “The total quantity of timber sold in that auction cost around Rs 40 lakh and we had paid 25 per cent of it, which was around Rs 10 lakh, according to rules,” an association member said. “However, till date, we could not collect the timber.”

Sources in the state forest department said there are 34 government timber depots in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar.

The last auction was held in December 2008 in Odlabari. Although the forest officials may not have to face opposition if they conduct the auction in its depots located in the foothills, but the shortage of timber has stopped the process, a trader said.

Officials of the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation also expressed their helplessness. “Several cubic metres of timber are lying at the divisions now and we have no idea when these will be finally auctioned,” a senior official said.

The Morcha is nonchalant. “We feel the timber in the hills is the property of the hill people and the government had minted money by exploiting the forest resources,” said Roshan Giri, the general secretary.
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Siliguri, July 27: Serpentine snow-strewn roads, a dazzling Kanchenjungha and its range, the historical Jelep-la leading to Tibet and a variety of flora and fauna. All these, added with consistent promotion, have led to the emergence of Zuluk as an ideal destination for tourists wanting to plunge into the nature’s lap.

Located at 10,000ft, Zuluk is a tiny hamlet in East Sikkim with a population of 335 people.

“The place was unknown to outsiders till a few years ago. But over the past couple of years, it has emerged as an ideal tourist destination because of its idyllic locales and serenity,” said Sandeep Chourasia, a Calcutta-based tour operator.

“Even today, tourism is in its nascent stage in Zuluk and at best a maximum of 50 tourists could be accommodated there,” he told The Telegraph over the phone from Calcutta.

He added that accommodation is available at cottages run by local self-help groups and at the homes of some residents.

Chourasia said describing the sunrise in Zuluk with Kanchenjungha in the foreground would be futile. “You have to see it to believe it. The three-level zigzag roads, a symbol of man’s engineering skills, are also mesmerising,” he said. “A number of other sites, right from lakes to temples, can be seen while visiting Zuluk.”

Another attraction is Young Husband Track named in memory of a Briton who had found a route leading to Lhasa, 520km away, said Chourasia.

A road to Tibet through Jelep-la was constructed on the route which Young Husband had used for a trip from Kalimpong to Lhasa in earlier 20th century. Before the construction of the road, traders used mules for trade with Tibet through the track. Even after the occupation of Tibet by China, the trade continued through the pass till 1962.

With the place developing as a tourist hotspot, the socio-economic conditions of the 33 families living there have improved considerably.

“Since Zuluk is bestowed with abundant natural beauty and has its own significance in the history because of Jelep-la, we thought of making every family in the area self-empowered. The residents can sustain themselves and enrich their lives by adopting tourism as a means of livelihood. With the revenue from tourism, they could improve their standard of living. The people were earlier engaged in cattle rearing or used to work as casual workers under the Border Roads Organisation,” said Gopal Pradhan, the president of a self-help group in Zuluk.

He said one could also see a lot of birds and animals in Zuluk. “Monal pheasant, blood pheasant, which is the state bird of Sikkim, khaleej pheasant and snow pheasant are some of the avian species spotted in Zuluk. Among animals, the red panda and the snow leopard can be sighted,” said Pradhan.

As Zuluk comes forth to woo visitors to spend a few days in the land of snow and cloud, Chourasia said they were also concentrating on the promotional aspect.

“The Association of Tourism Service Providers of Bengal has taken an initiative to popularise Zuluk. On our side, we have been the pioneer in providing the information on the hamlet and promoting the site with an intention to help the local population and to extend an opportunity to people who wish to visit offbeat destinations,” said Chourasia.
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Darjeeling, July 27: Bimal Gurung today said he had instructed the hill delegation that participated in the July 24 talks not to rake up the issue of territorial jurisdiction of the interim set-up, indicating that the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha president had wanted a dialogue without hindrance. Gurung said he did not want the territorial issue to crop up at least till the new hill authority was put in place.

He expressed his satisfaction on the tripartite meeting between the Centre, the state and the Morcha and said he did not want any “deadlock”, which would have happened if the territorial issue had been broached during the parleys.

So far, both the Centre and the state have been insisting that the jurisdiction of the interim set-up be restricted to the three hill subdivisions of Kalimpong, Kurseong and Darjeeling. The Morcha had maintained that it wanted Siliguri, the Terai as well as the Dooars, besides the Darjeeling hills.

“I am happy that the talks are back on track. I had called the members of our delegation an hour before the talks begun on Saturday and briefed them on Gorkha Adivasi Pradesh. However, I realised that the government would first discuss the interim arrangement and told them not to discuss the territory as it would create a deadlock. I told them to concentrate first on the powers and functions of the set-up,” Gurung told a gathering at Gymkhana Club on the occasion of martyrs’ day.

The Morcha president also said he had asked the delegation to keep their mobile phones switched off so that they were not disturbed during the discussions.

The Morcha chief, however, indicated that in the long run the issue of territory was bound to crop up especially when “realising our dream of a separate state”.

“We will not concede an inch of the Dooars and the Terai,” Gurung said. “I had also told the delegation that if the territory issue comes up for discussion they should talk about the entire Dooars and the Terai and not just about the Nepalese-dominated area.” In Saturday’s talks, the Centre had directed both the state and Morcha to make a point-wise observation of the proposal for the interim set-up and submit it within two weeks. An official level meeting would then be held on August 17.

Gurung admitted that the talks dwelt on the interim set-up but added that if the talks failed in the future then the Morcha would talk only about Gorkha Adivasi Pradesh, the new state that it wants. “The Bengal government wants a deadlock and is looking at the 2011 Assembly elections. If talks don’t move in the right direction, then we will have no option but to send a joint delegation comprising Gorkhas and Adivasis for a separate Pradesh,” he added.

Sounding optimistic about garnering the support of the Adivasi community, Gurung said: “We have only shown love and respect to the community and this is paying off. Despite hostility, we never stopped engaging in talks with them and ultimately we will be able to fight for a separate Pradesh together. This is our ultimate aim and we will not stop till we achieve our goal.”

Launching an attack on the slain ABGL leader Madan Tamang and his wife, Gurung said: “I admit that Madan Tamang was a great leader but I am not convinced he was the one for the Gorkhaland cause. He talked about mid-day meal scams and scams in text books and the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan but became quiet after a few public meetings. Were such talks compromised over money?”

The Morcha leader said he was “tense” because the ABGL had staged a hunger strike at the martyrs’ column at Chowrastha where we had planned a programme. “But I told our supporters to move out at the earliest.”

The martyrs’ column is in memory of 1,200 people who had been killed during the Gorkhaland agitation of the eighties.
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Darjeeling, July 26: The Darjeeling district administration has refused to grant permission to the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to hold its martyrs’ day meeting at Chowrastha tomorrow, with the ABGL refusing to shift its hunger strike from the spot.

Although the Morcha declared today that it would go ahead with the meeting at Chowrastha, insiders said the party would avoid a confrontation by making some other arrangements for the programme.

“We have received a report from police, expressing the apprehension that there could be a law and order problem if permission was granted (to the Morcha) to hold its function at Chowrastha,” said Surendra Gupta, the district magistrate of Darjeeling.

The Morcha has been holding meetings at Chowrastha on July 27 since 2008 in memory of 1,200 people who had died during the 28-month-long Gorkhaland agitation. Thirteen people were killed in a police firing at a GNLF rally brought out on July 27, 1987, to protest the Indo-Nepal friendship treaty of 1950.

The authorities fear law and order problems this year as the ABGL has been staging the relay hunger strike at Chowrastha, demanding the arrest of those behind the murder of the outfit’s leader Madan Tamang. The ABGL accuses the Morcha leaders of planning and executing Tamang’s assassination.

Dawa Lama, the treasurer of the Morcha, said the party was determined to go ahead with its “main function” at Chowrastha. “Since the martyrs’ column has been erected at Chowrastha and we have been holding the function there (for two years), we will go ahead with the main programme at the same venue,” he said.

Even though Lama sounded rigid, it has been learnt that the Morcha, which does not want any law and order problem following Tamang’s murder, will only hold a prayer followed by a wreath laying ceremony at Chowrastha (on the martyrs’ column). ‘The main meeting will be held at Gymkhana Club,” said a source.

Asked if the administration would allow the Morcha to go ahead with the wreath-laying ceremony, DM Gupta said: “Permission from the administration is not required for a wreath laying ceremony.”
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Siliguri, July 25: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today announced that it would not agitate or demonstrate in the hills till the next round of talks scheduled for August 17.

Morcha spokesperson Harka Bahadur Chhetri told reporters at the Bagdogra airport that the ball was now in the “state government’s court” as the onus lay on Writers’ Buildings to clear its stand on the two demands of the hill party, the interim set-up and the new state.

“In previous meetings whoever represented the state government in Delhi behaved like tourists: they attended the talks and came back (and did nothing). Every time, they only offered assurances on whatever was discussed. Apart from that, the state government has nothing to show for as its contribution towards resolving the issue,” said Chhetri, who was on the talks delegation to New Delhi that returned here this afternoon.

He said after yesterday’s talks the Bengal government would have to come clean on its stand on the Morcha demand. “After the sixth round of dialogue, the central government clearly told the state to finalise its stand on whatever demands that have been raised by us and get back to Delhi by the first week of next month. After going through the state’s observations, the Centre will hold the next level of talks on August 17,” Chhetri said. “Till then, we will not organise any movement in the hills.”

The Centre had proposed that an interim set-up called the Gorkhaland Autonomous Authority, which would report to the Bengal governor, should replace the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council. Delhi had also said the new authority would have “legislative powers” along with the executive authority that the DGHC now enjoys. While none of the proposals were new, yesterday’s development was that both the Morcha and the state government said they would submit their final observations within the deadlines so that the interim authority could be formed soon.

Chhetri and the seven Morcha members who had taken part in the Delhi meeting appeared positive about the outcome. They insisted that the discussions were solely based on their demands. Chhetri iterated that the separate state, whatever be its name, would be the ultimate goal of the Morcha.

“We want to separate from the Bengal government and if the interim set-up is formed, we will consider it only till December 31, 2011, and we are not going to compromise with the proposed area which we have already demarcated,” he said.

When reminded that the Centre had already made it clear that there would be no further division of the state, the Morcha leadership said it was not true.

“Who told you? The majority of the tribal population in the plains is with us. We are not worried about what a section of the Adivasi leadership feels,” said Chhetri, referring to the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad that has been demanding autonomy under the Sixth Schedule for the tribal-dominated areas in the plains of Darjeeling district.

The hill outfit had re-christened Gorkhaland, the state that it wants, as Gorkha Adivasi Pradesh to woo the Adivasis or the tribals.
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