Darjeeling

Gorkhaland People

Dinesh Sharma October 31, 2020

Gorkhaland – The Leaders and the People

Today, the idea of Gorkhaland is at the crossroads. The state assembly elections are round the corner and some people feel the idea has been compromised after the ‘old guards’ made a deal with the state government for their return.

The state which had hounded them with multiple legal cases, has now decide to forgive them and assured their safe return. The state against which the movement was launched, has today become the protector of the rebels. The same state which took away even the voting rights of the ‘old brigade’ leaders is now guaranteeing their freedom to participate in the upcoming elections.

International Day of the Girl Child

Articles October 11, 2020

On International Day of the Girl Child – “छोरी”

हो अवश्यै जान्छिन , जानू पनि त पर्छ , त्यो त प्रत्येक छोरीको नियति हो , तर नजीक-टाढा, जहाँ नै गएता पनि उ हामीसित , हामी उसँगै हुनेछौ । उसको हृदयमा सदाका लागि रहनेछौं , शायद मरेर गएपनि। छोराले बुहारी ल्याउछ भन्छ्यौ , ठीकै हो , तर के थाहा बुहारीले पो छोरालाई लगेर जाने हो ?! तर छोरी कहाँ जान्छे त्यसले हामीलाई खासै फरक पार्दैन , टाढा-नजीक ,जे जस्तो , जहाँ गए पनि उ हामीसितै हुन्छे। त्यसैले त भन्छ नि “A Son is a son till he gets him a wife, but a Daughter is a daughter all days of her life.” इ ! आफैलाई हेर न , दिनमा कति चोटि घरमा फोन गर्छ्यौ , व्हाट्सेप र फेसबुकमा बिजी हुन्छ्यौ , आमा-बाबाको लागि सुर्त्याउछौ , घरी घरी भाइ बुहारीलाई कस्तो हकार्दै गरेकी हुन्छ्यौ अन्त , कि कसो ?

Our Primer

Divya Pradhan September 27, 2020

OUR PRIMER

Only a being can belong. Where is your being? You talk about Right, Left and Centre? You are a photocopy of a photocopy. Can’t you see, there is no You, there is no Home, there is no Us? Outfoxed, outmaneuvered, overpowered, outplayed, don’t you realize that you have been reduced to a speck of dust? The Right has no use for specks of dust and neither does the Left.

Exposing Hypocrisy

Articles September 20, 2020

Exposing Hypocrisy: बंगाल सरकारकै शरणमा बसेर मुद्दासँग छौँ भनेर यदि कसैले भन्छ भने त्यो वाहियात लाग्न सक्छ । 

बंगाल सरकारकै शरणमा बसेर मुद्दासँग छौँ भनेर यदि कसैले भन्छ भने त्यो वाहियात लाग्न सक्छ । यहाँको वर्तमान सत्ता जतिसक्दो कुनै पनि अन्य व्यवस्था अथवा केन्द्रको सुधार प्रक्रिया पहाड नभित्रीउन भन्ने पक्षमा छन् । यदि कुनै अन्य दल हुनु हो भने पनि त्यो दलको स्तर यहाँबाट माथी उठ्ने अपेक्षा बेकार जान्थ्यो । मुद्दाको अवस्था सुध्रिनु नसक्नुको मुख्य कारण दलहरुको यहि स्वार्थपरक सत्तामुखी सोच हो ।

Current State of Affairs

Upendra September 19, 2020

CURRENT STATE OF AFFAIRS – No one is to be blamed

In “Wai Wai” we trust – that’s the state of journalism in our hills.
In “Syria” we outrage – that’s the state of writers, poets, intelligentsia in our hills.
In “Social-media revolution” we believe – that’s the state of activism in our hills.
In “Finding political relevance” we strive for – that’s the state of academia in our hills.
In “Silence” we dwell – that’s the state of rebellion in our hills

We will vocally decry those who we believe are worthy of our self-righteous scorn, but don’t bother us to speak out against the tyrannical state and the current state of affairs.

Gorkhaland Andolan

Divya Pradhan September 12, 2020

Special Series on Gorkhaland Andolan – Shards of Memories from a Shattered Mirror – Part II

My aunts waited for the cremation to end and sat and gossiped among themselves. They were talking about some place where women had cremated the dead, an unheard of practice, Keti haru lay garnu parcha abo. Someone also mentioned in hushed voices that in some tea garden, a woman had given birth to a dark-skinnned baby, “nikkhur kalo nani”. There was anxiety in their voices. I didn’t really understand the implication of these conversations.

Teachers

Articles September 5, 2020

Dear Teachers: You are the game changer

From the 1st to the 14th of every month is the greatest event in the quarantine days for the Philominites. Along with the midday meal the questions of every subject framed by the respective teachers are distributed to the parents along with the essentials of the midday meal. Then the School Principal, along with a group of dedicated teachers are seen in a jeep or a pick-up toggling along the rough broken trails of the villages carrying the essentials of the midday meal and the question papers which are distributed to the parents at some vintage points of the village. The students then submit their workout sheets via their parents at the next midday meal, and the papers reach the school handed to the respective teachers after the papers are quarantined. This unending process have made it possible to connect the teachers with more than 2000 students without any elaborate technology.

Perceptions

Articles August 28, 2020

Perceptions: My four-year-old and I

The idea of inclusiveness becomes a rarity as we grow more in power. We become more rigid in our thoughts and actions. The world is, no wonder , robbed off its peace and harmony as we are constantly at loggerheads with each other, trying hard to enforce our ideas which we believe to be “absolutely correct” on others.

Bhikkhu Bodhipala

Obituary August 4, 2020

Bhikkhu Bodhipala – December 20, 1968 to July 27, 2020

Bhikkhu Bodhipala having grown up in Shillong, he well understood the importance of mainstreamitizing the North-East as well as forging a pan-Buddhist network between the various communities of practicing Buddhists scattered throughout different parts of North East India. From Arunachal Pradesh to Sikkim and Darjeeling to Assam to Kolkata and Chittagong, he worked tirelessly towards this end.