India Fights COVID19: Northeast Leads the Way
An analysis of how India’s Northeastern states have successfully managed to contain the spread of Coronavirus in the region.
Kalimpong
HOW DARE YOU? An Open Letter to Narendra Damodardas Modi
Respected Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi jiu I am writing this letter to share my outrage against You and Your government. But because my parents…
Apex Plan for Combating COVID19 in the Hills, Terai and Dooars
The COVID19 pandemic has been claiming lives and livelihood around the Globe at an alarming rate. Global & National Action Plans and initiatives to combat the pandemic have already been underway. Its success ultimately depends upon the effective and prudent actions undertaken at the Regional and Local level to implement it.
SONAM SHERPA – A Legend Unparalleled
Everyone will have a Sonam Sherpa story to tell. From the multitudes of awestruck fans who, for the first time, witnessed Sonam set the stage on fire with his Les Paul. The fan-students (and their fan-parents) who made their way to Hauz Khas Village in Delhi every week to learn from the master himself. The bandmates-turned-brothers from India’s biggest rock band with whom he traversed the length and breadth of the country (and beyond), spreading the good news of rock’n’roll. Collaborators in music with whom he was quick to share his gift with. His friends from school… Everyone.
Siliguri-The Legitimate Claim Since the Old Gorkha Days
A question that anti-Gorkha elements have always triggered to counter Gorkha’s claim on Siliguri since the time of Left Front is, why should Siliguri be in Gorkhaland when 80 per cent of its population speaks Bengali? I decided not to halt unearthing the answer so easily after coming across an individual who said that this is an invalid claim of the community. To arrive at a proper conclusion, the most important of all the aspects would be to consider economy, demography and history.
Darjeeling Shops Charging Exorbitant Prices – Is the Tax Department Aware?
I don’t know much about the markets in other hill regions like Kalimpong, Kurseong, Sikkim etc, but I am astounded and shocked to hear the prices of apparels in Darjeeling nowadays, as we say in our lingo “Tarsiney daam”.
Three-Tier Panchayat in Darjeeling – A Context
We, the people of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts, wholeheartedly welcome the initiative to initiate Constitutional Amendment to implement the three-tier Panchayati Raj in these two districts. Panchayati Raj has been the backbone of Indian democracy. It envisaged incorporating all the villages and its population in the nation-building processes. Further, as the majority of the population lived in the villages it was an endeavour to make them equal stakeholders in the decision-making the process and the developmental activities. Panchayati Raj system came into existence when the Community Development Programmes failed due to the lack of governance and monopoly of the few. Panchayati raj was implemented to decentralise democracy.
“Bring in Constitutional Amendment – Pave Way for 3-Tier Panchayat in the Region” – MP Raju Bista
Darjeeling MP Raju Bista has demanded that Article 243M section 3 of the constitution which prevented the holding of 3-tier Panchayat Election in the hills is scrapped.
NRC Issue: The Indian Gorkha Perspective
As the push for a nation-wide National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise gets stronger, there are growing concerns among the Indian Gorkha community settled in various pockets across the country. The discussions are gaining more ground after Assam published its final NRC list on August 31, 2019, the process which was monitored by the Supreme Court of India. As reported by different media organisations, of the estimated 25 lakh Gorkhas living in Assam, about 1 lakh were excluded from the final list.
IN THE NAME OF SAVING TEA GARDENS – TMC is Handing Over our Prime-Land to their Financiers
West Bengal Cabinet’sdecision 31st of Oct 2019 permits for 15% of the land in tea gardens to be used for “tourism purposes”. They have further said that the maximum land that can be diverted to tourism should not cross 150 acres. The WB Cabinet has further mandated that the tea garden owners can make construction in 40% of this land.