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Kalimpong, May 28: Terms like satellite communication (Satcom) or broadband should not be unfamiliar to orange farmers of the hills if the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) can bring them within the information communication loop.

In a bid to implement information and communication technology (ICT) in socially relevant sectors, including agriculture, the Calcutta-based C-DAC has developed certain components of multimedia based e-learning content for farmers. (more…)

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RAJEEV RAVIDAS

Kalimpong, May 24: East Main Road is a road, alright, but fit for only bullock carts, one feels. To the west of the town is Relli Road, which is even worse, and steeper, making driving on its dusty and potholed length a nightmare.

There are many more stretches of roads — all within the Kalimpong municipality area — that are in a similarly pitiable state. “We have been approaching the authorities for donkey’s years, but to no avail,” said Dip Thapa, a resident of East Main Road. (more…)

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Kalimpong, May 21: Frequent disruptions in the direct internet access system (DIAS), especially in the last two months, has left local BSNL subscribers fuming and the tourism industry helpless.

Though there are only 18 DIAS subscribers in Kalimpong, most of them — like hotels and cyber cafes — are frequent users. The hotels have been hit the hardest since tourists can’t get their bookings done through the Net. Amode Yonzone, general manager of Kalimpong Park Hotel, said the DIAS connection was down for eight days this month. Though no figures are available, the loss is significant given that April and May are peak tourist seasons.

Cyber cafés, too, are worried. “There has been a complete breakdown of the DIAS for the last three days. We have to pay the connection fee to BSNL, though we earned nothing,” said B. Pradhan, who runs a café in the Super Market complex. Praful Rao, who owns a café and is the secretary of Kalimpong Consumers’ Association, alleged that there are no qualified technicians in the local BSNL office.

The BSNL has outsourced the work of laying DIAS cables to Banyan Network, a Chennai-based private company whose technicians, incidentally, arrived today to repair the fault. “Our men tried their best, but were not successful. That is why we approached the Chennai people. The fault will be repaired soon,” said Dipankar Deb, subdivisional officer of telecom services.

Rao warned that if things continued to remain as they were, subscribers might take the department to consumer court.

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Rajeev Ravidas 

The closed market on Wednesday. Picture by Chinlop Fudong Lepcha

Kalimpong, May 17: For the first time in living memory, the historic market in the heart of the town remained closed on a haat day as traders shut shop to protest against the municipal authorities for not clearing the accumulated garbage in the area.

The bi-weekly vegetable market or haat is held every Wednesday and Saturday at Haatbazar here.

The episode is seen by many as a fall out of the recent Assembly elections, with certain sections accusing the GNLF, which controls the civic body, of being vindictive after its winning candidate Gaulan Lepcha did not perform particularly well in the area. Municipality chairman C.K. Kumai, however, rubbished the charge and instead accused his rivals of trying to defame him and his party.

“We were not singling out any political party. Our protest was directed against the civic body and its failure to perform its duty,” said Ravi Pradhan, secretary of the Himalayan Bepari Sangatan, a trade union wing of the GNLF. He, however, made it clear that if the authorities continue to treat the traders shabbily, they would launch a bigger movement.

Kumai, on his part, claimed: “Our conservancy vehicles collect waste thrice a day and the town is very clean.”

This morning, hundreds of traders took out a procession demanding the immediate clearance of the garbage that had accumulated near the market. A little later, two trucks belonging to the conservancy wing of the civic body arrived and collected the waste.

The traders, however, decided against opening their shops as it was already too late in the day. Instead, they will hold the haat tomorrow.

On haat days, transactions worth Rs 10 lakh take place in the market as the number of people plying their trade there goes up from 400 to around 1,500. What makes the haat special is the availability of produce unique to the hills — like dalle khorsani (round chillies), kinema (fermented soyabean) and gundruk (made of dried green vegetables) — that are brought by villagers from the hinterland.

The haat had begun way back in 1886 and till the mid twentieth century, traders from Tibet used to take part in it. In fact, there have been talks of securing world heritage status for it. There are 433 registered stalls in the ramshackle market comprising tinned shades, most of them remnants of the British era.

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Darjeeling, May 17: Hill schools run by the missionaries have lived up to their reputation in the Class X and XII results declared by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, but listed schools that have come up in the last two or three decades are not far behind either.

After an average performance last year, the hill schools have fared extremely well this time round with most institutions in Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong boasting of cent percent pass results.

While hill toppers Nafisa Alam from St Anthony’s School, Kurseong, and Ankit Agarawal from St Augustine’s School, Kalimpong, both scored 95 per cent in the ICSE examination, Yogesh Goel from St Joseph’s School, Darjeeling, secured the same percentage in the ISC examination. Ritesh Baig, also from St Joseph’s, scored a perfect 100 in ISC Mathematics. (more…)

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Kalimpong/Darjeeling, May 16: A post-election clash between supporters of the GNLF and the PDF has sparked off a heated war of words between the hill rivals, with threats flying thick and fast.

The clash took place at Malli, about 18 km from here, on Sunday night following a feast in the house of a PDF supporter. The host Reena Rai, a local panchayat member, was injured in the clash while her house has been damaged. Rai is presently undergoing treatment at the subdivisional hospital here.

Rai, who is a member of the GNLF(C) (a PDF constituent), had thrown the party for fellow PDF supporters who had campaigned during the elections. The PDF candidate Norden Lama, however, lost to sitting GNLF legislator Gaulan Lepcha by 25,000 votes. (more…)

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RAJEEV RAVIDAS

Kalimpong, May 15: A small step towards a drugs free world.

It has been a long-standing grievance among experts that while the problem of drug abuse has assumed alarming proportions in the hill town, very little has been done by the civil society to help control the menace. However, many believe that the opening of a drop-in centre for drug addicts here today marked a move in the right direction.

The centre, located in the heart of the town, has been set up by World Vision, an NGO working in the field of rural development. The organisation has roped in people from diverse backgrounds, including recovering addicts, to make a success of its initiative. (more…)

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RAJEEV RAVIDAS

Kalimpong, May 14: The poster-boy of popular Bengali cinema, Jeet, is here to essay the role of a woman-hater in Prabhat Roy’s film Priyatama.

The irony of the movie is evident in the title (Priyatama means beloved in Bengali), which is rather unusual for a film having a woman-hater as the main protagonist. There is, however, nothing paradoxical about the star’s name, as he has been a winner all the way. (more…)

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VIVEK CHHETRI

Darjeeling, May 11: Urban Darjeeling had wanted a change, but rural voters reaffirmed their faith in Subash Ghisingh, ensuring an easy victory for the GNLF in the hills.

Of the 32 wards here, the PDF — the anti-Ghisingh coalition — won in more than 22-odd wards. This, despite the fact that the GNLF is the majority in the Darjeeling municipality.

In 2001, the GNLF had led by over 45,000 votes in Darjeeling but with the urban population wanting a change this time, the margin has been reduced to 22,010 votes.

Ghisingh’s party was, however, quick to admit its loss of urban voters.

“One of my first priorities will be to look into the grievances of voters, whom we have failed. Definitely we did not fare as expected in the municipality areas, but I hope to win over the urban voters with my devotion in the days to come,” said Pranay Rai, the winning candidate.

He maintained that the popularity of Ghisingh and the GNLF had not been affected despite the hype of the Opposition. “The elections were strict and fair and the results show that the GNLF is still the people’s party. There is a tendency among urban voters to believe every propaganda of every party, but at the end it is clear that the Opposition failed to convince all of them,” said Rai.

The results also show that the PDF has virtually little organisational set-up in rural areas as a result of which, it could not cash in on the anti-incumbency factor.

“The absence of proper set-up did hit the Opposition in the end. I would, however, like to thank people for voting me,” said Amar Lama, the PDF candidate from Darjeeling.

In Kurseong and Kalimpong, the voting pattern remained the same. Gaulan Lepcha retained the Kalimpong Assembly while Shanta Chhetri (GNLF) won the Kurseong seat for the third consecutive time.