www.kalimpong.info

By Janice Mukhia

I am sure I am not alone when I say this, but if I were asked where I’d rather be at this time and at this very moment, I would without a moment’s hesitation say: “KALIMPONG”.

Kalimpong is truly an integral part of my life and continues to rein a strong hold over my heart. I associate it with a wealth of idyllic memories……memories, if narrated to a teenager who grew up in the big old cities, would evoke a lukewarm enthusiasm at best.

Growing up in Dungra busty during the radio generation with no television, cell phones, video games, MTV or ipods, life in Dungra busty was what you might expect…“SIMPLE”. But make no mistake, it was simple yet rewarding and enriching in every sense of the word or dare I say, invigorating than most kids today can ever imagine.

To begin with, back in those days, reading was still the number one option to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon. I remember, browsing through every pile of Enid Blyton, Nancy Drew or Famous Five books in Kashinath or Upasak. Hopelessly influenced by characters in Enid Blyton’s Famous Five, my cousins and I would plunge into an imaginary world of detectives. Eager to get us out of the house and catch up on household chores, my mom would pack us some lunch, fill our water bottles with orange juice and off we’d go in search of that unborn/undiscovered mystery, borne out of our imagination. The big old pear tree in my aunt’s house served as the magic faraway tree and our letters to Santa Claus did not include pleas for the latest Xbox series or MP3 players. They were filled with pleas for the newest book in town. Yep those were the days, when kids had the luxury of imagining and had a passion for reading. In retrospect, I am glad life was what it was back then. (more…)

www.telegraphindia.com
OUR CORRESPONDENT

Kalimpong, Feb. 28: Even after one-and-a-half years of surrendering his Cellone post-paid connection, a consumer here continues to receive bills from the local BSNL office.

Brother Johnny, the director of Don Bosco Job-Oriented Technical Institute at 14th Mile, had taken the cellphone connection in April 2005, and paid Rs 3,300 as deposit. On September 20 the same year, he sent a written submission asking the officials to discontinue the service and also returned the SIM card.

Once a consumer discontinues the cellphone connection, the service provider is supposed to return the deposit amount. However, even after all these months, Brother Johnny is yet to get the refund. “Though I do not subscribe to the connection anymore, the BSNL has been billing me unjustly. They have not even paid me the refundable amount. Besides fooling me and hurting my dignity, they have been wasting precious paper by sending me false bills regularly,” he said.

Brother Johnny demanded that the BSNL not only refund his money with accumulated interest, but also compensate him for causing “mental tension and humiliation”.

According to Brother Johnny, he had met D.K. Deb, the subdivisional officer (telecom), a few days ago and Deb had promised to resolve the problem in seven days. When contacted, Deb, however, said he did not look after the cellular operations of the BSNL.

www.telegraphindia.com
ANURADHA SHARMA

Siliguri, Feb. 28: Ever wondered who wrote the deosey and bhailo songs, an integral part of Nepali Diwali celebrations? Or where do the jogis, who do the rounds of our homes at night with their bugles, come from? Or how the ready-to-cook gundruk (fermented green leafy vegetables) came into being?

To answer such questions and more, the Netaji Institute for Asian Studies (NIAS), Calcutta, has decided to set up a Centre for Himalayan Studies at Giddapahar, 4 km from Kurseong.

The centre, to come up on the premises of the NIAS-run Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Museum, will closely study the society, culture and language of the three hill subdivisions — Kurseong, Darjeeling and Kalimpong. (more…)

www.telegraphindia.com
OUR CORRESPONDENT

Kalimpong, Feb. 28: People living along the main pipeline of the Neora Water Supply Scheme continue to draw water from it illegally, ignoring administrative threats.

Almost three weeks after a high-powered committee chaired by the Kalimpong subdivisional officer Shakeel Ahmed instructed Neora Water Supply authorities to plug all the illegal connections, The Telegraph discovered that absolutely no action has been taken in this regard.

Prior to the meeting on February 7, members of the committee, including officials from the army station at Durpin, had inspected the pipeline from Algarah to Deola and found as many as 98 illegal connections.

A visit to the area by The Telegraph yesterday showed that the illegal connections are still merrily siphoning off water. When informed, Ahmed said: “If that is the case, I will call another review meeting shortly. If your findings are accurate, I will report the matter to the government.”

He added that neither the Neora water authority nor the DGHC public works department, which is responsible for distributing water within the municipality area, are yet to submit any report to him.

Kalimpong Municipality chairman C. K. Kumai admitted that illegal connections still exist. “I inspected the route twice after February 2 (the date of the first inspection), and people are still illegally siphoning off water. If these agencies can do nothing about it, they should hand over the entire responsibility of managing the water supply scheme to the municipality.”