23 June, 2004; NOW! 1

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CM meets 3 unionministers; getsassurances on

assistancefor Sikkim

a NOW REPORT

GANGTOK, 22 June: The chiefminister, Pawan Chamling, today,called on PM Mahavir, union min-ister, small scale and agro indus-tries. Mr. Mahavir is also in chargeof the prime minister’s RozgarYojna and Khadi Board.

During the meeting Mr.Chamling sought full assistance forthe development of Sikkim in smallscale cottage and agro-based indus-tries. The union minister assuredthe chief minister of full fundingin these sectors and added that theinterest of the northeast states alongwith Sikkim was of foremost con-cern in his ministry.

The union minister also in-formed that he would be shortlychairing a meeting of state ministersof industries and added that a briefnote on the five sectors mentionedabove should be sent to his minis-try. The note should highlight theareas that needed central assistance.

Mr. Chamling also invited theMr. Mahavir to visit Sikkim at anearly date which was readily ac-cepted by the latter.

The chief minister also calledon Dr. Raghuvansh Prasad, Minis-ter, Rural Development Departmenttoday and congratulated him onassumption of the office of minis-ter of RDD.

Mr. Chamling requested for allnecessary assistance and speciallysought representation of Sikkimesepeople in constitutional posts suchas those of governor, judges of thehigh courts and the Supreme Court,ambassador and other national bod-ies. He also informed Dr.Raghuvansh that it was the policyof his state government to seek theemotional integration of the peopleof Sikkim with the national main-stream. Mr. Chamling further drewthe attention of the union ministerto the pending issues concerningthe people of Sikkim with the cen-tral government which needed to belooked into positively. In this con-nection a copy of the memorandum

100 TEACHERS TO BE TERMINATED!

RANJIT SINGH

TEMI, 22 June: The Human Re-source Development [erstwhileEducation Department] Minister,GM Gurung, was in Temi today toobserve Kranti Diwas in his homeconstituency of Temi Tarku.

During his visit to the constitu-ency, Mr. Gurung, took time off totalk to NOW! in an exclusive inter-view during which he talked of someimportant decisions taken by the SDFgovernment and especially his Min-istry concerning the field of humanresource development and education.

Responding to the allegation ofthe SPCC [I] that the governmentwas preparing to transfer a signifi-cant number of teachers, Mr.Gurung told NOW! that govern-ment employees were subject totransfers and that there should beno complaints on this front.

“We will only transfer teacherson their request. However, there isa list being prepared of around a100 teachers who are likely to beterminated from service,” Mr.Gurung said. He maintained thatthe proposal for termination wasbeing processed on complaints oftheir negligence of duty “not vic-timisation.” He said that the pro-posal, once it is ready, would beexamined by him in detail beforethe issuing of the orders.

The HRD Minister was frankin expressing his dissatisfactionwith the present quality of educa-tion in the state.

“I am not satisfied with just thehigher literacy rate that Sikkim boastsof,” he said in response to the literacystatistics of the country. “What I aminterested in is quality education. Forthis purpose we intend to separatesections of education.”

He informed that the Primary,Secondary and Elementary sectionsof the education system will soonbe separated and each section to beput under an Additional Director,if not an even more senior official.

“We want to concentrate more

on primary education the results ofwhich at present are not satisfac-tory,” Mr. Gurung expressed. Hefelt that this was mainly due to thefact that the government was pro-viding many subsidies to the stu-dents and parents.

It was, however, not all discom-forting news that the Minister hadto share. He also touched on severalimportant policy decisions that hadalready been taken by his ministry.

“A science college will be estab-lished at Soreng within 100 days,”Mr. Gurung said. He also disclosedthat another college would come upat Rhenock. These decisions havebeen taken in line with the chief min-ister’s earlier announcement that the

GM GURUNG DELIVERS GOOD NEWS-BAD NEWS COMBO

UNIVERSITY AT TEMI, SCIENCE COLLEGE FORSOREONG, DEGREE COLLEGE FOR RHENOCK

HRD Minister GM Gurung arrives at Temi

for the Sampurna Kranti Diwas celebrations turn to pg 7

turn to pg 7

2; NOW!; 23 June, 2004

C M Y K

NOW!FIRST WITH THE NEWS

ED-SPACE

I attended the annual Junior SchoolParent Teacher meeting yesterdayat TNA and although my child is astudent there, I write to all parentsthis open letter.

As parents, we are our child’sfirst and foremost teacher. Whatvalues we uphold and what educa-tive qualities we “value” are firsttaught at home. Inmy mind’s eye Isee the man myson one day shallbecome and know it is my respon-sibility to shape and guide him tobe a credit to himself, his family,and his society.

We as parents must not abdicatethis charge to anyone nor lay blamewhen our children fail to meet ourexpectations. It is our duty to workproactively with the teachers of ourchildren to help them excel in allwalks of life; be it in academics,sports, or social grace.

Excellence is achieved onlywhen the foundations are strong

and that begins with us at home.I heard it said yesterday by a

parent, “We work, we don’t havetime…”

We don’t have time for what?Surely we have time for our

own children. And if we don’t careenough to make the time is it fairor reasonable to expect someone

else to?The reality is

our children areonly in school a

fraction of the day, one classteacher to 50 students. No matterhow dedicated to their students,teachers cannot be expected toshape our children into successfuladults single-handedly.

I appeal to all parents to makethe time, to take the interest. To giveevery opportunity possible to yourchild by taking an active role intheir education; only then we willbe able to ensure for them a futureof success and excellence.A Parent

�LETTERS

write NOW! Democracy does not only allow a person the libertyof holding an opinion, but also expressing it publicly. If you feelstrongly about something that has been reported in NOW! or havean opinion on some recent development, then share it with a wideraudience. While the LETTERS section will carry responses to ar-ticles and news carried in NOW!, ACTION MAIL is about com-plaints and grievances. Wherever possible, NOW! shall also searchout a response to the Action Mail. If not, then at least a complaintwould have been filed in the public domain.write to: NOW!, Gairi Gaon, Tadong, East Sikkim.Or email: sikkimnow@rediffmail.com

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL PARENTS

When the Maoists got theirstudent wing to force anationwide education

shutdown two weeks ago, theywanted to put political pressure onthe government to resume negotia-tions. It seems to be working.

The government is also hopingthat an end to the education strikecould mark the beginning of apeace process. “If the talks with theMaoist student wing are success-ful, it could pave the way for pos-sible peace talks,” Education Min-ister Bimalendra Nidhi told us onThursday afternoon, as mediatorsappeared closer to a deal.

Sudeep Pathak, coordinator ofthe task force mediating betweenthe government and the rebel stu-dents said an agreement was withinreach and that there was bargain-ing on the precise wording of theagreement. “An agreement onopening schools could lead to peacetalks,” he said.

The Maoist students’ main de-mand is the withdrawal of its ter-rorist tag, but the government firstwants them to accept schools asviolence free zones. Minister Nidhitold us: “If they agree to keep outof schools, we can consider with-drawing the terrorist label.”

The Maoists are under consid-erable pressure after the arrest oftheir top leaders in India and ana-lysts say they would benefit from amonsoon breathing spell. But thearmy is said to be dead against aceasefire, citing previous truces thatthe Maoists used to regroup.

“It is the government’s securityforces that use schools as barracksand bring violence to them,” saysthe Maoist AANFSU-R president,Lekhnath Neupane, who has beengiving frequent phone interviewson FM stations all week.

However, it is clear that theeducation strike is more about poli-tics than about education. “We be-lieve the AANFSU-R strike is po-litically motivated because the realdemands of the students on feeshave been sidelined,” says RajendraRai, president of the rival UML-af-filiated student union.

The Maoists, who have seentheir anti-monarchy slogans hi-jacked by the anti-‘regression’street agitation of the politicalparties and their student wings,needed toassertthem-selves.An in-definite edu-cation strikewas an easy way tomake their presence felt.Besides closing schools, the Mao-

Nepali dystopia

As things go from bad to worse, this country’s well-wishers keepasking us: what do you think will happen? One thing we have

learnt is not to underestimate the capacity for Nepal’s circumstances toget even more dire. “Things will get worse before they get better,” wesay wistfully, recognising that only the first part of that statement mayhold true.

Observe the signs of a failing state: the scant presence of the govern-ment in large parts of the country, the sagging morale of those who aresupposed to be in charge and the demolition of the education system.

Extrapolating this country’s accelerated slide downwards, it is easyto predict a doomsday scenario for 2006: by then the death toll in adecade of conflict reaches 25,000. The number of those wounded,maimed, bereaved, orphaned and widowed crosses the one millionmark. Almost every family is touched by tragedy. A Maoist utopia isalready looking like a dystopia.

The revolution has degenerated into criminality and warlordism,with a new generation of unschooled children taking up arms. TheMaoist rank and file is wracked by infighting and purges, but the lead-ership can’t stop fighting without risking the ruthless retribution ofhardliners. The war takes on an increasingly ethnic polarisation. As theconflict gets more desperate, the guerrillas show less and less interestin the safety of non-combatants, indeed deliberately targeting them tosow panic and chaos. The countryside is littered with landmines andbooby-trap roadside bombs.

The military becomes even more indiscriminate in cracking downon suspected insurgents. Instances of disappearances, extra-judicial kill-ings, pillage and rape put Nepal right at the top of the list of the world’sworst violators of human rights, mentioned in the same breath as Congoand Colombia.

Tourism is a thing of the past, the civilian administration and gov-ernment has long since collapsed. The political parties have been tornto shreds by the pincers of the extreme left and right, and by their owninfighting. Five million Nepalis have fled to India and New Delhi hasstarted voicing concerns about instability in Nepal threatening its ownsecurity. India does not allow UN peacekeeping forces to stabilise thesituation, but doesn’t intervene itself for fear of being sucked into theconflict. Nepal is left to its own devices, just another hotspot in anincreasingly unstable world that no one has time for.

It doesn’t take a prophet to foresee this apocalyptic scenario in twoyear’s time. Signs are already pointing that way, and that is the waythings will go unless the comrades in the hills, the king in his palaceand the political parties on the streets come to their senses and seewhere they are taking the country. Maybe one of them will wrest con-trol one day, but of what use is that power if there is no country left toexercise it in.

-editorial featured in Nepali Times

ists havealso been tak-

ing away thousands ofstudents and teachers from

rural schools all over Nepalfor revolutionary indoctrina-

tion sessions.If there is a silver lining in

the school closure, it is that itmay lead to another truce. Aprominent human rights activ-ist in the mediation task forcetold us: “Both the Maoists andthe government want to see the

negotiations between theirstudent wing and thegovernment leads topeace talks.”

So far, the only thingstanding in the way is seman-tics.

-Nepali Times, Kathmandu

CLASS WARWhen schools become a

war zone, the sword is

mightier than the pen

elsewhere: NEPAL

A Year OnIt was around this time last year that the then Prime Minister AtalBehari Vajpayee made that historic visit to China and announced,among other things, that the two countries had reconciled on Sikkim’sstatus as a part of India. This message was subtle, hidden underthe folds of the bilateral agreement which agreed to resume tradeover Nathula. It grew stronger each month and word had it thatNathula would be opened for border trade as early as in July 2004.Then the elections happened and as Vajpayee left the PMO so didhis theories on external affairs. A new Prime Minister sits in his placenow and even though Dr. Manmohan Singh might be a man of eco-nomics, he leads a government that might have a different take onSino-India relations. Also, because it is a new set-up, they have tofeel their way around first and then continue with whatever the NDAgovernment promulgated. This will obviously take some time.Nathula, the Centre now tells us will open only sometime next year.Sikkim, like always has no real say on Nathula. It opened on thewishes of the British, was continued because the Indian govern-ment desired so and was closed because India no longer patron-ised it. But this delay is good for Sikkim. The State is not as enter-prising yet as a State which sits on a pass that moves internationaltrade should be. Neither our departments nor the officials are yetequipped to help with the policy-framing required to get the bestdeal out for Sikkim. Our entrepreneurs and businessmen lack thekiller instinct which will leave them as sidekicks to the sharper busi-ness acumen from even North Bengal businessmen who will de-scend on Sikkim the moment there is trade. The time that Sikkimhas at hand would be best utilised if local entrepreneurial skills werehoned finer. The State can act as the facilitator here to send inter-ested youth to whatever courses are required to facilitate trade whenit resumes. Even though Sikkim might not be a big enough pro-ducer to trade with China, it could at least provide the human re-sources required to keep the trade smooth. That in itself is a tre-mendous employment opportunity which Sikkim could corner foritself, not by way of quota, but by displaying their skills. It now hasthe time to prepare. It should use it well.

23 June, 2004; NOW! 3

C M Y K

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GANGTOK, 22 June: ChakrapaniBhattarai will be awarded the “Dr.Shova Kanti Thegim [Lepcha]Smriti Purashkar –2004.”

This was decided in a meetingof the Dr. Shova Kanti Thegim Me-morial Trust held on 20 June atGangtok. Mr.Bhattarai was se-lected for the awardfor his book “MatriSattako Nimti,”recomended by theFinal SelectionCommittee consti-tuted by the trust.

The award,which consists of acash award of Rs.7001, a Tamra Patraand a certificate willbe presented to theauthor on 4 July, the Birth Anni-versary of Late Dr. Thegim atNepali Sahitya Parishad Bhawan,Gangtok.

Only books in Nepali languagewritten by all levels of writers be-longing to the State of Sikkim [in-cluding permanent residents] andpublished during the calendar yearsof 2000, 2001 and 2002 were eli-gible for the Award-2004. Out of

the entries received from a widerange of writers, Mr. Bhattarai’scollection of poems [lyrical] “MatriSattako Nimti” was finally selectedfor the award.

Mr. Bhattarai was born on 10December 1964 at Namin-Tumlabong busty in East Sikkim.At present he is employed as a multipurpose health worker with the de-

partment of Health &Family Welfare atTumlabong, Sikkim.

He credits hissuccess in Nepali lit-erature to his fatherwho would recite the“Mahabharata” tohim during his child-hood. This becamethe source of inspira-tion that helped himin developing interesttowards poetry andcreative writing

when he grew up.He has authored many books and

his poems and other creative writingshave been published in various maga-zines and news journals.

Another important feature ofthe award function will be the pres-entation of Dr. Shova Kanti Thegim[Lepcha] Memorial Prize and Sti-pend comprising of cash prize ofRs. 2001 and Rs. 1500 per annum

ANAND OBEROI

GANGTOK, 22 June: Bamboo andits potential as a money-earner for theState was the main focus of the“Policy Workshop on Bamboo” heldat the Conference Hall, Forest An-nexe Building, Deorali today. Theworkshop, which was conducted byCane & Bamboo Technology Centre[CBTC] in collaboration with theState Government, was to envisagea policy on bamboo for Sikkim.

The State Government has con-stituted a Bamboo DevelopmentAgency with the Chief Secretary asthe Chairman and Additional ChiefSecretary as the Vice-Chairman ofthe agency. The board members ofthe agency are the secretaries of theCommerce & Industries, Culture,Horticulture, Forest and Science &Technology departments. AdditionalSecretary, Industries & CommerceDepartment, DR Kharel is the Mem-ber Secretary of the Agency.

The Chief Secretary, SW Tenzing,in his inaugural address, talked aboutthe framing of a policy on bamboocultivation for the state adding that theSikkimese people were not unfamil-iar with bamboo and its utility as thishas been a part of our life and tradi-tion. Bamboo has been in use exten-sively all round the state in one formor the other, he added.

The bamboo industry howeveris being run in an unorganised man-ner due to lack of proper frameworkand awareness about its economicpossibilities, he added.

Terming the workshop as agood indicator for the developmentof bamboo culture in the State, theChief Secretary added that if theelite section of the society, alongwith the NGOs, policy framers, in-stitutions and departments cameforward for framing policy for thestate then Sikkim could definitelybecome a major exporter of finebamboo products.

In his Welcome Address, Mr.Kharel, Member Secretary, BDAS,spoke on the potential of bamboogrowth in the state. He said that al-though large varieties of bamboo werewidely grown in the State, and its uti-lization common in rural areas, its fullpotential was still to be realized.

Sikkim, according to him con-sumed very little compared to whatit grew and the focus now needed tobe shifted to how the surplus bam-boo could reach markets outside andthe profits delivered to the cultiva-tors directly. There was also a needfor proper resource mapping andpreparation of a master plan to de-velop bamboo cultivation in the state.

The Bamboo DevelopmentAgency, Sikkim has proposed a

project of Rs. 4 crores to the NorthEast Council out of which Rs. 63lakhs has already been approvedand Rs. 25 lakhs given to theagency for the development ofbamboo in the state, it is learnt.Mass bamboo plantation was beingcarried out. The project will nowbe revised and sent to the StatePlanning Board for scrutiny beforebeing sent for final approval to theNorth Eastern Council.

The North Eastern states werethe highest cultivators of bamboo

in the country. About 64 per centof India’s Bamboo is grown in theNorth East, amounting to 24 per

cent of the total world growth.According to Kamesh Salam,

the CBTC project coordinator,Sikkim was not lagging behind andwith the active support of the stategovernment and the Bamboo De-velopment Agency, it could soon beon its way to join other NE states.

CBTC had taken a project of Rs.26,000 crores to fully develop thebamboo industry with the main stresson streamlining the haphazard meth-ods being applied by the bamboocultivators in the region, he said.

“Sikkim should identify waysto utilize the surplus bamboo aftermass plantation increases produc-tion,” he said.

Zilla Adyaksha, West, RM Rai,Zilla Adyakshya, South, Mrs.Phurmit Lepcha, Secretaries andofficers of various line departmentand representatives fromNABARD, NEDFI and SIDBI at-tended the daylong workshop.

Sikkim mulls State Policy for Bamboo cultivation

Chakrapani Bhattarai to receiveDr. Shova Thegim Smriti Puraskar

respectively to students of PNGSchool, Gangtok, based on the re-sults of the class X board Exam.

The Trust has announced thename of Shringkhala Dahal ofClass XI for the said prize and sti-pend for securing the highest marks[78%] in Nepali in the class Xboard exam of 2004 and for pursu-ing her studies in class XI withNepali as one of the subjects.

Chakrapani Bhattarai

Chief Secretary, SW Tenzing, [right] being shown around various items made from

Bamboo at the Policy Workshop on Bamboo held in Gangtok on 22 June

4; NOW!; 23 June, 2004

C M Y K

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ASSAM LINGZEY, 22 June:Among the various projects un-dertaken by Assam LingzeyGram Panchayat, Hepatitis-Bvaccination programme campwas organized today here at As-sam Lingzey Sr. SecondarySchool. The programme is oneof the projects carried out un-der the Gram Panchayat fundutilization scheme.

Around 235 children below the

a NOW REPORT

GANGTOK, 22 June: On this dayin 1993, the agitation led by theSikkim Democratic Front against thethen Bhandari-led governmentpeaked with a huge rally held inGangtok. The rally was stoppedfrom moving beyond the Deoralioffice of the party and culminatedin violence with many party support-ers beaten up and more than 300 ar-rested. The arrests notwithstanding,the fear psychosis that pervaded the14-year-rule was lifted. Ever sincethe party has celebrated the day as‘Sampurna Kranti Diwas’.

Today, the Gangtok branch ofthe SDF observed the day at itsbranch office near Community Hallat Development Area. Area MLA,NK Pradhan was the chief guest on

the occasion, and was accompaniedby senior party members and partysupporters from the capital.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr.Pradhan, on behalf of party presidentand Chief Minister, Pawan Chamling,who is presently at New Delhi, ex-tended good wishes to the people.Repeating Mr. Chamling’s messageon the occasion, he reminded the peo-ple of the significance of the day,which symbolizes “people’s victoryover an anti-people regime.”

Mr. Pradhan used the occasionto also announce that from now on,the Gangtok branch office wouldbe a full-fledged constituency-levelparty office. He urged the support-ers to make maximum use of theoffice for the benefit of the people.

Kranti Diwas was observedall over the State at the constitu-

ency level.In the Assam Lingzey con-

stituency, in East Sikkim, areaMLA-cum- Chairman, TransportDepartment, Kunga ZangpoBhutia officiated the celebrationsas the Chief Guest.

A gathering of around 500 partysupporters from the constituency at-tended the function held at AssamLingzey Sr. Secondary School.

Speaking on the occasion, thechief guest said that there was stilla need for revolution in many fieldsincluding, education, agricultureand health.

Former MLA and senior partymember, Sonam Dupden Lepchaalso spoke on the occasion and re-minded the people that the June22,1993 revolution had ushered intrue democracy in the state.

Gangtok SDF supporters mark the day they stormed the SSP bastion in 1993

age of 6 years were vaccinated dur-ing a day-long camp. Besides this,Phutob Lepcha, Health EducationOfficer from STNM Hospital, Dr.Sangeeta from Pakyong Sub-divi-sional Hospital and staff of AssamLingzey PHC also carried out ahealth check-up programme forthe residents of the surroundingareas. SDDO, Pakyong, who wasalso present on the occasion, ap-preciated the ruling government’sscheme to decentralize power to

the Panchayat members. The sec-ond and third phase of this pro-gramme will be held at AssamLingzey PHC.

The same day, area MLA,Kunga Zangpo Bhutia inaugurateda tailoring and cutting trainingcamp and Pastanga. A broom bind-ing training camp, which waslaunched few days back concludedthe same day. Both these campswere part of the gram panchayat’sfund utilization programme.

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a NOW REPORT

NAMCHI, 22 June: The SikkimDemocratic Front party members ofDamthang constituency observedKranti Diwas, today, 22 June, at theparty office at Namchi. The get to-gether was chaired by BM Rai,Upadhyaksha, South.

In his address, Mr. Rai said thatthe word ‘kranti’ in today’s contextdid not mean violence but insteadmeant a struggle against corruptionand exploitation. Gagan Rai, Teaboard Chairman, and others alsoaddressed the gathering.

A similar programme was alsoheld at Jorethang where the KrantiDiwas was observed at the partyoffice there under the chairman-

ship of area MLA and RDD Min-ister, KN Rai. There were about200 people in attendance includ-ing party members of constituencylevel, block level and ward levelcommittees.

Mr. Rai, in his address recalledevents following 22 June, 1993 andsaid that through that struggle thepeople of Sikkim had attained fullfledged freedom. In his view, hesaid kranti was mainly a struggleor a step in the making of a peace-ful and prosperous state.

Following the programme, Mr.Rai along with the DE and AEscouted for sites around Jorethangfor a prospective gymnasium hall,a playground and other amenitieswhich the minister assured wouldcommence soon.

KRANTI DIWAS OBSERVED INNAMCHI AND JORETHANG

23 June, 2004; NOW! 5

C M Y K

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GANGTOK, 22 June: Rajya SabhaMP PT Gyamtso was the chief guestat the first Cement Consumers Meetheld here at Hotel Tibet today. Themeet, supported by the Bhutan-IndiaFriendship Association, was organ-ized by Penden Cement AuthorityLimited, Gomtu, Bhutan [pic right].

The CCM was first held atJalpaiguri, Siliguri and Cooch Biharbefore coming to Gangtok. Duringthe function a message by Bhutan-India Friendship Association wasalso read. BIFA was established in

STYLEHotel Golden PagodaMG Marg, Gangtok

DEEPAK SHARMA

Lachen has always consid-ered itself to be the poorcousin of the much more

affluent Lachung. Whether incivic amenities, tourism infra-structure or fund-allocation, thepeople of Lachen feel side-linedby the State Government.

This is now being voiced bymany persons of the area, especiallythe educated unemployed youth,who feel much can be done to im-prove the living conditions of peo-ple here and also create employ-ment avenues.

“Lachen has great scope to bepromoted as a tourist destinationjust like Lachung, but not enoughis being done about it,” says PhutukLachenpa, a young man.

“If the government seriouslypromotes the place we can reap thebenefits of being on the route to des-tinations like Thangu, Jasu Valley,

Gurudongmar Lake andMuguthang,” adds Pema Wangchen.

According to KyadenLachenpa, the oldest man here,Lachen has not only been domi-nated totally by its neighbour butalso neglected in all spheres.

“Farmers are unable to get applesaplings in time from the Horticulturedepartment, cabbage cultivation is de-generating by the day,” he complains.

The locals see the lack of aproper road to Lachen as one rea-son why tourists are hesitant to comehere. Rough and difficult, it getsespecially bad during the monsoons.

The litany of complaints car-ries on. Water pipes are not fittedproperly leading to water supplyproblems. Scarcity of electricityis another aspect the people areunhappy about.

“Street lights have not beengiven to Lachen whereas Lachunghas good supply,” says PemaNamgyal.

Medicine is not available at thedispensary inform the local medi-cal staff making both patients andhealth workers suffer.

LACHEN FARES POORLY IN COMPARISON TOITS MORE AFFLUENT NEIGHBOUR

jest a while by ARUN & CHEWANG, TNA

Locals feel that if tourist haltsat Lachen were encouraged, thelocal economy would benefitmuch from it.

The locals now hope that witha new government in place, theirconcerns would be assuaged in theright spirit, soon.

Lachen has little options but to hope for a more genuine developmental package this time

1969 to strengthen friendly relationsbetween the two countries with theobjective of making India and Bhu-tan partners in development.

Also present at the meetingwere delegates from Bhutan, stategovernment officials, engineers,contractors, cement dealers andother businessmen.

Cement consumers meet heldFROM FRIENDSHIP TO COMMERCE

KARAN SHAH

KALIMPONG, 22 June: It wasunanimously decided that theKalimpong Winter Fest would beheld this year and that too with vari-ous new programmes to add to itsalready packed itinerary.

A dozen guys got together in-formally last year and had organ-ized this fest, which turned out tobe a roaring success by all stand-ards for Kalimpong.

With the aim of promoting tour-ism and to highlight the rich cul-tural heritage of the town, the mot-ley-arrangement of programmes atthe fest had commenced on Christ-mas Eve last year. The eight-dayfest also highlighted the socio-reli-gious dimension of the hills.

An interesting event was the eth-nic march in which representatives ofall races of Gorkhas took a rally through

the town, dressed up in traditionaldresses and holding ethnic instruments.

Amongst the many other attrac-tions the fest also included pro-grammes like rock climbing atPedong, angling and rafting at the riverTeesta, local food festival, rally, a pic-nic, dance competitions, musical pro-grams, bike rally and a flower show.A photo exhibition exhibiting the newand the old pictures of Kalimpongalong with an exhibition of the prod-ucts made at Kalimpong were alsoheld. Felicitation of prominent localpersonalities who have made a markin literature and art was also held.

Apart from the Kalimpong townarea different surrounding areas likePedong, Rellie, Teesta, and CharKhola, which is near Samthar, werealso included in the venue list.

Also conducted was a day longtour, for the tourists who came tothe fest, with a tour guide taking

them to the different tourist attrac-tions in and around town.

“The new items that will beadded to this year’s schedule willbe the approximately 70 kilometercycle rally from Lava toKalimpong,” said Mr. Sandip Jain,the chief-coordinator of the Fest.“Along with the regular stuff theparticipants will also experience thebreath taking bungee jumping,which will also be included in thisyear’s schedule,” adds, Jain.

An interesting factor for the last year’swinter fest was that from the funds gen-erated, not a single penny was raised fromfolks of the town. Rather the whole eventwas sponsored by corporations e.g.Maruti Udyog, P C Net etc.

Pointing out the importance ofholding such festivals, S Jain, says,“Such gatherings will certainlybring a sense of belonging and no-doubt it will also boost tourism”.

KALIMPONG TO REPEAT WINTERFEST WITH MORE EXCITEMENT

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PARCEL FORKALAM CREATES

SCARENEW DELHI, 22 June: A parcelreceived for President A P J AbdulKalam on Tuesday morning createda scare at Rashtrapati Bhavan withthe authorities summoning thebomb disposal squad of the policeto check its contents thoroughly.

According to a RashtrapatiBhavan spokesman, the pistol-sizeparcel was being put through a X-ray machine, as is normally donewith every packet, when the staffnoticed that its contents could in-clude a country-made weapon andcartridges.

The squad and the New Delhidistrict police were immediatelysummoned to take the parcel away.They will now check the contentsof the packet, the spokesmanadded.

The parcel was addressed to thePresident and the sender’s namewritten on it in Hindi said: MaheshSaav, Village Mujahidpur, PatnaDistrict. It was posted from Barh.

Mahesh Sav, the man who sentthe country’s security establishmentinto a tizzy by sending a parcel con-taining a gun and cartridges toPresident A P J Abdul Kalam, wasarrested on Tuesday evening fromhis native Mujaheedpur village inPatna district of Bihar.

The parcel was received at theRashtrapati Bhavan at 10 am onTuesday.

Sav, 40, claimed during his inter-rogation that he had sent a ‘toy’ pistolin the parcel.

NEW DELHI, 22 June: The USembassy and American ConsulateGenerals in Chennai, Mumbai andKolkata decided on Tuesday to endthe ‘drop box’ facility for submit-ting visa applications, following themove to collect fingerprint impres-sions of visa applicants from July.

This change in the visa appli-cation process will affect only thelimited number of persons currentlynot required to appear in person fora visa appointment, the Americanembassy said in New Delhi.

It said the reason for ending thedrop-box facility is that beginningnext month, US consular sectionsin India will start collecting finger-print impressions from all visa ap-plicants, except those travelling onofficial government business orwho are under 14 or over 79 years.

At the time of the visa inter-view, applicants will be asked toelectronically scan the index fingerof each hand. The scanned finger-print data collected at time of visaapplication will be compared withfingerprint scans at the US port ofentry to prevent the use of US vi-sas by imposters and by thosewanted for more serious offences.

This is a world-wide pro-gramme and has already been im-plemented in more than 150 Ameri-can consular sections around the

The tribal girls of Chhattisgarhhave humbled the Shiv Sainiks

objecting to the screening of ‘Girl-friend’, which tells the story of alesbian.

The movie’s screening, whichhas led to violence at several placesof the country, is continuing unin-terrupted in Bastar district, thanks

to these gutsy girls.Tribal girls protested against the

Sainiks when they stormed into thetheatre campus and started tearingaway banners and posters. The girlsreached the spot and what followedwas a virtual showdown overscreening of the movie. Finally, theSainiks were forced to eat humble

pie.“They asked us not to succumb

to anyone and continue to show themovie,” says Laxminarayan GuruDiwan, manager of Satyam cinemahall, where the movie is beingscreened. It is the only cinema hallin Chhattisgarh screening the con-troversial movie.

Girlfriend: Tribal girls humble Sena

world, the release said. “This pro-gramme is not targeted at any coun-try or region,” it said, adding thatUS visa offices in Frankfurt, Brus-sels, San Salvador and Guatemalawere the first posts to begin thisprogramme September last year.

All the US visa issuing postswill be collecting fingerprint databy October 26 this year, comple-menting the US-VISIT programmein which nearly all visitors to theUS, including those from countrieseligible for the visa waiver pro-gramme, have their fingerprints andphotograph taken at the airport onarrival in the US.

In the schedule for discontinu-ing drop-box facility, the last dayto submit applications via drop-boxin Delhi and Chennai is June 30,while for Kolkata it is July 16 andMumbai July 20.

The release said that visa appli-

cations must make an appointmentfor visa interview and fingerprintcollection. In Delhi, Chennai andKolkata, applicants have been askedto make appointments online, or byvisiting the offices of TT Servicesin Chennai, Bangalore or Hyderabadif applying from Andhra Pradesh,Kerala, Karnataka or Tamil Nadu.

Applicants from Maharashtra,Gujarat, Goa, Madhya Pradesh andChhattisgarh can make appoint-ments online at www.visa-services.com or by visiting the of-fice of the Visa Facilitation Servicein Mumbai, Ahmedabad or Pune.

The embassy reminded appli-cants that all posts in India experi-ence delays in the availability ofappointments during spring andsummer, and that this year was noexception. It noted that the longestdelays are in Chennai due to thehigher volume of applications.

HEADED FOR US? SUBMITYOUR FINGERPRINTS

ISLAMABAD, June 22: FormerPakistani cricket legend ImranKhan and his wife Jemima haveformally separated, family andparty officials said Tuesday.

“Imran and Jemima haveended their marriage,” an official

of the cricket hero-turned-politi-cian’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaafparty said.

Whisper it softly, goes thesibilant hiss from some of the big-gest kiss-and-tell headlines of theLondon season, but will it beLove Actually rather than play-ing a straight bat for Jemima,Imran Khan’s heiress wife of nineyears?

Jemima is reportedly seeingactor Hugh Grant. Just days ago,the couple who refuse to admitthey’re an item, were seen hav-ing rather a good time.

IMRAN ‘GRANTS’ DIVORCETO JEMIMA UP RS polls: EC asks

RO to reconsider

Cong nominationsNew Delhi: In an apparent boostto the claims of the two Congresscandidates, the Election Commis-sion directed the Returning Officerof the Rajya Sabha elections inUttar Pradesh to consider afreshtheir rejected nomination papers forscrutiny and take a final decision.

Acting on the complaints of theCongress candidates HarendraAgarwal and M M Shukla that theirnomination papers were “unconsti-tutionally and unlawfully” rejectedby the RO on Saturday, the three-member Commission said in itsorder that the RO consider all “rel-evant matters with due and delib-erate care and pass such appropri-ate order in his quasi-judicial ca-pacity as he may deem fit.”

The Congress on Monday metthe Commission in a delegation andcomplained that the RO had re-jected the papers of its candidatesunder pressure from the state gov-ernment run by the SamajwadiParty led coalition.

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government would bring out a blue-print of development for the state ofSikkim within 100 days of the an-nouncement of election results.

On the need of more collegesMr. Gurung said, “Today there are2,300 students who have completedtheir higher secondary exams andare seeking admissions. Of this2,300 around 300 will seek admis-sions in educational institutes out-side the state; another 200 will goto Manipal or other engineering in-stitutes. That leaves 1,800 studentsof which the college at Gangtok canaccommodate about 650 studentsand the one at Namchi about 300.”

The college to be established atRhenock, which will be doneshortly, will also have hostel accom-modation, the Minister informed.For non-locals, the minister in-formed, admission would begin at70 percent marks while for locals thecut-off mark would be 50 percent.

On the government’s plans for a

University in Sikkim, Mr. Gurung toldNOW! that the University Act had beenpassed but central funds were awaited.

“However,” he said, “a univer-sity will be established in Sikkimwithin the year.”

The university, the Minister dis-closed would come up at Temi.

“This is not because I am thearea MLA but because during thetime of the Chogyal there was ateachers’ training institute here atTemi which was later shifted toPelling. The foundation of educationin Sikkim was established here andthe University will continue thisprecedent,” the HRD minister said.

Temi locals further contestedthat Temi had the best climate inSikkim and was ideally suited for auniversity. Mr. Gurung also revealedplans for a new school at Temi.

The HRD Minister also dis-closed plans to start FM radio inSikkim within the next 3 months.

“This FM service, which is incollaboration with IGNOU, ismainly aimed at assisting college

students,” he said. He went on toexplain that the students would beable to call in at the FM station andput in questions on their particularsubjects to specialist teachers. TheFM would be relayed from theGuwahati station and both the NECand the chief minister had beenunanimous in their decision tolaunch FM radio in Sikkim, he said.He also informed that studentswould also be able to use the internetto put in their queries to teachersspecialising in their subjects.

On his message to the people onKranti Diwas, Mr. Gurung assured thatthe SDF government would work forthe development of society, protectionof the environment and work towardsthe fulfilment of the chief minister’svision for Sikkim.

“I am happy to know the per-formance of the party programmethrough the Panchayats and partyworkers. I would also like to givemy good wishes for those workingtowards the chief minister’s visionof a Sukhi Sikkim,” Mr. Gurung said.

submitted to the prime minister wasrequested to be forwarded to theunion minister.

Mr. Chamling suggested increas-ing the purchasing power of villag-ers and small farmers by proper mar-keting of their produce bypassing themiddlemen who today deprive thevillagers of their benefits. He said thatthere should be a national policy onthis. The union minister took note ofthis and promised to take suitable

steps in this regard.Later in the course of the day Mr.

Chamling also called on Mr. KapilSibal, minister of state in charge ofscience and technology and con-gratulated him on his assuming hisministerial office. Mr. Sibal assuredthat he would support the develop-mental process going on in thenortheast including Sikkim and ven-tured to offer the services of the newcommercial aircraft tested recently,SARUS, to the Sikkim government.The chief minister indicated that

Contd from pg 1

100 teachers to be terminated!

Sikkim was a suitable area for thesetting up of a national research in-stitute cum study centre on BioTechnology. He said that develop-ment should be on the lines of avail-ability of national resources in thatparticular state. He pointed out thatSikkim was an insurgency free statewith rich national resources and wastherefore eager to participate in theestablishment of a national level in-stitute on Bio Technology. Mr. Sibalassured of all assistance by his min-istry to the Sikkim government.

Contd from pg 1

CM meets 3 union ministers...

BIRENDRA SHANDILYA

DARJEELING, 22 June: Whatstarted off as a strike call for busesin the Darjeeling Sub Division to-day by the Parvatiya BusKarmachari Union (PBKU) endedup being supported in a spontane-ous show of cooperation by 37 Taxiand other vehicle syndicates. Inci-dentally, this strike call was to pro-test the bad condition of the National

Highway 55, the 76 km link roadbetween Siliguri and Darjeeling.

Though private vehicles andtwo wheelers were seen plying inDarjeeling, buses, taxis and trucksremained off the road in Darjeelingand especially along the NH55.With prior intimation of the strike,there was a mad rush of touristsyesterday to leave Darjeeling result-ing in a shortage of vehicles. How-ever not many stranded tourists

were seen today. AmalenduMukherjee, a tourist from Kasba,Kolkata supporting the strikestated, “It is high time the authori-ties did something about the con-dition of the NH55. It leaves a verybad impression on the tourists. For-eign tourists must be shocked tofind more pot-holes on these roadsthen there are craters in the moon.”

“Along with the repair of theNH55 our demand is also for a bus

and taxi stand in Darjeeling, with-out which there can be no solutionto the traffic problem” statedBhutia. He also alleged that theMunicipality had called for a ten-der 8 months ago for the demoli-tion of the present Beef Market andfor building a taxi stand above it.Though the blue print is ready workhas not yet begun.

The Central Government hadsanctioned a fund of Rs. 10 Crorefor the repairs of the NH55 and thedeadline was slated for March2004. Later this deadline was ex-tended to 2005. Gopi Nath Roy,Asst. Engineer, NH55, Div. 9 hadearlier stated that work was slowdue to heavy traffic during the day.“The labourers are afraid of work-ing at night” he added. The mon-soons have further delayed thework. “In spite of all these odds weare trying our best to complete thejob at the earliest” added Roy.

“All the funds are being di-verted to the plains,” retortedBhutia.

Talking of the future course ofaction Rupen Lama of the GorkhaHill Transport Joint Action Com-mittee, an umbrella organization of37 vehicle syndicates stated thatthey would be holding a meetingon 7 July and submitting memoran-dums to the District Administrationand the DGHC regarding the above.“We will give a deadline of 15 days.If nothing positive occurs we willthen go in for a large scale agita-tion which will also involve an in-definite strike” added Lama.

Meanwhile report in a vernacu-lar daily of a landslide in Likhubirin the Kalimpong Sub Divisionalong the National Highway 31A,sparked panic among tourists today.The Darjeeling DM, however, de-nied the report

PBKU Darj Strike gets wide support; indefinite strike threatened

8; NOW!; 23 June, 2004

C M Y K

Published by Lt. Col. (retd) P. Dorjee and printed at Darpan Publications Pvt. Ltd, Siliguri. Editor: Pema Wangchuk. Executive Editor: Mita ZulcaNow! Near Ayurvedic Clinic, Gairi Gaon, Tadong. East Sikkim. ph: 03592 270949 email: sikkimnow@rediffmail.com

THEFINALONE �

today in

History23rd June

THE FUTURE, NOW!ARIES Happiness will prevail. Youmay get an overseas job. Financialstatus will be very good. Family lifewill be very comfortable. Litigationwill be postponed. Your prospectsand position will improve with a longtrip. Cash flow will be good. Exportsbusinesses will be very successful.TAURUS You may purchase a newvehicle. A change of environment isindicated. Overseas job will be verysuccessful. Understanding with yourlife partner will be very good. Peaceand prosperity will be maintained.Long travel is indicated.GEMINI You may go on a long trip. Afinancial crisis is indicated. There maybe tension with your life partner andbusiness. Litigation will be postponed.Your boss may get you anxious.CANCER You may start a new busi-ness. Business will be brisk. Socialstatus will be maintained. Political lifewill be very successful. Cash flow willbe very good. You may get married.Overseas job will be successful.LEO Job seekers may get new op-

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NEW YORK: Fans of Bill Clintonlined up outside bookshops fromArkansas to New York to snap upcopies of his autobiography, givingthe former president’s words thesame rock star treatment he oftenenjoyed while in power.

“It’s a historic moment for me,”said Margaret Woods, a Manhattanbilling consultant who stood in aline of about 100 people outside aBarnes & Noble near LincolnCenter that began selling the bookat midnight Monday.

Alfred A. Knopf has given thememoirs a first printing of 1.5 mil-lion. Mary Ellen Keating, a spokes-woman for Barnes & Noble, saidshe expected “My Life” to be the

SUSPECTEDSPOILED SEEDS KILL

250 PIGEONSATHENS: A professed bird-loverwas under arrest on Monday after250 pigeons died in Athens’ mainsquare after being fed suspectedspoiled seeds, police said.

Police arrested the woman atSyntagma Square opposite Greece’sparliament after pigeons she wasspotted feeding started to flutterhelplessly and die on Sunday.

The woman told police sheloved pigeons and had fed themmaize and sesame seeds she foundat her uncle’s home who died amonth ago. The woman was notaware how long the seeds had beenstored before her uncle’s death.

Police were considering whetherto charge the woman with animalkilling, a crime that can mean sev-eral months imprisonment.

portunities. You may receive a pro-motion and a transfer. Expenseswill be reduced. You will be in aposition to release tangled assets.Cash flow will be very good.VIRGO You may go on a long trip.Understanding with your life part-ner will be very good. You may facea financial crisis. Medical expensesthrough your father will prevail. Youmay go for new business activities.Business will be very brisk. Litiga-tion will be postponed.LIBRA You may commence newbusiness activities. Health willgood. You may earn a good incomefrom speculation. Support fromyour subordinates and superiorswill be there.SCORPIO You may go for a picnic.You will do well financially. You willbe able to cash in on your resources.You may inherit ancestral property.Cash flow will be very good.

SAGITTARIUS You may acquire anew vehicle. A change of environ-ment is indicated. Worries will beover. You may go on a long trip.Cash flow will be very good. Exportbusinesses will do well. Litigationwill be postponed.CAPRICORN You may be in a po-sition to take a new decision regard-ing business. Business will be brisk.Understanding with your life part-ner and business partner will bevery good.AQUARIUS All your plans will gosmoothly and you will enjoy easysuccess. You may get job opportu-nities overseas. You may take amajor decision for your welfare.Cash flow will be very good.PISCES All your plans will gosmoothly and you will enjoy easysuccess. You may get job opportu-nities overseas. You may take amajor decision for your welfare.

best-selling presidential memoir inthe company’s history.

“It’s like adult Harry Pottermania. We haven’t seen anythinglike this since J.K. Rowling camehere,” said Michael Link, a book-seller for Politics & Prose, a Wash-ington-based store.

The Books-A-Million store inNorth Little Rock, Arkansas, stayedopen late and staged a party withtrivia contests that drew about 80people. Those who attended alsocould sign up for a later drawinggiving them an opportunity to havetheir book signed by Clinton.

Although initial reviews havecalled the book self-serving anddull, Garry Caldwell, 54, of Sher-

wood, Ark., said he wanted to read“My Life” to better understandClinton’s political legacy.

“I believe in listening to bothsides of the argument and makingup my own mind,” he said. “I thinkhe was a good president — I thinkhe could have been one of the bestpresidents except for the scandals.”

Although Tuesday was its offi-cial release date, promotion for thebook truly began in early June,when Clinton was the keynotespeaker at BookExpo America, thepublishing industry’s annual na-tional convention. He has sincebeen interviewed by “60 Minutes,”Time magazine and the BritishBroadcasting Corp., among others.

FANS LINE UP TO BUY BILLCLINTON’S BOOK

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AMSTERDAM: Philips Electron-ics has launched the world’s first16-speed DVD writer, which canburn a disc in less than six minutes,the Dutch group said on Tuesday

U.S. computer maker Dell willbe the first customer for the newDVD burner, sources familiar withthe Philips activity reveal. Philipsand Dell have a partnership to sup-ply each other with products.

Philips said it planned to pro-duce 600,000 of the devices everymonth. Computer makers will paybetween 80 and 90 euros [$97-$109]per DVD writer when buying in

large quantities, while consumerswill have to pay around 180 euros.

The product, which has two lay-ers that take the maximum storagecapacity up to 8.5 gigabytes or fourhours of DVD quality video, will be amainstream feature in personal com-puters by the end of 2004, Philips said.

Until now, eight-speed burnerswere at the top of the range.

Philips’ optical storage unit,which was also the first with aneight-speed DVD burner last Sep-tember, returned to profitability in2003 after heavy losses as a resultof Asian competition.

PHILIPS LAUNCHES WORLD’SFASTEST DVD BURNER

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MARKET!LONDON: Jasper became the rich-est dog in Britain after making130,000 pounds at the stock market.

This ten-year-old doberman-labrador cross, who started life inthe Battersea Dogs Home, was be-queathed 50,000 pounds after thedeath of his first owner in 1995.

According to The Sun, his trus-tees invested this money in theshare market which has today madehim a millionaire.

“We always try to invest inthings that interest him, like PetCity, the animal supermarket,” hispresent owner, Sir Benjamin Slade,was quoted as saying by the report.

LAND FOR SALELand at Majitar NationalHighway, below Sleepwell.contact: 94340 90888