West Sikkim - Digital Himalaya

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August 07-13, 2002
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1
Panorama
Color Lab
Beyond
Competition
GANGTOK
GETTING
PASSIONATE
ABOUT
GARANDEL
WEDNESDAY, August 07-13, 2002
Vol 1 No 10 Rs. 5
MG Marg, Gangtok, Sikkim - 737 101
ph: 25098 / 22488
SLIDES TURN UGLY
a NOW! pic
TURN TO pg 11 FOR DETAILS
BHALUTHANG’S
MYSTERY
OBJECT NOT SO
MYSTERIOUS
TURN TO pg 5 FOR DETAILS
JORETHANG
PILGRIMAGE
TURNS
FATAL
IN WEST SIKKIM
A scarred West
Sikkim hillside
TURN TO pg 11 FOR DETAILS
LALL BAZAAR
SHIFTING YET TO BE
CONCRETISED
TURN TO pg 2 FOR DETAILS
GYALSHING: West Sikkim has always had a bad experience with rains. Landslides often disrupt vehicular traffic
to the district and while traditional slip zones keep acting
up each monsoon, new ones get born every August. While
no lives had been lost thus far in West Sikkim to landslides, the slush entered a home at Tadathang on August
2 and claimed four lives. The battered remains of the house
(see pic) still stands deep in the slush which has now congealed around it. Villagers still crowd around the house
trying to figure out why the slide targeted it in isolation...
- TURN TO PG 3 FOR DETAILS
Unique
SWEETS &
NOW
WE
ARE
HERE
SNACKS
AT NAYA BAZAR, MG ROAD, GANGTOK HAS SHIFTED
JUST BEHIND ITS PREVIOUS OUTLET INSIDE THE
NEAR PASSAGE
PH: 23881 / 24134
CHAMP’S
VIDEO
WE
WERE
HERE
NAYA BAZAAR ROAD
2
RECAP SIKKIM
NOW!
18 YEAR OLD
COMMITS
SUICIDE
DIKCHU: Ashong Lepcha an 18year-old boy of Raksay Rakdong
Busty committed suicide by
hanging himself in his house at
around 9’o’clock in the morning on
August 1, 2002. No suicide note
was found and the police are
investigating the matter.
TATA MEETS
WITH AN
ACCIDENT
CHUNGTHANG: A Tata met
with an accident at Naga, North
Sikkim. All the three occupants of
the vehicle escaped with minor
injuries. They were then forwarded
to the Mangan Hospital. The
vehicle was inspected and the
driver arrested, it is learnt.
CARDAMOM
THIEF
DALAPCHAN: Amrit Maja Rai
of Upper Dalapchand, lodged a
complaint with the police that Bir
Bahadur Rai also called Birkhey
and his son Chandra Bahadur Rai
nick named Chaturey, of Gamberey
Golai entered her cardamom field
and managed to carry away 2000
cardamom saplings on August 1,
2002. The police were able to catch
hold of the son Chaturey, but the
father Birkhey is still absconding.
read NOW!
Augsut 07-13, 2002
LAL BAZAAR SHIFTING
DATE SHIFTS AGAIN
by SUMANLATA PRADHAN
GANGTOK: It appears that the
three parties involved in the Lall
Bazaar reconstruction project are
unaware of what the other one is
up to.
The Lall Bazaar Association
members seem to have no clue as
to where UD&HD plans to shift
them. The shifting should have
been completed by the second
week of July and now the date has
been shifted to sometime in
September. Still no guarantees that
this new deadline would be met
because very little seems to be
moving towards that end.
The National Building and
Construction Corporation, however,
when contacted by NOW! was ready
to start construction work from the
first week of September. They are
still hoping that the clearance of the
area will be done at the scheduled
time. The scheduled time for
clearance was second week of
August.
Everything is apparently ready
at the NBCC’s office. Tenders have
been called and finalisation of
contractors for the project will be
done by the end of August, NBCC
officials inform. The latest report
that they had was that the UD&HD
Department would complete the
task of providing them with an open
space by the end of August. They
also added if the project does not
start on time then the cost
escalation factor would come into
play and upset the budget.
THE NBCC PROPOSAL FOR THE NEW LOOK OF LALL BAZAAR
However the Department
informed this reporter that it would
take some more time to finish the
job. The fund available has
increased to Rs. 16 crores now. As
far as informing the Lall Bazaar
people is concerned, nothing has
been done as yet. The Department
admits that no notices have been
served to the people and that the
Department has met the Lall
Bazaar representatives only once
till date. However a senior official
of the Department says that the
people are “hinted and aware” that
they will be shifted.
Members of the Lall Bazaar
Association have no clue as to what
is going on in the Department. They
said that they have not received any
official intimation of the proposed
shifting and that there have been
no negotiations between the two
parties. However if the Department
calls them then they would like to
place their view in front of the
officials. This has not been possible
till now. Right now the traders are
more concerned about the case
going on in the District Collectors
Court regarding a hike in the rent
to an “unexpected” amount.
The Department informed that
the file has been sent to the Chief
Minister’s office and it is also
contemplating the idea of forming
a
Project
Implementation
Committee
under
the
Chairmanship of the Chief
Secretary. The members of the
Committee will be officials from
the concerned departments of
UD&HD, Power, Superintendent
of Police and others.
The Department seems to have
finally decided upon the place
where they will be shifted. The
Superintending Engineer (N/E), GS
Sharma informed that present
tenants of Lall Bazaar would be
shifted to the old slaughterhouse
area at Arithang and that the various
approach roads to the site were
being constructed and repaired. The
remaining vendors will be shifted
to the Old West Point School Car
Park area, it is learnt.
GOVT COMMITTED TO ROOT OUT DADANI: GURUNG
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The so-called
guardian of the social system may
consider the practice of Dadani as
an age-old social requirement, but
those who have been at the
receiving end of this medieval
practice have rather sad tales to tell.
The practice of Dadani was
reported in NOW! in July this
year, about how orange cultivators
of Rameng Tingley belt, a half an
hour drive from the Bermiok
Phatak in South Sikkim caught in
the Dadani trap, had been conned
of their orange produce for years
now. The tribals of Rameng are
apparently
cash-strapped
throughout the year since the
orange harvest comes only in
November. Their entire year
revolves around caring for their
orange orchards, the only cash
crop in this belt. Through January
to November they run up dues at
two shops at Singtam, the
proprietors of which, also double
as moneylenders whenever they
require hard cash. They also
double as orange contractors
during season. In exchange, these
rural folk are made to sign
promissory notes, which entitle
the moneylenders to take away the
entire orange produce of their
orchards.
It is reported that come
November, these moneylenders
enter the orchards with their own
labourers and pluck and cart away
everything.
This is just one instance of the
practice of Dadani. This is widely
practised not only among orange
growers but also suffered by
cardamom and other cash crop
cultivators else where in the State.
Apparently, the horrors of this
practice has finally caught the
attention of the policy makers and
now steps are being taken to curb it.
Talking to NOW!, the
Agriculture Minister, GM Gurung
admitted that Dadani was still
being practised despite the “best”
efforts of the government. “These
are age-old practices-Dadani and
“Weplantoinvolve
cooperativesina
biggerwaynow”
Masikatta, in Sikkim. They have
been practised for a long time and
still followed basically due to the
illiteracy, poverty, lack of
knowledge and lack of marketing
skills among our farmers.”
On being asked on the steps
taken by the government to stop this
practice, Mr. Gurung said the
government has been trying to end
this system through the cooperative
movement. “But we failed,” the
Minister admitted while adding that
though the practice stopped for a
while, especially during the years
1986-87, “people went back to the
same old practice, because they had
this idea embedded in their heads and
it had become convenient to go to a
local moneylender in needy times.”
The government is now
tackling this problem by asking the
cooperative societies to get
involved in a bigger way, he added.
“The government has established
one multipurpose cooperative society
in every Gram Panchayat in the State.
And in case of any natural calamity
such as famine, drought or loss of
standing crops when the farmer
needs financial assistance, the MPCS
should be at least able to provide loan
to him, to sustain his livelihood,” he
said. Later, his products would be
marketed through the MPCS or
SIMFED, and the loan money
recovered, the surplus handed back
to him, Mr. Gurung said.
On the subject of issue of Kisan
Vikas Patra (Credit Card) to the
farmers bonded by Dadani, which
could mitigate their situation to
some extent, Mr. Gurung said that
the government has approved the
issue of Kisan Vikas Patra “in
principle” and as of today, only the
cooperative bank has been issuing
the Cards to the farmers. The other
Banks are not issuing the Cards
because of the fact that although
the transactions are huge, money
lending is relatively low, he said.
“This may be the reason why other
Banks have not agreed to it,” Mr.
Gurung said, adding that the
farmers would greatly benefit if
they could avail of the facility.
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August 07-13, 2002
NOW!
3
SLIDES TURN UGLY IN WEST
FOUR OF A FAMILY PERISH AS
LANDSLIDE INVADES THEIR HOUSE
Battered remains of the house in Tadathang, West Sikkim, where four
members of a family fell victims to a landslide on August 2, 2002.
NOW! pix
a NOW! REPORT
GEYZING: Four people,
including a three-year-old child
and two women, were killed in a
landslide on the night of August 2
at around 12:30 at Tadathang
village, 10 kms off Dentam.
The landslide, caused by
torrential rainfall, tore off part of a
hill, which was being dug for the
laying of a new road. The house
levelled by the landslide belonged
to one Jeet Bahadur Subba who had
a fortuitous escape, as he and his
wife were out to visit their in-law’s
house at Bermiok at the time of the
incident.
The deceased are - Suk Bdr
Suba (son), Sujata Subba (daughter
in law), Babina Subba (daughter)
and a three-year-old grandson.
Apart from the human lives
lost, the landslide also razed a
standing maize crop along with
some cattle and livestock. Seven
other members of the family, who
were at home that night, however,
escaped unhurt. Jeet Bahadur
Subba’s eldest son had an even
more miraculous escape when he
got up at night to check on the
cattle and escaped unscathed.
On hearing the news the district
administration led by area MLA, NK
Subba rushed to the spot and all the
bodies were recovered by the morning
of August 3 with the help of police
and local people. Relief measures are
being arranged for the affected.
When NOW! reached the spot
on Monday, the DC West, SB
Subba, was also at the spot assuring
villagers of all help from the
administration in tiding over the
fury of the monsoons. The district
administration provided the family
with immediate relief materials and
announced an ex-gratia payment of
Rs 50,000 to the next of kin of the
The levelled house as seen from
the road. The slide limited its destructive path to the house and
left the fields behind untouched.
deceased. Another nine families
from landslide affected areas of
Uttarey in West Sikkim have been
evacuated to safer locations, it is
learnt. The DC, while speaking to
NOW! revealed that given the
ferocity of the monsoons, very few
places on the hillock could be
called “safe”.
The landslide appears to have
been triggered off by the loose soil
dumped on the roadside. The entire
slip is ominously isolated to the
narrow track within which the
unfortunate house and its residents
fell. The areas above the road and
along the slip zone are absolutely
stable and untouched by the slide.
Senior officials at Gangtok who
have been keeping track of the
landslides in West Sikkim admitted
that even they have received reports
that the landslide at Tadathang was
triggered by dumping.
The police report on the cause
of the landslide, however, suggests
that it was triggered by a smaller
landslide above the road which
blocked the drain there. As more
and more water washed down
the slope, it scooped up the
gathered debris on the road
which snowballed into the
murderous
slide
which
eventually claimed four lives.
Landslides in West Sikkim
are also not isolated to
Tadathang and Kalej Khola, the
entire stretch shouldering the
road is littered with landslides
though most are limited in area
and impact. Over the past week,
a more severe landslide
reportedly occurred at Nambu,
above Rimbi. There are no
reports of any casualties there.
The roads here are badly
affected and vehicles are plying
in the region with great
difficulty.
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HARDLINE
by PANKAJ THAPA
Augsut 07-13, 2002
SIKKIM TRUCKERS SPLIT
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The truckers in
Sikkim have split. Truck drivers
and owners unhappy with the
functioning of Sikkim Truck
Association President, MK Thapa
and General Secretary, Neere
Chettri, have banded together and
formed an association of their own
under the banner - Sikkim Truck
Drivers-cum-Owner’s Association.
Although reports of an
impending parting of ways have
been circulating for quite some
time now, the final straw apparently
came in the form of a “complaint”
lodged by the two office-bearers
against the Traffic Police and SP
(East), Akshay Sachdeva, with the
Chief Minister, the DGP and the
Chief Secretary. The complaint
alleges undue “harassment” of
truck drivers by the SP (East) and
his traffic colleagues.
The Vice-President of Sikkim
Truck Association, Deepak
Gurung, while talking to NOW! on
August 6, the day the new body was
formed, alleged that Mr. Thapa and
Mr. Chettri had been taking
unanimous decisions tinged with
political leanings without taking
any other member into confidence.
CHAMLING STRESSES ACCOUNTABILITY
AT COORDINATION MEET
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The Chief Minister
Pawan Chamling has repeatedly
pulled up his officials for dragging
their feet while implementing
projects of the government. He did
so again on August 3 during a
coordination meeting with heads of
various departments. Addressing
his officer, the CM stressed that
accountability should be “fixed” to
“motivate” responsibility and
reiterated the need to decentralise
power to avoid delayed decisions.
The CM had earlier mandated
that the coordination meetings be
held on the first Saturday of every
month. Last Saturday, he focused
on the implementation of various
programmes and schemes and
urged the respective departments to
immediately implement the
government policies once they are
declared.
Mr. Chamling also said that
revenue collection should be taken
up on top priority and every
department “should make genuine
IN
deforestation!
rajdhani
effort to achieve the targets set for
revenue collection.”
The delay in the construction
of the State Legislative Assembly’s
Banquet Hall, an issue Mr.
Chamling has raised in the past
also, figured during the meeting
again. This time, the CM directed
that the Hall be completed no later
than January 2003. The singlewindow system, adopted with
much success first at the DC (East)
office and then at the Secretariat,
should also be made available at
every department, Mr. Chamling
said.
Perhaps tired with the lethargy
in the administration, Mr.
Chamling also spelt out that all
ongoing schemes be completed
without any further delay and the
utilization certificates of all
centrally-sponsored schemes be
submitted on time.
Ironically, the coordination
meeting also dwelt upon the “lack”
of coordination between various
departments. This lack of
communication needs to be worked
out for the sake of proper
governance, Mr. Chamling said.
During the meeting, UD&HD
officials informed that the process
to acquire Star Cinema Hall and
also land below Dukit Pandokan
was underway. This was stated on
the subject of reacquisition of
government property. It was
decided that a couple of
government properties in Siliguri
could be either used for good
purpose or disposed off
accordingly.
On capacity building, the
meeting resolved that all
departments should bring out its
policies, achievements and targets
in a booklet form to enlighten the
general mass about them. The idea
of an employment cell in every
department was floated by the CM
to give guidance to those seeking
employment.
The
UD&H
department, Women and Child
Welfare, Tourism and AH and VS
informed on the various schemes
started by them to meet the growing
unemployment problem. While
St. Augustine’s School
‘Sasonians’
You are
Invited
to your Alma Mater to take part in the School Day Celebrations
on Tuesday, August 27th 2002.
The Day will begin at
09:30 a.m.
Meeting
10:30 a.m.
Football Game Vs. Alumni
12:00 noon Swimming Gala
01:00 p.m.
Lunch
02:00 p.m.
Annual School Concert
04:30 p.m.
Tea and Parting
Kindly confirm your presence by August 20th 2002
email: [email protected]; [email protected]
Principal
(03552) 55926
Mr. K. N. Pradhan
()3552) 55557
Mr. K. N. Pandey
(03552) 55114/59006
Mr. F. P. Tamang
(03552) 60162
Dr. S. D. Zimba
(03552) 55921/57922
Principal, Staff & Students; SAS Kalimpong.
NOW!
OUT EVER WEDNESDAY
speaking on a solution to
unemployment, the Secretary,
Roads, said that there was a need
for coordination between different
departments to understand the job
requirements of each other and
those seeking employment. The
Secretary, IPR Department
suggested that there should be
manpower planning and the State
should prepare a database on the
various
categories
of
unemployment.
The upgradation of quality
education was discussed and the
Education Department has been
directed to include moral education
in the syllabus in view of the moral
degradation among the younger
generation.
The coordination meeting was
attended by the Speaker, Mrs.
Kalawati Subba, the Chief
Secretary,
Development
Commissioner and heads of various
state government departments.
The SP (East) when queried
about the complaints made against
him said that the two office-bearers
were being propped up by vested
interests wanting to create
disturbance in the State to disrupt
the upcoming panchayat elections.
The breakaway faction also
contended that the duo had planned
strikes and protests in case their
demands were not met.
Members of the new body, who
have elected Mingma Lama as their
President, met with the SP in his
office on August 6 and resolved to
work in unison with Sikkim Police
in working out whatever
differences they might have.
The meeting ended on a
positive note with the SP granting
most of their demands like the one
asking for a truck parking stand at
Singtam. Handing over of a seizure
list when documents are seized,
earmarking of specific areas
between Singtam to Tadong for
loading and unloading; and similar
zones in Gangtok were some of the
other areas that the truck drivers
and Sikkim Police came to an
agreement on.
The other office bearers of the
new body are DK Rai, VicePresident, Uttam Pradhan,
Secretary, Puran Tamang, Joint
Secretary, Gyamtso Bhutia,
Treasurer, Ajay Rath, Legal
Advisor, and Prem Lama, Chief
Advisor.
contact
NOW!
ph: 70949
email
sikkimnow@
rediffmail.com
INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL
OPEN UNIVERSITY
ADMISSION NOTICE FOR JANUARY 2003
Sale of Forms at the Regional Centre, Gangtok and the Study
Centres at Gangtok, Mangan, Soreng and Namchi are going on
for the session beginning January 2003 for admission to B.A/
B.Com/B/Sc, MA in English and Hindi and various Certificate/
Diploma/Post Graduate Diploma/Masters programmes on 1. Child
Care 2. Computers 3. Consumer Protection 4. Creative Writing
5. Disaster Management 6. Distant Education 7. Environment 8.
Forest Management 9. Health and Nutrition 10. Higher Education 11. HIV and Family Education 12. Human Rights 13. Journalism 14. Labour 15. Laboratory Techniques 16. Management
17. Rural Development 18. Teaching of English 19. Teaching of
Primary School Mathematics 20. Tourism 21. Translation 22.
Women and Empowerment 23. Youth in Development. The advantage of an Open University education is that attending theoretical classes is not compulsory and assignments and examinations can be done within the maximum duration.
The cost of General Prospectus is Rs. 30/- (Thirty) only. The cost
of Management Prospectus is Rs. 300/- (Three Hundred) only.
Prospectus can be availed by post when the additional cost of
Rs. 50/- (Fifty) only is added to the Demand Draft in favour of the
Study Centre or the Regional Centre payable at the town of its
location.
The names and addresses of the Study Centres are:1. Sikkim Govt. College, Tadong, Gangtok. Phone no. 32245.
2. Govt. Sr. Sec. School, Mangan, North Sikkim, Phone no. 34235.
3. Govt Sr. Sec. School, Soreng, West Sikkim. Phone no. 53204.
4. Govt. College Namchi, South Sikkim. Phone no. 63544.
The filled-in application forms with Certificates and Admission
Fee must reach the Regional Centre by August 31st, 2002. With
late fee it will be accepted upto October 15th 2002. The admission fee should be in favour of the Regional Centre payable at
Tadong.
REGIONAL DIRECTOR (I/C), IGNOU REGIONAL CENTRE
SHUMBUK HOUSE, GAIRIGAON, TADONG, GANGTOK
TELEFAX NO: 31375
FROM THE SPOT
August 07-13, 2002
NOW!
MYSTERIOUS OBJECT FROM THE SKY NOT
SO MYSTERIOUS AFTER ALL
A Vaisala gadget (see pics on right)
equipped weatherballoon lift off
It wasn’t a UFO, neither
was it a Bomb, the
object from the sky
which kept Bhaluthang
villagers occupied for
one whole night turns
out to be a regulation
weather balloon.
A NOW REPORT
G A N G T O K :
Conspiracy theorists
can rest in peace.
The “strange and
unidentified”
object that was
sighted in West
Sikkim last week
is just a weather
balloon
and
nothing else.
Putting aside
speculations over the
alleged sighting of a
UFO and some even
suspecting it to be
gadgets for spying,
official sources here
maintained that the
object which fell from
the sky was just a “weather
balloon” which had somehow
found its way to the rural interiors
of Sikkim only to spark rumours
about it being some kind of an
“alien invasion!”
Informed sources told NOW!
that the “sighting” was an isolated
case of a “weather balloon losing
course and dropping down to earth”
and that there have been no more
balloons sighted anywhere else.
Sikkim hopes for a
Shotgun solution to
Medical quota logjam
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: Chief Minister,
Pawan Chamling has asked the
Centre to consider restoring the
“full” quota of medical seats for
Sikkim.
Mr. Chamling, who was in New
Delhi recently, met the Union
Minister of Health and Family
Welfare, Shatrugan Sinha and
apprised him of Sikkim’s need for
these seats.
Expressing concerns over the
withdrawal of the MBBS 20 quota
seats for Sikkim from the Central
Pool, Mr. Chamling said that this
was causing much anxiety among
the students in the State.
Although the Centre has
restored 50 per cent of the quota,
this partial restoration has not fully
mitigated the situation caused by
the sudden order of withdrawal of
the quota, he said. The Chief
Minister suggested that status quo
be maintained for the present and
asked for restoration of the full
quota of twenty MBBS seats to the
State.
The attention of the Union
Minister was also drawn to the
need for strengthening the medical
profession in Sikkim. The State
required more specialists in its
midst if it was expected to take it’s
health care delivery system to the
desired level, Mr. Chamling said.
As a special case, the Chief
Minister requested for seats in the
Central Pool for Sikkimese doctors
wishing to specialise in Radiology,
Ophthalmology,
Oncology,
Urology,
Paediatrics
and
Anaesthesia.
Special financial assistance
was also sought to take up the
construction of a 500-bedded
hospital here in Gangtok. The
Union Minister was appraised on
the project which has already been
drawn
up.
This
entails
reconstruction of the State-run
STNM Hospital here in Gangtok as
per the requirements already
identified.
The State Government has
come under a lot of flak from
Opposition parties on its inability
to restore the medical seats quota
in full. Leaders from the rival camp
have contended that the loss
resulted from the “callous
approach” of the State government
in dealing with the matter.
FEEDBACK
- BOUQUETS OR
BRICKBATS INVITED @ NOW!
NEAR AYURVEDIC CLINIC, TADONG, EAST SIKKIM
email- [email protected]
According to an official
version, on July 29 around 6:30 in
the evening, a resident of Changay
village in Lower Bhaluthang, Ward
No. 11/6 in the
Tashiling Constituency
of West Sikkim, found
a huge deflated balloon
stuck on a tree.
The villager, Birka
Bahadur Subba, also
noticed
a
small
electronic
gadget
attached to the balloon,
tied with parachute
ropes. Word soon
spread and the whole
village gathered to have
a closer look at the
strange contraption that had
apparently fallen “from the skies.”
They described the balloon “as big
as a Commander Jeep” and the
gadget “something like a
“rechargeable torch.” The
villagers, obviously, had never seen
something like this before and
panicked, thinking it to be “some
kind of a bomb that could explode
anytime.”
The villagers kept vigil over the
weather balloon through the night
anticipating some unforeseen
incident, but when nothing
happened till the next morning,
some villagers got braver and
decided to open the
gadget. They found that
the words “Vaisala
Radiosonde”, “Vaisala
©1997” and “Finland”
inscribed on the metal
plates of the gadget.
The “strange” object
was then handed over to
the Police Station at
Gyalshing, the District
Headquarters.
Sources reveal that
this is not the first time
a weather balloon has
found its way into the State. A
familiar device was found about 12
years ago in the interiors of West
District.
A quick search through the
internet confirmed that Vaisala is
a company specializing in the
manufacture of scientific gadgets
for meteorological surveys. It is
based in Finland and “Radiosonde”
is a “high performance upper air
observation device” model from its
stable.
The
latest
is now
in the
stands
5
GANGTOK DIARY
HOW SOON
CAN WE CONVERSE
AGAIN?
G
angtok - this place will always
have a special place in my
heart. When we received the
invitation for Converse 2002,
Josephine and I did not hesitate even
once. All we knew was that we must
be there. I am sure the other
participants too felt the same way.
So, we came, we “conversed” and
wow, did we have a blast! From the
moment we landed it was just
laughter, good will, music and more
laughter and the spirits were at an
all time high and some of us were on
higher planes most times!! And of
course Jayanta-da was there. And we
got to find out that he can shake quite
a leg too…. poetry in motion so to
speak. Ahh, if only there were more
people like Jayanta-da, the world
would be a happier place. The poetry
readings provided a lot of wonderful
verses, mirth and later on in the
discussion sessions some friendly
pokes in the eye, but it only added to
the whole experience. But
throughout, it was “spiritually
uplifting” and my friends will
understand perfectly what exactly I
mean… Gangtok is a lovely place
and what struck us most was how
clean it is. Simply wonderful. It also
appears to be a happening place. The
progress that peace can bring is
evident here and we from the
northeast could only revel in it all
with a tinge of envy. However, for
some of us, who shall remain
anonymous, it all proved too much so
Time Out became the place to pass
out! But more than that it was in the
interaction with the people we met in
Gangtok that made the trip worth
every second of the short time that we
were there. The warmth, hospitality,
friendship, generosity, love and
everything nice that we were
showered with was overwhelming.
Our hosts went out of their way to
make us feel welcome and
comfortable and however inadequate
that all I can say is “Thank You”.
Ayangla Longkumer, Nagaland
P.S. How soon can we
‘Converse” again?!
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6
GANGTOK
AUGUST 07-13, 2002
ED-SPACE
Augsut 07-13, 2002
NOW!
HIDDEN PROFITS
SIKKIM MATTERS
NOT FUNDS, GIVE THE PANCHAYATS
INFORMATION
Any aspirations of peace can be guaranteed only by a democracy.
While a pessimist’s immediate reaction might point towards
indiscriminate bandhs and political violence as disclaimers for
democracy’s credentials as a deliverer of peace, one needs to look
into the reasons which prompt violent reactions from the people. But
before that, lets look at the kind of simmering violence that societies
untouched by democracy brew. One need not look far - there’s
Pakistan at one extreme and Bhutan at the other. While continued
dictatorship might have kept public processions at bay, look at how it
seeped violence into the Pakistani mindset. A violent streak so strong
that it propped up a Taliban regime in Afghanistan and released
Islamic militancy not only to Kashmir but also to strike fear in the
entire world - a feat that even Libya and Gaddafi could not achieve.
As for Bhutan, the superficial calm in the Dragon kingdom could be
misleading. The country is after all accused of having chased away
more than a lakh of its citizens because they belonged to an ethnicity
which did not harmonise with the demographic outlay that those in
power wanted. Could a deed be more violent than the uprooting of
people?
Now about the violence in a democracy - and we shall not debate
communalism here because this is a trend which is spawned by the
society and not the sociopolitical setup in place. Violence in a
democracy almost always results when there is a communication gap.
It is only when the flow of information is turned off that violence results.
Till such time that people are kept in the know, differences are settled
through debate and discussions. In the context of India, we seem to
have forgotten that democracy is all about transparency. It should have
been inherent in the system to be transparent, but decades of selfserving politicians have created a situation where governments have
to actually be told that information is something they owe to the people.
The entire facade of such rules as the Official Secrets Act are nothing
but colonial remnants which the bureaucracy continues to keep on
life-support as a front to hide its own inefficiency and malfeasance.
How can there be any secrets from the people in a democracy? And
then, what makes the public servants any better equipped to protect
“official secrets” than the public they are paid to serve?
It is this debate that the powers-that-be in Sikkim need to involve
themselves into as they launch into upcoming panchayat elections.
Panchayati Raj should have come even before the Constitution in
India but it didn’t. Attempts are being made to put it in place now. With
the elections mandated, Sikkim has no option but to hold the elections,
but if the people in power are serious about actually fostering the
panchayats as an institution, then all they need to do is give them
information. Let every villager know how much has been earmarked
for what project in his/her village and let the panchayats oversee the
projects. The people, once they know what should be coming their
way will pressurise the panchayats to make sure that work gets done
and panchayats, with all files open to them, will see to it that their dues
don’t get siphoned away to line already fat pockets. Accountability
would become automatic and this time in the proper direction - from
bottom up. The trickle down method of development has failed. With
access to information, we can allow people to make their own decisions
and learn from their own mistakes. That, we owe them.
T
he Presidential drama over,
the focus has now shifted to
the contest for the vice
presidential polls. Quite a few
names had been circulated as
prospective vice-presidential
candidates – as was the case in the
run up to the presidential polls –
though now the race has tapered
down to a contest between two
main candidates – the NDA
nominee Bhairon Singh Shekhawat
and the opposition nominee Sushil
Kumar Shinde.
The scale of politicking and
bitter drama may not match the
kind witnessed in the presidential
run up but the stakes, as usual, are
high and there already are some
long faces and sulking sighs.
The election of APJ Kalam to
the office of the President of India
pulled the curtains over any hopes
of more illustrious political roles
for two members of his community
namely Farooq Abdullah, Chief
Minister of Jammu and Kashmir
and Najma Heptullah, Congress
Rajya Sabha member and former
leader of the opposition in the
upper house of Parliament. Farooq
thought he had a deal with the
NDA, particularly Vajpayee, for the
VP’s post in return for the support
of the National Conference in the
Centre and more importantly in the
troubled state of Jammu and
Kashmir. Najma on the other hand,
apart from being the vice-chairman
in the upper house for long, is
known to be very close to Sonia
Gandhi, and she had the double
advantage of belonging to a
minority community and being a
woman as well. She could very well
have been the opposition’s
candidate.
Myopic as it might seem, no
one thinks it politically correct to
have two members belonging to the
same community in two of the
country’s highest constitutional
offices. Having been spurned thus,
Farooq and son Omar have started
DEEP
FOCUS
by RANJIT SINGH
making autonomy noises (Farooq
has sent feelers that he would settle
for a high profile post such as
Ambassador to some country) and
god knows where Najma has buried
her head.
This is just to illustrate how our
political system and in particular the
BJP dominated NDA thinks and
works. Various posts and offices,
assignments and job profiles,
promotions and demotions are
allotted either on the basis of caste,
community and even on religious
grounds or as expressions of
rewards and castigations for
upholding or harming petty party
interests. So Modi is bestowed with
accolades for upholding a particular
brand of Hinduvta and allowed to
remain chief minister of Gujarat
while Aroun Shourie and Yashwant
Sinha face castigation for their
unsavoury economic policies.
This is also the reason why
immediate former President KR
Narayanan was not supported by
the NDA for a second stint as
President. Working as the nation’s
conscience keeper he often aired
his views which were more often
than not at odds with the ideology
of the government. And that is also
the reason why the just deceased
Vice President, Krishan Kant, was
neither elevated to the office of the
President, as has been the
convention for the past twenty
years, nor supported for a second
term as vice president. The NDA
in Kalam sees a president who
while being a non-politician seems
pliable to their purposes.
The challenge put up by the
opposition’s Sushil Kumar Shinde
to NDA’s Shekhawat will at the
most present a token contest as the
NDA’s numerical strength in the
two houses of parliament is greater
than the combined opposition’s. It
is significant to note here that
Shinde is the joint opposition
candidate and not just the
candidate of the Congress party.
Consensus has been given a chuck
as the BJP is no longer making
bones about its intentions.
Shekhawat, illustrious as his career
might seem – he was chief minister
of Rajasthan from 1977 to 1998 –
is an RSS man and a staunch Sangh
Parivar loyalist. BJP leaders
contend that they should not let go
of an opportunity to have a party
loyalist as Vice-President. But that
is after they have filled various
important posts such as that of state
governors with RSS sympathizers.
Ever wonder why the Gujarat
governor, S. Bhandari never
recommended president’s rule in
the state when the state was
burning?
Conventions and precedents
are going for a six as Indian polity
is acquiring a distinct political hue
and an image that is unpatriotically
aggressive. Patriotism and
nationalism have come to be
associated with faith and religion
and measured in terms of the level
of animosity shown towards
minority communities.
It took the BJP three years to
work around its allies in the NDA
to start implementing its ‘hidden
agenda’. The shift was so slow and
gradual as to be hardly perceptible
to the lay public. Its allies are more
like zombies today, they can neither
protest nor withdraw support –
their electoral compulsions in their
respective states keeps the reins of
their conscience well within the
BJP’s grasp. More can be expected
from the saffron front as the BJP
seems the only party with the
strength, character and wit to
achieve its goals. If only they
adjusted their tracks a bit.
SIKKIM NEEDS NO HARVEST OF HATE
D
id you know that Sikkim is threatened? Even as the American Press
itself demonises the new visa regulations in the US of A, the media in India
sees “Shangrila” threatened not from without, but within. Sikkim, claims a report headlined “Shangri-la threatened” carried in the
August 4, 2002, edition of The Week a English weekly published from Kochi, “Is now
being threatened within and outside and it is
important to tackle the triple threat of Maosim
(sic), Islamisation and Christianisation.”
The report is flawed in the sense that it is
insensitive. All arguments presented in the
story are stands that one would expect from
an RSS bigot, but not points that can be raised
in a state which is a part of a democratic and
secular country.
The report claims that while there were
only a few Muslims and Christians in Sikkim
when it merged with India in 1975, now they
number 60,000 in a population of 5.4 lakhs.
The point that the writer misses is that in 1975
there much fewer people in Sikkim anyway.
First, let’s address the “threat” perceived
from the Christian faith. Most of the
Christains here are Sikkim Subjects so the
demographic imbalance that a senior bureaucrat quoted in the report fears are unfounded
at least as far as the Christains are concerned.
Loose statements like “it is no more a paradise” (again attributed to the same senior
bureaucrat) should be seen as an affront to
people of other faiths. Is the person trying to
imply that if all the Sikkimese should convert to religions other than Hinduism or Buddhism, then Sikkim would cease to the
“shangri-la” of the headline?
Comments are also made on the “lure of
money” which has “tricked” many poorer
Sikkimese into converting to Christianity. No
one has the right to comment on the reasons
why people embrace any faith. If belief can
be considered a motivation strong enough to
convert, then why not money? Adopting a
new faith is a personal matter and the reasons need not be made public. Even the society has no business interfering unless there
is evidence that people are being forced into
conversion. Forcible conversions, one can say
with certainty are not common in Sikkim. By
questioning the reasons prompting a person
to convert, we are not only questioning his/
her integrity, but also his/her faith apart from
the fact that we are also questioning their intent, something that we don’t have a right to
do. And we all know how touchy people are
about their religion and what such aspersions
could aggravate into. Although individuals
might have reservations about different religions, Sikkimese have thus far not organised
themselves into religious groups to target
another faith. Ironically, with this piece, the
segregation has been done for them from the
outside.
Now to move on to the “threat” of
Islamisation. Although the report makes it
clear that the supposed “Islamisation” of
Sikkim is not the result of conversion, but
influx, it is still in poor taste to perceive people of a faith as possible “threats”. In fact, I
would go a step further to suggest that the
presence of Bangladeshi Muslims in Sikkim
is definitely illegal, but the threat label is one
that should not be slapped so loosely on people of any faith or nationality. If one were to
look into the past records of crime in Sikkim
involving “foreigners”, there would be very
few involving the so-called Bangladeshi
Muslims.
The Muslims, most of whom are artisans,
are also accused of having reduced Sikkim’s
“backward castes and Lepchas to the status
of orphans”.
Turn to pg 10
OPINION
August 07-13, 2002
NOW!
7
WHAT DO THE MAOISTS
WANT THIS TIME?
The Maoists have shown new
political flexibility. The political
parties must respond in kind,
writes Shyam Shrestha...
T
he latest statement by Maoist Chairman Prachanda tells
us three noteworthy things:
• If the government is willing to sit down and resume talks,
the Maoists are also ready to come back to the table
anywhere, anytime.
• They also appear willing to consider taking part in elections,
provided there are provisions for an interim government,
and on mutually agreeable election procedures.
• The Maoists are ready to forge a working partnership with
all “pro-people” forces against retrogression for the complete
democratisation of the Nepali polity, and to join the political
mainstream.
What Prachanda doesn’t say clearly in his statement is
whether the “agreed election procedures” should be for a
constituent assembly, or for parliament. The Maoists
themselves must give the authentic and final explanation
about what they mean. But I believe that since they have
recently declared their readiness to drop the proposal of a
constituent assembly for now, they will settle for the
government agreeing to an interim government and a
referendum.
This is the first time that the Maoists have been so
positive on the question of elections under the present
regime. This is a sign that Maoist tactics have changed since
their plenum in early July. However, this is not the first time
the Maoists have hinted that they are willing to put their
demand for a constituent assembly on hold. That was the
message in a letter to all seven major political parties before
the dissolution of parliament. They said that they were
willing to come to a common agreement if all parliamentary
parties agreed to bring the army under the command of the
elected government, in order to make the present bourgeois
democracy “fully” democratic. Prachanda’s 18 July
statement appears to be a continuation of that line of thought.
The Maoists had also suggested a constitutional provision
might be needed to conduct the referendum. This could mean
that the Maoists may now consider in a very positive light
the insertion of a referendum amendment in the constitution.
This is the Swiss and Scandinavian model, where any
provision of the constitution can be changed at the will of
the people. It could provide a basis for taking the country
forward through a democratic political process. This will
make the Nepali people truly sovereign, which the Maoists
believe they are not now.
It also shows that if other political parties agree to this
change and make it their main election platform, and if the
government can assure free and fair elections, there may be
hope of a peaceful end to the present political crisis.
All these factors would also force the Maoists to
reconsider their stated objective of destroying parliament,
and instead be forced to look upon that institution in a more
constructive light.
Before the dissolution of parliament there was the
possibility of dialogue in parliament with all political parties
which had been trying to find a way out of this quagmire of
violence. But because parliament was hurriedly dissolved
(perhaps because the government got wind of such a
dialogue) the emerging alignment was pushed to the
backburner.
The dissolution of parliament brought the new possibility
of elections to the fore, but it also dispersed the emerging
alignments between political parties. The most recent Maoist
overtures may therefore be motivated by a desire to bring to
the fore and restart the process that was sidelined. The other
factors that must have weighed in on the Maoists decision
to make the conditional offer for talks could be a change in
India’s attitude towards them, and the possibility of the
American military turning Nepal into a proxy zone.
With elections in November, Nepalis are in a Catch-22
situation. The country would lose by not letting the elections
take place, but the likelihood of being able to hold free and
fair polls does not exist.
The government’s presence is non-existent in more than
half the country, making it impossible to set up polling
booths. Even if they were established, the possibility of
people coming out to vote is slim.
These developments make it necessary for the
parliamentary parties to take the recent Maoist proposals
seriously. The rebels have committed serious mistakes in
the past, but this is an opportunity for peace that politicians
of all hues must grab. The conflict can only have a negotiated
political solution; there is no military way out of this. Such
a decision could open the doors through which the nation
can be steered towards peace. The cost of not taking this
chance could be very high. The Maoists have bent a little,
the political parties must respond in kind.
But the government has rebuffed the Maoists’ overtures.
The big question is: Does the government have its political
ownership in its own hands? Its demand that the rebels hand
over their arms and apologise is unrealistic, and demonstrates
a desire to continue to wage war, for any reason. No strong
rebel group in the world would sit down for talks after
surrendering weapons. And why would the government talk
with a rebel force that has already surrendered its weapons?
Although the Maoists may be feeling the pressure of the
security forces’ actions, they do still hold sway over large
parts of the country.
The UML could have an important role to play here.
Unfortunately, the UML has taken the status quo stand that
parliament should not be re-instated, and naively believes
that the security forces can ensure a free and fair election
for them. The UML leadership is under the illusion that
despite the dissolution of parliament, the dismantling of local
bodies, and suspension of civil liberties, it can still win a
majority.
The only way to defend the achievements of the 1990
people’s movement, stop retrogressive and foreign
reactionary forces in their tracks, and seek peace and progress
through talks would be for the UML, the institutionalised
faction of the Nepali Congress, the political parties of the
dissolved parliament, as well as the Maoists themselves to
be united as a single struggling force.
It would have been up to the UML to forge such an
alliance. That would have been the true test of its leadership:
a visionary role of carving a path out of this crisis. But the
UML has shown that it is opportunistic and incapable of
looking beyond short-term power interests. It must rise above
such pettiness at a time when democracy and the country’s
future are under severe threat.
(Shyam Shrestha is the editor of the monthly magazine
Mulyankan.) - Courtesy: Nepali Times, Kathmandu
FREE PRESS UNDER ATTACK IN WORLD’S LARGEST DEMOCRACY
M
India boasts of being the
largest democracy in the world
and has a vibrant free press.
But successive governments
have tended to favour those
sections of the press that are
supportive of their policies
while directly or indirectly
punishing those that are
critical. The current BJP-led
government, once a fighter for
press freedom, is no exception,
reports KULDEEP KUMAR
ore than 25 years after fighting and
winning a battle for press freedom
during
India’s
infamous
Emergency period, the Bharatiya Janata Party,
now in government, is behaving in exactly
the same way as its one-time political foes.
Faced with some determined
independent and investigative reporting that
have sought to expose individual
shortcomings and general corruption in the
administration, the BJP-led government has
responded with the stick.
As a result Information and Broadcasting
Minister Sushma Swaraj is having to put up a
stout defence of her administration these days.
“Why should we,” Swaraj declared rather
innocently, “who have fought for press
freedom under Emergency, curb it? We have
never tried to cultivate any section of the
press. We have not cultivated anyone nor
have we rejected anyone.”
Harping back to the days when the late
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi invoked harsh
emergency powers to suspended basic
democratic rights and press freedom between
1975-77, convinces few these days.
Ironically, Prime Minister Atal Bihari
Vajpayee, Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna
Advani, Defence Minister George Fernandes,
and several other leading lights of the present
government had suffered prolonged
incarceration during the Emergency and had
fought for press freedom.
But the BJP-led National Democratic
Alliance government metes out the same some would say harsher - treatment to critical
media as Gandhi did in her heyday.
Confronted with a no-confidence motion,
the government got the quasi- independent
television network Doordarshan to telecast
the parliamentary proceedings live, thinking
it would net the sympathy of viewers.
But, when it was forced by the opposition
in Parliament to discuss this summer’s antiMuslim carnage in the state of Gujarat, the
network had no time to broadcast the debate.
When in March 2001, the Internet portal
Tehelka.com exposed rampant corruption in
the defence ministry - using rather
unorthodox means like concealed video
cameras, offers of bribes to politicians, army
officers and middlemen, even going to the
extent of providing call girls - Defence
Minister George Fernandes immediately
demanded the arrest of Tehelka reporters.
Fernandes accused them of conspiring
against the country to demoralise the armed
forces. The portal showed the then BJP
president Bangaru Laxman accepting money
turn to pg 11
8
BUSINESS
NOW!
Augsut 07-13, 2002
SISCO SCORES BIG IN SIKKIM
SIKKIM COOP BANK TOTES RECORD GROWTH; BAGS NATIONAL AWARD
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The Sikkim State
Co-operative Bank Limited
(SISCO) has completed three and
a half years of banking business in
Sikkim. The bank started
functioning on December 12, 1998
and is a state government
sponsored enterprise.
According to Mr Banerjee,
Managing Director, SISCO, prior
to 1997, there were no cooperative
banks in the state to cater to the
genuine credit loan requirements of
farmers especially the small and
marginal farmers of Sikkim. So, as
in other states with cooperative
banks, SISCO was set up to help
the farmers through different
cooperative societies to avail of
loans for agricultural production at
reasonable rates of interests and in
the process liberating farmers from
the clutches of unscrupulous
money-lenders who commanded
exorbitant rates of interest.
SISCO doles out loans to the
cooperative societies in the villages
and not directly to the farmers. The
farmers can get the loan they desire
from their cooperative societies. To
avail of the loan it is mandatory for
the farmer to be a member of the
cooperative society.
The Crop Loan from SISCO to
the societies is at an interest rate
of 8 per cent for loans upto Rs
10,000, while the societies charge
the farmers 10 per cent for the same
amount. Beyond Rs 10,000, the rate
of interest for loans is 10 per cent
and 12 per cent at the two levels.
The main thrust of SISCO is in
promoting agriculture and allied
activities such as diary farming,
poultry and floriculture.
SISCO also issues Kisan Credit
Cards to the farmers for which the
eligibility conditions are that the
individual availing for such a card
has to be a farmer engaged in the
cultivation of any crop of a short
term nature such as ginger, paddy,
maize etc.
The farmers are provided a
passbook and KCC from SISCO
free of cost. With a KCC, a farmer
need not apply for a loan every year
FREE PRESS UNDER ATTACK IN WORLD’S
LARGEST DEMOCRACY
Contd from pg 7
and the then Samata Party
president Jaya Jaitly, a close
associate of Fernandes, agreeing to
accept.
Both had to resign from
leadership of their parties. The
army had to institute a court of
inquiry to probe into the conduct
of several high and middle ranking
officers. The government
had to set up its own
Venkataswami Commission
to probe the scandal. And
Fernandes had to resign,
only to return after a while although the Commission is
far from winding up its
proceedings
and
pronouncing its verdict.
More than a year on,
Fernandes’ demand for
action against Tehelka has
been met - on July 3 a
Tehelka reporter was
arrested on the bizarre
charge of illegal poaching of
endangered leopards. It
prompted Tehelka’s chief
executive officer Tarun
Tejpal to accuse the
government of a witch-hunt.
On June 26 the Central
Bureau of Investigation,
which has an unenviable record of
acting as a convenient instrument
in the hands of the rulers of the day,
had raided Tejpal’s offices.
The timing was perfect.
Jaya Jaitly was to be crossexamined on the very day before
the Venkataswami Commission by
Tejpal and his colleagues, who now
could not do so.
The offices of First Global, a
company with 14.5 per cent equity
in Tehelka, have been raided 25
times since the expose was made
public.
Tejpal told the Commission:
“Everybody loves us but nobody
wants to be associated with us. Not
a single rupee has been invested in
Tehelka after we broke the story....
Our financiers have been put
behind bars. We are served
summons by half a dozen a week.
We have been harassed by all the
government agencies.”
Hindustan Times editor Vir
Sanghvi commented: “The
message in all this is quite direct:
if anyone ever tries to expose
corruption in the way in which
Tehelka has done, they will face the
full might of the government of
India.”
Abdul Gafoor Noorani, a
veteran commentator, warns
against the wider implications of
setting up a Commission to look
into “all aspects relating to the
making and publication of these
allegations”.
“Anytime it [the press]
publishes an expose, the
government will retaliate by setting
up inquiries not only into the truth
of the charges, but also into the
motives, finances and sources of
the journal which publishes them.”
The foreign media is not
spared. If the Emergency regime of
Indira Gandhi expelled Mark Tully
of the British Broadcasting
Corporation,
the
current
government is harassing Alex Perry
of Time magazine.
Perry’s crime: he wrote an
article, Asleep on the Wheel, which
wondered how safe India’s nuclear
arsenal was in the hands of the
ageing Vajpayee, a man Perry said
was obviously not in good health.
And he made a fleeting
mention of Vajpayee’s fondness for
whisky. That was all the
government needed.
The Prime Minister’s
Office immediately issued a
rebuttal and two days after
the article was published (on
June 17) the Foreigners’
Regional Registration Office
sent Perry a summons to
appear before it since he was
“in possession of two
passports”.
He was grilled by an
FRRO official thrice and
was allowed to stay on in
India on the condition that
he would inform the
government every time he
left the country.
Perry, a British national,
in fact carries not two but
three perfectly legal
passports.
Senior Advocate Rajeev
Dhawan, who also argued the case
on behalf of organisations opposed
to the Rathong Chu hydel project
in the High Court and then the
Supreme Court, said the whole
episode smacked of “political
vendetta”. Kuldip Nayar, a veteran
journalist and MP who himself was
jailed during the Emergency, said
the government led by the BJP had
made a mockery of press freedom.
The government’s desire to
muzzle the media, both domestic
and foreign, reveals a high degree
of nervousness. And it can mean
only one thing: the Vajpayee
regime is not sure of itself.
- GEMINI NEWS
as the card enables a loan limit
valid up to three years.
The loans can be withdrawn
and paid in installments within the
sanctioned loan limit.
Other benefits from SISCO
include, freedom of operation in
loan account any number of times,
reduction of interest burden and
personal and accident insurance.
Every draw has to be repaid in
twelve months time. To date 358
Kisan Credit Cards have been
issued in Sikkim involving Rs
26.85 lakhs as crop loan.
SISCO has also implemented a
crop insurance scheme for the
benefit of borrowing farmer
members.
According to Mr. Banerjee, the
performance of SISCO is better
than any other banks. The
following statistics speak volumes
of its performance in the state. The
rate of growth as compared to last
year has been phenomenal:
The share capital has jumped
from Rs 471 lakhs from last year
to Rs. 850 lakhs this year - a growth
of 80 per cent.
Reserve funds and other
reserves registered a growth of
219%; deposits increased by
137%.
Loan advances increased by
30% and investment in trustee
securities went up by 37%.
The recovery of loans, too,
according to Mr. Banerjee has been
highly satisfactory compared to
other commercial banks in Sikkim;
last year it was 86 per cent of the
demand.
Mr. Banerjee says there are
plans for two more SISCO
branches in Sikkim - at Gezing and
Mangan in West and North districts
respectively - as soon as
recruitment of necessary staff is
completed. SISCO already has a
branch at Namchi which was set
up last year. Mr. Banerjee was all
praises for the State Government
and its support for SISCO. The
government is in fact the largest
share holder with Rs. 820 lakhs of
the total share capital of Rs 850
lakhs. The rest of the share capital
is divided among the cooperative
societies (Rs 27 lakhs) and
individual members (Rs 3 lakhs).
SISCO’s
improving
performance in Sikkim has earned
it an “A” Class Audit classification
for the last two years as per
NABARD standards. Mr. Banerjee
feels it is a matter of pride for
Sikkim that SISCO was awarded
first prize for its performance
during 2000-01 under the two tier
cooperative credit structure by the
National Bank for Agriculture and
Rural Development (NABARD).
The award which consists of one
citation, a trophy and cash prize of
Rs 5 lakhs (to go to the staff welfare
fund of the bank) is given after
making an “objective assessment in
a scientific and professional
manner by an expert team of
professionals.”
The SISCO Managing Director
feels the cooperative banks should
be treated as a business
organization. “My motto is
productivity, profitability and
better customer service, the
achievement of which will
definitely benefit the people,” he
says. He also appealed to the people
of Sikkim to invest with SISCO as
SISCO has higher rates of interest
on various deposits. “Added to
that,” he says, “all deposits are
covered with insurance, so they are
safe and secure.”
Ghewa
Ghewa of beloved sister Late Ms. Yong
Dolma Dong (Munna Dong) who expired
on July 23, 2002, falls on August 12,
2002, Monday. All friends, relatives and
well wishers are requested to join us in
offering prayers for the departed soul at
our residence Near Hotel Tibet, PS
Road, Gangtok. We would also like to
take this opportunity to thank all those
who helped us in our hour of
bereavement and regret the inability to
do the same personally.
Dong Family; Near Tibet Hotel; PS Road, Gangtok
Ph: 22994/25354
Anthyesti Kriya
The Anthyesti Kriya of Late Prithvi
Narayan Pradhan, s/o late HB Pradhan,
resident of Soreng Bazar who left for his
heavenly abode on July 30, 2002, falls
on Sunday, August 11. All friends,
relatives and well-wishers are requested
to join us in offering prayer to the departed
soul.
Krishna Kumari Pradhan (Wife of the
deceased); Shailesh and Rabindra
Shreshtra (Sons of the deceased); NB
Pradhan and PK Pradhan (Brothers of
the deceased); Mrs Ratna Pradhan, HP
Pradhan and family.
DESPATCHES
August 07-13, 2002
Mount Tendong towers over the Namchi skyline. The peak is
believed to have sheltered the Lepchas during the Great Flood
and worshipped to this day by the Lepchas.
NOW!
Withdrawal of Direct Tax
Laws demand reiterated
with new FM
a NOW REPORT
OBEISANCE
TO THE
Saviour Mountain
GANGTOK: Tendong Lho Rum
Faat is one of the oldest festivals
of the Lepchas. The Lepchas being
the indigenous people of this part
of the Himalayas, have named each
and every mountain, hill, river,
valley and ravine of Sikkim. Some
of these mountains and rivers carry
beautiful and romantic folklore and
some have remained of historical
significance since ancient times.
According to the Lepcha
folklore, the observance of Tendon
Lho Rum Faat dates back to
ancient times when even the
Himalaya was in its infancy and the
rivers Teesta and Rangit were yet
to start their respective journeys
downwards from their sources-the
Naho and Nahor lakes respectively
in ancient Mayel Lyang, now
known as Sikkim.
Legend has it that when a
massive earthquake damaged the
lakes, Parilbu, the serpent king and
Tutfo, a bird guided the waters
away from the lakes. The
respective routes taken
by Parilbu and Tutfo
became the routes
taken by the two rivers.
Parilbu and Tutfo were
to meet and they
crossed paths at Pozok
(now Peshok) near
Melli in West Bengal
and the spot became
the confluence of the
two rivers.
However, when the
lakes burst, the rivers
during the course of
their journey flooded
the entire Mayel Lyang
country. The Lepchas,
living near Mount
Tendong climbed to its
top to escape the rising
waters. Even as they
prayed hard to It-BuRum, the almighty God
for their safety, Mt.
Tendong started rising
higher and cleared the
floodwater
which
showed no sign of
receding.
is a fact endorsed even by modern
science.
This year, the Sikkim Lepcha
Youth Association, along with the
Department of Culture and the
Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre,
Kolkata is observing the festival on
August 7 and 8, 2002, which
incidentally marks the completion
of ten years of Sikkim Lepcha
Youth Association’s involvement
in celebrating this festival in such
a grand scale in the State.
The two-day programme will
begin in the early hours of August
7 with the traditional worship of
Mount Tendong at its summit
overlooking Namchi, South Sikkim
by a group of senior and revered
Bongthings. This will be followed
by a day-long literary and cultural
programme at the community
centre here, which will consist of
quiz competition, elocution and
cultural programme.
The next day’s programme will
consist of a drama competition
during
the
day,
followed by the main
A Lepcha Bongthing
programme in the
evening.
Chief
Minister
Pawan
Chamling will oversee
the function as the
Chief Guest. The SLYA
has also announced its
plans to felicitate the
Chief Minister for his
contributions towards
the welfare of the
Lepcha community in
Sikkim.
The prestigious GB
Mainwaring Literary
Award and Late Lha
T s h e r i n g
Kunchudyangmoo
Literary Award will
also be given away
during the function.
Mr. Chamling will
also
release
a
documentary film on
the Lepcha community
during the occasion.
Legend holds that then
appeared Kohomo, a Partridge, and
joined the Lepchas in their prayers
and made offerings of Mong
Cheebeb (brewed millet) to It-BuRum. Their prayers were answered
and another earthquake hit the
region, creating several high
mountains around the northern
zone of Mayel Lyang forcing the
floodwater to drain southwards,
thus saving the lives of the
Lepchas.
Since then, the Lepchas have
been worshipping Mt. Tendong,
and the festival is known as
Tendong Lho Rum Faat which
translates literally as the worship
of Mt. Tendong.
The Lepchas take pride in the
fact that this ancient ritual,
observed since the times of their
forefathers, is in observance of the
Great Deluge and the eventual
happy ending which finds mention
in the Manu Smriti as also in the
Genesis Chapter of the Bible and
- a NOW FEATURE
THE NOW! TEAM JOINS THE LEPCHAS OF SIKKIM IN OFFERING
PRAYERS TO MARK TENDONG LHO RUM FAAT. AACHULEY!
9
GANGTOK: Chief Minister,
Pawan Chamling, in his first
meeting with the new Finance
Minister, Jaswant Singh, reiterated
his government’s request for
reviewal and eventual withdrawal
of the centre’s proposal to extend
or enforce Central Income Tax laws
as well as other direct taxes to
Sikkim.
While congratulating Mr. Singh
on his new portfolio, Mr. Chamling
also thanked the Centre for
allowing the setting up of a
committee of representatives, both
the Centre and the State, to study
the reservations that the Sikkimese
people have vis a vis the extension
of Direct Tax Laws to Sikkim. He
also expressed hope that a solution
would soon be worked out keeping
the interest of his people in mind.
The Chief Minister also
apprised the FM that Sikkim’s
deficit had dropped from 11% to
4% and also that the government
was certain that it could be further
reduced to zero within a year. This,
Mr. Chamling briefed the FM, was
made possible with strict fiscal
discipline and revenue generation
initiatives of the State Government.
During the meeting, Mr.
Chamling also expressed his belief
that the people of Sikkim would
continue to benefit from Mr. Singh’s
benevolent approach towards the state
as was the case during his earlier
tenure as the Deputy Chairman of the
Planning Commission.
The CM also informed Mr. Singh
that the State Government was
implementing the MoU signed with
the Ministry of Finance in 1999
earnestly. Measures such as the
amalgamation
of
certain
departments, increase in motor
vehicle tax, stamp and registration
duty, ban on the creation of new posts
as well as reducing MR work-force
and various other devices for
improving the financial status as well
as increasing efficiency are being
worked upon, said the CM.
Mr. Chamling was accompanied by
the Rajya Sabha MP, PT Gyamtso, and
his Political Advisor, BB Gooroong.
a
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Whammy
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10
DEVELOPMENT
NOW!
SIKKIM NEEDS NO Excellence award for
Sikkim Tourism
HARVEST OF HATE
IN
rajdhani
Contd from pg 6
Kyi-de-Khang’s
Traffic
Managers
Augsut 07-13, 2002
Out of place references in the
article on how mosques and
churches are “taking full advantage” of assistance forwarded by the
Ecclesiastical Department (a feature unique to Sikkim) come close
to slander since the department, although dealing with religion, by virtue of its name is a secular outfit
expected to treat all religious institutions similarly.
As for the demographic imbalance caused by influx - it remains a
valid concern. The fear of getting
swamped cannot, however, be allowed to translate into such insular
targeting of communities. If anyone
is to blame for the changed demography of Sikkim, its the Sikkimese
themselves. If influx were such a
concern among the people and if the
authorities view it with suspicion,
then there are enough rules and laws
in place to see to it that the influx
does not take away the political
rights of the people. The first step
would be to shake the Labour Department out of its somnolence. If
the administration does not do its
job and if the people do not support
the concerned department in performing its duties, then no one has
the right to complain - to target and
label communities as “threats” is an
allegation not loosely made. Whatever message the Week’s story might
have had is lost in the attempt to
scandalise the whole issue specially
when it comes in an issue with
“Harvest of Hate” as its cover.
- Pema Wangchuk
SikkimFootballAssociation
INDEPENDENCEDAY
for
FOOTBALLTOURNAMENT
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: Sikkim Tourism
bagged the “Excellence” award for
“good” participation at the recently
concluded Travel and Tourism Fair
at the Netaji Indoor Stadium,
Kolkata.
Twenty-five states along with
seven foreign countries, including
Thailand, Sri Lanka, Italy and
South Africa participated in the
Fair, which is one of the biggest
Tourism Trade Fairs held annually
in the country and provides an
opportunity to participants to
interact and promote the tourism
destinations of their respective
states.
Sikkim, participating in the fair
for the first time was represented
by twenty-five travel operators of
the state. The Sikkim contingent
was headed by the Minister for
Tourism, K.T Gyaltsen, who was
also one of the guests of honour at
the Fair. The raging success of the
Sikkim stalls, which included some
local entrepreneurs not directly
related to tourism, is an indication
as to how the local tour operators
have now become professional and
confident in competing with other
states in packaging and promoting
Sikkim as a tourist destination,
officials from the Sikkim Tourism
Development Corporation said.
This is seen as an outcome of
the consistent efforts made by the
Sikkim Government to ensure that
the private sector plays a prominent
role in promoting tourism with the
government playing the role of a
facilitator.
Mr. Gyaltsen, while addressing
the media at the Fair, stressed upon
Sikkim’s initiatives at preserving
the environment and the ecology
and its thrust towards ecotourism
as the basis for promoting tourism.
He highlighted Sikkim’s consistent
pursuance for Bagdogra being
declared an international airport as
indication of the State’s
commitment to promoting tourism.
In this he was supported by his
counterpart in West Bengal.
REST IN PEACE
CHOGYAL SIR TASHI NAMGYAL MEMORIAL CUP 2002 KOLKATA SIKKIM HOUSE IS
NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS
FIXTURE
PRE-QTR
(A) T.N.A. XI
Vs. Tathangchen
8.8.02; 3 PM
(B) Jorethang FC
Vs. Eagle XI
9.8.02; 3 PM
QTR. FINAL
SEMI-FINAL
FINAL
(C) Winner of “A”
vs. SSB XI
10.8.02; 3 PM
(D) Police XI
(G) Winner of “C”
Vs. UKPC (Kurseong)
Vs. Winner of “D”
10.8.02; 1:15 PM
12.8.02; 3 PM
(E) DAV, Birgunj (Nepal)
Vs. St. Paul EFC (Darj)
(I) Winner of “G”
11.8.02; 1:15 PM
Vs. Winner of “H”
15.8.02
(H) Winner of “E”
1:45 PM
Vs. Winner of “F”
13.8.02; 3 PM
(F) Winner of “E”
Vs. Boys Club
11.8.02; 3 PM
NB:1) All the matches will be played at Atshi Namgyal Academy Ground, Gangtok.
2) Games will be played as per the rules of AIFF.
3) SFA reserves the right to reschedule the ficture (if needed)
08.8.02
Mr. H. K. Karki
09.8.02
Mr. Rinchen Bhutia
10.8.02 (1st) Mr. P. T. Bhutia
MATCH COMMISSIONER
10.8.02
Mr. L. P. Pandey
11.8.02 (1st) Mr. Kunzang Namgyal
11.8.02 (2nd) Mr. Dhondup Lepcha
12.8.02
13.8.02
15.8.02
Mr. Karma N. Bhutia
Mr. O. P. Singhi
Mr. Karma P. Bhutia
(B. K. Roka)
GENERAL SECRETARY
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The long standing
demand for a Sikkim House by the
general traveling public to Kolkata
has now been fulfilled. The Sikkim
House, located at 4/1 Middleton
Street, in the heart of the city was
made operational from August 1,
2002, by KT Gyaltsen, Minister of
Tourism. The Sikkim House,
Kolkata, had earlier been
inaugurated by the Chief Minister
Pawan Chamling.
The Sikkim House is centrally
located within walking distance of
shopping arcades, medical centres
and the metro station.
The facility was completed
within record time under the
IN
rajdhani
FIXTURE
Sikkim
ootball
AF
ssociation
ALL SIKKIM
WOMEN’S
FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT
BAICHUNG STADIUM,
NAMCHI, SOUTH SIKKIM
CO-SPONSORER SPORTS & YOUTH AFFAIRS DEPTT.
guidance and supervision of the
officials of the STDC and the
Engineers of the Tourism
Department.
The property is under the
control and operation of the STDC.
In order to facilitate speedy and
confirmed
bookings
all
reservations will be made from the
Head Office at Gangtok. The
Sikkim House at Kolkata
comprises of 17 double rooms with
attached bath rooms and having all
the basic comforts.
Tariff of Sikkim House, Kolkata:
Suite – Rs 900
Standard room with A/C – Rs
550
Standard room (non A/C and
common bathroom) – Rs 80/bed
IT’S
A DOG’S
LIFE
August 07-13, 2002
RECAP SIKKIM
NOW!
11
GETTING PASSIONATE ABOUT GARANDEL
From a decorative plant
which also sprouted a
pungent fruit to a cash
crop with good economic
prospects, Passion Fruit
has come a long way in
Sikkim. SUMANLATA
PRADHAN traces its rise
over the years
P
assion fruit squash has hit the
local market with a bang.
Visit any store in the local
market and ask for a bottle of
Passionade or Sikkim Marnew and
it is readily available. Latin
American by origin this fruit seems
to have adapted itself to the local
climate perfectly. Grown at homes
not for economic purposes, but for
a taste of the fruit once a year or as
natural crown for the gate this fruit
seems to have great economic
potential.
Passion fruit squash started its
journey in Mirik, where RB
Gurung’s (former General
Manager,
Sikkim
Fruit
Preservation Factory) mother
suggested that the Sikkim Supreme
factory should try doing something
with passion fruits. “She used to
make passion fruit juice at home
and it used to taste excellent,” Mr.
Gurung said while talking to
NOW!
It was then that he and Norden
Lepcha, who now operates Sikkim
Mayal and was then working with
Mr. Gurung, started experimenting
with Passion fruit. The end result
was excellent and all those who
tasted the concoction approved it.
The Sikkim Fruit Preservation
Factory was in dire financial straits
at that time, and although the
Government liked the concept and
the product, no funds were
forthcoming from their side. After
waiting endlesly for funds, the
management at SFPF started
production on its own. What they
produced sold like “hot cakes,”
recalls Mr. Gurung.
The journey for Passion fruit
squash, from its inception to
present popularity has been a long
one and not very smooth. The
manufacturers had a big problem
at hand. The local supply of the
fruit was not enough to start
production on a large scale. This
problem persists to date, but the
supplies are much improved now.
Still, some of the manufacturers
have been forced to import the fruit
concentrate from Nasik. The
passion fruit concentrate, it might
be mentioned here, is one of the
most expensive fruit concentrates.
It is this factor which has been
keeping local manufacturers from
any plans of expansion.
The Horticulture Department
and Mr. Lepcha seem to be working
closely to overcome the deficit in
supply. Mr. Lepcha supplied the
Horticulture Department with
around 50 kilograms of seeds to be
planted in government farms and
also provided the Department with
some 15,000 seedlings to be
distributed among interested
farmers to increase production. Mr.
Lepcha has a Passion fruit farm at
Singhik-Sentam, Mangan, North
Sikkim, but requires more supplies
than his holding can produce.
The Department is at present
working on the Area Expansion
programme under the Technology
Mission for Integrated Development
of Horticulture in Sikkim, funded by
the PMO. Under this programme,
the Department is distributing
seedlings as well as GI Wires (for
the trailing) to the farmers.
KB Pant, Deputy Director,
Horticulture Department (East)
Norden Lepcha of Sikkim Mayal
while talking to this reporter said
that passion fruit cultivation is very
beneficial to the farmers since each
fruit, irrespective of its size, fetches
a minimum 50 paise upon sale.
Passion fruit can act as an
economic booster for the farmers,
and can indirectly earn a lot of
revenue for the State.
Mr. Lepcha is also working
tirelessly towards making the
farmers aware of the economic
prospects of passion fruit
cultivation. He has distributed
seedlings in Singhik where he owns
a one-acre farm. Why he is so
insistent on producing passion
fruits locally is because Sikkim’s
climate lends the produce a
distinctive aroma lacking in
products from other areas. The
strong “punch” of the Sikkimese
passion fruit makes it best suited
for squash making.
Dr. RK Jangra, a scientist at the
Indian Institute of Agricultural
Research has been experimenting
with passion fruits. While talking
to NOW! he said that experiments
were being conducted to work out
the best way of cutting, whether the
hard wood, soft wood or the semi
hard wood cutting or the leaf or the
leafless cutting will best suit the
climate here needs to be found out.
He, of course, is talking of the best
options for propagating the plant.
He is also trying to determine the
most suitable time for planting.
There are four varieties of the
fruit. Sikkim local (yellow and
purple), Mizoram local (purple),
Kaveri, a hybrid collected from
PILGRIMAGE TURNS FATAL
a NOW REPORT
T
he spate of accidents
continued this week with a
few more such incidents
being reported. A Maruti van with
a total of seven passengers, on its
way to Jorethang from Siliguri ran
off the road into the raging Rangit
below at Charcharey at around 10
am on Monday August 5. The fall,
which was all of 300 feet killed two
of the six passengers, Ashok Bhujel,
41 years and his wife Champa
Bhujel. The group was returning
from a Bol Bum pilgrimage.
Two passengers including a
child of two years, Achu Bhujel,
daughter of the two killed and
Ranmaya Chettri were immediately
rushed to the Jorethang hospital
when the team from NOW! arrived
at the spot. One of the bodies had
been washed away by the currents
and was retrieved by the locals. The
van belonged to one Karma Lepcha
of Jorethang, who is missing along
with Rani Chettri – probably swept
away by Rangit’s swift current.
The locals seemed at a loss to
explain the cause of the accident as
it was neither raining nor was the
road in a bad condition. Moreover,
Karma, the driver and owner of the
van was well known to the driving
community of Jorethang.
In a similar incident a
Commander jeep, SK 04/3825, at
around midday on August 2 fell
500 feet into the Rangit while on
its way to Jorethang from Reshi. Of
the five passengers three were
swept away by the raging waters,
while the other two were taken to
Mangalore (purple) and the Exotic
variety from Holland. But as far as
the flavor is concerned, everyone
has one thing to say, the Sikkim
local rules supreme.
Mr. Lepcha informs that while
preparing a bottle of squash around
28 fruits have to be scooped out.
After the processing of the fruit
only 12 per cent of the fruit is
retained. He manufactures an
average of 100 cases per week, and
expects to do better once the supply
of the raw material increases. He
sees a turn around in supply in the
next two years. After that people
will be served Passion fruit juice
in tetra packs (Frooty style), he
assures.
This is a pioneering effort on
the part of the entrepreneurs, to
make economic use of a local fruit
and experts believe that other local
fruits like peaches, plums, churri,
nevara, etc. have a very bright
prospect. Home made jams and
juices are a favourite among the
locals and if worked upon, these
can be used as a source of
generating employment as well as
revenue.
People
have
started
experimenting with stuff like
Nakimma and Dale Khhorsani and
a lot more will be coming.
Horticulture is a very lucrative
alternative for the farmers of
Sikkim. It is easy bucks for them
compared to the traditional farming
they do which, while being labour
intensive, provides scant returns.
COOPERATIVES
FOR
COOPERATION
a NOW REPORT
Cops recover the Maruti Van which claimed two lives from the raging waters of Rangit short of Jorethang
the Jorethang hospital in serious
condition. Local “tube” swimmers
have been engaged to recover the
missing bodies.
In Gangtok, a Maruti van on its
way to Sichey fell 70 feet off the
road into the ravine at Barbing
Sangtong turning. There was one
other person beside the driver, one
Maile Rai both of whom sustained
injuries. The reason for the fall is
not known. The accident occurred
on August 5 at around 4:30 pm,
Monday. The injured were rushed
to the hospital.
GANGTOK: While in Delhi, the
Chief
Minister,
Pawan
Chamling met Mohan Mishra,
Director, Publication, of the
National Cooperative Union of
India, which is an apex
organization of the Indian
Cooperative Movement.
In his talks with Mr. Mishra,
the CM stated that in order to
keep the National Cooperative
Movement alive and to
neutralize various problems
following India becoming a
member
of
WTO
his
government was giving the State
Cooperative Movement top
priority.
A number of State level
Cooperative Societies, he said,
had been constituted to achieve
these objective. Among these,
SISCO, established in 1998, has
been recognized by NABARD as
the best cooperative bank in the
country for the year 2000-01
under the two-tier system, he
disclosed.
He said that the strength of
the movement lies in the people
themselves and added that there
should be active participation by
the people for the people. He
stressed that the desired
objectives of economic and
social justice to all can be
realized and achieved only
through
the
people’s
cooperative movement.
12
SPORTS
NOW!
Augsut 07-13, 2002
PLAYWIN GOLD FOR MUNICIPALITY
MAN AND BHEL PURI VENDOR
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK:
Purshottam
Kulkarni, a retired officer of the
Brihanmumbai
Municipal
Corporation (BMC), in Maharastra
is the first winner of the Playwin
Sikkim Thunderball on-line lottery.
BAICHUNG – MOST
VALUABLE
HO CHI MINH CITY: India scored a brilliant 3-1 win over Vietnam
U-23 side to enter the semi-finals of the LG Cup Football tournament
here on Tuesday, August 6.
India drew their first outing against Singapore on August 2, which,
was also the opening match of the tournament. The victory over Vietnam
puts them on top of Group B with four points.
Baichung Bhutia, captain of the Indian side and leading a team which
has yet to prove its footballing credentials was under extreme pressure
to secure a win in order to secure a berth for the team in the semi-finals.
And though he has been out of competitive soccer action for the most of
the past two years he did prove that he has regained top form. India,
going into the match needing at least a draw to move into the last four,
drew first blood early on when skipper Baichung Bhutia found the net
with a magnificent strike.
Bhutia, who was a bit off colour against Singapore, was at his
attacking best as he scored the first goal and also created a number of
scoring chances to win the Most Valuable Player award.
Changing ends with a 1-0 lead, the Indians pressed hard in the second
session but failed to score.
Vietnam then stunned the Indians equalising in the 77th minute
through Dang Thang Phuong.
The alert Phuong pounced on a loose ball and beat Sangram
Mukherjee with a fine shot to make it 1-1. However India retrieved the
day with two more goals later in the match.
He won the jackpot of Rs
9,85,000. Kulkarni, 69, is also the
oldest on-line lottery winner in
India, according to Playwin
Infravest officials. Kulkarni, who
served the Mumbai civic body for
35 years, is currently helping his
sons in their dairy business. His
family and friends believe his
hitting the jackpot is God’s way of
rewarding him for his honesty.
Meanwhile, the fifth lucky
jackpot winner of the Playwin
Sikkim Super Lotto, emerged from
hiding last week.
Lingappa, a bhel puri vendor in
Bangalore, did not surface even
after a week since the results were
announced. Having won a
whopping sum of Rs. 2.78 crore,
he was sighted outside St Joseph’s
Indian High School in Bangalore
still in a state of disbelief and
overwhelming happiness.
Lingappa is based in
Sampangiramanagar, Bangalore, and
has been buying lottery tickets for the
last 10 years. It was only on July 25
that he struck gold with the winning
numbers 09, 10, 24, 27, 35 and 36.
After paying a tax of 31.5 per
cent, the current rate of tax
applicable for lotteries, Lingappa
will take home Rs 2.1 crore. “I plan
to deposit the amount in a bank,
buy a house, build a Shani
Mahatma temple and provide for
my children,” Lingappa said. A
mobile phone, television and car
are not on the agenda yet. His wife
Narayanamma is basking in the
attention.
With all these plans, Lingappa
said with a touch of regret, he
might have to discontinue selling
‘bhel puri’.
Playwin has seen a tremendous
response from Karnataka and
Kerala, apart from Sikkim although
Tamil Nadu, which incidentally has
a high consumption of paper
lottery, has not joined in yet.
RICE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS
a NOW REPORT
GANGTOK: The Department of
Food & Civil Supplies and
Consumer Affairs has announced
plans to issue 10 kgs of rice to
senior citizens above 65 years of
age, who are eligible for National
Old Age Pension and State Old
Age Pension, but have not been
given this facility thus far.
The free rice comes their way
under the Annapurna Scheme from
different food godowns. For this
scheme, the department has already
released the required quantity of
rice for four months, an official
communiqué informs.
All Gram Panchayat members
have been requested to ensure that
the benefits under this particular
scheme reach the target people.
Identified BPL families are
provided with 35 kgs of rice per
family per month at a subsidized
rate of Rs. 4 per kg.
The Department has also
initiated the process of issuing
individual ration cards to all the
bonafide residents of Sikkim.
Kicked off in July 2001, the
initiative attempts to streamline the
Targetted Public Distribution
System to ensure equitable
distribution
of
essential
commodities and food security to
all eligible beneficiaries.
It has also made arrangements
for spot photography of those
applying for the cards by fixing
different dates and venues for spot
photography progamme, starting
from August 9, 2002 till 12
September 2002.
The APL Ration Cards will be
valid for five years without any
renewal. The initial cost of Rs. 25
each for the Card is to be deposited
at the time of photography and there
would be no other extra charges.
PLEASE SEE THE RATE BOARD BEFORE THE PURCHASE OF ANY P.D.S. ITEMS
BeAn
ITEMS UNDER PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
Alert
Consumer
1.
Rice
2.
Sugar
3.
Wheat and wheat products
4.
S.K. oil.
MONTHLY ALLOTMENT OF P.D.S.ITEMS TO THE CONSUMERS
Rice
12 Kg per head per month for APL families
35 Kg per family per month for BPL families.
1.
Annapurna Yonjna -10 Kg per beneficial per
month.
2.
Antoydaya Yonjno – 35 Kg per month family.
b)
Sugar - 700 gms per head per month
c)
S.K. Oil – 1.25 liters per head per month.
10. Weighment of goods by Stone, Bricks, Metals or
any other non-standard weights is an offence.
If you have any complaints about defects on goods purchased or deficiency in service you hired - please
contact the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum of your respective District or the Department
of Food & Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs for Redressal of your grievances
DepartmentofFood&CivilSuppliesandConsumerAffairs
GOVERNMENT OF SIKKIM
Published by Lt. Col. (retd) P. Dorjee and printed at Baba Offset, Tadong. Editor: Pema Wangchuk. Now! Near Ayurvedic Clinic, Gairi Gaon, Tadong. East Sikkim. ph: 03592 70949 email: [email protected]