Darjeeling, Feb. 27: CPM politburo member Sitaram Yechury today took potshots at Mamata Banerjee, saying that Switzerland is not one city and the entire hills had to be developed if her dream of turning Darjeeling into the European country was to be realised.The Bengal chief minister is scheduled to visit Darjeeling on February 29 and is planning to even go up to Sandakphu, the highest point in the state, the next day. Ever since coming to power about nine months ago, Mamata has been saying that she wants to convert Darjeeling into Switzerland.Yechury was in Darjeeling today in his capacity as the chairperson of the parliamentary standing committee on transport, tourism and culture.He held a series of meetings with senior district and state officials and tourism stakeholders hereAfter the meetings, the Rajya Sabha member told journalists: “Comparisons are often drawn between Darjeeling and Switzerland. Switzerland is not one city. Darjeeling alone cannot be Switzerland. The area can develop as Switzerland if you have various (tourism) hubs in the region.”Asked if he was mooting a proposal before the chief minister ahead of her visit to the hills, Yechury said: “No, No. We are saying the possibilities and potentials are tremendous. The point is to translate the dream into reality by conceiving concrete projects.”The CPM leader refused to disclose the recommendations that the 13-member parliamentary team might make in its report on Darjeeling. But he said the meetings here had been “intense”.“A lot of issues were discussed today… issues like the NH55 remaining closed for more than a year. The need to improve railways and air connectivity in the region came up for discussion. Specific projects like beautifying the Mirik lake and the ropeway were also discussed,” said Yechury.The Darjeeling MLA of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, Trilok Dewan, and CPM leader K.B. Wattar were among those who met the committee members.(Telegraph)
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