Kalimpong to lose train quota

Kalimpong, July 5: The Northeast Frontier Railways has started withdrawing the manual train ticket quota allotted to Kalimpong citing computerised passenger reservation system at Durpin near here from where tickets for trains running across the country can be booked. Although the computerised counter at Durpin, 3km from here, has been in existence for many years, the NFR had been running a manual ticketing system here. Kalimpong had been allotted...

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Hill Trinamul to campaign in Dooars

Darjeeling, July 5: The Trinamul Congress has decided to take its leaders from the hills to the Dooars to canvass for the party’s candidates for the panchayat elections in a move to counter Bimal Gurung’s sustained campaign. Trinamul’s decision to deploy the Gorkha leaders of the party on the campaign trail is being seen as an effort to win the support of community members. The Morcha president has been camping in the plains since June 20 and in...

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Sudipta faces jeers

Siliguri, July 5: More than 200 depositors and agents of Saradha Group demonstrated on the premises of the additional chief judicial magistrate’s court here today when Sudipta Sen and Debjani Mukherjee were brought in connection with a case filed at the Siliguri police station. “The duo were brought to Siliguri from Calcutta today as a case had been registered against the group by a resident of Subhaspally here. The court ordered 14 days’ jail custody...

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Flight skids off taxiway - Air India plane stuck at bagdogra for 7 hrs

Siliguri, July 5: An Air India flight with 110 passengers from New Delhi swerved off the taxiway after it landed at Bagdogra airport this afternoon. The two wheels at the right rear end of the AI 879 flight went off the taxiway when the aircraft was approaching the apron from the runway. Nobody was injured as the plane was moving slowly at the time of the incident. The plane was brought back on the taxiway around 8.45pm, more than seven hours after...

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2014 को लोकसभा चुनाउमा खडाहुने - प्रो. लामा

कालेबुङ 6 जुलाई आगमी वर्ष 2014मा सम्पन्न हुने लाकसभा चुनाउमा दार्जीलिङ जिल्लालाई प्रतिनिधित्व गर्दै प्रो. महेन्द्र पी लालाले लोकसभा चुनाउको मैदानमा खडा हुने मनाश्य बनाएका छन। दार्जीलिङ जिल्लालाई प्रतिनिधित्व गर्दै साझ-उम्मेद्वरको रुपमा चुनाउ लडने प्रो. लामाले पहाडका विभिन्न पत्र-पत्रिकाहरुलाई आधिकारीकरुपमा जनाएका छन। सिक्किम विश्वविधालयका संस्थापक उपकूलपतिको पदभार सम्हाली सकेका प्रो. लामा देशको अन्तरिम सुरक्षा परिषदको पमि एकजना सद्सया हुन। हाल उनलाई...

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तातोपानीमा पैह्रो, सडक क्षतिग्रस्त

तातोपानी 5 जुलाई: पश्चिम सिक्किमको तातोपानी क्षेत्रमा गइरहेको पौह्रोले जनजीवन प्रभावित पारेको छ। हिज बेलुकी देखि परेको विषण वर्षाले तातोपानी क्षेत्रमा पैह्रो गएको कारण क्षेत्रको सडकमार्गहरु क्षतिग्रस्त भएको जानकारी प्राप्त भएको छ। जोरथाङ देखि गेजिङसम्म पुग्ने उक्त सडक मार्ग क्षतिग्रस्त भएको कारण आजा बिहानैदेखि यातायात सेवा बन्द भएको छ। पैह्रोले सडक क्षतिग्रस्त गरेको कारण यात्रीवाहक वहान साथै पर्यटक वहानहरु यस समस्याको चपेटमा परिरहेको जानकारी प्राप्त...

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NH31D back to state - Highway entrusted to PWD, repairs to proceed

Siliguri, July 4: The Union ministry of road transport and highways has decided to “entrust” the potholed NH31D to the state public works department (PWD) until a proposed four-laning project, stalled because of a land acquisition block, takes off. Entrusting the highway to the PWD would mean the road would be a national highway maintained by the state. The highway, which chief minister Mamata Banerjee in 2012 had refused to take because of its bad condition, would see temporary repairs, according to PWD officials. PWD officials said it would...

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Hill first step on water supply cure

Darjeeling, July 3: The Darjeeling municipality has signed a memorandum of agreement with the state government to revamp the drinking water distribution in the civic area. The Rs 192-crore project will be implemented once the Centre gives its nod for the funds. Amar Singh Rai, the chairman of the Darjeeling municipality, said according to the memorandum of agreement signed with the state urban development department in Calcutta recently, the Centre would be approached to provide 80 per cent of the funds for the project under the Jawaharlal Nehru...

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Shriniwas Patil has been named the new governor of Sikkim

New Delhi, (PTI) July 3: Shriniwas Patil has been named the new governor of Sikkim. President Pranab Mukherjee appointed 72-year-old Patil today. He will succeed Balmiki Prasad Singh, whose term ends this month. Patil has represented Maharashtra’s Karad in the Lok Sabha and is a former IAS offic...

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MLA ready for probe

Siliguri, July 3: Siliguri MLA and former Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority chairman Rudranath Bhattacharya today said he was ready to face any inquiry into the corruption charges levelled against him by the Left Front and the Congress. Bhattacharya, who had been the SJDA chief from July 2011 to March 2013, was accused of corruption after Trinamul minister Gautam Deb exposed a case where SJDA engineers in connivance with private construction firms allegedly siphoned off Rs 50 crore in the name of building electric crematoriums and sewerage...

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Flight time buffer for travellers - How fliers to and from Bagdogra will benefit from night-landing

Siliguri, July 2: The IAF’s assent to Bagdogra airport to keep the facility running till 10pm would have direct consequences for residents and travellers to Siliguri as well as other parts of north Bengal and Sikkim. Here’s what Metro found out. Travel time Air passengers coming to Bagdogra from Gangtok, Darjeeling and Kishanganj in Bihar would be benefited the most because of the night landing. If a traveller from Gangtok has to board a noon flight, he has to leave Gangtok by 5.30am. After 3.45pm, no flights depart from Bagdogra, so the luxury...

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Rivals set same venue for Martyrs’ Day

Darjeeling, July 1: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and the GNLF have both decided to observe Martyrs’ Day at the same venue in Mirik on July 27. Neither of the parties has sought permission from the Darjeeling district administration yet to hold the memorial service at the martyr’s column in Mirik. There are obvious law-an-order issues that the administration would have in mind, given a recent skirmish between the Morcha and the GNLF. “Let us wait and watch as no party has sought permission,” said a district official. The women’s wing of the GNLF...

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Bail for Gurung in Dooars case

July 1: Bimal Gurung and four leaders of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today got interim bail from the Jalpaiguri district and sessions court in a case of violence in the Dooars. Somnath Pal, the public prosecutor, said on January 16, 2009, the case was registered against Gurung, who is the Morcha chief, party general secretary Roshan Giri, Gurung’s wife and Nari Morcha leader Asha, as well as Ramesh Alley and Binay Tamang. Charges under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 307 (attempt to murder) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public...

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IAF nod for Bagdogra night landing - Flights allowed to land & take off till 10pm, says airport director

Siliguri, July 1: The Indian Air Force today informed the airport director of Bagdogra that it would allow the Airport Authority of India (AAI) to use the runway of the airport for night landing till 10pm, an extension of four hours. “We have received a communication from the Indian Air Force authorities today, mentioning that they are ready to let us use the runway till 10pm. It is good news for all of us as we have been trying over the years for introduction of night landing facilities at the airport,” said K.K. Bhowmik, the airport director...

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Ready-in-May reply to delay charge Vindicated, says Mira

Calcutta, June 29: State election commissioner Mira Pande today said the poll panel had been prepared to hold the panchayat elections in April or May this year, making it clear it would not take the blame for the delay. “We were ready to conduct the elections in April or May,” Pande told a news conference. Asked whether the commission felt vindicated by yesterday’s apex court order that accepted most of its key demands, she said: “To an extent, yes. We had taken a stand — what we believed in — and it was upheld by the apex court.” The court...

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