Fine print shows pittance

AVIJIT SINHA

A rally brought out by SFI and DYFI against the railway budget in Siliguri on Thursday. (Kundan Yolmo)

Siliguri, March 15: The fine print of the railway budget shows a meagre allocation of funds for the projects in north Bengal, inviting criticism from political parties as well as the common people.

The details of the funds allocation are included in the Pink Book 2012-13 published by the railway ministry. The book also contains the income and expenditure projected by the ministry for the ensuing fiscal.

The CPM said it would take decades to finish the construction of the rail route between Rangpo and Sevoke and the axle manufacturing factory at New Jalpaiguri as only a small fraction of the required funds had been earmarked in this budget.

“The budget is the classic example of the Trinamul Congress’s populism politics. We have learnt that in some projects, the allotments have been as low as Rs 1 crore or Rs 50 lakh, which means that the party and its leaders are making a fool of the people,” said former minister and CPM leader Asok Bhattacharya.

The Pink Book reveals that Rs 3,254.94 crore more is needed to complete the Sevoke-Rangpo railway route, while only Rs 38 crore (around one per cent of the required amount) has been sanctioned. The allocation for the axle unit at NJP is Rs 20 crore, that is around 10 per cent of the amount needed (Rs 244.11 crore).

A Siliguri resident said there would be a cash crunch in the next financial year to finish most of the projects announced during Mamata Banerjee’s term as the railway minister in the UPA 11 government.

“The only exception might be the laying of tracks along the New Mainaguri-Jogighopa, New Mal-Mainaguri Road and New Changrabandha-Changrabandha rail routes, for which Rs 225 crore has been earmarked. The project needs around Rs 215 crore more,” he said.

Mamata Banerjee’s pet projects for the Darjeeling hills — composite brake block manufacture unit and the upgrade of hospital at Tindharia and a nursing institute in Kurseong — will also be short of funds.

Trivedi announced around Rs 1.5 crore for the three projects, while the actual amount needed for their completion crosses the Rs 30 crore mark.

The budget came under attack from Congress leaders in North Dinajpur as well. “It is surprising to see that small amounts have been sanctioned for the new routes in South and North Dinajpurs. We have no idea when these projects will be commissioned,” said Mohit Sengupta, the North Dinajpur district Congress president.

The minister allocated Rs 15 crore for the Kaliaganj-Buniadpur route in North Dinajpur against the required amount of Rs 161.66 crore. The allocation for the new route between Balurghat and Hili in South Dinajpur is Rs 14 crore.

The Pink Book shows that Rs 166.97 crore more is needed to finish the project.

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Track protest on added land

The blockade at the New Malbazar station in Jalpaiguri on Thursday. Picture by Biplab Basak

Siliguri, March 15: Supporters of more than 10 organisations blocked the railway tracks in the Dooars and Terai for half an hour today to protest Mamata Banerjee’s silence on the demand to bring Gorkha-dominated plains areas under the hill set-up.

Hundreds of supporters of the Dooars Terai Joint Action Committee resorted to rail roko at four locations in the Terai and Dooars to demand that the government reject outright the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha demand to bring plains mouzas under the Gorkha Territorial Administration, instead of appointing a panel to look into the demand.

The joint action committee, which consists of the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad, the Kamtapur Progressive Party and nine other organisations, was formed last week to oppose the Morcha demand.

“We find no logic behind the silence of the chief minister and her government on the issue. The formation of the territory panel was unnecessary. With its formation, it became clear that the Morcha would be pursuing the issue,” said the state president of the Parishad, Birsa Tirkey.

He said the Morcha leaders would not take it lightly if the panel recommended that no part of the Dooars and Terai could be included in the GTA.

“Now is the time for the government and the chief minister to speak out, to announce that the Morcha demand cannot be met to prevent fresh trouble and agitation in the region,” he said.

Tirkey said the adivasis, the Rajbangshis and the other communities that had been living here for centuries were opposed to the demand. “It is tough to understand why the chief minister is ignoring us and consistently holding talks with the Morcha and visiting the hills. There has not been any specific or major announcement for us or our areas,” he added.

The protesters squatted on the tracks at Rangapani and Naxalbari in the Terai and at Malbazar and Mainaguri in Jalpaiguri. Although the blockades were planned for two hours, they were withdrawn in all four places within 30 minutes because of police intervention.

The joint action committee has called a 48-hour north Bengal strike on April 6 and 7.

“If the state government remains silent, we will have no alternative but to launch an aggressive movement,” said Rajesh Lakra, the secretary of the Dooars-Terai regional unit of the Parishad.

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Negligence in Model House Construction

RANGPO-15^TH MARCH12Modal house scam is shown in the sakhu khani gram Panchayat unit ward no 2 of west Pandam constituency .from the couple of years the ruling government Sikkim democratic front deciding to make state the slum free state many new schemes and developmental works is started to make the slum free state. One scheme is CMRHM under which the modal house is constructing in every ward at a cost of five lakh each. But huge negligence and worst quality work is strongly condemned by Mr. jagdish cinturi west Pandam in charge of congress i.mr cinturi in his village visit found that the under construction of tankanath ghimerey is constructed with only five post. But according to the government norms every modal house must have nine post .by seeing the foundation quality Mr. cinturi strongly question over the quality works of the contractor and the responsibility authority. Some house was provided with old tin shed which is also against the norms said Mr. cinturi.after the quake occurred in 18^th September in the state the government and the concerned department is serious over the quality work of government and non government construction.but except giving nine post five post installation in one modal house is not the quality works and seriousness seen in the departmental work process.

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Hill pact wrongly read: Morcha - Hill party to meet CM on March 16

VIVEK CHHETRI

Giri in Darjeeling on Wednesday. (Suman Tamang Darjeeling, March 14: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today accused the state government of wrongly “interpreting” the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration agreement, a day after the chief secretary said there was “no scope” for “considering" the demand to hold election only after the territory issue was settled. The GTA bill today became a law through a gazette notification. Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri, who is a signatory to the agreement on behalf of his party, said: “The Bengal government is wrongly interpreting the agreement that only says that the electoral process will run parallel to the high powered committee’s functioning. It does not say that elections would be held. The people will not accept an election without the finalisation of the territory and we will never accept anything that goes against public wishes.” The other two signatories to the agreement were the Bengal government and the Centre. The state government has appointed a 10-member committee headed by Justice (retired) Shymal Sen to look into the Morcha demand to bring Gorkha-dominated areas of the Terai and the Dooars under the GTA. Giri, along with other senior Morcha leaders will meet Mamata Banerjee and the chief secretary in Calcutta on March 16. “We will make our stand clear at the meeting. Elections are out of question without finalising the territory,” said Giri. The Shyamal Sen committee will also meet in Calcutta the same day. The Morcha wants the GTA election to be held only after the Shyamal Sen committee submits its report to the government. Its tenure has been extended for six months. “Until then, the election process like delimiting constituencies (the present DGHC has 28 constituencies while the GTA will have 45) can start. But holding election is a different issue altogether. Till the polls are held, an interim board with nominated members should be formed,” said Giri. Chief secretary Ghosh had yesterday said in Calcutta that there was “no scope” for “considering” the Morcha demand. “The tripartite agreement has been signed (by the Morcha as well). The agreement is exactly reflected in the law that will be notified tomorrow. It clearly states that the election process would be conducted by the state government even if the committee is yet to submit its report on the territorial matter,” Ghosh had said. “There is no scope now for such considerations. We will go ahead with the elections (in the present DGHC) area,” he had said. Countering Ghosh’s claim, Giri today said: “Clause 6 of the MoA reads ‘The work of this high-powered committee will run parallel to the electoral process which will be based on the existing delimited area (under the DGHC). However, the empowering statute will have a provision for the transfer of additional areas from Siliguri and the Terai and the Dooars that maybe agreed upon, based on the recommendation of the committee.’ I don’t think this means that election will have to take place parallel to the functioning of the high powered committee. The electoral process can definitely start.” CPRM fast The supporters of the Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists will be on a 12-hour hunger strike in front of the Jantar Mantar in Delhi on March 20 in demand of Gorkhaland. “We will also submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister's Office on March 20,” said Shekar Chhetri, chief of the CPRM’s youth wing.(Telegraph)

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