HIMALAYAN GUARDIAN     Wednesday Nov 28-Dec 4, 2012  

Mount Hermon gave me a sound foundation: CJI

    Chief Justice Altamas Kabir (third from right) at Mt. Hermon School's Speech Day function in    

    Darjeeling on November 24, 2012.

Darjeeling, Nov 27: Chief Justice of India Justice Altamas Kabir candidly acknowledged that he owed much to his alma mater for what he is today. “What we are today is because of the basic grounding that we got from Mount Hermon School,” Justice Kabir said during his brief address at the school’s annual Speech Day function here on Saturday.

“The values that you inculcate stand in good stead throughout life,” he said while adding that he was “extremely honoured” to be back after 56 years.

Justice Kabir spoke fondly of his three years in Mt. Hermon, where he remembers having ‘basmati rice and mutton balls for lunch’ not forgetting the ‘toy train rides and Going Home Day songs.’ He also recollected that David G. Stewart was the Principal when he was in school. He said former Principal GA Murray, who became Principal in 1964 when Stewart left, was “large as life.”

More than 150 ex-students and teachers attended the function. Prominent among them were P. Russell (UK), Rocky Gardner, Amar Rai (Chairman of Darjeeling Municipality), Justice Indrajit Mohanti, Tshering Dorji (Home Secretary, Bhutan), Karma Bhutia (Sports Secretary, Sikkim) and Mr. and Mrs. S. Rongong. Several ex-teachers were felicitated during the function.

Several Managing Committee members of the school, including Bishop Dr. Philip Maish, and Gorkha Territorial Administration’s executive member Roshan Giri were also present during the occasion.

The outgoing Principal George Fernandes, who served the school for 35 years, appealed to all Hermonites to look after their alma mater. Bishop Maish announced that a ‘Hermonite’ has been selected as the next Principal of the school. For almost a year now Hermonites from all over the world have been urging the school authorities to appoint a credible Hermonite as the next Principal to ensure that the school regains its past glory.

Map row: India retaliates, issues visas stamped with Indian map

New Delhi, Nov 27: India and China are back to sparring over territorial claims involving Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin.

It all started with the Chinese government showing Arunachal and entire Aksai Chin as part of its territory in maps of the country on their new e-passports.

Unhappy at this, the Indian embassy in Beijing is said to be issuing visas to Chinese nationals with a map of India showing Arunachal and Aksai Chin as its territories, The Hindustan Times reported.

After the water marks in the new Chinese e-passports showed Arunachal and Aksai Chin as part of China, the Indian mission started issuing visas with Indian maps including these places as part of its territory.

India has begun to mark its visas for anyone travelling from China to India with its official map that shows the disputed areas of Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh as part of India. This was done to retaliate against Beijing’s newly issued hi-tech passports that show these areas as part

of China in a map embossed inside.

The new passports have also angered several of China’s neighbours as it includes almost the entire South China Sea as also Taiwan, which broke away after a civil war in 1949, as part of its own territory.

Official maps issued by China have along included the territories, both land and sea, disputed with India and the other neighbours like Vietnam and Philippines.

Editorial

LOOK EAST

Handle With Care

Ahead of the 20th anniversary of ASEAN-India dialogue relationship, visiting diplomats from the South-east Asian region have rightly stressed the need for improvement of physical connectivity between the North East and Myanmar for full realisation of India’s Look East Policy. Improved connectivity will surely go a long way in expanding relationships between the two sides in areas of security, trade, commerce, tourism, culture and people-to-people contacts. However, it must be borne in mind that the ‘Look East Policy’, which was mooted two decades ago, could not take off due mainly to the slow process of India’s infrastructure development in the border states and the failure of the authorities to tackle the insurgents in the region.

According to Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, the global focus has now shifted to Asia and the Pacific region which accounts for three billion of the world's population and 40 percent of the GDP. The changed political situation in Myanmar is likely to lead to a final settlement of tribal problems in the country’s northern region. India, too, must engage itself genuinely in tackling somewhat the same issues in the northeast. Pumping money through corrupt politicians and unconcerned and unresponsive bureaucracy is not the ideal way to deal with the situation. The northeasterners, by and large, are only asking that while progress and development take place care should be taken not to disturb their fragile environment and distinct ethnic identities.

‘Solidarity March’ organized by Sikkim Tibetans to protest self-immolations

Gangtok, Nov 27: Hundreds of exiled Tibetans began a 120-kilometer-long march from Sikkim to West Bengal, as a mark of protest against incidents of self-immolations caused by Chinese atrocities.

The ‘Solidarity Peace March’ is organised by the Tibetan Youth Club (TYC) of Gangtok. The President of the Tibetan Youth Club of Gangtok, Chung Chung Bhutia, said: “We are organising this march from Gangtok to Siliguri as a mark of protest against Chinese atrocities on our compatriots in Tibet. Though, China says that they have human rights but Tibetans are not given their rights, which is invoking them to resort to self-immolation. Till now, the number of self-immolations has increased to 79,” ANI reported.

In an appeal by the TYC it said, “The overwhelming message from Tibet is that change must come now. Thousands upon thousands of people of conscience are standing in solidarity with Tibetans in this hour of crisis…”

Recently, Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, had pressed China to investigate the dozens of self-immolations by Tibetans.

The United Nations’ most senior human rights official had called on China to address frustrations that have led to Tibetans’ desperate protests, including some 60 self-immolations since March 2011.

China has refused, and continues to blocks foreign journalists from the region. It has set up road blocks to some Tibetan areas where there has been unrest.

Tensions over Tibet are at their highest in years after a spate of protests over Chinese rule and self-immolations by Tibetan activists, which have prompted a Chinese security crackdown.

Some 78 Tibetans have set themselves on fire since March 2011 in protest against Chinese rule over Tibetan region. At least 64 have died, according to Tibetan rights groups.

JMM to spread wings in North Bengal

JMM to tie-up with GJM for panchayat polls

Ranchi, Nov 27: The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has decided to expand its base and the political fray in northern West Bengal likely to be held in March-April 2013. This would be the first time Shibu Soren's party would venture into West Bengal.

Contesting polls in northern Bengal makes sense for the party as North Bengal has a sizeable tribal population with roots in Jharkhand. Keeping in mind the possibility of victory in elections in Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Darjeeling and Cooch Bihar areas of North Bengal, the party has decided to contest for all panchayat seats in the election.

Sources in party said the average tribal population in the Dooars Terai region is around 40%. "People from almost all major Jharkhand tribes - Santhal, Oraon and Munda - live in these four places. We hope the tribals will vote for JMM representatives in the election as we can take up their cause with more conviction than any other party," said the source.

Party spokesman Supriyo Bhattacharya said the focus of the party till now was on Jharkhand, or Greater Jharkhand, which covers some parts of Chattisgarh, Odisha and southern districts of West Bengal, and is close to the state and also has a sizeable tribal population.

"Our's is one of the few parties in the country that has always fought for rights of tribals. We have decided to expand our organization even in North Bengal as it has a good tribal population with links to Jharkhand. Our party has already entered into a tie-up with Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) and will jointly contest the panchayat election," said Bhattacharya. GJM will contest the election in the remaining districts and JMM will support their candidates in these places.

Meanwhile, senior leaders of the party, including chief Shibu Soren along with deputy chief minister Hemant Soren, will visit these four areas and try to build an organization that is strong at grassroots level. "According to our estimates, each of these places - particularly Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar - has more than 40% population with roots in Jharkhand. We are sure the tribal population will vote in favour of the JMM candidates," he added.

Former Mt. Hermon School teacher Miss P. Russell of UK at the Hermonite reunion in Darjeeling on Friday (Nov 23). Miss Russell will also attend Hermonite reunions in Gangtok, Kalimpong and Siliguri before returning home after meeting school friends in Chennai.

Gorkhas must have ‘national perspective’: Pradeep Yonzon

Gangtok, Nov 27: Former National Secretary of Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh (BGP) Pradeep Yonzon stressed the need to work towards a ‘national perspective’ while working for welfare of the Gorkha community in the country.

While speaking at a state level meeting of the BGP in Singtam, south Sikkim, last week, Yonzon, also a former minister of the State, said no matter how tough the situation is the Gorkha community and its apex body must be kept alive.

The meeting, chaired by BGP Working President Narayan Bhattarai, discussed future plans and programmes of the organization in the State, including the forthcoming annual convention in Legship, West Sikkim, scheduled for next week on December 2.

The meeting was also attended by its patron members C.P. Giri, A.B. Gurung, LN Poudyal, Surendra Kumar Dhungel, N.P. Gautam, S. Pandey and Prabin Khaling.

One day a Bangladeshi will become Assam’s CM: Gadkari

‘Infiltrators have outnumbered native people in 11 of 27 districts in Assam’

Agartala, Nov 27: If infiltration is not checked, one day a Bangladeshi will become the Chief Minister of Assam, BJP president Nitin Gadkari warned on Thursday. He also took a dig at the Congress by calling it a "maa-beta" (mother-son) party.

"The infiltration from Bangladesh has been unchecked in northeastern States, especially in Assam," Gadkari said, while addressing the 'Janajagaran Samabesh' (mass awareness gathering) here, IANS reported.

He said that in 11 of the 27 districts of Assam, the infiltrators had outnumbered the native people. "The number of infiltrators in Assam is fast rising," said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president.

Slamming the Congress, he said: "Congress has become a 'maa-beta' (mother-son) party, it has no vision."

Claiming that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government was virtually in the intensive care unit, he said that despite the 57-year rule of the Congress at the centre the country was still fighting poverty. "Wrong policies and corruption ... of the UPA government have further increased poverty in India," Gadkari said.

Claiming that the BJP-led alliance would come to power at the centre in 2014, Gadkari said their government would ensure that capitals of all the northeastern states get broad-gauge railway connectivity. Only Assam and Tripura have the facility at present. "There is inadequate rail and road network in the northeast ... even though there are huge resources in the industry-starved region," the BJP leader said.

Gadkari arrived here Wednesday night and held meetings with state party leaders for a campaign ahead of the assembly elections likely in February next year.

Comparing the BJP-ruled Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh with other states, Gadkari said: "Like Congress-ruled states, Left-ruled states have also remained heavily underdeveloped."

Six advanced landing grounds to be prepared in Arunachal

Tezpur, Nov 27: Six advanced landing grounds will be prepared immediately by Indian Air Force in Arunachal Pradesh for emergency landing of defence aircraft and helicopters.

The advanced landing grounds would be set up at Ziro, Vijay Nagar, Mechuka, Pasighat, Tuting and Walong, defence sources said here on Friday.

The Border Road Organisation here under Army's 4 Corps has taken measures to complete surface communication projects within the stipulated period, the sources said.

Union DoNER minister Paban Singh Ghatowar during a visit to the State earlier this week had said Rs 35 crore had been earmarked by his ministry for development of surface communication along the Sino-India border.

Ghatowar had also suggested that the Army and Air Force build up suitable surface and air communication there.

The defence sources said the 417 km long road along the Sino-India border in Arunachal Pradesh is expected to be completed this year.