SIKKIM OBSERVER Nov 17-23

Bhandari calls for opposition unity, sides with Golay

Gangtok, Nov 16: Former chief minister and Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee President NB Bhandari has reiterated the need for opposition unity in the State to dislodge the Chamling Government, which has been in power for nearly two decades.

This revelation came during a public meeting at Bhandari’s native village of Malbasey, near Soreong in west district recently. Bhandari and rebel ruling party legislator PS Golay were invited by Phurba Singh Tamang, who contested for the Malbasey Zilla Panchayat seat.

Though Golay was not present at the meeting due to his engagement in a legal matter, Bhandari said there was some kind of understanding between the Congress party and Golay and his supporters. He also pointed in the ensuing panchayat polls he and Golay were together.

Former MLA and Golay’s aide Bhoj Raj Rai said their new party will be ‘led’ by Golay and ‘blessed’ by Bhandari.

The former chief minister has been raising the issue of opposition unity to oppose the ruling party and government.

Bhandari said independent candidates who win in the ensuing polls would be with the government formed by the new party.

Demand for Assembly seat reservation for Nepalese raised in seminar

Gangtok, Nov 16: After keeping the issue in cold storage for years the demand for restoration of seats reserved for Sikkimese Nepalese in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly has again been raised by the political leadership of the State in the opposition camp.

The issue was raised during a seminar held here recently where former chief minister and State Congress President Nar Bahadur Bhandari, former Sikkim Lok Sabha MPs, PM Subba and Nakul Das Rai, former ministers KN Upreti and Tseten Tashi Bhutia were present.

Apart from the demand on Assembly seat reservation of the Nepalese those who aired their views at the seminar said politicization of the panchayat system was not in the interest of the people.

The seminar was organized by Concerned Society of Sikkim, whose convenor is Nakul Das Rai. According to Rai the seminar was organized for “leaders and intellectuals” to “sensitize” people on important issues concerning the State with a view to “promoting consensus” on these issues.

Most of the participants belonged to various opposition parties while there were few who represented social organizations.

Former chief secretary PK Pradhan and former MLAs NB Khatiwada and Pradeep Yonzone were also present during the function. (also see edit on page 2)

SIKKIM REMEMBERS NEHRU ON HIS BIRTHDAY

Gangtok, Nov 16: The birthday of the first Prime Minister of India Pd. Jawaharlal Nehru was celebrated here on Wednesday. The function started with garlanding the bust of Pd. Nehru at Zero Mile, Jawarharlal Nehru Road, by Governor BP Singh which was followed by main function at Chintan Bhawan.

    (L to R) Prince Palden Thondup Namgyal, Indira Gandhi, Chogyal Tashi Namgyal, Jawaharlal Nehru, Political Officer      

    Apa Pant and Dewan Nari Rustomji in Sikkim in 1958.

Recalling Nehru’s affection for Sikkim, Singh revealed the former Prime Minister’s interest in starting the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology (NIT)m which is a treasure trove of Tibetan and Himalayan  literature and artifacts.

Founded by Chogyal Tashi Namgyal of Sikkim in 1958, the institute was inaugurated by Nehru on October 1, 1958. The other two institutes of its kind are in Tokyo and Moscow.

While expressing satisfaction over the work undertaken by the State Government in providing basic facilities and education to children, the Governor urged civil society to ensure prevention of child labour, which he said was not only illegal but immoral as well.

Editorial

SIKKIM ISSUES

Role Of The Intellectual

Former Sikkim Lok Sabha MP Nakul Das Rai’s efforts to hold a seminar for ‘leaders and intellectuals’ in Gangtok to seek their views on vital issues that concern Sikkim is a welcome step given the lack of exchange of views on such issues in Sikkim these days. Rai not only belonged to the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front, which always boasted of restoring democracy in Sikkim, but is also in a comfortable position – now that he is no more with the ruling party – to judge whether Sikkim and the Sikkimese people are in a better position now or then when his former party took over the reigns of power in 1994. Understandably, almost all active participants at the seminar are politicians or would-be future ‘leaders’ of the State and seeking their views on the prevailing political situation in Sikkim would only provide a platform for them to hit against the ruling dispensation. It would be naïve on our part to expect any kind of balanced views from such people on issues and challenges that Sikkim faces.

Generally speaking, an intellectual is a person who is quite detached from society but who at the same time can evoke strong response from people by the views they express and represent. Intellectuals can be writers, musicians, artists, philosophers, social scientists, political activists etc. Someone rightly said: “The essential role of an intellectual is that of a dissident, a time-consuming, long and silent process.” Politicians can also be termed as intellectual though there are very few politicians who are intellectuals. The role of intellectuals have limited use in a society such as in Sikkim where autocracy prevails in a democratic set-up.  One-man-rule and one-party-system in Sikkim has been going on for nearly four decades and to expect people to exercise their democratic rights freely and fearlessly in such an atmosphere is a bit too much to expect from them. This is why Rai and his companions found it very difficult to trace people who may fall under the general definition of an intellectual. On the other hand there is no dearth of ‘leaders’ in Sikkim who come in many shades and who become active only during elections. We ought to know by now that yesterdays ‘unconcerned’ citizens become ‘concerned’ citizens today and today’s concerned citizens become unconcerned citizens once they assume power. That is why society does not take note of issues they raise no matter how important they may be. This perhaps is the main issue in Sikkim which needs debating.

US Senate honours Tibetan leader Lodi Gyari

Gangtok, Nov 16:  Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, recently introduced a resolution to honor the contributions of Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari as Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and in promoting the legitimate rights and aspirations of the Tibetan people.

 Senators Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Mark Udall (D-N.M.), Joe Lieberman (I-CT), John McCain (R-AZ), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Caif.) joined Kerry as original cosponsors.

“Lodi Gyari committed himself at a very young age to tear down the walls of the oppression in Tibet, and went on to be an effective leader and spokesperson for the Tibetan people and a loyal envoy for His Holiness the Dalai Lama,” said Sen. Kerry. “We honor all of the work he has done to advance the cause of the Tibetan people, and their struggle for genuine autonomy, human rights, and dignity, and for the preservation of Tibetan linguistic, cultural and religious traditions once and for all.”

Gyari, who was born in Nyarong, Kham in 1949, was recognized according to Tibetan Buddhist tradition as a reincarnate lama and began his monastic studies at 4 years of age in Lhumorhab Monastery, which was located in what is now Kardze Prefecture, Sichuan Province.

In 1958, 9-year-old Gyari fled Nyarong with his family after Chinese occupation of his country and sought refuge in India and lived in Darjeeling for some time and studied in Mt. Hermon School.

 Gyari “began a career-long commitment to the Tibetan struggle against Chinese oppression in Tibet,” the resolution said and pointed out that he also became editor for the Tibetan Freedom Press, founder of the Tibetan Review, the first English language journal published by Tibetans in exile, and a founding member of the Tibetan Youth Congress.

Gyari served as a civil servant in the Central Tibetan Administration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, as Chairman of the Tibetan Parliament in exile, and as a Deputy Cabinet Minister for the Departments of Religious Affairs and Health and Cabinet Minister for the Department of Information and International Relations.

In 1991, Gyari moved to the United States in the capacity of Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and was soon after selected to be President of the International Campaign for Tibet.

Since then Gyari has met with leaders and diplomats of governments around the world and with Members of the United States Congress and parliaments of other nations to work for the cause of Tibet and Tibetans.

In 1998, His Holiness the Dalai Lama authorized Special Envoy Lodi Gyari to be the principal person to reestablish contact with the Chinese government on the Tibetan issue.

Between September 2002 and January 2010, Gyari led the Dalai Lama’s negotiating team in 9 formal rounds of meetings with Chinese officials with “tireless drive and immense skill, winning the respect of the international community,” the resolution said.

The resolution has taken note of Gyari’s achievements in “building an international coalition support for Tibet,” with a view to preserving “the distinct culture and religious traditions of Tibet.”

After the Dalai Lama gave up political power Gyari, too, resigned from his post.

Dirty Angels ride for a cause

Gangtok, Nov 16: The Dirty Angels Bikers Club of Sikkim has been proving to be a group of messiahs for the needy. Roaring through the hills, the young boys from Sikkim show that behind their leather jackets and tough looks, is a will to make a difference.

Mayalmu Sang, an NGO in Tadong, located below here, is one of the many stops that the young bikers make. They help them with supplies and at times are all ears. Mayalmu Sang member says, "They come and support us, it feels very nice. We need donations and help."

Sometimes through words and often through signs, the men prove that when language fails, all you need is the will to reach out. Mayalmu Sang inmate Bishnu Tamang says, "It's good when the brothers come to visit us. We feel loved when people from outside come and accept us the way we are," CNNIBN reported.

Organising fund-raisers and spreading the message of help, they are men on a mission. Dirty Angels Motorcycles Club founder Tshering Lepcha says, "We are a bridge between the government and the youth and we tell them to be positive in life, not to drugs but to reach out."

"It's a passion for all of us and our bikes are a medium for us. When we go out on ten bikes, people look at us, we get attention," says Dirty Angels member Ringzing Nadikpa. For a state where most young men and women aspire for a government job, these men have decided to do their bit for others.

Govt lifts ban on import of eggs

Gangtok, Nov 16: The State Government has finally acted on public grievances on shortage of eggs in the State and has lifted the ban on import of poultry eggs.

Animal Husbandry Secretary DP Sharma said the ban has been temporarily lifted for three months till December 31 “in view shortage of poultry eggs in the local market.”

Sharma said the department will carry a survey on demand and supply of eggs in the State.

The State Government had banned import of poultry products in 2009 after the outbreak of bird flu in neighbouring West Bengal.

However, the ban was not lifted even after bird flu scare was over. Observers have pointed out that this situation helped special interest groups in the State to make a fast buck.

There has also been a growing demand for lifting ban on sale of imported chicken in the State. Compared to local chicken sold in the market cost of imported chicken are cheaper.

OBITUARY Rinchen Doma Reechung

She was a perfectionist par excellence

BY KC PRADHAN

    The Late Mrs. Rinchen Doma Reechung at the reception she organized for the visiting President of India, Neelam    

    Sanjeeva Reddy (seated on her left), at Pemayangtse Tourist Lodge, Geyzing (West Sikkim), in October 1979. Also seen in 

    the picture are former Sikkim Governor BB Lal (on her right) and Chief Minister NB Bhandari (front).

Sikkim lost another eminent personality in Rinchen Doma Reechung. She did her Preliminary Law from Mumbai and joined the Sikkim Durbar Service in 1969 as Assistant Superintendent, GICI (Govt. Institute of Cottage Industries). She was one the ablest administrators and a no-nonsense officer blessed with drive and artistic talents.

During my long tenure in Sikkim Tourism, I got to see her administrative capabilities from very close quarters and feel no hesitation in endorsing that every assignment entrusted to her was carried out with perfection and finesse unknown at that time.

She was at the Department when tourism was in a nascent stage in Sikkim and we tried to use her prodigious skills to the best extent possible. For example, when Sikkim was allotted a corner for a Sikkim Tourism Counter at the Bagdogra airport, she was assigned the task to design and execute it. She did it so well that it remained a real showcase to project Sikkim.

She was meticulous - a perfectionist par excellence I should say – which is a rarity in the administration. She was undoubtedly a one person army and once a job was assigned she did not tolerate any interference. She was a workaholic to the extent that she ruined her health many times by stressing herself too much. I remember the way she organized several functions, including the visit of the then President of India, Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy, to organizing Sikkim Evenings at Sikkim House in New Delhi with poise and finesse that flowed in her so effortlessly. Her contributions to the realm of Sikkim Tourism are immense.

As Secretary Culture, she brought in many innovative ideas and the various programmes performed in various parts of the country were highly appreciated. Her contributions at GICI, where she brought in a breath of fresh air, are equally praiseworthy.

It needs to be accepted that she laid the foundations of many of the departments that she was associated with. She was a hard task-master and considerate at the same time and her subordinates loved her. As for her bosses, they needed special skills to handle her.

It is hard to get an Officer so dedicated to her job, such a perfectionist and honest to the core. Like her late father, Tse Ten Tashi (TTT), an eminent personality in his own versatile manner, she was a person in a hurry. Idleness was not in her nature and she did not tolerate it in others either. In many ways, like her father, she was ahead of her times.

She accompanied her late husband Reechung Rinpoche, hailing from the illustrious Pheunkhang nobility of Lhasa in Tibet – the family OF 11^TH Dalai Lama dating back to 1838 – and also once Director of the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, to many foreign sojourns. He, a very humble personality, was an authority on the Tibetan system of medicines.

It was she who persuaded her husband to write a book on it and the outcome was ‘Histoire De La Medecine Tibetaine’ written in French in association with his long-time friend Jean-Paul R. Claudon and Published by Wellcome Trust, London, in 1989. The book was first of its kind and was very well received and he was highly respected.

Temperamentally they were poles apart, but yet they had high regard for each other. If Rinpoche was the fountainhead of knowledge on very many intricate Tibetan rituals, Rinchen Doma was the driving force who brought grace wherever they travelled abroad. She was a rare personality infused with Sikkimese ethos. Aggressive and yet humble and knew perfectly well how to glide in high circles with grace and humility.

Sadly, her health deteriorated over the years and led a forlorn life confined in her apartment in Development Area, Gangtok. Their large families were, however, always by her side to boost her morale. In her passing away the illustrious Rhenock nobility lost their seniormost member in the family.

We miss her immensely. We pray to the Almighty that her soul rest in peace. (KC Pradhan is a former Chief Secretary, Sikkim.)