Monday, 18 July 2011 19:01
Termed as a "historic deal", a tripartite pact has been signed Monday between the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) and the West Bengal and central governments, agreeing to establish an autonomous elected Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) in Darjeeling.
As per the deal, GTA will be more powerful than the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council formed during the time of Rajiv Gandhi in 1988. It will have 45 elected members to be elected within the next six months, according to online edition of The Hindu.
The agreement was signed by West Bengal Home Secretary G.D Gautama, Union Home Ministry Joint Secretary K.K.Pathak and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha General Secretary Roshan Giri at the Pintail village, about 8 km from Siliguri, the report said.
Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and GJM chief Bimal Gurung and the BJP MP from Darjeeling Jaswant Singh were present at the accord-signing ceremony, among others.
The Indian home minister Chidambaram was quoted as saying, both the Government of West Bengal and the Government of India will stand by you and hold your hand.
"The task before you is stupendous. There will be many hurdles, but there is no hurdle that cannot be solved through dialogue, determination and spirit of give and take."
GTA will have jurisdiction in the three sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong as per the deal. However, the GJM has been demanding inclusion of the Gorkha-dominated areas of the Dooars and Terai under the GTA.
Activists of the GJM and Gorkha Nari Morcha, and thousands of Nepali residents of the hills took to the stage, dancing and singing to celebrate the occasion, various Indian media reports said.
Indian experts and analysts were quoted by different media as expressing their remarks that the Darjeeling agreement would end long-standing Gorkhaland imbroglio. nepalnews.com
Source: http://www.nepalnews.com/home/index.php/news/1/11864-darjeeling-gets-autonomy-as-talks-conclude-in-tripartite-pact.html
Termed as a "historic deal", a tripartite pact has been signed Monday between the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) and the West Bengal and central governments, agreeing to establish an autonomous elected Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) in Darjeeling.
As per the deal, GTA will be more powerful than the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council formed during the time of Rajiv Gandhi in 1988. It will have 45 elected members to be elected within the next six months, according to online edition of The Hindu.
The agreement was signed by West Bengal Home Secretary G.D Gautama, Union Home Ministry Joint Secretary K.K.Pathak and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha General Secretary Roshan Giri at the Pintail village, about 8 km from Siliguri, the report said.
Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and GJM chief Bimal Gurung and the BJP MP from Darjeeling Jaswant Singh were present at the accord-signing ceremony, among others.
The Indian home minister Chidambaram was quoted as saying, both the Government of West Bengal and the Government of India will stand by you and hold your hand.
"The task before you is stupendous. There will be many hurdles, but there is no hurdle that cannot be solved through dialogue, determination and spirit of give and take."
GTA will have jurisdiction in the three sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong as per the deal. However, the GJM has been demanding inclusion of the Gorkha-dominated areas of the Dooars and Terai under the GTA.
Activists of the GJM and Gorkha Nari Morcha, and thousands of Nepali residents of the hills took to the stage, dancing and singing to celebrate the occasion, various Indian media reports said.
Indian experts and analysts were quoted by different media as expressing their remarks that the Darjeeling agreement would end long-standing Gorkhaland imbroglio. nepalnews.com
Source: http://www.nepalnews.com/home/index.php/news/1/11864-darjeeling-gets-autonomy-as-talks-conclude-in-tripartite-pact.html