Darjeeling, July 10 -- West Bengal Legislative Assembly Speaker Rathindra Nath Bose, on a two-day visit to Darjeeling, interacted with local residents, representatives from different organisations and civil society on Friday. The Speaker expressed confidence that the region, along with the rest of Bengal, would face overall development.
On Friday, Bose offered prayers at the historic Mahakal Temple in Darjeeling and also offered floral tributes at the statue of poet Bhanubhakta Acharya at the Darjeeling Mall. His interactions and discussions centred on developmental issues, public concerns and the aspirations of the people of the Darjeeling Hills.
"I am here interacting with the local populace. It is nothing political. The Government has a lot of development plans for Darjeeling. I am optimistic that Darjeeling will definitely be a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'Viksit Bharat' 2047" stated Bose. He stressed the need to strengthen coordination between the Hills and the plains and said the government aimed to build an inclusive development model in Bengal that could serve as an example for other states.
A delegation of the All India Nepali Scheduled Castes Association (Central Committee), Darjeeling, met the Speaker.
The delegation submitted a memorandum seeking constitutional safeguards, political representation and mandatory inclusion of constitutionally recognised Nepali Scheduled Castes in any Permanent Political Solution (PPS) for Darjeeling, Kalimpong, the Terai and the Dooars. The Association also called for reservation of elected seats and stronger protection of the educational, socio-economic and constitutional rights of Nepali Scheduled Castes.
Meanwhile, Dipak Barman, State minister for School Education, speaking to the media at Uttarkanya, the mini secretariat in Siliguri, announced, "Although Uttarkanya was built as a secretariat, the previous government had reduced it to just another building by not utilising it properly.
From now on, I will hold office at Uttarkanya every Friday and oversee the functioning of the school education department from here."
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.