Didi must unite Nepalis, Adivasis

JALPAIGURI: There have been a meeting of minds between chief minister and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leaders, but if the GJM demand for additional areas in the Dooars and Terai in the new hill council is to be successfully addressed then Mamata Banerjee has before her the difficult task of building a bridge of trust and prudence between Nepalis and Adivasis.

A four-member delegation of Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parshad (ABAVP), led by president Birsa Tirkey, submitted a memorandum to the CM in Kolkata on Wednesday and conveyed to her their stand on the issue. "There are 315 mouzas in the Dooars and 250 mouzas in the Terai which are included under the Integrated Tribal Development Project and without the concurrence of the National Commission for Schedule Tribes, these areas cannot be touched. Besides, all the areas which are said to be Nepali-oriented are parts of the assembly constituencies and Parliamentary seats reserved for ST. How can one ignore these facts" asked Tez Kumar Toppo, secretary of ABAVP's Bengal chapter.

The GJM has demanded inclusion of the Nepali-inhabited pockets of the Dooars and Terai under the new hill authority. Mamata, too, has asked an expert committee to check if the Nepali-dominated pockets can be a part of the arrangement.

But this announcement has already triggered discontent among the non-Nepali population living in the plains. They are ready to accept any solution if it is confined only to the Hills, but have expressed their determination to oppose if the government tries to include parts of the Dooars and the Terai.

Nepali pockets in these areas are surrounded by non-Nepali population (mostly tribals) and without their consent if any decision is taken, it might boomerang on the government. "We have always said that we have no problem if the matter is kept within the Hills. But we shall never allow the Dooars and Terai to be a part of the arrangement. We simply do not understand what is the justification behind checking out whether parts of the region can be included," said Toppo.

CPM leader Manik Sanyal feels that an addition of areas for the hill arrangement might trigger an adverse reaction in the plains. "Whatever arrangement is made, the area should not be increased. Otherwise it might give birth to disharmony.

However, let the committee submit its report on the issue. Only then the picture will be clear," he said.

Congress strongly feels that the interest of the tribals must be protected at any cost. "We have full faith in the state's CM and believe that she will consider every side before taking any decision," said Mohon Bose, president of Jalpaiguri Congress committee.

The tea industry and other business bodies too are keeping a close watch of the situation. "We pray for a healthy solution to the problem so that the industry is not affected," said a tea official.
--Pinak Priya Bhattacharya, TNN | Jun 9, 2011