"Bloodorange" e un nume frumos ca un titlu de poem, in spatele caruia se "ascunde" un amestec de ceai verde japonez, bucatele de portocala, coji de portocala, si petale de flori de portocala. Portocala la puterea a treia deci, mai lipsea sa bage in el si simburii, sau eventual frunzele de portocal, si tacimul era complet. Dincolo de gluma insa, rezultatul este extraordinar. Bun si simplu, devinde de-a dreptul divin servit cu miere si asta intrucit, in combinatie cu dulceata luminoasa si subtila, senzualitatea aromei de portocal isi gaseste adevarata implinire.

Inviorator si invaluitor, aromat si subtil, delicat si inmiresmat, "Bloodorange" e un ceai perfect de savurat intr-o zi fara soare...cu siguranta va va insenina sufletul.

By

VIKRAM KARVE

I love tea.

You too love tea but don’t know how to make a good cup?

Let me tell you how to make tea.

Get some good Assam CTC Tea [CTC is an acronym for Crush, Tear and Curl]. CTC teas have a granular appearance and the fact of the matter is that if you are really interested in a Stimulating, Refreshing and Invigorating cup of traditional Indian Tea, Orthodox Leaf Teas [the OPs, the BOPs, et al] just don’t fit the bill – you need CTC tea to brew your strong, bright and full-bodied cup of milky Chai which looks deliciously appetizing – a lively reddish orange colour, not the dull muddy brown colour you get when you add milk to tea made from leaf teas the orthodox “teapot” way.

Take two cups of fresh water [one for you and one for me!] in a stainless steel vessel. Add four teaspoons of sugar. Put on the stove, cover with a lid and boil. Once the water starts boiling, remove the lid and boil for one and a half minutes – yes, exactly one and a half minutes!

Now briskly add two teaspoons of CTC Tea leaves, one teaspoon for each cup – the boiling water will suddenly erupt, and surge up, like a volcano, so smartly switch off the flame before it spills over and quickly cover tightly with the lid. Brew for five minutes till the liquor is full-bodied and the infusion is complete.

Have ready some freshly boiled full cream buffalo milk – yes, fresh creamy buffalo milk is a must – in Pune, I prefer Chitale’s. First pour in some hot milk in the cup, and through a strainer, pour in the rich tea brew and till you get beautiful reddish orange colour. Remember – always pour tea into milk, never milk into tea. This is the secret of the appetizingly attractive bright lively carroty red colour as it facilitates the perfect blending of the strong rich full-bodied intense tea liquor tea brew with the creamy white milk without producing any bitterness.

Now, go ahead, relish every sip, and enjoy your cup of ambrosial divine rejuvenating tea.

And do tell us how you liked it.

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2008

Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

vikramkarve@sify.com

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

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Included in this week's excitement, both good and bad, and altogether disjointed...:

The builders from Shillong could not produce the proper paperwork (saying they were allowed to move to and work in Meghalaya), and thus had to leave the village. The head mason says he'll help them retrieve said paperwork, but Nangroi and I think we'll just stick with the local builders henceforward. We're in the next stage of foundation building, which is digging out wells between the support pillars and filling them with large stones and cement.

Janis from Charlottesville has arrived! Janis is staying at the Kharang Rural Center -- right next door! -- and is coming with Jon and I to the site to help out with carrying cement and such. (This week Jon and I also kit shyiup, i.e., carried sand on our backs via conical baskets held up by our foreheads. Needless to say, our heads and shoulders weren't too pleased with us, though the local builders were pretty amused by our efforts.)

Ebe from Pittsburgh paid a visit to the Kong Barr Secondary School, which Pittsburgh's First Church sponsors and where Sharmila works! We saw a really nice program with student performances and speeches from the school's management committee, but unfortunately Ebe had to take an early ride back to Shillong and couldn't stay for long. We're hoping that she'll have more time to chat with students and teachers when the pilgrimage comes to Kharang next week!

A bonus from Ebe's visit is that she brought a care package from First Church, including a beautiful card from the Campus Ministry group, candy corn (for Halloween) and cranberry sauce (for Thanksgiving), lots of books and magazines (which I believe are mostly courtesy of my friend Benjamin), and other odds and ends like guitar chords and a short-wave radio. So many thanks to Ebe, Devon, UUCC, and everyone at First Church for supporting me and Jon!

Sharmila birthday fun! On Monday night, she invited three of her fellow teachers over for a great dinner, and a number of students came for sweets as well. It was a really fun evening, and I loved the opportunity to get to know Sharmila's coworkers better. On her birthday proper we had another fun, late night, especially thanks to Khlur who made a surprise morning visit to drop off a delicious cake! She also really liked her birthday gift, a kot jingrwai (hymnbook).

Sharmila, Jon, and I are also all in the midst of planning big travels at the end of October. Sharmila has a few days off, and she's visiting a friend from the World Bank in Manipur. I was planning to visit my friend Jenn in Kathmandu around the same time, and not to be left out, Jon is coming with me. If any of you have suggestions of what to see and do in Kathmandu or Darjeeling, we're up for suggestions :)

Mei and Pa, the Mukhim parents, have both been in poor health as of late. Mei has been struggling with ankle trouble for over a year now, and Pa is really struggling with a combination of asthma and bronchitis. Both have been out of Kharang for the past week receiving treatment. If you all could keep them in your prayers, it would be greatly appreciated.

To end on a high note, the most exciting news of the week came early in the morning. As you read in my last post, Dari our "house manager" was recently trained as a beautician. Today, one of her instructors got the message to us that she passed her certification exam! We're all really happy and proud of her (though not possibly as happy as she is; she was ecstatic)!

Now I'm just waiting for Sunday and to see my parents and the rest of the pilgrimage in Shillong. I can't wait!

(Entendu dans le Darjeeling Limited, film lui aussi épatant)

Pour écouter:Deezer

Et dispo ici.

I was searching for a movie that would thrill me or indulge in my imagination but I didnt know ehat could possibly do that. I went to my renting place an started browsing believe me I changed from one movie to the other until I stumbled upon "The Darjeeling Limited". I must admit Adrien Brody was my primary appeal to the movie and perhaps the twist I thought Owen Wilson would bring to the film supposively comedic. I took it home and believe me I wasnt dissapointed.

This isn't a new movie, it came out last year, but it really doesnt matter I enjoy finding new movies each time. This movie is directed by Wes Anderson ( "The Life Aquatique with Steve Zissou") and also written by him. The story line is based on three brothers who drift apart after the passing of their father and the constant dissapearence of their mother since this event. The Withman brothers enbark on a "spiritual journey" across some of India cities to bond again and hopefully regain some trust on each other. The personalities of the brothers are incredibly different and each has their own story in the film. Franci, Owen Wilson, is the one that controls everything he is slightly crazy so to speak but well he joins the other two perfectly. Peter, Adrien Brody, is deeply disturbed result of his father's tragic passing and tries to deal with this privately and also with the fact he is having a child very soon. He was my favorite character throught the whole film his emotions, all his secrets and those flattering glasses just made the movie for me. And then we come to Jack, the youngest played by Jason Schwartzman, who is obssesed with his ex-girlfriend and doesn't know what to do with his life at all. His ex-girlfriends is played by Natalie Portman but she doesnt appear in the movie, the story is shown in a short film "The Chavalier Hotel" that plays before the movie. Believe me that was a stroke of genious.

I really enjoyed this movie and the other aspect that made my day was the amazing songs used in the film. They are all very different in melody and meaning but they fit perfectly to every part. The difference between them amazed me. You can go from a classic indian number by Satyajit Ray to the Kinks in just one frame and really how cool is that! "Claire de Lune" ....Joe Dassin. Really I don't know ehat you want to do first if the music or the film but I definetl recommend that you get up and check it out!

Stars: *****

You can get the Song List here!

[gallery]

Travel to Sikkim-Darjeeling-Kalimpong:

The trip was planned for a week taking us from Bangalore to Bagdogra by air, then Darjeeling-Gangtok-Kalimpong and back to Bangalore from New Jalpaiguri. For those planning anew, here are the points to help you:

An overview of the region 

Darjeeling and Kalimpong are two of the most the most popular destinations up in the east-Himalayan regions that fall north of West-Bengal. These places are situated on the top of adjacent mountains. Further north lies the mountain-state of Sikkim - a clean, cool state that definitely stands out from the rest. WB and Sikkim are seperated by the river Teesta - the road from DLG to GTK follows the Teesta and here you have the most wonderful roads - a classic demonstration of the Indian BRO/BSF abilities. On one side of the road is WB while on the other side is Sikkim seperated by the treading river! The Gorkhas make up the majority of the population(Prashant Tamang comes from here, every empty wall carried his poster and I kept wondering all through what support can India give anyone!) and their movement boils out at times restricting the movement of tourist transport on these single roadways. Landslides could be a bigger problem during rains. 

How to reach and leave the place 

By Air, Bagdogra is the nearest airport to every place north of itself - Darjeeling, Kalimpong or for that matter Sikkim(though there's a chopper that operates from Bagdogra to Gangtok with a capacity of 4). This place is a small port connected to Guwahati, Kolkata and Delhi - there have been quite a few additional private carriers in these segments these days. Please check your travel by air - you might have to sacrifice some time in waiting during transit. From Bagdogra operates the 4-person helicopter that takes you to Gangtok at around half-past-two(this is the time when the Indian Airlines' flight from Kolkota reaches Bagdogra)

 By Train, New Jalpaiguri, a town adjacent to Siliguri is the farthest railhead you can reach to access this region by normal train. From New Jalipaiguri, there's a toy train(that features on the UNESCO's world-heritage list) to Darjeeling -  a train to experience but not to travel! It takes around 7 hours from NJP to Darjeeling while a maruti omni takes you there in three hours! Listed in the links are guides to trains, timings.

By Road, unfortunately the steep hills do not allow access by bus - I never found one during all my stay there. Nevertheless, the taxis - maruti omnis and tata sumos, are a fine replacement to the buses. While Omnis are considered to carry two, contrary to what it could mean to many; Sumos carry more - either public or chartered. And that would be the best way to experience your roaring stomachs, if they do!

The First Impression

Bagdogra did quite excite me with it's offbeat look - a calm, serene and organised look to prove the Army's way of doing things but as we passed on to Siliguri, it looked more of typical equatorial landscape with thick density of trees and bamboo huts. Slowly as we were reaching the mighty mountains, the very presence amidst plains to take off into the world's virgin and highest range of mountains did run a few tingles down my spine - I kept staring at the line of hills that our road was leading to, with all astonishment and wonder beyond mystery that my soul was being subjected to, as all the thoughts from the little knowledge I have of the Himalayan Masters, unventured spiritual centres ran through my mind. Perhaps, that's how the soul conquers the mind. In no time, we were quite taking hair-pin bends seeing villages dotting the huge hill sides and lights just beginning to appear amongst the fog. Our driver was an old gentleman who perhaps loved safety to speed and kept us warm all through the journey. We stopped by a wooden motel to taste the snack that I never knew would make me one of it's greatest admirers - the Momos - fresh and hot either out of boiling oil or out of a steaming cooker. And a surprise to our taste-buds - the Darjeeling tea!

Darjeeling

I never thought I would relish a place so much after I have left it. So was this gifted town from the Raj era. As long as I stayed there, I never found it interesting than a tourist place; but now whenever my eye falls on the sight of the photos, I cannot stop myself from flying to the place and embracing it's beauty in a jiffy! This place has it all - buzzing crowd and serenity of privacy, riches and poverty of Indian population, European architecture and the Indian flair.

What we did? The best way to feel the spirit of this place to explore this town on foot. Quite an exercise, but we felt no better way to experience the beauty of this place - fog in the noon, snake-like streets beaded along with Raj-era buildings, orchids and the conifers - what would the soul ask more for? We visited the popular Padmaja Naidu Zoological park and the Himalayan Mountaineering Insititute, which are worth the visit. The best of it all was to laze around in an adjacent park to the zoo late in the afternoon. The Gompas were a big disappointment, especially after having visited the Bylekuppa(near Mysore) Namdroling Monastery! Had we not spent our time in the market, at the INOX(unfortunately to a rather boring film!) and the dinner at the Dekeling, our trip would have missed that extra topping! The INOX, the CCD and the Big Bazaar, though not for the nature-lovers, are places to be witnessed that prove what a low-population means! The trip to Tibetan Carpet Centre was a great memoir to carry from Darjeeling - we had a look at the way the carpets were made; the most interesting thing was the hospitality and the smile on these Tibetan faces that had taken refuge in India. The posters that pleaded the world for a recognition of their nation, a plead for help towards humanity against the forces that try to keep up supremacy by way of domination did influence our lighter sides! But then we are as helpless as they are! We are not Uncle Sams to protect an Israel! 

Where we stayed? We stayed at the Elgin to start off. Though the heritage was apparent from the atmosphere it carried inside the hotel, it was not the same outside. I would have preferred the attic-room to the suite. Unfortunately, they did not offer us the double-room that we had booked long back and were asked to take up another choice - the suite or the attic-room. Ony later did I come to know that I had to pay for this too and it was yet another 2k that I had to shed for a night, which was rather a big disappointment. The food was wonderful. We had to opt out as we had already got holiday homes booked, which were really not good enough to keep our spirits up for the stay! Had I the choice to change them, I would have stayed at Windamere or Mayfair at the top end and spent the rest at Tashi Delek near SBI.  

Sikkim

Hmm, if I were to pick the best moment of our trip, I would pick the journey from Darjeeling to Gangtok on a road that took us through thick conifers, warm towns bathing in fresh sunlight, hillside villages that kept me wondering if all my present struggle for existence was worth it, along the river that seperated the two states of West Bengal and Sikkim!

What we did? All the fun began even before we reached Gangtok. The entry point to Sikkim before Ravangla itself was a feast to the eye with black, wide roads, cleaner than any other place in India. The atmosphere became more majestic, serene and enlightening to the nature-loving spirit. We had a few poses on the Teesta - thank to the couple-duo, our driver and his girl-friend. After having reached Gantok, we had yet another disappointment from the SBI holiday homes that were booked for us. A sudden change that the destiny took us to a wonderful place called Cherry guest house.

 

[caption id="attachment_31" align="alignleft" width="188" caption="Sikkim's Welcome"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_39" align="alignnone" width="200" caption="Gangtok"][/caption]

Though we did not travel much around Sikkim, despite having planned to, due to unforeseen expenditures - we had to stay back at Gangtok for around 3 days. Exploration on foot proved to be the real thing yet another time - our walks to the Enchey Gompa, then the Sikkim Handloom Centre through the cleanest, wide roads dotted with flora all along, through the narrow streets and pavements, through the rocky landscape up and down-hills did enlighten our spirits up to unknown heights. We came across the famous Tashi Namgyal Academy - a boarding school to which Baichung Bhutia went to. Mind you, the roads are not this clean in busy areas, where spitting on roads still spoils the place. The Sikkim handloom centre was yet another place where we found yet another demonstration of art in India. We took our first ever ride on a cable-car that turned out to be my first such venture - hanging at a height of around 6500 ft above the ground. This runs between the Deorali market and the secretariat with a stop in between - it takes aroung 15-20 mins for a round-about trip. The walk through the buzzing city town-market, MG Road gave a clear picture of the Sikkimese lifestyle. The fact that this place has more cosmetic and clothing shops than any other normal town down south was quite interesting to us.Again a memoir of a lifetime, we spent each of evenings at the Baker's Cafe at MG Road. This Englander cafe seves truly authentic western snacks. We planned a trip to the Changu lake and the Nathula, which eventually got shelved out. Only later did we hear that it was snowing there!Where we stayed? We accidentally bumped unto the Cherry guest house - we opted to stay there for all four days for just Rs 4k! That's quite incredible for an accomodation like that! The food was absolutely flawless, due to which we found no better place for food at Gangtok! For more on the hotel, here's my review on mouthshut - http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Cherry_Guest_House__-_Gangtok-149850-1.html.

Kalimpong

We booked our tickets in advance for a shared jeep from Gangtok to this place - which wasn't that bad as we had thought. This ancient trade-centre that had routes open for trade between India, Tibet and Bhutan from times immemorial was a typical Himalayan town that held all signs of a trade-centre. Contrary to its's character, we booked one of the finest homestays for our stay here, as directed by Lonely Planet.

[caption id="attachment_52" align="alignnone" width="215" caption="Tree House"][/caption]

 What we did? All we did here again was explore the place by walk, laze around in the natural beauty that our homestay offered. We did nothing more than buying a few souvenirs, clothes imported from Bhutan. This place called Holumba Haven is really haven for the nature lovers! The Thinlays, who own the estate are quite old in the business and the town too! They run an orchid nursery that exports orchids to Europe too! For more on this magnisficient homestay, read yet another review on the mouthshut.

How we moved about?

All the region have the same kind of transport. We hired either a maruti omni or a tata sumo for two for commuting - local or moving around places; this turned out to be a pretty costly affair. There was a fairly cheaper option to move about in shared jeeps, but I never liked to wait for longer times or get squeezed among the daily commuters. We fortunately bumped onto people like a Bobby Deol's clone(Mr Neeru in Darjeeling) - the most soft-spoken person I would have ever met! His attire and looks never matched his character. We do miss him for all our journeys! So, do keep away quite a part from your budget to meet the costs of travelling on a chartered taxi if you like privacy and save time. But if you don't mind that extra time off or the Indian population, shared jeep are the best option. One can reserve the shared jeeps alike KSRTC or any other transport here and mind you, the earlier you are, the better seats you get - right in front beside the driver where you would not have to share the place with others!

Our recommendations:

Travel:

To reach the place by air, www.ixigo.com is a comprehensive search engine for flight-information, as good as www.cleartrip.com. Yatra.com and makemytrip.com were quite costlier than the original flight sites themselves! One-way from Bangalore to Bagdogra cost us around Rs 7k per person one way. Reaching Gangtok by air would be quite an enchanting experience, but because it can carry only 4 per day, please try booking it well in advance(Rs 1500 per person). By train, you can get your tickets booked on www.irctc.co.in or www.thomascook.co.in.

Travel in the region is best if you can afford for a chartered taxi that comes in varied rates - normally ten times the cost on a shared one. The shared ones are quite cheaper - nothing's more than Rs 100 around the region and the taxi stands are as happening as the bus-stands elsewhere.

Stay: 

Darjeeling At the top-end, I would recommend Windamere, Mayfair and the Elgin in order of preference as I feel so from the location and the ambience. Otherwise, Tashi Delek near SBI is a very good place, it seems, as portrayed by it's restaurant 'Dekeling'(a pretty little place that serves Indian and Tibetan cuisine on four dim-lit tables).

[caption id="attachment_55" align="alignleft" width="188" caption="The Elgin"][/caption]

 Gangtok I found no better place than Cherry Guest House in terms of value for money, location and food. The Oriental on MG Road was good too, but a little costlier, perhaps for the ambience it offers. Others like the Tashi Delek or Snow Lion were located quite far off from the main area. I feel Hidden Forest Retreat is still a nice option if you prefer seclusion to ny other criterion.

[caption id="attachment_22" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="View from the Guest-House"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_49" align="alignleft" width="128" caption="Momos"][/caption]

Kalimpong Though we had thought of Orchid Retreat at first for Kalimpong, we changed our opinion according to the LP to Holumba Haven and it really turned out to be a magnificent experience. Do not miss the review at mouthshut.

What to eat:

Momos, Tibetan Noodles(Thugkpa), the regional cuisine - soft and mild but healthy and hygienic.

 

What to do?

Why would anyone go to the Himalayas - it caters to a multitude of travellers - honeymooners, couples, the adventurous, nature-lovers etc. If you were just visiting it for the love of the place, do explore the places on foot. Choose a stay at one of the many retreats which give access to a variety of flora. Travel all through sikkim should take you to places never seen before, roads that you never have gone to - frozen lakes, orchids, lifestyle on the mountains...At Sikkim, contact Altitude Travels at one end of the MG Road near Sikkim Tourism office for travels, adventure sports etc - the owner is very hospital and doesn't charge too much for the professional services he offers. Buy sovenirs from Darjeeling for the special ones and from Kalimpong for the popular ones like figurines and memntos made of yak-bone and the bronze figurines of Buddhist Gods and demons. Kalimpong is very good for clothes and woven carpets - you get the best silk from Bhutan at unbelievable prices(the shop we visited and our attender were quite sweet). Other things to look for - himalayan orchids, tibetan art pieces, buddhist art, perfume-sticks and articles for the prayer-room.

Our thanks to Lonely-planet for the wonderful guidance, all those lovely people like Neeru, his cousin, the store-keeper who sold us a Canon A470, receptionist from Cherry's at Gangtok and the Thinlays, who made our visit the kind it is! Here are some photos if you want a little more...[http://picasaweb.google.com/sudheendhar.pg/TripToSikkim#]

 

 

 

I am an unemployed,

thirty eight year old 'youth' in Darjeeling.

My education cut short,

all thanks to the agitation of 1986.

It’s as if the last 22 years

has been going around on its own axis.

I roam the streets of my hometown

and try to act as nonchalant as could be;

like when we were teenagers.

Needless to say, I am still single,

and despite a longing for some company now and then

I am not yet ready to mingle (for obvious reasons).

Over the years my folks berated me,

shunned me, and then eventually accepted me;

like a farmer would accept a vermin

which is protected by law.

The interiors of this Eden hospital

(that stands tall displaying its outward architectural magnificence

but once steeped in controversy, therefore, in the news for all the wrong reasons)

is more than familiar to me.

Well I've been here a few times before (and not just visiting someone).

This time I am here with a jaundiced liver.

My neighbor on bed no.24 is a man in his mid-forties.

I'm told he's been here for a while now.

He's in pretty bad shape

and I'm afraid he's not going to make it.

I've been here for a week now and

I've seen neither hide nor hair of his folks.

I guess I'm lucky that way,

my mom hasn't given up on me, yet.

She trudges her way here every day.

She's not in the best shape of her life either.

For them I've been a black sheep- A Saiduwa chora.

Living shamelessly on my retired father's pension.

An epitome of failure

Whose reflection the neighbors detest to see

In the coming generation.

Times have been hard.

And its getting harder.

With no sign of respite

From any quarter.

The learned among us often opine,

and express through poems, essays, stories.

that embellish the local papers.

'Darjeeling has been brain-drained,

rendered fit only for rowdies.'

Goes without saying that I've been bad.

But the times were such,

the environment, the situation and the age was such.

It all made me what I am today.

The ravages of the 1980's

are there for every one to see.

Young lads just like me

became violent agitators,

and listless revolutionaries,

frustrated foot soldiers,

then alcoholics and drug addicts;

necessarily in that order.

But (god only knows!) I too had a dream.

I still remember, with such excitement

I had run down the roads of Raj Bari with friends;

drenched in the rain, wet with unbridled joy

celebrating our success in the Madhyamik Examination.

We dreamt of going to college.

I was barely sixteen then.

But it was not to be.

Bringing tidings of better future,

a self-proclaimed messiah cried hoarse

for agitation, for revolution.

The agent provocateur found willing takers

in my generation.

But the fates had different ideas.

Our every step towards freedom foiled,

we enrolled in the GVC.

We were trained to maim and murder.

Desperate times required desperate measures.

The thoughts of carefree days in college were long gone now.

Khukuris thrust into our waistbands and  Khaduwas  in our  hands,

we went to do battle for our 'promised land'.

Impassioned we walked the owl-hoot trails,

heady with the zeal of the revolutionary.

Days and nights dragged on into months.

In time, the outlawry gave way to bestiality.

We were pushed to the very edge

of reason and rationality.

Then when we finally crossed the line of sanity

we became unrecognizable, even to ourselves.

Our ideals lost in the maze

of police raids and political rabble-rousing.

Our hands soiled with the blood of strangers,

we lived for mayhem and murder.

Our sworn enemy - the CRPF

proved to be our nemesis.

They caught us, jailed and tortured us.

They made 'martyrs' of many of us.

Of course, we got our own back

every now and then.

The stalemate dragged on for months

and then for years.

Then one fine day our 'messiah' showed us a silver lining,

But failed to see and show the dark clouds lurking beneath.

And with a 'historic settlement' our fates were sealed.

We were plunged into an abyss of uncertainties.

Me and countless others who lost it all

were left to pick the pieces on their own.

The newly formed Council threw some crumbs our way,

which was too little and soon that too petered out.

The exploitation and the unemployment began to take its toll.

Sheer boredom and some wrong turns led to the inevitable.

I became a substance abuser in my early twenties.

The frustrations, the nightmarish violence,

the dying embers of hope, the inevitable surrender;

I had lived through it all.

But the pent up anger found a violent outlet.

Try as I might there was no escaping that route.

And a 'rowdy' like I was born.

The old folks in my neighborhood,

they see in me whatever that was bad about the agitation.

There's no warmth in their eyes.

There's always a veiled look of disgust and contempt.

After twenty years of an abysmal existence

I hear again the same old flame picking up,

But this time in the right direction, in the right way (they say).

The need of the hour,

is to carry forward the task left incomplete, they say.

But I wonder if the ghosts of 1986 are lurking somewhere

beyond the wintry haze.

They say I'm a goner

and my life's been a sheer waste.

An ugly scar on the visage of these serene hills.

But god only knows, me and my ilk gave it

as best as they could give it;

given the circumstances.

We could've taken the alternative

if there had been one.

But I guess my generation can lay claim to one thing,

at the least.

We too are sons of the soil (outcasts or not).

Our heart still burn for the freedom

For which we fought and paid dearly.

Now the bells are tolling again.

Stirring in us all a ray of hope.

But I dare not hope.

I dare not dream a long-forgotten dream.

All I can do is to wish and pray.

That they may choose a different path.

May they not be led

Like unsuspecting sheep to slaughter.

May they not be double-dealt

and driven to despair.

May they carry the flame forward

Sorting out personal differences.

And thinking not ' what I may get in this bargain'

And this time make good the promise

That we had made to ourselves

Of realizing the dream of standing on our own land,

Of breathing the free air of Dignified Existence.

So that no father has to severe

all ties with his wayward son.

And no aging mother has to nurse

her son back to the land of the living.

And I can only hope and pray

that they do not inherit

a legacy that they can do without.

The legacy of 'rowdy'.

By Various Sources on September 06,2008

By Various Sources on September 03,2008

Apropos Schwarztee: Ich bin ein leidenschaftlicher Schwarzteetrinker und (innerlich) sehr sauer, wenn wieder einmal bei einem "Kaffeekränzchen" (eben) nur Kaffee und dann "ja Tee, äh, darf's Hagebutte oder Kamille sein?" angeboten wird. Morgens Darjeeling - da kann man mehr davon trinken und nachmittags ein Assam - offener Tee natürlich, sehr fein!! Entkalktes Wasser muss nicht sein; hab ich auch einmal eine zeitlang probiert; finde ich aber übertrieben. Exkurs Ende.

Wo waren wir stehen geblieben? Also nach dem dritten Schwarztee begann ich munter zu werden und dem Tempo meiner drei folgen zu können. Heute war das Wetter traumhaft, super vorherbstliches Wetter - ideale Bedingungen für ein Bobby-Car-Rennen unter (kleinen) Nachbarn. Das kleine nette Video dazu hat die Kamera geschluckt -leider!

Speiseplan heute: Hokkaido-Kürbiscremesuppe und Topfennockerl

Der Hokkaido stammt leider nicht aus unserem Garten - den haben die Schnecken gefressen. Aber dieses Jahr hatten wir sowieso kaum Zeit, uns unserem Gemüsegarten zu widmen.

Zum Thema passend ein kleines Fotosuchspiel:

Wo ist der Schnittlauch, unser einziges echtes Gemüseüberbleibsel im Gemüsegarten? Aber nicht schummeln, zuerst nur das erste Bild ansehen. (Das Auflösungsbild findet ihr am Ende dieses Eintrages.)

Habe gestern den vollverzinkten Mega-Super-Schneckenzaun weggegeben - bei der Bewucherung am Außenrand des Zaunes, war das Reinkommen für jede Schnecke das pure Vergnügen. In diesem Gärten wuchs alles, nur nicht das, was wir gesetzt hatten. Und die wenigen Tomatenpflanzen haben erst seit kurzem (grüne) Früchte. Ob die noch reif werden?

Der Abend klang in der gemütlichen Hängematte aus, wenn auch das "Hängen" ohne ein Kind im Gesicht oder Rücken nur wenige Minuten andauerte.

Und hier das versprochene Auflösungsbild:

Gratulation denen, die ihn gefunden haben!!!

ohn Milton once said, “Anarchy is the sure consequence of tyranny; no power that is not limited by laws can ever be protected by them”….. 20 years of GNLF rule and the least I can say about it… It was tyrannical indeed. We saw it all… be it fear mongering or brutal broad day light murders. People were scared, and there was no way one could dare to go against the tide. 20 long years, it took us to stand together and raise a unified voice of protest against the tyrannical rule.
 
One question lingers though?? Who promoted the tyranny??? Who allowed GNLF to do as it pleased in those 20 years??? Is it just the GNLF and its leaders who are to be blamed?? Sadly, the answer is no. We the people of Darjeeling are equally to be blamed for all that happened in the past. We watched with muted approval of all that was going wrong, we inspired the so called leaders to reign over us with unlimited power. We accepted their actions by not speaking against them. Look at the election results from those days, they speak for themselves. In every single election, GNLF was given an overwhelming mandate by the people living in DGHC area. In the last count (before Sept 2007) 30 out of 32 DGHC councilors and 3 MLAs were GNLF members. GNLF enjoyed control of around 98% panchayats seats in the DGHC region, besides being given control of all the four municipalities viz: Darjeeling. Kalimpong, Kurseong and Mirik,. The question I’d like to pose is, if we were so unhappy and unsatisfied with the functioning of GNLF, why did we keep on electing GNLF members to represent us??? 

Perhaps it was fear or perhaps it was the fact that majority of the people preferred the maintenance of status quo as opposed to an uncertain future. However, the recent happenings in the hills viz: social boycott, burning of houses, notice to leave Darjeeling, point to a very interesting social phenomenon, popularly known as “distancing oneself from the past.” Our actions in recent days, were, I feel more directed towards ourselves than the GNLF leaders. It was our way of saying we were wrong and we do not want anything to do with the past, of which we are now ashamed. I find the similarity between our case today and that of Germany after the end of 2nd world war. However, burning houses, social boycotting and ignoring our past is not going to undo what has already been done. I believe, what we need to do is, accept our past and be ready to move forward with more caution and vigilance in coming days.

For some time now, GJMM had been drawing criticism for the actions or rather the inaction of its leaders in terms of growing incidences of vandalism, high handedness and diktat unleashed by its cadres at the grass roots level. Finally, Mr. Bimal Gurung seems to have taken matters in his own hands, and he has decreed that “the politics of boycott and vandalism are now days of past, we will have to work together towards a common goal and common future.” 

This announcement has been welcomed with enthusiasm and vigor by all the Gorkhali’s across the world, who were quite apprehensive of GJMM after the recent spate of incidences. 

The all party meeting called by GJMM in relation to Gorkhaland issue being discussed in Delhi shortly, shows political maturity and desire to work with every section of population in the designated Gorkhaland area. Personally, I would like to thank GJMM leadership and intellectuals who see the need for showing a united front in the face of this crucial meeting.
 
Most of political and social organizations in the designated Gorkhaland area have welcomed this move by GJMM and called it “mature, sensitive and appropriate.” As always one party (or is it one particular person?) does not seem quite happy with GJMMs decision to take all party delegation to Delhi. AIGL Chief Mr. Madan Tamang has, “started to see conspiracy…” However, he “refuses to be included in the delegation to Delhi”. Instead he has constantly been lambasting GJMM and Darjeeling MP Dawa Narbula for not being open and frank about the discussions in Delhi. Let me put it this way, unless you participate, why should anyone be expected to tell you anything? What harm is there in representing hills people be it on the strength of one’s party or being (as he put it) “sponsored by GJMM”. The main goal should be to represent the people of designated Gorkhaland area, instead of bickering on who was invited and who is being sponsored. His political immaturity is evident from the manner he has been unresponsive to pleas and requests from others. It is ironic though, Mr. Tamang is the person who is most vocal about “collective leadership”, but refuses to accept anyone else’s leadership except his own. If Mr. Madan Tamang is a real leader, if he is really a concerned politician, he will for once forsake his ego and his superiority complex and attend the Delhi tri-partite talk for the sake of Gorkhaland if not for his own. 

One of the most positive news to have come is recent days has been immensely popular, All India signature campaign in favor of Gorkhaland, which has reached Assam. Some of my friends from north-east wrote to me, stating how they would love to support the cause of Gorkhaland and how they are currently sensitizing people in the North-East. Their hard works seems to be paying off, according to one email I received yesterday, there was a huge line up of ethnic Assamese, Bengalis and people of origin other than just Gorkhali’s who happily signed their names in support of Gorkhaland. Unfortunately, when people in most parts of India happily signed the petition, and provided all possible help; Sikkim police arrested the signature campaign team on a flimsy charge of not taking out the permission. But the mistake of Sikkim police was more than made up for, when people from all walks of life turned out in huge numbers to show their support for Gorkhaland, which included all the political parties.

“Gorkhaland Rescue Team” is the name being used by the rafters from Malli and Teesta Bazar area, who have embarked on the noble cause to lend a helping hand to the people who are suffering due to the flooding in Bihar. They collected their own money and volunteer force of 150 individuals to help our country people in their time of need and distress. I am sure; actions like this will generate more good will for us across India, rather than bandh and rallies on any given day.

With sincere vote of thanks to people across India and especially those who have been tireless working for generating mass awareness for Gorkhaland and my prayers and best wishes to the “Gorkhaland Rescue Team”. I sincerely thank GJMM chief Mr. Bimal Gurung for finally putting a stop to the unnecessary vandalism and high handedness of his party cadres, which will undoubtedly usher in a new phase of Gorkhaland movement, that of cooperation, togetherness and constructive politics.

Finally, I leave you with immortal lines as stated by Edmund Burke... “When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.”

Hope! I made some sense

Upendra

Darjeeling times

It is a pity that every time the Gorkhas residing in India, specially those residing in the Darjeeling district & Dooars, raise the demand of a separate state in consonance with the Article 3 of the Indian constitution, we are dubbed as ‘foreigners’ or ‘immigrants’ and the demand very cruelly labeled as ‘separatist’. These labels of being ‘foreigners’ or ‘immigrants’ or ‘separatists’ have not only been used by communal forces like the ‘Amra Bangali’ or ‘Jan Jagaran Mancha’ or the ‘Jan Chetana Mancha’ (all of them being outfits of the highly communal CPI-M), but also by highly esteemed ministers of cabinet rank of the West Bengal State government, namely Sri Ashok Bhattacharya and Shri Subhash Chakroborty. Even the Chief Minister of West Bengal calls our movement for a separate state under the Indian union as separatist. It is not that these honourable (!) people do not know that to demand a separate state under Article 3 is entirely constitutional and not a separatist one. They repeatedly call our movement separatist because they constantly maintain and believe that we, the Indian Gorkhas are ‘foreigners’ and ‘immigrants’. As to the issue of the foreigners, the Indian constitution is very clear and there is no room for debate from any quarters questioning our Indian citizenship no matter how hard one may try. Coming to the issue of being branded as ‘immigrants’, we would like to highlight certain issues.

In 1839, Dr. Campbell, of the British East Indian Company devoted himself to the task of developing Darjeeling, inviting the hill tribes of neighboring region including Nepal to cultivate the mountain slopes, and stimulating trade and commerce. Every encouragement was given to the settlers, who received grants of forest land. It was mainly the hill tribes of Nepal who cleared the dense forests in the difficult mountainous terrain that helped Darjeeling grow by leaps and bounds. It was these hill tribes who were involved in the formation of the Hill Corps for the maintenance of law and order and improvement of communications in such a difficult terrain. Apart from Nepal, the people who worked here on the invitation of the British were the hill tribes from Sikkim (and of course, Darjeeling, which was gifted to the British by the Raja of Sikkim in 1835) and Bhutan too. All these facts which are documented in LSSO’Malley’s Darjeeling Gazeeter prove beyond doubt that apart from the Gorkhas who became Indian citizens by transfer of their land to British India, the other hill tribes who came to Darjeeling from Nepal, Bhutan and Sikkim were settlers who were enticed by the British to come to help the British build and develop this part of British India. So, those who very casually term the hill tribes as immigrants, without knowing the backdrop of their settlement are doing great injustice to the race of people who developed this place to this present state so that they are now able to make their sojourns as tourists to this land. These hill tribes were not refugees like the Bangladeshis who fled to India from Bangladesh because of insecurity or who entered and are continuing to enter India on the sly i.e. illegally under the patronage of the political masters in West Bengal to strengthen their political stronghold.

Later, after the signing of the Indo-Nepal Treaty of 1950, some people settled in India from Nepal by virtue of the treaty but their number is very less as can be verified from the Census reports. So, we see that even those who settled in India after 1950 did so legally as permitted by the Indo-Nepal Treaty of 1950, which is of mutual benefit to India and Nepal. It may not be out of place to mention that it is by virtue of this treaty that many Indians have settled in Nepal and are in national mainstream there. Now, Nepal even has Dr. Ram Baran Yadav, a Nepali citizen of Indian origin as its first President. Can we dream of this in India at present? One thing which needs to be stressed and needs to be clear in the minds of all (read Neo-Colonial rulers of West Bengal) that the Gorkha Indian citizens  are not ‘Refugees’ like the Bangladeshis, who have entered India in hordes and have changed the demography of Siliguri Sub-Division of Darjeeling district in a very short span of time.

In 1898, the final report on the Darjeeling Terai Settlement published by Sri Sasi Bhusan Dutta (Bengal Secretariat Press, Calcutta), a Settlement Officer of the Government of West Bengal, the total population as well as its ethnic breakup of the Terai areas of the Darjeeling district (i.e. Siliguri and its periphery of today) has been documented. The report reveals that more than 31% of the population in the Siliguri and adjoining Terai regions consisted of the Gorkhas, the Lepchas and the Bhutias. The remaining population was principally Adivasi and Mohamadden. What is remarkable is the fact that, the report does not show the presence of any Bengali population then. It is thus clear that the majority of the population in Siliguri and the Terai at the end of the 19th century was predominantly castes belong to the Nepali/Gorkha and Adivasi community.

Siliguri showed a population growth of 2.6%, 4.9%, 29.4% and 36.4% in 1891-1901, 1901-11, 1941-51 and 1951-61 respectively. The growth in population till 1941 was due to the rapid urbanization of Siliguri. However, from 1941 onwards the demography of Siliguri and its adjoining areas changed rapidly due the influx of refugees from present day Bangladesh. In 1941-59, the town of Siliguri recorded growth of 61.2%, which was largely due to the influx of refugees from the erstwhile East Pakistan, following the partition of the country in 1947 and the communal riots in 1950. In 1951-61, the population increased by 101.5% for Siliguri town, this again being due influx of refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan. Immigrant refugees, mostly Bengali Hindus from erstwhile East Pakistan became a quantitatively important segment of population of the district, most of who settled in the plains of Siliguri sub-division (West Bengal District Gazeeter, Darjeeling 1980).

Excerpts from the West Bengal District Gazeeter, Darjeeling 1980 bring out very interesting facts. It is written that “The refugee influx has helped Siliguri town to grow in many ways. The Refugee Rehabilitation Department made donations to the Siliguri College and the Siliguri Commerce College to construct buildings. Land was also granted to Siliguri Girls’ Higher Secondary School for its building as these institutions were needed to meet the ever-increasing demand for education of the new settlers. The state government also advanced more than Rs.1, 50,000 to the Siliguri Municipality to construct roads, make sanitary arrangements and arrange water supply in the refugee concentrations within the municipal limits. In addition, the Refugee Rehabilitation Department opened a market on a 3-acre plot of land at an expense of more than Rs. 10, 00000 for the benefit of about 800 refugee traders and named it ‘Bidhan Market’. Half of the refugee colonies are within Siliguri town and the persons staying there are mostly employed in urban occupations pertaining to the tertiary sector of the economy. Two are in the semi-urban area, the inhabitants of which are also employed more or less in the same sector. The other two colonies are in rural areas and engaged in the primary sector of the economy”.

The Government of West Bengal has taken lots of pains to take care of immigrants from neighbouring Bangladesh, who have been changing the demography of Siliguri and adjoining areas, pushing the original inhabitants, the Indian Gorkhas to the fringe areas. However, when thousands of Nepali speaking Bhutanese citizens were forcefully thrown out from Bhutan in the 1990s, not only did the Government of West Bengal keep mum on the issue, on the contrary it helped in the deportation of these Nepali speaking Bhutanese citizens through its territory in Indian army vehicles at the dead of night to the other side of the river Mechi in Nepal, where these refugees are languishing in a pathetic state. Every time they make efforts to go their homeland, they are thwarted by the Bengal police at Panitanki. The interesting question that arises here is why a differential treatment is meted out to refugees from Bhutan unlike those from Bangladesh? Are not both the groups foreigners? The answer to our question is obvious. As the Bhutanese refugees speak the language of the Indian Gorkhas, have similar physiognomy and have a similar social and cultural ethos, the West Bengal government was afraid that the accommodation of the Bhutanese refugees would alter the demography of Dooars, Siliguri and the adjoining areas. Similar episodes have happened to Indian Gorkhas residing in Assam and the North East. Had we a separate state, the Indian Gorkhas and the Nepali speaking Bhutanese refugees could have been saved from the ignominy of having to lead such miserable lives on the banks of the river Mechi on pure humanitarian grounds. In contrast, the Bangladeshis have been sheltered in West Bengal simply because of the common language and culture they share with the Bengalis residing in West Bengal and of course, the ‘vote bank’ issue. This was possible because the Bengalis have a separate state of West Bengal for themselves. If the state of West Bengal had not been in existence, the Bangladeshis would have possibly met the same fate as the Bhutanese refugees and the evicted Indian Gorkhas from Assam and the North East.

A book titled, ‘Immigration from Bangladesh to India based on census data’ by Aswini Kumar Nanda has documented the population flows from Bangladesh to India over 1981 and 2001. He reports that as of 2001, there were 3.1 – 3.7 million Bangladeshis in India, 97% of who have infiltrated to the East (i.e. Bengal) and Northeast regions in 1981-2001. It is reported that an average of 200,000 persons slip annually into West Bengal State alone’. Almost all of them stay back by procuring ration cards and entering their names in the voter’s list in collusion with the ruling Left front of West Bengal for the now well known ‘VOTE BANK’. In collusion with the highly politicized state administration, the CPI-M is reported to have forged and distributed more than 8 million ration cards, thereby jeopardizing the public distribution system.

The West Bengal Government has defined the term ‘Refugee’ in the context of immigration from Bangladesh as ‘families which were displaced from erstwhile East Pakistan (presently Bangladesh) and settled in West Bengal prior to 25th March 1971’. Those meeting the afore-mentioned criteria are eligible for rehabilitation from the government (West Bengal Government Official website). The Government of West Bengal has, even today, a department for Refugee Relief and Rehabilitation headed by the Hon’ble Minister of State, Shri Binay Krishna Biswas (Secretary: Smt. R. Venkataraman, IAS, and Officer on Special Duty: Shri A. Kanungo, WBCS). The Department was formed in 1950 with the objective handling the enormous dimensions of the human tragedy that West Bengal had to face following the partition of India in 1947 and the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war for liberation of Bangladesh. As per government order No. 264-Rehab. Dated 1988 & 602-Rehab. Dated 20-02-90 as well as 264-Rehab. Dated 35-01-91, the certificates from elected representatives including MPs, MLAs, Municipal Councillors, and Sabhapatis of Panchayat Samities would be accepted for the purpose of regularization of displaced families or for grant of a ‘No Objection Certificate’. Free-hold Title Deeds against homestead plots in government sponsored and approved ‘Squatters’ Colonies are now issued in appropriate cases to eligible refugee families. Lease deeds for 99 years granted to refugee families prior to 1988 are being converted to Free-hold Deeds vide government orders dated 17-01-89 and 08-12-88 (West Bengal Government Official website).

No doubt, the influx of refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan during partition in 1947, the riots that followed in 1950 and the Indo-Pakistan war for liberation of Bangladesh in 1971 was very unfortunate and the government had to rehabilitate the immigrants. Having said this, it also needs to be stated that this influx changed the demography of Siliguri. However, what is unacceptable is the accommodation of the illegal immigrants after 1971 by the Left front led government, mainly for political reasons i.e. vote banks for electoral gains. Indian Gorkhas, who were the dominant community in the Ashrampara, Hakimpara, Gurung busty and Pradhannagar areas of Siliguri town, have been reduced to a minority. Though it has been more than 60 years since the partition of Bengal and more than 37 years since the Indo-Bangladesh war, the Department of Refugee Relief and Rehabilitation continues to exist. Does it not indirectly suggest that the illegal immigration from Bangladesh still continues and they even have a department to welcome them? If there was no illegal immigration from Bangladesh continuing, why is it necessary to continue having a separate refugees from Bangladesh?

This influx of refugees and constant efforts at harassing the Indian Gorkhas from different areas of Siliguri has led to the gradual but pre-meditated ouster