GORKHALAND

Gorkhaland

The Union government, the West Bengal government and the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) leadership have agreed to the formation of the Gorkhaland Terrotorial Administration (GTA), an autonomous body. Gorkhaland is the name of the proposed state in India demanded by the Gorkhali speaking ethnic group in Darjeeling in North West Bengal The demand for a separate administrative unit in this region has existed since 1907, when the Hillmen's Association of Darjeeling submitted a memorandum to Minto-Morley Reforms demanting a separate administrative set  In Independent India,Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha Leaue(ABGLwas the first political party from the region to demand greater identity for the Gorkha ethnic group and economic freedom for the community.

The movement for a separate state gained serious momentum during the 1980s, when a violent agitation was carried out by Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) The agitation ultimately led to the establishment of a semiautonomous body in 1988 called theDarjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) to govern certain areas of  Darjeeling district.. However, in 2008, a new party called the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha raised the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland once again.  Before the 1780s, the area of Darjeeling formed a part of dominions of the Chogyal of Sikkim, who had been engaged in unsuccessful warfare against the  Gorkhas of NepalFrom 1780, the Gorkhas made several attempts to capture the entire region of Darjeeling. By the beginning of 19th century, they had overrun Sikkim as far eastward as the  Teesta Riverr and had conquered and annexed the  Terai In the meantime, the British were engaged in preventing the Gorkhas from overrunning the whole of the northern frontier. The Anglo-Gorkha  war broke out in 1814, which resulted in the defeat of the Gorkhas and subsequently led to the signing of the  Sugauli Treaty in 1815. According to the treaty, Nepal had to cede all those territories which the Gorkhas had annexed from the Chogyal of Sikkim to the British East India Company (i.e. the area between Mechi River and Teesta river).

The controversy did not end there. Later, in 1835, the hill of Darjeeling, including an enclave of 138 square miles (360 km²), was given to the British East India Company by Sikkim, executed with a controversial Deed of Grant. In November 1864, the Treaty of Sinchula was executed, in which the Bhutan Dooars with the passes leading into the hills and Kalimpong were ceded to the British by  Bhutan. The present Darjeeling district can be said to have assumed its present shape and size in 1866 with an area of 1234 sq. miles. Prior to 1861 and from 1870–1874, Darjeeling District was a "Non-Regulated Area" (where acts and regulations of the British Raj did not automatically apply in the district in line with rest of the country, unless specifically extended). From 1862 to 1870, it was considered a "Regulated Area". The term "Non-Regulated Area" was changed to "Scheduled District" in 1874 and again to "Backward Tracts" in 1919. The status was known as "Partially Excluded Area" from 1935 until the independence of India

    In the 1980s, Subash Ghising raised the demand for the creation of a state called Gorkhaland within India to be carved out of the hills of Darjeeling and areas of Dooars and Siliguri terai contiguous to Darjeeling. The demand took a violent turn, which led to the death of over 1,200 people. This movement culminated with the formation of Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) in 1988.

The DGHC elections were due in 2004. However, the government decided not to hold elections and instead made Subash Ghising the sole caretaker of the DGHC till a new Sixth Schedule council was established. Resentment among the former councilors of DGHC grew rapidly. Among them, Bimal Gurung, once the trusted aide of Ghising, decided to break away from the GNLF. Riding on a mass support for Prashant Tamang, an  Indian Idol  contestant from Darjeeling, Bimal quickly capitalized on the public support he received for supporting Prashant, and was able to overthrow Ghising from the seat of power. He went on to found the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha raising the demand a state of Gorkhaland.

Ahead of the 2009 general elections in India, the BJP again announced its policy of having smaller states and to create two more states, Telangana and Gorkhaland, if they won the general election. GJM supported the candidature of Jaswant Singh of BJP, who won the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat with 51.5% votes in his favour. In the July 2009 budget session of Parliament, three Parliamentarians—Rajiv Pratap Rudi, Sushma Swaraj and Jaswant Singh—strongly pleaded for creating a state of Gorkhaland. West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Sunday,February,2011 firmly told the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha that its demand for a separate state would never be conceded and asked it to instead concentrate on development of the region. "Stop your movement for a Gorkhaland. It will never be fulfilled. Concentrate on all round development of Darjeeling as it is the only solution to the issue

On a historic day for Darjeeling Hills, the Centre, the West Bengal government and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) signed a tripartite agreement to create Gorkhaland Territorial Administration.The administration will have greater financial and administrative autonomy. The agreement is expected to douse the agitation for a separate state in the Darjeeling Hills, adding feather to the Mamata Banerjee government, which took over power in May. The Union home secretary, along with the West Bengal home secretary and the secretary of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha signed the treaty on Monday in presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Home Minister P. Chidambaram. Thousands of GJM supporters gathered at the Pintal Village, near Siliguri on Monday to witness and celebrate the signing of the tripartite agreement. The Left stayed away from the function. It feels the agreement will only aggravate the problem.The tripartite pact gives Gorkhaland Territorial Administration powers to generate revenue. Elections to the GTA will be held within a few months and all parties will be free to participate in the electoral process.The GTA will have authority over civic bodies, departments of electricity and IT in the proposed Gorkhaland area. It will also be given power to control tea gardens and the crucial tea industry. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha had expressed happiness that the word 'Gorkhaland' was included in the nomenclature of the new hill council in Darjeeling, but did not specify whether it would continue with its demand for a separate state. "We are happy with the inclusion of 'Gorkhaland' in the name of the new hill council to be known as Gorkhaland Territorial Administration,"

 GJM The demand for Gorkhaland was not a closed chapter, a member of the Gorkhaland Janamukti Morcha (GJM) said Monday,18^th July,2011 while describing the tripartite agreement as a temporary solution rather than a permanent one.“As far as the Gorkhaland demand is concerned, it is not a closed chapter…the Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) is just a temporary settlement for the economic development of the Darjeeling hills. It is not a permanent solution,” said T. Arjun, member of the ‘intellectual forum of the GJM’ and a former West Bengal civil services officer. The centre and the state will provide all possible assistance to the GTA for the oval all development of the region. The centre will provide Rs 200 crore per annum for three year for projects to develop the socio-economic infrastructure in the GTA over and above the normal plan assistance to West Bengal

                                                         Prof. John Kurakar.