NEPAL: Nepali Boy Is The World’s Shortest Man, Says Guinness World Records
KATHMANDU, Feb 27 (Bernama): Guinness World Records has verified Khagendra Thapa Magar, Nepal’s shortest man, as the shortest man in the world after verifying his height and weight, China’s Xinhua news agency reported, citing a local daily on Saturday.
According to The Himalayan Times daily, Thapa Magar was awarded a certificate to this effect in Rome Friday night.
According to Min Bahadur Rana, chairman, Khagendra Thapa Magar Foundation, 17-year-old Khagendra was awarded the Guinness certificate and a medal Friday night.
According to the Guinness verification team, Khagendra is 56 cm tall and weighs just 5 kg.
Rana added that Khagendra would be registered as the shortest man of the world in Guinness World Records after six months when he turns 18. He has also been given the registration number-154894.
Currently, China’s He Pingping, who is 74.93 cm tall, has been registered as world’s shortest man. He was recognized as the shortest man after the death of Gulma Mehta, a 57.15 cm tall man from India.
Euro Television Network had assisted Khagendra to go to Italy in his quest for the Guinness record. The French Embassy in Nepal had provided visas to Khagendra, his father Rup Bahadur Thapa Magar and chairman of the foundation Min Bahadur Rana to visit Italy.
---------------------------------------------------------------
A shortest human in the World is a Nepali
Agencies
Khagendra Thapa Magar
KATHMANDU, Feb 27 (Bernama):Guinness World Records has verified Khagendra Thapa Magar, Nepal’s shortest man, as the shortest man in the world after verifying his height and weight, China’s Xinhua news agency reported, citing a local daily on Saturday.
According to The Himalayan Times daily, Thapa Magar was awarded a certificate to this effect in Rome Friday night.
According to Min Bahadur Rana, chairman, Khagendra Thapa Magar Foundation, 17-year-old Khagendra was awarded the Guinness certificate and a medal Friday night.
According to the Guinness verification team, Khagendra is 56 cm tall and weighs just 5 kg.
Khagendra Thapa Magar - World's Shortest Boy
Rana added that Khagendra would be registered as the shortest man of the world in Guinness World Records after six months when he turns 18. He has also been given the registration number-154894.
Currently, China’s He Pingping, who is 74.93 cm tall, has been registered as world’s shortest man. He was recognized as the shortest man after the death of Gulma Mehta, a 57.15 cm tall man from India.
Euro Television Network had assisted Khagendra to go to Italy in his quest for the Guinness record. The French Embassy in Nepal had provided visas to Khagendra, his father Rup Bahadur Thapa Magar and chairman of the foundation Min Bahadur Rana to visit Italy.
Sunday 28 February 2010
JOURNEY TO THE RAJAH OF SIKKIM's RESIDENCE AT TUMLOONG
SERIES: HIMALAYAN JOURNALS by Joseph Dalton Hooker
-Episode 82 Vol II
source: Barunroy
THIS SERIES WAS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE CONTRIBUTION OF ABDUL KALAM EZANI
THE HIMALAYAN BEACON [BEACON ONLINE] EXCLUSIVE
HIMALAYAN JOURNALS
CHAPTER XXV
JOURNEY TO THE RAJAH OF SIKKIM's RESIDENCE AT TUMLOONG
We started on the 3rd of November for Tumloong (or Sikkim Durbar), Dr. Campbell sending Tchebu Lama forward with letters to announce his approach. A steep ascent, through large trees of _Rhododendron arboreum,_ led over a sharp spur of mica-schist (strike north-west and dip north-east), beyond which the whole bay-like valley of the Ryott opened before us, presenting one of the most lovely and fertile landscapes in Sikkim. It is ten miles long, and three or four broad, flanked by lofty mountains, and its head girt by the beautiful snowy range of Chola, from which silvery rills descend through black pine-woods, dividing innumerable converging cultivated spurs, and uniting about 2000 feet below us, in a profound gorge. Everywhere were scattered houses, purple crops of buckwheat, green fields of young wheat, yellow millet, broad green plantains, and orange groves.
We crossed spur after spur, often under or over precipices about fifteen hundred feet above the river, proceeding eastwards to the village of Rangang, whence we caught sight of the Rajah’s house. It was an irregular low stone building of Tibetan architecture, with slanting walls and small windows high up under the broad thatched roof, above which, in the middle, was a Chinese-looking square copper-gilt canopy, with projecting eaves and bells at the corners, surmounted by a ball and square spire. On either gable of the roof was a round-topped cylinder of gilded copper, something like a closed umbrella; this is a very frequent and characteristic Boodhist ornament, and is represented in Turner’s plate of the mausoleum of Teshoo Lama (“Tibet” plate xi.); indeed the Rajah’s canopy at Tumloong is probably a copy of the upper part of the building there represented, having been built by architects from Teshoo Loombo.
It was surrounded by chaits, mendongs, poles with banners, and other religious erections; and though beautifully situated on a flat terrace overlooking the valley, we were much disappointed with its size and appearance.
On the brow of the hill behind was the large red goompa of the Tupgain Lama, the late heir-apparent to the temporal and spiritual authority in Sikkim; and near it a nunnery called Lagong, the lady abbess of which is a daughter of the Rajah, who, with the assistance of sisters, keeps an enormous Mani, or praying-cylinder, revolving perpetually to the prayer of “Om Mani Padmi hom.” On this side was a similar spur, on which the gilded pinnacles and copper canopy of the Phadong* [Phadong means Royal, and this temple answers to a chapel royal for the Rajah.] goompa gleamed through the trees. At a considerable distance across the head of the valley was still a third goompa, that of Phenzong.
We were met by a large party of armed Lepchas, dressed in blue and white striped kirtles, broad loose scarlet jackets; and the little bamboo wattle hat lined with talc, and surmounted by a peacock’s feather; they escorted us to the village, and then retired.
We encamped a few hundred feet below the Rajah’s house, and close by those of Meepo and the Tchebu Lama’s family, who are among the oldest and most respectable of Tibetan origin in Sikkim. The population on this, the north side of the Ryott, consists principally of Sikkim Bhoteeas and Tibetans, while the opposite is peopled by Lepchas.
Crowds came to see us, and many brought presents, with which we were overwhelmed; but we could not help remarking that our cordial greetings were wholly from the older families attached to the Rajah, and from the Lamas; none proceeded from the Dewan’s relatives or friends, nor therefore any in the name of the Rajah himself, or of the Sikkim government.
Tchebu Lama vainly used every endeavour to procure for us an audience with his highness; who was surrounded by his councillors, or Amlah, all of whom were adherents of the Dewan, who was in Tibet. My man Meepo, and the Tchebu Lama; who were ordered to continue in official attendance upon us, shrugged their shoulders, but could suggest no remedy. On the following morning Campbell was visited by many parties, amongst whom were the Lama’s family, and that of the late Dewan (Ilam Sing), who implored us to send again to announce our presence, and not to dismiss at once the moonshie and his office,* [It is usual in India for Government officers when about to transact business, to travel with a staff (called office) of native interpreters, clerks, etc., of whom the chief is commonly called moonchie.] who had accompanied us for the purpose of a conference with the Rajah. Their wishes were complied with, and we waited till noon before proceeding.
A gay and animated scene was produced by the concourse of women, dressed in their pretty striped and crossed cloaks, who brought tokens of good-will. Amongst them Meepo’s wife appeared conspicuous from the large necklaces* [The lumps of amber forming these (called "Poshea") were larger than the fist: they are procured in East Tibet, probably from Birmah.] and amulets, corals, and silver filagree work, with which her neck and shoulders were loaded: she wore on her head a red tiara (“Patuk”) bedizened with seed pearls and large turquoises, and a gold fillet of filagree bosses united by a web of slender chains; her long tails were elaborately plaited, and woven with beads, and her cloak hooked in front by a chain of broad silver links studded with turquoises. White silk scarfs, the emblem of peace and friendship, were thrown over our hands by each party; and rice, eggs, fowls, kids, goats, and Murwa beer, poured in apace, to the great delight of our servants.
We returned two visits of ceremony, one to Meepo’s house, a poor cottage, to which we carried presents of chintz dresses for his two little girls, who were busy teazing their hair with cylindrical combs, formed of a single slender joint of bamboo slit all round half-way up into innumerable teeth. Our other visit was paid to the Lama’s family, who inhabited a large house not far from the Rajah’s.
The lower story was an area enclosed by stone walls, into which the cattle, etc., were driven. An outside stone stair led to the upper story, where we were received by the head of the family, accompanied by a great concourse of Lamas. He conducted us to a beautiful little oratory at one end of the building, fitted up like a square temple, and lighted with latticed windows, covered with brilliant and tasteful paintings by Lhassan artists. The beams of the ceiling were supported by octagonal columns painted red, with broad capitals.
Everywhere the lotus, the mani, and the chirki (or wheel with three rays, emblematic of the Boodhist Trinity), were introduced; “Om Mani Padmi hom” in gilt letters, adorned the projecting end of every beam;* [A mythical animal with a dog's head and blood-red spot over the forehead was not uncommon in this chapel, and is also seen in the Sikkim temples and throughout Tibet. Ermann, in his Siberian Travels, mentions it as occurring in the Khampa Lama's temple at Maimao chin; he conjectures it to have been the Cyclops of the Greeks, which according to the Homeric myth had a mark on the forehead, instead of an eye. The glory surrounding the heads of Tibetan deities is also alluded to by Ermann, who recognises in it the Nimbus of the ancients, used to protect the heads of statues from the weather, and from being soiled by birds; and adds that the glory of the ancient masters in painting was no doubt introduced into the Byzantine school from the Boodhists.] and the Chinese “cloud messenger,” or winged dragon, floated in azure and gold along the capitals and beams, amongst scrolls and groups of flowers. At one end was a sitting figure of Gorucknath in Lama robes, surrounded by a glory, with mitre and beads; the right hand holding the Dorje, and the forefinger aised in prayer. Around was a good library of books. More presents were brought here, and tea served.
-Episode 82 Vol II
source: Barunroy
THIS SERIES WAS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE CONTRIBUTION OF ABDUL KALAM EZANI
THE HIMALAYAN BEACON [BEACON ONLINE] EXCLUSIVE
HIMALAYAN JOURNALS
CHAPTER XXV
JOURNEY TO THE RAJAH OF SIKKIM's RESIDENCE AT TUMLOONG
We started on the 3rd of November for Tumloong (or Sikkim Durbar), Dr. Campbell sending Tchebu Lama forward with letters to announce his approach. A steep ascent, through large trees of _Rhododendron arboreum,_ led over a sharp spur of mica-schist (strike north-west and dip north-east), beyond which the whole bay-like valley of the Ryott opened before us, presenting one of the most lovely and fertile landscapes in Sikkim. It is ten miles long, and three or four broad, flanked by lofty mountains, and its head girt by the beautiful snowy range of Chola, from which silvery rills descend through black pine-woods, dividing innumerable converging cultivated spurs, and uniting about 2000 feet below us, in a profound gorge. Everywhere were scattered houses, purple crops of buckwheat, green fields of young wheat, yellow millet, broad green plantains, and orange groves.
We crossed spur after spur, often under or over precipices about fifteen hundred feet above the river, proceeding eastwards to the village of Rangang, whence we caught sight of the Rajah’s house. It was an irregular low stone building of Tibetan architecture, with slanting walls and small windows high up under the broad thatched roof, above which, in the middle, was a Chinese-looking square copper-gilt canopy, with projecting eaves and bells at the corners, surmounted by a ball and square spire. On either gable of the roof was a round-topped cylinder of gilded copper, something like a closed umbrella; this is a very frequent and characteristic Boodhist ornament, and is represented in Turner’s plate of the mausoleum of Teshoo Lama (“Tibet” plate xi.); indeed the Rajah’s canopy at Tumloong is probably a copy of the upper part of the building there represented, having been built by architects from Teshoo Loombo.
It was surrounded by chaits, mendongs, poles with banners, and other religious erections; and though beautifully situated on a flat terrace overlooking the valley, we were much disappointed with its size and appearance.
On the brow of the hill behind was the large red goompa of the Tupgain Lama, the late heir-apparent to the temporal and spiritual authority in Sikkim; and near it a nunnery called Lagong, the lady abbess of which is a daughter of the Rajah, who, with the assistance of sisters, keeps an enormous Mani, or praying-cylinder, revolving perpetually to the prayer of “Om Mani Padmi hom.” On this side was a similar spur, on which the gilded pinnacles and copper canopy of the Phadong* [Phadong means Royal, and this temple answers to a chapel royal for the Rajah.] goompa gleamed through the trees. At a considerable distance across the head of the valley was still a third goompa, that of Phenzong.
We were met by a large party of armed Lepchas, dressed in blue and white striped kirtles, broad loose scarlet jackets; and the little bamboo wattle hat lined with talc, and surmounted by a peacock’s feather; they escorted us to the village, and then retired.
We encamped a few hundred feet below the Rajah’s house, and close by those of Meepo and the Tchebu Lama’s family, who are among the oldest and most respectable of Tibetan origin in Sikkim. The population on this, the north side of the Ryott, consists principally of Sikkim Bhoteeas and Tibetans, while the opposite is peopled by Lepchas.
Crowds came to see us, and many brought presents, with which we were overwhelmed; but we could not help remarking that our cordial greetings were wholly from the older families attached to the Rajah, and from the Lamas; none proceeded from the Dewan’s relatives or friends, nor therefore any in the name of the Rajah himself, or of the Sikkim government.
Tchebu Lama vainly used every endeavour to procure for us an audience with his highness; who was surrounded by his councillors, or Amlah, all of whom were adherents of the Dewan, who was in Tibet. My man Meepo, and the Tchebu Lama; who were ordered to continue in official attendance upon us, shrugged their shoulders, but could suggest no remedy. On the following morning Campbell was visited by many parties, amongst whom were the Lama’s family, and that of the late Dewan (Ilam Sing), who implored us to send again to announce our presence, and not to dismiss at once the moonshie and his office,* [It is usual in India for Government officers when about to transact business, to travel with a staff (called office) of native interpreters, clerks, etc., of whom the chief is commonly called moonchie.] who had accompanied us for the purpose of a conference with the Rajah. Their wishes were complied with, and we waited till noon before proceeding.
A gay and animated scene was produced by the concourse of women, dressed in their pretty striped and crossed cloaks, who brought tokens of good-will. Amongst them Meepo’s wife appeared conspicuous from the large necklaces* [The lumps of amber forming these (called "Poshea") were larger than the fist: they are procured in East Tibet, probably from Birmah.] and amulets, corals, and silver filagree work, with which her neck and shoulders were loaded: she wore on her head a red tiara (“Patuk”) bedizened with seed pearls and large turquoises, and a gold fillet of filagree bosses united by a web of slender chains; her long tails were elaborately plaited, and woven with beads, and her cloak hooked in front by a chain of broad silver links studded with turquoises. White silk scarfs, the emblem of peace and friendship, were thrown over our hands by each party; and rice, eggs, fowls, kids, goats, and Murwa beer, poured in apace, to the great delight of our servants.
We returned two visits of ceremony, one to Meepo’s house, a poor cottage, to which we carried presents of chintz dresses for his two little girls, who were busy teazing their hair with cylindrical combs, formed of a single slender joint of bamboo slit all round half-way up into innumerable teeth. Our other visit was paid to the Lama’s family, who inhabited a large house not far from the Rajah’s.
The lower story was an area enclosed by stone walls, into which the cattle, etc., were driven. An outside stone stair led to the upper story, where we were received by the head of the family, accompanied by a great concourse of Lamas. He conducted us to a beautiful little oratory at one end of the building, fitted up like a square temple, and lighted with latticed windows, covered with brilliant and tasteful paintings by Lhassan artists. The beams of the ceiling were supported by octagonal columns painted red, with broad capitals.
Everywhere the lotus, the mani, and the chirki (or wheel with three rays, emblematic of the Boodhist Trinity), were introduced; “Om Mani Padmi hom” in gilt letters, adorned the projecting end of every beam;* [A mythical animal with a dog's head and blood-red spot over the forehead was not uncommon in this chapel, and is also seen in the Sikkim temples and throughout Tibet. Ermann, in his Siberian Travels, mentions it as occurring in the Khampa Lama's temple at Maimao chin; he conjectures it to have been the Cyclops of the Greeks, which according to the Homeric myth had a mark on the forehead, instead of an eye. The glory surrounding the heads of Tibetan deities is also alluded to by Ermann, who recognises in it the Nimbus of the ancients, used to protect the heads of statues from the weather, and from being soiled by birds; and adds that the glory of the ancient masters in painting was no doubt introduced into the Byzantine school from the Boodhists.] and the Chinese “cloud messenger,” or winged dragon, floated in azure and gold along the capitals and beams, amongst scrolls and groups of flowers. At one end was a sitting figure of Gorucknath in Lama robes, surrounded by a glory, with mitre and beads; the right hand holding the Dorje, and the forefinger aised in prayer. Around was a good library of books. More presents were brought here, and tea served.
Excerpts from the book "Sikkim : The Wounds of History"
"This book is not about the people's revolution of 1973. Enough books have been written about that. Rather it shall focus on retracing the constitutional jugglery which took place to define Sikkim's status within the Union of India. The question of status is important here because we need to determine whether it is correct to club Sikkim with other 'regular' states of the Indian Union"
"There are so many questions which have not been answered yet, and this state of continuing confusion has caused the wounds of history to fester again...., which have been around for more than three decades now, and shall have to be addressed if Sikkim is to move on into the future....."
"Declassified documents and transcripts..... by the CIA show Henry Kissinger... Z.A.Bhutto... were offered the same explanation officially by the Govt. of India"
"Sikkim has not signed the instrument of accession , and in the future .... Sikkim Assembly passes a resolution to reverse the earlier resolution , then what would the Government of India do ? "
"But there is one more interesting 'old law' left .... The Government of Sikkim Act, 1974. This came to force ... and was recognized and given legitimacy by India after the 35th Amendment of the Constitution. ......... So is the Constitution of Sikkim still in existence ?"
"If a proud citizen like me has been forced to doubt certain aspects of my existence and nationality, then the country has some explaining to do to me and also the coming generations"
"This book is not about the people's revolution of 1973. Enough books have been written about that. Rather it shall focus on retracing the constitutional jugglery which took place to define Sikkim's status within the Union of India. The question of status is important here because we need to determine whether it is correct to club Sikkim with other 'regular' states of the Indian Union"
"There are so many questions which have not been answered yet, and this state of continuing confusion has caused the wounds of history to fester again...., which have been around for more than three decades now, and shall have to be addressed if Sikkim is to move on into the future....."
"Declassified documents and transcripts..... by the CIA show Henry Kissinger... Z.A.Bhutto... were offered the same explanation officially by the Govt. of India"
"Sikkim has not signed the instrument of accession , and in the future .... Sikkim Assembly passes a resolution to reverse the earlier resolution , then what would the Government of India do ? "
"But there is one more interesting 'old law' left .... The Government of Sikkim Act, 1974. This came to force ... and was recognized and given legitimacy by India after the 35th Amendment of the Constitution. ......... So is the Constitution of Sikkim still in existence ?"
"If a proud citizen like me has been forced to doubt certain aspects of my existence and nationality, then the country has some explaining to do to me and also the coming generations"
Saturday 27 February 2010
India-China Timeline
*1962: Sino-Indian War; China seized Aksai Chin and overran Arunachal Pradesh.
*1967: There were two skirmishes between Indian and Chinese forces in Sikkim. The first one was dubbed the 'Nathu La incident,' and the other the 'Chola incident.'
*1986-87: Chinese and Indian forces clashed in Arunachal Pradesh
*1988: Relations began to thaw. India and the People's Republic of China agreed to broaden bilateral ties in various areas, working to achieve a "fair and reasonable settlement while seeking a mutually acceptable solution" to the border dispute.
*1993: Prime Minister Narasimha Rao and Premier Li Peng signed the border agreement.
*1998: Sino-Indian relations hit a low point following India's nuclear tests in May. George Fernandes declared that "China is India's number one threat", hinting that India developed nuclear weapons in defense against China's nuclear arsenal.
*2004: The two countries proposed opening up the Nathula and Jelepla Passes in Sikkim which would be mutually beneficial to both countries.
*2006: China and India re-opened Nathula, an ancient trade route which was part of the Silk Road.
*1962: Sino-Indian War; China seized Aksai Chin and overran Arunachal Pradesh.
*1967: There were two skirmishes between Indian and Chinese forces in Sikkim. The first one was dubbed the 'Nathu La incident,' and the other the 'Chola incident.'
*1986-87: Chinese and Indian forces clashed in Arunachal Pradesh
*1988: Relations began to thaw. India and the People's Republic of China agreed to broaden bilateral ties in various areas, working to achieve a "fair and reasonable settlement while seeking a mutually acceptable solution" to the border dispute.
*1993: Prime Minister Narasimha Rao and Premier Li Peng signed the border agreement.
*1998: Sino-Indian relations hit a low point following India's nuclear tests in May. George Fernandes declared that "China is India's number one threat", hinting that India developed nuclear weapons in defense against China's nuclear arsenal.
*2004: The two countries proposed opening up the Nathula and Jelepla Passes in Sikkim which would be mutually beneficial to both countries.
*2006: China and India re-opened Nathula, an ancient trade route which was part of the Silk Road.
Indo-Pak talks: Just for the sake of political time pass
Our nation needs to take a stronger stand. The Indian government must make it clear to Pakistan that there will be no talks on Kashmir which is an integral part of India rather talks will be held on the regions illegally occupied by Pakistan.
INDO - PAK dialogue is not a new phenomenon. In fact, this news now doesn’t attract any enthusiasm from any quarter at times when it has become a well established fact that both sides will keep on banging their heads on a wall with pre-conceived notions and none going to trust the other even a bit on any issue.
The history of India-Pakistan relations since 1947 i.e. when Pakistan came into existence after partition of the country on August 14, and a separate nation was carved out purely on religious basis, is known to all and it is also no secret that it was Pakistan which attacked India first every time it got an opportunity.
After analysing that it would be not possible for Pakistan to win from India in any direct confrontation, Pakistan policy makers decided to experiment it with fighting a ‘proxy war’ with India in which their tactics was to used the youth of the region in the name of religion and thus with the help if their intelligence agency the ISI, the blue print for taking up the militancy against India was drawn and by 1990, they began their strikes in the Kashmir valley in form of militant attacks in which their first target was to flush out Kashmiri Pandit families living in the Kashmir valley in a phased and planned manner.
After succeeding in this game plan, they began attacking the key installations of the Indian government present in the valley. After almost 20 years now there is some respite following the fencing along the Indo-Pak border and after the US making attacks on militant camps and their groups in Afghanistan and in regions present along the Pak-Afghan border that the incidents of militancy have come down significantly in the valley.
Now after the Indian government has started plying its own Railways in the valley, and we have been having elections done in the Kashmir region for the legislature both for the assembly and for the Parliament, and have been making our own elected government in the state, what is the need to discuss Kashmir with Pakistan? When we claim and repeatedly say in every world forum that ‘Kashmir is an inseparable part of India,’ then why our secretaries, ministers talk on the land which is already in the possession of Indian government?
It is simply ridiculous on our part to talk on something which is already ours. Instead of Kashmir, there should be discussion on taking back the land which has been illegally occupied by Pakistan i.e. Pak occupied Kashmir or the PoK as it is better known. By this yardstick, tomorrow I have little doubt if our leaders start discussing Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh or Sikkim with China.
If tomorrow Beijing exerts pressure on the Indian government and we start secretary level talks in Delhi over these states stating them as disputed region and acknowledging the same, it would be political hara-kiri. A blunder for which the coming generation would only curse the political class of today that they did no homework before getting into the rounds of talks with the Pakistani delegation which arrived in Delhi for talks including terrorism.
Time has come when the Indian government must make it clear to Pakistan that there will be no talks on Kashmir which is an integral part of India rather talks will be held on the regions illegally occupied by Pakistan and same should happen with China.
A large part of Kashmir is under the occupancy of Chinese troops. Sadly we show the entire map of Kashmir in India but that’s also cheating with the countrymen as most of the region shown in the map which is often used by our Met department to show weather on the Indian TV channels lies either with China or Pakistan.
But we never feel comfortable in talking about that region in any debate/seminar or on any global platform including the United Nations, SAARC, ASEAN summit etc.
After being a responsible nuclear power and having one of the best armies in the world, if we can’t talk for our rights and for legitimate part of our nation’s territory, we must stop showing and holding political dramas every now and then because that would only waste our precious time and money. When our political class and bureaucratic set up know each others competence to tackle international issues it is better they don’t put extra burden on the state exchequer for making political gossip amidst five star lunches and dinners.
source:merinews
Our nation needs to take a stronger stand. The Indian government must make it clear to Pakistan that there will be no talks on Kashmir which is an integral part of India rather talks will be held on the regions illegally occupied by Pakistan.
INDO - PAK dialogue is not a new phenomenon. In fact, this news now doesn’t attract any enthusiasm from any quarter at times when it has become a well established fact that both sides will keep on banging their heads on a wall with pre-conceived notions and none going to trust the other even a bit on any issue.
The history of India-Pakistan relations since 1947 i.e. when Pakistan came into existence after partition of the country on August 14, and a separate nation was carved out purely on religious basis, is known to all and it is also no secret that it was Pakistan which attacked India first every time it got an opportunity.
After analysing that it would be not possible for Pakistan to win from India in any direct confrontation, Pakistan policy makers decided to experiment it with fighting a ‘proxy war’ with India in which their tactics was to used the youth of the region in the name of religion and thus with the help if their intelligence agency the ISI, the blue print for taking up the militancy against India was drawn and by 1990, they began their strikes in the Kashmir valley in form of militant attacks in which their first target was to flush out Kashmiri Pandit families living in the Kashmir valley in a phased and planned manner.
After succeeding in this game plan, they began attacking the key installations of the Indian government present in the valley. After almost 20 years now there is some respite following the fencing along the Indo-Pak border and after the US making attacks on militant camps and their groups in Afghanistan and in regions present along the Pak-Afghan border that the incidents of militancy have come down significantly in the valley.
Now after the Indian government has started plying its own Railways in the valley, and we have been having elections done in the Kashmir region for the legislature both for the assembly and for the Parliament, and have been making our own elected government in the state, what is the need to discuss Kashmir with Pakistan? When we claim and repeatedly say in every world forum that ‘Kashmir is an inseparable part of India,’ then why our secretaries, ministers talk on the land which is already in the possession of Indian government?
It is simply ridiculous on our part to talk on something which is already ours. Instead of Kashmir, there should be discussion on taking back the land which has been illegally occupied by Pakistan i.e. Pak occupied Kashmir or the PoK as it is better known. By this yardstick, tomorrow I have little doubt if our leaders start discussing Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh or Sikkim with China.
If tomorrow Beijing exerts pressure on the Indian government and we start secretary level talks in Delhi over these states stating them as disputed region and acknowledging the same, it would be political hara-kiri. A blunder for which the coming generation would only curse the political class of today that they did no homework before getting into the rounds of talks with the Pakistani delegation which arrived in Delhi for talks including terrorism.
Time has come when the Indian government must make it clear to Pakistan that there will be no talks on Kashmir which is an integral part of India rather talks will be held on the regions illegally occupied by Pakistan and same should happen with China.
A large part of Kashmir is under the occupancy of Chinese troops. Sadly we show the entire map of Kashmir in India but that’s also cheating with the countrymen as most of the region shown in the map which is often used by our Met department to show weather on the Indian TV channels lies either with China or Pakistan.
But we never feel comfortable in talking about that region in any debate/seminar or on any global platform including the United Nations, SAARC, ASEAN summit etc.
After being a responsible nuclear power and having one of the best armies in the world, if we can’t talk for our rights and for legitimate part of our nation’s territory, we must stop showing and holding political dramas every now and then because that would only waste our precious time and money. When our political class and bureaucratic set up know each others competence to tackle international issues it is better they don’t put extra burden on the state exchequer for making political gossip amidst five star lunches and dinners.
source:merinews
Friday 26 February 2010
Bangladesh & Sikkim: Nepal’s Response
M. R. Josee
Senior Journalist
Britain’s 1947 departure from India, new China’s emergence in 1949, including her re-establishment of authority in Tibet, have had national security policy implications for Nepal — and continues to do so.
Other regional developments, too, have had their impact, particularly the creation of Bangladesh and the merger with, or annexation of Sikkim, by India in the 1970s.
Before that, note must be taken of Nepal’s establishment of diplomatic relations with Pakistan in 1960 — a decision that was also influenced by geo-strategic considerations, including the imperative of broadening her contacts beyond her immediate periphery.
Nepal’s policy of trade diversification, begun with a trade treaty with Pakistan in 1962, can thus be interpreted as an attempt to maximize her security vis-à-vis powerful neighbors.
It had come in the wake of initial bilateral contacts in 1952, under the auspices of the consultative committee of the Colombo Plan, and subsequently at Bandung. (Author)
It was inevitable that the ripple effects of the 1971 creation of Bangladesh from East Pakistan through the active intervention of India should have been felt beyond the region.
The carefully planned dismemberment of Pakistan through the instrumentality of Indo-Soviet collaboration formalized on August 9, 1971 via a 20-year friendship treaty that possessed all the hallmarks of a security pact, was noted with deep anxiety in Nepal, as elsewhere.
Though Nepal, faced with a fait accompli, had no option other than to finally accept the reality of Bangladesh, her public policy makers noted the disturbing implications, national security-wise, that Pakistan — cultivated, among other reasons, as a countervailing force against India — underwent a sudden transformation: from a close to distant neighbor.
Its effect on Nepal’s national security policy mindset would become dramatically manifest a few years later, spurred by developments in the neighboring kingdom of Sikkim. That happened in less than two years’ time through a carefully orchestrated anti-Chogval (ruler) movement in 1973-74 that led, ultimately, to Sikkim’s integration with India in 1975.
It is also clear that Nepal’s sense of tranquility and security was rudely disturbed by developments in Sri Lanka, particularly India’s overt military intervention in 1987, following the Indo-Lanka Accord of July after which the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) declared war against Indian forces deployed on the Island. After suffering over 1,100 casualties, India’s military intervention was ended in 1989.
NEPAL’S RESPONSE
The elimination of Sikkim’s distinct personality and the uprooting of a dynasty that could be traced back at least from Pungshoq Namgyal’s installation in 1642 (B.S.K Grover, Sikkim and India…), set the stage for a fundamental re-think of Nepal’s national security options.
Basically, it took the shape of the Zone of Peace (ZOP) proposal unveiled in Kathmandu on February 25, 1975 by King Birendra at a farewell reception for dignitaries who had gathered for his coronation.
Its rationale was projected elliptically by his explaining that “we are not prompted out of fear or threat from any country or quarter… As heirs to a country that has always lived in independence, we wish to see that our freedom and independence shall not be thwarted by the changing flux of time…when conciliation is replaced by belligerency and war.” (HM King Birendra’s Peace Proposal for Nepal)
The very first reference to a Nepal-specific zone of peace was in King Birendra’s address to the Fifth NAM summit in Algiers on September 8, 1973, thus: “Nepal situated between two of the world’s most populous countries, wishes within her frontiers to be enveloped in a zone of peace.”(The Rising Nepal, September 9, 1973)
It will be appropriate to recall that although by the time of the Popular Movement of April 1990, 116 sovereign nations had extended Support to ZOP, India refused to do so.
Over the years, India’s mainstream media had made it abundantly clear that India’s refusal to do so was that endorsement would cancel her special status in Nepal purportedly secured in the 1950 Nepal-India Treaty — one that could not be compared to Nepal’s ties with any country including China, Nepal’s other immediate neighbor.
ZOP was formally cremated when the drafters of the 1990 Constitution in their collective wisdom threw out the ZOP baby along with the Panchayat bathwater. A few years earlier ZOP had been inscribed into the directive principles of the Panchayat constitution through its third amendment.
Therein the following foreign policy objective was enunciated: “to work towards making Nepal a Zone of Peace by adopting the basic ideals of the United Nations and the principles of nonalignment”. (Author)
No authoritative answer has been provided to date for thus killing a key national security policy initiative. Most independent analysts believe such a move was inspired by a desire to placate India, which had lent powerful support, including via its media, to toppling the panchayat order and transforming the monarchy from a ruling to a reigning entity.
NATIONAL SECURITY GQALS/POLICY SIDELINED
In addition to ZOP’s rubbishing, the decade after 1990 witnessed the deliberate, neglect of national security goals and policies.
This writer has it on excellent authority that an attempt soon after 1990 by a group of academics to set up an independent institute to pursue strategic studies from a Nepali perspective was spiked by the Nepali Congress government installed after general elections following the drafting of the November 1990 Constitution. (Source who requested anonymity)
For long, “foreign policy issues were solely decided by the prime minister, who held on to the foreign affairs portfolio till the bitter end, without virtually any debate in political circles, or indeed, as can be made out, much input from HMG’s ministry of foreign affairs.” (Author)
It was in that environment of opacity that Prime Minister Koirala, during his official visit to India in December 1991, categorically told the international media in New Delhi that “the forcible expulsion of southern Bhutanese by the Thimphu regime was a matter that fell wholly within Bhutan’s domestic jurisdiction.” (Author)
Whatever the reasons that prompted Koirala’s truly egregious comment, it triggered an upsurge in ethnic cleansing activities within Bhutan. Thus, within year of that statement, the Bhutanese refugee population in Nepal shot up to about 100,000 from a figure of around 10,000 at the time of Koirala’s India mission.
Thereafter, “Koirala’s government continued to turn a blind eye to the problem until in 1993 when it finally agreed to seek bilateral talks with the Thimphu regime. Completely disregarding the fact that the problem clearly involved Nepal, Bhutan and India, the country of first asylum or transit, Koirala agreed that talks should be bilateral, not trilateral, and, furthermore, that they should be led by the two home ministers, not foreign ministers. Meetings at foreign ministers’ level were to come much later. (Author)
Clearly, lacking transparency in the functioning of the ministry of foreign affairs, led by the prime minister, and sans a national debate on the multi-faceted implications of the Bhutanese refugee crisis, including on her national security, this issue has lingered on unresolved until today, despite about a score of rounds of formal talks. Despite all that, not one Bhutanese refugee has been repatriated to Bhutan, as of this writing.
What is perhaps its most disturbing aspect from the point of view of Nepal’s national security is India permitting — some claim, assisting — Bhutanese refugees to cross through at least 100 km. of Indian territory before entering Nepal, but preventing them from returning home.
Another national security policy disaster was the failure of a succession of post-1990 governments to stem the flow of illegal migrants across the open Nepal-India border and the inability, during that period, to bring about effective control of cross-border movement there, including by criminal elements.
The impact of cross-border terrorism on national security is too obvious to merit any further elaboration here.
(The author is a senior journalist of Nepal)
2010-02-25
M. R. Josee
Senior Journalist
Britain’s 1947 departure from India, new China’s emergence in 1949, including her re-establishment of authority in Tibet, have had national security policy implications for Nepal — and continues to do so.
Other regional developments, too, have had their impact, particularly the creation of Bangladesh and the merger with, or annexation of Sikkim, by India in the 1970s.
Before that, note must be taken of Nepal’s establishment of diplomatic relations with Pakistan in 1960 — a decision that was also influenced by geo-strategic considerations, including the imperative of broadening her contacts beyond her immediate periphery.
Nepal’s policy of trade diversification, begun with a trade treaty with Pakistan in 1962, can thus be interpreted as an attempt to maximize her security vis-à-vis powerful neighbors.
It had come in the wake of initial bilateral contacts in 1952, under the auspices of the consultative committee of the Colombo Plan, and subsequently at Bandung. (Author)
It was inevitable that the ripple effects of the 1971 creation of Bangladesh from East Pakistan through the active intervention of India should have been felt beyond the region.
The carefully planned dismemberment of Pakistan through the instrumentality of Indo-Soviet collaboration formalized on August 9, 1971 via a 20-year friendship treaty that possessed all the hallmarks of a security pact, was noted with deep anxiety in Nepal, as elsewhere.
Though Nepal, faced with a fait accompli, had no option other than to finally accept the reality of Bangladesh, her public policy makers noted the disturbing implications, national security-wise, that Pakistan — cultivated, among other reasons, as a countervailing force against India — underwent a sudden transformation: from a close to distant neighbor.
Its effect on Nepal’s national security policy mindset would become dramatically manifest a few years later, spurred by developments in the neighboring kingdom of Sikkim. That happened in less than two years’ time through a carefully orchestrated anti-Chogval (ruler) movement in 1973-74 that led, ultimately, to Sikkim’s integration with India in 1975.
It is also clear that Nepal’s sense of tranquility and security was rudely disturbed by developments in Sri Lanka, particularly India’s overt military intervention in 1987, following the Indo-Lanka Accord of July after which the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) declared war against Indian forces deployed on the Island. After suffering over 1,100 casualties, India’s military intervention was ended in 1989.
NEPAL’S RESPONSE
The elimination of Sikkim’s distinct personality and the uprooting of a dynasty that could be traced back at least from Pungshoq Namgyal’s installation in 1642 (B.S.K Grover, Sikkim and India…), set the stage for a fundamental re-think of Nepal’s national security options.
Basically, it took the shape of the Zone of Peace (ZOP) proposal unveiled in Kathmandu on February 25, 1975 by King Birendra at a farewell reception for dignitaries who had gathered for his coronation.
Its rationale was projected elliptically by his explaining that “we are not prompted out of fear or threat from any country or quarter… As heirs to a country that has always lived in independence, we wish to see that our freedom and independence shall not be thwarted by the changing flux of time…when conciliation is replaced by belligerency and war.” (HM King Birendra’s Peace Proposal for Nepal)
The very first reference to a Nepal-specific zone of peace was in King Birendra’s address to the Fifth NAM summit in Algiers on September 8, 1973, thus: “Nepal situated between two of the world’s most populous countries, wishes within her frontiers to be enveloped in a zone of peace.”(The Rising Nepal, September 9, 1973)
It will be appropriate to recall that although by the time of the Popular Movement of April 1990, 116 sovereign nations had extended Support to ZOP, India refused to do so.
Over the years, India’s mainstream media had made it abundantly clear that India’s refusal to do so was that endorsement would cancel her special status in Nepal purportedly secured in the 1950 Nepal-India Treaty — one that could not be compared to Nepal’s ties with any country including China, Nepal’s other immediate neighbor.
ZOP was formally cremated when the drafters of the 1990 Constitution in their collective wisdom threw out the ZOP baby along with the Panchayat bathwater. A few years earlier ZOP had been inscribed into the directive principles of the Panchayat constitution through its third amendment.
Therein the following foreign policy objective was enunciated: “to work towards making Nepal a Zone of Peace by adopting the basic ideals of the United Nations and the principles of nonalignment”. (Author)
No authoritative answer has been provided to date for thus killing a key national security policy initiative. Most independent analysts believe such a move was inspired by a desire to placate India, which had lent powerful support, including via its media, to toppling the panchayat order and transforming the monarchy from a ruling to a reigning entity.
NATIONAL SECURITY GQALS/POLICY SIDELINED
In addition to ZOP’s rubbishing, the decade after 1990 witnessed the deliberate, neglect of national security goals and policies.
This writer has it on excellent authority that an attempt soon after 1990 by a group of academics to set up an independent institute to pursue strategic studies from a Nepali perspective was spiked by the Nepali Congress government installed after general elections following the drafting of the November 1990 Constitution. (Source who requested anonymity)
For long, “foreign policy issues were solely decided by the prime minister, who held on to the foreign affairs portfolio till the bitter end, without virtually any debate in political circles, or indeed, as can be made out, much input from HMG’s ministry of foreign affairs.” (Author)
It was in that environment of opacity that Prime Minister Koirala, during his official visit to India in December 1991, categorically told the international media in New Delhi that “the forcible expulsion of southern Bhutanese by the Thimphu regime was a matter that fell wholly within Bhutan’s domestic jurisdiction.” (Author)
Whatever the reasons that prompted Koirala’s truly egregious comment, it triggered an upsurge in ethnic cleansing activities within Bhutan. Thus, within year of that statement, the Bhutanese refugee population in Nepal shot up to about 100,000 from a figure of around 10,000 at the time of Koirala’s India mission.
Thereafter, “Koirala’s government continued to turn a blind eye to the problem until in 1993 when it finally agreed to seek bilateral talks with the Thimphu regime. Completely disregarding the fact that the problem clearly involved Nepal, Bhutan and India, the country of first asylum or transit, Koirala agreed that talks should be bilateral, not trilateral, and, furthermore, that they should be led by the two home ministers, not foreign ministers. Meetings at foreign ministers’ level were to come much later. (Author)
Clearly, lacking transparency in the functioning of the ministry of foreign affairs, led by the prime minister, and sans a national debate on the multi-faceted implications of the Bhutanese refugee crisis, including on her national security, this issue has lingered on unresolved until today, despite about a score of rounds of formal talks. Despite all that, not one Bhutanese refugee has been repatriated to Bhutan, as of this writing.
What is perhaps its most disturbing aspect from the point of view of Nepal’s national security is India permitting — some claim, assisting — Bhutanese refugees to cross through at least 100 km. of Indian territory before entering Nepal, but preventing them from returning home.
Another national security policy disaster was the failure of a succession of post-1990 governments to stem the flow of illegal migrants across the open Nepal-India border and the inability, during that period, to bring about effective control of cross-border movement there, including by criminal elements.
The impact of cross-border terrorism on national security is too obvious to merit any further elaboration here.
(The author is a senior journalist of Nepal)
2010-02-25
3300 CRORES RAIL PROJECT WORK STARTS
SIKKIM: Work starts on Sikkim link
sILIGURI Feb. 24: The construction of a new railway link connecting north Bengal to Sikkim has begun with Ircon International Limited, a public sector undertaking incorporated with the Indian Railways, starting work on the 44km stretch between Sevoke and Rangpo two years after the plan was mooted.
The general manager of the Northeast Frontier Railway, Shiv Kumar, and senior officials of the railways and Ircon, attended the ground-breaking ceremony at Rangpo on the Bengal-Sikkim border on Saturday.
Ircon sources said the estimated project cost is around Rs 3,300 crore.
Ircon’s general manager, eastern region, Anil Kumar Gupta, said engineers were already working on the access roads to reach the proposed track alignment. “The terrain is a challenging one and we have to first reach the areas through which the railway line will pass. After that, we will be able to conduct a survey and arrive at the final estimate,” Gupta said.
He said Ircon had experience in constructing railway lines in Jammu and Kashmir.
“An estimated 70 per cent of the total stretch to Sikkim will have to be either through tunnels or viaducts in order to make progress through one hill to the other, spanning deep gorges. The viaducts will have to be constructed on high pillars,” the general manager said.
The project will take five years to complete once the funds are sanctioned. The first railway link to the Himalayan state will help boost the state’s economy as well as its economic mainstay, tourism.
Senior officials of the NFR said after the Sevoke-Rangpo track laying is completed by 2015, there are plans to take the link up to Gangtok.
“The railway connectivity to Sikkim is important as the India army has deployment along the border with China in the state. The railway line will vastly improve troop movement as they will not have to rely solely on the state’s only road link with the rest of India, NH31A,” an official said.
sILIGURI Feb. 24: The construction of a new railway link connecting north Bengal to Sikkim has begun with Ircon International Limited, a public sector undertaking incorporated with the Indian Railways, starting work on the 44km stretch between Sevoke and Rangpo two years after the plan was mooted.
The general manager of the Northeast Frontier Railway, Shiv Kumar, and senior officials of the railways and Ircon, attended the ground-breaking ceremony at Rangpo on the Bengal-Sikkim border on Saturday.
Ircon sources said the estimated project cost is around Rs 3,300 crore.
Ircon’s general manager, eastern region, Anil Kumar Gupta, said engineers were already working on the access roads to reach the proposed track alignment. “The terrain is a challenging one and we have to first reach the areas through which the railway line will pass. After that, we will be able to conduct a survey and arrive at the final estimate,” Gupta said.
He said Ircon had experience in constructing railway lines in Jammu and Kashmir.
“An estimated 70 per cent of the total stretch to Sikkim will have to be either through tunnels or viaducts in order to make progress through one hill to the other, spanning deep gorges. The viaducts will have to be constructed on high pillars,” the general manager said.
The project will take five years to complete once the funds are sanctioned. The first railway link to the Himalayan state will help boost the state’s economy as well as its economic mainstay, tourism.
Senior officials of the NFR said after the Sevoke-Rangpo track laying is completed by 2015, there are plans to take the link up to Gangtok.
“The railway connectivity to Sikkim is important as the India army has deployment along the border with China in the state. The railway line will vastly improve troop movement as they will not have to rely solely on the state’s only road link with the rest of India, NH31A,” an official said.
Monday 8 February 2010
SERIES: HIMALAYAN JOURNALS by Joseph Dalton Hooker
– Episode 68 Vol II
source: Shri Barun roy
DR. CAMPBELL LEAVES DORJILING FOR SIKKIM
On the 28th of the month the Singtam Soubah came up from Yeumtong, to request leave to depart for his home, on account of his wife’s illness; and to inform me that Dr. Campbell had left Dorjiling, accompanied (in compliance with the Rajah’s orders) by the Tchebu Lama. I therefore left Momay on the 30th, to meet him at Choongtam, arriving at Yeumtong the same night, amid heavy rain and sleet. Autumnal tints reigned at Yeumtong, and the flowers had disappeared from its heath-like flat; a small eatable cherry with a wrinkled stone was ripe, and acceptable in a country so destitute of fruit.* [The absence of _Vaccinia_ (whortleberries and cranberries) and eatable _Rubi_ (brambles) in the alpine regions of the Himalaya is very remarkable, and they are not replaced by any substitute.
With regard to Vaccinium, this is the more anomalous, as several species grow in the temperate regions of Sikkim.] Thence I descended to Lachoong, on the 1st of October, again through heavy rain, the snow lying on the Tunkra mountain at 14,000 feet. The larch was shedding its leaves, which turn red before they fall; but the annual vegetation was much behind that at 14,000 feet, and so many late flowerers, such as _Umbelliferae_ and _Compositae,_ had come into blossom, that the place still looked gay and green: the blue climbing gentian (_Crawfurdia_) now adorned the bushes; this plant would be a great acquisition in English gardens. A _Polygonum_ still in flower here, was in ripe fruit near Momay, 6000 feet higher up the valley.
On the following day I made a long and very fatiguing march to Choongtam, but the coolies were not all able to accomplish it.
The backwardness of the flora in descending was even more conspicuous than on the previous day: the jungles, at 7000 feet, being gay with a handsome Cucurbitaceous plant. Crossing the Lachoong cane-bridge, I paid the tribute of a sigh to the memory of my poor dog, and reached my old camping-ground at Choongtam by 10 p.m., having been marching rapidly for twelve hours. My bed and tent came up two hours later, and not before the leeches and mosquitos had taxed me severely.
On the 4th of October I heard the nightingale for the first time this season. Expecting Dr. Campbell on the following morning, I proceeded down the river to meet him: the whole valley was buried under a torrent or debacle of mud, shingle, and boulders, and for half a mile the stream was dammed up into a deep lake. Amongst the gneiss and granite boulders brought down by this debacle, I collected some actinolites; but all minerals are extremely rare in Sikkim and I never heard of a gem or crystal of any size or beauty, or of an ore of any consequence, being found in this country.
I met my friend on the other side of the mud torrent, and I was truly rejoiced to see him, though he was looking much the worse for his trying journey through the hot valleys at this season; in fact, I know no greater trial of the constitution than the exposure and hard exercise that is necessary in traversing these valleys, below 5000 feet, in the rainy season: delay is dangerous, and the heat, anxiety, and bodily suffering from fatigue, insects, and bruises, banish sleep, and urge the restless traveller onward to higher and more healthy regions. Dr. Campbell had, I found, in addition to the ordinary dangers of such a journey, met with an accident which might have proved serious; his pony having been dashed to pieces by falling over a precipice, a fate he barely escaped himself, by adroitly slipping from the saddle when he felt the animal’s foot giving way.
On our way back to Choongtam, he detailed to me the motives that had led to his obtaining the authority of the Deputy-Governor of Bengal (Lord Dalhousie being absent) for his visiting Sikkim. Foremost, was his earnest desire to cultivate a better understanding with the Rajah and his officers. He had always taken the Rajah’s part, from a conviction that he was not to blame for the misunderstandings which the Sikkim officers pretended to exist between their country and Dorjiling; he had, whilst urgently remonstrating with the Rajah, insisted on forbearance on my part, and had long exercised it himself. In detailing the treatment to which I was subjected, I had not hesitated to express my opinion that the Rajah was more compromised by it than his Dewan: Dr. Campbell, on the contrary, knew that the Dewan was the head and front of the whole system of annoyance. In one point of view it mattered little who was in the right; but the transaction was a violation of good faith on the part of the Sikkim government towards the British, for which the Rajah, however helpless, was yet responsible. To act upon my representations alone would have been unjust, and no course remained but for Dr. Campbell to inquire personally into the matter. The authority to do this gave him also the opportunity of becoming acquainted with the country which we were bound to protect, as well by our interest as by treaty, but from which we were so jealously excluded, that should any contingency occur, we were ignorant of what steps to take for defence, and, indeed, of what we should have to defend.
On the 6th of October we left Choongtam for my second visit to the Kongra Lama pass, hoping to get round by the Cholamoo lakes and the Donkia pass. As the country beyond the frontier was uninhabited, the Tchebu Lama saw no difficulty in this, provided the Lachen Phipun and the Tibetans did not object. Our great obstacle was the Singtam Soubah, who (by the Rajah’s order) accompanied us to clear the road, and give us every facility, but who was very sulky, and undisguisedly rude to Campbell; he was in fact extremely jealous of the Lama, who held higher authority than he did, and who alone had the Rajah’s confidence.
– Episode 68 Vol II
source: Shri Barun roy
DR. CAMPBELL LEAVES DORJILING FOR SIKKIM
On the 28th of the month the Singtam Soubah came up from Yeumtong, to request leave to depart for his home, on account of his wife’s illness; and to inform me that Dr. Campbell had left Dorjiling, accompanied (in compliance with the Rajah’s orders) by the Tchebu Lama. I therefore left Momay on the 30th, to meet him at Choongtam, arriving at Yeumtong the same night, amid heavy rain and sleet. Autumnal tints reigned at Yeumtong, and the flowers had disappeared from its heath-like flat; a small eatable cherry with a wrinkled stone was ripe, and acceptable in a country so destitute of fruit.* [The absence of _Vaccinia_ (whortleberries and cranberries) and eatable _Rubi_ (brambles) in the alpine regions of the Himalaya is very remarkable, and they are not replaced by any substitute.
With regard to Vaccinium, this is the more anomalous, as several species grow in the temperate regions of Sikkim.] Thence I descended to Lachoong, on the 1st of October, again through heavy rain, the snow lying on the Tunkra mountain at 14,000 feet. The larch was shedding its leaves, which turn red before they fall; but the annual vegetation was much behind that at 14,000 feet, and so many late flowerers, such as _Umbelliferae_ and _Compositae,_ had come into blossom, that the place still looked gay and green: the blue climbing gentian (_Crawfurdia_) now adorned the bushes; this plant would be a great acquisition in English gardens. A _Polygonum_ still in flower here, was in ripe fruit near Momay, 6000 feet higher up the valley.
On the following day I made a long and very fatiguing march to Choongtam, but the coolies were not all able to accomplish it.
The backwardness of the flora in descending was even more conspicuous than on the previous day: the jungles, at 7000 feet, being gay with a handsome Cucurbitaceous plant. Crossing the Lachoong cane-bridge, I paid the tribute of a sigh to the memory of my poor dog, and reached my old camping-ground at Choongtam by 10 p.m., having been marching rapidly for twelve hours. My bed and tent came up two hours later, and not before the leeches and mosquitos had taxed me severely.
On the 4th of October I heard the nightingale for the first time this season. Expecting Dr. Campbell on the following morning, I proceeded down the river to meet him: the whole valley was buried under a torrent or debacle of mud, shingle, and boulders, and for half a mile the stream was dammed up into a deep lake. Amongst the gneiss and granite boulders brought down by this debacle, I collected some actinolites; but all minerals are extremely rare in Sikkim and I never heard of a gem or crystal of any size or beauty, or of an ore of any consequence, being found in this country.
I met my friend on the other side of the mud torrent, and I was truly rejoiced to see him, though he was looking much the worse for his trying journey through the hot valleys at this season; in fact, I know no greater trial of the constitution than the exposure and hard exercise that is necessary in traversing these valleys, below 5000 feet, in the rainy season: delay is dangerous, and the heat, anxiety, and bodily suffering from fatigue, insects, and bruises, banish sleep, and urge the restless traveller onward to higher and more healthy regions. Dr. Campbell had, I found, in addition to the ordinary dangers of such a journey, met with an accident which might have proved serious; his pony having been dashed to pieces by falling over a precipice, a fate he barely escaped himself, by adroitly slipping from the saddle when he felt the animal’s foot giving way.
On our way back to Choongtam, he detailed to me the motives that had led to his obtaining the authority of the Deputy-Governor of Bengal (Lord Dalhousie being absent) for his visiting Sikkim. Foremost, was his earnest desire to cultivate a better understanding with the Rajah and his officers. He had always taken the Rajah’s part, from a conviction that he was not to blame for the misunderstandings which the Sikkim officers pretended to exist between their country and Dorjiling; he had, whilst urgently remonstrating with the Rajah, insisted on forbearance on my part, and had long exercised it himself. In detailing the treatment to which I was subjected, I had not hesitated to express my opinion that the Rajah was more compromised by it than his Dewan: Dr. Campbell, on the contrary, knew that the Dewan was the head and front of the whole system of annoyance. In one point of view it mattered little who was in the right; but the transaction was a violation of good faith on the part of the Sikkim government towards the British, for which the Rajah, however helpless, was yet responsible. To act upon my representations alone would have been unjust, and no course remained but for Dr. Campbell to inquire personally into the matter. The authority to do this gave him also the opportunity of becoming acquainted with the country which we were bound to protect, as well by our interest as by treaty, but from which we were so jealously excluded, that should any contingency occur, we were ignorant of what steps to take for defence, and, indeed, of what we should have to defend.
On the 6th of October we left Choongtam for my second visit to the Kongra Lama pass, hoping to get round by the Cholamoo lakes and the Donkia pass. As the country beyond the frontier was uninhabited, the Tchebu Lama saw no difficulty in this, provided the Lachen Phipun and the Tibetans did not object. Our great obstacle was the Singtam Soubah, who (by the Rajah’s order) accompanied us to clear the road, and give us every facility, but who was very sulky, and undisguisedly rude to Campbell; he was in fact extremely jealous of the Lama, who held higher authority than he did, and who alone had the Rajah’s confidence.
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