Gorkhaland Territorial Administration

Gorkhaland Territorial Administration
—  territorial council  —
Darjeeling Location of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration in India
Coordinates	27°02′N 88°10′E / 27.03°N 88.16°E / 27.03; 88.16Coordinates: 27°02′N 88°10′E / 27.03°N 88.16°E / 27.03; 88.16
Country	India
State	West Bengal
Established	2011
Capital	Darjeeling
Official languages	Nepali
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)

Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) (Nepali: गोर्खाल्यान्ड क्षेत्रीय प्रशासन) is a semi-autonomous administrative body for the Darjeeling hills in West Bengal, India. The GTA will replace the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, which was formed in 1988 and administered the Darjeeling hills for 23 years. GTA has three hill subdivisions Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong and some areas of Siliguri subdivision under its authority.

Background

Gorkhaland is the name of the proposed state in India demanded by the Nepali/Gorkhali-speaking Gorkha ethnic group in Darjeeling and the Dooars in north West Bengal. The term Gorkhaland was coined by Subhash Ghisingh, leader of Gorkha National Liberation Front, who led a violent agitation for its formation in the 1980s.^[1] This movement culminated with the formation of Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in 1988. The DGHC could not fulfill the aspirations of the people of the Darjeeling hills which led to the downfall of Subhash Ghisingh^[2] and the rise of another party Gorkha Janmukti Morcha headed by Bimal Gurung in 2007, which launched a second agitation for a Gorkhaland state.

Formation of GTA

After three years of agitation for a state of Gorkhaland led by GJM, the GJM reached an agreement with the state government to form a semi-autonomous body to administer the Darjeeling hills.^[3] A bill for the creation of GTA was passed in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on 2 September 2011.^[4] The GTA will have administrative, executive and financial powers but no legislative powers.

Memorandum of Agreement

The Memorandum of Agreement^[5] for GTA was signed on 18 July 2011 at Pintail Village near Siliguri in the presence of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leaders.^[6] The agreement was signed by West Bengal Home Secretary G.D. Gautama, Union Home Ministry Joint Secretary K.K. Pathak and GJM general secretary Roshan Giri.^[7]

Demand for GATA

On 29 October 2011, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad (ABAVP), Dooars Unit signed an 18-point agreement at Mongpong, after which these organizations jointly proposed a new administrative body called the Gorkhaland and Adivasi Territorial Administration (GATA) in place of the GTA.^[8] The ABAVP decided to agree to incorporate 196 mouzas of the Dooars and 199 mouzas of the Terai region into the proposed GATA.^[9]

References

1. ^ http://www.darjeelingtimes.com/news/Interviews/Interview-with-subash-ghisingh.html Interview with Subhash Ghisingh
2. ^ http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/11/stories/2008031154731100.htm Subhas Ghising resigns
3. ^ http://expressbuzz.com/nation/darjeeling-issue-solved-mamata/282219.html Darjeeling issue solved: Mamata
4. ^ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/GTA-Bill-passed-with-54-amendments/articleshow/9842647.cms GTA Bill passed with 54 amendments
5. ^ Full Text of GTA MoA http://www.darjeelingtimes.com/images/stories/news_images/2011/jul11/jul15/finalmos.pdf
6. ^ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Darjeeling-tripartite-pact-signed-for-Gorkhaland-Territorial-Administration/articleshow/9263963.cms Darjeeling tripartite pact signed for Gorkhaland Territorial Administration
7. ^ http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?728097 Gorkhaland Territorial Administration Agreement Signed
8. ^ http://zeenews.india.com/news/delhi/plea-to-rename-gorkha-council_738966.html Plea to Rename Gorkha Council
9. ^ http://thestatesman.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=388679&catid=72 GJMM-ABAVP joint deputation on GATA