Still no ray of hope at Rey

“Youth dies of drowning” - is a headline that does not garner much interest apart from a cursory look. But what about a headline which screams, “Four youth drown within four months at the same spot”? This is exactly what happened on 27 September, a Sunday, when a Class X student drowned in Rey Khola below Gangtok at around 12.30 pm. He became the fourth person to drown at the exact same place at this popular picnic spot in the past four months. Before him, a young driver and two students, just like him, have drowned here.

A Municipal Election of Challenges

The much awaited urban local body elections 2015 are now in the offing. The State Election Commission has declared 09 October as voting day, counting on 12th, and by 15 October the election process will be over. With that, all the four districts of Sikkim will have their respective urban representatives for the next five years. As expected earlier, there will be having two cornered contest between the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front and the opposition Sikkim Krantikari Morcha.
The SDF has fielded candidates from all the 53 wards in the seven municipal bodies of the State. On the other hand, SKM has concentrated primarily in areas where it had gained some hold in the general elections. SKM is contesting from all the 17 seats of the Gangtok Municipal Corporation as it had swept the assembly elections here with six of its nine MLAs, including party president PS Tamang having on from assembly constituencies comprising of areas within and around what is now the GMC. Similarly, the party is also contesting from all the seven seats of Nayabazar-Jorethang Municipal Council and five each seats of Singtam and Rangpo Nagar Panchayats.

Referee Referrals

Sikkim has two big hospitals - STNM Government Hospital and Manipal Central Referral Hospital - but as far as treatment for patients ailing from critical diseases or serious accidents is concerned, both fail to deliver on expectations. Meanwhile, the district hospitals and primary health centres are only equipped to treat minor ailments like flu or to dress wounds.
The STNM Hospital, which is still the more trusted institution for most here in Sikkim and is also a referral hospital, is facing acute shortage of beds. If a patient in critical condition is taken to the emergency ward of the hospital, he or she will immediately be forwarded [not referred, mind you] to the CRH with a note on the hospital card that says “patient sent to CRH due to unavailability of bed”.  The patient is then required to be taken to the CRH.

Another life lost at Rey Khola, and Still no solutions on the table

In India, drowning is ranked third among leading causes of death in children between 10-14 years age group. The first position is taken by lower respiratory infections followed by road accidents. This, as per data reflected in “Drowning Deaths in India: Need for Prevention Policies and Programs”, a study paper prepared by Dr. G. Gururaj, Professor & Head,  Department of Epidemiology, WHO Collaborating Centre for Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion, National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Sciences, Bangalore. The paper further revealed that 16.8% of Indian children [0-17 age-group] who died in the year 2004, succumbed to drowning.

To College, and Beyond

The Board Exam results are out and a majority of the Sikkimese students passed with good numbers. But parents as well as students, especially +2 passed out, are worried about getting admission in colleges of their choice. Results for the CET exams conducted by the Human Resource Development Deparment are also out and counselling sessions for 25 [MBBS], 13 [BDS], 09 [B.V. Sc. & A.H], 23 [B. Sc. Forestry], 4 [B. Sc. Fisheries], 4 [B.Sc Home Science], 22 [B. Sc. Horticulture], 2 [B. Sc. Sericulture], 38 [B.Sc. Agriculture] and 1 B.Sc. Nutrition & Dietics] are going on in full swing. Among the thousands who sat for the CET exams only 141 students will get admissions on Government Scholarship in good colleges in the first phase of the counselling. Obviously, the lucky 141 are the toppers of the CET.

Tourist Season snubbing of ‘locals’ begins

The death toll due to heat wave has already crossed the thousand mark in the country. Temperatures have crossed 45 degrees especially in the now neighboring states of Andhra Pradesh and Telengana. Compared to this, continuous rainfall for the last three months has made Sikkim the perfect destination for tourists. The volume of tourist inflow this season will probably cross last year’s record. The official figures will be known only after the season is over but the fact that 1,200 tourists were stranded due to a landslide on a single night and had to be evacuated from North Sikkim earlier this week gives us some idea about the volume of tourists already arriving in Sikkim.

Of unlimited wants and limited resources

“Everyone should now worry about how to maintain consistency in sustaining the reputation earned by Sikkim in the country and around the world,” said Chief Minister Pawan Chamling in his State Day address on 16 May here at Chintan Bhawan last Saturday. Obviously, Mr. Chamling, who has been heading the State for the last 21 years, is not satisfied with the level of coordination, commitment and cooperation from certain sections of society towards the development of Sikkim. He also urged the gathering comprising mostly of senior bureaucrats at the venue aptly named, Chintan Bhawan, to maintain common consciousness and coordination to help the state maintain progress that it has achieved so far.
Now a simple question arises for the little over six lakh population of Sikkim. Why is the most popular and successful Chief Minister elected by them asking for everyone's cooperation at this juncture? Most probably there is a huge gap of coordination between the policy makers and the implementing agencies. Several projects in Sikkim are incomplete and most are running behind schedule. Some projects which are already completed are lying idle and not being properly utilized.

‘Growth’, Still Unchecked and Unplanned

On 25 April, and then again on 12 May, earthquakes wreaked havoc on Nepal. From experts to laymen, all are convinced that old, un-engineered, unplanned and weak structures were the main contributing factors behind the huge number of casualties, injuries and damage to properties. Now, experts ranging from architects to civil engineers, even geologists in their interviews given to TV channels of Nepal are urging the government as well as the public in general to avail their services in rebuilding Nepal. It is difficult to say how long the Nepalese will take to overcome the devastation but expert suggestions are a welcome move in certain respects.
In the case of Sikkim, we are lucky that the tremors felt here were of less than half the intensity of the ones in Nepal. It is difficult to imagine what would have happened if 7.8 and 7.3 magnitude temblors had hit us here. We have already seen the consequences of a 6.8 magnitude quake that struck us in September 2011. Maybe it is time for us to think about the lessons from the past.

Of clogged jhoras and unpreparedness

The months of March, April and May usually witness numerous cleanliness drives along the jhoras and drains across the state. But this year, such drives have been few and far between. The unseasonal daily downpours coupled with the Nepal earthquake could perhaps be the reason behind social organisations and concerned authorities not being able to undertake such activities in the state. Around this time last year, the newspapers were flooded with news of cleanliness drives, but this year there have not been too many such news appearing in the papers.  
The wet weather has exposed the wretched condition of the drainage systems in and around Gangtok which are either clogged with garbage and assorted debris or have suffered damages especially in the lower parts of Gangtok. Besides damaging crops and vegetables, the untimely rains have also hit drinking water supplies in and around the capital much before the monsoon actually arrives in the State.

Schools, still not properly toilet-trained

Sikkim is one of the most hygienic states in India. A claim attested by the fact that it is the first state of to achieve Nirmal Rajya status by securing total sanitation. And yet, out of the total of 774 Government schools all over Sikkim, 773 schools still require proper toilets for girl students. The official data on “status of improvement/ reconstruction” states that 773 schools are in need of this upgrade. The lone school that did not require toilets for girls is Tashi Namgyal Senior Secondary School in Gangtok, a boys only school! 190 of the 774 schools require toilets for boys. This data has been extracted from the Human Resource Development Department’s official website which presents statistics as of September 2014.

Marcha, important not just for the tipplers

From tourism festivals to religious and cultural events, stalls showcasing traditional food items have become one of the main attractions in Sikkim. Though food items can be seen in varieties with different tastes and flavours depending on the community presenting it, one thing common to all stalls is chaang [kodo ko janr] and tinpaney rakshi [distilled liquor from janr]. These two items play a vital role in attracting visitors to these stalls. However, not many are aware of how chaang is prepared.
Millet is the main ingredient for chaang but to convert millet into chaang an ingredient called Marcha [yeast inocula/ starter cake] is needed. Marcha helps in the fermentation process to convert cooked millet into chaang.

The Post-Board Stress

The Class X and XII board examinations are nearing to an end. While students will undoubtedly heave a huge sigh of relief, a pall of anxiety will now come over parents whose children took these exams. For those appearing for the Class X examination, it is time to choose streams which will set them up for their futures, not just academic but also professional, and this will depend largely on how much they score. Students looking for admission into better schools or schools that offer their choice of subjects for +2 have nervous days ahead as most schools have raised their cut-off percentage over the last couple of years.

Kitney documents the?

An ordinary man’s life with documents for every occasion and every status update

An old friend of mine recently told me that he needs to buy a larger trunk since there was no place in his ancestral trunk to keep his “important documents” any more. I also agree with him and will soon need to consider such an investment myself because my wife too is complaining of the drawer running out of space. As per my calculation, a Local Sikkimese needs to possess more than 14 documents to get by reasonably without too many bureaucratic hiccups holding up his files and applications. Now I would like to explain this situation in detail.

Dimapur, Never Again. Never Anywhere

The lynching of a rape accused by a mob last Thursday in Dimapur, Nagaland holds a lesson or two for the government, administration, law & order agencies, politicians and also the general public of Sikkim.
As per media reports, a mob of 7,000-8,000 people reached the ramshackle building that serves as the central jail at Dimapur, overpowered the Nagaland Armed Police guards and got hold of Syed Farid Khan, an accused in a sexual assault case. The mob dragged Khan out of the jail and beat him as he was paraded naked along the streets for about eight kilometers. Already dead from the beating, his dead body was finally hung from the city tower.

Referral reference

A patient getting referred out of the State for treatment might benefit from the expertise of super-speciality hospitals and specialist doctors, but the process can be long and the paperwork tedious and complicated. Here are some detailed tips on how to negotiate your way around if you, God forbid, end up as a member of a ‘patient party’ attending to a referred patient…

Sikkim is arguably among the most generous of states when it comes to providing financial assistance to its citizens seeking advanced healthcare remedies outside the State. It has several healthcare related programmes and schemes being implemented through the Health Care, Human Services and Family Welfare Department. Among these, here I would like to share my experience with regard to two schemes- the Sikkim State Illness Assistance Fund [SSIAF] and the Mukhya Mantri Jeevan Raksha Kosh Scheme [MMJRKS]. Both schemes provide cashless access to advanced healthcare to patients referred outside the State.
SSIAF is meant for patients from BPL families referred outside State and who are in need of necessary assistance to receive medical treatment for certain life-threatening diseases, treatment for which is normally very expensive, in super specialty hospitals. In Sikkim, the patient is provided up to Rs. 1.50 lakh in the form of cashless treatment facility i.e. payment made directly to the hospital by the State Government. Financial assistance beyond Rs. 1.50 lakh is to be provided by the Central Government.
MMJRKS, on the other hand, is meant for APL patients referred outside the State for treatment. In this scheme, the State Government provides cashless assistance starting from Rs. 20,000 up to Rs. 2 lakhs depending on the case history of the patient.

Many Schools, Scarce Safety

“He who opens a school door, closes a prison”
It appears that the above quote of Victor Hugo has made a strong impression on Sikkim. Besides government schools, almost all Gram Panchayat Units all over Sikkim now have at least one private school, if not more. And more schools come up every academic session. While the total number of private schools cannot be accessed at this point since a large number of these schools are probably not even registered with the Government, surviving because they are fulfilling the interests and aspirations of families from lower income groups who cannot afford the more reputed schools but are unwilling to trust their wards to government schools.

New academic year Blues

School’s reopen next week, and it is not just the parents who should be tense

The long winter break of the children are about to end now. Most of the schools, including Government schools, will reopen on 16 February for a new academic session. Like every year, it’s time again for parents to prepare for the several new challenges owing to their children’s education. It is obvious that the month of February is a tight-budget-month for every parent. Almost all private schools have revised the tuition fee and some schools have announced changes of school uniforms and the like. Parents working with middle-class budgets will be directly affected by this.

When Maghey Mela tries too hard to be hep and happening :-(

This year’s Maghey Mela celebrations, at least at some of the venues, were among the longest ever celebrated in the recent history of Sikkim. At some venues, the mela is still going on, touching nearly a fortnight of Mela. But sadly, this longest-ever celebrated festival was not the ‘funnest’ one as visitors rued that ‘there was no charm’ and also that the melas were ‘boring’.
It was also seen that besides old venues, some new locations with new organizers were added and it was obvious that expectations were high on the part of the mela lovers to experience some new forms of entertainment. While visitors were attracted to such new additions, they also missed the old staples which used to especially entertain the low budget visitors.

Caves for rent in the urban jungle!

It is a fact that urban areas, with their substantially more employment opportunities, choice of schools and colleges, better medical facilities, easier access to administrative centres etc., attract a high number of migrants from the rural parts of the State. While the aspiration to live in the “city” must have always been there, the past few decades, when “development” and disposable incomes spread comparatively wider in Sikkim, and also when more opportunities opened up, have seen an explosion in the number of people settling in Gangtok. Sample this, the Gangtok Municipal Corporation area is estimated to have a population of nearly 2 lakh, that is close to 30% of Sikkim’s population of a little over 6 lakh. [accompanying video at the end of the column provides a virtual walk through a sample tenement which sees no natural light even during daytime]

Children & the City

As usual, the enormously long winter break of the children is upon us. Some of the parents residing in urban clusters have sent the children off to their native villages to enjoy the vacations. But not everyone enjoys the luxury of having a home in the basti as well, and those who are not as lucky see their children cramped for space. Rented quarters and concrete jumbles make enormous demands on the creativity of children [and their parents] to find place to play.
Most of such children can be seen either playing marbles in the corners or playing cricket on the streets – at least on stretches such as ICAR-Lingding, Byepass-Ranka, Ranipool-Adampool roads where traffic is low and vehicles in less of a dangerously tearing hurry [thanks to the poor condition of the roads]. Kids who don’t have too many children of their own age in the neighbourhood can be seen either playing alone [as seen the picture] or spending all their waking hours watching cartoons on TV. The travails of living in the city never end!