RUSH-HOUR BLUES FOR BURTUK RESIDENTS

Transcription

1 RUSH-HOUR BLUES FOR BURTU RESIDENTS introducing State Bank Vishwa ForeignYatra Travel Card No more foreign cash or Travellers Cheques. Just carry this magic card to access ATMs and shop anywhere in the world Contact SBI, Gangtok. ph: She s got the looks & she s from Darj! Cheer for Jyoti Brahmin tonight as she attempts to bring the Miss India crown to the Queen Of The Hills! TURN TO pg5 Saturday, 27 March, 2004 Vol. 2 No. 52 Gangtok Rs March, 2004; NOW! 1 Air-Conditioned Grocery Shop for Provisional Goods, Dry Fruits & All Hotel Requirements (for kitchen) WHOLE-SALES RETAIL-SALES at the most reasonable prices Rajdeep Spectrum Color Lab Building, Near Amar/ Chaman Garage, Sevoke Road, Siliguri ph: , EAST DISTRICT COORDINATION COMMITTEE FORMED No Section 144 does not mean anyone can break the law: DC COUNTING AT TNA AUDITORIUM THIS YEAR a NOW REPORT GANGTO, 26 March: The District Coordination Committee [DCC] for East Sikkim has been formed to oversee the electioneering process and to resolve disputes between political parties in the District. The DCC consists of two members from all political parties in the State. This Committee composition was decided at an all-party meeting called by the District Collector [East],. Srinivasulu, at an allparty meeting for the district con- vened at his office here today. Representatives of seven recognised political parties of the State attended the meeting. While the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front [SDF] was represented by Mohan Dungmali, S Pradhan and BS Pant, all general secretaries of the party, Maj. T Gyatso and Hemlall Bhandari represented the Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee-I. SSP found representation in Rajendra Upreti and amal umar Rai, Gyamtso Bhutia and Madan turn to pg4 TURN TO pg3 EAST DISTRICT COORDINATION COMMITTEE NAME PARTY PHONE NO: S.. Pradhan S.D.F B. S. Pant S.D.F Nidup Lachenpa S.S.P A.. Sharma S.S.P Maj. T. Gyatso S.P.C.C Hemlall Bhandari S.P.C.C Gyamtso Bhutia B.J.P (O) Madan Gajmer B.J.P (O) Anjan Upadhyaya C.P.I. (M) Bishnu Neopaney C.P.I. (M) T. B. Thatal S.H.R.P.P Satish Rai G.N.L.F T.P. Bhattarai G.N.L.F ANAND OBEROI GANGTO, 26 March: The case of the 12-year-old boy who was missing from Gangtok took a happy turn today when Bina Tamang of Pakyong called up the NOW! office informing that the boy was safe and well at Pakyong. Bhim Bahadur Bishwakarma, aka Tashi, had been missing from Upper Tatangchen Area since 3 March. Originally from Rhenock, he was staying with Tsewang Chupay Bhutia, a friend of his father. On the morning of 3 March he had gone to drop Tsewang Bhutia s son to school, but did not return. He was last seen wearing blue jeans, a black turtleneck and blue shoes. Information available now suggests that he was found crying near the High Court at Sichey by one Dawa Bau from Pakyong. He had some food with him, which had been bought by passers-by. According to Bina Tamang, Dawa Bau s neighbour, he brought the boy to Pakyong hoping to locate his father, who Bhim said was in Rhenock. Despite all efforts, however, Bhim s father could not be located. When he told Ms. Tamang of the boy, she recalled seeing his photograph in NOW! and immediately called the office informing that Bhim Bahadur was at Dugalakha, Pakyong with Dawa Bau. When Tsewang Bhutia was informed, he was extremely happy that Tashi, as he calls him, had been found. His father had given me full responsibility to take care of Tashi. When he suddenly went missing, I lost all sleep, I have been searchturn to pg 3 Bhim Bahadur Bishwakarma; lost - 3 March, 2004; Lost announcement in NOW! - 16 March; Reported found - 26 March, 2004 ONLY AT: New Babumashai Restaurant & Bar Opp. Tashi Delek, New Market Gangtok Ph: HONG ONG BAZAAR Any Item Rs. 90 to Rs. 150 Gift Items, Crockery & Other Attractive Goods! FIRST TIME IN SIIM HOTEL BAYUL, MG MARG, GANGTO

2 2; NOW!; 27 March, 2004 NOW! FIRST WITH THE NEWS Who Nurtures A Culture? There has been much talk of vanishing cultures in the Hills. Where each proponent of saving this culture goes wrong is in mistaking culture for a relic. Culture is not something that can be pickled and preserved as a museum piece for posterity. Culture is vibrant, alive and current. It is spontaneous, almost instinctive, and not something that is learnt. It is imbibed. Since culture forms a part of evolution, it is also subject to fresh interpretations, nuances and relevance. Because culture is all abut people, a culture which disappears because of neglect should perhaps be allowed to do so. Maybe its time is up. What we have to guard against is the snuffing out of a culture due to persecution [swamping out of a people would qualify as persecution]. Given the more informed times we live in, such persecution is rare. Yet, we should not dismiss a culture as ripe for extinction even before we have understood it. It is important that the repository of culture is routinely passed on to the next generation to nurture and craft as it feels right. If after they have understood it, they decide to discard it, it is their call and it should remain that way. Cultures remain on the brink of extinction in the hills and a lot of noise is generated over these cultures under threat. If these voices are raised out of concern, then they need to be appreciated, but if these are expressions of xenophobia, then the Hills need to be concerned. But then, the hills will keep producing xenophobes till such time that it keeps suffering from an inferiority complex vis-à-vis the plains. But that is for another time. For now, what can we do about cultures under threat? All eyes turn to the government and the establishment to help sustain a culture. Government sponsorship of a culture is like a life support system for a patient. It could end either way. A culture could finds its moorings again and return rejuvenated, our it could survive endlessly in its comatose form. There are several government initiatives underway to preserve culture. But that is all a government can do. It is up to the people to actually do the nurturing. For a culture to thrive, it has to be practised. Stop practising it and a culture is lost within a generation; even quicker in the present times. Those who think that a department of culture can actually keep a culture alive have lost their s a long time back. Culture after all is more than just fancy-dress parade or folk dances performed by professionals twice a year. It has to be about the people and it has to be the people who sustain it. Artist, filmmaker, keen photographer, columnist with international magazines... It s hard to pin Twan Yang down. Born to a Chinese father and Tibetan mother, he grew up in alimpong and worked in Sikkim. NOW! serializes Twan Yang s autobiography, Houseboy in India... ED-SPACE Learning Tongues W -15- hen we had been some two months in Peshawar, Sirdar Sone Singh had to go back to alimpong for some urgent work. But my mistress, the baby and I were to stay at the home of my mistress s sister in the town. This house was threestoried and stood in a street called the Ram Gali. I saw only Punjabi Hindus and no other people of our caste at all. My mistress s brother-in-law was a cloth merchant. The day we arrived was very hot, much hotter than in the camp. I did not see any electric fans such as we had in the camp, only a punkah, a long strip of cloth hanging down from a long pole suspended from the ceiling. A servant pulled the punkah forward and backward by a rope all the time fresh air was necessary. At night the whole family, the sister and brother-in-law of my mistress and their son, who was fourteen years of age and reading in school slept on the flat roof. My own sleeping place was arranged in a corner near the kitchen. In this house there was a servant, the only one, who had been with his master for the past five years and had learned Punjabi very well. He himself came from Benaras and spoke Hindustani excellently as this was his tongue. By this time I myself had learned a great deal of Hindustani. Whenever I could not understand anything, I asked this other servant from Benaras, and he would explain to me. With my own mistress I spoke in Nepali, and with her sister mostly in Hindustani. But my new mistress very often forgot herself and spoke to me in Punjabi. At such times I would look dumb and open my mouth wide. Then I would run quickly to my new friend and repeat the sound of what I had heard, and he would tell me the meaning. My new friend, who was called Ram Lal, took me one day to the bazaar to show me all the shops in which to buy all things used in a Hindu household. I was forbidden to buy anything from any Mohammedan shop. I took careful note of everything, and then we came to the food shop, where Ram Lal invited me to have food with him. The shopkeeper was a Punjabi Brahman. Ram Lal said: Eat as much as you can, for this kind of simple food is much better for poor people like us than the good food we get at home but only in little driblets. Such good food is not for us. We do not want all kinds of nice tastes. We only want food to fill our bellies. When the children were asleep in the afternoon I had other work to attend to. First of all I had to wash my clothes and sometimes also those of the children, and I had to sweep out the room, because in this Hindu house no sweepers were allowed to enter the rooms. Then I had to always execute my mistress s orders, whatever they might be. I was especially told always to keep my body purified and free from defilement. I had to bathe oftener to purify myself, so sometimes I would be doing practically nothing but bathing all the time without a chance to do any work, and I would not grudge that, because it was a great pleasure to refresh myself by the cool water of the well on these warm days of the hot Indian season. As a rule no Mohammedan may come to take water from a Hindu well, and no Hindu may go to take water from a Mohammedan well. For such people as lived in places without any well near by, mashkis, which means water carriers, supplied water. If he were a Mohammedan, then the mashki would bring the water in a sheepskin bag which he carried on his shoulder and under the left arm: but if he were a Hindu he would usually carry the water in a copper or earthen vessel. -to be concluded Reality itself changes with discovery of water on Mars T by PHIL BERARDELLI he British social historian James Burke is fond of say ing any time humanity s view of reality is changed by new knowledge, reality itself is changed. That is exactly what has happened with the discovery by the Mars rover Opportunity that the red planet once harbored liquid, flowing water. Opportunity, which has been exploring an area near the Martian equator called Meridiani Planum since late January, first discovered rocks that formed as a result of the chemical actions of water. Then, NASA scientists announced on Tuesday that the robotic craft had located rocks most likely shaped by a body of gently flowing seawater. We think Opportunity is parked on what was once the shoreline of a salty sea on Mars, said Steve Squyres of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., the principal investigator for the instruments aboard both Opportunity and its twin Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit. Although the clues gathered by the rover so far have not revealed either how long or how long ago water covered the area, the sheer disclosure of the presence of water on a planet other than our own is monumental. It ranks with the moment, nearly 400 years ago, when Galileo Galilei peered through his telescope and discovered spots on the sun, mountains on the moon and four tiny bodies circling Jupiter. Those revelations, which today are taken for granted, also were monumental in their day. Prior to their disclosure, people confidently - even fervently - believed Earth was the immovable center of the universe, surrounded by all the heavenly bodies, each of which was a perfect, featureless sphere. Galileo s announcement was considered so shocking at the time he was charged with heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. Opportunity s findings have been treated more matter-of-factly, with NASA officials holding a news conference and bubbling over with enthusiasm at the images Opportunity has transmitted, and members of the media duly reporting the information and displaying the rover s images. Yet the importance of this finding cannot be overstated. Until now, we have known for sure of only one planet on which liquid water has flowed and water is absolutely essential for supporting life as we know it. There are no chemical processes that will permit the formation of the long, complex organic molecules composing living organisms other than in the presence of water. It is an extremely simple rule: No water, no life. As long as Earth was the only planetary body containing liquid water - and, more particularly, seawater - then it was the only place in the universe where life was possible. Now, suddenly, there are two. This dramatic confirmation of standing water in Mars history builds on a progression of discoveries about that most Earthlike of alien planets, said Ed Weiler, NASA s associate administrator for space sciences. This result gives us impetus to expand our ambitious program of exploring Mars to learn whether microbes have ever lived there and, ultimately, whether we can. NASA s Administrator Sean O eefe put it more succinctly. When you dare to ask profound questions about the universe in which we live, you may very well receive some rather profound answers, O eefe said at the briefing on Tuesday. His statement might be tremendously prophetic. Two months and 10 days ago, US President George W. Bush announced a new policy for the U.S. space program, involving a renewed effort to return humans to the moon, stay there, and push outward into the solar system. The discovery by Opportunity provides a bigger impetus for that effort, as does the recent finding, by the European Space Agency s Mars Express orbiter, that Mars retains water still - in the form of ice at its south pole. O eefe said Opportunity s discovery coincides with the administration s strategy of altering decisions about its new space policy to accommodate the findings of existing missions. In the case of Opportunity s discovery at Meridiani Planum, suddenly that site has become the prime target for NASA s next Mars rover mission, the Mars Science Laboratory. About the size of a VW Bug, the nuclear-powered craft is currently planned for launch in There may be other, major discoveries awaiting the rovers or their successors, such as finding fossils of ancient Martian organisms or, even more turn to pg 3

3 NEWSSCAN RUSH-HOUR BLUES FOR BURTU RESIDENTS SAGAR CHETTRI GANGTO, 26 March: How does it feel to be caught in a rush hour jam? Well, the people of metropolitan cities are better suited to respond to that but the mild people of Gangtok, too, get jittery when caught in a snarl. Of course, you can only be caught in a rush hour jam when you re there in a vehicle caught between bumpers. But how does one react to getting stuck at the starting point itself just because it is rush hour? The people of Burtuk seem to be facing that dilemma these days. Their problem is shortage of taxis to get them to the where the jam is. From 9 AM to 11 AM everyday Contd from pg 1 ing for him in all the four districts and have spent a lot of money trying to find him, he said. According to him, Tashi s father was a friend of his who hails from Aritar, Rhenock. I had brought Tashi to Gangtok not as a servant but as a son. But being mid-session, I could not get him admitted to any school. Maybe that residents of Burtuk sometimes queue up for almost 2 hours in wait for a share-cab. And there is no guarantee that a yellow top will happen along. One guarantee they will give is that absolutely no yellow tops are available on a Sunday. The current tourist season seems to be at the wheel of the problem. All the vans seem more interested in having a tourist in the front seat with more of them in the back and wheeling them to locations better to the sight than an office with furniture. And as to the left over Fiats, scarce as they are, if anyone tried their service he would surely end up servicing it instead. That s how bad the Fiats conditions are as the Burtuk people tell us. Was lost, now found is the reason he ran away, he added. Saying that he had never illtreated the boy, he stated, I had brought him to make his life as his family are not so well-off. I shall take care of all his requirements and will love him like my own child. Tsewang left for Pakyong on Friday to get Tashi saying that he s going to send him to school and with Tashi wanting exactly that, this story should see a happy ending. WONDERFUL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY work from home! earn Rs. 20,000 to 60,000 per month part time! Call Dr INCREDIBLE NATURAL WEIGHT LOSS Nutrition & Energy Products! First time in Sikkim!!! Call Dr Solomon, a Burtuk resident who runs his own business in Gangtok says, The refusal of the wheels to turn in our favour has left not just me but all office-workers from Burtuk stranded. They all end up late for work. We don t even have the services of a City-Runner bus. It would be great if we too could avail of such a service, at least during office hours. Tshering Bhutia, another resident said, Earlier, we had demanded for a bus but the taxi drivers opposed the idea and now the taxis don t show up. Another rear view from Chandra Tamang, Burtuk resident, reveals that most of the drivers drop them off halfway to Burtuk and make a U-turn Contd from pg 2 dramatic, finding living creatures. Still, the seawater-sculpted shapes on the rocks photographed by Opportunity promise to furnish the material for a new chapter in Burke s classic book, The Day the Universe Changed. Because now that it has been shown there are two planets where water once flowed, there no longer is a reason to doubt hundreds - or even thousands - more might exist right within our own Milky Way galaxy. Farther out in the universe - which, thanks to images from the Hubble Space Telescope, contains perhaps several hundred billion galaxies - there could be a huge number of planets holding water even now. It is intriguing to imagine water lapping against unimaginably distant shorelines upon which water-based, DNA-structured beings build their vacation homes and dock their sailboats. Once any condition can be shown not to be unique, it can be commonplace. That is a profound realization by anybody s standard for Gangtok. He adds that if the drivers could arrange for some to stay at the Bazaar stop while others hang around at the Burtuk stand, the problem would be solved. As for the drivers, they admit the problem faced by the people of Burtuk during office hours but add that they usually have to wait a long time for their seats to fill up for the trip back even though they leave town at times with just 2 or 3 passengers. And then there is the traffic jam they have to drive through which delays arrival at Burtuk making the return trip even more difficult. It seems that all that the people can do is drive around the problem - in circles. ACTING FOR A CAUSE GANGTO: Street plays are a novel way to send a message out to the people and perhaps the most likely to generate interest and intrigue among the masses. Artistes of Sikkim Amateur Theatre took this route to convey a message regarding pollution and its effects to the public of Gangtok. The performance was enacted before the Tourism Department this evening and had quite a crowd lapping up the course on offer. The play Effects of Pollution on the Health and Well Being of People and its Prevention and Control was the second street play for the amateur artistes after performing at the Jorethang Mela and was sponsored by the State Pollution Control Board. The chief purpose was to generate concern about the rising levels of pollution among the citizens of the town. The performing actors were Ranjeet umar Singh, writer and director of the play, Devendra Sunwar, Samthen Bhutia with guest artist, Chunnilal Ghimeray. The programme also saw a cultural performance by 8 artistes from Saureni, Assam Linzey who happen to be members of the Reiyukai Faith. Reality itself... A LIFESTYLE STORE Hotel Central 31A NH Way ph: , , March, 2004; NOW! 3 SIIM ROUND-UP SWINDLED OUT OF HIS EARNEST MONEY GANGTO: N Bhutia, a resident of Pelling, West Sikkim, was recently the victim of some swindlers. Unknown to Mr. Bhutia, someone it seems made away with a total of Rs. 5,28,400 of his earnest money deposited with the Rural Development Department. While Rs. 3,68,000 had been accrued from the tender of construction of the Pelling-Gyalshing road to Sangachoeling, another Rs. 1,60,400 was due from the tender bid for the Rimbi-Darap road to Tingdom, West Sikkim. Information available thus far suggests that the con-men had fraudulently forged his signature and withdrawn the TDR from RDD. During the course of investigation, the relevant documents were seized from RDD office in presence of witnesses and available witnesses were examined and the case is under investigation. LABOURER ILLED IN MUD-SLIDE MAHA: On 25 March, 25 labourers of Costral Project Limited, Adit III Makha, had to contend with a sudden burst of earth and loose fall while working at the Phase IV tunnel at 3 in the morning. During the sudden cave in, two labourors were injured and one of them Ajit hwazi succumbed to his injuries on his way to the hospital. The dead body was handed over to the relatives concerned after autopsy and case is under investigation to ascertain negligence if any. The latest offerings from Internal Affairs - Exclusive Wall Frames, Flowers and Decorative Items come with a wide variety that lends an exquisite expression and a sense of magnificence to Stylish Homes. UNDER ONE ROOF Centre for Performing Arts olkata urseong Gangtok Darjeeling Siliguri Opportunity to take courses in Guitar, Synthesizer, Violin, Drums, Art (sketching, water colour), Indian Classical Vocals, Contemporary form of freestyle Western Dance and Indian Classical Dances DISCOVER ONESELF OF YOUR HIDDEN TALENTS! For details, contact tarang office, Near rishi Bhavan, Tadong. ph:

4 NEWSSCAN EC WANTS AIR PASSENGERS BAGGAGE CHECED FOR CASH 4; NOW!; 27 March, 2004 NEW DELHI, 26 March: The Election Commission has issued a letter to the civil aviation ministry for checking any liquid cash present in the baggage of passengers travelling by air. The letter sent to the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) asked the security personnel to question any passenger carrying large sum of liquid cash, official sources said here today. The BCAS has asked the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), in-charge of providing security at all airports in the country, to check and question any passenger carrying huge amount of money, they said. Gazmer from the Bharatiya Janata Party, Bishnu Neopaney from the CPI [M], TB Thatal from the Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party, and Satish Rai, TP Bhattarai and Samdop Bhutia from GNLF, Sikkim. The DCC for East District is headed by Mr. Srinivasulu, who is also the Returning Officer for the District. Speaking to NOW!, the DC said that he had fruitful discussions with the representatives of the parties on various issues related to the polls in the State. All the seven parties were wellrepresented in the meeting and various pertinent issues relevant to the Assembly elections in the East District and the Parliamentary Constituency were discussed today, he said. The political parties were informed about the schedule of the polling dates by the Returning Officer and also on the ground rules for all the political parties for the polls. Importantly, the representatives were informed about the procedure and various formats for filing nomination papers. This time around, all candidates, while filing nomination papers will have to submit criminal and property affidavits as well. This from OUR CORRESPONDENT DARJEELING, 26 March: The National Institute of Information Technology [NIIT], Darjeeling, has dedicated this month to the cause of bringing women, specially the underprivileged, and computers together. In a unique programme, NIIT is providing free Information Technology training to 24 underprivileged women. Of the 24, ten are from four social organizations - Missionaries of Charity, Hayden Hall, Nishkalank Nari Udyog endra and Parvatiya Nari Ayog. The rest are school students from St. Teresa s High School, Nepali Girls High School, Maharani Girls High School, Municipal Girls High School and Sai Ratna School. We did not select the candidates ourselves, but asked the authorities to do so since they are the best judges would apply to candidatures in both the Parliamentary as well as Assembly constituencies, Mr. Srinivasulu said. This is in accordance to an Election Commission of India directive, which has made it compulsory for candidates to submit Income Tax returns, wherever applicable, along with evaluation papers of all their movable and immovable properties. Candidates are now also required to submit affidavits of any criminal records. The meeting also discussed other issues such as photo identity cards for voters in the State and the preparation of the electoral roll. The representatives were informed about the use of the Electronic Voting Machines. It was decided that the EVMs would be configured and sealed for the polls in the presence of the members of the DCC. The issue of defacement of public properties was also brought up during the meeting. It was decided that only certain areas selected by the DC s office would be given to political parties for pollrelated graffiti on a priority basis. Other than that, all other graffiti and posters put up by the parties in public places are to be removed within The CISF has also been directed to report any such matter to higher authorities where a passenger was carrying money over Rs 10 lakh. The move comes in the wake of reports that heavy transactions take place during the elections, sources said. The Election Commission has also sought a report from the civil aviation ministry by tomorrow regarding the issuance of free travel passes by Air India to political functionaries of high-profile to visit London. In a communication to the ministry, the commission said the issue of such free passes amounted to contravention of the provisions of the model code of conduct. No Section 144 does not mean... from pg1 a week, as directed by the Chief Electoral Officer. The law and order situation and the security arrangements for the East District were also discussed during the meeting. The DC made it clear to the party representatives that although Section 144 had not been imposed in the District yet, even as a precautionary measure, it did not mean that the law and order situation could be taken lightly by any party. All the parties were requested to refrain from violence and to help in the conduction of free and fair elections in the District. The representatives were also informed about the polling and counting arrangements in the State. The Tashi Namgyal Academy ground and auditorium here would be used for storing of EVMs and the counting of votes, the DC informed. Mr. Srinivasulu added that the list of contesting candidates would be out by 27 April and any candidate requiring security would be provided with Police escorts until the polling process was over. The DCC will work in close coordination with the office of the District Collector from today on all pollrelated matters, it is further learnt. Underprivileged women get an introduction to IT courtesy NIIT on who would be the most befitting for our free course, said Neeraj Agarwal, Director, NIIT, Darjeeling. The 12-hour programme has been specially designed by Dr. Saugata Mitra, Head of R&D, NIITbased on principles of andragogy [a method of teaching adults]. N. Donne, a social worker associated with the Hayden Hall here said, Private educational houses, and specially those imparting technical trainings, should come forward with initiatives like NIIT has. It is after all every one s duty to work for the less fortunate. Prabha Tamang, one of the candidates, adds: It is an excellent opportunity for us. I could not have undergone such a course if I had to pay the fees. Asifa Siddique of Maharani Girls School added that it would be a major boost to her career prospects. SITUATION VACANT! FOR GANGTO & JAIGAON CENTER 1. Female Academic Counsellor. 2. Office Superintendent 3. Automobile Engineering Faculty DESIRED: Graduate with attractive personality, excellent communications skills and multi-lingual [Only local candidates preferred for Gangtok Center]. ELIGIBITY: B.E. with excellent communication skills. Apply immediately with full bio-data to: The George Telegraph Training Institute H.C. Rd., Siliguri small price Home PCs now at unbelievably low prices starting at Rs. 18,000/- * With Color Printer Also available HCL EzeeBee:- Intel Pentium 4 Processor, 2.0 GHz, 128 MB DDRAM, 40 GB HDD, 52X CD ROM, 1.44 FDD, Multimedia eyboard, Scroll Mouse, 10/100 Mbps NIC, 15 Color Monitor at Rs. 22,500/- SPECIAL OFFER: Inkjet Color Printer + HCL Rs. 5,500/- Sole Authorised Dealer in Sikkim: NAYUMA INFOSYS, SSi EDUCATION NEAR RISHI BHAWAN, TADONG, GANGTO PHONE: , CELL: , * Frieght & Local Taxes Extra TM RADIANT ALIGNED SERVICES Information hand-outs regarding privilege card pertaining to shops offering privilege discount. Name of the Shop HCL HCL Desktop PCs Rated No. 1 by Dataquest - IDC Customer Satisfaction Audit 2004 HCL EzeeBee AMD 1800 / 2000 XP 128 MB DDR RAM 40 GB HDD 52X CD ROM 1.44 FDD Internet eyboard Scroll Mouse 10/100 LAN 15 Color Monitor Color Printer HURRY L I M I T E D STOC Purchase Percentage Amount of discount offered 1. Fusion(Food & Bewereges) Rs % 2. Weldon Motors(All Parts) Rs % 3. Beekay Hardware Rs % 4. Eye Catcher (readymade garments & footwear) garments Rs % shoes Rs % 5. R.P. Enterprises(medicine stores) (All) Rs % 6. Somani Enterprises(Cassettes & CDs) Above Rs % 7. Quickbite Above Rs % 8. Yeti Cosmetic Shoppe Above Rs % 9. Style(readymade garments) Above Rs % 10. Steps (footwear) Above Rs % 11. Pariwar Resturant (vegetarian) Food Only Rs % 12. Sunny Guest House ON Season 5% OFF Season 50% 13. Expression Stationers above Rs % Gift above Rs % Card above Rs % 14. Jainco(Books & Stationeries) Above Rs % 15. Snoopy Tour & Treks Xerox Above 100pgs 25% Vehicles ON Season 5% OFF Season 10% 16. Himalayan Book Store (all newspaper) On Annual Subscription 10% 17. Good Books Above Rs % 18. Dr. C.B.Rai Opticals Only 15% 19. Dr. Sheila Pradhan (Child Specialist) 20% 20. Dr. D.N. Joshi(Physician) On clinic visit 10% 21. Dr.P..Gupta (Physician) On clinic visit 10% 22. Dr. Marda (Medical officer) On clinic visit 10% 23. Dr. A..Adhikari (vetinary doctor) Accessories, except medicine 5% Pet Purchase above Rs % Consultancy 10% 24. Tenzing Enterperise (all mobile accessories) 15% On hiring and purchasing 5% 25. alimpong Supply Agency All oils & lubricant purchase above 7 ltrs. 3 ltr off 26. Car Shingar. All goods, above Rs % 27. Spectrum(movie world) Purchase & hiring basis above Rs % Fire fighting equipments above Rs Attractive discount 28. Hotel Radiant Above Rs % 30. Tendrils Readymade salwars Above Rs. 1,000 10% Cosmetic above Rs % olapuri Sandles Above Rs % for further details, please contact: RADIANT INDUSTRIES PRIVATE LIMITED Registered Vide Registration No: 652 Dt. 25/9/2001 under Law Deptt., Govt. of Sikkim Hotel Radiant Building, Nam-Nang, Near Lall Market, Gangtok or call: / HRS SERVICE ON JUST A SINGLE CALL

5 NEWSSCAN 27 March, 2004; NOW! 5 LATENT HEAT IS ABHYATA CHAP! GO FIGURE In which language do I have to tell you - I opted for Nepali medium, not Gobbledygook WBBSE does it again, prepares question papers in Nepali which no one understands AMITAVA BANERJEE DARJEELING, 26 March: The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education [WBBSE] continues to live up to its reputation of preparing Sicence and Mathematics question papers for Madhyamik candidates in a Nepali that no one except the ones who scripted them can decipher. This year again, the papers are full of anomalies. Every year, the same problem repeats and despite repeated complaints nothing is done. It is little wonder that Madhyamik candidates appearing in Nepali fare so badly in the examinations. They don t understand the questions because the paper is so full of the terminology errors, says Passang Tshering, a teacher. Very little of the Mathematics paper can be understood because it is rift with faulty translation, he alleged. Tshering has also written to the WBBSE President regarding this. Quoting a few examples, Tshering said that in the Life Science paper, Entrapping has been translated as abja Garnu which actually means to possess illegally ; oxygenated blood is translated as something no one has heard of in the hills, Oxygen Samridhha Rakta. Queen Of The Hills awaits her Crown Jyoti Brahmin eyedentify&win Identify the venue shown alongside and one lucky correct entry will win RELIANCE RECHARGE COUPON WORTH RS. 200/- from Cindrella Mobiles MG MARG, GANGTO. PH: NAME:... ANSWER:... Last Edition s Answer: Libing Helipad WINNER: Mukesh Paudyal, Tadong. The Pond s Femina Miss India contest this year will see two hill girls vying for the coveted title. J YOTI BRAHMIN from Darjeeling and HIMANI THAPA from anpur will share the stage with 29 other finalists for the Miss India title. 23 years old Jyoti, a Business Development Manager, now based in olkata stands 5 7" tall and has already won the Sananda Tilotama 2003, considered the biggest beauty title in East India. A complete introvert, Jyoti says that she has learnt to appreciate small things in life which can bring a smile to someone s face. I don t make friends that easily, but when I do, it s a friendship that lasts forever, she says. Born and brought up in Darjeeling where she also did her schooling, Jyoti believes that participating in this contest will definitely help her grow as a person. She believes she would now be able to explore new avenues, new challenges and achieve goals that would never have otherwise been possible. Jyoti now wants to pursue modelling as a full time career, but without comprising on values and ethics. She believes that physical beauty is a passing phase, it is momentary. To remain beautiful for life, there has to be inner beauty. A person of varied interests Jyoti loves reading, listening to music, and playing Basketball and Badminton. Himani at 23, is already a well-known model. She is from anpur, but now lives in Delhi. A Commerce Graduate, she was a Finalist at the Miss Euro Asia 2001; First Runner-Up, Miss IIFT 2000, Megamodel IIT anpur Watch out for the girls at the Ponds Femina Miss India 2004 which will be broadcast live March 27, Saturday at 9 pm on Sony TV. P Positive Summer Collection Hotel Golden Pagoda STYLE MG Marg, Gangtok The Physical Science paper translates Latent Heat as Abhyakta Chap which actually means pressure. The Board refuses to be consistent even in its errors. Major is translated as Parimeya in the Physical Science paper and as Parimiti in Mathematics. I had been asked by the WBBSE to prepare a booklet translating Mathematical terminology from English to Nepali. I have completed it and sent it to the Board much ahead of the examinations, but it seems that it has not been used at all, added Tshering. He is convinced that similar booklets on translations for Science are also gathering dust in the Board Office. BB Pradhan, a board member from Darjeeling insists that the mistakes are much lesser this year than in previous years. Unless the proof readers and the translators are from the hills with a sound knowledge of Nepali, this problem will continue, he adds. Pradhan said that in November last year, when he had met the Board President, he had made complaints regarding anomalies in the Nepali version of question papers, to which the Board President had assured that there would be no mistakes any more. I will be meeting the Board President this Saturday in Siliguri and I will bring to his notice the grievances of the students and the guardians, he assured. However, most of the guardians feel that except assurances, nothing has been done to eradicate this problem. ACTUAL PRODUCT MAY DIFFER FROM THE PICTURE SHOWN.

6 6; NOW!; 27 March, 2004 How much does an election cost? A general election in India is a gigantic exercise, equivalent to con ducting polls in all of Europe, the United States, Canada and Aus tralia all at once. So claims a report from the National Commission on Electoral Reforms that reviewed laws, processes and reforms. The Lok Sabha election which begins next month will be enormous not just in size, but in cost as well. The interim budget that Union Finance Minister Jaswant Singh presented in February put the cost to the exchequer of the parliamentary election next month at Rs. 818 crore. But if the huge expense of conducting a similar exercise in 1999 is anything to go by, it is likely to go up to as much as Rs 1,000 crore. Approximately Rs. 880 crore was spent in the 1999 Lok Sabha elections The biggest costs are incurred on deployment of security personnel and polling staff, setting up polling stations [some 800,000 throughout the country for a general election], purchase of electronic voting machines, and issuance of photo identification cards. The election budget covers only the government s expenses on conducting the polls and not the money that political parties spend on campaigns. NEW DELHI, 26 March: Indian scientists will interact with their American counterparts on developing futuristic equipment for soldiers, according to Defence Research and Development Organisation chief Dr V Atre. As decided during a recent meeting of the Indo-US High Technology Cooperation Group, an agreement for joint collaboration on the issue will be signed later this year, he said. According to Dr. Atre, the Indian side will get to interact with the American scientists who have an ongoing project for Land Warriors. The Land Warrior Project is an ongoing US project that looks at a soldier as a complete weapon system and looks at three components - lethality, survivability and command and control. Costing over U$2 billion and expected to be completed by 2014, the project will witness some 45,000 equipment tried and tested for shaping the perfect soldier of the future. The DRDO will begin its own such project in June that will be called the Man Pack System Project, Dr. Atre added. The Man Pack System Project will be one of the three areas that the two sides will cooperate in, Dr. Atre said. The Indian side will look at development of equipment such as global positioning systems and radio S? First Prize : Rs. 500/- Second Prize : Rs. 300/- Third Prize : Rs. 200/- India, US join hands to make futuristic soldier ix Britons were rescued af ter spending more than a week trapped in a cave in Mexico, the U Ministry of Defence said today. One civilian guide and five members and former employees of the British military were freed from the Alpazat system of caves in Cuetzalan, near the central city of Puebla, The six explorers, or spelunkers as they are called in Mexico, had been trapped since 18 March after rains caused water to rise in the caves, blocking their exit. The men, members of a 16-man Combined Services Caving Association team, were working on a civilian mission to map the caves, according to a statement posted on the website of the British Embassy in Mexico. The spelunkers had vistransmitters, backpack antennas and smart vests that will be able to communicate to bases the condition of soldiers when they are wounded or ill. Dr. Atre said among the key components for such a futuristic dressing up of soldiers is miniature batteries that can be easily recharged. Among the other areas of collaboration will be various aspects of military operations in high altitudes. In this regard the Americans are keen to learn from the Indians, who have over 15 years of experience in Siachen sector. What has been of great interest to them is our medical ability to bring down casualty rate among Do you consider yourself to be the Master of Games We would like to see it! LAST WEE! for further information on participation, just drop in at Aptech Computer Education, Daragaon, Tadong. ph: , ENTRY FORMS AVAILABLE AT APTECH COMPUTER EDUCATION (TADONG) ELSEWHERE Britons Rescued From Mexican Cave soldiers in Siachen in recent years, a senior army officer said. He pointed out that there has not been a single death among soldiers in Siachen in over two years now because of new medical techniques in treating high altitude sickness. The two sides have in recent times had bilateral seminars and interactions on high altitude medicine, and also on the susceptibility and spread of contagious diseases among soldiers in extreme weather conditions. We would be regularly interacting on these issues also, the army officer said. The two sides will also jointly work towards developing vaccines against biological and chemical weapons. ited Mexico before, and their trip was exclusively a caving mission, with no additional purposes, the statement said. The cavers had sufficient food and oxygen, and were equipped with a radio, first-aid gear and sleeping bags, according to the embassy s statement. The cavers were on an adventure-training expedition, and members of the group who are in the military may have received a small Ministry of Defence grant to help HOME > Performance & Mobility Rs. 46,990/-* From the World Leader in Portables Compaq Presario 2814AT notebook Quick Specs Mobile Intel Celeron processor 2.4GHz Linux OS-Mandrake MB DDR SDRAM 20GB Ultra DMA HDD (ATA 100) 24X CD ROM drive 14.1 (35.8cms) TFT Active Matrix XGA Display ATI Mobility Radeon 4XAGP 16MB SMA VRAM Rs /- Walk-in for demo Ready Stock BUY NOW > AMBER ELECTRONICS Daragaon, Tadong ph: , Compaq Presario SR1030IL Quick Specs Intel Pentium GHz 128 MB PC2100 DDR SDRAM (266 MHz) 40GB Ultra DMA Hard Drive (7200 RPM) 48X/24X/48X/ CD-RW Drive Turbo Linux Workstation Release Compaq MB5500 Monitor Rs /- BUY BEFORE 31ST MARCH & GET 32MB PEN DRIVE FREE fund it, the ministry spokesman said. The civilians, including exservicemen, would have received nothing, he said. CALL e d ito r ial: b u s ine s s : Actual product may differ from the pictures shown BUY TWO SHIRTS AND GET A WRIST WATCH FREE!!! BUY TWO SHIRTS AND GET A WRIST WATCH FREE!!! BUY TWO SHIRTS AND GET A S h i r t s T r o u s e r s T - S h i r t s D e n i m s Available in STYLE HOTEL GOLDEN PAGODA, MG MARG, GANGTO. PH:

7 SIIM HOUSE Where the décor blends with the flavours A Summer in Style S tyle, next to Rockland Shoes at MG Marg, has collected a large inventory of summerwear for the Gangtokians to choose from as the mercury starts soaring. Cotton T-Shirts, those ubiquitous item of summer clothing start from a price range of Rs. 195 and go up to Rs Not only is the fabric suited for the hotter months, but even the T-Shirts themselves come with funny one-liners to lighten up the mood while strolling through town at noon when tempers tend to otherwise flare easily. A personal favorite on display was the one that said, Face it boss, this time it s your fault. For those uncomfortable with the idea of people giggling at them as they walk past, there are the more toned down, sober T-shirts from M2 and Unistyle MH, India s top brand company in different styles and colours. If your workplace frowns on comfortable T-Shirts, then you can pick from the handsome range of summer shirts from Lee Cooper, Pepe, Levi s and Positive which tote up the cash registers with bills ranging from Rs.365 to Rs. 1,095. Whoever said that comfort comes cheap? The ever dependable formal range from John Player [ITC] and Arrow Shirts also vie for attention. Denims too lose some thickness with the summers on us and Style stocks up on summer jeans from Pepe and Flying Machine in different fits and varieties. But if leathers continue to be your obsession, leather products from Hidesign and Longhorns will surely impress. What are you waiting for? Go ahead, lighten up this summer in Style. LEISURE Y SARIAH ATREYA our first impression is that you are entering some one s living room. But that s exactly how you are supposed to feel - right at home while you savour traditional Sikkimese cuisine. Sikkim House, the newly opened, ethnic cuisine restaurant at Hotel New Castle, Deorali, resembles every inch a tastefully appointed Sikkimese living room a fine blend of Nepali, Bhutia and Lepcha cultures. And the food - lipsmacking dishes that bring out the best flavours of the three ethnic communities of the State more than lives up to that allusion. Hand-crafted wooden Tibetan Chokchis for tables, low and comfortable Budens with ethnic weave upholstery and Tibetan carpets in bright colours give a warm hue to the space. The walls are done up with traditional Buddhist motifs and adorned with Thankas. Exquisite traditional jewellery adorn one wall, while the rest of the walls have been decorated with ethnic artefacts that reflect the rich cultural heritage of the State. Even the main entrance of the Restaurant is elaborately done with traditional wall paintings and murals. Two Snow Lions guard the door, which has a glass panel done in beautiful Tibetan designs with vibrant colours. Once in, you are greeted by attendants dressed up in traditional dresses. The welcome drink consists of either the quintessential Chang [brewed millet] or a steaming cup of Tibetan butter tea - depending on your preference. The appetisers would include spicy Bhatmas [roasted soya beans], Chewra [roasted puffed rice] or the hot and savoury Churpi ko achaar [cottage cheese]. The soups arrive. Steaming hot bowls of Thenthuk or Phaktu, Bhutia noodle soup with pieces of meat or vegetables. You would have hardly managed to finish that when the main course arrives, the best of Tibetan, Nepali and Lepcha cuisine. Served in kasha ko thaal [traditional Nepali copper plates and bowls], the Sikkimese platter consists of rice, makai ko bhaat [corn rice], phaphar ko roti [buckwheat chapattis], raya ko saag [green mustard leaves], taba aloo [bamboo shoots with potatoes] along with momos, Phing [rice noodles] with mushrooms, Neengro with Churpi, Grundruk [dried mustard greens], inema [fermented soya beans], sisnu [stinging nettles] and cucumber and sesame seed pickle. The meals can be either vegetarian or non-vegetarian. Vegetables served change from season to season and guest can also pick between pork or chicken. For the authentic Tibetan taste, the Gyakho [hot pot of meat, vegetables and rice noodles in soup] is a must. The entire experience could cost a group of 4-15 persons Rs. 350 per person, while a group of more than 15 persons could make do with Rs. 300 per head. Gyakho costs an extra Rs However, one needs at least four hours advance booking for this. The restaurant has already caught the fancy of the local people as well as the tourists. Tourists, especially foreigners, are really enjoying the food we serve, says Rakesh Mohora, who runs the place. We have received a good response from the people since we opened earlier this month. Our menu is well researched. Our cooks have been especially trained by a speciality cook. We are in the process of adding more items to the menu, he adds. If you are tired of eating the same Chinese, Continental and Mughlai dishes and want to try some ethnic Sikkimese fare, Sikkim House would be just the right place for you. ADMISSION ANNOUNCEMENT AIEE & AFMC For 2004 Entrance Exam [Starting 1st April, 2004] BY A GROUP OF EXPERTS FROM SACHDEVA INST. REGULAR COURSE FOR 2005 AIEE, PMT, AIIMS, AFMC, CET, DCE ETC. RIMC COACHING IS ALSO GOING ON Contact: Mrs. Dey, Career s Counselling Institute, Tibet Road, Gangtok. ph: , C.C.I CONDUCTS COACHING FOR C.E.T. (SIIM) UNDER STATE QUOTA Anthyesthi riya Our beloved father late D. N. Sharma of Central Pandam who was a retired teacher of Senior Secondary School left for his heavenly abode on 16 March We heartily thank all relatives, friends and well wishers who stood with us during the time of bereavement. The Anthyesthi riya falls on 28 March 2004 and all friends, relatives and well wishers are requested to join us in offering prayers for the departed soul at our residence at Central Pendam, East Sikkim. Chandra ala Sharma (wife), Januki Sharma, Ganesh hanal (son), hagendra, Prakash, eshav, (son), daughters & in-laws, grandson and granddaughters. Ph: March, 2004; NOW! 7 CLASSIFIEDS FOR RENT Barsaana College Building & Hostel available for rent in alimpong after June Contact B Ghatraj. Phone: EARN Excellent Money Making Franchise Opportunity available for Foreign Education and Employment. Interested parties please info@thememorexgroup.com FOR SALE Pure Jersy Cows for immediate sale in alimpong. Contact: B Ghatraj. Phone: NOTICE State Bank of Sikkim Employees Association raffle draw extended up to Norbu Tamang, General Secretary ph: [r] HOUSING IN SILIGURI Book your Ownership Flats in Siliguri. Beside Sevoke Road, 2nd Mile Checkpost with Loan Facility. Contact: Modern Associates Mayadeep Building, 2nd Floor, 11/22, alibari Road, Siliguri ph: , , utse Shegu 49 th Day utse Shegu of late ex- Panchayat Gyen Tsh. Lepcha who left for his heavenly abode on 11 February 2004 falls on 29 March. All the well wishers, friends and relatives are requested to join us in offering prayers for the departed soul at our residence at Lum Lower Dzongu, North Sikkim. I, the present Panchayat of Lum along with bereaved family also take this opportunity to thank all those who stood by us during the time of bereavement and request our inability to thank them individually. Family member and Tshering Gyatso Lepcha, Panchayat, Lum Village Ph: MOBILE PHONES amola RC CELLULAR SALES & SERVICES Tharo Line,Lal Market Road. Ph: , Mobile:

8 8; NOW!; 27 March, 2004 today in History 27th March 1863: Sir Henry Royce, founder of Rolls-Royce, is born. 1512: Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Le n sights Florida. 1855: Abraham Gesner patents kerosene. 1944: 1,000 Jews leave Drancy France for Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 1944: 2,000 Jews are murdered in aunas Lithuania. 1944: 40 Jewish policemen in Riga Latvia ghetto are shot by the Gestapo. 1944: Children s Aktion- Nazis collect all the Jewish children of Lovno. 1945: Gen Eisenhower declares German defenses on Western Front broken. 1968: Yuri Gagarin, first man to orbit Earth, dies in a plane crash. 1977: 582 die in aviation s worst disaster, LM-Pan Am 747 crash. THE FUTURE, NOW! ARIES: Relationships go awry or at least take an unexpected turn. The need for more freedom, independence, or novelty on your part, or on the part of someone close to you, may disrupt the status quo in an important relationship. TAURUS: This is a good time to schedule social activities or even business meetings where tact and friendliness would be a plus. You act as a diplomat and harmonizer between people with differing viewpoints. Also, attending cultural events such as an art show or a play is favored. GEMINI: Tensions may erupt in close relationships because one of you feels that you have been giving more and not receiving enough in return, or one of you is more amorous than the other. CANCER: Agreements, contracts, and joining your efforts with others will work out very much to your advantage now. A friend or person in authority may offer help or present an opportunity which will benefit you now or in the future. LEO: Your usual routine is likely to be disrupted now, either by "freak" accidents beyond your control or by your own impatience with the status quo. Sudden unexpected events and breaking free of confining situations and relationships are very likely. VIRGO: This is an excellent time for personal relationships and friendships. You are able to share feelings, interests, and concerns WHAM! GOES MUSICAL F ollowing in the footsteps of ABBA and QUEEN s WE WILL ROC YOU, GEORGE MICHAEL has revealed plans to stage WHAM!, THE MUSICAL. The elusive star says he and fellow Wham! member Andrew Ridgeley are currently sifting through offers from producers. Two or three different producers have approached Andrew and I about this and I m a bit torn. I absolutely hate the idea on a creative level. But on another level I know that a certain generation of people would love it, Michael told Heart 106.2FM. But he added that he would find it difficult to watch hits like Club Tropicana and Wake Me Up Before You Go Go being murdered by stage school students. The truth is that done on stage there will be no charm and you ll be left with a lot of cheese, so I m torn. Am I being too much of a snob? I would literally have to avoid the premiere. Wham! split in 1986 after a massively successful four-year chart career, which included four U Number one singles. openly and honestly with others. You find that you can be more candid than usual. LIBRA: Errors in judgment, due to personal prejudices or emotion, are apt to occur. Your mood very much colors your thinking right now. You can have fruitful discussions with your close friends or family members, however. SAGITTARIUS: This can be a very depleting and confusing time when you do not know exactly what you want or you do not feel strong, capable, or effective. Physically, you need to be gentle with yourself and take care not to dissipate your energy reserves. CAPRICORN: Your usual routine is likely to be disrupted now, either by "freak" accidents beyond your control or by your own impatience with the status quo. Sudden unexpected events and breaking free of confining situations and relationships are very likely. AQUARIUS: This is a good time to schedule social activities or even business meetings where tact and friendliness would be a plus. You act as a diplomat and harmonizer between people with differing viewpoints. PISCES: This is one of the least favorable times to make a decision or sign a contract, as your communication with others is likely to be fraught with misunderstanding or even outright deception. Your thinking is rather fuzzy now and you are more gullible. ODDLYENOUGH Newborn Survives Four-Floor Fall SEOUL: A newborn baby boy survived a four-floor fall after his 27- year-old mother threw him out of a motel window soon after giving birth, South orean police inform. The baby was recovering in hospital with a fractured leg after the incident, which took place in the early hours of Tuesday, a policeman said from Ansan near Seoul. The orea Times newspaper reported a shop sign broke the baby s fall after the mother threw him out the window because she did not want her boyfriend to find out she had given birth to another man s child. Woman Asks State to Return Bribe Money HARTFORD: When Rebecca Messier asked for her money back, she drew snickers from the courtroom crowd. The cash she requested was U$8,500 from a failed bribe to a prosecutor. Messier appeared in Court on Thursday to argue that she is entitled to the money she gave a bagman for a crooked prosecutor six years ago to argue for the early release from prison of Messier s husband, convicted child molester Joseph Messier. The Messiers got in trouble because the prosecutor wasn t on the take, and the bagman was an undercover investigator with the chief state s attorney s office. Published by Lt. Col. (retd) P. Dorjee and printed at Darpan Publications Pvt. Ltd, Siliguri. Editor: Pema Wangchuk. Executive Editor: Mita Zulca Now! Near Ayurvedic Clinic, Gairi Gaon, Tadong. East Sikkim. ph: sikkimnow@rediffmail.com XX THEFINALONE I DON T WANNA TAL DJ! A fast-becoming infamous botched YLIE MINOGUE ra dio interview has been turned into a song which has been made available online. The star s annoyance with DJ Tony Wrighton s interview technique was apparent in an unedited radio interview which surfaced on the Internet. The star took particular offence to being asked if she had ever had any plastic surgery. Now choice snippets from the interview have been put to music and turned into a track called So Stupid. The song surfaced on an unofficial fan website, but was taken down shortly afterwards. Sikkim House (The Ethnic Cuisine Restaurant) at Hotel New Castle, Deorali Phone : / Bring Rs. 64,650 /-* Margin Money only Plus First EMI + Insurance + Service Charge & TAE AWAY Mahindra Ma Festara 2WD AND REST ON EASY INSTALMENT WITH FREE! Gift hamper of...* 20 COLOUR TV LTR. FRIDGE + VCD PLAYER + SEAT COVER + WHEEL COVER + FOG LIGHTS + STEERING COVER + WRIST WATCH HURRY! OFFER VALID FROM 20TH TO 31ST MARCH ONLY! RUSH TO: SIIM MOTORS * Conditions apply * Finance at the sole discretion of MMFSL AUTHORISED MAHINDRA DEALER. 6th MILE, TADONG, GANGTO. Ph: , Lhendup , Ravi , Vikash , Ajay NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR HOTEL MANAGEMENT AND CATERING TECHNOLOGY, PUSA COMPLEX, NEW DELHI [UNDER MINISTRY OF TOURISM AND CULTURE, DEPTT. OF TOURISM, GOVT. OF INDIA] AND INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCES JEE FOR ADMISSION TO THE FIRST YEAR OF 3-YEAR BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (B.SC.) PROGRAMME IN HOSPITALITY AND HOTEL ADMINISTRATION Last date for sale of Information Brochure and Application Form for admission to the above course has been extended upto April 6, 2004 IMPORTANT DATES Sale of Prospectus at Institute of Hotel Up to 5th April 2004 Management, Near Ayurvedic Hospital, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim Last Date for receipt of completed 7th April 2004 Application Form Date of JEE Written Test 18th April 2004 [2:30-5:30pm] Centralized Counselling for allotment of Inst. 7th June to 16th June 2004 Commencement of academic session 19th July 2004 for details access or contact Institute of Hotel Management, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim. Ph: ,