Cabinet nod for new Council for hill areas of Darjeeling Distt

New Delhi, Oct 1 (UNI) The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for the Constitution for creating a new Council for the amending hill areas of Darjeeling District under the Sixth Schedule.

Briefing newspersons here after the cabinet meeting, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said Articles 244 and 332 and the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution are to be amended for creating an autonomous self governing Council called 'Gorkha Hills Council,' Darjeeling (GHC) in the State of West Bengal.

The Minister said in late 1980's then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu and Mr Subhash Ghising, GMLF leader, had reached an accord to set up the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council to ensure peace in the hills. Since then efforts were being made to give Constitutional status to the Council.

Mr Dasmunsi said the West Bengal government, the Gorkha Hill Council and the Centre had held several rounds of discussions and a Memorandum of Settlement was reached in this regard.

UNI