Identify this legendary house of Sikkim ?

Photograph shared by Vicky Palzor Lepcha

Body of unidentified male found

Sikkim Express

GANGTOK, August 28: A body of an unidentified male aged between 40-45 years was traced between the boulders in the middle of Rani Khola near Singtam, suspected to have been swept away from higher areas of Rani Khola.

Singtam Police have informed the people to contact them if any persons are missing.
Later, the unidentified male body was sent to Singtam Hospital, where it has kept for 72 hours preservation for identification. Police have registered a case of unnatural death.

Maharani Kunzang Dechen wife of Chogyal Sir Tashi Namgyal

Maharani with her children Photo shared by Tenpa I am thankful towards Tina Tashi for providing information about the persons in the photographs. Maharani Kunzang Dechhen in the centre to her left is Prince Paljor, to her right is Prince Palden Thondup Namgyal who later became the Chogya of Sikkiml, in front is Princess Pema Tsedeun. The baby is Princess Pema Choki.

MAHARANI KUSHANG DECHEN RAGASHAR was married to Chogyal Sir Tashi Namgyal, the King of Sikkim on 8th October 1918 at the Royal Chapel, Tsuklakhang Monastery. They had three sons and three daughters: Paljor Namgyal, Palden Thondup Namgyal, Jigdal Tsewing Namgyal, Pema Tsedong Namgyal, Pema Choki Namgyal and Sonam Palden Namgyal. Maharani Kunzang Dechen died at the Royal Palace, Park Ridge, Gangtok, March 1987.

NB: Information taken from Royalark

Is Nathula border facing war like situation?

There were rumours in the streets that army vehicle would take over the National Highway for three days to transport warfare to Sikkim border, to which few days back the army personal had denied the news as baseless and disclosed no plans doing such in days to come too, as published in a local newspaper and all of a sudden there is this news published in internet about India, China armies clash in Sikkim. So whats the truth...whats cooking up?

from Google news

Extracted from Pakistan Defence

India, China armies clash in Sikkim?

The Indian and Chinese armies have reportedly been locked in sporadic exchanges of fire in Sikkim, where the two countries share a high-altitude border, since Tuesday night.

A senior defence ministry official in Kolkata, where the Eastern Command is based, said the conflict had been on at Nathu-la pass — 54 km east of Sikkim’s capital Gangtok.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the Ministry of Defence, however, denied any shooting on the border.

The defence official, who refused to be identified, said, “The gunbattle intensified during the early hours of Wednesday. There are, however, no reports of any death or serious injuries.”

He said although India had not deployed any additional forces in the area, all civilian traffic had been stopped. But the ministry statement said the roads had been closed in the area because of landslides.

The official said, “The skirmish caused concern as at a special joint meeting on August 15 both sides reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen the existing friendship.”

Situated at 14,140 feet, Nathu-la reopened for trade in 2006 after the 1962 Sino-Indian War.

Proud to be a Sikkimese on "Talk Sikkim" magazine

Hey guys do u know that my blog "Proud to be a Sikkimese" has been featured on the August issue of monthly magazine Talk Sikkim, published from Gangtok. I am sharing the scanned page. I would like to thank everyone for making my small effort of understanding Sikkim worth giving your precious time.

Yo!!......monthly magazine

FROM MY COLLECTION


YO!

YOUTH OFCOURSE

VOL 1/No.5 01-14 August
2002. Gangtok-Sikkim

Editor
Pema Wangchuk

.......(Sikkim) This country is gone

I was just surfing an eBay auction website, and there I came across some material related to Hope Cook, the former queen of Sikkim on sale. There is an autographed photograph of former queen Hope Cook, her letter and an envelope in which it was sent to the USA. The three materials cost you 300 dollars.

The heading of the items says:

HOPE COOKE NAMGYAL AUTOGRAPH, Queen consort of SIKKIM

ONE-OF-A-KIND PIECE, VERY RARE, THIS COUNTRY IS GONE!

Just read the last line that says...."This country is gone". Sikkim is no longer an independent country now so it is more often referred as a dead country.

The further description says:

PHOTOGRAPH:
4-1/2" X 6" MEASUREMENTS, BLACK AND WHITE IN EXCELLENT CONDITION AND SIGNED IN BLUE INK PEN, "HOPE NAMGYAL"

LETTERHEAD:
8-1/4" X 6" THE PALACE, GANGTOK, SIKKIM, DATED 15TH SEPTEMBER 1969 AND SIGNED SINCERELY HOPE NAMGYAL, "GYALMO OF SIKKIM

ENVELOPE:
8-1/4" X 6-3/8" WITH 13 STAMPS FROM INDIA AND 1 BIG STAMP COLORED PURPLE FROM INDIA (INK STAMPED FROM POST OFFICE DATED 17, SEPT. 1969
RETURN ADDRESS IS FROM GYALMO OF SIKKIM, GANGTOK, SIKKIM. VIA - EASTERN HIMALAYAS

HISTORY:

In 1959, Cooke, then a freshman at Sarah Lawrence College, met Palden Thondup Namgyal, Crown Prince of Sikkim, in the bar of the Windamere Hotel in Darjeeling, India. He was then a widower nearly twice her age.

Four years later, Cooke, an Episcopalian, married the Crown Prince in a Buddhist monastery on 20 March 1963, an act which caused her to be dropped from the Social Register. He became monarch of Sikkim nine months later but was deposed in 1975 and confined to his palace under house arrest. The couple had two children, Palden and Hope Leezum; she also has two stepsons and a stepdaughter from her husband's first marriage.

The Chogyal and his wife separated soon after he was overthrown, and she moved to Manhattan, where she raised her children. The royal couple divorced in 1980, and the Chogyal died of cancer in 1982 in New York City.

Today

Cooke is a tour guide and historian in New York City. She lives in Brooklyn Heights, New York. She wrote a memoir of her life in Sikkim, Time Change.

SHIELA DIKSHIT PAYS HOMAGE TO SHAHID DURGA MALLA ON BGP’S BALIDAAN DIWAS IN NEW DELHI

Shared By Hira Chettri

New Delhi (Media Cell, BGP): On August 25, sixty-five years ago, a young Gorkha major in the Azad Hind Fauz was hanged by the British in Delhi. Today, Delhi Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit paid homage to the Gorkha martyr, Durga Malla, at the spot where he was hanged. The occasion was Balidaan Diwas, observed by the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh all over India in remembrance of all Gorkha heroes who have given their lives for the sake of their country.

After paying floral tributes to Major Durga Malla, who sacrificed his life at the young age of 31, at the memorial site in the Maulana Azad Medical College premises, the Delhi Chief Minister planted a sapling to mark the occasion. At the function, Mrs Dikshit interacted with the families of Gorkha war heroes who had died in the Kargil war in 1999. Then, the chief minister led many Gorkhas from all walks of life who had gathered there in the Sankalp ceremony. They pledged to uphold the great sacrifice made by the martyrs and work for the unity and integrity of India.

The Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh, the donor organization for the Shahid Durga Malla statue in the Parliament House complex, remembers all Gorkha martyrs on this day. The sacrifices made by Durga Malla, Dal Bahadur Thapa, Dal Bahadur Giri, Bishnulal Upadhyaya, and all the other Freedom Struggle heroes were recalled.

The Central Programme Cell of the BGP met Mrs. Dikshit last week and apprised her of the issues related to the Gorkhas of India, including the demand for a separate state of Gorkhland.

As part of the Balidaan Diwas, the BGP also organized a musical tribute to the martyrs on August 22. At the very well-attended programme in the St Thomas School auditorium in New Delhi, several bands sang songs about the country and Gorkhas, including their bravery and contribution to nation-building.

General Ashok Mehta was the chief guest, formerly of the 5th Gorkha Regiment and Commanding Officer of the IPKF in Sri Lanka. Prominent guests included Col R B Rai, who graduated from the very first batch of the Joint Services Wing, the predecessor of the National Defence Academy.

Groups that participated included iWitness, Himalayan Youth Forum, Decorus, Hamro Sanskriti, Kushal and group, and Mantra Two, which comprised two members of the erstwhile Mantra band. They all presented patriotic Gorkha songs, recalling the life and loyalty of the Gorkhas to the country. Diya and Sujata Pradhan also mesmerized the crowd with their dances.

I have seen Bhaichung Bhutia grow

Bhaichung Bhutia, the only Indian football player to have played 100 international matches was a class junior to me during my schooling days. When i was in class xii studying at TNSSS as a PCB student he was at class xi at TNA but busy with football boots. I still remember watching him play against our school football team. The year than was 1992-93. The matches between TNSS and TNA was nothing short of what the cricketing world have curiousness when India plays Pakistan. None of the teams wanted to loose.

TNSSS never had that excellent players like Sherap, Ram and Laxuman, the twin brothers and Bhaichung himself that capitulated many famous wins for their school TNA but they could give them a strong fight for the result of the matches. Bhaichung was already a star in his schooling days and his Boys club, the most popular football team at Gangtok.

By the end of 1993 he shifted to Kolkata and he never looked back. So today when i read on newspapers people of all age praising for Bhaichung Bhutia i feel proud and say myself, i have seen this legend of Indian football grow.

Mahatma Gandhi Marg (Gangtok) over the years......

My last post was a bit easy and a bit nostalgic. When I was in Gangtok as a TNSS student and as a Sikkim Government College student, I had many memories at this Mahatma Gandhi Marg. This first marketplace of Sikkim has had a major turnover over the years. So when i started collecting old photographs about this market place i am sure many of you to would see your bygone days pass by with the flip of each photographs. So, for those who remember their prime like me, this is our MG Marg.

DURING CHOGYAL PERIOD -BEFORE 1970s

DURING THE MERGER PERIOD- 1973

MG MARG -2009

Identify this popular place in Sikkim ?

Photo shared by Anup Lama

I am sure many people are familiar with this place..are you?

CM SHIELA DIKSHIT TO BE CHIEF GUEST AT BGP'S BALIDAAN DIWAS IN DELHI

By Hira Chhetri

New Delhi (BGP Media Cell): On August 19, a team from the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh's Central Programme Cell met Delhi Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit to inform her about the objectives and activities of the only national organization of Indian Gorkhas.

Delhi CM Shiela Dikshit with BGP members

(from left) Pappu Pradhan, Munish Tamang, Joel Rai, Commodore KS Rai and LB Rai

at her residence on August 19.

Meeting Dikshit at her residence, the BGP team, comprising L B Rai, Commodore K S Rai, Professor Munish Tamang, Joel Rai, and Pappu Pradhan, updated the Delhi Chief Minister on the Parisangh's various activities and informed her of its coming programmes. The Chief Minister was sympathetic to the cause of the Gorkhas in India. She also received a set of books and documents on the Gorkhas of India.

She consented to be the chief guest at the BGP-organised Balidaan Diwas on August 25 at the spot where Azad Hind Fauz Major Durga Malla was hanged by the British in 1944. She will plant a sapling there on the occasion. Interestingly, the Ashok tree sapling is currently growing on soil brought from all states of India by members of the BGP during its national convention in New Delhi in December last year. Dikshit will also meet war widows, war heroes and other Gorkhas who are expected to attend the ceremony in large numbers.

When told that BGP was also in correspondence with the Archaeological Survey of India to correct the name of Martyr Durga Malla on the memorial plaque at Shahid Sthal erected at the site where the gallows stood, Dikshit asked for the relevant documents to be submitted to her office. "I will see what my office can do to push the correction of the name," she assured the BGP team. The black marble plaque at the site has wrongly inscribed the Gorkha hero's name as "Daroga Mall" in both English and Hindi.

As part of the Balidaan Diwas programme, CPC-BGP is also organizing an evening of patriotic Gorkha music as a tribute to Gorkha martyrs on August 22 in New Delhi. Several bands and musicians, including members of Mantra band, will participate in the event. General Ashok K Mehta, formerly of the 5th Gorkha Rifles and General Officer Commanding the Indian Peacekeeping Forces in Sri Lanka, will be the chief guest at the function.

India’s illegal occupation of independent Sikkim has to be reversed

Extracted from Pakistan Defence

India’s “Chief Executive” in Gangtok wrote: “Sikkim’s merger was necessary for Indian national interest. And we worked to that end. Maybe if the Chogyal had been smarter and played his cards better, it wouldn’t have turned out the way it did.”

It is also said that the real battle was not between the Chogyal and Kazi Lendup Dorji but between their wives. On one side was Queen Hope Cook, the American wife of the Chogyal and on the other was the Belgian wife of the Kazi, Elisa-Maria Standford. “This was a proxy war between the American and the Belgian,” says former chief minister BB Gurung. But there was a third woman involved: Indira Gandhi in New Delhi.

Chogyal Palden met the 24-year-old New Yorker Hope Cook in Darjeeling in 1963 and married her. For Cook, this was a dream come true: to become the queen of an independent kingdom in Shangrila. She started taking the message of Sikkimese independence to the youth, and the allegations started flying thick and fast that she was a CIA agent. These were the coldest years of the Cold War, and there was a tendency in India to see a “foreign hand” behind everything, so it was not unusual for the American queen to be labelled a CIA agent. However, as Hope Cook’s relations with Delhi deteriorated, so did her marriage with the Chogyal. In 1973, she took her two children and went back to New York. She hasn’t returned to Sikkim since.

Then there was Elisa-Maria, daughter of a Belgian father and German mother who left her Scottish husband in Burma and married LD Kaji in Delhi in 1957. The two couldn’t have been more different. Elisa-Maria wanted to be Sikkim’s First Lady, but Hope Cook stood in the way. “She didn’t just want to be the wife of an Indian chief minister; she wanted to be the wife of the prime minister of an independent Sikkim.” With that kind of ambition, it was not surprising that with annexation, neither Hope Cook nor Elisa-Maria got what they wanted.

Meanwhile, in New Delhi, Indira Gandhi went from strength to strength, and India flexed its muscles. The 1971 Bangladesh war and the atomic test in 1974 gave Delhi the confidence to take care of Sikkim once and for all. Indira Gandhi was concerned that Sikkim may show independent tendencies and become a UN member like Bhutan did in 1971, and she also didn’t take kindly to the three Himalayan kingdoms, Bhutan, Sikkim and Nepal, getting too cosy with each other. The Chogyal attended King Birendra’s coronation in Kathmandu in 1975 and hobnobbed with the Pakistanis and the Chinese. There was a lobby in Delhi that felt Sikkim may get Chinese help to become independent.

In his book on the Indian intelligence agency, Inside RAW, The Story of India’s Secret Service, Ashok Raina writes that New Delhi had taken the decision to annex Sikkim in 1971 and that the RAW used the next two years to create the right conditions within Sikkim to make that happen. The key here was to use the predominantly Hindu Sikkimese of Nepali origin who complained of discrimination from the Buddhist king and elite to rise up. “What we felt then was that the Chogyal was unjust to us,” says CD Rai, editor of Gangtok Times and ex-minister. “We thought it may be better to be Indian than to be oppressed by the king.”

So, when the Indian troops moved in, there was general jubilation on the streets of Gangtok. It was, in fact, in faraway Kathmandu that there were reverberations. Beijing expressed grave concern. However, in the absence of popular protests against the Indian move, there was only a muted reaction at the United Nations in New York. It was only later that there were contrary opinions within India-Morarji Desai said in 1978 that the merger was a mistake. Even Sikkimese political leaders who fought for the merger said it was a blunder and worked to roll it back. But by then, it was too late.

http://www.defence.pk/forums/world-affairs/31975-india-s-illegal-occupation-independent-sikkim-has-reversed.html

A nepali actor in Sahid-Priyanka's Kaminey

Ya, you heard it true there is a Nepali actor in Sahid Kapoor - Priyanka Chopra's latest Bollywood flick Kaminey. He is Tenzing Nima and plays the character of Tashi, a gangster. I am impressed with his acting skills and I bet you should too look at this next powerhouse. His screen presence speaks volumes.

Source: bollywoodhungama

Former landlords of Independent Sikkim

Well i am thankful towards Vicky Palzor, a very good friend of mine for helping me find who these people were.

So, here are the names of the people:

Kazi Dawa Sabdup (Bermoik Athing), Rai Saab Ratna Bahadur (Thikadar of Rhenock) [,IN THE CENTRE] Rama Shanker Prasad (Thikadar of Khamdong), younger brother of Gyaltsen Kazi (Sukshing) and he himself [SECOND FROM LEFT STANDING}, Gobardhan Pradhan (Thikadar of Temi Tarku) Sang Athing, Kazi Passang Namgyal (Lingmo), Rani Chuni, Rai Bahadur Lobzang Choden, Khendzong Athing (Gangtok Kazi), Rhenock Athing, Enchey Athing, Pemayantse lamas, Punya Prasad Pradhan (Thikadar of Thurung)