Skip to main content

The first philatelic exhibition on a running train

By himalayanreview

A new record was set on the rail tracks at Siliguri Junction on June 5, 2006, when for the first time in India and across the globe, a running philatelic exhibition was conducted. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, UNESCO recognized world heritage, ran for 31 kilometres in 10 hours from Siliguri Junction to Agony Point, with a halt at Sukuna to mark its 125th year. 

The program jointly conducted by the Siliguri Philatelic Society (SPS) and Sikkim Philatelic Club (SPC) had added a new page in the history of Indian Philately. Noted Railway Philatelist Vikas Singh of Ghaziabad, the man behind the concept, had booked the train for the day










for this purpose. The event named “Heritage 06” was held on June 5 and 6, 2006. On the first day, the exhibition was held at Siliguri Junction Railway Station where the well-decorated Train 788-B was flagged off at Agony Point, Tindharia at around 7.30 am. Stamps, Special Covers and First Day Covers on Indian Railway mounted on 40 sheets were exhibited inside the two bogies of the toy train.

Present on the occasion was K B Chursa, Superintendent of Post Offices Jalpaiguri Post Office, Dipok Dey - eminent philatelist from Kolkata, Vikas Singh, noted railway philatelist from Ghaziabad, S K Biswas President of Siliguri Philatelic Society, Shital Pradhan Secretary, Sikkim Philatelic Club, Postal and Railway officials and the philatelists Chiranjiv Chakraborty, Biswajit Bhattacharya, Padam Parajuli, Sumnima Parajuli, all from Siliguri, Ganesh Pradhan and Shishir Pradhan from Sikkim while Asit Ghosh and Manoranjan Bhattacharya represented Cooch Bihar Philatelic Association.

The event finds mention in Stanley Gibbon magazine

Shital Pradhan conducted the program on the running train. Biswas welcomed all aboard and told the passengers on board the significance of the achievement of the day. He added that this event held on a small platform will generate enough curiosity in India and other parts of the World. Pawan Agarwal, Secretary, SPS also addressed the audience.


Dipok Dey conducted a workshop on philately explaining the beauty of the stamp and how a beginner can generate this hobby for its commercial use too. The Chief Guest K B Chursa released a special cover and stamp booklet on this occasion, who presented the first Special Cover to Vikas Singh.

The next phase of the function was held at Bangabandhu Manch. A stamp exhibition with over 2000 stamps was displayed followed by a painting exhibition and quiz competition. Both the associations of SPS and SPC are trying to mark the achievement recognized by an entry in the Limca Book of Records and the Guinness Book of Records.



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

JANHA BAGCHA TEESTA RANGIT

By himalayanreview
This was a national song of Sikkim sung in the Nepali language during the monarchy system. During the merger with India, the song got banned and later re-released. Two words on the 8th para, which earlier said 'Rajah rah Rani,' were replaced with "Janmah bhumi."     This song was dedicated to the King and Queen of Sikkim. The song lyrics were penned by Sanu Lama, and the music was composed by Dushyant Lama.  The song was first sung on the birth anniversary of Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal on April 4, 1970, at Gangtok by Aruna Lama, Dawa Lama, and Manikamal Chettri.    JANHA BAGCHA TEESTA RANGIT,  JAHAN KANCHENDZONGA SEER   YEHI HO HAMRO DHANA KO DESH,  TAPAWAN HO PYARO SIKKIM     INTERLUDE     PHULCHAN YEHA AANGANAI MAA,  CHAAP , GURAS, SUNAKHARI   SWARGASARI SUNDAR DESH KO  HAMRO PYARO PYARO JANMAHBHUMI     JANHA BAGCHA……     BATASHLE BOKCHAA YAHA,  TATHAGAT KO AAMAR WAANI ...
16 comments
Read more

The legend of April "73" Agitation in Sikkim

By himalayanreview
I was not born when Sikkim got merged with the mighty Indian Union, but being a student of Sikkim History, all that is available to me is a rack of books by different authors and those old folks who had been part of that historical “April ‘73’ Agitation”.  When I go through the history of Sikkim, April ‘73 Agitation holds an important role, mostly as the turning point of the Independent Sikkim and the Sikkim State. The mass demonstrations against the Chogyal rule shocked the 300-year-old monarchy system and ushered in democratic rule in Sikkim.  The agitation was a result “due to big differences which ensued with the demand of repoll in one booth by Kazi Lhendup Dorji and Mr. Krishna Chandra Pradhan, as such the Chogyal had to face the people’s agitation launched by the Joint Action Committee with the tacit blessings of the Government of India. This people’s political movement spearheaded by Kazi Lhendup Dorji finally resulted in Sikkim joining the mainstream as the 22nd State...
2 comments
Read more

CBSE: ARUNACHAL PRADESH AND SIKKIM, PUSHED GUWAHATI TO FLOOR

By himalayanreview
Guwahati, June 1: When students in Delhi were flashing their 90 per cents and doing their high-fives, the Central Board of Secondary Education was looking for reasons for the below-par performance of students in the Guwahati region, comprising the seven states of the Northeast and Sikkim. Among the six regions where the board conducts Standard X examinations, Guwahati region has the lowest pass percentage - a mere 56 per cent. Ajmer region registered a staggering 93.87 pass per cent, the highest. A post-result analysis by the board revealed that poor performance by government schools in two states, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, pushed Guwahati to the bottom in the list. K.K. Choudhury, the regional officer of CBSE (Guwahati), said the two states pulled down the pass percentage of the entire region. "We have four categories of schools - government schools, independent (private) schools, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas and Kendriya Vidyalayas. The pass percentage of independent schools,...
1 comment
Read more