KALIMPONG TOWN HALL: A HERITAGE UNDER NEGLIGENCE

By Nisha Chettri (TNI Kalimpong) ~ Edited By Pradiptamay Saha (TNI Siliguri)

Webdesk, TNI Kalimpong, 20th June, 2015: The 532 seated town hall established in 1994 is in a bad, unmaintained condition since last few years. The sources also disclosed that the hall was last maintained in 2010-11 by the Kalimpong Engineering Division, DGHC. The hall is functioning under the town hall committee since it was founded where the SDO Kalimpong (Radhika Aiyer) was the President and Paras Kumar Singh, (Sub-division information and cultural officer) secretary. The earthquake of 2011 developed multiple cracks in the hall and the gallery had to get fastened where the entrance is still not permitted. Shutting down of gallery now makes the hall decrease the seat to 432 chairs. It was known that the maintenance of the hall is done by the funds received from the payment of the programs in where the commercial programs pays 6000 rupees and the non-commercial program pays ₹ 5000 respectively (per day). However, the staff members who works in town hall are paid in daily wages which estimates a minimum income in this expensive epoch. Meanwhile, Bikram Parajulee, a film director spoke to the press regarding the condition of the Town Hall. Parajulee believes that many artists were born from this hall which indeed is an asset of the society, ‘I personally feel that the maintenance is neglected here, if the hall shuts down, I wonder where would we (artists) go to perform.’ Parajulee also appeals the concerned authority to look after the society’s asset and maintain it immediately. Bishnu Chettri, the general secretary of Kalimpong Krishak Kalyan Sangathan in the other hand questions the concerned department through an R.T.I regarding the management of the town hall. He demanded to know if the offices (MLDB office, information office and treasury office) in the building are paying their rents and the amount collected so far.

Photo: Nisha Chettri (TNI)