A special committee will be constituted to address the long-standing demands and issues of the Darjeeling hills following a high-level meeting held at a resort in New Chamta, Siliguri. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and several political and social leaders from the hills attended the meeting, where the region's concerns were discussed at length. Darjeeling MP Raju Bista said after the meeting that the committee would systematically examine the problems of the hills and work towards addressing them.
Pankaj Kumar Singh, who has already been appointed by the Central Government, will serve as the mediator for the proposed committee. The committee will focus on presenting the concerns of the Darjeeling hills to the Central Government and addressing the issues through a structured process. Senior Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader Roshan Giri said the concerns would be presented to the Centre and that solutions would be sought within the constitutional framework.
The demand for Gorkhaland also came up during discussions with the leaders. Rajya Sabha MP Harsh Vardhan Shringla declined to comment on the issue, while no clear statement on Gorkhaland was made by the other leaders who attended the meeting. The information provided does not indicate any specific decision on the separate-state demand.