COOCHBEHAR NEWS

IG-BSF Nand Kishor visits border

Nand Kishor, Inspector General of Border Security Force (North Bengal Frontier) recently visited India-Bangladesh border areas under Sahebganj and Durga Nagar Border Outposts in Dinhata. The areas are under supervision of 181-Bn BSF.

The IG-BSF inaugurated a medical camp organised by the 181-Bn BSF at Sahebganj village. It is to provide medical help to the poor and needy villagers living in border areas.

The IG-BSF met local Gram Panchayat pradhans, GP members and eminent villagers. He also witnessed a demonstration of martial arts (Judo and Karate) that was staged by local boys and trained by Assistant Commandant Jarnail Singh. The children of local schools staged a small cultural programme. BSF band also entertained the gathering.

Speaking on the occasion, Nand Kishor emphasised on the need to better relation between BSF and civil population of border areas. He assured the people that the BSF were there to help them in any contingency. He exhorted people to come out with their problems and assured that the BSF would try to sort them out. The IG-BSF desired that better working relation with civilians be developed and nurtured.

At the end of the programme, the IG-BSF distributed prizes to the locals who participated in the demonstration of martial arts skills.

 

Medical camp

A medical camp was organised recently by 46-Bn BSF at the local primary school campus in Paglimari village. At the camp, the Senior Medical Officer of 46-Bn BSF Dr Khurshid Alam examined more than 250 patients including children. TP Kushwaha distributed medicines free of cost among the needy and poor patients. The villagers welcomed the BSF's initiative and requested them to organise such free medical camp regularly in the area.

 

Cultural initiative

In a meeting of eminent citizens and intellectuals a new cultural platform was formed at Paromita Bhavan in Cooch Behar recently. Name of the new body is Nationalist Council for Culture and Literature (NCCL). Prasenjit Barman became the adviser while Dr Sukhbilas Barma became the president and Dr Ramaprasad Nag the convenor of the NCCL central committee. To conduct operations in Cooch Behar district Prof Ushakanto Dutta, Parbanando Das and Biswadeb Chattopadhyay were appointed as the president, working president and secretary respectively.

The NCCL will form committees in other districts very soon, said Dr Sukhbilas Barma. The aim of the newly formed body is to start an awareness drive among the people for a healthier nationalist cultural atmosphere against regionalism and communalism, he added. He urged the writers, authors, poets and other artistes to join the NCCL to strengthen the nationalist cultural initiative.

 

Rural health

Submitting a memorandum to the chief medical officer of health in Cooch Behar, the SPC Society of Rural Health demanded enlistment of rural medical practitioners by the government in all the blocks. General secretary of the SPCSRH Ashutosh Sen said the CMOH accepted their memorandum containing ten-point charter of demands and heard their arguments with patience. He also assured of all co-operation from his end, Sen said.

In the memorandum the SPCSRH demanded providing of short-term medical training to the rural practitioners in the government-run sub-divisional hospitals and primary health centres. They also demanded introduction of diploma medical course and setting of at least one village health clinic in every Gram Panchayat. They also sought protective measures to save rural practitioners from the 'illegal harassment' by drug control officials and the police.