Darjeeling:
Indicating that the West Bengal government will not give in to the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said today, "Darjeeling is my darling, Darjeeling is charming. We cannot leave Darjeeling."
This was Ms Banerjee's first visit to the hill station of Darjeeling after she signed an accord in July with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha which had fronted the movement for a Gorkhaland state to be carved out of West Bengal.
The pact provides for a new, autonomous, elected council called Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA). The central government was party to this accord.
"We will provide all kind of help to GTA (Gorkhaland Territorial Administration) and the people of the hills but will not leave Darjeeling. Love spreads by staying united," Ms Banerjee said today. She also promised to deliver more funds to help Darjeeling recover from the earthquake that struck the area last month.