Statesman News Service
MALDA, Feb. 26: The Malda Intuc will stage an agitation for two hours from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday in Malda town in protest against the Indian Railway Board's decision to form a new railway division in Bhagalpur, Bihar.
The Intuc called a 12-hour strike on this issue on 21 February but cancelled it at the last minute in the public interest following requests from various quarters.
“We have heard that the Railway Board plans to lay a foundation stone for the new railway division at Bhagalpur on 1 March. To protect the interests of Malda railway division we have decided to call a "Rail Roko" for two hours on 28 March between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m,” Mr Narendranath Tiwari, the Intuc district president and the chairman of the English Bazaar Municipality, said.
Large areas in Jamalpur and Bhagalpur, currently under the Malda Railway Division, would be ceded to the planned Bhagalpur Railway Division under the new plans.
“We will not tolerate the Railway Board's decision to reduce the territory of the Malda Railway division or its moves to wind up the construction division of the Northeast Frontier Railway from Malda. These actions will hamper the district's economy,” Mr Tiwari said.
The Malda Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce (MMCC) called a convention on 20 February, forming a 31-member committee inducting all political leaders to consider the current situation of the Malda Railway Division.
The Committee adopted a resolution to send letters to the Prime Minister, Mr Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Mrs Sonia Gandhi, railway minister Mr Lalu Prasad and other officials concerned.
The MMCC has not confirmed whether the committee has sent letters to them, but the spokesperson of the MMCC, Mr Ujjal Saha, said that it would cooperate with the Intuc during the "Rail Roko" movement.
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