WANT CYCLE, WON’T ALLOW TO PASS

Jan. 27: Hundreds of school students in Siliguri today blocked roads at multiple points for several hours, demanding immediate distribution of bicycles under the chief minister's pet project Sabuj Sathi, which highlighted the implementation of a scheme fraught with deficiencies.

From 9am, when the first protest started, to 3pm, when the last protest was lifted, the police and the district administration had a harrowing time negotiating with the agitating students before all roads could be cleared.

The first blockade started at Jalpai More on Burdwan Road of the town around 9am as students of Siliguri Hindi High School walked out of the school and started demonstrations demanding the bicycles. The agitation continued for nearly 1 hour and 30 minutes. On the Station Feeder Road, another half an hour blockade was held from 10.30am.

"But soon after, more than 5,000 students from seven schools, reached Hashmi Chowk on Hill Cart Road. Around 11.30am, they put up a roadblock mouthing the same demand," said a police source.

The blockades took the toll on Siliguri's traffic, which was thrown out of gear. Thousands of residents, including school students, had to bear the brunt of severe traffic congestion as vehicles stopped plying along Hill Cart Road.

The blockade was finally withdrawn at around 3pm after the local SDO, Rajanvir Singh Kapur, reached the spot and announced specific dates on which students would get bicycles.

The incident in Siliguri has raised several questions on the process the state government has adopted to distribute bicycles to students between Classes IX and XII.

Senior government officials said that though the students in Siliguri first launched the agitation, it may happen in any other district any day because bicycles were being distributed in phases in all the districts.

The state government is buying bicycles directly from three bicycle manufacturing companies and the parts of the bicycles are sent to different blocks.

The bicycles are being assembled at the block level and local bicycle mechanics are being hired for this purpose.

"This is a time consuming exercise as there are a limited number of bicycle mechanics in a block. This is the reason why bicycles could not be distributed in all the schools of an area at the same time... This is creating confusion among the students," a senior government official said.

According to officials, this could have been avoided easily, had the state government decided to distribute coupons - equal to the amount needed to buy a bicycle - to the eligible students through the schools.

"If it was the case, the students could have easily bought bicycles from the local cycle shops.... It would have helped the local bicycle shops too," said a senior government official.

In Bihar, the state government distributes coupons of Rs 2,500 to eligible students and in return the students had to submit purchase receipts to the schools within two months of receiving the coupons.

"This appears to be a much easier process as there was no major demonstration in Bihar over delay in distribution of bicycles. But there is a problem too. You cannot distribute bicycles to students by holding a public rally like our chief minister did in almost all the districts," said another official.

If the state government had decided to distribute coupons through schools, it would have helped the beneficiaries too as they could have checked the bicycles before buying it from local shops.

"Now, we are receiving complaints that the majority of the cycles that are being distributed are faulty and the students are spending around Rs 300 on average to make the bicycle roadworthy. This is happening because we had to depend on the local mechanics to assemble the bicycles," said an official.

In Siliguri today, some students accompanied by policemen met the SDO who was standing in front of the head post office, located near his office premises.

Kapur spoke to them and gave them specific dates when the bicycles would be distributed.

The delegates heard him and they were then told to convey it to their friends and juniors who were still blocking Hashmi Chowk.

Around 2pm, the representatives returned and informed them about the dates mentioned by the SDO.

Despite the dates being conveyed, the demonstrators refused withdrawing their agitation and demanded that the SDO should make the announcement himself.

Kapur reached the spot around 2.30pm and using a hand-held megaphone asked the students to calm down. He then informed them about the dates and said that the bicycles would be distributed from their schools and also from the godown in Bagracote where the cycles have been kept.

"It has been decided that bicycles would be distributed among students of classes X, XI and XII on different dates. These can be provided to the schools, if the authorities say so, or else, we can distribute it from the Bagracote godown," Kapur said.

A similar protest, on a smaller scale, had started on Monday, the day the cycles were first given out in the town. Then too the administration had clarified that the cycles would be given out on different days.

Kapur later said: "It is a huge exercise (the distribution of cycles) and there can be minor hiccups. We have set the dates when cycles would be distributed among schools and hope to distribute cycles to each student eligible under the scheme, within the first week of next month."

Darjeeling district Trinamul leaders today alleged that the CPM leaders and workers have incited the school students.

District CPM leaders rubbished the allegations.