Elderly Couple murdered in Kalimpong, bodies dumped in septic tank

4:44 PM

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murder

The Kalimpong district police on Friday evening recovered the bodies of an elderly couple from the septic tank of their house in Pedong that has led to panic among the residents of the small hamlet.

Sherpa Couple murdered in Pedong Kalimpong

The bodies of Phurtemba Sherpa (69) and his wife Kusum (55) were recovered by police after neighbours informed them about their being missing. The two are residents of Dokyong I Sericulture, Sakyong GP of Pedong.

According to police, the couple’s elder son Sangden has called his neighbours from Malda to inquire about his parents, who did not take his calls. “The elder son called up the neighbours to inquire about his parents. The door of the house was locked and a phone and a torch light that belonged to Phurtemba were found outside,” said Atul Vishwanathan, Kalimpong additional superintendent of police in Saturday.

Sangden is employed in the police department and is presently posted in the correctional home in Malda. His younger brother is a teacher in a private school in Bihar. “I got worried and called my brother and also our neighbors in Pedong to inquire because my father and mother were not taking my calls. I has spoken with my mother just a day before and had promised them to call back again on Friday,” Sangden said.

The bodies of Phurtemba and Kusum were discovered from the septic tank in the rear of their house by police. “We found the bodies in decomposed condition. There are deep cut marks on the foreheads of the couple. When we broke open the door, we found the house ransacked. We have started a case and are looking at every possible angle,” the ASP
said.

The police official said it was difficult to say immediately when the murder may have taken place. “They (husband and wife) were last seen on August 16. We recovered the bodies on Friday evening. Now, whether the murder took place on Friday evening or Saturday morning, we are trying to ascertain,” Vishwanathan said.

Sniffer dogs have been called from Siliguri to help in the investigation. “We have got some clues and four to five names. Hopefully, the case will be detected very soon,” the ASP said.

The bodies have been sent for postmortem in the Kalimpong district hospital and report is awaited.

Via  (EOIC)

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Darjeeling Orange crisis probe

1:16 PM

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Kalimpong

Writes Vivek Chhetri and Rajeev Ravidas

Darjeeling, Nov. 27: The state government has decided to investigate the recent spate of fungal infection and pest attacks on Darjeeling oranges that dropped the yield of the fruit by more than 50 per cent compared to last year.

State agricultural minister Purnendu Bose who is currently in Darjeeling said: "This is my first official visit to the hills after becoming minister. A team of scientists from Uttar Banga Krishi Visvavidyalaya will probe into the matter (the infection and pest attacks) and based on the report, we will take appropriate steps."

While 2.5 lakh quintals of oranges were produced in the hills last year, this time the yield is expected to be around 90,000 quintals.

Sources said 50 to 60 per cent of oranges in the hills were destroyed after a fungal infection and pest attacks.

Darjeeling Orange A file photo

The harvest season starts from November end and goes on till mid-January.

M.W. Moktan, a senior scientist and the in-charge of Darjeeling Krishi Vigyan Kendra, a unit of Uttar Banga Krishi Visvavidyalaya, Cooch Behar, spoke about three reasons for the spread of infection and pest attacks in the hill orchards.

"The main reason is that the farmers still practise the traditional method of farming and they are reluctant to adopt new technology. The other reason is that they do not follow proper nutritional management system, which is critical for the health of plants. Climate change, too, has affected the crops," he said.

Moktan, however, said that all was not lost and oranges could be saved if farmers took up modern methods. "Few farmers who have incorporated modern farming methods have not been affected. Disease and pest management must be done properly," he said.

Ram Prasad Sanyal, the assistant director of agriculture department, GTA, had earlier said that a spell of dry weather during the flowering season around March and April was one of the reasons for the drop in orange production.

Today, Bose said: "The agriculture department is acting as a nodal agency in bringing together departments like horticulture and fisheries. In the hills, there are seven seed farms but most are defunct. We plan to revive them. There was an agriculture fair in Kalimpong yesterday and I visited the stalls. While some farmers are trained, many are not. A building of the agriculture department in Kalimpong is lying without use. We will renovate it and start an agricultural training centre there."

Source Telegraph

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