Kolkata, Sep 8 — The West Bengal government on Tuesday appointed Smritiranjan Mohanty, the secretary of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), as the administrator of the autonomous body that oversees civic and developmental affairs in the hills of Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong in North Bengal.
According to a gazette notification issued by the state government, Mohanty will take charge as GTA administrator and continue in the position until elections to the autonomous body are held and a new board is constituted.
Sources in the state secretariat, Nabanna, said the appointment was necessitated by the resignation of the previous GTA board, which was headed by the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), an ally of the Trinamool Congress.
The development came ahead of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's two programmes in North Bengal on Tuesday. He is scheduled to visit Kalimpong and Siliguri during the day.
The previous GTA leadership resigned in June amid growing political uncertainty in the hills. BGPM founder Anit Thapa first stepped down as the GTA's chief executive. Subsequently, Anjul Chowhan resigned as chairman, while Rajesh Chowhan quit as deputy chairman.
The resignations came against the backdrop of allegations of financial irregularities in the functioning of the GTA.
Political tensions in the hills had increased following the change of government in West Bengal after the Assembly elections earlier this year.
During a public meeting in Kurseong in June, Adhikari had spoken about alleged corruption in the GTA, particularly in the recruitment of teachers for schools run by the autonomous body.
He had said his administration would identify those responsible for such irregularities and take legal action against them.
Thapa resigned as GTA chief executive two days after the Chief Minister's warning.
More than two months after Thapa's resignation, the absence of a full-time leadership had raised concerns over the functioning of the GTA and the delivery of civic services in the hills.
A state government official said the appointment of Mohanty was made in the public interest to ensure that administrative work and development activities continue smoothly until a new elected GTA board takes charge.