Kalimpong, the only district in Bengal where women are heading both civil and police administrations, is lauded for success stories driven by women’s power as the world celebrates International Women’s Day.
R. Vimala of the 2010 batch of IAS took over as the district magistrate of Kalimpong, one of the youngest districts in the state, in 2019. Aparajita Rai from the 2013 batch of IPS was appointed the Kalimpong district police chief in 2022.
With the two women at the helm, the district is making waves.
Kalimpong won the first prize for the implementation of Kanyashree Scheme in the state for the year 2021-2022. In the year 2019-20, it was the district with the lowest number of malnourished children in Bengal.
Shovna Sewa, the officerin-charge (OC) of Kalimpong women’s police station, has won the Union home minister’s medal for best investigation. Sabita Lama, the OC of Teesta outpost, won the police bravery award in 2022.
“Another female member of Kalimpong police, Solomi Khati, won the bronze medal in the Asian Kickboxing Championships 2022,” said a source.
“The Kalimpong district administration also started a project called Shuddhi in 2022 to rehabilitate substance abuse victims belonging to poor families free of cost,” said a police source.
Till now, 45 patients have benefitted from the programme.
It is in Kalimpong district that the largest quantity of narcotics has been seized and the highest number of peddlers arrested since 2017.
While Vimala and Aparajita are successfully leading the district, their life is also the epitome of the woman’s grit and determination.
Vimala cracked one of the toughest examinations when she was a mother of 10-year-old twins.
“I prepared for the preliminaries and mains by myself as I could not divert attention from the family,” said Vimala.
The IAS officer from Tamil Nadu was a chemistry student but opted for Indian history and Tamil literature for the civil service examination so that she could prepare by herself.
Vimala was drawn to the civil service when she saw as a college student the way the administration dealt with the aftermath of serial bomb explosions in Coimbatore on February 14, 1998.
“February 14 has always been special as Kalimpong district, too, was formed on February 14, 2017,” she said.
Aparajita from Sikkim had wanted to be a police inspector —because that was what every hero was (in movies) — right from the age of around four-five. She, however, leapt over her “childhood ambition” to be an IPS officer.
During her training, Aparajita won the “trophy of IPS officer in the batch 1958 best lady outdoor probationer” and Shri Umesh Chandra Trophy for Field Combat.
Aparajita also bagged the West Bengal Government Trophy for Bengali and the 55th Batch of Senior Course Officers Trophy for Best Turn Out.
The IPS officer credits her mother for the success.“Very few people actually end up being what they write under the tag of ‘my ambition’ in the autograph books in school,” she said.
Despite the success, the IPS officer is candid when she talks about her journey so far.“The journey has been enriching. I get to learn something new every day but it would be a lie to say that it is all glory and no shadow... I guess that’s true with every person following a passion.”
Women in Kalimpong are truly leading the way. The district also has the highest gender ratio in Bengal with 1,025 female voters against 1000 male voters.