Islampur, Aug. 17: Islampur’s Trinamul Congress MLA Chowdhury Abdul Karim has sent a proposal to chief minister Mamata Banerjee to set up a development authority for the subdivision that was envisaged by the state and Centre more than five decades ago.

Karim said the proposed body would be on the lines of the Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority.

“I have sent the proposal to our chief minister in the first week of this month. Our subdivision has long been neglected and the pace of development is slow. The body will help to bring about development in the area,” Karim, who is also the mass education and library services minister, said.

A separate authority would mean that funds would be allotted to the body that would help to develop the area. “So far all funds allocated are from the general pool of the entire district. With a dedicated authority, there will be more focus and overall development of the area. We have also suggested to the chief minister to appoint an additional police superintendent and an additional district magistrate for Islampur,” Karim said.

He said Islampur subdivision was carved out of Surjyapur in Bihar’s Purnea district and 19 mouzas of the Phansidewa block of Darjeeling. It was made part of Bengal on November 1, 1956, by the state reorganisation commission. At that time Bihar, Bengal and the reorganisation commission had signed an agreement for the development of the area through a Transferred Area Development Authority.

“There was also a provision (in the agreement) that it (Islampur subdivision) could be made into a separate district with its own MP. Fifty-five years have passed and this agreement has never seen the light of day. During my long stint as a legislator, I had tried to bring this issue to the fore but throughout the Left Front rule no one heeded it,” he said.

Karim, however, added that there could be problems in forming a separate district of Islampur but the other provisions should be revived for the development of the subdivision.