Darjeeling: The Bengal government has constituted a committee headed by the Darjeeling MLA to prepare a proposal for the holistic development of the hills for short, medium and long terms.

The panel was announced by chief minister Mamata Banerjee who held an administrative review meeting with GTA officials at Rivers Hill - office-cum-residence of Darjeeling district magistrate - here on Tuesday.

"We had a detailed discussion today (Tuesday) and we are of the opinion that for the proper development of the Darjeeling hills, there must be a planning for short, medium and long terms. For this, the chief secretary formed a committee with Darjeeling MLA Mr Amar Rai in-charge," Mamata said after the meeting.

The committee will include the MLAs of Kurseong and Kalimpong, chairpersons of all four municipalities in the hills, representatives of industry bodies like the CII and the FICCI and the DMs and the SPs of Darjeeling and Kalimpong.

GTA chairman Binay Tamang and vice-chairman Anit Thapa will be advisors to the committee, along with the principal secretary of the Bengal government, S.K. Thade.

"A separate office will be set up for the committee in Darjeeling and it will have to submit a report in six months," said Mamata.

The chief minister said all aspects of hill development, including improvement in education and tourism, would be looked into by the team.

"There was a very old demand for a university in the hills. The Centre was also approached but nothing was done. The state has decided to set up a varsity and it will be named Darjeeling Hill University," said Mamata.

The Telegraph had reported on Monday that the state government had decided to change the name of the varsity from Greenfield University to Darjeeling University. The government had taken note of the demand that the name of the university strike a chord with the hill people.

The demand for a development proposal for the overall growth of the hills, too, has been in public domain for quite some time. A few years ago, Darjeeling municipality under the chairmanship of P.T. Ola had talked about preparing a Vision Document but it did not see the light of day.

Similarly, Binay Tamang has talked about Vision 2020 of late.

Speaking after the meeting, Rai said: "I will try my best to fulfil the responsibility entrusted to me. We will look for a holistic development proposal covering every sphere. Urban planners and other experts would be consulted while preparing the proposals."

During the GTA review meeting, Tamang raised the demands like benefits for the employees of the hill body, appointment of more officers and volunteer teachers, formation of college service commission and sub-ordinate selection board and establishment of an engineering college at Takdah.