As expected, the second round of the tripartite meeting over the Gorkhaland issue remained inconclusive with the Centre and the West Bengal government on Monday remaining non-commital on the separate statehood for Gorkhas. Though all the parties - including the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) - agreed to have another round of talks over the contentious issue soon, officials in the home ministry hinted that acceding to the demand might not be possible. They said that the government would try to convince the Gorkhas at the next meeting about accepting "more powers for Darjeeling Hills under special status" as a separate state was not practically possible. The Morcha has been demanding a separate state comprising the three hill sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong, besides Siliguri sub-division in the plains and adjacent area in North Bengal. Union home secretary Madhukar Gupta told reporters that the talks were held in a cordial atmosphere. He said: "Whatever decision is taken, it will be in national interest, keeping in mind the aspirations of the people."
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