A CONVERSATION between two mayors could result in a town twinning arrangement.
Barnard Castle mayor Cllr John Blissett’s counterpart in the North Yorkshire town of Colburn is Nepalese-born Jagannath (Jag) Sharma.
The two got chatting at a function after which Cllr Blissett was approached by the Parbat Welfare Society.
The society is a UK-based organisation which aims to safeguard the traditions and culture of the Parbat district of Nepal as well as extend the hand of friendship.
The society has asked Barnard Castle Town Council to consider a twinning arrangement with Bihadi, in Parbat, which is about 50 miles west of Kathmandu.
Like Barney, it is situated on a river – the Kai Gandaki – and is known for rafting and tourism. It is less than half the size of Barney with a population of about 2,500.
The idea was initially raised at the town council’s November meeting, when councillors agreed to look further into the matter. Cllr Blissett said last week: “It is just looking at it and seeing what it entails.”
He told colleagues at last week’s town council meeting the most recent attempt a twinning arrangement, with a community in France, “did not go well” .
Cllr Blissett said working with the mayor of Colburn could help get this latest attempt at twinning off the ground. “One of the first things would be to visit the Nepalese consul,” he added.
Cllr Sandra Moorhouse said it was not the first time interest in the town had been shown by the Nepalese.
“There is a group of Gurkhas that go to events and spread the word around. They are a very interesting group and they know Barnard Castle very well. They were quite fascinated by the 1940s weekend.” She added: “As for where this (Bihadi) is and what relevance it is to Barnard Castle other than rafting, I don’t know.” And she joked there was no money in the budget for the mayor and mayoress to make a trip to Kathmandu.
However, she said it was “worth exploring” and colleagues agreed.
Parbat is a hilly area of Nepal and one of 75 districts in the country. It is one of the smallest areas, with a population of about 160,000.
