My dearest younger sister and the wife of Jogeswar Bora, retired District and Sessions Judge of Morigaon district, left for her heavenly abode on 4 November 2026 at a city hospital after a brief illness. My wife, Rita, with whom she was very close, and I have lost our most beloved sister and continue to be in deep anguish.
Kalpana, affectionately known by her pet name 'Minu', was a couple of years younger than me. She was a very loving child of our parents, Late Bhoba Rajkhowa, an eminent educationist and Vaishnavite scholar of Jorhat, and Late Annada Rajkhowa, former Principal of "Namacharjee" and later Secretary and then President of the Srimanta Sankar Mandir Mahila Wing at Jorhat. Our parents were ardent devotees of Lord Krishna and followed the Vaishnavite culture and traditions taught by Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev and Madhabdev. All four of us, their children, were brought up in the milieu of Sankari traditions. Kalpana received her school education at Geetarthi Girls' High School and her college education at DCB Girls' College, Jorhat. She actively participated in sports, dancing, music, etc., and was a well-known and popular student.
Kalpana was married to Jogeswar Borah, son of Late Lambeswar Borah and Late Chandra Borah, both prominent residents of Bengenakhoowa, Golaghat. Borah worked in a British-owned tea estate in the then Golaghat Sub-division of pre-independent India.
Jogeswar Borah, who was then a Judicial Magistrate First Class, later rose to the position of District and Sessions Judge and was posted at Marigaon in Morigaon district, from where he retired. The Borahs permanently settled at Cinaki Path, Narikal Basti (Narikal Bari), in the Gitanagar area of the city. Kalpana planted a number of fruit-bearing trees, such as coconut, arecanut and Assam lemon, as well as flowers such as roses, hibiscus, bougainvillea, marigolds, sunflowers, chrysanthemums and many other seasonal varieties, which she regularly grew. She had a keen interest in gardening and maintained a beautiful and fascinating flower garden.
Kalpana was also a pioneer in rooftop vegetable cultivation, growing eggplants, tomatoes, cabbage, cauliflowers, cucumbers, bottle gourds, bitter gourds, spinach, etc., which she also shared with us. Kalpana took a keen interest in social welfare activities and served as a member, secretary and president of important social organisations such as Mitali Sangha, Geetarthi Sangha, Milan Sangha and Clean Guwahati.
Minu was an awesome cook and an incredible hostess. She could prepare all kinds of indigenous and popular cuisines, which we relished very much. My sister always remembered us whenever she prepared special dishes such as "Kachu-Masur Tarkari", "Chitalar Charchari" with "Kulathi" or "Tenga Jhol", "Ilish Machar Charchari", "Rou" or "Bhokua Machar Kalia", "Garaimachar Pitika", "Puthimachar Bhaja", and so on.
She organised the "Annada Rajkhowa Memorial Cooking Competition" in memory of our mother, who was also an awesome cook, at the Mitali Sangha premises in the early part of this year. We jointly sponsored the event, which attracted huge participation from women and girls from different walks of life.
She was always well-dressed and was much loved and adored by our son Vikram, daughters Runa and Tina, daughter-in-law Dr. Zikpuii, and all our grandchildren for her qualities of head and heart and her endearing nature. At the time of her death, Kalpana left behind, besides her devastated husband, a son, Amlanjyoti, who works as a legal adviser for a US-based MNC with an office in Bangalore, along with his wife, Urvasee, and two grandchildren, Neil and Ubi. My sister was very fond of Rita, me, and all my children and grandchildren. We have been missing her very much. I find no suitable words to express our grief over her passing away.
May her soul rest in eternal peace in Vaikuntha. May Lord Krishna, whose lifelong devotee and servant she had been, grant her liberation (Mukti) and shelter her at His lotus feet ('Karakamol')! May the gracious Lord Krishna also grant solace to her deeply grieving and devastated husband, Jogeswar, and son, Amlan, to bear the pain of this irreparable loss with fortitude and grit!
-Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa