Nandigram, August 6
Fresh trouble erupted in Nandigram after a CPM local committee secretary was killed during an exchange of fire between the Trinamool Congress and the CPM activists at Rajaramchak village, near here, today.

The eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) jawans and the police rushed to the spot and used batons to disperse the warring groups, the police said.

Two Trinamool Congress workers were injured in the lathicharge.

According to the police, Niranjan Mondal, CPM’s local committee secretary, was returning home from Kolkata when he was caught in the crossfire and received gunshots in his head. Mondal died on the spot.

The EFR jawans launched combing operations in the nearby Kalicharanpur and Sonachura to track down the assailants.

No arrests have been made yet.

The EFR and armed police personnel were patrolling the area in view of the flared-up tension.

Terming the killing “planned murder”, CPM district secretary Ashok Guria said the party had called a 24-hour bandh tomorrow at Khejuri I and II, Nandigram I and II and Chandipur blocks.

Protests would also be staged in all other blocks, he added.

Meanwhile, hundreds of Trinamool Congress supporters today gheraoed the Nandigram police station in protest against the alleged assault on villagers by security forces last night.

Stray incidents of bomb attack were reported from two localities following the attack on a CPM local leader Jaidev Barik. — PTI

Kolkata, August 6
A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacherjee ruled out rollback of the Tata Motors project, Union Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi today said the problem at Singur and Nandigram arose after the CM adopted the SEZ policy initiated by the previous NDA government.

“The problem arose only after the Chief Minister followed the NDA government’s SEZ policy,” said Dasmunshi.

Dasmunshi, who is also the state Congress president, said here that the UPA government amended the SEZ policy incorporating several redeeming features that were brought about later. The state government did not follow this which resulted in the Singur and Nandigram violence.

Dasmunshi said the West Bengal Pradesh Congress would form its opinion and chalk out strategy over the Singur issue at its upcoming panchayat and nagarpalika conference at the Netaji Indoor Stadium here on August 9.

Dasmunshi said the state government must find out ways to protect the farmers on one hand and see that the industrialisation process could stabilise on the other.

Bhattacherjee had also ruled out return of 400 acres of the acquired land in Singur to the “unwilling” farmers as demanded by the Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee who has threatened to launch an indefinite agitation around the factory site from August 24. — PTI

Lucknow, August 6
In an apparent move to consolidate the upper caste Hindu vote bank on the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, Chief Minister Mayawati today launched projects worth Rs 250 crore for the development of the twin pilgrimage cities of Mathura and Vrindavan into major tourist centres.

Addressing the media persons at the foundation laying ceremony at her 5, Kalidas Marg residence, Mayawati praised her aide and chairman of the state advisory council, Satish Chandra Misra, for this initiative.

In her earlier tenures, Mayawati was instrumental in developing the Buddhist circuit of Kushinagar and Shravasti. This is for the first time that she is paying attention to the development of a Hindu pilgrimage centre.

Calling Mathura and Vrindavan as the major pilgrim centres of religious significance, Mayawati blamed the previous governments for not concentrating on the development of the region.

"We are taking the initiative to launch projects worth Rs 250 crore relating to roads, power, sewerage etc. Majority of them will be ready within one year," she claimed.

Giving a further push to local tourism, the famous local fair, Mudiya Punnu Mela of Vrindavan, has been granted a regional status by the state government today.

The extensive development plan includes the construction or upgradation of eleven major roads in the district to facilitate easy access of tourists to the twin cities. A sum of Rs 76.45 crore has been earmarked for this.

Rs 19.52 crore would be spent to upgrade the Vrindavan-Parikrama route.

Vrindavan, a popular historical destination of destitute Hindu widows, would now have a home for destitute women, a fully quipped 100-bed hospital and houses for the urban poor.

Allocation of Rs 44 crore has been kept for setting up power sub-stations and strengthening the power distribution system in the region, a prerequisite of any tourist destination. 

New Delhi, August 6
Reaching yet another milestone in its efforts to develop a slew of missiles, India today entered an elite group of nations with the successful final testing of Nag indigenous guided anti-tank missile and readying it for induction into the Army.

After the trials, the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) declared it ready for induction into the Army following user trials.

The climax trials of the third generation anti-tank missile were conducted in the presence of the Army at Pokhran ranges in Rajasthan in the last 48 hours.

The flight tests of the ‘fire and forget’ anti-tank missile programme now stands completed almost 22 years after it was first conceived, DRDO’s chief controller Prahlada said today.

“User trials by the Army would come close on the heels of the Pokhran trials,” officials said.

The Army needs these missiles in large numbers, which is evident by acquisition of 4,000 anti-tank guided missiles from Russia and France recently.

Prahlada said both targets were precisely hit. He confirmed the system capabilities of the Nag missile and mobility of the system in desert terrain was comprehensively demonstrated.

“Nag missile has both top and front attack capabilities and passive homing guidance achieved through imaging infrared seeker system,” he said.

Nag is the last of the five missile systems successfully developed by the DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme that was declared completed in December.

The long delay on Nag is attributed by defence scientists to problems with its imaging infrared guidance system due to technology denial by advanced nations.

However, top DRDO scientists now say the missile, which has a complete fibreglass structure, is ready to become fully operational.

The other four surface-to-surface Prithvi and Agni series of missiles as well as surface-to-air Akash are in the process of induction while Trishul multi-mission missile’s development trials are already over.

DRDO officials said Nag missiles used for the present trials were superior in terms of range to Javelin of the US and Spike of Israel.

They said the new version of Nag had operational day and night capability and its lethality had been increased to enable it to carry one of the most powerful tandem warheads.

The Army has already placed orders for 443 Nag missiles and 13 NAMICAs, tracked launchers of these missiles, for induction over the next three years. — PTI

New Delhi, August 6
Special adviser to UN secretary-general on millennium development goals (MDGs) Jeffrey Sachs has said that India’s National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) is the world’s largest effort to meet the goal related to maternal and child health.

He, however, feels that the country has not done well enough on public health front and better progress on malaria control could have been achieved.

In the capital to assess the progress of the NRHM as head of the international advisory panel for the same, Sachs underlined the urgency of the raising government investment in public health, and said private spending was no answer to India’s public health challenge.

“India’s spending on public health should go up to at least 4 to 5 per cent of the GDP as against the current 1 per cent. About 75 per cent of the health spending should come from the government sector. That must happen now,” Sachs told The Tribune, repeatedly stressing the need of scaling up expenditure in the health sector.

The expert, who earlier met health minister Anbumani Ramadoss to understand the challenges facing the NRHM, said the single-largest challenge to India’s health problems was lack of public spending and political will for the purpose.

“We hope this issue is seen as national and is not subjected to whims of politicians,” said Sachs, who advised India to take heart from the rapid progress being made under the NRHM, which he described as “a highly-dynamic public health initiative that has done well to bring health to the poorest of the poor.” He added the programme could well be an example for similarly situated nations.

Sachs said India had not done enough on health front, and also voiced his concerns about the strange paradox of over nutrition and under nutrition existing simultaneously in the country. “We have discussed this issue with the health minister and also the other challenges of high infant and maternal mortality rate. By the time we meet again, which would be six months later, we would have reached further from here,” Sachs said on the NRHM.

Again blaming the government for not spending enough on health for decades, Sachs said the neglect had left India’s health sector severely deficient. “The deficit will take time to go,” he said, sounding highly-satisfied with the NRHM.

So much so that Sachs has decided to invite health ministers from other nations to the next meeting of the international advisory panel for the NRHM and the health ministry. He also plans to bring the NRHM into international focus when the world meets on September 25 to discuss the midway progress on MDGs.

New Delhi, August 6
Even as the Bombay High Court rejected the plea of Niketa Anand to abort her 26-week-old foetus, health minister Anbumani Ramadoss categorically said an isolated case could not be treated as a ground to amend the law that had existed for many decades.

Clarifying the government stand on the issue before leaving for his official tour to Mexico City where the XVII International AIDS Conference is being held till August 8, Ramadoss said there was no cause for any amendment in the existing legislation that deals with legal termination of pregnancy.

The Bombay High Court had in its Monday judgment in the Niketa Mehta case told the petitioners to approach the legislators for changes in the law that disallowed termination of pregnancy after 20 weeks of conception. The court had said it could not legislate in the matter, and it was for the lawmakers to consider the issue.

The health minister for his part ruled out necessity of amendment, to begin with. “I have sympathy for the mother, but a single case can’t warrant amendment in a law that has been in operation for close to three decades,” he said, adding, however, that the ministry would be willing to look into debatable issues like the one at hand. Other matters that need to be discussed at broader length are euthanasia and laws governing organ transplant, the minister admitted.

He was speaking specifically with reference to the case of Venkatashwaran from Hyderabad. The case made headlines as the man in question wanted to donate organs but the law of the land prevented him from doing so. “We will talk about these matters on a larger framework and arrive at some decision then,” the health minister said, after he had attended the mission steering committee meeting of the National Rural Health Mission in the capital.

Ahmedabad, August 6
The Gujarat police today released sketches of three persons who were suspected to have planted bombs at three areas in Ahmedabad on July 26.

“We have released sketches of three persons who are suspected of planting bombs in Narol, Hatekeshwar and Raipur areas. The sketches have been prepared on the basis of description given by eye witnesses,” joint commissioner of police H.P. Singh said.

The crime branch, investigating the serial blasts in the city that left more than 50 persons dead, prepared sketches on August 1 but did not release them earlier as they thought it may alert the accused.

According to the police, the man, who may have planted the bomb at Narol, is about 45-year-old, five-and-half feet in height, has wheatish complexion and a sturdy built. He is slightly bald and was wearing a white shirt, a lungi and rubber slippers.

Similarly, the person suspected of planting a bomb at Hatkeshwar area is around 30-year-old, 5' 7" in height, has a heavy built and dark complexion, curly hair and moustache, the police said, adding he was wearing a yellow shirt and beige coloured trousers.

The third person, suspected to be involved in the blast in Raipur area, was the one who had purchased the cycle from a trader, the police said.

He is about 21 years of age, 5' 8" in height has wheatish complexion, medium built and well-groomed hair. He was wearing light coloured shirt and trousers, they said.
The police appealed to the people that if they come across any person, who fits the description of the suspects, they should inform the police control room immediately. The police has also released a full-size sketch of the suspect who may have planted bomb in Raipur area. The sketch shows him wearing a shirt, trousers and chappals. The copies of the sketches have been sent to all police stations in the state.

H.P. Singh said total 18 cases had been registered in serial blasts in the city. He said they had also compared the sketches of Jaipur blasts suspects with those of Ahmedabad blasts. "However, the sketches of the Jaipur blasts suspects do not match with those of the Ahmedabad blasts," Singh added.

Regarding sketches of suspects of blasts in other areas of the city, Singh said investigation was on and statements of eye witnesses were being recored. — PTI

New Delhi, August 6
The long-cherished dream of women entering the male bastion of flying fighter jets may finally come true with IAF chief F.H. Major today saying the force is open to the idea of allowing the fairer sex donning the frontline combat role. Major said women in the Indian Air Force were doing a “good job” and there was no reason why they would not be able to fly combat aircraft in future.

Replyng to a question on whether IAF will have women fighter pilots in future like that of the US and other western armies, Major said he was “certain” that his force would have women in combat roles.

“It may happen in future, why not. The women in IAF are doing a good job,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.

Asked whether the IAF was considering any proposal in this regard, he said: “No proposal is under consideration right now. We will have to give a lot of thought on it.”

Many top brass in the forces think women are not fit for combat role as the Indian society is not moulded yet to see women combat casulties.

They think women officers would not be able to withhold pressure of battle fatiques and the risks like being taken prisoners of war would be difficult to handle. The IAF has over 700 women officers in non-combatant role.

Major said the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) will take a decision next month on the proposal of having women as permanent commissioned officers in the armed forces. — PTI

Dehra Dun, August 6
Adding teeth in its quest of implementation of the Right to Information (RTI) Act in Uttarakhand, the state information commission has finally decided to take a punitive action against erring government officials, who have failed to perform their duties as Public Information Officers (PIO) or first appeal officers towards the cause of RTI.

As many as dozen senior Uttarakhand government officials have been fined by the commission within last few days holding them responsible for non-implementation of the RTI act in their respective departments. These officials, include senior bureaucrats, top police officials and public representatives.

Most of them have been imposed a fine of Rs 5000 as they failed in providing timely information to the applicants. Those penalized prominently, includes district magistrates of Pauri and Udham Singh Nagar districts, superintendent of police Haridwar, senior transport official and many public representatives.

Interestingly, the commission, in one of its recently held review meetings, had expressed strong reservations over the Uttarakhand government officials’ general apathy towards the RTI.

It held the careless attitude on part of these officials vis-à-vis the RTI was the main reason that was providing to be hindrance in implementation of RTI act.

The number of appointments of PIOs and First Appeal Officers in certain departments that exceeded far from what was required had also been resented by the commission.

However, it also felt the need of better training programmes for PIOs as it was revealed at the meeting that nearly sixty per cent of PIOs had no formal training regarding the RTI and many were not even aware of its basics.

Meanwhile, Uttarakhand chief information commissioner R.S. Tolia said the commission was committed to ensure that RTI was implemented in the state, both in letter and spirit.

Kolkata, August 6
The CPM Politburo member Biman Bose, who is also the party secretary in West Bengal, and two other central committee leaders, Benoy Konar and Shyamal Chakraborty, were summoned to the Calcutta High Court yesterday on a contempt case and also for defaming the judiciary and the high court.

The leaders had pleaded that their representatives be allowed to attend the hearing. But the court rejected their plea.

The court also directed them to submit affidavits to the division within next four weeks, justifying themselves why necessary legal actions should not be taken on the contempt charges and also for defaming, denigrating and dishonouring the high court.

Accompanied by their counsel Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya, who is also Calcutta Mayor, and a host of their followers, the Marxist trio were virtually “mobbed” while they were entering into the high court premises in the morning.

Incidentally, these three leaders had been charged for defaming and denigrating the high court by making some derogatory remarks and ugly aspersions on the high court’s ruling on the police firing at Nandigram on March 14 on the basis of the CBI report. The high court earlier ordered a CBI probe into the police firing which killed 14 farmers at Nandigram.

Patna, August 6
The Patna High Court today granted bail to incarcerated Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Mohammad Shahabuddin in connection with an alleged violation of the Arms Act.

Justice Shiv Kirti Singh granted bail to Shahabuddin after hearing the arguments of his counsel and the prosecution.

A case was registered against Shahabuddin in 2001 for possessing AK-47 rifle and hand grenade, violating the Arms Act.

The RJD MP would, however, remain behind bars, as he was serving life term in Siwan Jail after being convicted in kidnapping and subsequent killing of a CPI (ML) leader. He was also facing trial in connection with several other cases. — UNI

Guwahati, August 6
The proscribed United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) has rejected the argument put forward by a section of intellectuals, writers and the media for unconditional talks with the government of India to give up its core demand for ‘restoration of sovereignty of Assam’.

The outfit, in fact, criticised the intellectuals, writers and media persons who advocated unconditional talks and stated that it would never support such ‘shallow argument’ of a section of ‘rootless intellectuals who have no knowledge of the history and civilisation of Assam’.

“Sovereignty is the fundamental right of the people of Assam. It has been violated and has to be restored. The government of Assam has to clarify whether it recognises the right of sovereignty of the people of Assam or not,” it said in the editorial of its monthly mouthpiece ‘Swadhinata (Freedom)’. The Internet edition of the mouthpiece has been mailed to the media here.

Regarding the alarming problem of illegal migrants, the outfit stated that no government in Assam, under the ‘colonial Indian regime’, would be able to solve this problem as it has been created to cause disadvantage to the indigenous people so that exploitation of natural resources of the state can go on unhindered.

Bangalore, August 6
Brigadier B.S. Sambyal took over as the Commandant of the Parachute Regiment Training Centre (PRTC) in Bangalore today.

Brigadier Sambyal’s military experience covers command and staff appointments in both operational and non-operational areas. He is a recipient of “Sena Medal” (Gallantry) for his services during “Operation Rakshak” and GOC-in-C of the Northern Command’s Commendation Card.

During his earlier assignments, he has commanded various establishments, including Headquarters 71 Mountain Brigade, 116 Infantry Battalion TA (PARA), Para Training School (VIKAS), Army Airborne Training School, 3 PARA (Special Forces) and 31 Rashtriya Rifles (CDO).

He has also held instructional appointments at Project Chandni, Infantry School, Mhow, and PRTC. He also held the appointment of ADC to GOC of a Mountain Division in 1986-87.

New Delhi, August 6
Carpets from Afghanistan and Pakistan, electronic items from Bhutan, jewellery and watches from the Gulf...the public could soon catch a glimpse of these exquisite foreign gifts given to Indian leaders!

The government plans to display some of these items that have for long gathered dust at the toshakhana, the official storehouse made up of three rooms at Akbar Bhawan housing a sizeable section of the External Affairs Ministry.

“We had approached the National Museum for putting some of the more historically significant items on display,” an official of the ministry told IANS on condition of anonymity.

“We are also looking at alternate ideas, like displaying them in Jawahar Bhawan (the new ministry building under construction).” However, National Museum officials said while initial talks have been held with the ministry, they were not too keen on the idea.

“Right now, we can store the items, but do not have space for display,” a senior museum official said.

The toshakhana, a veritable treasure trove, has a collection of 1,000 gifts spanning over two decades and kept behind code-protected strong doors. Foreign dignitaries gave these to Indian leaders and officials - from the Prime Minister to junior bureaucrats.

Under the government conduct rules, any gifts received from foreign officials or leaders have to be deposited at the toshakhana, which then asks the Customs Department to determine its monetary value.

If the value is lower than the limit prescribed by the government rules, the receiver gets to keep it. Otherwise, it stays in the toshakhana.

“If there are any gifts they would like to keep but their values exceeds the limit laid down, then they can deposit the balance with the SBI,” an official said.

The Prime Minister and his Cabinet colleagues can keep gifts that are valued at less than Rs 5,000, while officials, including secretaries, have a limit of Rs 3,000. The last clearance of gifts had taken place two decades ago through an auction.

A single MEA employee maintains the toshakhana register that lists the gifts, the names of the giver and the receiver, the value of the gift, and the date on which it was transferred to the depository.

The most expensive item in the toshakhana is a gift to the Indian Prime Minister from his Thai counterpart in November 2007 - a framed replica of the royal emblem and a gold miniature, studded with diamonds. Its price tag, according to the Customs Department is Rs 1 million.

Arab leaders have been consistent givers of expensive gifts. During Saudi King Abdullah’s visit in 2006, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was gifted the sculpture of a horse with a timepiece embedded in it. It was valued at Rs 2 lakh.

The toshakhana also has some arms that were gifted to Indian leaders, for instance, a dagger worth Rs 1.6 lakh from the Moroccan king to the external affairs minister in 2001.

Incidentally, the Rashtrapati Bhawan has a separate repository for the gifts, which the President receives from foreign dignitaries. — IANS

Dehra Dun, August 6
The Uttarakhand police today arrested 14 Bangladeshi’s from Roorkee’s Kaliar area and investigating their probable involvement in terrorist activities in the state ahead of the independence day.

Kotwali police inspector D.S. Bhandari said 14 Bangladeshi’s were arrested in the Kaliar area at 11.30 and interrogations were on to trace their involvement in the terrorist activities in the state.

They will be produced in court tomorrow, he said.

So far, 34 illegal Bangladeshi’s have been arrested since last year from Roorkee and with today’s arrest, the count has increased to 48, he said.

On October 24 last year, the police had arrested 12 Bangladeshi’s from Roorkee and in January this year, two groups of 11 Bangladeshi’s were caught from the same area.

Incidentally, the state has been put on a high alert after several mails warning attacks across the state on the independence day was received. — UNI

New Delhi, August 6
Realising the tremendous effect that any future vagaries of weather may have on precious water resources of the country, the ministry of water resources has identified effects of climate change on water resources as one of the priority areas for research in the water sector during the XI Five Year Plan.

Ministry officials say important issues related to water resources, like efficiency studies for major and medium irrigation projects, effects of climate change on water resources and studies in respect of adaptation as a consequence of effects of climate change on water resources, would be conducted by the ministry in association with leading institutions of the country.

Climate change effects on water resources studies include simulation studies for selected water systems, while incorporating features of changed scenario, reservoir sedimentation studies, post-facto evaluation and management plan for optimal benefit from resources and initiation of benchmarking of irrigation projects for performance improvement.

Various research and academic institutions in the country, including Water and Land Management Institutes, all Central research institutes related to water sector, research institutes of state governments related to water sector, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Delhi, Kanpur, Mumbai, Chennai, Kharagpur and Guwahati, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, all National Institutes of Technology and all universities recognised by the UGC, would be involved in the studies.

Dehra Dun, August 6
The increasing pollution in the Ganga has increased the biological oxygen demand (BOD) at Hardwar and Rishikesh.

Recent reports from the Uttarakhand Environment Protection and Pollution Control Board, Dehra Dun, state that the Ganga has shown a tremendous increase in the BOD level in 2007 and 2008 compared to 2005 and 2006. The sampling was done at Missarpur, Hardwar, and Lakshman Jhula, Rishikesh.

Due to a large quantity of organic waste present in the river, there are a large number of bacteria present to decompose the waste. Therefore, the demand for the oxygen increases with the number of bacteria population in water. Also, nitrates and phosphates present in water increase the BOD level.

The remarkable variation was seen in Hardwar where the BOD level recorded in 2005 and 2006 is 21.2mg/l and that in 2007 and 2008 is 48.9 mg/l. A clear difference of 27.7 mg/l is recorded.

The BOD level at Rishikesh has increased from 2.8 mg/l in 2005 and 2006 to 14.4 mg/l in 2007 and 2008.

Speaking to The Tribune, P.C. Joshi, regional officer of the board, informed, “The reason for increase in the level of the BOD in the Ganga is escalating water pollution. This should be stopped immediately otherwise it will not only affect micro-organism in water but also diminish its existence.”

The reports also revealed that the number of total coliform (TC), especially at Hardwar, was very high though had not shown any variations. The TC registered at Hardwar during 2005 and 2006 and 2007 and 2008 was 1,600 MPN/100ml on an average.

Also, the fecal coliform (FC) at Hardwar has increased, which was found negligible in 2005 and 2006. The presence of fecal coliform bacteria in aquatic environments indicates that water has been contaminated with the fecal material of man or other animals. The fecal coliform bacteria can enter rivers through direct discharge of waste from mammals and birds, from agricultural and storm runoff, and from untreated human sewage.

Dehra Dun, August 5
In a first ever initiative of its kind, the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Dehra Dun, has found 1,013 species of fauna, hitherto not documented, from the famous Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) in Uttarakhand.

This was revealed after a survey was conducted by the ZSI, findings of which were released by the department recently.

This newly documented fauna includes 685 species of birds, 49 of mammals, 39 reptilian species, 36 species of pisces, 10 amphibians among vertebrates, 10 of nematodes, 11 of centipedes, 21 of termites, seven of bugs, 37 of dragons and damselflies, 34 of hoppers, 36 of butterflies, 10 of beetles and six species of Mayflies, amongst invertebrates.

Describing the CTR survey as challenging, P.T. Bhutia, joint director, ZSI, Dehra Dun, said his scientists spent nearly five years to conduct the survey which involved a lot of field work while maintaining forest protocols.

Interestingly, the findings that have come up in the form of a 230-page document entitled "Fauna of Corbett Tiger Reserve”, has also revealed the new distributional records of seven species of fish, four species of frogs, 10 species of nematodes and seven species of butterflies, for the first time from the reserve area.

Dr Vinod Khanna and Dr P.C.Tak, senior scientists at the ZSI, Dehra Dun, expressed that the CTR document would go a long way in helping in the conduct of any type of fauna study.

Apart from reporting the inventory of species, the ZSI scientists have also come up with a list of ‘threatened fauna’ in the CTR. The document, besides providing the population status of major mammals including tiger and elephants, also deals with an exhaustive study carried out by the scientists of the Forest Ecology Division of the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), Dehra Dun.

Dehra Dun, August 6
The State Wildlife Authority of Uttarakhand is preparing for the state bird count (Garhwal region) scheduled for November. Unlike the recently released state bird census, which focuses on the presence of few species, the state bird count will include the total population of all existing birds in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand.

The entire Garhwal region will be divided into initial 50 subareas, which will be further reduced to 15 areas. These divisions or areas will be decided on the basis of highest availability of various species and number of birds.

For this purpose, the State Wildlife Authority will hire specialised bird watchers from different states or countries. The bird watchers will not only register the species present in the region but will also have a microscopic eye on each and every bird. As many as 10-15 groups of bird watchers will be framed for this study.

Also, major role will be played by the participation of residents. The wildlife authorities will include the students of government schools. Voluntary participation will be welcomed by the authorities.

Srikant Chandola, additional chief conservator of forest (wildlife) and chief wildlife warden, Uttarakhand, informed as to why they have choose November for this study. He said, “In November you find maximum diversity of birds in the state. The temperature during this time of the year is optimum for not only birds but even for the bird watchers to conduct their study.”

The wildlife authorities have also designed an advertising campaign to spread awareness regarding the bird count. They believe that the residents of various places who better understand the geography and climatic conditions can prove to be of great help to the bird watchers.

Kaziranga, August 6
Siloni, a female captive-reared Hoolock Gibbon, has finally gone to live in the woods with her partner. Siloni was released in the wild after being reared in a temporary enclosure till her sexual maturity and subsequent pairing with a male in the Kaziranga National Park.

“Siloni has conceived and we are expecting the baby within a few months. We are monitoring the movement of the couple and everything is normal,” said the director of the park, Suren Buragohain.

Buragohain rescued Siloni from a temple in Assam’s Golaghat district, when he was the divisional forest officer there in 2003.

“She was injured when I brought it from a priest. I took her to my home and nurtured it. She had developed acquaintance with humans as she learnt to watch TV, react to pictures in books and even eat with a spoon,” the director said.

The spacious enclosure was suspended under the canopy of a Ficus tree about nine meters above the ground. It was there that the male gibbon, who wandered in from the wild, met her.

Conservationists believe that successful rehabilitation of Siloni could provide a strategy for the management of gibbons living without mates in the wild. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Prez to unveil Bhagat Singh’s statue
NEW DELHI: President Pratibha Devisingh Patil will unveil the statue of Shaheed Bhagat Singh in Parliament House complex here on August 15. The Lok Sabha Secretariat donated the 18-feet high statue of Bhagat Singh, sculpted by eminent sculptor Ram Sutar, a Lok Sabha Secretariat release issued here on Wednesday, said. — UNI

Chandrayan-1 launch by Oct: ISRO
CHENNAI: The much awaited launch of Lunar Mission Chandrayan-I will take place by the second week of October, ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair said on Wednesday. “We are all set to launch the thermo vacuum tests. After this test to simulate the condition in space was completed, the launch would take place in the next 45 to 50 days,” he said. “We don’t have the flexibility to launch the mission at any time we want, because the launch window will be available once in a month. We have time up to second half of October,” he added. — UNI

Scribes condemn ultras’ threat
IMPHAL: No newspapers were published in the state on Wednesday as the media fraternity voiced its protest against the militants’ threat to journalists and media organisations. The scribes of Manipur under the aegis of All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union on Tuesday staged a protest at the Manipur Press Club here. An ultra’s outfit had “imposed ban” on a local newspaper for not properly publishing a press statement. — UNI

Loan waiver no help to Bihar
PATNA: The state government claims a raw deal in the agricultural loan waiver scheme announced by the Centre. Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi said, the Rs 70,000 crore loan-waiver scheme was announced for the farmers, but only Rs 2464.35 crore was granted. As per the state government’s estimates, about 8.09 lakh loanee farmers of the Central Cooperative Banks and 1.35 lakh of the Bihar State Land Development Bank would not be able to get the actual benefit of the loan-waiver scheme, he added. — PTI

Ex-MP Mahendra Singh dead
KHANDWA (MP): Senior Congress leader and former Khandwa MP Mahendra Kumar Singh (58) passed away following a cardiac arrest here on Wednesday. He is survived by wife, son and four daughters. He represented Khandwa seat in Parliament from 1990 to 1995. He had also served as the mayor of the Burhanpur Municipal Corporation. The last rites would be performed at Burhanpur. — UNI