Pitthoragarh, August 5
The massive landslide at Chautuldhar that took place on July 31 on the strategically important India-China motor road near Dharchula is coming in the way not only of Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims, but also of the Army and paramilitary personnel going to their posts at the India-China-Nepal border at Darma, Beans and Chaundas.

“The debris of the July 31 landslide has not been cleared by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). This has added to our troubles as we have to carry goods of our daily needs on our shoulders for a distance of eight km from point zero,” said Dhan Singh, a resident of Syankuri village near Tawaghat.

“Strong waves of the Kali river swept away the debris dumped there for the past one year. We are allowing the movement of Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims at this point with the help of rescue workers of the ITBP under guidance of BRO engineers,” BR Arya, base camp in charge at Dharchula, said.

“According to the BRO engineers, the earlier landslide which occurred on February 6, 2009, was difficult to clear in keeping with the available infrastructure of the BRO at that point. The BRO was waiting a heavy rain to clear it.

“This debris-clearing tendency of the river can help us clear the remaining debris dumped at Chaitalkot for the past one year and clear the road not only for villagers, but defence personnel as well,” said a senior officer of the BRO.

Dehradun, August 5
A group of women residents of Morrowala, the rain-hit locality of the city, came complaining to Mayor Vinod Chamoli for being divested from the interim relief of Rs 2,000 and urged him to remove the wide-spread encroachments on the drains in their area which became the main cause of flooding.

Chamoli gave orders to prepare a list of those who did not get relief amount in the area to be sent to the District Magistrate for their inclusion. He also told the group that he would soon visit their place to gauge the exact situation of encroachments.

Bhagwati Devi, a resident, said, “I am at a loss to know why I have been excluded from the rain victims’ list for relief compensation. It was I who stood at night all alone to be on guard when water gushed forth from office of the Power Department to our locality and my house was the first one to take it all”.

Another resident Nishan Longwal said their locality had become a meeting ground for water emanating from all sides, Garhi Cantt, Majra, ISBT and Azad Colony. She also blamed the creation of four big drains in the colony which got choked during rain and flooded the area.

Elucidating the gravity of enormous scale of encroachment, Saroj Chuhan, member of the group, described as to how a 70-ft drain had been narrowed down to 6 ft by an encroacher who had built myriad structures on it. The encroacher had been having merry time at the expense of negligence of the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, she said.

Dehradun, August 5
Doonites, who went through a hellish experience due to the torrential rain last Saturday, are now grappling with the aftereffects - financial complications due to non-payment of relief cheques, health hazard due to stagnant water, infrastructure problems due to leakage of pipes and non-functional street lights.

Today, eight families from Morrowala went to encash cheques of Rs 2,000 each distributed by the state administration to the victims as interim relief, but to their horror, they were sent back by the Punjab National Bank situated near Shimla Bypass citing dearth of money in the bank.

Aman Malik, who saw his slipper factory crumble to the ground due to the rain, was distraught and so was Mahender Singh (75) who came from Sewala village to collect the relief.

“Almost everything in my house was destroyed by the pouring rain. I was hoping to get some succour from the cheque, but that too hasn’t materialised. It is difficult to get justice in this state”.

ADM (F) Vinod Suman expressed ignorance about the incident and said banks had been provided enough cash for the cheques. He said he would look into the matter.

Due to the limited number of cheques allotted for each locality, some victims did not get these. Sanjay Gupta, councillor of Azad Colony, said the tehsildar of his area had made it clear that the 15 persons who got left out would not be able to avail the benefit as cheques were limited in number. Sanjhu Jha, a resident of Morrowala, complained about the same.

But District Magistrate D Santhiyal Pandiyan made no bones in declaring that whoever deserved monetary help would not be left unattended.

Besides this financial complication, health hazards are also raising their ugly head. Lane No. 12 at Morrowala does not have potable water as the contents of the sewerage and potable water supply pipes have got mixed due to leaking pipes. Aman Malik said residents of the area have to tread half a km to fetch water.

He said many persons in the area were encountering health problems like dysentery or diarrhoea, fever, malaria, jaundice as the water stagnant in the pits have mosquitoes.

Malik denied that any fogging or anti-mosquito spray drive had been carried out in the area. As a matter of fact, no such drive has been undertaken even in other pockets of the city that is normally observed after such an incident.

Senior Health Officer of the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, Dr Gurpal Singh, was caught unawares when a question was raised about it.

He retorted that his department had been carrying out this drive throughout the city from March. The official did not know that the drive initiated on March 23 had come to an end on July 9, as confirmed by the spray in charge Puran Singh Bisht.

The Mayor gave a piece of his mind to Dr Gurpal Singh for not being aware of the fact and directed him to resume the drive.

Residents of Azad Colony and Subhash Nagar, the other severely affected areas, complained of litter and blamed their supervisor for being highly callous in maintaining sanitation at the localities. The Mayor has given an order to suspend the supervisor concerned.

Streetlights which went dysfunctional in many pockets after the incident have not been repaired. The Mayor said that no matter how many times these lights are repaired, these were bound to develop some fault or the other due to the rainy season.

Dehradun, August 5
Standing at the cusp of knowledge, traditional vaidyas have to their credit many potent cures against debilitating diseases. But, ironically, no steps have been taken to validate their cures or document them. Scared of incurring the wrath of natural forces, if they pass on their knowledge, many among them are the last repositories of traditional wisdom. Aware of the tremendous loss that may befall the traditional system of medicine, for the first time, Herbal Research and Development Institute (HRDI), Gopeshwar, has stepped in to protect and nurture the traditional vaidyas and make this dying system more lucrative.

As part of Jari Booti Diwas, the traditional vaidyas gathered to discuss the challenges and problems that they are facing while practising the traditional knowledge, picked up from their forefathers or while foraging into deep forests guided by their missionary like zeal to seek cure for debilitating diseases.

Take the case of Haroli Devi of Pitthoragarh. She has a magic potion discovered accidentally by her father that he managed to pass on to her. The ingredients she uses are a mix of common herbs she willingly shares but that’s about all the other part she would rather keep silent. “My father fell ill in the autumn of his life and was forced to share the knowledge with me, but I do not know if I will be able to do that with my children,” said Haroli.

Quiz her about the sudden desire to cross the threshold and participate in the workshop that aims at addressing these very problems, the ever-enigmatic Haroli just smiled.

“We will be documenting and validating these cures and treatments. A panel of experts will prepare a data base of herbs, cures and treatments for specific diseases and then broaden the parameters,” said Dr RC Saundriyal, Director, HRDI.

However, making a strong plea for economic benefits that should accrue to the inventor or the possessor of a particular knowledge, Uday Singh of Tyuni (Chakrata) said: “I am not averse to sharing my trade secret, but my entire livelihood depends on the cure and economic benefits should be sizable so that I can lead a life of dignity.”

Similar thoughts were echoed by Uday Singh Pundir, vaidya from Chamoli who has earned fame for curing jaundice.

To begin with validation does not come cheap. It means pumping crores of rupees into a long drawn out process that may not yield immediate results, as Dr Kiran Arun, research scientist of the Society for Himalayan Environment and Research, points out: “There is a need to bring the traditional vaidays into the mainstream, but any effort aimed at documentation should start at the village level, together with archaeological literature. Most of vaidyas fear that the potency of their cure will decrease, if they share their knowledge but the government should give them incentives,” said Dr Kiran.

Nainital, August 5
Lambasting the state government for ignoring their genuine concerns, teachers posted at various institutes of higher education in the state have come together to fight for their common cause.

Members of the Kumaon University Teachers Association (KUTA), Pantnagar University Teachers Association (PUTA), Garhwal University Teachers Association (GRUTA), Federation of Uttaranchal University and College Teachers Association (FUUCTA) and the Federation of Uttarakhand Government Teachers Association (FUGTA) have come together to launch an Uttarakhand Vishwavidyalaya Mahavidyalaya Sangharsh Samiti with KUTA president Ajay Arora as its convener.

The samiti has raised a series of demands and has sought immediate redressal of the issues failing which it would launch an agitation across the state. The teachers are demanding a complete implementation of the package announced by the University Grants Commission (UGC).

They are also seeking that as announced by the Centre, their retirement age be raised to 65 years. Dr Arora pointed out that such a condition was mandatory for the state government if it wanted to avail 80 per cent of the arrears from the Centre and by not implementing this, the state government was incurring a huge loss.

The teachers are also seeking an early payment of arrears pertaining to the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations with regards to them in the state.

The most important issue taken up at the meeting held here on Wednesday under the Chairmanship of Dr SP Singh was with regards to the absence of an affiliating university for those colleges which were earlier affiliated to HNB Garhwal University. The teachers are seeking that till the time a new affiliating university comes into being, the colleges be given the same treatment like before when Garhwal University was not a Central university.

Responding to a query, the teachers hit out at state Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank for having failed to set up an affiliating university despite a proposal being approved by the state Cabinet almost a year ago.

It was questioned that while on one hand Nishank is “least interested about the plight of one lakh students studying in colleges earlier affiliated to Garhwal University”, on the other he is getting an Ayurveda University set up for a few hundred students at an approximate cost of Rs 44 crore. Since most of the colleges earlier affiliated to Garhwal University are in Dehradun and Haridwar, the teachers want that the affiliating university be set up in either of the two places.

According to them, 133 of the total 156 such colleges are in these two districts. They have also sought rectification of a technical shortfall with regards to the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations concerning the employees of the Gobind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology.

It was pointed out that unlike others, the employees of Pantnagar University did not get compounded increment from January 1, 2006. They have sought that this anomaly be set right.

Dr Arora said the teachers planned to meet senior bureaucrats in the Education Department PC Sharma and Radhika Jha along with Nishank on August 12 and 13 on these issues.

He said the issues would also be taken up at the national convention of the All-India Federation of University and College Teachers Organisation to be held in Dehradun later this month.

Thereafter they would observe Teachers Day on September 5 as Virodh Diwas. Since the day falls on Sunday, they would wear black bands and would not be teaching on September 6. Following this they plan to take out a Dehradun March on October 2 where future course of action would be chalked out.

Dehradun, August 5
Uttarakhand Technical University (UTU) has announced a golden opportunity for engineering aspirants who cannot get admission due to lower ranking in All-India Engineers Entrance Exams this monsoon. Now, such candidates can get admission in the technical varsity on the basis of their class XII merits.

Under the instruction of the state administration, the technical varsity has organised a counselling session on August 5, 6 and 7 at the GRD Institute of Management located on the Rajpur Road. Through this counselling, students can get admission in all government and private colleges of Uttarakhand. The grades or branches will be allotted to the students accordingly after the counselling.

Those who have attained more than 65 per cent in class XII will appear for counselling on August 6. Those who have acquired between 50 per cent to 65 per cent will have to report on August 6 while their counselling will be held on August 7.

The All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has specified the provision to the applicants pursuing BTech course through this lateral entry. The best part to opt for this integrated course would be that the candidate will not get admission on the basis of the all-India entrance examination and the candidate need not take any coaching for the same.

According to officials concerned, “Education is witnessing many reformations in the method of teaching and learning at school as well as at the college level. This integrated course will have its own advantages in the long run. The course would not be different from others but would help the student to conceptualise the basics of BTech course without the peer pressure on their minds. The varsity is also considering other elements that can help in the development of the students for their future prospects in India as well as in abroad”.

Dehradun, August 5
A total of 180 students of the Devbhumi Institute of Technology has proved their mettle and proficiency by getting placed in Reliance Telecommunication during their campus placement drive. More than 500 students of technology from Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh have participated in the series of test organised by the placement firm.

The placement drive was organised on the premises of the institute, where a large number of students from different colleges participated.

Chairman of the institute Sanjay Bansal expressed its heartfelt congratulations to the students who got selected in the first round of the placements and encouraged the rest who could not get through to the selection criteria.

The institute is expecting more companies like Tata Consultancies Services, Wipro and Ashok Leyland to approach for campus placements soon.

Dehradun, August 5
Grass and weeds, which have grown over 2 feet, welcome visitors at the parks at 
Vasant Vihar.

Due to poor maintenance at these parks, children of this posh area are not able to play there. Another deterrent is the fear of insects and snakes in the tall grass.

Vasant Vihar falls under the Doon Valley Officers Housing Cooperative Society, which is a registered society. It was established in 1966 and has 700 members. It is spread over an area of 200 acres.

From setting up streetlights to repairing of roads, from planting of trees to organising welfare programmes all are done by the cooperative society.

The locality has 14 parks, but residents prefer to call these “open green belts” due to their poor condition. There is not much hope for improvement of the green belt in Vasant Vihar as the society lacks funds and is looking for sponsors for its upgrade.

“Gradually, these green belts are taking the form of a garbage dump. Instead of providing better environment to residents, it could become a health hazard. The administration is neither bothered about the poor conditions there nor is it providing us with funds,” said a member of the society.

While talking to The Tribune, DP Nawani, Chairman of Doon Valley Officers Housing Cooperative Society, said, “We have a very large area to cover and it is impossible to upgrade it completely. According to officials, the maintenance of the locality is entirely being looked after by the society.

“The only contribution that the Mussoorie and Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) have made is that they have constructed boundaries around two parks five years ago but have not taken any care of it.

“We have hired a gardener who looks after the plantation, cutting and caring of the plants. No assistance is being provided by the Municipal Corporation,” he alleged.

Navin Bisht, municipal councillor of Vasant Vihar, denied the allegations levied by the society. He said, “We have offered full support to the society. I am ready to fund them but the society needs to approach me first. I will be happy to see my constituency in a good shape.”

“We had a meeting with the MDDA recently and they have agreed to support us. We are also approaching private sponsors who can take over the responsibility of upgrading the parks,” said Nawani.

Dehradun, August 5
Members of the Uttarakhand Madhyamik Shikshak Sangh will hold a protest in favour of their demands at the District Magistrate’s office on August 7. This was stated by Pradeep Dabral, state president of the federation, at a meeting of affected primary teachers held here yesterday.

The protest will be held to press their demands on the administration seeking the recruitment of the teachers in the primary schools.

Apart from this, the federation will demand to incorporate members of the federation under the group insurance scheme, include the upgraded junior high school in the list of schools that receive grants from the administration.

Dehradun, August 5
SGRR Race Course beat SGRR Balawala 3-2 in the final today to become the champion of the SGRR Sahodaya Complex Sub-junior Football Tournament held at Race Course.

Deepak (35th and 38th minutes) scored a brace for the winning team while Parul (50th) scored the decisive goal of the match after the two sides were locked 2-2.

For Balawala, Kanishak (16th) and Saurabh (18th) netted a goal each to put up a good competition.

Dehradun, August 5
Marshall School beat Aryan School 1-0 with the help of a lone goal of Aman Negi during the 26th Carvery Memorial Sub-Junior Football tournament being organised by Carman School, Dalanwala.

While Akash scored a brace in the 4-1 win of MIS over Carman School. Guru Nanak School also defeated The Heritage School 3-0. In another match, Kasiga School edged past Hilton School 1-0.

Whereas, Nirmaldas School faced 2-1 defeat at the hands of Hilton School. The match between Mussoorie Modern School and Pestle Weed College ended in a 1-1 draw. Raja Ram Ray Academy and Summer Valley failed to reach result scoring two goals each.

Haridwar, August 5
With most of the environment and related eco drives focusing on planting of saplings, the Irrigation Department today too held a plantation drive, but with emphasis on not only the plantation of saplings but also on their conservation.

The plantation drive, carried as part of Harit Kranti Divas observed every 5th of August, was organised in all 13 districts of the state, according to Irrigation Minister Matbar Singh Kandari. Hundreds of saplings were planted at Irrigation Department’s Bairagi camp land adjacent to the Ganga.

Speaking as a representative of the Irrigation Minister, vice-chairman of the Gau Raksha Samiti Swami Yatishwaranand highlighted the importance of trees in our daily life.

“Trees’ importance is incomparable. Its every part be it leaf, wood even its shade is beneficial for humans and animals but we don’t think for once when we cut trees for commercial usages. Our life will be healthier with ill-effects of pollution and global warming being negated by the green cover, but it should be done instantly as it takes time for a sapling to become a full-grown tree,” said the Swami.

Executive Engineer of the Irrigation Department DD Dalakoti specified on the need of conserving saplings after the plantation drive. Stating most of the plantation drives don’t achieve the desired results, Dalakoti said caring and nurturing of saplings was of more importance as a tree didn’t bloom overnight.

“If we take pledge to plant as much tree as we can and also make sure that due care of saplings is taken, then there is no doubt that the green cover that is fast shrinking will be revived,” said Dalakoti.

Notably, the Bairagi Camp is the same area where every 12 years the Maha Kumbh is organised.

Chief Engineer of the Irrigation Department Suresh Chandra too attended the drive and voiced for more efforts from departmental employees in carrying out more such drives on a regular basis.