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Haridwar afloat
Kumaon region reels under rain fury
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Rain-hit Jaunpur farmers await government aid
Nainital diary
Kids celebrate Grandparents Day
U’khand lad Sujal is u-14 karate champ
Handball teams selected
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Haridwar afloat
The level of the Ganga surpassed the danger mark of 292 metre while the Neel Dhara river was in spate too. An alert has been sounded by the district administration in the all adjacent areas of the Ganga and other tributaries, seasonal rivers and rivulets as the water level didn’t dip for hours.
There were reports of landslides, mudslides, water logging, road cave-in and vehicles overturning. While rural areas got submerged in river water and city inner areas experienced a severe water logging due to choked drains and unplanned construction. City’s busiest intersection Ranipur Mod was submerged in rain water. The traffic remained suspended for 10 hours with heavy vehicles breaking down in the middle of the road. Many people sustained injuries owing to the overturning of some vehicles at the Ranipur Mod, Bhagat Singh Chowk, Kankhal, Jwalapur railway crossing, Shivalik Colony, Hanna Nagar, Bhoopatwala and other pockets of the city. District Magistrate R Meenakshi Sundaram said the administration was keeping watch on the rain fury round the clock and was doing its best to evacuate people from danger zones. Meanwhile, many local organisations and affected people protested against the municipality and administration for their negligence in many developmental works, including strengthening of city infrastructure, despite a lot of funds at their disposal. Many councillors, along with residents of various colonies, protested braving the rain. They demanded the resignation from local legislator Madan Kaushik and Municipal Chairman Kamal Johra for failing to carry out their responsibilities and duties efficiently, despite crores having been spent on the city infrastructure in the name of the Maha Kumbh. “A sum of Rs 765 crore was allotted to Haridwar for the Maha Kumbh which was held just five months ago. The Municipal Committee too has failed due to the factionalism in the ruling BJP. But, it’s the people who are suffering to the hilt,” lamented Sanjay Sharma, leader of the Opposition in the Haridwar Municipal Committee.
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Kumaon region reels under rain fury
Nainital, September 12 Meanwhile, Nainital and surrounding areas have been experiencing incessant rains since last evening. There was a bit of delay and inconvenience on account of the rains for the inauguration of the annual Nanda Devi Mahotsava that began at the Ram Sewak Sabha here on Sunday afternoon. Those managing the fair are experiencing problems in establishing the stalls and other entertainment equipment like the merry go rounds and giant wheels at the Parade Ground on account of the rains. Meanwhile, eight new cases were reported at various hospitals in Haldwani and Ramnagar till Saturday night while a dozen patients are learnt to have been discharged following the required treatment given to them. Reports coming from various parts of the region convey that several roads continue to be closed for more than a fortnight on account of the continuing rains causing extreme difficulties for the residents of the remote villages. People are compelled to walk between 15 km to 20 km to get a mode of transport for reaching a bigger settlement. These roads include the Amjarh-Meedar road, Amritpur-Babiyad road, Dalkanya-Lavaddoba road and Padampuri-Haidakhan road. The people have to shell exorbitant sums of money to jeep and taxi owners for reaching various destinations. Vegetable sellers of the region are, perhaps, the worst affected lot. They have to first bring their produce to the point from where transportation is available on mules and horses. From this point they have to pay the carriage for transportation of the produce to the whole sale markets. A large number of areas continue to face the problems of improper supply of drinking water and power. Around 40 villages being fed by the Bhawani Devi Pumping Drinking Water Scheme have been facing an acute shortage of drinking water because of the burning of a transformer. About 15,000 people living in the villages around Bhatraunjkhan are badly affected. The areas of Terai continue to face problems of massive water logging. Places like bus terminals and rickshaw stands are amongst the worst affected areas. The people in the affected areas of Udham Singh Nagar have been carrying out protests and demonstrations against the failure of the government to provide relief to them.
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Rain-hit Jaunpur farmers await government aid
Mussoorie, September 12 The monsoon has aggravated their trouble by leaps and bounds in the form of flash floods and cloudbursts leading to extensive agricultural damage across the state. The hard toil of farmers has gone down the drain especially in Jaunpur block of Tehri Garhwal district as their standing crop has been wiped off by the wrath of nature. The incessant rain has recharged traditional water sources and water rushing from them has led to a change in the course of rivulets creating havoc and rendering farmers helpless. Most farmers are on the verge of hunger as link roads have been completely washed away or blocked due to landslides.
The unplanned development carried out by the PWD and other departments has increased the woes of farmers. These departments have sanctioned roads at very risky places without testing the soil. Villagers allege that the roads sanctioned by the government, due to pressure from local contractors, have caved in and the debris is falling on the villages below. The Mussoorie-Bhavan-Nagun-Gangotri highway that would shorten the distance to Gangotri by at least three hours is not yet complete. The usual excuse is excessive rain. Farmers of the area are fed up with the blame game being adopted by various government departments. Hari Prasad of Bichhu village near Mussoorie said the rulers of the nation gave nothing, but fake assurances during summers and monsoon. Gram pradhan of Tuneta Pooran Singh said it was sad that persons who were indispensable for the growth of the nation had been left to their fate. Pooran Singh said faulty power projects like the Ryat Power Project had also not helped farmers in any way as the Aglar river was a few kms from Mussoorie. Rampant cutting of trees to make way for the project had caused damage to the fields on numerous occasions, he said. “It is unfortunate that villagers, who are affected the most by such projects, are not consulted or informed about them”. A farmer’s woes doesn’t end there. The government provides only Rs 2,000 as immediate relief and the rest of the relief is lost in the files at the district administration office. Poor farmers end up in the clutches of private money lenders from where it is impossible to escape, thus leading to suicides. Farmer Govind Singh, who lost his shop and fields in the flash floods this month at Bhavaan village, said he had lost the means to earn his daily bread and was in a quandary now. For farmers to get back on their feet was not easy as government help was usually slow in coming. Banks do not provide immediate relief and take ages to sanction loans sought by helpless farmers. Tota Ram, a tailor at Bhavaan village in Jaunpur block, lost his machines and other tools in a recent cloudburst. Being a Dalit, he feels that he will be the last person to get relief from the government. Such delays lead to migration to cities and towns and add fuel to the cycle of poverty. For the bureaucratic setup in the state, such calamities come as a boon in disguise. They are able to wash away their sins committed while constructed sub-standard bridges, roads and irrigation canals by blaming nature. Experts are of the view that rather than directing more money into dams and canals, Indian agriculture will be better off investing in “groundwater banking”. According to them, if every village constructs five new water harvesting and recharges structures and de-silts the existing ones, it will be able to survive the next drought. Farmers should avoid cultivating fields near the river bed where the most damage occurs every monsoon. State Agriculture Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said farmers of Uttarakhand, who had small farms, could benefit from contract farming in which they received a fixed amount. “In case of a natural disaster, these small farmers will not suffer financial loss as the loss is the responsibility of the contracting person or organisation. The contractor also has the wherewithal to provide scientific agricultural support,” he said. The minister added that the state government had asked for interest-free loan for affected farmers. On the other hand, Samar Bhandari, state general secretary, Communist Party of India, said contract farming could not be the answer to providing relief to farmers. He alleged that the government was utterly confused and had no concrete policy towards farmers. Bhandari said the labour force was already working on contract and now, they were planning to corporatise farming. This would uproot the farmers instead of helping them, he said.
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Nainital diary
Tribune News Service People in the region are so disgruntled with the way things have moved that they have been making statements like: “This truly is Devbhoomi as everything is somehow functioning by the grace of the God. Otherwise we do not expect anything from the government”. One report after the other had been pouring in with regards to the insufficient measures undertaken to provide relief to people as they suffered. Even today, the region is grappling with an acute shortage of cooking gas. It is a well-known fact that cylinders meant for domestic consumption are being used in hotels and restaurants, yet nothing is being done apart from a few “cosmetic raids and directions”. The region has been experiencing traffic blockades and protests almost daily. A common refrain one often gets to listen to is that what is being reported is mainly about the state of affairs in the main towns and settlements where the media has some presence. One can imagine what might be the situation in remote interiors. It was pointed out by a person recently: “If it takes 40 hours for the authorities to get an important road like the Kaladhungi-Nainital road repaired, one can imagine what it would be like in areas which are not as important tourist destinations like Nainital”. Finally, Nainital saw minister and in charge of the district Madan Kaushik visiting the Lake City recently. The visit had nothing to do with tourism or its promotion but was an attempt to take stock of the damage done by the rains and the relief works. The people in the town, especially those connected with the tourism industry, are peeved at the fact that despite being the Tourism Minister, Kaushik did not bother to visit the town, which stands on the global map as one of the important tourist destinations, even once in the tourist season. And when he finally came, he decided not to talk about tourism at all and kept his focus only on the damage caused by the rains. On being persistently asked on his not visiting the destination, all that he said was: “I will keep coming now”. BJP draws flak from mediapersons
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is a political force well known for its “media management”. The same has been on display for sometime at Nainital, particularly on days when matters like the recent writ filed by Ruchi Kshetri and more recently the alleged Citurgia land scam cases came up for hearing at the High Court. Just because the petitions had the name of the Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, emissaries were sent from Dehradun to tackle the media. One of these is a Vice-Chairman of a Corporation. The move drew flak on both occasions from mediapersons that made the emissaries stop preaching to the journalists what and how the things were to be reported.
A fortnight of elections
It has been a fortnight of polls in Nainital. The Lake City witnessed two major elections in the form of the polls to the Students Organisation on the Kumaon University campus and the Mallital Vyapar Mandal elections. The first one saw the recommendations of the Lyngdoh Committee being violated grossly and no steps were taken to check this. The contestants went around spending money as if they were contesting an election to a much bigger office. The election saw campaigning at its worst with efforts being made to even divide the electorate on communal and regional lines. However, such efforts were proved futile by the voters. The election to the Mallital Vyapar Mandal assumed significance in view of the fact that the polls were held after a gap of 14 years. A high pitched campaign was witnessed before the polling and several ills that plague the Indian political system were up for display during these elections. These ranged from making false voter lists to massive distribution of alcohol among the voters. The general gathering of the candidates saw them hurling one accusation after the other on their opponents. The town had enough to discuss on account of these two polls during the fortnight.
Minister catches teachers unawares
Minister of State for Education Gobind Bisht was left red faced recently during a visit to the Okhalkanda Block which also happens to be his legislative constituency. The minister was apparently peeved at the fact that teachers at a school had refused to recognise him. According to witnesses, Bisht who was travelling in the area that day with only a couple of accomplices which was contrary to a usual style of travelling in a cavalcade, made a surprise halt at the school and headed straight to the staff room. There was no power supply at the school at that time and the teachers were sitting there in a circle around a table. Bisht asked them, “How are things?” One of them casually replied, “As usual”. The minister then asked them whether they knew who he was and they were a bit confused. It was only when he revealed his identity that the embarrassed teachers stood up. This small incident was filed by the local reporters, but it never saw the light of the day.
Rain no damper at soccer tourney
The soccer season in Nainital is in full swing with the people getting to witness one major tournament after the other. The town recently hosted the All-India Rampur Football Tournament. It is one of the oldest football tourneys of the country and is a prestigious event. The event saw Food Corporation of India’s (FCI) North Zone team from Noida lifting the cup beating the team from the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. The tournament saw the local people turning up in large numbers to witness the matches even during the incessant rains. The town now awaits a unique tournament in which teams comprising officials from various departments competing against each other. All participants in the event were more than 35 years of age.
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Kids celebrate Grandparents Day
Dehradun, September 12 About 80 grandparents attended the session. Dieticians and health experts gave valuable tips about the diet that should be taken after the age of 60 years to the grandparents. They played various games like musical chairs, lucky dip, tambola etc for which prizes were given to them. Teachers presented a small cultural programme that was thoroughly enjoyed by the grandparents. Director Ranjana Mahendru said the little ones at The Poly Kids were told that they should respect their grandparents and spend time with them. The others present were Headmistress Nidhi, coordinator Nigam, Shivani, Poonam and teachers and other staff.
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U’khand lad Sujal is u-14 karate champ
Mussoorie, September 12 In the under-18 girls’ section, Aarju bagged first position, Lavina stood second and Jyoti Jha came third. They all were from Madhya Pradesh. In under-14 group, Madhya Pradesh again bagged the medals in which Tanmay stood first, Aravil grabbed second position and Harsh held third. In boys’ section under 14 Sujal of Uttarakhand bagged gold medal, Nirbal got silver while Anal bagged bronze. In under-18 Shiv Pal, Tanmay and Ravi Sood won medals. In under-14 girls, Shivani, Karishma and Prachi bagged the medals. The referees for the championship were Arvind Kotnala, Shihan, Amit Bhatt Sensai, Sensai Som, Pradeep, Sandeep, Ankit Kotnala, Vinod Rawat, Pradeep and Rajenddar. Ward member of the Palika Nand Lal and coach Roop Chand from Mussoorie supported the championship. Convener of the championship Arvind Kotnala said karate would be demonstrated in the forthcoming Commonwealth Games, but the Indian Olympic Federation had not yet recognised it despite its popularity. He demanded it to be included in the Indian Olympic Association immediately so the participants were motivated.
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Handball teams selected
Dehradun, September 12 The players were selected during the trials held on the Parade Ground today. Less number of participants turned up for trials. Trials were held for about two hours in slight rainy conditions. Handball coaches said a good number of district participation was expected in this competition. They said the district had been giving good performance in the state tournament and they were confident of teams’ success this year as well. Nine members under-19 girls’ squad will leave tomorrow since the girls’ matches are scheduled to be held from September 14 to 16. While boys’ matches are fixed to be played from September 18 to 20. Coaches Arun Tomar and Vikram Kumar will accompany the teams. U-19 girls’ squad are Yamini Kaushal, Deepa Rawat, Mamta, Priyanka, Priya, Madhuri, Vimla, Ritu Uniyal and Rashmi. U-19 boys’ squad are Dushiyant Kumar, Sohan Singh, Deepak, Arjun Patel, Suraj Bisht, Manish Singh, Sumit Kumar, Rahul Pokhriyal and Kuldeep Kumar.
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Mussoorie, September 12
The district teams of under-19 boys and girls for the upcoming Invitational State Handball Championship to be held in Uttarkashi from September 14 to 20 have been selected.
The players were selected during the trials held on the Parade Ground today. Less number of participants turned up for trials.
Trials were held for about two hours in slight rainy conditions. Handball coaches said a good number of district participation was expected in this competition.
Haridwar, September 12
Farmers at Bhavaan and Bilaundi villages have suffered extensively in the recent flash floods losing their fields, homes and shops that remain buried under the debris or have been wiped off.