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Fund-strapped MC mulls service tax on govt institutes
Tibetan women commemorate uprising day against Chinese hostility
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Couple sends Dehradun cops on a wild goose chase
Police gropes in dark in jeweller brothers’ robbery case
Chaos, indiscipline mar college function
Policemen wield lathis on unruly students at SMJN College during the annual function in Haridwar on Saturday. Tribune photo: Rameshwar Gaur
Balwant Kanyal Murder Case Face of the week ‘Investing in science is always for future good’Neena Sharma Dehradun, March 12 
He waxes eloquently about the turning point in neutrino science research. There are rare moments in science when the scientific community is sure what lies ahead, and be assured Dr J Morphin does not let go any opportunity to hold discussions on his favourite topic, the nature of neutrinos. At ease in
Dehradun, the physicist seemed to enjoy every moment of his stay here. Working with the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (USA) since 1980, The Tribune spoke with him on the sidelines of an international workshop on Neutrino-Nucleus Interactions in the
Few-Gev region, organised recently by HNB Garhwal University (Srinagar).
Psychotherapy seminar from March 25
District Football Assns’ dispute resolved
BBA-III students at a farewell function at ICFAI University in Dehradun on Saturday.
A batsman in action during a match of the Uttarakhand Cup Beehive Challenger League at Matawala Bagh in Dehradun on Saturday. A Tribune photograph
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Fund-strapped MC mulls service tax on govt institutes
Dehradun, March 12 This will also increase the corporation’s source of income. Due to the non-payment of service tax by government bodies, the corporation was losing income of about Rs 2 crore every year. But in a recent development, the DMC’s Tax Department was able to get a government order that stated that local bodies could take service tax from government buildings though they are not liable for any other tax. Now, it remains to be seen whether the corporation gets the nod from the administration. Sources affirmed that this would be a good move for the corporation that is currently going through a bad phase. “The DMC is not able to give the salary of its employees on time from its own pocket and is dependent on the payment received from the government. As a result of this fund crunch, it just can’t think of development works in the city. “Its income is generated from the various taxes imposed on the city’s residents, but these need to be revised. The file pertaining to these has been pending with the administration for some time,” the source maintained. He added, “This tax will surely boost the income of the corporation.” There are over 40 such institutes in the city and if they pay the tax, the corporation will get a minimum of Rs 2 crore per year. The corporation’s biggest source of revenue is house tax. Last year, the DMC collected more than Rs 3 crore just from it. From the total collection of Rs 5.37 crore from all tax sources, Rs 3.42 crore came from house tax which comes out to be 65 per cent. But now, the DMC’s Tax Department doesn’t want to give up a windfall as a result of a government order that was passed in 1952 which clearly mentions that it can take service charge from Central bodies too. The government order, first passed in 1954, was reissued in 1967, 1976, 1986, 1994 and 1996 with various amendments. The first order mentioned that the properties of the Union are exempt from the payment of all taxes imposed by a state or any authority within the state. But in its revised order, it stated that though the properties of the Union are exempt, such properties of the Union are liable to pay service charges for the services rendered by the local bodies. With respect to isolated Central government properties, where all services are availed by the Central government in same manner as private properties, the Central government will pay service charges equivalent to 75 per cent of the property tax realised from private individuals. The net rateable value per annum for the purpose of these instructions shall be 9 per cent of the capital value of the property concerned, but for residential/non-residential properties, the capital value shall include the cost of acquiring or constructing the building including the cost of the site, its preparation and any other capital expenditure incurred after acquisition or construction or when this is not known, the present value of the building including the value of the site as on the CPWD records or those of the department concerned. Azhar Ali, Tax and Revenue Superintendent, said, “The file has been sent to the Executive Engineer for his nod who will then forward it to the administration.”
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Tibetan women commemorate uprising day against Chinese hostility
Dehradun, March 12 Addressing a gathering at the Gandhi Park here, Chairperson of the Child Welfare Board Neelam Sehgal said, “Despite peaceful measures adopted by people of Tibet, the repressive Chinese regime continued to suppress the basic human rights of the Tibetan people. Six thousand Tibetans are already imprisoned and another 4,000 are missing,” she said. Meanwhile, president of the Tibetan Women’s Association (Clement Town) Tenzin Dolma said Tibetan women would continue their struggle. “We have been demanding the release of environmentalist Karma Samdrup, who has been imprisoned for the past 15 years. There are several activists who have been put behind bars on fake charges,” she said. She said the association members had also been raising their voice against the illegal detention of wandering Tibetan women and monks. “Around 10 lakh wandering women have either been illegally detained or have disappeared,” she said. Take out peace march
MUSSOORIE (OC): Members of the Mussoorie Tibetan Women’s Association undertook a peaceful rally to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of the National Tibetan Women’s Uprising Day here today. It was on this day 52 years ago that Tibetan women from all three provinces of Tibet, for the first time in the history, stood united and challenged the brutal clampdown and engaged in a peaceful resistance against the Chinese oppression. Starting from the Happy Valley, the procession walked past the Mall Road, Jhoola Ghar, Kulri Bazar, Picture Palace and culminated at the Gandhi Chowk. Members of the Regional Tibetan Women’s Association and girl students from the Central School for Tibetans (CST) and Tibetan Homes Foundation Happy Valley led the procession. The protesters carrying placards and Tibetan flags raised slogans against the Chinese regime and alleged rampant violation of human rights. The procession converted into a small meeting at the Gandhi Chowk, where CST student Tenzin Yangchen read out the statement issued by the Tibetan Women’s Association, Dharamsala. The Chinese under “great western development strategy” were forcibly evicting the Tibetan nomads from the grasslands under pretext of saving degradation of the pastureland and controlling disasters in the country. The Tibetan women wished that the struggle to achieve their goal of freedom would carry on under the leadership of the Dalai Lama, as he was the most revered leader for the Tibetan community worldwide.
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Couple sends Dehradun cops on a wild goose chase
Dehradun, March 12 According to the police, a Merchant Navy officer complained to it that he was looted of his bag containing a laptop, mobile and other important documents this morning by two motorcycle riders on the Rajpur Road. Officer Nishant Negi said in his compliant that he reached the ISBT at Dehradun from Delhi. He hired an auto-rickshaw to reach his home on the Rajpur Road. After reaching near his house, he got down from the hired vehicle and started walking on foot towards his house. However, two persons on a bike came from behind and pushed him down to snatch his bag that contained his laptop and mobile, along with other important documents. The police was suspicious of the complaint, as it was given to it about three hours after the incident. It then started questioning the officer, who after some resistance narrated the actual story to the police. Circle Officer Shweta Choubey said, “He and his wife finally told us that they had lost their bag at a station in Old Delhi and on reaching Dehradun, he told the police that his bag was snatched by two persons on a bike on the Rajpur Road, as he had to get the matter reported. This is really wrong. We will initiate action against those who are deliberately reporting wrong matters and creating problems for us”.
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Police gropes in dark in jeweller brothers’ robbery case
Dehradun, March 12 Two brothers Gaurav and Vikas Rastogi were returning after closing their jewellery shop on the Rajpur Road, when the four unidentified persons targeted them. Though the police had rounded up a few persons after the incident, it failed to come to any conclusion. The cops were also questioning the brothers’ servant, suspecting his role, but to no avail. After this, the police started suspecting the brothers of plotting the robbery. Circle Officer Shweta Choubey said the police was working on different aspects. She said the police would crack the case soon.
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Chaos, indiscipline mar college function
Haridwar, March 12 Shravannath Math Jawaharlal Nehru (SMJN) College is one of the oldest in the city and caters to graduation-level education. It was established in 1961, but for the past few decades it has not lived up to its reputation of being one of the leading colleges in the city. The ruckus created by college students, particularly two sections, on a trifle matter, took an ugly turn as in the course of the function they began to mishandle one another using foul language in the presence of dignitaries, college management, teachers and girl students.Police officials informed that taking cognizance of the past few years trend of infighting and chaos at SMJN College functions, they had deployed additional police personnel that came ihandy in controlling the young mob from disrupting the remaining proceedings. Principal of the college Dr Ashok Mishra condemned the students’ unruly act which had brought a bad name to the college. Girl students were quite disappointed at the behaviour of their counterparts. Tanvi, a student, said she had heard a lot about the college function, but now saw the unsaid part of it. Earlier, as chief guest, Dr Vijay Bahuguna, MP from the Tehri Garhwal, urged the students to live up to the expectations of their family, teachers and nation. Bahuguna said with vast opportunities on the anvil for the young generation, it was up to them to utilise these properly, excelling in education, sports and extra-curricular activities. Former Chairperson of the Uttarakhand Women Commission Dr Santosh Chauhan highlighted the role of the youth in India’s emergence at the world level. Various items from Indian culture, Garhwali-Kumaoni culture to Hindi cinema dance numbers were presented on the occasion by students. These continued till late afternoon after the police maintained discipline during the function.
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Balwant Kanyal Murder Case
Nainital, March 12 The court let off Neeraj Tewari, local Bhahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader and key accused in the case yesterday. The question that remains unanswered is who was the person who shot dead Kanyal on the premises of the Kaladhungi police station on the night of August 22, 2009. It was alleged that Kanyal, a block-level BJP leader, was having food at a local eating joint with his supporters when an altercation broke out between his group and the group led by Tewari that had arrived there. The police had rounded up persons from both the groups and taken them to the police station, where Tewari had allegedly shot Kanyal from point-blank range on his head, killing him on the spot. He was later arrested from Nainital. It was ironical that Tewari, who had not been granted bail since his arrest, was acquitted in the absence of substantial evidence. The case had fallen apart in the court as the hearings proceeded. A large number of witnesses had turned hostile and even the weapon of offence had not been produced in the court. After his acquittal, Tewari reportedly told mediapersons in Haldwani that he had nothing to do with Kanyal’s murder and claimed that he was the deceased’s friend. According to him, he was unconscious when Kanyal had been shot. He said he would now work for the withdrawal of the ‘false cases’ against several persons in the matter pertaining to Kanyal’s murder and the subsequent rioting that had taken place. The Kaladhungi area had seen large-scale violence after the murder in which Head Constable Puran Lal Sharma had been stoned to death by an irate mob and later thrown into the inferno of a burning police station at Kaladhungi. Large-scale violence had erupted at several places with the mob torching a large number of vehicles, the Kaladhungi police station and killing the Head Constable.
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Face of the week
Dehradun, March 12 Q. The research in neutrino science has gone futuristic. So many collaborations are underway. Why is this field catching the attention of the scientific community? A. Well, we are indeed living in interesting times. Neutrino experiments will soon embark upon an exciting exploration of fundamental physics. The Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (USA) has already embarked on the next generational studies. We had an understanding that the universe comprised one kind of neutrino, but we were still wide off the mark and could not understand it. We proposed to solve the puzzle, so as to understand the basic question as to what holds the universe together and we have for the first time prepared an entire road map. Q. So, by the time scientists come up with their conclusions, we expect several revisions in the earlier held theories? A. Well yes, but that is the nature of discoveries. New theories are breaking our long-held picture of the universe. New theoretical models correct the problems of old theories. The data gathered at current and future neutrino experiments will be instrumental in confirming or correcting these theories, or perhaps in opening unimagined possibilities. We are engaged in exploring the symmetry of neutrinos in the relics of Big Bang. Already, the Nobel prize has been awarded in this field. Neutrino changes type from one to another in space. It also figured when scientists found out more than one type of neutrinos in the ’60s. Q. It is all very good to talk about discoveries and getting involved in collaborative research. But at times India has been criticised for investing too much in these scientific pursuits when it could have channelised the funds towards ameliorating the sufferings of the poor. What do you think should be the line of action? A. Even the developed countries are assailed by such questions. In the USA too questions are raised whether it is worthwhile to put aside a sizeable portion of exchequers’ money into research that may not show immediate results, especially basic research that is focused on understanding the nature of our existence. As we go about our task, we are constantly evolving, the Magnetic Resonance Investigation, along with Internet and television, are spin-offs of the experiments carried out by physicists. We generally take these things for granted, but for a minute just visualise the impact these discoveries may have had when scientists first stumbled upon them. Investing in science is always for the future good, and societies need to nurture such enterprises. As a scientist I can say the discoveries of our peers help us refine our search. The road to scientific studies is always the road to future, never mind the pitfalls. Q. At times it appears that ‘pure science’ is losing out to ‘applied science’. Young people do not see any virtue in spending long hours at the laboratories. What are your views on this issue? What should developing countries like India do to ensure that they do not lose out the early advantage they had in computational science? A. To some extent yes, ‘pure science’ or ‘basic science’ is generally viewed as a luxury in a society that is a developing economy. At the same time, I would also like to point out that this field demands men and women who are cerebrally inclined, who can unravel mysteries and propound theories that may have a lasting impact. So only the best opt for this field. At the same time, developing economies like Brazil are giving ascendancy to practical or applied sciences. It is their way at looking at things. In the same vein how can one ignore the contribution of Indian scientists in ‘pure science’? The advantage needs to be maintained.
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Psychotherapy seminar from March 25
Haridwar, March 12 A host of experts, doctors and researchers will focus on indigenous therapies to lessen our dependence on Western techniques in this field. Dr SP Mishra, Chancellor, DSU, who is the coordinator of the seminar, said Western techniques had not got encouraging results in psychological ailments in the Indian context as there was a vast difference in cultures, perspectives, familial and societal setup and living conditions in these two regions. “We are hosting this seminar with this in mind. We hope that our findings will give Indian techniques in psychotherapy a keener edge,” said Dr Mishra. “Day by day, the number of mental ailments or psycho-related problems is increasing in our country. So, effective and timely treatment is the need of the hour. This has made us organise a high-level seminar,” he added. Dr Jwala Narayan, Padma Shri awardee; Prof Vinay Kumar Pathak, Vice-Chancellor, Uttarakhand Open University; Prof BK Kuthiyal, VC, Makhan Lal Chauturvedi University, Bhopal; Prof NN Tung, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar; Prof Nilanjana Sanyal, Kolkata University; Prof NS Khan, Aligarh Muslim University, Prof Abhilasha Shrivastava, Allahabad University and Prof CP Khokhar, Gurukul Kangri University, are scheduled to attend the event. Dr Chinmaya Pandya, Director, School of Yoga and Health, said psychology students and researchers from many states would also take part in the seminar. He said “man chikitsa” therapies pioneered by Indian saints would also be explored to treat Indian patients.
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District Football Assns’ dispute resolved
Dehradun, March 12 President of the Olympic Association Rajiv Mehta yesterday spoke to the two parties and gave place to members of both the parties. He also warned the members that if still the dispute remained, an ad hoc committee would be formed in 15 days. Since last year, two parties came up in the Dehradun football due to the dispute among members who later formed two different DFAs. Due to this, last year two different football leagues were held. The two DFAs have been fighting with each other since then. They tried to convince the state football body to give them the affiliation. Not only this, political pressure was also being used to get the affiliation. Finally, to solve the dispute, the Olympic state body had to jump in. On Friday, president Mehta held a meeting of the two DFAs and a decision was taken to have officer-bearers of the DFA. Joginder Singh Pundir has been made president, while Tejpal Singh Rawat and Devender Bisht are general secretary and secretary, respectively.
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BBA-III students given farewell
Dehradun, March 12 The function was presided over by Dr GP Srivastava, Vice-Chancellor of the university. The students enthralled the audience by their performances. The passing-out batch of the students appreciated and applauded the performances. Addressing the gathering, Srivastava showered his blessings upon the students and wished them good luck. He encouraged them to burn their midnight oil and leave no stone unturned to come out with flying colours in future endeavours.
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New XI Star oust J&K XI
Dehradun, March 12 It was beaten by 22 runs by New XI Star. New Star batted first after winning the toss. It scored 123 for eight wickets in 20 overs. Manoj (42), Anil (23) and Jagat (19) were the principal scorers. Rayes and Adil of J and K took two wickets each. Arvind and Babbar got one each. In reply, J and K was bowled all out for 91 all in 18 overs. Asif (19), Manu (16) and Adil (12) were the main contributors. Manoj of the rival team got three wickets. Manjay and Monu took two wickets. Ashish also got successful in getting a wicket. Tomorrow, YMCA will take on ITCC and ITM will face Doon Colours.
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Tibetan women under the aegis of the Regional Tibet Women’s Association took out a peaceful rally today to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of the National Tibetan Women Uprising Day in Tibet.
Though the annual function was being touted to be a show stopper by the college management and the student union, it turned out to be the opposite as infighting among students, chaos and indiscipline marred the function.
