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Gangotri route opened to traffic
Munsiyari villagers face water crisis
Fifth Dham status for Hemkunt Sahib sought
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19 model schools to be opened
Lohaghat Cong men divided over party ticket
Employees’ Code of Conduct Service Rules
Decomposed body of youth found near Nainital Proposed Expansion of Council of Ministers
7 hurt as bus overturns
Candles lit in memory of train mishap victims
A walking encyclopaedia on cricket
Fashion students display their creations in Haridwar
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Gangotri route opened to traffic
Dehradun, July 11 District Magistrate, Uttarkashi, Akshay Gupta said on the night of Sunday eight boulders, each around 8 m in size, fell on the road along with a lot of debris. “The debris and boulders blocked the road completely. A team of the BRO could not carry out blasts to open the way due to the continuing rain. Even the JCB machines stationed at the spot failed to remove the boulders. “We began the road-clearing operation at 4.30 am and after carrying out around 10 blasts, we could clear the road of the boulders and the traffic began moving smoothly. No tourists has stranded on the way at the moment”. “We have been requesting tourists and pilgrims to stay put at guest houses or hotels at Gangotri and Harsil or on the way till the road is cleared but people who have no knowledge of the terrain are always in a hurry to reach their destination. The traffic coming from Gangotri was diverted at Gangnani because it is difficult to reverse vehicles on hill roads. The pilgrims who got stranded on the way were provided water and biscuits though we did not have funds for that.” Gupta said a tunnel at Thirangnala, the rocks of which got loosened due to the construction work at the Loharinagpala hydroelectric project, and seven steep bends at the Sukhi top had become quite dangerous and prone to landslides. He said the administration was taking help from the personnel of the Police and Revenue Departments to keep the pilgrims well informed about blocked roads. The administration is taking the utmost precautions and has restricted traffic on the route from 8 pm to 5 pm, though the locals have been permitted to travel on the road. Chamoli, which had witnessed a road blockage a day before, had a smooth traffic on the highways. District Magistrate, Chamoli, DK Santh said: “Barring three link roads at Birahigoda, Kotiyalsan-Chamnau, Chamolivartu Chinka, all the main highways have been opened up the vehicles are moving smoothly on these.” Ever since the monsoon set in, the tourists and pilgrims have had a tough time traversing on the Char Dham routes. It was just a week ago, the vehicles going to Gangotri from Rishikesh had held up at Devidhar, Doonda, Matli and Uttarkashi for several hours. Similarly the vehicles going from Rishikesh to Gangotri were stranded at Badethi, Chinyalisaur and Dhrasu. Badrinath too had witnessed a jam-like situation for many days, especially as the national highway from Srinagar to Rudraprayag remained blocked by landslides. The Kanchanjunga road was blocked by a breaking glacier near Badrinath. However, the Highway Borders Road Organisation cleared the road soon. Meanwhile, there was panic at two school buildings in Uttarkashi after mud falling from hills entered the premises. The national highway and link roads remained closed between Kalagarh and Ramnagar. The Yamunotri and Gangotri highways have been blocked at many places. The Rudraprayag-Kedarnath national highway had remained blocked at Badasu and Mudkatia for 7 hours. The situation on the Laam Bagaar-Radang Bang road was no different. |
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Munsiyari villagers face water crisis
Pithoragarh, July 11 “The villagers have been using rainwater collected either from the rooftops of their houses or from the local ponds for drinking,” said Guman Singh, a villager of Dhami Gaon Panchayat. “If our water schemes were not repaired, we will be forced to start an agitation at the subdivisional headquarters at Munsiyari,” he said According to the villagers, there were two drinking water schemes catering to the needs of 2,000 villagers. The pipes of both the schemes have been damaged in landslides triggered by the heavy rain. The department concerned has not bothered to repair the pipes that had been damaged 15 days ago. Both the water schemes had been constructed at a cost of Rs 90 lakh in 1998-99. “We have informed the department so many times in the past 15 days, but to no avail. Villagers have to fetch water from various sources situated as far as 10 km or use rainwater for daily use,” said the villagers. The officials of the Jal Sansthan admit that the villagers were facing difficulties due to the damaged pipes. “We will soon be repairing the damaged pipes to restore the water supply to these villages,” said Ranjeet Dharmsaktu, an assistant engineer of the Jal Sansthan. According to the villagers, students studying in all the four primary schools of the area face the danger of waterborne diseases as not only at homes but in schools as well rainwater or the water collected from a muddy pond is being used to prepare meal. “We have also requested the health officials to look into the matter, but in vain,” the villagers alleged.
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Fifth Dham status for Hemkunt Sahib sought
Dehradun, July 11 While interacting with the media, he said the Sikhs from Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh would participate in the seminar where the problems faced by the Punjabis who are living outside Punjab would be taken up. “Despite being a Punjabi we do not have a say in the committee as we are not allowed to vote for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). This would also be discussed at the seminar,” he said. If anyone wants to attend the meeting he is welcome, he added. Their other demand is Hemkunt Sahib be declared as the fifth Dham and to roads leading to the gurdwara repaired. “Thousands of pilgrims visit Hemkunt Sahib everyday and a massive revenue is earned on account of the pilgrimage to the shrine but the Uttarakhand Government continues to neglect the shrine. It should construct proper roads just like the ones at the Vaishno Devi shrine. Moreover, there is no lighting on the way and everything there runs on generator sets,” he claimed. Sethi also stated that the government receiver should be removed from Nanak Matta Sahib Gurdwara and a committee constituted. It should also construct Gurdwara Gyan Godri Sahib at its original place as all the Punjabis have religious feelings for that particular place. Panchual Madan, representative of Parmajeet Singh Sarna, specially visited the capital city in order to attend the press conference.
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19 model schools to be opened
Dehradun, July 11 The meeting was presided over by Subhash Kumar, Chief Secretary, who directed the opening of 19 model schools in all parts of Uttarakhand deprived of educational facilities and the setting up of 18 girls’ hostels in the state to promote girls’ education. According to the directions, girls from SC/ST families or those who are studying at Kasturba Gandhi Boarding School will be provided a fixed deposit of Rs 3,000. Under the plan, the council will upgrade all 147 junior high schools in the state. As many as 1,168 qualified teachers to fill the vacancies in the existing primary schools and 1,766 teachers for new schools will be recruited. Kumar said, “The department has given the nod to entitling the Primary Education Council with an annual budget of Rs 790 crore while for the Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan its will be Rs 605 crore.“ He directed the members to facilitate the children in hilly areas with educational institutions within a periphery of 2 km and provide them with a bridge course. State project director Saujanya said,“Under the Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan, special training to boarders, day scholars and students aged 6-14 years will be given while libraries at every primary and junior high school will be set up.“ Soon an English laboratory, a mathematics laboratory and a career counselling centre will be established in every district.
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Lohaghat Cong men divided over party ticket
Pithoragarh, July 11 “This time we want that a candidate from the backward block of Pati be given the party ticket for the next Assembly elections from the Lohaghat seat as due to the non- representation of the area, Pati has become the most backward block among all the three blocks of the Lohaghat Assembly seat,” said Khusal Singh Adhikari, Block Pramukh of the block and senior Congress worker. He said Lamgaria belonged to the Pati block. The sitting Congress MLA from Lohaghat, Mahender Singh Mahra, who was the Agriculture Minister in the Congress government headed by ND Tiwari, is considered a loyalist of Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Harish Rawat. “It is not practical to deny a party ticket to a candidate who has represented a seat for two consecutive terms defeating strong BJP contenders,” said Chet Ram Sharma, president of the Congress unit of the Barakot block. The Congress workers from the Pati block said Lamgaria was a senior Congress worker of the area while Mahra was shifted here from Pithoragarh. “Keeping these aspects in mind, a team of Congress observers that visited the area last week has recommended the name of Lamgaria for the ticket,” claimed Adhikari Meanwhile, a meeting of the other section of the Congress workers held at Barakot last week demanded the renomination of Mahra from the Assembly seat. “The developmental works done by the sitting MLA speak for themselves,” said Chet Ram Sharma, a Mahra loyalist from the Barakot block. — OC
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Employees’ Code of Conduct Service Rules
Dehradun, July 11 This decision was taken at a meeting of the organisations to decide on the next step to be taken taken by them on the ongoing strike of the Karamchari Sangh. The Uttarakhand Government has recently passed an order implementing the Employees’ Code of Conduct Service Rules vigorously so that they can curb the tendency of employees going on strike every now and then. It has said the government would dismiss the employees who participate in the strike individually or as members under any union. It has also issued directives to all the departments asking them to ensure that the employees follow the service rules and implement the no-work-no-pay rule strictly. Talking to The Tribune, Rajinder Kumar, district president of the Uttarakhand Ministerial Collectorate Karamchari Sangh, said: “We would be visiting the Uttarakhand Chief Minister, the Chief Secretary and the Revenue Minister on Tuesday to submit the copies of a memorandum to them, requesting them to take back the order within seven days or else they would first boycott a day’s work and later on intensify the protest without informing the government about it. This memorandum should be taken as the notice for the future,” he added. The employees of the tehsil and SDM/DM offices have been on strike since June 1 to press for their demand for the restructuring of the collectorate. Those who attended the meeting included Pratap Singh Pawar (Executive State President, Uttaranchal Parvatiya Karamchari Sangathan), Mahesh Dobriyal (State President, Uttarakhand Karamchari Siksha Mahasangh), Sunil Kothari (State General Secretary Uttarakhand Ministerial Federation), Rajpal Singh (State General Secretary, Uttarakhand 4th Class Union), Dinesh Bhandari (State President, Rajya Nigam Karamchari Mahasangh), Jai Prakash Bahuguna (State President, Madhyamik Siksahak Sangh), Prem Singh Gosain (State President, Prathmic Sikhsa Sangh), Santosh Rawat (President Nigam Karamchari Mahasangh), Ravi Pochari (State General Secretary, Nigam Karamchari Mahasangh), Puran Anand Nautiyal (State General Secretary, Irrigation Department Ministerial Sangh), Naveen Kanpal (State President, Diploma Engineers Mahasangh), Suresh Thapa (State General Secretary, Uttarakhand Pay Jal Nigam) and various other organisations.
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Decomposed body of youth found near Nainital
Nainital, July 11 Documents recovered from the bag revealed that the deceased was a resident of Champaran in BiharAccording to the information, the Jeolikote police was informed about the body that was found at a spot located at a distance of 3 km from Bhawali and 1.5 km below the road in the area known as Bhumiyadhar. It was learnt that the youth was of 25 or 30 years of age. The police personnel have informed their counterparts in Champaran about the body. About 20 days ago, a body had been found in the same area and the deceased has not been identified yet. This is the third unidentified body found in this area over the past three months. In April, a body had been found in the Beluvakhan area along with a pistol.
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Proposed Expansion of Council of Ministers
Dehradun, July 11 In a letter to her, a copy of which was also sent to PM Manmohan Singh, Pratap argued that during the NDA government headed by PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, there were four ministers from Uttarakhand namely Bachi Singh Rawat and Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri (both Lok Sabha MPs), and Sushma Swaraj and Sanghpriya Gautam (both Rajya Sabha MPs) in the Union Council of Ministers. He said these ministers helped bring in a lot of funds and development schemes to the state but the trend was reversed under the Congress-led UPA government as there is only one representative in the Union Cabinet, who represents Haridwar, which is a plain area of Uttarakhand. Although the Congress had won all the five Lok Sabha seats from Uttarakhand in the 2009 elections, only Harish Rawat, representing the Haridwar Lok Sabha seat, has been made a minister of state while former Union minister Satpal Maharaj, who represents the Pauri Garhwal constituency, has been ignored. Similarly, two times MP Vijay Bahuguna and KC Singh Baba were not considered for any important post in the Union Council of Ministers, he added. While comparing the 100 per cent mandate given to the parliamentary candidates of the party by the people of Delhi and Uttarakhand in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, Dhirendra Pratap said from Delhi three MPs namely Kapil Sibal, Ajay Maken and Krishna Tirath were given Cabinet berths but from Uttarakhand only Harish Rawat was made a minister of state. He has charged that this has created resentment among the rural people of the Kumaon and Garhwal regions. Pratap also expressed dissatisfaction over not including a single Congress leader from Uttarakhand in the All-India Congress Committee Secretariat and appealed to the Congress President to accommodate a leader in the national setup. — TNS
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7 hurt as bus overturns
Mussoorie: Seven passengers were injured when a bus plying on the route from Uttarkashi to Rishikesh overturned near Kandi Saud village on the Gangotri highway on Monday. The accident occurred around 9.15 am when the driver lost control over the bus that was carrying more than 40 passengers. The injured included Prema Devi, Bhuvneshwari Devi, Sarojni Devi, Murti Ram, and Rajendar Singh.The driver of the bus, Govind Singh, is also under treatment. —
OC
Candles lit in memory of train mishap victims
Haridwar, July 11 Founder of the Teerth Maryada Samiti Sanjay Chopra said the accident had moved the residents of the city and they offered their condolences to the bereaved families. Pandit Bishambar Shastri said they had gathered at the ghat to pay their tributes to those killed in the accident. He has demanded adequate compensation to the affected families. — TNS |
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A walking encyclopaedia on cricket
Nainital, July 11 He is also probably the only tea shop owner who serves a dose of cricket anecdotes along with a steaming cup of sweet tea. A cricket fanatic and a storehouse of epic matches and scores, Pande himself played cricket locally here from 1976 to 85. He is walking encyclopaedia on cricket. “I was lean like Gavaskar and almost the same height too. I would usually be seen wearing a white cap just like he did during matches. I also had an incredible knowledge of cricket. So the nickname Gavaskar came into being. Today, when I visit my mother, she also says my Gavaskar has come home. Nobody calls me by my real name anymore,” he says. His interest in the sport has been great ever since his childhood. Despite having studied only till Class VIII, he knew enough English to understand commentaries. He fondly remembers the days when people would gather around his prized transistor and followed matches closely. He enthusiastically begins to analyse matches that happened as far back as 1970, remembering minute details like the batting order and even the score of every player. He even remembers the commentators. However, he is unhappy about the present state of the game where match-fixing scandals have taken away the novelty of the game. He is more fond of the old time cricket legends. Indulging in occasional betting as well, Pande famously gave out free tea upon one of the team’s historic wins. He lists his favourite players as Andy Roberts, Vivian Richards, Michael Holding and Malcolm Marshall. Cricket has been an education of sorts for him. His understanding of geographical time difference is based on the match timings of international cricketing events. He is knowledgeable of cricket stadiums round the world.
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Fashion students display their creations in Haridwar
Haridwar, July 11 Sadhvi, a students, had given a traditional as well as trendy look to lehangas designed by her with pleats pattern, making it one of the most expensive designer pieces of the exhibition priced at Rs 75,000. Attributing the success of the exhibition to students, Vaishali Kausik, a local fashion designer, said talent, creativity and a will to shine in this industry was there in these students. “Students of Haridwar have a lot of talent. Support and exposure will make them on a par with other students such as in cities like Delhi, Noida or Mumbai,” said Suman Lata Pal, a city-based designer. “Earlier, societal set-up was not conducive to fashion designing, but now thinking has changed. Fashion industries have paved the way for a mass-scale commercialisation. There is nothing wrong in girls pursuing fashion designing,” said city-based novelist Mona Verma. These outfits will also be donned by models at a fashion show soon.
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In order to solve the political as well as regional problems faced by the Punjabis living in Uttarakhand, the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) will be holding a seminar.
Dehradun, July 11
Haridwar, July 11
