No action against mother who abandoned kids
Dehradun, September 30
Although a police team was yesterday honoured for reuniting two abandoned small children with their father a few days ago, it has not taken any action against the mother of the siblings who had abandoned them in a park in the Vasant Vihar area in July.

Land records to be online by 2017
Dehradun, September 30
Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar today said all land records would be digitised and made online by 2017.

Governor gives away prizes to 10 students
Dehradun, September 30
Uttarakhand Governor Margaret Alva today gave away prizes and certificates to 10 students from various schools of Dehradun who won essay and poetry writing competitions organised in Hindi and English by the Doon Library and Research Centre and the Industries Association of Uttarakhand .

DM reviews development works
Dehradun, September 30
To review the ongoing works executed under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and those carried out by the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA), Dehradun District Magistrate Dilip Jawalkar held a meeting with the officials concerned here today.

Exploring social dynamics of wood on canvas
Dehradun, September 30
Perpetually in conversation with her surroundings and exploring the social dynamics of wood through her paintings comes naturally to artist Nishi Chandra. The artist in her is quick to realise the falling health of wood.

Mussoorie, September 30
Widespread illegal limestone mining near the Jharipani falls, just below a property of the Tourism Department, has left a huge scar on the mountain, thus adversely impacting the fragile environment of the area. Continuing illegal mining has put a question mark over the working of the Forest Department that is yet to take any action in this regard.

The huge scar left by illegal limestone mining on the mountain suggests the mafia involved in the illegal practice has no respect for the Supreme Court ban orders.

The local residents were of the view that trucks laden with illegally mined material move around all night without any fear of the authorities.

The Divisional Forest Officer, Mussoorie division, Ram Gopla Verma, expressed his ignorance about the illegal practice, but said if such activity was going on strict action would be taken against the culprits without any delay.

Meanwhile, the Forest Department authorities impounded two vehicles carrying illegally mined material, one on the Mussoorie-Kempty road and the other on the Mussoorie-Dehradun road. According to Verma, the persons involved in the illegal act have been booked under various sections of the forest law.

Dehradun, September 30
A man was today arrested for posing as an Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS) official nad duping several persons of their money promising them jobs in the Railways.

The suspect, Tarun Kumar Jha, who lives in THDC Colony with his wife, who is a teacher in a private school in Dehradun, is a native of Bihar. He would dupe people of their money promising them jobs or promotions in the Railways. He is said to have duped the persons of Rs 1.5 lakh.

According to SS Bisht, Station House Officer, Patelnagar police station, Jha claimed himself to be a 2008 batch officer of the IRTS to cheat people.

Three or four persons of the city who have became his victims have complained to the police. They have paid him amount ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000, the SHO said.

“As the case progresses more victims are likely to come forward. It is also yet to be ascertained whether he cheated people in Doon or in some other areas as well,” Bisht added.

Meanwhile, the police has registered a case of cheating against Jha at the Patelnagar police station. 

Dehradun, September 30
Although a police team was yesterday honoured for reuniting two abandoned small children with their father a few days ago, it has not taken any action against the mother of the siblings who had abandoned them in a park in the Vasant Vihar area in July.

Suraj (3) and Ganga (5) were found crying in a park on July 26. Since the children are very small, they could not divulge much information regarding their family. The police shifted them to Shishu Sadan, where it later came to know from Ganga that their mother, Pooja, had married another person, Rahul.

On the basis of the information, the police managed to reunite them with their father, Bhim, a labourer in Kotdwar district.

Bhim alleged that his wife had married another man and left the house along with the children one and a half years ago without any information.

Circle officer Manikant Mishra, who was supervising the case, said: “Our top priority was to reunite the kids with their father. Though it is a crime to abandon children, for now there is no plan to take action against the woman.” 

Dehradun, September 30
Uttarakhand Governor Margaret Alva today gave away prizes and certificates to 10 students from various schools of Dehradun who won essay and poetry writing competitions organised in Hindi and English by the Doon Library and Research Centre and the Industries Association of Uttarakhand .

The Governor gave away the prizes at a function held at the Raj Bhawan auditorium. She lauded the efforts made by the Doon Library and the association to give a platform to students for giving expression to their creativity.

She said in this age of information technology, the need for expressing one’s originality and creativity was all the more important .

In the poetry competition, in Hindi, the prize winners were Mayank Singhania, Advait Jha and Archana Yadav. In English poetry, the prizes were won by Tanvir Bal, Vinayak Bansal and Shashank Upadhyaya.

In the essay competition (Hindi) ,the winners were Shivangi Barthwal and Radhik Singh while in English, the winners were Aditi Bhowmick and Vibhuti Kochar.

Dr BK Joshi, Director, Doon Library and Research Centre, said the library would publish the best essays and poems and circulate these among schools.

Dehradun, September 30
To review the ongoing works executed under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and those carried out by the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA), Dehradun District Magistrate Dilip Jawalkar held a meeting with the officials concerned here today.

During the meeting, the DM sought detailed information regarding the works, including solid waste management, development of the city, payjal management, laying of sewerage (phase I), etc. He asked the officials of the Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC) to ensure that all the dustbins were covered as the open containers attract stray animals who scattered garbage around.

Sushil Kumar, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), DMC, apprised the DM about the progress of the various works. He said they could work better if the district administration cooperated with them as they faced many problems while carrying out works for the betterment of the city. Kumar stated the Payjal Nigam was constructing overhead tanks at a cost of Rs 70.02 crore and have spent Rs 48.95 crore on the project till now.

Regarding the sewerage project for which Rs 54.65 has been approved, the CEO said about Rs 13.66 crore has already been spent on the project that would be completed by December, 2012. He said under the project five sewage treatment plants (STP) would be set up and 54.59 km of sewer lines laid, of which 39.37 km of sewer lines have already been laid in Indra Nagar, Jhakhan and Salawala. A sum of Rs 62.83 crore has been sanctioned for the sewerage project (phase 1 L-zone) in Dehradun out of which Rs 10.60 crore has already been spent. The project is expected to be completed by December, 2013.

It was also discussed that Rs 18.77 crore had been approved for servicing 60 luxury buses each in Dehradun and Haridwar while 25 luxury buses had been sanctioned for Nanital. These would be managed by the Uttarakhand Transport Corporation.

The DM also discussed urban infrastructure development project for which Rs 61.73 crore had been sanctioned. Under the project, sewerage has been laid in Mussoorie and its adjoining areas at a cost of Rs 10.94. The work for the same is expected to be completed by March, 2012.

Vinod Suman, Secretary, MDDA, gave the details of the progress report of the construction of a parking lot with a capacity of 500 vehicles and the business complex for the people who would lose their shops due to widening of roads. Suman also said 500 sheds were being constructed at the ISBT the plan for which has already been prepared. He further stated the MDDA was constructing flats for the poor after demolishing a godown of the authority in Dharampur.

The DM told the officials that they should lay the sewer lines keeping in view the population in the next 15 years.

Dehradun, September 30
Perpetually in conversation with her surroundings and exploring the social dynamics of wood through her paintings comes naturally to artist Nishi Chandra. The artist in her is quick to realise the falling health of wood.

With the wood museum of the Forest Research Institute (FRI) forming the background for her solo exhibition, “Rock me gently”, slated to be held tomorrow, Chandra brings to the city a unique exhibition of paintings and installations.

“Like all artists who move out of Dehradun to learn and refine their art, I too have chartered a similar path. But every time I move out, there is a strong desire to come back to my home,” says Nishi, who also teaches art at a popular school here.

She says that the art has taken a giant leap and is no longer restricted to one medium. Artists willing to experiment can dabble in anything and everything. “While my fascination with the medium of water colour continues, the sheer joy of experimenting with seemingly mundane things of daily use, like Coca Cola cans, plastic wrappers and even stones too catch my attention,” says Nishi.

The ability to make an evocative statement about man’s greed for exploiting wood for timber by using the symbols of a rolling pin, a rocking chair and traditional Khadus (slippers worn by hermits) when etched on a large canvas with bold strokes do make an impact like never before and Nishi manages to convey just that through her paintings.

“I am quite comfortable with the idea of standing at the crossroads. So in my art you will find the amalgamation of sculpture, painting and installation,” she adds.

Based in Dehradun, Nishi at times misses the vibrancy of the art scene in Baroda and other cities that have so much to offer. “I am afraid, Dehradun is bit insipid and dry. Even if artists have come here, it has always been with a single intention of seeking a get-away. So in that sense, Dehradun has not benefited from this kind of association,” she adds. 

Mussoorie, September 30
A team of the Mussoorie Municipal Council today demolished an illegally constructed wall near the main gate of Mussoorie Girls Inter-college here. The wall had been hampering a free flow of water to a drainage system.

The team was led by executive officer Rohtash Sharma.

Sharma said despite repeated warnings to the persons concerned regarding not to construct the wall, they did not stop construction.

He said no encroachment on land belonging to the MC would be tolerated.

Rishikesh, September 30
Ayurveda is fast gaining popularity in European countries with a large number of foreigners thronging Haridwar and Rishikesh to learn this ancient Indian medical therapy and also for their treatment.

Experts in this therapy, particularly from Uttarakhand, are also in great demand in Europe. A Rishikesh-based ayurveda physician, yoga expert and panchkarma therapist, Dr DK Shrivastava, who recently visited European countries, said as ayurveda had no side effects as compared to allopathic and other modern medical remedies, people of such countries were now opting for this form of medical therapy.

“In Europe, ayurveda and yoga have gained much popularity. It is not only a traditional therapy but also a scientific therapy,” said Dr Shrivastava.

He also attended an international seminar on “Alternative medical therapies”, organised by the World Health Organisation in France, where he gave a presentation on ayurveda that was appreciated by experts of other therapies.

Dr Shrivastava have also been participating in a workshop on ayurveda in Switzerland for the past few years and visiting various medical schools as a guest lecturer. These institutions want to include ayurveda in their curriculum.

Former legislator Subodh Uniyal said Dr Shrivastava had brought laurels to the country. He also appreciated his efforts to bring this ancient Indian art on a global map.

Dehradun, September 30
Guru Nanak Academy and Col Brown School will battle it out to decide the winners of the Inter-council School Sub-junior Boys’ Football Tournament on Monday.

In the first semifinal today, Guru Nanak Academy thrashed their rivals ,The Aryan School, 5-0. Sarvnam Gautam (12th minute), Pawan Rawat (32nd and 47th), Ayush Nautiyal (40th) and Nizil Thapa (44th) shone in the win.

In the second semifinal, Col Brown School had to fight hard with The Heritage School whom they beat 2-1 to book the final ticket. Yogesh (28th) and Gaurav Bhatia (37th) were the scorers in the win of Col Brown.

Sarthak Bijalwan (16th) struck the lone goal for Heritage that finally went down fighting.

Dehradun, September 30
India-B got the better of India-A 3-2 to claim junior boys’ team events title during the ONGC Indian Junior Cadet Open ITTF Premium Circuit Table Tennis Tournament at Maharana Pratap Sports College, Raipur.

In this final, Gnanasekaran Sathiyan surpassed Desai Harmeet 3-1 (11-6, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9). Saha Sourav lost to Ghosh Soumyajit 0-3 (9-11, 7-11, 5-11). Saha Sourav and Gnanasekaran Sathiyan lost to Desai Harmeet and Ghosh Soumyajit 2-3 (11-9, 5-11, 5-11, 11-8, 9-11). Gnanasekaran Sathiyan got past Ghosh Soumyajit 3-0 (11-5, 11-9, 11-8) and Saha Sourav defeated Desai Harmeet 3-1 (11-6, 15-13, 7-11, 11-8).

In the cadet boys’ singles event (qualifying groups), Yadav Abhishek (IND) beat Vishwakarma Pankaj (IND) 3-0 (16-14, 11-9, 12-10). Yadav Abhishek (IND) defeated Imran Hoosain Hridoy (BAN) 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 11-9) and Vishwakarma Pankaj (IND) thrashed Imran Hoosain Hridoy (BAN) 3-0 (11-2, 11-4, 11-6).

In cadet boys’ group 2 first stage (singles match), Gupta Utkarsh (IND) beat Thapa Magar Krishna (NEP) 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 11-7). Gupta Utkarsh (IND) defeated Mozahidul Islam (BAN) 3-0 (11-2, 11-7, 11-2) and Thapa Magar Krishna (NEP) got past Mozahidul Islam (BAN) 3-0 (11-4, 11-7, 11-8).

Dehradun, September 30
Carman School, Dalanwala, scored a 49-run win over St Jude’s School here today during the fourth Shri Rohitash Singh Memorial Inter-school Boys’ Super 8’s Cricket Tournament 2011 held at The Heritage School.

Having won the toss, the winning team opted to bat first. It scored 46 runs in the first innings losing four wickets.

The rival team could score 27 runs only for the loss of three wickets. Even in the second innings St Jude’s was bundled out for 13 runs in reply to 43 runs of Carman.

The winning team’s Shobit, who scored 21 runs, was adjudged the best player of the match.

In the second encounter, Shivalik International School beat Col Brown School by five wickets with the help of a fine knock of Akashdeep (18).

In the last match of the day, Constancia was defeated by The Aryan School by 41 runs. Abdul of Aryan was declared the best player of the match.