Dehradun, December 16
Floral tributes were paid to the soldiers of all the three services of the Indian Armed Forces who sacrificed their lives during the 1971 Indo- Pak war on the occasion of “Vijay Diwas” at Roorkee today.

At a solemn ceremony, army officers, junior commissioned officers, jawans and several retired army personnel placed wreaths and paid floral tributes at the Bengal Engineer Group and Centre War Memorial.

On the occasion, Brigadier Suresh Sharma, Commandant of the Bengal Engineer Group and Centre recalled how the multi-pronged operations, which were professionally planned and executed, led to one of the greatest military victories recorded in the annals of history resulting in the liberation of Bangladesh. The day also marks the anniversary of the unconditional surrender of at least 93,000 troops of Pakistan to the Indian Armed Forces in 1971 when Lt-General AAK Niazi, the Commanding Officer of the Pakistani Armed forces located in the East Pakistan, surrendered his forces to Lt-General Jagjit Singh Aurora, the Eastern Army Commander.

Vijay Diwas ceremony ended with the candle light march in which students from various schools participated. The wives and children of the officers and jawans also participated in the march.

“I feel proud to be an Indian and lucky to be a part of this march,” said Daipayan, a class XII student of Army School, Roorkee. 

Dehradun, December 16
Chief Minister BC Khanduri inaugurated a felicitation ceremony organised on the occasion of Vijay Diwas here today.

He felicitated the bravery award winning soldiers of the 1971 Indo-Pak War and their family members.

Speaking on the occasion, he said the history of Uttarakhand was replete with numerous examples of bravery and sacrifices of the soldiers.

He said Dev Bhoomi Uttarakhand has been a land of brave hearts. To sacrifice oneself for the sake of the country had been a time-honoured tradition here, he said.

Khanduri said Darban Singh Negi, the first Victoria Cross recipient, Gabar Singh, Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali, the hero of independent Peshawar incident, Som Nath Sharma, the recipient of first Param Veer Chakra, Gajendra Singh, who attained the martyrdom in the terrorist attack on the Mumbai’s Taj Hotel on November 26, 2008, and Surjan Singh Bhandari, who attained the martyrdom in the terrorist attack on the Akshardham Temple in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, on November 25, 2002, were all from Uttarakhand.

He said altogether 255 soldiers from Uttarakhand laid down their lives in the 1971 Indo-Pak war which yielded a historic win for India while 68 others soldiers from the state were decorated by the Government of India with different gallantry awards, he said.

On the occasion, a shawl and a memento was presented to 15 retired defence personnel and the family members of the martyrs, including Lt-Gen Anand Swarup (Retd.), Major General Shamsher Singh (Retd.), Neetu Roy, wife of martyr Major Bhaskar Roy, Indira Gurung, wife of martyr Col. Ram Bahadur Gurung, Hav Bagicha Singh (Retd.), Col JP Raina (Retd.), and martyr Col AS Khatri.

Those who were present on the occasion included Lt-Gen Anand Swarup (Retd.), Brig PS Gurung (Retd.), Brig. KG Behl (Retd.), Col PD Kuriyal (Retd.), and Col CM Nautiyal (Retd.), among other retired defence officials. AN Bahuguna, former Director, Soldier Welfare Brigadier, proposed the vote of thanks.

Earlier, the Chief Minister also paid floral tributes to the martyr soldiers by laying a wreath at the Martyrs’ Memorial at Gandhi Park here. A large number of public representatives and retired defence officials joined the Chief Minister in paying their tributes to the martyrs.

The Chief Minister also visited Garhi Dakra and unveiled a statue of a soldier. He also felicitated the family members of soldiers and martyr soldiers.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand Congress Ex-servicemen Cell today remembered the martyrs of the Bangladesh Liberation War.

At a function held in Dehradun, Uttarakhand Congress Ex-servicemen Cell president Capt Balbir Singh Rawat (retd) said the role of the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in liberating Bangladesh was unparalleled. “Indira Gandhi aided by the excellent strategist late Lt-Gen Jagjit Singh Aurora resulted in the defeat of Pakistan and the liberation of Bangladesh”, Rawat said.

He reminded that it had because of the bravery of Indian soldiers that Bangladesh got freedom from Pakistan on December 16, 1971. He said the Army had always safeguarded the frontiers of the nation whether it was in the case of a Paksitani or Chinese attack or even the recent Kargil incursion. A large number of Congress workers attended the programme. 

Dehradun, December 16
The strike by the class IV employees of the state government in support of their demands entered its 25th day today. The employees of 36 departments who are on a dharna at the Gandhi Park today organised a yajna with the aim that better sense prevails in the state BJP government.

The employees are agitated that while the officials and other employees have been given the new pay scales since 2006, the class IV employees have been discriminated against and given new pay scales from March, 2011.

Darban Singh Mehta, president of the Fourth Class Employees Federation, alleged that the officials were unwilling to do justice to the class IV employees and were shifting their stand during negotiations. He prayed that after the yajna, the state government comes to its senses and do justice to them. 

Mussoorie, December 16
The existing global economic crisis is due to the faulty policies adopted by capitalist countries led by the USA.

This was stated by Tapan Sen, CP (M) Central Committee member and Member of Parliament from Bengal, during the inauguration of the fourth state-level CP (M) conference held at New Tehri today.

Tapan Sen, targeting the United States, said the US, which was in deep economic crisis due to its own fault, was trying to induce similar economic crisis in the Third World for its own selfish motives, and the fall in the rupee was an example of such tactics.

Tapan Sen also accused the Congress Government of playing into the hands of capitalist United States by trying to introduce FDI investment through the backdoor. Tapan Sen said that the Congress was trying to take the country on the path of self-destruction in economic terms by propounded neo-liberal policy that was conducive to the US and against the Indian masses.

He said if people wanted a control on price rise and inflation, it was imperative to bring Left government in power as the BJP was a pro-capitalist party.

He appealed to the CP (M) workers to reject the Congress in the forthcoming state elections as it was responsible for inducing starvation and poverty.

State Party leaders of the party Banchi Ram Kaunswal, Virendra Bhandari, Bhagwan Singh Rana, Dinesh, Pandey were prominent persons present along with others on the occasion. 

Haridwar, December 16
Soon Bollywood actresses will be dancing to the directions of an Uttarakhand-based young choreographer, which will be first for any choreographer hailing from this hilly state.

Dolly Bisht from Haridwar has just returned from Mumbai, wherein she assisted noted choreographer-cum-director Farah Khan for her upcoming flick “Joker” starring Akshay Kumar.

Working as second assistant dance director to choreographer Feroz Khan, Dolly choreographed the dance steps for the actress of the film, Sonakshi Sinha.

Talking to The Tribune exclusively, Dolly Bisht termed it as a dream come true as she had gone to Mumbai for the grand finale round of dance reality show “Dance India Dance,” wherein she reached the mega audition final stage making it to the top 30s.

“Never thought I would get to be a part of the film industry and giving dance steps to Sonakshi. I was worried a bit …but sticking to the theme of the film and song gave me ample confidence to conceptualise the song,” said an exuberant Dolly.

Currently pursuing her B.Com at Haridwar Educational College, Bisht wants to make it big in the glam world and be a professional choreographer.

But she is not taking it easy, as she points: “To make other people dance, you have to be first well-versed in all dance forms, be it contemporary, classical-semi classical, western, hip hop or the mixed variety.”

“Apart from this, a film choreographer has to conceive the dance keeping in mind the theme, story, song, music, costume and trend,” said 20-year-old Dolly, who has more than 40 awards and trophies to her credit in various dance competitions.

Her father SB Bisht and mother Bhajan are all proud of the young girl and are supporting her in her dreams. “From childhood itself she has only one passion, dance, and it is our duty to provide her best of support though it is not so easy for people of Uttarakhand to make it to this arena, which is confined mainly to Mumbai or Delhi only,” said Dolly’s father.

Accepting that had she been from a metropolis, she could have found a conducive atmosphere both in terms of training and opportunities. Yet the vibrant dancer doesn’t want to make it an excuse of any sort.

Now Dolly is giving free dance training to 20-odd youths in Haridwar itself as she claims that she definitely has a dance institute in her mind in the near future for Uttarakhand.

Dehradun, December 16
Doon University held a talk on ‘Visioning India’s role in globalising world’ as a part of its winter school lecture here on Wednesday.

The current phase of globalisation, marked by rapid changes, demands a collaborative effort, internationally, to solve the problems of drug trafficking, international terror and climate change. “This phase of globalisation is challenging old mindsets and is not amenable to one specific solution. So old approach of giving as little as possible while conducting domestic and international policies is simply not possible,” said Shyam Saran, former Foreign Secretary.

He said problems of depleting energy resources, terrorism and climate change demanded multiple solutions through cooperation between nations. “There seems to be an impasse on the climate change talks simply because countries like the United States of America and the United Kingdom are not ready to give technology to developing countries who they now view as competitors.”

He said most of the time India was termed as a deal-breaker when the country was demanding a solution based on equity.

The former secretary further said globalisation was in the genes of India and in the current phase of globalisation, we were reconnecting and rediscovering our ancient relationship with the world.

On the other hand, ST Devere, Director General, Indian Council, World Affairs (ICWA-New Delhi) said while India’s foreign policy had become more pragmatic, in this phase of globalisation, India as a nation was asserting its national interest and even demanding a permanent place in the United Nations. However, what remains to be seen are India’s efforts to handle power with maturity and responsibility.

Devere also said so far India had remained uncritical of nations using force to settle domestic and international problems. “Our policy has been based on non-interference but would this policy undergo a shift if life is under threat, remains to be seen in the future,” he said.

Earlier, VC of Doon University Prof Girijesh Pant said the third winter school organised by the university had attracted scholars from south India, Kolkata and Assam. “By inviting eminent scholars to deliver lectures on key issues, the aim of the university is to maintain a link with the society,” he said. 

Dehradun, December 16
Madhu Chauhan, chairperson of the Dehradun Zila Panchayat released a Garhwali video album titled “Maina Saiyali” at a function held here today.

The video album has been made by Santosh Khetwal, a renowned Garhwali singer. Two of his sons, namely Sankalp Khetwal and Saransh Khetwal, also sang in the video album.

Speaking on the occasion, Madhu Chauhan appreciated the efforts of Santosh Khetwal in promoting the local culture, language and folk songs through his melodious voice. She also congratulated his sons for stepping into the shoes of their illustrious father. She wished them luck in their future endeavours. 

Dehradun, December 16
On the first day of the 19th All-India Forestry Sports Meet events in the disciplines of football, kabaddi and table tennis took place.

The Uttarakhand Forest Department had a poor start in the discipline of football. Uttarakhand lost 7-0 against a formidable Meghalaya in the football. Meghalaya outclassed Uttarakhand in almost all departments of the game. In another match, the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy beat Chhatisgarh 1-0.

In the event of table tennis in men’s section in the initial matches, Andhra Pradesh beat Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand beat Maharashtra. In women’s section, Meghalaya beat Gujarat.

In kabaddi, while Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh won their respective matches in women’s category, Uttarakhand too registered a win in the men’s section.

Dehradun, December 16
Secretariat XI and Himalayan (A) won their respective matches in the Twenty20 Beehive Challengers cup Cricket Tournament played at the Matawala Bagh ground here today.

In the first match, Secretariat XI defeated Gautam International School by 48 runs. Secretariat XI won the toss and elected to bat first. They scored 183 for six wickets in the allotted 20 overs. The top scorer was Lalit Joshi who scored 70 runs. Subhash took two wickets for 50 runs while Talib took two wickets for 17 runs.

In reply Gautam International were all out for 135 runs losing the match by 48 runs. Sudhanshu was the top scorer with 36 runs. Vikas, Lalit and Mukesh claimed two wickets each for Secretariat XI.

In the second match, Himalayan (A) defeated DCA XI by 27 runs. The Himalayan team, after winning the toss, elected to bat first and scored 168 for four wickets. Opener Sristi and Ravi scored 64 and 52 runs respectively. Shivam took two wickets for 32 runs.

In reply, DCA XI was all out for 139 runs losing the match by 27 runs. Rahul scored 35 runs while Ankit scored 33 runs for their teams. Manish was the most successful bowler taking five wickets for 40 runs.

Dehradun, December 16
The 19th All-India Forest Sports Meet started here today with Uttarakhand Chief Minister BC Khanduri declaring the games open.

In his opening remarks shortly after handing over the torch to the competitors, the Chief Minister welcomed the players from different parts of country to the Dehradun Sports Meet and exhorted them to give the best of their performances. Calling upon foresters to be fit and healthy, Khanduri said the forest officials have to encounter various challenges in the discharge of their duties. “Sports prove helpful in keeping the body and the mind fit,” he said.

Khanduri said events like these not only help promote sports activities but also provide opportunity to the forest department officials from different parts of the country to interact with each other and share their experiences.

Chairman of the Games Organising Committee and Uttarakhand Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Dr RBS Rawat said altogether 21 events were being organised at meet. He said a total of 2,078 competitors that are part of 35 teams from different states, Union Territories and the Ministry of Environment and Forest are participating in the event. He disclosed that the sports events are being organised at the IGNFA Pavilion as well as in other sports grounds in the Indian Military Academy, Forest Research Institute, Central Academy for State Forest Service, Jaspal Rana Academy and the Parade Ground.

The event started of with the march past, followed by oath taking ceremony. Thereafter, an exquisite cultural performance given by various artistes hailing from different districts of Uttarakhand left the audience mesmerized. As many as 110 artists staged the cultural programmes that presented the rich and vibrant cultural heritage of Uttarakhand.

Uttarakhand Forest Development Corporation Chairman JP Gairola, Vice-Chairman of the Uttarakhand Forest and Environment Advisory Committee Anil Balooni, Inspector-General of Forests, Union Ministry of Environment and Forests AK Shrivastava, eminent environmentalist Sunder Lal Bahuguna and secretary of the Games Organizing Committee Dr Rakesh Shah were prominent among those present on the opening ceremony.

The team from Chattisgarh bagged the first prize in the march past while Andhra stood second and Tamil Nadu secured the third position.

Dehradun, December 16
Vijay Cantt will clash with Akrant in the first semifinal of the Abhishek Dabral Memorial Football Tournament being played at Hathibarkala, Dehradun.

Vijay Cantt beat Doon Valley in today match with score line reading 1-0. Bhuwan scored the solitary goal for Vijay Cantt, thereby ensuring his team’s place in the semifinal.

The second semifinal tomorrow is slated to take place between Cantt Blues and Wills Youths. Both semifinals will take place tomorrow.