The police tries to pacify the mob

Mussoorie, March 24
A person was crushed to death by a speeding Qualis vehicle (number HR 55 AT 1207) near the Mall Road barrier here today. The vehicle was going towards Picture Palace from Landour Bazaar when the accident took place. The Tribune had highlighted the apprehension of the people about the chances of mishaps in a news item titled "Mussoorie traffic woes begin before tourist season" published on March 18.

The victim, Shoorvir Singh Negi, was rushed to the nearby St. Mary's Hospital by his neighbours, where the doctors declared him brought dead. The driver of Qualis, who tried to flee, was apprehended by the locals and handed over to the police.

Negi, 55, owned a small dhaba near the place where the accident happened. The apprehended driver told mediapersons that he lost control over the vehicle as its steering wheel got jammed after it was caught in the debris of the sewerage project dumped by the Peyjal Nigam alongside Mall Road. The vehicle hit Negi and he was killed on the spot.

Another untoward accident with the same vehicle was averted near the Nirulas restaurant when a policeman was bringing the Qualis involved in the accident to the police station. The policeman driving the Qualis said as he reached near Nirulas he lost control over the vehicle as its steering wheel got jammed and brakes failed. The vehicle went out of control, forcing him to ram it into shutters of a closed shop. Pedestrians had a miraculous escape.

The local residents questioned the reason behind the policeman driving the broke vehicle to the police station as it could have led to injuries to more people.

Later an angry mob blamed the callous attitude of the Peyjal Nigam in laying the sewerage pipeline and not removing the debris from roadside for the accident. The mob shattered windowspanes of the impouned Qualis. It also tried to set the vehicle on fire but was stopped by the police.

Later the protesters blocked traffic at Picture Palace. They raised slogans against the local administration and the police for their lackadaisical approach in the matter. The police acted as a mere spectator while the mob placed barricades to block traffic on Mall Road.

Eyewitnesses to the accident said Negi had just came out of his dhaba when he was hit by the Qualis. Amir Ahmed and Deepak Saxena lambasted the Peyjal Nigam and said it was the second incident when a person lost his life due to erratic work done by the nigam. They added the people of the town had raised the issue vociferously but in vain. Cabinet minister Mantri Prasad Naithani reached Mussoorie on hearing the news about the accident. He also inspected the place of accident. He went to the hospital where Negi's body was lying and consoled his family members. He appealed to the protesters to lift the blockade and assist in restoring normalcy in the town.

However, the adamant protesters demanded that guilty Peyjal Nigam officials be booked for the incident.

SDM, Mussoorie, Jharna Kamthan and other senior officers also reached the town along with former MLA Jot Singh Gunsola and former Municipal Council president Manmohan Singh Mall. Present Municipal Council president OP Uniyal also reached the spot.

All leaders were critical of the sewerage laying work in progress and demanded that it should be stopped altogether considering the tourist season. Shops at Kulri Bazaar were closed in protest. A meeting between Naithani and the agitated members of Negi's family was on till the time of the filing of this report.

Meanwhile, the police has registered a case of rash and negligent driving against the Qualis driver. Additional police force has reached the town to remove blockade from the road at Picture Palace. The situation was tense but under control. Naithani assured the victim's family of financial assitance from the Peyjal Nigam and the government.

Haridwar, March 24
Former Chief Minister Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri has termed factionalism and dissension in the Vijay Bahuguna-led Congress government as detrimental to the development of the state. This trend does not “augur well for the state,” he said.

Khanduri also referred to factionalism in the BJP as a matter of concern. He added that he did not want to raise the issue in public and would discuss it with the party high command. Khanduri lost from the Kotdwar seat in his home district of Pauri Garhwal in the Assembly elections recently.

Talking to The Tribune at the Jagadguru Shankaracharya’s Ashram in Kankhal today, the four-time Lok Sabha MP hinted that the Congress may not succeed to save the government for long, and in case it fell the BJP would stake claim to form the government.

“Factionalism in the Congress, delay in the formation of the Cabinet and other related issues are impacting development of the state. The Congress leaders are ignoring the larger interests of the people for their personal interests. This is hurting both democracy and the development of the state,” said Khanduri.

Asked whether the BJP feared poaching as it had taken its newly elected legislators to Ujjain, Khanduri said he did not know the reasons but “the party high command definitely has devised a strategy in case the Congress fails to prove its majority”.

Khanduri, who was the Union Minister for Roads and Highways in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government, also had a brief discussion with Shankaracharya Jagadguru Raj Rajeshwaram Maharaj.

The Shankaracharya termed Khanduri’s defeat in the Assembly elections as unfortunate as the latter was a clean, honest and efficient politician and had a development-oriented approach. The Shankaracharya said the ongoing Anna Hazare campaign against corruption was trying to supersede the Constitution. He urged the people to first ensure that every one of them remained honest.

Pithoragarh, March 24
The BJP is not likely to contest the election for the post of Speaker of the Uttarakhand Assembly as it lacks the required strength of MLAs, said Uttarakhand BJP president Bishen Singh Chaufal over the phone today.

“Whether it contests the election for the post of Speaker of the Uttarakhand Assembly or not, the BJP will wait for the decision of the high command in this regard. The party legislatures will be made aware about the decision of the high command by this evening as the nomination for the post of Speaker can be filed up to 12 noon tomorrow,” said Chufal

He said the BJP needed the support of six more legislatures to win the election for the Speaker’s post. Therefore, it seemed almost impossible for the party to win the post and the party high command was also not likely to decide in favour of contesting the election. “Earlier, the party was targeting rebel MLAs of the Congress who were in a defiant mood. But since the Congress has managed to win over Harish Rawat and his supporter MLAs, there is little possibility of the BJP getting the post,” said Chaufal.

The BJP chief said they would sit in the opposition and fight for the interests of the people of the state.

Meanwhile, all 31 BJP legislatures from Uttarakhand, who had gone to Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, were on the way to Dehradun to take part in the proceedings of the state Assembly starting on March 26. “We are on the way to Dehradun from Ujjain where we had gone to perform puja at the Mahakal temple on the occasion of New Hindu Year of Chaitra Shukla Pratipada,” Chufal said.

Dehradun, March 24
From Delhi’s Metropolitan Hotel to Rishikesh’s Ananda Resort, all have benefited from Mona Schwartz’s culinary expertise and belief in macrobiotic dietary principle of “cooking food with consciousness”.

She has made several converts to macrobiotic food all over the country, including Shonali Sabherwal, the author of The Beauty Diet, who learnt macrobiotic cooking at her kitchen, after her father was diagnosed with cancer.

On Sundays in Dehradun, her lawn buzzes with activity with farmers from Rishikesh and villages setting up kiosks loaded with organic vegetables. “I provide space to the farmers, who sell organic vegetables. This is the first step towards making people aware of healthy food. They can taste scrumptious macrobiotic food made to suit the Indian taste. It comes loaded with the goodness of brown rice and oil-free snacks. All sourced from my kitchen,” averred Schwartz.

Living in India for the past 22 years, it is her mission to promote and propagate macrobiotic food which she says is in consonance with the principles of Ayurveda. “Today, the children have unlimited choices. They are keen to experiment with other food and are forgetting the traditional Indian thali. Even parents are giving in to their children’s whims and do not mind pandering to their demands. Now in Indian homes, two types of foods are being served- one for the parents and the other for the children. It is creating a divide. I am all for reintroducing thali to Indian homes with an organic touch,” she said.

Enumerating the virtues of macrobiotic diet that combines elements of Buddhism with dietary principles based on simplicity and avoidance of toxins that come from eating dairy products, Schwartz says she was introduced to the diet when she came in touch with Denny Waxman while living in the USA. “I was battling a host of health problems and undergoing treatment for leukaemia and sluggish liver. The pills that I was made to pop every day left me physically drained. Then I came in touch with Denny, who put me on a macrobiotic diet meant for patients recovering from cancer. Soon I was on the path of recovery and my faith in the diet grew by leaps and bounds,” she pointed out.

While in the USA, the macrobiotic caught up solely as a cancer diet. Schwartz has managed to promote it as a food that can be consumed by healthy people also. “I believe, if the simple principle of proportion and balance is followed, the food that you eat can never cause any harm,” she expressed.

Terming her innings in India as a second life, Schwartz said she was already in the middle of finalising a book that she hopes would spread awareness about macrobiotic diet. “I have already written seven books and this one would try to give an insight into the food habits of ancient India and how macrobiotic living complements the spirit of yoga and satvik food,” she added.

Dehradun, March 24
Blood often proves to be the most critical thing in saving human life and its requirement can arise at any point of time. For this noble cause, the Military Hospital, Roorkee, in collaboration with the Indian Medical Association, Dehradun, and the First Battalion of the Brigade of Guards organised a two-day blood donation camp that concluded today. Nita Ganguly, wife of Commandant of the Military Hospital, inaugurated the camp yesterday, which was attended by all serving personnel and their families at the station. A team of experts of the Indian Medical Association, Dehradun, collected the blood, which would be used for civilian patients as well.

Brig M Ganguly, Commandant, Military Hospital, Roorkee, said the blood units collected at the camp would go a long way in saving valuable lives. He congratulated all personnel and their families for their participation in this noble cause. He emphasised the need for holding more such camps in future.

All serving personnel, ex-servicemen and their dependants were screened for diseases. The camp was followed by a lecture by Col Ajay Deora, ophthalmologist, Military Hospital, Roorkee. Brig Ganguly also released a free educative CD.

Dehradun, March 24
BEd students of DAV PG College displayed their projects on ‘Teaching learning aid’ in the department of education here today. A large number of students from different colleges visited the exhibition.

The BEd students of first, second and third years presented the projects, based on the academic curriculum, through models, paintings, charts, crafts and origami.

The students had transformed the entire classroom where the exhibition with an array of innovative and modern-study material was held. The creativeness of the students was appreciated by all.

Dehradun, March 24
The valedictory session of two-day long national conference on ‘Emerging trends in energy engineering’ was organised at the Dehradun Institute of Technology (DIT) here today.

The function began with the welcoming of the chief guest, Dr K Balakrishnan Prabhu, Professor, department of chemical engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology, Karnataka.

Executive-Director of the DIT, Dr Krishna Kumar, presented his views on the two-day conference.

Dr JS Saini, head of the thermal engineering department, DIT, presented the recommendations emerging from the conference in which he told that rigorous research and development was required in the area of solar, wind and hydro technologies.

In his speech, Dr Balakrishnan praised the involvement of students in the activities for making the conference a success.

In the award giving ceremony, certificate of participation was distributed to all participants and delegates. The best paper award was given to the paper titled ‘Numerical analysis of enhancement of heat transfer in phase change material using radial fins’ by Sutar Abhijeet Balakrishna and Dr PA Tukaram (Govt. College of Engineering, Karad, Maharashtra) and AV Waghmare (All India Shri Shivaji Memorial Society College of Engineering, Pune).

Dehradun, March 24
The Artemis Health Institute (AHI), a super specialty hospital in Gurgaon, organised a continued medical education (CME) on “new concepts in myocardial revascularisation and common cancers in women" yesterday for the member doctors of the Indian Medical Association, Dehradun.

“Cancer is a life threatening disease and its early diagnosis is crucial for effective treatment. Barely less than three per cent of women in India come forward for regular checkup,” said Dr Anil K Dhar, Director, Medical Oncology, AHI, Gurgaon.

Cardiac diseases, which are fast becoming an epidemic in the country, were also discussed. “Cardiac diseases are likely to increase rapidly in India which will be home to more than half the cases of heart problems in the world within next 15 years,” said Dr Manjinder Sandhu, Director, Cardiology, AHI.

A free health camp was also organised by the AHI in association with the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in which experts examined the patients and gave them free tips for leading a healthy life. The camp was held for both cardiology and orthopaedics problems in Dehradun and Haridwar. The residents of Dehradun availed of the facilities of blood sugar test, ECG and ECO.