Alert sounded as tourists throng Rajaji park area
Sandeep Rawat/ TNS

Haridwar, December 31
An alert has been sounded in the world-famous Rajaji National Park spread across 820 sq km falling in Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal and Dehradun districts in view of a large number of tourists thronging the area for New Year celebrations. All rest houses, guesthouses and lodges in the park area are fully booked with no room available till the first few days of January.

The park ranges of Chilla, Motichur, Beribada and Kasraun are being thronged by tourists, both domestic and foreign, as these offer maximum opportunities for wildlife sightseeing.

Chila Ranger DP Uniyal told The Tribune that an alert had been sounded in the park periphery in with coordination with all ranges in view of wildlife poaching and intrusion by wood smugglers during New Year.

“We have also pressed into service sniffer dogs as the park area is quite large and it is not easy to manually identify poachers and smugglers in thick forests. Anti-social elements try to enter the park as tourists to carry out their nefarious designs. We have formed special teams to check such incidents,” said Uniyal.

A huge rush was witnessed today at the Chilla range gate falling in the Yamkeshwar block of Pauri Garhwal district. Besides, gypsy wild safari tourists enjoyed basking in the sun at the Chilla rest house and open fields.

Meanwhile, thousands of pilgrims and people took bath in the Ganga and adjoining ghats of Har-ki-Pauri today. Since early morning people in a large number were seen moving towards H ar-ki-Pauri to take a dip in the Ganga. Tourists also flocked Dehradun, Mussoorie, Rishikesh and hill stations in the upper reaches of Garhwal, making traffic to move at a snail’s pace. Huge traffic jams were witnessed on the NH-72 and the NH-58 and also at major inner intersections of Haridwar city.

Meanwhile, the city wore a festive look with hotels, restaurants, resorts and shops donning fancy lighting. They have adopted various ways to attract customers.

Several hotels offered discounts and theme-based settings for New Year celebrations while many had been booked by companies. As hundreds of companies have come up at SIDCUL, the New Year celebrations have touched a new high. Old-timers point out that now the buzz in the market is unimaginable as compared to yesteryears.

The Hindu Jagran Manch has said the New Year celebrations should be held keeping cultural values in mind. SSP, Haridwar, Arun Mohan Joshi has put all police stations on alert and directed them to strictly deal with offenders and law-breakers.

Punjabi mahasabha for action against TPS Rawat
Tribune News Service

Members of the Uttaranchal Punjabi Mahasabha hold a protest at the office of the District Magistrate in support of their demands in Dehradun on Monday.

Dehradun, December 31
Members of the Uttaranchal Punjabi Mahasabha submitted a memorandum to the District Magistrate to demand action against state president of the Uttarakhand Raksha Morcha TPS Rawat, for speaking against the people of the Punjabi community which is 30 per cent of the total population.

State president Rajiv Ghai said, “TPS Rawat’s statement where he had declined to consider the people of the Punjabi community as citizens of the state and called them refugees has hurt the sentiments of the Punjabi community. When the High Court has decreed that those living in the state on November 9, 2000, will be entitled to become citizens of the state, then Rawat has no right to pass such derogatory comments against Punjabi community.”

He said it was the people of this community who laboured hard to convert the barren land of the Terai region into fertile one and played a pivotal role in the development of trade, education, business and tourism in the state for all these years.

He said Rawat had tried to divide the people on the lines of caste and language. He demanded legal action against him. He said he was happy over the state government’s announcement to go with the High Court order in the matter and urged the Chief Minister to release a Government Order soon.

Statehood agitators hold demonstration

Dehradun, December 31
A delegation of Uttarakhand statehood agitators held a demonstration before the District Magistrate office for not fulfilling their demands.

Members, angry with the state government, also raised slogans in this regard. The agitators were of the view that the state government had not yet completed the task of identification of statehood strugglers. Those identified had not been given pension benefits. The identity cards, which the state government had promised to them, had not been given to all so far.

They said the government had accorded the title of statehood agitator and the facilities to those who did not deserve it, hence they must be devoid of the title.

They demanded the inclusion of the name of Amar Singh Negi who was injured while fighting for the state formation on the list of the statehood strugglers. They said the administration did not include his name despite submission of his application in this regard for several times.

Among those present included Urmila Sharma, Prabhat Dhandriyal, Mathura, Sunil Juyal, Pushpa, Vinod Aswal and Jayanti Patwal. — TNS

Hindi greeting cards losing sheen
Sandeep Rawat
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, December 31
The exchange of wishes on New Year is a regular feature. But with changing times, a shift can be seen in the medium of expression. With new social media tools in use, it is now easier to convey greetings.

E-cards, e-mails and SMS have directly affected the paper greeting cards that were almost a rage a decade back. However, greeting cards still hold their importance. Card lovers can be seen thronging the card galleries to pick the best one that suits the personality of the receiver.

While the English language cards have still some buyers, the worst hit are those in Hindi. It seems that Hindi cards are on the verge of extinction which is evident from the fact that most of the galleries in the city have no cards in Hindi.

Amita Singh, coordinator of the Ranipur market Archies Gallery, said for the past few years, greeting cards written in Hindi did not have much demand, particularly the younger lot did not prefer these cards. She said that was why the reason why Hindi cards were not ordered this year.

Sales girls at shops on the Bhagat Singh chowk pointed out that barring a few customers, they did not have any customer demanding Hindi cards this year.

“Youngsters and older people alike are disinterested in buying Hindi cards. Maybe they now find it out of fashion,” said Amita, showing cards in demand.

Noted Hindi littérateur Naresh Mohan expressed shock on knowing the public attitude towards Hindi cards. He said despite much efforts of making Hindi the national language, it was English that was gaining prominence in society. People feel proud to be speaking or writing English. It was a matter of concern, added Mohan.

“Greeting cards still have and will always have the feeling and sensitivity which an SMS or an email lacks. That is the reason why I prefer greeting cards for my loved ones. They last long and have an impact,” said Konika Arora, a student.

Khanduri greets Guv Qureshi 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, Decemeber 31
Former Chief Minister BC Khanduri today called on Governor Aziz Qureshi and enquired after his health, giving him best wishes for the New Year.

Among others present who called on the Governor to wish him were the Vice-Chancellor of Sridev Suman University, Dr US Rawat, and the Pro Vice-Chancellor of Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, Dr Chinmaya Pandya.

The Governor obtained information about the infrastructure and future plans of the new university from Dr Rawat.

Guv greets people on New Year

Dehradun: Governor Aziz Qureshi has greeted the people of the state on the New Year.

In his message on the eve of the New Year, the Governor said “I wish all citizens of Uttarakhand a happy, prosperous and peaceful year.”

He called upon the people to rise above religious and caste-related differences and work for the progress of the state.

Meanwhile, former Chief Minister BC Khanduri has also greeted the people of the state on the New Year.

In his message, Khanduri asked the people of the state to celebrate the New Year eve with simplicity.

In the light of the Delhi gang-rape case, he requested the people to take a pledge that women would be safe in the state and no such unfortunate incident would ever take place here.

Ban on gutka, pan masala from today
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
The Uttarakhand government’s decision to ban sale, storage and manufacture of gutka, pan masala and other tobacco-based products will come into force from Tuesday.

The state government had taken the decision to ban gutka and other tobacco products at the last Cabinet meeting.

Earlier, it had deferred its implementation in October 2012 following representations by traders who demanded some more time to clear their stocks.

According to the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations of 2011, the food safety commissioner has the powers to prohibit -- in the interest of public health -- the manufacture, storage, distribution and sale of any article of food either in the whole of the state or a part for a period not exceeding one year. The act includes Rule 2.3.4, according to which tobacco and nicotine should not be used as ingredients in any food products.

“The state government was evoking this regulation to ban gutka coupled with a Supreme Court ruling that stated, "Since pan masala, gutka and supari are eaten for taste and nourishment, they are all food,” said S. Ramaswamy, Principal Secretary, Health.

Health activists and NGOs had been pushing for a ban on tobacco products. Anti-tobacco activists cited several reasons for banning gutka. A recent report of the Union Ministry of Health had stated that 28 out of the 3,095 chemical components in chewing tobacco products (including gutka) were proven carcinogens. The most abundant group of carcinogens was the tobacco-specific N-nitrosamines. More than 90 per cent of oral cancer in India was directly associated with tobacco use.

“For years, we have seen gutka and pan masala being sold as mouth fresheners to minors, schoolchildren as well as pregnant women and nothing has been done to check it. Now at least the government has decided to act,” said Dr KC Pant, senior physician.

So far, a total of 14 states have enforced the ban after the Centre had issued ban order in August 2011. 

The year BJP would like to forget
Neena Sharma
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
The adage, so near yet so far, aptly describes the condition of the Uttarakhand BJP that astonishingly came close to retaining power in the state by winning a total of 31 seats to the Congress' total of 32 in the 2012 Assembly elections.

The one-seat lead made all the difference and the defeat of former Chief Minister BC Khanduri from Kotdwar under whose stewardship the party fought the elections sealed the fate of the BJP. In that sense, the BJP would like to forget 2012 as a bad dream, for then onwards there was no stopping the Congress that not only formed the government in the state but also managed to elect its Speaker and the member of the Rajya Sabha.

Rampant infighting with leaders from different factions raising decibel levels against senior leaders remained the tone and tenor of the party that tried to get its act together in the face of shrewd and wily political play by the Congress.

The party not only went about striking alliances with the lone member from the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal but also brought the BSP members on board that helped in forming the government.

Out of power, the BJP was left licking its wound but a blow in the form of Kiran Mandal resigning from his Assembly seat of Sitarganj and also from the primary membership of the BJP left the party stunned.

Later Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna fought from the Sitarganj Assembly seat that not only helped in increasing its tally but also left the BJP badly bruised.

In the entire episode, questions were raised about the management prowess of Uttarakhand BJP president BS Chuphal, who failed to keep in touch with MLAs though there were repeated reports of some Congress leaders lurking in the shadows to poach on the BJP MLAs.

Incidentally, the BJP central leadership had even taken the BJP MLAs on a trip to a temple in Madhya Pradesh as it feared poaching from the Congress. But the soul searching at Madhya Pradesh failed to prevent Kiran Mandal from crossing over to the Congress.

The episode demoralised the state BJP but alerted the central leadership which in turn galvanised former Chief Ministers BS Koshiyari and BC Khanduri to avert the poaching of Bheem Lal Arya, BJP MLA, from Ghansali.

In the run-up to the Tehri parliamentary election, senior leader of BJP Matbar Singh Kandari and his son also left the BJP to join the Congress.

Come October, the BJP managed to get its act together by wresting the Tehri parliamentary seat from the Congress. The seat was won by Mala Raj Laxmi Shah of the erstwhile Tehri royal family. She defeated the Congress candidate Saket Bahuguna and Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna's son in her first election.

The win boasted the party's sagging morale of the party and for once the party seemed to have tide over the factionalism and bitter infighting that did affect its prospects in the 2012 election.

However, as the year draws to an end, the party leaders are once again back to their old tricks and bickering has once again resumed among the leaders as they hunt for a new president. The tenure of president of the Uttarakhand BJP ends today and the party would be electing a new leader in the new year.

Majdoor mahasangh demands pension for unorganised sector
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
A meeting of the Uttarakhand unit of the Bhartiya Janata Majdoor Mahasangh was held at the state BJP office here yesterday. Presiding over the meeting, sangh national president and BJP MP Prahlad Patel called for compulsory registration of workers in the unorganised sector in the country. He also called for ensuring free medical facility for these workers along with free education for their children.

Patel also held that the sangh had demanded the Centre that workers in unorganised sector be provided pension of at least Rs 1,500 per month after attaining the age of 50. He also suggested bringing in farmers of the hill areas into workers category. He also reminded the gathering of worker friendly policies started during the Atal Behari Vajpayee-led NDA government at the Centre.

Sangh’s president Suresh Papneja also spoke on the occasion. Bhuwan Joshi, Anuj Rajput, Vandana Thakur and Dinesh Kapur attended the meeting.

Toll-free helpline to check crime against women
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna today announced a series of measures aimed at increasing a sense of security among women in the state. Bahuguna, who had returned from a vacation-cum-business tour of South Africa, announced the setting up of a toll free helpline for women for lodging complaints of atrocities committed on them without having to visit a police station.

“When a complaint is lodged a designated police officer will visit the complainant woman to seek details. The identity of the woman will be kept confidential. Besides, women can also file complaints at any police station, irrespective of the area they reside in,” said Bahuguna while speaking to mediapersons.

He took note of delays in discharge of cases pertaining to crime against women and said henceforth an SSP rank woman officer would monitor such cases in the state. “The monitoring cell will function at the police headquarters to keep a track on the cases,” said the Chief Minister.

He also announced the appointment of at least one woman Assistant District Government Counsel (ADGC) in each district for taking up the cases of atrocities against women.

To ensure safety of women working during night hours, it would be mandatory for the owners of hospitals, nursing homes and other institutions to provide transport facilities so that they could be dropped back home.

Five working women hostels would also be set up at Pant Nagar, Haridwar, Selaqui (Dehradun) and Udham Singh Nagar. The government also sanctioned Rs 5 crore for the installation of CCTV cameras at public places and the procurement of fast-moving vehicles.

While the use of black films and curtains in private buses, cars and taxis had already been banned, the government would take action against the drivers and the conductors of public transports in case any untoward incident against women comes to light.

To expedite cases pertaining to crime against women, the government has already proposed the setting up of four fast-track courts in Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital. 

Security arrangements on Nepal, China borders discussed
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, December 31
Security and intelligence personnel deputed at the borders with China and Nepal today held a routine meeting to discuss security arrangements.

The meeting convened by the ITBP was attended by Army and SSB personnel, besides the ITBP, the police and intelligence agencies. "Officials from the Custom and Forest Departments were also invited at the meeting," said BS Martolia, an ITBP officer.

GS Martolia, DIG, Pithoragarh range, said the meeting was organised every month for mutual coordination among security forces and intelligence agencies deputed at the national borders. "At present, our focus is on checking the smuggling of the organs of wild animals, Maoist activities and smuggling from across the border. We are trying to strengthen the security and intelligence network to check these activities," said DIG Martolia.

New transfer policy for teachers to be implemented soon
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
A new system of transfer and posting for teachers has been put in force by the state government in which no transfer will be made on compensatory grounds. The transfer list will be released by March 15.

The new transparent system will provide teachers posted at remote areas to serve in comfortable areas.

Education Minister Mantri Prasad Naithani, on a review meeting at Secretariat here today, informed the gathering about the proposed transfer policy. The minister directed the officials to set the time frame for transfer and complete the data collection of teachers and categorisation of schools by January 31. He also asked them to prepare the list of request transfers and compulsory transfer by February 25.

Prasad said the transfer list be issued by March 15 so that the teachers reach their new postings well in time before the beginning of the session in April. He said 10 parameters had been set for the schools, including facilities available viz distance of working place, road mobility, traffic movement, medical, bank-post office, educational institutions, market, telecommunication, electricity, water and distance from the sea-level for transfers.

Naithani said the schools had been divided into six categories from A to F. ABC for easy and DEF for difficult areas and the software was being prepared for the same. As per the new standard, 15 per cent teachers would go from easy to difficult and 10 per cent from difficult to easier places. The duration of service would be counted on days instead of years. The provision of relaxation has also been made for the sick, handicapped, widow, derelicts, widowers and similar other categories.

The Minister instructed the officials to remove the excess teachers from schools where students were less in number. He also laid emphasis on making the transfer process online and also to depute master trainers in every block.

The meeting was attended by secretary, School Education, RK Sudhanshu, Director, Middle Education, and CS Gwal, Director, Basic Education, Anil Negi among others. 

Ministerial staff strike continues
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, December 31
The ministerial staff working in various government departments continued with their indefinite agitation today as the government did not make any attempt to broker peace with employee union leaders.

The employees owing allegiance to the Uttarakhand Federation of Ministerial Services Association reached the paraded ground today and discussed the strategy for the coming days. The association leaders criticised the government for its failure to fulfil their three-point charter of demands.

“The bureaucracy in the state is misleading the government on our demands and the obduracy of senior bureaucrats is coming in the way of resolution of the standoff,” said Sunil Dutt Kothari, general secretary of the association.

The people, who had come from far off places to get their work done, had to return empty-handed. The work in all departments had been paralysed due to the strike.