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Emphasis on need to conserve energy
Panel to overlook Laldhang-Kotdwar road construction
Auxiliary nurses to hold fast at Jantar Mantar
Bindra to be minorities panel chairman
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38 docs shifted to earlier places of posting
Notorious wildlife smuggler arrested
Nabard told to adopt one village in each district
Focus paper highlights weak farm infrastructure in state
New system to assess learning level of school students
Railway workers continue dharna for third day
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Emphasis on need to conserve energy
Dhradun , February 6 In the valedictory ceremony held here today, Utpal Ghosh, Pro Vice Chancellor, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), gave away prizes to the winners of various competitions, viz. drawing, quiz, debate, slogan and easy writing organised at various schools in Dehradun and also within the ONGC campus during the Oil and Gas Conservation Fortnight-2013. Speaking on the occasion, Utpal Ghosh said that India constitutes 17 per cent of the world population but had oil reserves of only 0.5 per cent, which necessitates dependence on oil import. Hence, for the energy security of the nation, it is the prime responsibility of everybody to make every effort in judiciously utilising the available resources, and this is possible only by conserving the existing and developing new resources. He also gave tips on energy conservation to the audience. On this occasion, R K Shukla, GGM- Head Corporate Inventory Managament, S Shakir Ali, DGM(M), Lt Col Satish Sharma, R K Bahuguna, DGM(E)- I/c Corporate Energy Cell, were present. In a glittering ceremony, the prizes brought happiness not only among school children but also to the employees and housewives who won the competitions in different categories. The AMN Ghosh Auditorium was full with schoolchildren and senior executives of ONGC. R K Shukla conveyed the need of conservation to the students in easy words that it is possible to generate energy by simply reversing the process of energy consumption. He also expressed the need of using car pools. Lt Col Satish Sharma said that India had a huge potential in conserving energy in all sectors. He further said that a survey conducted by PCRA found that the precious fuel worth Rs 1000 crore can be saved annually in Delhi itself by just switching of engines at red lights. Earlier, RK Bahuguna, I/c - Corporate Energy Cell, in his welcome address, outlined the different activities undertaken by the energy cell, technical services during ONGC Fortnight-2013.
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Panel to overlook Laldhang-Kotdwar road construction
Dehradun, February 6 Chief Secretary Alok Kumar Jain at a meeting convened in this regard at the Secretariat here today said the Laldhang-Kotdwar road would reduce the distance by 25 km and the consumption of fuel worth Rs 30 crore annually. He said the road would also provide relief to the people from double tax. A 5-km flyover would be constructed on this road and it would facilitate connectivity of the SIDCUL area, Ramnagar and Lansdown. The 8-km road would be constructed by the Forest Department by June this year with a single-lane bridge on it. Meanwhile, the PWD would construct the remaining 11-km road. The Chief Secretary has directed the officers concerned to ensure that no wildlife is disturbed and no man-animal conflict takes place due to the construction of the road. Principal Secretary Rakesh Sharma, Commissioner, Garhwal, Kunal Sharma, Additional Secretary, PWD, Amit Negi, Additional Secretary, Forest, Manoj Chandran, Chief Minister’s Staff Officer MC Joshi and other senior officers attended the meeting.
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Auxiliary nurses to hold fast at Jantar Mantar
Dehradun, February 6 The nurses and midwives today gathered at Parade Ground, Dehradun, and staged a dharna. The protesters alleged that they would now observe hunger strike at Jantar Mantar, Delhi. “We will also be meeting UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and apprise her about our problems,” said Jayanti Dobhal, one of the protesters. The protesters also pledged to work towards uprooting the state government. They alleged that the government was failing to keep with its earlier agreement and was not providing pay fixation linked arrears. Hemlata Bhandari, Madhubala Semwal, Nandi Arya, Manju Gusain, Sushila Negi, Ambika Baratwal and Premlata Yadav were prominent participant to the dharna. |
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Bindra to be minorities panel chairman
Dehradun, February 6 Interestingly, senior Congress leaders of the state have been demanding that they should be given official position in the state government. The Congress president Yashpal Arya has also been pressing the government to reward senior party leaders. But Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna, who will be soon completing 11 months in office has resisted the party pressure. The two persons who have been given new responsibilities are not Congress members. |
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38 docs shifted to earlier places of posting
Dehradun, February 6 After the government had undertaken large-scale transfers of 238 government doctors, a few among them had refused to comply with the orders and had sought judicial remedy. Later, at the insistence of Health Minister SS Negi, around 38 doctors withdrew their petitions in January. Of these few had cited health reasons as an excuse for their inability to serve in inaccessible areas of the state. The government was keen to send only those doctors in their previous place of posting, who had genuine health problems, but now it had transferred all 38 doctors of the rank of senior medical officers back.
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Notorious wildlife smuggler arrested
Pithoragarh, February 6 “The criminal, who hid himself in disguise of a beggar near a cemetery at Ram nagar, had come to arrange for the bail of his son Ramesh, who is languishing at Haldwani jail for the same crime,” said the police. According to the police, Daria Bavaria was involved in the case in which the police had recovered tiger’s body along with some other material in the Bijrani zone of Corbett Tiger Reserve last year. “While 6 culprits were arrested, the leader of the team Daria succeeded in escaping from the spot, said Sanjay Pandey, in charge of the police team which caught the criminal. According to the police, after confirming that the intestines recovered at the spot last year was of the tiger, it had arrested other criminals who were connected to the case. They were all relatives of Daria. “While some of the criminals were arrested when trying to enter the CTR, some other wanted criminals surrendered,” said the police. Daria Bavaris, who is wanted in Haryana, UP and Bihar for killing of tigers, had started operating in the CTR last year, when he killed one tigress. “Before that, Daria and his family members had been arrested by UP, Bihar and Haryana police in 2000, 2005 and 2006 for killing tigers,” added the police.
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Nabard told to adopt one village in each district
Dehradun, February 6 Admitting that the state had failed to benefit from the schemes and programmes of the bank, the minister said, “We may have erred in goal-setting and lacked will power in taking the villages on road to development. The problem is serious in the villages where migration has not ebbed. The schemes and programmes of Nabard can change the face of the villages. I urge you to develop at least one village as a model village in each district of the state,” she said. She was speaking at the State Rural Infrastructure Credit Seminar with a special focus on developing rural infrastructure and rural economy in Uttarakhand. The minister also said the initiatives taken by the state of Himachal Pradesh in horticulture needed to be replicated in Uttarakhand. "Our fruit producing areas will benefit immensely, if Nabard takes up construction of ropeways on a priority basis. It will help the farmers immensely in taking their produce to the markets easily,” added Hridayesh. The minister also said under the financial inclusion scheme, the banks should be able to relax guidelines for opening of bank accounts, especially under pension schemes of the government. She also urged the bank to bring the maximum beneficiaries under the Kissan Credit Cards scheme. Around 35 per cent of the cards have been issued to the farmers in the state. Further as a major policy initiative, the minister also announced the extension in issuance of block guarantee to state cooperatives towards loans to farmers from one to three years and exemption of stamp duty on agriculture loans up to Rs 5 lakh for a period of three years. On the occasion, the minister also released a state focus paper for Uttarakhand for the 12th Five Year Plan 2012-2017. |
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Focus paper highlights weak farm infrastructure in state
Dehradun, January 6 The paper points out that 40 per cent of the villages do not have proper access to roads and 10 per cent of the area is irrigated in
the hills out of the total 44 per cent of the total cultivated area. “While the role of infrastructure is crucial for agriculture, industrial and overall economic development, it needs to be prioritised in favour of the agricultural sector," said Selvaraj, Chief General Manager, Nabard. Further 15 per cent of crop produce is lost due to poor roads and inappropriate storage facilities. Improved infrastructure also leads to expansion of markets. It has been pointed out that while the districts of Tehri, Udham Singh Nagar, Pauri Garhwal, Haridwar, Dehradun and Almora possess road network equal to the state average, the districts of Chamoli, Pithoragarh, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag, Nainital, Champawat and Bageshwar have road network less than the state average. The annual credit planning exercise that Nabard undertakes in planning the potential linked credit in all 13 districts of Uttarakhand culminates with the presentation of the State Focus Paper (SFP) that also becomes part of the Annual Plan prepared by the states. A credit potential of Rs 10,844.86 crore has been estimated in the SFP for the year 2013-14 in Uttarakhand under agriculture and priority sectors . This includes potential of Rs 3,404.15 crore for crop loan, Rs 1517.87 crore for long term investments in the agriculture sector, including investment for agriculture Rs 2,213.77 crore, for non-farm sector, including micro and medium enterprise and food processing, and Rs 3709.07 crore for other priority sector. |
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New system to assess learning level of school students
Dehradun, February 6 The need to implement the LLA that would come into effect from the next academic session was felt after government inspections pointed towards a poor response of students who failed to answer questions of lower classes. “Since the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act in the state, the system of tests and examination is practically over. This has given rise to complacency both on the part of students and teachers. A system has to be put in place that will at least evaluate the students on their learning outcomes,” said RK Kunwar, Additional Director, Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA). He said under the LLA teachers would examine students in order to ascertain their grasp over the subjects being taught and general awareness. The onus would rest on both teacher and pupil so that there was necessary feedback on the progress of the pupil and the teacher’s ability to ensure the students grasp the fundamentals of the subject in a stress-free atmosphere, he added. Once the Central government gives a go-ahead for the countrywide implementation of the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE), it would replace the LLA. |
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Railway workers continue dharna for third day
Dehradun, February 6 Raising slogans against the railway management, the protesters alleged that the management was insensitive towards their demands. NRMU branch president KP Chaubey disclosed that railway colonies at Harrawala, Dehradun, Doiwala and Railwala have not been cleaned for the past five years. He said even some of accommodations were devoid of drainage facility. Referring to other concerns of railway workers, Chaubey said the they had even been deprived of laundry allowance. He said there were also shortage of staff that was adversely affecting the railway employees. "Only one booking clerk was posted at Raiwala. Similarly, a commercial clerk was performing the duty of the reservation clerk at Doiwala station", Chaubey pointed out. Ramesh Kumar, JN Srivastava, Virendra Kumar, Ganga Prasad, Hariom Singh, Ummed Singh, Sushil Mamgain, Mukesh Gairola, SD Dobhal and OP Singh were prominent among the protesters. |
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Urging the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to play a proactive role in the development of the state, Finance Minister Indira Hridayesh today asked the bank to adopt atleast one village in each district of the state and develop it as a model village.
