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Tribune Impact
Conservationists hopeful of increase in tiger population
Roorkee to host half marathon on March 31
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Waste Warriors celebrate V Day in its own way
Students launch cleanliness drive
Kite flying, prayers mark Basant celebrations
Amid strict vigil, couples flock to Mussoorie's Lovers’ Leap
DM pulls up officials for poor quality of work
Women form chain against violence
Women form a human chain to highlight crime against women in Dehradun on Thursday. Tribune photo: Vinod
Pundir
Vijay Cantt defeat XI star club
Little Masters defeat Wonder Boys
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Mussoorie SDM reviews progress of sewerage project
Directs officials to ensure safety of residents, tourists Ajay Ramola
Mussoorie, February 14 He scolded Pey Jal Nigam officials for reaching the venue of the meeting late. The residents of the town apprised the SDM, Mussoorie, about the shoddy work being done by the concerned department at several places and also demanded adequate safety measures to avoid any risk to lives of tourists and residents alike during the laying of the pipelines. Sandeep Sahni, spokesperson of the Mussoorie Hotels' Association, raised the question of constructing manholes in the centre of the road, and feared that the traffic could come to a standstill during any damage to these manholes, leading to inconvenience to the residents and tourists. The residents raised the issue of incomplete work near MacKinnon pump, where pipes had been left in the open, inviting danger to schoolgoing children. The SDO, BSNL, also complained about the damage to OFC cables by contractors while digging the road at several places in the town, rendering broadband and telephone service useless. SDM NS Dangi, taking a serious view of the complaints, directed the Pey Jal Nigam to ensure the safety of the people by placing barricades at the sites. He directed the officials to inform the BSNL Department officials in case of any damage to the OFC cables in order to rectify the problem immediately. He directed the police officials to register a case if the safety measures were not taken by the contractors. He directed the officials to remove the mud debris as soon as the work is completed at the given site. It was also decided in the meeting that the SDM's office would be monitoring the progress of the project closely to ensure quality work in Mussoorie. The Pey Jal officials assured that all the steps would be taken to remove the bottlenecks and the work will be completed on the given deadline. Administrative officers Suryamani, M Mustafa, RK Tripathi, Anil Kulkarni, Anurag Negi, Virendar Rawat and others were present on the occasion.
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Conservationists hopeful of increase in tiger population
Jotirmay Thapliyal Tribune News Service
Dehradun, February 14 After 2008, there has been no census for tigers in the park. The last census has put the tiger figure at the Rajaji park to nine. But those knowing the park do not deny an overall increase in the population of tigers all these years, asserting that the figure this time could exceed a dozen. The park authorities will be taking assistance of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and other wildlife NGOs. Both camera traps and pug mark techniques will be used to ascertain the true population of tigers in the park. The Rajaji park had been contemplating relocating a tigress from the Corbett to western sector of the park and was awaiting final green signal from the Union Minister of Environment and Forests. “We are all prepared to undertake the much-awaited tiger census in the park in assistance with the WII,” said HK Singh, Deputy Director, Rajaji National Park. He said all protocols linked to conduct tiger census would be strictly adhered to during the census. The tiger census at the Rajaji National Park comes at a time when hardly a week ago a tigress died after eating an infected prey. The tigress was considered to be the sole female tiger inside the park, thus sending park authorities in a tizzy. The latest tiger census would definitely lead to emergence of new tiger scenario in the park. Interestingly, the Rajaji park authorities had, sometime ago, planned to come up with a tiger relocation from Corbett to the Rajaji park somewhere in the western sector of the park. However, the Rajaji park is still awaiting a green signal from the Union Environment and Forests Ministry. The WII, too, had more than a year ago, mooted a tiger relocation plan for theRajaji park on lines of the Sariska tiger relocation project. Senior researcher at the WII Abhishek Harihar, in his study ‘Population viability of tiger in their north-western range limit, Terai landscape’ had suggested tiger translocation as a means to revive the tiger population in the western sector of the Rajaji park. The study held that translocation was very much viable and could lead to recovery of tigers in the western sector. The WII has also held that it was for Uttarakhand to take the initiative as the WII had expertise on the subject.
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Roorkee to host half marathon on March 31
Haridwar, February 14 This marathon will figure renowned names that include Arjun Awardee Bheem Singh and Sunita Dogra among others. Some cities that figure on the half marathon list in the country include Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Pune. These cities on a regular basis hold half and full marathon in which thousands of participants take part. Talking to TNS, chief of the Krishnachal Sports and Educational Trust Mayank Gupta said the prize money for the winner of this event had been fixed at Rs 1 lakh while the first runner-up will get Rs 51,000 and second runner-up Rs 31,000. Other top five winners will also be given Rs 11,000 each. "This is first of its kind half marathon in the state. We are getting entries already from different parts of the country. While from the state level too, a substantial number of participants will be taking part. Prize money is also on a par with the other cities where half marathon will be and we hope to generate awareness about health through this event," said Gupta.' A number of schools, colleges, educational institutes have already been contacted to be a part of this mega event. General secretary of the organising trust Manoj Sharma added that The logo for the half marathon was also unveiled with a running athlete's shadow in black impression running with sky blue, Ganga canal bridge, Piran Kaliyar shrine and other important buildings located in the city being in the background. Renowned Arjun awardee athlete Bheem Singh pointed out that the total length of half marathon is 21.0975km or 13.1094 miles, which is just half of the full marathon. "Usually half marathon is run on roads and participation in half marathon in recent time has steadily increased owing to it not requiring the same level of training that a marathon requires. Also half marathon is being linked with social causes and becoming a live telecast event too," added Bheem.
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Waste Warriors celebrate V Day in its own way
Dehradun, February 14
The shopkeepers in the vicinity signed up for the collection of their waste with the DVWM at the behest of the Waste Warriors team. The last few activities of the group included clearing two illegal open dumping grounds in the Jakhan market and collecting more than 110 bags of garbage. These areas have remained clean and people have welcomed the change. The burning of waste and leaves is prohibited under the Municipal Solid Waste Rules but continues to be the method adopted and requires the Nagar Nigam to take preventive steps. Waste Warriors hopes to make a change by leading by the example. Founder of the movement and CEO Jodie Underhill said: “We’ve been in Dehradun for 10 months now and seen remarkable changes in the cleanliness of the city, especially around Jakhan where we are working. When we first arrived here, I was shocked to see how much garbage lay everywhere but there has been a substantial improvement, which is fantastic. This is largely due to the door-to-door waste collection service provided by the DVWM that is now running in Dehradun. The District Magistrate and the City Magistrate also need to be congratulated for enforcing a ban on plastic. Vice-President Sujata Paul Maliah said: “The need to inculcate a civic sense in the citizens has to be emphasised and Waste Warriors hopes to clear all illegal dumping grounds across the city over the next few years. But we require financial assistance to do so. We look forward to the government to support us in this endeavour and also hope that if the citizens support us, we can pride ourselves in recreating and maintaining a clean Doon. We commend District Magistrate BVRC Purushottam for initiating ‘Clean Doon Clean Campus’ programme and both he and City Magistrate Shri Harak Singh Rawat for enforcing a ban on plastic inspite of a tough opposition they have had to face. We also look forward to having the active participation of the citizens of Dehradun in the clean Doon mission of Waste Warriors.” Shanti Varma, President, Waste Warriors, and former Principal, Welham Girls’ School, said: “One of the objectives of our organisation is to improve the conditions for people who work with waste. If sweepers worked in an organised manner, it would reduce their workload and improve their efficiency.
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Students launch cleanliness drive
Haridwar, February 14 In various parts of Haridwar, Roorkee, Mangalore, Lakshar, Mangalore and Bhagwanpur such drives are being carried out in which students are visiting villages and apprising villagers of importance of cleanliness. NSS students of the Jwalapur Inter College took out an awareness rally, apprising villagers of hazards of garbage, untidy lifestyle and choked water in drains. Chief programme officer Sanjeev Jagta said cleanliness should start at one’s house, Only then people can be motivated. Students of Methodist Girls’ Post Graduate College, Roorkee, held a special camp at Dhandera village. Students and villagers also underwent a health check up. Girl students and women of the village were given information about HIVAIDS. Dr Madhulika Chaudhary, who was present at the camp, said AIDS had become a menace throughout the world and people must be made aware of the disease. Pamphlets on sanitation and AIDS prevention were also distributed by the NSS students in the village.
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Kite flying, prayers mark Basant celebrations
Haridwar, February 14 At Sai Sanskar Play School, Vivek Vihar, children offered prayers to a portrait of Goddess Saraswati. —TNS
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Amid strict vigil, couples flock to Mussoorie's Lovers’ Leap
Mussoorie, February 14 The vehicles were checked thoroughly at the entry points to control the anti-social elements, especially near the Kothal gate. Several young couples were seen heading towards Hathipaon and Benog Mountain Quail Sanctuary in order to celebrate the day with peace in serene environment amid green mountains. A film shooting unit from Mumbai also shot a few love scenes to mark the occasion. Former roller skater of the international repute Gopal Bhardwaj skated through the Camel’s Back road on his favourite fibre wheels to mark the celebrations. The 38 years of the historic Mussoorie to Dehradun rollerskating rally ended today. It was also on this day that he fell in love with his to-be-wife Beena Singh, who was one of the officials for the rally present on the eventful day. Gopal reminisced his love affair on that day and said it was different the way it was celebrated now. “Back then, expressing love had meaning; not like the youth of today for whom the Valentine’s Day had just become means to attain their sexual desires bereft of any platonic feeling.” Elaborating further, he said the main objective of the symbolic gesture of treading on roller skates was to pass the message to the youngsters that love was pious and it should not be demeaned to indecent levels. “The youth, instead of indulging into frivolous activities on the day, should channelise their thoughts towards some social and constructive activity, as they did by organising roller-skating rally from Mussoorie to Delhi on this day 38 years ago,” said Gopal. Passionate about maintaining the historical records, Gopal said the town had an age old history of Valentine’s Day. According to Gopal, the first recorded reference of Valentine’s Day is mentioned in the a book titled Mussoorie Merchant. In the book, the author has he revealed to his sister his unconditional love for a young lady whom he was planning to marry in Mussoorie. He also narrated another incident in which a lover, in a pursuit of showing their undying love, ended his life in Mussoorie from the Lovers’ Leap point. Now it is a popular place to visit on Valentine’s Day. Showing the rare picture of a British couple, Mary and John, who were in love with each other and resided in Mussoorie, said one day in 1866, Mary, while treading on the horse, lost control of the horse she was riding and lept from a point situated on the Camel’s Back road and fell in the ravines below. She died. When John came to know about the incident, he ended his life from the same spot, showing his undying love for her. Since then, the place is called Lovers’ Leap and has became a place of pilgrimage for many couples. — OC
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DM pulls up officials for poor quality of work
Dehradun, February 14 He directed officials to give charge of those roads, where the work of laying down water and sewerage pipes got completed by March, to the PWD so that it could also finish the carpeting of roads before the monsoon and people did not face any problem in commuting on these roads. Unhappy over the poor quality of work, Purushottam pulled up the officials saying that the ADB carried a good reputation of doing quality work in rest of the country, which was missing in the state. He also indicated towards many anomalies in the documentations pertaining to the project which reflected the ignorance of the officials about the ground work. He directed them to examine the work regularly. The residents of the colonies such as Chaudhary Colony, Sandhu Colony, Mool Chand Colony and Mool Chand Enclave in the Sevla Kala area complained to him about the sewer connections not facilitated last year and the dug-up roads posing inconvenience to them. Executive Engineer, ADB, BM Garg said pipes had been laid down and only the chambers had to be created which would be done by the next month. The DM found that the chambers formed on JMS roads were deeper than the required depth. At this, the officials informed him that the chambers were made at 5-metre depth because the lines of the Jan Sansthan and BSNL criss-crossing at upper level. The DM directed the officials to carry out the work at night to avoid any inconvenience.
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Women form chain against violence
Dehradun, February 14 The women from different walks of life formed a human chain that reached the Clock Tower and beyond. Carrying placards calling for an end to violence and gender, women from different districts lent their voice to the global movement. "Our movement is not against men but we are exhorting them to join the movement and extend solidarity with us so that violence against women could be fought jointly," said Jhanvi Tiwari of
Disha, an NGO. She said Mahatma Gandhi's doctrine of non-violence was not being
practised. "He wanted all forms of violence to end, especially the kind that is perpetuated against women, children and the weaker sections of society," she added. Similarly, Indu Naudiyal of the All-India Democratic Women's Association urged the Central Government to act on the recommendations of the Justice Verma Commission. Interestingly, just as women were at the forefront of the campaign, there were a few men to lend support to the movement, prominent being Dr Ravi Chopra of People's Science Institute
(PSI), Biju Negi, Lekhraj, Kamal Joshi, Prem Pancholi and a few members from the Communist Students' Wing. "Violence of any kind should be tolerated, more so if it is perpetuated against women," said Biju
Negi. Geeta Gairola said it was all about mindsets and the Delhi gangrape case had shown that the political class was always slow in reacting.
—TNS
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Vijay Cantt defeat XI star club
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Little Masters defeat Wonder Boys
Dehradun, February 14 Winning the toss, the Little Masters Cricket Club decided to field. Wonder Boys batting first scored 114 runs all out. Opener Durga Rawat was the highest scorer with 32 runs. Shubham, Vicky and Amit took two wickets each. In reply, the Little Masters’ Cricket Club scored 115 runs for three wickets to win the match by seven wickets. Openers Shubham and Kashif scored 37 and 123 runs, respectively.
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A large number of women today gathered at Gandhi Park, demanding an end to violence against women and gender discrimination as part of the global 'One Billion Rising'
(OBR) campaign. The women from different walks of life formed a human chain that reached the Clock Tower and beyond. Carrying placards calling for an end to violence and gender, women from different districts lent their voice to the global movement.
The team comprising garbage girl Jodie Underhill, staff members, Vijender Kumar and Karma, German volunteer Sid Conquest and member Rajat Saxena showed their love for the city by clearing the dump site of 40 bags of waste and also levelled the construction waste lying around. The team was informed by local residents and shopkeepers of the vicinity that the dump has been created by Municipality sweepers who collect the waste from adjoining areas and dump it at the site. Waste Warriors wants that the Mayor should look into the matter as Municipality sweepers are under his direct control. 
Dehradun, February 14