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Sewage from nullahs continues to pollute Ganga
The Lalta Rao nullah near Gujrawalal Bhawan, causing water pollution in the Ganga in
Haridwar. Tribune photo: Rameshwar Gaur
Solid waste project
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Seeing huge crowd, medical team flees camp
Tech fest kick starts at IIT-Roorkee
Mussoorie MC passes
Rs 27.2-cr budget
Book fair begins at St George's College
Commissioner tells DM to clear pending cases
Street play on water conservation by Agaaz
A streetplay being staged by Agaaz Foundation on World Water Day in Dehradun on Friday. Tribune photo: Vinod Pundir
Spring festival to promote indigenous fruit begins today
Bhagat Singh remembered
Rao Cricket Academy win
YMCA make it to final of cricket tourney
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Sewage from nullahs continues to pollute Ganga
Haridwar, March 22 Twelve major nullahs, for which projects were declared to be launched by 2012, were directly polluting the holy Ganga river in the Haridwar-Rishikesh stretch. The proposal for launching the projects remains on paper only. In the name of cleaning the sacred river, billions of rupees have been sanctioned by the government, and the Chief Minister had categorically made it clear that before the Budget session, the flow from these nullahs into the river would be fully checked. As per figures with TNS provided by the Uttarakhand Pay Jal Nigam, Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan and Municipal Corporation, the flow from two major sewers in Rishikesh and 10 in Haridwar is yet to be tapped. In the Rishikesh Sai Ghat nullah and Saraswati nullah, survey work is going on under NGRBA project. Though concerned officials claim that within one year these two sewers will be completely sealed, gauging by the work at the site, it seems a distant dream. In Haridwar, government-run clean-Ganga project is under way. Besides, numerous drives by saints, religious organisations, institutions and social forums are being carried out on regular basis to prevent the massive flow from sewers from directly going into the Ganga. Ten such sewers at Khadkhadi, Lalta Rao nullah, Bhalla College, PWD upstream nullah, Shiv Lal Temple, Kassawan nullah, Pandewalla nullah, Ramrakha nullah, Latowali nullah and Gurbaksh Vihar-Hanumant Puram nullah still remain to be tapped to prevent them from polluting the Ganga. Work of tapping all these sewers is progressing slowly despite stern court directive to make the clean-Ganga campaign a success. Executive Officer, Haridwar Municipal Corporation, Harshwardhan Mishra, said that different nodal agencies were carrying out the tapping work under various schemes such as Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) and National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD). '' We are concerned about contamination and pollution of the Ganga, and by 2014, we will surely be able to completely block these sewers, which are pouring dirty water into the river,'' added Mishra. Social and RTI activist Surendra Singh Thapa lamented that despite more than Rs 20,000 crore having been spent on Ganga Action Plan and similar other projects, Ganga had been getting more polluted over the years. ''Government nodal agencies and departments on the ground level don’t work in accordance with the amount sanctioned for the clean-Ganga projects. Mass anomalies and corruption prevail when it comes to spending these funds meant for cleaning Ganga. More than four departments involved in tapping these sewers have failed to do so till date,'' said Thapa. Working administrator of Haridwar Municipal Corporation Jeevan Singh Nangiyal said that in Haridwar a sewer line was being laid throughout the MC periphery to ensure that the flow of sewage did not go into the Ganga. He acknowledged the fact that full tapping of major sewers was imperative for cleaning the Ganga. He assured that the sewers coming under the corporation ambit would soon be successfully tapped.
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Decision on transfer station postponed to April 12
Tribune News Service
Dehradun, March 22 The proceeding of the case is taking place for the last one and a half years and has reached its final stage. The high court is now to deliver the final verdict in the matter. The DMC is also preparing to give better representation to the matter regarding the scientific land fill (SLF), which is stuck with the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF). It had rejected the venue for the SLF for being close to a water body. The Director of the SWM project, also known as the Doon Valley Waste Management, Sidharth Jain, said, “Since the corporation lacks alternate land, we are now amending the earlier sent report. We will try our best to assuage the concerns of the MoEF experts in the matter.” He, however, admitted that they were nervous because of the number of rejections they had to face from the panel. They are contacting experts on the issue and making further changes in the report. Mukhya Nagar Adhikari Ashok Kumar, who earlier showed reluctance, is also taking keen interest in the project. He said he had given direction to his staff to find any alternate land if possible so that the project could continue unabated for its term of 15 years. He, however, remarked that in future, when bigger project would be needed after the exponential growth in population, a larger piece of land would be required for the purpose. He regretted that most of the land had been either sold or occupied and it was getting difficult to get vacant land in Dehradun which would pose problems for SWM project.
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Seeing huge crowd, medical team flees camp
Mussoorie, March 22 The children, after receiving the information of an immunisation camp, had assembled in large numbers at a school in Thatyur, but after seeing a large gathering at the camp, medical staff and the organisers developed cold feet and fled back without administering a single vaccine, alleged a villager. The villagers said they had come on foot to attend the camp, leaving their daily chores in order to get their children vaccinated, but the organisers, without giving any explanation, returned back without attending to even a single person here. Speaking to mediapersons, former gram pradhan of Thatyur Sanjay Panwar said they had received the information of such camp being held at Thatyur by the district administration and the villagers arrived at the camp site. They were shocked to hear that the medical staff had returned back without even administering a single dose of the vaccine. The Director, Raphael Ryder Cheshire Foundation, the organisers of the camp, said they had already clarified to the administration that they would be able to attend only limited person. He said it was possible that the news of the medical camp had spread in the villages which led to the situation. He said that seeing the large gathering, they, in consultations with the villagers, decided to cancel the immunisation programme for the day and reschedule it for later dates at the Nyay Panchayat level.
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Tech fest kick starts at IIT-Roorkee
Dehradun, March 22 The carnival provides an opportunity for students across technical institutions in the country and abroad to come together and share new ideas and technical innovations. The three-day festival includes more than 180 events such as workshops, exhibitions, international conferences, online events and lectures by renowned guest speakers. Addressing the inaugural gathering, chief guest Bhuwan Chaturvedi, an IIT(Roorkee) alumni and president and executive director of Hindustan Motors Limited, appreciated the reach of the event and the theme, "Aim inclusion", chosen for this year. — TNS
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Mussoorie MC passes
Rs 27.2-cr budget
Mussoorie, March 22 The issue of raising fare at two barriers on Mall Road, which are owned by the MC, also cropped up at the meeting, where it was decided to increase the fare at both barriers from Rs 100 to Rs 300. MC advocate Rajendar Panwar, while addressing the council members, said the fare at both barriers would be increased only after an amendment to the UP Municipality Act of 1916 and the amended proposal would then be sent for government approval. MC president OP Uniyal said the fare would be increased only after hearing the objections, if raised, by the people in the near future. MC Executive Officer PS Rawat said an electronic computing machine worth Rs 1 lakh had been installed at all barriers manned by the council to make the process convenient for commuters. Council members also discussed the issue of allotting parking lots at various places in the town. Ward members Virendar Rawat and Ramesh Bhandari said parking spaces should be allotted in accordance with the existing laws and the fare taken by the contractor should be monitored regularly so that they do not fleece the tourists. It was decided at the meeting that horse owners being rehabilitated in newly constructed shops would pay the premium and all shops would be allotted to them on a priority basis instead of auctioning them in the open market. Council members passed a resolution to cancel the allotment of land for the solid waste management project to Prakriti International and instead carry out the project under the MC in association with Asian Development Bank, which has agreed to fund the project in Mussoorie. Ward members Sushil Agarwal, Jaikumar Gupta, Dinesh Badoni, Dr RK Singh, Jasvir Kaur and others were present on the occasion. Meanwhile, most of the ward members who had been at loggerheads with each other during council meetings in the past were in somber mood and interacting in a congenial working environment.
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Book fair begins at St George's College
Mussoorie, March 22 The fair is being organised in association with Book Tractor, an organisation involved in nurturing young minds. Students from class VI to XII participated in the fair and bought several books of various publishers, ranging from fiction to real-life drama. Senior students were attracted towards bestselling novels by Amish Tripathi, namely ‘The Immortals of Meluha’, ‘The Secret of Nagas’ and the ‘Oath Of The Vayuputras’, while junior students bought books written by authors like Ruskin Bond, Hugh, Colleen Gantzer, Ganesh Saili and many other foreign writers. The Principal of St George’s College, Bro Christopher, said the whole idea behind the book fair was to bring the students closer to the books to enhance their knowledge during their growing years. Vice-president of Book Tractor Sandeep Singh said it was heartening to see the students converging at the school library to buy books in large numbers. He further said the organisation was involved in nurturing the young minds. He also said around 722 titles of various authors, including Chetan Bhagat, John Grisham and others, were on display in the fair. Speaking to mediapersons, librarian of the school N Khan said they had been organising the book fair for the past two years and it had evoked a posi\tive response among the students here. The fair will conclude tomorrow.
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Commissioner tells DM to clear pending cases
Dehradun, March 22 He said the complaints of public and employees as well those received from the Chief Minister’s Office must be addressed swiftly. Sharma directed all Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDM) to inspect the tehsils at least once in a year and peruse matters related to arms dealers. He expressed concern at the low collection of dues. He, however, said the collection of dues from the power and industries departments and banks was satisfactory. Sharma also inspected the DM’s office and other related offices of the district administration. He said there was need to build a new building for the DM’s office. District Magistrate BVRC Purushottam informed Sharma about a proposal to use a five-storey building with a basement as the DM’s office. He said a new building would also be built to house the Collectorate office. ADM, Finance, Jharna Kamthan, City Magistrate Harak Singh Rawat, SDM, City, Girish Gunwant and SDM, Mussoorie, NS Dangi accompanied the Commissioner
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Street play on water conservation by Agaaz
Dehradun, March 22 Laying stress on the importance of water conservation, JP Mathani, founder, Agaaz Foundation, disclosed that a large population, particularly in the developing countries, was affected due to water scarcity. Referring to Uttarakhand, Maithani said the speedy drying of traditional water sources in the hilly areas had come up as a major challenge for the state and sincere efforts were needed for its conservation. Surendra Singh Thapa from the Sarthak Foundation spoke on the rising problem of pollution in the water bodies in the state. Another speaker Satish Dhaulkhandi expressed concern over rampant exploitation of ground water by builders. The Centre for Integrated Development's Director Rakesh Pant said there had been a constant increase in demand of drinking water in Dehradun but the state authorities had so far failed to take adequate measures towards conserving water sources. Street Play "Nadi Ki Kahani" staged on the occasion was highly appreciated by the audience. Pamphlets appealing people to work towards conservation of water were also distributed.
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Spring festival to promote indigenous fruit begins today
Dehradun, March 22 The edible fruit kaphal has been selected to promote biodiversity, conserve indigenous germ plasm and promote indigenous fruit plants. While addressing a press conference during the curtain raiser at Raj Bhavan, Principal Secretary to the Governor Ashok Pai said that every year the spring festival was providing a platform to the farmers so that they got familiarised with different farming techniques. “The farmers get an opportunity to interact with the officials and also showcase their produce,” said Pai. He said that the first-day cover featuring the yellow flower of kilmora (Berberis Asiatica), a medicinal herb grown in Uttarakhand, would also be released. As with previous years, the stalls of art and crafts, Central and state departments and agriculture universities would also be set up along with stalls of various firms manufacturing horticulture tools, micro irrigation system, mulching sheet and pesticides would be set up. The distribution of flowers will open for the general public on March 23 and 24 and the distribution of prizes would take place on March 24. This year 11 categories of competition have been included. On-the-spot photography contest, floral rangoli competition, painting competitions for physically and mentally challenged children, schoolchildren, rag pickers and street children will be among the events at the festival.
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Bhagat Singh remembered
Haridwar, March 22 Various programmes were held across the city, where people shed light on his life, achievements and impact on the Indian freedom struggle. The Communist parties also jointly held a special remembrance programme at Bhagat Singh Chowk. Veteran CPI (M) leader RC Dhiman said the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh gave a turn to the Indian freedom movement, igniting the minds of the countrymen to fight against the tyranny of British. Central secretary of the labour cell of the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal Uday Ram Semwal said Bhagat Singh used to read Bhagwad Gita and books by Lenin and Marx, influence in which can be easily felt in his ideology.
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Rao Cricket Academy win
Dehradun, March 22 Batting first after winning the toss, supported by a century by Deepankar, Rao Cricket Academy scored 244 for seven wickets in 30 overs. Deepankar scored 106 runs in 89 balls with the help of 15 boundaries. Ashish Pal also scored 54 runs. Sunny took three wickets for 48 runs. In reply, Blue Star Club was all out for 135 runs in 20.6 overs, losing the match by 109 runs. Manish was the top scorer of the team with 34 runs. Kiran Singh took five wickets for 32 runs.
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YMCA make it to final of cricket tourney
Dehradun, March 22 In the first seminal, the YMCA team defeated Doon Warriors by two runs. Batting first after winning the toss, the YMCA team made 139 runs all out in 19.1 overs. Kapil was the top scorer with 30 runs. Prashant took six wickets for 20 runs. In reply, Doon Warriors was all out for 137 runs, losing the match by just two runs. Opener Shariq made 44 runs while Gurpreet took three wickets for 21 runs. In the second match, Doon Combined Club defeated Ajabopur Youngsters by eight wickets to enter the semifinal. Batting first after winning the toss, Ajabpur Youngsters scored 95 all out in 16.3 overs. In reply, the Doon team scored 97 runs at the loss of two wickets to win the match by eight wickets. Vaibhav scored unbeaten 44 runs.
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Despite Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna giving assurance of launching projects to prevent sewage from flowing directly into the Ganga river a month ago while on a visit to Haridwar, at the ground level the fate of the projects seems to be still hanging in balance.
An estimated budget of Rs 27.20 crore was presented and unanimously passed at the last meeting of the present Municipal Council held here today. The five-year tenure of the present council comes to an end this month, therefore members took active interest in passing the pending proposals here.
More than 20 publishers from around the country today showcased their books in a two-day book fair that began at St George’s College here with an objective to inculcate reading habits among students.
The fair is being organised in association with Book Tractor, an organisation involved in nurturing young minds.
Students from class VI to XII participated in the fair and bought several books of various publishers, ranging from fiction to real-life drama.
As part of the World Water Day observation, several non-government organisations led by the Agaaz Foundation today staged a street play at Gandhi Park,
Dehradun, informing the visitors about the importance of water conservation.
