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BJP finding it tough to select candidates for civic poll
Nishank terms Harak’s appointment as TDC Chairman illegal
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Megh Raj equates Harish Rawat to a fused bulb
Letter to CM suggestive in nature: Haridwar MP
Chakrata development plan changed completely
Indiresh hospital to give 50% discount
Annual district conference of Lions Club begins
Over 500 examined at health, disability certification camp
Residents of 50 villages launch indefinite stir
Nainital institute to have planetarium by May
Swara Bhaskar’ s commitment to theatre a breath of fresh air
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BJP finding it tough to select candidates for civic poll
Dehradun, April 6 While the observers appointed by the BJP leadership are expected to hand over the list of probable candidates by April 8, the party has left the decision of selecting the candidate for the post of Mayor of Dehradun to the top leadership. The BJP leaders say that though the incumbent Mayor of Dehradun, Vinod Chamoli's name continues to figure in the list, things may not be smooth for him as his relationship with the three top leaders of the state comprising BC Khanduri, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and Bhagat Singh Koshiyari have been far from cordial. ''It was the backing of Khanduri that had helped Chamoli in contesting the second mayoral election in 2008. But thereafter the relationship has been on the decline. It was Chamoli who had distanced himself from Khanduri after he was removed from the post of Chief Minister. Though he was seen in close proximity with Nishank thereafter, it is unlikely that he would go all hog to support him. As far as Koshiyari is concerned, it is unlikely that he would extend support to Chamoli and has less stakes in Garhwal, said a senior BJP leader. The other contenders who are in the list, including Vinay Goel, Anil Goel, Umesh Aggarwal, too, are banking heavily on the support of these leaders, and have managed to garner considerable support among them. Even senior leader Harbans Kapoor is not keen to extend support to Chamoli and is keen to prop his own leader who had managed his election campaign. Further, at least all the three aspirants comprising Umesh Agarwal, Anil Goyal and Vinod Chamoli are eyeing the Dharampur seat to contest the mayoral elections. On the other hand, for the Haridwar mayoral seat, former Cabinet Minister Madan Kaushik is trying hard to get his brother elected from the mayoral seat. In Roorkee former MLA Suresh Chand Jain is also among the list of aspirants, while in Haldwani the new entrant to BJP Renu Adhikari is hoping to make a cut. In all the new corporations, the names of more than four aspirants are doing
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Nishank terms Harak’s appointment as TDC Chairman illegal
Dehradun, April 6 “A politician cannot head the corporation. The chairman should be either a government or state official. A minister cannot occupy office of profit as stated in the Article 102 (1) (A) and 191 (1) (a) and the holder of the post could even face disqualification. We have already brought the matter before the Governor and as the last resort, he would be forced to move the High Court,” said Nishank at a press conference today. Nishank said the minister’s claim that the office of the corporation’s Chairman was out of the list of office of profit was incorrect. “The minister is fooling the people by making such statements. I am surprised by the support extended by the Chief Minister to him. The Chief Minister is a former High Court Judge and is expected to know about these issues,” he said. He said the government should tell the people when the order was issued for removing the post of Chairman out of the list of office of profit. “The Agriculture Minister should act now and tender his resignation, otherwise the Governor may be forced to take drastic steps and cancel his membership,” said Nishank. |
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Megh Raj equates Harish Rawat to a fused bulb
Haridwar, April 6 Bahujan Samaj Party state chief Megh Raj Singh Zaraware while talking to TNS said that Harish Rawat somehow or the other won from Haridwar seat last time but now after four years of his tenure, the public has known his real face. Megh Raj cited Harish Rawat's four parliamentary losses from Almora constituency since 1991, which reflect the image of the Congress leader in his home constituency. He urged people of Haridwar to not get down with false assurances and much hyped visionary thinking of Harish Rawat,as he is himself putting hurdles in working of Congress-led Vijay Bahuguna state government. ''He (Harish Rawat) is a fused bulb since 1999 when he lost his fourth parliamentary election from Almora. People of Haridwar recharged his political battery which is sure to defuse once again in 2014 Lok Sabha election,'' said Megh Raj. Claiming emergence of BSP in the upcoming three-tier panchayat elections in Haridwar, the party state chief said that only BSP is able give clean governance and cater to both plain and hilly region people. Urging voters to seek explanation over the five-year tenure of the public representatives of BJP and Congress, Megh Raj said that in comparison, representatives hailing from BSP have catered to public aspirations. On the Bhatti commission report, furore and subsequently boycott of Budget session by BJP, Megh Raj termed it unfortunate. He also blamed former BJP Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank for flaying budget session. ''Nishank knew his name figured in Bhatti commission report; so he tried to force Congress government not to table the report in the House. If Nishank claims he is clean then why did he fear the report being tabled,''added Zaraware. |
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Bahuguna rejects Harish Rawat’s allegations
Dehradun, April 6 Giving details of the each project, Bahuguna wrote that 26.55 hectares had been earmarked in Laksar tehsil of Haridwar district for the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF), and the objections raised by NDRF are being sorted out. He further said that the state government had given its consent to house two battalions of NDRF at Srinagar in Pauri Garhwal and Almora. He said that it would be wrong to state that no land had been given to the NDRF. Regarding national flower research institute, Bahuguna said that 11 acres had been selected to construct nurseries and the Union Government had also been informed about it. But there is no confirmation of setting up of the said institute by the Union Government, he stated. He further said that to set up a national flower directorate, land had been identified at state farms at Ganga Lahri in Dehradun district and the Union Government was informed. On opening of an ESI medical college , Bahuguna said that Haridwar Municipal Corporation had provided 45 acres at village Missarpur and a proposal in this regard had been pending with the Union Labour Ministry. Moreover, to open four ESI hospital and dispensaries land had been physically handed over to the ESI at SIDUL, Haridwar, Pharma City, Selaqui, Dehradun, Tarla Nagal, Dehradun and village Jagatpur in Udham Singh Nagar district. On the opening of sugarcane research institute, he stated that land had been identified in Haridawr district but a final decision had to be taken by the Union Government. On opening of nursing college at Haridwar, he said that there is no such proposal from the Central Government. Bahuguna wrote that land acquisition for the Deoband-Roorkee railway in four out of total nine villages had been completed and there are talks between the Union and the state government on sharing of the cost of the project. Regarding Haridwar-Roorkee gas pipeline, Bahuguna wrote that the land had been given for the purpose by the state government. The Chief Minister requested Harish Rawat to use his good offices as a Union Cabinet minister to get these projects implemented on ground in
Uttarakhand.
Counter attack
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Letter to CM suggestive in nature: Haridwar MP
Haridwar, April 6 “The letter was written in good spirit and was ‘vegetarian’ in taste but the media and some rivals in the party tried to make it look ‘non-vegetarian’ or noxious,” he said. Rawat had in a letter to Bahuguna yesterday complained that the state government was not serious about development projects being sanctioned by the Union government. Notably, Rawat, MP from Haridwar, had stated in the letter that the previous BJP government hampered the projects of the UPA government for political reasons but now when there is a Congress-led government in Uttarakhand, many projects were still not being provided land or were being delayed. He mainly focused on projects relating to a medical college, an ESI hospital and the National Disaster Management Authority in Haridwar that were not being implemented due to lack of initiative by the state government in providing sufficient land and other facilities. Talking to The Tribune on the sidelines of a health camp, Rawat defended the contents of the letter saying “in a democracy everyone has the right to express his feelings”. “I have no qualms or complaint against the working of the Vijay Bahuguna-led state government. In fact, it has shown the previous BJP government how to use public funds by higher spending of the budget allocations during the last fiscal,” he said. He suggested that a land bank should be formed so that the availability of land could be ensured for projects related to education, medical, government institutions, industrial and public purposes. Rawat said a revenue committee headed by a secretary-level officer was the need of the hour. “Many projects of Central institutions have been shifted out of Uttarakhand and many more are on the brink of being relocated to other states due to the non-availability of sufficient land or delay in sanctioning land. The letter highlighted this aspect but the media misinterpreted it as my annoyance with the state government. This is totally wrong,” said Rawat. Dehradun: Union Minister of Water Resources Harish Rawat had yesterday shown his unhappiness at the delay in providing land for the national disaster relief battalion (NDRF), ESI hospital and medical college in Haridwar by the state government. In the letter written to the Chief Minister, he expressed his regrets that despite his repeated requests since 2009, the land for these three important institutions at Haridwar has not been provided by the state government. He said that despite the approval by the Union Labour and Home Ministries for these projects, nothing has been done, which was a matter of grave concern. |
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Chakrata development plan changed completely
Dehradun, April 6 The traders who had reservation on this plan asked MDDA to allow them to discuss the matter among themselves first. According to this new plan, the ground floor comprising lower ground and upper ground as well as first floor will be given to stakeholders .Second floor will be given to builders/developers. Third and fourth have been kept for parking purpose. Fifth and sixth floors will be used for residential purpose for those who would lose their houses under this plan. Seventh and eighth floors will be given to developers. These buildings are being built on PPP mode where builder company is not charging any cost neither from MDDA nor from stakeholders. They are adjusting their cost by building floors for their use. In this way, they will have four floors for their own use. MDDA will write to the state government to get permission to raise the height from permissible limit of 21 metres to 27 metres.
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Indiresh hospital to give 50% discount
Dehradun, April 6 The hospital management had made this announcement on the occasion of the Jhanda Mela. Brig Prakash said the hospital was already providing cent per cent discount on bed charges to the BPL cardholders. “The objective of the discount is to provide medical services to the masses on cheap rates,” he added. Principal of SGRR Medical College Prof SK Ghildiyal, Deputy Medical Superintendent of Shri Mahant Indiresh Hospital Dr VK Bihari, principal of SGRR PG College Prof VA Bourai also addressed the conference. |
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Annual district conference of Lions Club begins
Mussoorie, April 6 The chief guest on the occasion, Sunil Kumar along with his wife Kavita Kumar, inaugurated the conference by lighting the ceremonial lamp. Lion Lokmani Jakhwal welcomed all the members on the occasion and commended the role of various clubs in extending their support to him during various social and environmental programmes organised by the district. Lakhwal, informing the gathering, said that during his tenure more than 1500 trees were planted by clubs in the district in order to create awareness towards the environmental conservation. He that the club members also played an important role in providing sight to more than 2500 needy person through several eye camps held in the year. Jakhwal also said that members from the club, understanding their social responsibility through collective donation campaign, made arrangements for a blood van to assist them during blood donation camps. Sunil Kumar also praised the efforts of the club members for working towards creating awareness to the social issues such as female feoticide, domestic violence etc. He praised Lokmani Jakhwal for leading the clubs to serve the humanity in much better way in the end. Flag invocation ceremony and prayer for world peace was also held on the occasion. The third cabinet meeting was approved along with tabling of financial report. Sudhir Janmeja,Sunil Jain,Sushil Agarwal,conference chairman Alok Bhatnagar, conference coordinator Varun Berry,Anu Lamba, GK Gaud, Sunil Goel, MK Agarwal and Ravi Jain were present on the occasion. |
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Over 500 examined at health, disability certification camp
Mussoorie, April 6 Thirty five IAS trainees from the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration also counselled the people. Three persons were provided disability certificates after a complete medical check-up while 18 would be given the certificates in Dehradun later. Earlier, the camp was inaugurated by Director, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Padamveer Singh, who commended the efforts of the officer trainees in taking up their social responsibility seriously. He said the academy was also involved in providing benefits to the needy by conducting regular health camps, where medicines were provided free of cost. The Social Welfare Department distributed two wheelchairs, 70 hearing aides, 400 spectacles and walking sticks on the occasion. Probationers RC Shukla,Vibhu Goel, Vinod Nautiyal and others were present on the occasion.
IAS officers give counselling
Thirty five IAS trainees from the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration also counselled the people. Three persons were provided disability certificates after a complete medical check-up while 18 would be given the certificates in Dehradun later. |
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Residents of 50 villages launch indefinite stir
Pithoragarh, April 6 The agitation is being carried out under the banner of the Pungrao Ghati Ekta Manch. Manch president Dinesh Arya said their other demands included the opening of an ITI at Pankhu, government girls' high school at Pungrao Valley, nod to the construction of the Chausala-Nachni road and an allopathic hospital at Pankhu. Arya said three women agitators sat on a fast on the first day today and it was supported by more than 10 villagers who sat on a dharna. He said their agitation would continue till their demands were fulfilled. "While Congress leaders are claiming to have released funds for the construction of the roads, the department concerned is saying that it has received no funds." said
Arya.
Demands
The opening of an ITI at Pankhu, government girls' high school at Pungrao Valley, nod to the construction of the Chausala-Nachni road and an allopathic hospital |
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Nainital institute to have planetarium by May
Pithoragarh, April 6 “The equipment being installed at this round-shaped planetarium, which has been imported from Germany and USA, has reached Nainital. The equipment costs Rs 25 lakh,” said the director. According to the director of the institute, a sum of Rs 15 lakh is being spent on civil construction of the planetarium, which will be computer driven and ultra modern. “The space observation shows for school children and common tourists will start after the planetarium gets completed, for which we have purchased 40 space films from across the world,” said Hume Chandra, an space science at the institute. |
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Swara Bhaskar’ s commitment to theatre a breath of fresh air
Though the medium of theatre and films may be alike in the sense that both try to reach out to the masses, but the reach of the cinema is wide and expansive in nature. For me, theatre was the stepping-stone to films. While in Delhi I was associated with NK Sharma’s Act One Theatre Group and once I shifted to Mumbai, my friends comprising writers and music composers decided to come together. Thus Swaang was formed in 2011. Most of the members have full-time careers and try to contribute as much as we can towards the group,'' said Swara. She said the members of Swaang are spread all across the country and the cultural group expressed solidarity with the girl who lost her life after being attacked and gang-raped in the moving bus in New Delhi by composing the song ‘Ma Nee Meri’. A product of Jawaharlal Nehru University, Swara says the exposure at the university did shape her views about the political situation in the country and elsewhere, and she is determined to keep alive that flame. ''The pull towards progressive politics will continue and Swaang helps me vent my views on several issues. But at the same time, I am also happy that my childhood dream of becoming an actress has been realised,'' said Bhaskar, who is also a trained Bharatnatyam dancer. After making her debut on the silver screen for the first time in 'Madhokal Keep Walking,' Swara is looking forward to the release of 'Aurangzeb' under the banner of Yash Raj Films in May, followed by 'Raanjhanaa' and 'Machhli Jal ki Rani Hai.' In the manner of the hit film 'Manu Weds Tanu' in which she shared screen space with Kangana Ranaut, in her upcoming film 'Aurangzeb' she would be sharing space with newcomer Sasha Aga and Arjun Kapoor. But unperturbed, Swara says these issues are secondary. ''I am still trying to find my space in the film industry and meaningful roles are important for me. Besides, I cannot play roles where women are shown in bad light. This is the only area where I may disagree with my director,'' emphasised
Bhaskar.
Face of the week
For me, theatre was the stepping-stone to films. While in Delhi I was associated with NK Sharma’s Act One Theatre Group and once I shifted to Mumbai, my friends comprising writers and music composers decided to come together. Thus, Swaang was formed in 2011. |
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Mussoorie, April 6
Dehradun, April 6