Victors to make Kumaon clean
Pithoragarh, May 1
Pledging to solve all the problems being faced by their respective urban bodies, victorious candidates in urban bodies in Kumaon region emphasised on providing better sanitation and roads in towns.

Consolation wins for Cong in US Nagar
Pithoragarh, May 1
The Terai region of Udham Singh Nagar district gave some hope to the Congress in the Kumaon region where the party won five out of the 11 seats of chairman in the local bodies’ elections.

Mussoorie BJP in disarray after losing poll
Mussoorie, May 1
With the debacle faced by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Municipal Council elections, the blame game has begun in the party in Mussoorie.

BSP candidate elected chairperson of Kotdwar nagar panchayat
Dehradun, May 1
Kotdwar town has become famous for producing unexpected results in elections. This time the people of the town has elected BSP candidate Rashmi Rana as the chairperson of the Kotdwar Nagar Panchayat. Rashmi defeated the candidates of both Congress and BJP.

Durgapal greets workers on May Day 
Dehradun, May 1
Uttarakhand Labour and Employment Minister Harish Chandra Durgapal today greeted people on occasion of May Day. He visited Himalayan Drug Company and met the workers.

Elated Cong workers take out procession
Mussoorie, May 1 Elated Congress workers today took out a victory procession after party candidate Manmohan Singh Mall won the seat of president of the Municipal Council of Mussoorie.

Haridwar, May 1
Manoj Garg, newly elected Mayor of the Haridwar Municipal Corporation, has resolved to restore the lost glory of the civic body, which was adjudged as the best civic body in erstwhile Uttar Pradesh in early 1950s. The civic body has incurred a debt of about Rs 10 crore in recent years, which makes his task tough.

Talking to The Tribune at his election office in Vivek Vihar today, the new chief Garg put forth his views on issues that would be on priority .

Citing Rs 10 crore debt, the Mayor blamed the previous Municipal Committee for the ill-work. He said the previous regime could not even chalk out a single major development project for the city and failed to check the rising debt.

Apart from this, the Municipal Corporation had to release wages for the last four months to the contractual workers, recruited by the previous Municipal Committee.

" I am hopeful that with the full majority in the 30-member Corporation, we would be able to resolve these issues at the earliest. I assure each and every corporation worker that their interests will not get affected. Development of the city is on my agenda, for which I will not hesitate to reach out to contractual worker and citizens," said Garg, who won the mayoral seat after defeating Congress candidate Swami Rishishwaranand.

Manoj Garg said he knew that the city did not have a world-class infrastructure but in the coming years he would make sure that the city became one of the best cities in the region.

"Haridwar had got the Best City Award in 1952 for cleanliness, sanitation and street lighting. I want to restore the lost glory of the city by improving cleanliness, saintiation, street lighting. Millions of pilgrims or tourists come to Haridwar every year , after every six years the Ardh Kumbh fair and after every twelve years Maha Kumbh are held, so we need to work on a master plan for the city," said Garg.

Task ahead doesn't seems to be easy for the new mayor as coming up of new residential colonies in recent years, establishment of the industrial estate in SIDCUl, laying of 5 km sewer line are the issue need to be tackled.

Door-to-door collection of garbage has begun in only two colonies of the city, which needs to be extended to in all 30 wards of the city.

He said with the Municipal Corporation status, various Centre-run schemes would come to the town. He said he was ready to seek suggestion from Haridwar MP Harish Rawat for the development of the city.

Garg said local legislators Madan Kaushik and Aadesh Chauhan had also given some suggestions for the development of the town and assured full support to him.

Dehradun, May 1
Vinod Chamoli, who was re-elected Mayor of the Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC), paid obeisance at the Martyrs' Memorial on the Collectorate premises here today.

Chamoli was accompanied by his supporters and party leaders and he met prominent leaders of statehood agitation. He told mediapersons that "I have come to take the blessings of the martyrs who had always paved the way for me. The souls of these martyrs are safeguarding the state. Whatever we are at present is because of these martyrs."

Chamoli criticized the Congress saying, "Congress leaders must have applied their minds before choosing the candidate for the Mayor's seat. The Congress once again had to face a drubbing in the election for Mayor's seat. Still I am amazed how its candidate garnered so many votes. This needs to be analysed thoroughly."

He said with a majority in the DMC he would be able to complete pending projects and start new ones. Asked about how he would confront the problem of lack of support and funds from the state government, Chamoli said, "It is a different matter altogether now. Now, with a majority on my side, I will have my way with the government. It is difficult to deal with the government of your own party. I know how to get works done from the government led by the opposition party."

He did not accept the contention that BSP candidate Rajni Rawat gave him an advantage as Congress votes shifted to her. He also thanked the leaders of the statehood agitators like Jagmohan Singh Negi, Pradeep Singh Negi, Bhanu Rawat, Omi Uniyal and Sushil Dhyani of the Uttarakhand Andolankari Forum.

Chamoli thanked the BJP for giving him ticket and reposing faith in his abilities. He invited all statehood agitators to his swearing-in ceremony at the DMC compound on Friday.

Meanwhile, Pradeep Singh Negi said he was happy that a statehood agitator won the Mayor's seat.

He added regardless of deterioration in politics this was heartening that leaders of all parties had been coming to pay homage to the martyrs. This practice also kept the issues of statehood agitators and their contribution alive.

Negi said the families of these martyrs got solace when leaders remembered sacrifices made by the martyrs.

Pithoragarh, May 1
Pledging to solve all the problems being faced by their respective urban bodies, victorious candidates in urban bodies in Kumaon region emphasised on providing better sanitation and roads in towns.

“The historic city of Almora has become dirty. It is full of stray animals, which are keeping away tourists from coming to the town. My first priority will be to improve the sanitation system of the town, besides making arrangements to keep monkeys and other stray animals away from the town,” said Prakash Joshi, newly elected chairman of Almora Nagar Palika Parishad.

Spelling out his priorities before the local press today, Joshi said that Almora Nagar Palika Parishad was in debt of Rs 13 crore. Getting rid of it will be his top priority.

In Pithoragarh Nagar Palika Parishad, winning Congress candidate Jagat Singh Khati gave details of his priorities and said that investigation into irregularities during BJP rule in the parishad will be his first priority. “To repair parks inside palika parishad, repairs or reconstruction of broken link roads and proper sanitation are my priorities for my coming tenure,” said Jagat Singh Khati.

Chairperson-elect in Bageshwar Gita Rawal has vowed to keep the town neat and clean and provide it with regular electricity and effective sewage system. Kapkot chairperson Champa Devi said that she would give priority to construction of toilets and proper sanitation for the town. “We will have to fight to keep our town free from pollution as it happens to be the source of river Saryu,” said Champa Devi, BJP candidate who won from Kapkot.

Victorious candidates from Dharchula and Lohaghat vowed to make their towns as model towns. Chairman- elect in Gangolihat and Didihat nagar panchayats have given priority to sanitation and arrangements for water in their respective towns. “As the Congress government is doing developmental works at the Centre and in state, we would follow their policies for development in Dharchula town,” said Dasrathi Khair, chairperson-elect in Dharchula town.

Pithoragarh, May 1
The Terai region of Udham Singh Nagar district gave some hope to the Congress in the Kumaon region where the party won five out of the 11 seats of chairman in the local bodies’ elections. The party could not open its account in Nainital district and won only 50 per cent of the total seats of ward member in Almora, Bageshwar and Pithoragarh districts.

The Congress candidates were elected chairmen of the Kiccha, Khatima, Sirtarganj, Bajpur and Shaktigarh nagar panchayats while the Samajwadi Party won the seats of chairperson of the Kelakhera and Mahuadabra nagar panchayats.

Independent candidates were elected chairmen of the Dineshpur and Sultanput Patti nagar panchayats while the BJP won the seat of chairman of the Gadarpur nagar panchayat,” said Mathura Dutt Joshi, a Congress spokesman.

Joshi said mostly Independent candidates were elected ward members in the elections this time and this was bound to make the functioning of the local bodies difficult. “All seven seats of ward member in the Mahuadabra and Sultanpur Patti nagar panchayats were won by Independents, who defeated the candidates of the mainstream parties,” he added. Consolation wins for Cong in smaller towns of US nagar district 

Mussoorie, May 1
With the debacle faced by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Municipal Council elections, the blame game has begun in the party in Mussoorie.

Several party workers in the review meeting held at a hotel in Mussoorie alleged that the party officials, including the president of the local unit Roop Singh Kathait, along with other officials worked against the party candidates, resulting in loss in all wards and for the post of president.

The party workers alleged that the local BJP MLA Ganesh Joshi also did not work of the party and was instead colluding with the Opposition, resulting in the win of the Congress candidates. The party workers also alleged that on one hand the party registered a win from the area under the Mussoorie Assembly segment in Dehradun, but in Mussoorie it failed to field a BJP candidate from the area where the BJP MLA Ganesh Joshi resides. They also demanded resignation of the local party unit officials after the debacle in the MC elections.

The ward-level BJP candidates, Vijendar Bhandari and Dharampal Panwar along with other members such as Ashutosh Kothari and Gambhir Panwar also alleged that some party officials were seen seeking votes for Opposition candidates, and now had lost the moral right to remain in the office in Mussoorie.

Sarojini Kaintura, the president of the local women's cell of the party, who also contested from Kacheri ward number 7 and lost, was so enraged that she tendered her resignation to the president Roop Singh Kathait. She also said that the party officials instead of assisting them were hand-in-glove with Opposition party, resulting in her loss from the ward number 7.

When contacted the BJP local unit president Roop Singh Kathait, responding to the allegations, said that considering the anger of the party workers, the details of the debacle in the elections would be sent to the high command where after the review action will be intiated.

The election in charge of BJP, Ravi Mohan Goyal, speaking on the loss of the party, alleged that the whole government machinery was working for the Congress candidates. He also said that the sudden enforcement of the law under rule 4 of the Election Commission around 4 pm and not informing the parties other than the Congress showed that the administration was working at the behest of the Congress.

He further alleged that the Congress resorted to bogus voting, thus leading to loss of BJP in the elections here. He also said that the BJP was collecting the proof and would take action following that.

The losing presidential candidate, OP Uniyal, said that the party workers were saddened at the surprising loss and were venting their ire accordingly. He also said that action would be taken after a complete review. Respecting the verdict of the people, he extended greetings to the newly elected council members and said that he would support them in any development work but would also oppose any anti-people activity started by the council in the near future.

Dehradun, May 1
Kotdwar town has become famous for producing unexpected results in elections. This time the people of the town has elected BSP candidate Rashmi Rana as the chairperson of the Kotdwar Nagar Panchayat. Rashmi defeated the candidates of both Congress and BJP.

Earlier Kotdwar was in the news when former Chief Minister BC Khanduri lost the Assembly election here to Surendra Singh Negi of the Congress. Khanduri headed the last Assembly election campaign of the BJP but he himself lost the Kotdwar seat. The party was banking so heavily on Khanduri’s stature that it went to the Assembly election with his ‘Sushasan’ (good governance) plank. But the voters of Kotdwara had something else in mind and Khanduri not only suffered a humiliating defeat but also the BJP lost the opportunity to form the government in Uttarakhand as it secured one seat less than the Congress.

In the civic bodies’ polls, the chairperson’s seat in the Kotdwara Nagar Panchayat was reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Caste category. This disturbed the election strategies of both BJP and Congress. Health Minister Surender Singh Negi’s political moves in the local bodies’ elections also failed.

The people of Kotdwar elected Rashmi Rana, an unknown but educated woman, as the chairperson of the local nagar panchayat. 

Dehradun, May 1
Uttarakhand Labour and Employment Minister Harish Chandra Durgapal today greeted people on occasion of May Day. He visited Himalayan Drug Company and met the workers. In his interaction with the employees, Durgapal said workers played an important role in the development of a country.

He reminded the initiatives taken by the Uttarakhand government towards betterment of the working class in the state. He said better pay and perks were being ensured for workers in the unorganised sector. A dignostic centre and a 100-bed hospital were also coming up at Haridwar to provide best of medical facilities to the workers. Dispensaries at Selaqui Dehradun and Rudrapur were also being established, he added.

Durgapal said his ministry was also coming up with several other schemes for the benefit of workers. 

Mussoorie, May 1
Elated Congress workers today took out a victory procession after party candidate Manmohan Singh Mall won the seat of president of the Municipal Council of Mussoorie.

The party workers gathered at Tailors Flat in Landour Bazaar along with victorious Congress councillors and marched all along Mall Road till Gandhi Chowk raising slogans.

They danced to the beats of drums and musical instruments especially brought from the nearby Jaunpur block. Manmohan addressed the gathering at Gandhi Chowk and said he would take the entire council in confidence and earnestly work for the development of the town. Former MLA from Mussoorie Jot Singh Gunsola, local Congress unit president Bhagwan Singh Dhanai, were present on the occasion. — OC

Dehradun, May 1
After the Uttarakhand government acted tough on the striking review officers working in the Secretariat by banning the officers from staging a sit-in inside the Secretariat, the unrelenting officers shifted the venue outside the main gate of the Secretariat.

Among the five- point charter of demands that the review officers have been demanding for implementation, the payment of arrears from 2006 onwards has not found favour with the government.

''Though the Principal Secretary had agreed to our demand during the last two meetings, it was turned down by the Department of Finance for lack of finance but the government had conceded to these demands in the past,'' said JP Makhuri, president of Review Officers' Secretariat.

The Finance Department had turned down the demand as it is likely to put additional fiscal burden on the government forcing the officers to continue with their strike that entered the 21st day today.

Today, the Uttarakhand Cabinet Minister Harak Singh Rawat and Principal Secretary(Industries)Rakesh Sharma also held parleys with the striking review officers but the deadlock continued.

Today Section 144 was enforced at the Secretariat to bring around the striking officers. It only led to more resentment and anger.