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No action in “scam” involving medical institute appointments
Jhanda mela begins today
Khanduri extends good wishes
Padma Bhushan Kunwar Singh Negi passes away
Encroachments removed from Rajpur Road
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CS reviews repair work on Char Dham Yatra route
NSUI students demand employment generating courses
Tehri villages bereft of basic amenities
Nishank begins campaign for Lok Sabha poll in right earnest
BJP candidate from the Haridwar Lok Sabha seat Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank meets people while canvassing for the elections in the Rest Camp area in Dehradun on Thursday. A Tribune photograph
Cong on the backfoot in Pauri Garhwal
Roadshow in Nishank's support
Infighting in BJP to the fore, Bacchi Singh not to campaign for Koshiyari
Tehri nominee Mala Raj Lakshmi will get big lead in
Mussoorie: Joshi
‘New parties not to dent vote share of Cong, BJP ’
Prince Vipon nominated for global TT events
Dehradun-Purkul-Mussoorie ropeway project awaits nod
Eco Task Force begins tree-planting drive
Euro number plates stolen from cars in Mussoorie
Thieves decamp with Rs 50,000
School owner sent to judicial custody
Play highlighting issue of crime against women staged
Kavi sammelan marks day two of student week
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No action in “scam” involving medical institute appointments
Dehradun, March 20 Irked over failure of the state government in taking action into the matter, which highlighted the wide-scale anomalies taking place in the nigam, UPNL Chairman Lt Gen MC Badhani (retd) has decided to approach the Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi, seeking his intervention in the case, Speaking to The Tribune, Lt Gen Badhani (retd) said that there is a strong indication that these 32 appointments were made by flouting norms. “Ever since the scam was reported I had written twice to the Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat seeking an enquiry. In fact the Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar had called up and asked for the documents related to the scam. However, he was told that the documents are with Brig Bahuguna (retd), Director of the Directorate of Sainik Kalyan. Since then nothing has been done,” he added. “I have a strong hunch that the documents related to the appointments
might be fudged or compromised to hush up the matter in connivance with somebody from the higher authorities in the Directorate and the state government. That is why I had demanded an enquiry from an outside agency,” the chairman added. “On one hand the Congress is pressing for a corruption-free India and on the other hand, the state government being led by Harish Rawat is doing nothing to resolve the issue that has the sentiments of ex-servicemen attached to it. Till date neither the
documents have been seized nor sealed to prevent its misuse. This is a clear indication that the authorities are trying to hush up the matter,” added Lt Gen Badhani (retd). It may be recalled in a letter shot on February 20, the chairman had requested the CM for an enquiry into the alleged irregularities during the 32 appointments made in the institute by UPNL in 2013. In a letter, the chairman not only requested for an immediate enquiry but also demanded the suspension of UPNL Managing Director Brig AN Bahuguna (retd) so that he is not able to influence the enquiry. The appointments were made at the time
Brig Bahuguna was heading the nigam. It was also requested that the enquiry be conducted from an
outside agency so that either the employees of UPNL or the Directorate of Sainik Kalyan could not influence members of the enquiry team. The issue of irregularity came to light when in January members of Sanyukt Karamchari Mahasangh objected to the 32 appointments made on contractual basis in the Medical College, outsourced from UPNL. The objection was being raised on the basis that joining was done nearly nine months after the issuance of contract letters. As per the rules, the contractual employee has to join within a month of issuance of contract letter, failing which the offer stands cancelled. In this case the joining letter was issued in May 2013. It may also be mentioned here that Secretary,
Medical Education, had placed a ban on the institute for outsourcing the employees in October 2012. However, following a request from the college authorities UPNL had issued 32 fresh appointment letters in May 2013. Formed in 2004 with an aim to provide employment to the ex-servicemen and their dependents in Uttarakhand, UPNL has been outsourcing for various government departments and private players since then. The appointments made via the nigam are on contractual basis. Though the priority is given to the ESMs, a government order has been issued to cover the civilians as well.
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Jhanda mela begins today
Dehradun, March 20
Over 150 policemen will be deployed in and around the venue for the next fortnight with the Quick Response Team (QRT) manning the most crowded places and keeping a close vigil on suspicious elements. Besides constables, 17 sub-inspectors and 20 head-constables will also be a part of the overall security arrangements. “We have received force from all the police stations of the district and tight security arrangements have been put in place to ensure trouble free Jhanda Fair this year. We have also deputed Sub-Inspector Pradeep Pant to For the constant electronic surveillance, the management of the Guru Ram Rai Darbar has also installed 22 CCTV cameras at selected places to monitor all the activities in the fair. The Jhanda Fair is held on the fifth day after Holi every year. The fair is celebrated in the memory of Guru Ram Rai, who established Dehradun city with thousands of devotees, especially from Punjab and Haryana. Mahant Devendra Dass Maharaj delivered guru manta to the pilgrims of the east here today.
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Khanduri extends good wishes
Dehradun, March 20 The former Chief
Minister also extended his wishes to Kumari Reena Maithani for standing first in the essay writing competition organised by the National Women Commission in the Ukhimath block in
Rudrapur. |
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Padma Bhushan Kunwar Singh Negi passes away
Dehradun, March 20 Born in Pauri Garhwal district in 1927, Kunwar Singh made several books available for the blind in Braille. He retired as Braille editor from the National Institute of Visually Handicapped, Dehradun. His biggest contribution was transcribing the Gurmukhi in the Braille script titled “Bani Nitnem” and also the “Sukhmani Sahib”. His work received recognition from the Union Government and he was awarded the Padma Shri in 1981 and Padma Bhushan in 1990. Shri Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee had bestowed Sikh Gaurav award to him. He was also closed linked to Bharat Netrahin Samaj, Punjab, and National Federation of Blind in Delhi. |
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Encroachments removed from Rajpur Road
Dehradun, March 20 As part of their anti-encroachment drive, a team from the DMC removed encroachments from the Regional Transport Office up to Jakhan. Besides clearing encroachments adjacent to the platforms and on the roads, the officials also warned the erring shopkeepers and kiosk owners of stringent action in case they were found encroaching upon the area again. |
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CS reviews repair work on Char Dham Yatra route
Dehradun, March 20 In a press note issued here it was stated that the CS reviewed the route from Harshil to Maneri by road and gave directions to repair the damaged patches before the yatra begins. The Public Works Department and Border Roads Oragnisation are carrying out the repair and road widening work of the damaged highway. The work from Harshil to Bhatwadi is being carried out by PWD whereas work from Bhatwadi to Maneri is also being undertaken by PWD. Subhash Kumar gave directions to increase the pace of work and said that he will again conduct a review visit on 15 April. ''It is very important to finish the repair works under any circumstances so that pilgrims can visit the temples without any problem. We will have to prove that both Gangotri and Yamunotri are safe for tourists. The landslide zones will Additional Chief Secretary Rakesh Sharma said that there has been an increase in the compensation amount. He added that Bhatwadi is a landslide sensitive zone and experts have given advice to displace people from their areas. |
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NSUI students demand employment generating courses
Mussoorie, March 20 Manmohan Singh Mall is also the chairman of the managing committee of the college. Rawat presented a memorandum to Mall, seeking more employment generating courses for the
students here. Ritesh Rawat said they have been demanding introduction of professional courses from past several decades, but their demands have not been met as yet. “Mussoorie is a famous tourism spot, but there are no courses related to tourism in the college due to which the students, who belong to poor strata of the community are forced to look for better avenues elsewhere, which is not only cumbersome exercise but expensive too,” said Rawat. Presenting the memorandum, Rawat demanded introduction of courses such as Hotel Management, Mass communication and Tourism in the college from the new academic year. Mall assured the NSUI members, that he
would speak about the problem with the concerned authorities and try to resolve the problems
of the students on priority basis. However, the members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarti Parishad (ABVP), the opposing student group affiliated to BJP, termed the meeting as only an election gimmick. The ABVP student leaders said if the NSUI members had shown the same interest in fulfilling the other demands of the student earlier, a headway could have been made so far. |
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Tehri villages bereft of basic amenities
Mussoorie, March 20 The villagers from the region have been demanding adequate health, road connectivity, education, drinking water facilities from the concerned authorities but all such pleas have fallen on deaf ears so far. Around one dozen villages, Kolti, Malwana, Ladur, Kimoi, Kapolti,Tuneta,Jhinsi, Baman Gaon etc are still awaiting a motorable road to their villages since Independence. The local residents Gambhir Singh Panwar ,Virendar Singh, Mahavir Singh lamented the fact that several public representatives while seeking votes had promised to bring in the road and provide adequate health and education facilities but they seem to forget after the elections are over. The condition of Ladur village is even worse as it has not received electricity supply in the village as yet. The residents said around a dozen villages were without any school beyond class eight. — TNS |
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Nishank begins campaign for Lok Sabha poll in right earnest
Haridwar, March 20 In this regard on a daily basis the former Uttarakhand Chief Minister is holding meetings with party leaders and workers. He has temporarily made the city party office at Devpura his election office and is reviewing the campaign progress. Three-time legislator Madan Kaushik, who was also among the claimants for the BJP ticket from Haridwar, is angry at the allocation of ticket to Nishank. He has been absent from Nishank’s campaign. However, Nishank has been able to garner support of four other legislators from the district. Haridwar rural Assembly segment Swami Yatishwaranand, Ranipur-BHEL MLA Aadesh Chauhan, Lakshar MLA Sanjay Gupta and Jwalapur legislator Chandrasekhar Bhattewalla have expressed their support and faith in Nishank’s candidature. This has boosted former CM's candidature and party activists too seem to be happy with the party high command’s decision. Now,they feel they can really retain Haridwar seat, which was held for three consecutive terms in the 90s by party candidate Harpal Sathi. Addressing party workers at the city office, Pokhriyal said that all of them should start reaching voters as the party has reposed faith in his abilities, while he himself is banking on the work of party workers. He claimed the BJP was in a winning position owing to a ''pro-Narendra Modi wave, ill-governance of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance and lack of development done during sitting MP Harish Rawat’s tenure in Haridwar.” Nishank added that along with Haridwar seat, the BJP will win from other four constituencies also, Pauri Garhwal, Tehri Garhwal, Almora-Pithoragarh and Naintal-Udham Singh Nagar. Refuting any major resentment within the party rank and file, the six-time legislator said that if any one has any issues he is open to express with the party high command but should abide by the decision as no one is above the party. Nishank said that he never vied for MP ticket as he had been busy with the work in his Assembly segment in Doiwala, but it was the party high command's decision to field all three former CMs BC Khanduri (Pauri Garhwal), Bhagat Singh Koshyari (Nainitial) and he himself. “Whatever the party says should be final for all of us, be it a minister, MP, legislator, Cabinet ranked, senior or grass-root worker. The time is to strengthen BJP to reach 272 plus figure, otherwise neither the party nor the public will pardon the violators. |
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Cong on the backfoot in Pauri Garhwal
Dehradun, March 20 Satpal Maharaj is the sitting MP from Pauri Garhwal and he has categorically announced not to contest the parliamentary elections this time. He has even denied that any of his family members could contest in his place. Though he won only twice, Satpal Maharaj has contested from the Pauri Lok Sabha seat for a staggering seven times in the past. In the last 2009 parliamentary polls, Satpal Maharaj defeated Lt Gen TPS Rawat (retd) by a margin of 17,397 votes. Maharaj had polled 2,36,949 votes while Lt Gen Rawat secured 2,19,552 votes. Ever since polyhouse subsidies irregularities were raked up in the state and Opposition in particular targeted Satpal Maharaj’s wife and Cabinet minister Amrita Rawat for her involvement, Maharaj has not been having good relations with the Chief Minister Harish Rawat. The matters became worse when Harish Rawat while distributing portfolios to his ministers did to give horticulture to Amrita Rawat, the department held by her in the Vijay Bahuguna government. A war of words that subsequently erupted between Satpal Maharaj and Harish Rawat caused much damage to the Congress. However, in efforts to placate Satpal Maharaj, Chief Minister Harish Rawat in public admitted to committing an error by not giving Horticulture Department to Amrita Rawat. But a reluctant Satpal Maharaj has refused to contest this time. He has made it amply clear that even his family members will not contest the Pauri Lok Sabha seat, leaving no room for compromise. Maharaj has even made his intention clear and conveyed the same to UPA chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Maharaj has reportedly offered his services to campaign for the party across the country instead of being a party candidate for Pauri Lok Sabha seat. While last ditch efforts are still under way to convince Maharaj to enter the poll fray, Satpal Maharaj’s reluctance has caught Uttarakhand Congress completely off guard. It will be extremely difficult for Congress to come up with an alternative choice. First to come up with a new candidate and then to ensure that Congress rank and file in the constituency support him will now be a very tough task for Congress. However, there are reports that Congress Kotdwar MLA Surendra Singh Negi is likely to contest if all efforts to persuade Satpal Maharaj to contest fail to yield results. But ensuring support of Satpal Maharaj to a new Congress candidate does not seem forthcoming. The BJP has already announced former Union Minister Maj Gen BC Khanduri (retd) as its candidate from the Pauri Lok Sabha seat. This seat has been the traditional seat of Khanduri, who has represented it in 1991, 1998, 1999, 2004, defeating Saptal Maharaj. But the contest between the two political rivals has been bitter at times. The Congress think tank, too, admit that taking into account the popularity of former Union Minister and former Chief Minister BC Khanduri, no other Congress candidate other than Satpal Maharaj will be in a position to give a contest to Khanduri. But the uncertainty that lingers over Congress candidate for Pauri Lok Sabha seat is bound to damage the party for which every seat counts in the state.
Little option * Satpal Maharaj, sitting MP from Pauri Garhwal, has announced that he will not contest the Lok Sabha poll this time *
The Congress has no second rung leadership in Pauri Garhwal * Kotdwar MLA Surendra Singh Negi is likely to contest if all efforts to persuade Satpal Maharaj fail to yield positive results
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Roadshow in Nishank's support
Dehradun, March 20 The roadshow passed through Race Course, Deep Nagar, Clement Town, Deep Nagar, Mothrowala, Banjarawala, Kargi, Turner Road, Chandrabani, Transport Nagar, and Niranjanpur Chowk before culminating at Bhandari Bagh. Mayor Vinod Chamoli, Neelam Sehgal, Prakash Suman, Umesh Aggarwal, Punit Mittal, Laxmi and Satish Kashyap took part in the roadshow.
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Infighting in BJP to the fore, Bacchi Singh not to campaign for Koshiyari
Pithoragarh, March 20 Bachi Singh Rawat, former union minister and estranged BJP leader, said: “The party decision not to consider my name from Nainital has hurt me. Hence, I have decided not to seek votes for Bhagat Singh Koshiyari.” Rawat, however, reiterated his support to the party for which he claimed being a member of Rs 5 only. He said he was preparing his grounds in Nainital, as the party high command had told him that he would be given another chance to contest from the seat. “I am deeply hurt. So much that even if the party makes me the manager of the election management committee, I will not go to Nainital to campaign in favour of Koshiyari,” Rawat told the media at Ranikhet today, adding that his vote and support would be with the party. On the other hand, Sajjan Lal Tamta, a senior RSS functionary from the Kumaon region and a claimant for the party ticket from Almora resigned from the primary membership of the BJP, protesting non-inclusion of his name in the party panel sent from the state as a prospective candidate. He was also against the inclusion of Rekha Arya, who according to him is a new entrant in the party. “I have decided that I will contest independently from Almora,” Sajjan said during a press conference at Haldwani today. He said despite being attached with the RSS from his student days, he was not considered from Bageshwar and Someswar Assembly seats. He said, like other parties, the BJP too had started giving importance to money and muscle powers. “The grassroots level workers are not respected in the party,” he said. Senior BJP leader Bishen Singh Chufal, however, tried to pacify Tamta by paying a visit to his house at Narsinghbari in Almora town today. “I have sent his grievance to the party high command and have requested the party not to accept his resignation,” Chufal. |
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Tehri nominee Mala Raj Lakshmi will get big lead in Mussoorie: Joshi
Mussoorie, March 20 Joshi said Tehri Garhwal MP Mala Raj Lakshmi Shah had gained an important lead from the Mussoorie Assembly segment in the Lok Sabha byelection when she defeated former Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna’s son Saket Bahuguna. He added Mala Raj Lakshmi would get an unprecedented lead from the Mussoorie segment this time also and win the parliamentary election with a handsome margin. He said the fear in the Congress of losing the parliamentary elections was evident as its senior leaders were shying away from contesting against the BJP candidates. Joshi said the work done by him in the constituency would come handy for Mala Raj Lakshmi and increase her victory margin in the election. |
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‘New parties not to dent vote share of Cong, BJP ’
Haridwar, March 20 The Jai Maha Bharat Party, which was founded in 2008, has decided to field its candidates in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and other states. The party, in mere six years of existence, claims to be a national party. While, the Congress is facing a crisis in finalising its candidates in the state, the Jai Maha Bharat Party has no such issues. The party has named candidates from all five seats in Uttarakhand. So far, the party has officially announced Diwakar Chaudhari from the Haridwar constituency, Dr Nazim from Bijnore, Nitin Kumar Tyagi from Sonipat, Mukesh Kapil from Sambhal and Arvind from Saharanpur. As per JP Sahi, spokesperson of the Jai Maha Bharat Party, the list of candidates from various other states and constituencies would be released soon. He claimed that the party evinced good response from voters. Sahi said the party was banking on its manifesto, which covers issues such as corruption, education, health and communal harmony. He said other parties have a vision of one Bharat (India), but we want the overall development of India, hence the name Jai Maha Bharat. Asked about the presence of parties like Jai Maha Bharat, political commentator PS Chauhan said: “These parties are like monsoon toads, which will vanish soon after the elections get over.” He said: “When Uttarakhand’s major regional party Uttarakhand Kranti Dal could not fetch a single parliamentary seat, how can such an outfit claim to have major presence in the state?” He said in Uttarakhand, none of the parties, including the NCP, Shiv Sena, RJD, RLD or even the Samajwadi Party or the BSP, have been able to make a dent in the vote share of the Congress or that of the BJP. “Hence, one can imagine the fate of these parties in the Lok Sabha elections,” he said. |
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Prince Vipon nominated for global TT events
Dehradun, March 20 Prince Vipon, who is a SAI table tennis coach as well, has been a technical official for a number of international events, including the Commonwealth Games, 2010, World Junior Championship, Indian Junior and Cadet Open. The Uttarakhand Table Tennis Association has extended the wishes on his nomination.
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Dehradun-Purkul-Mussoorie ropeway project awaits nod
Mussoorie, March 20 The ropeway project was decided to boost tourism in the state. The residents of the town are agitated over the inordinate delay and the state government for not initiating the project on priority basis. Piyush Jain, project manager, said the project had been sent to the
Ministry of Environment for clearance. He said some queries were being sought by the ministry for which the reply was being prepared and would be sent soon. The project also awaits a green signal from various state departments,
thus resulting in delay in the project. The project covers a distance of approximately 11 km. If completed, it would be the longest ropeway project in Uttarakhand. According to the Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) officials, several activities such as eco-tourism, paragliding club, theme parks and luxury and budget hotels were also proposed under the project in order to boost the local business and generate employment for the youth of the region. The ropeway project being developed under the PPP model initially was estimated at a cost of Rs 500 crore a few years back, but due to
the unwarranted delay the cost rose to Rs 900 crore and could rise even further. “The design of the ropeway project will not cause damage to trees along its route,” said a
UTDB official. Former chief secretary Alok Kumar Jain had reviewed the progress of the project in a meeting held in May 2013. He had also directed the officials to speed up the process, but it has not inched a step further since then. The residents and
local businessmen of the town are of the view that instead of wasting time and money on the project which is yet to take off, the government should focus on other viable projects to boost tourism in Mussoorie. |
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Eco Task Force begins tree-planting drive
Mussoorie, March 20 The Eco Task Force planted large number of saplings in the region,
yesterday. The project with its base at Kauthi Bhaundi was attended by a number of dignitaries including, Ram Gopal Verma, DFO, and Shivraj Chand, SDO of the Kalsi forest division. Col KS Jaggi said the main aim of the project was the ecological development of the area and to improve the ecological balance of the state and the country. He said the plantation area was located in the Kalsi forest division and will cover approximately 2,000 hectares of civil soyam land that would include plantation, soil conservation and development of grasslands. The proposed species of trees and shrubs include Bhimal, Kharik, Tun, Siras, Shisham, Sagwan, Akhrot, Chulu, Walnut, Banj etc.Col KS Jaggi said Lt Col Mayank Dhasmana will oversee the project. He said the Eco Task Force had been involved in planting trees in the barren areas of Mussoorie and Aglar watershed region in the past. |
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Euro number plates stolen from cars in Mussoorie
Mussoorie, March 20 The taxi owners on arriving at the taxi stand early morning today found that the expensive Euro number plates were missing from their cars. They summoned the police which rushed to the spot for further probe. A case was registered against unidentified persons. —TNS |
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Dehradun, March 20
The house owner was away and when he returned on Thursday, he saw that his house was ransacked. He informed the police and filed a complaint. He said the thieves took Rs 50,000 cash and other valuables.
—TNS
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School owner sent to judicial custody
Pithoragarh, March 20 The anti-human trafficking team of the Nainital police arrested Karki (70) from his house in the city yesterday on the charge of sexually assaulting girl students residing at his school hostel at Berinag in Pithoragarh district. SSP, Nainital, Vimmi Sachdeva, had ordered a probe into the matter after she received a video clipping from the victim students last week. “The anti-human trafficking team of the Nainital police conducted a detailed inquiry in the matter and arrested Chandra Singh Karki under Section 376 of the IPC and other laws for sexually exploiting girl students residing at his school hostel at Nainital for the last seven years,” said DL Verma, in charge of the anti-human
trafficking cell of the Nainital police. According to the police, Karki always introduced himself as a statehood activist. He had even contested the Assembly election from the Didihat seat as an Independent candidate in 2007. He had retired as a government intermediate college lecturer. |
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Play highlighting issue of crime against women staged
Dehradun, March 20 The ADG along with Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Garhwal, Amit Singh and other senior police officials showcased the posters and pamphlets displaying the women helpline number: 1090, which will be distributed across the state by the police. Ram Singh Meena said: “Being the first responder, it’s the responsibility of the police personnel to council and restore confidence of the victim in cases of crime against women. We must empower women by creating awareness among them about their rights.” The Sambhav Manch Parivaar also performed a play on the issue of crime against women. Over 100 female and male police
personnel from across the seven districts of the Garhwal range participated in the workshop. Experts from other fields also addressed the participating police personnel and spoke on various issues related to crime against women. Gyandendra Kumar of Empower People organisation spoke on women empowerment. Ramendri Mandrwal, former women protection officer spoke about child abuse and other women related issues. DIG Amit Sinha, SP Crime Nivedeta Kukreti, ASP Mamta Vohra and CO Mussoorie Jaya Baluni were also present on the occasion. |
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Kavi sammelan marks day two of student week
Dehradun, March 20 Local MLA Ganesh Joshi was also present during
the kavi sammelan. The college teachers and other staff members were also present. Besides kavi sammelan, a number of other activities were also organised on the occasion. Rangoli and poster painting competition were organised on the first day
of the celebration. An orchestra performance will also be organised during the celebrations. |
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Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, BJP candidate from the Haridwar constituency, started campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections today.
In the first leg of the campaign, Nishank, legislator from the Doiwala Assembly segment, is trying to regroup, unite party workers and and infuse enthusiasm in them.
The 127 Eco Task Force began the project of tree plantation in the remote areas of Jaunsar
and Bhabhar in Dehradun district under the stewardship of Col KS Jaggi, commanding officer of the force.
The Eco Task Force planted large number of saplings in the region,
yesterday.
