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Badrinath yatra resumes, while heavy snowfall halts Kedarnath pilgrimage
Water shortage hits entire U’khand
2 lakh take dip in Ganga on Buddh Poornima
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CII invites CM to discuss development agenda
Another team visits automobile industry at Pantnagar
Paper suggests new approach for reporting forest cover
DMC drive to collect house tax from June 1
Low voltage adds to woes
Several areas in Doon face power cuts
CM orders measures to check frequent road mishaps
Snowfall, rain delay return of tribals to Darma valley
Slight tremor in Thal town
Prayers offered at Lord Buddha’s statue in Doon
Cong rejects exit polls, expects better
results
Bharatnatyam workshop at Ecole Globale begins
Cultural extravaganza marks prize distribution at Carman School
Free medical check-up camp in Mussoorie
Office bearers of Kashmiri Sabha elected
30-yr-old man ends life
Woman killed in road mishap
sports
Day after, rape victim’s accomplice arrested
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Badrinath yatra resumes, while heavy snowfall halts Kedarnath pilgrimage
Dehradun, May 14 Around 300 pilgrims who had paid obeisance at the Badrinath shrine also commenced their downward trek.
“After the road was opened around 11.30 am the traffic began moving and the movement of pilgrims has resumed,” said CS Napalchayal, Garhwal Commissioner. Early morning, the route leading to the Gangotri shrine area witnessed a landslide forcing the local administration to halt the yatra for a few hours. “A landslide occurred at Songaad (between Harsil and Gangnani in Uttarkashi), but after a few hours the route was cleared,” said Napalchayal. So far, the pilgrimage to the Yamnotri shrine has been smooth and without any disruption. Meanwhile, due to heavy snowfall at the Kedarnath shrine, the pilgrimage has been stalled till May 16. “The District Magistrate and the Rudraprayag SP will visit the area on helicopter tomorrow to ascertain the conditions and a final decision would be taken thereafter,” said Napalchayal. He said heavy snowfall at the site of the shrine and a landslide that occurred three days ago near Gaurikund had forced the government to halt the pilgrimage. “As of now there are no pilgrims at Kedarnath, but around 200 pilgrims are still at Guptkashi awaiting movement. We have temporarily stopped the registration of pilgrims at Rishikesh. Since the yatra to Kedarnath Dham began, approximately 1,500 pilgrims have managed to pay obeisance at the shrine,” said Napalchayal. On the other hand the head priest of the Kedarnath shrine, Bhima Linga, also raised doubts about the resumption of the Kedarnath yatra any time soon, “Kedarnath is covered with 2-feet snow and it is not conducive for pilgrims to carry on with the yatra. There is a constant need for oxygen cylinders and even a fit person can face problems,” he said while speaking to The Tribune. |
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Water shortage hits entire U’khand
Dehradun, May 14 With insufficient water schemes in Gopeshwar, Gauchar and Pokhri, and low voltage power problem in Dehradun and Haldwani, and construction of roads in Pithoragarh town, due to which water pipes have been extensively damaged, the state faces massive water scarcity. In these areas water is being supplied once in four days and sometimes in eight days. With the ever-increasing demand for water putting pressure on the existing water projects, the inability of the Peyjal Nigam and Jal Sansthan to deliver on several existing schemes, too, has exacerbated the
problem. However, the authorities say that the water scarcity existing in certain areas is temporary and is being sorted out. “The problem in Gopeshwar, Gauchar and Pokhri has arisen due to insufficient water projects. Here water is being supplied through tankers. But new water schemes have already been approved for these areas. We have prepared a road map for these schemes. There are around 2000 schemes that are being given assistance under the Asian Development Bank,'' said DD Dimri, Chief General Manager, Jal Sansthan. In Pithoragarh town, road widening has damaged drinking water supply pipes, forcing the concerned authorities to raise the matter with the PWD. Beside, the Jal Sansthan has also held talks with Electricity Department urging it to step up the voltage, at least during the morning and evening when electricity
is required for pumping water. As the state is dependent on underground water sources for drinking, the authorities say a good rainfall last summer and better management of water resources have considerably improved the availability of water. But keeping in view the increasing demand for water, Jal Sansthan has earmarked more than 30 areas in the districts of Tehri, Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Pauri where water may be supplied through tankers. In the Kumaon region a total of 59 areas have been earmarked for a similar exercise. |
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2 lakh take dip in Ganga on Buddh Poornima
Haridwar, May 14 They took a holy dip in the sanctum sanctorum of Brahamkund, Har-ki-Pauri and paid obeisance at various shrines, including Mata Mansa Devi, Mata Chandi Devi, Daksh Maha Dev temple, Tulsi Manas temple, Maya Devi temple, Bilkeshwar Mahav Deo and Mat Vaishno Devi temple. As part of security arrangements, additional company of the PAC and police force was deployed in various zones. SP (city) Surjeet Singh Pawar, circle officer (city) Chandra Mohan Singh Negi, Har-ki-Pauri police post in charge Mohan Singh and Kotwali SHO PC Mathpal monitored
the mela events. Twenty traffic police personnel, 150 constables, 20 head constables, 25 sub-inspectors and two inspectors were also on mela duty. The entry of heavy vehicles remained prohibited in the city from 6 am to 9 pm. |
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CII invites CM to discuss development agenda
Dehradun, May 14 He invited the Chief Minister to a discussion on the development agenda for the state. Kochhar also presented to him a CII report on "Suggestions for agenda for economic development of Uttarakhand". The report focuses on giving the impetus to growth as well as the creation of livelihood and employment in the hills. It also makes recommendations on improving investment climate for the industry by focusing on the simplification of laws and better infrastructure. The delegation also briefed the Chief Minister on the CII Uttarakhand disaster rehabilitation initiative being carried out under the aegis of CII Foundation. This includes rebuilding eight completely damaged primary and upper primary schools in Tehri Garhwal, besides providing furnishing and teaching aids. While construction work on four schools, two in Devprayag block and two in Jaunpur block, is underway, work on another four schools in Bhilangana block will soon be carried out. For skill development and livelihood interventions, 11 drives have been organised in the disaster-affected areas so far. Fifty youths will be trained in industry certified courses. A pilot batch of
eight students is already undergoing training in two-wheeler auto technician course. |
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Another team visits automobile industry at Pantnagar
Dehradun, May 14 The CII delegation visited four industries that have excelled in the automobile sector - Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Bajaj Auto and Minda Corporation. The objective of the mission was to share and learn the best manufacturing practices that make them leaders in their respective areas of work. S K Dubey, chairman, CII Kumaon Zone and vice-president and plant head, Mahindra & Mahindra shared that such missions provides an opportunity to the participants to have first-hand exposure and insight on the technological strengths of the visited companies. He expressed that such activities promote various innovative and successful practices implemented at the workplaces of these organisations. S Doseja, co-chairman, CII Kumaon Zone and SBU head, Minda Corporation expressed that the pan India participation in this mission shows that Uttarakhand has found a place for itself on the industrial map of India. He shared that CII Kumaon Zone is keen to organise more events and activities in future for the development of the Industries in Kumaon. A total of 23 delegates from companies across the spectrum like Titan Industries, Napino Auto & Electronics Ltd, Foton Motors Manufacturing India Pvt Ltd, Vee Tee Auto Manufacturing Co Pvt Ltd, Ericsson India Pvt Ltd, Cheema Boilers Ltd, Luman Automotive Systems Pvt Ltd, Wabco India Ltd, Rajnish Industries Pvt Ltd, Rawat Engg Tech Pvt Ltd, Dayal Fertilizers Pvt Ltd were part of the delegation. |
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Paper suggests new approach for reporting forest cover
Dehradun, May 14 A research paper published in the present issue of Current Science argues that India can be potentially over reporting the forest cover by including many plantations as forest cover. Large-scale coconut, cashew, coffee and rubber and even fruit orchards are being potentially shown as forest cover. It even questions inclusion of plantations like eucalyptus and popular as forest cover. The paper suggests for a new approach for monitoring and reporting forest cover in the country. This is important to meet forest conservation challenges, research and also to ensure accurate reporting to UN agencies such as Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO) and United National Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It suggests for adopting a number of stratification measures in process of forest cover monitoring and reporting. It calls for dividing forest area into natural or native forest, second or degraded forests followed by forest plantations, commercial plantations, fruit orchards and tree outside forests. Citing an example of Indonesia and South Africa, the researches assert that the two countries have already started monitoring and reporting forest area according to forest types, which include segregation of natural forest and plantations. A team of scientists that submitted the research paper was led by NH Ravindranath and included IK Murthy, Priya Joshi, Sujata
Upgupta, Swapan Mehra and Nalin Srivastava as its other members. While NH
Ravindranath, IK Murthy, Priya Joshi, Sujata Upgupta are with the Centre for Sustainable Technologies, Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, Swapan Mehra is with Iora Ecological Solutions Pvt Ltd New Delhi and Nalin Srivastava is with Institute of Global Environment Strategies, Japan. The current science research paper findings comes at a time when large scale diversion of forest land for non-forestry purposes has taken place in the country in the past couple of years evidently due to pressure of keeping up with the fast paced development. But to the utter dismay there has been no sharp decline of forest cover in the country and the forest cover in the country by and large continues to be static. Forest cover data that reveals rates of deforestation, degradation, afforestation and reforestation are of great importance for promoting forest conservation. It facilitated enforcing forest legislations aimed at conservation and regeneration of forests and also catering to needs of biodiversity and climate change convention and mechanisms. |
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DMC drive to collect house tax from June 1
Dehradun, May 14 Mayor Vinod Chamoli said the house tax collection drive was delayed as the model code of conduct was in force due to the Lok Sabha elections. The rate of house tax would be assessed on the basis of the rental value fixed at the board meeting last year. The DMC is expecting to collect Rs 10 crore per annum from house tax.
Chamoli said, "In the first phase, tax on new buildings will be assessed and collected. In the second phase, the tax will be revised on the basis of the rental value of the houses that have already been reviewed. Around 60,000 new houses have come up since the DMC carried out the house tax collection drive last time. There are 45,000 old houses that come under the preview of the
DMC.
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Low voltage adds to woes
Dehradun, May 14 Going by the version of the State Potable Water Department, most tubewells are not functioning at there optimum level due to supply of low power voltage in the region. Among the worst-affected districts are rural and urban areas of
Haridwar, followed by Dehradun and Udham Singh Nagar. The department officials claim that 64 tubewells are not functioning properly due to supply of low voltage especially during the water-supply timings. The data compiled by Jal Sansthan clearly highlights that 34 tubewells are not functioning properly due to low voltage in
Haridwar. The data also says that eight tubewells each in Haridwar and Roorkee respectively are not functioning at the optimum level whereas, 18 tubewells in rural areas of Haridwar are not working effectively to meet the demand of potable water in the region. Department officials lament that rural areas of Haridwar are the worst-affected in terms of problem of low voltage, and voltage fluctuation. Similarly, 14 tubewells in urban areas and six tubewells in Jeevangarh are facing the brunt of low power voltage in
Dehradun. The situation is equally bad in Udham Singh Nagar. Two tubewells in
Rudrapur, three tubewells in Bajpur/Gadarpur, and five tubewells in Sitarganj are not functioning at there optimum level due to low voltage supply in the region. Additionally, Bharpurgram pumping project, Bageshwar urban pumping project, and Ghat pumping project in Pithoragarh are unable to meet the requirement of the residents as machines are not operating at its optimum. Speaking to The Tribune, chief general manager of Jal
Sansthan, DD Dimri, said the department had been working to overcome the problem of shortage of potable water in the state. According to him, low voltage and voltage fluctuation were hampering the department’s efforts to supply potable water to residents. He said a centralised call centre had been started in order to address the grievances of the consumers.
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Several areas in Doon face power cuts
Dehradun, May 14 Among the worst affected areas were
Niranjanpur, Green Park, Patel Nagar, Subhash Nagar, Shivlok Colony, Kargi, Banjarawala etc. where power cut was imposed for nearly one hour as linemen carried maintenance work at substations. The department has purchased 6.8 million units of electricity today in order to bridge the gap between demand and supply of electricity in the state. It is noteworthy that power generation in the state-run hydropower projects is hovering around 13 million units per day against the demand of 31 million units per day. One of the department sources said that the department had been continuously procuring electricity to ensure disruption-free power to consumers. He claimed that it had become mandatory to tight lose connections after inclement weather to ensure supply of correct voltage and disruption free electricity to consumers. |
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CM orders measures to check frequent road mishaps
Dehradun, May 14 At a review meeting of the state transport department held here on Tuesday, the Chief Minister directed for issuing advisory for the entire state and hills in particular for taking urgent measures to putting a curb on frequent road mishaps in the state. The Chief Minister’s advisory comes at a time when several road mishaps have taken place in the state in recent days, resulting in death of a large number of persons. He also directed for keeping fitness certificate validity for vehicles in hills only up to six months. He said regular checks must be done on buses operating on Char Dham routes. He also called for fixing responsibility for these
mishaps. Uttarakhand Cabinet Minister Pritam Singh and Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar were present.
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New head of St Joseph’s Academy
Dehradun, May 14 He was previously the vice-principal of the school for the last two years under outgoing principal Brother AJ George, who has now gone to Doha, Qatar, as the principal of Olive International School that is being run under the guidance of the Patrician Brothers. Brother Joseph began his teaching career in 1990 and has taught at several schools run by the Patrician Brothers over the years. His reputation as an outstanding teacher is well-known, and so is his command over English language. His elevation as the principal of St Michael’s Academy, Chennai, in 2005 did not come as a surprise as he had taught there for two years and was then sent to Mount St Patrick Academy, Pune, as its principal in 2007. A native of Kerala, Brother Dennis Joseph joined the Patrician Brothers in 1982.
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Hypertension threat to life, say experts
Dehradun, May 14 Speaking on the occasion Dr Anurag Rawat said hypertension had no
symptom, and it often remained undiagnosed. “Undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension leads to life threatening complications like heart attack, stroke, kidney failure and eye damage. The only way to prevent hypertension is to undergo regular blood pressure check-up,” said Anurag Rawat, a cardiologist at the Himalayan Institute Hospital Trust. He stressed on undertaking daily exercise, low salt intake and keep oneself free of stress. On the other hand Dr Yogendra Singh, a senior consultant and head department of cardiology at the Fortis Escorts (Dehradun) said the number of persons suffering from hypertension was increasing. “In India, hypertension was the leading risk and estimated to be the cause for nearly 10 per cent of all deaths. Adult hypertension prevalence has risen dramatically over the past three decades between 5 per cent and 20-40 per cent in urban areas, and 12-17 per cent in rural areas,” he said. Dr Singh said apart from health implications, it had huge societal, developmental and economic costs. There was also noteworthy income loss to families affected by hypertension not only due to illness but also due to care giving and premature death. |
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Snowfall, rain delay return of tribals to Darma valley
Pithoragarh, May 14 “The condition of the track route from Bongling to Sipu is not safe for use, as it was made temporarily for migrating families,” said KS
Phirmal, a resident of Philam village in the Darma valley. Phirmal added for over 100 families on their way to
Chal, Sela and Nagling villages in the Darma valley, crossing the wooden suspension bridges at
Sela, Chal, Tidang and Marcha was a big challenge. “Due to sudden rain and snowfall the temporary bridges on the route may collapse, making it difficult for them to cross the swelling rivulets during their return journey,” said
Phirmal. He added while 100 families were on their way back home, 10 families had reached their native Soun village. The migrant families left the lower valleys of
Tawaghat, Baluwakot and Dharchula today for their homes in Sipu, Marcha, Bon,
Philam, Dantu and Dugtu villages in the Darma valley. “About 450 families returning to their villages in the Darma valley are accompanied by over 15,000 heads of sheep, 150 horses and 250 yaks. The people and the animal need pucca routes for smooth travel,” said
Phirmal. “Fresh rain and snowfall on the Kailash Mansarowar route in the last two days have resulted in a fall in the temperature by 3°C,” said Kedar Singh
Rawat, ITBP Commandant. The lower valleys of Pithoragarh and Almora witnessed cold conditions in the last two days following 7.4 mm of rainfall. The minimum temperature dropped to 2.5°C. |
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Slight tremor in Thal town
Pithoragarh, May 14 “The epicentre of the earthquake was 7 km below the earth near Thal in Pithoragarh district and the tremor of such magnitude is termed as minor, which occurs frequently in this area,” said RS Rana, District Disaster Management Officer, Pithoragarh. |
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Prayers offered at Lord Buddha’s statue in Doon
Dehradun, May 14 The festival marks Gautam Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death. Prayers were held before a Lord Buddha’s
statute at the Buddha park. The Triratna Buddha Mahasabha organised a function to commemorate the day. Addressing the gathering, Yashpal Boudh said the day holds a lot of importance in the lives of Buddhists as it was the day Siddhartha was born and he achieved enlightenment as well. Those present at the function included RS
Kardam, Nihal Singh, Bhanwar Lal, Sant Lal Boudh, and Kartaram. |
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Cong rejects exit polls, expects better
results
Dehradun, May 14 In a statement issued here today, state Congress spokesman Shipli Arora said the exit polls were not the final verdict and it was immaturity on part of the BJP to take exit polls as the final result of the Lok Sabha elections. She asserted that the Congress would get favourable results in the elections. Arora said Congress workers need not get discouraged as the party will be the main force behind formation of the next government at the
Centre. Arora said Harish Rawat-led Congress government was doing commendable works in the state and giving top priority to development.
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Bharatnatyam workshop at Ecole Globale begins
Dehradun, May 14 Nidhi Mishra, who left her engineering career to pursue her passion of
Bharatnatyam. Nidhi Mishra, who left her engineering career to pursue her passion for
Bharatnatyam, is training students in the dance form. Nidhi informed the participants about certain basic postures and expressions used in the dance form. According to the school management, the workshop aims at inculcating the habit of appreciating classical dance by being aware of nuances of such forms of dance. — TNS |
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Cultural extravaganza marks prize distribution at Carman School
Dehradun, May 14 Students achieving excellence in any of the subjects they studied in the past year were given awards for their hard work. Samridhi Kumari, student of class XII, won the Lawrance Cup in the allrounder category students. Vantika Bist and Ayushi Bhatt won Howard Cup in the allrounder category as well. Trophies for the inter-house sports competitions held in the school were distributed among the winners while school students who represented district or state in various sports events were awarded.
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Free medical check-up camp in Mussoorie
Mussoorie, May 14 More than a dozen medical specialists from around the region volunteered to help the people suffering from various ailments, including dental, eye, etc on the occasion. Dr Gaurav Bhasin also conducted a pathology test on more than 50 patients. The members of Rotary Club distributed free spectacles to the patients suffering from eye ailments. The patients requiring cataract operations were identified and the Rotary Club pledged to get their operations done in the near future. Dr GK Takhral, Dr Rashim Thakral, Dr Garima Goel (Dental specialists),eye specialist MP Luthra,Dr Gaurav Luthra,Dr SM Das, gynaecologist Dr Savita Luthra, Dr Aarti Luthra, Dr Neetu Parihar,eye specialist Anurat Nawani, Ashutosh Kumar Bharti, pathologist Guarav Bhasin,Pawan Kumar and Aashish William attended the camp. The members from Rotary Club, DP Singh,Vipul Mittal and others were also present on the occasion. |
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Office bearers of Kashmiri Sabha elected
Dehradun, May 14 Amit Kaur, Ramesh Kumar Miya and Sanjay Khoshoo were elected vice-president, secretary, and treasurer, of the
organisation, respectively. The elected members were Ashok, Ashwani Kaul, Krishen Kumar
Dhar, Nirmala Dhar, Ravindra Kak, Ravi Sumbli, and Vijay Raina.
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30-yr-old man ends life
Dehradun, May 14 The deceased, Anuj Oberoi, was into the rafting business at Rishikesh and used to live along with his parents at Kishanpur. No suicide note was found from the spot. His parents have also expressed ignorance about any stress that Anuj might have been undergoing. The police are questioning Anuj's friends in Rishikesh to find out the reason behind the incident. Meanwhile, the body has been sent for a post-mortem examination.
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Dehradun, May 14 The driver of the tractor-trailer Masroor, has been arrested by the police. A case has been registered in this connection and further investigations are on in the matter. — TNS |
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sports
Dehradun, May 14 Karan scored two goals at the 8th and 42nd minute for Doon Eagle while Ishrab, Manak and Sandeep scored a goal each for the winning team. Vicky scored the only goal for Bajrang Eleven at the 46th minute of the match. In the second match of the day, JA Boys defeated Yamuna Football Club 3-0 with Rohan Rana netting two goals at the 39th and 58th minute of the match. Mahish Rai also scored a goal for JA Boys. Two matches will be played tomorrow. The first match will be played between Thakurpur Football Club and Loko Football Club whereas the second match to be played between Chandrabani and Shiwalik Football Club.
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Day after, rape victim’s accomplice arrested
Dehradun, May 14 Saeed Chaudhary, who is reported to be a close associate of the rape victim, was arrested today morning. A case has been registered against the girl and Saeed for extorting money. On Tuesday, DGP BS Sidhu informed that during the investigation in the Pradeep Sangwan case, the SIT found that the victim along with one of her close associate was trying to extort money from Sangwan in lieu of changing her statement before the magistrate. The girl was arrested from her house in Banjarawala yesterday. The police are claiming that Saeed is the same person, who was in touch with the girl on phone, and was guiding her how to extract money from Pradeep Sangwan, who has been absconding to escape arrest in the rape and blackmailing case against him. Notably, a recorded mobile phone conversation of the girl and Saeed revealed that both were allegedly trying to extort money from Pradeep Sangwan, against whom the girl has levelled charges of rape and blackmail on pretext of marriage. The police also found evidence when they found the registry of the a house in the name of the victim, which was done on May 2 by paying Rs 17 lakh in cash, while the girl was unable to tell the source of the money. The police also recovered Rs 6 lakh cash from her house during her arrest on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the police also intensified their efforts to nab Pradeep Sangwan, who has been at large since the rape and blackmail case was registered against him at Rajpur police station. Pradeep Sangwan is the son of three-time MP from Sonepat, late Kishan Singh Sangwan, and runs Joyland Water Park in Dehradun. The girl was working as a cashier in the water park and had alleged in her complaint that Sangwan had been physically assaulting her for the last two years on the promise of marrying her.
Second catch
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The pilgrimage to the Badrinath shrine resumed today after the Border Road Organisation personnel managed to clear the blockade at the Rangar bend, ahead of Joshimath in Chamoli district.
More than two lakh devotees from across the nation thronged Ganga ghats on the occasion of Buddha Poornima today.
Dehradun, May 14
A three-day workshop on Bharatnatyam began at Ecole Globale International Girls School here
today.
The annual prize distribution ceremony was held at Carman Residential and Day School here today. The students from both senior and junior sections who performed exceptionally well in the fields of academics, sports and extra-curricular activities were awarded during the ceremony.
Come summer months and large parts of the state have begun to reel under acute water shortage, forcing the Jal Sansthan to prepare a contingency plan for 964 areas in the state where water may be supplied either through water tankers or mules.
