Dehradun, November 10
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Maj Gen B.C. Khanduri (retd) in his quest to please annoyed party legislators today took out 28 more positions of chairmen of various boards and committees of the state government out of the purview of the Office of Profit Act.

On a day when former Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, who led the dissidence against the Chief Minister, filed his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha elections marking an end to political hostilities in the ruling BJP, the Uttarakhand cabinet took this decision.

These positions would be offered to party legislators. Last month, the state Cabinet had taken a decision to take out 23 positions of chairmen and vice-chairmen of various boards and committees out of the purview of the Office of Profits Act with an aim to please party legislators but the move failed to impress them.

According to party sources, party legislators, who had been kept away from holding such positions by the party high command, were not impressed with the positions. Many of them believed that the most lucrative positions were still held by various bureaucrats of their respective departments.

The party high command had taken a decision last month following dissidence by party legislators against the style of functioning of the Chief Minister to give such positions to legislators.

Earlier, the Chief Minister had allocated more than 40 such positions but those went to senior party leaders. Due to moratorium by the party high command, the legislators had felt sidelined.

It is expected that with Koshiyari going to Rajya Sabha, the move would pave way for the Chief Minister Khanduri to make bridges with the party legislators by offering them positions.

The Cabinet decided that any legal formality to take out these positions from out of the purview of Office of Profit Act would be undertaken by the respective departments.

Dehradun, November 10
While former Uttarakhand Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Bhagat Singh Koshiyari filed his nomination papers for the lone Rajya Sabha seat from the state, opposition Congress put a spanner in Koshiyari’s unopposed nomination by putting up a local Congress leader as an Independent candidate.

Manish Verma, a local Congress leader who was also a vice-chairman of a committee during the previous Congress regime, also filed his nomination papers with the help of Congress legislators. The scrutiny of the papers will be held tomorrow.

The election of Koshiyari is a foregone conclusion keeping in view the majority of the ruling BJP in the state assembly. The BJP has 35 members of its own and also has the support of three members of the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD) and three Independents.

On the other hand, Congress has only 20 members and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) eight legislators.

Even if the Congress and BSP join hands, there is no chance for the Independent candidate. But given the ground realties and the sore relationship between the Congress and BSP leadership, there is absolutely no chance of any understanding between the two.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Maj Gen B.C. Khanduri (retd) and state BJP chief Bacchi Singh Rawat along with senior party leaders were present on the occasion of the filing of Koshiyari’s nomination.

After bitter infighting between Koshiyari and Khanduri, the BJP high command has decided to send Koshiyari to the Rajya Sabha to control dissidence against the Chief Minister.

Speaking after filing his nomination, Koshiyari said that as per the directions of the party, he would be serving at the national level. Bhagat Singh Koshiyari is a legislator from Kapkot in Bagheshwar district of Kumaon.

Dehradun, November 10
It was a strange sight that greeted the patients visiting Rajkiya Sanyukt Chikitsalya in Prem Nagar today. Instead of carrying out medical examinations inside the hospital, the doctors were doing so out on the lawns! Reason: The inauguration of Rajkiya Sanyukt Chikitsalya in Prem Nagar that could not take place left the doctors without a roof on their heads.

Hesitant to approach them at first, some of the patients entering the premises thought the doctors were on strike. “I thought the doctors were on strike and I would have to go back home, but I was surprised when a prescription slip was made and my eyes were examined,” said Reeta Rani, a resident of Prem Nagar.

The inauguration of the Rajkiya Sanyukt Chikitsalya was to take place on the statehood day yesterday, but last minute changes in the programme resulted in the chaos. A death in the family of an Uttarakhand cabinet minister forced the postponement of the inauguration, leaving the doctors high and dry.

Actually the doctors had already shifted their instruments and other articles a day before, in anticipation of the inauguration of the new building, and the old building where the hospital existed was handed over to the owner.

However, they somehow managed to attend the patients on the lawns today. “Lack of communication between two departments has landed us in a piquant situation,” said a doctor on conditions of anonymity.

Dehradun, November 10
In his address on the Foundation Day function of Him Jyoti School, which is imparting free education to girls from underprivileged sections of society, Uttarakhand Governor B.L. Joshi exhorted people to donate for the cause of education for the poor in the larger interest of society.

Highly impressed by the service being rendered by this English medium residential school, the Governor said this experiment of educational uplift of the downtrodden was worth emulation.

A total of 120 girls are studying in the school up to Class IX. It is proposed to be upgraded to Class XII.

The Governor lauded the role of his predecessor Sudarshan Agarwal whose motivation generated confidence among donors and, as a result, funds were generated to set up this state-of-the-art school.

Welcoming the chief guest and other dignitaries, former Governor Sudarshan Agarwal acknowledged the cooperation of the generous contributors who helped this dream come true.

On the occasion, Him Jyoti Foundation gave 100 scholarships to boys and girls of the state pursuing professional courses. Each beneficiary, whose family’s annual income is below Rs 1 lakh, is given scholarship of Rs 25,000 annually.

Notably, head of Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, and guest of honour Swami Chidanandaji announced eight more scholarships to needy students.

The students enthralled the gathering with a cultural performance. An exhibition of their handmade decorative items was also organised on the occasion.

Dehradun, November 10
Unhappy over the stance of the government in recognising their contribution in the statehood movement, members of the District Bar Association (DBA) have demanded government jobs as has been done in the case of others activists identified in the state.

The demand follows the announcement by the Chief Minister B.C. Khanduri on the state foundation day that the activists of the state who remained in jail for seven days during the sustained movement for the creation of Uttarakhand would be given a monthly pension of Rs 3,000. All the activists who could not avail the benefits of government jobs due to age or qualification factors would be entitled for the pension.

During the previous Congress regime, the government had announced a scheme to provide jobs in Class III and IV categories to the activists having matriculation and middle as the educational qualification. As the jobs offered were not at par with their qualification, the lawyers have demanded that they be considered for government jobs in higher judicial services as well as in the government departments as legal advisors, additional district government counsellors and assistant prosecution officers as per their qualification. “I believe the government has failed to take this into account. It is an anomaly that should have been removed while formulating the relief scheme so that professional interests of any particular section of activists were taken care of,” opined the secretary of the DBA, Dehradun, Prithiviraj Chauhan.

“I was implicated in five false cases under charges of rioting, firing, dacoity, loot and damage to public property and remained in jail for five days. I was subjected to physical and mental torture. My family as well as professional life was shattered. But I am not covered under the government scheme of relief like other officially identified activists,” said Shambu Sharan Badoni, a practising advocate.

Similarly, Shambu Prasad Mamgain was charged for breaching peace and remained in jail for nine days in Unnav, UP. “For me, the government relief is meaningless even if I get a job of a clerk despite a law degree and 15 years of active legal practice,” he said. Meanwhile, the resentment amongst the lawyers is growing.

The DBA had exhausted funds to the tune of lakhs in fighting cases of the jailed activists in places like Lucknow, Faizabad, Moradabad and Muzaffarnagar. It was instrumental in filing a PIL in Allahabad High Court after Rampur Tiraha incident in which some activists were killed. The sufferers got relief on the HC order. “We will be happy if the government accepts our demand of setting up a High Court bench at Dehradun and sanction funds for infrastructure in the courts’ complex,” added Chauhan.

Dehradun, November 10
Keeping in mind the rising number of cases linked to cooling tower collapses in the chemical and fertiliser industries within the past few years, the director-general of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education Jagdish Kishwan has asked the industry to ensure that the standards of wood used for construction of cooling towers is maintained.

Inaugurating a two-day national seminar on premature failure of timber in cooling towers, Kishwan said the collapsing of the towers was a disturbing trend and these should be properly maintained. He added that a cooling tower is expected to perform efficiently for at least 15 years if good care is taken. Kishwan said as many as 20 industries have sought help from RFI towards testing and other requirements concerning their cooling towers.

In his keynote address, Dr S. Chandra, advisor, ministry of fertilisers, described cooling towers as an inevitable part of high energy consuming and heat generating industry. However, he said of late cases of these cooling towers collapsing have been on an increase, leading to production losses to the industry. Earlier, while welcoming the delegates officiating director Onkar Singh hoped that the deliberations would help in drawing out a future strategy. He admitted that despite being an integral part of the industry, the cooling towers have not received much focus. He hoped that the workshop would enable the industry to know of the possible solutions to this problem.

Dehradun, November 10
The vice-president of the State Youth Welfare Council Ravinder Jugran has demanded a high-level inquiry into the incident of the death of five porters, after an 11-member team of trekkers and porters from India and another 35-member team from Australia were trapped in a blizzard on the Bhatwari-Kalindi Khal-Arbatal-Ghastoli-Mana route in September this year.

The Uttarakhand police had recently arrested officials of the two trekking agencies, including Kapil Rautela of Dehradun-based Mount Shepherd, on charges of allegedly sending two teams of trekkers to high altitudes of the Garhwal Himalayas notwithstanding inclement weather, which led to the death of five porters.

In a written statement issued on behalf of Mount Shepherd, Dr Sunil Kainthola alleged that while conducting inquiry into the incident, the sub- divisional magistrate of Bhatwari did not record the statements of the members of the trekking teams, who returned safely.

“Furthermore, noted historian from Uttarakhand Shekhar Pathak and renowned photographer Anup Sah, who were also in the 11-member team of trekkers that got trapped, had said on record that it was Mountain Shepherd employees who saved the lives of the trekkers,” claimed Dr Sunil, while expressing extreme dismay over the booking of Kapil under Section 304-A of Indian Penal Code. He also alleged that inquiry into the incident was mere eyewash.

Dehradun, November 10
Tuberculosis continues to be common in the age group of 30-35 years and youngsters with low immunity levels are more prone to the disease. Even a small infection or a lump in the throat, if detected in children, should not be ignored as it can give rise to Tuberculosis

The northern areas of the country are high-risk areas for TB and Uttarakhand is no exception. However, the disease can be controlled if proper medication is taken in time.

The Directly Observed Treatment (DOT) is the only strategy that has proved effective in controlling the disease on a mass basis. “DOT is the first line of treatment that is given to the patients in the early stages, the only hitch is that patients do not take the treatment on a regular basis although the medicines are administered free of cost,” said Dr V.S. Tolia, TB department, Doon Hospital.

Interestingly, women seem to recover faster from the disease as they take medicines regularly. “Women patients take the treatment seriously, although they may be under great deal of stress while going through pregnancies and other related ailments,” added Dr R.S. Tolia.

Notably, the National Tuberculosis Programme was started in 1962 to create infrastructure for TB patients, but was unable to achieve the desired result. Later, a Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) was launched to strengthen the existing programme by creating a sub-district level supervisory team known as the TB unit. These programmes are run district-wise, with the district TB controller being at the helm of affairs.