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As lights dim, bulb-makers look for
bright ideas
ehradun, January 16 Till a decade ago, Dehradun was also known for its miniature bulb industry. At every function, especially Diwali, the bulbs would lend light and colour to destivities. But the invasion of Chinese miniature bulb segments has spelled doom for the industry.There seems to be no light at the end of tunnel for the industry despite the tax break offered by the Uttarakhand government. The Rs 30-crore industry continues to be under threat. Over 200 units have shut shop and another 10 are on the verge of closure. Only 20 to 30 small- scale units in the organised sector are operational. The number of units operational in the unorganised sector is also on the decline. Owners are opening schools on the premises where these units once stood. “It is difficult to sustain as Chinese products have eaten up the miniature bulb industry in Dehradun. With cheap and better quality products, Chinese who innovate every year, have captured the entire miniature bulb market,” complained Mintu Gulati, a manufacturer. Only the market in South India continues to provide sustenance. “People in the South are still using the mini bulbs for decorations and have not yet shifted to Chinese products otherwise we would have been wiped out,” said Mintu Gulati. "It’s sad that not many people could take the benefit of tax breaks. Except for the top six units, most are in a bad shape," said Pankaj Gupta, president, Industries Association of Uttarakhand. However, a few manufacturers have carried out substantial expansion to avail of the tax break benefit and are making good profit. Rajiv Berry, owner of Anand Industries and president of the Local Bulb Manufacturers Association, has a turnover of Rs 3 crore. He has stopped manufacturing Indolite brand of torch bulbs. "Light-emitting diodes are better substitutes for torch bulbs. So we switched over to railway signal lamps last year," he explained. He said at one time his unit made at least 250 types of bulbs. “The technological advancement in the bulb industry to thecompact fluorescent lamp (CFL) and now to light-emitting diodes (LED) have spelt doom for the once thriving decoration bulb industry of Dehradun,” he said. The first miniature bulb factory in India, set up in Dehradun in 1958 by AC Jain, manufactured Comet bulbs. The first Comet factory closed down in 2006. "My grandfather (AC Jain) was a pioneer in the miniature bulb industry," said Rajiv Agarwal, president of the All-India Auto Miniature Bulb and Components Association, who runs a second factory. Last year, Agarwal set up a third unit at Dehradun with an investment of Rs 1 crore. "Now, we are making a profit due to excise and other benefits in Uttarakhand," he said. The only alternative is diversification. Some manufacturers have shifted to the halogen lamp while others have started making specialised bulbs. “We are not sure how long we can carry on,” said Berry. The industry is clueless on a plan to revive the dying mini bulb industry. The central government did try to help the industry by adopting a cluster approach by which common training and testing facilities were provided to units, but it did little to jolt the Chinese industry. The common testing facility was shut after sometime. “We have no idea what to do to help these units survive,” said said Agarwal. More than 2,000 workers employed in the mini bulb industry face a bleak future. “We are not able to compete with Chinese products. They are better in quality and are cheap. We can’t provide an alternative to the Chinese products,” said Agarwal. "The industry is facing a tough time because there is no government support. The separation of Uttarakhand from Uttar Pradesh also led to the decline," said Gupta. Nevertheless, there is a ray of hope with top auto industries like Tata Motors, M&M, Hero Honda and Bajaj Autos setting up shop in the state. “It is either change or perish for the Dehradun bulb industry,” said Berry.
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New VC Chauhan to seek UGC
recognition Dehradun, January 16 It has been three years since the university was created but the process of enlistment with the UGC was initiated only now. “All universities in the state have to apply for enlistment. Soon after taking over as VC, I took up this matter last week,” informed Dr GS Chauhan. “The state universities can ask for financial grant under 12B of the Universities Act (1956) but before that they have to enlist under 2F of the same Act”, said Dr Chauhan. While states are responsible for the administration and functioning of universities, the UGC is the grants agency that also evaluates the functioning of universities. According to sources, the VC is expected to raise the issue at a meeting in New Delhi on January 27.The VC is expected to raise the issue of infrastructure development. Further, the UGC recognition would open doors for linkup with the Association of Universities and collaboration with other national and international universities. On the grant allocation by the UGC, Dr Chauhan said: “Both the state and the central governments make allocations to the university but the aid given by the Centre is substantial. “ The university is bound to benefit from the aid,” said Dr Chauhan.
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City roads to get more room n Traffic to be streamlined in a phased manner n Movement of Vikrams to be regulated n Drivers to be challaned for going high beam n New parking lots in different localities n Self-assessment planned for house tax Dehradun, January 16 Claiming the main objective behind such an open session was to keep the masses informed about various works being undertaken by government departments, Negi said: “Such interactions will help us get feedback about the problems being faced by the general masses.” He said such interactive sessions would now be a monthly exercise. Negi stressed on the need for penal provisions for success against encroachers and traffic violators. He acknowledged that in several cases illegal shops had been rebuilt after being brought down. In order to ease out traffic congestion, several roads in the city would be widened in the coming months, the DM said. “One of the busiest roads, Chakrata Road, will be widened from Kumar Sweets to the Prabhaat Cinema stretch,” he said, adding that new parking lots would be set up in different localities. Asked why the administration had not yet named Parade Ground as permanent place for demonstrations, Negi replied: “We called a meeting of representatives of various political parties to discuss the issue but nobody turned up.” He said before taking a decision in this regard, they wanted a legal framework to be drawn. After daylong jams in the capital due to dharnas and demonstrations against the state government by employees, social and political organisations a couple of weeks back, the district administration had announced to allocate Parade Ground for demonstrations. DMC Chief Executive Officer Sushil Kumar said in certain localities that had come up in the recent past, house tax was not being levied. “Now we have decided that inhabitants of these colonies should do self-assessment so that house tax can be levied on them from coming April 1, 2009.” Sushil said the DMC had started work on building partitions on major roads for installation of streetlights. “The lights being installed on Saharanpur Road will be powered by underground cables and include a system to prevent electricity from being wasted,” he explained. The SP (Traffic), N.A.Bharne, said the police was concentrating on streamlining traffic in a phased manner. “To begin with, we have tried to regulate the movement of Vikrams,” he said. Bharne also said traffic cops would initiate action against drivers of four-wheeler using high beam, which led to accidents.
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Simians face the trap Dehradun, January 16 The corporation would be paying Rs 45,000 for the entire operation and Rs 225 for each monkey caught. The team members have already trapped a hundred monkeys in the first two days of the campaign from Tehri House colony on Rajpur road. The trapped monkeys are being left in the forest areas of East Dehradun. “The trappers from Mathura have taken up the task of capturing 200 monkeys and the campaign is being carried out speedily,” BS Jayara, a senior corporation official said. The trappers are particularly targetting Jakhan and its surrounding areas, where the menace is at its worst. Bhandari Bagh and Indira Colony are other residential localities that would be taken up during the campaign. Meanwhile, the development has come as a big relief for Doonites who have been suffering from the menace since long. Till date, the onus of tackling the monkeys was on the state wildlife authorities and this is for the first time that the corporation has taken up the task. Welcoming the initiative, councillor Arun Kumar said the monkey menace had become a major problem within the city and trapping them had become important. Significantly, the state forest authorities have also been mulling the idea of creating rehabilitation centres for monkeys in close vicinity of temples and other charitable institutions. The move would ensure that monkeys get proper feed and the temple institutions some additional income.
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Relish local delicacies at food fest Dehradun, January 16 To promote local food and spread awareness regarding the traditional delicacies of Uttarakhand, Prince Honey restaurant has organised a one-week Uttarakhand Food Festival for foodies to relish the local dishes and to realise the importance of traditional food. From past several years people of Uttarakhand have been taking healthy traditional food but the trend is changing fast with people migrating from villages and adopting new food habits. People here want to have Punjabi, Italian and south Indian food instead of having healthy and rich local food of Uttarakhand. “With many joints serving Punjabi, Rajasthani, Gujarati, people of Uttarakhand have forgotten about their own food and there is no restaurant serving local dishes. We want people to know more about their culture and preserve the authenticity attached with the food here,” said Arun Sajwan, general manager Prince Honey restaurant. The festival began on January 14 and will continue till 21st of this month. Foodies can enjoy items here like mandwa ki chapatti, kumaoni raita, chausa, goath’s soup, thick red rice, jangora’s dry fruit kheer and tangy chutneys of garlic and bhaang within just Rs 75. Apart from being delicious, the speciality of Uttarakhand food is that it is healthy and apt for winters. “Goath, a local pulse, is very good for people who are suffering from problem of stone. Similarly, garlic and bhaang ki chutney is good for digestion and also helps in keeping body warm during winters,” said Arun Sajwan. I lenjoyed the chutneys they have made and I will surely try making them at home,” said Shalini Rana a housewife. “Though, I had these dishes for the first time I totally enjoyed them,” said Sanjeev Srivastava, a visitor at the food festival. “The response till date has been good and we hope to spread awareness regarding the importance of local food. However, this is the first time we have organised a food festival but in future we plan to have more such festivals and if government bodies take initiative, it will become easier for the food lovers to get access of it,” said Arun Sajwan.
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IT firm to employ ex-servicemen Dehradun, January 16 “Our main purpose for launching these services is to provide employment opportunities to a large number of ex-servicemen and their dependants. For this, we have prepared a statewide data of ex-servicemen and their dependants so that we can easily reach out to them and help them to have better future prospects,” said Kriti Sharma, director, Sapphire Techno Service. The company’s website was launched by chief secretary, Indu Kumar Pandey. "Every important information related to our services and future plans are available on the site and anybody who wants to work with us can register on this website by selecting their area of specialisation,” said Kriti Sharma.
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