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Govt moves to secure elephant corridor
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Theatre Fest: Thin audience disheartens artistes
India’s telecom sector booming, claims TRAI
4 schemes announced at talent hunt
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Govt moves to secure elephant corridor
Dehradun, May 18 The Chila Motichoor elephant corridor connects the western and eastern parts of the Rajaji park. It facilitates long-distance movement of pachyderm that today face hindrance from physical obstructions, including Khand III villages. Park officials have drafted a memorandum of understanding that is to be shortly signed with Khand villagers entailing shifting of 32 families to Kalapani area that lies between the townships of Rishikesh and Haridwar. After these families are shifted, nine more will be moved, making. This will make way for Asia’s biggest elephant The rehabilitation process will be on the lines of Tehri Dam oustees, which involves land in place of land while ensuring basic civic amenities at the new site of rehabilitation and monetary compensation. There has been much concern over the fast-shrinking Chila Motichoor corridor due to human interference, causing hindrance in pachyderm movement. The Rajaji park authorities have been working hard to make this corridor obstacle-free, Shifting Khand III villages is a step in this direction. Rajaji National Park director SS Raisaily says: “We are in the process of rehabilitation. Assessment of properties has been done through the district authorities to ensure proper compensation to the affected families apart from providing them land in lieu of land.” The National Highways Authority of India has decided to take the initiative to construct the one-of-their-kind elephant passes under the highway and railway line that cut through the Rajaji park. These underpasses will facilitate undisturbed movement of elephants while ensuring a smooth flow of traffic. The rehabilitation of Khand village is aimed to facilitate the construction of one of the underpasses. The Wildlife Trust of India has been instrumental towards brokering talks between Khand III village families and the state forest department. Says Dr AK Singh, Uttarkhand coordinator for the trust: “The Chila Motichoor corridor assumes much significance for movement of both elephants and tigers. “This corridor connects western and eastern parts of the Rajaji park. Bigger forest areas, including Dehradun, Rishikesh and Shivalik forests, that lie on the west of the Ganga also get connected with this key corridor.” “Securing the corridor will facilitate elephant movement and end the isolation of groups of elephants, thus facilitating male breeding in the long run,” explained Dr Singh. Around 27 hectares have been earmarked in Kalapani for rehabilitation of these Khand III villagers, who are Tehri Dam oustees and were settled in the area in the late seventies and early eighties. Welcoming the securing of the Motichoor Chila corridor, wildlife experts say while underpasses will certainly address the highway problem, the rail track issue will remain unresolved. The say seek making the underpass structure ecological sound. Removal of an ammunition dump has been another constraint. Dr Hem Singh Gehlot, WWF, Uttarakhand, says securing corridors hold much importance for the sustenance of wildlife. Expressing concern over the rising human interference in the form of habitation and encroachment in wildlife corridors across Uttarkhand, Dr Gehlot says the elephants cannot be confined to one forest. Corridors, thus, play a key role in ensuring free movement of the elephants. He feels the sole solution to check the growing incidence of human-wildlife conflict in the Corbett region is to safeguard the corridors. “By securing a key corridor like Chila Motichoor, the Rajaji park authorities have done laudable work,” he said. Situated in the Shivalik hills of the outer Himalayas, the Rajaji park is 5-10 km south and east of Haridwar. Its three ranges — Chilla, Motichur and Rajaji — in Pauri Garhwal, Dehradun and Haridwar districts. Thenational park is known as an ideal elephant habitat.
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Theatre Fest: Thin audience disheartens artistes
Dehradun, May 18 Donning the traditional mekhla dress and carrying “jhapis” and dhols, the dancers (senior group) exhibited near-perfect synchronisation, matching step for step. The artistes belonged to the Nritya Kala Kendra, Nalabari, Assam. Presenting another variation of bhiu, the artistes from the BDP Cultural Association, Nalabari, presented a slower version of the dance, that was much appreciated, especially because of its song. An energetic garba by male artistes ( Junior group) from the Sharda Education and Charitable Trust, Lok Nritya, Rajkot, dedicated to Lord Krishna took the audience by surprise because of its sheer vitality. This was followed by a spirited Rajasthani dance by Tana Singh and Shruti Sharma from Jabalpur. The female dancers (senior group) carrying clay pots on their heads were a picture of poise and balance. Their performed daring feats. The programme began with solo performances by Aruna Mishra from the Aruna Lok Nritya Dal Evam Natya Sansthan, who presented the Shiv Aradhana. A student of KPRC Kala Kendra College, Bareilly, he also been selected for a dance programme called “India’s got talent.” While the Doon Ghati Rang Manch has managed to bring in groups from 15 states, there has been a dearth of audience. “We are surprised at the lack of interest by the local audience. On the second day too the audience has been absent,” said a rather disappointed GB Mohapatra, director, Theatre Movement,
Cuttack. He was not too hopeful if things would change for the better in days to come.
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India’s telecom sector booming, claims TRAI
Haridwar, May 18 The seminar was held to mark the 143rd anniversary of the World Telecommunications Organisation which was founded in 1865 when the international telegraphic convention was signed. It is not for nothing that international telecommunication companies are eyeing India as a prime investment area. According to latest data, the number of telephone users utilising base-fixed phones and cellular phones combined have touched a whopping 44 crore mark in the country. Considering the increasing number of cellular service providers and the cheap rates of cellular sets, soon India will overtake China in the number of users. Notably, India is the second-biggest market for wireless services with approximately 400 million wireless connections. China leads with more than 600 million users as per the data received from Telecom
Regulatory Authority India (TRAI) office in New Delhi. Experts predict that with the advent of third generation services, commonly known as 3-G services, this number is bound to increase in leaps and bounds. Vishwajit Mitra associated this rise with the day-to-day and latest developments in technology and science which are
complimenting the telecom revolution. Institution of Engineers secretary, SK Singh, shed light on the history of telecommunications in the world and in India. Professor Kum Kum Garg pointed that in India there are four crore landline phones. Cellular connections have crossed the 40-crore mark and every year, one crore consumers are added to the number. Experts also dwelt on the the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) and CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) network and the difference between these two technologies. The experts also dwelt on the growing misuse of internet and added services by the younger generation. “As is the case with the latest technologies, children and youth are misusing the internet and other services. Keeping this in view, parents should constantly monitor them and try to generate awareness in them about the negative aspects of technology,” said Dr
Dharmendra Singh, conveynor of the IOE.
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4 schemes announced at talent hunt
Dehradun, May 18 Addressing a press conference, Pooja Mittal, spokesperson of the institute said, “We are getting a good response from Uttarakhand. To let a large number of students learn from our well-qualified professors and avail our facilities of placements, we are announcing the Vivekananda scheme for single-child girls (two seats), weaker section (two seats), sports quota (two seats) and physically challenged students (two seats) with minimum 50 per cent in graduation from any recognised university. “In addition to these categories, any student having marks above 65 per cent is eligible to get admission in an open seat (direct admission) for the two-year PDGM course based on IIM’s trimester system which is approved by AICTE, New Delhi.” Mittal added, “The motto of SVIET is to educate students to become job creators rather than job seekers. This region has lot of talent and only thing is to show them the right path and provide them quality education. “As Swami Vivekananda said education, education and education is the panacea to all evils on this earth, we are positive we will get a very good response from this talent hunt.”
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