Pitthoragarh, October 8
In the wake of a major threat from a swollen Sharda river to the Tanakpur project of the National Hydro-electric Power Corporation (NHPC), the corporation has decided to spend a sum of Rs 50 lakh on a protection wall to protect the dam and power house. It has rained incessantly in the entire Kumaon region in the past week.

The river level has reached the 10-metre mark at the power house, posing a real threat to the 120-MW power project.

“We have floated a tender today for this protection wall because the Sharda river is cutting towards the project for the past some years,” said CB Singh, Chief Engineer (in charge) of the project.

The water level in the river started increasing from Dharchula in the higher hills where it is called Kali. “We have also helped the Tanakpur project with our efforts at the dam at Chirkila in Dharchula where we increased the storage of water of the Dhauli river at 41-metre level which generally remains at 35 metres,” said S Kalgounker, project manager, Dhauliganga Project.

The Sharda river, which originates at Kalapani, the tri-junction of Nepal, China and India, is called Kali throughout its 274-km hill journey until it reaches near Tanakpur in the plains. From there, it is called Sharda up to Faizabad where it is known as the Saryu river and merges into the Ganga near Patna as the Ghagra river.

Owing to continuous rainfall in Kumaon Hills for 60 hours last week, the river is in spate and poses a major threat to the Tanakpur power project as well as to Banbasa town. “We had to release more than 3.75 lakh cusec of water from Banbasa barrage as it overflowed,” said CB Singh.

“The Sharda river flooded a colony of Ambedker Nagar besides Sharda Ghat and we had to shift 30 families of this localities to safer places for two days,” said NS Nagnayal, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Tanakpur. Waters of the Sharda river also inundated the villages of Ucholigoth, Thwalkhera and Sailanigoth besides posing a threat to 12 villages situated close to its banks floodwaters had damaged crops, said Nagnyal.

The flow in the Sharda river increased as its supporting rivers like Dhauliganga, Goriganga, Ramganga and Chameliya from Nepal were also overflowing due to unprecedented rain their catchment areas. “We had to call the Army to ensure safety of the channel,” said the SDM.

“It is not the first time that the swollen waters of the Sharda river have posed a threat to the power house, barrage and the town, last year during rain we had to release 4.75 lakh cusec of water from the barrage,” said CB Singh.

Dehradun, October 8
Head of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Nandan Nilekani today held preliminary discussions with officials of the state government to prepare for the groundwork to be done in the state for the implementation of the ambitious national project of issuing unique identity (UID)numbers.

Following a meeting with the top brass of the state administration, led by Chief Secretary (CS) IK Pande, Nilekani said the basic purpose of his visit here was to explain a strategy about how Uttarakhand and the UIDAI could work together to issue the UIDs to people of the state. “We had a very useful interaction. The CS promised a complete support to the project authorities. The state had all necessary wherewithal to cover about one crore population of the state under the project,” he said.

Terming the meeting as introductory, Nilekani said nothing concrete was decided at the meeting because the groundwork was yet to be started. “We still have to publish standards besides making design of the required system of the UID. Actually, UIDs will take 12 or 18 months to be issued. There is a lot of preparatory work to be done. For this, we will soon start working very closely with the state,” he added.

On part of the state, Pande said a presentation made by the UIDAI chief was the first one about what the state could do to prepare database for the implementation of the project. “We offered to share the data related to multipurpose household survey, which was conducted in the state for the purpose of planning. The data can also be sourced from the Income Tax Department and banks,” he said.

The UIDAI will set up its regional office for the purpose of coordinating with the state.

The UIDs will not substitute other existing numbers a person may have, including PAN, passport number, ration number, etc. It will actually be an additional unique number to be cited along with existing numbers for different purposes. This will help weed out widespread problem of duplicacy of cards issued to people for various purposes. Though it is being considered very useful, the scheme is purely voluntary.

Haridwar, October 8
Maha Kumbh mela officer Anand Vardhan has strictly directed Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Departments to resolve their differences amicably and do their respective works before normal flow of the Ganga canal is resumed on October 17.

On a field inspection of the canal spots where various works are being carried out, Vardhan said differences should be amicably and timely solved otherwise the ongoing work will suffer. At no cost will he allow it to happen, he added.

Saying that the issues between the two departments don’t get down well the public, he advised them to mutually carry out works and specify their allocation too, if needed.

Reviewing a temporary bridge at Har-ki-Pauri and a permanent one at Singh Dwar late last night, the mela officer seemed satisfied with the speed and quality of these works. Apart from this, he also inspected Khadkadi, Sarvanand Ghat, Subash Ghat, Sati Ghat, Kangda Ghat and various other sites.

“Do all works before normal flow is resumed in Ganga and it should be strictly monitored that the quality should not suffer,” said Vardhan.

The deadline for the completion of these works is October 31.

Dehradun, October 8
Uttarakhand India Scouts and Guides Association organised their general body meeting here yesterday.

More than 150 members were present at the meeting. They had come from various parts of Garhwal and Kumaon regions.

The state Scout Commissioner, Guide Commissioner, Training Commissioner, Scout Guide, District Secretaries, District Training Commissioner, District Organisation Commissioner and other members of the state and district level introduced themselves to the gathering.

The meeting began with a prayer after which state secretary Ravinder Mohan Kala discussed the role of scouts and guides and their policies. He also elaborated on their training and organisation for the Kumbh Mela that is to be held in January 2010.

“With policies and budget allocation for the overall development of our institutes at the time of the Kumbh Mela, the role of scouts and guides is very important as they not only help organise translators for tourists, but also manage traffic and look into minute details,” said Urmila Rani Suri, Assistant Administrative Officer, Uttarakhand India Scouts and Guides.

As the state Education Minister is the president of the state scouts and guides, the former education minister Madan Kaushik today announced new Education Minister Govind Singh Bisht as president for the new session.

NN Pandey, Director, Higher Education, Pushpa Manav, Director, Junior Education, and Kusum Naithani, Principal, Nari Shilp Mandir Inter-College were also present on the occasion.

Dehradun, October 8
Six cadets from Rashtriya Indian Military College (RIMC) here took part in the 3rd Civilian High-Altitude Siachen Glacier Trek held from September 1 to 28, 2009.

The team comprised 23 members, including six cadets from RIMC namely cadets M Sai Surya, Anshul Bansal, VPS Pathania, Mukesh Kumar, Sudhir Sindhu and Anshul Gupta. The team was led by Major Tejender Singh. Other members of the team include cadets from Military Schools, Air Force personnel and media personnel.

The entire expedition was divided into three stages. In the first stage, the team underwent acclimatisation at Leh for a period of six days. During their stay at Leh, the team was taken various places that included Pangong Tso Lake, Thiksey Gompa, Shanti Stupa, Magnetic Hill and Hall of Fame.

The participating team was flagged off by Lt Gen SK Singh, Corps Commander, 14 Corps in the presence of various other distinguished officers on September 7, 2009.

The next day, the team proceeded to the base camp, where they got lessons for the basic glacier training at Army Mountaineering Institute. This formed the second stage of the training. At the base camp, they visited the War Memorial and witnessed the functioning of Bofors guns. They were trained in movement on glacier, climbing on ice wall and crevasse rescue. The team also witnessed a demonstration by the soldiers at Siachen Battle School.

After the completion of training, the team started for the expedition on September 17 seeking the blessings of OP Baba, who is strongly believed by all the soldiers posted at Siachen. Such is the belief that the soldiers give up the consumption of alcohol and meat during their tenure at Siachen. Like any other mountaineering expedition that is equipped with the pertinent gear and equipment, this team was also issued special clothing and equipment.

All members had to move in groups of four or five roped up together. The expedition was successful with the team reaching the final destination, Kumar Post on September 20. On their return to the base camp, a campfire was held.

“It all lies in the mind. The trek requires more mental than physical strength,” says cadet M Sai Surya, who aspires to join the Indian Air Force.

“The jawans fighting under inhuman conditions have strengthened the feeling of patriotism in all of us,” said cadet Mukesk Kumar.

“It was a tough trek, but the kind of training imparted to us at RIMC made it possible. There is a famous saying at RIMC- ‘When the going gets tough, Rimco gets going,” said cadet VPS Pathania, who aims to join the Indian Army.

All cadets have appeared in the NDA examination and are awaiting results.

Col H Dharmarajan, SM, commandant, RIMC congratulated the cadets on their arrival and complimented them for adding a feather to their cap. He said the cadets had brought laurels to themselves as well as the alma mater and made their parents proud by achieving this feat.

Dehradun, October 8
Three members of a family were killed when the motorcycle they were riding collided with a truck head-on near railway crossing on the bypass road here this afternoon.

Two of them died on the spot while the third one died on the way to the hospital.

The deceased have been identified as Deepak Dikshit (27), alias Tinku, his wife Anita (22) and their two-year-old son Chirag.

According to the police, the incident happened at about 2:25 pm when the motorcycle (UA07N 0386) driven by Deepak collided with the truck (UA08 9962) head-on while negotiating a turn. Both vehicles were reportedly on a high speed.

The bike was coming from the Saharanpur bypass side while the truck was coming from the Haridwar side.

Such was the impact of the collision that the bike got stuck into the truck while the members of the family were crushed under the front tyres of the truck. The driver of the truck fled from the spot.

The child and his mother died on the spot. Deepak died on the way to the Doon Hospital.

Deepak and Anita had a love marriage a few years ago and were putting up in a rented accommodation in Sarvasti Bihar.

Deepak’s family was staying in Kidypur, near MDDA, and he was going to meet them.

He was working as a private driver while his spouse was a housewife. He was the youngest of his siblings.

He had a brother and three sisters, all of them are married. His father runs a small shop in Arhat Bazar.

Dehradun, October 8
An unemployed youth, in his early 20s, shot himself dead with a country-made pistol last night in Rishikesh.

According to the police, Shankar was a native of Bhiwani in Haryana and a graduate in arts. He had come here to his maternal uncle’s house for sightseeing a few days ago. His uncle told the police that the deceased had told him that he was very tense, but didn’t tell him the reason.

Dehradun, October 8
In order to acquaint students about international trends in physiotherapy the Sports and Fitness Training Federation of India in association with the Physiotherapist Interns Association held a workshop here today.

The workshop was inaugurated by Commissioner, Income Tax, RK Sharma.

Addressing the workshop, Pearlson K, founder of the Federation of Indian Manual Therapists, said the aim of the workshop was to upgrade knowledge of students and apprise the general public about the benefits of physiotherapy.

“Patients suffering from joints and muscle-related problems can benefit from physiotherapy,” said Pearlson who has undergone a course in Australia in manual therapy. He is a practitioner of glides treatment.

The glides treatment, if given manually by expert physiotherapists, also increases healing and quick recovery.

The association members demonstrated the techniques at the temporary OPD set up for the benefit of students. They would also be holding similar exercise at an ashram at Vikas Nagar for the benefit of the public.

Besides, the workshop focused on joints, shoulder mobility and cervical spondylitis and how it can be avoided through corrective postures.

“In several cases, the patient is ill-advised and the cause for pain is usually attributed to a nerve being pressed when it may not be the case,” said Dr Kartikeya Arora, a member of the Sports and Fitness Training Federation of India.

Dehradun, October 8
The state government today increased the limit of the Trader Accident Insurance Scheme covering about 80,000 registered traders in the state. With this, the demand of trade organisation pending for long has been fulfilled.

As the order issued by secretary, finance, LM Pant, the limit of benefit in case any accident has been increased from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. It comes into effect from October 8, 2009. The government pays the premium under the scheme implemented in the state three years back.

Various trader organisations had termed the Rs 3-lakh limit as inadequate and made several representations to increase it. The BJP had included the issue in its poll manifesto in the last assembly election.

Hailing the decision, chairman, Industries Association of Uttarakhand, Pankaj Gupta said it was an acknowledgement of traders’ contribution to the government tax kitty.

Dehradun, October 8
Sports College registered a 1-0 win over Doon Valley in the District Super League underway at pavilion ground here today.

The Sports College team made a fine comeback in the match by defeating much stronger opponent by solitary goal.

It was Vikas for the college team who scored a goal in the 45th minute of the match.

Dehradun, October 8
The Dehradun volleyball team gave an outstanding performance to lift the 25th LIC North Central Zonal Volleyball trophy here today. In the final, they outplayed their opponent Lucknow in straight sets.

The final proved to be all Dehradun affair as the local team gave their opponent no opportunity to get a foothold in the match. They dominated the proceeding right from the beginning, winning the first set 25-11. The second set was no different as Lucknow team failed to provide any resistance to a physically agile Dehradun team and lost the set 25-16. The score in the final set was 25-17 in Dehradun’s favour. In the match for the third spot, Allahabad defeated Agra 25-16 and 25-17.

In the first semifinal match, Lucknow beat Allahabad in a five sets 19-25, 27-26, 25-22, 21-25 and 18-15. In the second semifinal match, Dehradun defeated Agra 25-10, 25-12 and 25-10.

Dehradun, October 8
Local lad Ankit Kandwal has done Uttarakhand proud. He will represent the country at the Turkey Open Karate Championship to be organised from October 9 to 12. Ankit is among 25 selected students who will be participating in the championship.

Ankit is optimistic about his good performance at the championship. He has been continuously doing well at the national level and has won a gold in 75-kg category (17 years) last year.

Talking to The Tribune, Ankit said: “This is my first international competition I will be participating in. I do not know much about my opponent and his style of fighting. Therefore, I am just going through previous championship videos to get some information about what strategy to be adopted. At the national level, I know the fighting style of most of my opponents but at the international level it is a different ball game alltogether”.

Ankit has been working hard for the past two months for the championship under the guidance of Sanjeev Kumar Jangra and had missed school too often. “I have been focusing on many stepping, punching and kicking techniques during the training session. The most important part is the counter attack, which earns you most of the points in a match. One needs to have good reflexes”. Ankit undergoes four hours of rigorous practice everyday. He has divided his practice session into two parts, two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening.

For the upcoming tour of Ankit, the Chief Minister has announced a fund of Rs 50,000.