15 Himalayan dialects set to lose their voice
Pitthoragarh, February 18
After the death of the lone Bo language speaker in Andaman and Nicobar Islands last week that resulted in the disappearance of the Bo language, scholars in the Himalayan region have also expressed concern at the fast disappearance of Himalayan languages.

Haridwar, February 18
With lakhs of pilgrims thronging Ganga ghats for a holy dip during the Maha Kumbh, the possibility of cases of drowning is much more. In the past Kumbhs, dealing with such situations was quite a tough task for the mela police. But, now with the deployment of special Jal Police teams at ghats in Haridwar and Rishikesh, devotees can feel more secure.

The Jal Police teams have been positioned at various ghats in Haridwar and Rishikesh that have maximum load of pilgrims. In view of the pilgrim number likely to increase in the coming days, the strength of Jal Police personnel has been increased.

At present, companies of the 40th and 31st Provincial Armed Constabullary (PAC) have been deployed in the mela area. These comprise one company commander and platoon commander each for both battalions. Rajendra Singh is the in charge of the Jal-Police squad that has 37 inspectors, 12 nayaks, 3 lance nayaks and 111 constables.

Till date, the Jal Police has saved 24 persons from drowning at ghats in Haridwar and Rishikesh. These include Jatwada Bridge, Premnagar Ashram, Vishwakarma Ghat, Agrasen Ghat, Jaswant Ghat, Vishnu Ghat, Alaknanda Ghat, Damkoti, Sanjay Bridge, Gau Ghat, Rein Basera, Dudhiya Van, Lakshman Jhula, Shatrughan Ghat, Bombay Ghat, Koyal Ghat, Geeta Bhawan, Seedhi hat, Platoon Bridge, Malviya Bhawan, Bahathara Seedi Ghat, Macli Ghat, Triveni Ghat and other important ghats. The Jal police personnel have got Rs 15,000 award from the Police Department for these life-saving acts.

The Jal squad has been equipped with five motor rafts, three motorboats, life jackets, scuba diving equipment, swimsuit, life buoy and other life-saving equipment.

Satish Rana, Platoon Commander, 40th PAC E-Company, said the E Jal police personnel got a major satisfaction whenever they saved someone’s life. “As we get just a few seconds to save a drowning person, it’s imperative that they draw out a strategy and react swiftly”.

He said 40th PAC E-Company jawans also carried out various other rescue operations. For instance in July, 2009, a bus had fallen in the Bhagirathi river and the company’s jawans had retrieved bodies of 25 persons. They had rescued six persons during heavy snow at the Hemkund Sahib.

Dehradun, February 18
From now on, training of police personnel and new recruits will be held in the state only as the state-of-the-art Uttarakhand Police Training Academy is to get ready in three to four months at Narendernagar in Tehri district.

This will be for the first time since the formation of the Uttarakhand state that the training of the police will be held here. Till now, the Police Department used to send its trainees to other states, including Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, incurring big fee charges besides coping with other hassles.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Uttarakhand police has incurred expenses of about Rs 10 crore on training its personnel in other states. Most of which has already been paid while the rest of the amount is being paid in lump sum. However, with Uttarakhand having its own police training academy, it will save crores and make full use of it.

The training academy is being built up with a budget of about Rs 12 crore. It will have the Uttarakhand police’s biggest parade ground and playground in the state.

Besides, the academy will have an auditorium, a multi-speciality hall, an administration block, quarters for the police employees, barracks for at least 100 trainees, a horse-riding field and a small forensic lab. The basic training and the in-service training, also called refresher training, will be held at the academy.

“We have also written to the government to get sanction of over 200 posts for the academy where the Inspector-General (IG) and the Deputy Inspector-General (DIG)-level officers will also be posted,” DIG (Training) SS Negi told The Tribune.

“We have spent about Rs 10 crore till now on training our personnel at academies of other states and most of which has been paid. But, now we can save a lot of money by organising training in the state itself and even some police personnel out of the coming 1,400 recruitments will be trained in the state. We can also provide training to personnel of other departments like the forest and transport once the training academy is ready,” added the DIG.

“Besides saving a huge amount involved in getting trainees trained in other states it will also help making training effective. We can also engage teachers from the local universities and colleges here,” said JS Pandey, DIG (Admn).

Pitthoragarh, February 18
After the death of the lone Bo language speaker in Andaman and Nicobar Islands last week that resulted in the disappearance of the Bo language, scholars in the Himalayan region have also expressed concern at the fast disappearance of Himalayan languages.

“There are at least 15 Himalayan dialects which are on the verge of disappearing. Out of these 15 dialects, three - Raji, Bhotia and Jad languages - are from Uttarakhand,” said Dr DD Sharma, an eminent scholar who has compiled a 10-volume study “Studies of Himalayan Languages” recently under a University Grants Commission (UGC) fellowship.

Dr Sharma claimed that some Himalayan dialects had already disappeared. “During my studies in the late eighties, I found only one man in Munsiyari town of Pitthoragarh who spoke the old Rangkash language. After his death, the language disappeared from the Earth,” recalled Dr Sharma.

Dr Sharma, who has travelled extensively in the entire Himalayan region from Jammu and Kashmir to the North-East in the past 25 years to study Himalayan languages and dialects, found that the grammar of all Himalayan languages is one.

“There are almost 60 dialects in the Himalayan region which represent four families - Tibeto-Burman, Dardo-Pahari, Indo-Aryan and Munda,” said Dr Sharma. He found that Tibetan influence on Himalayan languages was the highest.

In search of local Himalayan languages and dialects, Dr Sharma travelled to far-flung areas of Johar and Darma valleys of the Kumaon region.

“Many languages that George Grierson mentioned in his linguistic survey of the Himalayan region in 1816 had disappeared by 1994. The last person who spoke the Tibetan origin Rang-Skad language died in 1973,” added the linguist.

“Not only the languages of the eastern Himalayan region, but the dialects of western Himalayas are also disappearing. The Chinali language from the Chinal area of Lahaul in Himachal Pradesh, which is a language of the Indo-Aryan family, has now been confined to two villages of the valley only.”

Asked why Himalayan languages could not develop their script, Dr Sharma cited low rate of literacy in the region as the reason.

“When persons in the Himalayan region started speaking the languages of other people, they forgot the original words of their own language. A script of a particular language can only develop when it has its own phonetics,” said Dr Sharma.

After his retirement from Panjab University in 1989, Dr Sharma was awarded emeritus fellowship by the UGC which helped him study the languages and dialects of Kumaon and Nepal Himalayas.

A retired Sanskrit Professor from Panjab University, Chandigarh, Dr Sharma has studied nearly 60 Himalayan languages from Ladakh to Bhutan. “At least five languages in Ladakh, the same number of languages in the Lahaul valley, one language in the Spiti valley and two in Kinnaur are highly endangered. These are gradually disappearing because a new set of words has entered these areas due to the new system of education,” said Dr Sharma.

Dr DD Sharma said with the disappearance of old dialects not only was the inter-relationship of these languages threatened, but we were also losing the exact and appropriate expression for local events and situations.

“In the border areas of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, local dialects have an interrelationship with Tibetan and Kirati dialects. The five local languages in Ladakh have a relationship with the languages spoken in the western part of Tibet,” said Dr Sharma.

The Uttarakhand government has not surveyed the disappearing dialects in the state, but initiated some work to compile the dictionaries of some dialects.

“We have compiled dictionaries of two major tribal languages in the state. These are Jaunsari and Rang,” said Parkash Pant, a cabinet minister in the Uttarakhand government. “The state government is thinking of awarding fellowships to students who want to study tribal languages,” Pant said.

Dehradun, February 18
After scripting a success story with the prasad made from flour and nuts, the Vaishnavi Mahila Dal of Prathal village in Jammu is now planning new products for devout to be offered at the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine at Katra or taken back home as a token.

Almost at the brink of poverty, these women, 10 in all, are credited with pioneering the business of selling nutritious laddoos prepared in pure ghee as prasad at the shrine. Tapping the potential of these women, Dehradun-based Himalayan Environment Studies Conservation Organisation (HESCO) started the initiative four years ago.

In Doon on a two-day visit, members of the group are keen on upgrading their skills, improving the packaging of the prasad and going for product diversification.

The members belong to the Baridaar clan, that had been left to fend for itself after their share in the earnings of the shrine was withdrawn with the setting up of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. The villagers were left high and dry with virtually no stakes in the new dispensation that has now become an independent entity. According to a legend, the Baridaar families had discovered the cave shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi several years ago and as a mark of recognition were given a small percentage of share in the earnings.

“But, Dr Anil Joshi, patron of HESCO, helped us stand on our own feet and again establish link with the shrine. We are happy that our prasad is not only offered to the Goddess but taken back home”, said Sushma Devi, member of the Mahila Dal. There are around 350,000 families of Baridaars in villages surrounding Katra. They have been badly affected with the creation of the shrine board.

The unique nutritiously rich concoction comprising wheat, corn and nuts is laboriously mixed into round laddoos and then packed in small cartons that are easy to carry.

During the peak yatra season, the sale even goes up to 1,000 boxes a day and on regular days 500 boxes are sold each day. The prasad comprising four pure desi ghee laddoos is priced at just Rs 11.

“As of now I work from my house. I have kept aside two rooms for this activity and we have even requested the shrine board to provide us with a small shed and a few rooms for our activity. By extending support, the board will only be strengthening local entrepreneurship,” said Prem Singh, who is spearheading the project.

Though a majority of work is done by women, men too contribute in carrying the cartons of the prasad to the shrine board, for which they are paid a monthly remuneration of Rs 3,000. The women are paid Rs 1,300.

The successful prasad project has several takers. It has also been replicated at Chamoli and Uttarkashi shrines in Uttarakhand by HESCO and has also made a Southward entry.

Ramnagar, February 18
The local administration has a peculiar job on hands. It is baffled by reports of girls at an inter college of a village located 22 km away losing consciousness en masse over the past one week. Although things are said to be improving, the exact cause of the phenomenon is yet to be established. As of now it is being treated as a case of mass hysteria.

The school is Government Inter College at Patkot. The administration received reports on February 10 and 11 that a group of girls studying in classes IX and XII were falling victim to a strange phenomenon. A girl would start having convulsions for a few minutes and these would spread to other girls as well. The convulsions in the girls aged between 14 and 17 years would be accompanied by their uttering strange sounds and shrieks. Just when the administration was pondering what to do, the number of girls falling prey to the phenomenon went up to 22 on February 13.

The panicky guardians and wards of the students, all of whom are from rural background, attributed the behavior of the girls to the will of local deities and went ahead with calling godmen into the school who started preaching occult remedies like putting tilaks of different things on the foreheads of the girls.

However, the administration constituted a team of medical experts and officers of the Education Department under the local Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM). It visited the school on February 15.

Talking to The Tribune, SDM AK Nautiyal said: “The medical experts talked to the girls individually and carried out psychological counselling. Till the time they were being tackled individually they were fine. But, when they were called in a group, they again started behaving in a strange manner and started having convulsions accompanied by strange utterings”.

He said it was during the phase when the group was behaving strangely that some girls talked about the fear of the approaching examinations. He said one of the inferences drawn by the team was that maybe it was the fear of exams that had something to do with the erratic behaviour of the girls. Another thing could be a deficiency of some important minerals in their body.

“We have told their wards not to put any kind of pressure on them regarding the approaching exams. We have also suggested to them to keep the girls at home for a few days,” said Nautiyal. With most of the girls remaining home only one girl repeated the act on Tuesday while three fell victim to the phenomenon on Wednesday. He said the situation was being monitored daily.

Not intending to hurt the faith and beliefs of the villagers, it has been suggested to the parents that if they want to have any kind of puja or ritual performed to ward off the “will of the deity”, they should do it at their respective houses only as the entry of occult practitioners at the premises of the college has a detrimental effect on the minds of students.

Medical help has also been promised to the parents. As of now the incidents are being treated as a case of mass hysteria.

Earlier in November, a school in the Bajuniya Haldu area of Kaladhungi block had shot into limelight for being a venue of a peculiar phenomenon. On two different occasions, scores of girls studying in Government Inter College had fallen unconscious simultaneously.

Concerned at the development, the authorities had called for a medical examination of students at the institution. Just when a two-member team from the Kotabagh Community Centre had arrived at the school for conducting tests on the students, another 12 girls had lost consciousness.

While there were rumours about some supernatural phenomenon doing the rounds in the region, the medical fraternity termed the incidents as a result of mass hysteria. The doctors had requested the parents to keep a watch on their wards and record their activities. No such complaints were received again from the school.

Mussoorie, February 18
Protests against English-medium schools are gaining momentum on the issue of unprecedented fee hike with only one month remaining for the start of new session. Workers of the local Youth Congress, led by their president Shailendar Bisht, presented a memorandum, addressed to the State Education Minister, to the SDM.

The memorandum states that English-medium schools have been increasing the fee year after year without any consultation with parents. It has led to an additional burden on the parents/guardians of the students of these schools. The Youth Congress demands the Education Minister should take cognisance of the matter and act immediately in issuing strict directions to these schools so that the fee hike could be rolled back before the beginning of the new session.

Speaking to mediapersons later, Bisht lamented that despite the fact that most of the English-medium schools were set up to impart quality education to local students, these have turned into money-minting machines and forgotten the very purpose for which these had been built. He said if the government failed to take any action against these schools, then the Youth Congress would be forced to take to streets and protest by non-violent means.

The parents have welcomed the Youth Congress’ move and said these schools were forcing them to dole out extra money under various pretexts like picnic, fancy fair and educational tours. Shyam Sharma (name changed) said his ward was studying in Class XII and they were under enormous pressure as they would require a huge sum for their ward who will be taking various competitions after his board exams. Therefore the increase in the fee was unwarranted.

Meanwhile, school authorities is of the view that some fee hike has become essential due to inflationary compulsions. Mussoorie Public School Principal Mukesh Lal said the school was also feeling the pinch of rising inflation. It was receiving requests for the payment of tuition fee in instalments. Apart from the mess charges for boarding students, the fee has not been increased in his school. He categorically stated no fee was increased for day students this year and the school had no such plans in the near future too.

Dehradun, February 18
To provide students a platform to avail various career opportunities, a two-day fair called Destination 2010 will be organised under the aegis of Edu Plans. The event will be held on February 19 and 20 at the St Joseph Academy auditorium.

The event will provide students with numerous career and skill enhancement activities, ranging from comprehensive talks on different career options to detailed information on courses available at foreign and Indian universities.

In continuation of the career fair, Bharat Shodh, an organisation working for social causes, has planned Uttarakhand Conclave 2010 in association with the Livelihood and Skills Development Alliance (LIDSA), a non-governmental organisation dedicated to work for underprivileged, from February 19 to 21.

Bharat Shodh works in alliance with the government, non-government organisations and various educational institutions so that masses can be sensitised regarding various opportunities in numerous sectors and create employment opportunities.

“People in India want to work, but lack specialised training. Bharat Shodh comprises a team of intellectuals from varied fields, who plan to impart knowledge at grassroot level so that India as a whole develops in all facets,” said RK Atri, Secretary and Chief Development Officer, Bharat Shodh.

“Simple skills like bee-keeping, vermin-compost production, rainwater management and teak plantation have taken place and can take ordinary farmers to high prosperity zones. Skill in other vocational trades like electricians, plumbers, mechanics, drivers, security personnel, hose-helps for senior/disabled can have a similar impact,” added Atri.

Sandeep Khanna, organiser of Destination 2010, said, “The goal of the activity is to provide forum for parents, students and teachers to interact with representatives of almost 30 different educational organisations. 

Dehradun, February 18
A total of 32 students of Graphic Era University got placed in a leading IT company, Infosys, for its technical support and other processes in BPO wing through campus placements held here yesterday. Many students from undergraduate courses sailed through the campus interviews, who were earlier baffled with the dilemma of getting appointed. More than 200 students took part in the recruitment process.

A majority of the eligible students got rewarded for their strenuous labour and diligent efforts by getting campus placements during ongoing recession in the IT sector. Apart from the BCA Department, students from MBA and BSc (IT) were also selected.

The entire process of the placement was categorised into three segments, where 111 students were short listed out of 200 but only 32 could get through the assessment. 

Dehradun, February 18
Two students union groups of DAV (PG) College clashed today over the Union Function Committee issue.

The students, who were having a talk with Principal BL Nautiyal over the committee matter, turned violent following heated arguments among them. Later, the police had to call to control the situation.

Members of the National Students Union of India (NSUI) alleged that they had little share in the decision-making of the committee particularly about the union function, which was to start from March 5 and had no member on the committee.

While members of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidya Parishad (ABVP) refuted the allegation. NSUI chief Shibu said they had gharoed the Principal over the committee issue and the CD episode.

The CD carrying details about the salary of the college teachers was to be sent to the Haldwani Higher Education, however, it allegedly turned out to be “blue CD.”

Meanwhile, the Principal said the students had fought over the participation of the members in the Union Function Committee, however, later it was resolved. 

Dehradun, February 18
After a rigorous academic schedule, students of ICFAI University have got into a festive mood. A three-day cultural festival named Antarnaad-2010 was organised on the university campus, Selaqui, Dehradun. The Students Welfare Committee has been heading the festival. Vice-Chancellor GP Srivastava inaugurated the event.

An array of activities held in the festival provided students a time to relax and unwind. It also brought students closer as well highlighted the hidden talents.

Some of the events that were showcased on the first day were product designing, technical paper presentations, website designing, painting, counter strike, bed monitor, table tennis, gully cricket, catch-the-clip, volleyball and kabbadi.

Mussoorie, February 18
Five roller-skaters were felicitated today during a simple ceremony at a hotel for their outstanding contribution in the field of skating. Organised by the Mussoorie Sports Association (MSA) on the occasion of completion of 35 years of the roller-skating rally from Mussoorie to Delhi. On February 18, 1975, these five youths had reached Delhi after a four-day adventure.

Chief guest Palika President OP Uniyal honoured Gopal Bhardwaj, Gurdarshan Singh, Singhara Singh along with late Anand Mishra and late Gurcharan Singh Hora who were honoured posthumously. Their kin received the award on their behalf.

The five wheelers had created an Asian record by travelling on wheels till Delhi. The skaters were extremely happy that the MSA remembered them after so many years.

Gopal Bhardwaj reminisced the day they began the rally from Mussoorie. “A milestone was established by five young men of Mussoorie on Valentine’s Day, 1975, when they set out on a chilly winter morning and covered the distance of 290 km from Mussoorie to Delhi.

“We completed the adventure on February 18, 1975, and received a tumultuous welcome in Delhi.”

He added that it was an out-of-the-world experience as for the first time in the history of Delhi, the traffic was stalled for them at the Yamuna Bridge for half an hour.

They were welcomed by the then Lt Governor of Delhi Krishan Chandra at the site of the Basant Mela. A makeshift wooden ramp was built by the federation for the skaters.

Gurdarshan Singh and Singhara Singh, members of the team, recalled that they were so inspired by the rally that they also achieved the distinction of travelling to Amritsar on wheels on December 9 the same year.

Singhara Singh reminisced that onlookers had a quizzical expression on their faces. “Some thought that we had lost our legs and felt sorry for us,” he added.

Remembering the journey, Gurdarshan Singh said as they entered Punjab, some fellow skaters taunted him about the land of abundant milk and sarson da saag, but it was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly, a Punjabi cyclist, who was travelling along with the skaters, overheard the conversation and immediately told them to halt at that place.

He ran back to his village and returned with a big can of milk, ghee and makki di roti. The cyclist then assertively said, “Puttar, this is really the land of plenty and you will have to finish it all”.

The skaters first relished the food and later, forced the rest of it into their tummies. This was the cyclist’s answer to the taunt.

Gurdarshan Singh, however, is not happy with the attitude of the government and said that sportspersons sacrifice the most important years of their life for the nation, but get nothing in return.

He said that his financial condition was not good and he was looking for a job as a taxi driver in hotels.

“I can barely fend for my family and the bank loan on my taxi is yet to be paid,” he said.

The skaters also remembered the days when they participated in Korea and Macau. “It feels great to see the Tricolour being hoisted,” said Gopal Bhardwaj with tears in his eyes.

OP Uniyal and Principal, MPS, Mukesh Lal said Mussoorie had its golden moment in roller-skating as the city was the pioneer in promoting it to other states. The Queen of Hills had the best rinks, he added.

Mukesh Lal opined that the tales of great sportspersons like them should be introduced in schools so that they become an inspiration to many.

Palika president OP Uniyal admitted that the rink was in a bad shape but said that they were looking for new venues. After the completion of the stadium in Bhilaru and Townhall in Kulri, the problem of the skating floor would also be solved. He said Chief Minister Nishank was taking interest in the project.

The skaters in unison resolved to travel on wheels again to encourage healthy habits among youth and for environmental causes from Mussoorie to Dehradun if they got some support.

The Coordinator, MSA, said the MSA and other organisations would organise a rally from Mussoorie to Dehradun in the near future. President MSA Suresh Goyal, SS Rawat, BS Negi, Javed Khan and Rakesh Badola were also present on the occasion.

Dehradun, February 18
Ashish Tiwari, a cadet of the Rashtriya Indian Military Academy (RIMC), has won a silver medal at the 55th National Shooting Championship. The competition was organised by the Maharashtra Sports Authority under the aegis of the School Games Federation of India at the Balwadi Sports Complex, Pune, from February 10 to 12.

Around 200 shooters from eight states took part. Cadet Ashish Tiwari represented the IPSC team and went on to bag a silver medal in the .177 Air Rifle category with a score of 383/400.

More than 20 schools from all over India were represented through their state units and shooters got to showcase their talent at the country’s best shooting range.

Dehradun, February 18
Prateek Sharma won the 100m gold at the annual sports day of the Instruments Research and Development Establishment here today.

Result: 100m (boys): 1. Prateek Sharma 2. Sumit Pal 3. Deepak Pradhan.

100m (senior): 1. YP Singh 2. Manish 3. Vipin Singh.

200m (senior): 1. YP Singh 2. Manish 3. Vipin Singh.

800m: 1. Manish 2. YP Singh 3. Ajay Gupta.

1600m: 1. Pramode Pathak 2. Naveen Yadav 3. Deepak Kumar.

Girls 100m: 1. Priyanshu 2. Pratisksha 3. Prachi Chauhan.

Long jump: 1. RS Negi 2. YP Singh 3. Vipin Singh.

High jump: 1. Manish 2. RS Negi 3. Vipin Singh.

Shot put: 1. GS Rawat 2. RS Negi 3. Rachit Sharma.

Discus throw: 1. Rachit Sharma 2. GS Rawat 3. Ikbal Singh.

Javelin throw: 1. YP Singh 2. Manish 3. Kamal Ram.

Cycle race: 1. KRS Negi 2. YP Singh 3. Manish.

100m veterans: 1. Karamveer 2. Kailash Chand 3. Naresh Negi. — TNS

Dehradun, February 18
UIT registered a huge 110-run victory over IMS, Dehradun, at the first Inter-College Tournament organised by the Uttarakhand Technical University, Dehradun.

UIT piled up 189 runs in 30 overs with Ritush being the star performer. He played an important knock of 47 runs off 37 balls.

The openers gave a fine start to the team with Pankaj scoring 11 runs and Kuldeep scoring 18 runs. First down batsman Mahender scored 41 runs off 35 balls.

For IMS, P Suri was the leading wicket taker with three wickets while Ravinder, Rahul and Chhtreshwar took two wickets each.

In reply, IMS was all out for 79 runs. Deepak scored 27 runs off 30 balls and Chhtreshwar made 11 runs. For UIT, Mukesh took three wickets. Kapil and Ritush took two wickets.

In the second match, GRD defeated RIT by 34 runs. Batting first, GRD scored 203 runs in 35 overs. Bivender was the highest scorer with 46 runs while Ankit made 20 runs. For RIT, Munakashit took three wickets and Udit claimed two wickets.