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Allotment of Hydro Power Projects
More health projects to come under PPP mode
Babbal attackers to be arrested soon, says SSP
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Cong workers hold rally to oppose state govt
Local NGO provides software for tiger census
‘Kheti-se-Lakhpati’ TV serial soon
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Allotment of Hydro Power Projects
Mussoorie, March 17 Congressmen had alleged rampant irregularities in the land and hydro-electric deals. Das in defence of the government said the Congress was raising these baseless issues and shying away from discussion. He asserted that no irregularities had been committed by the present government and the Congress was venting its frustration due to the fast pace of development in the state initiated by Nishank. Placing the documents before the media, he said on July 25, 2008, an advertisement was placed with the last date on December 27, 2008. The government received 741 applications, of which five for renewable energy projects and 736 for hydro-electric projects. As many as 624 projects were found according to the guidelines’ committee headed by the Chief Secretary, in which 175 applications were considered for discussion and the rest were yet to be decided. In 100 KW category, three applications were received and allotted to them. In 1 MW and 5 MW categories, nine applications were received, which had also been allotted. Not only had this, 44 persons had been allotted projects of 5-25 WM, from which the government would receive Rs 1 lakh premium and in 5-25 MW category, Rs 5 lakh worth of premium. He said the fact that the right of fixing tariff structure would remain with the government. Flaying the Congress, he alleged that the Congress in the tenure of its government allotted 15 projects in private sectors. On the contrary, the BJP government to safeguard the rights of the state introduced the first right of disposal under which Singoli, Bhatwari, Rambada, Fata etc were allowed to increase the capacity. Das alleged that the Congress itself had sold Vishnu Prayag Project of 400 watts at Srinagar without premium leading to loss of revenue. He further said the Congress fearful of the vast development work being carried out in the state by the BJP and misleading the people and creating state of confusion. The allotment procedures in the power projects bereft of any discrepancies. He praised the development work being done by Nishank and assured secure future under his leadership. Anglo-Indian Karen Hilton Mayor, BJP MLA and chairperson of the Educational Committee said land use pattern was changed after the directions of the BIFR and the high court and they had no role to play in it. |
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More health projects to come under PPP mode
Dehradun, March 17 The exercise is expected to give impetus to medical services in the state, which continue to be out of reach of an average villager. In the pipeline are trauma centres, MRI, diagnostic and CT scan centre at Kotdwar and Pithoragarh, cardiac unit at Dehradun
and Roorkee. The ever-expanding list of medical facilities/services going the private way now includes 16 trauma centres (both complete and incomplete) which the government failed to run because of lack of manpower. The trauma centres at Rishikesh, Roorkee and Kotdwar will also be run on PPP mode, for which the government has also made provision in the new budget presented today. Despite getting clearance for 16 trauma centres they remain non-functional in the absence of manpower. The holistic trauma centre with international standards having specialists in surgical and non-surgical 20 hours a day remains a pipe dream. The government is slowly learning that the operation of the centres is not only extremely expensive, but also the non-availability of medical staff may invariably come a cropper despite the best intentions of the government. Significantly, the state government is already running GVK EMRI 108 emergency ambulance services in the state, that was introduced in March, 2008, followed by MRI services in Doon Hospital, nephrology unit at Deen Dayal Upadhayay Coronation Hospital which is shortly expected to get a cardiac unit also to be run on PPP mode. “The trauma centre requires specialists and surgeons who are equipped to handle emergencies 24 hours a day. We have dearth of medical and para-medical staff at the moment, but our doctors in the emergency are equipped to handle any cases. But I think the
centres located a little distance away from the hospitals would pose a problem as the staff cannot be easily deployed,” said Dr CP Arya, Director, General Health. |
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Babbal attackers to be arrested soon, says SSP
Dehradun, March 17 The police had arrested Jaideep, driver of Jiti, on the day of the murder. The driver was caught injured with a bullet in his abdomen, which supposedly was because of the fire shots from Babbal’s side during the encounter. Jaideep had told the police that he was not involved in the clash, but was only there with Jiti. The police had later arrested one more person in this connection from Rishikesh and on the basis of the information got from him the police is trying to trace the prime accused Jiti. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Abhinav Kumar said the police teams had got vital clues and were likely to arrest the persons involved in the case in a day or two. The police had sent its teams to different states to trace the accused. Kotwali police station Circle Officer (CO) Ajay Kumar though didn’t reveal where the police teams had been sent to trace the accused, said the police was about to get success in a couple of days. Jiti and Babbal, both history-sheeters and property dealers, reportedly had some dispute over property in the Shaspur area. Though there were reports of a gang war between the two, the police had categorically denied such reports. It may be recalled that desperate to arrest Jiti, the police had attached his property on the Ring Road on March 10, besides announcing Rs 2,500 on his arrest. Three held for
drugging passengers
Nainital: In a breakthrough, the Haldwani police has managed to arrest three persons involved in drugging passengers and then fleeing with their possessions. Those arrested are Govind Singh and Prem Singh of Ramnagar, along with Chanda Devi of Gularghati. A special team of the police had been on the lookout for the miscreants for sometime. On spotting three suspicious characters at the bus stand on Monday. the police followed them and eventually managed to nab the three. A large number of tablets, which could be used to drug a person, were recovered from the three accused. The incidents of bus and train passengers being drugged and robbed have been reported from Haldwani, Rudrapur and adjoining areas over the past few weeks. This is the first major arrest in the matter. |
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Quota for Rawaltas, Jaunpuris sought
Dehradun, March 17 The issue was also raised by the Congress legislators in the House, who sought the Speaker’s attention over the issue. It was only after state Congress president Yashpal Arya and Leader of the Opposition Harak Singh Rawat, who informed Rawat of the assurance given by the state government to take up the issue on priority that the dharna came to an end. Interestingly, BSP legislative party leader Shahjad Ahmed, intervening, held that their party would oppose inclusion of any new caste on the Backward Caste list in the name of regions. Rawat had been taking up the issue of Rawalta and Jaunpuri communities. He recalled that while earlier the Congress government had declared these two communities as backward, the present BJP government had so far failed to recommend these communities into Central other Backward Caste list. Rawat had been repeated raising this issue in the House. |
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Cong workers hold rally to oppose state govt
Mussoorie, March 17 Members of the Youth Congress, NSUI, Mahila Congress and a large number of senior Congressmen attended the rally that began from Anupam Chowk and ended at Library Bazar. MLA, Mussoorie, Jot Singh Gunsola, Mussoorie president Bhagwan Singh Dhanai, Mahila Congress president Bharosi Rawat and others aised slogans against the government. They flayed the government on its incompetency in dealing with the various controversial issues. Gunsola said on the occasion that this government had failed miserably on all fronts and was engulfed in scams worth several thousand crores. In Mussoorie the Congress would vehemently oppose the land lease to the Art of Living. The lease of the Clock Tower to a businessman was also opposed in the rally. Shailendar Bisht, Nitin Dutt, Sunil Panwar, Sandeep Agarwal, Rais Khan and others were also present on the occasion. |
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Local NGO provides software for tiger census
Dehradun, March 17 The Wildlife Institute of India is putting to use this software after collecting the field data. The software will help the WII come out with tiger census figures. The NGO also has its centres in Ranchi and Pune. The organisation, which has been into software business since 2001, maintains websites of the Uttarakhand Forest Department, Forest Survey of India, Indian Institute of Remote Sensing and several other Central government scientific institutions based in Dehradun. According to WII sources, the software suits the GIS and GPS data and works exactly to the needs of WII census needs. Tiger census figures are to come up by November. |
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HelpAge holds camp on preventive health care
Dehradun, March 17 At the two-day training camp on “Preventive Health Care in Old Age” held today and organised by HelpAge experts called for making adjustment and taking preventive steps prior to attaining the age of 56 years. “Decrease in bone density and lack of coordination can lead to morbidity, and for the old it is difficult to recover from the mishaps quickly. Medications take a toll on health too. Long hours on bed too prove stressful,” said Aju Philip, Country Coordinator Physiotherapy Care, HelpAge India, while delivering a presentation on physiological changes and adaptation in older adult. He also mooted the concept, Elders for Elders, in which the physically active elderly could provide services to those older than them. “They can handle them better and even the elderly will feel at ease in like company,” said Philip. Focusing on diet and exercise, Philip said a balanced diet rich in minerals and other nutrients should be started as early as possible. Earlier, while inaugurating the training camp, Major-Gen Manoj Tayal, Additional Surveyor General, Survey of India, said age should not be a barrier in leading a fulfilled and enriched life, provided the elderly made an effort. “The NGOs can put pressure on the government for implementing elderly-friendly policies,” he said. Dr Aapga Singh, Deputy Director, Programmes, HelpAge, said care-givers from oldage homes and senior citizens were attending the training programme and suggestions from them too would be incorporated. |
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House gutted in fire
Dehradun, March 17 No one got injured in the mishap since no family member was at home at the time the incident occurred. The fire first broke out in the temple of the house, where a lamp was placed. A cloth kept nearby reportedly caught fire and it gradually engulfed the whole house. Neighbours saw the fire emerging from the house and called up the fire station and the owner of the house. Two fire tenders were pressed into service and it took about half an hour to douse the flames. The fire could have engulfed nearby houses as well, but with the help of the fire tenders the tragedy was averted. Owner of the house Chandra Devi, who works as a domestic help, said she had gone for work. She said she had kept Rs 40,000 and ornaments for her daughter’s marriage, but that all had turned into ashes now. |
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‘Kheti-se-Lakhpati’ TV serial soon
Dehradun, March 17 For mass dissemination of its programme for employment generation by increasing productivity and efficiency of people from different sections of society, Bharat Shodh has launched a television series for farmers and people associated with farming. Doordarshan (DD), New Delhi, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Bharat Shodh, a voluntary organisation, as per which DD on its different channels (national and local), will broadcast in the next three years 52 episodes of “Kheti-se-Lakhpati”, a film series produced by the NGO for empowering poor farmers to become “lakhpati” from farming. The MoU has been signed for all channels of DD and the broadcast of the first 13 episodes of the film will begin from March 20 on DD National. The series has been conceived and scripted by PK Siddharth, IPS, an Additional DGP rank officer, who is a principal adviser to the NGO, and directed by PK Siddharth and Prerna Siddharth. In these films lives of some small farmers has been captured, who become millionaires through farming by adopting right agricultural practices and techniques in the states that present mighty challenges to successful farming. The series also show instances in which some farmers have become billionaires through teak plantations on land that is considered wasteland. The films demonstrate how even huge chunks of wasteland can be turned into goldmine. Best agricultural experts have taught techniques and agricultural trades that can empower the farmers to earn lakhs of rupees from their small land holdings. Shyam Benegal, veteran director, and many other celebrities have also acted in the film. |
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Bahuguna remembered
Dehradun, March 17 The leaders of the Mahanagar Congress Committee, Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee and SP state unit traced the stories of his life. Virender Singh Bisht, state general secretary of the Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee, said he was a nationalist and his contribution in the development of both Uttarakhand and UP couldn’t be forgotten. |
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