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Char Dham Yatra hits hurdle before start
State facing food crisis, says minister
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70-yr-old painting at Pavilion
Ground restored
Rishikul medicos step up stir
Celebration time at Navodya Vidyalaya
St Jude’s School celebrates annual day
Gold Cup: SCYC, Services enter semifinals
Ajabpur Young Star drub BCC
Carman School beat Unison World
Doctors’ annual confidential reports released
Sushil fashions Education Dept win
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Char Dham Yatra hits hurdle before start
Dehradun, May 12 Their demands are to stop the initiation of decentralisation and projects through the public private partnership (PPP) mode, regularisation of daily wage earners, contractual employees and compliance of Supreme Court’s order on the same post same salary. In this strike, both the Nigam Employees Organisation and the Employees Association have come together to reinforce their demands. Mananging Director of the nigam VVRC Purushottam and General Manager UK Kabadwal dashed off to the Rishikesh office to hold a meeting with both factions. The functioning at the Dehradun headquarters of the nigam came to a halt today when officers stayed away from work and the employees could be seen gathered outside in groups. Briefing about their demands, Purushottam Puri, president of the Employees Association, said: “It is sad that in the name of decentralisation, the department is vacating and selling this Dehradun headquarters building which after a long years of its establishment was recently renovated. We fail to understand why higher officials who are starting five branches in different areas of the state for decentralisation purposes need to sell off this building, which is a property of the GMVN. The matter looks fishy.” A meeting with higher officials held two days ago with regard to the demands failed, forcing the employees to go on an indefinite strike, he said. Puri also vehemently opposed the system of getting work done through the PPP mode in the GMVN, a trend which he felt would ultimately render the employees redundant and lead to layoffs in the near future. The employees expressed anguish the way daily wage earners were appointed in the GMVN and not regularised since then. “Five hundred daily wage earners were employed in 1985 and then again 300 more were appointed without any requirement, as neither there were vacancies nor was any surge in business. After 1976, there has been no change in the staff structure with any promotion in sight. In such a disparaging situation, we were egged on to move to the High Court in 2001-02 to seek regularisation of employees, which the High Court granted us on the basis of equal work equal pay, even that was not given to us till date,” said SP Pant, vice-president of the association. He said officials had been dodging this question in the name of fulfilling norms which they did fulfil and got approval from Radha Rathuri, senior IAS officer, but still the GMVN was not ready to move files. AK Ghildiyal, another member, said by not placing the report of the Pant Committee in the Cabinet which talked of employees’ welfare, the Nigam has disrespected the feelings of the employees. The only higher official, DS Pawar, AGM, found in the premises said it was unfortunate to see the employees going on a strike when the peak tourist season in view of the Char Dham Yatra is all set to begin. But, he expressed hope that a solution would be worked out soon. |
State facing food crisis, says minister
Dehradun, May 12 Addressing the media in Dehradun, Bhatt said with scant rainfall in the state for past three years and water problems aggravating further, the state had entered into a food crisis. “Even after making alternative arrangements we are able to provide 10 literes water per day to each family in localities,” Bhatt pointed out. He said a lack of water had created drought-like conditions, forcing people to go to the extent of even selling off their cattle. He said the state Civil Supplies Department had even appealed to the Centre for allowing them to utilise remaining Kumbh foodgrain stock taking into account the prevailing drought-like conditions in the state. He argued that
while against the availability of 17,000 MT of wheat, the state needed around 47,000 MT of wheat. While admitting that there existed a shortage of employees in the Civil Supplies Department, Bhatt said as many as 144 key posts of Inspector were lying vacant in the department apart from other vacancies. The department was in talks with Uttarakhand Poorva Sainik Nigam Limited and was planning to hire ex-servicemen to make up for these shortages. Referring to opening up of new gas agencies, Bhatt said 78 new gas agencies were to be opened which included 59 agencies under the Rajeev Gandhi Grameen Rojgar
Yojana. “The new gas agencies will do away with monopoly of existing 144 agencies and will introduce a competitive factor,” Bhatt argued. Responding to queries, Bhatt said he had been repeatedly appealing
the MP representing Uttarakhand to take up the issue of existing food crisis in the state. “After repeatedly urging them to
take up the issue at the Central level, we have now decided to write a letter to them reminding them of their responsibility as representatives of the state,” Bhatt observed. |
70-yr-old painting at Pavilion
Dehradun, May 12 The history of the painting, a portrait of late Lala Mansumrat Dass, can be traced way back to 1939. The directors of Bhagwan Das Bank Ltd, Dehradun, acting on a suggestion by JEC Turner, IFS (retd), decided to construct a football stadium at a cost of Rs 4,000 in memory of late Lala Mansumrat Dass in Dehradun. Since the inception of the Pavilion Ground, the portrait has remained a part of the ground. Rai Bahadur L Ugra Sen (Bar at Law) presented the oil painting in 1939. The Modern Art Studio, Dehradun, prepared it. The portrait had a fixed place in the main room of the Pavilion Ground. After facing wear and tear and neglect for almost seven decades, the heritage painting was in a state of decay. The canvas had been in a bad condition and had decayed. It was torn at two places. The wooden frames had been infested by termites. The board fixed on its back was also in tatters. The District Football Association (DFA), Dehradun, decided to restore the historic painting and for this, they took the help of eminent restoration artist Ranjan Chakraborti of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). Being a football player in his younger days, Ranjan agreed to restore the painting. The DFA gave him cost of the chemicals. After doing hard work for many weeks, Chakraborti was able to restore the painting. Commenting on the painting, he said, “Jute canvas, on which this painting was made, was used in India in the early 19th century. We cleaned the painting with chemicals, the torn spots were repaired and we applied touching to integrate the colours. “We used no colours in the restoration work. We have also pasted an additional canvas behind the painting to provide added strength to the jute canvas. To extend the life of the painting, we have applied a coat of preservatives.” The restoration of Lala Mansumrat Dass’ painting is possibly the first of its kind in Indian football. No such work has been recorded in any part of the country, not even in places like Calcutta and Goa, said football historian and commentator Novy Kapadia. Kapadia told the DFA, “This is the first case of restoration of football or football ground-related painting in North India. I think maybe even in India. I have not heard of any football painting being restored in either Calcutta or Goa.” The painting was in a bad shape. “Due to the accumulation of dust over the years and seepage of water, the painting had been badly damaged. The restoration process began by removing the painting from the outer frame. “Dust, dirt and cobwebs were cleaned by using a soft sable hair brush. The painting was removed from the stretcher frame. Pale yellow varnish was cleaned by a mixture of solvents at the rate of 2 inches per day,” said Ranjan Chakraborti. “After removing the painting canvas from the stretcher frame, the torn portions and missing colour portions were mended. A lining was provided at the back of the canvas by pasting a starch-free cotton canvas by applying a heated mixture of bee wax, gum and dammar as adhesive,” Ranjan Chakraborty added. Interestingly, the Pavilion Ground, located in the heart of Dehradun city, has remained a testimony of the rise and fall of the Doon football. |
Ground restored
The Pavilion Ground was part of the Parade Ground. The Bhagwan Das Bank had submitted the building plan after making all necessary arrangements for the start of the construction to the Municipal Board.
Sher Singh, Chairman of the District Board, laid the foundation stone for the sports pavilion on 26 February, 1939. But, as the Parade Ground was a ‘Nazul’ land, the plan was referred to the Superintendent of Dehradun. "The Parade Ground is used chiefly as playgrounds by a number of clubs and schools and the proposed constructions will complete one chief requirement of the sports-loving section of the public,” the Municipal Board Chairman had written in his letter. The process to get the approval took almost one year and finally on September 15, 1939, Commissioner T Sloan of the Meerut Division gave the green signal to build a pavilion. "I have been directed to convey the sanction of the government to the construction by the Dehradun Municipal Board of a sports pavilion on the Parade Ground, Dehradun, which is a ‘Nazul’ land under the agreement of the Board," the approval had stated. The construction of the pavilion, as mentioned in letter No. 492, got completed within a year. The Pavilion Ground saw top football clubs of India and also from neighbouring countries like Pakistan fighting for top honours in Dehradun. In 1958 and 1967, the Gorkha Brigade played exhibition matches against East Bengal here to enthral football fans. The Pavilion, located in the heart of the city, played a key part in giving a boost to football in
Doon. |
Rishikul medicos step up stir
Haridwar May 12 First they gathered at the college gate and held the daily meeting. The rally started from Rishikul chowk then culminated on main road and blocked the traffic for sometime at Chandracharya chowk. Addressing the gathering, state chief of ABVP Pulkit Arya while commenting on principal’s statement in which he called the ABVP as anti-social organisation said the ABVP has been a national organisation and it’s unfortunate to call it anti-social. “Principal will have to face dire consequences of his statement as well as his tyrant management of the college affairs,” said Pulkit. Agitators also pointed that they had to take this corpse rally as a result of college management’s attitude towards their agitation. “We as girls initially didn’t felt like taking out and to be a part of such procession but we had to as the management is only trying to blame us while the onus lies on them. They are not concerned about our future,” said Priyanka, student. |
Celebration time at Navodya Vidyalaya
Dehradun, May 12
The meritorious students as well as children who have performed well in extra-curricular activities were awarded in the event. Scouts and guides of the schools that were awarded with the Prime Minister Shield were also honoured during the ceremony. The main attraction of the function was Garhwali dance and songs performed by the students that showcased the culture of diversified India. The performers captivated the audiences with their classical, semi-classical and folk dances. The guests appreciated their performances and the hard work they had put in to make the event memorable. |
St Jude’s School celebrates annual day
Dehradun May 12 The event initiated with welcoming of the chief guest, Air Commodore PN Pradhan, President, Air Force Selection Board, Dehradun followed by prize distribution ceremony. VR Gardener, Principal of the school, presented the annual report of the school during the programme and congratulated the meritorious students for
their achievements. The theme of the annual function was ‘Believe in the magic of life’ in which variety of programme kept teachers, guests and parents enthralled with 295 students participating. The main event for the day was the spectacular portrayal of The Lion King Broadway Musical on stage with huge graffiti of animals crafted by them. The magnificent music and choreography along with the props and costumes was a sight to behold. In his address, the chief guest congratulated all the scholars of the school and guided them with the knowledge and perseverance. The event concluded with vote of thanks by the Principal
followed by the National Anthem. Also present at the occasion were principals of many schools like RV Gardener, GIG Mann, D Hilton, PS Kalra, Col AK Pundir and Bobby Cash, singer. |
Gold Cup: SCYC, Services enter semifinals
Dehradun, May 12 In another quarterfinal played at Abhimanyu Cricket Academy, Services, New Delhi, beat NE Railway, Lucknow, by 11 runs to register the semis berth. Though the BSNL had mustered a good total of 312 runs in allotted 40 overs, an excellent performance by the batsmen of SCYC proved it an easy target. Anshul Kapoor (86), Niranjan Behra (67) and NS Negi (43) were the principal scorers for the BSNL. Mohd Arif of SCFC bowled superbly to capture five wickets for 55 in eight overs. He also bowled a median over. Ajay Devanda also took three wickets. While batting second, SCYC easily achieved the target in 36.3 overs at
the loss of four wickets. Vaibhav Deshpande (91 off 58), Arjit Gupta (82 off 59) and Anshu Jain (78 off 60) played quick-fire knocks
in the win of the team. Rohit Jhalani (49 off 33) played a cameo role in the later part of the batting innings of SCYC. Joginder Singh, Kamlesh Makwana, Ankur Kakkar and Anshul Kapoor, all got a wicket for BSNL but couldn’t stop the rival team batsmen to pile a big score. |
Ajabpur Young Star drub BCC
Dehradun, May 12 Batting first, the winning team scored 169 runs for nine wickets in 20 overs. Shekhar (48) and Arvind (48*) shone for the side but unluckily they couldn’t reach half-century. Vikas took three wickets, Sumit and Laxman pocketed two wickets each for the bowling side. BCC batsmen surrendered in front of Ajabpur’s bowlers. Ravinder (21) scored highest while rest all batsmen performed badly. Shekhar and Keshav captured two wickets each for Ajabpur. DRCA also registered one-sided victory over Little Young Star by seven wickets in another match played today. Little Young Star set a target of 158 runs in 20 overs for seven wickets. While DRCA achieved it easily at the loss of three wickets. |
Carman School beat Unison World
Dehradun, May 12 Priyanka scored as many as five points in the win of Carman School. Amaara also chipped in with two points for UWS. In another match, girls of Jaswant Modern School outplayed Aryan School 13-6. Anjali emerged as the highest scorer for the winning team. She scored four points in the win of her side. In boys’ section, Constancia School was no match for Kasiga School that thrashed it 32-6 here at St Joseph’s Academy. Johny contributed the maximum points. He scored 14 points and Pankaj of Kasiga School scored four points. Doon International School (DIS) also posted one-sided win over St Mary’s School 26-8. Akshay of the winning side scored eight while Abhijeet scored four points for DIS. Pestle Weed School in another match beat SGC 24-15. Six points each were scored by Anand Khanna of the winning team and SGC’s Aakash. |
Doctors’ annual confidential reports released
Dehradun, May 12 Seeking recourse to the RTI, more than four government doctors, who were denied promotion and superseded by their juniors, had demanded copies of the ACRs. Though the government rules forbid disclosure of the reports, under the RTI this information can be accessed. Besides, a couple of the RTIs also seeking information about assets and income of all government doctors has put the DG office in a quandary. |
Sushil fashions Education Dept win
Dehradun, May 12 In this tough encounter, Rawat starred for the Education Department. He opened the account in the 22nd minute. However, this goal was retaliated by Sunil Raj of Secretariat in the 37th minute. The first half ended with the scoreboard reading one each. However, in the very first minute of the second half Rawat struck again in the 46th minute to bring trouble to his rival team. The strikers of Secretariat later made several attempts to score but all of them proved futile. |
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