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Sanitation Employees Stir
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Ministry confirms nexus between timber mafia, forest officials
Visitors take a look at the model of a housing colony at a property conclave
in Dehradun on Saturday. A Tribune photograph
Congress apprises public through meetings
Deepak Bhardwaj, president, National Real Estate Development Council, inaugurates the first e-magazine on environment in Dehradun on Saturday. A Tribune photograph
Devotees throng temples on Shani Amavasya
Panel to fill non-gazetted posts, says agitationist
Officer suspended for withholding labourers’ dues
Kumbh wages: State staff ink letters to CM in blood
Gram pradhans told to use funds for sanitation
Garhwali video album released
Heavy traffic jam witnessed due to weekend rush in Mussoorie.
8 die as bus falls into gorge
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Rift between union leaders deepens
Tribune News Service
Dehradun, June 12 The rift between the union leaders on the matter of projecting themselves as the biggest supporter of the Dalit society is getting sharper with the strike of the sanitation workers becoming grave day by day. Kala targeted these leaders saying that they never fought for the rights of the Dalits, including their rights of regularisation of jobs. It was they who made minister Khajan Das to press upon the DMC officials to postpone the elections of the sanitation workers, he said and adding that the present state government was conspiring against the Dalits. On being asked as to why he was targeting these leaders who just a day before gave a letter to the Principal Secretary of the Urban Development and the Mayor extending their support to the samiti’s fight, Kala retorted that, “They are just feigning to be their supporters as they did not take along samiti’s people while going to meet these officials”. Makwana while slamming Kala for using derogatory terms “dalal and thekedar” against them, said they tried to persuade Kala as well as Somu to come along with them, but the latter refused. He also blamed Kala for playing dirty politics and instigating the sanitation workers against them because of which the workers did not take them into confidence while going on strike, and which is why their groups were not seen joining them in the strike. Clarifying his position on holding the seminar, he said this had been prefixed a month ago on issues such as caste domicile, regularisation of the sanitation workers, condition of slum dwellers, etc. On Kala’s questioning about their credentials in terms of fighting for the Dalit’s causes, Makwana said his organisation had been holding protests on these issues on various occasions. He denigrated Kala for nursing an ambition to grab power in the union elections which is why he dragged the election issue even in this strike. Makwana termed him as a “man of dubious character” for having committed umpteen irregularities during his tenure as president of the Sanitation Workers Association from 1997-2000.
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Ministry confirms nexus between timber mafia, forest officials
Dehradun, June 12 Despite this PIL, which should have made the Forest Department officials alert and cautious, more than 150 trees were axed in the forests of Joli Danda by the timber mafia last week. Villagers allege that a known timber mafia, in connivance with some Forest Rangers, which belongs to Dhaonri village in Dwarikhal block, felled the 150 trees through sub-contractors. The ranger who gets a large chunk of the profit also facilitated the transit of about eight trucks of sleepers from the Joli Forest. “When we went to survey the area, we found freshly sawed pine trees. The resin oozing out of the trees was still white and clean. The trees were scattered over an area about 1 km starting from the village boundaries of Kandwan and Baryun and extending to the area near the temple at Jolikhal,” Dabral alleged. However, Uttarakhand Principal Conservator of Forests Dr RBS Rawat terms the allegation of illicit felling in hills as baseless. “I am worried that such allegations, if baseless, can deprive people of their hak hakook,” Rawat pointed out. The Uttarakhand government, that is still to file its reply for the past two months, has been seeking adjournments even as the Forest Department claims that the official copy which was serviced by the applicant to their counsel and Uttarakhand government has not been received by them. Dabral of the Himalayan Chipko Foundation has filed several PILs in the Apex Court exposing the misuse of the hak hakook system and the nexus between the Forest Department officials and the timber mafia. In two such matters the Ministry of Environment and Forests has confirmed that the nexus exists and the illegal felling of trees does take place in connivance with the Forest Department officials.
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Property show attracts Doonites
Dehradun, June 12 The companies that participated in the show include Ansal, Jaypee Greens, Wardhman, Delhi Apartment Private Ltd, Sunrise Techno Builders Private Ltd, Eminent Infra developers Pvt Ltd and Aditya Doon Shree. The buyers not only showed interest in buying houses in Dehradun, Rishikesh and Haridwar, but also enquired about houses in the NCR region and Muzaffarnagar. Organiser of the property carnival OP Sinha, proprietor of Lotus Leaf, said in the future they would bring in more companies so that the buyers in Dehradun had a wider choice. “The exhibition is in par with Delhi and we deliberately chose a hotel so that a feel good atmosphere can be created for the customers,” said Sinha. Real estate
development stuck in red tape
The multiplicity of authority, inability to honour commitments and above all a lethargic system are some of the factors blocking real estate development in Uttarakhand. Stating this today during the Doon Property show, Deepak Bhardwaj president, National Real Estate Development Council (NREDC), said the state had a potential to develop real estate but unless the government and private players work hand in hand it couldn’t be achieved. “There is the multiplicity of authority and red tape that create hurdles in getting clearances. Even after promising to provide for electricity and water by the government once the auctions are done, instead of honouring the commitments the developers are forced to make arrangements,” he said. Several plots and land auctioned earlier remain unutilised because of these difficulties. “The government has to build roads, strengthen infrastructure before the realtors can hope to start, unfortunately we have not witnessed a prompt approach from officers working at the State Infrastructure Development Corporation of Uttaranchal Limited (SIDCUL) most of the surplus staff from Noida were transferred here,” said Bhardwaj. The Uttarakhand chapter was also constituted on the occasion.
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Congress apprises public through meetings
Haridwar, June 12 At suburban Jwalapur, one such public meeting was held wherein a large number of party workers and local residents assembled bringing smiles on party leaders’ faces. Addressing the gathering, the party leaders stressed the need of having workers keeping in constant touch with people so that communication gap didn’t exist. City unit chief OP Chauhan termed the Congress as the only party which respected all religions, sects and strata of the society and not confined to one ideology. “The Congress played an important part in pre-Independence movement and post-Independence development of the country. Now, it’s shaping and taking the country to the path of prosperity so that India becomes a developed nation,” said
Chauhan. Party leaders also took the opportunity to criticise the BJP government in the state on various fronts in the state. Terming allegations of the BJP government of not providing adequate food supplies during the
Kumbh, Furkan Ali, district working chief of the Congress, said the Central government provided as much help the state needed which was evident in the mammoth Rs 565 crore the state was granted for the Maha
Kumbh. “The basic infrastructure is lacking in the stat and the state government is failing to spend fully Central grants and is putting blame on the Central government instead. Such is the working and governance of the BJP in the state,” said Ali. Women leaders Kiran Singh and Saroj Sahu termed the BJP government as total failure which only knew to take care of its party cadre and RSS leaders. They cited the Kumbh tenure when BJP-RSS leaders were welcomed, while other political parties were written letters to abstain during the Kumbh in view of inconvenience to people. Prominent among those who addressed the gathering were party leaders Poonam
Bhagat, Anju Dwivedi, SwamI Chaitanyapuri, Hazi Naeem Qureshi, Maqbool
Qureshi, Tej Prakash Sahu, Sanjay Chopra, Indresh Ansari, Usha Sharma, Krishan Kumar, Shafi Khan, Sarfaraj Gaur, Anil
Chaudhari, Punit Goyal, Sanjay Aggarwal, Pradeep Pant and BP Tejiyan.
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Environmental e-magazine launched
Dehradun, June 12 The magazine unveiled by I Care, a non-profit volunteer organisation, working towards creating a beautiful and sustainable future by promoting community involvement and heritage education, will be disseminated through integrated mass mailing software. “The magazine is an excellent approach initiated by such young generation. It will definitely help to get the knowledge regarding the environment,” Bhardwaj said. People from various walks of life will be engaged as a team. “We are involving a number of eminent figures like Raj Kanwar and Padma Shri Dr Anil Joshi. We hope to create a revolution in the city through our magazine and usher in an awakening that will restore the ecology of the Doon valley,” Yudisther Singh, founder of I Care, said. “We will have different editors every month. Shalini Mehta from England will be the editor for this month’s edition”, he added. “We have various townships coming up here. So we need to make sure we develop the city without sacrificing on its environmental health. Thus, it becomes imperative to proceed with a project after considering all of its environmental implications,” SK Sharma, president, Society for Protection of Human Rights in Uttarakhand, said. Journalist Raj Kanwar mentioned, “Conservation is the need of the hour. We require to actively work towards improving condition in the city”. I Care had tied up with a number of firms and in their latest crusades is an interactive open-for-all magazine that will reach every corner of the world.
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Devotees throng temples on Shani Amavasya
Mussoorie, June 12 A figurine of Lord Shani was installed at Gun Hill amid traditional rituals, prayers and chants. Devotees in a large number thronged the temple and bhajans were sung in praise of the lord. Ramesh, a devotee, said he was having Saturn cycle or “Shani cycle” or “Sade Sathi” in his horoscope and performed special puja like Shani yagna or “homa” to ward off the effect of the lord. Some devotees observed a fast on the occasion. A Shani temple was also established near Nag Mandir, in which devotees from Kyarkuli village and dignitaries like Mussoorie MLA Jot Singh Gunsola sought blessings for their prosperous future. According to priest Acharya Sunder Lal Bhargav of Bhadrabad, Lord Shani is one of the navagrahas (nine planets) and also called as Shani Bhagwan, Shaneeshwara and Shani Deva. Shani is son of Lord Surya (Sun) and mother Chhaya, meaning Shadow. Hence, he is also known as Chayyaputra. Shani is the lord of Saturday and lead metal.
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Panel to fill non-gazetted posts, says agitationist
Mussoorie, June 12 He said the data on vacant posts in the state had been collected. A three-member high-level committee, headed by the Chief Secretary, would formulate guidelines to include the unemployed youth only on the post of the local state machinery and submit its report within 15 days. He said the government had also cancelled the service commission advertisement taken out on May 29. He said the government was trying to include the general category candidates and provide them employment. On the issue of agitationists, he said the government would form a 10-member district advisory committee to identify them. All agitationists would be treated equally, whether they had served a seven-day sentence or were injured during the agitation. Jugran informed that 100 per cent disabled andolankaris would get Rs 15,000 per month as medical assistance and the dependents of the deceased agitationists without getting any remuneration would also receive employment.
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Officer suspended for withholding labourers’ dues
Nainital, June 12 PC Kandpal was suspended by Chief Development Officer (CDO) Dr Pankaj Pandey on Thursday while he was on a tour to the Amkheda Chorgaliya area of Haldwani block to evaluate the implementation of MNREGA. He had received a complaint regarding the non-payment of proper dues to the labourers. He called for an on-the-spot inspection of the passbooks, where it was found that although there were details about payments being made, the amount was not reflected in the passbooks.The suspended official has been attached to Bhimtal block. The CDO has ordered an adverse comment for an executive officer for the latter’s negligence of duty during the recent District Planning Committee polls held last month. It is learnt that the action follows Neeraj Joshi not adhering to orders pertaining to the responsibility given to him for the conduct of the polls. When contacted, the official could not come up with a satisfactory answer.
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Kumbh wages: State staff ink letters to CM in blood
Haridwar, June 12 After protesting normally for days, the employees have been pressing for 40 per cent Maha Kumbh mela wage allowance. The protesters, on a daily basis, are now inking letters with their blood enlisting their demands. District president JP Chahar said that this was being done to press forward their demands which have not been met despite more than 40 days having passed after the completion of the Kumbh. “Without mela wages, we will not withdraw our agitation. If the need arises, we will include municipality and power corporation employees in our agitation,” said Chahar. Mahipal Singh, an employees, said that we gave our sweat while doing Kumbh duty, but it was unfortunate that we have to draw our blood to demand wages. The union has also decided to take out ‘mashaal rally’ in evening in the city.
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Gram pradhans told to use funds for sanitation
Nainital, June 12 Evaluating the works being done under the District Plan, the District Magistrate ordered the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) to launch an awareness campaign across the district on health and hygiene. He also asked the District Panchayati Raj Officer to ensure that all gram panchayat officials took due interest in implementing schemes drawn under the District Plan. Referring to sanitation in rural areas, he said a gram health and sanitation sub-committee had been set up in all villages under a centrally sponsored scheme. He said gram pradhan, gram panchayat officials, aanganwadi and principal of village primary school etc. were members of this sub-committee. Bagauli informed that every year Rs 10,000 were being sanctioned to every sub-committee through the CMO. Additional grants were also made available for the purpose under separate heads.
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Garhwali video album released
Dehradun, June 12 The video album consists of eight songs and the entire shooting has been done in the beautiful locations of the state showcasing its culture and heritage. “We are very proud to be associated with this music album and I am sure people are going to enjoy the videos,” said Ravindra Lakhera, producer of the video album. Lyricists are Madan Duklan, Girish Sundriyal, Dr Preetam and Vijay Lakshmi. The producer is Ravindra Lakhera who has made many popular Garhwali movies and music albums in the past. Other singers of the album are Gajendra Rana, Manglesh Dangwal, Virendra Rajput and Meena Rani. Sanjay Kumola has directed the video album, while the coordinator is Mohan Lakhera.
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Tourist flow brings traffic to halt
Mussoorie, June 12 The traffic flow was slow and tourists had to wait for hours to move further. Encroachments on the Mall Road also became a huge problem as the road was covered with stalls leaving no space for pedestrians to walk on. Rajya Andolanakri Parishad president Ravinder Jugran was appalled at seeing the chaotic condition due to non-availability of parking space, encroachments and rampant construction in the town. He said if nothing was done soon, the Queen of Hills would be bereft of tourists within the next15 years. He also stated that to improve the condition of the hill station like Mussoorie, a joint campaign should be started. He said the only solution for this was formulating a futuristic master plan for the next 50 years, according to the geographical and environmental conditions of the town.
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8 die as bus falls into gorge
Dehradun, June 12 According to officials of the Disaster Management Cell, the bus belonging to the Garhwal Motor Operators Union (UP-06-2505) was on its way from Satpuli to Kotdwar when it skidded on the hill road at Ghumkhal near Bairgoan and fell into the deep gorge. A total of 33 passengers were travelling in the bus. Residents of nearby villages rushed to the spot to rescue the injured. Eight persons, six men and two women, died on the spot while the injured were admitted to a Kotdwar hospital. The police and civil administration officials also helped the injured. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank condoled the deaths and ordered a magisterial inquiry into the accident.
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