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Govt to exploit tourism potential of Rajaji
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Irrigation Department awaits working agency status
Nurses training institute gets face lift
830 I-cards of statehood agitators ready
Trekkers held for using banned satellite phones
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Govt to exploit tourism potential of Rajaji
Nainital, October 11 Kaushik pointed out that till now only a small portion in the Rajaji National Park was opened to the tourists and the government was planning to open a greater area in the Park for tourist visits. He said the government was working on a three-pronged strategy to develop tourism. Under this strategy, there are plans to develop five circuits across the state. “The idea is to offer something additional to a visitor than a mere single destination. A person coming to Nainital can visit the adjoining area of Corbett Park and similarly someone visiting Almora can visit the adjoining places of tourist interest in Pitthoragarh district,” he said. The minister laid emphasis on the proper presentation of Uttarakhand as a tourist destination. He claimed that the government had been training taxi operators, waiters and other people involved in tourism-related activities on how to conduct themselves while interacting with tourists. Incidentally, such things were not visible on ground, at least in this part of the state. He also claimed that the concept of village tourism had taken off well in the state and there had been a series of memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with various parties. “While we are having more and more inquiries about such destinations, there are an equal number of requests from villagers seeking help to renovate their premises. We cannot have five-star hotels here but we can attract more tourists by such innovative schemes,” he added. Kaushik was appreciative of the Centre for the help being given to the tourism sector. He said with the help of various agencies, the state government was in the process of making 10,000 modern toilets across the state. He said the state government had prepared schemes to the tune of Rs 500 crore for tourism development and recently the Centre had cleared a project worth Rs 18 crore. Kaushik also pointed out that efforts were being made to promote aviation in a big way in the state. Forty helipads were being developed and talks were on with more aviation companies to start services to various airports in the state. The Vice-Chancellor of Kumaon University, Dr VPS Arora, said the state had failed to realise its tourist potential till now and this had been because of a lack of professional managers. The university was moving towards making more and more courses employment oriented. He said through the new course there would be an effort to provide the much-required professionals to the tourism industry. The Head of Department (Tourism), Dr Ajay Arora, said the course would have an annual intake of 30 students and would be run on self-finance basis. He appealed to the government to make some provisions for poor students so that they too could get enrolled for the course.
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Kumaoni Ramlila through the ages
“Initially, Parsi theatre companies used to perform on various religious topics. When these companies reached Kashipur in the Kumaon region, they started enacting Raslilas and Ramlilas,” said Dr Ram Singh, a noted social historian of the region. Ramlilas in Almora and Pitthoragarh were influenced by these
Nautankis.
Almora
“The Ramlila which started in Almora in 1831 is based on song and ballet. Dialogue delivery is through singing while the steps are based on a ballet dance form by Uday Shankar, the famous dancer who lived in Almora for a while,” said Rajendra Bora, a Kumaoni poet and artiste associated with Ramlila in Almora for more than three decades. Organised by the Sri Laxmi Bhandar Hukka Club, the Ramlila in Almora also shows the influence of Raslila and Nautankis of
Mathura.
Pitthoragarh
“Ramlila celebration began in Pitthoragarh in 1895-96 when Devi Dutt Makaria came as SDM to Pitthoragarh, the then subdivision of Almora district. “He erected a small stage near Pitrota village and staged Ramlila in 1897. It has continued ever since,” said Padma Dutt Pant, a retired Principal. During the initial years, the script of the Ramlila that was staged in Pitthoragarh was based on a book popular in the Dehradun area and the script was made available by Devi Dutt Makaria, the SDM. The Ramlila in Pitthoragarh was a throbbing example of communal harmony where a Muslim used to play the sitar, Jait Ram, a Dalit, accompanied him on the tabla and Brahmins used to play the lead roles. In the initial days, lamps bearing mustard oil were used to illuminate the stage. This system continued till gas lights were introduced by an unknown trader from Bareilly in 1916. When petromaxes were introduced, the timings of the act saw a huge shift. Ramlilas in Pitthoragarh began at night instead of afternoon as was the practice earlier. After 1940, a new script of Ramlila was evolved jointly by Ganga Ram Punetha and Bahadur Pal. In 1960, when Pitthoragarh became a district, classical music was introduced in Ramlilas and various classical singers started participating. Some of these artistes were Master Lali Ram, Mohan Bhatt, Bhairav Jung Thapa and Rajnikant Joshi. Prominent among them was Ustad Bulaki Ram who started teaching classical music to artistes. This initiation improved the vocal and musical qualities of the enactment. Pitthoragarh Ramlila has also seen a change in musical instruments. Initially, there was the sarangi and tabla. The harmonium was introduced in 1916. Modern musical instruments are used nowadays. During the time sarangi was used, sub-classical ragas were employed by the musicians, but local organisers like Ganga Ram Punetha, Govind Lal Gupta, Harkishan Lal Shah, Bahadur Pal, Master Bulaki Ram and Master Intiya Ram developed their own script and based it on pure classical ragas. “We are different from the ballet style prevalent in other parts of Kumaon. They are based on the Bimtal script and use mixed ragas, but we are a bit more classical,” said Jagdish Punera, secretary of Pitthoragarh Ramlila committee. “We have a training committee of old artistes and musicians. The committee starts selecting artistes for Ramlila two months before Dasehra and trains them in acting and classical singing,” said Punera. Mahendra Matiyani, leading theatre artiste of Kumaon region, relates the Ramlila enacted in the region with the ballet introduced by noted classical dancer Uday Shankar in the late 50s. “Though the influence of Uday Shanker is the same on every Ramlila in Kumaon, but Pitthoragarh Ramlila is different in script and tunes,” claimed Matiyani.
Nainital
The Ramlila in Nainital does not lag in antiquity to other regional versions. The Ramlila of Mallital entered its 91st year and the Tallital Ramlila has completed more than 100 years. “No other Ramlila in Kumaon region except ours has a totally musical Ramlila. We also score over our rivals in terms of background scenes, music based on Radheshyam Ramayan and participation of actresses,” said Ganga Prasad Shah, a member of the Ramsevak Sabha that organises Ramlila in Nainital. Nainital witness four Ramlilas - at Tallital, Mallital, Narayan Nagar and Sher-ka-Dhanda.
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Kasiga School celebrates founder’s day
Dehradun, October 11 Chief Minister Ramesh Nishank Pokhriyal was the chief guest on the occasion, while accompanying him was Padmashri Tom Alter, famous actor and theatre personality, and Ganesh Joshi, MLA, Rajpur, as the guest of honour. The programme began with lighting of the ceremonial lamp followed by Saraswati Vandana. Then the Principal formally welcomed the chief guest. Students read out the annual report for 2009-10. This was followed by the prize distribution ceremony. The Best Student Award went to Tanat of class X-B, while Devansh Malik of class X-A bagged the second position. The school choir sang with melody and harmony combining the prayers of all religions into a mesmerising performance. The audience was moved by the music played by students followed by medleys on the piano by Myra Rachel Massey. Students also enacted on stage “Man and Beast”, depicting the portrayal of cruelty to animals, particularly monkeys. A well-known piece of English literature, “Macbeth”, by William Shakespeare was also enacted by the students. Tom Alter appreciated the efforts of the students and expressed joy at their immaculate performances. The function culminated with a vote of thanks proposed by Jyoti Nagranee, Vice-Principal of the school, followed by the National Anthem.
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Irrigation Department awaits working agency status
Dehradun, October 11 After all civil and mechanical work of hydro power projects were given to the Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited, a large chunk of corporation has gone without work. The anomaly in 67 divisions of the department is also creating frustration among employees. The assurance of giving the department the status of a working agency is yet to see the light of the day as BK Tamta, Head, Irrigation Department, said: “The Irrigation Minister has assured us that the Irrigation Department will be made a working agency according to which any construction project up to Rs 10 crore of any department would be given to the Irrigation Department. If this happens, it will solve the problem of all employees working in many wings of the department who are without work at present.” Ramesh Ramola, general secretary, Employees Association of the Irrigation Department, said the Irrigation Department had been given the agenda to undertake the projects of tourism and the Education Department. A mere formality of clearing the government order was to be done but then the projects got hung in balance for the want of working agency status.” People from different departments have begun to airing their grievances for the alleged prejudices in the distribution of work. Chief Engineer, Ganga Projects, is the busiest man with most of the projects falling in his lap whereas Chief Engineer, Yamuna, and Chief Engineer, Kaula Garh, have virtually negligible work in their hands. Yamuna Chief Engineer Amirul Hassan said it was the task of the department to equally distribute the work among various sections. The employees would not agitate as long as they were given salaries even without any work. Clarifying his position on the stark difference between quantum of work given to different departments, Tamta said: “It is just coincidence that all coming up projects are related to Ganga which is why the Chief Engineer, Ganga, has his hands full. Earlier, Chief Engineer, Yamuna, enjoyed the same position.” But Tamta once again reposed hope in the declaration of the Irrigation Department as a working agency which would give enough work to all sections of the Irrigation Department to keep them busy in constructive pursuits.
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Thomso 2010
Dehradun, October 11 A fun-filled extravaganza with lots of excitement is being designed by budding young engineers who are spending their evenings in rehearsals, preparing invitations, discussing various issues, sponsors and many other things besides regular academics. “It is a great feeling to organise this show for our fellow IITians,” said Shekher, a member of the core group organising the event. Approximately 40,000 persons will witness these young engineers display their hidden talents at this ‘cul-fest’. “This year, we have a laser as well as a fire show which definitely would be showstoppers,” said Mayank, another team member. Sharing information on the grand event, Shekhar said that this year, there would also be a cultural programme by the students of the IIT-run Dumb and Deaf School. “These special children will also exhibit photographs in a gallery for the first time which will give people a chance to see their hidden talent.” Street dancing and acrobatics are also being introduced this time, added Mayank. Approximately 500 colleges have been sent invitations to participate in various competitions and win exciting prizes. An astonishing array of events, ranging from literature to cinematography, has been lined up for students though the crowd will be missing international bands from Pakistan and Norway which visited last year. Thomso is a cultural festival
held annually at IIT, Roorkee. It is not only the largest youth festival of Uttarakhand, but also the
largest youth festival of India. Another feather was added to the Thomso cap when it was declared the Official Youth Festival of Uttarakhand last year.
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Nurses training institute gets face lift
Nainital, October 11 The building has been renovated at a cost of Rs 91.71 lakh at the Ramsay Hospital complex in the Tallital area. According to Principal of the nursing institute Indira Arya, former Health Minister in the undivided Uttar Pradesh Pratap Bhaiya had started the institute in 1967, which stopped functioning in 1991. It was restarted in 1995 and had continued to function till 2001. During this period, 25 batches of 15 students each had passed out from the institute. From now, 20 students would be enrolled every year. Speaking on the occasion, Bhauriyal said this institute would help provide employment opportunities in the area. He said the pass-outs coming out from the institute would help overcome the shortage of nurses in the region. The minister said besides starting medical colleges in Almora and Rudrapur, the government was also planning to open a medical college in the state capital. Stating that Dehradun had already started a nurses training institute, he said more paramedical colleges would be started across the state. He added that nurses training schools would come up at Almora, Pithoragarh, Tehri and Bageshwar in the coming days.
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830 I-cards of statehood agitators ready
Dehradun, October 11 He affirmed that the I-cards could be collected from Dehradun tehsil on October 14, from Mussoorie on October 15, from Rishikesh on October 16 and from Vikas Nagar on October 18. While convening a meeting with officials, Kurve asked them to set three counters for the same. The list of names would be put up on the notice board of the tehsil on October 12. He said information regarding the list would be available on counter No 1. On the counter No. 2 the person would put his signature in the register and on the third he would get the I-card.
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Balawala, Bhaniawala teams win volleyball titles
Dehradun, October 11 In the girls final, SGRR Public School, Balawala, beat SGRR
Public School, Race Course, 2-1. Balawala lost the first set by a narrow margin of 13-15. However in the second set, they fought strongly to defeat Race Course 17-15. Race Course, despite a good fight, lost the third set too by 15-17. In the boys final, SGRR Public School, Bhaniawala, edged past SGRR Public School, Race Course, 2-0. Bhaniawala won the first and second set 15-7, 18-8. Arun Kumar Sood of the Uttarakhand Volleyball Association was the chief guest.
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Double delight for Pradeep Kumar
Dehradun, October 11 In the 600m sub-junior category, Mafizul stood first. Aman Singh got first place in the boys 400m. Anuj bagged the top honours in the seniors long-jump event. Pradeep Kumar had double delight winning the shot put and discus throw events. Meanwhile, KS Ghumtyal, Principal, SGRR Inter College, Nehrugram, thanked all present at the venue.
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Easy victory for Convent of Jesus and Mary
Dehradun, October 11 Unison World School also posted a win over Doon International School 17-9. Sneha (seven points) of the winning team and Neema (five points) of DIS mainly scored during the encounter. Convent of Jesus and Mary scored an easy win 26-8 over Raja Ram Mohan Rai Academy. Yashika was the top scorer for the winning team with eight points and Dipika chipped in with four points. Carman School, Dalanwala, beat Col Brown School 32-20. Joshna (12 points) and Soabh (eight points) struck for CSD and Carman, respectively.
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Constancia, Heritage schools triumph
Dehradun, October 11 DIS opted to bat first after winning the toss. They scored 37 runs losing three wickets in the first innings in eight overs. Constancia, on the other hand, scored 45 runs giving away two wickets. In the second innings, DIS could just gather 22 runs at the loss of four wickets.
In reply, Constancia scored 15 runs losing four wickets to win the match. Harpreet was adjudged batsman of the match. In the second match, The Heritage School registered a five-wicket win over Guru Ram Das Academy. GRD scored 28 runs in the first innings at the loss of five wickets. The winning team replied with 29 runs. GRD, in the second innings, could score 25
runs losing three wickets. The Heritage School, in reply, scored the required 25 runs to win the match. Puneet Gussian was declared best batsman.
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Trekkers held for using banned satellite phones
Pitthoragarh, October 11 “The set named Thuraya, which is banned in the country, has been used by this Slovenian group to call to Slovenia. Though we have traced the code of the handset, we could not trace the set despite the fact that intelligence agencies have given a confirmed report regarding this to the administration,” said JS Rathor, SDM, Munsyari. According to the administration, when the group left Munsyari on the trekking route last week, they denied having any such handset with them, but were caught making international calls. “We are waiting for them to return from the expedition. We will seize the satellite phones if we find the same with them,” said the SDM.
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Pitthoragarh, October 11
In Almora, the tradition of Ramlila and Dasehra is one of the oldest in the Kumaon region. Almora is only one place where effigies of 20 members of Ravana’s family are displayed in public before burning these on Dasehra day.