Dehradun, October 25
Reacting to a video released on the Internet by a renowned foreign magazine featuring nude yoga, yoga guru Baba Ramdev expressed his annoyance during a yoga camp here today.

He lashed out at the yoga performance by an unclad female model in the video. He asserted, “This kind of yoga is practised nowhere in the world. Shedding clothes can never encourage people to practise yoga. It is a religion and should be performed in a sacred manner”.

“There is bhakti yoga, pran yoga, kriya yoga, samadhi yoga, but no such yoga is mentioned in the Vedas or Puranas.

“This ancient science has the power of feeling and healing. It just not only makes you fit physically, but also mentally and spiritually. It is shocking to know about such practices in foreign countries,” said Baba Ramdev while addressing mediapersons.

The world-renowned yoga guru, who is on a Swabhimaan Yatra, denied having any political ambitions. He said his yatra across the country was entirely for social causes - to eradicate evils from society and making people aware about leading a healthy life.

Meanwhile, in a free non-residential yoga camp conducted in the Patanjali Gramodhyog va Swabhimaan Gramothan Yojana in the Doon Valley, Baba Ramdev encouraged the gathering to perform the age-old exercise daily to lead a healthy life.

He even appealed to the masses to ensure the intake of products made of cow milk or cow urine every 24 hours for the detoxification of the body.

He also emphasised on the eradication of drugs from the country and making citizens act more responsibly towards the motherland. During his yoga session, he taught different yogasans.

The Swabhimaan Yatra across the country commenced on October 8 and will culminate at Shikohabad (Firozabad) on November 30. Ramdev has already held such camps in Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and Dehradun.

Dehradun, October 25
The bodies of two leopards were recovered from Birpur, a leopard-infested cantonment area, near Dehradun today. The bodies of the felines, one male and another female, were first seen by local residents who brought the matter to the knowledge of the forest authorities.

Ruling out any foul play at the outset, Dehradun Divisional Forest Officer Meenakshi Joshi, looking at the two bodies, pointed out to the possibility of the duo getting electrocuted to death. The male and female leopards were probably courting each other as part of the mating activity.

As the bodies of the two felines have no injury mark, the use of snare cannot be a possibility. “In all probability, the two leopards were probably atop a tree when they came in to contact with the high tension power line passing near the tree and were electrocuted. However, the exact cause of their death will be known after the outcome of a post-mortem examination report,” said Joshi.

Forest Department officials have sent the bodies for a post-mortem examination. The Dehradun cantonment area has been infested with leopards for quite some time. The Indian Military Academy (IMA) authorities had repeatedly complained of the presence of leopards on the academy premises.

Haridwar, October 25
Tomorrow, many married Indian women would observe a fast, pray and look their best for the long life of their husbands on the occasion of Karva Chauth.

Festival not for the unwed

Traditionalists and astrologers disagree with the observance of rituals by unmarried girls, even terming it detrimental to the health of their future husbands.

Noted astrologer Pandit Vipin Parashar remarked that Karva Chauth is only to be observed by married woman for the long life of their husbands. “There are other fasts that unmarried girls can undertake to get a good husband like the 16-Somvar (Monday)fast and Mangala Gauri vrat.”

The right time

“The auspicious time for the puja of Goddess Parvati is 7:57 pm in North India with the rise of the moon. The fast should be broken only after sighting the moon through a sieve. The moon provides calmness and purity to the minds of the couple,” said Dr Acharya Prateek Mishrapuri.

The women, whose husbands are not in town, should imagine their husband’s faces in the moon and break their fast by offering water with a ‘kurwe’ (an earthen pot) to the moon.

Dehradun, October 25
A book fair organised by the National Book Promotion Society at the Uttarakhand Trade Mahotsav is a treat for all book lovers in the Doon valley these days. The 10-day extravaganza, the book fair commenced at the core of the city, the Parade Ground. It is seeking a lot of attention from all age groups who feel delighted on reading.

Around 20 stalls of 23 renowned publishers, including Osha Publication, S Chand Publishing House, Bhartiya Gyanpeeth, Kendriya Hindi Nideshalaya, Prajita Yog Sahitya, Mahindra Publishers and Jain Prakashan, have been guiding readers, specially students, to explore more about life science and fiction. Interestingly, the books are priced at nominal rates ranging from a minimum cost of Rs 20 to Rs 1,000 and cater to the interests of readers from all walks of life. From children to older group, every body can pick a good number of books from a wide variety of fiction, drama, poetry, educational, religious, spiritual, bed-time stories, fairytales, novel, magazines, subject books, colouring books for toddlers and many others.

While informing about the trade mahotsav, Rohit Verma, media coordinator of the event, said: “This is the biggest book fair organised at a trade mahotsav after a long time in Dehradun. Four years earlier, Real Host and Events Paradise had provided the opportunity to the National Book Promotion Society for showcasing books written by renowned writers. The book fair has something or the other for readers of all age groups”.

“This time we have organised such a massive book fair with a motive to apprise maximum readers of Uttarakhand of the latest as well as legendary writers, which is necessary, specially for students to excel in today’s competitive world. Books in languages like Hindi, English, Marathi, Urdu and Gujarati are also available at the fair,” said Rohit.

However, apart from looking into the array of wide variety of books, one can purchase handmade crafts, hosiery items, pottery, electronic home appliances, readymade garments while relishing mouth-watering food at the mahotsav. Visitors can also enjoy cultural programmes performed by artistes of Uttarakhand.

Nainital, October 25
One of the masterpieces penned by William Shakespeare, “Macbeth” came alive on the stage at Chalet Hall here. A spellbinding performance of the Hindi adaptation of the play was given by artistes from the National School of Drama (NSD), New Delhi, and the Kutumbh Vikas Samiti, Nainital.

Artistes from the NSD had been holding a workshop for youngsters of Nainital over the past one month and the presentation was the culmination of the month-long exercise in the form of a 90-minute production.

The concept and direction of the play written by Shakespeare was that of Hema Bisht Sharma, an NSD graduate. The script adaptation had been done by Binod Sharma.

According to Hema, “It was an experiment in which I tried to present ‘Macbeth’ with different colours of the contemporary world. Perhaps ‘Macbeth’ is still alive among us and the situation of the present era is similar to that period when ambition, jealousy and greed were the main instruments of human behaviour. Let's see, think and then compare. I hope our team efforts will certainly give you new realms to ponder over".

They did give enough to ponder over. The play had some timely and accurate references to the present day happenings in the Indian realm. Be it the alleged scam of the Commonwealth Games, the fodder scam, the Jallianwala Bagh incident of 1919, the Bhopal gas tragedy of 1984 and the Godhra incident that was followed by a communal blood bath, the references were all there and the elements presented in the play related well to these happenings.

The play opens on an open stretch of land where three witches give the prophecy that the civil war will end that day they will meet Macbeth. They refuse to leave the spot saying that what is normally “fair” will be “foul“ and what is “foul” will be “fair”.

King Duncan learns of Macbeth’s victory over MacDonwald and bequeaths him with the title of Thane of Chowder. On the other hand, Macbeth and his Banquo have been given a prophecy by the witches that Macbeth would be the king and Banquo would be the father of a king, but not the king himself. Macbeth has been victorious in the war and what greatness should he now aspire.

The witches spark the ambitious nature in Macbeth. Although Banquo is skeptical of the witches Macbeth is driven by desire which is further inflamed by Lady Macbeth. What follows is a trail of political murders driven by the fire of ambition until these killings come back to haunt Lady Macbeth and Macbeth himself.

One can easily relate the relevance of “Macbeth” in the modern world where such events and killings have taken place at regular intervals, be it the two World Wars or other events in the countries across the globe.

The presentation was a stunning one in which the best in every actor was brought out. The makeup and costumes were outstanding. The performance given by all actors was appreciable, while Nuri Parveen as Lady Macbeth and Bhaskar Bisht along with Kamal Joshi as Macbeth excelled. Adil Khan as Lanax also gave a captivating performance. The only flaw at places was in the pronunciation of Urdu words used in the adaptation.

Dehradun, October 25
To select the Indian team that will participate in the South Asian Federation (SAF) Winter Games, open championship of skiing and ice-skating will be held from December 18 to 30. There will also be a test event before the Winter Games which are being hosted for the first time here.

Open skiing championship for senior, sub-junior and junior will be organised from December 18 to 23 at Auli while ice-skating will be held from December 25 to 30 in Dehradun.

A total of 500 sportspersons, including 200 locals, will be taking part in the championship. The event will also act as a test championship for the organisers before holding the first SAF Winter Games.

Brig SS Patwal, president of the SAF Games, addresses a press conference in Dehradun on Monday. Tribune photographs

SS Patwal, president of the SAF Games, informed this in a press conference here today. Patwal also said almost all preparations had been made and the Winter Games would commence from January 7.

Skiing will be held from January 7 to 12 at Auli in Chamoli district and ice-skating and ice hockey will be organised from January 14 to 19 in Dehradun. The winter sports team will also be prepared for participating in the seventh Asian Winter Games, which are to be held in Astana and Almaty, Kazakhstan from January 30 to February 6.

On the occasion, Bharal, the mascot, for the first South Asian Winter Games was launched. Bharal, the Himalayan Blue-Sheep or Big-Horn (Ovis Ammon) Wild Sheep is the native of North America, Mediterranean Basin, Central Asia, Asia and South Himalayas.

Dehradun, October 25
KV, FRI, easily beat KV, ONGC, 3-0 on the inaugural day of the ONGC Ram Bahadur Chetri Memorial Inter-School Football Tournament held on the ONGC campus here today.

The FRI played dominating game right from the word go. It received first success quite early in the fourth minute of the game. Avneesh struck this goal to open the account of his team. No goal came later in the first half as it ended 1-0 in FRI’s favour.

Coming after the break, the FRI kept its solid performance. It had more ball possession in the second half, too, and made most of the goal bearing efforts. Ashish Bisht of the FRI scored a brace in the second half.

He netted his first while team’s second goal in the 49th minute of the match. The goal shattered the hopes of the ONGC of leveling the match as the scoreboard read 2-0 in its opponent’s side. Bisht gave another jolt to the rival team in the 58th minute scoring another beautiful goal.

Fourteen school teams are participating in the tournament namely St Joseph’s Academy, Dehradun, Manav Bharti, Mussourie, Army School, Birpur, North Point Children Academy, Jaswant Modern School, Maharishi Vidya Mandir, SGRR Mission-A, SGRR Mission- B, Children’s Academy, Kasiga School, KV-IMA, KV-FRI, KV-ONGC and Doon Valley Public School.

Earlier, chief guest Sanjay Singhal, DIG, ITBP, in his address, appreciated the efforts of the ONGC in promoting sports and wished good luck to the players for their matches.

Dehradun, October 25
Graphic Era got the better of Star XI during the Chaudhary Charan Singh Memorial Twenty20 Cricket Tournament held at Matawala Bagh here today.

Star XI won the toss and invited Graphic Era to bat first. The latter riding high on its good batting performance scored 127/ 9 in 20 overs. Jishan (31) and Raghav (22) were the principal scorers for the batting side.

Bharat and Rohit of Star XI got four and three wickets, respectively. While replying, Star XI failed to perform with the bat. The whole team was packed off for meagre 50 runs in 15 overs.

Bharat (19) was the top scorer for the team but it went in vain in the absence of good support from the other end. Gurpreet pocketed three wickets for Graphic Era.

Mussoorie, October 25
On the concluding day of the All-India Invitational Roller Skating Championship held in the memory of international referee and oraganiser late Nand Kishore Bamboo and Naresh Agarwal at the Rink, Seniors Division, the Jammu and Kashmir team defeated the Chandigarh team with a margin of 7-3.

In a keenly contested match the Chandigarh team was unlucky as several shots rebounded after striking the goal bar. The Jammu and Kashmir team, however, kept their cool and scored in both halves.

Chief guest on the occasion, IG (Intelligence) Anil Raturi presented the trophy in the end.

Speaking on the occasion, he said the championship began from Mussoorie and all should unite in bringing it back in the town and it would help in promoting the sportsmanship among the young generation. Dinesh Semwal, Singara Singh, Keerti, among others, were also present on the occasion. 

Dehradun, October 25
College of Engineering, Roorkee, and DIT emerged as champions in the boys and the girls team events, respectively, during the Uttarakhand Technical University Inter-College Badminton Tournament being organised by the Tulas Institute at multi-purpose hall of the Parade Ground.

While GBPEC, Pauri, and the Shivalik College of Engineering got the second place in the boys and the girls’ categories, respectively.

Individual finals will be played tomorrow and the prize distribution is scheduled after 11 am.