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Obama’s visit a business trip: CPM leader
Facilitate US visa for Indian scientists: MP
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Historical Garhwal painting adorns US gallery
Science, technology convention to begin from November 10
2 booked for illegal bull trade
SP leader concerned over green cover depletion
Khanduri mourns social worker’s death
Hansji Maharaj’s birth anniversary to be observed today
Speeding bus crushes one to death
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Obama’s visit a business trip: CPM leader
Dehradun, November 7 He said the hype generated by the media was unnecessary and the government of India’s focus should be on an equal relationship with the USA concurring with Indian viewpoints and interests. “I think Obama is more of a super salesman with a long shopping list keen on obliging customers back home. There is pressure on India to open it’s market, but Indian companies and scientific institutions too should have access to the US market,” said Salim while speaking to The Tribune. One among the members that had visited the Kashmir Valley recently while being a part of the all-party delegation, Salim said political acumen was missing and New Delhi had time and time again squandered opportunities, favouring a balanced approach. He said: “The valley requires careful handling. Jammu and Kashmir is unlike any other state and has geopolitical implications as well. The alienation has grown as both state and Central governments have failed to impress people. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also announced an economic package, but it can only work if the money reaches people, and for this a proper mechanism needs to be established,” he stressed. On the large-scale unrest among youth, Salim said the government had to engage the youth who were increasingly restive. “There are highly educated youth without jobs and the long period of insurgency has affected the economy with fewer companies setting up shop. Even when those who went outside Kashmir for jobs, were subjected to discrimination,” Salim said. Commenting on the performance of his party in West Bengal and Kerala, Salim said the party would be able to maintain it’s stronghold in West Bengal and Kerala despite the recent electoral setbacks, the party is on firm wicket. “In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee continues to pose a challenge. So is the Congress-led alliance in Kerala, but we are working on strategies to counter them,” he emphasised. |
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Facilitate US visa for Indian scientists: MP
Dehradun, November 7 In a statement issued here today, Satpal said the Indian scientists faced a lot of problems in obtaining visa from the USA. He said this, at times, caused delay in the execution of projects. “Timely availability of visa will help the Indian scientists get visa on time, thus facilitate the completion of long-term pending projects,” he pointed out. He also held that after the Indo-US Nuclear Deal, the visit of the Indian scientists to the USA would be frequent, thus visa issues needed to be sorted out. He pointed out that even the USA had amply hinted in introducing
visa relaxation for scientists and asserted that an appeal from the Prime Minister would further push the cause. |
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Historical Garhwal painting adorns US gallery
Local historian and chronicler Gopal Bhardwaj is of the view that the picture of original miniature painting depicting Lord Krishna holding up Mount Govardhan, considered as the most illustrious miniature paintings in the world, is the work of none other, but son of the soil Mola Ram (1743-1833) born in Srinagar (Garhwal). Bhardwaj says, however, the saddest part is that the Goverdhan Puja painting by Mola Ram is adorning the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, courtesy the Smithsonian Institution, due to the neglect of the state government towards its
own artefacts. Bhardwaj, throwing light on the life of poet, historian and diplomat Mola Ram, says he originated the Garhwal branch of the Kangra school of painting. He worked for the Garhwal Kingdom from 1777 until its annexation in 1803. Mola Ram’s ancestors arrived with Suleman Shikoh, a Mughal prince who had taken refuge in Garhwal around middle of the 17th century A.D. The prince left Garhwal but his court painters and ancestors of Mola Ram, fascinated by
the state environment, stayed behind. These painters settled in Srinagar (Garhwal), then capital of the Pawar dynasty, and introduced the Mughal style of painting in Garhwal. Gradually these painters developed their own style, later came to be known as Garhwali School of Painting. Mola Ram developed a the style of painting similar to the charm of a few other styles
of painting. Mola ram was a great poet of his time and his paintings were accompanied with the poems he wrote. Speciality of his Garhwal School of Painting was the depiction of beautiful women with fully developed breasts, thin waist line, soft oval shaped face, delicate brow and thin nose with defined nose bridge as evident from the painting here. Mola Ram not only wrote poems but also made notes on natural history, collected data and painted a diverse range
of subjects. The influence of Guler artists from Kangra after the matrimonial alliance of King Pradyuman Shah also enhanced the beauty in the paintings of Mola Ram. He also wrote the historical work “Garharajavansh ka Itihas” (history of the Garhwal royal dynasty), which is the only source of information about several Garhwal rulers. Mola Ram also chronicled the regime of Sham Shah and goes on to describe Dula Ram Shah, Mahipati Shah, Pritam Shah, Medini Shah, Lalit Shah and Jayakrit Shah. Apart from this he also wrote Ganika Natak or Garh Gita Sangram in 1800. Bhardwaj laments the fact that the painters from the state have created awesome work, but most of it is lying either in some museum or
art galleries abroad hidden from the public eye. The state government apart from making tall claims of preserving culture art and tradition
of the region has no interest in retrieving its own artifacts and the valuable treasures. He believes that if serious efforts similar to the pattern of Vijaya Mallya retrieving sword of Tipu Sultan are not made, the artifacts will never see the soil on which they were
created. |
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Bhai Dooj celebrated in a big way
Dehradun, November 7 Many of them who do not have brothers at home too celebrated the real spirit, that of the thick bond between siblings, behind this festival. Uma Singh, a social worker, said the fact that she did not have a son did not stop her from making her two daughters enjoy the festivities associated with Bhai Dooj. “The elder one dons the mantle of a brother and younger one of a sister and then they observe the same ritual which brother and sister do on this festival. More than the gender, it is the spirit behind this festival which matters to us”. Shamsher Singh, president of the Personal Below Officers Rank, said as per the Garhwali culture, his sister put a tilak (vermilion dot) on his forehead, offered him sweets and coconut, and he too reciprocated the gesture by giving her gifts. The family then went on relishing sel roti, a kind of chapatti made of rice which is then dipped in sauce made of til. Meat too, be it mutton or chicken, is cooked by the community on this day. People from Haryana followed their own custom of plucking leaves of barley which they had been growing in small pots during the nine days of Navratri. Shakuntala Devi, a housewife, informed, “The tender barley leaves, a symbol of purity and divinity, are safely put on the ears of brothers by their sisters who also put a tikka on their forehead and sweeten their mouths. As usual, brothers give either money or gifts to their sisters. The family then feast on rice pudding, besides other dishes. Non-vegetarian dishes are a complete no-no for us”. The Bengali community which calls this festival as Bhaipota celebrate it in a little similar and dissimilar fashion. Chandan Banerjee, Bengali entrepreneur, said, “Even in the Bengali culture, sisters put tikka and give sweets to their brothers and seek their blessings. It is the food, especially fish curry, is one thing which separates us from other communities as it is a must for us to cook and savour any fish curry cuisine on this day”. The Bihari community too adheres to the norms of their own peculiar culture, when it comes to Bhai Dhooj. Shweta Kasha, web-designer, averred, “I tied a kind of rakhi, which is made of cotton wool, made damp with milk and then rubbed with turmeric, on my brother’s wrist. I then sprinkled some rice and til grain on my brother’s head and sang a couple of songs, which elucidate sisters’ love for their brothers. I then offered sweets made of rice which we call as ‘bajri’ to him and he gave me some money to make me buy anything of my choice”. |
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Devotees offer prayers on Govardhan Puja
Dehradun, November 7 In charge of the temple, Swami Vidhi said prayers started in the wee hours with “mangal aarti” followed by kirtan. Then a lavish feast consisting of 36 kinds of food and 56 ingredients were offered to Lord Krishna. Devotees then danced in a spiritual trance while singing songs in the praise of Lord Krishna. Thereafter, the devotees made 108 parikrama (rounds) of the sancto-sanctorum. In the end, all of them savoured a mass kitchen which started from afternoon and lasted till evening. The devotees continued to come till late evening to offer prayers. |
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Science, technology convention to begin from November 10
Dehradun, November 7 Besides research papers, the scientists will also deliberate upon four subjects namely global warming, biodiversity, drinking water and non-traditional energy sources. The real objective behind the deliberation is to bring out solutions of the problems pertaining to these fields and then to pass on the recommendations to the state government to formulate policies which will help in betterment of living conditions of people. On the first subject of global warming affecting the food security system in the Himalayan region, Chief Convener, Director Wadia Institute of Himalayan Zoology Dr BR Chopra (retd) and his assistant Dr Prabhakar Badoni and Dr RK Johari of DAV College will address the issue. Under this, the cloud bursting, landslides, etc. will be discussed. On the second subject of drinking water, Chief Convener of DAV College Dr Prashant Singh, his assistant Dr Sanjay Gupta and Dr SS Sahni will talk about how the drinking water in villages can be easily made available to the villagers in purified form. Biodiversity will be discussed threadbare by Forest Conservator and Chief Convener Jayraj and Associate Professor of Government College, Uttrakashi, Dr Gulshan Kumar Dhingra and Prof DBS College Dr Rakesh Singh. Their discussions will zero in upon the utility of biodiversity for public welfare, preservation of biodiversity and useful information regarding the tribal groups living in the surroundings of biodiversity. The fourth subject of non-traditional energy sources will be addressed by Chief Project Officer, UREDA, EAK Tyagi, Assistant Professor of DAV College Dr Gunjan Purohit and Professor of PG College, Bageshwar, Dr MP Singh. The discussion will involve mooting policies to select the options of non-traditional energy sources area wise and chart out a map of energy resources of the city. Convener Dr Sarita Khadka, senior scientist of the Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology will preside over these discussions. |
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Vikas sammelan passes proposal for welfare of Muslims
Dehradun, November 7 At the Vikas Sammelan for Muslims organised by the CPM, a unanimous proposal was passed for the welfare of Muslims that would be handed to the state government. A demand was made for filling up of 341 posts of Urdu teacher lying vacant for the past eight years, the constitution of a Urdu Madarsa Board, reserving 20 per cent of houses in rural areas for Muslims, computerisation of madarsas and creation of an Urdu academy for the advancement and promotion of Urdu language. Speaking at the sammelan, Mohammed Salim, former Member of Parliament (MP) and Central Committee member of the CPM, said the Manmohan Singh government lacked the political will to implement the recommendations of the Ranganath Commission. “So far there has not been any debate in Parliament on the Commission’s recommendations. Unless Muslims get rid of an inferiority complex and stand up for their rights by joining the forces that are enlightened, they will
continue to be ignored,” said Salim. He also urged the Muslims to shrug off the diffident attitude and demand work from MPs and MLAs in their areas. “Do not get carried away by sentimental and emotional issues, but ensure that development reaches every corner of your village,” he said. President of the Bar Council Razia Beig asked Muslims to introspect and be aware of the ground realities. “You can hold the government if you have information about various schemes. I am sorry to say most of you don’t make an effort to acquaint yourself with the basics,” she said. She also held members of the Muslim community responsible for failing to present proposals regarding the construction of institutions, hostels for girls etc at the meeting of the Wakf Board. Chairman of Tanzim-ai-Rehnuma Latafat Hussain said the BJP government did not know the problems of Muslims. The problem could have been sorted out if a Muslim was appointed as Officer on Special Duty attached with the Chief Minister. “We have been constantly raising the demand of a burial ground for Muslims, but it has not been met,” he said. Earlier, secretary, district unit of the CPM, Surinder Singh Sajwan and member, District (Dehradun) Panchayat, and coordinator, Muslim Vikas Morcha, Kamaruddin gave a brief introduction about the agenda of the sammelan. Those who attended the sammelan included secretary, state committee, CPM, Vijay Rawat, Bachi Ram Kainswal and others. |
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SC/ST confederation seeks quota in private jobs
Dehradun, November 7 He said the rally would culminate with the submission of a memorandum to Congress Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. He also called upon people to generously donate for the confederation as without finance it was not possible to wage a struggle for the Dalits’ cause. Raj said rampant privatisation was hurting the interests of deprived sections and called for a strong opposition to the pro-privatisation policy. He raised the issue of sanitary workers alleging that contractual system of employment was leading to unending exploitation of sanitary workers. Later addressing mediapersons, Raj again asserted that the confederation was strongly for reservation for Dalits in the private sector. He said Dalits did not have enough potential to flourish on their own within the private sector and as such reservation was very much needed in private jobs. Balbir Chand Bodh, state coordinator of the All-India Confederation of the SC/ST Organisations , and RB Singh, state patron, were also present on the occasion. |
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2 booked for illegal bull trade
Dehradun, November 7 The FIR was lodged at the Sahaspur police station today against Shanky Agarwal and Deepak Gupta. The PFA (Uttarakhand) representative, Gauri Maulekhi, said the organisation had been receiving frequent complaints from residents about the illegal sale of bulls for slaughter at a weekly market in Sahaspur. The PFA investigated the matter and sent decoy customers to market contractors Shanky and Deepak. The contractors provided to them four fake receipts for sale of eight bulls. According to PFA sources, it is illegal to sell any bovine outside the state limits without a permission in writing from the District Magistrate and depositing Rs 500 in the Collectorate as per the Uttarakhand Cow and its Progeny Protection Act 2007. However, Agarwal and Gupta were facilitating the sale of bulls to Bijnore and other areas of Uttar Pradesh in violation of this law with more than 100 cattle being sold every week for slaughter. The police authorities lodged an FIR against the two contractors after intervention of IG (Garhwal) MA Ganapathy, who was approached by the PFA
members. |
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SP leader concerned over green cover depletion
Dehradun, November 7 He referred to the felling of healthy and thick trees on the roadside at Selaqui which, he said, should not have been axed at all. He also deplored the futile attempts made by the state government and different organisations in planting new trees which withered down, for want of proper maintenance, within a short period. He said planting new trees and their maintenance for three years should be made compulsory while clearing maps for new houses. |
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Khanduri mourns social worker’s death
Dehradun, November 7 Khanduri said Seth first served the country through his long Army service. “I too started my Army career with him in 1952. After retirement, Brigadier Seth utilised his time in serving people. He played a memorable role in helping the affected at the time of an earthquake in Uttarkashi in 1991,”
Khanduri said. He consoled Seth’s grieving family. Khanduri also condoled the death of freedom fighter Dileep Singh, who, he said, had contributed a great deal during the Quit India Movement. He said with his death the country
had lost a true son. |
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Kedarnath, Yamunotri shrines closed for winter
Dehradun, November 7 Similarly, the shrine of Yamunotri in Uttarakashi district was also closed for the winter. The Yamunotri doli reached Krashali late night. With Gangotri closed for winter few days back, now three out of the four Char Dham Shrines of Uttarakhand now stand closed for the winter. The fourth shrine of Badrinath will now be closed on November 18, bringing the Char Dham to a conclusion. |
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Hansji Maharaj’s birth anniversary to be observed today
He stayed at Sindh and Lahore during his childhood and took part in the Non-Cooperation Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi. He spent his whole life in the service of humanity preaching love and equality for all. He started the All-Dharam Sad Bhav Movement in 1954 which his son has been propagating in India and abroad. He wished to build a sacred temple where people following different religions could worship and humanity is understood. |
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Speeding bus crushes one to death
Dehradun, November 7 The bus was on its way to Haridwar. After the accident, the driver did not stop and sped away towards Haridwar. Local people informed the police about the number of the bus. Later, the driver was caught by the police at Bhadrabad and he was brought back to Roorkee this afternoon, the police informed. In another accident, two persons at Landhora were severely hit and injured by a tractor trolley. The two were on their way for Bhai Dooj festival. The injured were brought to the district hospital at Roorkee where their condition was declared to be serious. One of them was referred to Dehradun for further treatment. The two have been identified as Sravan Kumar and Johny Singh. |
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Mohammed Salim, former Member of Parliament (MP) and Central Committee member of the CPM, said today that US President Barak Obama, who is currently in India, might not be able to dramatically shift the scales in favour of India and one should view his visit purely as a business trip, capable of serving the interests of businessmen back home.
Mussoorie, November 7
Dehradun, November 7