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Ailing author, journalist Thapliyal looks to govt for assistance
Mohan Rakesh’s ‘Lehron ke Rajhans’ brought alive on stage
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Ramnagar, Lal Kuan to be model railway stations
DEHRADUN DIARY
50 vie for ‘Prince and Princess of North’ title
General Bahuguna visits art, cartoon exhibition
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Ailing author, journalist Thapliyal looks to govt for assistance
Mussoorie, February 6 Sudhir informed the former Chief Minister about his recent operation and the need for financial assistance for the dialysis as prescribed by the doctors. Sudhir’s father was the Principal of Ghananand Inter College that was donated by Khanduri’s grandfather. Later, speaking to the mediapersons, Khanduri said it was sad that a senior journalist of such a repute was feeling neglected in the state for which he had fought his whole life. Khanduri regretted the fact that he was meeting his old friend Sudhir after a long time, but was feeling glad after meeting him. Speaking on the financial assistance in such cases, Khanduri said many cases were being expedited through the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund in general cases. Sudhir, thanking the leader, presented a book “Mansoori Macabre” written by him on the occasion. Sudhir was born in Mussoorie and joined the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla, as an Air Force cadet. A graduate of the University of Allahabad, he did his Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Kolkata. He worked as a senior journalist for a newspaper in Calcutta, now Kolkota, from 1967 to 1979 and Editor of a national magazine. Sudhir has also written a book called “Mansoori Macabre”, a murder mystery based on the true story that occurred in Mussoorie several years back. Thapliyal is a 1972 Fellow of the World Press Institute, St Paul, Minn (USA). He was also nominated for the Rhodes in 1967. Since 1965 many of his short stories and features have been published in leading Sunday supplements, The Financial Times, London. Sudhir has also written the screenplay of a telefilm based on Ruskin Bond's novel. He is currently working on a screenplay for a Bollywood producer. He is credited with filing the public interest litigation in the Allahabad High Court that eventually secured financial compensation for those whose human rights were violated during the agitation. These include victims of police firing. He was a member of the Sir Edmund Hillary's Ocean to Sky Expedition in 1977 and the Saser Kangri III expedition in the Karakorams in 1986. Meanwhile, Khanduri informed the media that during his reign as the CM a separate welfare fund for the journalists was established amounting to Rs 1 crore that had been increased manifold presently, but the journalist should come forward and advise the government on the adequate use of the funds. Speaking on the bottlenecks created by the bureaucracy in the state, Khanduri said it was everywhere in the country, but the responsibility rested on the public representatives to sensitise them so that they took interest in development works for the benefit of the common people. Speaking on the Lakhwar Vyasi power project that was inaugurated by him two years back, the former CM said the pending project was restarted by him considering the fact the requirement for power by the state, but was unaware of the present status of the project. Denying the allegations that the projects initiated during his reign as the CM had been shoved under the carpet, he said irrespective of the change in leadership, the government was the same so there was no question of shoving any project. Speaking on the corruption issue, he said most of the cases were in court so it was not possible to comment on them, but the government had also kept its views on such issues. He also said all the party leaders and workers were governed by the manifesto that was issued by the party in 2006-07 and were working accordingly for the development of the state. Speaking on the ADB funding in the state, Khanduri stated that the fund was allocated during his tenure as the CM and several development works were to be expedited under different branches and he hoped that the allocated fund was being used adequately.
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Mohan Rakesh’s ‘Lehron ke Rajhans’ brought alive on stage
Nainital, February 6 Most of the artistes involved in the production are amateurs and a large number of them are students in local schools and colleges in the Lake City. Presenting a classical play that involves the rendition of the dialogues in Hindi of the highest order has indeed been a commendable effort on the part of the team that worked under the direction of Ritesh Sagar. “Leheron Ke Rajhans” (The Swans of the Waves) is a play based on ancient Buddhist tale of love, conflict, inner struggle and renunciation. It is the most noted play from Mohan Rakesh. The story revolves around the renunciation of the Buddha and its after effects on his close family. The play was first written as a short story and later turned into a play for the radio and broadcast under the title "Sundri". It is said Rakesh’s struggle over different versions of the play lasted for nearly 20 years before he came up with the creation of the masterpiece. The conflict that revolves around the identity crisis of an individual and has been an integral part of human existence from the ancient time has been brilliantly presented through the play. The three-day presentation at Nainital was able to take the audience successfully for one and a half hours on every occasion to the Mauryan era. The make-up and costumes of the artistes were near perfection. An important aspect of the presentation was its strong musical score done by none other than Vachaspati Deodi, who is a known face in the theatrical circle of Kumaon. The key roles of Nand and his wife Sundari were played by Sanjay Kumar and Aarti Dhami. The latter, in particular, came up with an excellent dialogue delivery of her part which involved certain tongue twisters. The presentation was dedicated to eminent folk poet and social activist Girish Chandra Tewari, who is fondly known as Girda, and Nirmal Pande, who had made a name for himself in Bollywood. Both these personalities had left for the heavenly abode last year.
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Ramnagar, Lal Kuan to be model railway stations
Nainital, February 6 Chief Public Relations Officer of the North Eastern Railways Amit Singh disclosed this during a visit to Kathgodam yesterday. The Railways had been given an additional sum of Rs 125 crore for various developmental works at different stations and most of this money would be spent on providing more facilities to the passengers, he said. It was disclosed that the model railway stations would be developed before the end of the current financial year. Under the plan, these stations would have a proper parking area and waiting rooms would be redone so that all the amenities were available for passengers. The Railways already have a plan to develop a multi-functional complex at Kathgodam. It was also related that the freight handling facilities would soon be made more efficient at the Bazpur Railway Station. The Railways planned to evaluate the performance of the recently introduced Kathgodam-Anand Vihar Air-Conditioned Express that ran thrice a week after three months and after this evaluation a proposal would be forwarded for running the train on a daily basis. It was disclosed that the Haldi Road station continued to be the prime revenue earner in the entire region and efforts were being made to improve the earnings coming from the other stations in the region that were witnessing a growth in the economic activity. During a recent visit to Kathgodam, Divisional Railways Manager (DRM), Izzatnagar Railways Division, KB Nandaof said the Railways had been handling a large number of rakes of edible items produced by the Nestle India and an equally high number of rakes of automobiles produced in the region from this station, which was a non-descript destination till a couple of years back. The handling primarily includes Tata Nano cars being produced at the companies Pantnagar facility, apart from the vehicles being produced by Mahindra and Mahindra. The Railways now plans to lay an additional track at
the station.
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Tribune Impact
Mussoorie, February 6 The residents told him that they had written several letters to the authorities concerned in this regard, but no action had been initiated so far. Thapli immediately talked to the Forest Secretary and apprised him about the grim situation in the area. He told the Secretary that the area below the garden could cave in any moment, leading to loss of life and property. The Secretary assured him that necessary steps would be taken on an urgent basis. Mussoorie DFO RG Verma, who is on leave at present, acting on the direction given by the Secretary, contacted members of the Residents Welfare Association of the area and assured them that their grievances would be heard after he joined duty on February 9. Thapli, while speaking to The Tribune, said the public representatives of the town had failed to address the grievances of the people and due to this the funds released under the district plan had not been fully utilised yet. He also said the local representatives were solely to be blamed for this grim situation in the area. President of the Garden Welfare Association Surendar Rana, Shambhu Prasad Saklani and others were present on the occasion.
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DEHRADUN DIARY
Even after the announcement of a new president of the Uttarakhand Congress by the party high command two months ago, the much-awaited announcement of office-bearers of the Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee could not take place till date indicating that all is not well within the main Opposition party of the state.
Yashpal Arya, a Dalit leader who had been heading the state Congress for the past three years, was again made the state party chief in the crucial year ahead of the 2012 Assembly elections. By giving the reins of the party in the hands of Arya, a low-profile leader, the party leadership has reposed faith in him in taking the party into the crucial electoral battle ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls scheduled for May, 2012. But, it has not been a cake walk for Arya in the run-up to the Assembly polls as most of the other senior party leaders are also flexing their muscles in the battle to become Chief Minister if the party wins the 2012 Assembly elections. Since the Congress is hopeful of doing well in the elections due to anti-incumbency factor facing the state Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) Government, most of these senior Congress leaders do not want to leave any stone unturned to have their say in the state party affairs. The Uttarakhand Congress chief has given his own list of the office-bearers, but the party in charge of the state and general secretary RK Dhawan had also asked all the other senior leaders to give their own lists. It has been learnt that most of these leaders had submitted their lists but the final list of the office-bearers is still awaited. Meanwhile, the party high command instead has made two high-level committees namely the coordination committee having all the senior leaders and the monitoring committee. The party high command is taking no chances and wants to put its best foot forward to avoid a war within the party ranks before the Assembly polls. A meeting of the coordination committee of the state Congress has been called in New Delhi on February 11 to sort out the differences and prepare a joint strategy for the elections. Union Minister of state for Agriculture and Food Processing Harish Rawat, who is a frontrunner for the post of Chief Minister if party comes to power in the state, has already started his campaign in right earnest. Hailing from the Kumaon region, Rawat shifted to the Haridwar seat in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and won it for the party after 25 years. His entering into Haridwar politics has changed the entire dynamics of politics in the bastion of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). His supporters, including Almora MP Pardeep Tamta, announced during the Jan Akrosh rally at Pithoragarh on February 5 that a leader like Harish Rawat should be the next Chief minister if the party came to power in the next elections. Another claimant, Pauri Garhwal MP Satpal Maharaj, is not far behind in staking claim to the top post. He has been active in the Lok Sabha and is touring his Pauri Garhwal parliamentary constituency. A godman and former Union Minister of State for Railways, Satpal Maharaj donated eight ambulances for each block in Chamoli district from his MP Local Area Development Fund amidst much fanfare. Last but not the least, Tehri Garhwal MP Vijay Bahuguna, former judge of the Mumbai High Court and son of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, is banking on his relations with the Nehru-Gandhi family. His sister Reeta Bahuguna Joshi is heading the Uttar Pradesh Congress and is considered close to party President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. It would be an uphill task for the party high command to resolved the differences between various groups and give a united fight to the well-oiled RSS-BJP election machinery. Interestingly, even before the start of the preparations for the crucial elections, the fight for the top position amongst the Congress stalwarts has blunted the party’s campaign against the state BJP Government. It has been felt that the Congress has failed to put a united face and exploit the issues that propped up in the past six months. They feel that the issue of the dismal performance of the state government in providing relief to the people affected by unprecedented rains in 2010, alleged irregularities in the SAF Winter Games and the alleged failure of the state government on developmental front have not been fully exploited by the Congress. There were individual and isolated efforts by different leaders in their own way. While Arya has been touring the state to have his control over the organisation, Harish Rawat launched the Jan Akrosh rally in Kumaon and Leader of Opposition Harak Singh Rawat has been demanding a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the conduct of the SAF Winter Games. There has been a complete lack of coordination and even dialogue between various factions and leaders. Workers and leaders, who owe allegiance to their leaders, are seen in the programmes of their respective factions and are boycotting programmes of even state party chief
Arya.
BJP prepares well for Assembly polls
On the other hand, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been much ahead in preparing for the Assembly polls with active help from the Sangh Parivar. The three-day meet of senior BJP and RSS leaders at Rishikesh in January, 2011, was seen as a serious attempt to galvanise the party before the Assembly polls. Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has been on the move in every nook and corner of the state. Already, as a populist measure he has announced a new scheme to provide rations at low rates to Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Above Poverty Line (APL) families of the state. It would be seen whether the BJP would be able to reap the benefits of the scheme since there are serious doubts about the proper implementation of the scheme given the attitude and working of the state bureaucracy in the state. The ration depot holders are also up in arms against the government scheme unless their demands of better remuneration are met. But still, the BJP is way ahead of doing groundwork for the forthcoming elections. The Chief Minister has been trying to placate all sections of the society. On February 5, he addressed a well-attended meeting of the Muslims organised by the minority cell of the party at Sahaspur. Nishank had sprang a surprise by eliciting the support of the Muslim community in winning the Vikasnagar assembly bypolls after taking over the reigns of the state in 2009.
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UTU beat SIDCUL by 91 runs
Dehradun, February 6 In this 35-over match, UTU chose to bat first after it won the toss. The innings of UTU revolved around opening batsman Peeiosh, who struck a valiant knock of 77 runs. He hit nine fours during his well-struck half century. Rohit (20) and Harendra (20) also contributed for UTU that set a target of 194 runs in 31.2 overs losing all the wickets, while Rajendra Singh claimed five wickets for SIDCUL. Manish Thapliyal, Virender Negi and Virendra got a wicket each. SIDCUL could score only 102 runs in 20.1 overs before getting all out. Virender (24) was the top scorer for the team. Peeiosh of UTU got three wickets. Gopi and Ravinder Kumar took two wickets each in the match.
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BHEL organises function on fire safety
Dehradun , February 6 With several cases of fire incidents happening in the city, which otherwise could have been averted if safety precautions were adhered to, public sector undertaking Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) organised a programme at Bal Bhawan where school students were apprised of the safety measures with this year’s topic being “Home safety”. Safety experts dwelt upon the subject apprising children of the dire consequences of one’s laxity as well as not adhering to the precautionary safety measures. BHEL security officer Jagat Narayan informed about various aspects of fire safety urging children to be active whether they are at home, school or in market as a bit of extra cautiousness can avoid many incidents. Along the sidelines, a painting competition was also organised for children. Students from 16 schools participated in the competition. Apart from this, the competition was also open for all so that students from other schools in the region can also take part so that the message of safety measures is spread among as many people as possible. Organising committee member Rajiv Maheshwari said innovative paintings and creativity of the participants was quite successful in spreading the message about safety awareness. Shwetha Kumari, a Class VI student of Bal Vidya Mandir who made a drawing of safety measures to be adhered to while working in a house, particularly in a kitchen, was quite enthusiastic about the importance of the day and said she would urge her family members to make sure that LPG cylinders are safely placed. The best students in different categories will be awarded at a function at BHEL in March, where all participants in yearly competitions are felicitated at one platform. Among others who coordinated in the proceedings were Vipul Saxena, Abhay Singh, NK Garg, Lalit Kumar, Sandeep Kumar and BHEL employees.
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Doon Eagle beat 19 Garhwal
Dehradun, February 6 The closely contested quarterfinal saw several goal bearing attempts being made by the two sides, but only one could be successful. Besides Doon Eagle, Junior Cantt and Garhwal Boys have also booked their semifinal berths. In the fourth semifinal Garhwal Sporting will take on Shivalik Club.
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50 vie for ‘Prince and Princess of North’ title
Mussoorie, February 6 The chief guest on the occasion, eminent Bollywood star and youth icon Shahid Kapoor’s mother Neelima Azim, along with local MLA Jot Singh Gunsola, former vice-president Mandi Parishad Upendar Thapli and CEO, Yograj Films, Yograj inaugurated the contest and wished
the participants. The contestants from different parts of the country showcased their talent in front of a large gathering. The contest was on till the filing of this report. CEO Yograj said on the occasion that the objective of the contest was to provide a national-level platform to local participants so that they could excel in the film industry. The two winners of the contest would be given the opportunity to work in the forthcoming feature film under the banner of Yograj Films, he added.
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General Bahuguna visits art, cartoon exhibition
Dehradun, February 6 The schoolchildren also enjoyed glimpses of the exhibition put up by budding artists of the school. The exhibition is open for the residents of the city in the junior section of the school from 11 am to 4 pm every day.
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