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World Forestry Day
‘Rajaji, a haven for its 32 tigers’
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FRI divisions exhibit works
Unani medical college to be set up at Bhagwanpur
Woman gang raped
5-day placement training programme begins
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World Forestry Day
Dehradun, March 21 Speaking on the theme “Balancing Development and Forest Conservation: The Role of a Forest Officer" at the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy (IGNFA), Dehradun, on World Forestry Day today, the Governor exhorted probationary forest officers that they would have to objectively balance development and conservation by taking decisions responsibly. The Governor recounted several conflict situations between development projects and conservation activities in the Western Ghats, the problem of sharing common property resources (CPRs) and the threat posed by wild animals such as monkeys and leopards to the human population and agriculture in the hills of Uttarakhand. "World Forestry Day is meant to increase public awareness on three key facets of forestry - production, protection and recreation. You must lay stress on the need for a people-centric approach to managing forest lands which would take into account not only their environmental riches, but also their economic, social and cultural value,” the Governor said. She said, “It is imperative that you link forest conservation efforts to the many facets of human activity ranging from hunger, poverty eradication, governance, green economy to employment”. She said forests and development were inter-related. Balance and harmony were fundamental principles of both physical and human ecology. The sudden intrusion of excess energy or activity can disrupt the balance. Nature’s first impulse is to maintain that balance wherever it is disturbed. Human society is governed by a similar conservative principle. Unchecked development without regard for the environment disturbs the balance. Hence, the need of the hour is environment-conscious development. Secretary to the Governor Ashok Pai, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Uttarakhand Dr RBS Rawat, Director of IGNFA Dr RD Jakati, Additional Director Shri AK Wahal and IGNFA faculty members were present on the occasion.
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‘Rajaji, a haven for its 32 tigers’
Dehradun, March 21 Interacting with mediapersons during a field visit of a group of journalists inside Rajaji National Park on occasion of World Forestry Day, Uttarakhand Chief Wildlife Warden Srikant Chandola said with the availability of excellent prey species, Rajaji was proving to be an excellent breeding ground for tigers. “The park has one of the richest sambar populations anywhere in India and this favours tigers,” he said. He, however, was also quick to add that the complete shifting of Gujjars from inside Rajaji could further boost the tiger population inside the Park. When asked to substantiate his claim on the existence of 32 tigers inside Rajaji Park, Chief Wildlife Warden said he was giving this figure on the basis on tigers captured by camera traps. He said he was hopeful that the tiger report to be released by the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, would definitely support this figure. While admitting that the shortage of water was a challenge for Park authorities, Srikant Chandola said they were undertaking all possible measures to ensure the availability of water to the animals in the summer months. He stressed on the complete shifting of Gujjars from the Park pointing out that the Gujjars occupy the best lands and use the water inside Rajaji which have a negative impact on wildlife and the environment. He added that the Uttarakhand Forest Department was making all attempts to ensure presence of staff in the forest chowkis to check the acts of poaching and forest fires. Rajaji Park Director SS Rasaily, Deputy Director Shrawan Kumar and other Rajaji Park officials were also present.
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FRI divisions exhibit works
Dehradun, March 21 The exhibition was held at the office of the information centre. Through posters and models, the gathering was informed about the achievements of its divisions - Non-wood Forest Product Division, Forest Product Division, Genetics and Tree Propagation Division, Plant Physiology Branch of the Botany Division, Chemistry Division and the Extension Division - and how these works benefited the common man. Chief guest Dr SS Negi advised young scientists to work with dedication and achieve world-class excellence in their work. “Scientists should not only come up with new research work, but also ensure that their findings reach the masses,” he said. Deputy Director-General of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education Omkar Singh, FRI University’s Dean Dr RK Aima, Dr VRR Singh from the Extension Division and a large number of FRI University students were present on the occasion. Satyaswaroop from the Non-wood Forest Product Division gave detailed information about the qualities and utility of various herbs. Praveen Uniyal from Chemistry Division referred to making of natural colours and compost. A representative of the Forest Product
Division informed the gathering about bent wood and techniques for solar seasoning and the Genetics and Tree Propagation Division informed about the methods to improve the quality of wood. A quiz for FRI University students was organised which was coordinated by Dr Anand Sharma, Executive Director, Meteorological Department, Dehradun. FRI museums were thrown open to the public for the day. A large number of students from various educational institutions and the general public availed this ticket-less opportunity.
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Nursery inaugurated
Dehradun, March 21 A students’ nursery of medicinal and aromatic plants was inaugurated by Chairman Arvind Gupta on the premises of the institute. Other activities included the ceremonial planting of a sapling of Saraca Asoca (Sita Ashok) and medicinal plants by Dr Shailja Pant, Principal, Dr Arun Kumar, Vice-Principal and Prof SS Biswas, display of slogans-cum-posters and photographs clicked by the students. Prof SS Biswas said the new nursery was the outcome of the Department of Forestry’s research project on “Screening selection and cultivation of medicinal plants of heavy demands to uplift the financial status of rural population”. The main objectives of the survey was the collection of medicinal plants that are of interest to growers and then training the farmers in their cultivation and also providing them planting stock/seed for cultivation. Arvind Gupta, Chairman of the institute, mentioned that the nursery would now form a part of the students’ activities on different aspects of establishment, conservation, management, raising awareness about medicinal and aromatic plants, besides integrating classroom nursery and the propagation lectures to field orientation and practical exercises. Later, Prof SS Biswas, head of the department, made a presentation on the “Role of forests and forestry in the management of world’s great disasters” with reference to the recent disaster in Japan. Rinchen, a student of forestry from Bhutan, made a presentation on “Forestry in Bhutan”. Forestry students, along with the faculty members, also visited the Forest Research Institute.
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Living healthy with natural remedies
Dehradun, March 21 “I believe our body has the natural capacity to resist foreign agents and heal itself. We need to learn to understand our body and the signals that it gives from time to time,” she said, while speaking to The Tribune. Essentially this has been her guiding philosophy and her family and friends have benefited from the remedies suggested by her for diverse ailments. “These percepts were handed down to me by my mother and then I carried on my own research. Soon my friends, too, started relying on my advice and then somebody suggested that I should write a book on my experiences and that is how my book ‘Wow! No Side Effects — Living Healthy Naturally’ came about. It tells us how to take charge of our lives only by doing simple adjustments,” she said. Lucidly written in anecdotal style, the book has valuable suggestions for those who are worried about the heavy dose of medicines prescribed by doctors and the consequential side effects. “Most ailments occur due to increased acidity in the body. If we correct this balance, we can avoid ailment. We should know how to breathe correctly and take seven to eight hours of sleep daily. Besides, I have also suggested simple exercises for those with chronic backache and relaxation techniques in my book,” said Sharma. “Taking under consideration the unhealthy lifestyle most of our youngsters lead, they can get handy hints from the book,” added Mridula.
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Unani medical college to be set up at Bhagwanpur
Dehradun, March 21 The proposal regarding the construction of the Unani medical college at Bhagwanpur has been hanging fire due to the absence of availability of land, but after an agreement with the Health Department, the Community Health Centre lying vacant will be utilised to set up the medical college that will be the first in the state. In order to revitalise the traditional systems of medicine, a Central Government programme is underway under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). There has been a major thrust on establishing ayurvedic dispensaries/ wings both by the Central and the state governments, but no steps have been taken to set up Unani dispensaries in the Muslim-dominated areas. Concerned Unani practitioners and residents had even taken up the matter with Mohammed Shafi Qureshi of the National Minorities Commission in the past. Though a full-fledged directorate of ayurveda and Unani services exists in the state, there are only five Unani hospitals- Rajkiya Unani Chikatsalya, Piran Kaliyar; Rajkiya Unani, Kaliyar Sharif; Rajkiya Unani, Sultanpur Kunhari; Rajkiya Yunani Chikitsalya, Luxar ward and Rajkiya Yunani Chikitsalya, Jaspur. Among these, only the Rajkiya Unani Chikatsalya at Jaspur has a Unani medical officer. According to the data provided by the directorate, there are a total of 538 ayurvedic dispensaries and five Unani dispensaries in the state. As many as 23 ayush wings have been set up at 23 community health centres and 116 at primary health centres. Besides, 26 ayush wings have also been established in the state at each male and female district hospital.
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Woman gang raped
Dehradun, March 21 The police last night arrested Soban, one of the accused, following a complaint from the victim’s mother. A local court today sent him to a 14-day remand. According to the police, Deepu, the victim’s husband, had gone for work in Delhi three to four months ago and had not come home since then. He was before that working with Pramar Hotel on the Gandhi Road in Dehradun. The incident happened on Saturday night when his wife, a resident of Nai Basati Indira
Colony, Chukhuwala, was heading towards her place after finishing work at a house as a domestic help. Surender Sharma, a resident of Delhi and one of the waiters at the hotel who was known to the woman, approached her on the Tilak Road saying that her husband had been found and was at the hotel. However, when she reached at the room of the hotel, she saw three more staffers of the hotel, Tilu, alias Tilak, Bihari and Soban Ustad, present there. Following this, the four bolted the door and gang raped her. She was left on the floor of the room in a bad condition. She then called up Emergency 108 that took her to the Doon Hospital. Later, her mother Rani lodged a complaint with the police. A case under Section 376 (2) (g) has been registered at the Kotwali police station. Investigation Officer Ekta Koshyari said all four accused were employed as waiters and cooks at the hotel. “We have arrested Soban and very soon will arrest the remaining three,” she added.
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5-day placement training programme begins
Dehradun, March 21 During the training programme, specialists of Dehradun farm industries will give technical and practical education to the students. The programme was inaugurated today by AK Pandey, Uttarakhand Assistant General Manager, Small Industries Development Bank of India.
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Doon Combined get the better of Sports College
Dehradun, March 21 After winning the toss, Doon Combined chose to bat first. In the stipulated 30 overs, it set a target of 211 runs (29.4 overs). Opening batsman Kamal (58) and first down batsman Kamal (37) played the main knocks. Deepak Negi (25) also contributed for the batting side. Karthik Joshi and Karan took three and two wickets, respectively, for Sports College. Pawan Pal, Sunil Bisht and Gajender also got success with one wicket each. Chasing the target, Sports College could score 196 runs in 30 overs at the loss of six wickets. Karthik Joshi (42), Gajender (34), Falkh Rana (33) and Sunil (32 not out) made valuable contributions to their team’s score, but in vain. Manish, Nishu, Vaibhav Panwar, Kamal and Pankaj of Doon Combined got a wicket each. Tomorrow, ONGC will take on the Institute of Technology and Management (ITM).
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CSD, Security (B) triumph
Dehradun, March 21 Today, league matches were played. CSD beat the Union 25-16, 25-18. ONGC (Green) was defeated by Security (B) 25-16, 24-26, 15-10. Tel Bhavan (White) was surpassed by Headquarter (Black) 25-13, 25-20. KDMIP (final) also beat Mogli 25-16, 26-24. Headquarter (Black) beat Communication 25-6, 25-8. Centre Store defeated Frontier Basin 25-6, 25-15.
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Doon Civic Blues
Dehradun, March 21 The area starts from Nalapani Chowk and extends to the IT Park, including Rishi Nagar, Aman Vihar, Mayur Vihar, Rajiv Nagar Kandoli, Mandakani Vihar, Sidharth Vihar and Brahamawala Khala. Though the area is being modernised, residents are facing a lot of problems, be it roads, streetlights, sewerage or hanging wires. The major problem is inadequate power supply or low voltage. Councillor of the area Anuradha says she being from the BSP, faces a lot of problems in getting the work done in the area. “The whole area is facing a lot of problems due to fluctuating power. Either there is no electricity or voltage is very less,”
she maintained.
Talking to The Tribune, shopkeeper at Rajiv Nagar Kandoli Satender Chopra said, “Recarpeting of the road was started here some time back, but till today, it has not been finished. Other than this, it is the low voltage problem, due to which we are not able to do our work properly. The power supply is worse during the winter season. What can be expected during summers ?” Sidharth Vihar, secretary, Jabresh Singh said, “Hypertension wires hanging all over the area are one of the major problems for us. Many incidents have taken place due to this. We have told the MLA regarding the same, but no action has been taken. Besides, poor condition of the roads is also creating problems for us. The roads have been constructed recently, but the contractor has used bad material that they have broken in a span of a few days.” Retired officer and member of the BSP CP Singh said, “We face a lot of problem due to the absence of sewerage line here. The roads, too, are in very bad condition. We have talked to the Dehradun District Magistrate and the contractor regarding the same, but no action has been taken as yet”. Ram Gopal Kashyap of Mandakini Vihar said, “All the roads here are in a miserable condition. Moreover, the streetlights are not working properly. This makes it very difficult for commuters, especially women, to cross the road in the evening. We have complained about this to our councillor many a times, but she never pays heed towards it. A lot of filth is lying around, but the councillor is not interested in getting it cleaned”. Subash Nandiyal, who has retired from the Army, also complained about the bad condition of the roads. “It seems that the contractors use low-quality material, as the roads get damaged every two months. We have no option left as the councillor never visits the area,” he said.
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