Dream Mansion

n 58-room mansion has a touch of Lal Bazar houses that are unique to Almora (Kumaon) n Has been built at a cost of Rs 15.81 crore n Though conceptualised by Lt-Gen BC Khanduri (retd), Nishank is the first Chief Minister to occupy the mansion n The black stone or pathal that covers the roof and the sunshades has been sourced from Mandi and Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh n The double-storey mansion has been raised on RC columns and a framed structure in order to make it earthquake and fireproof n The principles of Vastu Shastra have been followed with space allocated to Brahm sthal too

Dehradun, May 13
The most prestigious address in the state, the Chief Minister’s house on the Cantonment road finally has occupants with Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and his family moving into the house today.

The elegant porticoed 58-room hill mansion, which is surrounded by manicured lawns, looks very different from the austere design of the house that was used by the first Chief Minister as his residence. That old house was demolished and the entire area has undergone a breathtaking transformation. Amidst the urban milieu, suddenly the emergence of a façade of long-extending wooden balconies, an example of the architecture so commonly found in the hills, adds to the surprise element.

Right from the entry point to the main residence, the hill architecture has been perfectly balanced with modern elements and it took two and half years to build the house.

“The 10 acres of compound encloses the Chief Minister’s residence, the Janata Darbar office and the security block with staff quarters. It has been built at a cost of Rs 15.81 crore for which allocations were made in the 12th Plan,” said engineers from the Public Works Department.

The former Chief Minister, Lieut-Gen BC Khanduri (retd), who had conceptualised the house, had to reign from the post before the construction of the house could be completed. Now, Nishank has become the first Chief Minister to take occupancy of the mansion.

The architectural design marks the marriage between old and the new and has the footprint of the Lal Bazar houses that are unique to Almora (Kumaon) and also architectural elements of modern houses such as the fireplace that can be found in the living rooms.

Carvings on a door in the new residence of the Chief Minister. A Tribune photograph

“I am happy with the way the engineers have turned around the place. We hope to promote this kind of architecture else where also. I am impressed with the greenery around, especially the herbal and landscape gardens,” said Nishank

From time to time, the Chief Minister vetted the project along with the engineers. “The bay windows have been uniquely crafted by the craftsmen, so also the doors at the main entrance and the jarokhas at the entrance that lend an air of grandeur to the mansion,” said an official from the PWD.

The construction material, comprising stones, tiles and wood, has been sourced from Pauri, Almora and Tehri. While the black stone or pathal that covers the roof and the sunshades has been sourced from Mandi and Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh. The tiles on the floor with flower motifs were brought from Bikaner.

The entire house has been covered with the Almora stone and cladding has been carried on the brick walls that also resulted in the increase in work for the masons. The double -storied mansion has been raised on RC columns and a framed structure in order to make it earthquake and fireproof. The Almora stone is soft, can be cut into any shape.

The principles of Vastu Shastra have been followed with space allocated to Braham sthal and the kitchen in the east and the study in the north-east directions. It has the right tapering, so distinct of hill houses and the RC roof is covered with pathals

Architects from Dehradun-based company P Jain, who were engaged by the PWD to oversee the design, did not forget to built an indoor 40-foot-long swimming pool in the house.

Dehradun, May 13
It is for the first time the Uttarakhand Electricity Regulatory Commission (UERC) has decided not to pass the burden of the cost overruns in generation and distribution of power to the consumers.

The commission will constitute a special audit team to study the factors of cost overruns, which, if found genuine, will allow Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL) and the Power Transmission Corporation to enhance the estimation, otherwise these corporation will have to bear the brunt of their own blunders and not the public. The tariffs may likely to undergo further change after the team submits its report to the commission.

In the current situation, the tariffs are bound to increase at least 1.5 per cent, as the UERC has already announced the tariffs for 10 hydroelectric projects of the UJVNL and the transmission tariffs of the PTCUL, which rose up by 2.5 per cent. According to Anand Kumar, a member of the UERC, the retail tariffs were slated to increase at least by 1.5 per cent, keeping the increased tariffs of the UJVNL and the estimation of other expenditures by the UPCL.

It is for the first time, the UERC has decided to do a special audit of the cost overruns of the UPCL and the PTCUL. The UJVNL was estimated to spend Rs 1,700 crore on the Maneri Bhali-II project in 2008, which it exceeded by Rs 200 crore. Similarly, the PTCUL too gave an estimated budget of Rs 100 crore last year but placed its total expenditure of Rs 247 crore, which would also be examined along with the balance sheet of the past few years, he said.

The UERC has asked the UJVNL to set up a bench mark for high performance, renovate its old projects for enhanced production, and also suggested to it to study the functioning of the NHPC in this regard.

Anand said the PTCUL had been allocated a bigger budget of Rs 130 crore this time in comparison with Rs 101 crore last year. Similarly, the UJVNL had been permitted to charge Rs 64 paise per unit, a six-paisa increase in the rate against that of the previous year.

The tariffs are also more likely to increase due to addition of the subsidised amount of last year in the current tariff list. This process is giving sleepless nights to the members of the UERC. Anand said: “We gave subsidy to the farmers and domestic consumers last year against which few industries knocked at the door of the Central Electricity Tribunal as we were charging Rs 2 and 20 paise per unit from domestic consumers and Rs 3 and 58 paise per unit from industries. In its verdict delivered in February, the tribunal has asked us to follow the National Policy, according to which we can’t impose a change beyond 20 per cent more or less to the fixed tariffs. Therefore, now we will have to charge the subsidised amount as well, so we are trying to strike a balance, so as not to put consumers under acute strain.”

He said though each year the tariff hike varies between 5 and 8 per cent, this should not go up more than 3.5 per cent despite keeping all the facts together.

Dehradun, May 13
To beat stress, the cops in the state capital have taken to yoga classes in a big way. Ten days into the classes already, the cops are feeling relaxed and are keen to finish the classes that would continue for a month at police lines here.

A batch of about 60 to 70 constables and head constables is attending the classes being held by Yogi Simant Maindola, founder of Yogvedica. “Depending on the results, the DGP has already said that he will recommend yoga classes for the cops of the entire state,” said Maindola.

“Yoga is very important for every policeman to get relaxed. It helps them reduce their stress as the cops work for a long stretch of hours and they have to be ready to deal with every sort of situation,” the Yogi told The Tribune.

“Initially, we are starting with mediation and secret mudras (with the cops). They are picking up and in a month’s time, we hope to see a good result,” Yogi said.

“We have done yoga classes with the Punjab Police at Ropar earlier and the response has been very good. We hope to do the same here. At present constable-level cops are registered and in future we will hold classes for senior police officers as well,” he added.

“I am posted at a police station and my work makes me tense and stressful and I have found that yoga is the best way to fight it out,” a constable practising at the police lines said.

Superintendent of Police (City) Ajay Joshi also hailed the step. “This is a good way to remove tension. Cops’ everyday life is very stressful and this will help us,” the SP said.

Dehradun, May 13
One of the oldest Government Junior High School here, located on Rajpur Road, is hardly noticed by any passersby. The school, which is crying for attention from the state Education Department, is dependent on charity. Interestingly, the school headmaster runs a free boarding and lodging programme on his own where about 70 students from the school and seven more boys, who passed out from the junior high school, are boarders.

While talking to The Tribune, HS Uniyal, the headmaster, said, “When I was transferred here, the school was on the verge of closure with only three students left to attend the classes. Then I started a programme of running a free boarding and lodging as an experiment for the underprivileged children, which went on successfully. But after passing out from Class XIII, many of my students remained here as their parents never came to take them back.”

“At that time, it was my responsibility to take care of those poverty-stricken students and encourage them to pursue further studies. Out of that graduating batch, two were adopted by an NGO and one was admitted to the public school as boarders, one left with his sister and seven are still staying here while pursuing their higher secondary education from another school,” he asserted.

The headmaster further added, “Now I have minimal resources to run this school along with its hostel. I have to run from pillar to post to seek funds for one square meals for my students. Some days back, I managed to get Rs 30,000 as charity from some non-profit organisation with which I bought beddings, clothes and other sports items for them.”

Earlier, the school had insufficient furniture, dilapidated infrastructure and lack of basic amenities such as sanitised toilets, utensils for meals, clothes and shoes. But gradually with determination and inner strength of its Headmaster, the school got some funds from outsiders.

However, Uniyal feels that the school’s condition clearly depicts the apathy of the Education Department. “Except the annual fund for the maintenance of the infrastructure and for the mid-day meal, no other assistance is provided by the Education Department to us. Its quite tough to look after the requirements of 70 students with only four teachers out of which two are currently deployed for child census,” he complained.

While emphasising more on his grievance, the headmaster maintained that the government should lighten the burden on teachers of government schools so that regular attention could be paid to students and their academic curriculum.

Dehradun, May 13
Madan Uniyal (100* and six wickets) powered Wildlife Institute of India to the final of the Government Employees’ Welfare Committee Cricket Tournament outplaying Survey of India by eight wickets in the semifinals here today.

In the allotted 25 overs, Survey set a target of 167 runs in 25 overs losing nine wickets. Satender Rawat (53) and Rakesh Negi (41) were the principal scorers.

For Wildlife Institute, Uniyal scalped six wickets and broke the backbone of the rival team’s innings.

Playing second, Wildlife Institute continued to get the main support from Uniyal, who slammed an unbeaten ton. Gajender Singh (50*) ably supported him from the other end and both scripted an easy win for the team.

Devender Sharma of Survey remained the only successful bowler claiming two wickets.The remaining bowlers could take no wicket throughout the match.

Meanwhile, Ordnance Factory, Dehradun, will face IRD on May 16 in the second semifinals.

Mussoorie, May 13
Wynberg Allen School lifted the inter-school hockey trophy defeating St George’s School by one goal in the 13th DM Swing Memorial Tournament at Major Dhyan Chand Grounds in Oak Grove School today.

In a keenly contested match Wynberg Allen School boys scored in the first half of the match to take an early lead. St George’s School missed more than four penalty corners and failed to equalise losing the final in the process.

Dehradun, May 13
District Sub-Junior (Under 14yr) Basketball Championship for Boys and Girls commenced at Welham Girls School and Doon International School in Dehradun, here today.

In the boys’ section, Kasiga School beat Welham Boys’ School 23-10. In the girls’ section, Welham Girls School defeated Doon International School 35-10. Also, St Mary’s School surpassed HGS 10-4.