Mussoorie, June 22
Band Stand, the circular structure built in the mid-19th century at Gandhi Chowk overlooking the library on the Mall Road, which has been witness to live music shows by jazz artists and military bands during the British Raj, is in a poor shape, thanks to the apathy of the Municipal Council.

Band Stand, created as an ornamental focal point, serves the acoustic requirements of the musicians besides providing a shelter to people from the unpredictable weather. This historic construction is now falling apart is in urgent need of a makeover.

The age-old wood ceiling has decayed and could fall on tourists any time. The paint has peeled off at several places and presents an ugly sight, much to the dislike of tourists and passerby alike.

According to Jai Prakash Uttarakhandi, local historian and author of the book titled “Mussoorie Ek Dastavez”, Band Stand was built around 1850 by British officer Bensy Tart taking a cue from similar structures constructed in Scotland and England, thus reminding the British of homely environs.

The place was used for performances by military bands and several jazz groups who were specially invited for v
arious occasions from Calcutta (now Kolkata).

The practice was discontinued after 1968 due to reasons unknown.

The structure was renovated with the red bricks later in 1915 by Maharajah of Kapoorthala Jagjit Singh Sahib Bahadur. In 1962, the Municipal Council of Mussoorie once again renovated the structure carrying out cement work on it. The maintenance of Band Stand was continuously done by the Municipal Council during the 1980s and 1990s. After that the structure has faced continuous neglect of the council, raising questions over its existence itself.

Uttarakhandi recalls around 1990 a statue of Mahatma Gandhi was shifted from the centre of Library Bazar and installed at the structure. He demanded that the path to Band Stand and Gandhi Statue should be bifurcated so that their individuality was maintained.

Uttarakhandi further said the other similar structures that existed on Camel Back Road and Landour Bazar were the prime examples of the finest French architecture. But, the irony is that one of the richest Municipal Councils in the state with a budget worth several crores, does not have funds to maintain Band Stand, which is known for its glorious past.

Mussoorie Municipal Council President OP Uniyal said the widening of the road at Gandhi Chowk had been proposed by the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) and Band Stand will be shifted further back.

He reiterated the fact that the renovation work at the historic structure would begin thereafter and the whole process could take at least two months.

Dehradun, June 22
Jolted by the manhandling incident at the Doon District Hospital last night, the doctors have again raised the demand for the implementation of the Security Act in the state.

The members of a patient’s family from Najibabad attacked the medical officer on duty at the Emergency Ward, forcing the Doctors to go on a strike and raise the demand for the implementation of the Security Act in the state.

The 14-year-old patient from Najibabad had died last night. Following his death, the members of his family first created a ruckus at the hospital and then allegedly manhandled the medical officer. They alleged that the patient, who was suffering from acute abdominal pain, was denied treatment.

The situation was brought under control after the police intervened.

However, the office-bearers of the Provincial Medical Service immediately gave a call for an indefinite stir. But, they were persuaded by the government and the Chief Medical Superintendent (CMS) in withdrawing their call.

Meanwhile, the members of the patient’s family made an apology in writing and the Heath Secretary, Dr Umakant Panwar, assured them that the Security Act would be implemented in the state soon.

Dehradun, June 22
Sachi, Dhruv Sabharwal, Atishay, Mritunjay Badola, Mayuk Rawat, Utkarsh Bhardwaj and Dhruvpal of Uttarakhand won their respective quarterfinals today to register the semis berth in the ongoing All-India Talent Series Tennis Tournament (boys and girls) at Shanti Tennis Academy here today.

In the boys’ singles u-12 quarterfinals, Utkarsh Bhardwaj drubbed Khush Arora of Rajasthan 4-0, 4-1 and Dhruv Sabharwal beat Mukul Singh of Delhi 5-3, 3-5, 4-2.

Another state player, Mritunjay Badola, thrashed Vipul Mehta of Delhi 4-0, 4-0. In this category, the only state player to exit was Prakhar Pal who was defeated by Sanket Tomar of Delhi 4-1, 4-1.

In the boys’ singles u-14 quarterfinals, Dhruv Pal got past Drona Walia, also of Uttarakhand, 4-0, 4-0. Atishay Jain beat Abhilaksh Uniyal 5-3, 4-2 (both of Uttarakhand). Utkarsh Bhardwaj surpassed Mritunjay (Uttarakhand) 4-1, 4-2 and Mayuk Rawat beat Sanket Tomar (Delhi) 4-0, 4-1.

Dehradun, June 22
The Retired State Pensioners Organisation today held a rally at Gandhi Park in protest against the apathy of the state government towards their grievances. General secretary of the organisation PD Gupta said they met the Principal Secretary and other government officials, ministers and MLAs, but none did anything to solve their problems.

Secretary KD Sharma said they would stage street plays to expose the government in this regard. Senior vice-president Janardhan Chaudhary said if the state BJP government continued to neglect them then they would vote against it in the forthcoming Assembly elections.

President of the organisation RS Parihar said, he was ready to resign from his position as president of the Suman Nagar Mandal and if needed he would make the office-bearers of his organisation from districts, tehsils and blocks to resign in protest if the Chief Minister did not give him time soon to talk over the matter. The main demands of the pensioners included recognition to the pensioners of pre-statehood time as pensioners of Uttarakhand, medical treatment in private hospitals through Smart Cards, benefits of the 5th Pay Commission to teachers and administrative officers-grade II from January 1, 1996, solution to the problems of grade IV pensioners, etc.

Dehradun, June 22
While the official launch of the Aadhaar or the Unique Identification programme in Uttarakhand awaits kick off, agencies shortlisted by the Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI) have begun the enrolment drive in some districts of the state.

The Uttarakhand Government will be floating a request for proposal for shortlisting enrolment agencies shortly. The selected agencies will then be asked to set up registration centres across the state for the collection of personal and biometric details of persons for issuing unique identity number to each individual.

“Officially, the programme has not launched in the state since the signing of an MoU between the UIDAI and the state government last year. We hope to start the enrolment programme at the government level after the agencies are selected. The first card may roll out in October,” said Rakesh Sharma, Principal Secretary (IT).

However, the process of enrolment is already on in Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital and Haridwar by different agencies selected by the regional office of the UIDAI in Lucknow.

In Udham Singh Nagar, the total enrolment stands at 38,633 as of June, Nainital 13,129, Champawat 4,971, Haridwar-1,101 and others 673.

As the programme is demand driven, individuals have to voluntarily come to the centres to provide information and get the 12 digit number. “The number will then be stored in a central database and linked to the basic demographics and biometric information of each individual. To avoid duplication and overlapping, the information will be cross-checked at the central database,” said Sharma.