State to have 5 more districts
Announcement by CM likely on August 15 
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, August 9
Uttarakhand will soon have five new districts. “The Chief Minister has agreed to create new administrative units in the state in principle, but the announcement for the creation of five new districts by him is awaited,” said Bishen Singh Chufal, president of the Uttarakhand unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“The Chief Minister had shown a positive attitude on the issue when we met him in a delegation of representatives of the people demanding new districts in the state on Sunday,” said Chufal.

According to the BJP chief, the Chief Minister agreed in principle to form the new districts in the state to make smaller administrative units as per the aspirations of the people keeping in view the geographical constraints faced by them.

People in many areas of the state are agitating to demand separate districts on the ground that the present district headquarters are far-off from their areas.

“People of Ranikhet and Didihat in Kumaon are agitating to demand district status for their subdivisions,” said Chufal.

The BJP chief said the state government wanted to create five new districts of Kotdwar, Purola and Kashipur in the Garhwal region and Ranikhet and Didihat in the Kumaon region. “Demands for six more districts have been raised in recent months, but the state government is not considering the new demands,” said Chufal.

“The revenue board of the state has not been informed about this intention of the government. The process of creation of new districts will probably start as it was expected that Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank himself will announce the formation of the new districts on August 15,” said the BJP chief.

According to officials, an expenditure of nearly Rs 110 crore will be needed to create the basic infrastructure for the district.

But the state BJP chief feels otherwise. “The government does not need any budget for this announcement. The present infrastructure in these subdivisions, which are to be upgraded as districts, is already present; only district-level officers are needed to be posted there after the announcement,” said Chufal.

Value added tax on Cloth
Merchants postpone bandh on CM’s assurance
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 9
The Cloth Merchant Association and the Dehradun Traders Association has postponed their proposed bandh in protest against the imposition of VAT on cloth after a meeting with Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and minister Khajan Das this evening.

The Chief Minister has now invited them for another meeting to resolve the issue.

The bandh was to be observed after Rakshabandhan.

In the day, both associations held a joint rally at Clock Tower and submitted a memorandum to the District Magistrate addressed to the Chief Minister demanding the revocation of 1 per cent VAT on cloth. Nearly 300 cloth shops remained closed in the city.

President of the Cloth Merchant Association Anil Gupta said: “The CM has given an assurance that the problem will be solved at the earliest.” President of the Dehradun Traders Association Vipin Nagliya said the government had already levied 4 per cent VAT on clothes. The textile industry had shrunk and the government would not be able to earn much of revenue from it through VAT. “When the Union Government is introducing the Goods Sale Tax in April next year in the country, then why the state government is in a hurry to impose VAT on cloth,” he added.

Debt Crisis in US
Obama to ‘take part in yajna’
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, August 9
Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, which is facing a debt crisis that is likely to affect the economy of the country and impact the whole world, will participate in a yajna in November which will be performed to bail the country out from the current crisis.

Pranav Pandya, head of the Gayatri Pariwar at Shanti Kunj, Haridwar, will perform the 15-minute Vedic yajna in the USA.

Pranav Pandya, who has just returned from a US visit, claimed that he had accepted an invitation from the Mayor of Piscataway and some Senators for conducting the yajna for world peace in which the US President and his wife will participate. Pandya said it was recognition to the Indian religious heritage.

According to one of the Senators, the Obama family was impressed with Indian traditions when they visited India in November last year.

Former US President Bill Clinton, too, has invited 200 Naga saints of the Juna Akhada for religious rites next year.

Char Dham Yatra disrupted after heavy rain
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 9
The Char Dham Yatra in Uttarakhand has been disrupted due to caving in of roads and the falling debris at several places all along the yatra routes due to heavy rain. All four Rishikesh-Gangtori, Rishikesh-Yamnotri, Rishikesh-Badrinath and Rishikesh-Kedarnath highways have been blocked due to debris.

The road to Gangotri from Rishikesh that caved in at Senji a few days back was still to be repaired with the authorities failing to restore connectivity. A 70-metre stretch of road had been washed away near Senj in Uttarkashi district, a few days back.

The Border Road authorities, who have been working round the clock to restore the traffic, held that it might take some days before the new road could be built. The road to Yamntori has now been blocked for almost 66 hours.

Pilgrims on the Char Dham Yatra, particularly to Badrinath, were stranded due to the blockages. The road to Badrinath was blocked due to debris at Tangree in Chamoli district. Scarcity of edibles here has further worsened the situation. Some of the pilgrims have even been forced to spent nights in their vehicles due to lack of adequate accommodation midway. 

Haridwar stinks as MC staff strike on
Sandeep Rawat/TNS

Haridwar, August 9
The Haridwar Municipal Corporation has failed to take steps to improve sanitation and civic facilities in the city.

With a large number of devotees and tourists visiting the pilgrim city every month, the city seems to be welcoming them with heaps of garbage and the filth on the roads. The situation is worst in nearby areas of Brahmkund, Har-ki-Pauri, with garbage lying on almost all roads leading to the site.

Residents complained that though the Kanwar Mela concluded a few days ago, garbage had not been cleared so far. On Upper Road, Moti bazaar, Kushawrat ghat, Gau ghat and the Ganga canal stretch, heaps of garbage could be seen.

Due to the alleged laxity of the authorities, the situation is aggravating as fear of the spread of contagious diseases has gripped residents and they are avoiding going from these routes.

What has added to the problem is the ongoing strike by employees of the Municipal Corporation, which is being presented as an excuse by the authorities. City Health Officer Anil Tyagi said he would try to solve the problem at the earliest. He said a manpower shortage was also affecting the cleanliness drive.

On the other hand, labourers’ leader Surendra Teshwar said they were being forced to go on strike as roll employees had not been paid for three months and contractual employees for four months.

Accounts officer of the corporation Suresh Chandra Gupta cited a paucity of funds as the reason for the present situation.

He said the corporation had only Rs 50 lakh left with it and the offer of payment in instalments had been rejected by the employees. The matter had been brought to the notice of temporary in charge of the corporation Ranbeer Singh, he added.

Anniversary of Quit India Movement
Another agitation needed to end corruption: Ex-MLA

Dehradun, August 9
To commemorate the anniversary of the Quit India Movement, Uttarakhand Congress Committee members today remembered Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi and recalled his role in achieving freedom for the country.

At a workshop held at Congress Bhawan here, Deen Mohammed, state district party president, said despite police atrocities, a large number of people participated in the movement.

Freedom fighter Tota Ram Kala informed the gathering about the contribution of Congress leaders in gaining independence for the country. Former MLA Sundar Lal Mandarwal said another agitation was needed to end the menace of corruption.

At another function organised by the Cantonment Board Block Congress Committee in Patelnagar, senior Congress leader and PCC member Suryakant Dhasmana said the people of the state must pledge today to keep communal forces out of power in the state.

He said people from every religion, caste and creed had participated in the Quit India Movement in 1942. He said the sacrifices made by Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Asfaquallah Khan and Ram Prasad Bismal were far above religion. He said the Congress had played an important role in the Independence struggle. Freedom fighters Harikrishan Lal Agarwal and Jugal Kishore Arora were also honoured at the function. — TNS

Freedom fighters’ dependants honoured
Our Correspondent

A function being held to honour dependants of freedom fighters at Pithoragarh on Tuesday.

Pithoragarh, August 9
A prabhat pheri procession, garlanding of Gandhiji’s statue and a symposium on Gandhian values marked the ‘August Kranti Day’ celebrations at the district headquarters today.

The symposium was organised in the municipal hall of the town, where an appeal to revive Gandhian values was made by participants. “People have forgotten the real spirit of Gandhiji,” said Gurukulanand Kachahari, a social worker and an Arya Samaj leader while delivering a keynote address on the occasion .

The programme was organised by the Swatantrata Sangram Senani Ashrit Sangthan, Pithoragarh. Over 12 dependants of freedom fighters were also honoured by the organisers on the occasion.

“We have been living a neglected life in our remote villages,” said Dhana Devi, the dependant of a freedom fighter from Munsiyari, who took part in the movement of 1942.

“The state government has failed to take any initiative to remember the dependants of freedom fighters who lost their everything during the Quit India Movement,” said Balbir Singh, son of Laxman Singh Maher, a leading freedom fighter of the district.

BJP ready to face early poll: Ex-MP
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 9
Former MP and BJP manifesto committee president Bachi Singh Rawat said today that the party was geared up to face the assembly elections as early as next month.

“The party workers are upbeat. They will be prepared to face the elections if held next month. The party will be completing the process of appointing booth-level workers by next month. This talk about holding early elections has been doing the rounds after the Chief Election Commissioner’s visit to the state. It is not for us to decide,” said Rawat while addressing a press conference at the BJP office here. He said the manifesto of the party would broadly focus on three issues, the government’s achievements, the Chief Minister’s twenty-twenty vision and future goals.

While the party is engaged in the manifesto-preparation exercise, the members of the committee would travel to the districts to have the views of the party workers. “Besides, a two-member committee comprising senior leaders Suresh Joshi and JP Gairola would also give inputs gathered from the grass-roots level about the plans that the government has failed to fulfil. The process of inviting suggestions and making evaluations will be complete by September 4,” said Rawat.

The former MP also charged the Congress MPs with failing to protect the interests of the state. He said an opportunity to establish the proposed regional office of Rural Development Institute in Kotdwar was lost as the five Congress MPS failed to forcefully put the state’s point of view in this regard. “In anticipation the state government had even sanctioned Rs 11 crore to procure land and set up infrastructure for the project in January, 2011, but suddenly in June, 2011, the Central Government informed us that the institute would now be set up in Alwar, Rajasthan,” said Rawat.

Kalam asks students to say no to graft
Tribune News Service

Nainital, August 9
By saying no to things acquired through unfair means, students could launch a campaign against corruption at home, said former President APJ Kalam, while interacting with school students at St Mary’s School, Nainital, today.

The former President asked the students not to get perturbed but contribute their own bit to end corruption by refusing to use things procured by their elders through unfair means.

“You could make a big difference in stopping corrupt practices by refusing to become party to the things that your elders may have brought for you, using unfair means,” said Kalam.

Sounding optimistic, the former President said despite the all round gloom regarding corruption, India could still craft a success story if the society transformed itself. “Instead of pointing fingers at others and blaming the government, we should be able to transform ourselves,” said the missile man.

Similarly on being queried on the issue of reservation and it’s fallout, the former President said: “It has been mandated by the Constitution but issue of reservations will become meaningless once the number of colleges and institutions goes up. I believe the problem of scarcity of institutions is creating problems. Once we have enough institutions and our youth have enough choices, the issue of reservation will be meaningless,” he asserted.

On the issue of brain-drain, he said it was not a worrying trend because people would continue to move in and out of their countries in search of work and studies.

Brahm Kamal lookalike in Haridwar
Sandeep Rawat/TNS

A lookalike of Brahm Kamal found in a Kankhal house in Haridwar.

Haridwar, August 9
The state flower of Uttarakhand, Brahm Kamal (saussurea obvallata), found only in the hilly terrain of the Garhwal Himalayas, is a rare variety, but now one can find almost its lookalike in Haridwar.

This may come as a surprise to people in the state, particularly those who have either seen it or those who know that this variety is found in cold climatic conditions, approximately 4,000 metres above sea level.

Not one but in two different locations in the city a Brahm Kamal lookalike has been reported. By the time people flocked these places, the flower, popularly called Maidani Brahm Kamal, dried up.

As the hilly Brahm Kamal has a four-hour life, this Haridwar-grown Brahm Kamal also doesn’t survive for more than a few hours. Like the original Brahm Kamal, the local flower only blossoms at night.

The Maidani Brahm Kamal was first reported at the house of Ram Avtar in Kankhal who had brought a sapling of this variety five years ago. But the flower only blossomed in this season.

Ram Avtar, who has dozens of varieties of flowers, said initially the bud was brown but later the flower turned white and it was a rare spectacle in the plains of Uttarakhand and till date only two flowers had blossomed from this sapling.

Similarly, at the house of Rohit Sharma in Krishna Nagar, a similar flower blossomed.

Noted biologist Ritesh Sharma points out that this variety seems to be a foreign flower variety, not the original Brahm Kamal as is being rumoured. He points out that the life cycle of this flower is normally of one month and this makes it rarer, considered auspicious by the local people, but till date no Brahm Kamal has been found in the lower reaches of the state not even in the lower altitudes of hilly districts.

Install anti-hail guns in state, Centre urged
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 9
Stae Agriculture Minister Trivender Singh Rawat has asked the Central Government to include the damage caused by hailstorm under the natural calamity.

During his meeting with Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar in New Delhi recently, the minister said farmers in Uttarakhand were suffering the maximum damage due to hailstorm that occurred in summer and winter season.

He urged the minister to install anti-hail gun facility in the state which was already extended to the farmers of Himachal Pradesh under the Horticulture Mission.

Rawat also apprised the Union Minister about the competition being faced by the Himalayan farmers from fruits arriving from abroad. “The Uttarakhand farmers are at a disadvantage which can only be addressed if tax on imports is raised,” said the minister.

Responding to the suggestion, the Union Minister said the matter pertained to the World Trade Organisation and would be pursued through an appropriate channel.

Prisoners with good conduct to be freed 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 9
The Uttarakhand Government has decided to free a number of convicted prisoners on occasion of Independence Day.

According to Principal Secretary, Home, Rajeev Gupta, those who had recorded decent behaviour during their sentences and were covered under some norms would be released on Independence Day.

He said even those prisoners who were disabled or face serious illness like cancer and tuberculosis would also be released on compensatory grounds.