|
|
|
|
|
Poll on mind, govt targets youth, businessmen
CM offering sops only to befool public: Cong MLA
State will hold winter games ‘if Centre gives financial help’
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Cong to probe scams if it comes to power
Curbing corruption is top priority, says CM
Admn gears up for Assembly poll
Shantipuri Gate to be reopened for quarrying
Admn shuts three food godowns for winter
Peyjal Nigam employees’ strike affects works
Tantric nabbed for rape
|
|
Poll on mind, govt targets youth, businessmen
Dehradun, November 29 Chief Minister BC Khanduri gave the nod to a new youth policy at a Cabinet briefing late last night. Chief Secretary Subash Kumar said the youth policy envisaged the setting up of a youth commission, youth courts, the creation of a separate cell for the youth in the Planning Department and the allocation of a separate budget for their welfare by all government departments on the lines of gender budget. The Cabinet has also approved the single-window system for the clearance of proposals to set up industries in the state. Now, the committees constituted at the district level under the District Magistrate will be able to clear proposals of worth Rs 5 crore while proposals of more than Rs 5 crore will be passed by a state-level committee heading by the Chief Secretary. The government is also planning to bring in
an ordinance. It has also announced the creation of the Uttarakhand Border Scouts on the lines of Assam Rifles and the Ladakh Scouts. The proposed battalion would take shape after the Central Government’s approval. It has also decided to provide a monetary assistance of Rs 5 lakh each to the dependents of paramilitary personnel killed on
the battlefield. To give fresh impetus to tourism activities in the state, the Cabinet has given its nod to a Rs 457 crore project under which 70 per cent of the assistance will be provided by Asian Development Bank. The assistance in the form of a loan would be borne by the Central and the state governments in the ratio of 90 and 10. It has also approved the rehabilitation policy chalked out for the Chakrata shopkeepers, which will pave the way for the widening of the Chakrata road and the removal of traffic bottlenecks. Those having shops on ‘nazul’ land are expected to begin shifting from December 10 and will be allocated shops at new shopping complexes built by the Mussoorie- Dehradun Development Authority.The government has also waived the registry fee and stamp duty for shopkeepers. To firm up cow protection activities in the state, the Cabinet has accepted the proposal of creating ‘go sadans’ at each development block and also the creation of fund for the protection of cows. The marriage assistance amount given by the government for the marriage of the girls belonging to the SC and ST communities has been raised from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. In other decision, gram panchayats, Agustmuni, Swaragashram, Chinyalsaur, Ukhimath, Pokhri, Gangolihat and Kapkot, have been made nagar
panchayats. While the nagar panchayat, Champawat, has been accorded the status of nagar palika, the Pithoragarh nagar palika has been accorded A1 status. other decisions
|
|
|
CM offering sops only to befool public: Cong MLA
Dehradun, November 29 Addressing a press conference in Dehradun, Kishore said making announcements at this juncture, when the Assembly elections in the state were a few months away and the model code of conduct was about to come into being, was just an exercise to befool the public. “With elections round the corner, it is quite evident that the announcements being made by Chief Minister BC Khanduri these days will never be fulfilled”, he said, asking the Chief Minister to stop making false promises and befooling the people. Expressing concern over an agitation by Basic Training Course Trainees, Kishore accused the state BJP government of being insensitive towards the genuine concerns of the BTC trainees. He said instead of addressing their concerns, the BJP government was using force against them. He also raked up the issue of ad hoc appointment for contractual lecturers. He said these lecturers were the backbone of higher education in the hills and accused the state government of trying to make them jobless. Responding to queries, Kishore said Rs 103 crore provided by the Tehri Hydroelectric Development Corporation to the Uttarakhand Government was not enough to carry out proper rehabilitation to the Tehri Dam affected. “Under present circumstances when 22 new villages have been included in the rehabilitation process, an amount of least Rs 1,000 crore is needed for the purpose”, he pointed out. He also accused the BJP government of trying to stop the release of discretionary funds belonging to opposition MLAs. Former Congress Uttarakhand spokesman Surendra Kumar was also present in the conference. The Chief Minister recently had announced election sops that include employment policy for the youth in Uttarakhand, introduction of single-widow system for industries, assistance to the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribe families for marrying off their girlchild, construction of cow shelters in 100 van panchayats and increase in salaries of forest guards. |
|
|
State will hold winter games ‘if Centre gives financial help’
Dehradun, November 29 “The Centre has appreciated our efforts made during the South Asian Federation Winter Games held early this year and we have even presented a proposal to Sports Minister Ajay Maken regarding hosting of the National Winter Games, but we need funds. If the Centre agrees to provide financial assistance, it would boost our efforts,” said Maken at a press conference today. He said in a decision taken by the state government, the Sports Department and Maharana Sports College would now be responsible for the upkeep of the ice-skating rink. Earlier, the Tourism Department was also included in the arrangement. The minister said the Sports Department would promote 21 disciplines and to encourage sports men and women of the state, who win gold medals at the national level, the government had decided to constitute the Uttarakhand Dev Bhoomi Ratan award. The award would carry a cash price of Rs 5 lakh. Similarly, the minister said the coaches and trainers would be honoured with the Dronacharya award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh. He said efforts were on to bring the different cricket associations in the state on one platform. “The unification will pave for getting recognition from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). We have been able to bring four associations on board and talks are still on with two others. The state government will not interfere in the matter of appointment of the office bearers of the unified association,” he added. |
|
|
Cong to probe scams if it comes to power
Pithoragarh, November 29 Addressing mediapersons here today, he said the Congress would ask the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the lapses in the allotment of 56 hydroelectric projects during the BJP rule and change of land use pattern of Citurgia chemicals at Rishikesh. “We are asking the people of the state to assess what the BJP has done for employment creation and for the benefits of tribal people of the state. The BJP government, under two Chief Ministers, was involved in corruption and the party can not claim to have eradicated corruption overnight by changing the Chief Minister. Khanduri leads the same team of ministers as the Nishank ministry, who were allegedly involved in corruption,” said Rawat. The leader of the Opposition said the Congress had given a helicopter to the state party leaders to visit each and every corner of the state from November 15, said Rawat. He claimed that the Congress party would win 40 seats in the election to form the next government with full majority. “It may go to 45 or go down to 38 but a clear majority is sure for the party this time,” he stated. “If the Nishank government cancelled the allotment of 56 hydroelectric projects in the state, it was only due to the fear of going to jail that forced him to reverse his decision,” said Rawat. He said he wanted to contest the Assembly election against former Chief Minister Nishank, but he would respect the party’s decision on the matter. |
|
|
Curbing corruption is top priority, says CM
Haridwar, November 29 He said the Lokayukta Act was just one important step taken by his government as more stringent measures to curb this menace were in the offing. Khanduri said: “After retiring from the Army in the 90s, I joined politics. I didn’t knew the course of politics but guidance
from inner conscience and the Almighty’s blessings helped me reach Parliament.” Earlier, the Chief Minister performed religious rituals at temple. Cabinet ministers, Prakash Pant and Madan Kaushik, Mahant Ranvidra Puri, Parmarth Niketan’s head Swami Chiddanand Maharaj, Baba Hatyogi and other saints were also present on
the occasion. |
|
|
Admn gears up for Assembly poll
Pithoragarh, November 29 “The District Magistrate has also instructed the Regional Transport Officer (RTO) to make available a list of government and private vehicles in the region to the District Election Officer,” said DK Pandey, District Information Officer. According to a press communiqué issued by the DIO in this connection, the District Election Officer has also instructed engineers to repair all internal and external roads in the district. “The District Election Officer has also instructed the officials to get ready all bridle ways and track routes in the district and prepare a list of critical, sensitive and highly sensitive pooling booths in all four Assembly seats of the district,” said the information officer. The District Magistrate has instructed the Sub-Divisional Magistrates to make available a list of telephone numbers of all Gram Pradhans and Zila Panchayat members to the District Magistrate so that WLL phones could be supplied to the places, which are not connected with the landline or mobile services. “The District Magistrate has also sought the date from the SDMs for the training of master trainers in their respective Assembly constituency,” said Pandey. The assembled officers were also given the training of EVM machines and ballot unit and the officials were asked to get the bank account of the candidates opened, keep an eye on the paid news appearing in local newspapers and count the number of printing presses in their areas as soon as the election notification was issued. |
|
Irregularities in ration supply trigger protest
Haridwar, November 29 Agitators apprised the officers concerned of mass irregularities and shortage in public distribution shops, which is posing problems for common man. Former councillor Ashok Sharma pointed out that the rationed foodgrains were not available on time and due to blackmarketing, half of the people didn’t get the foodgrains from these shops. Social activist Sanjay Chopra said the winter season and unavailability of kerosene at these shops were aggravating the woes of the poor people. Taking cognizance of the demand of the agitators, assistant supplies officer SS Joshi assured them that he would be taking this matter at a higher level and would inspect these distribution shops to make sure the ration card holders get the sanctioned material and also would carry out raids to check the blackmarketing. “What’s the use of such shops if we don’t get wheat, rice, sugar and kerosene? Every first week of the month, dealers give excuses that commodities came in inadequate quantity or had already been sold,” said Congress district leader Furkan Ali. Among the protesters were former councillors Haresh Sheri, Sarfaraj Gaud, Padma Raj Anand, Anil Verma, Tripal Sharma and Mridul Kaushik. |
|
Shantipuri Gate to be reopened for quarrying
Nainital, November 29 Since the Shantipuri Gate is located on the border of Nainital and Udham Singh Nagar districts, officials from the two districts have been given joint responsibilities with regards to its functioning. At a meeting held in Nainital yesterday, Kumaon Commissioner Kunal Sharma ordered that quarrying activities at the Shantipuri Gate be restarted from the third week of December. He has asked Nainital District Magistrate Nidhi Mani Tripathi and her counterpart in Udham Singh Nagar PS Jangpangi to carry out a joint inspection of the area and take stock of the security and other arrangements with regards to the proposed quarrying operations. It was ordered that 125 vehicles be registered for the transportation of the mined material from each of the two districts and priority be given to the vehicles that had been registered earlier in the area. Orders were also given to the officials of the Forest Department to get the damaged road in its jurisdiction repaired. The Forest Development Corporation has been asked to get weighing bridges installed so that there is no delay in quarrying. Sharma ordered that relevant steps be taken well in advance to check the instances of overloading of vehicles and tractors used for transportation of the mined material. He ordered the officials of the corporation that the list of the vehicles found to be overloaded be made available to the Regional Transport Office (RTO). He also underlined that the officials must ensure that quarrying is carried out only on the plots earmarked for the purpose. The commissioner has ordered action against the use of unregistered excavators for quarrying activities. Referring to the quarrying activities being carried out in the Kosi, Nandhaur and Dabka river beds, he ordered that more vehicles be registered for transporting the material as the targets are not being met with regards to the mining. |
|
Admn shuts three food godowns for winter
Pithoragarh, November 29 “The ration godowns of Gunji in the Vyans valley, Duktu in the Darma valley and a godown situated in Burfu in the Johar valley have been closed for winter and these godowns will be opened for ration supply in June,” said Tejbal Singh, District Supply Officer, Pithoragarh. According to Tejbal, the Gunji godown feeds seven villages of Vyans valley whereas the godowns at Duktu and Burfu feed 11 villages of Darma and 13 villages of the Johar valley respectively. “A total of 1,050 ration cardholders are attached with these food godowns, which will function temporarily from the lower valleys of the winter residents of these tribal villagers,” said the District Supply Officer. “The ration supply to these godowns will be resumed in April to be ready before the tribals reach their permanent villages in the month of June,” said the DSO. From the month of April, the ration supply will also be made for extra four months of monsoon as due to the blockage of the supply routes to these villages during rains, the ration is dumped before the monsoon. |
|
Open varsities to develop common software
Dehradun, November 29 The VCs also decided to prepare educational and video contents and also focus on capacity building of faculty and staff members. A message by John Daniel, the father of open university, who lives in Vancouver, Canada, was also delivered a lecture through video conferencing. Earlier, president and CEO of Asia-E University (Malaysia) Dr Dato Ansari Ahmed dealt on the impact of globalisation on e-learning and how Malaysia was dealing with it. While Prof AK Bakshi of Rajshri Tandon University stressed on the importance of video learning and why it was important to prepare crisp lessons for the students.
Krishan Kumar, VC of Yashwant Rao Chavan Open University (Maharashtra), said the university had managed to bridge barriers so that students hailing from poor artisan families had managed to improve their prospects by enrolling in the course run by their university. |
|
|
Peyjal Nigam employees’ strike affects works
Dehradun, November 29 At a meeting held today at the Peyjal Nigam’s office, the employees said after their talks with Water Resource Minister Prakash Pant held on November 27 failed, no effort had been made by the government to open talks with the employees and officials. The meeting was addressed by BK Jain, MK Gupta, Jitender and others. The striking employees are demanding government for the Peyjal
Nigam. |
|
Tantric nabbed for rape
Nainital, November 29 It is learnt that a poor Dalit family from Tanakpur had approached the accused on having learnt that he was solving the problems of the people by providing them
with occult treatment. The accused misled them into believing that he would address their
concerns. He landed at their house on Sunday evening and on Monday morning he took their 14-year-old girl into a room while promising to begin the treatment. In the process, he allegedly raped the girl. When the girl told her family members of his act, the family members locked him up and handed him over to the police. The medical examination of the girl has been
done and a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) registered against the tantric. Further investigations are on in the matter. This is the second instance of a rape of a minor that has come to light in the town within the last one week. Earlier, a teenaged girl was allegedly raped by a taxi driver. It is learnt that a taxi driver raped the 13-year-old girl who had come to attend a wedding.- The accused had allegedly dragged the victim to a garden near the place where the wedding was being held. The screams and cries for help made by the victim had been stifled under the loud music being played by the Disc Jockey at the function. |
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
