Illegal structures demolished in Nainital
Six enlisted for sealing; more to be razed to the ground
Tribune News Service

Nainital, February 15
A day after it had sealed some illegal structures in the lake city, the Lake Development Authority (LDA) went on to demolish two such structures on Wednesday.

The LDA officials accompanied by the labour force required for the purpose went on to demolish two structures in Pilgrim Lodge area and the zone behind the CRST School. There was no protest from the people who had gone on to allegedly illegally occupy public land. In one case the construction had come up on a drain.

An official of the LDA told media persons that six structures had been enlisted for sealing on February 22 and a similar number are to be demolished the next day. He said that the encroachers have been duly served notices in the past and have been asked to vacate the premises where encroachments have taken place.

On Tuesday, the LDA authorities had sealed a group housing complex having 12 flats, two buildings and a temporary structure in the town.

These structures were alleged to have come up illegally in the green zone in the town. Observers in the town continue to point out that the LDA also needs to net some big fish, including some hoteliers, media persons, former bureaucrats and other influential persons who have gone on to encroach

upon the public lands in the recent past and have constructed buildings in the green zone. They say that some instances can be witnessed right in the heart of the town itself.

It is also being questioned why the LDA initially allows illegal structures to come up right under the nose of the officials.

An interesting aspect that has come to light is that the people indulging in illegal activities have been managing to get power and water connections installed in their premises.

A large number of people in the town are also questioning the logic behind sealing of the buildings and are of the opinion that the sealing would be done away with under some pressure in the days to come as has happened in the past.

The town has seen a spurt in concrete structures coming up, particularly since the model code of conduct was implemented.

A large number of these structures are located either in the unsafe zone or the green belt. The constructions are unsafe as these have been done without following proper norms. Even the maps have been been cleared by the authorities in these cases.

2010 Kumbh Mela
Chief Secretary wants action against erring officials
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
Chief Secretary Subash Kumar today said that as part of the action taken report (ATR) on the audit on the Kumbh Mela undertaken by CAG, the heads of concerned departments have been asked to initiate action against officials who undertook work without prior permission.

At the meeting of action taken report on CAG, Kumar said it was a challenge to stage the Kumbh Mela in 2010. Some works were carried out according to the immediate need and the prevailing situation, for which no prior permission was taken from the administration, though the mela adhikari had given approval.

The Chief Secretary said the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) had also started hearing on the matter and the remaining hearing would be undertaken by the new PAC.

The CAG report for the year ended March 31, 2010, while undertaking a performance audit for the Maha Kumbh Mela -2010, had rapped the Uttarakhand government led by former chief minister for misappropriation of funds. It had revealed the absence of an integrated plan, a lack of coordination among various departments, substandard work and poor management of affairs in various areas.

It had pointed out that 11 departments without a prior approval of the government incurred unauthorised expenditure of Rs 19.39 crore for executing 43 works.

The Centre had sanctioned Rs 563 crore as Additional Central Assistance (ACA) to the state government. An expenditure of Rs 439.47 crore had been incurred till July, 2010, by the Mela Adhikari, Kumbh Mela, Haridwar.

The PAC would hold hearing in 12 cases pertaining to the Mela adhikari, 10 cases pertaining to water supply, 10 irrigation, 8 medical and 8 cases pertaining to PWD and 6 cases related to Urban Development Department. 

UJVNL exceeds generation target
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (UJVNL) achieved more than the target set for power generation in the state for the financial year of 2011-12 . It generated 4769.70 Million Unit (MU) against the target of 4760-50 MU in the current financial year by February 12 of this year.

The generation of UJVNL generally dips during the winter season because the water in rivers and streams in hills deposits as snow.

The power production which would increase to 20 MU every day during rainy season comes down to 9 MU during winter season. But it is the brilliant power production of rainy season which enabled UJVNL to achieve its target in totality by February this year.

UJVNL had made history by generating record electricity in the month of July 2011. The large and medium powerhouses of UJVNL generated 624.145 MU of electricity against the target of 535.150 MU set for the month of July. This is the highest ever generation of not only of July but of any month since the establishment of this corporation.

Before this the highest generation achieved in one month was in October 2010 when the power plants of the corporation had generated 595.407 million unit of electricity.

Managing Director, UJVNL, GP Patel said: “The credit for this record generation goes to the far-sighted vision and appropriate planning of the UJVNL’s management as well as hard work and efficiency of the officers and employees. Timely repair and maintenance also increaesd the efficiency of the machines. Flushing of barrages in a scheduled and planned manner helped to get continuous generation during the month.”

GMVN to take over Auli guest house
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
The South Asian Federation (SAF) Winter Games Organising Committee has decided to transfer its infrastructure to the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN) and the state Sports Department.

A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the SAF Winter Games Organising Committee held here today which was presided over by Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar.

Guest House at Auli in Chamoli district, constructed at a cost of Rs 10 crore, and other infrastructure at skiing resort will be handed over to the GMVN. Similarly, the ownership of skating rink in Dehradun will also be transferred to the state Sports Department.

Uttarakhand Principal Secretary, Industries, Rakesh Sharma, Secretary, Tourism, SS Sandhu, Secretary, Sports, NS Negi, and Managing Director, GMVN, Ravinath Raman, participated at the meeting. 

944 to go to Kailash Mansarowar this year
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, February 15
A total of 944 pilgrims in 16 batches will go to the Kailash Mansarowar yatra this year, said Vishwa Mitra Anand, Commandant of 7th Bn of the ITBP quoting this year’s yatra programme sent to him by the Union Ministry of External Affairs.

Pilgrims travel to Tibet, the roof of the world, to have a glimpse of Mount Kailash, the abode of Lord Shiva.

The yatra which was discontinued after the 1962 Indo-China war was resumed in 1981 after a gap of 22 years, said Vishwa Mitra Anand.

“After the online registration process for the pilgrimage started last week, 369 aspirants have applied so far for the yatra,” said Anand.

According to the programme, the-27 day Kailash Mansarowar yatra will begin on June 1, and last till September 25, the day the 16th and the last batch of pilgrims reach back to New Delhi.

“The pilgrims will be sent to Mansarowar via, Bageshwar and will go back to New Delhi via Pithoragarh district headquarters,” said the Commandant. 

LPG quota for Ramnagar increased: MP
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
Pauri Garhwal MP Satpal Maharaj has disclosed that the Centre has increased the quota of LPG for the Ramnagar region of the state.

In a statement issued today, Satpal Maharaj said he had met Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Gas RPN Singh during a poll campaigning in Lucknow who apprised him that the LPG quota had been increased in Ramnagar. Maharaj said the increased LPG quota would reach Ramnagar by Holi.

Maharaj said he had organised a number of election meetings for Congress candidates in Farukhabad and Kanpur which witnessed a large turnout of people. He said he had appealed to the people of Uttar Pradesh to vote for the Congress candidates in a big way. 

Need to curb violence against children stressed
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
Educationists today expressed concern over the failure of the authorities concerned to implement provisions of Section 17 of the Right to Education (RTE) Act. They said violence against children in any form should be curbed immediately.

Experts called for the implementation of Section 17 of the RTE in schools. They were speaking at a state-level workshop, “Learn Without Fear”, organised under the aegis of the Plan India project and Shri Mahila Bhuvneshwari Mahila Ashram to sensitise academicians and parents against corporal punishment.

“Violence against children both overt and covert in and outside classrooms continues to receive sanction of society and goes unreported. We will be sending our suggestions to the National Child Protection Commission for curbing this kind of violence,” said Gajender Nautiyal, state coordinator of UMANG, a project under Plan India.

It was also suggested at the workshop that the facts regarding the issue be collected in order to strengthen the case. The Plan India had undertaken a survey in 2006 and found that children spoke about 33 ways in which they were punished.

Drive to highlight harm of e-waste
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
The Department of Chemistry, Dolphin (PG) Institute, Dehradun, started an awareness campaign towards the problem of electronic waste here today.

The campaign was launched under the supervision of Dr Deepak Pant, head of the chemistry department, where he exhorted students to collect e-waste stored in various main areas of the city then make people aware of its harmful effects.

Pant said, “The disposal management of the electronic waste is not easy and it also increases the atmospheric pollution. It contains huge quantity of heavy metals and poly-halogenated matter that pollutes the whole atmosphere”.

“It may cause cancer, allergy problem in nervous system, abortion, indigestion problem etc. and it may carry its adverse affects to the coming generation. As a preventive measure, we have to be very careful in that management of e-waste,” he added.

The campaign of collecting e-waste was launched at Connaught Place, Prem Nagar, Kanwali Road, Saharanpur Chowk and Rajpur Road by students.

EC allows calling of bids
Tribune News Service

Nainital, February 15
In a major respite to the state governments in the three states where polling is over but the model code of conduct is still in effect, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has allowed the call, evaluation and finalisation of bids besides the awarding of contracts by the governments.

In a statement, Director, EC, Yashvir Singh yesterday said in Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand where polling is over, the EC had decided to allow, “the calling, evaluation and finalisation of bids and the award of contracts”.

The EC has also allowed several other activities in these states which include the tours of ministers to the districts and the accompaniment of officials on such tours. It has also allowed the review and implementation of ongoing programmes in the field.

The EC has also permitted calling a review meeting of officials at the headquarters except those who are on election duty. 

Doon Hospital without manager 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
Doon Hospital has been without the services of a manager since the last eight months, putting undue pressure on the principal superintendent and other senior doctors who are now being forced to perform double duties.

It has been eight months since the manager, Lt Col (retd) Ramamurthy tendered his resignation and the hospital authorities are yet to come up with a replacement.

“We had advertised for the post of the manager but the interviews could not be carried as the model code of conduct was in place. In all likelihood we would be carrying the interviews after the election results are announced,” said Dr B.C Pathak, Principal Superintendent. The manager usually with a degree in hospital management has become vital for hospitals as they are responsible for carrying out the day-to-day administrative work in the hospital.

The hospitals undergo routine inspections for renewal of accreditations and have to ensure that the handling of biomedical waste is carried according to the guidelines.

Besides, they are also entrusted with the responsibility of hiring class four staff, but in the absence of the manager, the principal superintendent and his deputy are now being forced to chip in.

“We have to give duties at the OPD, too. As a senior physician this is my first priority but now in the absence of the manager, I have to cut back on my OPD hours and pay attention to the day-to-day running of the hospital,” said Dr K.C Pant, senior physician, who is now entrusted with the duties of the manager,” said Pant. 

Felicitation ceremony at Pestle Weed college

Dehradun, February 15
A felicitation ceremony and a musical evening were organised at the Pestle Weed College of Information Technology here today.

Senior Congress leader Hira Singh Bisht was the chief guest on the occasion while Prof R K Srivastava, Head, School of Education, HNB Garhwal University, was a guest of honour. The function was attended by several other eminent personalities.

The programme began with the lighting of a ceremonial lamp followed by Saraswati Vandana. Students presented folk dances, classic songs and bhajans to entertain the audiences. College Principal G S Aswal read out the annual report of the college. Later, the prizes were given away to the meritorious students.

The programme culminated with a vote of thanks by Dr Geetika Mehrotra, coordinator. — TNS

Papers in 15 subjects presented at Science Congress 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
The sixth Science Congress of the Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology (UCOST) was organised on the Kumaon University campus in Almora today.

The UCOST has been regularly organising the Science Congress since 2006. The first Science Congress was organised at the Dehradun Institute of Technology, Dehradun, second at Kumaon University, Nainital, third at the IIT, Roorkie, fourth at GB Pant University, Pantnagar, and the last congress was held at Doon University, Dehradun.

Senior Scientific Officer, UCOST, Dr DP Uniyal said papers in 15 subjects, including chemistry, biology, agriculture, environment and mathematics, were presented at the Science Congress this year. He said a large number of budding scientists, teachers and students pursuing higher studies in science presented papers at the congress.

Uniyal said the council would honour three scientists with the UCOST Excellence Award, besides conferring science teacher award upon a science teacher. He added the UCOST was committed to promoting the learning of science in Uttarakhand.

Probe ordered into irregularity in blood supply
Tribune News Service

Nainital, February 15
The authorities of the Sushila Tewari Memorial Hospital in Haldwani have ordered a probe into the irregularity in the supply of blood to a patient from the blood bank at the hospital.

Hospital sources say that the probe was ordered after a case came to light on Monday that 16 units of blood were given to an attendant of a patient while only one unit was reflected in the blood bank records. As there was no donor in the case, the patient had to pay for the 16 blood units.

Meanwhile, the attendant, who had procured the blood, brought the matter to the notice of the hospital authorities. The hospital authorities convened a meeting and the guilty employee was dismissed from service. A warning was also issued to the blood bank authorities. It is learnt that the technical staff at the blood bank would be reshuffled.

The Sushila Tewari Memorial Hospital is the biggest government health facility in the region and it caters to a large number of people from Kumaon. As the health facilities in the hill areas are in a poor condition, the patients from across the region come to the hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, the hospital authorities have made it clear that there would be no compromise with the interests of the people. 

Protest against Siddharth institute
Tribune News Service

Dehradun February 15
Students of the Siddharth Institute of Pharmacy staged a protest against the management of the institute for misleading them at the time of admissions here today.

They blamed the institute for running courses illegally without the mandatory approval from the Pharmacy Council of India thus putting their future in jeopardy.

A large number of students of B. Pharma gathered on the college campus and raised slogans against the director of the college.

“While taking admissions here, we were told that the institution is approved by the Pharmacy Council of India, New Delhi, but now we have learnt that he told a lie to us. When we appealed our director to take a stand on it and seek approval from the authority, he refused,” said Deepak, a student protester. However, the director of the institute was not available to comment on the matter.

Two from Doiwala hurt in clash
Tribune News Service

Dehradun February 15
Two men, Vinod Kumar and Ranjit Kumar, residents of Doiwala, who had gone to attend a wedding at Nehru Colony, got injured when they tried to intervene in a clash which was taking place among a few peoplein front of the wedding venue.

The persons involved in the fight got infuriated over forced intervention and beat up Vinod and Ranjit and fled from the scene. They could not be traced by the police.

Vinod sustained injuries on the head and Ranjit on the hand.

These two also smashed a motorcycle of a boy who had gone to a nearby ATM. 

Tributes paid to Nautiyal

Dehradun, February 15
The state unit of the CPI paid tributes to communist leader and noted literary figure Vidhyasagar Nautiyal here today.

State secretary, CPI, Samar Bhandari said Nautiyal was among those who contributed towards establishing the CPI base in the hills.

He stood by his passion for literature and cause of the people till his last breath, he added.

Rajiv Kothari, spokesperson of the Uttarakhand Parivartan Party and SS Pangti, senior leader of the Uttarakhand Raksha Morcha, spoke about Nautiyal’s concern towards the problems of the hill people.

CPI leader and littérateur Radha Krishan Kukreti described Nautiyal as a true inheritor of the communist legacy.— TNS

Vikas Club, Wills Youth win
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 15
In a tiebreaker match, the 5th Vikas Club defeated Doon Star 3-2 in the ongoing Narayan Gurung Memorial Football Tournament played at Mahindra Ground here today.

No goal came in the first half despite some good attempts and the match ended 0-0 in the stipulated time. This took the match to the tiebreaker.

Later, in the tie breaker round, Nawang, Tashi and Kirseing scored one goal each for 5th Vikas while Harpreet and Vijay made one goal each for Doon Star.

In the second match, Wills Youth edged past Gorkha Rangers 2-0.

Vineet scored the first goal in the 22nd minute for the winning team, followed by Amit in the 50th minute.

Garhwal Sporting will take on Chandrabani XI tomorrow in the quarterfinal match.