Sanitation, cleanliness take a back seat
Haridwar, October 20
Despite several cases of dengue and malaria being reported in the district, and despite the ongoing festive season, no heed is being paid to the sanitation and cleanliness aspects in the pilgrim city.

Miss Uttarakhand Contest takes place in Drona College today
Dehradun, October 20
Drona's Blender's Pride Miss Uttarakhand Contest will take place on Sunday in Drona College of the city. Convener Dalip K Sindhi said he was going to organise a grand show this time as many sponsors were willing to pitch in for the event.

Dehradun, October 20
The police has been not been able to arrest the three main accused who killed advocate OP Saklani’s wife Pushpa Saklani four days ago. The driver of the car, Sunny, resident of Brahmpuri, Patel Nagar, has been identified. The police has also arrested Basant, resident of Dehrakhas, who gave vital information to the police. According to Basant, the three accused, residents of Bareilly, had come to beat up the advocate with whom they wanted to settle scores due to enmity over an old legal matter.

A day before they did a recce of the house. On the fateful day, Sunny and Basant remained in the car while the other three, Navratan (main accused), Adil and an unidentified person, went inside the house. There they thrashed the maid, who became unconscious. Contrary to their plans, they killed the advocate’s wife. They booked rooms in a guest house on Raja Road two days before the murder. After commiting the crime, they left by Kathgodam Express, whereas Sunny and Basant hid themselves in jungles near Raipur.

Senior Superintendent of Police Neeru Garg said the police could not make headway beyond this at present and were raiding different possible locations to apprehend the accused.

Haridwar, October 20
Despite several cases of dengue and malaria being reported in the district, and despite the ongoing festive season, no heed is being paid to the sanitation and cleanliness aspects in the pilgrim city.

The Health Department laxity is proving fatal to the residents, as many cases of dengue, malaria and other diseases have come to light, particularly in suburban Jwalapur region.

Filth and garbage are also seen lying outside the three government hospitals, District Hospital, Mela Hospital and Women's Hospital.

If this is the situation of sensitive areas like hospitals, then one can gauge the scenario in other colonies of the city.

Chief Medical Officer Deepa Sharma has now given instructions to concerned officers to make sure the premises and staff colonies at Mela Mospital and District Hospital were cleaned of the garbage.

At Brahampur Colony the situation is getting worse as the Municipal Corporation health employees seldom visit this colony to dispose of the garbage heap lying unattended. As the link road to the revered shrine of Mata Mansa Devi Temple passes through this colony route, apart from local residents, pilgrims, who throng the temple in thousands daily, are facing inconvenience.

Taking this matter with the Health Department, local outfit Brahampuri Mohalla Jan Kalyan Samiti is writing complaint letters, meeting Municipal Corporation and Health Department officers in this regard.

Town Health Officer Kailash Joshi said that he had given necessary directions to the subordinates to dispose of the garbage on a regular basis.

He also appreciated the working of the samiti, saying that due to the large area of the city, it was sometimes not easy for him to take notice of all colonies.

Gaurav Bharadwaj, a resident, said that his colony had been facing apathy from the administration side for quite a long time. A major portion of the colony comprises lower middle class and slum dwellers, who are approached during election time for votes and forgotten later by politicians. Former municipal councillor Ashok Sharma has demanded that in Kankhal and nearby areas, which have many temples, should be given special attention by carrying out regular cleanliness drives during this festive season.

After meeting Kailash Joshi at his office, Ashok Sharma said that be it Daksh Prajapati Temple, Sheetla Mata Temple, Radha Krishan Mandir, Bhandeshwar Temple, Sati Kund, Parad Shivalingam or Anandmayi Ashram, Sati ghat, Kankhal was the home to many a revered temple. Keeping in mind the ongoing Navratra festival, regular cleaning needs to be done.

Dehradun, October 20
Drona's Blender's Pride Miss Uttarakhand Contest will take place on Sunday in Drona College of the city. Convener Dalip K Sindhi said he was going to organise a grand show this time as many sponsors were willing to pitch in for the event.

The finale will consist of ethnic, western and evening gown rounds, besides the quintessential question-and-answer round.

He said this event was gaining significance with each passing year

with the winners of the pageant carving a niche in different fields.

Asha Negi had become a known TV actor. Priyanka Kandwal was today a prominent face for commercials, and Bahar Kaur was making inroads into modelling.

He said their reach was expanding with contestants joining in the fray from far away areas such as Tanakpur and Pithoragarh.

Haridwar, October 20
To give children a first-hand account of Ramayan, Ramlila was staged wherein young kids played Ramayan characters with great enthusiasm.

Held at Mool Chand Shastri Bal Vidyapeeth, Sati Kund, Kankhal, the main episodes of Ramayan were performed by students followed by burning of a Ravana effigy.

The characters of Lord Rama, Laxman, deity Sita, Lord Hanuman and Ravan and Kumbhkaran were much appreciated by the audience.

School manager Veena Shastri lighted the effigies of Ravan to the huge cheer of students, who later termed the victory of Lord Rama as a proof of victory of truth over evil.

Signifying the importance of Dasehra festivity, Principal Ashok Kumar said that Dasehra was very close of Indian culture, in which Lord Rama gives the message of shunning evil, adhering to the path of truth, respect towards parents, gurus and elders.

The effigies were collective efforts of students of the school under guidance of teachers.

Among others who coordinated the Dasehra event were Ashish Rana,Vineeta Ritu, Rakhi, Meenu, Himani, Nilima, Shashi, Namita, Sonali, Seema, Sonia, Puja, Manish, Kapil and Vijendra.

Meanwhile, at Academic Heights, Bachpan Pay School, the festival of Durga Puja and Dasehra were celebrated with fervour and dignity.

Yellow House presented beautiful cultural programmes related with the ongoing Dasehra and Durga Puja festivals.

Class V student Gaurvi sang Durga Vandana, followed by folk dance of garba by girl students, which was equally loved by the audience as was the Punjabi Bhangra by boy students.

Ramlila was performed by students of class III and IV, with episodes of ‘Sita Haran’ and buring of Lanka by Lord Hanuman being the major attractions of the enactment.

Haridwar, October 20
Devotees observing a fast during the Navratras need to take minor precautions. Those suffering from diabetes, heart, kidney and liver diseases, blood pressure and hypertension particularly need to be careful.

Health experts suggest that a person observing a fast should know that he can face health problems.As it is observed that people while fasting consume potato, papad, kheer, sweets, oily food and namkeen that are high in calorie. A high-calorie diet containing fats is not good for health as it increases weight and can also pose problems for patients suffering from diabetes and hypertension. Heart specialist Dr Sanjay Shah told The Tribune that minor precautions during the Navratra festival could make both fasting and health go together.

Shah said those suffering from diabetes and hypertension should avoid high-calorie food and take food in small quantities.

The devotees observing a fast should instead consume fruits like banana and apple, fruit juices, curd, milk, and green vegetables. The use of salt should also be lowered, said Shah, who is also secretary of the Indian Medical Association, Uttarakhand.

Though women observe a fast during the Navratras earnestly, expectant mothers should be careful and take the advice of a health expert while fasting, particularly during the advanced stage of pregnancy. 

Dehradun, October 20
The inter-section athletics meet of Rashtriya Indian Military College (RIMC) ended with several old records being broken and new ones set. Dr Swarna Subba Rao, Surveyor General of India, was the chief guest of the evening.

The day began with the 110 m hurdles where cadet Aurobindo Mishra finished first while cadets Saurabh Singh and Raushan Kumar secured the second and third positions, respectively. After 11 more closely-contested events, the final standings were as follow:

First -- Pratap section (259 points); second -- Chandragupta (186 points); third -- Shivaji section (178 points); fourth -- Ranjit section (135 points).

Cadets Aurobindo, Tuhin Kobing, Nelson Tomthin and Vijay of the Pratap section won the 4x100 m B-division relay. They also smashed the oldest record of the RIMC set in 1965. They completed the event in 48.86 seconds. They also won the 4x100 A-division relay and the C-division 4x400 m relay. The individual prize winners were as follow:

Best Athlete (A Div) - cadet Tomthin, Best Athlete (B Div) - cadet Sohail Islam, Best Athlete (C Div) - cadet Ligang Kobing and the Major Gen Hira Lal Atal Overall Championship Trophy - Pratap section. The event concluded with a march past by the cadets with Dr Swarna Subba Rao taking the salute. He was amazed at the high standard of athleticism of the cadets and appreciated their efforts. —TNS

Dehradun, October 20
The annual sports meet of Raja Ram Mohan Roy Academy was held here today.The sports meet was declared open by chief guest Swarna Subba Rao, Surveyor General of India. Students displayed their expertise and talent in the march-past, PT drill, fun races, relays, races and gymnastics. The major attraction of the day was the band display by the school band which was highly appreciated by the chief guest as well as the guest of honour. A number of athletic events were held and at the end of the meet the results were :

The sports trophy was won by Aravali House, scoring 343 points; Shivalik House stood second with 301 points; and Satpura House stood third with 242 points.

The march-past trophy went to Satpura House, while the winner of the tug-of-war event was Satpura House. The trophy for the best PT display went to Shivalik House.

The prize winners for best in athletics in different categories were:

Best gymnast girl - Shalini Kumari (Satpura House), best gymnast Boy - Ankur Saini (Shivalik House), best drummer - Deepak Sailani, best side drummer - Simant Choudhary, best bigular - Afrid Ahmed, best piper - Shashwat Garg. The Sarla Bhushan cash prize award went to Shalini Kumari.

Basketball trophy- Satpura House; Cricket trophy - Aravali House; Football trophy- Shivalik House; and Volleyball trophy - Aravali House.

In his address the guest of honour AK Shah highly praised the school band as he recalled how the history of this band went back to1960s when the band used to play in Mussoorie as the school at that time was running in Mussoorie by the name of Shishu Niketan. He was glad to see the participation of girls in all the sports activities. He inspired the children to plant trees to save Mother Earth.

Dehradun, October 20
In the Kargil Martyr Jaideep Bhandari Memorial Football Tournament being played here, Akranta beat Dehra XI 4-0 in a one-sided match.

For Akranta, Vikas scored the first goal in the 22nd minute of the match followed by Pramod, who scored the second goal in the 25th minute of the match. Vikash scored yet another goal in the 28th minute. Further, the fourth goal for Akranta was scored by Naveen in the 54th minute of the match.

As of Dehra XI, its players failed in all departments of the game and were no match for Akranta.

Dehradun, October 20
St Thomas College organised its annual sports meet here today. The chief guests on the occasion were Brig Surendra Mehta and his wife Nidhi Mehta.

The sports meet started with march past by school students.

Students of the junior and the middle school put up a PT display, which included the tambourine PT, aerobics, bows drill, kite drill and the free hand exercises.

The school gymnastics team also performed on the occasion.

The chief guest praised the school for organising such a large event.

He appreciated the spirit shown by all participants and wished them luck for the future.

Brig Mehta also appreciated the manner in which the entire show was conducted.

Principal of the school RV Gardner, in his vote of thanks, thanked Brig Mehta and his wife for attending the sports meet.

While praising the students for the excellent performance, Gardner also thanked the parents for their keen interest in the school activities.

Dehradun, October 20
Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna inaugurated the annual sports meet of St. Joseph’s Academy (SJA) by hoisting a flag here today. Dooley House excelled in the competition.

Bahuguna, while addressing the students, said sports should be played with a sportsman spirit. He added victory and defeat was an integral part of sports and losers should not feel dejected. He emphasised that sports activities should be encouraged.

The event commenced with an impressive march past, followed by a torch relay where the best athletes of the school participated. Dooley House took an unassailable lead in the marathon and other field events held earlier. The events held in different categories, i.e. 80 m, 100 m, 200 m, 400 m, 4x50 relay and 4x100 relay were keenly contested. The spectators lauded the talent of the athletes of the academy. The children scuttling along the track in different fun races like “Bell the Cat”, “Turtle and the Ninjas”, “Dress the Scare Crow”, “I Love India” and “The Princess and the Frog” left the onlookers mesmerised.

Girls of class IV and V participated in the skipping race and reminded people of their schooldays. A mass drill by students of class IV and V, spectacular aerobics performed to the tune of patriotic songs by girls of class VI to X and a flawless PT display by boys of class VI to IX spoke volumes of the immense energy and skill of the Josephites.

Doon International, Guru Nanak Academy, Moravian Institute, Nirmala Inter College, SJA and the SJA Alumni Association participated in the 4x100 m invitational relay in the boys category while Welhams School, CJA, Himjyoti, Moravian Institute, SJA and SJA Alumni took part in races in the girls category.

In both categories the SJA bagged the first position. The members of the Alumni Association proved the dictum “Once a Josephite, always a Josephite” by keenly participating in the 4x100 m relay. Then came the star event of the day -- cycle race -- in which after breathtaking rounds of the big fields, Gary Lu of Bergin House (junior boys) and Kevin Lu of Bergin House (senior boys) emerged winners in a tough competition.

The fact that vigour and zeal are not subject to age was proved by parents who enthusiastically participated in the 100 m race.

Dooley bagged the trophy for the best marching house. Dooley House won the Cock House Trophy for the fifth consecutive year. Lastly, Principal Bro AJ George proposed a vote of thanks and credited the students and staff members for making the event a success. Brother Dennis lowered the flag and declared the meet close.