Devotees throng Baba Roshan Ali's dargah
Haridwar, January 20
The annual Urs of Baba Roshan Ali began on the dargah premises here today with gaiety and devotees thronging from varied parts in large numbers.

Cong men rejoice elevation of Rahul
Dehradun, January 20
Congressmen in Uttarakhand today burst crackers and distributed sweets on the elevation of Rahul Gandhi as the party’s national vice-president.

Haridwa, January 20
Matra Sadan ashram, known for staging many agitations for the cause of the holy Ganga and social issues, has once again warned of resorting to agitation on quarrying issue if the state government and district administration fail to cater to it's demand letter.

Swami Shivanand, founder of Matra Sadan, has written to the district administration a 43-point letter, in which he has demanded explanation within a fortnight.

If on not finding the reply feasible, the Matra Sadan head warned of staging fast once again. Swami Poornanand Saraswati, who got released on bail from 29-day judicial custody on charge of abetment to suicide after he went on fast on anti-quarrying issue, alleged physical and mental harassment by Jolly Grant Hospital and Roshanabad prison staff.

The seer also revealed that a nursing staff member told him that the late Swami Nigmanand's death at Jolly Grant was mysterious as when he was brought after 100 days' hunger strike to hospital, he was quite well.

Swami Poornanand said that at both places he was confined in locked rooms, while he was not even allowed to read religious-spiritual books, and was always pressurised to break the agitation by taking food.

He alleged that he was also forcibly fed by doctors on the pretext of deteriorating health, which was not the case.

Hospital staff had made it clear that they won't allow any outsider to meet him, or any books to be given to him as per directives of Haridwar District Magistrate Sachin Kurwe, claimed Swami Poornanand Saraswati.

The seer revealed that a nursing staff member told him that the late Swami Nigmanand's death at Jolly Grant was mysterious as when he was brought after 100 days' fast to hospital he was quite well.

Haridwar, January 20
With today being International Vendors' Day, vendors, under the aegis of the Small Scale Traders' Association, held various programmes and a march demanding the implementation of the national vendors' policy in Uttarakhand.

On the Rodibelwala ground till Shaheed Park, the vendors took out the march raising slogans of unity and demanding better facilities for them.

Led by state chief of the Street Vendors-Hawkers' Association chief Sanjay Chopra, the vendors were vociferous against the delay by the Uttarakhand government for delay in making special vending zones throughout the state, as per National Vendors Policy.

"For the past decade, vendors under various banners and at separate platforms have been demanding having separate authorised vending zones but what we get is displacement in the name of encroachment drives. We too are given fundamental rights by the Constitution and are paying daily tax to local civic bodies," said Chopra.

While vendor representative Bhoopendra Rajpoot complained over the delay in earmarking 15 vending zones by the Municipal Corporation as were done during previous corporation officer Jyoti Yadav.

He lamented that despite protesting at the civic body office, present office-bearers didn't seem interested and are delaying the process.

City coordinators of the association Dhruv Pathak and Asim Joshi said that unless vendors were given their due recognition and facilities as per the National and State-level Vendor Policy, they will continue their fight in this regard.

Haridwar, January 20
The annual Urs of Baba Roshan Ali began on the dargah premises here today with gaiety and devotees thronging from varied parts in large numbers.

District Magistrate, Haridwar, Sachin Kurwe accompanied by City Magistrate JS Nambiyal also paid obeisance and offered a chadar at thedargah,seeking blessings.

DM Kurwe cut the ribbon to commence the grand fair that is held alongside. In his address, Kurwe said, "Saints have always shown us the true path, giving us information about religion and spirituality and we should tread on their path".

Hundreds of jayrins offered flowers on the holy dargah, praying for peace and harmony.

At the fair which is held at the suburban Jwalapur, the mazaar of the holy seer has been decorated with colorful lights and the whole atmosphere is dipped in spiritual aura.

Temporary markets too have been set up with people, particularly women and children, enjoying the fair.

Qawwali sessions are also being organized in the fair and the venue was jam-packed. Devotees also wished for global peace and prosperity at the dargah which is revered by local people irrespective of their affinity to religions.

Seer Irfan Ansari said Baba Roshan Ali was revered by the devotees and they got blessings which made their family, region and lives happy.

Dehradun, January 20
Congressmen in Uttarakhand today burst crackers and distributed sweets on the elevation of Rahul Gandhi as the party’s national vice-president.

Congress workers today gathered at Congress Bhawan in Dehradun from early morning hours.

Apart from bursting of crackers and distribution of sweets, Congress workers rented the air with pro-Rahul Gandhi slogans.

They said with Rahul Gandhi becoming vice-president, Congress will have a strategic advantage for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

They also reminded that it was only late Prime Minister Rajeev Gandhi, who gave the right of voting for the 18-year old youth.

Arun Chamoli, Anjana and Vipul Nautiyal were prominent among present on the occasion.

Dehradun, January 20
Australian Senator Eric Abetz, who is the leader of the opposition in the Australian Senate and former forest minister of Australia, visited the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, today.

The visit, a private one, was an emotional one as he visited the grave of his grandfather Dr Hugoseitz in Dehradun for the first time.

Dr Hugoseitz, food and agriculture expert, had come to Dehradun from Stuttgart, Germany, as part of a UN delegation to set up timber engineering division of the FRI in 1953.

While working as head, Timber Engineering Division of the institute, he had severe typhoid and hepatitis B and died in Dehradun and was buried in Chandernagar cemetery on October 6, 1953.

After visiting the grave of his grandfather, Senater Eric Abetz visited the Forest Research Institute to cherish the memories of his grandfather. He visited the FRI building and the Timber Engineering Division which was set up by Dr Hugoseitz and appreciated that such old memories were still being preserved by the Forest Research Insitute.

Earlier, Senater Eric Abetz was welcomed by Dr PP Bhojvaid, Director, FRI, and he was accompanied by Dr Jagvinder Singh Virk, Chairman of Indo-Australian Strategic Alliance and Sanjay Singh, president of the Indo-Australian Strategic Alliance.

The Senator also interacted with officers and scientists of the institute and promised to have better collaboration between the two countries in the areas of forestry research.

Mussoorie, January 20
BSP woman council member from Nagar Nigam, Dehradun, was physically assaulted by B.Tech and MCA students from Roorkee at Buraskhanda while she was on her way to Dhanaulti with her family today.

The Mussoorie police rushed to the spot and apprehended the perpetrators of the crime on the complaint launched by the council member from Nagar Nigam, Dehradun.

According to the BSP council member, seven youths from Roorkee stopped her vehicle at Buraskhanda and started misbehaving with her. When she protested they caught the hand of her niece and tried to assault her also physically. The youths did not stop there. They stopped the vehicle once again at Jaypee bend on return and started misbehaving with the family there. The council member immediately summoned the police, who arrested the culprits and booked them under various sections and sent them for medical examination. The youths had arrived in a vehicle bearing the name plate of Congress vice president from Roorkee.

Dehradun, January 20
Matu Sangathan and Aagaas Federation, voluntary organisations spearheading the crusade against construction of big dams in Uttarakhand, have accused the World Bank of misleading the public on 444 MW Vishnugad Pipalkoti Hydroelectric Project built on Alaknanda river in Uttarakhand.

Vimalbhai from Matu Sangathan said the World Bank was going too far defending the Vishnugad-Pipalkoti project without waiting for the Inspection Panel (IP) to do it's investigation.

It is noteworthy that World Bank will be sending it's inspection panel to investigate the policy violations by the proposed Vishnugad-Pipalkoti Project.

“The press release issued by the World Bank (Bank) India office on January 10 is misleading and has gone too far defending the Vishnugad-Pipalkoti project without waiting for the Inspection Panel (IP) to do its investigation,” Vimal Bhai said. “We wonder whether this is a veiled attempt to influence the process and to send across a message to all affected communities that, irrespective of their complaints, the bank will have its way,” he added.

The World Bank release claims that Vishnugad Pipalkoti Hydro Electric Project (VPHEP) is a sustainable hydropower project with manageable impacts that has been thoroughly assessed and for which appropriate mitigation measures are prepared. “The distance of flowing river between the upstream Tapovan Vishnugad Hydro Electric Project (HEP) now under construction and the downstream proposed Vishnugad Pipalkoti HEP is exactly zero, and yet the bank has the temerity to call it sustainable,” argued JP Maithani, chairperson from Aagaas Federation, another organisation working for rights of people displaced by big dams.

Maithani said that they were concerned about many media reports that suggested that the Ministry of Power had put undue pressure on the bank to keep the report of the Inspection Panel under wraps until the Maha Kumbh Mela gets over. “It is reported that the request was made in order to avoid agitations that the findings may trigger and some protests by the Hindu pilgrims and spiritual leaders. We wonder whether the bank is in connivance with the government in suppressing the report from being made public,” Maithani observed.

Dehradun, January 20
Uttarakhand Governor Dr Aziz Qureshi was the chief guest at various programmes at the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad today.

Speaking at the programmes, Dr Qureshi said Prayag was the land of saints and sufis. He said events like the Kumbh brought the entire country together and evoked the inner strength of the nation. He said serving the poor and needy was the true worship of God.

He inaugurated an international environment meet organised at the Kumbh by Parmarth Niketan (Rishikesh). The subjects taken up at the meet included sustainable farming, environment conservation and saving the girl child.

Dr Qureshi also unveiled a water purifying machine at the Prayag, which would provide 10,000 litres of pure Gangajal to the pilgrims and the residents of the area every day.

Speaking on the occasion, Swami Chidanand Saraswati of Parmarth Niketan said the development of pilgrim centres, on the banks of rivers, needed to be done on a pattern that suited the saints as well as the developers.

Pritam Singh Panwar, Minister for Urban Development, Uttarakhand, and Justice Giridhar Malviya were among those present on the occasion.

Earlier, Dr Qureshi inaugurated the Samadhi of Sidhh Baba at Maujagiri Ghat at Keetganj on Yamuna Bank Road at a programme organised by Juna Akhada.

Haridwar, January 20
A total of 98 young volunteers, hailing from rural background, were given self employment training by Nehru Youth Village Development Committee Training Institute here today.

The training was part of a project “Bharat Nirman Sewak” being carried out by the Rural Development Ministry.

The volunteers were also given information about Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGA), Right to Information (RTI), Fruit Processing, NABARD schemes, Agriculture, Sports and self help groups aided by the government.

Ranjana Rana, master trainer, said such training was given to volunteers on regular basis to empower them as far as various government-run employment projects and schemes were concerned.

At the conclusion of the camp, Vaibhav Kumar of Dungarpur village was selected as the best volunteer while Sonika Saini of Fatwa and Kiran Pal of Gangdaspur were adjudged the second and the third best participants.

The winners were given cash prizes worth Rs 1,500, 1,000 and 500 respectively. "I am from Fatwa, a rural village where girls are commonly not allowed to go to school. But due to this voluntary skill training programme, I now feel confident and can contribute to the family’s earning" said Sonika Saini.

Dehradun, January 20
Mahant Indresh Hospital, Dehradun, in assistance with the Raipur BJP organised a free health camp at Arya Samaj Mandir, Nathanpur. A total of 352 visitors benefited from the camp.

Inaugurating the camp, former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said such camps were important to provide free medical facilities to poor people.

He appreciated Mahant Indresh Hospital for its quality health services. He said the medical college, run by the Shri Guru Ram Rai Education Mission that also manages Mahant Indresh Hospital, was giving an opportunity to the youth of the state to get into the field of medical education.

Prof SP Thapliyal from SGRR Education Mission said such free health camps would also be held in the far-flung areas of the state.

Dr Ragini Singh, Dr Ishwar Agarwal, Dr Akhil, Dr Mukesh Tiwari and Dr Pankaj diagnosed the patients on the occasion.

BJP district panchayat member Subhash Bhatt also distributed free medicines at the camp. BJP leaders Jagdish Semwal, Pan Singh Rawat, Ramesh Bharti and Satish Joshi were prominent present on the occasion.

Dehradun, January 20
Vijay Cantt has won the first late Shri Neel Ratan Kashyap Memorial Football Tournament- 2013 played in Dehradun. In the final played today, Vijay Cantt beat Garhwal Boys 3-2. Jatin Bedi, Ankur and Nitin scored goals for Vijay Cantt, whereas Ashish Nautiyal scored both the goals for Garhwal Boys.

Earlier in the day, the two semi-final matches were played. In the first semi-final, Vijay Cantt beat Garhwal Sporting 1-0, while Garhwal Boys beat Sports Hostel, Dehradun, 3-2 in the second semi final.

Former Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank handed over the trophy to the winning Vijay Cantt team. He handed over Rs 10,000 cash to Vijay Cantt team and Rs 5000 to runners-up Garhwal Boys team.

As of other awards, best goalkeeper award was given to Cantt Blue's Sunder, best defender to Shyam from Wills Youth Club, best striker to Ashish Nautiyal from Garhwal boys and best midfield player award was given to Raja Rawat from sports hostel.

Dehradun Football Academy also gave awards to upcoming players Ayush, Rajan, Mohit and Suraj.