SC order upsets elected gram pradhans
Ajay Ramola
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, March 4
The postponement of the panchayat elections till June on the directions of the Supreme Court might have provided a reprieve to the state government but it has also abruptly halted the streak of merrymaking going on in several villages of the Jaunpur development region in Tehri district.

Gram pradhans are miffed at the postponement of the panchayat elections fearing that the situation in the seats where they were declared winners unopposed could change due to the fresh delimitation exercise. They had worked hard and thrown parties after being unanimously elected in more than 24 villages in the Jaunpur development region.

Sumitra Rana, who had been declared gram pradhan unopposed from the Tator gram panchayat (reserved seat) under Nainbagh tehsil , said with the postponement and the electoral process her prospects of getting elected could be jeopardised if the seat is converted into general category.

Another woman Bisla Devi, who was elected from Marod Kshetra panchayat after a consensus among six villages, rued the fact that with the postponement of the elections her prospects have received a jolt and if the seat is delimited to any other category, the whole exercise would be rendered futile as she would have no chance of getting re-elected again.

Many representatives elected unopposed also fear that they would now have to prepare the pitch for their electoral prospects once again with the postponement of panchayat elections here.

Speaking of the Laloor Patti under Nainbagh tehsil in district Tehri, more than 24 gram pradhans from Devan, Ghansi, Myani, Khadagsari, Nakot, Tikri, Naingaon, Khairad along with the villages in Idalsyun and Silwad Patti, were elected unopposed.

The number of women elected unopposed in the reserved category of these gram panchayats was around 14 and the people had begun calling these elected representatives by the name of the posts for which they were elected unanimously.

With the postponement of the panchayat elections the prospects of getting re-elected has become a distant dream for such representatives who believe that with the change in categories, their prospects of getting re-elected would suffer.

The voters who had been relishing the parties thrown by various candidates standing for these elections are also a saddened lot with the streak of merrymaking coming to a abrupt halt due to postponement of panchayat elections in Jaunpur development region.

A voter said they were enjoying great food included with a bottle of liquor as a form of enticement to cast their vote in favour of candidates elected unopposed but it all has come to an end.

The representatives elected unopposed are spending sleepless nights and are left with only cursing the government for the postponement of the panchayat elections here. Earlier, the panchayat elections were scheduled to end in the month of March but with postponement in the dates, the dream of getting elected afresh has become bleak for the candidates declared winners unopposed.

Disappointment writ large

Gram pradhans are miffed at the postponement of the panchayat elections fearing that the situation in the seats where they were declared elected unopposed could change due to the fresh delimitation exercise. They had worked hard and thrown parties after being unanimously elected in more than 24 villages in the Jaunpur development region.

BJP to announce candidates for five seats on 
March 8
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
Announcing the names of prospective candidates for the five parliamentary seats for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections was to be a cake-walk for the Uttarakhand BJP but lack of unanimity among senior leaders on the Almora parliamentary seat has now delayed the announcement of names on all the five parliamentary seats to March 8.

Pitching for Rekha Arya, his choice of candidate from the Almora parliamentary seat, senior BJP leader Bhagat Singh Koshiyari managed to set a discordant note, leading to the cancelling of the announcement for the three parliamentary seats comprising Tehri, Nainital and Pauri, where there has been a unanimity on the selection of candidates.

Rekha Arya, Koshiyari's choice of candidate from Almora who happens to be connected with a leader in Uttar Pradesh, managed to temporarily nix the candidature of Ajay Tamta, who has been a front-runner for the parliamentary seat.

BJP party sources claim that Koshiyari's insistence on the candidature of little known Rekha Arya was aimed at harming the prospects of Ajay Tamta, at present an MLA from the Someshwar Assembly seat (Almora) who does not belong to the Koshiyari group. “Tamta’s survey report prepared by the party had put him way ahead of several candidates, but the way Koshiyari managed to push for the candidature of Arya forced the central leadership of the BJP to delay the declaration of the names of candidates on the three safer seats,'' said a senior BJP leader.

The manner in which Koshiyari batted for Arya, a veritable novice has also not gone down well with his opponents in the party who now allege that Koshiyari had entered into a deal with Arya in the hope that funds could be arranged for his election.

DVWM to resume work in 10 wards, courtesy DM
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
Doon Valley Waste Management, a private company hired for the door-to-door garbage collection under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), has taken a U-turn and decided to resume the work in 10 wards. It had called off the contract with the government three days ago.

The decision to restart the work came after District Magistrate and acting Mukhya Nagar Adhikari BVRC Purushottam assured it of resolving its issues. The company plans to resume its services within a week. The Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC) will lift garbage from the remaining 50 wards.

Sidharth Jain, CEO, DVWM, told The Tribune that the decision to resume work was taken after a meeting with the District Magistrate. “The District Magistrate has assured us of looking into the matter. Initially, we have decided to restart the work in 10 wards and later we may start providing the services in other wards as well. At present, vehicles, equipment and manpower are with the DMC and it will take some time before the new set of guidelines is drawn,” he added.

Purushottam told mediapersons here today that Chief Minister Harish Rawat had called a meeting of DMC officials with the company to resolve the contentious issues. “We have asked the company to resume the work of garbage collection in 10 wards. Also, the Chief Minister has formed a three-member committee to consider the demand of the company for increasing the tipping fee by Rs 112,” he said.

“We are also trying to get a written clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests for the scientific waste disposal plant site at Sheeshambada so that the company could start the work at the earliest. The clearance might arrive in 20 days,” said Purushottam.

“Nearly half the total number of vehicles purchased and given to the company by the state government is of no use. We have asked for a technical evaluation of these vehicles to assess their condition. An estimated Rs 15 lakh could be spent on the repair of these vehicles and the DMC would bear this cost,” he added.

Purushottam said while there was no proposal to move the trenching ground, an alternate 50-acre site had been earmarked in Hope Town for use as an alternative trenching ground.

Earlier, the District Magistrate at a meeting attended by revenue and DMC officials made it clear that the priority would be given to keep the city clean. He instructed the Additional District Magistrates to ensure cleaner wards and inspect their areas between 8 am and 10 am everyday and submit a report.

“Broken dustbins will be repaired at the earliest. Also, additional vehicles will be pressed into service for collecting garbage. DMC officials will also submit reports daily,” he said.

Business community agitated over digging on Mall Road once again
Ajay Ramola
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, March 4
The digging on Mall Road to instal telephone cables by private telecom operators has left the business community agitated in Mussoorie.

The business community and the residents of the town have been at the receiving end in the past due to the digging exercise conducted on Mall Road in the name of sewerage project, and with the digging exercise staring at them once again, they are forced to bear the brunt of such exercise with only few days left for the tourist season to start in the town.

The business community lamented the fact that the business activities start picking up in the month of March with the arrival of boarding students in various public schools here but the fresh digging exercise being conducted by the private telecom operators has become a bane for every one, making it difficult to commute on the road.

The pedestrians are also feeling the heat with the road being dug at several places and they are finding it difficult to ro reach shops for their daily needs, resulting in loss in business here.

The tourists arriving in the town are also avoiding the Mall Road due to the dusty conditions prevalent here, said a businessman Harbhajan Thakral. He further added that it seems like there was no administration left in the town that could keep a check on such activities, especially when the tourist season was at the doorstep in Mussoorie.

The SDO, BSNL, Ganesh Kothari, also lamented the fact that the due to the digging exercise conducted by the private operators the lines laid by BSNL have incurred damage, disrupting the broadband and banking services in the town.

He also said that an FIR has already been lodged against the private telecom operators for damaging the BSNL lines and senior officials have been informed about the whole situation.

The SDM, Mussoorie, Ramjee Saran, when contacted said that he would look into the matter and try to resolve the problem on priority basis.

5 newly appointed members of SCPCR up in arms
Neena Sharma
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
With pithy honorarium of Rs 3,000 per month and no proper designations to boost, the five newly appointed members of the State Commission of Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) are up in arms against the tardy manner in which the previous Bahuguna government made the appointments, violating the norms laid down by the Ministry of Women and Child Welfare.

Based on the recommendations of the ministry all the states were given guidelines that clearly spelt out the qualifications required, duties and the salary structure for the members who were to perform regular duties.

While all the states are paying monthly salaries between Rs 40,000-Rs 50,000, the newly appointed members are receiving a monthly honorarium of Rs 3,000 per month.

“The government tinkered with the guidelines and instead of giving salaries of Rs 50,000 per month, we are being paid an honorarium of Rs 3,000 per month, which is in gross violation of Central Government directives,'' said Ashish Uniyal, a member of the commission.

The resentment among the members who were appointed in January 2014 has been made worse by the Rs 50,000 monthly salary being drawn by one member who was appointed during the tenure of the BJP government (2011).

“Two sets of rules seem to be working here, out of the six members one member is drawing a handsome salary, with even a designation of secretary. The remaining five of us have been relegated to insignificant positions with an honorarium of Rs 3,000 per month,'' said Uniyal. Interestingly, out of the six members two members belong to Sitarganj and doubts are also being raised about the ability and qualifications of the members, which too seem to have been given a miss.

According to the guidelines of the Central government, all the members should have proven expertise in dealing with issues of child rights but the government seems to have overlooked this aspect as well.

''At least two members seem to have been appointed more for their political clout as they both hail from Sitarganj, alleged Uniyal.

Dhasmana demands resignation of Mayor Vinod Chamoli

Dehradun, March 4
Blaming the Dehradun Municipal Corporation Board and Mayor Vinod Chamoli for deteriorating sanitary condition of the state capital, Uttarkhand Congress vice-president Suryakant Dhasmana demanded an immediate resignation from the Mayor. In a press note issued here, Dhasmana said the people of the city had voted for Chamoli during the MC elections and therefore it was his responsibility to take care of the city. “If the Mayor has no control over his own staff at the DMC, he should resign at the earliest,” said Dhasmana.

“It has been more than 11 months since the board of the DMC was formed and till date there has been no work in the city,” added Dhasmana. “If the sanitary condition of the city is not improved immediately, we will not only ghearo the Mayor’s office, but will also demand for dissolving the board,” he added. — TNS

Sanatan Dharma in danger, warns VHP leader Singhal
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, March 4
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) ideologue and ex-international president of the organisation Ashok Singhal yesterday called on Hindus to participate in the upcoming 16th parliamentary election as “Hindu sanatan religion is in danger”. He stressed on the need of making Shri Ram Mandir at Ayodhya and urged saints to create a conducive environment.

The firebrand leader said the VHP would not play a direct role in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections but added that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP will come to power as people are perturbed of corruption, inflation and ill-governance of Congress-led UPA government.

Addressing a saints' convention here in Haridwar at Shri Panchayati Naya Akhada,Kankhal, Ashok Singhal said that while many political parties were playing the vote bank card ,trying to lure many religious-sectoral communities, the interests of Hindus were being neglected to garner power.

Urging saints to guide VHP,Singhal said that since its inception VHP had been working for the causes of saints and the country and its high time that saints came forward to protect the Sanatan Dharma in India.

Demanding a stringent Cow Protection Act, Singhal said both moral and political degradation had left India in the lurch as for self interests those in power at the helm of affairs in the country had let down a major population of the country.

Singhal said conversions process be immediately stopped and the Central Government's slogan of “Hum do hamare do” should not be adhered to as there is no such rule for the minority community. He pressed for common civil code, saying that this will bring uniformity and sense of equality among all Indians.

Singhal also alleged nexus between Aam Aadmi Party supremo and ex- Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Maoists and Naxalites backed by foreign powers.

While praising former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Singhal said that he never bowed to foreign pressures, which Pokhran tests confirmed and the same will happen when a tough leader like Narendra Modi comes to power.

Conference on optics begins today
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
The International Conference on Optics and Optoelectronics (ICOL-2014) is being organised at the Instruments Research and Development Establishment (IRDE), Dehradun, from March 5 to 8.

Addressing a press conference here today, Director, IRDE, Dr AK Gupta, said the Optical Society of India would be organising the conference. A total of 600 national and international delegates would participate in it.

Traffic rule violators to face the music

Dehradun, March 4
The police yesterday launched a drive against traffic rule violators. Two interceptor vehicles have been deployed to keep tabs on them.

On day one of the drive, the police issued challans to 151 violators. Sixteen vehicles were also impounded.

A traffic policeman said they recovered a sum of Rs 54,900 as challan during the drive. “Two-wheeler drivers without helmet and those using cellphones while driving will be dealt with strictly," said Pradeep Rai, SP (Traffic). — TNS

MC to levy 7.5 pc tax on hotels
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, March 4
The Municipal Corporation in Haridwar will levy tax on the city hotels. A tax surcharge of 7.5 per cent on a hotel’s evaluation, based on the current circle rate, will be levied on all the hotels falling under the civic body periphery.

There are more than 300 hotels falling under the civic body’s area in the city.

A decision in this regard was taken during a meeting between the Municipal Corporation’s Mayor, councilors and hotel representatives. Though for the current financial year, the tax concession of 50 per cent has been granted to the hoteliers according to the tax slot.

Mayor Manoj Garg said the civic body had fewer avenues to explore as far as its income resources were concerned, so the decision was taken. “Due to the last year’s mid-June flash floods, the hotel and tourism industry has been affected in Haridwar too. We have decided to given 50 per cent concession on the current tax slab to the hotel industry,” added Garg.

On the other hand, the decision of giving the hotel industry a 50 per cent discount on the tax slab was resented.

Councilor Lakhan Pal Chauhan and Satendra Verma alleged that BJP leaders, who are mostly hoteliers, were the main reason behind Mayor waving 50 per cent of the tax amount.

“It seems the BJP leaders who have themselves numerous hotels in the pilgrim city, with one being close to former Chief Minister, are running the civic body. The Mayor says he is increasing the revenue sources, but he has lessened it by giving 50 per cent concession to the hoteliers,” said Pal Chauahan.

Satendra Verma said if this decision was not reviewed, they will agitate or could even go to court. Former BJP district president Om Prakash Jamdagni, who owns two hotels in the city, welcomed the Municipal Corporation’s decision.

He said the local hotel industry needed such concession as they serve people, pilgrims and tourists at cheap rates at par with Dharamshala hotels.

But, when questioned about the room rates of their hotels were between Rs 4, 000 and Rs 20, 000, Jamdagni said profit margin was very less and the tax concession would bring relief to hoteliers.

Vishwa Mohan’s musical journey ‘quaint mix of science, tradition’
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
Legendary musician and exponent of mohan veena, Pt Vishwa Mohan's musical journey, ever since he began his career in the 60s, has been engaged in the unending quest of new musical sounds.

Since he started learning music at an early age under the tutelage of Pt Ravi Shankar, Pt Vishwa Mohan Bhatt has never shied away from trying out newer things, be it the invention of Mohan Veena. ''I wanted an instrument that could allow me the facility of sustained notes in one stroke. So I decided to Indianise the western 6-string guitar and mohan veena was born. Now in one stroke, I can play 32 notes. Basically, possessing 20 strings, the mohan veena is an amalgamation of Indian musical instruments comprising sarod, veena and the western guitar,'' emphasised Bhatt.

More often than not, a quaint mix of science and tradition has been the bedrock of his musical journey that propelled him to chart a new route.''Only the orthodox are afraid of trying out newer things. As musicians, we should not be burdened with the baggage of orthodoxy, but should be ready to shoulder the responsibility of creating new things that stand out,'' said Bhatt.

For that matter, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt was never assailed by doubts, when he engaged himself in the creation of the new musical instrument. ''My only focus was on delivery, and the experimentation that I was carrying out should bear fruits was my sole concern,'' said Bhatt while reliving the moment when he delivered the mohan veena to the musical world.

Intoxicated by music, Bhatt says music has the power to conquer one's weaknesses, anger, sorrow and joy. No wonder then, seldom has there been a low phase in the life of Bhatt. ''For me, when I wake up, it is a dawn of a new day. I feel as though I have been reborn and with that thought in my mind, I prepare myself to take the challenges of life. But I never quibble when things go wrong but accept them as part of destiny,'' said the musician.

Protest over delay in development works
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, March 4
Members of the Landour Cantt Board vented their ire at the delay in development works during the broad meeting held at the cantonment board premises in Mussoorie on Saturday.

The ward members lamented the fact that from the last six months no development works were undertaken in the area due to which they were facing the wrath of the people.

The ward members were of the view that the work had not started in the area despite the completion of the tendering process.

The ward members also welcomed the new president of the board Brigadier S Sabharwal on the occasion.

They discussed the issue of extending the period of the door-to-door garbage collection agency along with extending the tenure of the contractual workers in the board.

The laying of sewerage pipeline from Ganesh Hotel to Lakshman Puri was also approved in the meeting. The members also approved the parking project charging a nominal parking fee near Char Dukan during the meeting.

The vice-president and other ward members also raised the issue of illegal encroachment and construction in the area. It was also decided to appoint one electricity employee to repair the road lights in the area. Brig S Sabharwal said the development work would be hastened and a joint inspection would be conducted to maintain quality control over the approved works.

CEO of the board Ajit Reddy, Col Ajay Sharma, elected vice-president CP Baloni, ward members Jasvinder Garg, Kamal Sharma, Munni Devi, Narendar Padyar, Rajesh Kumar Kanaujia, and others were present.

Natural disaster: 449 death certificates yet to be issued
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
After more than six months since the Uttarakhand government decided to issue death certificates to those persons who went missing during last year's natural disaster, the work is still pending.

The Department of Medical, Health and Family Welfare managed to issue around 2,724 certificates to the next of kin of the people, who went missing in the disaster while around 449 certificates are still to be issued.

“These certificates will be issued once the matter is resolved at the end of the home states. We are facing verification problems and lack of response from the parent state,” said Om Prakash, Principal Secretary of Medical, Health and Family Welfare.

Out of the remaining 449 certificates from the different states, around 218 certificates belong to missing persons from Uttar Pradesh, 73 from Delhi, 36 from Madhya Pradesh and 26 from Andhra Pradesh.

Nach Baliye-6 winner visits hometown
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
Doon girl Asha Negi, popularly known as Purvi Kirloskar from the TV show Pavitra Rishta, was in city today. A jubliant Negi said, “Winning the sixth season of Nach Baliye instilled confidence in me. It helped me believe that I can dance well,” she said.

Her dance partner from the reality show, Ritwik Dhanjani accompanied Negi to thank their fans and supporters.

Addressing a press conference, Negi while admitting that she had two left feet before the show began, said, “It was during the show that I learnt various forms of dance. Ritwik always helped in boosting my confidence and told me that we were capable of dancing and winning the show.”

Talking about their sizzling on screen chemistry, the couple who proposed one another on the set of Nach Baliye, season 6, said initially when they met on the sets of Pavitra Rishta, they did not like each other. “In fact I used did not like the way Asha used to behave on the sets. Similarly she thought that I was an NRI snob with a fake accent. Gradually we started understanding each other and became friends before falling in love,” said Ritwik.

While admitting that they do intend to get married, the couple said it would take two to three years for that to happen as they were both busy earning a name in the telivision industry.

Shishpal Singh named BSP candidate from Tehri

Dehradun, March 4
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) today named Shishpal Singh as its candidate from Tehri for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.

The announcement was made by state party affairs in charge Ramachal Rajbhar at a convention here.

Address party workers, Rajbhar accused the Congress and the BJP of befooling the deprived sections of society. He said the Dalits as well as Muslim communities were strongly backing BSP supremo Mayawati, both in UP and Uttarakhand.

State party unit president Meghraj Jaraware said the mass base of the BSP was increasing tremendously in Uttarakhand. — TNS

20 booked in Ramnagar communal violence
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
The district administration and police have started taking action against the miscreants who indulged in stone pelting and damaged public property during the communal violence that erupted in Ramnagar on Saturday.

The police have registered cases against 20 persons under different Sections of the Indian Penal Code who created ruckus on the streets of Ramnagar. District Magistrate (DM) of Nainital, Akshat Gupta said the administration was identifying the miscreants on the basis of the CCTV and video footages.

Besides taking action against persons who indulged in violence, the district administration has started registration of labourers and persons who have come to Ramnagar for working in the last couple of months. The DM has also given directions to the officials to recheck the arms licenses in the district. He also made an appeal to the people to refrain from rumour mongers.

Earlier, the communal violence erupted at Ramnagar town in the Nainital district on Saturday after one person allegedly posted an inappropriate photo on a social networking website hurtful to one community. Later, the accused who allegedly posted the picture was arrested and sent to the jail.

On the other hand, the Bar Association of Nainital has requested the DM to cancel the arms licenses of the persons who were indulged in the violence.

Japanese technique being experimented to generate power
Our correspondent

Pithoragarh, March 4
A Japanese technique of generating electricity out of canal water was being experimented in the state as the state government had selected three major canals of Kumaon region to begin the pilot project.

According to the information given by the UREDA project officer in the state, three canals of Kotabagh, Belparao and Pawalgarh in Nainital district have been selected for the project where turbines of 10 kilowatts each will be installed at the initial-level of the project. “The sites of 1.5 meters high and same length wide canals have been selected for the project. If it works successfully, we will be able to electrify the local villages in the future,” said LD Sharma, Deputy Project Officer of UREDA project.

Sharma said the experiment on the Japanese technique was being promoted with the help of United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO).

“If this experiment gets successful, it is being hoped that all the canals of the state will generate electricity for local needs,” added Sharma.

The UREDA officials said it was the first such project in the state where canal waves will be used to generate electricity.

Three-day yoga festival begins at Dev Sanskriti varsity
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, March 4
Uttarakhand apart from being hub of rivers, spirituality, herbs, ayurveda, is also fast becoming an international centre for the yoga.

This was stated by Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Gobind Singh Kunjwal, here today at the inauguration of a three-day International Yoga Festival at Dev Sanskriti University.

He said apart from India, a large number of people from foreign countries were coming to Uttarakhand to learn yoga.

“Yoga is a symbol of peace both mentally and socially, hopefully the ongoing yoga festival becomes a platform to disseminate message of peace to foreign shores via the yoga participants,” said Kunjwal.

Dr Pranav Pandya, president, Akhil Bharatiya Gayatri Parivar, Shantikunj, said yoga was a name of discipline which enhanced personality of human beings and makes one’s mind peaceful. Citing the Bhagwad Geeta’s sixth chapter in which yoga is referred to as destroyer of pains, Pandya said yoga connects human beings with the Almighty, relieving of the physical and mental pains.

As per yoga festival coordinator Swami Vishudanand Maharaj and university registrar Sandeep Kumar, more than 500 participants from India and other countries are participating in this yoga festival, which is being held in 8 rounds, with age bracket of 8-80 years.

Governor Aziz Qureshi will attend the concluding session of the yoga festival at Dev Sanskriti University, informed pro vice-chancellor Dr Chinmaya Pandya.

sports
Manish takes Khukri club to victory
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
In a one-sided encounter, Khukri Football Club thrashed BSC Boys 4-0 in a match during the 22nd Narang Gurung Zics Memorial Football Tournament played at the Mahindra football ground here today.

Manish remained the top scorer for the Khukri club with three individual goals in the match. He scored in the 2nd , 25th and 56th minutes. Pradeep scored the fourth goal in the 54th minute of the match.

Earlier, Khalanga boys defeated Gorkha boys 5-4 in a tie-breaker. The match was drawn with both teams scoring one goal till the sound of the final hooter.

In a tie-breaker round, Brijesh, Ramesh Rakesh and Amit brought one goal each for Khalanga boys while Anubhav, Sanjay and Himanshu scored for Gorkha boys.

Rao academy enter semifinals
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 4
The Rao Cricket Academy entered the semifinals of MS Dhoni Charitable Foundation Pepsi trophy match, being played at SelaQui International School today.

The Rao Cricket Academy defeated Doon Eleven by 75 runs in the quarterfinal match played today.

Batting first, Rao Cricket Academy scored 173 runs at the loss of 8 wickets. Kiran scored the highest with 48 runs for Rao Cricket Academy. Karan from Doon Eleven took 5 wickets. Chasing the target, Doon was all out at 98 runs. Vaibhav with 40 runs was the highest scorer of Doon combined. Dipankar from the Rao Cricket Academy took 5 wickets. The first semifinal between Abhimanyu Cricket academy and Khalsa Cricket Academy would be played tomorrow.

ACA Cricket Club win

The ACA Cricket Club defeated Rising Star by 9 wickets in a match during the 62nd Dehradun District Cricket League here on Monday. Batting first, the Rising Star team made 101 runs. Manoj remained the highest scorer with 42 runs.

In reply, the ACA team got off to a good start with opener Raman making unbeaten 43 runs and Kunal scoring 13 runs. The team achieved the target at the loss of just 1 wicket.