world environment day
Residents pledge to keep Mussoorie clean and green
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, June 6
Residents of Mussoorie, under the aegis of the Municipal Council, took out a rally here today.

The rally was supported by Nirankari Mission headed by their spiritual guru Hardev Singh. A pledge was taken to keep Mussoorie clean and green to mark World Environment Day.

Members of Nirankari Mission marched from Landour Bazaar to Gandhi Chowk, carrying placards and raising slogans in support of the cause of keeping the environment clean and pledging to remove plastic garbage from the town completely.

Devotees from Nirankari mission, along with Srishti, an NGO, collected garbage all along the road during the rally. Later, they went to the trenching ground near Gaadi Khana where around 10 sacks of plastic garbage were collected and sent to the compactor on the Tehri bypass road.

Mataji of Nirankari Mission Savinder Kaur joined the march. She said it was important to save the environment and keep the town clean and green. On World Environment Day, every citizen should try to share the responsibility of removing plastic garbage from the town, she stated.

Later, speaking at a function held at Garhwal Terrace, Baba Hardev Singh, said environmental degradation had increased over the years. It was imperative to save the environment in the wake of global warming that was affecting the planet adversely, he added.

In another function, SDM Mussoorie Ramji Saran, along with DFO Mussoorie Dr Dheeraj Pandey, planted several saplings.

Meanwhile, residents expressed their disappointment with the slow progress in the door-to-door garbage collection project. The project is being undertaken only in a few wards of the town.

The head of Srishti, an NGO tasked with collecting garbage door-to-door in Mussoorie, RK Mishra, said they were collecting garbage from around six wards at present. They had not received any written order to start the project in other wards, he stated.

Another organisation, Save Mussoorie, distributed pamphlets spreading the message to avoid the use of plastic in the town as it is hazardous for the environment in the long run.

ITBP constables plant saplings

Costables of the ITBP celebrated World Environment Day by planting saplings on the ITBP academy campus.

Davinder Singh, DIG and deputy director of the ITBP academy, inaugurated the plantation drive.

Seminar on need of plantation

Pithoragarh: Several NGOs, social workers and people of Pithoragarh celebrated World Environment Day. Himal adventure trackers and development society, an organisation of youths concerned with ensuing cleanliness on the Himalayan trekking routes, organised a seminar and plantation programme at a hill trek near the PWD rest house. They planted over 250 tree saplings. A large number of schoolchildren participated in the event.

“The schoolchildren also participated in a seminar on the need of plantation in the Himalayan region,” said Lalit Mohan Kapri, convener of the NGO and program coordinator. Kapri said the eco-task force battalion, situated in Pithoragarh district headquarter, had accepted their request to take the barren hill trek near Pithoragarh town for plantation in this monsoon.

DR Anand Srivastawa, chief development officer, Pithoragarh, forest officers and personnel from eco-task force were also present in the plantation programme.

Sarthak Prayas Samiti, an NGO, also celebrated World Environment Day. They appealed the people to shun vehicles for a day as symbol to save fuel. They also asked people to discontinue the use of polythene bags to save the decaying environment of the Himalayan region.

Children from New Era Academy in Kanalichina took out an awareness rally on the occasion. “We have made our students to participate in a discussion and express their views on the environment around their neighbourhood,” said Kishor Pant, manager of the school.

In Champawat district, senior citizens gathered at the district headquarters to discuss the condition of town and appealed the government to prepare a master plan for the town.

‘Development shouldn't come at environment's cost’

Haridwar: As part of World Environment Day, various seminars, functions, debates and awareness programmes were organised in Haridwar. At Divisional Forest Office, Bilkeshwar, a seminar was organised. Forest and Rajaji National Park officials dwelled on varied aspects of environment conservation.

DFO MB Singh said with global warming severely impacting the environment, there was need to generate mass awareness.

He said development was imperative but it should not be at the environment's cost.

Exhibition at FRI

Dehradun: As part of World Environment Day, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, today organised an exhibition of posters and models at the institute.

The posters conveyed to the visitors the importance of environment conservation. The models and posters were put up by various divisions of the FRI.

Meanwhile, an environment awareness cum afforestation campaign was conducted by the 127 Eco-Task Force with an aim of spreading environmental awareness among the people. Schoolchildren, NCC cadets and army men attended the function. Nearly 1,000 saplings were also planted.

Balance between environment, growth must: CM

Chief Minister Harish Rawat has emphasised the need of making society aware of the importance of environment conservation. In a press release, Harish Rawat referred to the importance of Uttarakhand in environment conservation. He appealed to the masses to actively contribute in the works of environment conservation. He stressed the need of maintaining a balance between the environment and development and sought collective efforts on part of public representatives and general masses.

MC collects big sum, but does little for environment
Ajay Ramola

Mussoorie, June 5
The Municipal Council that imposed eco tax with an objective to safeguard the environment is far away from keeping its promise even after collecting around Rs 2.86 crore in the past six years in Mussoorie.

The Municipal Council decided to impose an eco tax upon entry to the Queen of Hills in line of Naini lake of Nainital on tourists in 2009 so that to attain the objective of preserving the environment, there is no shortage of funds.

The tax of Rs 100 from heavy vehicles and Rs 30 from cars and jeeps is being levied by Mussoorie Municipal Council through its employees from motorists stationed at Kolhukhet the entry point to Mussoorie.

The tourists, on knowing that the funds will be used for environment, have been cooperative in paying the eco tax at the entry point. However, the Tribune has learnt through sources that out of Rs 2.86 crore collected in past six years, only a small portion of the fund has gone in preserving the environment and major share has been used for other purposes.

The data given by the Municipal Council reveals that crores have been collected during the past six years. In the year 2009-10 around Rs 23,54,475 was collected, while Rs 64,63,490 was collected in the year 2010-11. Around Rs 64,85,745 was collected in the year 2011-12 while Rs 64,82,510 was collected in the year 2012-13 and Rs 7,28,570 was collected in the year 2014 amounting to around Rs 26,68,161 in the past six years.

The objective of the tax predominantly was to collect revenue for preserving the town's environment and its heritage but due to the lackadaisical approach of the MC, the funds have been diverted to other works that have no direct relation with environment, alleged residents who had been opposing the imposition of the eco tax since day one.

When contacted the Municipal Council president Manmohan Singh Mall said that the eco tax has emerged as the great asset for the council that is starved of funds due to the natural disaster that occurred last year. He refuted the claims of diversion of funds and said that most of the funds were being used for saving environment and the rest went in for sanitation and cleanliness along with the purchase of equipments necessary for the town.

However, the residents are of the view that ample funds are being disbursed through various programmes run by the Central Government to preserve the environment. Therefore there is no need to burden the tourists entering Mussoorie who are already facing the problem of high inflation. They demanded eco tax should be scrapped completely.

Waste Warriors celebrate environment day
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Waste Warriors, a local NGO, celebrated World Environment Day here today. They removed large garbage dump on an open plot at BEHL chowk, here today.

Jodie Underhill, founder of Waste Warriors, said the volunteers of the organisation collected almost 40 bags of non-recyclable garbage, weighing approximately 800 kgs.

The members also raised awareness among the surrounding localities and collected Rs 1,600 in donations in appreciation of their efforts, she added.

“If everyone signs up to the DVWM or Nagar Nigam door-to-door collection service, sights like these would become a thing of past. A clean environment is a fundamental right, but not enough is being done to ensure that it happens. We would like to clear all of the illegal dumpsites around the city, but we need assistance from the administration,” she added.

Change at personal level can save environment
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
A seminar was organised at Manoranjan Club of THDC India Limited (THDCIL), Rishikesh today. Various noted environment specialists and thinkers including Sachidanand Bharti, Dr KN Bhatt, Veenapani Joshi, Jagat Singh Jangli, Prof Kusum Arunachalam and Sudhir Kumar attended the function.

The Chief Managing Director of THDCIL, RST Sai, along with invitees, inaugurated the seminar.

Sachidanand Bharti deliberated on depletion of underground water level, melting glaciers and problem of drinking water scarcity and their effect on future economy.

Dr KN Bhatt stressed on the fact as to how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities in PSUs can be effectively interlinked with environment conservation. He appreciated the work done by THDCIL in this field.

Jagat Singh emphasised on the need for change at personal level - Only then can the environment be saved.

Veenapani Joshi recited some of her poems and shared her experiences.

Various activities like debate, painting and essay writing competition were conducted in THDCIL as part of World Environment Day.

Director (Technical) DV Singh, Director (Finance) Sridhar Patra, former Executive Director Rakesh Khare, General Manager HL Arora, General Manager NT Ravindran and General Manager HL Bharaj were present.

Experts: Rivers are drying up in race for development
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
On the occasion of World Environment Day, a one-day seminar was held in the premises of Dolphin (PG) Institute of Biomedical and Natural Sciences on the topic “Island Biodiversity & Climate Change” here today.

Renowned environmentalist Dr Anil Joshi inaugurated the seminar. In his keynote address Dr Joshi said that in the race for development ''we are damaging our environment and as a result of this, the rivers are drying up, forests are vanishing.''

He further said that New Delhi had been declared as the most polluted capital in the world and in the highest agriculture yielding states, Punjab and Haryana, the soil has become so polluted due to overdose of fertilisers that the people in these states are suffering from various deadly diseases such as cancer. He also attended tree plantation ceremony in the premises of the institution.

On the occasion, a book on ''Udhyamita Swalamban se Safalta'' edited by Dr. Sanjay Agarwal, head of department, Department of Biostatics, was launched. Talking about his book, Agarwal said that this book is a summary of the lectures delivered on the programme of entrepreneurship development, which will be the guide for the future entrepreneurship.

Another expert of the field, Dr. S.K. Srivastava, Deputy Director and Senior Scientist, BSI, Dehradun, discussed about biodiversity of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Another eminent speaker of the day was Dr S.P.S. Rawat, Senior Scientist, ICFRE, who discussed about the climatic change due to unorganised development.

BJP activists protest delay in distribution of ration cards
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Angry over the delay in distribution of ration cards to beneficiaries under food security scheme, BJP activists staged a protest at the District Supply Office (DSO) here today. The agitators have threatened to start an intense agitation if the district administration does not distribute ration cards to beneficiaries soon.

BJP activists under the leadership of councillor Satish Kashyap gathered at the DSO office and shouted anti-department slogans. The agitators alleged that department is not taking effective steps to distribute ration cards to beneficiaries under food security scheme. Kashyap expressed concern that department officials are not issuing ration cards even after residents completed all formalities. He alleged that officials are harassing residents by asking them to resubmit their documents.

Among those who were present were Kausalendra Singh, Sagar Yadav, CS Pokhriyal, Sanjeev Singhal and Vinay Ashish.

Meanwhile, residents from Hathi-Bar-Kala staged a protest at DSO office. The agitators submitted a memorandum to officials, and demanded to distribute ration cards to beneficiaries at the earliest.

Addressing the gathering, BJP councillor Bhupendra Singh Kaithat said that the department is not issuing ration cards to deserving candidates. The agitators demanded to notify residents so that they can apply timely for making ration cards.

Jeevan Singh, Rani Kaur, Mahipal Dhiman, Nandani Sharma, Savita Oberaoi, Varsha Badooni, Sharda Gupta, Saroj Panwar, and Daya Joshi were also present. 

City Patrol Units to go high tech this summer
Gaurav Talwar
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The newly set up City Patrol Units are going to get more high tech on the lines of other professional police forces in the world, as the state police department has decided to equip these with taser guns and mounted cameras to make them more efficient and effective.

According to the senior police officials at the police headquarters, the police department is in the process of acquiring 'non-lethal' taser stun guns for the City Patrol Units, presently operating in Dehradun city since the last two months.

The specialised units were set up with an aim of enforcing traffic rules, containment of incidents of road accidents and intervention in road crimes.

''We have decided to buy taser guns for the city patrol units in Dehradun to deal with agitated mobs, crime or in any other emergency situation, as it does not involve the risk of causing fatal injury to anyone,'' said Nivedeta Kukreti, Superintendent of Police (SP), Crime, told The Tribune.

It is to be noted that taser stun guns fall into the category of non-lethal weaponry that can incapacitate a person without causing permanent damage. These guns are mainly used by all professional police forces in Europe and America.

Besides taser stun guns, police department has also decided to buy mounted cameras for motorcycle-borne cops, which will be mounted on their helmets, making their hands free and mobile.

''Presently, the pillion cop has to keep a video camera on his hand always for recording videos of the incidents during their duty on road while the mounted cameras on their helmets will do the same work without any manual handling and will make them more mobile,'' said SP Crime.

Notably, the videography done by the City Patrol Units has created controversy as well, as people take it as invasion in their privacy though police department has been claiming that everyone is under electronic surveillance these days, whether it is movie theatres, malls, banks, shops etc. 

Afghan delegation meets Dehradun District Magistrate
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
A 22-member delegation from Afghanistan on its tour to Uttarakhand under the Afghan Provisional Training Programme being organised by the Indian Institute of Public Administration met the District Magistrate BVRC Purshottam here today.

The DM informed the delegation about the public participation in the local administration, quality improvement in services, development projects and disaster management projects being carried out in the state.

The members informed the gathering that the steps being taken and policies formed for the development in both the countries were almost similar.

Those present included Alok Kumar Pandey, Pratap Sah, Girish Chandra Gunwant and several others.

House tax: DMC divides city into four categories
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC) has divided the city into four categories based on the width of roads in order to ease the house tax calculation process.

Mayor Vinod Chamoli said several members of the MC board and the public were against the existing system of calculating house tax.

“To resolve the issue, a committee was formed, which was directed to find out 
an easy and acceptable way of calculating house tax. Now, 
house tax will be 
levied on basis of 
the width of roads in the respective localities,” he said.

However, he said the new rate of house 
tax was yet to be 
decided. A decision in this regard would 
be taken soon, 
added Chamoli. 

Division of city

Category A

Race Course Road

Haridwar Road

Teg Bahadur Road

EC road

Nehru road

Subhash Road

Ravindranath Tagore Marg I,

Salawala,

Kalidas Marg,

Rajpur Road,

Chowdhary Bihari Lal Marg,

Khan Bandhu Marg

Raibahadur Agrasen Road,

Dilaram Bazaar,

Arvind Marg,

Industrial Marg,

Ballupur Road I & II

Ballupur Gram,

Kaulagarh Road,

Krishannagar,

Rajender Nagar,

Defence Colony,

Vasant Vihar

Engineer Enclave

Category B

Nardev Shastri Marg,

Faltu Line,

Amrit Kaur road,

Acharya Nardev Marg

Circular Road

Mohini Road

Laxmi Road

Nemi Road

Inder Road

Balbir Road

Kasturba Road

Chander road

MDDA colony

Welham lane

Ravindranath Tagore Marg

Dhobalwala

Ziladhish Marg

Naradut Dutt Dangwal Marg

Mahant Laxman Prasad Marg

Narayan Muni Marg

Astley Hall

Ugra Road

New Market

Beni Bazaar

Govind Bhallabh Pant Marg

Sewak Ashram Road

Karanpur 1&2,

Old Dalanwala

Chibber Marg

Tilak Road

Anand Chowk

Mahant Road

Saraswati Soni Marg

Swami Vicharanand Marg

Guru Road

Rest Camp

Sant Vinoba Bhave Marg

Railway Road

Awas Vikas Parishad

Nehru Road

Araghar

Govind Nagar,

Mall Road,

Eidgah,

Kanwali Gram

Nari Shilp Mandir

Category C

Patel Road

Kalalo Wali gali

Naya Gao

Hathibarkala 1-2-3

Bakralwala,

Patriya Peer,

DAV road,

Mansingh Wala,

Gurdwara Road,

Nalapani Road,

Ambedkar Marg 1-2,

Rispana river 1-2

Bengali Mohalla,

Library Road

Vishnu Marg, Laxman Prasad Marg, Moti Bazaar

Paltan Bazaar,

Ghosi Mohalla,

Azmal Khan Road,

Hakikat Rai Nagar,

Ansari Marg, Sarnimal Bazaar,

Luniya Mohalla 1-2,

Dandi Pur Mohalla,

Shivaji Marg,

PD Tandon Marg,

Khadri Mohalla

Indresh Nagar,

MDDA flat,

Vijay Raturi Marg

Saharanpur Road,

Arhat Bazaar,

Shiv Colony,

Jhanda Mohalla,

Lakhi Bagh,

Muslim colony,

Hanuman chowk,

Rameshwar mohalla,

Darshani Gate,

Netaji mohalla,

Babuganj,

Peepal Mandi,

Dhamawala Bazaar,

Dhamawala mohalla

Naya Nagar

Khurbuda

Single mandi,

Bhandari Marg,

Syed mohalla,

Govindgarh,

Kanwali Gram 1,

Eidgah 3

Onkaar road

Category D

Nayi Basti

Racecourse A, B & C,

Nai Basti, Chander Road,

Nai Basti, Nemi Road,

Nai Basti, Pritam Road,

Nai Basti Mohini Road

Nai Basti Inder Road

Parsolowala

Bridgelok Colony

Bindalwala

Badrinath colony

Pathriya Peer,

Rispana river

Adhoiwala, Aarya Nagar 1& 2

Nai Basti, Arya Nagar

Nai Basti, Ambedkar Nagar

Nalapani Road

Nai Basti, Chandan Nagar

Nai Basti, Rispana

Shivaji Marg

Park road

Sanjay Colony

Saharanpur road

Madrasi colony

Gandhi Nagar

Lakhi Bagh

Rajiv Gandhi colony

Jawahar colony

Sri Dev Suman Nagar

Nai Basti, Chakkuwala 1, 2& 3 

Cabinet approves Rs 2,500 cr supplementary budget
To be tabled at the upcoming Assembly session
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The Uttarakhand Cabinet today approved a supplementary budget of Rs 2,500 crore to be tabled during the upcoming Assembly session beginning from June 9 at Gairsain.

Briefing mediapersons after the Cabinet meeting, Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar said this is the first supplementary budget for this fiscal. It would fulfil the budgetary needs of the new departments recently created, he added.

The supplementary budget will be tabled at the Gairsain Assembly session. Some new departments have been created which necessitated the provision for a supplementary budget which is the first for this year, said the Chief Secretary.

The significance of the Cabinet meeting being held for the first time in the Kumaon region was apparently not lost on the government — It announced several sops for the region.

Keeping in view the poor connectivity in the region's remote areas, the Cabinet also approved starting of helicopter services in high-altitude areas of Dharchula.

Further, the Cabinet approved deploying of doctors on contractual basis in the valleys of Darma, Vyans and Johar in Pithoragarh.

It was decided to start a pension scheme for elderly and marginal farmers possessing less than 2 hectares of land.

Each beneficiary will initially get a sum of Rs 800 per month.

The Cabinet decided to set up a corpus fund of Rs 1 crore for conserving the art and culture of ancients towns of Almora and Purola.

A sum of Rs 50 lakh each has been marked for these towns.

“The Department of Culture will prepare a blueprint for the conservation of these towns,” said Subhash Kumar.

The Cabinet approved the construction of a 2.5-km-long tunnel for Almora town. It would prove useful in diverting traffic, said the Chief Secretary.

The government reviewed the progress of development works underway in the districts of Almora and Bageshwar.

Vidhan Sabha session to begin from June 9
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Kishore Upadhayay, former Congress MLA, said the state government has decided to hold Vidhan Sabha session in order to pay respect to sentiments of statehood activists.

Addressing the mediapersons here today, Upadhayay said the proposed three-day maiden Vidhan Sabha session was slated to start from June 9 at Gairsain in Chamoli district.

“In a rough estimate prepared by the state government, an expenditure of Rs 75 lakh will be spend for the three-day proposed Vidhan Sabha session,” he said.

The state government will strictly monitor expenditure in order not to make the session an extravagant event, he added.

He said holding cabinet meetings in the remote areas of the state and the proposed Vidhan Sabha session will be helpful in improving infrastructure in the disaster affected areas of the state.

He said the state government was trying to ensure the presence of bureaucrats in the higher parts of the state in order to address grievances of villagers.

Justice Vijay Kumar Bisht takes over as officiating HC Chief Justice
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Senior judge of Nainital High Court, Justice Vijay Kumar Bisht, was appointed as the officiating Chief Justice of the Nainital High Court on Thursday.

The Chief Justice Barin Ghosh retired from his post on Wednesday.

The Union Law Ministry has issued a notification to this effect.

Justice Bisht will be the officiating Chief Justice of the High Court till the name of the new Chief Justice is announced.

On Thursday, Justice Bisht made a courtesy call on Governor Dr Aziz Qureshi at the Raj Bhavan.

He is the third native of Uttarakhand to be appointed as acting Chief Justice of the Nainital High Court.

Before Justice Vijay Kumar Bisht, Justice BC Kandpal and Justice BS Verma were appointed as officiating Chief Justice of the Nainital High Court.

Start disqualifying 2008 panchayat poll candidates
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The state Election Commissioner Suberdhan today directed the district magistrates of the 12 districts of the state to start the exercise of disqualifying the candidates who failed to furnish the expenditure details for the 2008 panchayat elections.

"I have asked the District Magistrates to issue disqualification notices to the candidates who have failed to provide expenditure details for the 2008 Panchayat elections. The districts should also furnish the list to the state Election Office within three days about the candidates who have failed to provide the details of expenditure," said Suberdhan, state Election Commissioner holding a video conference with district magistrates and police officers of 12 districts of the state.

Govt determined to clean Ganga: CM
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, June 5
Chief Minister Harish Rawat said today that the state government was determined to clean the Ganga.

Rawat was speaking as a special invitee at a saint convention here today at Hari Sewa Ashram, Bhoopatwala.

The CM said India has been a spiritual leader owing to regular guidance and blessings of saints, with the holy Ganga being regarded as mother. Assuring saints that efforts would be carried out to maintain the sanctity of the Ganga, Rawat said rising above self-interest and political affinity, everyone should contribute in making the Ganga clean. Founder of Bharat Mata Temple Satya Mitranand Maharaj said that upon hearing religious-spiritual discourses, one’s inner self becomes clean as inner unrest is then overtaken by mental peace.

Auto drivers’ strike hits life in Haridwar
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, June 5
The indefinite strike by the Panchpuri Autorickshaw Union and the Rickshaw Maha Sangh has disrupted normal life in the holy city. With autos remaining off the roads, commuters are facing a tough time.

Under the banner of the Joint Auto-Vikram Union, the protesters are demanding a ban on the plying of eco-friendly battery-operated mini-rickshaws in the city.

The agitators also took out a protest march to the City Magistrate's office and submitted a memorandum in support of their demand. The march passed through the Lal Tarao bridge, Bhagwan Valmiki square and Shiv Moorti square.

Autorickshaw drivers complained that their livelihood had badly hit due to the plying of battery-operated mini-rickshaws in the periphery of the city.

Joint Auto-Vikram Union president Satya Narayan Sharma said they would not call off the strike till a ban was imposed on the plying of battery-operated rickshaws.

Vice-president of the union Ravi Dutta said despite several complaints to the ARTO and the Municipal Corporation, no action had been taken so far.

Panchpuri Auto Union representatives demanded a licence policy, route chart and standard fare for these battery-operated autorickshaws.

On the other hand, the battery-operated autorickshaw union also lodged a protest here today. Under the banner of the Maa Bhagirathi Battery Rickshaw Welfare and Hand-Held Rickshaw Union, the protest was held in retaliation.

Coming out in their support, Sanjay Trival, district traders' union organisation secretary, said tempos and Vikrams charged hefty fares and also created pollution while eco-friendly autorickshaws were more convenient and safe.

Meanwhile, circle officer Chandra Mohan Singh Negi said they were holding talks with Auto-Vikram Union representatives to solve the deadlock.

City Magistrate KK Mishra stated that they were trying their best to arrive at an amicable solution.

Summer camp for children of serving, retired Army soldiers
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
A week-long summer adventure camp for children of serving and retired soldiers of the Army is being organised by the Lucknow-based Central Command at Lansdowne.

Around 250 children from seven states are attending the camp that aims to bring them closer to nature and develop the spirit of adventure.

The camp is tailored for them to learn through fun-filled outdoor activities. Children will be exposed to trekking, shooting, photography, rock craft, bird-watching, survival techniques, navigation, art and craft. Children in the 12-18 years age group, while participating in varied adventure activities, will learn new skill sets apart from imbibing the spirit of teamwork, cohesiveness and decision-making ability, thus enhancing their self-confidence.

PRO, Central Command, Group Captain Basant Kumar B Pande said the camp would give an opportunity to children from different parts of the country to learn about each other's cultures on a common platform through cultural exchange designed to promote cohesion, camaraderie and spirit of national integration.

The activities include social work, community service and interaction with gallantry award winners, who will share their experiences of service and special achievements. These are aimed at instilling in children a sense of responsibility towards a better society and nation and above all a never-say-die attitude, he added.

Contractual ayurvedic doctors threaten stir
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Contractual ayurvedic doctors have threatened to launch an agitation if the government failed to fulfil their demand for removal of pay anomalies in the coming days. Dr Seema Bansal, president, Contractual Ayurvedic Doctors' body, said despite promises made by the Principal Secretary, Medical Health and Family Welfare, that the matter would be looked into, nothing had been done so far.

"In 2012, the government hiked the salaries of contractual allopathic doctors, but did nothing for us, though our working conditions are the same. We are also performing duties in place of allopathic doctors at primary health centres under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM)," said Dr Seema Bansal. She said if the government continued to ignore their demand, they would be forced to launch an agitation.

Notably, these doctors have been deployed at primary health centres falling in the remote areas. They are also responsible for running school health programmes across the state.

MAD marathon on June 8
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
To commemorate the completion of its three years of service towards propagating civic consciousness in Dehradun, Making A Difference, a group of socially awakened youngsters, is going to conduct a marathon on June 8.

According to MAD volunteers, it will be the third edition of its annual marathon, fancied as ''Mad-a-thon,'' aimed at saving the dying streams of Dehradun valley. The event will be graced by the presence of Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Harish Rawat and will be flagged off by Mayor Vinod Chamoli.

Notably, the marathon would start from the Pavilion ground at 6 am, spanning over 7 km and passing through places such as Clock Tower, Kishan Nagar Chowk, Ballupur Chowk, and then entering it's destination, KV ONGC ground at Kaulagarh road.

Till that date, MAD has confirmed 1,500 registrations for the marathon and the group is expecting at least 2,000 participants. It is worth mentioning that the winners will get a cash award of Rs 5,000 in both girls and boys category followed by Rs 3,000 for the runners up. 

Twin sisters scale Mt McKinley
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Nungshi and Tashi have set yet another record by becoming the first twin sisters in the world to scale Mt McKinley, the highest mountain peak of North America.

Their father Col VS Malik (retd) said Nungshi and Tashi were on a mission to draw the attention of the public towards the alarming phenomenon of female foeticide and infanticide in India, especially in the rural areas of North India.

“Known as ‘Denali’, the peak is a serious mountaineering challenge for any climber. 

Chatra samiti cleans Survey Chowk
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The Chatra-Yuva Sangh Samiti celebrated World Environment Day by conducting a cleanliness and awareness drive at Survey chowk here today.

Aryan Kothiyal, district secretary of the samiti, said samiti members cleaned the entire area and removed polythene bags and garbage. 

Forest fire around Champawat
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, June 5
Champawat district headquarters remained under a cover of smoke emitted from burning forests around the town, as forest department made frantic efforts to extinguish the fire which has been raging for the last five days and has taken a heavy toll of flora and fauna of the forests.

According to forest department sources, the forests of Chauki and Basan ranges of Champawat division are burning as these forests consist of highly inflammable pine trees in high numbers.

“The fire safety measures declared in the month of February by the forest department seem nowhere in sight,” said Bindu Singh Moni , sarpanch of forest panchayat Basan near the town.

The forest panchayat sarpanch said that over 10 hectares of forests in the villages of Chauki, Jayra and Basan are on fire these days. Some of the villagers tried to extinguish the fire.

ONGC team book berth in semis
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
The ONGC cricket team entered the semifinal of the 32nd All-India Uttarakhand Gold Cup Cricket Tournament after defeating North Eastern Railway by 98 runs in a quarterfinal match played at Abhimanyu Cricket Academy here today.

Batting first, ONGC scored 344 runs in 45 overs with Turwar Kohli scoring a splendid knock of 111 runs on 97 balls.

Rahul Tewatia and RS Gupta scored brilliant half-centuries in the match. For the Railway team, Aashish Chopra and Ashwani took two wickets each.

In reply, the Railway team got off to a good start with opener Mritunjay Yadav playing a wonderful knock of 85 runs accompanied by Prashant Awasthi who played a cameo of 89 runs on 49 balls.

Once they got out, no other batsman could face the opposition bowlers and the entire team was bowled out after making 246 runs.

Rahul Tewatia took 4 wickets in the match for the winning team.

On the other hand, Haryana Police also made it to the semifinal of the tournament after defeating CWC, Delhi, by 184 runs in the quarterfinal match. The Haryana Police team batted first and made 338 runs with Talwinder Singh scoring 106 runs and Shivam Chaudhary made 86 runs. During the chase, CWC, Delhi, displayed a dismal batting performance and the entire team was out at 154 runs. Shakib Alam scored 37 runs for the team. Arjun Kumar took three wickets for the winning team.

Cricket summer camp at Doon global school

The Global Sports Academy organised a cricket summer camp at Doon Global Academy School here today. Over 45 budding cricketers took part in the training session on the first day of the camp.

The children were enthusiastic about learning cricket skills. The experts were also seen teaching cricket lessons to the young and aspiring cricketers.

Ankit Agarwal, patron of the Global Sports Academy, met the participants and wished them luck for their future.

Javed Butt, general secretary of Twenty-20 Cricket Association was also present on the occasion.

U’khand Police pip Thakurpur
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 5
Uttarakhand Police thrashed Thakurpur Football Club by 7-0 in the ongoing district football league played at Pavilion Ground here today. Saurabh Rawat scored a hatrick of goals for Uttarakhand Police, while Veer Singh scored two goals in the match.

In the second match of the day, Pachuadun Football Club played a 1-1 draw against Gorkha Boys Club. Rahul of Pachuadun scored the first goal in the 15th minute of the match, while Deepak of Gorkha Boys scored an equaliser in the second half of the match.