Communal violence in Saharanpur
Alert sounded in Haridwar, PAC deployed in sensitive areas
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, July 27
The Uttarakhand Police has alerted intelligence agencies and deployed Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel in sensitive areas of Haridwar district in the wake of communal violence in Saharanpur in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

D Senthyl Pendiyan, District Magistrate, Haridwar, told The Tribune that a high alert had been sounded in Haridwar, which shares border with Saharanpur and has a mixed population.

He added that additional police force has been deployed in sensitive villages in the district bordering Saharanpur. According to the district police, the PAC has been deployed in the sensitive pockets of both rural and urban areas.

SSP Sadanand Datte along with SP, City, Surjeet Singh Pawar and SP, Rural, Parmendra Dobhal led a flag march in Roorkee and held meetings with all Station House Officers to ensure a round the clock vigil so that no one could disturb communal harmony in the district.

With Eid nearing the district administration is taking no chances and has intensified checking at all entry points of Haridwar district from the Uttar Pradesh side.

Meanwhile, BJP legislator from the Haridwar rural segment Swami Yatishwaranand and Lakshar legislator Sanjay Gupta have criticised the Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh for failing to control communal riots. Swami Yatishwaranand said the Samajwadi Party-led government was not strictly dealing with those involved in riots.

Sikhs submit memo to Aziz Qureshi

Dehradun: A delegation of the Guru Singh Sabha here yesterday submitted a memorandum to Governor Aziz Qureshi over violent clashes in Saharanpur between two communities and demanded safety of the Sikhs and their property there.

The representative of the Sikh community demanded immediate deployment of the Army in the riot-hit areas of Saharanpur and protection for the property belonging to the Sikh community. They also expressed displeasure over the Uttar Pradesh Government’s failure to provide security to the Sikhs living in that state.

The delegation said the Sikh community in Dehradun felt hurt after the attacks in which properties belonging to the Sikhs were destroyed and several Sikhs were injured.

Harpal Singh Sethi, Amarjeet Singh, Manmohan Singh, Trilochan Singh Talwar, Jasbeer Singh, Ranjeet Singh and many others were part of the delegation.

Lobbying for ZP chief posts hots up
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, July 27
Political parties, mainly the BJP and the Congress, are now focusing on winning zila panchayat seats in the state. The fight for the posts of zila parishad chairman largely looks like a two-party affair.

In all six districts of the Kumaon region, the Congress seems comfortably placed in Nainital, Almora, Udham Singh Nagar and Pithoragarh districts as it has more members in the Zila Panchayats. The BJP has chances in Bageshwar and Champawat districts even as Independents are poised to play a decisive role in both districts.

In Almora, where the zila panchayat seats have gone to women belonging to the general category, four candidates have emerged in the Congress and the BJP is yet to open its cards. “Among the candidates, who are lobbying for the ticket, are relatives of a former Cooperative Bank chairman, a former Block Pramukh and a former district-level executive of the Congress. They have all claimed eligibility for the post,” said Bittu Karnatak, a district Congress leader in Almora.

In Nainital district, Neema Arya, who was runner-up in the last zila panchayat elections, has again staked claimed for the Congress ticket, while Harish Bisht, former zila panchayat member, has also requested the Congress state leadership for the ticket. “Though the BJP circles are talking of Hem Arya’s name for the post, they have not fully opened their cards yet,” said Kamal Jagati, a journalist based in Nainital.

In the 42-member Zila Panchayat of US Nagar district, the Congress is in a strong position, groupism has led to confusion as to who would be the party candidate for the Zila Panchayat chairman’s post. “While Iswari Prasad Gangwar, husband of former Zila Panchayat chairperson Shusheela Gangwar, has emerged as a strong 
candidate, the youth face of the Congress, Sandeep Cheema, has also staked claim for the party ticket. Cheema, who has been a student leader in the district, has support of senior Congress leader Tilak Raj Behad,” said a Congress source in US Nagar.

In Pithoragarh district, two candidates, one each from the BJP and Congress, have emerged as candidates for the top Zila Panchayat post. The BJP district chief and former Zila Panchayat chairperson Kusjen Bhandari is the BJP candidate while the Congress has named Prakash Joshi, a close confidant of Pithoragarh MLA Mayukh Mahar. The role of Independents could be decisive. No wonder then that they are being wooed by both the parties.

In Champawat district, Sushma Fartiyal of the BJP and Khushal Singh Adhikari of the Congress are in direct contest. As many as three Congress candidates and two BJP candidates are the top contenders for the zila panchayat chairman’s post in Bageshwar district. “While Govind Singh Danu and Shiv Singh Bisht have expressed desire for the BJP ticket, Harish Aithani, Bhagat Dasila and Devendra Parihar have staked claim for the Congress ticket. In the 20-member zila panchayat where the two parties have won only seven seats each there are six Independent members also,” said Ghanshyam Joshi, a journalist based in Bageshwar district.

BJP versus Cong?

• In all six districts of the Kumaon region, the Congress seems comfortably placed in Nainital, Almora, Udham Singh Nagar and Pithoragarh districts as it has more members in the Zila Panchayats
• The BJP has chances in Bageshwar and Champawat districts even as Independents are poised to play a 
  decisive role in both districts
• In the 42-member Zila Panchayat of US Nagar district, the Congress is in a strong position, groupism has led to confusion as to who would be the party candidate for the Zila Panchayat chairman’s post.

Delayed monsoon hits flora and fauna in Doon valley
Ajay Ramola
Tribune News service

Breeding season

• The breeding season for hundreds of species of birds begins in April when the parents raise their young ones and the exercise continues even during the monsoon till they fledge their wings and fly away.
• Sporadic forest fires during April and May in the Galjwari, Majhaun and Maldevta areas on the northern flank of the Doon valley killed many birds, especially newborn chicks.
• Wild mammals like deer, porcupines, civets, wild boars and foxes in the local forests have also been suffering as their food is in short supply.
• Ferns, wildflowers and other rain-hungry wild plants are much less in number as delayed rains are hurting the natural life along the Kolti Gad, including butterflies.

Govt nod to cyber crime police station awaited
Gaurav Talwar
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
In view of a spurt in cyber crime cases in the state, the police had sent a proposal for setting up a separate cyber crime police station last year. However, the department is still awaiting the approval of the proposal from the government.

The proposal was sent with an objective to have police personnel specialising in dealing with cyber crime who would work round the clock in cyber crime police station.

According to the proposal, there would be one cyber crime police station in the state, which would function under the Special Task Force (STF), to deal with complaints regarding cyber crimes.

However, the proposal seems to be biting dust in the secretariat and the regular police personnel deputed in the STF have to investigate the cyber crime cases, which are generally technical in nature, in the absence of expert cyber crime personnel.

“The proposal was sent on June 7 last year, along with a notification of Karnataka where the Cyber Crime Police Station has already been functioning, and the police department is still waiting for the government’s nod to set up a specialised police station to deal with cyber crime complaints in the state”, said, a senior police official, on anonymity.

“Regular police officials deployed at the police stations are not trained to deal effectively with cyber crimes and we require trained personnel to deal exclusively with the cyber complaints,” said another senior police official.

It is worth recalling that a week ago, a woman was duped of Rs 1.3 crore by a person he had befriend on a famous social networking site, after he assured her a sum of $1.5 million (about Rs 9 crore) to open an old-age home in Dehradun. At present, the cyber crime cases are being investigated by the STF and Cantonment police station in Dehradun.

Victim of Redtape

• The proposal was sent on June 7 last year, along with a notification of the Karnataka government.
• According to the proposal, there will be one cyber crime police station in the state, which will function under the Special Task Force (STF), to deal with cyber crime complaints.
• The proposal is biting dust in the Secretariat and the regular police personnel deputed in the STF have to investigate cyber crime cases, which are generally technical in nature

SC, ST students denied admission: BJP
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
Babita Sahotra, vice-president of the BJP Mahanagar Cell, has alleged that Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes students are not being given admission in MKP College in the city.

Babita said a memorandum had been submitted to the chairperson of the SC/ST Commission in this regard. She added students belonging to the reserved category were not given admission in different courses in the college.

“The admission process in the college has been stopped after the merit list for different graduate and postgraduate courses was declared,” said Babita.

20 schools take part in debate contest
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
As many as 20 schools participated in an inter-school debate competition “Aver” organised by Delhi Public School (DPS), Dehradun, on its campus here yesterday.

The topics for the debate competition were “Progress of a woman is a myth” and “Modernity has eroded the moral fabric of our society.”

The programme commenced with the lighting of a lamp followed by a welcome speech by Principal BK Singh. The chief guest on the occasion was Manoj Srivastava, Regional Officer, CBSE, Dehradun.

The competition was adjudged by Dr Rupali Behal, Dr Indu Nautiyal and Kedarnath Pandey.

In Group ‘A’, Rajith Aryan of Delhi Public School (DPS), Dehradun, bagged the first prize while Ujjwal of St Kabeer Academy stood second. The third position was secured by Jessica Robin of Scholars Home.

In Group ‘B’, Shiv Netri of Scholars Home stood first while Shimon Waskar of Grace Academy secured second position. The third position was bagged by Utkarsh Dwivedi of Marshal School.

The programme concluded with the vote of thanks by Shruti Gupta. 

Plant a tree for peace drive from today
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
The “Plant a Tree for Peace and Non-violence” campaign will begin at Gandhi Park here tomorrow. Harak Singh Rawat, Mukhya Nagar Adhikari, Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC), will inaugurate the campaign, said Biju Negi, convener of the Zila Sarvodaya Mandal, Dehradun, here today.

Negi told mediapersons that the campaign would start with active support of the state education and forest departments. He said students of 15 to 20 schools would be given saplings for planting in their respective institutions.

He said members of the Zila Sarvodaya Mandal, Dehradun, had decided to start a plantation drive on the completion of 100 years of First World War and the centenary of Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India. Negi added the Mandal, in seeking to protest any form of war and violence, had issued a public appeal to “Plant a Tree for Peace and Non-violence”.

Kalyan Singh Rawat of the Maiti Andolan said, “We stand against all forms of war. This tree plantation drive is also dedicated to the memory of our martyrs of First World War, particularly Darwan Singh Negi and Gabar Singh Negi, who were decorated with Victoria Cross for their valour and sacrifice.”

Ashok Narang, Sumitra Chauhan, Dr Brijmohan Sharma, Kasim Hasan Siddiqui, Vijay Shankar Shukl, Harbir Singh Kushwaha, Rajneesh Kothari and Rajul Pant were present.

Polytechnic teachers hold silent march
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
Contractual polytechnic teachers continued with their protest for the fifth day today. They accused the state government of not paying heed to their demands and showing an apathetic attitude towards them.

Addressing the protesters, Sarvesh Chaudhary, president of the Uttarakhand Polytechnic Contractual Teachers Society, said government officials concerned had ignored their demand for regularisation of their services.

“Chief Minister Harish Rawat and his Cabinet colleagues are busy celebrating the recent success of the Congress in the Assembly byelections,” said Chaudhary.

The protesters organised a silent march from Parade Ground to Clock Tower sporting black ribbons on their mouths. Khanengra Awasthi, Pankaj Dagar, Naresh Pathak, Sandeep, Poonam Rawat, Sweta, Anjali and others took part in the protest.

Meanwhile, the agitating polytechnic contractual teachers organised a yajna for the fulfilment of their demands on the fourth day of their ongoing strike yesterday.

Chowdhary said following the results of the Assembly byelections, the Congress-led state government has claimed a majority in the House. “It is now much easier for the Congress-led government to fulfil our long pending demands and take steps for the welfare of contractual employees,” he added. 

‘Expectant mothers must take adequate calcium’

Dehradun, July 27
Gynaecologist Dr Sujata Sanjay said expectant mothers usually had calcium deficiency due to which babies could be more prone to diseases. Addressing participants at a seminar here today, Dr Sujata Sanjay said awareness on healthy diet could brighten the future of babies. She emphasised that expectant mothers should take a balanced diet. “Their diet should contain green leafy vegetables and fruits in addition to cereals etc,” she added.

Dr Sanjay said expectant mothers should avoid foods which induce nausea and vomiting. — TNS

Sakshi, Shivam best speakers of competitive fest

Dehradun, July 27
Sakshi Thapliyal and Shivam Dangwal were declared the best speakers while Paras Rawat and Sourab Barthwal shared the best questioner title in a competitive fest orgainsed by the Indian Academy here yesterday. The event was aimed at honing the skills of students and motivate them to participate in extra-curricular activities.

A poem recitation competition was held for the students of playgroup to class I. Students of classes VI to VII presented their views on different topics, including caste system, poverty and female foeticide.

A group discussion was organised for students of classes IX to XII. — TNS 

Priest jailed for attacking Deputy Jailor, his wife 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
The police today arrested a temple priest for allegedly attacking the Deputy Jailor of District Suddhuwala Jail and his wife last evening and sent him to jail. The accused is the priest of a temple in the Suddhuwala jail.

Deputy Jailor Jay Prakash Diwedi filed a complaint in Sahaspur police station last evening that he and his wife were hit by a motorcyclist when they were going towards Sahaspur.

The biker, who turned out to be priest Vijay Prasad Bhatt, abused them and threatened them with dire consequences.

Diwedi stated in the complaint that Bhatt lives on the jail premises and had been misusing the jail’s resources to which he had objected to.

He had told Bhatt not to use the jail’s resources without permission, the complaint reads. Diwedi said Bhatt hit him and his wife with the bike thrice.

On the other hand, the priest’s family has accused the Deputy Jailor of harassing him and forcing him to leave the jail temple.

The case

• Deputy Jailor Jay Prakash Diwedi filed a complaint in Sahaspur police station on Saturday evening that he and his wife were hit by a motorcyclist when they were going towards Sahaspur. The biker, who turned out to be priest Vijay Prasad Bhatt, abused them and 
  threatened them with dire consequences.
• According to the complainant, Bhatt lives on the jail premises and had been misusing the jail’s resources to which he had objected to. 

House sealed in Mussoorie
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, July 27
The Mussoorie-Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA), acting on a complaint filed at the office of the SDM, yesterday sealed a house under illegal construction near the ITBP gates on the Mussoorie-Dehradun road.

MDDA Executive Engineer Atul Gupta along with the police arrived at the site and sealed the house under unauthorised construction. MDDA Assitant Engineer Atul Gupta said the MDDA had received a complaint about the illegal construction being done. The house was sealed and its owner directed to discontinue construction work. The owner of the house was not available for his comment.

Diarrhoea control drive begins today
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
Dr BS Jangpangi, Chief Medical Officer, Dehradun, has directed health officials to sensitise the masses about precautionary measures to be taken to check the outbreak of diarrhoea.

Dr Jangpangi, while addressing a meeting here today, said a diarrhoea control fortnight programme would be launched in the district tomorrow. He directed officials to ensure all works were completed to make the programme a success. He added ANMs, ASHA and health workers could play a significant role in checking the outbreak of the disease during the monsoon.

He said the programme would be launched in every development block of the district. He asked the officials to ensure the availability of life-saving drugs and ORS packets at health centres.

Dr Jangpangi asked the officials to inform villagers about the importance of giving ORS to infants during diarrhoea. He told them to identify places prone to diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases.

He asked health workers to visit government schools to make students aware about the importance of cleanliness and personal hygiene. He said health workers could avail of the facility of 108 ambulance service in case of any emergency.

The Chief Medical Officer said coordination among government departments was important to check the outbreak of diarrhoea. Health workers should focus on creating awareness among villagers living in the remote areas of the district, he added.

Multan Jot Mahotsava from August 2
Tribune News Service

Haridwar July 27
The annual Multan Jot Mahotsava will begin on August 2. Chairman of the Akhil Bharatiya Multan Yuva Sangathan Mahendra Nagpal, while addressing mediapersons at Press Club, Devpura, today, said the main event of the festival would be held at the sanctum sanctorum of Brahmakund, Har-ki-Pauri, on August 3.

Prior to this, women would take out a religious procession in the city on August 2.

Community kitchen (‘bhandara’) would be organised across the city by the Akhil Bharatiya Multan Yuva Sangathan.

Haridwar MP Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and several other political leaders also would participate in the festival. Nagpal said the rendition of ‘Shri Ram Charit Manas’, ‘108 kundiya yajnas, religious discourses would be part of the festival.  

Thatyud block: 3 BJP-backed candidates win 
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, July 27
Three BJP candidates won polls for the post of Block Pramukh in the elections conducted amid tight security, with all panchayat members casting their vote for the Thatyud block in Tehri district today.

The polling was held at the Government School in the block headquarter Thatyur amid tight security.

According to BDO Thatyud Bir Singh Rana, BJP-supported candidate Kunwar Singh Panwar defeated Surendar Singh Rawat of the Congress, while Budhi Prasad BJP defeated Soban Singh of the Congress for the post of Kanisht Pramukh.

BJP-supported Bhola Singh Panwar emerged victorious, defeating Jot Singh Rawat in the poll for the post of Jyesth Pramukh in Thatyud block.

10 villagers buried under landslide
BD Kasniyal

Pithoragarh, July 27
Ten residents of Sirdang village, who were on their way to Gunji, were buried under heavy debris that fell on them following a landslide at Syaldhar near Pangla town in Dharchula subdivision today. Pramod Kumar, SDM, Dharchula, the accident occurred at 3.30 pm today when the landslide hit the villagers and buried them while they were walking on a track considered safe.

“The ITBP and the SSB, which have their camps nearby, have been rushed for rescue operations and till now no person has been reportedly taken out alive from the debris,” said the SDM.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Harish rawat, who won the Assembly byelection from Dharchula, has expressed grief over the incident. He has directed the District Magistrate, Pithoragarh, and the SDM, Dharchula, to supervise the rescue operations. The state government has also decided to send a helicopter to Dharchula to airlift the injured.

Party workers’ hard work led to victory: Upadhyay

Dehradun, July 27
Uttarakhand Congress president Kishore Upadhyay met party workers at the state Congress headquarters here today. The party workers had come in large numbers to greet Upadhyay on the recent success of the party in the Assembly byelections.

Upadhyaya said it was the hard work of the party workers that led to the victory of the Congress candidates in all three Assembly seats. He asked them to keep their morale high and work for strengthening the party in the state. He asked the party workers to take the Congress to a resounding victory in the Assembly elections in 2017.

Besides from Garhwal, party workers from Kumaon led by District Nainital Women’s Congress president Shashi Verma met Upadhyay. — TNS

Distributors to form panel to curb black marketeering
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, July 27
A conference of the Regional Distributors Association was held here today with an objective to resolve issues being faced by distributors.

The distributors unanimously agreed on blacklisting Black Zed Company. They decided not to buy any goods from the company in the near future.

Association president Suresh Kohli said a committee would be formed to curb black marketing of goods.

He said the committee would keep a watch on such activities and notify the police so that a strict action could be taken against perpetrators.

Manoj Agarwal, MPS Khurana, Karamjit Sharma, Sanjay Agarwal, Dinesh Goyal, Nitin Sharma, Sanjay Bhasin, Dinesh Goyal, Sushil Gulati, Anil Kumar, Bhola, Yashpal, Ravindar Gupta, Dhanprakash Agarwal, Harish Kalra, Satish Goyal, Shyam Lal Mehta, Suresh Goyal, Amit, Jagjit Kukreja and others were present on the occasion. 

Doon Valley Football Club win 2-0
Tribune News Service

Players in action during the Nemidas Memorial District Football League at Pavilion Ground in Dehradun on Sunday. A Tribune photograph

Dehradun, July 27
Doon Valley Football Club registered a 2-0 win over Graph Football Club in the ongoing Nemidas Memorial District Football League being played at the Pavilion Ground here today.

Sunil scored the first goal for his team in the 5th minute of the match while Ayush stuck another goal in the 10th minute. Though the opponent tried a number of times to the score a goal, their efforts went in vain.

The second match between Rising Star Football Club and Gypsy Club ended in a goalless draw.

Youth academy log emphatic win

Youth Football Academy, Haldwani, won the U-19 All-India Football 2nd Boys School and Academy Challenge Cup after defeating Golden Boot Soccer Academy, Ghaziabad, in a tiebreaker in the final match being played at Marshall School playfield in Jogiwala today.

The match entered into a tiebreaker, but Youth Football Academy, Haldwani, won it by 3-1. Deepak, Bablu and Anand scored goals for Youth Football Academy while Rohit Sharma scored the lone goal for Golden Boot Soccer Academy.

Make World Sanskrit Meet a success: Guv
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
Governor Aziz Qureshi held a meeting with officials concerned to review the progress of work for the proposed three-day ‘World Sanskrit Meet’ to be held in Uttarakhand in September.

The Governor said the preparations for the event should be made in such a way that Sanskrit becomes the language of the common man.

He said no barrier like religion and politics should come in the way to conserve and develop Sanskrit language.

He directed the officials present that all work must be conducted according to the norms and completed within the time frame.

The Governor said it was the duty of the officials to make this meet a success and asked for full support for the event and the language to generate a positive image of the state.

Nidhi Pandey, Additional Secretary to the Governor, presented point-wise details of the preparations. The Governor ordered the formation of a committee of three to five Sanskit scholars.

Speaking about publicising the state’s religious destinations, the Governor said the state had religious places of people belonging to various communities. He added the Tourism Department should issue and distribute copies of an information book on Badrinath, Kedarnath, Jageshwar Dham, Hemkunt Saheb and Piran Kaliyar during the meet.

He emphasised on including plays based on Kalidas and Meghdoot’s writings to give respect to Sanskrit during the three-day meet.

The Governor told the officials to organise essay competitions and debates based on Sanskrit. The message from the President of India for the magazine has been received. The formal acceptance of the invitation from the President to inaugurate the programme is still awaited.

Industrialists’ concerns will be addressed, says DM

Dehradun, July 27
District Magistrate Chandresh Yadav has assured industrialists of solving their problems on priority.

Yadav, while presiding over a meeting of the Dehradun Udhyog Bandhu, directed officials to look into the concerns of the industrialists and solve them on priority. He assured the industrialists that their concerns would be addressed in a time bound manner. He told the officials concerned to maintain coordination among themselves to get speedy results.

Yadav apprised the industrialists of proposed industrial areas in the district. He said in accordance with the Doon valley master plan, 2031, 12 industrial clusters were being identified in the district. He also took up the issue of potholes in the Selaqui industrial area. A discussion was held on the setting up of a fire station in the Laltappar industrial area. The issue of the construction of drains in the Mohbbeywala industrial area was also discussed. — TNS

Kargil War widows honoured
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
The Uttarakhand Directorate of Ex-Servicemen Welfare and Rehabilitation yesterday honoured widows of the martyrs, who laid down their lives during the Kargil War.

One could see tears welling in the eyes of their family members as the martyrs were remembered during the commemoration ceremony organised at the ONGC community centre here yesterday.

Nandi Badola, wife of Lance Naik Devinder Prasad Badola of 17 Garhwal Rifles, said, “My children were very small when the war took place. Though the financial help was given to me, the void left by my husband’s death cannot be filled. Still I want both my sons to join the Army and defend the honour of our country,” she added.

For Gangi Devi from Chamoli, the news of her husband’s martyrdom shattered her world. Lance Naik Heera Singh of 1st Naga Regiment laid down his life fighting the enemy on May 30. “My family members kept the news hidden from me until the body arrived. I still cannot forget the day. What is even more hurtful is the indifferent attitude of the state government. Except calling us on days like this, there is hardly any communication from the government side regarding the welfare of the dependents of the martyrs,” she said.

BEG sappers felicitated for mela services
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, July 27
District Magistrate D Senthyl Pendiyan and ADM Jeevan Singh Nangyal today felicitated Bengal Engineering Group (BEG) Sappers for their commendable services during the Kanwar fair held here recently.

BEG expert swimmers saved 248 Kanwariyas and pilgrims from drowning when they had gone to fetch Ganga water. He presented citations to the Bengal Engineering Group Sappers.

DM Pendiyan said since a large number of Kanwariyas throng the city every year, the Army’s help was very important in managing the rush.

BEG, Commandant, Brigadier Digvijay Setiya (VSM), said Bengal Engineering Group divers were specially trained in marine operations. Subedar Mohan Singh said, “Our Sappers saved 248 Kanwariyas and pilgrims from drowning.

Those who were felicitated included Maj Sachin Jain, Maj Sandeep Singh, Nayak Pawan Kumar, Jeevan Singh, Om Prakash, Sappers — Upendar Tomar, Gurpreet Singh, Abhijeet Mohanta, Prayas Haldhar, Hemant Kumar, Suraj Upadhyay, Raj Singh, Amit Kumar, Daljeet and Anil Kumar.

Nodal officer, BEG Sappers (Kanwar fair), Naresh Chaudhari said BEG squads were deployed at Brahmakund, Har-ki-Pauri and the Sarvanand, VIP Rodi Belwala and Alaknanda ghats.

Rimcollion rides into Limca Book of Records
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 27
Lt Yogesh Kumar Tewari of the Indian Navy, who is an alumnus of the Rashtriya Indian Military College (RIMC), created a world record by making it through 11 mountain passes on a single bicycle ride. The feat has been recorded in the Limca Book of Records.

Tewari, along with Rajnikant Yadav, cycled non-stop to achieve the feat on the tough route. The duo took off from Rohtang Pass (3,978m) on June 29 and went through Baralacha Pass (4,650 m), Nakee-la Pass (4,740m), Lachung la Pass (5,059 m), Pologonka la Pass (5,060 m), Namshang la Pass (4,990 m), Pilung la Pass (4,885 m), Tanglang la Pass (5,326 m), the second highest pass, Chang la Pass (5,183 m), the third highest pass, Wari la Pass (5,130 m), the fourth highest pass, before completing the journey at Khardungla Pass (5,602 m), the highest motorable road.

The expedition covered 960 km in six days. Lt Yogesh Kumar Tewari passed out of the RIMC in 2008. Col HS Bainsla, Commandant, RIMC, expressed happiness over his achievement. 

Man held for posing as SI

Dehradun, July 27
The Raipur police today arrested a man for allegedly posing as a sub-inspector of the Narcotics Department and duping youths on the pretext of getting them jobs.

The police also seized from his possession a fake identity card and Rs 24,000, which he had allegedly taken from a youth. SP (City) Ajay Singh told mediapersons that a resident of Doiwala informed the police that Rana Pratap was demanding Rs 2 lakh from him to arrange a job for him in the Narcotics Department. On the basis of this information, a police team arrested Rana Pratap from near IT Park and recovered Rs 24,000 from his possession which he had taken as an advance from the complainant.

The Narcotics Control Bureau, Sahastradhara Road, also confirmed that the ID card Rana Pratap had been using was fake. A case has been registered against the accused, who has admitted to having accepted Rs 20,000 from another youth hailing from his village. — TNS

Stress management tips given to Army personnel

Haridwar, July 27
Physical and mental well being is affected by stress as it hampers our lifestyle, thinking, courage, enthusiasm and positive thinking. This was stated by Shantikunj spiritual ideologue Dr Pranav Pandya while giving tips to Army personnel on stress management.

The Army personnel are being imparted skills on meditation, yoga and spirituality.

Dr Pandya, while addressing the commissioned officers of the Army at Ambala cantonment via tele-conferencing, held an hour-long interaction and solved queries of the officers related to stress and spirituality. Dr Pandya said stress was a slow poison which sows negative traits in human beings. He asked the Army personnel to adopt a healthy diet and take spirituality in their life. — TNS