Students union elections on September 10
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
DAV PG College Dehradun, which is the largest post graduate college of the state, announced dates for the election of office-bearers of the college students union and members of students union working committee, here today.

The election process will commence from September 3 with the filing of nominations and come to an end on September 11 with the declaration of results. The polling will take place on September 10 from 9 am to 2 pm, followed by counting of the votes on next day.

According to the notification, the last date for withdrawal of nominations is September 7, while the final list of the candidates will be announced on the same day at 5 pm. Dr RK Pathak has been made the chief election officer.

While addressing a press conference, Devendra Bhasin, Principal, DAV PG College, said, “The code of conduct also comes into force with the announcement of the elections and strict directions have been given to all student groups to adhere to the Lyngdoh Committee guidelines. Pasting of posters on the walls of the college is strictly prohibited and close vigil would be kept on money spent by the candidates on canvassing.”

He also said students must not indulge in any type of violence during the run up to the elections, as code of conduct has come into force, and the district administration along with the police is keeping close watch on all activities of the students.

The ABVP swept the last year student union election in the college with winning the prestigious president post, consecutively for the sixth time, while the general secretary post was won by the ABVP supported candidate. 

The schedule

* The election process will commence from September 3 with the filing of nominations and come to an end on September 11 with the declaration of results.

* The polling will take place on September 10 from 9 am to 2 pm, followed by counting of the votes on the next day.

Congress panel on students council poll
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Uttarakhand Congress president Kishore Upadhyay has set up two committees headed by Cabinet Ministers to ensure coordination between members of National Students Union of India (NSUI), the party’s student outfit, in the wake of the upcoming college student union elections in Dehradun and Nainital districts.

The committee for Dehradun will be headed by Cabinet Minister Pritam Singh. It will have other members such as Dinesh Agarwal, Nav Prabhat, Heera Singh Bist, Umesh Sharma, Rajkumar and Jot Singh Ghansola.

Cabinet Minister Indra Hridayesh has been made the head of the committee supervising the NSUI election campaign in Nainital district. Cabinet Minister Yashpal Arya, Sarita Arya, KC Baba and Mahendra Singh Pal will be the committee’s members.

The Congress president asked the committees to make sure that the candidates were shortlisted after proper discussion among the NSUI leaders in colleges.

Congress membership campaign soon: Upadhyay
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, August 27
The Congress will soon have a membership campaign in the state. This was stated by State Congress president Kishore Upadhyay here today.

The membership campaign would be followed by party elections beginning from booth level, he said.

Talking to reporters at Almora, the state Congress president blamed the BJP of trying to subvert constitutional provisions by demanding resignation of an elected government in the state. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party was undermining the constitution.

“The defeat of the BJP in the panchayat elections is due to exposure of BJP policies in the state,” said Upadhyay.

He accused the Central Government of not paying any attention towards special needs of the state in its budget. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi is cheating people of Varanasi and doing the same in Uttarakhand,” he said.

Answering a question, the state Congress president said the bureaucracy in the state was not doing what Chief Minister Harish Rawat wanted them to do in the larger interest of welfare of people. 

Investiture ceremony at Saigrace Academy
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Investiture ceremony was organised at Saigrace Academy International School with fervour and gaiety here today. The Managing Director of the school, Samarjeet Singh, and Principal Vaishali Singh pinned the badges on the prefects. 

It was followed by oath-taking ceremony in which all the prefects took the oath for their given responsibilities and promised to work for the school as a team to the best of their ability. The senior and junior prefects were selected from each of the four house, namely Venus, Saturn, Neptune and Jupiter.

Do not resort to strike, CM tells employees
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Stating that the state government was concerned about the welfare of every government employee, Chief Minister Harish Rawat today said the staff should not restore to strikes and boycott of work.

Rawat held a meeting with representatives of various government employee organisations here today. Addressing the gathering, Rawat said every issue could be resolved amicably.

After listening to the issues raised by the organisations, Rawat said the state government would never take any step that would not be in the welfare of its employees. “The state exchequer has taken a severe blow due to the disaster that struck the state last year. At the moment, reconstruction and relocation is the most important for the government. Boycotts and demonstrations malign the state’s image. Therefore, these should be avoided,” said Rawat.

Efforts on to make Doon district tobacco free
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
A district-level capacity building workshop for effective implementation of COPTA 2003 was held on the old Health Directorate premises yesterday.

At the workshop the focus was on cooperation within various district offices and spreading awareness among the youth about the harmful effects of tobacco.

Speaking at the workshop officiating CMO Dr BS Jangpangi said, “As the CMO office had been made the nodal agency for the programme in the district, we are seeking cooperation for launching a joint effort for making Dehradun district tobacco free. A van equipped with IEC material was already travelling the length and breadth of the city since May 26 to disseminate awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco,” he said.

He said strict vigil had to be maintained outside the schools and colleges so that tobacco products were not sold. “We have also set up a tobacco cessation centre at the Doon Hospital which is helping the youth to shun tobacco. The youth are encouraged to quit smoking and to adopt a healthy lifestyle,” said Dr Jangpangi.

The workshop was inaugurated by Joint Magistrate Ranjana Verma and department heads from the district offices participated in the workshop. 

MPEd, BPEd unemployed teachers continue protest

Dehradun, August 27
The members of MP Ed and BP Ed Association continued their protest today in support of their demands.

The association demanded appointment as teachers in the state government schools. They also threatened to hold a protest march towards the Chief Minister’s house on September 2 if their demand were not met at the earliest.

They said the government had been giving them false assurances regarding their demand. State president of the association Surendra Dhoni and other office-bearers, including Devendra Koranga, Sooraj Singh Butola, Harish Bobby, Yogesh Rawat, Manorama Chauhan, Ramesh Podiyar and Surendra Kumar were present. — TNS 

  NGT opposes flood protection work in Rajaji National Park

Dehradun, August 27
The National Green Tribunal has taken exception to construction of a flood protection wall alongside Song river in Motichoor range of Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand.

Following a petition filed by an NGO Social Action for Forest and Environment (SAFE) over a wall being constructed in violation of the Forest Conservation Act as it falls in the key Motichoor Gohri corridor, the NGT stated that laws had been thrown to the winds and construction of the wall measuring about 900 metres in length and three metres in height had been already carried out in the national park. The matter will further come up for hearing on September 23. — TNS

Power crisis grips state
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
The power generation in the state-run hydropower projects was adversely affected due to silt in the Himalayan rivers and its tributaries after heavy rain lashed higher parts of the state.

Officials of Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL) claimed that the state was procuring electricity to bridge the gap between demand and supply, but several cities are facing brunt of prolonged power cuts due to power shortage.

The latest data compiled by UPCL clearly highlighted that the demand of electricity was 38.27 million units against the availability of 34.03 million units of electricity. The electricity generation through the state-run hydropower projects is nearly 17 million units per day, which is insufficient to meet with the demand of electricity in the state.

The gap between demand and availability of electricity in the state has increased to four million units per day. The state once again faced an acute shortage of electricity as it was supplied 12.09 million units from the Central poll against the demand of 16 million units.

Besides, low electricity generation in the state-run hydropower projects has forced UPCL to implement emergency cuts in different cities of the state to meet with demand of electricity.

While speaking to The Tribune, Madhusudan, an official spokesman of UPCL, said the department was regularly procuring electricity in order to bridge the gap between demand and availability of electricity in the state.

He said power cuts of nearly four hours were implemented in the rural areas of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts of the state. Garhwal and Kumaon division, including Roorkee, Kashipur, Sitarganj, Rudrpur and Haldwani, went without electricity for nearly three hours due to shortage of electricity in the state.

The 198 MW Kalagarh and 51 MW Dhalipur have not generated electricity while 90 MW Maneri Bhalli-I has generated 30 MW electricity on Wednesday. The Dhalipur hydropower project has generated 120 MW of electricity against capacity of generating 240 MW of electricity.

Officials lamented that the power generation was adversely affected in the state-run hydropower projects due to silt in Himalayan rivers and its tributaries. He said power generation was likely to improve once the silt reduces in the coming days.

Several localities, including old Dalanwala, Rajpur Road, Neshvilla Road, EC Road, Patel Nagar, Mothrowala etc. faced brunt of power outage due to maintenance works carried out by corporation for rectifying errors to ensure disruption-free electricity to consumers.

The power supply was resumed to most of the localities except in those areas where testing of lines continued till late in the evening.

Railwaymen’s body opposes privatisation move
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, August 27
The All India Railwaymen’s Federation has said if the Central Government persists with its plan to hand over the operations of the Railways to private parties it will launch an indefinite rail roko agitation across the country. These views were expressed at a meeting of the working committee of the federation that concluded in Nainital yesterday.

“We have cautioned the Union Government that if it tries to change labour laws to facilitate privatisation in the Railways to appease corporate houses of the country and abroad, the federation will oppose the move tooth and nail,” said RL Gupta, president of the working committee of the federation.

The federation passed proposals to oppose the PPP mode and FDI in the Railways. It alleged that the Union government was mulling to give tax concession of over Rs 5 lakh crore to big industrial houses to attract investment in the Railways. “The government should consider the interests of several lakh railway employees and over five lakh outsourced employees working with the Railways,” said Gupta.

The delegates emphasised on strengthening the IT department of the Railways to ensure better facility to passengers and offered its help in making every travel by rail safe. “The government will have to think of the welfare of the employees, as they are key to maintain passenger safety measures,” said Gupta.

Vice President to visit Doon
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
The Vice President, Hamid Ansari, will be on an official tour of the state on September 2 and 3.

During his two-day visit, the Vice President will deliver a lecture at the IAS Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie on September 2.

“The dignitary will also visit the FRI and IMA on September 3. He will leave for New Delhi on the same day. No informal function will be held ,” said Subhash Kumar, Chief Secretary, Uttarakhand. In view of the VIP visit, elaborate security arrangements will be made.

2 test positive for dengue
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Two patients who were admitted at the Doon Hospital with high fever have been tested positive for dengue.

“Reports of the confirmatory Eliza test that were received today were positive for the patients who reside in Dalanwala and Dila Ram Bazar, respectively,” said Dr BS Jangpangi, officiating CMO.

A total of five cases of dengue have been detected in Dehradun so far. Out of these, three patients were admitted at a private hospital.

Orders of carrying out extensive fogging have already been issued by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO). In Dehradun, the fogging is carried out by the Municipal Corporation, while in Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar, it is undertaken by the Chief Medical Officer.

ZP chairperson’s election challenged 
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, August 27
The election of Champawat Zila Panchayat chairperson, Khushal Singh Adhikari, has been challenged in the court of District and Sessions judge.

The petitioner has said that the election for the Champawat Zila Panchayat chairperson was not free and fair as a member of zila panchayat was allegedly abducted a day before the voting and even the secrecy of voting was disturbed at the polling booth. “We have urged the court that justice should be provided as there has not been free and fair voting,” said Shushma Phartiyal, the BJP candidate who lost the election by a margin of three votes last month.

BJP workers had also protested the alleged abduction of a member of the zila panchayat some days before the election and had blocked the highway. They allegedly damaged the office of the District Magistrate and cases were registered against 200 BJP activists.

Transfers cancelled
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Amid reports of allegations of gross irregularities, the Uttarakhand Government today cancelled all transfers of teachers in the state.

The Department of School Education had recently transferred 159 primary and upper primary school teachers, 97 middle school teachers and sent some teachers under temporary arrangement to schools that were upgraded.

But in the directives issued today, all transfers have been cancelled.

There were reports of tweaking of rules, arbitrary placement of teachers allegedly by the Minister of Education that led to resentment among teachers, forcing Chief Minister Harish Rawat to intervene and strike down all transfers.

State to seek Centre’s advice on water, power sharing
Neena Sharma
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
After problems arose with Himachal Pradesh on signing of the 660 MW Kishau power project on the Tons river that will supply water to New Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan, the Uttarakhand government has decided to seek the intervention of the Central Government.

Though the Central Government has declared the dam as a project of national importance and would bear 90 per cent cost of the project, no headway has so far been reached on the contentious issue of power and water sharing.

“The problem has arisen as Himachal Pradesh is demanding 50 per cent share in the project due to downstream augmentation, which is not acceptable. The release of stored water during the lean season will help augment generation in downstream old projects of Chibro, Khodri, Dhakrani, Dhalipur and Khulal. For this reason Himachal Pradesh is seeking revision of share from 25 per cent to 50 per cent even for the old projects which is not acceptable. To iron out the differences, I will be meeting the higher Central Government officials in New Delhi tomorrow,” said Subhash Kumar, Chief Secretary.

Already Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have five projects on the Tons river comprising Khodri, Khulan, Dakrani, Dhalipur and Chibro and the share of Himachal Pradesh has been kept at 25 per cent.

Besides, a movement of sort has also gathered pace in Himachal Pradesh, demanding scrapping of the project as around nine villages in Uttarakhand and eight villages of Sirmour in Himachal will be totally or partially submerged. In Uttarakhand, no anti-dam sentiments have come to the fore so far.

Further, the Uttarakhand government would also pursue the matter on the Lakhwar Vyasi 300 MW hydel power project which has been put on hold after the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) raised objections on the issue of water component. “The water component was always part of the project since it was conceptualised in 1994. The five states had signed an agreement and the project is valid. I will raise the issue with the Central Government officials,” said Subhash Kumar.

Besides Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana will benefit from the project. 

Trouble shooting

* Uttarakhand faced problems in signing the agreement with Himachal Pradesh regarding the 660 MW Kishau power project on the Tons river that will supply water to New Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan

* Himachal Pradesh is demanding 50 per cent share in the project due to downstream augmentation, which is not acceptable to Uttarakhandn Though the Centre has declared the dam as a project of national importance and will bear 90 per cent of its total cost, no headway has so far been reached on the contentious issue of power and water sharing.

Sufi renditions enthral audience
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
A Rajasthani Sufi music programme by Badey Gajee Khan organised by Spic Macay was held at the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Carman School, Prem Nagar and Dehradun Institute of Technology in Dehradun today.

The audience at all three venues was mesmerised by the performances. The renditions appealed to an incredibly wide spectrum of audience.

During the programme, the performers sang the traditional and popular ‘Kesariya Balam’ and a devotional bhajan on Lord Krishna ‘Sri Radha Rani’. Their Algoza recital by Alaudin Langa set new standards in Sufi music performed in Dehradun. The instrument is supposedly very tough to work with and the Manganiyas community has kept the art alive.

They also presented ‘Haluri’, which is sung to give wishes to a family when a birth takes place. The audience cheered and was full of praise when they sang ‘Nimbuda Nimbuda’ as well as ‘Duma Dam Mast Kalander’.

Rajasthani folk music was presented by Din Muhammad and a group of the Thar Lok Kala Sansthan.

The lead singer is the legendary Bade Gajee Khan Manganiar, who has been given the National Sangeet Natak Akademi award by the President of India, the Marwar Ratna Samman and other awards.

Along with his group, he has performed in the US, England, Germany, Brazil, Japan, China, Norway, Spain, Canada, France and all over the Middle East more than 200 times. His fame rose with his singing the famous Rajasthani song ‘Nimbuda’. With 250 folk compositions in his repertoire, he is a doyen among Manganiyar singers of Rajasthan.

He was accompanied by Khamaycha player Deen Mohommad, leader of the group, vocalist Jete Khan on harmonium, Jasu Khan on Khartaal, Roshan Khan on Dholak and Alaudeen Langa on morchang.

The group will perform at the Doon Business School and Ecole Global International on Thursday and The Heritage School as well as Institute of Management Studies (IMS) on August 29.

BJYM protests at Dehradun MC
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Irked at failure of the Dehradun Municipal Corporation to allot flats constructed in ward number 44 for relocating those staying in Bindaal river bed, a large number of people led by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha gheraoed the office of Mukhya Nagar Adhikari Harak Singh Rawat here today.

The protesters also submitted a memorandum to the MNA seeking early allocation of the flats and stopping of encroachment on Bindaal river.

Leading the protesters, Rajender Singh Dhillon, youth ambassador of BJYM, said that for allotment of the flats constructed under the JNNURM, a list of the beneficiaries was prepared after conducting a survey.

“Those who had encroached on the Bindaal river bed were to be allotted the flats. Despite repeated attempts, the Dehradun MC has failed to shift the families to the flats constructed at Brahmpuri,” he added.

“While the MC is keen to displace the families from Bramhawala Khala on the pretext of encroachment, it has failed to check widespread encroachment into the Bindaal river that has slowly converted into a drain. The DMC should explain why it has turned a blind eye to the encroachments from Patel Nagar till Kabaddi bazaar near Haridwar bypass,” said Dhillon.

Those who took part in the protest included Uma Shankar, Surender Ghel, Brajpal Singh, Jasbir Singh, Kunal Goyal, Deep Gupta, Deepak Rawat, Sonu Rohila, Naveen Yadav, Anil Kashyap and several others.

Expansion of Naini Saini airstrip by December: Official
Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, August 27
The expansion of runaway for the Naini Saini airstrip will be completed by December. This was informed by PS Jangpangi, secretary of the Secretariat Administration and Revenue Board, here yesterday. He is also the in charge secretary of development activities for Pithoragarh district.

Jangpangi said the second and third phase of electrification and construction of buildings will begin after the expansion work of runway is done. The work would be completed by April 2015, he said.

The in charge secretary, who visited the airstrip to review the expansion work, was informed by the engineers concerned that development work was being carried out by the funds (Rs 25 crore) received from the state government.

“After the expansion work gets completed, the length of runway which is 1,300 m will become 1,510 m and its width will become 30 m,” said Anil Raturi, an engineer.

During his visit to pumping schemes of drinking water at Rai and Thuligar, Jangpangi was informed by Jal Sansthan engineers that the old pumps of 1,500 m length needed to be replaced as they were creating problems at peak hours when the town needed a regular supply of water.

Public toilet near Hotel Roxy in poor condition
Ajay Ramola
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, August 27
The pathetic condition of public toilets managed by the Municipal Council has irked residents and tourists who are demanding an immediate solution to the problem.

The Municipal Council constructed the public toilet near Hotel Roxy after spending several lakhs of rupees and a fee of Rs 10 was levied on tourists and commuters, but due to mismanagement and lack of maintenance, it is in a bad state much to the disgust of tourists.

Ravinder, a tourist from Delhi, said despite paying Rs 10, he found the toilet in a dilapidated state.

Residents lambasted the Municipal Council for neglecting the basic hygiene in the town and said washrooms were in the same state for the past one month and no action had been initiated till date.

Amit, a shopkeeper, said foul smell emanating from garbage collection store near the toilet could become a reason for multiple health problems. Such circumstances were making it difficult for tourists and residents to utilise the services, he said. He demanded shifting of the garbage dump.

The Tribune has learnt that the contract of the public toilet along with its maintenance was given to a private firm, which seems not interested to spend a penny on the repair work.

Dr RK Singh, MC Health Officer, said he was not aware of the condition of public toilet and would look into the matter and try to get necessary repairs without any further delay. 

UPNL staff continue with protest
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
The ongoing agitation of members of the Uttarakhand Purva Sainik Nigam Limited (UPNL) Employees Association continued for the third consecutive day today. The protesters threatened to intensify their agitation if the state government did not take effective steps to address their grievances.

The protesters gathered at the old Raipur bus stand and shouted slogans against the government. They lamented they had submitted memorandum of demands to the officials concerned several times but the government was yet to take effective steps.

Bhavesh Jagudi, state president of the UPNL Employees Association, asked the state government to give extension to employees who were employed under the Panchyati Raj system through UPNL. He said these employees had played a pivotal role during the natural disaster in Tehri district.

Devendra Singh, Mahesh Bhatt, Kailash Chandra, Deepak Chauhan, Jaidev Bijjalwan, Raghuveer Singh Gusain, Ravindra Negi, Devendra Rana, and Deep Chandra Singh took part in the protest.

Homebred teleserial director felicitated in Mussoorie
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, August 27
Students and staff of Mussoorie Public School felicitated Amandeep Singh, Mussoorie-born director of the television serial “Qubool Hai” at the school auditorium today.

The school principal Mukesh Lal, welcoming the home-bred director, presented him with a bouquet of flowers and a trophy on the occasion.

Dhruv, a senior student of the school, presented a solo song in honour of the director. This was followed by a song item by Dhruvika, a student from the same school.

Amandeep thanked the school for honouring him and commended the performance of the students here. Addressing the students, he said, “Dreamers are believers and believers are achievers”. He advised the students to follow their dreams and work diligently to achieve despite difficulties.

He praised the school for promoting various creative activities in the school to hone the skills of the students. Later, the director shared his experiences with students.

At present, Amandeep is directing a serial for Zee television titled “Qubool Hai”. He has also directed a serial titled “Do Dil Ek Jahaan” and worked as assistant director in “Na Bole Tum Na Mainey Kuchh Kahaa” season 2 and several other soap operas.

World Scholars’ Cup at Unison school

Dehradun, August 27
Unison World School will host the World Scholars’ Cup, a global academic tournament that combines debate, collaborative writing, multiple choice tests and a multimedia quiz, on September 6. The World Scholar’s Foundation team from the USA will conduct the event. Its core idea is to motivate students to discover their new strengths and skills.

The theme for the year is “The World Within”. Within the theme, students will have to read on six fields: science, history, technology, literature, arts and current affairs. They will work together in teams of three to research, debate, and solve problems related to the theme.

Multiple teams of three students each, in two age groups (11-14 and 15-18) will be participating in the regional round and they may earn invitations to a global round and a special year-end conference at Yale University. Speaking on the issue, Veena Singh, Principal, Unison World School, said in today’s time learning was not confined to the four walls of a classroom but extends to every sphere of daily life. — TNS

E-rickshaws to hit Mussoorie

Mussoorie, August 27
The exercise to introduce e-rickshaws began with a trial run from Jhoola Ghar to Library Bazaar here yesterday. Municipal Council president Manmohan Singh Mall was present on the occasion.

The electronic battery operated rickshaws are known to be eco-friendly and can provide a mode of transport convenient to rickshaw pullers and tourists, said Mall. He said the e-rickshaws had minor problems and the manufacturing company been directed to upgrade it in accordance with the hilly terrain of the town. — TNS

Nainital Bank holds account opening camp
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, August 27
Nainital Bank organised an account opening camp under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna in Mussoorie today.

Rahul Goyal, manager with Nainital Bank, said around 100 new accounts had already been opened under the scheme that aimed to provide bank accounts to each un-banked household. It is estimated that around 7.5 crore households (6 crore in rural and 1.5 crore in urban areas) do not have access to any kind of banking facility. Under the new scheme, each account-holder will get a debit card with accident insurance cover of ?1 lakh. In the second phase, each of these account-holders will also get life insurance cover and pension products.

He said the camp was being organised to remove the bottlenecks faced by people in opening a bank account.

Residents protest inadequate water supply
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Residents from Chukhhuwala and adjoining colonies under the banner of Rashtrawadi Swabhimaan Punjabi Morcha gathered at the Jal Sansthan office and shouted anti-department slogans here yesterday.

They protested acute shortage of potable water in the locality. The agitators threatened to intensify their agitation if the department does not take effective steps to overcome shortage of potable water in the colony. They lamented that a memorandum highlighting their demands was given to officials many times. But, the department was yet to take steps to address their grievances. Kuldeep Singh, Deepak Dhiman, Purushottam Bhatt, Manorma Bhatt, Vimla Dhaundiyal, Raju Sharma, Shailendra Kandari, Vishnu Verma and Sanjay Saini were also present.

KV regional sports meet kicks off
Tribune News service

Dehradun, August 27
The Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) regional sports meet kicked off at KV Forest Research Institute (FRI) here today.

Over 320 participants from 19 Kendriya Vidyalayas from Dehradun region are participating in the annual meet. The sports meet will have various sports events like cricket, football, hockey, basketball, volleyball and many others.

KV FRI principal Dr Charu Sharma extended a warm welcome to the chief guest, FRI Director Dr PP Bhojvaid and the participants. She expressed the hope that all participating teams would play with good sportsman spirit and wished they would bring laurels to the institution.

Earlier, the flag was unfurled and the chief guest declared the sports meet open. This was followed by a march past by all 19 teams and the oath-taking ceremony.

Later, the football matches took off. KV FRI defeated KV OFD 1-0 in the inaugural match. The second league match between KV No 1 HBK and KV IMA ended in a goalless draw.

Woodstock School win 2-0 in soccer
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, August 27
Woodstock School today defeated Seven Oaks School in the ongoing 16th Colonel Shashi Memorial Inter-School Soccer Tournament being played at Gorkha Military School.

Wood Stock won the match 2-0. Deepak from Woodstock scored both goals in the 11th and 36th minute, respectively.

Two matches would be played tomorrow with first match between Grace Academy and The Asian School. The second match will be played between Kasiga School and Doon International School.

Asian School trounce KV IMA

The Asian School thrashed KV IMA 3-0 in the ongoing 13th Om Prakash Memorial Football Tournament played at Carman School football ground here on Wednesday. Anurag scored two goals in the 8th and 54th minute of the match while K Lal scored a goal in the 27th minute.

In the second match of the day, Carman School Dalanwala defeated Lucent International School 4-3. For Carman School, Tenzin scored two goals and Mayank and Abhishek found the net once each. Kshitij, Aditya and Shivam scored one goal each for Lucent International.

Chess champs felicitated

Aarav Nanda and Avyam Nanda, the first and second position holders in the 8th Uttarakhand State Chess Tournament (under-7 category), were awarded the certificate of appreciation by Sports Minister Dinesh Aggarwal here on Wednesday.

Aggarwal said these children had done the state proud by winning the tournament at such a young age. “Given the sharp minds of these children, we are sure they would continue to win laurels for the state. The state government is making efforts to promote sportspersons and sharpen their skills. Special attention would be given to those sportspersons who win tournaments. The Nanda brothers would represent the state in the forthcoming 28th National under-7 boys and girls chess tournament, scheduled to be held from September 1 to 10 in Kolkata,” said Aggarwal.

Two wildlife smugglers arrested

Dehradun, August 27
The Uttarakhand Police on a tip-off nabbed two suspicious-looking persons near Parade Ground today and confiscated 1.5 quintals of antlers from their possession.

The duo were later identified as Meharban and Nisar, both residents of Haripur Tongia village in Biharigarh. They disclosed to the police that they were looking for potential customers when they were arrested. They had been smuggling antlers from the Rajaji National Park for the past several years. The seized antlers belong to the species of sambar, cheetal and even swamp deer and their market value is said to be quite high. — TNS