Campaign for green Diwali
Tribune News service

Dehradun, October 22
The U Turn Foundation today organised the fourth phase of its pollution-free Green Diwali campaign at Gandhi Park to encourage residents of Dehradun to shun firecrackers. The focus was on burning less firecrackers and keeping the surroundings clean. The youth wing of Green Force made passersby aware of how firecrackers caused air and land pollution, accidents and burn injuries.

People were gifted marigold flowers to showcase the importance of nature in its real prosperity. They appreciated the efforts of the young crusaders and took an oath that they would try to abstain from bursting firecrackers and keep the environment pollution free. This would be a step towards making Mother Earth a better place for future generations.

“The money we waste on buying firecrackers can be used to help at least one poor and needy child have education or victims of natural disasters or for any other noble cause close to your heart. Diwali is a festival of lights, sharing happiness, prayers for peace and distributing sweets among friends and relatives. Let’s not burn the spirit of Diwali in a chaotic display of firecrackers,” stated Jaya L Kumar, vice president of the foundation. Deepanjli Sharma, Akansha Mishra, Anchal Bisht, Diksha Bisht, Anant Mishra, Abhinay Nawani and Akash Sahu coordinated the campaign.

8 arrested for gambling
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
In a drive against gambling ahead of Diwali, a Kotwali police team raided a house on the Race Course road in the wee hours today and arrested eight persons for gambling and seized Rs one lakh.

SS Bisht, in charge of Kotwali police station, said, “We arrested eight persons red-handed while gambling and seized Rs 1.46 lakh from them.” All of them have been arrested and booked under Section 3/4 of the Gambling Act.

Those arrested have been identified as Ashwani Kumar, Kishore Bhatt, Amarjeet, Vimal Singh, Upendra Giri, Bhajan Lal, Om Kumar and Rakesh Kumar. 

Anandmayee School celebrates founder’s day
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Maa Anandmayee Memorial School celebrated its 29th Founder’s Day with joy and enthusiasm here today. The event commenced with Haridwar MP Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, who was the chief guest, and DS Maan, Chairman of Doon International School, who was the guest of honour, lighting the ceremonial lamp to declare the school exhibitions open.

It was followed by a few touching dance dramas based on the theme “save the girl child”, a theme which touched everyone present. The audience was spell bound by impressing acts presented by the students. School principal Veena Sahni presented the annual report of the school, apprising everyone of the achievements of the school in the last one year.

School Trustees Divya Panjwani, Mahesh Panjwani, and Rajiv Bhalla, Director of the school Arpit Panjwani were present were present at the function.

SPECS volunteers take food samples 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
As part of an initiative to check adulteration of food, Dehradun-based NGO, The Society of Pollution and Environmental Conservation Scientists (SPECS), conducted checks in different markets here today.

SPECS volunteers collected food samples from Hanuman Chowk, Patel Nagar, Paltan Bazaar, Karanpur, Kisan Nagar, Dharampur, Rest Camp, Rajpur Road, Panditwari, Railway Station and Dakra Bazar areas of Dehradun from October 18 to 21.

Of the total 218 samples collected from these markets, 163 were found to be adulterated. Of the 20 samples of milk, 16 were found to be adulterated. Many samples reported presence of urea, detergent, refined oil and starch.

As many as 15 of 20 samples of cheese taken from market were found to be adulterated with soya bean, flour and urea. Further, 7 of 10 samples of milk cake were found to be adulterated, with refined oil and urea.

As of other sweets, 2 of three samples of kaju barfi were found to be adulterated. Among laddoos, 8 of the 10 samples were found to be adulterated. As many as 5 out of 10 samples of biscuits that were collected were found impure. In case of condiments, 16 out of 20 samples of turmeric were found to be adulterated while 9 out of 10 samples of red chilli power were found impure.

Founder president of SPECS Dr Brijmohan Sharma said adulteration of food items, particularly during the festival season, continues to be a big challenge. He said people need to be sensitised about adulteration in food items.

SPECS has, for the last 15 years, been undertaking a campaign to check adulteration of foodstuffs during festivals.

Pharmacists continue strike
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
The agitation of homoeopathy pharmacists continued for the ninth day here today. The pharmacists under the banner of the Unemployed Homeopathy Pharmacist Diploma Holder Association gathered at the Raipur bus stand. They lamented that they had submitted memorandums of demands the officials concerned many times, but the department was yet to take effective steps.

Pravesh Uniyal, general secretary of the association, said filling of posts, appointment of diploma holder homoeopathic pharmacists in government hospitals, and sanctioning of service rules were their main demands.

Rajmohan Negi, Pramod Semwal, Digpal Bisht, Vivek Aswal, Una Ramola, Babita Rana, Swati Bisht, and Sharavan Kohli were present.

Kailash yatra to be held on Char Dham Yatra lines: CM
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Chief Minister Harish Rawat chaired a meeting with a delegation of Kalyan Sabha held at the Bijapur guest house here today. He said Kailash Mansarovar Yatra would be organised on the lines of the Char Dham Yatra. He added every possible step would be taken by the state government to improve infrastructure along the Char Dham Yatra and Kailash Mansarovar Yatra routes.

Instructions were given to officials for improving basic infrastructure along the Om Parvat and Chhota Kailash route in the state.

The Chief Minister stressed that a proposal would be submitted to the Union Government for rebuilding infrastructure along the yatra route.

He said they would ask the Union Government to sanction funds for construction of roads along the inter-state and international borders.

He added the state government had released Rs 25 crore for rebuilding infrastructure in Pithoragarh district of the state. Stern instructions were given to managing director of the Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam to improve basic amenities at Dharchula, Munsiyari and Pithoragarh.

“The state government is committed to reviving tourism sector. Work is already on to develop trekking routes,” he said.

Rawat also released a souvenir named “Amtikar” and a telephone directory.

NS Napalchayal, CS Napalchayal, Ajay Singh Nabiyal, AS Hayanki and former MLA Harish Dhami were also present in the meeting.

LPG cylinders seized during raids
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, October 22
In view of the festival season, the District Food and Supplies Department is conducting impromptu inspections at sweet shops, restaurants, dhabas, eateries and confectionery shops to check adulteration of food items and use of domestic cylinders for commercial purposes.

The department has issued a notice to a hotel near the Shiv Moorti chowk for not adhering to cleanliness standards. Food Inspector Yogendra Pandey took samples of some food materials and sent these to the laboratory at Rudrapaur for testing.

Similar checking was done at hotels near the roadways bus station and street vendors and they were warned not to violate food and safety rules.

Officials of the Food and Supplies Department inspected several shops which were using domestic Liquefied Petroleum Gas cylinders for commercial purposes.

More than 24 gas cylinders were seized by various teams of the department under the Essential Commodities Act.

Rahul Sharma, District Food and Supplies Officer (DSO), said there were complaints that some commercial establishments using domestic Liquefied Petroleum Gas cylinders instead for commercial purposes.

He added during raids seven Liquefied Petroleum Gas cylinders without valid papers were seized from the godown of a shop on the Sarai Road. A case would be filed against Sandeep Chauhan, owner of the shop.

Officials of the Food and Supplies Department have conducted raids at the bus station, Devpura and Rishikul Chowk areas.

Teerth Maryada Raksha Samiti founder Sanjay Chopra welcomed the decision of the department and said such offenders were damaging the religious image of Haridwar.

The department should conduct raids on a regular basis. 

Guv, CM greet people on Diwali
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi and Chief Minister Harish Rawat have greeted people of the state and the country on the auspicious occasion of Diwali. In a message on the eve of the festival of lights, the Governor said he wished for peace, joy and prosperity for every member of society. 

“We must awaken in our hearts the light of virtues like humility, love, compassion and forgiveness in order to remove the darkness of anger and greed. We must take collective initiatives to create a better society by helping the underprivileged people and spreading the light of happiness in their lives,’’ said the Governor.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat in his message also greeted the people on Diwali, Bhaiyya Dooj and Govardhan puja. He wished that the festival bring prosperity and happiness in the lives of people.

Greetings for Qureshi

Several eminent people met Governor Aziz Qureshi at Raj Bhavan to greet him on Diwali. Director General (Information) Ravinath Raman, DIG (Garhwal) Sanjay Gunjiyal, and Maj Gen AK Singh met him. Governor Qureshi greeted officials and staff of Raj Bhavan.

Gorkha community presented cultural programme highlighting tradition and culture of Gorkhas. The Governor appreciated programme and wished everyone a very happy and prosperous Diwali. 

Doon district planning panel polls on Oct 31
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Chandresh Kumar, District Magistrate-cum-District Election Officer, has said a notification has been released for elections to the District Planning Committee comprising 30 members on October 31.

He said nomination papers could be filled between October 27 and 28 while October 29 and 30 are the dates for the scrutiny of papers and withdrawal of candidature, respectively.

Yadav added the polling would take place at the conference hall on the District Magistrate’s campus up to 3 pm on October 31, followed by the counting of votes.

He said the model code of conduct had been implemented in order to ensure free and fair elections.

Yadav said employees would not be transferred ahead of the elections, and no employee would be relieved from duties under any circumstances.

RLEK hails Ravishankar’s appointment
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
A Dehradun-based NGO, Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK), has welcomed appointment of N Ravishankar as the new Uttarakhand Chief Secretary. Welcoming the appointment, chairperson RLEK Padam Shri Avdhash Kaushal described N Ravishankar as a person of high integrity.

“N Ravishankar is a soft spoken person with firm commitment and exceptionally high integrity which is rarely seen now among the bureaucracy,” Avdhash Kaushalm said.

“I am very sure that the new Chief Secretary will have an impressionable impact on the 
development and working environment in the state which presently is totally derailed,” Kaushal added.

He also congratulated Chief Minister Harish Rawat for his timely appointment.

Irregular power supply dampens Diwali festivities 
BD Kasniyal

Pithoragarh, October 22
Lack of electricity connections in some remote villages of the region and irregular power supply in towns have marred Diwali festivities in the Kumaon region this year. Business on Dhanteras crossed the figure of Rs 20 crore in all six districts of the region where the customers purchased a variety of goods from crackers to the latest model television sets, sources from different markets in the region said.

“The business on Dhanteras in Haldwani market, a major wholesale market of the region, crossed Rs 5 crore on a single day. This was the highest business in the last one year as due to the Kedarnath disaster, the markets had reported fewer customers on Dhanteras last year,” said Kamal Jagati, a journalist based in Nainital.

He added besides buying crackers and utensils, people bought jewellery, latest consumer durable goods and vehicles. The sale of cars and motorcycles was high on the day. “Had some government employees received their salaries and bonus in time, the sale of consumer durables and utensils would have been much higher,” said Jagati.

In Pithoragarh and Champawat district headquarters, people thronged furniture, utensils, vehicles, electronic and electric goods shops and made brisk purchases. “We have sold 17 cars on Dhanteras and models of Alto and Swift cars were preferred the most,” said Ajay Pal of Aakansha Automobiles in Champawat district.

While the main markets of the district headquarters in all six districts of the region were doing good business, some villagers in remote areas in the region were crying for electricity supply. The residents of Sim and Kakarpani villages in Bageshwar which border the villages of Pithoragarh district have complained that in the absence of electricity connections in their village, they have to travel 2 km to charge their mobile phones. “We are celebrating Diwali this year like in the past, by lighting pinewood. We do not have electricity, kerosene oil or even solar lanterns distributed by UREDA which have been rendered useless due to flash floods last year,” said Gopal Datt, a resident of Kakarpani village in Bageshwar district.

Similar is the story of residents of over 200 hamlets of Lohaghat, Pati and Barakot subdivisions of Champawat district, which were to be electrified under the Rajiv Gandhi Vidhyutikaran Yojana, but even a survey for the purpose had not been done. “We have received orders from the Chief Minister to electrify these villages and a private company from Dehradun doing the survey for the purpose. As soon as the company completes the survey, we will invite tenders to electrify these hamlets,” said NS Khati, 
Executive Engineer, Electricity Distribution Department, Champawat.

B.Ped, M.Ped trainers end fast
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Five members of the M.Ped and B.Ped Trained Association ended their 16-day fast here today.They were offered juice by Heera Singh Bisht, MLA, Doiwala, and Congress leader Rajiv Jain at the protest site in Parade Ground.

However, the B.Ped and M.Ped Trained Association is adamant on continuing their 402 days old protest in support of their one-point demand of getting employment as physical trainer (PT) in state government schools.

The protesters claimed that they were running out of patience and the government must take decision at the earliest in the interest of hundreds of unemployed youth.

Bisht and Jain persuaded them to break their fast. Shyam Kiran, Kavita, Manu Verma, Arjun Lingwal and Vimal Tomar, agreed to break their fast by drinking juice on a condition that the government will meet their demand.

They claimed that they were breaking their fast unto death on the assurance of the Chief Minister that the government was serious about the demands of the association.

Yuvjan Samaj protests Shankracharya’s remarks 
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Activists of the All-India Scheduled Caste Yuvjan Samaj burnt an effigy of the Shankracharya to register their protest here on Monday. They gathered at the Clock Tower and protested against the statement allegedly given by Shankracharya that “Dalits should not enter temples”.

The agitators threatened to continue with their agitation till Shankracharya apologises in public. The agitators said the government should arrest Shankracharya for his anti-Dalit remarks.

Sunita Sharma, Neeraj Kumar, Hariom Rathi, Naresh Prabhunath, Sandeep and others were present in the protest. 

Licences of 29 ultrasound centres cancelled 
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, October 22
Taking cognizance of a report submitted by the District Consultant Committee (DCC), District Magistrate D Senthyl Pendiyan has cancelled licences of 29 ultrasound centres functioning illegally in the district.

A decision in this regard was taken by the District Magistrate after holding discussions with senior health officials at Mayapur camp office. Besides, other ultrasound centers have also been directed to renew their licences.

Pendiyan directed the DCC to hold impromptu inspection of such centres and on the recommendations of this committee the renewal of these ultrasound centers would be permitt0ed.

The DM also made it clear that those ultrasound centres which were being operated by untrained doctors or medical staff, would face similar action.

Notably, 76 ultrasound centres were currently operating in Haridwar distric out of which 29 centres were found violating the norms and thus had to face this punitive action.

During the meeting, Chief Medical Officer Sushma Gupta, Joint Magistrate Nitin Bhaudariya, Nodal Magistrate Mohammed Nasir, Dr Bhawani Pal, Aarti Dhaundiyal and Sandeep Nigam were present.

• Notably, 76 ultrasound centres are currently operating in Haridwar district and out of which 29 centres were found violating norms and thus were to face this punitive action
• The DM made it clear that those ultrasound centres, which were being operated by untrained doctors or medical staff, would face a similar action.

Thumi House overall champion 
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, October 22
The Central School of Tibetans celebrated its 49th annual sports day here yesterday. Thumi House emerged as the overall champion and was awarded the march past trophy. Ganesh Joshi, MLA, Mussoorie, and Lt Col Sh Penpa Tsering (Retd.), general secretary, THF, were the chief guests on the occasion and they inaugurated the event.

A mass yoga and aerobics was displayed by students. The school band was the main attraction of the day. Anita Narula, Principal, laid stress on the sportsman spirit. Joshi said sports was as important as academics. Tsering distributed trophies and certificates to the winners. 

NRMU opposes move to privatise railways
Tribune News Service

Haridwar, October 22
The Northern Railway Men’s Union on Monday opposed Union Railway Minister Sadanand Gauda’s move of privatising Indian Railways in phases. The union meeting was held at the NRMU office, where its members criticised the Union government’s motive behind privatisation and voiced for opposing vehemently any such move.

Union general secretary Shiv Gopal Mishra said earlier the UPA government at the Centre had tried to privatise the Railways and now the NDA government was trying to do the same only to benefit private sector.

Shiv Gopal said instead of looking into lack of infrastructure, facilities, technology and railway employees woes, the Union government was focusing on privatisation and foreign direct investment, which hinted at their anti-labour and pro-corporate policies. On the pending demands of the Railway employees, Shiv Gopal warned that if the government failed to meet their demands before November 
18-20 convention at Hooghly, West Bengal, they would be forced to start agitation.

Ajay Tomar, Haridwar unit secretary, discussed various problems and issues related with NRMU members. He said earlier the employees were provided medical facilities at the Jolly Grant hospital but since last month the hospital had been removed from the Railway’s panel of hospitals.

Shiv Gopal assured the employees that he would raise the issue with Railway officials. Union leaders Gopal Chaudhari, VK Shrivastava, Ajay Kapoor, Somveer among others also discussed the issues related with the NRMU. 

 Unison World students dwell on an array of topics
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
An inter-disciplinary class presentation was organised at the Unison World School for students of classes IV to XII on Tuesday. The classes were divided into four groups. Group A comprised students from classes IV to VI while Group B had students of classes VII and VIII. Students of classes IX and X were part of Group C while Group D comprised students of classes XI and XII. All students participated in the event enthusiastically.

The class presentations were based on topics selected from the curriculum of the respective classes. The presentations were a blend of technology and education. Some of the presentations that captivated the audience were Invisible Flaws by classes XI-A and XII-A.

Presentations like 21st Century - Akbar Returns by class XII-B, Mother Earth by class V, First World War by class XI-C, Bio-weapons by class IX-B and Shades Of The Human Mind by class XI-A captivated everyone. The students learnt not only about the topics but also the value of team effort and coordination. The students were greatly appreciated for their scripts, dialogue delivery, confidence and time management.

Kedarnath Cabinet meet result of CM’s fears, says Koshiyari
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Nainital MP and senior BJP leader BS Koshiyari today ridiculed Chief Minister Harish Rawat for holding a Cabinet meeting at Kedarnath and said it was due to fear that his government may fall anytime that he was seeking refuge in Devi and Devtas.

Speaking at a press conference, Koshiyari said the Chief Minister’s visits to Kedarnath and other places were aimed at preventing his unstable government from falling.

“It is that a sense of deep insecurity that has forced Rawat to seek refuge in Devi and Devtas. He is seeking divine intervention to prevent his unstable government from falling,” emphasised Koshiyari.

The former Chief Minister urged the Rawat government to emerge from deep slumber and hand over the reconstruction work to the Centre. “It is the people of the National Institute of Mountaineering that have been engaged in constructing tracks at Rudraprayag, while the PWD and other state government departments have been in deep slumber. In my opinion, the state government should hand over the work to the Centre,” he asserted.

He repeated his demand for resettlement of disaster-affected people in the plains and also for creating a land bank so that the dam-affected people could be resettled. “Besides resettlement of the disaster-affected people, in the future, with the construction of new dams, land would be required for the affected people to get resettled. The government should create a land bank, so that work on the dams is not hindered due to the resettlement issue,” said Koshiyari.

Kerala dancer leaves audience spellbound at Oak Grove School
Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, October 22
Students and staff of Oak Grove School were in for a Diwali treat. They were mesmerised by a unique dance form of Kerala called Ottan Thullal, that was presented by noted dancer Mohan Krishna at the Oak Grove School auditorium in Mussoorie today.

The audience was overawed by the dance presentation that evolved in Kerala in the 1700s due to the pioneering work of poet Nambiar. It has its roots in Natya Shastra of the 2nd century BC.

The theme for the dance was taken from mythology wherein poet Nambiar liberally added humour and parody to the prevailing sociology, political situation and relational prejudices. The costumes used in this dance form were similar to Kathakali, music, percussion, mime and theatre all built into it. The performers involved the audience through gestures, mudras, facial expressions and emotions with the lyrics, a mix of Malayalam and Sanskrit.

The vocalist sang and the main dancer too performed, transcending the language barrier in the act accompanied by humour, sarcasm, wit and bonhomie visually portrayed by the dancer.

Mohan Krishna, who has been staging Thullal performances since 1989, has an educational degree in the dance form from Kerala Kalamandalam. He has conducted lecture demonstrations and Thullal performances at various venues in India and abroad. His performances in London, Scotland, Ireland, Muscat, Kuwait and Hong Kong were much appreciated.

Mohan Krishna has a gold medal from Muscat for outstanding Thullal performance. He has been awarded the Evoor Damodaran Nair Award and Kalasagar Award for his contribution to Thullal. NSS Kuwait presented him with the Thullal Shree Award.

Sandip Trivedi, Principal, Oak Grove School, Illa Trivedi, Tanuja Joshi, Head Mistress, Oak Grove Girls’ School, Dr Sanjay Dube, Vinay Kumar, Atul Kumar Saxena and Anuradha Sharma were among the faculty members and students of the three wings of the school present on the occasion.

PRD staff organise protest 

Dehradun, October 22
The Prantiya Raksha Dal (PRD) protested here yesterday in support of their pending demands. They threatened to intensify agitation if their demands were not met by the state government. The PRD activists gathered at Parade Ground and raised anti-government slogans during protest.

The agitators said amendment in the PRD Act, separate staff structure, pay anomaly etc. were among their year-long pending demands. Pramod Kumar, Rajendra Singh, Satyapal Singh, Kishore Kumar and many more were present in the protest. — TNS

Amit Shah’s b’day celebrated
Tribune News Service

Dehradun, October 22
Ganesh Joshi, Mussoorie MLA, distributed fruits, and fruit juice packs to patients at Doon Group of Hospitals on the occasion of the 51st birthday of BJP national president Amit Shah here today. He wished patients a speedy recovery.

Newly appointed in charge of Jharkhand Trivendra Singh Rawat, BJP Mahanagar president Neelam Sehgal, Aditya Chauhan, Sandhaya Thapa, and Nandini Sharma present on the occasion.