Page 36 - Uttarakhand

Dhami holds review meeting amid heavy rain, asks officials to ensure action

The Chief Minister directed officials to ensure the safety of citizen and the availability of all possible facilities for them

Rain wreaks havoc in Uttarakhand's Maldevta, defence building collapses

The defence college building in Uttarakhand's Maldevta collapsed on Monday as torrential rains pounded the state, flooding major rivers and their tributaries and causing landslides along the national highways to Badrinath, Kedarnath and Gangotri shrines, officials said. Several people are feared to be buried in landslides triggered by heavy rains in the state. Alaknanda, Mandakini and Ganga rivers were flowing above the danger level at Rudraprayag, Shrinagar and Devprayag, the disaster control room here said. The Badrinath National highway is blocked at a number of places due to landslide debris.There is also information about one person being buried under the debris near Pipalkoti. In Chamoli district, a flood-like situation has developed along the banks of a dozen rivers, including Alaknanda and its tributaries Pindar, Nandakini and Birhi. Pindar's tributary Pranmati was also flooded due to landslide. Landslides in the upper reaches of Nandakini have caused the water level of

Badrinath highway in Chamoli blocked due to falling debris, vehicles buried

The district magistrate said that at present there are vehicles buried under the debris and information has been received about one person buried under the debris in Pipalkoti

52 dead, 37 injured as rain continues to wreak havoc in Uttarakhand

According to officials, the victims, including one from Gujarat, were on their way to Kedarnath when the incident took place on Thursday evening

Uttarakhand BJP sends 3 names to party central board for Bageshwar bypoll

Uttarakhand BJP has sent three names to the party's central parliamentary board for selection of one candidate for the upcoming assembly bypoll in Bageshwar. The process of filing nominations for the by-election, scheduled for September 5, has already begun and will continue till August 17. Uttarakhand BJP president Mahendra Bhatt said the names of the top three contenders for the seat have been sent by the state unit's election committee to the party's central parliamentary board. The board will announce the BJP candidate soon after due consideration of the list of names forwarded to it, Bhatt said. A by-election is being held on the seat Bageshwar as it fell vacant due to the death of sitting MLA and cabinet minister Chandan Ramdas in April this year. He had won the seat on a BJP ticket for four consecutive terms. BJP has fixed August 16 for filing its nomination, Bhatt said. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Bhatt, apart from a host of party workers, will accompany the

5 pilgrims killed as landslide debris falls on car in U'khand's Rudraprayag

"A 60-meter portion of the Kedarnathgya highway collapsed due to heavy debris falling from the hill with boulders in Tarsali. During this, a vehicle was buried in the debris here," they said

U'khand to introduce MBBS courses in Hindi in state medical colleges in Aug

Uttarakhand will introduce MBBS courses in Hindi in the state's medical colleges this month, Minister of Health and Education Dhan Singh Rawat said here on Friday. He said Uttarakhand will be the second state in the country after Madhya Pradesh to bring such an initiative. Rawat said Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has agreed to formally launch the MBBS courses in Hindi in Uttarakhand's medical colleges before the end of August. He added that the syllabus for the courses in Hindi was prepared by a state government-appointed committee of expert doctors, who studied the Madhya Pradesh model before finalising it for medical colleges of Uttarakhand. The Uttarakhand minister said the syllabus was submitted by an expert panel to the Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna University of Medical Education, which has also completed all formalities for its introduction. It will be a big gift for the students who have had Hindi as their medium of education, he added. Rawat had gone to Delhi to invi

Heavy rains cause severe waterlogging in U'khand, SDRF rescues 50 people

The SDRF team reached the spot at night and taking prompt action, rescued about 50 people from the submerged houses and took them to a safe place by raft, said officials

PM making railways world-class, past govts used it for bargaining: Dhami

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday accused past central governments of leaving the railways at "God's mercy" and using it as a bargaining chip. The chief minister said under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, infrastructure in all sectors, including railways, is being made world-class. The opposition parties, which were in power for a long time after independence, neglected the railways, he alleged. Dhami made the allegations while participating through video conferencing in the foundation stone laying programme of 'Amrit Bharat Station Yojana' launched by Modi at the cost of Rs 25 thousand crore for the redevelopment of 508 railway stations across the country. If we go through history, we will find that the people sitting in the opposition have always used the railways as a bargaining chip. We have seen how the allies of the party in power at the Centre were pacified through railways (ministry) and how it was turned into an arena of politics," Dha

SC to hear pleas against order on removal of Haldwani encroachment tomorrow

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a matter in which it had stayed the Uttarakhand High Court directions for the removal of encroachments from 29 acres of land that has been claimed by the railways in Haldwani. According to the cause list uploaded on the apex court website, the pleas challenging the high court order are listed for hearing on August 7 before a bench comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia. The apex court had on May 2 said that its interim order staying the high court's December 20 last year directions will continue during the pendency of appeals before it. "The interim order(s) is made absolute during the pendency of the appeals," the top court had said in its May 2 order. On January 5, the top court had in an interim order stayed the high court's directions for removal of encroachments from 29 acres of land, terming it a "human issue" and saying 50,000 people cannot be uprooted overnight. According to the railways, there are 4,365

Heavy rains cause severe waterlogging in Dehradun village, people shifted

All the affected people were rescued and taken to a safe place by the SDRF team in the pitch darkness of the night, they added

3 dead, 17 missing in massive landslides U'khand's Rudraprayag district

Officials added that two roadside shops and dhabas were washed away in the heavy debris that came down from the mountain

Uttarakhand to hike aid to next of kin of human-wildlife conflict victims

The relief amount given on the death of a person in a wildlife attack in Uttarakhand will soon be increased from Rs 4 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. Chairing a meeting of the State Wildlife Board on Friday, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami asked officials to bring a proposal to this effect before the state cabinet soon. He also asked them to make arrangements to ensure the distribution of relief amounts among the beneficiaries in cases of human-wildlife conflict within 15 days. The chief minister advised steps like the installation of solar lights in villages near forests, creating public awareness, and appointing an adequate number of forest personnel to reduce human-wildlife conflicts. He said places, where human-wildlife conflicts are more frequent, should be identified so that people can be warned in advance. It was told in the meeting that Human-Wildlife Conflict Prevention Cell and Uttarakhand Human-Wildlife Conflict Prevention Fund have been established and Uttarakhand Wildlife Helpl

Portion of U'khand highway caves in following landslide, traffic diverted

According to officials, a stretch of around 60 meters has caved in and the area is close to an airstrip said to be strategically important

Uttarakhand: 12 missing after flashfloods wash away shops near Gaurikund

Twelve people have gone missing after a flash flood in a waterfall swept away three shops near Gaurikund on the Kedarnath yatra route, officials said on Friday. The flash flood occurred on Thursday night following heavy rains, they said. Relief and rescue operations were launched by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel but none of the missing people have been found yet, Circle Officer Vimal Rawat told PTI from the spot. Heavy rains coupled with boulders falling intermittently from the hillsides are hampering relief and rescue efforts, they said. Information regarding the missing people, including some from Nepal, is being gathered, he said. Those missing have been identified as Vinod (26), Mulayam (25), Ashu (23), Priyanshu Chamola (18), Ranbir Singh (28), Amar Bohra, his wife Anita Bohra, their daughters, Radhika Bohra and Pinki Bohra, and sons Prithvi Bohra (7), Jatil (6) and Vakil (3), officials said.

Uttarakhand CM Dhami inaugurates G20 Imapct Summit at IIT-Roorkee

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Wednesday inaugurated the "G20 Impact Summit: Unleashing the Potentials" at IIT-Roorkee, saying the event comes at a momentous occasion as India presides over the influential bloc. "This unique opportunity allows our nation to share its success stories with the global community and attract international businesses seeking to explore new investment destinations," Dhami said. The summit's primary objective is to unleash the potential for impactful change by fostering meaningful discussions, promoting collaboration and facilitating knowledge-sharing among students, researchers and innovators from diverse sectors, he said. By bringing together some of the brightest minds from institutions such as IISc, IITs, NITs, IIMs and several national law schools, the event aims to infuse a 'nation first' attitude, Dhami added.

PM Modi praises women of Niti-Mana Valley in U'khand during 'Mann ki Baat'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has heaped praise on the women of the Niti-Mana Valley near the India-China border in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district for developing Bhojpatra calligraphy as a means of livelihood. Showering praise on the women during the 103rd edition of "Mann ki Baat" that aired on Sunday, Modi said, "Bhojpatra, which is part of our cultural heritage, is filling the lives of women of the valley with new colours of prosperity." Bhojpatra, on which the ancient epic of Mahabharata was written, is being used by women of the valley to make beautiful artefact and souvenirs, the prime minister said. The use of cultural heritage to strengthen the local economy deserves praise, he said. Bhojpatra artefact created by women from the Mana village in the region have become popular among tourists, Modi added. He recalled how, during his visit to the border village near Badrinath in October, a woman gifted him a beautiful piece of Bhojpatra calligraphy. "I had appealed to tourists

Badrinath Highway blocked in Chamoli district as stones roll off hill

According to Chamoli Police, traffic movement was temporarily suspended on the route after stones slipped down the hill in Karnprayag town of Chamoli district

Magisterial probe finds faulty earthing led to electrocution at U'khand STP

A magisterial probe into the recent electrocution incident at a Namami Gange sewage treatment plant in Uttarakhand's Chamoli, which claimed 16 lives, has attributed it to faulty earthing at the STP. The report of the probe, which was carried out by Chamoli Additional District Magistrate Abhishek Tripathi, was submitted to the state government on Saturday. The report accused the joint venture companies responsible for the electrification system at the STP of violating terms of their contract and safety norms. It recommended cancelling their contracts and blacklisting them in Uttarakhand. These joint venture firms are Jai Bhushan Malik Contractors, Patiala (lead partner) and Confident Engineering India Private Limited, Coimbatore. Electric current ran through the steps and railings leading to the STP in Chamoli on July 19, killing 16 people and injuring 11. Four people, including the supervisor of the joint venture company, have been arrested in connection with the incident.

Part of Badrinath National Highway washed away in Chamoli due to heavy rain

The Police said that the road was blocked near Navodaya Vidyalaya Peepalkoti on Badrinath National Highway due to the pile-up of debris