At A Glance: May 23

Man, daughter killed in road accident in Uttarakhand

A man and his daughter were killed and two others of the family injured when a car in which they were travelling fell into a gorge in Chamoli district on Tuesday. The incident took place early morning when the car was going to Karanprayag from Haldwani and suddenly it skidded off the road and fell into the gorge, the sources said. A man and his daughter were killed on the spot while two others of the family injured, they said. Injured have been admitted to a government hospital in Karanprayag, the sources added.

2 pilgrims die of heart attack

Two elderly pilgrims allegedly died of heart attack when they were on their way to shrine of Yamunotri in the district, police said on Tuesday. Sohan Lal Soni (80), a resident of Gonda in Uttar Pradesh, and Ramkishan (90), a resident of Varanasi, complained of severe chest pain at Janakipatti area while they were trekking to Yamunotri temple on Monday. Before they could be provided any medical help, they died. Their bodies have been handed over to their families, police said. The portals of Yamunotri temple, situated at a height of 3615 meter in Garhwal Himalayas were reopened on the auspicious occasion of Akshya Tritiya on May 16.

2 poachers held near Corbett park

Two persons were arrested near Corbett sanctuary in Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar district for possessing leopard skin. Police said the duo was coming from Champawat district and going to Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad district to sell it off. "When we were checking some suspected vehicles at the intersection, our informers told us that two people were standing with leopard skin and waiting for a bus to Moradabad," said Arvind Choudhary, a police officer. "We arrested both of them at the Ambedkar Park. We have seized skin of two leopards from them," he added. "One skin is around three months old and it has been peeled off very nicely and has been well preserved. So, it seems that this has been done by a skilled worker," added Prakash Arya, Sub-Divisional Officer, Ramnagar forest. Besides Corbett National Park, leopards are found in Rajasthan's Ranthambore National Park and Sariska Tiger Reserve.

Two girls drown in Ganga

Two teenaged girls were washed away last week in the Ganga at Bhagirathipuram in New Tehri. The incident took place when the girls, both named Madhu and aged 16, went to the Dharm ghat of the river to drink water and suddenly one of them fell into the river. Seeing her drowning, another girl jumped into the river to rescue her and both of them were swept away in the fast currents of the water. On being informed, divers of the police department launched a search operation but failed to recover their bodies.

Retired judge to probe scandals

Retired High Court Judge Shambhunath Srivastav would head the commission set up to probe more than 50 scandals which surfaced during the previous N.D. Tiwari-led Congress government in Uttarakhand. The state government has decided to appoint Justice (retd) Srivastav as chairman of the commission. Justice (retd) Srivastav would probe 52 scandals unearthed during the tenure of Tiwari government and his term would be of one year from the date of appointment. The post of the chairman of the commission was lying vacant since the death of Justice (retd) R.A. Sharma last year. The commission was set up in September 2007 by the then B.C. Khanduri government to probe 56 scandals swirling around the previous Congress government as this was the main poll plank of the BJP during the electioneering in the run-up to the 2007 assembly elections. Justice (retd) Sharma had completed the inquiry into four cases and submitted their report to the government for action before his death.

Uttarakhand to have a Tribal Advisory Council

Uttarakhand will have a Tribal Advisory Council to look after the socio-economic development of the scheduled tribes in the state. A proposal of Tribal Affairs Ministry in this regard was cleared by the Union Cabinet in New Delhi for the benefit of members of the scheduled tribe community in the state. The scheduled tribe community notified in the state will now have a forum to discuss and review issues relating to their welfare and development and recommend specific action to the state government. According to 2001 Census, the scheduled tribes' population in Uttarakhand constitute 3.01 per cent of the total population of of 84,89,394. Five communities have been notified as scheduled tribes in the state as per the provisions in the Constitution.

Hydro power project under environ scrutiny

The government has warned Alakananda Hydro Power Company Limited (AHPCL) of closure of its project in Uttarakhand for its failure to comply with environmental norms at the site. "After examination of the monitoring report of the Srinagar Hydro Electric Project, we found that the work for the catchment area treatment is yet to be started by the forest division. Similarly, afforestation and green belt work at the site is yet to be commenced," an environment ministry official said. The ministry has also taken serious note of the fact that a firm assigned to formulate plans for the stability of slopes on the reservoir periphery through engineering and biological measures had not submitted the report to it. The official pointed out that while the company is wanting on various environmental compliances, the site inspection report has shown that construction work of the project is going on a fast pace and it is likely to be commissioned within next two years. AHPCL is implementing the 320 MW project over Alaknanda river in Srinagar under an agreement signed with governments of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand in February 2006. Taking serious view in the matter, the ministry warned the project promoter that if the work on environmental compliances does not progress pari passu (in consonance) with construction work, the same would be stopped. It has asked the AHPCL to file a detailed time schedule of construction vis-a-vis environmental compliances within two weeks in the matter or face action.