At A Glance: September 12, 2010

Air ambulance, boat services soon

Uttarakhand would start air and boat ambulance services within the next six months, chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said on Thursday. Both the services would be managed by 108 EMRI service, said Nishank. While the air ambulance service would be used in case of emergency in the far-flung areas, the boat ambulance would be plied in the Tehri dam reservoir, he said.

'Declare Shivalik a biosphere reserve'

The Punjab government has asked the union government to declare the Shivalik ranges as a 'biosphere reserve' area. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal urged union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh at a bio-diversity boards' meeting to look into the suggestion and announce the Shivalik as the first inter-state bio-diversity corridor of the country. This corridor will pass through Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand.

"Various states are associated with this project. We have received the proposal only from Punjab, and so we have to talk to the other states for consensus," said Ramesh. The minister said sand-mining mafias would protest the move as the Shivalik range is known for sandstone and conglomerate rock formations. However, there would be no prohibition on mining.

"We will not stop mining but follow a sustainable approach towards it. There would be a monitoring committee to draft a bio-diversity plan and only then we would allow any economic activity in the area," Ramesh said.

Ramesh was the chief guest at the inaugural session of the sixth edition of three-day national meeting of state bio-diversity boards at Chandigarh. The meet was held from Monday. The state government has also asked Ramesh to declare the Emami Bagh area in Hoshiarpur district as a bio-diversity site. The union minister said he would look into the request. He announced that a peacock breeding centre will be established at Bathinda town in Punjab in the next few months.

Max Dehradun to add 150 beds

Max Healthcare will add about 1,200 new beds across North India by the middle of 2011, which could entail an investment of up to Rs 715 crore. The company, which currently has a capacity of nearly 1,000 beds, will be adding about 650 beds through its three new projects in Mohali, Bhatinda and Dehradun, while another 550 beds will be added in two hospitals in Delhi. "By next year, we will be the biggest player in Delhi with the commissioning of our Shalimar Bagh (North Delhi) hospital, which will have 300 beds," Max Healthcare CEO & MD Pervez Ahmed said.

The company's existing hospital at Patparganj in East Delhi unit will become a 500 beds facility by the end of January next year, up from the existing 250 beds, he added. "Besides, we have already expanded our Saket facility by adding another 100 beds," Ahmed added.

On the upcoming projects, he said Max Healthcare will add 250 beds each at Mohali and Bhatinda and 150 beds in Dehradun. Asked about the investment, he said: "While the cost per bed in Delhi would come in the range of around Rs 65-75 lakh, it's going to be around Rs 55 lakh for other places." Overall, the total investment could be of around Rs 715 crore. Max Healthcare has eight hospitals across Delhi and employs over 1,500 physicians and 3,000 support staff

157-yr-old bridge collapses

A 157-year-old bridge over the upper Ganga Canal collapsed in Noorpur village in Muradnagar area, 30 km from here. The bridge, constructed by the British in 1853, collapsed as it was in a dilapidated condition, officials of state Irrigation Department said. One person, Chander Pal Saini, who was on a bike, plunged into the canal due to the mishap. He was rescued by passersby. The bridge was constructed when British engineers had dug the 500-kms-long Ganga canal from Haridwar to Kanpur at that time. Such bridges were constructed after every five kms on the canal and their life was estimated to be 50 years, which expired 107 years ago.